Relieved to have been given the option of avoiding a fight far above his paygrade, Nick continued making his way down the central tunnel.
He crept forward, following the putrid river and decrepit concrete infrastructure. The sewer that had been built by the ratmen before the calamity had destroyed the city above and stripped the survivors of reason. He eventually came across a few additional passages that were unblocked. But nothing he saw made him want to take the time to investigate. He was tired, hungry, and running low on water. Not to mention the time limit imposed by the dungeon itself.
By this point, Nick just wanted to find an Exploration Reward Chest. Then he could head back to the portal and wait until he ran out of food before gambling that the storm had blown past the island. He doubted that the deadly weather system would linger for more than a day or two, as it would make completing the tutorial pretty much impossible. If he was able to find the last room of the dungeon, he would consider trying to clear it before giving up.
As he progressed, he found more clues that revealed how the rats had been living down here, scavenging from the remnants of their lost civilization. Every so often, he passed by flooded intersections. Crossroads where the rivers of garbage merged and divided as they floated past. Grates and other perforated pieces of metal had been wedged into place across the thickest sections of the flow, allowing water to pass through but trapping larger pieces of debris.
Nick eventually found signs that normal animals were living in the area, mostly small insects and rodents. But it was only a slim fraction of the numbers that he would have expected given the scale of this place and the prolific piles of filth.
He began spotting clues that the humanoid rats frequented the area ahead, cementing his certainty that he would run into more of them before long. He considered heading back to the entrance and leaving the dungeon rather than fighting. But he was convinced that he would come across a reward chest or another major opportunity sooner rather than later. Something to compensate him for exploring a sizable portion of the dungeon, beyond whatever the System would offer him for clearing the final room and leaving through the exit.
If Nick was lucky, he could avoid getting into another fight, collect his loot, and make it back to the entrance portal sometime within the next few hours.
In case he came across an area where the lighting was insufficient, he decided to experiment with removing one of the bulbs from the wall. He was curious if the power source was localized rather than networked, so he carefully reached into the recess to separate an orb from its socket. He was hoping to learn something about the technology that still powered this place years after the last maintenance crew had walked these lonely halls.
The crystal sphere was warm, but not too hot to touch. It was held in place by brackets rather than being screwed in. It came out easily enough, and Nick was thrilled to discover that the device continued glowing after being removed from the wall.
He moved on to inspect the mountings, half-expecting to find a familiar set of electrical contacts. But rather than metal plating or wires, the base of the socket held only a tiny green gemstone. Regardless of how it worked, he was elated to have found a portable source of light. One that he could take back with him to the island. Maybe he could carve out the shell of a coconut for housing and fashion a proper lantern. Unfortunately, he soon learned that the bulb would only shine for about ten minutes before flickering and fading away.
At least I can remove an orb as needed for spot lighting while I’m down here. I’ll try taking this one back with me. Maybe I can figure out how to make it work. He slipped the orb into the pocket of his robe, wincing as the thread securing the pouch snapped in several places.
I need to find or make a backpack as soon as I can so that I can transport larger objects without having to carry them in my hands. These pockets won’t last much longer. I’ll think about it once I’m back on the island. Around this time, Nick decided that the tunnel was approaching something significant. A nexus or service station of some kind.
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The further he went, the cleaner the passage became, and soon the water was pure enough to see the channel’s bottom. Unfortunately, it was still thick with random pieces of garbage, rendering it too polluted to drink. He saw more signs that the rats were living down here along the way. Chairs cobbled together from random bits of detritus, with what looked like fishing rods resting beside them.
Nick wasn’t eating anything that lived in this water. He didn’t need his Foraging skill to tell him that it would result in catastrophic consequences. He did find a spool of fishing line that might come in handy later, which he slid into one of the pouches on his toolbelt. It was further evidence that whatever the exact relationship between the parasite and its hosts, the afflicted ratmen were still capable of using simple tools. Additionally, they needed food to sustain themselves, despite their artificially prolonged lifespans.
Ten minutes later, the layout of the sewers changed. Instead of consisting of one long passage with a series of smaller branches, the route ahead took him through a network of chambers, like what he had found at the level above. Convinced that he would run into another rat at any moment, Nick slowed his pace to a crawl, carefully inspecting every crevice and mound of debris he came across.
While he didn’t discover any more ratmen along the way, two empty rooms later, he found himself standing in front of an obstacle of a different sort. The chamber ahead was filled with water. To cross over to the far side, he would have to wade through.
After debating turning back, he decided to take a chance and pass through the half-flooded room. While the water came up to his knees, it was relatively clear and smelled only a bit tainted instead of absolutely revolting.
Just before he made it to the far side, something slimy brushed up against his leg. Nick was not particularly proud of what happened next. He might possibly have let loose a high-pitch squeal, which he ruthlessly suppressed before it could turn into a full-throated scream that would reveal his presence to anything nearby.
Despite the jump scare, nothing else happened. Heart pounding in his chest, he emerged from the water and exited the doorway on the far side of the room. It opened into a chamber that was surprisingly spacious and clean, at least compared to the others he had traversed. There were only two exits, both of which were clearly visible, and the floor was featureless and free of obstructions.
The far end of the room opened into a narrow tunnel that was long, dark, and damp. Nick could see light shining out from the exit, about a hundred feet away. As this would be a perfect place to set a trap, he came to a stop and spent half an hour searching for anything out of place. He discovered nothing of the sort, so he began inching his way forward.
Without a core controlling them, the parasites must not be sophisticated enough to place traps. Or maybe it’s because they haven’t had any visitors in decades. Either way, he was glad for the absence of mechanical threats. The ratmen and beasts living in the dungeon were more than enough danger as it was.
Before emerging from the tunnel, Nick came to a stop before the exit. He listened closely, then dropped into a crouch and put one eye past the entrance. A move that had become second nature after clearing the top floor of the dungeon.
The first detail that he noticed was that the room had a broad metal grate that served as a section of flooring. Unlike those on the first floor, this grill featured a series of hinge-lined hatches, allowing access to the water beneath. Below the grid flowed what appeared to be a true underground river, or perhaps a still-functioning aqueduct. Either way, the water was clear and clean, pure enough to top off his stores.
He spotted a bucket with a rope sitting next to one of the openings in the grating, then turned his attention to the water below. The gurgling current was swift and steady. For the first time since entering the dungeon, his Foraging skill informed him that the water was safe to drink. He would be able to rehydrate and fill his canteen, which would allow him to explore a little longer. The room appeared to serve as a disposal site for larger pieces of garbage that flowed out from the sewer, as well as the ratmen’s primary source of water.
In the corner that was visible from Nick’s position stood the decaying hulks of decrepit storage tanks. Beside them sat a pair of barrels, which appeared to be in serviceable condition compared to the rusted-out specimens that he had seen so far. Sitting on top were a pair of metallic tins that featured the same kind of clip that was mounted on his canteen. Even if they were empty, he was eager to add more containers to his toolkit.
He was just about to set foot into the room when he heard a faint, rattling wheeze. A sound that he now recognized as a ratman snoring. Sure enough, when he peered into the shadows, he saw a rat lying on a fetid pallet, surrounded by a ring of white powder.
He was now faced with a dilemma. If he wanted to finish looting the area, he was going to have to kill the creature while it slept. The problem was that Nick wasn’t sure that he had it in him.