As the group entered the dungeon, the door opened to the field. The grass was even greener than what was inside the settlement, and the air seemed cleaner. In the sky, there was the copper dragon banner floating above some structure on the left, according to the compendium, that indicated where they should go.
"Do you think we could go to the other camp and kill everything before even starting?" Alex asked as they headed towards the red banner.
"I do not believe we are capable of such a feat, but others might be able to be successful in the venture," Tom said.
"Why? I mean, we are a good team. I'm sure we can put up a fight," Blue flexed her arms. They were already very toned, but her muscles were not swelling up even with the constant fighting.
"Did you skip the table at the beginning of the compendium? There are about 2 thousand kobolds in there," Hera pulled up the information on her tablet and showed it to Blue.
"Oh… yeah.. 2 thousand is a bit too much," the controller scratched her head.
"Yeah, if it was like 19 hundred, I'm sure it would be much different," Bonnie laughed.
Blue rolled her eyes as they kept moving. It took them about fifteen minutes walking to reach the army's camp. Large wooden walls covered the area, and several trenches were being dug up. Small red flags were spread around marking places where traps were already set, while blue flags seemed to indicate places where traps would be placed later. Hera only assumed that because of a large hole being dug up by a spot with a blue flag. She couldn't tell who was working there, but dirt kept being tossed upwards from inside it.
As they got closer, Hera noticed the voices coming from various places. They were shrill and scratchy, but with time, she began to understand what they were saying.
"Wrong, wrong. This the wrong place. Move there, there! You wrong. I Right!"
"You stupid. If here, nothing work. Need to be high, not low!"
What followed were sounds of punches being thrown and yells of pain, but the second voice spoke when the noise stopped.
"You lose. This stay."
"Lovely, these people can't even form complete sentences," Bonnie sighed.
"Maybe they are still developing language," Hera said.
"If that's the case, what are they going to do with Tom?" Alex looked back at the man with shiny silver armor.
"I am sure we will find a way to understand one another. For speech is what separates us from mere beasts."
Blue and Hera stared at each other.
"They're going to arrest him, aren't they?" Hera said.
"Or maybe just straight up kill him," Blue replied.
"You wound me! How could you even say such a thing!" Tom gasped.
"Just… stay quiet until we get the ripcord that Bonnie told us about, ok? I don't want to have to break you out from jail," Runir patted Tom's back.
As they got closer to the large open gate, the group saw several small creatures moving about. They looked like humanoid giant lizards, with thin limbs and long tails and a dark red skin, but they were all small. Even the tallest ones could only reach Hera's waist, and each of them was dressed differently. Some had long tunics, robes, or skirts with capes, while others had armor made of leather, steel, and even wood. A few also had horn-like protrusions on the top of their heads, but that trait seemed to be exclusive for some, although it didn't show any impact on their interactions.
When the creatures started to notice the humans approaching, most of them stopped and stared. Soon, their walk towards the red banner in the sky became something close to a parade. Hera couldn't help but feel that those creatures were familiar, and looking at a small group, she activated her [Observe].
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Kobold (Lizard) – Level 4
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Kobold (Lizard) – Level 5
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Kobold (Lizard) – Level 4
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"They are Kobolds!" Hera gasped.
Hearing that, the creatures nodded with smiles on their faces.
"They are not like the ones I remember," Blue said.
"We have both types in our culture. The lizard type is mostly associated with the western version while the wolf type with the eastern," Bonnie had already figured out what they were when they saw the creatures.
"Ok… so who came first?" Alex asked.
"We did! Dog bastards stole name!" one of the kobolds yelled.
"He right!" others joined in.
"Mayhap we shall face the other version of those creatures during the quest," Tom said.
"That's a possibility. Kind of funny how the MAZE mirrors our culture, or our culture mirrors the MAZE," Bonnie added.
They kept heading towards what looked like the command center of the army, and as they got closer to it, Hera noticed the Kobolds were getting bigger. They also had more intricate designs on their clothing. Some even had full sets of armor, while other had hats or other accessories covering their heads. Checking their status, they were able to see that those larger and more adorned kobolds had a higher level than the smaller and simpler ones, but at most, they were level 7.
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The group entered the command tent and was greeted by a large table with a map of the area, along with several small items all placed on top of it: half red and the other half blue. Surrounding it were the 12 largest kobolds they saw in this camp, although even the biggest one among them could only reach Hera's chest.
"Welcome, you must be backup we asked," the kobold in the middle of the table said with a smile. She walked around the map, showing her large and muscular frame. She wore a chain shirt and brass armor on her legs, with two sets of horns, one on each side of her head, and all were pierced or wrapped in a ring. There were also five different necklaces all with clashing colors around her neck, and as she got closer, they noticed that the kobold was wearing makeup. Not only did she have a purple eyeshadow around her eyes, but her lips had a moss green color that seemed to be from lipstick.
"I Zudra, General of army. Thank you for come," the kobold replied, putting one hand out towards Blue, "You be leader, yes?"
Blue puffed her chest and shook her hand, "Yes, I am," the rest of the group rolled their eyes, but no one said anything. It was just a construct of the dungeon. There was no need to complain.
"Good, good. Come, look at map," Zudra gestured towards the group.
Now that they approached the table, Hera could tell that the red and blue pieces seemed to represent the position of the troops of both armies. Aside from the lack of an actual pattern in pieces, it was an impressively well-organized strategy table. Their information network seemed to be in good shape, and several blue pieces were spread around the middle of the field and one even behind the red camp.
"Each is enemy group," Zudra explained excitedly, "Dumb dogs gave warning. They attack tomorrow when shadows from sun don't appear. Stupid mutts. We prepare, make traps here, here, and here and over here. When they attack, most die before barricade."
There was a resounding laugh from all the Kobolds around the table.
"That is a good plan. But how can you tell they are coming here?" Bonnie asked.
"Worthless dogs are dumb. They send warning and let know battle plan. They idiots. Always do what say the way say," Another Kobold with several golden rings and chains all over his body said.
"They always do what?" Blue asked.
Zudra slapped the kobold who spoke on the back of the head, "Stupid Snuck. Speak right. They don't understand you if not," she turned back to the group, "Sorry. He strong but bad with words. Stupid mutts give plan and say how going to attack. They always follow plan. Say it's fair to do that. Morons think they better than us, say we too weak and need help. We prove we stronger, we prove we true kobold."
"What do you mean, true kobold?" Hera asked.
Zudra looked at Hera for the first time. She stared at her hair and snarled, "Of course, you light fur don't know. Worthless dogs stole our name. We true kobolds. The dragon voice gave us the name. They stole it! Thieving cowards. They make name dirty. Kobold is not dog with flea, kobold is dragonkin!"
Zudra's voice became angrier as her speech went on, getting closer and closer to Hera. The rest of the party stepped forward, worried that the creature might suddenly attack the explorer. In the end, no attack came, even as the kobold leader was so close that Hera could kiss her.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know," Hera said, looking to the floor and taking a step back.
"Don't need sorry. Light fur means you dumb, just like stupid mutt chief, but you came help. Maybe you smarter," Zudra snapped her fingers, and a kobold wearing a green jacket with yellow on the edges of it and large puffy shorts approached with a silver platter, "Here, your mission. We don't need help to fight, but humans smart. Help us with this list, and you get pay."
On the platter, there were six letters sealed with the dragon head emblem. The group picked one each, and as they opened it, a notification appeared.
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You have received a request from the Kobold General
Dungeon Quest.
The Lizard Kobolds are fighting against the Canine Kobolds. Reinforce their defenses and gather the resources needed for the army. When the Lizard Kobolds emerge victorious, the quest will be completed. Talking with the Kobold Officers will give you missions to complete that improve the structure of the base. The reward will be based on how much your help has contributed to the improvements.
Random events might appear during the quest.
Victory conditions:
Defeat the Canine Kobold Chieftain.
Have more than 20 surviving Lizard Kobolds.
The Kobold General must survive.
First-time completion rewards:
15 000 gold, kobold supplies
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Looking at the quest, it gave very little information about what they should do. According to Zudra, the battle would occur the next day, so they had one full day to complete as many missions as they could.
Inside the envelope, there was just a piece of paper with the symbol of the room - the dragon and the wolf facing each other, surrounded by swords and spears. Using her [Inspect], Hera targeted the paper.
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Kobold field certificate - Lizard
A certificate proving your allegiance to the lizard Kobold tribe. By showing it to any lizard kobold, you prove to be an ally to its kind. If the certificate is ripped, it will teleport whoever ripped it back to the dungeon entrance. By leaving the dungeon that way, the bearer will be unable to attempt the dungeon again before the weekly reset.
Can only exist inside Kobold Field's dungeon.
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"So… where do we start?" Alex asked.
"We busy now. Talk to Galva," Zudra spoke, waving its hand to the group to leave.
They walked outside, not wanting to disturb the meeting anymore. During the entire conversation, most of the kobolds inside stared at the group with angry expressions, leaving them very uncomfortable.
Outside there was a group of kobolds walking towards what looked to be a training area. Runir stopped them and asked, "Hey, can you guys tell us where to find Galva?"
The kobolds scoffed at him. One even spit on the ground, "Why pink skin want Galva?"
Runir showed them the certificate, "We came to help. Zudra told us to talk to him, or her, I'm not sure."
"Oh, you pink skin we hire?" the kobold looked to the group, "Arh, light fur," he said when his eye met with Hera's, "Fine, Galva on food tent. There, where smoke come from," he pointed to the side of the camp. A large tent was close to the walls, with a long line of kobolds of all sizes holding bowls.
"Thank you, friend," Runir said.
"We no friends. Show you strong first. Then we talk, friend," the kobold replied and walked away.
"Is it just me, or they seem very hostile?" Blue asked.
"Yeah. I'm not so sure I want to keep doing this one," Hera said with a sigh. Being criticized for her hair reminded her of high school. The worst part is that the color of her hair was one of the few parts that she always liked. Not knowing why they hated that color so much only made things worse.
The group walked over to the tent and were received by a small Kobold wearing an apron that read, 'My food good, you tongue bad.'
"Hi, are you Galva?" Blue asked.
The kobold turned around, showing an oversized chef hat on its head, "Who ask?"
Blue quickly showed the certificate, "Zudra sent us. She said we could help."
"You? Help me?" Galva started shaking, his nostrils flaring up and teeth grinding, "Finally!" he jumped in excitement.
A kobold said something about waiting, and Galva just tossed an entire fish at its face, "Eat that, if don't like. Leave!" he turned to the party, "Come, come. Hungry?"
Blue and Hera nodded. They just had some fruit before heading out in the morning. The rest of the party was too worried about the boiling pot with brown sludge to consider the food.
"Good. Come, eat. We talk help after."