I feel like I've been cut open, had students receive a lecture on autopsies and play with my organs before being stitched up. "That hurt about as bad as when you tried to eat my soul buddy." "Pain, I'm still learning to understand this feeling." I shake my head, Sym seems to be growing from a bad cellphone app to maybe a Siri type clone. On occasion I'm surprised by Syms' understanding of human things and then Sym will go and say some shit like that.

Shaking myself off and focusing on my task at hand I descend to the ground level. My goal is as few deaths as possible, the people here didn't request for Lord Tomato to invade my island, I become tangible and begin floating up towards his Castle. I could just fly there full speed but if other kingdoms see this as a threat then there is nothing stopping them from declaring war either, so I'll save that secret for bigger fish. I want people to witness me heading towards the Lord and only the Lord, I want them to report about how the haunted, rotting apparition of the dungeon left the citizens and those who didn't attempt to stop it alone. It's a bit chaotic here since the Dungeon wall sphere makes my invasion obvious. I'd prefer to be the center of attention here, so I swipe my scythe at nothing, just to summon the sonic boom from the air rushing back into the vacuum.

The sound silences everyone and eyes refocus on the monster in their midst. People cower and hide in the buildings but I leave them be. A group of guards got together in an attempt to block me, they form a shield wall up the road from my current location. I'm not sure if it would be more impactful to ignore them, take their weapons or to just reap those that decide to interrupt. I'll just play it by ear, if all else fails I can maim but not kill. As I approach them a mage in the back of the group throws a fireball at me. I haven't had the opportunity to witness how this worlds magic is cast by the humans, and it is something I've been wanting to learn about since I have no ground to stand on other than vague rules from dungeons and dragons. I decide to see if magic hurts me and it does, but only a little bit, it's like being stung by a bee, but I act unaffected and continue my slow float forward. Keep your opponents guessing as to your weaknesses, and they'll change tactics eventually. I swipe my scythe across the weapons of the shield wall in front of me, breaking the spears and swords. Then continue on towards my destination. A couple of the guards swipe at me with their broken weapons, but they just pass through never harming me. The mage throws a fireball at my back again but this one misses, crashing into a house setting the upstairs ablaze, screams come from inside the building and I fly up there.

Dumping out water from my body to extinguish the people and the flames barely took any of my supply of the stuff. I even got most of it back from reclaiming it. The people know I helped them, but are still terrified, I suppose I don't look like a cute bunny rabbit. Descending out of the upper wall and beelining for the mage who begins chanting again only to be interrupted by my skeletal fingers in her mouth. I shove her back towards the wall ignoring the swings from her companions. I reach my left hand into the wall behind her and pull stone from it to create bindings, sorry lady but you can't be lighting people on fire. I'll be back, probably, or maybe the guards can dig you out when this is over. I remove my hand from her face, she begins chanting again and I sigh as I pull more stone out from the building and across her face to keep more spells from flying. I shake my finger at her and try to give off the aura of a disappointed parent. Then head back towards my actual goal here.

I encountered more groups of guards along the way and each one had at least one mage in the group. I treated them all the same as the previous patrols that tried to bar my path. Mages got locked up to nearby buildings or fence work, guards had their pointy bits broken. I figured they'd fight me till the end but the last three patrols had taken a knee and left me an opening to continue onwards.

Entering the Lords' Manor I find him cowering in his room with a dagger in hand. Cursing the guards for not giving their lives to protect his. I pick him up and he tries to stab me but it doesn't do anything. Now that I have my target I Will the sphere to return to nothing, he can't escape now and as I carry the Lord of this place back down the street, kicking and screaming. I summon forth a cage and drop him into it from the open top. Summoning the tomato carts that are in the dungeon catalog thing that Sym shows me on occasion. They're big juicy tomatoes and the description says they're enchanted to never rot. These aren't for eating however.

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The bars of the cage bisect my first tomato thrown and both halves hit Lord Tomato in his tomato colored face. Spraying juices and seeds across the whole plaza I've set this demonstration up in. Some of the onlookers are watching in shock at first, as I throw more at the local tyrant. A child is the first one to join in from the crowd, uncaring of the opinions of others and deciding it seemed like fun and after the child joined in the crowd did as well. Shouts of complaints from the crowd ranging for high taxation, the forced servitude of the citizenry, and other dark deeds followed by more of the insults from the incited people. I was surprised to notice that guards were joining in on the impromptu festivity. I let everyone get their revenge on the tyrant. Hours passed and as the children departed I began setting up the execution for my sole enemy, the one person who had been telling insults and threats from a position without power, and the one who has stunted my career as a Dungeon.

One of the people decided to accost me with questions while I was working, I hadn't paid much mind to him at first, trying to beat back the pain of creating my goal, in this land that wasn't my domain. When I was taking a break I finally looked at the man and was more than a little miffed that it was Tomas standing there. Erifis was there as well, trying to be invisible and failing at it. Sym had said she had agreed to the offer on my letter and pointed out that I had misheard her name. I was about to summon some paper to write out what I wanted my new voice to say aloud for the crowd when I was interrupted. "Speak to her, as a contracted entity she should be able to hear you."

It wasn't the voice of Sym, it was a female voice, and not one I had heard before. I approached her, moving Tomas out of my way and drawing the eyes of more than a few in the crowd.

"Hello, Erifis, thankyou for accepting my offer."

"You can talk!?" The look of shock on her face is evident and I'd like for my voice to have a bit more decorum.

"Yes, I talk all the time, but the mortals don't understand me. That aside I need you to focus and relay my words, fret not I'll answer your questions in due time. Speak as if you are the Ruler of the entire world, back straight, and enunciate clearly. You get one shot to make an impact on the people here. Imagine yourself in an empty room and remember all the pain and suffering you've experienced to get where you are today."

As I speak her posture is corrected, she gives an air of royalty and while looking serene at first then slightly panicked at the mention of the crowd gathered. When she closes her eyes to picture an empty room the frown fades, and when she opens them, I see the fire that burns in me as well. Anger at all the injustices of the world, desire for change and the motivation and Will to do it.

"Good, now repeat after me, word for word, and be loud."

" Lord TomatoFace Ricard, you have been brought here for the crimes you have committed, and for declaring war on me The Dungeon of the Island of the Dead. Specifically you have been brought here to be used as an example for all the peoples of the world. To all in attendance- do not downplay the events that happened today when you recount it! No, tell the exact events, that when I The Reaper came to a land not of his Domain! That instead of murdering everyone of the citizenry as would be the result of a war between kingdoms, that I he graced you with no unnecessary death - not the guards, nor the citizenry. Shit I even saved the people who got caught on fire by that fireball That when an errant fireball was thrown, the Reaper saved the bystanders! Tell everyone what happened here today, that no Noble is able to win a war with The Dungeon, and that any who wish to try should send a declaration first! Tell of the swiftness of the events today! A war that lasted only fifty minutes, with only one casualty! Lord Ricard you are to be hereby Summarily Executed. Instead of being cast through the cycle of Reincarnation - you will be resurrected as a rat, fitting your personality and your actions. When you die again as rats do rapidly, you'll be reborn as a rat again, o'er and o'er for all of time. The Reaper wishes you a great eternity in your new lives!"

I figured I'd get a bit personal with it, I reach my hand into his chest, phasing through the flesh and fabric on my way in, before solidifying again, grabbing his heart and pulling it out forcibly. The dying noble screaming in agony at the spectacle of his death. He lived for around thirty seconds after his heart had been ripped out, and I collected the line of purple mana that was fleeing his corpse as he left this life. Some of the onlookers lost their stomachs, Tomas included - but most people seemed to be inspired. Good for them.

"We leave you all to decide on your next actions, and invite any who wish to, to move to our island, free of oppression, where everyone is equal! Where the laws are enforced, and the lawman can't be bought!"

I am happy she found her fire, and now that I have someone to talk to who isn't myself or Sym, one with a firm understanding of emotions and what it's like to be alive. I can see my existence getting much happier.