Memna, Level 5 Priest has pledged allegiance to you.

The first thing that she did upon adding this man - a living human - to her dungeon's forces was attempt to speak to him. But whatever link allowed her to command her minions seemed to be altered for Memna. He was under her command, but she had less control than she would have liked, it seemed - she couldn't simply demand he did something telepathically. However... he seemed loyal. She could gain a lot of information from him, if only she could ask. She just had to try.

"Hmmmmeeehm...nuh." She practically growled, countless years of disuse and a method of speaking that was distinctly different causing her voice to sound far more feral than she'd intended, "Mem...na. I. need. infor-for-mation." The words were a struggle to get out, but the more she spoke the easier they came. She'd expected this to be harder, but perhaps relying on her telepathic link to her minions hadn't been as necessary as she'd initially thought. Still, the ability to command her minions silently couldn't be understated in its use - it allowed her to communicate her orders without others listening in.

"Y-yes, Lady Wanderer?" The boy asked, nodding his head rapidly. "I can provide... information. But... but I must ask, is there any... food? I'm... I'm so hungry. It's been days..."

"It... has been a long time. A long... time. Since. I lived. Correct?" She asked as if he hadn't spoken at all, regarding him with her cold gaze as he offered a swift nod, her eyes glowing as they examined him. "I do not... remember... everything that I should. I propose... this. You... you will answer my questions. I will... feed you. What does a... boy... like you eat?"

"Uh... vegetables from the farms 'n' meat from the hunters." He mumbled. "What questions do you have, Lady Wanderer?"

"Mm..." The Master rumbled. "I will... think on that." Her gaze turned from Memna to the bodies laid out on her slabs. "I think... I can give you some meat to... sate your hunger, young Memna."

"Ex...excellent! I'll eat a-anything! I'm so hungry, I could eat a--"

"Chaka?" The Master finished for him, the lights of her eyes flicking down to the suddenly apprehensive young man.

"Well, I... I was going to say a rat, but... if that's all that you have, I... I feel faint. If it's all that you have..."

"It is." The Master sent a command to Ajax, who entered the room almost instantly. Memna cringed under his intense gaze. Ajax, cut up some meat for our acolyte to eat. And you, her will shifted to encompass the other skeleton in the room, see if you can find a way to cook it once it's done.

"The skeletons... they will bring you your food. You may wait upstairs - and you will not return here unless asked to. This area will be... off limits to you - it is far... far too close to my core. And you have not earned my trust... merely by seeming devout. I will come to you when I have questions. None of my minions will harm you." She dismissed Memna, who left the crypt in a hurry. Perhaps he hasn't the stomach to watch his food be prepared, she wondered. How much anima did she have now? Four. Then soon, I suppose, I shall add my next paragon to my forces. While she was unsure of its use, the two paragons that she currently had at her fingertips outshone the rest of her minions in every way. Having a third was unlikely to be a downside in her eyes. Until then... she just had to occupy herself for a few minutes.

Spider, reveal yourself. The spider crawled up onto one of the many slabs in the room, peering at her. Something about it felt... different. It was faintly glowing. Ah! The Master's eyes would have widened had it been possible. The anima that had dissipated after the kill... it seemed to have absorbed some of it, and now it was ready to become more than it was. I do hope that was just a faster way to evolve you things. Anima is a precious resource to me, she grumbled, peering closer at the spider until a box revealed itself.

Unnamed Spider has reached her current body's limit. To grow stronger, she must evolve.

[Crypt Weaver] - [Worker] - This species of spider lives inside of burial places, weaving silk and capturing insects that enter their homes. They are capable of spinning silk for use by a dungeon's inhabitants in large numbers.

[Bone Recluse] - [Beast] - A catacomb-dwelling creature that has gained a taste for bones, the Bone Recluse is a hand-sized, yet potentially deadly, species. They possess the ability to fire shards of bone from their abdomen, upgrading their classification from fauna to beast as they are now considered a potential threat to invaders.

[Wolf Spider] - [Beast] - An enlarged wolf spider. Roughly the size of a human head, it is far stronger than it was in its original form. Their bite is most effective against unarmored enemies. They will gain a guaranteed choice of a venom skill for their first selection.

Well, I'll rule [Wolf Spider] out immediately. It might be useful later, but right now I'd rather have a ranged attacker like the [Bone Recluse] over a role that my hands already fill. Silk is a resource, but I'm unsure as to what that actually offers me. Clothing isn't exactly... urgent for me. I'll experiment with [Crypt Weavers] later. You will be a [Bone Recluse].

The spider seized, going still, but she still felt her weak connection to it through the core. It appeared to be unconscious, and as she watched it appeared to form a cocoon around itself despite its paralysis. Leaving it where it lay for the time being, she turned to the inner crypt and connected to her first spawner through the doorway. As her anima ticked up to 5, she spawned her paragon. She wasn't sure what she expected to see. Ajax was larger, stronger and more aware than his compatriots. Esther was more defined, intelligent, and seemed to act on her own if not commanded. What could the 'paragon' of a crawling hand even be?

Its claw-like fingertips were sharper, its body larger - it was larger than her own hand, even. "Welcome to... my dungeon," she spoke calmly. Once again, she observed what she had come to understand as the 'greeting ritual' of the skeletal hands. Assuming that, like the other paragons, this one was smarter, that cemented it in her head - it was definitely some form of communication. "I suppose you'll need a name." Idly compressing her bony hand into a fist, she shrugged. "You'll be 'Carpal', I suppose." Carpal seemed to stretch, languidly crawling forwards to brush against her ankle in what she could almost call an affectionate manner. It was behaving almost like a pet.

Carpal - Level 1 Race: Skeletal Hand Type: Undead

Class: Skeletal Hand 1/10

Affinities: None Titles: None Body Integrity: 100% Soul Integrity: 100%

An animated skeletal hand, an ambush-predator that can commonly be found in death-aspected areas and dungeon regions that are located within a place of burial.

It is more intelligent and deadlier than a normal member of its species, though not capable of commanding them.

Current Effects: N/A

Interesting... this paragon is unable to command its kin like the others. Is that due to its intelligence or another reason? Regardless, it's another tool in my arsenal. She turned, motioning for Carpal to exit her core room and giving it a quick command to watch over the evolving spider, then strode purposefully up the steps to the church above. It seemed that the graveyard would cost 10 anima to expand into, but the smaller bell tower was a much lower 5. So... expansion is relative to something that I don't understand. Perhaps I should have expanded first... Looking out over the church, she noted that The Defender had healed and was standing calmly, unmoving. Ajax had taken a large hammer from the ground, wielding it with one hand where the chaka had needed two. The skeletal chaka was inspecting the bloodied floors with a curiosity that almost fooled her... until she noticed that it was simply repeating the same series of movements in sequence. Finally, Memna sat on one of the pews. The back of his hand was pressed against his forehead as he rubbed his stomach in slow circles. "Wanderer preserve me..." he groaned, tensing as he heard The Master approach.

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"You are more useful to me in your current form than you would be mummified," she said simply. Memna let out a nervous chuckle, shaking his head.

"It... was a figure of speech." He explained, sighing softly. "That was the worst thing I've eaten in my life. Especially raw... but if it keeps me alive, I'll eat it. So... I suppose you want me to answer some questions. B-before we begin, I need to clarify something. I'm not the most knowledgeable on dungeons. I know the basics, but my brother - may The Wan-- um... may you preserve him - is the one who's the expert on that topic."

"Yes. That is... fine. We'll start with something simple. What am I? Or... what was I?"

"You're The Wanderer... you're the ancient protector of our people," Memna replied, "it was you who led our people to this land. Er... not that this was supposed to be where we settled."

"Then why did you build a village here?"

"Ah, well... you were... betrayed." Memna smiled nervously but kept his composure. "You died... but, you left behind a contingency. A spell of great, divine power. And if we were to feed it our life essence - our anima - you could return from death. Obviously, um, things took longer than we expected... and it's been some time."

"Some time?"

"Perhaps... a thousand years, give or take?" He squirmed as she stroked her jaw with the soft sound of bone grinding on bone, "Your champion - Ajax - carried your body far from our camp with the most trusted among us and founded this village. In Wanderer's Rest, we've maintained a loyal but small following. In fact... my brother and I, my family, we count ourselves among your champion's descendants. Unfortunately, my older brother was the only one to receive his inheritant skill from my father. As for me, I decided to become a man of the cloth and carry out your will in my own way."

Ajax... my champion. Heh, and Esther's meddling resulted in history repeating itself. "You know, Memna... my champion in this life is named Ajax, too. I believe you've met him already." The paragon had drawn closer as they spoke, standing at her side dutifully and examining the acolyte with a cold gaze. "And what happened to the others?"

"Ah... I don't know. I believe they're still here, but I've never left Wanderer's Rest. Most of us don't stray far... it's not supposed to be done." Memna lowered his head, giving himself a momentary reprieve from Ajax's hard stare. "And... yes, I did notice your champion. Perhaps my ancestor has been returned alongside you." The Master prepared to refute him, but then she paused. No. When she last saw his status, it had omitted the line that the other skeletons had about their bodies being 'created'. Hadn't it?

Ajax - Level 3 Race: {Human} Skeleton Type: Undead Class: Skeleton 3/10 Affinities: None Titles: None Body Integrity: 100% Soul Integrity: 100%

The skeleton of a human that has been raised by a dungeon, weaving its anima into his long-dead bones.

He is fiercely loyal to the dungeon master and capable of both learning and commanding other minions.

This skeleton is bound to an unnamed dungeon.

[Skills]

Current Effects: N/A

"You may be right. I see nothing here that would disprove your theory." She hummed thoughtfully, a curious tone entering her faintly echoed voice. The new skills tab appeared to be a simple menu that allowed her to view Ajax's skills. A small amount of configuring allowed her to remove it from the status box and bring it up separately, at will.

"See..?" Memna frowned.

"You do see these... boxes, correct?"

"Ah, right... you can see your minions' statuses as well. That makes sense."

"Of course I can," The Master said matter-of-factly. "They're my minions. May I ask why you call me 'Wanderer' and not... my name?"

Memna's eyebrows raised. "Did you not, yourself, decree that to speak your name was heresy?" He asked. "The stories were very clear... I'm sorry, but I really don't know your true name."

Imitating a cough, The Master shrugged. "As I said, I don't remember much. Now that you mention that..." I didn't. "I did. Perhaps, with time, my memories will come back to me. So... I was supposed to be revived like this?"

"I can't say. A thousand years is a long time. Perhaps your current state was planned, perhaps it was... unforeseen." The Master found herself mildly amused at his attempts to speak diplomatically. "But as - currently - the highest priestly authority in your presence, I can promise you that I will do my utmost to guide you. I just wish that my brother was here. Um... well, I can tell you what I do know about dungeons if you'd like."

"I would," she replied, bridging her fingers. "Tell me, Memna."

"So... some of this, you'll know." He began. "A dungeon is often controlled by a master. These are generally monsters formed at the same time as the dungeon and, sometimes, a dungeon possesses a consciousness of its own. I know that it's possible for a human - or another race - to become a dungeon master, but I've only heard of that in stories and never seen it myself. As for what a dungeon master does, they can summon monsters... which you're quite good at already. They can also build things and shape their territory. They tend to excavate the earth and stone around them and dig deep into the ground, breaching into the caverns below and claiming both new monsters and territory, though some, like you, eventually focus on claiming territory above the earth. Most dungeons, however, prefer to consolidate their power in the depths of our world before they begin to expand onto the surface. Some seem entirely content to never do so."

"Excavate?" The Master asked thoughtfully. "I wonder, then... can I absorb stone?" Waving her hand, she disintegrated a small section of one of the pillars that lined the church. Gaining a unit of limestone, she tilted her head... and then attempted to weave the limestone back into the pillar. It was far easier than she had expected to repair it, though attempting to construct something new with bone appeared to be impossible. How hadn't this occurred to her? "I see. Perhaps I'll start to do that. I'll need more room for spawners at some point."

"Ah... I've helped! Good." Memna smiled - a genuine one, for once. "Unfortunately, that's most of what I know. I'd never been inside of a dungeon before outside of yours."

The Master nodded, "You have helped somewhat. I'll have more questions for you later." Her gaze was drawn to her anima meter. It had only raised by one. This is going to take some time, she sighed.

[Bone Recluse] has finished evolving. It is now a Rank 0 [Beast].

That was frustrating... she had been hoping for it to count towards her quest. "Ah. Something requires my attention," The Master explained, descending back into the crypt. Sending another hand out to scout beyond the graveyard and into 'Northern Town Path', she eyed her newly evolved monster. She wasn't willing to risk the investment that she'd put into Carpal just yet in case there were more soldiers laying in wait. At level 1, it would still likely be weaker than her skeletons - and those had fared poorly in their first fight. Turning back to her newly evolved minion, a small part of her was frustrated that the spider hadn't been Rank 0 in the first place. Did they simply not possess a rank at all?

The bone recluse was larger than before , now the same size as Carpal. Curiously, a wave of revulsion shot through her at the sight of it. The smaller spiders hadn't triggered this... aversion... in her, but she forced herself to power through the feeling. "Carpal, you are dismissed. Do as you wish, but do not leave my domain." The hand hopped off of its perch, its pseudo-wrist brushing against her fibula as it skittered past. Now, it was just her and the bone recluse... alongside two skeletons that were armed with clubs. The recluse had lightened subtly in color, a dark gray tone covering most of her body. Her abdomen held a skull-like pattern and it was dotted with small shards of what The Master presumed were bone and the tips of its spiny legs were a bone white color.

"You can shoot bone shards now, correct?" She asked, holding her gaze on its loathsome appearance, unwilling to show weakness to something that she had created. "...Show me. Fire one into the wall. Right there." She spoke, an edge to her voice as she pointed towards the closest wall. The spider spun its body around, drawing its thorax closer to the ground and aiming its abdomen towards the wall. It fired a single shot.

There was barely any noise as her abdomen shuddered, spitting a sharp chunk of bone at a high speed into the wall. It bounced off of the wall with a high-pitched crack. "Hm... I see. Perhaps you'd be suited to defending the church. Its higher ceiling would allow you to hide. If you attack after the skeletons, perhaps invaders wouldn't even see you. They certainly wouldn't hear you. I suggest you move upstairs." Also, then, I won't have to look at you. She thought to herself. As the bone recluse left, she felt herself relax. This... is a weakness that I need to remove.

But for now, she would attempt to add a new room underneath the church until she had enough anima to expand into the bell tower and claim the last area of the church. She imagined a doorway off to the side, raising her hands and beginning to absorb the stone wall. A steady trickle of stone entered her reserves as she worked, carving out a tall entrance before beginning to tunnel out into the dirt. She decided to tunnel down, further into the earth, as Memna had said was 'normal.' The other dungeons must have had a reason to do this, she thought. The process was slow and monotonous but at least it was calm. It took her some time to build a staircase down into the earth, slowly digging, and attempting to walk down them didn't result in the warning she had been afraid of. After only a few feet of digging, she'd regenerated enough anima to claim the bell tower. It must have taken some time to dig this...

She made her way upstairs, opened the door to the bell tower and expanded her domain.