Red was waiting on the porch of his dungeon, wanting to make sure that everyone was there for the meeting that was about to happen. Addison was standing beside him, not able to go on the grass even though the beetles had been hard at work. The ordinary Heavenly Hercules Beetles had not been spawned since Herc and Megara had appeared. He would be looking into it once the meeting was over. Especially since while the grass outside had spots of green it was hardly cleansed of the evil the area was known for. ”So, what’s da problem dere, Red?” Herc asked as he walked away from where he was cleaning evil off the ground to see what had the dungeon core so focused. He still had some good news to tell him, so the friendly janitor was hoping that there wasn’t something earth-shattering coming their way.
“Yeah, Herc. We have some rotten people who like to do rotten things while proclaiming that they are good. You need to know about this as much as Velua and Addison do. I’ll be filling Lotus in on the details later. She already has enough on her plate.” Red said with a frown as he attempted to bite his fingernails, only to find that his avatar was not that complex. While he was still a very detailed replication of his younger self, he was far from an actual human being who grew and shed things. Instead, all he had to do was bite down on the crystal that represented the fingernail on his thumb.
“Well, that’s unfortunate. What with us wantin’ more guests rather than those shamblers you’ve been leadin’ in.” Herc said with a downturn of his mandibles which was meant to be seen as a frown. There were times when Red was thankful that he understood all emotional subtext with anything that was his. He never would have noticed the subtle way the face plates of the beetle shifted otherwise. ”That situation might have a different solution now that I have gotten my second floor. So let’s focus on what we have to do for now.” Red said before the door swung inwards and out of the front entrance came Velua WatchfulBronze.
The dwarf was standing in a set of leather armor that fit her form, a red square on the chest in the same style as the birthmark-like sign on Addison’s hand. It seemed that his insignia was still a red square, yet something else he would have to ask Ras about before he got committed to it. The dwarf’s armor was meant for a light-footed fighter, with gaps in the armor meant to allow a wide range of movement. It wouldn’t do well if she was getting mobbed by attackers or someone with a big bludgeoning weapon got too close.
Her skin was tan from the two weeks of traveling that it had taken to get to Red, but not so deep that it was impossible to tell it was earned and not born with. A gift of her birth was however her long beautiful red-brown hair that gave the impression of glittering bronze in the sunlight. The long locks cascaded around her face and framed the thing that set her apart from the rest of her people. The fact that she was beardless, was not by any physical malady but rather a choice. One which Red had not yet dived into just yet.
“So, you’re back. Can I ask why you come back and immediately have problems for me to solve?” The dwarf asked as she adjusted her belt, the fancy dwarven masterwork sword on her hip glinting in the sunlight that found its way into the swamp and under the porch.
“Sorry, Velua. I would have come around and talked to you sooner but I was trying to do rounds on everyone. Then I found out something that needs to be addressed before someone can get the drop on us.” Red explained as he motioned for her to sit in one of the porch chairs, and then waved for Herc to climb onto the porch and join the lot of them. They all sat down and looked out on the swamp, all kinds of noises singing an ungodly chorus that reminded them of the dangers out there. Addison was quiet, and looking away from Velua with a bit of sadness on her face.
“Uh, hey there kid. I am sorry about yesterday. I didn’t mean to upset you so much.” She offered a gentle apology, trying her best to make sure that she didn’t make enemies in her new place of business.
“It’s alright, I shouldn’t have thrown a fit. I am glad you are here to help Red, and I am sorry that I pushed you.” Addison said softly, the two at least making some small bit of amends before the meeting went underway. The golden bi-pedal beetle sitting next to Red clasped four hands together in delight.
“Aw, ain’t you girls just the sweetest little things? So glad to know we keep gettin’ such nice guests!” Herc said happily as he looked at them, swinging his lowest set of limbs off the edge of the chair since he was much smaller than the rest of those present. Red would feel like a giant at the moment if not for the fact that he was too focused on the problems at hand.
“Velua, what do you know about the Mortae church?” Red asked with a frown as he looked at her, wanting to make sure that they had all the information that they could get on the institution.
“Mortae? They’re a bunch of nuts! Vitem is better because they at least accept everyone of any creed. They believe that the gods intended for them to inherit the world and that through death anything can be purified to give new life. We ousted them out of the mountain ranges a century ago because we couldn’t stand the idea of them doing those crazy sacrifices all over the place.” Velua said, getting almost aggressive and adamant about how she viewed the church. Which to Red was starting to sound more like a cult as time went on.
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Red sighed, seeing the tears beginning to well up in Addison’s eyes as she was believing everything that Velua was saying. The fact that it didn’t elicit a vicious or upset response from her was more than enough to make Red certain about what they needed to prepare for.
“Yeah, that’s the one. They were going to do something similar to Addison. So I wanted to make sure that everyone understood one very important thing in the coming months. If someone of that religion enters this dungeon, they are in for a fight. I was about to make this big speech to everyone about how this place isn’t going to be some charnel house meant to turn people into power. But that was before I learned that someone was going to sacrifice a sweet little girl to a god to try and make a swamp not spread.” He said with a growl as he processed the rage in his heart and tried to think about how this feeling felt… right? The rage, the urge to kill, burned within him like some raging fire that had not been ignited before.
He paused and pushed down the feeling, trying to make sure that he wasn’t going to lose his mind to some primal part of being a dungeon. He was out for blood, but it was not going to control him. He was going to take what he needed and nothing more. This place would fit his vision one day, and it would not be paved in blood to do so. He took a deep breath, before focusing back on the group. He realized that everyone was looking at him, except Addison who was slightly lower than she meant to since she was trying to look at where his voice was projecting from.
“So why are the three of us here? Shouldn’t you be telling this to your paratroopers?” Velua asked with a frown as she looked at him, expecting some well-thought-out response as to why he would want to tell this particular group of denizens. Addison couldn’t do anything, Velua was new and thus didn’t have any true pull with the rest of the dungeon, and as much as Herc was a helpful janitor he was still one Gnome-sized beetle with no real combat ability.
“Well, because the three of you know the most about the outside world. I’ve never known anything beyond the perimeter around my dungeon, and I certainly don’t know a thing about how a cult might try to reclaim an asset.” Red commented with a sigh as he looked off towards where there was some strange screeching sound as one swamp critter killed another. He just barely missed noticing the confused look on Addison’s face before she shook it off and thought about the matter at hand.
“They’ll still want to do the ritual. They don’t want the swamp to spread towards the territories to the east of the peninsula. They’ll come looking for me.” Addison said softly as she tried to think of what that would look like. She seemed paler than usual, gripping the beautiful dress that the fairies had made for her. She was scared, and Red didn’t want her to ever feel this scared when he was around.
“Well, how will they know she’s here? We ain’t exactly on any fancy maps dere.” Herc offered as he thought about it, knowing that it would be dangerous for someone to just wander into the swamp without any direction. He didn’t know too much about how Velua’s group did it, but they seemed to find their way rather easily. As easily as they could at the very least.
“Divination magic. That’s the same kind of stuff that brought me here in search of the hammer. It’s only a matter of time before those clerics with the Mortae start scrying to try and find Addison. I think it would be safe to assume that those spells will be starting any day now. With a month come and gone from what the fairies told me, they have probably figured out that something happened to the caravan.” Velua explained as she exchanged glances between Red and Addison, the two of them seeming to deflate some at the fact that she couldn’t just disappear without a trace. The divine magic that fueled the church would make Addison have a target on her back.
“Then I guess there is no better way to handle this, then. Addison, you’ll keep up your studying and games with Ivy while I figure out an emergency plan. It’s almost lunchtime, so why don’t you go and get something to eat? Velua, you will go and talk to Arabella and tell her that the army needs to expand. If she needs a quest then tell her to call me and I will bring one down.” Red offered as he looked at the dwarf and half-angel, hoping that his directions were clear.
“Sounds good, come on Addison. Let’s get you back upstairs where it’s safer.” Velua said as she dismounted from her chair and offered a hand to the young girl. Addison hesitated for a second, wishing she could look at Red for any kind of guidance. She took in a breath before taking Velua’s hand with a timid smile and a nod as she accepted it. The two headed inside before Red turned his attention back on Herc, the beetle patiently waiting so he could hear his task.
“Well?” The beetle-born asked, his beautiful blue spheres looking at Red without any discernable iris or pupil to indicate where he was looking.
“Herc, you are going to be lookout. I want you to make sure that whatever happens, you call me the moment you see someone wearing a symbol with a skull growing flowers out of its eyes, alright?” He asked honestly as he looked at him, the insect hesitating for a moment as he listened to the request.
“Sure thing, Red. But uh, can I ask why we had to talk about this in private?” Herc asked gently, his mustache bristles getting bushier as he got nervous about what was next going to be said. Herc watched as the dungeon avatar sighed and laid his face in his hands.
“Because if they are hostile I am going to have to throw everything at them. I can’t let them take Addison. Not if she is just going to be some sacrificial lamb.” Red spoke firmly, not happy about the fact that he would have to kill someone. It would be even worse if that someone was Addison’s parent. Cult or no, it seemed like such an evil thing to do and he didn’t want to dwell on that fact.
“Well, dats da right thing to do dere, Red. You gotta do what you gotta do.” Herc said with a sigh as he jumped off of his chair and put his hands to his back like he was trying to pop it. The action was more of a pantomimed thought than any real result as the minion did not have a spine under his exoskeleton.
“If’n I might lighten the mood some. I still got a surprise for you.” The beetle said with a grin as he headed for the entrance to the porch.
“Oh, that’s right. What’s the big surprise?” Red asked as he stood, following the beetle in expectation of some kind of present.
“Hey, Meg! Bring over the eggs!”