There was no boss monster. A young woman, probably around Maya’s age, sat silently on the mossy stone floor, watching the two pirates with wide blue eyes. She wore a baby blue dress that had been stained brown by the dirty water pooling all over the floor. Her pale skin was almost glossy. Cyll glanced at Maya, his hand slowly moving away from his axe.

“What are you doing down here?” Maya asked the woman.

“I’m sitting and, as of about a second ago, talking to you,” the woman said. Her voice was wooden, but hints of amusement and annoyance ran underneath her tone.

“Shocking,” Cyll said. “But what are you doing in the boss floor of a dungeon?”

“I’m the boss monster of course!” The woman said, rising to her feet.

Cyll’s axe was out before she’d risen, but neither he nor Maya made a move.

“I’m pretty sure you’re human,” Maya said. “Boss monsters aren’t human.”

The woman pouted, but she held her arm out and pulled the dress back, revealing porcelain skin. Then, with a click, her arm extended outwards. Wood and metal components appeared where her joints would have been.

“I’m not a human. I’m a puppet, see?” She said, poking Maya on the nose with her extended finger.

Maya and Cyll both went for their weapons, but the puppet didn’t seem to notice. Maya grimaced and moved the arm away from her face as politely as she could. The puppet retraced her arm and blinked innocently, and the two pirates slowly relaxed again.

“Ah,” Maya said. “I’ll be honest, I’ve only been in one dungeon before. I didn’t think it was normal for boss monsters to talk so casually with people.”

“It’s been a few thousand years, so the details are fuzzy for me too,” Cyll muttered. “It certainly feels strange, though. I thought we were just supposed to fight and leave.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the puppet said, her face downcast. “Master always said I talked too much. It’s just been so long since anyone visited me and I was feeling very lonely.”

“It’s no problem,” Maya said quickly as she realized the other woman looked to be an inch away from crying. “Cyll and I enjoy conversation as well.”

“Really? Please, sit with me,” the puppet said enthusiastically, patting the ground beside her. “My name is Patty.”

Maya shrugged and sat down next to Patty. The puppet seemed genuine enough, but she still kept her hand on the sickle at her side. Cyll sat down between them, putting his axe on the floor and yawning.

“Say, since you’re so willing to speak, what’s up with the monsters in this dungeon?” Cyll asked.

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“I made them myself! Master has been out on business, and he left me in charge of the dungeon while he was gone,” Patty said. “What did you think of them?”

“Honest answer?” Cyll asked.

“Yes, please.”

“They’re utter shit. You made poor tortured creatures that were practically begging to be put out of their misery, not monsters.”

Maya’s eyes widened and she glared at Cyll, but the older pirate shrugged.

“I did ask if she wants an honest answer,” he said.

“Nobody ever actually wants one! It’s just polite to say yes,” Maya scolded him.

“Oh. Sorry,” Cyll said, giving Patty a chagrined grin and rubbing the back of his head.

“I appreciate your honesty,” Patty said, smiling at Cyll. The expression looked slightly strange now that Maya could see the tiny pieces of wood and metal shifting to allow the puppet’s facial expressions. “Could you tell me what was wrong with them? Master’s notes said that Centaurs were half horse and half human, and mermaids were half fish and half human.”

“You got the halves mixed up,” Maya said, laughing. “Centaurs have the torso of a horse, but the upper half is human. Same for mermaids.”

Cyll shifted uncomfortably on the floor. He took his shirt off and wrung it between his hands to get the water out of it. Patty paused as she went to reply to Maya and stared at Cyll. The pirate put his shirt back on and raised an eyebrow.

“Is everything okay?” He asked.

“Yes. I was just looking at your muscles,” Patty said. “They are fascinating. Can humans really just…build more of them? Just by fighting?”

“They sure can,” Cyll said, grinning. “Do you want to see them again?”

Maya smacked him over the back of the head and Patty paused mid nod.

“Sorry, Captain,” Cyll said, not showing a single trace of remorse.

“Captain? You are pirates?” Patty asked, leaning forward. Her voice had suddenly become passionate, as if she were an entirely different person.

“We are. Maya over here is the captain, and I’m her first mate,” Cyll said, thrusting a thumb into his chest.

“Do you have a boat?” Patty asked.

“Not yet,” Maya said with a sigh.

“But we’re working on it!” Cyll interjected. “We’ll have one soon enough. Not having a boat doesn’t keep us from being pirates.”

“I think Master was a pirate,” Patty said wistfully. “I’ve never seen the sea, but the word sounds very pretty.”

“Just who was this Master anyways?” Cyll asked. “Was your Master the real boss monster?”

“Yeah, he was,” Patty admitted. “But he left a long time ago and told me to watch over the dungeon. I’ve been waiting for him to come back, but it’s awful lonely.”

“This is the strangest dungeon I’ve ever heard of. I didn’t think dungeon monsters ever left, although I guess there’s no reason why they couldn’t,” Cyll said thoughtfully.

Maya rose to her feet. Cyll copied her.

“As you said, the world is full of many things,” Maya said. “But we should probably get a move on. The Ashwind family might still be chasing us. We need to get a boat and disappear for a little while.”

“You’re leaving already?” Patty asked, disappointed.

“Sorry,” Cyll said. “You know, you don’t have to stay in this dungeon. If your master has been gone this long, he probably isn’t coming back. You might as well explore the world.”

Patty tilted her head to the side as she considered the pirate’s words. Then she smiled slightly, standing up beside them and gesturing to a staircase in the far corner of the room.

“I think I might do that. Thank you,” she said, smiling. Her gaze on Cyll lasted slightly longer than it did on Maya. “The exit is just over there. Perhaps we’ll meet again in the upper world.”

“I look forward to it,” Maya said. Cyll gave the puppet a wide grin and tipped an imaginary hat as the two of them ascended the stairs, leaving Patty behind in the darkness.

She watched the space where the pair had been sitting for several minutes. Then she glanced over at the stairwell.

“Perhaps I should find Master myself. He might need my help,” Patty mused. The dark walls of the dungeon didn’t answer her, but the desire to see the world had already sparked within her chest.