After a fitful sleep, Vonn woke up with Mom knocking on the door. He was laying on a blanket in the little workshop that had been his bedroom until recently. A hairline crack on one of the wooden walls showed the result of a terrible mistake he supposedly made a year ago. Slate chalkboards bore sketches of machines and a bunny with fangs.

Mom looked exhausted. But she was up and making candles, not food. She ruffled his ears and said, "We got through the night, gods be praised. Your Aves friend captured Tazo and took her to lunch a little while ago."

"Thanks. I'll be at the shop today, if the Baron doesn't send for me."

His clothes from last night stank of fear and sweat. He'd scrubbed himself a little before bed and now put on one of his two other outfits. White linen tunic and green vest and sturdy tail-compatible pants. The pockets were one of his first inventions.

On the north side of town near the temple, he entered the Hammer and Feather. His usual hangout was doing well today, maybe because the owner was a newcomer to town but had shown up for last night's drill. He was an Aves with orange bits on his black feathers, suggesting an oriole. Vonn waved, ordered the usual, and joined his friends at a side table next to the pinball machine. The primitive, non-electric device was also his own work. The pool table next to it was Selen's.

Selen was admiring both games when Vonn sat. "I was about to drag you out, too, but your mom said no."

Vonn leaned back, casually balancing in his chair. "Some night, huh? And now we've got some kind of aggressive dungeon on our doorstep."

Tazo waved a magicite crystal at him. "The Baron had somebody search the wreck site, he said. We've recovered most in total, and tallied all of the changed bits." She meant the golden pieces, which were currently irreplaceable.

"Great! That's one less loose end."

"The Baron's man said that the dungeon had stretched toward the wreck. Changed the ground beneath it to bare stonework."

Selen said, "Which means it might start copying airplane parts. Whirling propeller traps, maybe."

Vonn thought back to the last time he'd seen a dungeon voraciously mimicking things it had absorbed. "Remind me to crash a better airplane into it so it'll at least make good quality parts. Are we really not going to rush in there to peek at the core while it's in this special new state?"

Selen shook her head. "The Baron's assembling a delver team and he said, quote, 'hell no' when I opened my beak to volunteer."

"Seconded," said Tazo. "I'd been meaning to ask you, Vonn; was the dungeon layout similar to what we saw when we were there that one time?"

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"The first level, yeah. Didn't see those flying enemies though, just skeletons and things I don't want to get a good look at." He described what he'd seen, making them all shudder. "What is Shieldpoint going to do for iron, now?" He thanked the shop owner as a bowl of vegetable stew and bread arrived, then stared into it.

The bird-girl put her yellow taloned hand on Vonn's arm. "Are you okay? It must've been awful."

"Glad I don't remember my dreams last night. But I'm still thinking about the people who probably died down there." He shut his eyes for a moment. "I did the right thing, not abandoning the plan to try a rescue, but it still hurts."

"Nobody blames you."

"I'll try not to, either. Where's everybody else?"

Tazo said, "At the new forge or working with the Baron. Everyone's schedule is messed up. If you're up for it, we should get started on another 'wind gun'."

Vonn decided it was time to review his abilities. He was a machine-maker by trade, in a world where engineering as a formal class was a brand-new concept. After living here for over a year he'd become good enough at it that he was starting to worry about drawing attention. He might start having noblemen talk him into or out of dangerous expeditions, or something. The System described him like so:

Vonn Vulin Male Class Engineer 4, Mage 2 Physical Agility 2, Toughness 2 Mental Learning 3, Wits 2, Sanity 1 Social Will 1

Feats

Balance, Harmonious Join, Freezing Strike, Crystal Integration, Well of Energy Skills Woodcutting (Strength), Candle-Making (Agility), Dodge (Agility), Flight (Agility), Staff (Agility), Smithing (Agility), Endure Heat (Toughness), Endure Wounds 2 (Toughness), Hiking (Toughness), Swimming (Toughness), Clockwork 2 (Learning), Healing Magic (Learning), Literacy (Learning), Caster Support (Wits), Consolation (Sanity), Deception (Charm), Fashion (Charm), Storytelling 2 (Charm), Meditation (Will) Health (Toughness + Will) 55/55 Mana (Sanity + Will) 45/45 Stamina (Toughness + Sanity) 55/55

For his age, he was as mighty as the System allowed and even a little more, due to a bonus stat point. He'd earned it by getting the Flight skill without having wings. The only others to get that boon were his sister and for related reasons, Selen.

Vonn ate and thought about his next steps.

The restaurant door opened, and a Centaur staggered in, mud-caked and stinking. He found the counter and said to the owner, "I need a meal and a drink. Can I cut firewood or wash dishes or something for you?"

The Aves fluffed up in alarm and said, "Who are you? Did you come from the river?"

"If I'd been in the water would I smell this bad? I don't mean any harm and I'll be moving on. I just had a really bad day."

Vonn whistled at how beat-up and starved the horse-man looked. He called out, "Get him something, on me."

"Appreciate it. I'll, uh, go outside. Maybe try dunking myself in the river while I wait."