----------------------------------------

I wonder often, how they considered the implications of their little project. The societal impact alone was an earthquake,

----------------------------------------

“What does that mean?” Vic asked. “Trials? That sounds… interesting. And look, there’s more than just one plate to activate the portal.”

Matt followed Vic’s pointing finger. Next to the portal, there was a row of small metal plates. Reading the text below the plates, he said, “They are numbered from Floor 1 to Floor 10.”

“And there are ten tablets on the wall,” Mia added, and Matt saw five large stone tablets arranged on either side of the portal. She was inspecting the one on the far left. “This one says Floor 1, and there are rows and rows of names written in tiny script. There must be hundreds… Or thousands. The surface is almost completely covered in names.”

She walked over to the next tablet. “And this is for floor two, and it’s the same. Rows and rows of names… But not as many as the first one. Maybe only half the number of names.”

Matt walked over to the tablet on the far right. “The tablet for floor nine is entirely empty. Not a single name. And it’s the same for floor eight and seven; just a flat surface. The tablet for floor six only has three names written on it.” Matt touched the inscriptions made into the ancient stone, wondering who they had been. This dungeon is a trial, and each floor becomes increasingly difficult. With a city full of people gaining skills under this System, for only three of them to reach this floor… “This floor must be incredibly difficult. For only three people to succeed in the trial, over so many years. They must have been… incredibly powerful.”

Vic’s hand was idly toying with the handle of his dagger as he smiled wistfully. “Yes.”

“You want to try it, don’t you?” Matt asked Vic.

“Of course I do,” Vic answered. “That’s why we are here. To get the power to fuck the nobles. I get why we’ve been traipsing around looking at old buildings and weird trees, but in the end, this is how we do it. This is how we win. Who knows what rewards these trials might give us?”

Pete was standing back from the group, observing and scratching his chin. “I’m not sure,” he said eventually. “I agree with you Vic. We need to get stronger, and this dungeon… It’s tempting. But we don’t know how hard even the first floor is. If we all die there… Then it’s over. Nobody else will find this place, and the nobles keep harvesting crystals. I don’t think the risk is worth it–yet. Once there are more people here, when it’s not just us, sure.”

“Screw that.” Vic squared his shoulders and clenched his fists. “Can’t you see it? Once there are more people here… There’s nothing special about us, Pete. We are just normal people, and once this place grows, we’ll be… We’ll need to spend all our time just running things. Without Mia,” Vic threw his arms out towards Mia in a sharp gesture, “we would be dead ten times over by now. We can’t do dungeons without a healer, and once there’s a city to run, where do you think Mia will be? In the dungeons, risking her life with us, or up there, trying to keep things together?”

Vic looked at Mia, waiting for her to speak, but she just observed them with a contemplative look on her face. Vic walked over to Pete and put his hand on Pete’s shoulder. “Let’s… Let’s do this.”

Matt’s first instinct was to agree with Pete. They needed to play this carefully and to not rush into a situation that might be too dangerous, that might put everything at risk. About to speak up to agree with Pete, he felt a vibration from the guandao, and he knew instantly what the weapon wanted. It urged him onwards, to enter the dungeon, to test their skills against whatever was in there. To fight and to kill and to grow in power. Power they needed.

Breathing deeply, Matt was about to disagree with his bonded weapon, to send back a message of disagreement that explained why they should wait until later. Taking a moment to think, to structure his argument, another thought forced its way into his mind. He was well aware of his own tendency to be too careful and to play it safe. That is who he had been his whole life, but now… Was that still the right approach? The world he had grown up in was not the one he found himself in now. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and looked inwards, searching his core for an answer. What’s the right thing to do? He let his focus follow the beat of the spinning orb of power as it contracted and expanded, letting his breath fall into the same rhythm as he searched for his Way.

What should we do? There is probably a real risk of death in the dungeon, and it was completely unknown. But so was the Initiate’s Dungeon, and then the one where they found the classes. Each of the dungeons had pushed them towards more levels and more skills, more power. Once more people arrive… Vic was right. They would need to spend their time on managing the city.

Mixed with his deliberate contemplation, there was a spark of eagerness somewhere in his mind that he recognised as purely his own. A spark that just felt ‌right, part of his Way. Curiosity blended with determination as he made his mind up.

“I think we should do it.” The certainty in his voice made Pete look up at him in surprise.

Mia paused for a moment before looking at Thor. “What do you think?”

“I want to see what is in there,” Thor said. “We could wait… We probably should wait. But I want to see!”

Mia bit her lip as she thought, then nodded. “Ok, let’s do it. How about you, Verdant, will you join us?”

“I will wait for you here,” the fae said. “The… absence of essence in the dungeons is… painful for me. I will be here when you get back.”

“Ok,” Mia said and gestured for them to get ready. “Floor one then. Pete, take us in.”

Pete hesitated, but he squared his shoulders and drew his sword. Stepping forward, he peered at the metal plates and reached out for the first one. His finger touched the plate, and the stone portal shimmered to life.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

Matt’s shoulders tensed as thin filaments of essence reached across the stone doorway to form a shimmering doorway, and he shuddered as a memory of Thor covered in blood flashed across his mind. Their last time in a dungeon had nearly ended with his friend killed. Mentally preparing himself for battle, a now-familiar tingle ran down his back as his senses heightened in anticipation and adrenaline prepared his body. A nervousness at the back of his mind mixed with an eager excitement flowing up through the bond from his weapon. He took a deep breath and drew comfort and calm from his core.

Before heading inside, they took a moment to go over their formations and plans, and then Pete stepped through, with Matt right on his heels. Thor and Mia followed behind. Vic was last through the portal, flickering out of existence a moment later to stay in Hiding until the coast was confirmed clear.

An unfamiliar scenery spread out before them. They had stepped into a small grassy clearing covered in damp leaves, and nearby a strange forest rose from the ground. Thin, grey and yellow trunks that ended in wispy green leaves; a strange forest of sticks surrounded them on all sides. Looking back, Matt raised his eyebrows when he saw the portal was still shimmering behind them.

Mia had noticed the same thing. “The doorway didn’t disappear like last time when we entered. It would be very convenient if it stays open… Vic, try to go back.”

A few seconds passed, and Matt saw Vic flickering into sight shortly before disappearing into the shimmering portal. A few seconds later he reappeared, only to Hide again within moments.

“That worked,” he declared simply. “We can go back.”

“Perfect,” Mia smiled. “If it continues to stay open, we have an escape route. So, what does the writing for this dungeon say, then…”

She was quiet for a moment before reading aloud, “The dungeon is called The Bamboo Forest of Echoing Whispers.” She pointed to the forest ahead. “Which, I guess, makes that bamboo. Then it says, "Find the Orb and Maintain the Balance."”

“The first part seems obvious,” Pete said. “Somewhere there is an orb we have to find. The second part, though… What balance?”

Matt looked into the strange forest ahead. “I guess we will find out there,” he said and pointed with the guandao into the strange forest of sticks. The ground was soft, with grass poking up through fallen leaves. A heavy mist was rolling in from the forest, drifting across the blue sky above them and making it difficult to see far ahead. The air smelled earthy and damp, and Matt’s robe was already sticking to his skin from the humidity.

Pete looked at Matt and nodded, and they moved into the forest, dodging the strange bamboo plants that stood closer and closer as they progressed inwards. Soon it was a challenge to maintain their formation, and they had to split up to weave around and between the thin trunks. They heard no other sounds than the noises they made themselves as they moved through the forest, and the mist kept growing in density.

Matt felt increasingly claustrophobic and was about to suggest that they turn back towards the clearing where the mist was lighter, to try a different direction, when a sharp alert from the guandao made him turn sharply to the right.

“What is it?” Pete asked, turning to look in the same direction.

“I don’t know,” Matt answered, and they peered into the mist together, seeing nothing. “I think something is there… The guandao–”

“Watch out!” Vic shouted a moment before a dull pain struck Matt’s upper arm. He looked down and saw a deep indentation in the fabric of the black robe. The strike had failed to penetrate the garment, but left behind a dense pattern of intricate glowing threads where he had been hit, and a dull pain from his bruised arm.

That robe is more than just normal cloth, Matt thought as he twisted to look for what had attacked him, seeing nothing but mist.

“I can just… I can almost see it when I Hide,” Vic said. “It’s like a blur, a shadow–Thor, it’s heading for you, look out, get away–”

Thor stumbled back, wildly swinging his dagger around to defend against the invisible foe. A moment later, he was thrown backwards at the same time as blood poured from a wound in his chest. Mia rushed towards Thor, and Matt stepped closer to them, holding his guandao ready in front of him.

“Pete!” There was an urgency in Vic’s voice, and Pete reacted quickly, slashing his sword in a large circle. “Good! You nearly caught it,” Vic said. “It retreated. No, it’s coming… Matt!”

Clenching his jaw against a pang of fear, Matt mirrored Pete’s move and swung the guandao in a large circle in front of him, nearly catching the blade on the trunk of a thick bamboo stem.

“To your left!” Vic shouted, and he swung in that direction, with no effect. Then Vic bent backwards to avoid an unseen attack before springing forward in a lunge, the dagger missing whatever he was aiming for. He is going to overextend himself, Matt just had time to think before something pushed Vic from the back, making Vic groan in pain as he was pushed down and sprawled on the soft ground.

Fear growing, Matt was about to step forward to pull Vic back closer to Mia when his bond with the guandao vibrated with intense meaning. What do you want? He was momentarily confused. It wants to take over my senses, my eyes? No… It wants to take my eyes, to move them, to…? The bond buzzed more sharply. Still confused, but trusting the weapon, Matt accepted the request, linking his attention with the guandao’s core. With dizzying abruptness, his perspective snapped away from his own head.

Suddenly, his point of view was from the blade of the weapon, and he could see. A moment before, he had just seen bamboo sticks rising out of a dense, white mist. Now the mist was gone, and the surrounding forest appeared as ghostly traces. And right in front of him–

An apparition was rushing towards him, and he took a half-step back as he swung his weapon from low to high. His brain was struggling to keep up with the new point of view and he stumbled and nearly fell to the ground as his perspective stayed with the blade as it traced an arc towards the monster. Even as his vision was fixed to the end of his weapon; he could still feel his own body, feel his balance and his stance, the tension running from his hips up through his chest and into his arms. He found a way through the confusion to maintain a powerful swing, pushing essence into the weapon as it reached the end of its arc.

What had appeared as ghostly blades to his own eyes, appeared as solid metal to the guandao’s own senses, and he became the array of sharp metal, catching the strange apparition across its head. Face shredded, the creature fell back to the ground in agony.

A faint whisper of approval radiated up through his bond as his perspective snapped back to his own eyes, causing a powerful wave of pain and nausea. For several moments, dizziness pulsed through his head, before he forced himself to struggle back to his feet. Looking around, he was alert for any other attacks.

The creature had become visible upon death. A strange yellow-tinted blood spread across the leaf-covered ground under a creature that looked like… a collapsed, grey and black shadow. Perhaps two feet long, it looked intangible, like a spirit, tentacles of dark shadow flowing down from a more solid head that was marked with two faintly glowing eyes.

“Everyone ok?” He asked.

Mia nodded at him, then said, “More writing appeared when it died. I was busy. Did anyone catch it?”

“Yes,” Pete said. "It said, 'A slight disturbance in the balance.'"