Newest invaders aren’t invaders. They have no desire to kill. They explore, they are delvers.
Delvers are…. Different.
They left gifts. Things to learn from. They give food instead of becoming food.
Still hungry. Wanted to eat them, but ants not strong enough. Delvers escaped alive.
Ants need to be bigger. They need to hunt all prey.
Now minions eat what was left behind. Stones of first invader given to eclipse slime. Weird fire stick from same invader given to Shimmer. Ants eat food left by delvers.
Together we learn.
> Understanding Increased: Refined Mana - the first step to enchanting.
> Understanding of Mana Increased, Mana Control increased by 3
Tasty mana. Lots of flavors. New favorite food, refined mana. Refined mana and people. Both full of mana and food.
Items left behind are full of mana. It is food that feeds the entire dungeon.
With this we [GROW, EXPAND, CONQUER].
Delvers leave behind food for ants. Ants just need more food to grow stronger. They need more mana.
Mana fill their hive. Dungeon has a lot of mana after people left. A lot of mana to feed ants to make them stronger. Dungeon will not have weak monsters. Weak monsters are useless.
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The delvers’ expedition had given the dungeon a massive influx of mana as they passively gave it off. A volume so large that it forced the Core to grow to contain it. Its doubled size only increased its control over the world. A newfound power it used to flood its domain with mana. Dozens of small mutations appeared in the population across the dungeon as the Core forced rapid evolution with the guiding hand of System to help.
System tried really hard to not feel slighted by this disregard of their function, yet found it very difficult. Even emotionless machines can feel annoyed when their users have no idea what they are doing.
To avoid a third total disaster, System stepped in to give purpose to the will of the mana. No longer flowing with the only command of ‘make stronger,’ the desire was given a path to its goal. Upgrades for the ant’s nest were first, as they enabled genetic drift just as magical affinity coursed its way into the young. Two upgrades System originally locked, but no longer cared to hide.
In the heart of the ant’s nest, two more queens hatched. Each one with a slight mutation on the previously existing version. They would all work together and birth their young, but when one becomes successful, System would be there to taper off the genetic dead ends.
After all, System was the will of the universe, and they desired to stop seeing failure.
The changes started small. Splashes of color across their carapaces as some lost their bright red color while others refined it. The mutations grew too rapidly from the Core’s desire to have immediate results. Changes in their eyes and noses that made some more capable of sensing the world around them, while it made others worse. Those that were made worse System turned back into the pure mana that birthed them so that others could take their place.
The enchantments from the artifacts left behind by the invader were put to use. Reconstructed and replicated using biology alone, the shattered magic was used to harden the shells of the next generation. The knowledge of the fire wand gave a queen a slight fire affinity. These advantages adaptations left a single queen in the dust. Her genetic material converted into mana to make room for another, one that would contain both the hardened shells and the magic affinity.
While cruel, in a dungeon, it was do or die. Adapt or perish.
And System had no desire to meet their end in this dungeon.
Through sheer trial and error, the populations of ants became stronger. Far from their true potential, the upgrades they received differed from upgrades at their spawner. These upgrades did not make others more expensive. A minor loophole System was aware of and happy to make use of.
However, the ants were not the only population that marched into a better future.
The Core’s mana did not have a single target as it flooded the surroundings. While burned, the spores of moss had survived, just as the seeds of lupine were buried by the harvester ants.
The seeds of each plant clung to each other as they fused. A hybrid of summer’s invasive lupine and the winter hardy arctic moss sprouted. A mana-filled plant that got the attention of Shimmer. Her presence caused the plant to grow even faster.
Withered and unfit for a long life, the hybrid of close enough to being genetically viable for Shimmer’s light to help its seeds grow. Evolution on a rapid scale, each day new generations found the most viable offspring to see the light of the next sunrise.
Over the weeks, the plants grew stronger. Environmental pressures pushed them to new heights as an unexpected source of power was found in the soil. A sigil. A ward written by a passing mage designed to protect these mountains. Samu was an Incanter of Intent, his magic imbued with emotions to serve his goals. They found a mutual desire to protect these hills and this dungeon.
An unintended option System was all too happy to allow. They drafted the message as much as they ushered the new species into the world.
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> Species Created: Cleansing Carex - A prickly variant of Sage Grass, capable of surviving harsh winters and magical corruption. A pioneer species for the apocalypse.
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A body blacker than pitch, the embodiment of the abyss. The ruler of his domain in the underbelly of the dungeon. He was the slime who solved cases and protected the others.
And he was on break.
Able to relax as he waited for a fresh case to come in, he watched the world go by. The local kids on the block worked together to form another gang. Admittedly, one far more civilized than the previous one he had to intervene in. The once shady operations had been reformed to become a force for good.
It was a change that made the detective smile to himself, knowing that his work had been so successful.
The gang of insects had amounted to something. Their tunnels became a complex maze of twists and turn. They reinforced their bodies with knowledge of enchanted stones, just as their hive gave off the heat of their fire affinities. They had become a forge of creation rather than destruction.
Individually, each ant was a mindless child that stumbled through the dark without purpose of thought. It was only when they joined hands to work together were they capable of building the fortress that was the first line of defense against all invaders.
This progress and construction of defenses inspired the detective. The last invader had gotten close to the Client. If it wasn’t for the detective being nearby, they would have all met their end. He needed to protect the dungeon. He needed to build a labyrinth of his own.
His new body ate away at the stone as if it was nothing. Below the earth, his mana-fueled body of oil was unmatched. Slowly, an additional layer of the dungeon took form. It began just below the ant’s nest and extended as a long hallway that sloped down to be far away from anyone who wishes harm. One day their tunnels would be so large these narrow tunnels will fall to expansion, just as one day the path to the Client will be a maze none will solve. Today, however, he was content with the straight tunnel that put the crystal that gave them life out of reach of invaders.
As he paused his work, the detective turned his senses skyward to gaze upon the magnificence that was Shimmer. A slime that radiated her love for the world and wore her heart on her sleeves. Her love allowed her to make friends as they worked together to lure in the feathered enemies from the overcast sky they hid within.
The ants had a blaze in their hearts, the affinity of flame that made their cold-blooded bodies move quicker than they had just days prior. The speed they needed to swarm and ambush the flying invaders that were lured in by the light of Shimmer. Teamwork that got results.
It brought a smile to the detective’s grizzled features to know his sister had adapted so well to this new life. She had made friends, worked as a team, and found success. A life completely separate from his own as he was a lone wolf that dug ever deeper to separate himself from the world. He had to remain detached, otherwise, the cases would get to him. He had to remain strong for the others.
While he ruminated, the success of the surface endeavors bore fruit. The informant was all too happy to update on their progress.
> Understanding Increased: Basic Avian Biology - beak, lungs, digestive tract.
Knowledge of a completely different life. Yet, basic understanding was never the goal, only a stepping stone. The work on the surface continued as something more was unlocked.
> Understanding Increased: Advanced Avian Biology - Wings, flight, hollow bones
A dozen birds fed to the Informant. Each one is a brick laid in the never-ending march of progress. The knowledge of flight. The power of travel, of movement. Bones that give structure to their form.
Such a unique way of traversing the world that slimes would never understand.
As wondrous as the knowledge of flight was, it was a distraction from the true treasure. Misdirection and deceit to hide what the birds had brought with them in their stomachs. Digestive tracks filled to the brim with unknown varieties of insects and seeds. What they salvaged was added to the foundation, half a brick at a time.
It gave a new perspective to everyone as we realized there are different ways to live. That we are not defined by the roles we were born into. One that the ants took to with vigor as the Informant gave their verdict.
> Mastery over ‘Insectoid’ knowledge - for the next month insectoid species will evolve to fill every niche.
The hive of insects split at the news. The evolution of the ants branched to create species radically different. Enlightenment brought on by dead birds, the hive was all too eager to capitalize and create diversity.
The changes in the hive made the detective realize he needed to do the same. A detective at heart, but his employer didn’t need mysteries to be solved, they needed to be protected. They were the treasure that brought life to the dungeon.
He needed to become the guardian of the Client and their domain. Shedding the title of detective, he would become the Warden of the Vault, the last line of defense.
Inevitably, the liars and cheats of the world would return. He needed to be ready. So he took a name that would forever remind him of the mission. He became W. Vault, the one who would stop thieves.
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The road of a thousand steps starts with one.
Each day, another step. One after another. A journey that saw progress with each milestone and discovery.
When the plants were dissected, their intelligence rose. When the insects invaded, their intelligence rose. When the delvers visited, their intelligence rose.
Culture, magic, and evolution. Each discovery made the Core greater. Its thoughts, its control over its domain, its ability to be a dungeon. Slowly, each built upon another until the snowball cascaded into more.
Until the dungeon Core itself evolved. No longer the home for just plants, the ecosystem it created around itself was imbued with enough mana to change the very nature of the dungeon. It became an Arcane Core, a dungeon specially evolved to take on the dead mana that polluted the Joulo mountain range.
Race:
Dungeon Core (Arcane)
System Age:
2.5 years
Intelligence:
0 -> 10
Mana Control:
0 -> 6
Racial Trait:
Dungeon’s Domain (2/10)
The surroundings are touched by your mana, they exist to serve you.
Status Effect:
Mana Atrophy
Once dead, the mana has new life. It is weak and slow to move; casting time is doubled.
Activated Mastery:
Niche Exploitation (insect)
Absolute knowledge has allowed insects to evolve to fill new niches. Time Remaining: 3w, 6d, 20h…
> Subrace Change: Mana Core - effect of overcoming dead mana. Knowledge of refined mana enhanced, new evolution paths available. Enchanted items added to potential loot pools for delvers.