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“Victoria!” Rowan exclaimed. “So happy to see you.”
“Who’s she?” Hubert asked.
“The reason I kept a space open in my team.”
“Sorry to be late. Your people told me the entrance was under the bridge, but I searched for half an hour and—”
“It was in a pilon.”
“Didn’t find it, I used my smoke. You were fighting when I arrived, but had things well in hand so I let you be and scouted ahead… There is good news and bad news. I reached the next floor and made contact with a group of prisoners, they were friendly. Bad news, you have to go through that shark-infested water, the passage is on the bottom. About… thirty feet deep.”
“My suit is submersible, but don’t count on me for fighting, Cora said. “I’m in panic mode near water.”
“I’m OK to have a go,” Bree said.
“I’ll do it,” Rowan said. “Victoria, you think you can borrow me some of your smoke until I reach the sharks? Just to go easy on my Perk's stacks.”
The blonde nodded and forwarded to him her cigarette, keeping it between her fingers. After he inhaled, she also did, and they entered the interdimensional space together, staring at each other.
[Victoria to Rowan]: Don't exhale too much and it's fine. As long you have a trace of smoke in your lungs, you will be in the Space.
[Rowan to Victoria]: Just a thought… Isn't more appropriate to call this the in-between?
[Victoria to Rowan]: In-between is out of fashion. If you want to look cool in an Awakened bar, say: We had a Joint and took a trip into the Space.
[Rowan to Victoria]: Good to know. Take care to be in the Space when I’ll activate my Snowstorm. I'll give you a heads-up.
[Victoria to Rowan]: No need, I’ll wait for you on the other floor.
She offered him another smoke and they stepped into the sea, walking on the bottom. The center of the floor was not so far, maybe a couple of hundred yards away, so that meant the beach had an illusion on it forbidding the other side to be seen. Three more inhales and they reached the portal to the next floor, a swirling circle of darkness. He took another smoke, then gave the cigarette back to her, and waited until Victoria went to the other side.
All five shark groups were circling above the swirling blackness, going on and on. Exiting the Space after exhaling as hard as he could, Rowan activated Snowstorm at maximum force and in its pure AoE form. It did carnage, crushing four of the five monster groups, and freezing large chunks of water around, but he cut it short because of the lack of Mana, and the need to breathe, activating Joint Trip. He used rebar to kill the last group of sharks and climbed to the surface.
“It’s all clear, you can come,” he yelled, treading the water, and inspecting his notification.
The First Floor of The Shore Dungeon has been cleared. You were the major DPS contributor and received 1 free AP. You have leveled x1. You are Level 72.
Räsvelg’s First Aspect: Snowstorm cost is now 47 Mana/second. Increased potency by +25% vs Aquatic Targets.
As soon as the group reached the spot, he escorted Cora and Papa Allinder to the portal. Swimming downward, he noticed for the first time that Cora’s suit had also a segmented armor part for the tail, that waved in gracious movement through the water.
She’s so cute!
Then, they were on the other side, on a jungle floor. Trees reached to the sky, but their canopy threw a deep shadow around. A lot of noise around, birds, monkeys… some roars. A pair of tall humanoids waited next to Victoria, their clothes in tatters, and themselves emaciated. They had pointy ears, and their skin had a slight bluish-coppery hue.
Hm… Jungle… Tree Elves?
The rest of the Raid had arrived while he was inspecting them, and Rowan offered a handshake.
“Rowan Allinder, nice to meet you. This is our raid. My wife, Cora, my pa', Johan, Hubert, Bree, and people whose names I forgot, sorry!” he yelled toward the group.
"No problem, it's on you," a man said.
"What's on him?" Papa Allinder asked, but Rowan ignored him, as he exchanged handshakes with the Elves.
“Fay,” the woman said.
“Inglotal. Follow us.”
The man started to run, and they had no other choice but to follow, panting or not. Ten minutes later, they reached a clearing, with typical longhouses sprinkled on it, and some tree houses as well. There were a lot of people in that village, more than in the Goblin Town, and all were thin. They got surrounded in no time, everybody looking at them with apprehension and hope.
“They need food,” Victoria shouted. “Whoever has a sandwich to spare, give it to the children.”
“What happened here?” Rowan addressed his two guides, after putting every bit of food he had on him on a table.
Fay gestured for him to follow and entered a small hut, where they sat at a table, across from each other. The raid members leaned on the walls. From outside, curious eyes followed them through the windows.
The woman began to speak, looking into his eyes. “Our tribe tried to colonize a virgin planet, and we took a loan to buy equipment. Our quest was to rediscover the old ways, of living closer to nature."
"That's a noble goal," Papa Allinder said. "I often took my son hiking, to teach him our Old Norse ways. That's how he became so strong."
Rowan facepalmed, sliding his hand down on his cheeks, burrowing his fingers in his skin, to refrain from screaming. The woman repressed a smile, that was clear enough, and he felt embarrassed to the moon and back. "Please, continue," he sighed.
"It was not meant to be… When we failed to pay our debts, we were forced to sign an indenture contract for ten years, in an Entertainment dungeon. We barely started when the ship crashed on your planet. Soon after, the dungeon awoke, and us with it. Our former leader had a way of communicating with the exterior, but he tried to sell everybody into worse slavery, in which each of us, including children, would have been a pleasure provider.”
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“That kind of an entertainment dungeon brings a lot of money on the intergalactic black market,” Cora said. “It’s probably the Mercs.”
"There are humans who are as bad," Rowan said. "Viscardi has a team dedicated to identifying and killing them. Sorry, Fay. What happened next?"
“We fought back, and he and the people he wanted to sell us to ran deeper into the dungeon, to claim the core. We followed, but the dungeon changed out of a sudden, spawning monsters. We cleared ten floors but met a blockage on the eleventh and had to return to base. We’re giving it a second try now, but we’re out of food and short on Mana. Our fighters barely managed to clear the next three floors.”
“The monsters must respawn once a few days,” Cora added.
Fay kneaded her hands together. “Please, help us, and we’ll serve you for the rest of the sentence, as long you settle for normal work. We have many skills.”
Rowan let out a long sigh. “Fay, and mister… sorry, forgot your name. I suppose one can move between floors, as long they’re cleared, yes?”
“True,” the woman nodded, looking a little befuddled.
“Gather your people and move to the first floor. We'll install a lifeline to help the weak ones swim. Once there, I’ll get you out of the dungeon and send you to our city, where you’ll find food and shelter. Classes are rare in our world, so we could, indeed, use your help. Whoever wants to stay with us, will sign a contract for ten years, for the average pay… don’t ask me how much that’s an hour, because the dollar isn’t worth much anymore and we’re switching to Mana Coins… never mind. Nevertheless, we’re not into slavery, indenture, stuff. Those who want to leave will be free to leave.”
“I don’t have enough cigarettes for everybody,” Victoria said. “Even if they share.”
“Trust me, I have a way to get everybody out of the dungeon."
"And how does your Lordship, intend to do that? Can you explain to us, mere mortals who risk their lives in dungeons daily and could use such a feat?" Hubert asked.
"Can you cut the sarcasm, mind your business, and let me work, for a change?" Rowan frowned at the priest.
Svartálfar applied to target: Paladin Hubert. Dazed and Stunned for ten seconds.
Now, the priest was wobbling on the bench, his tongue slightly hanging out from his mouth.
Oops! Never mind. That will teach him a lesson.
“Fay, you have to trust me on this. Tell your people to grab their valuables and move them to the first floor. Before the night, you'll be safe and fed. Victoria, I'll need your help. The rest of the raid can take a break.”
----------------------------------------
It took until late afternoon to move all the people up, and he sent Victoria forward, to organize things on the other side. There were nearly three thousand people to rescue in the end, when the teams from the lower floors returned.
“A word,” Fay came to him.
“Hit me. Ouch! Hey! What's up with you?" Rowan yelled, massaging his cheek.
"You ask me to hit you," Fay said, turning the palm she used to slap Rowan up, in a gesture of befuddlement.
"Oh… cultural differences, I see. Here, it's just an expression. It means: tell me what's on your mind."
The Elf shrugged. “Do you want me and my husband to stay behind and guide you through the dungeon?”
“Is there any serious challenge?”
“For an army this big? No. On the sixth floor, there are iron golems, tough, but beatable. Then Sand Sharks, Water Sharks, more golems, and some zombies. Their DOTs are big and stack but they are slow and vulnerable to AoE’s.”
“Then we’ll be OK.”
“One more thing…” Fay shifted her weight from one leg to another, hesitating.
“Shoot. STOP!" he yelled, as the Elf was touching her bow. "I mean, what’s up now?”
“Are you an elf, by any chance? We all saw you using the Cold Gaze on that pagan priest, back in the village.”
Pagan, huh? I guess everyone has a different perspective on things.
“It’s a Perk I have, it’s called Svartálfar Stare.”
The surprise on the woman’s face was striking. She swallowed a lump. “S-Svartálfar? How? We’re the Svartálfar… the Swarthy Elves…”
“Really? Well, if I believe my father's sheet stats, I could have some elven blood in my veins.”
“It warms my heart to meet a fellow Swarthy Elf so far from home. Moreover one with such a precious perk,” Fay bowed her head.
“The Stare? Yeah, it’s a neat trick, but not as powerful as Räsvelg.”
“You have Räsvelg too?” the woman gasped, but he was too tired to have that conversation, at that moment.
“Are your people ready?”
“Yes, they are,” she looked around.
“Good. Just let me check something with my father. Papa, have you made up your mind? Will you stay with us?" Rowan asked the older man, who was talking with his Nekojin wife, six feet farther. "Hey, pay attention!"
"…and he slept with his Teddy bear until— Sorry, was telling Cora what a sweet child you were."
"Thank you so much for embarrassing me yet again. Have you made up your mind? Will you stay with us?"
"Of course, I'll stay with you," Papa Allinder weighed his words. "You need my help and guidance, that's sure."
"Argh…" Rowan gestured a choking gesture. "OK, then it's time you pledge your allegiance. If you start pestering me with questions about this or that, I'll refuse your citizenship application and drag your old ass back to Philly as soon we're finished with this dungeon, so I swear."
"That's not a civilized language to use on your father," the old man crossed his arms.
"Just go on with the Oath and don't interrupt me." Putting two fingers in her mouth, Rowan let out a loud whistle, to make the elves look at him.
Mass notification and message:
His Lordship Count Allinder, Count of Randolph County, Suzerain of Rome, Warchief of Goblin Town, and Honorary Godfather of Calveor offers all Swarthy Elves here present citizenship rights in Randolph County.
The Swarthy Elves will be provided with fair jobs, land (within reasonable limits) housing, and assistance to build back their lives.
All who accept the offer are bound to respect the Laws of Randolph County and swear a non-disclosure System-enforced Oath: they're not to reveal to any third party or casually talk about the Count's Perks or any spell, ability, skill, or perk of his or any Classed working for him. Penalties can vary between fines, Perma Death, Insta Death, becoming Bounty Hunted, and Pariahs.
Those who accept the offer, press Yes. Minors who are almost of age can select Yes themselves. Parents are required to accept the offer for younger minors. Those who reject the offer will be presented with a separate non-disclosure contract and will be free to go wherever they want. Those who reject both offers are asked to orderly form a separate queue, waiting to be painlessly and mercifully put to death.
Accept offer: Y/N
"That goes against everything I believe in," Rowan could hear his father mumbling behind him. However, the Yes was unanimous.
[Count Rowan Allinder to all]: OK, folks, we're going out. You know the drill.
The Elves started to join hands. They were packed together as tightly as possible, in rows and lines, parents carrying the smaller children on their backs or bags hung on their chests. Rowan had practiced the move a few times before, just to make sure everybody understood what was supposed to happen.
There were notifications, messages, and whistle-calls all lying around. When the calls ended, and all were ready, Rowan took Fay’s hand and activated Joint Trip. It was the first time he used it on such a large scale, but it worked. Everybody he touched, even indirectly, was pulled into the Space. Slowly, they walked through the dungeon’s outer edge, appearing inside Tygart’s Valley, on the river’s edge. He dismissed the Perk with three seconds to spare and with all the elves through.
There were roars, an ocean of gasps… Children rushed to play with the snow, and adults cheered.
“Follow the nice people through that Portal,” Rowan shouted, gesturing toward the blue gate going into town, with social workers and the police waiting to escort them.
“Hey,” Isla approached. “I brought food and the reinforcements you asked for.”
“Hail do you do,” Fenrri saluted. Behind her and Snemc was a long file of Goblinoid warriors, two by two.
[Rowan to Fenrri]: Please don't say Hail around here, it has a really bad connotation.
The Ogre gave him a thumbs up, and then he yelled as loud as he could: “OK, troops, hold hands, like in kindergarten. Chop chop.”
Joint Trip activated (6/10 remaining)
Before his stack got to its end, he was back inside the Dungeon, and a sizeable army together with him. His bet had paid. This was not a combat-oriented dungeon, and he could bring in more than a simple raid. How the monsters spawned was a question for another time. The ensuing notification gave him great joy, despite his fingers being hurt by Fenrri's humongous strong grasp.
For taking a record number of people with you, Joint Trip has advanced to the next tier, extending its duration to 45 seconds. You can chain stacks and have unlocked a new aspect: Friends on a Trip. You can take your friends, party, or raid in the in-between without touching them if they’re not farther than thirty yards from you.
For saving the Swarthy Elves, you have been awarded 10 free APs.