Morgan returned in a metaphorical cold sweat. They were uncertain about a lot of things right now. After all, they had just learned that those dreams they had were not actually dreams but memories of the world, as the dragon known as Adrestia called them. Though, She did say that Morgan had told her that term so Morgan does wonder where that term originates from. This brings up a point: are they really who the memories they have say they are or are those also memories of the world as well. Perhaps Morgan was never a person, they were only a collection of memories of a person injected into a dungeon.Maybe they weren't one, but multiple people and their memories are an amalgam of those memories. It’s impossible for Morgan to know. Though, the gods likely know the truth but they are distant for now so answers But now isn't the time to be thinking about temporal paradoxes or to have an existential crisis. The devourer will be coming here eventually and come hell or high water, Morgan will be ready for it. And so in about an hour, Morgan shook off their existential crisis and called up Guide.
“Guide, where did the lich I made part of my dungeon go?”
“Your denizen? They went up to the townscape. Why?”
“I just wanted to talk to them about some things.” As Morgan prepared to leave a thought crossed their mind, so they asked Guide: “Guide, why was it called the dweller conversion system if it created denizens?”
“Ah, that is because of the classification of beings in your dungeon. When a Creature is in a dungeon it is split into one of 4 classifications. The first is Dweller. A dweller in a dungeon is a creature that is in a dungeon that is neither harming nor really helping the dungeon. They may kill monsters and help keep the peace. This is the one of the two types of being you are trying to bring to the dungeon with your little plan. The second type is defenders. These are forces that are not part of the dungeon that are seeking to actively protect the dungeon. They will keep the peace in a more aggressive fashion but still kill monsters as that helps the dungeon grow. Most adventure guild officials are considered defenders over dwellers because of the rules. This is the other type of being you want to recruit for that plan of yours.” Guide explained in a manner like a teacher explaining a subject.
“Maybe I should create a guild building for them here, But wait, I don’t know what type of building they want so I should just reserve a spot for it.”
“That seems prudent as they likely have already sent a guild dungeon exploration squad. They will likely be able to give you a rough idea of what to build for them.“
“Any idea how long till they arrive?” Morgan said with a bit of humor.
“It honestly depends on too many variables for me to calculate. Such as size of group, location, weather conditions, monster locations, location of people, transit arrival and departure-” Guide explained dryly until Morgan stopped them.
“I get it, anyways should we get back on track with your previous explanation?”
“As you wish. The third type is likely the type you're most familiar with: Denizens. Denizens are creatures that exist inside your dungeon as a part of your dungeon. All monsters you create with dungeon functions are considered denizens. Any creature can become a denizen by giving something of great value to them and by forming a contract with the dungeon.If the dungeon accepts them and the item is of sufficient personal value they will become a denizen for the rest of their life. A denizen is not bound to the dungeon but will become greatly weakened when they leave the dungeon. The only way out of being a denizen is if one of the parties dies. Which leads us to the last type departures. They used to have a different name, but the dungeons adopted this term after learning what the guild calls them. Departures are those who try to destroy dungeons. Departures are hostile to all other types of beings since they are actively hunted by the guild since trying to destroy a dungeon is a crime the guild punishes. They are known like this because they depart from the guilds rules. If one is in your dungeon They will be marked on your map. So do not leave them be, exterminate them with extreme prejudice. Do leave them be or-”
“I get it, kill any departures on sight lest they hurt me. Anything else that is obvious that you need to tell me or can I go find feng bao now?”
“No expect you will find them in the northern part of town and they look a little different from the last time you saw them.”
“What do you mean by that?”
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“You’ll see.” and Guide’s presence faded away.
After all of that, once Morgan went up to the town, they quickly found where the lich was. But that was quite easy as they were in the only structure that was not built by Morgan. It appeared to be some kind of large tent. Without even a moment's hesitation, once they went in they saw a large amount of stacks of books and what looked like a red haired and winged child. Thankfully, they had clothes on. Morgan figured this was what Guide was talking about. So Morgan announced their presence to the figure.
“It is good to see you again, Feng Bao.”
The voice startled Feng Bao. “Ah great dragon Morgan it is good to see that you're up. Forgive me for not being prepared for your visit but I heard those sleep episodes you experience usually last for a little while.”
“Oh I came to talk to you about those but first is that what you looked like before you because a lich?”
“Yes, that is correct. Part of the reason is that my body never finished maturing. My body is forever stuck now looking like what I did when I was 385 years old."
“That seems later than most races' maturity cycles. And you are stuck like this because that's when you became a lich?”
“Yes, celestials do not finish maturity till about their 500 years old. The only race that has a longer maturity cycle are dragons which take about twice as long to fu;;y mature. And yes your assumption is correct I was forced to become a lich quite young due an incident in my past. Though now I am an awakened lich. ”
“Awakened lich? And will you tell me about that incident?”
“I would rather not talk about that incident. And an awakened lich is one of the evolved forms of an elder lich. To evolve into an awakened lich You must absorb a large amount of necrotic energies. I drew these necrotic energy from your core when I became a denizen of the dungeon.”
“And why would you do that?”
“I did because it is faster for me to take care of it than you can with no assistance. Think like this: a bucket filled with water with a small hole in the bottom. If you let it drain naturally it will eventually empty. But if someone were to dump out the bucket it would naturally be empty a lot faster even if it wasn’t all removed. While the dungeon core would eventually remove the significant amount of necrotic element you absorbed from this town, letting me take care of it helps you much faster. No need to thank me.”
“RIght.” Morgan rolled their nonexistent eyes.
“By the way my current form is but an illusion.My true form still is still quite similar to what You saw before. The illusion is automatically applied to me but I can remove it at will” Feng Bao proved this by dispelling the illusion on their right arm. It looked almost identical to what Morgan remembered except that it had blue patterns on it. It was at that point that Morgan realized that they had gotten off topic. SO they refocused the conversation.
“So Mr. Feng Bao, or is it Ms.? Why did you bring all these books here? What is your purpose in doing this?”
“Ah, I forgot to properly identify myself. Allow me to rectify that mistake. My name is Feng Bao, A female celestial, in my past I was known as the Phoenix of knowledge. As to the reason for bringing my books, it is rather simple: I wish to prove that I have genuine intentions,” She said.
“Genuine intentions!?” Morgan can’t help but scoff at that. Because they know that Feng Bao is already hiding some secrets from them.
“Yes, genuine intentions. Because if someone approaches with many secrets you will most likely think that they are approaching you with ulterior motives. So I brought the items that I valued the most: My books or rather the knowledge they contain. They are an offering to you.”
“If you want to prove your intentions then there is a simpler way, Just give what you know about something.”
“Very well. Ask your question o’ great dragon Morgan”
It was at this point that Morgan explained to her about the memories of the world. Feng Bao seemed puzzled but also intrigued about this. Once Morgan finished their explanations, she said-
“Hmm, I have never heard of this kind of thing before in my books. Even as my time as an apostle of Ethil I never heard but it is likely-”
“You were an apostle of the gods?”
“-the gods have a plan for you. Yes I was an apostle back in the early part of my lichdom. But that was a long time ago now. Anyways the gods must have given you this power for a reason but as a mortal I cannot truly fathom the gods’ plans.”
“Just another thing to ask the gods about. I’ll add it to the list. Anyways I thank you for providing me with that information. So to thank you I’ll ask: would you like a library to be built as your place in the dungeon?”
“Yes, that would be appreciated.”
“All right I will do that once the main parts of the town are ready.”
And then as Morgan left they thought to themselves that they really need to get things moving or else they won’t be ready by the time people arrive.
But Morgan was unaware that the world outside was moving as well.