Hey sorry for the late chapter. My proofreaders and I are students and we don't always have the time to use on the story. So sorry about that. Leave reviews, as they are free and let me know what to change. Also let me know how you guys feel about the third person. Let me know if you like 3rd person more than 1st or vice versa. Anyway enjoy the chapter.
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In the morning Claire wakes up, her eyes blink and she tries to move her arm to wipe away the crust. When her arm doesn’t move, she suddenly looks at the weight she only now realizes is on her chest. Helen had fallen asleep on her. “Uggggghh,” mutters Claire “This is the third day in a row”. She carefully lifts Helen’s arm and moves it from around her side. She tries to slide out from under Helen’s embrace without waking her, she fails however. Helen lifts her head up and blinks the sleep from her eyes. She glances around confused about where she is before it clicks in her head. Helen’s cheeks flush, “uh-uh s-sorry Claire” is all she stammers out. Her face is flushed red and she hurries to her dresser. The room is filled with an awkwardness so thick you could cut it, all emanating from Helen. Claire didn’t notice the air in the room, and unknowingly gave Helen a show. “Hey Helen are you alright? Your nose is bleeding” Comes a reply from between the divider. Claire turns to see Sandra with an obsessive amount of bed head. “Y-yeah I'm fine” Helen replies, Sandara chuckles to herself and shakes her head. A pillow sails across the room and hits Sandara in the side of the head. Sandara shoots daggers at Helen who just sits on her bed innocently, no pillow on her bedspread. Before Sandara can throttle Helen an arm drops around Sandara’s shoulder. Jacob stands behind her, he gives her a peck on the cheek. “Now now ladies” he says “No fighting this early in the morning” Helen huffs at him and sticks her tongue out. Kevin soon wakes up after hearing the commotion and shambles to the divider where his sister and Jacob are standing. “What's all the racket? Can't a man get some shut eye after being punched so hard he falls unconscious?” Kevin says a smile across his face. Claire scowls and turns away from him. “Breakfast is gonna start soon and Tammy is making pancakes. Someone got flour as a quest reward, and Tammy bought it off them” Sandara says rubbing her hands together and licking her lips. Sandara skips out of the room without fixing her bed head. Jacob gives Kevin a sympathetic glance, “Hey she’s with you, you couldn’t tell her that she has bed head?” is all Kevin replies. Jacob sighs and trudges out of the room, “Honey” he calls. “Yeees” replies Sandara in a sing songy voice. “WHAT?!?!?!” Is all the three here from the room. Suddenly a loud snap the sound of breaking wood, and Sandara screams. Then a large thud seemingly resounds from outside. Kevin bolts out the door, Helen and Claire dart out quickly after. A man is holding a large box one side of the box is broken open. A large bag of flower is spilled all over the floor below the upstairs banister. Sandara is on the floor crying, “My pancakes” she whimpers. Tears slowly falling onto the wooden floor.
After a breakfast devoid of pancakes and the party getting themselves cleaned up. They start the short trip to the adventurers guild. The main hall is no longer empty space, but a bustling foyer. A teller at the front desk greets them. Behind her a large array of various stalls sell all sorts of basic supplies an adventurer would need. A few people mill about but most are still drunk after a night of partying, the party they had to skip because of a broken finger and jaw. The stage which previously held a podium and changing stalls now has large boards that contain all number of quests and notices. The party picks their way through the crowd, greeting familiar faces and buying the odd tool that could be useful. One never knew what one might need in a place as twisted as the labyrinth beneath the city. The party eventually makes their way up to the stage and looks over the lowest ranking quests. Something to flex their muscles and get the two newest additions acclimated to the dungeon with.
Gods know how many people chose quests above their pay grade and never made it out of the dungeon. They chose a simple kobold extermination quest, the little green lizard people had been becoming a nuisance near some of the farming settlements on the outskirts of the city.
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Many people feared them because of their draconic nature, but they were anything but frightening. At best they could be ferocious. The tallest standing only at waist height. Ten kobold teeth could go from 2-5 iron truffles, and the hides offered a decent amount of protection. The leathery but scaled hide made magnificent amour if it was tanned properly. Some people in the upper parts of society actually kept them as pets, breeding them for scale colour as shows of power.
Kevin never liked killing kobolds, goblins or any of the at least somewhat intelligent monsters in the dungeon. They felt people like to him, as if he was killing another person. The party pulls the notice down and walks over to the teller.
She pulls out a stamp with a glowing sigil on it she stamps the paper. Each party member marks the paper using the stamp, leaving a similar glowing sigil behind. Magic is almost universally forbid by the Church, Magic has the power to corrupt the very soul of a person changing them into monster after periods of extended use. The use of magic is punishable by banishment which is essentially a death sentence, they send you unarmoured and without food or weapons into the dungeon for people to fend for themselves. That was what happened to Claire’s, Sandara’s and Jacob’s parents. It was as if the universe spit in the face of the church however because Sandara manifested white magic, Holy magic, soon after. The stamping seal that was used by the guild was one of the only permitted items.
The dungeon gets progressively harder, since a majority of the populace is illiterate the layers are labelled by monster. The first layer is the GKG goblins, kobolds and gnolls. The second layer is OAL orks, anubids, and lizardmen. The third layer is TGM Trolls, Gargoyles and Minotaurs. The third layer is near death to anything but a small army. A force of 500 once went to the fourth layer, the only 4 people that made it out were driven mad. No one knows what lives there, but it is surmised to consist of Giants due to the large Cavern ceilings, as well as dragons and some other large scaled creatures.
The party makes their way through the city of white. White only in name however. The reek of refuse and death permanently lingers in the air. The throng of people walking in their own filth is packed tight into the narrow streets, thinking of what it might be like to live in the upper sector. The place where nobles and church members live, among the buildings so tall they scrape the clouds in the sky. Pan handlers beg for coin or food from anyone, Jacob wastes no time dropping a few Iron truphles into the pan of one such person. The old man looks at Jacob with reverence, Jacob simply smiles and continues onward.
After almost thirty minutes of walking the party reaches the dungeon. They take a quick break to fill their water skins at a fountain. Sandara exchanges a few words with the guard on post outside the dungeon’s entrance outpost. Jacob and Helen exchange a greeting as well, they introduce the guard named Terrace, “he basically tutored us through the dungeon when we got accepted a few years ago” Helen says. Terrace rubs the back of his head sheepishly, “Aww it was nothing for you lot. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if two beauties like this were killed in the dungeon. Also Jacobs kinda okay” he chuckles at the last line. Jacob jabs him in the side. He shares a knowing look with Jacob however. He limps aside as he lets the 5 adventurers through. Kevin notices the wooden foot that Terrace is sporting. As the party begins their descent into the dank dungeons below Terrace gives them a smile, “Good luck to you lot, I’ll have a pork bun ready for your return” Helen giggles and waves back.
As the party disappears into the gloom below, Terrace sits down at the chair next to the banded Iron door. He lifts his leg up and inspects the wooden appendage. The names Helen, Jacob, Sandara, and Lacey are carved into the wood. A steaming bun next to them.