The scene of the yuan-ti being repeatedly stabbed had replayed several times in the Lair’s mind. It seemed that the increased Intelligence score and being a dungeon came with near-perfect recall. The memory was an unwelcome gift, as was the sacrifice, until the Lair discovered they could block the memory from replaying and file it away, in a manner of speaking.

“Well… that was sure unsettling. They also know where we are. I’m not too keen on sticking around here. It also doesn’t seem like a good idea to head inland. I don’t want to get any closer to those snake-people than I have to. Do you know what is further up the coast? I know that your grove is somewhere back down the coast from where we came.”

Grumblebark’s leaves shuddered, aggravating some of the flock. “I am afraid that I… do not know specifics I… just have a general idea… of where things are on… the island I agree that… we should avoid the serpents… they cannot be trusted.”

“On that, we are completely simpatico, my fair familiar. No matter what sort of gifts they gave me, I would rather not run into them again anytime soon. They gave me the heebie jeebies. I suppose that settles it, we head up the coast. I’ll have the summons gather up. I also need to make an allocation or two. Mind pinging me if we get to something interesting or at about noon?”

The Lair didn’t receive a verbal response, but a rapid pulse of affirmation from Grumblebark and a ponderous first step was agreement enough. Diving into the center of their awareness, the Lair pulled up the status update from their recent level gain.

Received per level

Points

Health & Mana Points

You receive 5 – 10 hit points per level + constitution modifier (0)

You receive 5 – 10 mana points per level + intelligence modifier (16)

N/A

24

Skill Points

You currently receive one skill point per level.

4

Ability Points

You currently receive two ability points per level.

2

Racial Bonus

You receive an additional skill point per level that is restricted to an arcane skill of your choice.

4

You have gained 1,512 experience from Consume against Level 5 yuan-ti Scout. You have gained access to basic lore regarding the creature yuan-ti Scout.

Biographical Information:

Name: Hasshsithhh

Level: 5

Experience: 15,124

Race: Yuan-ti

Stats:

Health: 53

Mana: 29

Armor:

Strength: 15

Dexterity: 12

Constitution: 13

Intelligence: 10

Spirit: 13

Charisma: 8

Luck: 13

Resistances:

Immune to Fear, Confusion, & Panic

50% Earth Resistance

-50% Fire Resistance

Each of the abilities pertinent to the current circumstances couldn’t be leveled with only two ability points. Since the only creatures worth Binding so far had been creepy serpent-people and a single rhino, it seemed sensible to simply hold onto the points for the time being. It was a boring level gain, but it would still mean more powerful summons. The Lair gave their status sheet a quick scan before moving on to their summoning and cataloging routine. Level four mobs should be more interesting. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

Biographical Information:

Name: Lurking Lair

Level: 4

Experience: 12,412

Race: Dungeon

Class: Unavailable – Requirements not met

Alignment: Neutral

Languages: Common, Serpent Tongue

Stats:

Influence: 1,002 ft. radius

Durability: 900/900

Mana: 119/119

Strength: 0

Dexterity: 0

Intelligence: 26

Spirit: 26

Charisma: 11

Luck: 13

Movement Speed: 0

Resistances:

100% Mental Resistance

90% Magic Resistance

90% Physical Resistance

Aspects:

None

Skills:

Creation Magic 3, Natural

Combat Tactics 2, Natural

Dungeon Loremaster Skills:

Foraging

Grazing

Spells:

Level 0:

Summon Dungeon Monster

Summon Dungeon Familiar

Abilities:

Dungeon Essentials: Bind (1), Consume (3), Assimilate (3)

Traits:

Magical Construct: Strength, Dexterity, and Movement Speed set to 0. Constitution stat x100 becomes starting durability score. 90% Physical Resistance, 90% Magic Resistance, and 100% Mental Resistance.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Dungeon Loremaster: Can gain any skill, but can only use dungeon appropriate skills, i.e. magic and knowledge-based skills. Non-dungeon appropriate skills will be gained with no level or aptitude, but can be taught to creatures with high enough levels of aptitude.

Sphere of Influence: Dungeons have mana sense and can perceive all elements within their influence throughout the sensory spectrum. Dungeon influence naturally expands at a rate of 1 radial foot per day.

A slow twinge of awareness poked at the Lair, rousing them from their dream-like state. Grumblebark had stopped at the edge of a shimmering iridescent lagoon. The aquamarine water was so clear that they could see the fish darting around the shallow water and sea grass. At the far end of the lagoon, beyond the Lair’s sight, lay the channel that let ocean water into the inlet. Low tide made this channel impassable and trapped the sea life behind. The warm waters of this pool were abundant with all types of life.

Sensing the Lair’s awareness, Grumblebark let out a creaking ‘hurumph’. “It is about time you... finally responded to me I… have been trying to get… your attention for a while… now we have arrived at… a suitable location and it… is past noon.”

The Lair felt groggy from so much continued mana use and focus, Grumblebark’s rude awakening was not helping. “Got it. Sorry about that. I wanted to make sure we are ready if the yuan-ti find us. I bet they have a few tricks up their sleeves. Also, I have no idea how many of them there actually are. How far up the coast were we able to get?”

The meliae started moving its roots into the sandy earth below them, assuming this would be the spot they would stop at. “We have been moving all… day and we are further… away from the grove than… I have ever been before… we have gone so far that… the trees have changed and… the climate is colder.”

Ack. That’s not the most accurate gauge of distance, I shouldn’t have expected him to have a good reference point. I need to remember that he thinks in completely different terms. It would have to do. Grumblebark obviously didn’t seem keen on moving again anytime soon. This was as a good a place as any.

The Lair counted up their summons and gave the new arrivals an inspection. Overall, they had an impressive thirty-two minions, not counting the meliae. Most of the troops consisted of the animals that had followed from the stream. Some of those summons had managed to gain a level or two during the engagements with the orangutan and tapirs. The real prizes were the two new creature types: all of these were level four thanks to the Lair’s recent gains.

Biographical Information:

Name: Catoblepas

Level: 4

Experience: 0

Race: Bovine (dungeon summon)

Class: Unavailable – Requirements not met

Alignment: Neutral

Languages: None

Stats:

Health: 55

Mana: 23

Armor: 16

Strength: 14

Dexterity: 8

Constitution: 16

Intelligence: 7

Spirit: 12

Charisma: 6

Luck: 11

Resistances:

50% Earth Resistance

10% Physical Resistance

-50% Fire Resistance

Aspects:

Stalwart

Ability:

Breath Attack: Upon a failed Constitution save, target creature will become sick and unable to take any action except movement for 1d4 turns.

Traits:

Wretched Stench: All creatures within a 5’ radius of the catoblepas must make a successful save against poison or take 1d4 damage.

Natural Offenses: Bite – 1d6 (Piercing) damage, Tail – 1d8 (Bludgeoning) damage [can only be used in open spaces]

Large Creature: (coming soon)

Biographical Information:

Name: Stymphalian Bird

Level: 4

Experience: 0

Race: Cockatrice (dungeon summon)

Class: Unavailable – Requirements not met

Alignment: Neutral

Languages: None

Stats:

Health: 13

Mana: 12

Armor: 10

Strength: 6

Dexterity: 17

Constitution: 6

Intelligence: 6

Spirit: 14

Charisma: 16

Luck: 16

Resistances:

Immune to Poison

50% Wind Resistance

-50% Earth Resistance

Ability:

Gaze: Upon a failed Spirit save, target creature will become stunned and unable to act for 1d4 turns.

Traits:

Birds of a Feather: Flight speed 2x greater than calculated movement speed. Suffers no penalties for fighting while aloft.

Natural Offenses: Beak – 1d3 (Piercing) damage, Talons – 2d1 (Slashing) damage

Small Creature: -25% Strength, +25% to Dexterity, Strength score capped at 10.

These are the first real magic-touched beasts. Well, beyond the fact that everything has been a summon. Up until now it’s all been animals. This gives me some real options when I get into the thick of things. I have multiple ways to lock prey down, but I still don’t have much damage. Unless I bring in Grumblebark, but I like to think of him as my ace in the hole.

The catoblepas looked about as mean as its stats and abilities suggested. It looked kind of like a cross between a cow and a stegosaurus. Thick fur coated every inch of the beast except its face. Sturdy bone ridges, spikes, and plates covered its head and tail. Given the catoblepas’ ability to effect an area and soak damage, they had just filled in the missing tank niche.

Taking over as the apex avian, the stymphalian birds had bullied the others out of the upper branches of Grumblebark’s canopy. Lilting and haunting, the melody of these new singers felt out of place on the sunny beach. Copper and gold feathers highlighted bronze plumage as the birds spread out their wings and groomed each other.

Okay, let’s give fishing another try. If something from the forest shows up then I can always redirect summons or have Grumbles deal with it. I’ll just make sure to have multiple waves of attackers if I run into something like the rhino, since I won’t have the element of surprise.

The Lair organized the various summons and had them line up on the beach or get ready from their perches. Stonefruit crabs would act as the bait – the Lair hadn’t gotten anything else aquatic related during the travel through the forest. Next was the small herd of catoblepas. There were three of them in total, but they took up a lot of space. The flock would be mobile harassers from the air, but for the moment they perched where they could find room. Behind the frontline troops prowled the reptiles, uneasy near the pacing musky catoblepas.

“Hey Grumblebark, I am planning on fishing again. Can you see anything in the lagoon that would be a threat to us? Any suggestions on how to do this? I’m just planning on luring whatever is in there to the shore, dragging it out of the water, and then overwhelming it.”

Blowing across the water, a stiff breeze pushed Grumblebark’s foliage back away from the shore. The catoblepas bellowed, a deep lowing mixing with the rustling leaves. The meliae’s creaking voice mingled with the symphony of nature. “I have only seen sea… birds fish for small food… I do not think that… is relevant.”

“Hmmm… may be better information than you think. I hadn’t been thinking of using the birds that way. The seagulls and parrots don’t really have much in the way of offense. If we use them as bait, they probably stand a better chance of surviving than the crabs and that frees up the crabs to attack. Good idea, Grumbles.”

Pulsing out from the meliae’s teal orb a wave of bewilderment and agreement washed over the Lair’s core. Grumblebark remained silent as always, but his reaction to this last “conversation” was markedly different than upon previous inquiries. The Lair wanted to press their familiar to explain the reaction, but that felt inappropriate. Well, it’s time to bait the hook.

Shifting positions, the stonefruit crabs submerged themselves in the surf and remained motionless. Seagulls and parrots flew down and onto the surface of the water, bobbing with the ebb and flow of the waves. The stymphalian birds were far to valuable to use as bait, so they stayed in more defensible locations.

Lapping waves counted away the hours as the Lair proceeded to clear out the Lagoon of anything worth eating. The process turned out to be simple and much of the planning turned out to be unnecessary. With the pure number of summons, anything that got dragged onto shore didn’t have much of a chance. If the Lair had not been consuming all of the fish, crabs, sea urchins, sea anemones, and other tide pool fauna, the beach would have been littered with rotting seafood.

None of the fighting was particularly interesting or dangerous. A couple of the birds got eaten before they could make it out of the water. One of the crabs got too close to a catoblepas and crunched into pieces. Eventually nothing was in the Lair’s influence that could be snacked on and nothing left in the lagoon was willing to try and eat one of the flopping birds.

Letting Grumblebark have some stationary time was probably a good idea with how much the two of them had been moving around. The Lair looked over their growth, filing away the Consume information from the minor kills to review during their summoning fugue. Not quite to level 5 yet, a couple of thousand experience away. Level 0 and 1 critters just don’t pack the same punch as that rhino did. I sure got lucky. I might as well replenish the ranks and see if this place restocks somewhat in a few hours as well.

Diving into the center of their crystal, the Lair began to summon. Lost somewhere between looking over details on the minor animals they had slain and enjoying the feeling of the waves, a shocking pulse of danger snapped the Lair from its relaxation. All of their summons had just reacted to something entering the lagoon. Fear spread through each of the animals to the Lair’s core and was reinforced by Grumblebark’s words.

“It did not just want… crabs.”

Tentacles whipped into the Lair’s influence from beyond their sight. Birds and crabs were dragged away and died. The catoblepas’ bucked and bellowed loudly, unable to see their enemy or attack it. The reptiles retreated from the fighting, trying to avoid being trampled. The meliae started to spread and coil its branches, readying to strike.

“I do not know what… it is but it has… five serpent heads on top… of tentacles.”

The Lair had not been expecting whatever this thing was to find them again so soon. However, this time they stood a much better chance. With no physical manifestations of panic to reinforce their initial reaction, the Lair was able to steady themselves and ready for a counter attack.

“Got it. We need to get it to shore and into my influence. I am going to sacrifice the catoblepas, at least a couple of them. Help out where you can.”

Sending quick directions, the Lair rallied their army and bolstered its flagging morale. The bovines thundered into the water, mostly submerging themselves. Their heads, normally low to the ground, were raised just above the surface of the water as they strained to breath. Spreading from their fur, a milky yellow oil began clouding the water around them. Stymphalian birds flew down and took position on the backs of the beasts. All of the weaker summons waited along the coastline, getting picked off by tentacles or making small attacks of opportunities.

Several catoblepas were ensnared, but they were able to use their bulk to maintain their positions. More tentacles suctioned around the animals and then the monster entered the Lair’s sight. Grumblebark had done a good job describing it – there wasn’t much more to this thing than flailing snake heads, tentacles, and scales. Subtle flashes of blue-green magic shimmered in its numerous eyes. It was like a hydra had combined with an octopus and grown an immensely violent disposition.

Two heads lunged and ripped chunks out of one of the catoblepas, and it collapsed in the water. One of the other catoblepas was pulled under the water entirely. Feathers burst in a confetti shower as maws ate birds whole. Squirming at the sight of the chaos, monitors and pythons paced in sand, unable to attack.

Floating to the surface, the dead bovine hulk was at least providing cover for the remaining birds. One of the cockatrices miraculously got off a gaze against a thrashing snake head, and it fell limp into the water. The two heads that had bitten the cow-beast had slowed, its natural toxins hampering the monster’s actions. Small gashes and wounds began appearing on tentacles. Scales were cracked and bleeding. The animal turned to flee.

The Lair threw everything at the beast before it could get away. A blender of salt water, blood, entrails, feathers, and leaves churned in a whirlpool of death. Grumblebark’s limbs smashed into the serpent and summons indiscriminately. Combat ceased and was replaced by the dependable crash of waves.

Not wanting their prize to be swept out to sea, the Lair directed their few mobile summons and the meliae to hold the monster in place as they Consumed it. It would have been great to use Assimilate for the first time, but this thing was bound to catalyze another good jump in experience. The Lair couldn’t pass up the chance.

Bubbling and oozing, the scylla dissolved and became part of the dungeon. Once the Lair learned what they had slain, it was more understandable why it had been such a challenge.

Biographical Information:

Name: Juvenile Scylla

Level: 12

Experience: (Coming Soon)

Race: Kraken

Class: Rogue

Languages: None

Stats:

Health: 138

Mana: 86

Armor: 18

Strength: 12

Dexterity: 15

Constitution: 14

Intelligence: 12

Spirit: 14

Charisma: 6

Luck: 14

Resistances:

90% Water Resistance

50% Earth Resistance

50% Magic Resistance

-50% Fire Resistance

-25% Wind Resistance

Holy crap! That certainly explains why this thing was so hard to kill. Not why it tracked me down necessarily, but this thing wasn’t some mindless animal. Although, it may not have even been the same one. I don’t think I should stick around the ocean…