5. An item of Great Power. Slightly Used.

“I was planning on giving you three Dungeon Cores, if your pathetic group could impress me,” Gyudue informed me after we’d had a moment of silence. “Instead, I’m afraid that I must ask you to give me one. I know that you have many at your disposal. In exchange, I will give you an item of great power. Slightly used.”

“I’ll not give you a core without knowing that it cannot be used against my homeland,” I said. “And while I have hopes that we are friends, Gyudue, I do not trust your word enough that swearing an oath is sufficient.”

“Indeed. Very well, I will show you how it is to be used, and then you may make your decision. But first, I must apologize. It was not so long ago that you built this dungeon, and today, as it’s master, I break it.”

I watched as he touched the Dungeon Core of Gemos Cavern, housed in the throne itself. A crystal the size of a fist, Travelers could not interact or see them for some reason. He spoke one word. “Reclaim.”

This Dungeon has been Reclaimed!

Teleporting All Parties To Last Visited Safe Zone In 9:59

“You’re busting your own dungeon?” I asked. “Why?”

“Follow me,” Gyudue instructed.

I was wary of a trap. But, then again, at this point the worst that Gyudue could do to me was cost me a single level on my [Mage] class. Or imprison me in an event, I supposed, like when I had been held against my will by my great uncle. That would be inconvenient.

Gyudue led me to a point in the wall, and then he simply walked through the wall as though it were not there. Touching it, I realized it was an illusion. I could not see the other side, but I chose to trust my drow companion and stepped through. The notice that I was about to be teleported went away, and I learned that the illusion counted as an exit to the dungeon as well.

We entered a corridor, branching off in different directions.

“So you live here?” I asked.

“You didn’t think I sleep in that chair, do you? Of course I have rooms of my own. But I am not bringing you to my kitchen, if that is what you think. Our destination is hidden beneath us.”

After the corridor had twisted upon itself several times, we came to a spiral stairwell which only lead downward. I followed my guide as we traveled deeper and deeper.

“This is one of the entrances to the Deepdark,” I realized suddenly.

“No. It is one of the exits,” he said. “An inconvenient one at that. And it was especially heavily fortified until just now, with a dungeon on the surface, a hidden entrance into the fortress at the top of the stairs, the stairwell itself, and a fortress at the bottom. It was built for thirty guardians, but after a few decades, someone said as a joke that a single man could hold this fortress indefinitely. And so it became my punishment to do exactly that.”

“Your people are punishing you because of a joke you made?” I asked.

“What? No. Someone else made that quip, and it eventually made its way into the ears of our queen. I am being punished, but it is for something else entirely,” he explained.

“May I ask what for?”

“I believe you just did,” he sneered back. “Our societies are very different. You will not understand, but very well. I refused to marry my step-sister after I was commanded to by my mother. I was banished to defend this exit indefinitely until I changed my mind. I have been very stubborn on the matter, but more than likely the entire thing has long been forgotten by the court and my sister was wed to six other men by now. Possibly a few women. She was a princess, so it is hard to say.”

I was surprised by the answer I’d gotten, and I began to formulate a non-offensive way to probe for more information about the drow as we delved deeper down the staircase.

“Are all drow polygamous, or just royalty?” I inquired.

“The powerful marry the powerful, and the powerless marry the powerless,” he said. “Our commoners pair up the same as yours. It is our upper class that schemes and plots. Each new member of the marriage must bring something to the whole which make it greater than it was before. Wealth, territory, minions, alliances. There are many reasons to marry, Hail Jeoran. And my people are not afraid to pick them all at once.”

“You’ve neglected to list love,” I pointed out.

“It was not an oversight. Love is a very good reason not to marry.” Then, in a much softer voice, he said “or at least it was for me.” Picking his voice up again, he declared “In the social circle that I was born into, Hail, loving your spouse was a weakness. One that could be exploited by assassins, kidnappers, poisoners, and warlocks. It is not that we do not love. But we either keep the relationships secret, or we disguise them as something else.” A moment of silence, then “She was my sister’s handmaiden. That is all that I will say.”

We reached the bottom of the stairs, and then passed through another corridor, which lead to a massive chasm. I estimated that all of Zhesa Castle could fit inside. Its floor was uneven, but not jagged, and it was lit by familiar crystals protruding from the walls.

“Gemos Golems?” I asked.

“They’re everywhere down here,” he informed me, shrugging. “Convenient light sources. Rarely move unless prodded. Not nearly as hostile as the ones in the dungeon that you faced when you were shorter.”

I nodded, and I noticed something else of importance. Right next to the entrance to the fortress at the bottom of the stairs was a Nexus Point. I reached out and attuned it without thinking. Gyudue shot me a glance, and then merely shrugged.

“If you wish to begin exploring the Deepdark on your own, at your current level, Hail, I suggest you get used to spending your time in between worlds,” he told me. “You are only safe now because I am with you, and everything that is hidden and you cannot see is afraid of me.”

“I will keep that in mind,” I promised. “Honestly I just didn’t want to climb those stairs again.”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

He chuckled, and he brought me into a small building carved of a strange, soft wood that was as white as snow. I was forced to light my way with several casts of [Spark], a small general spell which generates a flame that gives off light, its brightness less than a lantern but brighter than a candle.

The building was built over an excavation. And inside was a pedestal, which had previously been knocked over and buried, then excavated. Placed carefully on top of the pedestal was an orrery. My breath caught in my throat as I glanced at Gyudue.

“We knew it was here, but not exactly where. It took me time to find it, and time to obscure what I was looking for,” he explained. “I see you’re not entirely unfamiliar with what you are looking at.”

“One of the lost gates,” I whispered.

“Indeed,” he agreed. “Before you is a Gate of TirNiki. Built by the drow of the Deepdark. It lies here, forgotten by the court, even as the other races bring forth warriors of great strength from the other world. The fools. And that is why I need your Dungeon Core, Hail. I have the three that the dungeon has generated on its own. I have the core that I have reclaimed. I am short but one to activate this Gate and bring forth drow Travelers.”

“I’m not certain that this is a decision I can make on my own,” I said.

“The decision was made a decade ago. All of the councils of the civilized races agreed to open all of the Gates to Earth,” he said, growing impatient. “This is but a delay in the actions of my parents which I am now correcting.”

“Why?” I challenged. “Your sister’s death changed something. You were willing to part with the three Cores you had gathered before, so why do you now want to open the gate?”

Gyudue bit his lip, then looked away. “Revenge. Revolution. I know enough about the nature of the drow to know that the Travelers will be seen as outcasts by the court. And I know enough about the nature of the Travelers to know that such a state will not be tolerated for long. Bringing drow from Earth will forever upset the balance and stalemate which has lasted for centuries among my people. I do not know how the dice will land, and in this moment I do not care. All that matters is that it will disrupt and inconvenience the entire court while I seek vengeance for my sister.”

After Gyudue had finished his explanation, I considered the proposition for a while in silence. I knew that Travelers were Travelers. Human, Elf, Dwarf, Dryad, Beastkin, Goblin, it did not truly matter. Why would drow Travelers be any different from the other races?

I opened my inventory and selected a Dungeon Daughter Core that I had designated as one that was likely to be burned creating Battlegrounds. I had been using cores from the busting of the Zhesa Castle Raid exclusively, and it was one of those that I selected. I added it to its spot in the orrery rather than entrust it to Gyudue.

“Oh please. The honor is all yours. Here, you may use mine as well,” Gyudue said in a mock-helpful voice. He handed me four dungeon cores in succession. The orrery accepted the offerings greedily, and once it had eaten all five it began whirling on its own. The lights seemed much brighter than the ones that the goblin gate had given off. Once device had finished charging the origin point, it opened, allowing me to take out the large orb, glowing black. I do not know how it glowed black, but it did.

You have discovered a lost Gate of TirNiki!

You have activated it and recovered an Origin Point (Drow)

Origin Point (Drow) has 5/5 uses remaining before it must be recharged.

The surrounding location is a suitable location for a Drow starting point.

Use Origin Point (Drow) now?

Yes

No

“Use it,” Gyudue whispered.

“Thedum, what is the worst case scenario if I bring drow Travelers into the world?” I asked.

I was unsurprised when the deity answered immediately. “I have already done some preliminary estimations. The worst case is that they unite under the faction that has chosen to ally with my Adversary and become a unified source of conflict. That is already happening with those marked by [Mark of Sin] and other banes, however. In addition, Gyudue’s predictions that bringing drow Travelers into the world will greatly upset the balance among his people is correct. They will likely find themselves oppressed if they remain in the Deepdark, and after briefly leveling they will join their fellow Travelers on the surface until a force of Travelers becomes strong enough to overthrow the Drow Court and conquer deeper into the Deepdark. It will take them some time to prepare for that, even if that course of action occurs to them immediately.”

I sighed, wondering if using strange objects I had just found without fully understanding the implications would become a long lasting character flaw. I used the first charge of the Origin Point. The orb flashed, then its darkness shown a little dimmer. Gyudue reached for it, but I put it into my inventory before he could take it from me.

“I’m sorry, but until I know how drow Travelers affect the balance of this world I am only allowing one entry point for them,” I declared. “Kill me if you wish, you’ll not get the Origin Point back.”

Gyudue sighed, then shrugged. “It is not as though I could use it. I do not know of any other location which is suitable for level one Travelers to begin their personal quests. I thank you for your assistance so far. Even if you have robbed me in front of my very nose.”

“You said that you would give me an object of great power for helping you,” I reminded him.

“Did I?” he asked, feigning innocence.

We exited the building of white wood, and as I took one last look around, a thought occurred to me. I pulled another object from my inventory. I had earned it doing a favor for the goddess Eclipse; I had been the conduit through which she had entered the hearts of the goblin race, then I had supplied five Dungeon Cores to open their version of the Gate of TirNiki. This had allowed the humans of Earth to begin sending their minds into Goblin avatars here in Lagrea, and my reward was an Origin Point, which I held now in my hand.

Origin Point (Goblin) has 4/5 uses remaining before it must be recharged.

The surrounding location is a suitable location for a goblin starting point.

Use Origin Point (Goblin) now?

Yes

No

“What are you doing?” Gyudue demanded.

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I usually don’t when I do things like this.”

I used the second charge on the Origin Point (Goblin) before Gyudue could stop me. He sensed what I had done, somehow, and he sort of stuttered, then he stopped. <>

“Whatever it is that you have done, I ask that you leave at once,” Gyudue said, turning on me with sudden impatience. “I have guests arriving for the first time in decades, and I would not have them see me associating with a human.”

“As you wish,” I said, and I activated Fast Travel to get out of there before he could change his mind.

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