"This is going to be a problem," Bones says. After talking to the older youth for some time, Bones and Annette find a new secluded room to discuss the new discovery. Fury doesn't want to leave the children and is still out with them, playing.

"Yeah, I don't think I signed up for this?" Even though she spawned thousands of spiders, she never felt like they were her daughters. She was sad when she lost one. It felt like losing a part of herself. Never was she heartbroken like this. They weren't even her kids. Not even the same species.

Bones' stern face looks out into the distance. His voice is more mellow than it has ever been. "I really let those kids down. I didn't have the words to say and just knelt there, breaking in front of them. I felt it all too. They were in the pits of despair. I was in there with them. I wanted to lift and bolster them, but I couldn't."

Seeing the skeleton kneel in silence in front of the children as their world crashed down upon them was odd. At the same time, the sincerity of his action was conveyed clearly. No one can doubt the dungeon master has a heart.

"Then you were there. You were the rope that brought them out of the hole they were swallowed in. I saw you there fighting away their darkest thoughts. At that moment, I felt the corruption seeping into the core diminish."

She wants to deny her actions to downplay them. That wasn't her. She didn't do anything. She only reached out to the kids. Instead, she stays silent. She can accept her small action as having an impact.

"Thank you, Nette. You did more for those kids than you know," Bone says as if reading her thoughts. He shakes his head of its stupor and turns back to her.

Having heard gratitude expressed to her twice, she begins to feel a new appreciation for the words. It feels good. The words, so simple and small, are profoundly affecting her.

"So, what do you suppose we do now, boss?"

"Is hiding an option?"

Annette eyes him curiously. "Maybe hiding isn't a bad plan."

"Only for a moment. The children will need stability. Let's figure out how we can obtain that before dropping more bombs on them." Bones presents the idea with complete confidence, as if he isn't making it up as he goes.

"Step one will be figuring out the dungeon business.

"Step two, we use the dungeon to best serve the kids.

"Three, we need a foundation.

"Four, we get out of here.

"Five, we get a better name."

Annette eyes Bones skeptically as he rattles off step after step. As a spider, she always thought of herself as cunning. The way Bones is weaving his plans… well, it is something. "How long do you plan on hiding?" She finally interrupts him.

"Oh, not long. One is already done, and I just need to bring you and Fury up to speed. Two will be a small struggle that I am confident you'll overcome. Three, only needs approval. We are practically on the doorsteps of four. And five is a work in progress. I think I got it, though."

"So, we are done?" She turns to leave, acting out her facade.

"What? Not even close. Step one has only just begun." Magically a feathered quill appears in Bones' hand. Before him appears a large paper held upright by large skeletal hands protruding from the floor.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"What is happening? That isn't death mana your using."

"I'm the dungeon overlord. Anything is possible inside my core." The tone is serious; the grin is entirely contradictory. The following fist pump and "nailed it" comment is completely ridiculous. So maybe the children won't be her biggest concern.

Bones starts writing elegantly on the white parchment. At first, all she can hear is the light scratch of the quill that seems to have its own ink supply. The scratch is quickly drowned out by a catchy tune Bones begins to whistle. The boss keeps writing, and she reads what she can see as he progresses down the paper.

Dungeon Basics:

1. 1. The core is the heart, but I think we all agree differently.

2. Those bound to the core protect the heart — the children.

3. Two types of dungeon beings.

1. Bosses

1. 3/10, Weak! Could use more.

2. Boss perks:

1. Bosses get to share one skill with other bosses. Maybe Fury will give us wings!!! We need to convince him to give us wings.

2. Bosses can promote their own sub-bosses.

1. Sub-bosses share a skill with their boss. The power is lessened with more sub-bosses.

3. Classes — We all need to pick a class. (This also means Fury will become awakened. And me too!

2. Not bosses

1. 494/990 (Lot of cute wolf kids. More bark than bite.)

4. Dungeon Rank: 2

1. Upgrades - N/A (I don't know why I even bothered to write this.)

2. Wait, now I remember.

3. The more we kill, the more we grow. Nothing new here.

5. Capacity.

1. 497/1,000 (We could trade some dungeon slots for more boss slots. I think we might want more bosses.)

2. 10% progress to the next rank. We're basically already a 3!

6. This is gonna be awesome.

Bones runs out of room on the paper. He turns from his canvas, looking at Annette. "Let's start from the top," he says with a wicked smile.

"I thought you said we weren't going to hide forever. And to be pedantic, you said you had all power. Why did you write this all out? Couldn't the paper come prewritten?" She objects to the info dump she was unaware of when her mind is filled with knowledge covering dungeon basics.

Bones' wicked smile glows brighter when all the information is passed to her. He used the writing as a stall tactic to prolong their hiding. Though if she is being honest, much of the information sent over mentally stick in her mind better because it reinforces what is already there. Well played, boss.

"That simple?" she asks, ensuring nothing else needs to be covered.

"Yeah, it isn't much of a science. The core… I want to grow in power. I give the power out to others to keep me safe and help me collect more mana. The stronger I grow, the more power I can give to others. Since we are all bound to the core, we only die if the core dies."

"And you don't really die."

"We cheated the system! But what good is mana and power if you can't get away with some cheating."

"You think a false dungeon will work?"

Bones gives the question some more thought. "Maybe for a while. We set up the dungeon away from the lycans and keep people focused elsewhere on the island while we watch over the kids."

"We will need more adults."

"We'll have to recruit heavily. Not sure how we'll get that done on our abandoned island. Maybe some adults looking for kids or teachers wanting to teach will happen on our island. Good chance we will be able to find some people wanting to avoid death and that stuff."

"It's a good start." She easily admits. They've been in the room for less than thirty minutes, and most of Bones' objectives have already been met. She could call the skeleton out for all his theatrics but chooses not to. The bony man is enjoying his charade; there is no reason to knock him off his throne… yet.

Even though he can wipe the board from existence, Bones creates a washcloth in his hand and begins wiping down his paper. The simple act of cleaning the parchment completely distracts her. For now, all that matters is whether the parchment will come clean. Every time the ink is wiped away, a small amount of stress she was holding goes with it.

The ink shouldn't erase from the paper, and the paper should begin to tear from the moisture in the wet towel. On the contrary, it all works perfectly. Wherever Bones wipes his cloth, the words disappear cleanly from the paper. He erases every bit of ink methodically until his parchment is completely clean.

Annette wakes from her trance as soon as Bones stops cleaning. Her mind returns to the present, and she recalls the last question. "Do you know what class you will choose?"