I awoke in a heap on the ground, my muscles spasming slightly. Apparently it hadn’t been too long after I was teleported, either that or it had a far worse effect on the body than I expected. I stood up shakily as my vision began to clear and tried to take a few uncertain wobbly steps. My legs gave out and I fell like a sack of potatoes on the ground next to where the portal had dumped me. The feeling of vertigo and nausea finally began to fade while I sat there feeling sorry for myself. Deciding that sitting in the entrance to be crushed by the walls wasn’t the best way to go, I forced myself to get to my feet and take stock of my surroundings.

I was in a large circular room slightly larger than the teleportation dais had been. It had the look of being magically carved from solid stone, the walls were perfectly smooth and no crumbling rocks or debris could be seen in the faint torch light. Torches hung at intervals around the room and they continued down the corridor that broke the smooth wall in front of me.

Deciding it was best to try and keep moving I pushed myself off the wall and attempted walking again, I didn’t want to be there when the next batch of criminals came thru. It was quite possible that they could be murderers or thieves and try to take the little food and water I had.

Still not steady on my feet I decided I most likely had a good 10 to 15 minutes before the next prisoner came thru, they go fairly slow so that each person or group has time to move on. Sliding back down the wall I relaxed my legs and I decided to take a peek at my journal, Master Bertol had reminded me to read my notes, perhaps he slipped in a farewell note or something.

Pulling out the journal and opening it to my notes page I was confused at first, it looked right but something was kind of off. Closing the book and looking at the cover, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but the book seemed wrong. It looked like my book from the outside and even the notes I had written appeared to be my handwriting but it just didn't feel right.

I attempted reading my rune of protection page but my eyes got all fuzzy and I had a hard time focusing on it. Confused I looked more intently and notice something odd that I didn’t remember having in my journal. In each corner of the right page that I held my mastered minor protection rune was a faint circular symbol. They each looked slightly different and on closer inspection it looked like they were each of the 4 core runes.

Curious I brushed my finger across the bottom right one, the fire rune, and to my surprise the contents of the page changed. Instead of the minor rune of protection there was a master fire rune in far more detail than I was able to scribe on my own. Looking to the left page I found it had changed as well. The first page appeared to be a list, sort of like a table of contents that a text book might have.

I held the book close in my lap and hunching over it, touched one of the runes in the list, the one labeled explosive fire rune. To my surprise both pages shifted, the list changed as I watched and quickly scanning it I realized, it was instructions on how to make an exploding projectile along with a list of suggestions for random objects I might find in the dungeon.

I snapped the book closed and after a moment, took a deep breath then opened it once more. To my surprise it appeared to be my old journal once again. Flipping to the first page where I had been describing each milestone of my apprenticeship I noticed one word in the first sentence that really stood out, it wasn't in my handwriting. Holding my breath and reaching out I gently touched the foreign word, The whole page blurred and I got a lump in my throat as I hunched over and read the hidden note from Master Bertol.

My boy, I hope this journal is enough to aid you and keep you alive through the next part of your life. Mages always live the longest so I think with a proper arsenal of tricks and a bit of luck you should be able to make it to the first settlement in the dungeon.

That above all else should be your goal. If you can make it there you will have the potential to become the most powerful man in the dungeon since I'm pretty sure you are the only runesman in the dungeon with a silver scribe. Knowing that they only allow mages a single spell I've been working on a journal for just such an occasion as this, I keep it with me always.

I began building one for you as well after taking you in. I started planning what runes would be useful to a runesman on the off chance that I might be trapped in a similar situation to the one you find yourself in now. I've written yours so that even a novice like you can understand.

In these pages are the training instructions for you to master all 4 of the core runes and enough information that an astute student should be able to tease out the modifications necessary for any kind of master rank runes. I’ve also included exact instructions for many of the most valuable survival runes, I suggest you begin studying the explosive fire rune. If you look closely there is 3 steps I've outlined in building the runes.

Be sure to follow the steps and test out each step several times so that it looks like you have figured it out through experimentation. If it became known that I falsified your journal I would be sent there in short order and most likely without my scribe. I intend to move to a far off kingdom and start over under a different name in the hopes of escaping this horribly corrupt kingdom. Please give me a few weeks to escape before you blatantly begin crafting runes from the book without pretending to develop them yourself.

This is the most I could do for you Llond.

May the gods protect you and guide you safely along your path.

Your Master and friend,

Edward Bertol

I had to close the book before I soaked the pages, I began crying half way thru the note. He had always been there for me, a second father even before my parents were taken. I had to be sure that no one would ever find out he had aided me, I would make sure it looked like I learned it all on my own.

I now had a goal, the first village. It was a great plan since there were very few enchanted items in the dungeon. A runesman who could enchant anything he wished could become a hero to the people down here. I just had to live long enough to get there. Getting to my feet and dusting myself off I headed down the passage, stopping every time I found anything small enough to throw with a smooth enough side that I could scribe on easily.

Upon finding the first intersection in this damned dungeon maze I decided to stop and practice my fire scribing. I found a spot in the curve of the hall that cast natural shadows on one side of the tunnel and sat down to practice. From this location I should see anyone coming from either direction well before they spot me.

Flipping the book open I activated the fire rune page, I decided after reading Master Bertol’s instructions to practice by drawing a base rune first just to see what it did. Sifting through my satchel I found a rock that was mostly flat on one side, spitting on it and rubbing it on my loincloth I began scribing.

The first stone I scribed the core fire rune onto burst into flames almost immediately upon completion, making me throw it across the hall before I burnt myself.

“Well I know how to start a campfire if I ever get anything to cook” I said with a wary chuckle while rubbing the singed bits off my loincloth.

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By the time I had found another stone to try my fire rune on the first one had died out. To my surprise the entire stone had burned away leaving nothing but a pile of ash where it had landed. Pulling out my book and flipping back and forth between my rune notes and the guide master Bertol had given me I figured out what I had done wrong. There was an additional line I had to add in order to tell the rune when to be triggered.

In order to have it activate on impact there were 3 additional lines I had to add to the rune, and to make it explode on impact I had to change the flaring lines on the bottom half of the rune. Cocking my head to the side I also realized that the rune, if turned upside down looked a lot like a flame and that the flaring lines looked a lot like an explosion when done. The second time around I made sure I had scribed in the activation command before completing the fire rune, I really didn’t want it exploding in my face.

Setting the stone gently aside I dug through my satchel and found the smallest stone I had picked up. After duplicating the exploding rune on it as well, I hurled it down the hallway in the direction I had come from. Upon striking the ground there was a loud crack and flash of fire, I then hurled the larger stone and as expected the larger stone had a larger blast. I had guessed that the amount of power inherent in the stone determined the power of the blast.

Since the larger stone naturally had more power in it, it's blast was much greater. Happy with the results of my tests I flip to a blank page in my journal and made additional notes detailing my discoveries as well as drawing the exploding rune on the page next to my notes. I spent the next hour sitting there scribing the exploding rune on many of the rocks and made two impact activated fire starters out of a broken bone I had found. Gently placing most of the stones in my satchel, I kept one stone in each hand as I started down the hallway again.

I wasn't sure how long it would be before another prisoner came behind me. I had already spent several hours in this hallway so if there was someone coming they had to be close. I picked up the pace and walked for at least half an hour before finding myself in a small room. There were 6 other paths leading up to the intersection I stood in, it was a small circular, slightly egg shaped room with tunnels going off in every direction. Looking at the ground I could see many tracks. All the tracks looked human to my untrained eyes but they all entered the room and went off in the same direction. Scratching my head I examined the tunnel that they all seemed to go thru more closely.

It was at the point of the egg shaped room and did look slightly different than the other tunnels, it had a gentle downward slope all of the other tunnels didn’t have. Well that explains why I didn’t run into anyone else, it appears we all entered thru a different room and the groups all came together in this intersection, looking around on the ground I found 2 more small stones and notice a trail of bloody footprints leading back down one of the other tunnels. Gripping my stones tightly in each hand I crept slowly down the tunnel, following the bloody trail. It didn’t take long to find the body, it was only 30 yards or so from the intersecting room.

Once I got closer I could see that it was the body of a naked woman, her long hair splayed around her soaking up some of the blood pooling beneath her body. Completely naked not even a loincloth means that whoever killed her must have looted the body before moving on, but I decided it would be best to search her anyway just to be sure there wasn't anything useful left behind. Tentatively reaching forward with my foot I kick the bottom of her foot and jump back. She didn't move or make a noise at all.

“Must be dead” I said to myself out loud. Taking another step closer from behind her just in case she was only playing dead, I reached out and poked her hip before jumping back again.

“Still no reaction, she’s most definitely dead.”

I rolled her body over gently and found several stab wounds in her torso that were no longer leaking blood. She wasn’t very warm so she must have been dead for a while, long enough at least for her to stop bleeding. After rolling the body completely onto her back I noticed a glint of metal and, upon closer examination I found she had piercings, both of her nipples had small rods through them.

Kneeling down I closely examined them and to my surprise they didn’t have any rune markings at all, why would someone pierce themselves with an object that didn't give some sort of magical benefit. Reaching out gently I fiddled with the rods until I was able to work out how they were attached. While removing the second one it dawned on me that this was the first time I had ever touched a woman's breasts and I blush deeply.

It was quite embarrassing, kneeling next to a naked body, both hands cupping her left breast for support while trying to steal the nipple piercing. If anyone was watching me I bet they were all rolling on the ground laughing and that makes me flush even more. Finished with the second piercing I search the body for more treasures, while avoiding her genital area, I decided that even if she had more piercings there it wasn’t worth it, playing with a dead bodies junk even if she had been pretty in life just seemed wrong.

The search brought up nothing at first but after moving her around I noticed another glint of metal, but this time it seemed to be on her torso. Looking closer I couldn't find where the glint had come from until using her arm as a lever I twisted her body and there it was, it appeared to be a piece of metal in one of the wounds she had received.

Taking out the pointy fire starting bone I had in my satchel I poked it into the wound and yes, it appeared to be the tip of a blade. It looked as if the tip of a sword had gotten caught on a rib and broke off inside. Hoping it was big enough to be a spear point or small knife I used the sharper edge of the bone to rip the wound open more, and once I had the hole bigger I tried to pry the metal piece free.

It didn't come free on the first try and I ended up having to carefully wedge the bone between her ribs and the corner of the metal. After working it for a bit the chunk of metal came free, it was only about two inches long and was definitely the tip of a short sword or large double bladed dagger.

Holding the blade tip carefully I cut a notch of cloth out of the top of my satchel and wrapping it around the base of the blade I now had a small hand held cutting tool. If I found a stick I could definitely make some sort of spear from it or possibly a small knife with the right handle.

Looking the body over once more I decided that, rather than letting it rot, I should take her hair as well. After rolling the body onto its side I tied it in a knot as close to the scalp as I could. I began to braid it and after about half an hour I finally was able to knot the other end and cut the braid free from the body.

I looped the braid through the belt of my loincloth rather than putting it in my satchel, I didn’t want to get blood all over my journal. It was quite gross gathering up and braiding all that loose hair and I had more blood on me from braiding the hair than I had gotten from prying the point out of the bodies torso.

Happy with my loot I was even happier to be away from the body. I was sure that some beast or another would find the corpse soon or that one of the dark mages that monitored the dungeon would reanimate the body. Come to think of it, if I had been smart I would have crushed the skull just to be sure that it wouldn’t come after me later but I wasn't about to go back down the tunnel just to mutilate a corpse. I would just have to hope it became food for something after I had gone.

Once back to the intersection I cautiously walked down the tunnel that all the tracks used, praying I wouldn't stumble on a group of people making camp in the dark. This tunnel had far less lighting than the one I had started in and all attempts to pry a torch free had failed. I ended up just creeping along the passage, keeping to the shadows as I went. Hoping my clumsy attempts at stealth would be better if I stayed in the darker parts of the path.

I nearly screamed when I stepped on something soft and wet. Jumping back and peering into the darkness I was relieved to see that it was another dead body and not some foul creature conjured by the dungeon mages. Taking the smaller of my bone fire starters and dropping it on the ground I took in the sight before me. There were 3 bodies hidden by the dark of the unlit tunnel. They all looked to be men, I remember the one I stepped on, he and one other had gone through the portal before I was sent.

All four men were naked so it seems someone survived the battle, in the fading light of my fire starter I wound my way through the hall avoiding stepping on the bodies and searching for any missed treasures. I didn’t find any so apparently whoever had done the killing here had a light source, all the bodies had been stripped and closer inspection granted me no additional goodies like searching the first body had.

I remembered watching one of the more industrious criminals had purchased several women and once inside cut their hair and braided a rope from the hair. He had used the rope to get the items from a body that had fallen into a pit trap. Seeing that first body with the long blond hair had reminded me of him and so I'd decided to collect hair from all the bodies I found. Unfortunately these didn’t have hair long enough to scavenge.

All four men had the look of hardened criminals, two with scarred shaven heads, the other two had hair cuts short enough to make salvaging it not worth the effort. Betting that these men were the ones to kill the woman I had found earlier I was glad they were dead and hoped that whoever had defeated them was still up ahead clearing my path to the next floor.