The Surface

Stepping out of the school building, the team started to move towards the staircases.

“Have any of you been down to the 8th floor before?” Zaleon asked.

“A few times and deeper! Kaori replied with a grin I’m staying on the 7th floor right now, but they aren’t too different,”

Eolos shook his head. “No, I’ve never had a need to. My family tends to stay on the upper floors”. He paused for a momentHave any of you who’ve been deeper heard anything about dragons down there?”

“I’ve heard about a few way deeper, but I’ve never seen one,” Kaori answered, his tone tinged with intrigue.

“Aren’t there rumors about dragons on the surface too? Transformed into people or something?” Zal added, turning to the others, his voice low as if sharing a secret.

"That's just rumors. Why would dragons want to be up here?” Eolos scoffed, quickening his pace to walk ahead of the group, dismissing the idea with a wave of his hand.

As they walked towards the stairs, they noticed more groups from their class moving in the same direction and to nearby shops, likely to stock up on supplies. Each group had received a unique task on one of the first ten floors, and the air was thick with excitement and nervous chatter. The staircases loomed ahead, descending into the depths of the world below, promising adventure and mystery.

—

The Stairs

“I’m not walking down to the 8th floor!” Eolos protested as Kaori and Zal prepared to march ahead.

Zal raised an eyebrow, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Then what do you suggest we do? Jump and try to grab the ledge?” Stories circulated of people throwing themselves off the ledges, using magic to move to safety, but those attempts were usually acts of madness, with most failing to save themselves during the fall.

Eolos stood there, pondering for a moment. “As fun as that might be to try, no. I’ll pay for a ride down for the three of us,” he finally said. Walking up to a lizard cart, he told the driver their destination and paid the fee.

Kaori watched the exchange with a sour look. Ever since he left the clan, he had been short on money, barely able to afford his—well, you wouldn’t call it a house, but the place he slept in. Still, it wasn’t Eolos’s fault, and he had always paid his share.

The group climbed into the cart and settled in. The ride was easy-going, thanks to the road built on the stairs specifically for the lizard carts. They leaned back, each lost in their own thoughts, simply enjoying the ride. The rhythmic clatter of the cart’s wheels and the gentle sway of the motion provided a brief respite from the anticipation of what awaited them below.

—

Floor 8

The group thanked the driver for the ride as they stepped onto the 8th floor. Floor 8 was peculiar even to its inhabitants. Unlike the other floors that resembled old cities, this one felt like a labyrinth.

It was as if a mountain had erupted from the ground and carved itself out, leaving a maze of tunnels and dead ends. Despite its complexity, people had settled here, drawn by its rich mineral deposits. If you listened closely, you could almost always hear the distant strike of a pickaxe.

The group looked around, searching for a sign pointing towards Newshaw but found none. They approached a guard, who, after noticing their academy badges, directed them in the right direction. The walls of Floor 8 were adorned with glowing flowers and moss that dimmed as night approached. Zal carried a day-and-night token, a gift from his merchant parents, which changed colors to indicate the time—essential for maximizing profit.

As they walked through the floor, they encountered only a few people. Typically, the entrance to a floor was bustling with activity, but the intricate layout seemed to have driven people to move deeper in..

—

It took the group about two hours to finally reach Newshaw. As they entered the town, the rhythmic sound of hammers striking metal greeted them.

“A forge town, then,” Kaori remarked, looking around. The town was enclosed in a large, round cave with levels carved into the walls where buildings were nestled. In the middle of the town, a spacious town center stood out, surrounded by several prominent buildings.

“Where should we go first?” Zal asked the team.

“Well, I’m hungry, so…” Eolos began, sniffing the air. “I smell something amazing…” he continued, dashing off before they could respond.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Zal muttered as they hurried after the hungry satyr.

After chasing Eolos down a side road, they arrived at a small, cozy bakery. The sweet scent of freshly baked goods filled the air, and the sound of contented customers enjoying pastries wafted outside.

“Let’s just ask the owners if they know anything about the request,” Kaori suggested, following Eolos inside.

The store was small, with just a counter for purchasing. It was expected that customers would eat outside. As the group entered, they halted at the sight of the two massive workers behind the counter. Two orcs, wearing brown aprons, were conversing with the customers already inside.

Orcs were a complicated bunch. On the higher floors, they were usually friendly and integrated into the community. However, numerous attacks on stray orcs, particularly on the lower floors, made people wary when they encountered one. But these orcs were clearly just running their shop, so the group continued inside.

After some time waiting in line, they finally reached the counter. Eolos eagerly ordered the biggest pastry available, and the other two followed suit without much thought.

“We are from the academy and received a request from this town about some attacks. Are either of you able to help us out?” Zal asked after they had received their order.

One of the orcs, while handing them their plates, glanced at their badges before responding.

“Ah yes, well actually, one of our friends was attacked recently. If you just let us handle the line, I’ll come out and speak with you,” the orc said in a rough voice. The group nodded and took a seat outside, enjoying their food.

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—

A couple of moments later, the orc came out, having taken off his large apron. They now noticed it had a picture of a baby owlbear on it. He sat down with them.

“Alright, boys, ask away.”

“What do you know so far about the things attacking people?” Kaori began, leaning forward.

“Not much,” he shrugged. “So far, we’ve been lucky—no one’s been killed—but we have some children in the hospital, and a few animals have unfortunately gone missing.”

“Are there any similarities to the attacks? Locations, people, time?” Zal asked.

“The attacks have only happened to people wandering alone, so we started traveling in groups, and that seems to have helped. The attacks are only in the evening or night, but I’m not sure if that’s because of the time or just when people end up alone. The incidents have occurred near the edges of town, in alleys, or close to the walls. Sometimes, you can hear noises from the walls too, but we don’t know how something got in there,” the orc explained.

“You mentioned your friend being attacked. Where can we find him, and did he mention anything to you about it?” Eolos asked with a mouth full of pastry. The orc took a moment to watch him enjoying his food before responding.

“Yes, a few nights ago, after what we believe was a drunken nightly stroll, he got attacked. You can find him in the forge district; ask for Gork,” the orc said, pointing toward an area where the sound of hammers striking metal echoed.

The group thanked the orc and headed toward the indicated area. It took them some time to reach it, as they were unfamiliar with the way and hit a few dead ends along the route. Directions weren’t really their strong suit.

—

They reached the district and looked inside a few forges until they spotted an orc with fresh bandages around his left arm and leg.

“Are you Gork?” Kaori asked. The orc took a second before looking up at the group.

“Aye, who’s asking?”

“We’re from the academy. We received a request to stop the attacks and would like to ask you what happened,” Zal informed Gork. After a moment, Gork began.

“Well, I wish I could tell ya properly, but truth is, it was dark that night. I was walking home when I passed an alley,” he gestured vaguely, “and something grabbed my arm and leg.” As he spoke, he started unwrapping the bandage around his arm. “I could feel what was like thorns gripping and pulling. It hurt like hell, but whatever it was, it was weak. I managed to rip my arm and leg free, gave it a kick, and it moved away. All I saw was a shimmer of yellow from whatever it was.” As he finished his last sentence, the last bit of the bandage came off, revealing several dozen prick holes in his skin that had started to heal. “After I got free, I started feeling really weak, and both my arm and leg went slightly numb. It got better rather quickly, but it did frighten me,” he said.

After a moment of quiet, Zal spoke up.

“I feel like I recognize those marks and the description, but it feels way smaller…”

“I agree, it rings a bell. It’s on the tip of my tongue, but… didn’t we read about a large creature that had a similar way of attacking? But the numbness from a toxin isn’t familiar,” Kaori added.

“Yeah, I know what you mean. It sounds like a tunnel worm, but if that were it, the town would be gone by now,” Zal continued.

Gork paled slightly and quietly said, “No way, right?”

Zal shrugged. “It sounds similar, but I doubt it. They aren’t this close to the surface, or at least they shouldn’t be. Is there a library in town? I think we need to do some reading.”

After some more questions, they had gotten what they needed: directions to the area where Gork was attacked, where to find a library, and an inn to spend the night. But before leaving, Kaori asked, “Do you sell any weapons or maybe could make some?”

Gork took a moment to look around his workshop, which was clearly filled only with tools and building materials.

“Well… I can give you a spike to put on that club you have, I guess, but I’m not really a weapon smith,” he said. Kaori looked sad for a moment as he finally took a real look around the forge.

“Ah… well, that’s unfortunate. Thanks, though.” They all said farewell as they headed to the library.

—

The walk to the library was short, being in the city center. This time, at least, they didn’t get lost. The library itself was nothing impressive; it was a single-floor building, slightly larger than a normal house. The group entered, glancing around the inside, and without skipping a beat, Eolos beelined straight to the librarian.

“Do you happen to carry any books on dragons?” he asked, his excitement evident.

The librarian took a moment to look him over before nodding and, in a pleasant tone, said, “Of course, dear. Right over there, we have a few,” she pointed to an area with fantasy books. Eolos looked slightly disappointed; he had probably already read all of them, but he walked over nonetheless.

“Do you have anything on tunnel worms?” Kaori asked after Eolos walked off.

The librarian put a finger on her cheek as she thought for a moment. “I believe there should be some information in the creature book, but I don’t think we have anything super detailed,” she said, picking out a larger volume. “Here you go. I’m sure you can find at least something here,” she finished before returning to her task.

Kaori started flipping through the book, trying to find the entry on tunnel worms, with Zal looking over his shoulder. It took them some time to find it, and in the meanwhile, Eolos had returned to the group, slightly disappointed. He had already read all the dragon books.

“Anything about dragons in here?” Eolos asked.

“Probably, you can look after,” Zal said without looking up.

“Here we go!” Kaori finally said as he turned to a new page. In the corner, it read, "Tunnel worms." Kaori began to read aloud to the group.

“Tunnel worms can usually be found starting from floor 18, moving further down to settle. They grow as big as the floor, sprouting smaller arms to hunt. They are armed with large claw-like padding on their arms to wrap around prey, crushing and dragging them back to eat. Hmmm, it sounds similar, but we saw the marks on Gork—they were tiny.”

“Anything about poison or toxins in there?” Eolos asked.

“Let’s see… yes, here. Hatchlings use a toxin for protection and to incapacitate smaller prey. The toxin weakens as they get older and grow larger claws,” he added.

“Well, shit, how toxic is it?” Zal asked.

“It doesn’t really mention it, but from what Gork said and the fact it’s meant for smaller creatures, as long as we don’t get grabbed and held for too long, we should be fine?” Kaori said with a shrug.

“Let’s not go with a plan that counts on us getting grabbed, maybe,” Zal said, chuckling. “Also, why the hell is there a tunnel worm hatchling this high up? Did it climb up all on its own or something?” he continued.

“No idea, but now that we at least have a good guess on what it is, we should probably find the inn and figure out what we need to do,” Kaori said.

“We also need to report to a guard before it gets too late so they can inform the academy. Let’s avoid having Professor Willow after us,” Eolos said as he pushed his way to the book, finding the entry on dragons.

After some time of Eolos making exaggerated humming noises into the book, informing them it was simply him pondering, they left the library.

—

The inn they were directed to was close by; it was also a large tavern with two floors and an outside area.

“Wow… I’m not sure I can afford to stay here,” Kaori said with a short huff.

“What do you mean? The school pays for our lodging as long as we are on a task. I think we also get a meal, but the rest we have to pay for,” Zal explained, watching Kaori's eyes widen in surprise.

“Really?! When did they tell us this?” he exclaimed loudly, earning a few looks from passersby.

“I think it was last year during class when they explained the badges to us. Not sure,” he continued as they all walked in.

The inside of the tavern was what you would expect: tables, a fireplace, a couple of people day drinking, and the smell of grilling meat. The group walked up to the bartender, a tall and strong-looking man who was settling something behind the bar.

“Excuse me, gooooood sir,” Eolos began before Zal stopped him.

“Hi, we would like a room each and something to eat,” he said, lifting his badge. The bartender looked them over before nodding.

“Not a problem, please fill in these papers and I’ll set it up.” He took out three sheets of paper. On them, there were a few questions they needed to fill in. It was the same form traveling guards and soldiers used, so information could be sent back to the academy to ensure the bartender would get paid.

After a bit of time, they handed the papers over and received a key each along with a plate of steaming food.

“Enjoy,” the barkeep told them before returning to his work.

As they ate, they talked about their plan.

“So, first things first, we settle in our rooms for a bit and leave our bags, find a guard and report in, and then head to the alley where Gork was attacked,” Zal said, counting off the tasks on his fingers.

“Sounds good,” Kaori and Eolos agreed. They finished their meals, thanked the bartender, and went up to their rooms to prepare for the hunt.