Valterra knew he was close to Ascension. Only one more floor and he would be ready to Ascend again. Through his Dungeon Body, he could sense that most of his problems would be fixed if he just gave it time. His Dungeon, now that he had fixed the horrendous Aether flow, was beginning to work properly. Aether flowed in and met his creatures who used it and various invaders to grow.

His fourth floor was looking healthier with the grasses growing taller and more vibrant now that they had more Aether to draw from. His Deeplight Belchers seemed happier and there were a lot more of them now than when he had first seeded them. His Great Tidal Whale was doing her best to cull their numbers but it seemed like a losing fight. The Deeplight Belchers were expanding rapidly throughout the Floor and while that was a good thing the Core also didn’t want them to think they owned the Floor.

Valterra decided to think and act at the same time. Even as he pondered what to do for his Sixth Floor he went about summoning more Whales. It still took a ton of Aether to do but he also wasn’t summoning complete adults. They were more like juveniles, halfway into adulthood. He notified the original even as the new whales slipped into the water.

As she raced to meet them she seemed rather excited. Looking into the Framework, Valterra winced a little. Of course, she would be happy. Great Tidal Whales for all of their massive size and impressive powers were also part of a pod. They swam together, ate together, and hunted together. His lone matriarch had been without a pod for a while now.

Satisfied that he had fixed that little issue with his fourth floor, he moved around checking on his previous work. Each floor was working fine. There could be a bit more variety for all of his floors except the third but he supposed that would come with time. At this point, he figured he could get away with a few experiments. He wasn’t fully set on what he wanted in his sixth floor but he had some ideas.

His first three floors acted like concentric rings that drew invaders in. His fourth floor was a death trap in case anyone decided to try and dig their way to him. The fifth floor was a warzone between three different creatures and protected the East side of the House. His Aether Funnel stretched from the ceiling of the Living Room to the floor and descended straight down through the fourth. The West Wing began where the Living Room ended and contained the Ritual Room, the Furnace Room, and the Bedroom. The Furnace Room in particular felt odd to his senses so he made a mental note to check it out after he Ascended.

Each of these rooms could be utilized as floors and some could be made into two if he so desired by separating the bottom from the top as he had with the Kitchen and his fifth floor. Right now the Dungeon was balanced and he needed that in order for the Aether to continue to flow to his Column so that it could reach his Core. Any floors he placed in the West Wing would throw that balance into chaos.

I could redo everything again I suppose? He thought idly to himself. He shook off that thought as soon as he had it.

The main issue was that he lacked the Framework and the creative energy to create those extra floors anyway. Then redo the Aether Flow on top of that? Forget it. For all that he wanted to play and create Valterra hadn’t really seen much of the world. He could see a little bit more of it now that the whole house was a part of him. He could see the clearing and the surrounding trees but that didn’t really give him an idea of what to create. So he settled on what he could do.

He still had some Divine Potential left. He knew that he could Name creatures and he certainly wanted to. His Mouse Captain in particular came to mind as deserving of one. He knew that he could create a Divine Domain that would give him the ability to shape the space in any way he wanted without using Aether to do so. To be honest though, that wasn’t a major consideration at the moment.

Sighing to himself he turned to the space he had set up above the fifth floor. For now, this would be his sixth floor but it needed its own kind of ecosystem if it was going to be enough to push him to the next stage.

Valterra reached for his new powers and froze as his Divine Potential activated. Reality shifted and his mind expanded to include concepts he had never heard before. Using his power to create his mouse guardian's artifacts paled in comparison to the raw data flooding his Core at the thought of making a new Framework.

Alien ideas mixed with other thoughts and concepts beyond his understanding. The composition of a Spark Matrix and the right way to connect it with a Nascent Spirit provided by the Maker. How to form an Aether Core and connect it to the Aether Conduits that ran throughout a magical creature’s body. In a panic Valterra disconnected from the stream of Divinity. As he recovered he felt his System light up. Checking the screen he was surprised to find a message from Krat’Imos.

Hey there Little One. If using your Divine Potential to create creatures is too much for you at the moment I figured I would install a little help in the form of a new kind of system. I call it the Framework Helpdesk.

The name needs some work but it should be ready for you to use. I look forward to seeing what you can create - Krat’Imos

Valterra sent a grateful feeling upwards and began looking for the new system. He found it as a new icon within the system, just above where his Frameworks rested within his soul. He gingerly permitted it to open and was relieved when all it did was open a new series of messages.

Welcome to the Framework Helpdesk!

Please choose from among the following basic templates:

Animal:

A living organism that feeds on organic matter typically has specialized sense organs, and a nervous system, which allows it to respond rapidly to stimuli.

Plant:

A living organism of the kind exemplified by trees, shrubs, herbs, grasses, ferns, and mosses, typically growing in a permanent site, absorbing water and inorganic substances through its roots, and synthesizing nutrients in its leaves by photosynthesis using the green pigment chlorophyll.

Fungus:

Any of a group of spore-producing organisms feeding on organic matter, including molds, yeast, mushrooms, and toadstools.

Valterra didn’t hesitate to choose Animal. He needed different creatures for his new floor and he didn’t think Plants or Fungi would provide the best template. Once selected Animal expanded to include more options.

Please choose from among the following:

Vertebrates:

An animal of a large group distinguished by the possession of a backbone or spinal column, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes.

Invertebrates:

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An animal lacking a backbone, such as an arthropod, mollusk, annelid, coelenterate, etc. The invertebrates constitute an artificial division of the animal kingdom, comprising 95 percent of animal species and about 30 different phyla.

Valterra didn’t read the options as much as he felt them. The Vertebrates contained creatures as small as his House Mouse to creatures as big as the Great Tidal Whale. He only got vague hints of what it entailed but he gathered that they would be what he wanted.

The Invertebrates also contained creatures that could fly especially the Arthropods which he gathered were where the majority of his current creatures came from in the form of various bugs. He knew he would return, if only to customize the Framework for his Danians. For now, though, he chose Vertebrates.

Please choose from among the following:

Mammal:

A warm-blooded vertebrate animal of a class that is distinguished by the possession of hair or fur, the secretion of milk by females for the nourishment of the young, and (typically) the birth of live young.

Bird:

A warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrate, distinguished by the possession of feathers, wings, and a beak and (typically) by being able to fly.

Reptile:

A vertebrate animal of a class that includes snakes, lizards, crocodiles, turtles, and tortoises. They are distinguished by having dry scaly skin and typically laying soft-shelled eggs on land.

Amphibian:

A cold-blooded vertebrate animal of a class that comprises frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders. They are distinguished by having an aquatic gill-breathing larval stage followed (typically) by a terrestrial lung-breathing adult stage.

Fish:

A limbless cold-blooded vertebrate animal with gills and fins and living wholly in water.

Additional Notes by Krat’Imos:

“Be aware that these are base templates and do not have a Rank attached to them. The Ranking system exists to provide Dungeons with an idea of how much Aether is present in a creature at its current stage on the Path of Ascension. To create your own Framework you must utilize the base templates and then add Aether to it."

"This is usually a highly chaotic process and it is at this stage that your Divine Potential comes into play in the form of this Helpdesk. You pick and choose what you want, it will tell you the resulting Ranking and what it will cost in Divine Potential to create, and if you accept the system will do the rest. Be creative. I look forward to seeing what kind of unique creatures you will bring to life.”

There was a lot to take in. The insane amount of diversity hinted at in just these five options made him glad he had chosen it instead of the Invertebrates. He would touch the other 95% of animals when he had Ascended further. The note at the bottom filled the Core with a measure of relief. He was excited to use his new powers but if he was being honest with himself the incident with the monsters had scared him worse than he would like to admit.

Now though he had a way to use it safely and he felt some part of himself itch to get started. He also wanted to prove to himself and to the gods that he could make a worthy creature for his sixth floor. He wanted to wow Krat’Imos with how he had used the new system he had been given and show that the time spent on him wasn’t a waste.

Valterra turned back to the Helpdesk and began going through the different types of Vertebrate Animals. He immediately dismissed fish because although there were examples of flying fish listed within they couldn’t live without water for very long. Amphibians had the same problem although he took note of both of them for later. They might help him flesh out his fourth floor with more options.

He settled on mammals, birds, and reptiles because they had the most flight examples between them. Birds interested him, especially the hunting birds known as Raptors. They were fierce and fast with wickedly sharp beaks and talons. If he wanted a flying creature the Raptors would be a good choice.

Despite their advantages, however, Valterra was drawn to the Mammals and their one species of flying creatures. Bats. They fascinated him and it helped that they looked like large fuzzy mice. They weren’t, of course. They were a totally separate species but the similarity was there and Valterra had a preference for mice. On the other hand, they were far less fierce than the Raptors. They didn’t have beaks or talons that could rip and tear flesh.

They were still impressive though. They didn’t rely on a hollow bone structure like birds and didn’t have feathers. Their wings were more like oversized hands with membranes stretched between the fingers and Valterra found that fact hilarious. They were omnivores and ate a wide variety of small creatures and they ate a lot. The rate at which their bodies went through food was insane. The fact remained that they weren’t the terrifying aerial hunters that he wanted for his sixth floor.

Valterra mentally shrugged. Then he would just have to experiment. It wasn’t like he hadn’t done similar things before. He dipped into the reptiles briefly to see if they had anything he could add and largely liked what he saw. Many of them were carnivores and had various ways of devouring prey. None quite caught his fancy as much as the bats did but maybe he could use some aspects of them in his new creature. He especially appreciated their use of scales and shells as protection.

The Core began by choosing the basic bat template. In his mind an image of a bat formed like an in-depth drawing. Veins, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and cartilage could all be seen within the model. He took his time looking at the original model before he got to work. One thing he noticed that was missing was Aether Conduits. For whatever reason the template didn’t have them present.

Huh, I wonder why that is. Valterra then looked back at the note that Krat’Imos had left for him and things became clear. Oh, if it doesn’t have a Rank then it wouldn’t really need Aether Conduits since it has no Aether to begin with. I wonder if they gain them over time as they are infused with Aether or if it is a result of the Ascension process. He turned to look at his Boon to confirm that the max Rank he could create was Rank E. Hmm, so I guess I’m in charge of how the creature will develop its conduits. I suppose it would depend on what I want it to be able to do.

Having reasoned through this development he began to look at other creatures that had caught his eye to add them to his bat template. He started with the reptiles since they had a wide variety of interesting features. First, he chose to replace the bat’s legs with scaled limbs that ended in clawed feet. He wasn’t sure which lizard it was from but he thought it looked pretty good. The addition did make his creation lean too far forward so the Core added a long flexible tail to help it keep balance. To finish off the wings he gave them a single sharp talon where the primary joint was. He figured the creature would use it to hang off of things and latch onto prey.

Next, he toughened the skin and fur of the main body using a Mammal called the Honey Badger and combined it with the scales of a Reptile called a crocodile. The badger provided a tough skin that was still able to stretch easily and the crocodile added a length of rigid studs along the spine of the creature and the scales reminded Valterra of the armor plates he had seen in his borrowed memories. He figured it would make it easier for the creature to flex when flying while also protecting it if it got into a fight.

He strengthened the wings and expanded them to the maximum distance he could make them while remaining within the domain of his Title. Compared to the body of the creature the wings were massive but they would need to be to carry its new weight. For a final touch, he changed the head to be a rough mix between a bear and a wolf. He lengthened the neck also so that it could twist and bite where it needed to. It wasn’t a long neck because it had to remain fairly stocky so that the muscles that powered its bite weren’t affected.

Finished, he carefully looked over the creature he had made and felt excitement bubble up from within him. Now this was a true monster. With its scales and bristly fur, it made for quite the sight. He accepted the system prompt and watched as the system moved things around internally so that the resulting Framework would work properly.

Valterra was grateful for the assistance. Maybe if he was as large and old as a normal Divine Dungeon would be at this stage he would have the ability to do it all himself but he wasn’t at that level yet. He knew he was unique, the gods had said so but that didn’t mean he was as powerful.

He shook those thoughts away and looked at the new prompt that rolled across his screen, showing him the results of his experimentation.

Congratulations! You have crafted your very first Dungeon Monster via the Framework Helpdesk!

Would you like to name your creation?

Yes / No

Valterra couldn’t smile but if he could’ve he would be beaming. Yes please!