The first twinges of awareness seared through the void of non-existence in a way that can’t really be explained. The sudden presence of something where there moments ago had been nothing, and that something knew of the nothing, yet was not itself wholly the something. I was…

I wasn't sure what I was. I was me, I was sure of that. I had a concept of what ‘me’ meant. A separation from the self and the not-self. Yet I was sure that what I was should go deeper than that, although where that sense came from I had no idea. I struggled with my burgeoning thoughts for a moment until clarity struck like a… like a something… Like… lightning from a clear sky! Why had I thought of those words just now? That wasn’t important, because I now had a distinction between me and not-me. I now knew what I was.

Dungeon Core. I thought. That was what I was.

What was that, though? I wasn’t entirely sure, actually. Hopefully I’d figure it out eventually. For now I wanted to think more on something else. I felt like I had stuff to do, something just out of reach of my thoughts that would flee right as I reached out for it. What was the other stuff around me? I tried to stretch out with my thoughts to reach, but they wouldn’t go. Something else then… Something to make me aware…

Senses! The word appeared in my mind like I’d known it all along. I needed senses. With them I’d be able to know more things. Maybe even figure out what the hidden thing I was supposed to be doing was.

How would I get them?

I thought for a long while on that problem, which turned out to be quite a tricky one. I knew I was me, and there were other things that weren’t me, but where the line was I couldn’t quite tell. It was infuriating, this lack of knowledge. I needed to see. I needed to know…

Wait a moment… See! That was it. That was the word. That's what I needed to do!

As the thought went through me, a foreign one followed. Like a thought, yet coming from not-me. It pulsed through me and showered me with a soft sound and buzzing sensation, and an image appeared within the void that was my inner world.

Welcome, Dungeon Core! Congratulations on reaching the required level of cognisance to interface with the System. As a Core your connection will be a bit more special than most, and so I will be your guide for the introduction.

The sound reverberated through my mind for a few moments as I reeled from the new flood of impressions. This was communication, between me and another. How exciting! Maybe they’d be able to help me get senses, and expand them outwards.

Greetings. I thought; no reason to be discourteous. I didn’t think there was one, anyway.

If you are ready for the introduction, we can begin right away.

I sent a quick message of assent, and the voice continued.

Good. First things first, you need a name. Something that represents what is you.

That was a good thing to have. Nice idea, voice! I thought for a moment, trying to come up with a good name, and then like lightning from a clear sky, it struck me.

Veos. I sent. I am Veos.

Veos, Alright. Your choice is confirmed. I’ll unlock the system for you now, brace yourself.

What did that mea…

A torrent of intense heat and suffocating cold stormed through me. I gasped, which was strange given that I didn’t have a mouth, nor had I really known what a gasp even was before I did it. Another thing I realized was that I was a sphere. A spherical crystal of some sort. Around me was a bunch of nothing, and beyond that a wall of rock. Actually there was rock below me too. I felt the distinct difference between the rock and the sphere that was me. I was covered with pulsating lines that streaked across in different frequencies and patterns.

Suddenly I realized I could sense. I knew what was me and what wasn’t. I couldn’t see exactly… or maybe this was what seeing was? I was aware of everything that was around me, and I could sense what it was and how it wasn’t me. It was a dizzying experience, one not made any better by the sudden appearance of a… what was the word… I knew it, somewhere…

A status screen! A blue screen filled with patterns and shapes. Words, I realized. I examined the screen closely, reverent.

Name:

Veos

Race

Dungeon Core

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Floors

-

Level:

1

Experience:

0 / 1000

Mana:

10 / 10

Mana Regeneration:

5 / Minute.

Edicts:

None

Skills

None

Woah. I thought with excitement. That’s me!

I see you’ve already accessed the Status screen, good. It is a good idea to keep a close eye on it in the future as well, as it is a key part of your existence. Now however we still have some work to do. It will be easier if I show you, here…

I felt a pull on my mind. A strange sensation drawing my attention to… something. A new screen! It was there, just minimized, and waiting for me to shift my attention towards it and read its contents. I did so with glee.

Introduction: First floor begun! Select A Guardian

As a Dungeon Core, many people will want to reach you to learn your secrets and gain your treasures. Most of them will act in accordance with the custom of challenge, but unfortunately you also have very limited personal abilities in terms of self defense against those who don’t. Other than hiding and traps, you will have to rely on others to do the defending for you. As a result, all Dungeon Cores come with the ability to conjure a variety of creatures to act as their stalwart defenders. The last line of these are the Floor Guardians. The one who will protect the Floor against any and all who seeks to delve past it.

As a young core, your options are limited by your level and your mana. Please select from the list below to act as the Guardian of your first Floor.

Rock-Claw Mantis: A large version of the mantis species that sports particularly sharp claws. Typically mantises are ambush predators who like to lie in forests or tall grass waiting for their prey to come close enough to strike. However, with their claws that can grow strong enough to cut through stone this species often take up other forms of hunting, as their size makes hiding less practical.

Young Wyrmling: A young Wyrm is still quite a deadly foe, especially for those who underestimate it due to its small size. As it grows in strength and size however the ones who would underestimate it quickly disappear.

Green Jelly: A green slime that uses corrosive acid to absorb nutrients from whatever they can get their slime on. Mostly they eat plants, but some of the ilk who grow enough can have acid strong enough to melt bone and steel just as easily as flesh and plants.

Leatherwing: A cousin of both the bat and the manta. An ambush hunter who is just as home in the darkness of a cave as they are in the darkness of deep water. Their sharp teeth, spiked tail, and swift yet sturdy wings make them adept grapplers, who bite down on their foes and bleed them dry, if they don’t drag them down to the depths and drown them first.

I read through with what would have been a happy smile on my face if I’d had a mouth. This was cool. A creature of my very own. Something to keep me safe while I spent my time… doing something important, surely? I wasn’t quite sure exactly what I was going to do yet, but I was getting there. My thoughts were becoming clearer and clearer by the second.

As for the choice of creature itself… There I paused. I felt instinctively that this was an important decision. One that might lead to my downfall just as easily as to my meteoric rise to power. I took my time, reading through the different options over and over, before finally making my decision.

I want the Leatherwing. I thought. I waited for a moment… and nothing happened. There was no notification, no change in the screen, nothing. I frowned mentally but soon realized that there was a distinction between thinking that I wanted the Leatherwing, and choosing it. It was a subtle difference, but an obvious one now that I knew it was there. I rearranged my thoughts and selected the fourth option. The screen immediately blinked out of existence and I was filled with a surge of mana, which just as quickly rushed out of me and into the air of the cave.

cave… nice word.

The mana pooled in a small area, then started to spin. With a final surge of light and color, I felt a change, as the Leatherwing appeared in front of me. It stumbled slightly as it held itself up on awkward forelimbs. Its large wings were as black as the cave around it, and folded behind the forelimbs. I could see a mouth filled with teeth, as well as a pair of pincers on either side of the face, made for gripping hold and not letting go, and the head and spine extended back beyond the large wings and thinned out into a long tail covered in small spikes ending in a hook. I instinctively knew it was made both for gripping and hanging, as well as grappling onto anything it caught, getting the hooked claws to catch and rip through flesh.

It seemed to sense my attention as it peered in my direction and gave a small screech, before it unfurled its wings and took up its post hanging from the cave's ceiling just above me. Its red eyes had a faint glow as it scanned the small cave for anything that could threaten me. I couldn’t help but shiver. This was my first Guardian, and it was perfect.

Ah, the Leatherwing. An excellent choice for a cave-like Floor. The voice once more entered my mind. We’re almost done with the introduction. All that’s left is for you to finish your claim to your first Floor. Take your time and get it the way you want it, because it won’t be easy to make drastic changes to the layout once a Floor is finished. Think over what you need in a Floor, and your instincts should tell you the rest. I shall leave you to it, and return once you are finished.

Introduction: Lay Claim to your First Floor!

Now that you have contracted your first Guardian creature, it will need a place to guard. Create a space for your Guardian and its fellows, a place they can call home.

Requirements for First Floor: An Entrance, and a Clear Reward.

Alright then, time to make a Floor…