It has been ten days since I carved an entrance to my dungeon, and I took that time to expand as much as I could while following the already established pathways. I don't even want to think how much mana and time I would have wasted if I had to scrape all the wood instead, and until I have a way already open, I can follow it.
I reached the other side of the shaft a few hours after emptying my first room of the Wasps. The width of the vertical tunnel is a meter and a little more, and after verifying it is indeed a closed shaft and not an irregular space, I had a decision to make. To go down or to go up.
All the walls I've met while I expanded were my old wood overgrown by the Luminous Moss, and as time went by, the belief I am still inside my trunk has only grown. This meant I would have to develop downwards to reach the ground level. However, the fact that the air and moisture are coming from the top, and not only the bottom, made me curious about what is happening to my old body.
Taking my time to reach the ground is not a bad choice either. I will be much more secure if I develop as much as I can before tackling the underground, where I know the more dangerous creatures live and thrive. I will gain all the patterns I can, have more time to accumulate powerful creatures, and discover more about my new self.
So, this is what I did for the last ten days, grow, think and observe.
The shaft sometimes curves and slopes just a little, and I even wasted two entire days when it split up in two; I expanded in the wrong direction, reaching a dead end after 4 meters from the division.
I met other turns and forks as well, but I ignored them. Fortunately, the shaft I am following it's still going toward the top. I am 30 meters or so from my first room, and I noticed it is becoming much harder to grow only in this direction. I remember the same thing did happen with the small tunnel I carved myself.
It is as if I am stretching myself too thin with my domain, and I need to support the expansion point with a greater foundation. If I don't find anything interesting in the next few days following this way, I will have to grow my dungeon in a few other tunnels parallel to this one.
At least I am starting to get a root on my new way of reasoning. Yet, the monotony is getting on my leaves.
Before evolving, I did not even notice the passage of time, but as I am now, I feel so alert and present in the moment that not having anything to do or study is making me feel bored; an emotion I never felt before. And while expanding is indeed pleasurable, I still have a small portion of my consciousness with nothing to do. It's not that big, and I can't see much with it, but it is annoying to not use everything I have at my disposal.
With that tiny fraction of my consciousness, I entertained myself by following the Wasps as they terrorized the local population of mundane insects and spiders. The little creatures are still pretty hungry, and even now there are a few of them hiding just on the border of my dungeon, ready to snatch everything they see as food and it is so suicidal to not hide inside the moss. I even gained some new patterns of random mundane insects and spiders.
Even without any predators or fights, two Natatory Wasps died. Their death was pretty similar to the first one; all of a sudden, they started to twitch for no reason, and after half an hour of shakings, I received their death message from the Akashic Records. I studied their body, interested to find out why they perished so abruptly, and I understood the reason only after noticing those were the female drones who examined the wood cuttings.
It seems like they processed some of it to make a nest while I was distracted, probably thinking it was some kind of mundane or Common wood, and the intrinsic magic of my old body slowly killed them. At least I didn't lose all of my creatures for that, and the others aren't at risk since I ordered them to not enter my first room, where most of the dust is. Still, losing two of them for this stupid reason irked me a bit.
I couldn't even let the other Wasps eat their bodies. I doubt the two dead Wasps could process even a bit of my old magic before dying, and it would just kill the others as well. For the moment, I am keeping their bodies inside my core room in case I can find a use for them later.
The only other thing that gave me something to interest myself with is my Luminous Moss. Plants are always reliable like that.
The small patch of Common Moss I created on a whim to check out its mana cost propagated, a lot. The spot I gave life to is still there, indistinguishable from the original one, but around it, the second generation of dungeon-born Luminous Moss has grown. And this version is richer and more vibrant than its first.
It is also quickly spreading over and overtaking the Moss that is not mine, way quicker than should be possible. My body has some residual magic, and that should speed up the growth of every being around since that is the main specialty of a Verdant Elder Tree, but this speed of reproduction is still insane even with that increase.
The naturally dungeon-born Luminous Moss would have conquered the spot of the original one too, but I send an order to the successive generations to leave it be. I want to keep that patch of specimens I created alive and observe the differences between the two.
In the end, it was clear that the second generation of naturally born Luminous Moss is better than the one I created with mana. Even if they are both Common Moss, the difference is rather noticeable. Sadly, the third and fourth generations are identical to the second. It doesn't seem to steadily get better. That would have been perfect.
To make sure it was not a fluke or some random mutation, I created another few patches of Moss inside the shaft, and the same thing happened to all of them. In the last days, the new offshoots have almost covered the entire shaft, overtaking all the Moss that is not mine.
I didn't know if that could only happen to the Moss, and I had a speculation to confirm.
My boredom forgotten, I took a day off my expansion and spent all the mana I generated in that time to produce all the mundane insects I gained the pattern for. Some of them quickly got snatched by the Wasps or some spiders, however, after a few days, the only creatures I can see crawling inside the Moss are dungeon-born.
Today, throughout the day, I followed some of them and found out why. They reproduce and mature at a much higher rate, and they are more clever than the natural ones or the ones I created. I don't really know why this happens, and I am still investigating, but the Wasps certainly appreciate it happening; more food for them.
In the end, the sight gave me an inkling of how birth and reproduction works within my dungeon, but I will have to wait until I have enough space to sustain the proliferation of the Natatory Wasps to confirm it. They are much more voracious than I thought they would be, and without enough space for a nest, they are growing more and more irritated as time goes by.
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After a few hours, the separate thought that was growing my dungeon notifies me, and I take control again. I found some fascinating blue vines, something that wasn't present inside the tunnel. The vines are thick and long, with deep blue leaves sprouting from everywhere, and water slowly dripping between them. They are interlocked with one another, preventing most of the water from flowing down.
The tunnel narrows after it starts to fill with vines, going from a meter to forty centimeters in width, and in a few more meters, I reach the end. My mana swirls faster around my core as I realize it is connected to what looks like a more open area.
While keeping my mana at 10 units and my reasoning stable, I use everything I regenerate to develop my dungeon above the tunnel.
As I keep expanding upward, I find small plants and muddy water; insects and other creatures racing inside it. From below, it looks like some kind of pond or lake teeming with growth and life. It's rather lovely, much better than the rather bare tunnel.
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After a few days of expansion inside the waters, I realize that while I can keep going in this direction without any problems, my senses become blurrier and blurrier as I go on. It's not a problem with my dungeon or that I don't have enough consciousness to see. Instead, all the creatures inside the pond that are not mine are interfering with my senses. I can barely see shapes after a meter from the opening.
The only light I sense in the water is the greenish one from the Luminous Moss, so I am sure this is still a confined space rather than the open top.
It makes sense since I went up only 30 meters with the tunnel, and I still have a few kilometers or so to go. However, even after expanding my domain for 3 meters in every direction from the aperture, the inclination of my old wood is barely going upward, and in one direction it's even gently going down.
From that, it's clear this hollow is not a sphere. The wood I am finding is completely irregular like the tunnel surface was, and because of that, I have no idea how big it is. I will have to slowly expand to find out. From the diverse ecosystem, I think it is pretty big.
To gain some new patterns and see what happens where there are more of my creatures near, I instigate a few Natatory Wasps to explore the waters.
I divide a sizable fraction of my consciousness again and let it expand in all directions while I keep some attention to my creatures as they move. I've become proficient with multitasking since I evolved. However, there is a reason I don't like doing it with even more parts.
Expanding, reviewing my dungeon, thinking, everything I do requires some amounts of my attention. And my consciousness is not unlimited.
Splitting my consciousness into so many parts, with one able to use my mana like this and expand, means I am limited with what I can perceive with the rest. While I had enough to see everything when my dungeon was smaller, now it's pretty much impossible no matter how much of my consciousness I use.
I still have to do it if I want to grow as quickly as possible, and usually, there is not anything interesting to see.
While I called for only three Wasps, six eagerly fly upward inside the tunnel at the idea of ample food, casually snatching and eating some dull insects that were foolish enough to move outside the Moss. The only Wasps left inside the tunnel near my heart are the Queen and a female drone tasked with her and my core protection. The Trait A leaf amongst thousands is active since I have Common creatures, but I like being safe than sorry, or dead in this case.
The six Natatory Wasps navigate rather effortlessly between the vines, killing all small insects they encounter on the way that never had any experience with the voracious and agile predators.
I order one of the Wasps to eat a few mouthfuls of the nearest vine while I make the others wait a moment, but even after it reluctantly obeys while strangely twitching, I don't gain any pattern for it. After a few minutes when nothing happens, I let the shaking Wasp fly away and join her swarm while I think.
It's clear what the problem is. I have to kill the entire thing, but a mouthful is not going to work as it did for the Luminous Moss. The vine is much bigger than a strand of Moss, and a few bites are not enough. If I don't find a creature that can somehow kill a thick vine, I will have to task a Natatory Wasp to slowly saw or chew through one. I want the pattern for it since I am pretty sure it's not a mundane plant. I can see the mana shimmering oddly around and inside them.
As the Wasps move the plants out of the way with their forelimbs, some water flows down, but the vines quickly move back in place, closing the path again. The water travels down the tunnel, washing away some of my dungeon-born mundane creatures, and goes down where I didn't expand yet. Before long, I will have to grow in that direction too. I don't like that my core is so close to an open way like this.
My six Wasps reach the exit of the tunnel and slow down, their antennae twitching rapidly even when submerged. It's the first time I see them move completely underwater, and it's pretty fascinating how they use their long limbs to grip various plants, launch themselves and angle their wings to change direction if they need to.
While they hunt, they stay near each other, coordinating rather elegantly and sending some insects scampering in the others direction. In the ten days that went by, they slowly accepted their role within the swarm and learned to help each other while hunting.
The Natatory Wasps are having the time of their lives since they finally are in their preferred habitat. Curiously, they can't keep staying indefinitely underwater as I thought, and after a few hours, they move toward the tunnel and through the vines to breathe. I didn't see any gills on them, and I have to observe them closely to understand how they are staying that long.
They have multiple sacs inside their bodies that they use to store the air they will need while underwater, and gradually release it inside their bodies when they need it. There is probably something else going on at the mana level I cannot yet perceive. Every single creature connected to the Akashic Records can use mana in some form, and I doubt Natatory Wasps are the exception. With their name and description, it makes sense they use mana to help themselves with swimming and hunting inside water.
It's rather interesting watching my creatures hunt like this. It's not a feeling I ever had as a tree, and it belongs to my new instincts as a dungeon core instead.
As I am keeping a small portion of my attention on them, I catch the precise moment when one of them passes near a cluster of blue vines, and what I thought was a plant snaps in action and locks its jaws around the clueless Wasp.
Incredibly, the bitten Wasp doesn't die instantly.
In a fluid movement, it bends its abdomen and stings the snake near the head. I focus as much as I can as I see the Water-attuned mana twist around the stinger, creating a tiny spiral near the point in the muddy water. If I wasn't concentrating so much on the Wasp, I would have missed it. The 5 centimeters weapon penetrates without any resistance, going through scales and flesh and releasing venom directly inside the creature.
The snake hisses and jerks its whole body. With the quick movement, my Natatory Wasp is torn into two parts as its stinger stays inside the flesh while its thorax is clamped within the long creature's mouth. Bits of internal organs and dark-red blood taint the already muddy water.
As my monster dies, everything around the snake creatures becomes even blurrier and undefined in my perception.
I switch my attention to the other five Wasps to call them but see them move before I can. I don't interrupt since I am sure any directions I can give would conflict with their instincts. They know better than a former tree how to fight and hunt.
They swim in their dead brethren's direction and separate before coming in contact with the creature. Two of them go straight towards the still wriggling snake, while the remaining three curve and move to its sides, hiding between the blue vines, the Wasps shade almost matching with the plants.
The two vanguards make to attack the snake, and it reacts striking at one of them. The targeted insect veers by shifting its wings, mana shimmering inside them, and avoids the fatal bite by a millimeter, yet, it still loses three forelimbs from the snake bite. The other four reach the creature, and after grasping its body with their talons, sting it, Water-attuned mana spiraling on their natural weapon.
The creature hisses strongly, and what I am pretty sure is Dark-attuned mana unfolds from its body, completely blinding even me. It's the first time I can't perceive something inside my dungeon even when I concentrate.
From that point, I can't see anything about the fight.
Without any options, I switch my attention to my status, the Akashic Records messages flashing by within my consciousness in the next minutes.
Your male Natatory Wasp has died.
Your sterile female Natatory Wasp has died.
Your sterile female Natatory Wasp has died.
Your male Natatory Wasp has died.
Your sterile female Natatory Wasp has died.
Every message makes the mana around my core swirl faster in nervousness. I am left with only 3 Wasps now. And only one of them is still fighting on.
Seeing no reports for a while, I turn my attention to the blind spot inside my senses. The fight started near the tunnel opening, and the snake never moved away from its own ability.
I am just in time to witness the Dark-attuned mana dissipate.
The water is much muddier than before, but I can still see inside with my dungeon core senses. There are bits and blood of my Wasps everywhere, but those are not the only thing.
A long dark shape is laying on the Moss near the tunnel opening, still shaking and full of wounds. Stabs, slashes, and Wasps stingers are everywhere on its body.
I try to locate my last surviving Natatory Wasp, and I eventually see it's under the snake's body, still weakly slashing while it's stuck with its stinger inside the flesh. Its wings are broken, and it has only two forelimbs left.
The two creatures fight on but it's clear they are both completely spent. The snake barely twitches, and the Wasp can't find enough grip to move away with only two limbs left.
I keep my attention on them, and I rejoice when the snake is the one who dies first. It keeps shuddering even after its heart stops, the Wasps' venom probably still affecting its body.
I expect to grasp its pattern, yet, the knowledge never comes.
Meanwhile, I keep watching my Natatory Wasp as it tries to get away from under the creature's body, still slashing and trying to cut through the snake's scales. As time goes by, it gets weaker and weaker, and in the end, the last Wasp gradually stops too.
After a few more minutes, I get the message I didn't want to receive since I saw its last struggle.
Your sterile female Natatory Wasp has died.