“And why exactly are you here?” I said with suspicion as I glared at Calvin.

“It’s okay, Rico, there is a problem that involves all of us,” Marie said.

“I understand your reluctance to work with us Rico, and I apologize for the way you were treated during our first meeting. A lot of things have been changing at our organization, and I think you’d have found your experience a much different one if things were done back then, the way they are now,” Calvin offered. I was not going to put any kind of trust in this guy, but for Marie and Refuge, I’d listen to him.

“Why don’t you say why you’re here and what’s going on?” I offered, trying to dial down the anger I was feeling.

“You want me to start?” Calvin asked.

“Yes, I’ll jump in when I need to. Marie added.

“Great, thanks. Rico, a few days ago, we started getting strange mana reading in the area just north of LA. Just like with your organization, we have ways to track these things, but the energy of this event was much different from what we normally detect from a summoned being portal. We sent people to investigate, and instead of a summoned being, they found a strange portal that led to what we believe is a dungeon.

“As we assembled a team to delve inside the dungeon, our contacts in the government were calling frantically for assistance. It appears that this dungeon we found in LA wasn’t the only one. Dozens have popped up, and unfortunately, many were discovered by local authorities who tried to investigate a few of them. Nobody who went in one that isn’t a summoned being has come out.

“The government even sent a special operations team into the one they found in Washington DC, but they also never emerged. For now, they are sealing up the areas wherever these appeared, but more than one has spewed creatures into our world. So far, casualties have been light as the creatures lose their power soon after leaving the dungeon as our world siphons the mana powering them,” Calvin said.

I sat there a bit stunned, dungeons, or any system created things, weren’t supposed to show up in our world anytime soon. The mana levels here weren’t supposed to be able to support them. If Calvin was telling the truth, and it sure seemed like he believed what he was telling us, this could be a disaster if left unchecked.

“Has anyone tried to communicate with the dungeon cores? In my experience, they are intelligent and able to interact if they choose to,” I asked.

“Yes, our first recon teams did that exact thing. We even have people with classes specifically tied to dungeons. They’ve gone in with the first teams, but nobody has cleared their dungeon yet. It’s all hands on deck at my organization, and every summoned being with a combat or relevant support class is out there trying to put a stop to these things. A new dungeon has just opened here in Orange County, and we don’t have the manpower to deal with it. Our hope was that your people at Refuge could handle this one or at least supplement our forces,” Calvin asked.

“What are your thoughts, Marie,” I asked. My immediate response was to head out and help stop anyone from getting hurt by the dungeons, but my distrust of the Grimslade Group kept me from immediately volunteering.

“I think we need to help. There’s no hiding what has been happening from the government now, and if we pitch in, we can have a say in how summoned beings are treated after this immediate danger is over,” Marie said.

“What about you, Julio?” I asked. He was the only other member of Refuge in this little meeting.

“I know it’ll put my cousin at risk, but I think we need to help and find out what is happening. Is this an isolated incident, or is our whole world about to change?” Julio asked.

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“I’ll help, but I’m not signing up to join Grimslade or become some government test subject afterword,” I decided.

“Great. I can assure you that we have no designs on you other than seeking your help to deal with this dungeon. We’ve already worked out an agreement with our government contacts, which will cover your people as well, where we will offer consultation and support in return for them not interfering with our lives. How many summoned beings with combat or relevant support related classes can you quickly field?” Calvin explained. I looked to Marie for that answer.

“We can have three for certain, and perhaps another if he returns soon from his latest summoning,” Marie answered. I figured the three she was talking about were me, Julio’s cousin, Quinn, and herself. The fourth must have either been the new guy Tran who I didn’t know much about, or maybe even the moody teen Elliot, but I didn’t think he had a class yet.

“So far, none of the dungeons have been particularly high tier, but I would suggest at least a party of four. We’re out of summoned beings who can help, but we can supplement your people with some of our security teams, if need be,” Calvin offered.

“We have our own security forces who can make up the difference if needed,” Julio said, jumping in. I knew at least him, and Samantha had military training. While they weren’t summoned beings, they were more than deadly enough in their own right.

“Excellent, I think we have a plan, Here’s the address where you’re needed, can I count on you being there in the next hour, or will you need more time to prepare?” Calivn said.

“An hour should be fine; traffic won’t be bad at this time of day. Wait, the dungeon is here? I hope there weren’t any civilian casualties when it appeared,” Marie asked. I craned my head to see where the location was, but I couldn’t quite make it out.

“No casualties yet, thank goodness, but the dungeon couldn’t have appeared in a worse place. Knotts Berry Farm has closed down the park at the police’s request, but it’ll bring more attention than anyone wants if we try to keep the place closed indefinitely,” Calvin answered.

I’d been to Knotts Berry Farm more than once, it was a fun enough amusement park, and though it was a local, one location place, it had been around since the 1940s. If a dungeon had appeared there and the denizens ran amuck among the crowds, it would have been a disaster. The park was huge and knowing exactly where we were going would be important.

“Where in the park is the dungeon located?” I asked.

“Under the Calico Mine Ride, which seems kind of appropriate in a strange way,” Calvin answered. I knew the ride; it was a good one to take when it was hot outside since it was mostly indoors and air conditioned. It was a slow train that traveled through a fake mine and had the perfect, dark atmosphere for a dungeon to grow.

“We’ll get our team together and meet you at the park,” Marie said, ending our meeting with Calvin.

“Excellent, thanks for your help, I’ll see that everyone involved is fairly compensated. I’ll also make sure that the police will send a car over to escort you to the park. That should help cut down on any traffic delays. I’ll meet you at the park and will function as your liaison between Grimslade, local law enforcement, and our government contacts,” Calvin said as he made his way from my apartment.

“Besides me, who are we bringing?” I asked once Calvin was gone.

“I’ll join you along with Quinn. He’s hit tier one, rank two and his class is starting to become powerful. Tran has a class that will eventually make him an information broker like those in Somhagen. For now, he’s working to dig into what Calvin has told us and should be able to confirm if we’re being slung a line of bull or not. The question is, do we bring Elliot or not?” Marie said.

“Has he hit tier one yet?” I asked.

“Yes, he just hit tier one after his last summoning, and returned a day ago from Somhagen. He’s become an Elemental Mage specializing in fire, which could be handy in a dungeon, but he’s…well, he’s Elliot if you know what I mean,” Marie explained.

“He doesn’t strike me as a team player, but do you think he’d be a risk to our group?” I asked. The other two were quiet for a moment before Julio replied.

“No, I think he’ll play well with others for something like this. We’ve got to put him to the test at some point, and with you and Rico there to reign him in, I think he’ll be fine. Someone who can become a human flame thrower might be necessary inside a dungeon. Marie, you’ll be leading the team, so it’s your call. If you don’t want him, I can gear up and help,” Julio offered.

“We’ll give him a shot, as long as he’s willing. You’re probably better prepared for what might be waiting for us inside a dungeon than even the special forces team the government sent in, but none of them made it out, and from what Calivn said, it seems like summoned beings are the only ones to have a chance,” Marie decided.

“Okay, I’ll give him the good news if you can round up everyone else,” Julio said, leaving the apartment.

“So, Marie, I hope that since we’re going to an amusement park for this, you’re not going to take it out of my vacation time,” I joked to cover up the anxiety I was starting to feel. This was the real deal, a dungeon here on Earth where there would be no respawns and no returns to my personal space if things went badly.