《Tiny heart》 1. Happy It wasnt a great dungeon, when scaled to other dungeons it was actually quite small but it was a happy dungeon. Children from the nearby village would come and play with the fluffy dire bunnies and as they grew up they would slash at the whipping vines with wooden swords. Years would go by and the children''s grandchildren would do the same, going on grand adventures in the five rooms and the cavern that was all this dungeon had. A nameless unranked dungeon near the town of Siod in the kingdom of Jerra it was the perfect hideout for the bandits that started raiding the highways that crossed nearby. But that dungeon wasn''t allways like this, it could still remember its days as the legendary azure caves of Tishal and the bandits made a mistake, they killed one of its children, he watched her father''s first steps, and her aunt''s, he was there when Sedi fought the whipping vines like an imaginary pirate and he also drank her blood and fed on the life of her now cold corpse.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Her death had been long and terrible, the bored bandits toyed with her for days before she snatched a knife and killed herself, she had to watch how her beloved dire bunnies were slain and eaten, she suffered torture and vandalism of her body and even dying she was in pain for long minutes before her soul could rest. But as she left the world something had awakened, the cave shook and a crushing sound was heard as one of the back walls crumbled to dust, the first group of bandits went in to investigate and came back with reports of a giant hoard of gold and other treasures, the whole group raced into the darkness and after a few twists came to behold the enormous piles of treasure, a second tremor was felt and they were never heard from again. The townfolk sent some guards to investigate but all they found were evidence of a bandit camp in the old dungeon and the body of a young girl that they brought back to bury. For a while no one would come but the years had turned and children would dare the whipping vines once more 2. Mourning Tie was breathing hard after her long run in the dungeon obstacle course, this was her team''s shiny moment, they would take over a legendary dungeon like no team has ever done before, fighting hundreds of boss monsters and thousands of beasts and other monsters, even the four near sentient tribes of goblins, merfolk dragonkin and the weird glowing things, weeks of fighting and dodging traps all leading to this final test. Nosh their healer was occupied with the floor map, it was a giant riddle worked like a clockwork mechanism where you had to finish some fight and then run with the runestone back to the stone pillar and you would open another segment, they were almost at the center, the time lapses were cutting short and even tie''s empowerd stamina and dexterity was at its limit to finish the long runs back to the pillar. Grinding their teeth the team of seven greatest adventurers in three countries joined together to do what no one has done before, conquer the heart of the legendary Azure caves, when the final rune was placed in the correct slot out of hundreds a great booming sound was heard, the whole platform retracted down into the floor opening the huge room and revealing a domed ceiling soaring dozens of meters into the air, with runes shining like stars all over the the pseudo sky. Azeb was unimpressed with the light show, all he wanted was the prize, not some fancy display of dungeon magic, he nontheless clung on to his shield and axe, waiting for the coming boss fight. When the roar of a giant beast shatterd the mystical mirage Azeb was alert for it, he cought the tail swipe with his shield and smashed his enchanted axe into the scaly skin of the monster that dropped from the fake sky, darker than night and mightier than any mortal beast the purple and black dragon was already casting a spell while crashing its enormous tail into the group, had Azeb not been ready they would all be dead there and then. Sahemo countered the night dragon''s spell that would have ignited the runes to scorch them and quickly cast a reinforcing chant on Azeb to help him counter the massive physical attack. Tie ran along the creature''s body, quickly climbing its front foot and surged to strike at its gaping maw before it could breath its lethal weapon of yet unknown type and magnitude, but while her attack was successful the monster was too quick, it clumped its fist and crushed the rogue''s legs then threw her at the wall.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Nosh hurried to Tie''s side casting on the run, he could save her if only he was quick enough, earth mounds erupted to his left and right not letting the beast crush him with its massive body. He got to Tie just as he finished chanting his strongest spell that let him reverse time on a single wounded being, only effective a few minutes after taking damage and unbearable for more than once in at least a month of temporal stability its limits forcing Nosh to use it very sparsely during their quest to the dungeon heart. Kine was ready, her earth magic was invaluable in tight corridors and under ground, she helped Nosh reach Tie on time and now she was ready, forming a magnificent image in her mind she called forth a gargantuan stone golem shaped like a rhinoceros, the stone beast drummed the ground, lowered its head and its stampede caught the dragon by surprise, the huge four meters stone horn impaling its side and dragging it over twenty meters, the dragon cried in pain and rage and smashed both fists on the rhino golem''s head turning it to dust. But the damage was done, black sizzling blood oozed from its wound and puddled to the ground. Azeb wasted no time and charged at the wounded darkness, a flight of arrows whistled over his head as Crib let loose with all his powers, the arrows all sinking into the gaping wound, a final roar and a slash of an enchanted axe later the beast was down, it glowd and shattered into a million lights that floated to imbue the runes on the domes ceiling, another boom and the sound of gears when the floor in the middle of the room opened to a majestic staircase. The dungeon was dreaming of its glorious past, remembering the mightiest heroes to brave ita halls, now it had other brave heroes of a different kind, children dreaming of one day fighting giant beasts in magical caves would come to him and swing between the vines slashing wooden swords at fairy lights. The stone altar in the central cave was placed there not long after its lost one of his precious wards, her name written in the ancient scripts caused some uproar and many pilgrims to come into his domain but they lost interest soon, her brother would come every year to sit by the stone pillar and sometimes he would cry hugging the stone, other times he would just sit there contemplating. Her father tried to destroy the stone, but he couldnt, not even the town mason could do it and so it was left there. 3. Absolutions The beastmaster pacified the mighty creature, it was his first but soon many more would join his hoard of trained loyal monsters, the dire bunny hopped with excitement as the group assaulted the stone parapets lining the dungeon walls. They took over the evil lord''s castle and saved the villagers from his wicked reign, with a warrior princess and a sharp tongued wizard nothing could stand in their way. And then the bandits came and the team no longer had a warrior princess, Gabe wouldn''t go anywhere near their old dungeon playground and when Ben went to look for Sedi after dark he ran away as soon as he heard her screams telling himself he was only going to get more help, no one in town would help him go after them, his uncle locked him and puddles in the basement and wouldnt even let him see her body, he heard that the bandits were all gone and when he cried himself to sleep he could still hear those horrid cries for help from his best friend.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. When the weird stone appeard in the dungeon he put his hand on it and vowed to never let anyone be hurt like his Sedi ever again if he could help it, and when he heard the slab of stone move he had to enter, finding a cave where there were narrow bridges crossing ever more elaborate canals drifting mists hiding the far corners of his secret room he knew this was his, this was the answer to his promise and so he and puddles starting sneaking to the dungeon every day, playing in the secret area training to be the greatest bane for bandits that ever was. The old dungeon heard the vows of his young charge and decided it was time to start the second stage of his plan, after centuries of apparent slumber he opened a new room accessable through a secret passage only his ward could open, he allowed his monster now named puddles to join this child in his quest for glory, not knowing at the time the tragedy that would fall them all. He will help both children get strong and when they are ready he will send them on the greatest quest ever taken by a dungeon. 4. Reason Toby leaned closer to Jay, he kissed her lips gently when she put her arms around his head, their naked bodies slick with passionate sweat as they moved together with the harmonious song of the dungeon kritters, they climaxed minutes apart and hugged lying on the blanked they brought to cover the soft moss floor in the small secluded room behind the whipping vines, it was their secret spot from when they were little and came to play in the dungeon. Suddenly they heard something huge crashing outside the cave, then a mighty cry of some avian beast and the sound of human chatter, between the vines they could see the head of a dire bunny entering the cave but it was enormous, at least the size of a small horse, it was helped walking by a strange man whom they both immediately recognized as the legedary beastmaster Benjolin Colter, he was half carrying the giant dire bunny all the while soothing it with words like "almost there puddles, hang on, we are almost home". He layed Puddles on the stone altar and looked at his sage eyes as his friend could barely hold them open, i promised you i will get you here on time, rest now and know you will never be forgotten, the dire bunny looked the man in the eye one last time, took a deep breath and as he exhaled the last thing he saw was the love a devotion of his master and friend, they had shared many adventures and ravaged many bandit gangs, found allies and created great bonds and sometimes mighty enemies but now it was done, his time has come to join his maker. As tears streamed down his rugged face Ben buried them in the great beast''s fur, after a few minutes he heard the knocks of boots on the rock floor, come on Ben, she called, you''ve finished your mission, this isnt even a real dungeon, also you are embarrassing those children at the back there, so let''s go. As she was saying these words that broke the silence Puddles started glowing and then shattered into a million motes of light that swirled around the room and lit runes all over the walls and ceiling who dimmed after a few seconds, Impressive now lets let out of here.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Sure Sara im coming, he was my first beast and i owed him to get him back home so yeah lets go, he wiped his face, eyes still stinging and started to follow her when he heard the old stone slab opening, it hadnt done so since he turned sixteen two decades ago, he almost thought it was like the townsfolk said that his mind let him dream of grandeur so he wouldn''t have to face his sorrow over losing Sedi, but now it was open and he was no longer a lost lonely child. Entering the room he found the old bridged crevices and winding walkways shrouded in mists, Sara was quick to follow him whistling in appretiation, I didnt think this old nameless dungeon could hide something like this for so long. Where to partner? The mists parted ways creating a corridor leading to a shrine, as they neared it they could see something shining on a pedastel, it was a dark blue egg sitting in a jeweled cup, on the stone around it was written "take the egg and cup to the misty vale dungeon for a reward as great as your greatest dream". The ancient dungeon was excited beyond words, his theory was proven right, he was not alone, others like him existed and he could contact them, true his original method was slow but it worked and he had two decades to perfect his solution should the theory prove true. His bunny went on many adventures, explored many other dungeons with his master and everywhere he went he made contact and remembered, the misty vale was a safe bet, it wasnt far and it was relatively mature if not as old as Azure was all he needed now was for the cup to be placed in the other dungeon, then using its twin the two secluded beings could for the first time in recorded history make contact with one another. As the two adventurers left the stone slab closed behind them and the buffled teenagers got back to what they were doing before all the interruptions 5. Mystery Wind whipped Sara''s hair as they were gliding towards the misty vale less than an hour after going to that weird old hole from Benjolin''s childhood, he could call it a dungeon all day but that wouldnt turn a bunch of musty rooms in an old cave into anything great, she decided it wasnt worth the hussle to try and convince him otherwise, especially when they were landing and preparing to enter one of the kingdom''s most dangerous and treacherous dungeons and they were going to roam it without a proper party which immediately pumped her body full of adrenaline. Ben held the cup as he guided the lead roc to land at the entrance of the misty vale dungeon, although it was late there were parties getting ready to enter the dungeon and they all turned to gape at the newcomers, he went to the registration station and stood in line when suddenly all those in front dissipated, the receptionist was staring when he handed him his token and needed a nudge from his neighbor to start the process, and what level are you aiming for sir? I dont know yet, might have to go all the way, was probably not the best answer as Ben heard clapping and hushed conversations, this was going to be a long night as it seemed. Trev heard the commotion and decided it was time to see what had happened outside, as soon as he left the tent it was obvious, another legend had come to grab his prize, this was his longest expedition yet, already lasting over ten weeks and no end in sight, he noticed the thunder of rocs and immediately knew it was that damned beastmaster that has come to snatch his commission and Trevain Himmok was not going to let that be. Ben finished his registration and started back to his beasts to gear up and call his pack when he noticed the man standing in front of the luxurious tent, Hey Trev how far did you get?, I got all the way to the boss at seventy four, thats over twenty more than your last dive fron what I remember. Yeah but now I have a mission so got to take it seriously, Im bringing in Nat and Penny too this time,. Damn you Ben who gave you a commission to the misty vale? Just an old friend, don''t worry Trev I''m not here to rob you of your treasures, just going in and out and im gone.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Sara was ready when Ben returned she heard some of his conversation with Trev and wasn''t pleased at all, they weren''t ready for a seventy five floors dive into the misty vale not even with the naga and rakshasa monsters Ben had trained but he was on a god given quest from some musty old cave and nothing would convince him otherwise, she managed to grab onto a couple of adventurers and sent them with a shopping list and a sack of gold, at least they wont starve in the dungeon, she thought as she spotted the group coming back to where she was waiting. Ben and Sara neared the archway marking the entrance to the Misty vale dungeon, just a few meters beyond it were the swirling mists that gave it its name, Ben called forth his legendary skill of Hunting Grounds and summoned his beasts to join them, the crafty six armed lion man Penny and the mighty spell slinging snake woman Nat were only two of the great walking circus that was this man she loved so much. Once they stepped into the dungeon the mists swirled all around them, the next archway dimly visible among the pearly puffs of fog. Azure was elated beyond belief, all those years of thinking, crafting and planning finally bore fruit, he made first real contact with another dungeon, the price was higher than he was ready to admit, giving away one of his midnight dragon eggs was not easy to bear but Ben was also his, so he could let it go. He looked at the pulsing goblet set on a pedastel in a hidden room and held his metaphorical breath in waiting for an answer. 6. News Azure needed more people, but he didnt want to take over the little children''s dungeon so he decided to place a caretaker to that particular region of his domain, he started by imbuing a gem with some mana and then added a little bit of his knowledge and experience to the glowing jewels'' instructions, he put in it some of his most basic emotions like caring for the children and his sorrow for the one lost, as an afterthought he added the ability to craft some minor traps and even adding a few rooms, not something grand, just basic level dungeon crafting that would let it do some minor maintenance tasks while Azure was busy elsewhere. He placed the jewel inside the stone altar and the runes inscribed on it immediately lit in a reassuring surge of power, he almost forgot but he enabled the stone pool some of the ambient mana in the little cave. As soon as Azure let go of the stone sonething has happened that he hadn''t seen in so long it was almost forgotten in his vault of memories.
New skill unlocked
Create dungeon core: with your crafting you have surpassed the limits of all dungeons, you can now create new dungeon cores
Azure was for the first time in almost three hundred years dumbstruck, this was so unfathomable that he had to rethink all his previous assumptions, nothing in his world made sense anymore, he has ascended to the level of creation only gods could master and it scared him more than he dared admit even to himself.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Ben was holding the line while Penny disarmed the traps in the door, Sara was shooting volley after volley of enchanted arrows at the strange winged cats that dominated this region of the misty vale, finally a triumphant roar was heard and the party retreated into the fort from which they would descend the next thirty or so stages of the dungeon, Nat was already casting her web on the courtyard knowing what was coming. The giant three headed chimera burst from the gate before them only to be shrouded in volumes of enchanted threads, the more it struggled the more its wings and paws got tangled in the web, at the last minute it conquered its rage and tried to burn the spelled silky strands but it was too late, as it drew breath the webs contracted and it suffocated on its own sulphurous breath. They regrouped in the courtyard and Ben put the poor beast out of its misery, as he could not spare the time to tame and train it. They were deep in the misty vale, breaking every known record of progress to come this far in less than four days, they would rest in the courtyard and in a few hours continue their descent into the most dangerous parts of this labirynth. 7. Chains Something was very wrong in the Misty vale dungeon, a small group, you wouldn''t even call it that, a couple of adventurers and some beasts that served them was smashing through the dungeon like a rampaging typhoon, mobs and boss monsters were destroyed in minutes where larger parties would take days to approach the challenge, this was beyond anything the old dungeon has ever experienced, they were killing his reputation, he checked to see how others were doing and was relieved to see this was not some wide spread epidemic, just this couple it could cope with, the others will have to suffer the consequences of the dungeon''s new inventions as it tried to veer them off from their goal. Ben called his Hunting Grounds skill and summoned another of his troup letting nat rest for the time being, he whispered some arcane words and a waterfall of light gushed through the magic portal, Hello Nea had a nice nap? Yes brother Ben, where are we? This is the Misty Vale dungeon and I need you to tell me what lies ahead, i have never come this far before. The lights puddled on the floor and soaked into the tiles running along the cracks and up the walls lighting the way to the trio of heroes as they walked down the corridor traps sprang on all sides but they were just illusions cast by Nea the elemental spirit, the illusions let them avoid and evade all the lethal traps and even prepared them to the charge of the moster trihorn bull on the long and narrow hall, as they entered the chamber Nea pooled again into the living fountain of light and the group prepared for a boss fight on this level. A screech was heard resonating from the walls and a magnificent harpy queen descended on the party with her flock, this was the time for Sara to show off, her arrows felling a dozen monsters in a single volley, the queen buffered her second volley with a gust of wind from her great wings and Ben used his Lure skill to call her to him, as Sara was fighting the flock Ben had a battle of wits and determination with their queen, he posed a riddle for her, a man she could not enchant with her voice or charms yet still offered her his devotion, the queen, named Emmaline could not resist him for long, he promised open skies and great adventures if she would just join him, the elemental by his side was another force to reckon with as it wasnt a slave, she could see the bonds of service and they were not charred with compulsion, feeling her heart beat faster and her breath cought in her chest she agreed to the bond and as she did ahe could hear an angry voice ringing in her mind, the flock turned against her, trying with all their powers to shred their treacherous queen but the man was there and with his elemental and his friend he protected her from harm sealing the bond and proving he was true to his word.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. As the battle ground fell silent Ben used his Hunting Ground skill to send Emma to roost and rest in a magical kingdom of endless forests and boundless sky and she dove inside eager to explore. Another one for your harem Ben? Sara asked sarcastically with a little wicked smile, Well done on using your manly wiles to seduce every royal female you come across. Its not like that and you know it. Azure was excited, his chalice was almost in place, he could feel the ebbs of ambient mana lapping at its jeweled lip, not long now before he could establish his first link to another dungeon beyond his domain. He went back to working on his other two projects mainly the little accident he had a week before and his creation of a new public middle tiered dungeon, he decided to experiment some more with his new skill and created another core, this one much larger and more elaborate than the tiny one he installed in the children''s den, he called this new dungeon Finder''s Hollow and allowed it a much greater selection of abilities and attributes, because the old Azure was feeding it, the new dungeon grew rapidly into the desired shape and was almost ready for its first adventurers. 8. Steps They were setting up camp to rest after the long arduous day, their advance slowed to a crawl, in the past two days they barely made it through three floors, the dungeon had turned vicious, not only was it harder but it was cruel too, no longer trying to slow them down or just kill them it was aiming to maim, poison, and cripple them, many of his bonded beasts were wounded, sick and some even died, all in the last two days after three weeks of grinding through the dungeon it has ground them to a halt, every twist was a pitfall to climb, and every turn had deadly traps and ambushes. Penny had lost his arm to a withering poison he contracted from a trap set with delayed action to baffle his skill, Nat was a wreck from mana poisoning after casting too many spells at a too short period of time, his friends had feared his voice and he had almost lost his will to call them, but they were so close. Ben decided to try something else, after warning Sara he called Emma and Penny from the hunting grounds, the queen had answerd his call and it was a good sign. As the group of four sat by the fire Sara was oiling the string of her bow and Ben checked Penny''s stump they were chatting like some old friends without a care in the world when Ben asked Emma why the dungeon had become so dreadful, her answer surprised him, she said it was angry because Ben had taken Emma away from it, but Ben could hardly believe her words, implying a dungeon had feelings and coherent thought processes had gone beyond his experience and knowlege, only thinking back could he now see a pattern in all his dungeon crawls and dives, this was no different. Penny had much of the same answer, the Cloud Fortress dungeon where Ben had contracted him was also angry when they left, the only dungeon that was happy to see its creature go was that musty old cave where Puddles came from, and yes they can contact the dungeon but it will try to assert its power over them, being mosters roaming in its halls. Ben told Sara to prepare, in the morning he will try to do something he has never dreamed possible before, but for now he sent Emma to the Hunting Ground and after checking Penny let him go as well, they had a few hours before the wards on their camp would fall and wake them so they made sure to use those to rest.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Misty Vale could feel its daughter in its halls, but some buzzing noise wouldnt let it find or touch her, those humans were slowed to a more normal pace now and she was ready for any surprise, until it felt something foreign establishing a bond to it. It was the human beastmaster that proved to be a much greater annoyance than any other before him and now that same human has bonded its soul to the will of the dungeon. Ben felt pain jarring his every muscle the link to the dungeon has been corrupted by a manifestation of rage like he had never seen before, it was a tide that swept everything before it and ground it to dust, he held his ground, clenching his fists and kicking uncontrollably but he held on for dear life and as he held he could feel other presences flocking to his call, every beast he ever pacified had come to anchor him in the storm of that soul link, and the last to come was a fluffy dire bunny that was like a wave breaker that turned all the rage in that flood into droplets of reviving rain, it seemed like the bunny was smiling at him for a last time before bounding away. Ben woke up covered in sweat, all around him were piles of corpses from every kind of moster in the dungeon, his beasts were there and Sara fell exhausted to the ground covered from head to toe in blood, mostly not hers, the monsters had turned to light and a river of it was making its way away from their camp, a fluffy bunny hopped on the river and glided away, Ben got up and helped Sara stand, they left their equipment on the ground there, all except the golden jeweled chalice with the egg, and followed the river of light. They entered a great room, at the center was an altar just like in the training cave and he placed the chalice on it, as soon as the chalice was placed the egg cracked and a reptilian head came out, it was a deep purple color like of which Ben had never heard of, in his head words formed THIS MIDNIGHT DRAGON IS YOUR PRIZE, TAKE IT AND NEVER RETURN TO MY DOMAIN, the voice echoed in his mind and he and Sara retreated hastily from the cave, packed their equipment and almost fled the dungeon. SO LITTLE CHALICE, WHAT HAVE YOU BROUGHT ME the mind of the Misty vale quested and soon a thing happened that was beyond reckoning, it could hear the thoughts of another dungeon. 9. Deeds Ben held the hatchling to his chest in a protective embrace, Sara was leading them outside and as soon as they got to the keep courtyard Ben called the Rocs to carry them away from the dungeon borders, the majestic birds parted ways from the mists and soon the keep completely vanished in the swirling fog, they were out, in minutes the couple reached the camp outside and after a hasty landing Ben walked to the register, the dragon hidden in a satchel tied to his chest, blissfully sleeping unaware of the commotion their arrival caused. Tam was atarting his midday watch at the register when he heard the murmurs from outside the tent, it seemed one of their legends had had enough of the dungeon for the season as the words "finished" and "out" were the common thread of conversation drifting around, he turned to serve the Mad clappers group when they suddenly drew back clearing the way to a tattered looking man that approached the counter, so Ben, had enough adventures for the season? And the adventurer seemed oblivious to Tam''s sarcasm as he handed over the rune token for examination. You could throw a thousand gold coins in the camp at that moment and no hand would even reach to try and grab them, the shock was absolute, the rune glowed not in the normal gold hue of the final boss for a dungeon but with all the colors of a mad rainbow, an effect only possible if it was in the same room as an ancient dungeon core, this adventurer has done beyond the impossible, proving once again his legendary reputation was justified, every man, woman and beast was jealous of this man''s prowess, to not only finish the whole misty vale dungeon, a feat never heard of before, in record time of less than a month to even reach the lower levels of the keep but he has gone beyond that and touched the dungeon heart. Tam dropped his pen, closed his mouth and scurried to the back to drag Viola to the front office, This better be important Tam I dont have time for, she swallowed a hard lump that caught in her throat, B Ben? How? What did you do to my dungeon? Ben smiled and then started laughing and banging his hands on his thighs and chest, I DID IT VI, LIKE I TOLD YOU WAY BACK WHEN WE WERE IN THE SAME TEAM, I CONQUERED THE MISTY VALE, after shouting and laughing he went over to his old friend and twirled her around, I got a wonderful story to tell you, let me and Sara wash and rest, I will come and we will talk, the dungeon has a hundred and seven and i will tell you all about them for your book, meet me at the dancing wizard in and hour, get us a private room and you''ll hear all about it. The Misty vale dungeon was in a fit of rage, it was just bested by a couple of mortals and a weird talking cup that was spitting lies as fast as it could form words, There is NO other dungeon like me, you have no proof because its impossible, I AM UNIQUE, you are just some soul trapped in a pretty cup and you tricked me so i would let your master invade my heart room and run away. But i know his type, once he tasted glory he will return and i will destroy him then. Azure wad frustrated with the results of his quest, the contact was true but Misty Vale wouldnt believe him, all the other dungeon wanted was revenge for the trick it decides was played on it, no explanations, pleas or promises would appease the frothing mad dungeon and his demand that the cup reveal its true purpose, if he had hair Azure would probably be pulling on it right now, he decided to let things cool down with the other dungeon and maybe make contact in another decade or three, he had other things to do for now. Trevain was furious, his messenger just arrived minutes ago with the news of Ben''s victory and Trev was becoming a boiling pot of rage, all his planning and perfect execution were for nothing, he was at the fourteenth level of the keep and preparing for the next boss that was the first real challenge for his team and that upstart moron had already cleared the whole dungeon, it was known that divers were somewhat quicker than perfectionists but this was usually curbed with their higer mortality rates, mainly none of them actually survived to turn in their runes as proof of success and now this buffoon had clearly not only went deeper than anyone had gone before but he also had the audacity not to die doing so. Misty Vale was following the group that had been assailing it for almost three years now and was almost happy to see they were progressing as usual, their leader, the moustache man with the odd assortment of tools and crafts, was shouting profanities at the wall, apparently he wasnt happy about this beastmaster either so the dungeon thought to make a small bargain with the odd man. On the wall before him Trevain could see runes forming, they were telling him all he needed to know about Ben''s cheating and betrayal, how the great and rightous Benjolin Colt had sacrificed his friend to enclose his soul in a magical chalice and then challenged the dungeon to a duel of souls after stealing one of its precious children and then using his friend''s soul to cheat in the challenge and steal another of the dungeon''s creations, a harpy queen and a dragon hatchling were prizes worthy of great kings and emperors, not some mudspitting farmboy from an unknown town. What Trevain needed was proof, and he bargained for it like he has never haggled before in his life, at the end the runes on the wall became a portal and when he stepped in he found himself fulfilling his dream, he was standing in front of what has been the greatest challenge of his life yet, the heart of the Misty Vale dungeon, as was their deal he collected the shards of the dragon egg shell and reentered the portal he then collected his people and in three hours they were ready to march out, another day and they all got to the main tent and he displayed his rainbow rune demanding an audience with the representatives of the crown and the guilds.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. The chubby winged reptile was chunking out on the sliced foods Ben was giving him, it seemed to prefer cooked meat and sweet fruits over raw and sour ones, so Ben was indulging its appetites when the soldiers marched in followed by some officious looking people. Benjolin Merrik Colter, i hereby call upon you to testify before the court in regards of your crimes of reginal theft and appropriation of kingdom treasures in contradiction to kingdom law and customs, come without a struggle or face the consequences. Ben followed the group when they passed by the smirking Trev, he then heard Sara''s command voice, Put it down before you lose that arm, and he knew nothing good would come from it, so he jumped back in the tent right on time to see a soldier trying to stuff his new dragonet to a small cage, another soldier was facing Sara with a half drawn sword and in the confusion the other soldier cried in pain as he felt the razor sharp teeth piercing his armor and skin, I told you it would happen moron, Sara glared at him and the dragon was flapping all around the tent when the officials entered, What is going on here? You were told not to resist, are you trying to get in deeper trouble than you already are? Ben called the dragon and then summoned Penny from the Hunting Grounds, Look after her my friend while i sort things out, and he released Penny back to the inner world. Thief, the official screeched, Get that treasure back here right this instant you ruffian, the man was puffed up and his face red with rage, This is the last straw, arrest him at once! The troops hurried to shackle Ben''s arms and marched him to the royal tent where the king''s representative held his audience, they forced him to his knees before the seat of justice where a hefty man sat wearing golden robes and displaying a wealth of jewels in abundant splendor. Where are the treasures you stole, and where are you holding the queen? He said in a dry tone like crumpling automn leaves. Ben was lost, he had no idea what the man was talking about. Cat got your tongue? Speak up man, where is the queen and where is her pet dragon that you stole from the dungeon? Some dim light of understanding was shining through Ben''s mind, he looked around to see the greedy faces of the nobles in the room and the contemptuos smile lifting Trevain''s mustache. Sara was in no mood for nonesense, she marched straight for the adventurers guild and pushed through the line, What is this crap about Ben cheating and stealing? The clerk ran off to the back and brought out the manager, Come now Sara, you were there, didnt Ben kidnap some queen from the dungeon and then used her as a hostage to get past the other monsters? We have witnesses that saw you grab the dragon from its shell and then you ran away leaving Trevain behind to fend off against the dungeon''s wrath. That is most certainly not what happened, who told you this pile of centaur shit? She was getting even more angry now and the guild manager started getting anxious about this legendary ranger who had a reputation for violence and it seemed like he was her current source of ire. Look, Sara, no need to put too much on this, the crown is already putting forth the full force of law and justice and if Ben just hand over what he borrowed from the dungeon he can probably just walk away with no more than a few stern words about misplacing crown property. STERN WORDS? ILL BE GIVING YOU STERN WORDS, YOU GET THERE RIGHT NOW AND STOP THAT FARCE OR I WILL CALL ON THE ADVENTURER TRIBUNAL TO DEAL WITH YOU AND ALL YOUR OTHER GRABBY FINGER FRIENDS, GET THERE NOW! DO IT! NOW! When the final NOW declaration echoed in the whole camp the guild manager was dumped out of his chair trying to both run and hide at the same time, blacksmiths missed their beat, soldiers marching by found themselves obeying the Command and walking to the crown tent, in the offensive tent silence had fallen and greedy smiles turned to concerned frowns when the nobles were uncertain what calamity was about to fall on them, the guild manager of the Misty Vale branch ran inside tripping on his own cloak and right behind him marched Sara followed by a troop of soldiers and a whole bunch of curious adventurers and camp followers, the large tent was almost bursting with the crowd gatherd inside to see what was happening. Come now Sara, you dont have to fall so heavy on them, they only wanted to know what happened at the dungeon. Ben shut up, you are so naive you couldnt defend yourself against somone claiming your skin was blue. Well you see in certain light my skin actually is. "Shut up Ben, im taking care of this right now". "Ok Sara, as you wish". Sara looked around the room her eyes scanning faces and her mind giving them names and affiliations, the targets of her scrutiny moved uneasy in their seats. "Who in this sorry ass crowd is trying to claim rights to our spoils in the dungeon?" The judge collected his wits and was ready to lash out on this impudent woman that dared challenge his authority in his own court, "Now see here young lady", her eyes focused on him and his voice refused to finish the sentence, "it was Trevain that has brought down accusations of theft and misconduct", a new plan was forming in his mind, "He brought back a core imbued rune a day and a half after the accused and he said he was abandoned at the dungeon''s heart, is this not so?" The judge asked the man who was doing his best to vanish in the swallen croud. Some unseen hand pushed Trevain out from the croud and when he turned to glare at those ruffians they all just stared at him so he cleared his throat and put his hands in his coat pockets, "what i said was true and I have proof", he pulled out his adventurer runestone and it shone like a rainbow casting colored lights at the awed faces in the crowd. "They want to claim it all for themselves so they abandoned me to die". The harsh words caught Ben completely unprepared, "I am sorry Trev I didnt know you coming with us" he started apologizing when Sara cut him, "Ben I said shut up and I meant it, so tell me Tervain, what boss monster did we beat at the eighty third level of the dungeon?", "Well uhmm it was if I remember correctly the hellhound pack", "false there was no boss at that level only a ratman gang we avoided, how did we cross the mud beast''s domain?", "you will just deny anything i say and state something else happened", "Fine, what is the name of the queen you say we abducted?" 10. Dues Sara knew it was impossible, but the runestones never lied, it was impossible to fake them so the only conclusion was that Trevain really had gotten to the heart, probably even before she and Ben did, and it just took him a little longer to exit than it had taken them, is it possible he had gotten there four days before them and that was why the dungeon had become so hard to pass? If that was so then the man had first claim to any treasures extracted in their dive. Trevain felt trapped, he thought he was prepared to defend his rights to the dungeon spoils but this woman was asking all the wrong questions, he cared less for the treasures the divers may have collected in their hasty passage through the levels, but the first to finish a dungeon had a boon from the king that could amount to a small barony and Trevain being the fourth son of a just such a baron knew it was his one chance at the title. The other spoils from the dive were the oil he hoped to use to hasten the process with the local gentry and a way to stab that annoying fool where it really hurt him, with his precious beasts and critters he calls friends like the savage that he is. Everything was playing like Aresh planned it, the fools will fight amongst themselves and in the end he will use the king''s seal to grab all the best prizes from this unexpected success, that dragon hatchling was only his leverage on the dimwit beastmaster that was more broan than brain and the small barony was none of his concern so he dangled it before the two aspiring nobles to bicker about it amongst themselves, it was time to get the show to its next chapter. "Enough, this is a respectable court and i i will not have you contempt the king may he rule long nor the kingdom with which we prosper, there are formal proceedings to adhere and you may address the court when it is your time to speak, now let us begin, display your runes before the court". Three dazzling runestones were raised and the hall was flooded with a miriad of lights and colors, "Now lay the gathered treasures from the dungeon on the appraisal table and relay each item''s description and method of aquisition", after a while the growing treasure hoard was getting less cheers and woes as another gemstone was added to a great pile of similarly magnificent gems, one more jeweled sword on a table with already a dozen wasnt the same as the first, the crowd was dispersing with only about a hundred staying to look, the sheer size of that treasure was impressive but each item by itself was just another line in a ledger, the last few items were enough to get some cheers with the dragon hatchling, the crown of stars and the midnight dragon egg shells topping the trove. Royal regalia was crown property and there was nothing to do about it, weapons were divided between the army, the royal guard and the various adventurer guilds that had a claim in the particular dungeon, the rest was tithed between the expedition, the royal representative and the crown, so it was all meticulously registered and the adventurers in question had first pick from that remaining segment of the piled jewels and precious metals, they could also claim a single artifact from the secluded piles and were generously compensated for the rest, its was obvious the beastmaster would take the monster, but Aresh wanted to see what the others will try to take so he could get a better appretiation for the other items. Sara took the necklace and looked with disgust as Trevain took an artisan''s hammer, it was a wondrous and extremely rare artifact as they were rarely made and never sold outside artisan guilds and communities, he didnt deserve it, he somehow cheated, and she knew it but not how, the shells were absolute proof that he had gotten to the room after them and he added nothing to the pile from beyond the fourtieth level but his gem and the shells were proof that he had been to that room.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Aresh was extatic, it was his luck to be at the right place at the perfect time, it was possible for adventurers to turn in loot at their own guild court but if there was any dispute custom said it was to resolve at the earliest possible time and that meant turning in the treasure at the local court, of course most adventurers would just turn in loot to get more supplies and go back inside but some divers just robbed the dungeons and then left to make somone else rich, if that silly Trevain hadn''t disputed their claim they could have just gone and he would only get his tithe as appraised by the guild, he was sure Trevain was pilfering the best bits from his lengthy expeditions but there was never any proof, and now Aresh had his hands stuck deep in this royal grab and he will be damned to let it slip from his fingers. Ben picked up the dragon and was about to leave when the courtmaster cleared his throat, "What about the abducted queen?", So Ben called Emma and when Aresh saw it was only another of the man''s collection of freaks he let out a sigh and shooed him away with a flap of his hand, Ben and Sara left while Trevain stayed to facilitate his deed for the title. All three signed their statements with their runes giving the letters a mystical shine like precious jewel were used to inscribe the scrolls. The storm was letting off outside and the the children were eager to run and play in the Vine Hollow dungeon as it was lately named, when the deluge of yesterday gave way to a soft morning drizzle many doors burst open to see young boys and girls with leather boots running in the puddles and racing to see who would claim the vines and play the brave defenders fending off against the monster hoards and who would be cleansing the vines from the infestation of semi sentient tribes of giblins and gnolls that has settled there, each child was the hero of their own little world and they will all be victorious when the day ended, some older siblings were called on duty to watch over the youngsters but they were drawing lots to see who got to go to their old playground and who had to stay and do chores or work at the many shops and duties of young folks in a busy town. When they reached the dungeon something was differet, the old dusty hole was replaced by a trio of stone slabs with a curtain of vines blocking the entrance, the children ran inside after over a month away from their favorite playground and the youths looked with worry at the changes to a place that had been the same since their grandparents were little. Inside they found a dreamland filled with colorful flowers covering a graceful meadow and amongst them were fairylike creatures looking like tiny people made of light that played with the little children, there was no apparent light source it was as if everything was glowing and adding a soft aura of floating light to the whole scene. Tam was running like evil spirits were chasing him, when he got to the town gates he was covered in mud and had a bruised lip from slipping on the uneven trail, the guards took him in and heard something about the dungeon changing, the commander sent a small group to investigate knowing that many children had used the break in autumn rains to go play at the little cave, they all had fond memories from the place and hearing something happened to it made them worry. Azure felt the armed men entering his domain, it was like an echo of the feeling he knew well and it made him wonder, when he checked the little cave he was dumbstruck, the tiny core had populated the dungeon with one of his most fearsome tribes of elemental fairies, semi sentient beings that fed off feelings and thoughts of adventurers and then created illusions to suit their fantasy of what a dungeon should be, with intruders it was mostly fear and deadly traps and demons, but here the children felt safe and happy and the tiny dungeon now expanded and filled with light had become a true dreamland come to life. Pirate ships were floating in a sea of flowers, giant dire bunnies had knights in shiny armor riding them and charging against fluffy monsters that vanished at the touch of a wooden sword, the guards couldnt help but laugh with joy at the follies of the children when they heard the first painful cries. 11. Claws The guards rushed to where a large group of fairies was hovering around a little girl and a teenaged caretaker that was trying to soothe her, "come now Day you dont have to play with Velk if he isnt nice", "i j j just wanted to pet the bunny and he hit me with his sword, it really hurt", "i know sweetie but why dont you and i go wash our faces in the pond and then maybe we can play with some of the other children?", The girl nodded and walked away from the excited fairies and soon the whole thing seemed forgotten, the guards looked all around them at the new magical landscape and wished they could stay and play some more but this had to be reported immediately as it seemed something has awakened the slumbering dungeon. Gat was upset with her brother for hitting the little girl so the guard went over there to drag the misbehaving near youth back to town, but when the boy resisted something far more ominous started happening, all around her shadows started shifting into near tangible beings and when fear started creeping into her mind the shadows became real monsters, she was surrounded on all sides by demons just like in her nightmares, Veldi was holding her sweaty hand when a whimper escaped his lips, suddenly it was all gone, the lit flower covered cavern returned as if nothing had happened and she could see a large group of fairies rushing to hide between the vines.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Azure wasnt happy, it wasnt the first time but it was special, because he was angry at his own creation, the little dungeon was defying Azure''s wishes and would not relent to threats nor promises. The child had misbehaved and an older sibling had a duty to teach his proginy right from wrong, it was a simple truth of the world and the ancient dungeon was starting to see why mortal parents had gone to such lengths to impart their knowlege and experience on their younger generations. Trevain, the new baron of sert had devised a plan to make him rich and powerful beyond any of his previous dreams, when he set out to reach the end of the misty vale dungeon he was bonded to serve his sponsors from the higher nobility, but now he had a new ally and he will sever those bonds soon to play on the much bigger field that had opened before him. Not a chapter; Synopsis Azure wakes up when a girl is brutally murdered in his dungeon, he helps her friend the beastmaster Benjolin become a powerful adventurer by training him and his bonded beast the dire bunny Puddles. Years later the beastmaster returns and takes on a quest from the old dungeon, to bring an enchanted chalice to another dungeon and let the two entities make contact for the first time in known history. After successfully completing the mission the beastmaster and his ranger companion Sara leave the misty vale but are challenged to their loot by another adventurer who somehow also reached the dungeon''s core room a short time after they left, the dispute is resolved in court and Trev steals the deed to a barony from Sara because Ben wouldnt defend himself. The old dungeon learns he can create new dungeon cores and imbue them with his own experience and some guidelines about dungeon management, his first attempt backfires as he is pushed aside from a part of his own complex and his little old cave where he could play with children from the nearby town becomes an independent dungeon called Vine Hollow where he is now only a guest. The Misty vale dungeon refuses the contact with Azure Vale but forms an alliance with a human enterprenour that sells reformed wards to parties that try to challenge it, those who dont use the new wards find themselves victims to nightly raids when they dont expect to be attacked, the dungeon and its new friend also take prisoners to use as bait for other parties and playthings for the pervert fantasies of the human component of the duo. Azure Vale sends another child on a quest to establish a new dungeon in an old tower nearby, although the plan is a success it backfires when the prize for the quest is an ancient weapon of great value that even its creation process has been lost in the mists of time, both child and dungeon go through rigorous investigations that although failing to reveal their secret still spark a nation wide treasure hunt and causes some would be adventurers to attack the semi sentient fairies that live in Vine Hollow. The Crossroad Tower dungeon is prospering and a few taverns and some guilds build a semi town around it, crown officials demand that all construction be ceased and already built establishments be torn down when Trev saves the day by establishing his barony at the spot, he immediately encloses the new dungeon behind a fence and charges an entry tax to any challenger as his right even though its usually dealt with through the guilds.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Azure Cave is again foiled in its attempts to make contact with another dungeon when the Spearhead canion demands further proof of the theory and Misty Vale wouldnt answer their call through the artifact. Tam becomes an adventurer and recieves the spear he gave to Ebi as a parting gift for his adventures, he reluctantly accepts it and follows his dream, when he conquers the Murky Swamp dungeon with a bit of luck, wits and a mighty legendary weapon Azure finally gets to make his first contact and now with the added proof Spearhead canion also joins their conversation. Misty vale feels left out of the new dungeon network and plots to dethrone Azure as the head of the young coalition, it uses the connection to allow its human ally to conquer the relatively young Dreadful Meadow dungeon and sets the blame on Azure for giving outdated advice about dungeon tactics. The Dreadful Meadow dungeon is saved by Trev and with gratitude shift its support to Misty Vale for the leadership. Sara follows a lead in her investigation about enslaved adventurers and comes upon an exploited unregistered dungeon in the republic of Sahemi where adventurers she once knew are used to extract treasures for the black market, she enters the dungeon and learns about the horrors occuring in the depths of the misty vale when she is captured and interrogated until she breaks. When Ben passes a second year without hearing from Sara at their agreed rendevouz he becomes worried and starts asking the wrong questions in the worst possible places, after teaming up with Tam who lost his party to a freak dungeon accident they unravel the mistery from its other end by again taking on the Ravaged Desert dungeon that is a part of the dungeon coalition, this time Ben claims the barony and follows his leads from the rescued adventurers to go and save Sara, he finds her a broken husk but frees all the slaves from the republic indentured camp and sets his keep and barony on the border between the two countries. Azure Vale calls Tam to it and gives him another dungeon core, this time Tam brings the new core to Bens keep and it becomes the first sentient non dungeon entity called Tiny Heart Fort, as a joke from Ben that calls his barony domain Heartland and the keep is still tiny even though its guardians are mighty. Epilogue Sara is slowly healing but relapses when she meets her torturer in a house party. 12. Stars Night was falling on the Misty vale dungeon, a time of great danger but also greater rewards, the small party left their camp in search of those greater riches, they hadn''t payed the new ridiculous protection "tax" and it seems like it was paying off. The newly trained hogs caught the scent of the wards set without the other condition and in minutes they were wreaking havoc in the abandoned camp. As soon as they broke the enchantment the lizardmen descended on the camp and after pillaging anythin of value set an ambush to the weary adventurers for when they returned to what they thought was a safe zone. A masked man was counting his spoils from the latest endeavors of his skirmish, he taught the dungeon how to break the wards that had foiled its attempt to recapture the harpy queen and in return he was getting either the money from the purcase of ''improved'' wards or the spoils of a successful dungeon dive, he was also considered a hero for jumping in at the last minute to save what was left of the dying parties and it started getting him more and more followers, those not staying in line soon found out that the dungeon had many hidden rooms and a certain person was a very skilled and enthusiastic torturer. It was an odd way to do things but Misty vale''s conciousness was satisfied with the results, it got more adventurers killed in four months than in the past decade with the wards creating invisible havens inside its domain and allowing invaders to rest and regain health and strength, breaking the wards using mundane monsters that were attracted to them was the idea of a certain human and the agreement not to break certain seals was paying off as it still let some adventurers to push into the deeper parts of the dungeon but being aware of them let its monsters to ambush those fools at unexpected places. All in all it was a fine deal and the dungeon entity knew it could go back on its side whenever it wanted. The other weird thing about the whole endeavor were whe prisoners, they were proving to be worthwhile to hold in their own right as adventurers seeing one of their own held captive would go into berserk and make mistakes that had them join their comrades as bait for the next group, and if some escaped they would soon return with even more victims for the dungeon and its mortal ally. Winter had finally come and vine hollow had taken on a white theme to accommodate its surroundings, the white flowers had given off a special minty scent that was chilly and invigorating at the same time, the town had expanded the winding road leading to it and even had a few taverns dotting the now comfortable shortcut to the kings'' crossroad where a lone decrepit old tower stood as a reminder for days past. The tower was another of Azure''s children, when he heard the youths watching over the little ones talking about their new hideout now that Vine Hollow was getting cramped the old dungeon decided to make another core and had one of the youths carry it for a promise of a reward, the older child only asked for an enchanted spear to give to his brother when he was appointed captain in the guard so the dungeon had no problem supplying such a minor artifact for the much greater satisfaction of carrying out his experiment. Remembering past failures this time it had taken months growing and educating its younger self before setting it off to the world. In the main barracks at the town one new guard captain and two older commanders were trying their best to contain their emotions as they were questioning the said captain''s brother. "Tell us again please how you came about possessing the king''s bane spear." The oldest man in the room said with an almost smooth voice, Zur had never even heard of an artifact grade spear like this, it was a magnificient weapon with depths of magic and a wealth of secrets that could occupy a legion of artificers for a decade and this boy just handed it over to his brother. "Posses what" the boy Tam, sounded a bit hesitating. "Where did you get it and how?" Zur corrected, reminding himself he wasnt interrogating a criminal mastermind. "I was in the kids'' dungeon, and like everyone does i asked the dungeon spirits to protect Ebi and then the stone told me what to do", after a hundred times retelling the story he already knew what the next question would be but he let the grownups ask anyway. "What do you mean the stone told you what to do? Which stone? How did it talk to you?" It was the younger commander Kor and he had much less noble thoughts about this child, it was obvious Tam stumbled on some secret of the children''s dungeon that would let a more experienced man get rich if he could just make that boy tell them what he really did and not this nonsense literal fairytale.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. "Its the Sedi stone with the altar where you can make a wish and if your heart is true then the dungeon would grant it, and i was really scared for Ebi when he became captain so the dungeon gave me a quest to conquer my fear and prove i really meant it, so the stone told me to take the jewel to the lowest part of the old tower and i did it even though i was really scared most of the time, but the jewel was glowing so it drove away the darkness and when i got to the lowest part of the tower the jewel broke apart and everything was shiny for a little while and then the spear was there and i knew it would protect Ebi if i would give it to him so i did" Even after hearing it again the three men couldnt believe it, and they wouldnt have if not for the weapon that had caused all this mess, in the Bane series wepons a "king" level was never heard of, the greatest weapon in the kingdom was a fiend''s bane sword and it was a legacy of the royal family passed down from the first kings, and now this king''s bane spear had surpassed it in all applicable tests, the problem was that there wasnt even a known way to give the weapon to another person, you couldnt sell it or lose it and the spear would protect itself and its owner from theft and attempts to murder him, even the lowest tangle bane weapons would allow some protection and it was known that fiend''s bane weapons could destroy a noble house to the last remnants if it percieved danger to its bloodline holders, the men didnt want to imagine what this dangerous thing would do if somone had tried to steal it from Ebi, there were allways fools who thought enchantments were only some tale that old men told to make others shy of their treasure, but that was the reason for dungeon runestones they would keep the loot impartial to ownership and allow the adventurers to sell their loot through the guilds and establishments, but this boy wasnt an adventurer, it was a good thing he meant to give the weapon to his brother and that it recognized the recipiant as part of the holder bloodline. The team had entered the dungeon and was immediately assaulted with acrid smell and flashing lights, they blinked a few times and then started a careful search of the cave complex, taking a right angle they formed a small protective wedge keeping their support members with their back to the wall, the leader had taken point and was checking every nook and cranny for traps and other dangers when after a few minutes their warrior cried with frustration, "what kind of crap is this Fern? Is that even a real dungeon? Where are all the monsters", just as Kai finished the sentence a dire bunny had crossed their path and the whole party jumped grabbing their weapons. "Stop jumping at shadows and focus, the man said something about an altar and that thing over there looks like any altar i ever heard of so lets move it" the bunny was nibbling on the grass and Reeve slashed it with his axe when they passed it, the monster became a puff of light and they all knew it was a real dungeon even if not a very big one. Nothing more happened before they reached the altar, everything was quiet around them and they gathered around Atir their mage when she was deciphering the ancient runes on the stone overlooking the altar. "Step off and let me concentrate, ''Ceti the warrior prince may your dreams life where you are gone''. It doesn''t say anything about a quest or hearts, just some memorial to an old noble" Fern looked around as the fairy lights seemed to move closer to them, "Could it be a riddle? Dungeons dont usually have memorials in them". Atir examined the altar again from all sides when Reeve cleaved at one of the bobbing lights, another puff of light was all he needed to get into a rampage of squishing the annoying bugs, Fern looked worried, "stop that reeve", she called out but it was too late, the berserker was already at his play. Reeve heard Fern but this whole early morning thing to a cave was definitely not his favorite thing, and it didnt seem like any kind of loot was going to pop out from reading century old riddles so he was smashing at the stupid light creatures, "come off it Fern, its not like there are any real monsters here, i would give anything for a good bout with some minotaurs or a hydra, even that dire bunny put up more of a fight than these things", when he stopped talking he heard them rushing from between some trees. Fern turned to look at the horde that was descending on them, there were at least thirty minotaurs and a four headed hydra towered them at least twice in height than the two and a half meters of the smaller monsters, their party had no chance so she grabbed the protesting Atir and called the retreat, they barely made it outside when Shai cried in pain, Reeve hoisted the small ranger and they all kept running and didnt stop for a little over an hour. Fern kicked Reeve, "couldnt you ask for some bloody loot you big oaf?" Reeve was catching his breath after putting Shai down and looked puzzled at his leader, "what are you talking about?" She looked back at the surprised berserker "It looks like the stone had given you your wish you crazy bum, at least we know its working, next time just shut up" After Shai chugging down a small healing dumpling that restored the slash on his back, they returned to the dungeon, But instead of the peaceful meadow this time they found a minotaur war camp with hydras penned and over five hundred warriors surrounding the stone altar, they retreated back to town and decided not to report who got the monsters into the Vine Hollow dungeon that they heard was some kids'' playground. 13. Values Ben smashed his shield in the bandit''s face and used his sword to skewer the man in the guts, he twisted and slashed at another bandit spraying blood all over the man that slid to a stop when faced with the gory display of violence, Emma was nearby, Ben could feel her soothing aura that she used to suppress victims before devouring them, a queen without a flock she was becoming more feral and violent every time Ben refused her seduction attempts and denied her freedom to kidnap mortals into the Hunting grounds pocket dimension, he knew he had to do something soon but he couldnt think what that might be, he wished Sara had stayed but their relationship was allways more of the convenient kind and the failure as she called it of the Misty Vale dive had brought their relationship to a new low. When the last outlaw was brought down by a chop from Neba the centaur''s axe Ben looked around at the carnage with satisfaction, it was the second group they took care of in so many weeks, making the roads and borderlands safer for law abiding folk of the kingdom, it was also a great way to release tensions that were building up since he felt betrayed and fooled by Trevain in the Misty Vale court. While cleaning his blade on one of the miscreants he heard the whimpers from underground, a quick search brought him to the hidden cache and in itnhe found several cages where the bandits were holding what seemed like the victims of their latest raids, he opened the cages and the women were suffocating him with hugs and thanks as they were getting out. A more thorough search discovered an even deeper hole where he could smell blood and human refuse, he went down to find more cages and what looked like a small office, he released the caged men and sent them outside while he looked over the ledgers.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. It had taken him long hours of hard work to learn to read the common basic runescript adventurers learned so they could decipher basic quest instructions in the dungeons they explored and he had no comprehension of foreign texts at all, but he had a scholar friend to help with these problems, after sending Neba back to the Hunting Grounds he called Nat to help deciphering the scrawling letters and she soon found some interesting bits of information. 14. Consequences The waterfall dropped for a hundred meters into its its basin, hitting jutting rocks and spraying droplets of glacier waters on the winding trail that climbed into the assortment of half hidden caves, it was claimed to be the hardest part of the Spearhead canion but the group making its way up knew it was only the begining, after traversing the treacherous route they would reach a certain cave that had a nasty scorpion boss and seemed to hold dozens of fetureless drop traps that the boss used to greatly limit any party''s movement, the substantial treasure usually gained from defeating the scorpion was another key in the dungeon defense as most parties would leave soon after, and this party stumbled into another secret of the dungeon, their tank fell into one of the traps and lived to discover another passage, after a short investigation they headed back out knowing they were coming back prepared this time.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.