I slipped between the wall-cracks as the sounds grew nearer, covering the gap in its surface with a weak illusion; as low on light as I was, it wouldn’t have held up to close scrutiny.

It didn’t need to.

The bad-things thundered through the tunnel, generating the sound through the sheer, unending size of the horde rather than size of the individual. Mandibles clicked and clacked in an incessant tick, and I could faintly make out the drip-drop of molten liquid tapping against the stone as they moved on. The heat that they gave off was becoming unbearably hot, fire-pain flashing across my scales in response.

Or maybe that was my own heat.

In such a confined area, I had no easy way to release it. A release of flame outwards would give me away, pushing through and possibly even breaking the illusion that protected me. A gout of flame in the other direction would just blow back on myself, forcing me to reabsorb it or suffer the consequences. Worse, it would push through the concealment of the illusion that I had created, possibly revealing my location.

If that happened, I would have nowhere to go, alone and stuck in the small wall-crack as I was.

So I bore with it, feeling my mind grow hazy and my scale-flesh sluggish as the fire-pain danced across my length. I opened my mouth further, letting the leaking liquid of [Molten Bite] drip down below me. The air, cool by comparison, caressed the inside of my mouth with its gentle touch. I desperately yearned for the comfort that came with chewing on my tail, but the heat of [Molten Bite] directly on my scale-flesh might only make things worse. For a moment, I did it anyway - but it hardly helped, with me stuck in the tiny wall-crack and unable to provide the heat an outlet.

Not for the first time, I wished that I had been blessed with [Heat Resistance] to protect me from the fire-pain. Yet, before I had slithered my way into the Dungeon earlier, I had never been faced with heat and fire-pain on the same level. [Piercing Resistance] and [Venom Resistance] had only been gained while I was lost in the comforting sensation of chewing on my own tail. Eventually, the thought-light just revealed them to me.

I wasn’t sure what I had done to receive them, but I could only hope to be blessed once more.

I waited expectantly.

The thought-light never came, leaving me disappointed and oh so very hot.

The sounds outside only grew louder as the bad-things marched on, following the Coreless in their retreat. Some scrambled against the walls; I could hear the way that their legs tapped against the stone, their passing creating tiny little vibrations that rubbed against my scale-flesh.

That same scale-flesh began to tremble and ache, unable to bear the cloying heat that filled my tiny wall-crack. Just as I was about to give up, to release all of the heat that I had stored in a plume of flame, a leg slipped its way through the illusion.

It waved in the air frantically, its owner surprised by the lack of purchase. Finally, it pulled itself out, and the bad-thing moved on.

I breathed in relief, letting out a soft hiss and thanking the Great Core for my continued peace. I had been close to giving in; with the bad-things still as close as they were, I would have given myself away, as well.

The tiny leg had slipped through the illusion just in time.

It was a reminder to hold fast, and to bear with the pain.

And so I did, listening to the sounds of the horde of bad-things as they began to disappear down the tunnel - my scale-flesh trembling all the while.

Finally, I could hear them no longer. A blast of flame lashed from my scale-flesh, shattering the illusion in front of me along with my concentration. As my reservoirs of heat emptied out, I absorbed more. The air grew colder around me, and my scale-flesh began to settle.

I breathed.

My head poked through the opening in the wall-crack, and I looked down the tunnel. The stone was littered with makeshift puddles of heated liquid, product of numerous bad-things dripping with their own version of [Molten Bite]. Little trails spilled outwards from those puddles, marking the bad-things’ path in their pursuit of the Coreless.

I hissed, thinking for a moment, my tongue flicking from my mouth and catching the scent-taste of the air.

The Coreless and I were now separated; I had no hopes of catching up with them. However, how much did that matter?

The Great Core had brought them to me so that I could make my way through the traps and dangers of the lesser Core’s Dungeon. Though I hadn’t yet reached the Core, they had managed to do that so far. Beyond the Flame-Wisps, I wouldn’t have been able to deal with anything that I had encountered if I had been alone. The large bad-things that had initially attacked near the flame-water would have been enough; even the first of those had almost ruined me.

Instead, I had managed to stay alive. Even more, I had managed to shed my scale-flesh for a second time, allowing me to keep all that I had gained up to that point.

And now, the Coreless had drawn the Flame Formicans in the other direction. Will, the dead male Coreless, had even sacrificed himself to reduce their numbers, cutting down on the bad-things that could oppose the Great Core.

Now, the way might be open.

My tongue flicked out again, searching for the scent-taste of the lesser Core. It was strong here, but not as strong as it once was. We had been going in the wrong direction.

I slithered down the tunnel, back in the direction that we had traveled.

The journey was long, without the giant legs of the Coreless to carry me. Still, the increasing scent-taste of the lesser Core on my tongue encouraged me. [Molten Bite] sending spikes of fire-pain through me as I traveled, scalding my tongue-flesh each time it dripped from my fangs, did quite a bit to dampen that encouragement.

So far, I had mixed feelings about [Molten Bite]. While it had allowed me to pierce through the hard-flesh of the bad-things far more easily, its existence placed me into a constant battle. I couldn’t deal with the heat and fire-pain that it caused easily.

Without [Illusion Spark] to cut its bite, I wouldn’t be able to at all. I was forced to constantly pull away the heat that it generated, to store it within the reservoirs within my scale-flesh for a few brief moments before sending it away in a wave of heat. It made the ever-present heat of the lesser Core’s domain even more difficult to deal with, causing it to sap away at my body and will.

I forced myself to focus.

I tried, anyway. As I grew closer to the scent-taste of the Dungeon Core, approaching the ledge that we had climbed up earlier, the air’s heat only grew stronger. With much of the reservoirs provided by [Illusion Spark] already at work to fight back the adverse effects of the upgraded form of [Molten Bite], my slithers grew more wobbly and sluggish, my scale-flesh rebelling against my commands. My head grew heavy, wanting nothing more than to lay itself down and rest.

And then, I saw hope.

Down below, still floating in the air where I had last seen them, were a large group of Flame Wisps. They dotted the cavern, filling it with both shadows and light as flames lashed from their strange, fire-like forms.

All I had to do was reach them, consume them, and take what they had to offer.

That was harder than I had hoped.

I clung to the sides of the ledge, my scale-flesh gripping the rough textures created by the many small-tunnels and scratches that dotted its surface. While I could travel down one and hope that it led me directly to the bottom, I didn’t want to risk it. Many small-tunnels veered off for great distances, and there was no way of knowing the final destination without exploring it for myself.

More than once, I almost slipped from the wall of stone, my scale-flesh lifting dangerously from the rough surface as I traveled down in a slow and winding pattern.

Eventually, though, I made it down.

Eventually, I received a welcome sight.

Experience Gained!

Level 0 Flame Wisp Consumed.

Transferred to Core.

Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 1/20.

A gout of flame licked from my scale-flesh, and I moved on to the next.

Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 2/20.

And the next.

Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 3/20.

On and on, until finally…

Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 19/20.

I collapsed.