Chapter 23 The Deal

Elysia roused to the sound of steady beeping. A yawn escaped her lips as her mind booted up. The unfamiliar bed caused her mind to snap awake. She sprang upright, frantically scanning her surroundings.

She found herself in a small hospital room hooked up to an IV and EKG machine. Not trusting whatever clear liquid was in the IV, she gently pulled it out, causing blood to drip from her arm for a few seconds before the wound sealed. Next, she peeled off the pads from her chest under the hospital gown, flat lining the EKG machine, eliciting a wince from her mistake.

Terrified to stay any longer, she dashed across the tile floor barefoot to the door. Her hand grasped the door handle, but found it locked. Giving up on escaping through the door, Elysia turned her attention to the single window to the left of the hospital bed.

Elysia froze, eyes wide as she stared out the window at the devastation. Unlike her perfectly intact hospital room, the city below laid in ruins under the dense vegetation and trees. After shaking away her shock, she gripped the bottom of the window to lift it, but like the door, it refused to budge.

Just as she reared back to break the window, the door to her hospital room opened, announcing the arrival of a nurse.

On guard, Elysia turned her body toward the new arrival while keeping her back to the wall, electricity at the ready.

Contrary to Elysia, the nurse gave her patient a friendly smile as she greeted her. “Hello Miss Arashi, how are you feeling?”

“Where am I?” Elysia asked, veins glowing dim violet.

Unafraid of her potentially hostile patient, the nurse responded with a disarming smile. “Yesterday, our police found you unconscious on your ship after it crashed onto the shore just outside Port Alberni. As a precaution, they brought you here.”

Elysia’s eyes shifted to the closed door behind the nurse before speaking with an edge to her tone. “Why did you lock me in here?”

“For your own safety. We didn’t want to risk a young Changed such as yourself hurting themselves outside.” The nurse replied, as if it was obvious.

“Can I leave now? I’ve dealt with dungeons before, so I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

At the mention of dungeons, the nurse perked up. “Miss Arashi, I’ll be right back.” Before Elysia could question the nurse, she dashed out the door, closing it behind her.

Despite the futility of it, Elysia tested the door handle but, like before, she found it locked. Well crap, now what? It’s obvious they don’t want me to leave, but at least they aren’t rough like the Coast Guard. Somehow, I doubt they locked me in here for my own safety. She mentioned that changed term again, so whoever runs this place has connections to whatever government exists. I was an idiot coming here. I should’ve taken my chances with the turtle. At least they didn’t use those stupid cuffs.

Elysia released a sigh as she plopped on the hospital bed to wait. Her eyes gravitated down toward the thin hospital gown but with no other options, she shrugged her shoulders, gazing out the window at the devastation below.

It looks worse down there than what happened to my hometown. Did only part of the city turn into a dungeon? The other towns I visited so far had the entire town affected. Even if sections weren’t a part of the dungeon. This is by far the biggest city I’ve visited since the changes, so it’s hard to say.

The opening of the door broke her from her thoughts. She turned her attention to the middle-aged man dressed in a camouflaged uniform accompanied by a younger man and woman pair dressed similarly. The pair stood guard at the door while the older man approached Elysia with a confident stride.

He scanned her with a critical gaze, frowning for a moment before asking. “Nurse Lori said you delved dungeons before?”

With no reason to hide if they somehow already knew her name, Elysia answered. “Yeah, I’ve dealt with three so far.”

With a skeptical tone, the man questioned. “How could a level 22 complete one dungeon, let alone three? They said Changed had an easier time delving, but even after training, it required a full team of five to complete a dungeon.”

Elysia tensed, flashing back to the last time someone knew her level. “How to you know my level or even my name?”

Instead of answering, the man commented, “You don’t even know that much? How did you survive this long without even basic knowledge?”

Sick of this interrogation, Elysia glared up at the man, eyes flashing with electricity as she demanded. “Look, are you going to let me go or throw me in some jail cell? I don’t need some special training to survive out there on my own.”

Again, instead of answering, he asked another question of his own. “Which dungeons did you delve?”

Elysia’s veins lit up, matching her shining eyes as she glared at the man. “Why should I answer you when you don’t have the decency to answer me?”

“Fascinating, a lightning infused variant.” Commented the man unbothered by the angry girl in front of him.

Fed up, Elysia grasped at her core, releasing a streak of lightning from her right hand.

-40 Charge.

With a step to the right, the lightning shot past her target, leaving a scorch mark on the wall next to the door just missing the female guard. “Poor emotional control but decent power for a level 22.”

Elysia slumped in surrender, knowing she had no chance, prompting the man to continue. “I can see how an untrained Changed like you could survive with a bit of luck.”

The man had a thoughtful expression for a few moments before asking. “Would you be willing to delve our dungeon?”

Elysia stared at the man with an incredulous look. “Why don’t you clear it yourself?” questioned Elysia. “I doubt you would have any trouble if, as you say, someone as weak as me cleared three.”

The man’s unreadable demeanor cracked for a moment with a wince. “I would love to save my city, but I can’t.”

Refusing to accept the answer, Elysia pressed. “Why?”

After a second of hesitance, the man revealed. “There’s a reason the capital wanted all Changed. While we have no problem fighting off monsters that escape the dungeon, we struggle within the dungeon’s boundaries.”

Unsatisfied, Elysia asked, “Why don’t you send another Changed in?”

The man released a sigh before responding, “We sent every Changed to the capital as the president mandated.”

Elysia stared at the man in disbelief. “So let me get this straight. You sent away the key to clearing the dungeon without a backup plan?”

He gave Elysia a sharp glare. “Do not question what I had to sacrifice to protect my city!” After taking a moment to collect himself, he continued speaking to the cowed girl. “So, are you going to accept my offer or not? If you refuse, we will be forced to report and send you to the capital.”

Elysia regained her nerve, asking with a hint of desperation in her tone, “So my options are to risk my life or sacrifice my freedom to the government? Why can’t you just let me go? You said yourself I’m weak, so wouldn’t it be better for both of us if I took my boat and challenged small dungeons until I get stronger before coming back?”

With a tone brokering no argument, the man replied, “No, you are either entering the dungeon or we report you. Besides, with the damage to your boat, it won’t be seaworthy anytime soon.”

Her veins flared for a moment before regaining her control. Through gritted teeth, she said, “fine, I’ll delve your dungeon, but I need assurances you will let me go and will fix my boat after. Also, I need supplies and equipment.”

The man took only a second to deliberate before answering. “That can be arranged. However, I can’t guarantee your freedom beyond our borders.”

Elysia nodded her head in acceptance, glancing out the window before requesting, “For weapons, I want a staff or spear and a collection of at least a dozen throwing knives with high electric conductivity. Since I’m going into an unknown, highly dangerous dungeon, I would like body armor with an emphasis on lightness and flexibility. For camping supplies, I want a hiking backpack stocked with rations, a tent, and a sleeping bag.”

The man glanced at his subordinates, giving them a single nod. They nodded back before exiting the room. “Your requested supplies shall be here shortly.”

While waiting, Elysia asked, “anything you can tell me about the dungeon?”

In a militaristic style, the man answered, “The reports from my subordinates trapped within reveal a focus on plant-based and insectoid creatures. This aligns with our experiences defending our city. One transmission mentioned multiple levels but no other team collaborated this discovery.”

“So you have teams in the dungeon?” inquired Elysia, with a hint of hope.

The man’s expression hardened, but a flash of guilt appeared in his eyes as he spoke. “The last report came in 48 hours ago. We don’t know the status nor whereabouts of our teams.”

With that, Elysia fell silent while staring out the window in contemplation. Am I really going to do this? If the entire overgrown area is the dungeon, this thing is massive. Plus, if the city is desperate enough to send me, the dungeon must be brutal. Somehow I doubt someone as fast as him would have any trouble surviving out there and if he does, I stand no chance. At least this time I’ll have proper equipment. I hate how I’m at the mercy of these guys. How did they get so strong? He didn’t even answer my question about how he knew my level or name. I’m so in the dark, but if I started in civilization, I’d probably be stuck in some training camp. Though my current situation isn’t exactly ideal either. At least I have a chance to regain my freedom this way. Even if they go back on their word, if I can conquer the dungeon, I could sneak away. Should I risk trying to escape on the way to the dungeon?

Elysia glanced at the middle-aged man standing ramrod straight, hands clasped behind his back while staring out the window with a distant gaze. Something tells me that would be a really stupid decision. I get a feeling he is on par with the Coast Guard Captain. Even if he wasn’t, the way he casually dodged my lightning shows I have no chance.

Ten minutes passed in silence, with Elysia afraid to disturb the man. The door opened, announcing the return of the subordinates. With a thud, the man dropped a crate on the floor, followed by the female guard lugging in a bloated, camouflaged backpack. The crate creaked on metal hinges as it opened to reveal a spear and set of throwing knives on top of a camouflaged combat suit.

“How did you get everything so quick?” asked Elysia.

The trio remained silent, prompting Elysia to approach the crate, grabbing the spear first. Afraid to antagonize the trio, Elysia examined it while keeping the leaf bladed spear tip toward the floor. The spear felt perfectly balanced, with a bit of extra heft at each end. At the opposite end of the spear was a round metal bulb, perfect for smashing enemies. She sent a bit of electric current through the spear’s dark composite shaft, finding her electricity flow through sparking along the entire length. Her head tilted in confusion as the shaft didn’t appear to be metal but smothered the question in favor of examining the other pieces of equipment.

The throwing knives were small black bladed blades with a rubberized handle about twenty-five centimeters from tip to end of handle. A quick electric conductivity test showed excellent results despite the rubberized handle. How did they keep conductivity through rubberized and nonmetal materials? Though I am hardly an expert on the subject so I’m sure there are plenty of ways.

Elysia glanced at the trio, finding the younger pair back at the door standing guard while the leader still stared out the window as if deep in thought. She slid the throwing knife back in to one of many sheathes built into the combat suit. After a quick glance down her body, barely covered by the hospital gown, she said, “could I have some privacy? I need to change.”

The subordinates turned their attention to their superior who, despite still staring out the window, nodded his head before performing an about turn, exiting the room, followed by the male guard. To Elysia’s annoyance and embarrassment, the female guard remained stationed at the door.

Elysia released a sigh, giving up on arguing further as she bent down to grab the camouflaged combat suit. After turning her back to the remaining guard, she stripped off the hospital gown and stepped into the bodysuit. With several yanks, the tight suit slid up her legs and over her hips. She fed her arms through the sleeves, lining her fingers up with the built-in gloves before fumbling with the zipper at the small of her back, contorting her right arm, pulling the zipper upward. The zipper smoothly glided up to the back of her neck, pulling the suit snugly to her frame. Next, she bent down to grab the pair of combat boots, finding the suit surprisingly flexible, only padded and plated in vital and non-jointed areas.

After lacing up the camo boots, reaching past her ankles, she examined her appearance. A solid plate protected her heart and lungs while her core had several interlocking plates under the flexible camouflaged fabric, providing protection with only a minimal loss of flexibility. Like her torso, aside from joints, her legs and arms had thick padding and plates. Three sheaths on each thigh, and six on her mid-back housed her collection of throwing knives. To finish her armor off, she once again bent down grabbing a helmet and the provided hair tie, pulling her long snow white hair into a tight ponytail, strapping the helmet on under her chin. The helmet came with built-in visor, which she slid down into place before turning her attention to the backpack.

Her arms strained under the armor, hefting the backpack up before strapping it into place with two pairs of buckles cinched just above her hips and just below her bust, which barely showed under the armored suit. She stumbled a few steps before adjusting to the heavyweight strapped to her back. An attempt to bend down to grab her spear revealed near zero torso flexibility with the backpack, forcing her to turn toward the lone guard signaling she was ready.

Achievement! Outfitted.

“Took you long enough to find semi passable equipment.”

Reward: One Attribute Point.

Elysia ignored the jab as the other two returned to the room. With a stern expression, the leader ordered, “turnaround, hands behind your back.”

She glanced at the familiar, thick shackles in the younger male’s hands before commenting, “really? I doubt I could escape any of you.”

After receiving only silence, she sighed before turning her back, bringing her hands together just under the backpack. Two quick snaps welded her hands at her butt. Out of curiosity, she prodded the shackles but found the conductivity of her gloves, and forearm guards sucked the electricity into the shackles before it reached her hands.

-5 charge.

With their charge equipped and secured, the male subordinate grabbed her spear as the woman ushered Elysia out through the door.