Chapter Three Hundred and Fifteen - Childish Fears Grow Up to become Adult Fears

This was our third time in the bedroom that linked the entire dungeon together. I was growing used to the room, I guessed, though it had changed again.

The bed wasn’t just undone, it was missing its blankets and sheets, and the mattress was stained and gross. The walls too. Water damage made the pretty wallpaper peel in places and rot in others. Mould was sneaking up along the floor and the entire room smelled damp and unclean.

I couldn’t resist letting some Cleaning magic leak out. It spread across the room and brushed aside some of the worse stains and cleaned out the mould. I didn’t want anyone getting a cough while we were down here, and the room smelled much nicer after a minute or so.

We caught our breaths after the long run on the last floor. Aria slumped to the ground and splayed her hands out behind her and Lucille leaned against one of the walls. Even my friends looked a bit winded, though we were recovering quickly enough.

Lieutenant Petalwrought cleared his throat. “The next room shouldn’t be as difficult,” he said. “Does anyone have a timepiece?”

Bron did. He pulled it out and tossed it to the lieutenant who caught the device out of the air.

“We’ve been in the dungeon for just over an hour. I think we’re due a small pause. We have some supplies, if anyone needs to eat. Don’t forget to drink as well.”

“I’d love some tea,” Lucille muttered.

“Ah, I can help with that,” I said. I could be helpful! I plopped my pack down and pulled out my tea set. It was a necessary part of my adventuring kit, after all. I prepared some tea for everyone, though I only took a tiny cup for myself. There weren’t any bathrooms in dungeons, and while it was an easy walk back up to the surface, I didn’t feel like challenging that maze room again.

Once everyone was relaxed and sipping at warm tea or lukewarm water, the lieutenant straightened his back and cleared his throat for attention. “Two floors remain before we meet the dungeon’s boss. This next one is perhaps the easiest floor in the dungeon, at least for some. It’s generally a combat-free floor, just a challenge to test your bravery, and so far you all seem more than brave enough to pass this trial.”

I puffed out my chest, even if the compliment was a bit silly. I wasn’t that brave, I just wasn't afraid of much.

“What’s the challenge on this floor?” Lucille asked.

“Not another maze, I hope,” Erin muttered.

The lieutenant chuckled. “Nothing so complicated. It’s a series of rooms, each with a bed and some sleeping amenities. To get to the other side, you need only crawl under the bed. Eventually you’ll find yourself in a corridor, though the dimensions are never the same. That’s where you’ll encounter your greatest fear.”

“Our greatest fear?” Awen asked.

The lieutenant nodded. “I have only heard of a few who have been injured on the floor, at least physically. The fear will be illusions and light and sound. Not real. Just keep pushing forward. Ignore the fear or face it, as you wish. Once you’ve crossed the corridor, you’ll come upon a doorway into a hallway; that is where we’ll all gather before returning to this room.”

“Can more than one person go under the same bed?” I asked.

He shook his head. “No, it’s one at a time. There are multiple rooms, so we’ll all have a bed to crawl under. Fears rarely change, so I know that the knights and I will be facing the same challenges as we have before. The first time is unpleasant, but always remember that it is only an illusion. It will not actually hurt you.”

“You’ve already said that some people were injured,” Amaryllis pointed out.

Lieutenant Petalwrought nodded. “Yes. Usually by their own magic. On occasion a recruit has tripped over their own sword.”

One of the knights jokingly elbowed the other. I couldn’t see the face of the poked knight, but I could feel the embarrassed glare directed to his companion.

“You won’t be injured by the challenge itself. Scared, perhaps, but not injured. I promise.”

There wasn’t much else to do once we were done drinking. I refused the offer of crackers from Bron (they looked way too dry) and then I repacked my tea set, nodding to Lucille’s muttered thanks.

We didn’t form up as we continued into the next room. Lieutenant Petalwrought stayed at the front, but he said that we didn’t need to worry about any adversaries in this next part of the dungeon. Still, it was clear that he was checking his corners and watching for trouble anyway. He was nothing if not diligent.

Awen slid up next to me as we squeezed into the next floor. “Broccoli,” she asked in a low voice that wouldn’t carry.

“Yeah?” I asked.

“Can... can I get a hug before we split up? I... I don’t know what my fears are, but I think it would be easier to face them, ah, with a hug?”

I grinned and bumped my shoulder against hers. “Always,” I said. “You too, Amaryllis.”

Amaryllis was just behind us. She scoffed. “As if I need such things. Though I imagine that I would be wasting my time if I insisted otherwise instead of just humouring you.”

“That’s right,” I agreed.

The first room was... a room. A little space with a desk, a shelf with some knick-knacks, and a bed.

One of the knights was picked to go first, to show us how it went. The bed wasn’t all that big, but he squeezed his pack through the opening, then dropped onto his tummy and shimmied through.

The room had a door that led into another bedroom, this one much bigger, with a bed fit for two in the middle. “Any volunteers?” the lieutenant asked. “I’ll be going last.”

“Might as well,” Bron said. He dropped, then rolled under the bed. When I leaned down to see under it, he was gone, and I could see clear out to the other side. Was there a trapdoor or something?

We continued into the next room, and this time, when the lieutenant asked for volunteers, Awen was the one to step up. “Awa! I’m going to go next, please. Just... want to get it over with.”

“Fair enough,” he said.

Awen turned towards me, and I pulled her into the best hug I could manage. “You’ll be fine,” I said. “Remember, no matter what you see, no matter what scares you, Broccoli Bunch will be there for you on the other side, okay?”

Awen nodded. “Thanks,” she said with a return squeeze.

She snuck under the bed, and was gone soon after.

We crossed two more rooms, losing as many members along the way, one of them a knight, before we came upon a bedroom fit for a princess. “Well, this one seems good enough for me,” Amaryllis said.

I grinned, and shared a hug with her too.

Under the bed she went, with a lot of grumbling along the way about the indignity of it all.

I waited until I couldn’t hear her anymore, then checked under the bed. No Amaryllis.

“She’ll be fine,” Aria said. “I’m sure all of your friends are as brave as you are. There’s nothing to worry about.”

I smiled back at her. “Thanks,” I said.

The next room saw Lucille squeezing under a rather fine bed in a humble little room. She didn’t want hugs.

And then we came upon a teeny tiny bedroom, one small enough that it was tough for everyone to squeeze in. “Ah, one of these,” the lieutenant said. He was glaring down at the bed.

It was a children’s bed, all nice and neat and covered in colourful bedspread. “What’s wrong with this one?” I asked.

“Not much room under the bed. It’s hard to squeeze in, even for a sylph.”

I shrugged. “I’ll go this time,” I said. I was sure I could pass through. “But, ah, can someone take my scythe? He’s a bit big.”

Erin volunteered to hold my scythe for me, with a promise to give it back as soon as we met again.

I dropped to my knees, took off my pack, which was fortunately squishable enough to fit into the space, then I crawled in on elbows and knees. It really was a tight fit. As I pushed in, I had to exhale hard to make space for my chest to fit, and even then it was rather uncomfortable.

I was regretting picking this bed when I finally scooted forwards a little and found myself no longer under the bed.

With a bit of a wiggle, I pulled myself out of the tight space, then tugged my pack out while I eyed my surroundings. It was a great empty space, dark, with deep, branching silhouettes nearly blocking out a faint pale blue light coming from somewhere ahead I couldn't see.

I created another light ball, then raised it high so that I could see better.

The room was filled with roots.

They crissed and crossed from every direction, big brown ones as large as trees and some no bigger than my pinkie. I poked one of the roots with my foot. It thunked. So they weren’t just illusions, then.

I shouldered my pack and started to look for a way through the maze of roots. I didn’t find a way to walk through it, but I did find a way to slip between the bigger roots.

Was this my greatest fear? A room choked by Evil Roots? It was more annoying than scary, honestly.

I rolled through a hole and flopped onto the ground on the other side of the roots, then paused as I heard someone groaning above.

It was Amaryllis, and she was nearly stuck trying to squeeze her way through the roots. I tried not to giggle at the look on her face, and that had her glancing up and finding me in the dark. “Well, will you help me or just stand there gawking?” she grumped.

I laughed and climbed up to help her down. She was quite stuck, actually, but we managed to wiggle her through. Mostly that meant me putting some weight on one of the roots so that it moved aside and made enough room for her to pass.

“Are you okay?” I asked. I patted her back free of dust.

She sighed. “I’m fine. I didn’t think we could rejoin each other in here. The lieutenant didn’t say anything about it.”

“He didn’t,” I agreed.

Amaryllis’ eyes narrowed. “Are you the real Broccoli, then?”

I shrugged. “I know I am, but then I don’t know if you’re the real Amaryllis. The Lieutenant also said that the illusions in here couldn’t hurt us. Uh, I know you’re physical though.”

“Corporeal, the word you’re looking for is corporeal.”

I grinned. Whether or not it was the real Amaryllis didn’t matter, I figured. I’d treat her as a friend, and that was that.

“Come on, there’s a weird light that way. I bet that’s the exit.”

“Yes, you would run towards the first shiny thing you see,” Amaryllis grumbled.

I laughed, the sound lightening my heart in the face of the darkness and the roots. I gave her a hand to slip through two of the bigger roots.

“Broccoli,” she said once she was on the other side. “Come here, please.” There was a strange, worrisome note in her voice. I hurried to push through, and when I did, I found myself confused.

We were on a hillside? There were still roots all around us, and it was mostly dark, but only on the edges.

In the centre was a ravine, with a slope before us and one just a little ways away. The image, the illusion, faded on the edges. It still felt familiar, somehow.

Then a group of cervid materialised from thin air on the far end, and with them an Amaryllis that was trussed up and tied.

“Oh.” It was the only sound Amaryllis made.

Was this... was this that time she was kidnapped? When I rescued her? Wait, was this her greatest fear, rather than mine?

“It’ll be okay,” I said as the scene continued. “I’m here, you’re fine.”

“I know,” she said. “But still.”

We probably shouldn’t have stopped to watch, but neither of us moved, not even as a smaller, bunny-ear-less Broccoli showed up, looking... looking like a much younger, less confident me, one who desperately wanted to save the only sorta-friend she had made so far.

***