“Are you ready Miss Kat?” Dorrik asked, the big dark four armed lizard standing just in front of a dungeon portal. A pair of sword hilts stuck out above their armored shoulders as their crest fluttered placidly. “So far we have only conquered wood tier dungeons. This will be our first iron tier, and the increase in difficulty will be severe.”

“Fighting the Wooly Spider to get off of the fifth floor was bad enough,” Kat replied with a shudder. “I didn’t even have to wear nearly as many heat amulets as you in order to make it past the blizzard elementals, and I was absolutely miserable. I have no idea how you managed it.”

“The entirety of the fifth floor was awful,” her other companion, Kaleek interjected. “Only a couple of races actually enjoy fighting snow monsters on top of a gigantic glacier. Given that we only come to The Tower of Somnus in our sleep, you could say that it was a ‘literal nightmare.”

Kaleek grinned at her, whiskers on his furry nose twitching. Kat rolled her eyes at the desoph. It was hard to think of him as anything other than a giant playful otter, the comedic counterpoint to Dorrik’s overly formal delivery.

“Very funny.” Kat tried and failed to keep herself from smiling at his bad joke.

“There we are.” Kaleek slapped her on the shoulder. “That’s the Kat we know and love. I know things have been pretty grim on Earth for the last couple of months. It’s good to see a crack in that morose shell of yours.”

He was a big goof, but Kaleek meant well. Sometimes it seemed strange that The Tower of Somnus, a brutally violent game played with entities from across the galaxy in her sleep, would be her respite from the brutal reality of her life on Earth, but it was.

Kat was a bit too much of a loner to find a huge community in the dreamscape, but Dorrik and Kaleek provided something that no one on Earth outside of her immediate family could. Friendship and acceptance that didn’t expect anything in return.

“Sorry.” She shrugged helplessly. “I’m still a bit lost, but It gets a little easier every day.”

“I understand.” Dorrik nodded, their voice as severe as ever. “When my siblings were killed by stallesp treachery, it took me months before I felt like myself. I found that honest work and training were the best medicine for my sadness. If I was too tired to think after a day of calisthenics, it was hard for me to dwell on what had happened.”

“I suppose that’s why we’ve been hitting so many dungeons in the last couple of months?” Kat asked.

“Of course,” the big lizard agreed earnestly. “I do not like to see you upset Miss Kat. Between that and the other human climbing toward level twenty four, I thought it best that we keep moving.”

Kat winced. Her companions hadn’t been able to tell her what happened at level twenty four. The Tower would literally disable their translations functions if they tried. Still, from the hints she’d picked up on, it sure looked like the first human that made it to that level would be able to represent Earth to the intergalactic community.

Given that the highest level human was currently being assisted by hostile aliens as he leveled up, that was a fate that she would like to avoid. Escaping debt slavery to a megacorporation only to become a satrappy of a ‘well meaning’ space empire didn’t exactly seem like a great time.

“Thanks,” she flashed a quick smile to her companions. “Seriously. I know that I’ve been a bit of an emotional drag lately. It might not be much, but it means a lot to me.”

“Good,” Kaleek replied with a chuckle. “Now enough with the sappy stuff. Make sure you’re ready to go, and let’s handle this dungeon. We’ve got monsters to kill.”

Name

Katherine Debs

Class

Elementalist Initiate

Max Level

6

477 Marks

HP

39

Dodge

Poor

MP

60

Damage Mitigation

Insignificant

STA

41

Strength

4

Agility

10

Fortitude

4

Endurance

5

Mind

7

Reaction

7

Charisma

5

Spirit

6

Spells Known

Gravity’s Grasp

Levitation

Pseudopod

Dehydrate

Dazzle

Shadow

Water Jet

Gravity Spike

Mirage

Overpressure

Skills Known

Knife I - 12, Max

Gravity I - 12, Max

Water II - 1, 0%

Cat Step - 12, Max

Light I - 12, Max

Cure Wounds I, 10, 16%

Penetrate

Crossbow I - 1, 0%

Perks

Nightvision

Leaping

Sensory Dampening

Crippling Blow

Fast Healing

Satisfaction flooded through her as Kat looked at her status. It took her a couple of months, but she finally had her first Iron tier skill, courtesy of her level six level up award. Apparently, Kat could only evolve a Wood tier skill that had reached its maximum level, but given the number of dungeons she’d fought through with Dorrik and Kaleek, maxing out her first tier abilities wasn’t terribly hard.

One by one, the three of them disappeared in shimmers of rainbow light as they touched the portal and willed themselves into the dungeon. The minute the flickering energy dissipated, Kat’s senses were assaulted by her new surroundings.

An arc of brilliant white-blue light stung her eyes, followed a moment later by the smell of burnt ozone. Rather than rock, the walls of the dungeon were made of brightly polished bronze, their mirrorlike surfaces only occasionally marred by discolorations. Even as she watched, another bolt of lightning burst forth from a crystal sphere sitting atop a metal pole, crackling with ferocity as it vented itself on a tunnel wall.

“Careful Miss Kat!” Dorrik called out, motioning with one of their claws toward the spheres lining the hallway out of the starting room. “The Tunnels of Lightning and Brass is a metal and electric themed dungeon. There aren’t any reported traps, but its corridors are heavy with environmental hazards.”

“Keep your head down if you don’t want to end up crispy,” Kaleek chuckled. “Generally good advice.”

“Is there any pattern to the discharges?” Kat frowned, glancing at humming structures. “If we can figure out when they’re about to fire, we might be able to plan around them. Maybe even use them against the dungeon’s monsters.”

“Unfortunately there is no rhyme or reason.” Dorrik shook their head. “Worse, most of this dungeon’s denizens are twisted amalgamations of flesh and steel. Electricity will heal their wounds rather than hurt them.”

“Wait, Kat replied unhappily. “You’re telling me that we’ll have to fight the monsters of this floor while constraining our movements to watch out for periodic arcs of lightning that could heal the bad guys? That hardly seems fair.”

“Welcome to the iron tier.” Kaleek slapped her on the shoulder with a grin. “Just think of it like our first couple of dungeons all over again. You might have better gear and stats, but the difficulty just jumped to match you. We’re in over our heads and only quick wits and quicker reflexes are going to keep us alive.

He walked past her, tail flicking playfully as the giant otter stepped into the hallway, body in a crouch and his sword drawn but low to the ground.

“That’s hardly reassuring,” Kat muttered, eyes on the desoph’s back.

“I do not believe that was his intention Miss Kat,” Dorrik replied solemnly, another blast of lightning flashing overhead. “The Tower does not give power freely. Iron tier skills are powerful, and they are only awarded to those willing to risk themselves to earn them. Make sure you are ready with your new abilities, in all likelihood we will need them.”

The big lizard slipped past her, lowering their body so that their lower pair of hands touched the dungeon’s metallic floor in an attempt to balance themselves.

Kat bit her lip, wracking her mind for alternatives and coming up with nothing. Finally, she just shrugged and followed Dorrik out of the room. The gleaming copper hallway continued for another minute or so, only to end at a giant sliding metal door.

The three of them glanced at each other for a second, each unaware.what to do next with the mass block of steel. Kat looked it over, trying to determine if there were any telltale signs of hidden blades or magical emitters.

Grunting, Kaleek leaned forward, grabbing the door’s handle and pulling to the side with the grating scream of metal on metal. Kat felt her jaw drop open as she stared at the otter in disbelief.

“What,” he grinned cockily back at her. “The guide to the dungeon said that there wouldn’t be any traps.”

Before she could respond, a metal claw on a chain shot through the gap, wrapping its four massive metal talons around Kaleek and jerking him into the room.

Dorrik tore after him, a sword gripped in each pair of hands as they disappeared into the room beyond.

Kat swore under her breath, drawing her knife and taking a step to join the two of them only for a bolt of lightning to crackle past her shoulder and striking the huge iron sliding door. For a moment, she froze, all the hair on her body standing on end in the wake of the near miss.

Tender skin and light burns, nothing else. Once she took stock of the situation, Kat darted into the room.

In the center of the chamber, sat what she could only think of as a monstrosity. A massive pile of twisted and tumorous flesh, teetering precariously atop a trio of trunk-like legs, it had no natural arms or head. Instead, grafted limbs made of metal ringed the circular maw at the center of the creature’s body.

Kaleek struggled against the bands of metal pinning his arms to the side, unable to free himself from the monster’s grasp even as it steadily reeled him closer to its undulating and lipless mouth. Dorrik’s blades clattered in a dance of steel on steel as they fought another pair of multi segmented and spider-like arms that ended in wicked, barbed points.

The lizard glowed purple for a second as they activated a Psi ability, augmenting their attributes. Their swords moved even faster, taking chips out of the rusting iron of the creature’s limbs.

They took a step forward, advancing toward Kaleek only for the third and final arm of the monster to enter the fray, whipping sideways in deceptively sinuous motion. Dorrik jumped backward, barely avoiding the point of the creature’s blade arm as it slashed through the air in front of them.

The beast slavered at her friends, all four of its arms occupied. Kat swore to herself.

She activated Cat Step, stamina leaving her body to power the perk as she blurred forward. Her footfalls were almost completely silent as the ability lent her a burst of speed.

It didn’t notice her approach, only realizing that Kat was there when her dagger bit into one of its massive legs. Her weapon flashed red as she activated Crippling Blow, one of her newer abilities.

The monster bellowed in agony, the knife jerking in Kat’s hand as the ability pulled its edge toward an unseen vital point deep inside it. A second later, she was dancing backward, a fountain of tarlike ichor bubbled up from the wound.

Focusing her mana, Kat cast Overpressure. Unfortunately, she couldn’t dual cast the second tier spell. Dorrik assured her that the ability would come with time, but she couldn’t help but hope that she earned the ability sooner rather than later. By now she was so used to keeping two spells active at the same time, only being able to use one made her feel naked.

That said, the spell’s usefulness spoke for itself. Technically, it could be used to dramatically increase the pressure any fluid was under. Eventually, it would let her dramatically increase the effectiveness of her water based spells such as Water Jet and Pseudopod by tripling or quadrupling their solidity and force.

For now, the bubbling spring of blood from Kat’s stab wound erupted, ripping the injury even wider open as the monster’s essence poured out of the gash and onto the brown metal of the floor.

Theoretically the spell could be used on any major artery or vein, increasing systolic pressure to dangerous levels and rupturing cell membranes in the surrounding flesh. Like most water spells, it was quick to cast and didn’t consume much of Kat’s precious mana.

Even against an uninjured foe, so long as the enemy has a liquid based physiology, it allowed her to quickly and efficiently leave bruises from a distance. Not enough to kill an enemy, but it would tire and weaken them, allowing Kat to follow up with a finishing blow once it let its guard down.

She darted in once again, her enhanced reactions and agility letting her duck at the last second to let one of the monster’s multi segmented stabbing limbs plunge through the air above her. With a grunt of exertion, she spent more stamina to Leap atop the monster, grabbing onto one of its wobbly, tumorous growths to steady herself before slamming the knife up to its hilt in the creature’s pendulous flesh.

Kat ripped downward, letting herself drop to the ground and using her weight to tear open a massive gash in the creature’s side.

A second later, she was Leaping away once again. Apparently her antics convinced the monster to release Kaleek and focus on her.

The massive claw slammed into the bronze just beneath Kat’s feet, denting the thick metal and skittering across the floor. She landed, feet already backpedaling as two of the monster’s arms scissored through the air just in front of her.

She pushed with her mana once more, casting Overpressure on the ragged seeping wound she’d just ripped into the creature’s hide. It shuddered, visibly deflating as dark blood sprayed from the wound.

Another metal arm slashed toward Kat, forcing her into a roll to avoid it even as Kaleek whipped out his great sword and embedded it into the monster’s flabby stomach. It bellowed, flesh undulating as it staggered backward on its thick, stubby legs in a vain attempt to pull itself off of the otter’s blade.

Dorrik’s swords cut through the air, whistling as they buried themselves into one of the creature’s undamaged legs. Even as it stumbled, Kat cast Overpressure once again, rupturing the veins surrounding the wound and forcing the black goop that passed for the monster’s blood out of its body.

It slipped, falling to the floor, mechanical arms flailing madly as it tried to catch itself in time. Kaleek twisted to the side, dodging a panicked strike. He pulled his sword from the monster, holding the weapon high before bringing it down with all of his strength.

The thwack of the sword biting into flabby meat had a certain finality to it, but that didn’t stop Kaleek. He slid his blade out of the creature before repeating the heavy blow another five times.

Kat glanced at Dorrik uncertainly. The creature was clearly dead, its limbs limp other than the occasional twitch from misfiring nerves.

Finally, Kaleek straightened himself, chest heaving. He wiped his weapon on the battered corpse of their opponent before sliding it into the sheath on his back. The otter let out a deep sigh before rubbing his face in a futile attempt to work the beast’s blood from his fur and whiskers.

“Are you…” Kat paused for a second, licking her lips before continuing. “You doing all right Kaleek? That was a little intense near the end there.”

“Nothing a quick bath can’t fix, that was actually surprisingly cathartic.” He held up a hand, forestalling Kat’s next question. “And no, I’m not ready for you to use Water Jet to hose me down. Maybe when we finish things up, but I have a feeling that things aren't going to get any less messy.”

“Great,” Kat smiled cheerfully at both of her companions. “Now can someone explain what in the everloving fuck that thing was? We’re in the first room of the dungeon and that creature was on par with a boss fight.”

“I believe it was something called a Flesh Crawler.” Dorrik’s crest fluttered contemplatively. “Approximately half of the recorded encounters in this dungeon involve them although the mechanical limbs grafted to them tend to change each time. The other primary monster are Shrieking Fiends, ape-like creatures that have had half or more of their bodies replaced with crude steel facsimiles. They aren’t terribly imposing on their own, but generally they are encountered in groups four to six times the size of the party.”

“That sounds incredibly unpleasant actually,” Kat sighed. “Still, you did say that iron tier dungeons were more difficult. That fight was a bit of a steep learning curve, but I suppose it wasn’t entirely unexpected.”

“Actually.” Dorrik scratched the scales above one of their eyes, the tone of their voice apologetic. “That was a fairly easy encounter. Much of this dungeon is filled with the lightning orbs we saw earlier and acidic vapors. On that note, if you see a cloud of green or red mist, I would avoid walking into it. I would VERY much avoid breathing or opening my eyes while I was inside it.”

“Fuck,” Kat groaned, wiping the blade of her dagger on her thigh before sheathing the weapon.

“I know right?” Kaleek chuckled. “There’s a reason why iron tier skills aren’t terribly common. I mean, you already know that the Tower won’t even let you attempt an iron dungeon until you hit level six, but even then, something like fifty percent of the teams that try one for the first time get wiped out. A lot of groups don’t even make the attempt.”

“I get it.” Kat glanced back at the abused corpse of the crawler. “I only have one second tier spell, and already I want more. Overpressure let me almost triple my damage output, and it’s actually easier to cast than Gravity Spike. It’s hard for me to imagine what a full lineup of abilities like that would do for me.”

“The Tower makes you earn it though.” The otter agreed cheerfully. “The boss fights in these dungeons are always absurd.”

“Oh?” Kat asked, glaring at Dorrik accusingly. Somehow, the giant lizard managed to adopt a hangdog expression.

“It’s called ‘The Brood Mother,” the lokkel responded sheepishly. “It’s little more than a giant womb, completely submerged in an acid bath. It uh-”

“It gives birth to a bunch more flesh walkers even as we try to fight it,” Kaleek finished for the hesitant lizard, a giant grin on his face. “We basically get to fight as many of those things as we want. Plenty of fun to go around, eh?”