Cutting steadily through the endless hordes of caterpillar beasts, Mud and Jabrax proceeded towards the lower levels. Until now, Mud had avoided the tunnels with sounds of combat, so as to avoid unnecessary complications. Now, such a luxury was no longer possible. From the only path towards their destination, the distinctive insectoid screeching echoed.

Silently, the pair skirted around the edge of the cave, prepared to wait on the sidelines until the fight ahead of them finished. What Mud spotted when it rounded the corner was not a team of Delvers slaughtering monsters as the golem expected, however. Instead, a whirlwind of chiton and green blood flew in all directions as a mass of caterpillars attacked each other.

"Jabrax, why are they killing each other? Aren't they allies?"

Mesmerized by the carnage, Jabrax lowered herself and whispered, eyes remaining locked on the churning pile. "This is how the dungeon makes stronger forces. Look, you see that big one?" Jabrax pointed a clawed hand towards an unusually large caterpillar near the center of the horde. Its strength was noticeably superior to those around it, and the majority of its kin's deaths arrived with its mandibles.

"It looks ready to ascend. Once it finishes with this group, probably."

It didn't take long for the beast to finish slaughtering the remainder of its brethren. After crushing the skull of the final remaining challenger, it let out one final screech as it looked around for more prey.

Finding none, it settled into the center of the pile and began rapidly covering itself in white thread from its mouth. In a short time, it was completely covered, hidden from view.

As the champion became fully hidden by its cocoon, Jabrax walked confidently out into the tunnel intersection, stopping next to the cocoon. Mud following shortly behind.

Turning towards Mud, she pointed at the cocoon. "Alright, kill it before it finishes. We don't have long."

Mud reacted immediately. Leaping towards the cave ceiling, Mud latched on to what few handholds were available and climbed directly above the white lump.

Once in position, the golem released its Skate spell. During the exploration of the dungeon, Mud had taken to carrying large rocks inside its body at all times. As a result, its current weight was significantly higher than before. To further increase the destructive power of its falling attack, Mud struck the rocks held inside itself with a low powered Force Bolt, aimed directly down. The final aspect of the attack was the golem's trusty dagger aimed to impact point first, handle pressed against the rock.

The hastily constructed silk wall was no match for the forces brought to bear against it. Mud's dagger tore through the material like wet tissue, and the bulk of its mass didn't slow in the slightest. An instant later, a wet squishing noise signified the crushed skull of the half-formed creature within.

[Experience Gained: 21]

Despite the short time that the beast was hidden from view, a remarkable transformation had already taken place. The claws on the front had lengthened considerably, and appeared much more flexible. Its mandibles were now larger, sharped, and covered in jagged protrusions. From its mouth dripped a white foam that bubbled and sizzled as it touched the caved floor.

Despite these radical changes, it was clear that the transformation was far from complete. The skin was transparent and delicate, and the new chitin, particularly around the mandibles, was still soft. Had the beast more time to strengthen into its new form, it was possible that the attack wouldn't have killed it.

Mud slid off of the beast onto the cave floor.

"We will now continue to the lower floor."

Jabrax leaned over and began collecting the torn remains of the cocoon. "Wait, I'm going to take this. I have a use for it."

Once she collected the remaining material, she shoved it hard into Mud's face. Mud, understanding her intention, absorbed it into its body for storage. Strangely, the demon had a satisfied look on her face after striking the golem. "I need to find more excuses to do that."

The two proceeded towards the lower floor once again, killing more beasts along the way. No further unusual incidents occurred, and a few minutes later they arrived at their destination.

While the cave system of the dungeon was complex and seemed to follow no logical plan, there were some consistencies that Mud had noticed. The tunnels, although ragged, had a consistent diameter. The only large spaces occurred where multiple tunnels intersected, forming small rooms. Another consistency was that the tunnels were all at exactly the same height. In their entire time within the dungeon, Mud had not sensed any significant upward or downward slope on the floor.

The path to the next floor was a steeply inclined tunnel near the edge of the tunnel network. The hanging stairs up to the surface were, incidentally, near the center.

So steep was the tunnel down that Mud wondered how a human would manage to descend it without compromising their combat ability, being a nearly eighty-degree angle. The wall of the shaft was rough enough to keep a grip, but smooth enough that it would be difficult to regain footing if a climber slipped.

All of this was not a concern to Jabrax or Mud, however. Mud slithered smoothly down the shaft with Skate disabled, and the demon lazily floated behind on an invisible platform. As they moved lower, strange noises became audible.

Rather than the screeching of insects and occasional explosion they had grown used to, the noise Mud now heard was different. Every few seconds, a 'woosh' followed shortly by a wet sound of something being cut. From experience, Mud knew the beasts here always screeched the moment they spotted an enemy, so the only explanation was that they were being killed before they noticed their foe, or before they had time to scream.

Finally reaching the bottom of the descending tunnel, the ground opened up to display a new network of tunnels. The scenery here was slightly different, however. While the tunnels above were ragged and disorganized, the walls here were smooth and straight. Although the directions still seemed haphazard, it appeared as if some intent was behind their design.

In the tunnel intersection ahead of them stood a man in heavy black armor holding a curved sword. Mud immediately recognized him as the man standing behind Prince Cain in the parade. Below him was a mountain of corpses, each resembling a completed form of the cocooned monster Mud had just killed. On the floor above, the corpses of the man-sized beasts had dissolved to nothing in only a few minutes. How fast must this man be killing them for an actual pile to form?

As the pair came into sight, the man in armor's head whipped towards them. In one smooth motion, he rocked towards Mud and swung his curved sword towards the golem's head. Such was the speed of the strike that Mud had no time to react, and the cold steel blade sunk deep into its neck. In the lighting fast attack, Mud had time for only one thought. If I were cut in half, would I die?