Tarifax and Earth – World of The Misplaced Dungeon.

{Timeline: November 2019 – MD starts about the time of Ch. 130}

* * * EARTH / TARIFAX * * *

Oscar examined the link to his other self suspiciously. It was calling to him, just demanding he pour himself along it, heedless of consequences. His experiences in the forces had taught him to exercise caution at all times.

So, Oscar eased a trickle of his consciousness into the link. He fought hard to keep from flooding through. All to soon he reached the dormant mind of his other self. He found it trapped under a straining barrier. He could see that the barrier was keeping most of his other self quiescent.

Very carefully he eased a thread of perception through the barrier. The part of his mind that resided on the other side of the barrier was almost unrecognizable. It lacked, well it lacked anything that counted as analytic thought. It was almost totally suggestible. And it was linked to a companion. A companion that under the present circumstances, had an unduly strong influence.

Oscar noted that his crippled self was linked to a Pooka named Cyrdwynne. Cyrdwynne seemed to be a rather bloody-minded sort of being. Oscar was able to pick up several clues, as Cyrdwynne was not guarding himself against his companion.

Oscar slowly realized that Cyrdwynne was wearing a very nasty magical slave collar. He would be unable to count on his other companion, at least until that collar was removed or nullified. And then the problem would lie in restraining the pooka’s blood lust, and tempering his desire for revenge.

Further careful probing allowed Oscar to realize that his other self sat at the centre of a busy enclosed market. In fact, the only thing literally keeping the market building’s roof up was his/their dungeon powers. Then, there was the market’s security. He/they controlled a baker’s dozen of minotaurs and a score of kobolds.

Carefully he withdrew his attention from Tarifax and settled into his core. He considered everything he learned carefully. He examined the templates for the minotaurs and kobolds. Oscar decided that the former had promise. He chuckled to himself and spawned a big, fiercely protective female minotaur. He examined his latest guardian with interest. Yes Sally would do nicely. His grandkids needed a nurse and protector and Sally would serve nicely. Now he just had to equip her. A barret light fifty and a desert eagle would be just the thing.

* * * EARTH / ALASKA * * *

Mandy Fallbrook clutched her briefcase to her chest as she waited to board the big helicopter. Several military men were also waiting, as were a couple of law enforcement people. Her mind seemed determined to go around in circles.

She was desperately worried, it was good that the two children had been found, but they were in the clutches of an inhuman monstrosity. A thinking jewel. True it had been their grandfather, and the children’s father had proved to be a totally unsuitable guardian. The things that had been found in their former home proved that. They must be suffering from trauma. She felt that they should be taken into care in order to ensure they had access to counselling. But their grandmother had proved to be uncaring, and she was under investigation as being an accomplice to the abuse.

Then too, the dungeon core had a lawyer. From what she had been able to find, Mr Mason was one of those shadowy corporate lawyers. He seemed to belong body and soul to MagiTech and the other companies controlled by the robber baron, by Ms Silvestre, who had made herself a ruler on another world.

Mandy ducked and shuffled to the door of the helicopter. One of the soldiers helped her to board it. She sank into one of the chairs, and almost mechanically she fastened the security harness. She spent most of the journey to Finder’s Vale plotting ways of separating the children from their grandfather. She was, after all, convinced it would be for their own good. Humans belonged with humans, and not with monsters.

And Finder’s Vale was an abomination. It was new, most of the inhabitants had settled there after choosing to become monsters of various kinds after the disaster that was the System. According to her records there were two or three other children suffering at the hands of those deluded monsters. Maybe she could do something about them too.

* * *

Captain Benally watched the snow covered wilderness out of the chopper’s windows. He mulled over his orders. He was to secure the dungeon, it was obviously another linked one so the government wanted good relations with it. It was another potential gateway to another world.

He glanced at the stout middle-aged bottle blond desperately clutching a briefcase to her chest. He suspected the woman would cause him problems, as her record was – troubling. But she had connections. He smiled thinly and looked out at the magnificent mountains. He had connections too, and he suspected her connections were more fragile than she realized.

* * * ALASKA – FINDER’S VALE * * *

Easton Oxendine looked up when his son Vinny came racing into his store, shouting excitedly. East blinked and smiled at the incongruous sight of his son clad in jeans and a t-shirt. The glint of the new enchanted earring being the reason Vinny no longer needed furs to combat the cold.

“Hey slow down son, what has you so excited?” he asked indulgently.

“It’s a flying bus. A bus, and it’s flying over the snow,” exclaimed Vinny.

“This I have to see,” said East emerging from behind the counter. He walked towards the door of his store seeing his son’s back disappear through it. He stopped once he reached the porch of his store, he looked west to where the snow covered road came into the village, and sure enough a strange looking vehicle was making its way in their direction. It looked a bit like a touring bus. It was powered by two caged pusher props at the rear. Its roof was flat and looked like a set of solar power cells.

By the time it stopped in front of the general store, most of the village’s inhabitants had gathered to meet it.

A distinguished looking man, incongruously dressed in a lightweight suit stepped down from the vehicle. He made his way towards the general store even as two more well dressed individuals emerged from their flying coach. The two wolf beast folk looked round in interest.

“Good afternoon, I’m Perry. I’m Mr Waverley’s lawyer. Would one of you kindly tell me where I can find him?”

“And why does Oscar need a lawyer?” enquired East.

Perry smiled apologetically, “That is for my client to know, I can only say that Mother agreed he needed my help.”

East blinked, “Mother?” he asked bemused.

Perry grinned but didn’t reply.

East grunted, irritated. “Very well, follow me lawyer man,” he said as he stepped down from his porch and headed towards the mine.

Perry and his two guards followed the big man. And many of the villagers followed them. It didn’t take long for the crowd to reach the Oscar’s mine.

* * *

Oscar felt the invader’s enter his domain. He recognised that three of them belonged to another dungeon core. It was a feeling he recognised from the memories he absorbed from his other self. He, somewhat nervously, sent his attention to inspect his visitors.

And there, large as life, were two high level beastmen. And the avatar of some other dungeon spawned creature. Something he had never come across before, here or on Tarifax. In fact, he had thought only dungeons and gods could produce avatars.

He cursed to himself at his glib acceptance of gods. He an atheist, well, an ex-atheist now he guessed.

His visitors stopped after entering his domain. The avatar smiled and sent him a thought.

« Greetings Mr Waverley. I have the documentation appointing you your grandchildren’s legal guardian. Mother insists that the work is pro bono. She was not amused at what’s come out about this case. »

« What are you? And by Mother, do you mean Blue Lagoon? »

« I’m one of Mother’s AIs. My name is Perry Mason, and I’m a lawyer amongst other things. And yes Mother is Blue Lagoon. »

Oscar felt stunned, « An AI? An honest to god AI? »

« No. An honest to Goddess AI if you will, but ‘to god’ no. »

« Mr Mason? I know I asked about things on the exchange, but why? »

« Please call me Perry Mr Waverley. You brought your grandchildren to Mother’s attention. Mother took the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. First, she wants the children safe and happy. Second, she wants the precedent of a dungeon core being recognised as a guardian, and parent. »

« Um, well please call me Oscar. But they are my grandkids, and my ex won’t give a damn. Why do I need help? »

« Your ex was an accomplice in the children’s treatment. Mother is not happy with her, she will be lucky if she ends up in jail. And the rat ’folk discovered who the authorities are sending here to see if the children are safe and well. Thus my presence, and the presence of a squad of Silver Dolphin Security’s best people. »

« Do you truly think that is necessary Perry? »

« Probably not. You are a US citizen after all, and the courts recognise that after Bet Your Life and Arena of Blood. But the army is on its way to secure another potential link to another world. Mother wants you to have options. »

* * *

East and the villagers had stopped when Perry had stopped. They looked at him bemused at the sight.

“Why have you stopped lawyer man?” asked East.

The bigger of the two wolf ’folk grinned, “He’s chattin’ with your friend the dungeon. It’s not polite to just waltz into a strange dungeon after all.”

“But how? I thought only allies and the Voice could,” asked East.

“An’ other dungeon cores an’ their monsters, and then there are the paladins an’ clerics of dungeon gods. Mind you I don’t think there are any of those on Earth – yet.”

“What!” exclaimed East.

“Look, more to the point, there are a bunch of soldier boys and an inteferin’ social services type on the way. The bitch has the rep of bein’ a tad over enthusiastic when it comes to takin’ kids into care. If I was you, I’d make sure my kids didn’t catch her eyes – she doesn’t like ‘monsters’,” explained the wolf man.

The villagers grumbled amongst themselves, and a couple of them slunk off.