Our stay on the twenty-ninth floor ended up being far longer than I’d expected.

Three days after we were still there, waiting for permission to go on to the next floor. Adam and Lance spent most of their time in discussion with the leaders of the settlement, but due to what lay beyond this floor they’d grown cautious about who they allowed through. It was a delay that irritated me as in my day there’d been no limits and no camp on this floor.

So Kuzu and I had opted to do some training out near the settlement. We’d found a nice open spot of grassland, and each day we’d done some basic combat practice. Even though we fought without weapons we’d still managed to pick up a few spectators, perhaps though it was due to Kuzu more so than myself.

It was while we were still in the middle of a session that Adam finally showed up. While I knocked aside a roundhouse from Kuzu I gave a quick glance in his direction, before I waved at Kuzu. “Hold on a second,” I told her.

“The old men finally relented, we’re cleared to go to the next floor tomorrow morning,” Adam said as he adjusted his monocle, “this would’ve gone faster if you weren’t so insistent on taking along a child, you know?”

“There’s no way I’m leaving my daughter behind with strangers,” I retorted, “how’d you manage to convince them?”

“It helped that the gnomes we saved talked about you. My brother and I vouched for you as well.”

We walked back to the settlement as we talked, mostly about what the Wolfe brothers had done over the last few days The sentries at the gate nodded in greeting as we passed by, but the gate was left open as the gnomes were still out harvesting lumber and food. From what I’d learned a little distance away were actual farms which helped to feed everyone.

Our walk through the camp took us near the tents, and around them the children ran with boundless energy. My daughter was in that group, and though she had a clear physical edge she had enough intelligence to not abuse it. I could only smile at how happy she was to get to play with other kids.

“It’s amazing that people are being born and raised here,” I said.

“Well, if not for them I doubt the labyrinth would be in the condition it is right now,” Adam replied, “The shifters would’ve probably pushed through by now.”

“Will you be ready to head out tomorrow morning?” I asked Adam as we stopped in front of our tent.

“Of course, and Lance can’t handle all this sitting around.” Adam gave a slight wave of one hand before he turned and walked away.

I watched him walk away and then turned my attention to Kuzu, who had remained quiet during our conversation. “Coming?” I asked while I opened the flap a little further as though to encourage her to come in.

Kuzu gave a flick of her left ear before she turned away from me. “I’m going to go check up on Lisa.”

Ever since our conversation the other day she had become displeased with me. That feeling was all the more obvious during our sparring sessions, as she would often give a smile every time she managed to hit me.

All I could do was watch her walk away. I had often thought of talking to her about why I had said what I did, but in the end I knew it would only lead to more problems. Women, after all, were a bit of a mystery.

☗ ☗ ☗ ☗ ☗

A wall had been placed around the portal, the rickety walls a sign that they’d only put it up recently. Nearby it a handful of guards stood watch, though the main bulk of the guards would be back at the arrival point.

Lance still wore his darkened clothes and the night steel armguards, the twin long daggers sheathed at his hip. He had washed his red hair and combed it back, though the scent of metal still clung to him thanks to the various equipment he had. A dark red cloak lined with fur was draped about his body, though the hood that was attached to it was left down.

Nearby stood Adam, pistol holstered while he held the rifle at the ready. He too wore a dark red cloak designed for cooler climates, the hood had been lifted up and covered his dark green hair. With his left hand Adam adjusted the monocle on his eye.

Kuzu had opted to wear conservative clothing, baggy articles designed to help deal with cold temperatures. Unlike the Wolfe brothers she did not have a cloak, though I had forced her to pack one in case it became a necessity at some point. The powerful two-handed sword she favored was still strapped to her back, while the claw gloves that she’d picked up from my small armory were still worn.

Like the brothers I had chosen to wear my cloak, the cooler floors ahead an issue I wanted to be prepared for. My equipment hadn’t changed aside from that, though I’d changed from a duffel bag to a more compact knapsack.

“Lisa,” I said to get her attention. Out of us all she still wore a casual dress, a white dress that would normally be insufficient for cold weather.

She stood in front of the portal and was peering up into it when I spoke to her. “Daddy?” she responded with a quick turn of her head.

“Try not to fight anything on the next few floors, and stick close to me.” I knelt down near her and rested one hand on her head. “Can you do that for me?”

“Sure thing!” she exclaimed while bouncing up and down excitedly.

“I think we should all stick close to each other,” I rose up and looked to the Wolfe brothers, a glance at Kuzu gaining me little more than a tail twitch in response, “if we get separated the shifters can play their little games.”

“Agreed,” Adam checked his rifle before he approached the portal, “see you on the other side.”

Floor 30

Lost City of the Shifters

Checkpoint Three

When we arrived on the next floor every single one of us was ready for combat. I pulled Lisa in close to me and held her between myself and the others of our group, even as we studied the perimeter of our entry point. Both Kuzu and I perked our ears in an attempt to hear any type of threats.

Nothing moved within the flat and empty square we’d appeared in. Near us stood tall buildings that were easily thrice the size of any found on the earlier floors, and stood in a ring around the square. Most of the buildings had become rotten and started to fall apart, the broken chunks scattered about.

There were no commands as we moved out, instead we relied on simple hand motions to dictate our coordination. We stepped into a fog-laden street that was wide enough for five men to stand side by side. Each of us walked as quietly as we could, with Lisa being the loudest out of us all. Her energetic nature and lack of experience in the labyrinth made it all the more difficult for her to comprehend the importance of silence.

What impressed the Wolfe brothers, given their looks of shock as they peered at her, was the silence from Kuzu. It was easy enough to forget she was even there, her foot falls so quiet that my elf ears failed to pick up the slightest of noises. While she walked she kept moving into shadows without thought, her body so well trained in stealth that she maintained an absolute lack of presence during the entire march.

It was hard not to feel a hint of pride when I looked at Kuzu. Certainly a good deal of what she had learned derived from the crystals I had thrown her into at the orc nursery. Still I had helped to refine the rough gem, and a flawless diamond was the end result. I had in the past never bothered to teach others, but what I had managed with Kuzu made me wonder about what could’ve been.

My train of thought was disrupted when the sound of stones falling clattered off to our left. A pure white figure clung to one of the half-destroyed walls of a large building. The legs and arms were gaunt and the skin looked wet. The head of the creature turned in our direction, black eyes staring out from an alabaster white face that had no hair.

The creature made no noises but instead darted up the wall and clambered into some inner chamber of the building. From nearby Adam let out a long sigh at the sight, before he turned to glance at me. A quick shrug was all he gave before we returned to our forward march, though our alertness had grown even more.

There was an almost oppressive feeling to the city as we walked through it. Fog swirled around our ankles and often blotted out our vision of the buildings. Sometimes the fog would let up, yet all it did was reveal the structures which towered over us, and also made one feel as though you were caged in. Even looking up into the sky only presented clouds that were dark and kept back most of the sunlight.

When we all heard the crying of a child the entire group froze. Lisa, who had clung onto my clothing, looked with concern in the direction of the noise. The Wolfe brothers for a few moments stared at the fog-coated figure of a young girl before promptly ignoring her.

It was Kuzu who started to approach the weeping child. When I grabbed onto her wrist and yanked her back the look she sent me was one of anger, but also embarrassment. It was noble that she had so readily wanted help the kid, yet in this case her kindness was vastly misplaced. She knew it, but at the same time she had been unable to fight her instincts.

“It’s a shifter, Kuzu,” I reminded her in a hushed tone, “leave it alone, let’s keep moving.”

“I know, it’s just…” Kuzu started to trail off while she stared at the weeping child. With a twitch of her left ear she sighed, then turned her gaze away.

As we walked away from the shifter the sobbing grew louder and louder, the figure still knelt down on the ground amidst the fog. After we lost sight of the shifter the sobbing came to an end, a silence that fell with such suddenness that it caused all of us to instantly stop in our tracks. With worried looks we began to scan the nearby mist in hopes of seeing what lurked beyond, yet our eyes were incapable of noticing anything more than glimpses of the large buildings.

In the wall of white mist some creatures stirred, their footfalls quick and sharp against the stone. A sound reminiscent of ice cracking could be heard from different directions, and at least three sources produced an animal call. I pulled my daughter in closer against me even as I raised my sword up in preparation of a fight.

What emerged from the fog was not the white figure that we had seen before, nor the child that wept, but instead it was a snake that was as thick as my torso. The large serpent slipped out of the mist without a sound, while it’s long tongue tasted at the air. The snake’s head swung from left to right with slow motions, the pitch black eyes focusing on none of us. When the snake came within five feet of us it hissed, and the mouth opened wide to reveal long fangs.

Lance intercepted the snake before it got any closer. With a flourish of his right hand one of the long daggers was brandished, before he promptly drove it down into the top of the head. The dagger stabbed through to the ground and impaled the snake, and all it could do was twist and struggle to escape. Lance ended any hope of that happening when he pulled out his other dagger and sliced the head off.

A spurt of red blood came from the large stump of the snake. Lance stood up and tore his dagger free, not bothering to clean either of the blades off before he deposited them back into their sheaths. With a look of indifference Lance kicked the decapitated head far away from the corpse.

From the mists came more of those odd animal calls. What emerged next was not a snake but rather two people who wore ragged cloaks about their bodies. From beneath the hoods that covered their heads long serpentine tongues slipped out, while both of the strangers held curved swords made from stone.

Before one of the lizardmen could take more than one step blood blossomed from out of the hood, the loud bang of the fired rifle echoing loudly in our ears. Next to me Adam stood with his gun lifted as a hint of smoke billowed out of the muzzle. The usage of the rifle was enough to make the other lizardman freeze, perhaps scared at what had happened, and gave Lance all the time he needed to step in close and slice off its head.

What came next was a surprise for me, as Lance uttered noises similar to the oddities coming from the fog that surrounded us. He rested one foot on top of the decapitated head of the lizardman, spewing forth a stream of crackling sounds that seemed impossible for any ordinary person to produce.

The silence was all too unnerving as we stood there and listened for any signs from the shifters nearby. For a while there were no more discussions in their alien tongue, perhaps baffled as equally as I by how Lance could talk in their language. Then from beyond our sight the sound of movement came at once. A noise that started out loud and gradually grew quieter, one that marked the departure of the shifters.

“Told ya, ain’t nothing to worry about,” Lance called out to his brother.

“It helps that it wasn’t one of the major tribes,” Adam said, “hopefully we can keep clear of them.”

“Tribes?” I glanced back and forth between the brothers, for the first time in a while perplexed.

It was a question that made Kuzu look at me with a startled expression. She was accustomed to me knowing more about the labyrinth than anyone else. For a second Kuzu started to open her mouth to speak, then she thought differently and turned her attention toward the fog. One of her ears remained half-turned in our direction, a testament to her curiosity.

“You don’t know about them?” Adam asked as he checked his rifle, “the shifters all live in tribes. Some are big and some are small, but they rarely go solo.”

It was information that blindsided me. During my youth the shifters had been an infamous species that terrorized the thirties. Few divers had managed to survive their encounters with them and so little knowledge about them had spread. Even during my first sojourn into the thirtieth floor I had gone in without any idea of what was to come.

What I had encountered was a bunch of animals that masqueraded as anything they encountered. Disorganized and dangerous they fed on each other almost as much as invaders. My first few attempts to get to the fortieth floor met with close calls, even with the help of Pierre there were times when I had never thought I’d return home.

After I returned to the floors with Lute she taught me a bit about the shifters, and the city that we currently walked through. It had first been made to be a gentle and assistive presence for divers. At one point in time it had been a checkpoint.

Then Lute had walked away and worked on the other floors, never once realizing the mistake she had made. By the time her attention returned to the thirtieth floor the shifters had already killed off everyone and threatened to spread to the lower floors. With the floor already being considered completed she could only stare in horror at the monsters that had been unleashed.

In the end she decided on a course of action that would forever change the shifters. While she had the potential to reset the labyrinth back to start instead she chose to leave it, a reminder for herself about the importance of double-checking her own work. After that she then gave the shifters something that halted their descent toward the lower floors.

Fear.

All animals have an instinctual need to protect themselves from harm. Most will back away when faced with a dangerous situation or deploy some sort of mechanism to guard themselves. The shifters originally were not like that, instead they had been created to know no fear and fight to the death. Lute had intended them to teach how to handle monsters that would never stop attacking.

By instilling fear into their psyche Lute had managed to make them afraid to change floors Those few that did were often alone and summarily died off in the new environments. The fear of the unknown became so crippling to them that soon the shifters stopped changing floors altogether.

“Fear made them band together?” I muttered to myself.

“What was that?” Adam looked up from his rifle at me with an upraised eyebrow.

“An idle thought,” was all I said in explanation before I motioned in the direction we were headed, “how much longer until we reach the portal?”

“Well, based on the compass it looks like it hasn’t moved since our last dive. A few more hours, I believe.”

“We might want to pick up our pace.” I pointed at the remains near us. “Unless you think the other shifters won’t be drawn by that smell?”

“Agreed, here’s hoping we can avoid the tribes.”

“Speaking of, since they know we’re in the area do you mind explaining this whole tribes thing to me?” I asked him as we started to walk in the direction of the portal.

Once more our group began a steady march through the foggy city. Off in the distance I could barely make out the sound of movement. It was probably shifters that had heard or smelled what had occurred, as I doubted much else lived on this floor anymore.

“From what we’ve been able to piece together there are three main tribes, with numerous minor tribes,” Adam explained as he walked next to me, “the minor tribes tend to stick to specific floors while the main ones try to control the portals.”

“So that’s why you have a settlement on the twenty-ninth floor, to keep them from spreading?”

“Ah, in a sense. The main tribes all are in agreement that trying to start a war with the humans isn’t worth it.” Adam tapped at his monocle absent-mindedly. “They’re much more interested in gaining complete control over the other shifters.”

“So they fight internally for dominance. Do the major tribes battle one another as well then?”

“Oh most definitely. The Scarlet Blood tribe is the most infamous in that regard, it absolutely loves to murder fellow shifters and rule via force. The Beast Lords utilize the natural animals of the floors as slaves and allies, which means they’re often at odds with the shifters who want to eat them.”

“What’s the third one?”

“The Doppelgangers,” Adam said, “they’re the reason why the settlement was able to be made. They warned people passing through about the other major tribes and befriended them. The Doppelgangers look at humans and the other humanoid races not as food, but as potential friends.”

It was news that sent a chill down my spine. When I had died the shifters had been intelligent to be sure, but in no way could they have been so smart that they were able to properly interact with humans. The change in them was to such a degree that it made me fear what I might find on the later floors.

We came upon the portal without another interruption, and by that point Adam told me about all of the minor tribes they knew of. The fog had thinned considerably as we grew closer to our destination, and at the portal itself there was almost none. The sphere hung in the middle of an orchard, one that had long since withered.

“How trustworthy are the Doppelgangers?” I asked Adam, my attention split between the portal and my companion.

“For the most part they aren’t too bad, but I’ve run across a few that are downright dangerous.” Adam slung his rifle around his body before he pulled his pistol out and double checked. “Also a lot of the other tribes like to pretend to be them to try and create a false sense of security in their prey.”

“Is there any way you can tell the difference?”

“It’s better if you consider all shifters as a potential threat instead,” came a voice from the orchard.

All of us instantly dropped into defensive stances as we peered in the direction of where the voice had come. From behind one of the withered trees a woman draped in black stepped out into the dull light that filtered through the cloudy sky. Her clothes were tight and fell down across the full of her form with little difference in color. A flawless black that made her skintight outfit somehow less provocative and yet at the same time all the more interesting.

With red-tinted fingernails she lifted one hand up to brush away the scarlet bangs that fell about her face. “It’s been a while, Pups,” she said with a gentle tone, “have you been doing well?”

Lance was the first one to relax out of the group. When he sheathed his long daggers Adam lowered his pistol. “Don’t worry, she’s on our side,” Adam told me, though the displeasure was clear on his face.

“Who is she?” I sheathed my own sword, my free hand still protectively placed on Lisa.

“Viva, the Empress of the Doppelgangers.”