2.2.2 Picking up the pieces

Mastermage Orven Windrider

One hour has passed since the battle on the [safe] floor. An hour of frantic messages to and from the City Council while the ambassadors from the Dverolion Empire, the Realm of Kaarg and the Combined Cities were called in and the identities of the prisoners sorted out.

Currently everyone important was sitting in a tent in front of the dungeon entrance on Rock Island: Ambassador Celrin and Sworddancer Leader Oran from the elven cities, Ambassador Torvin Flintstone and Dungeon Master Ohannus from the Empire and Ambassador Melkan and Commissar Owlkan from Kaarg. Orven was sitting in front of them with a scribe next to him and Tom Blueeye standing near the entrance to the large tent.

I hate politics - why do others consider me good at it? Give me some trade arrangements to solve without any posturing for political fame at any time. Hopefully I can leave the details to others and conclude this quickly.

"OK, Ladies and Gentlemen.The City Council of Rivansea has decided to expand the Traveller's Guild into an Adventurer's Guild and give me as the Guild Leader the first responsibility of handling this mess.

It now has been proven that this new dungeon has four magic portals as entrances, with one each on soil that is undisputedly deep inside each of our countries. It is literally just a few steps through those portals to get from one of these places to the others.

It is also clear that the dungeon had send scouting parties into each one of our countries - the elves observed Lizardpeople and large grey or white foxes. The Legionaires didn't see any spawn, but found the old dungeon Blackmoss retracted and collapsed. Kaarg has lost a necromancer with four skeletons to an unknown scouting party. We ourselves haven't found any trace of scouting here on Rock Island, but suspect that it was at least checked out as well.

The current state of the dungeon is also unknown - luckily it hasn't gone rogue, but it might be mutated or dormant due to the energy cycle triggered by that idiotic fight. Since all of your teams participated instead of stopping the fight inside the dungeon, and because the system declared us as the winner, we'll be the ones to send in a professional evaluation team tomorrow - but I expect each of you to pay your part of the costs.

To prevent further fights I propose we create a dungeon council to handle this dungeon. Economically each of our countries will get one-fifth of the timeslots to send in parties (and yes, the dungeon activated the party system sometime during the fight). The final fifth will be at the discretion of the dungeon council to pay for its operating costs, with any remainder to be used or distributed on the discretion of that council.

For strategic decisions of the dungeon council, each of you get one vote and one councillor, while Rivansea gets two votes and councillors on it.

Any questions or suggestions to that?"

As suspected, a storm of protests comes out - most of them on the lines of why Rivansea as the smallest country should get more control and threats that they could take what they want and so on.

I knew that Rivansea was considered a backwater posting and didn't get the best people as ambassadors, and the scout leaders had already proven themselves to be hotheaded, but can't those people stop to think what they're saying? I hoped and planned for such a reaction of course so I shouldn't be disgusted when they behave as childish as I expected them to behave....

"SILENCE!

No, you can't fight over the dungeon - the entrances are too deep into your borders, there is no way you can march an army to them on the outside. And fighting inside the dungeon will only create further chances of it going rogue and destroying everything.

The Dungeon Council needs five votes instead of four to prevent voting deadlocks, and Rivansea not only came out on top of the first entry but is also the only neutral country where you might agree to have the additional vote - or can anyone of you agree to giving the extra vote to one of your opponents?

If Rivansea proposes anything that you absolutely cannot agree with you can still outvote us if you three all agree on it. Otherwise your only option is to close the entrance on your side and ignore it - which of course would allow the others to claim your shares."

Ambassador Torvin Flintstone of the Dverolion Empire is the first to speak into the silence that follows. "That might be something the Senators could agree to, but I can't speak for them on something this important. I request we postpone this for two weeks so I can send a messenger to Bremarin to ask for details."

At that Orven is tempted to roll his eyes, but has better manners. "You don't need a week to travel each direction anymore - send your messenger through the dungeon portals and he is in Bremarin within a single day."

Hearing this Commissar Owlkan strokes his lower tusks "That's right, even if the dungeon itself became dormant the advantage of the gates for travellers is enormous. We'll have to install a customs office on our gate..." He continues musing in silence and starts to think about the opportunities.

At that Ambassador Celrin interjects "OK, I'll see that - but it does not change the fact that it was the Dverolion Centurio Ohannes that started the fight - so the Empire should be excluded as a penalty."

"What? I might have made a bad decision, but I clearly remember your elves sneaking up on the discussion to do the same"

"STOP" Orwen shouts again. "We will never get anywhere in this if we let the past cause more conflict. That is why I suggested the same access for long term for everyone. Penalties should be done as fixed payments or we will never get anywhere."

"I agree," Owlkan adds "I think a payment of 1000 gold toward the dungeon council for its first operating costs would be a good penalty."

"ARE YOU INSANE???"

Again the discussion degenerates into a shouting match, but this time Orwen lets them continue while thinking about the situation.

That commissar Owlkan seems to have some political skills, the Dverolion Ambassador hasn't even realised that by discussing the amount of the penalty he basically accepted it. And declaring it as the initial fund to develop the dungeon will both help the dungeon council and make this more acceptable to the senators - they would have to pay something for the dungeon development anyway. He is one of their political control officer in Kaarg, so some skills are to be expected.

If only the dungeon core has survived the energy boosts, this could become really good for Rivansea...

Master Gunnery Sergeant John Parkinson

Using his battlestaff as a rest Gunny watches the large, two-headed silver fox body dissipate. A deformed, slimy core remains for a few seconds before it is also reclaimed by the dungeon.

"OK, General - where next?"

"That was the last mutant you have to kill Gunny. None of the remaining mutants is out of control, so I'll let them stay for the adventurers. It will prove to them that there were mutation waves, and spare me the cost of replacing them with new spawns. There are just two other silver fox mutants and one crab mutant that I hope to preserve, but I need to get the mana to replace them before the first party enters or the defenses might be too low. If I can get that mana to replace them and enough influence points, I'll try to turn their mutations into modifications that should be interesting and usable. But we'll have to see about that, for now I have a much bigger problem to solve."

"Huh? Are there any other mutations that you haven't told me about?"

"No mutation - the problem is just a regular dungeon floor."

"Don't be that cryptic General - I can't help if I don't know what's going on."

"Your idea of giving Booble authorisation and the energy to create a floor is probably the only reason why I survived the mess - it allowed me to dump a lot of mana and DP into Booble. Unfortunately Booble is a regular dungeon core, and as such the floor it built covers the entire available space. No hidden parts where you can bypass the adventurers, and my full size including the mythical rank bonus has been used on that floor.

I have to find the best way to hide part of that floor to prevent people from calculating my true rank, and I'll have to push all of the remaining free points from the level-ups into core-size to be able to increase the fifth and sixth floor wide enough so that I can create a hidden bypass around Boobles floor."

"Oh, and speaking of the sixth floor - what do you plan to do with that mess? The mutation wave caught you while working on the second half of that floor and I wouldn't call that result sane at all." Gunny shudders a bit at the memory of the floor he had to pass to get here.

The General is silent for a minute before answering. "The mutation is contained on that floor. I only have limited access on that floor due to the effects of the mutation. At the moment I think I have to keep it for study and training. What will happen with it long time I simply don't know - at the moment I have no way to repair it.

That is a risk - the surfacers might decide to kill me to destroy that floor. But I hope the treasures and the fact that the system has confirmed containment is enough to prevent an overreaction. Especially as I'm not sure I have enough mana to even try to erase that environment - somehow the mutation upranked the environment. And erasing an environment has a cost similiar to creating it."

At that, Gunny shoulders his staff and moves on. "Nothing I can do about that, but let me check the seventh floor and what Booble did there. Perhaps I can add a few suggestions to solve at least that problem."

 Centurio Markus Ohannus

Markus carefully lays down the quill and checks the letter he just wrote in the candlelight.

From Centurio Markus Ohannus, Bremarin Dungeon Master

To Senator Tevron Ohannus, High Dverolion Council

Dear Uncle Tevron,

sorry - I made a mess and need your help.

For the past decade whenever I was skipped for promotion and told to learn how to handle situations without Kuor'Tel, I always thought this was jealousy. After all my combination of three rare abilities boosted my Kuor'Tel to be a power that let me handle anything with it.

So when I realised that I made a mistake and tried to kuor it without success due to the dungeon's stabilisation, I simply froze. I couldn't think of anything else to do without using Kuor'Tel and panicked when the fight went worse.

And something similiar happened in the diplomatic meeting - even I knew better than to try Kuor'Tel with that number of high-ranked people around, and my temper was part of how we were tricked into accepting the penalty of 600 gold.

If I ever want to compensate my mistakes and become a good officer of the empire, I need to learn how to handle situations without relying on Kuor'Tel - and the best way to do that is to be inside a dungeon where it doesn't work. So I ask you if you can make sure that I stay here in Bremarin and can use the dungeons around here to learn and train how to be an officer without using Kuor'Tel?

I would be in your debt for arranging this.

Best Regards

Markus Ohannus

The Sky Arrows, Ranger Tom Blueeye (Leader)

Tom waits while the Sky Arrows squeeze themselves into one of the rooms they rented in the inn, and watches while Park asks D'vol to create his better privacy shield around the room.

Park is definitely up to something that he doesn't want anyone else to hear.

He waits until the Channeler is finished before opening the discussion.

"OK, let's talk about the dungeon evaluation job. I would have agreed to it anyway, but Park was extremely quick to land us this job - care to explain why, Park?"

"Of course, Tom " the blue-haired black sage takes a few seconds to collect his thoughts. "This dungeon is extremely interesting and the travel gates make it even more valuable. So if our evaluation shows that it survived and has not gone dormant, then I would suggest we ask to build a permanent base here for the Sky Arrows as a reward. We can even rent it out while we go through the portals to other dungeons like the Bremarin one, and return here after it has grown a bit."

The Dwarf, Holgun, speaks up next "It will take years to get the dungeon to [High] and [Very High] ranks, the Bremarin dungeon is completely developed at [Very High] already. I agree to the job - we expected to sit around here doing nothing when we arrived. But I would prefer to get some priority access to Bremarin as a reward instead of rooms and citizen papers here while waiting for the dungeon to get developed. And even with 27 meter on floor 1 it could be a specialized [High]-Ranked dungeon instead of [Very High], since no one has seen the core yet."

"But the travel advantages are big, and I have suggested we select a base for quite a while to help reduce costs and allow me to set up some trade agreements to better sell loot. With the dungeon gates and because it is neutral, Rivansea would be the best position for my trades. We haven't seen any better in years of traveling and dungeon delving." comes from Siirm.

"That might be, but I still say that better access to a developed [Very High] dungeon is worth more to us than waiting for an unknown dungeon that could get to [High] or [Very High] ranks." is the dwarfs answer.

At this Park continues to speak "There is one other information I have not yet voluntered to anyone. When I checked the gate rooms, I was unable to identify their data."

"Don't joke around, Park" the blue-skinned human tamer speaks for the first time. "You are a [Dark Sage], and [Identify] is one of your primary class skills. You can identify anything up ... to ... [Very ... High] ... rank..." Her eyes become larger and larger as her voice becomes quieter and quieter.

"Exactly Claudia - that gate room and therefore the dungeon core itself are [Master]-ranked, or I would have been able to identify them."

The General Core

The dungeon is mostly silent, because most spawns and people in it went to sleep for the night. The General uses this time to check on the long log that scrolled by when it lost concentration due to the overcharges.

One idiotic fight and I was almost destroyed as a side-effect. No wonder that the life-cycle here in the sphere is at risk if it is that instable. Without the extra crystals and Booble's core I would have lost it, and that means that no regular dungeon could withstand what is probably happening regularly on a smaller scale with a few adventurers and two sides only. After all humans and probably intelligent non-humans always fight for advantages over others.

This is a big problem in this lifecycle, and it should have been obvious from the beginning. So why is it there? And why are the gods trying everything to save the sphere? If I were in charge of such a project I would probably have pulled the plug and tried to save what could be saved for a restart.

I can only think of two possible reasons: Either they can't create another world - which means those "gods" are newbies that got some starting package from other, greater gods that can create worlds. Or there is something special about this world, something that is the key to what they want and requires the problems to be solved instead of abandoning the sphere.

My gut tells me it's the second case - Bareen was too competent and sure of her actions to be a newbie that bungled her first world. But what is so special here? Why does the Sphere System work this way? I think solving this question would help me a lot in the long run. And I don't think Bareen will answer any questions about the Sphere, or she would have told me the reason from the very beginning.

But comments like these don't really help me the General thinks while he looks at the screen with the quest message and some unintended data mixed into it.

Quest "Gain the Attention of the Governments" completed.

Contract of choice gained

All types of contracts can be gained by abilities on later ranks, this reward gives you early access and without the need for the required abilities.

All contracts have different limits, please refer to knowledge base. Command "give Booble authority to create a floor and transfer mana and DP to it" detected

Connecting dungeon cores "general" and "Booble"

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Energy interference - feedback loop increases access requirements

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Accessing Communication Network

Bareen: That is one way of gaining attention...

Atlas: Ah, but it does point to another option. I think I'll try something to make battlefield-variants of dungeons. This could solve our problems if we find a way for them to survive the fights.

Rolandro: The entire fight was funny, and I think it'll be even more funny to watch you creating those battlefield cores. How do you propose that? The General only survived due to the second core Booble, and you know the problems with a stabilisation interacting on multiple cores.

Evendar: You allowed Bareen to do the same, and it might really help you with the Sphere

Bareen: Get lost, you were never invited. And we only agreed to try that dungeon with multiple cores and multiple floor crystals because everything else failed.

Korem'Dorn: Ah, but the destruction would be awesome to watch...

Darklight: The dungeon core has to survive before this could be calculated as a success. All other speculation is premature.

Legalia: Dungeons aren't my responsibility, so I let you decide on what to do. But Rolandro, your last game has really added another mess to this. I can handle Elevri and Shaleen, and Nirial is even funny - but Magnor and Conan are nothing but trouble. Especially if Magnors plans succeed.

Rolandro: You hurt me Legalia - I always do everything to the betterment of the Sphere. So a little bit of fun should be no problem. And I even used four of the thirteen to solve existing problems and loopholes...

Overcharge levels too low for override, cancelling access and system override.

You can choose the contract reward at any time you want.

You can either offer it to any surfacer inside your dungeon, or ask the system to offer it to a person in range that fulfills criteria you specify. The Gods give favor for the "War on the Safe Floor":

Bareen: +60 Favor

Atlas: +100 Favor (Request Gained, 1/1 Request available)

Rolandro: +35 Favor

Pilia: +20 Favor

Darklight: +30 Favor (Request Gained, 1/1 Request Available)

Korem'Dorn: +50 Favor (Request Gained, 1/1 Request Available)

That discussion of the gods is something else, and I don't think I was supposed to get that. Unfortunately I don't understand most of those references, and I don't want to risk another overcharge to get that access again. Need to file it away for a future time when I have enough leisure to think about it. Back to the reward problem.

I can have only one "Voice" contract in total, and it becomes available at level 81 at a cost of a core ability. The voice contract gives communication and political skills. I can have two "Traders", but only one of them under my choice. It becomes available at level 51 for chosing another core ability. The other trader slot would have to be filled by a merchant-type that reaches my physical entry and declares himself or herself to be my trader. Nothing I can do about that second trader. In both cases the trader would get limited communication and haggling skills, and would also gain access to my core inventory - something that I myself have only limited access to and use for without a trader.

The "Rogue" contract seems to be better for now - I can have one rogue contract for every entry (and there are other types of entries I can gain at level 51 and 101), and it gives the rogue some hiding skills appropiate to the assigned exit as well as some skills to obtain templates and special objects for my inventory. But it would not give any special communications skills beyond normal contract options like I can talk with Gunny, and I would still need to spent a core ability slot to get the other rogue contracts.

The Voice or Trader contract would solve some of my communication problems and free the ability slot, but their main options would require me to reveal that I'm sapient to the adventurers. Not a good idea at the moment.

Putting the decision about the contract to the side for now, the General checked with the comatose and glowing silver fox below the desk in his room. It was the silver fox that he kept in his room to preserve the picture of the Paut'a that nearly captured it, but it also meant that it was nearest when the overcharge tripped his mind.

Somehow in that mess he overrode the system and installed a mage-class-core intended for people into an animal spawn, and ever since then the silver fox has been comatose with a yellow glow, while the system somehow rewired its existence. Three regular silver foxes were standing guard on it in case that the fox would be insane on awakening, but hopefully the changes the system makes will prevent that.

Mastermage Orven Windrider

The next morning I first go to the Citywatch headquarters where two recruits wait for me. Together we travel by boat to Rock Island.

We really have to think about some better way to get to the dungeon - Rock Island is too small for a large number of buildings. My gate crystal has only one more charge left and I want to keep that for emergencies.If the dungeon survived and is valuable, we should built something like stilted homes next to the pier. But the lake is deep there, we'll need some earth mages to built it up and we can only pay those if the dungeon gives loot.

When I enter the dungeon I see the Sky Arrows already waiting near the node on the first floor.

"Hi Tom, Park, everyone. I want to suggest a few changes to the normal procedures on first evaluation - if you think you can handle that.

With the experience from the kills of that fight yesterday, the dungeon is guaranteed to be blocked at Level 20 with reduced generation of mana due to EXP-overcharge - most likely even into total stagnation with no generation left."

Luckily not completely the General thinks while checking his status

[EXP Overcharge state (IV): Reduced to 6% regeneration values]

But you are correct about the level 20 block...

"To rank-up from level 20 the core will need [Very Low]-ranked escapees from a [Very Low]-ranked floor. That of course is impossible at the moment, but I want you to take these [Limited]-ranked recruits and help them to trigger the [Escapee]-count for the first rank. This should show the core that it needs to increase to floor 11 to rank-up and would help to train it by teaching that it needs to let people live to continue. First delve with escapees would be a perfect way to start training the dungeon."

"OK, we can do that - in this case, the first group should be only Park, Claudia, Samantha and Corvin. The rest of us will go tomorrow if you can't get to the final floor today. Claudia - instruct your beasts to keep additional guard on those two, that should protect them even with only four adventurers." Tom answers to that request. "Anything else?"

"Yes, " I search in my pouch for the crystal I stored there before leaving home, an old keepsake from my adventuring days. "If you get any hint that the core is not dormant, then we should not risk to panic it by entering the core room. This crystal lights up if it is on the same floor as a core node, giving you a warning about that. If it looks as if the core is dormant, then you need to go to the core node as that might panic it out of dormancy - but if you think it survived normally, your evaluation ends if the crystal lights up on a floor."

Gunny speaks up "I think you're to old to need potty-training, General, so that idea of training will probably fail. But what do you think about the escapees and the crystal?"

"I think that Mastermage Orven has just solved a problem he didn't even knew I have. The small hidden areas I have now are too small for several of my other plans, but if the message works as he describes no one will think it strange if I have floor 9 and 10 just as small pass-throughs to floor 11. That would leave the rest of those floors for me to hide other functions.

As for that crystal... Booble, can you move? You are not bound to a node and as a former dungeon core you might trigger that crystal before they get to my lowest floor if you are higher up..."

 "No problem at all" answers Tom and takes the crystal from my hand. Then he adresses the others. "Park, take this crystal and go for the first dungeon delve. Orven, usually we need around two hours to completely map a [Limited] floor including drawing a good map and identifying and documenting everything. But if this dungeon has other strange options it might take longer. If it has only three or four additional floors below this one, the first team should be able to make it in one delve. It should not have many more floors unless it used the energy from the fight to create them - which is a real possibility after all. In that case the remaining floors will be mapped by myself and the second team delving tomorrow."