Dungeon:

I… I received ‘I.’ I think. I am… I.

‘I’ is good.

~SENTIENCE~ATTAINED~>>

Running New Start Sequence:

…

~LOCATION~ACQUIRED~>>

…

<<~ENVIRONMENT~ACQUIRED~>>

…

~POTENTIAL~CALCULATED~>>

~~~Objectives~~~~**Updated!**~~~~~~

Select Creature Create Floor[1] Begin Next Floor

Oh. I also… Do?

~CREATURE~SELECTION~>>

ENVIRONMENT: Underground[EARTH]

POTENTIAL: LOW

BEAST[EARTH]

BEASTS are highly flexible creatures. They are usable in any location by any Core, regardless of POTENTIAL. While often lacking the intelligence found in other selections, BEASTS always hold a ferocity unable to be ignored.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[EARTH] attuned beasts tend to act as armored brutes. Often their natural speed is limited in exchange for greater defense.

GIANT

GIANTS are mighty hulks, towering above the normal HUMANOID. Their large size is often confused with a lack of speed, which allows GIANTS to easily leverage their great strength against an overeager opponent.

OOZE

OOZES are a collection of amorphous creatures, capable of incredible adaptation. While not possessing great physical strength, all OOZES both are naturally acidic and have an intrinsic connection to Mana.

Oh… again! Heh. ‘Oh.' 'Oh.' 'Oh.' 'Oh.’

‘Oh’ is good, too.

Beast… Limited…?

Ooze… not strength…

Giant mighty!

~GIANTS~SELECTED~>>

~~~Objectives~~~~**Updated!**~~~~~~

Create Floor[1] CORE ROOM DEFENSE LAYER ENTRANCE Begin Next Floor

:ETHER[INTRA]:

:ETHER[INTER]:

Ah!

I do Floor…

Intra… Within… Ether within my environment!

Inter… Between… Ether between I and… and I’s Giants!

:ETHER[INTRA]:

:ETHER[INTER]:

It easy enou… enough. Easy enough to cre… crea… make a room. It was easy enough to make a room!

And it was. With an instinct so ingrained the green gem could easily be forgiven at missing it, the surrounding earth was forced away in waves of Ether. Infused with the primordial Mana, all of the dirt, rocks, gems, bones, and bugs surrounding the Core compressed into a strange new material. Any adventurer worth their salt would recognize it as Dungeon Stone: the strongest “natural” material in existence. Not quite unbreakable, but without a nation’s worth of Mana or the direct intervention of a Deity… it was essentially indestructible.

The small green gem laid by itself in the center of the room. Excited at the use of its new power and a bit tired at the massive outpouring of energy, the Core reviewed its objectives.

It never noticed how the released Ether failed to deplete after it created the room. Nor did it notice how it continued to radiate outwards, slowly degrading into Mana…

~~~Objectives~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Create Floor[1] CORE ROOM [✔] DEFENSE LAYER ROOMS TUNNELS CREATURES ENHANCEMENTS ENTRANCE Begin Next Floor

A brief flicker of fear swept through the gem. If its objectives kept expanding… Would it ever finish…?

Eh. Onwards! More Rooms!

Mystiq:

In the private realm of the Elder Goddess of Magic, Mystiq opened her eyes for her bi-century check-in.

Well. Then she continued to open them.

Eons of being a Deity tended to produce… interesting results when it came to abilities. Mystiq had long ago created many unnatural replicas of herself. Or, well. They were replicas of enough of herself to matter.

Each of her moved to check the variety of experiments and projects she had in motion. The many eyes, several hands, a couple arms, and notably one full human each took care to perform a multitude of careful examinations.

With a few extra eyes… next time I’ll be able to get back to bed 0.02% faster… Mystiq thought. Something to consider, at least… Aeon and Erudita might finally stop teasing me about my sleep schedule…

Considering the Elder Deities had become near fully Conceptual, it was unlikely. Beyond their Millennial Luncheon, Mystiq was more likely to spontaneously cease existing before miraculously meeting one of her peers.

“Sleep” was an interesting way to interpret the transition between the truly metaphysical and the semblance of pseudo-mortality of the standard Deity. Mystiq was rather unique among the Elder Gods and Goddesses, however. Her connection to the ever-changing nature of magic meant that being fully Conceptual was unrealistic.

To be magic meant being change, understanding what that change was, and reproducing or undoing that change. Luckily, she did not need to understand the cause.

Magic was effect. Cause was thankfully the domain of the newer Goddess of Science. Or as most called her, the Exhausted Goddess.

In any case, it was Mystiq’s similarities to the “Default Deities” that allowed for what happened next.

She was examining one of her greatest creations when it happened. They were her favorite: a species of sentient stones designed to record new magics, ensure the constant upkeep of readily accessible Mana, and even provide a bit of worship. One moment she was looking through hundreds of thousands of eyes, and the next she was a woman.

Just a woman.

Two hands, two arms, two eyes… Zero power.

What the Actual… What? What!?!

“Four worlds.”

Mystiq’s head snapped around. She was not alone in the stark white void that now surrounded her. Behind her stood a New God. One of the really new ones…

Ugh. One brain makes it so much harder to remember things…

“Four worlds.” The New God continued: “31 Continents. Over 300 Nations. Billions of Worshippers. All for this moment.”

With a flick of his wrist, he was suddenly holding an elaborately decorated golden sword. Intricate engravings empowered the mighty weapon with a variety of obvious effects, including the aura of bloodlust, the heated edge strong enough to force the air to whistle around it, the increased durability required to have gold function as a weapon, and even the ridiculous size.

The hilt of the dumb thing was over twice the wielder’s size. And enough of a hint to finally recognize the boy standing in front of her.

“Arthur? The so-called ‘King of the Gods?’ You’re not even a dozen centuries old, and you think you can challenge an Elder Goddess!”

With the raising of her voice, Arthur flinched. Her power might be sealed, but even a fraction of a modicum of her power could wipe him from all of existence. But threats alone were not enough, as Arthur centered himself with a deep breath before continuing.

“Mystiq. You have been placed on trial, one for which you failed to appear! Your crime stands unanswered, but that matters not. For you have gone against the King of the Gods! For the crime of absence, you have been found to hold ineluctable guilt!”

Taking a single step toward her, he raised his massive sword high above his head.

“With the full sanction of the New Gods, I sentence you to death! By our power I remove you! By our strength, we replace you!”

Each proclamation was emphasized with a burst of godly might. Enhanced by his domain, empowered by billions, Arthur was the mightiest he had ever been. Mystiq was the weakest she could ever be.

Before the sword fell, the once Elder Goddess made sure to take a careful look at the crowd of auras surrounding her executioner. It certainly looked like the entire new Pantheon, but there were a few notable exceptions…

No need to throw out the babies with the bathwater…

As Caladfwlch fell, in a private realm newly vacated and currently being ransacked, a single finger plopped itself off one of the many dead hands. It wiggled its way into a miniscule fold of space before squirming through a series of ancient rituals.

As Mystiq was sliced in two, a backup plan older than the written word was activated.