War Room

Chapter 148

It was several hours later when I finished up some home improvements of my own in the palace of shadows and the Dungeon denizens started to arrive. I’d edited the old arrangement, adding longer couches and a decorative rug to accommodate the larger-than-normal crowd I expected. There was also a low table for the dramatic unfurling of maps with some cups of chaos beverage on it.

Skeletons started taking seats immediately, but I noticed someone, two someones hanging back by the entrance. Andrea looked apprehensive, while Chris seemed to be trying to talk her through it. They made it fully into the room, only to stall a second time.

“Andrea, feel free to have a seat,” I said in a neutral tone, gesturing at the couch. I’d gone for a high-end lounge vibe and hoped it made the space a little less intimidating than it would have been otherwise.

Not sure a mortal would like or be able to safely consume chaos beverage, I placed some different drink options near Andrea. She took a cup of cider and I made a point of not paying too much attention to her while she settled in.

Everyone aside from Chris and Andrea mingled and chatted a bit before finding seats. Once they did, all eyes turned toward me curiously. Fun stuff, being the center of attention.

“As most of you are aware our latest arrival, Felix, was ill. He’d contracted an illness created by another dungeon, Dr. Satan,” I began. Most of the assembly knew some of the facts, so no one looked lost. I’d been pretty good about letting them know when I found out things thus far and it was paying off.

“Because he was the first victim he likely contracted it very close to the dungeon, so Dawn bargained with him for his map data,” I continued.

“Was it any help in locating them?” Dawn asked. I smiled at her. It was the question I’d been hoping she’d ask for.

Dramatically, the table vanished and the floor beneath it lowered a few inches then split. It opened to reveal a detailed relief carving of the map and rose up to the height the table had been. I could almost hear a howl of outrage from Felix that he wouldn’t get to see it.

I’d been anxiously waiting for the meeting and spent my nervous energy on presentation props. The bits of flooring I was just moving myself with the system. Eventually, it would be cool to put in a mechanism to cause it to do the same with all the whining and gear noises. My method was silent and underwhelming to my own eyes.

The rest of the room didn’t share my lack of enthusiasm.

“Shit!” Andrea hopped back, half climbing up the back of the couch. She was a beat slow, Chris was already behind it, peering suspiciously at what was being revealed. The rest of the skeletons tried to behave in a more dignified fashion, while Henry was biting back laughter. He’d yelped the first time when I’d been practicing my little trick before the meeting.

“Felix traded his map data for the weeks just before he was infected until he reached here,” I said serenely, pointing at a glowing red line painted on the topography. He’d only made the concession because those places were already on regular maps. Despite his position, he still had a craftsman’s pride concerning map making. He wouldn’t give up new discoveries easily.

I kept my orbs on the display and let Chris and Andrea climb back into their seats. They both looked sheepish and I didn’t feel a need to add to their embarrassment, though I’d found it cute. I’d possibly tease them about it later though. Gently. Probably.

“Based on what the disease’s data said, he’d have been infected somewhere in this area,” I said as I drew a small glowing green circle around an x. Using my interface caused it to seem to appear out of nowhere. This didn’t shock anyone but Andrea.

I didn’t have to be in physical contact with an object to effect changes, though the closer I was the easier it was to control. I was enjoying being dramatic.

“It's not a small space to explore, but because he was the first victim, the exact date of his infection was marked in his information, which means it happened around here,” I explained. It had been recorded like an achievement, which was almost as awful as it was useful. The date had been given, but not the time and the catkin moved fast.

It was still a much smaller area to search than the three days worth of his travel that matched with the estimate based on the incubation time. Particularly since he’d been following a narrow road through a swamp. He hadn’t deviated from it so the inflection points were limited.

“What do you intend to do with this knowledge, mistress?” Brun asked.

“I want to find and kill Dr. Satan,” I said simply. Chris looked away at that, but the rest of the denizens looked like they approved. They also didn’t seem inclined to question my motives.

“How?” Sulvir asked.

“When I form contracts, I can grant a guardian to a mortal. Essentially, I plan to foster a group of adventurers and anyone interested can partner up with them and then raid the other dungeon,” I explained. Since I was planning to lure them to the valley anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to get a little more use out of them.

“Can I?” Andrea asked. That was a question I’d been hoping to dodge for the moment, but was prepared for.

“Possibly. We'll have to see who else we get to do it. I’m going to prioritize party needs and teamwork, but if you commit to the group training you should be able to if you want,” I said simply. Andrea didn’t look happy, but didn’t seem to have a way to refute what I’d said either. My preparations had paid off.

“What's the catch?” Dawn asked.

“He’s had at least three years to dig in and build up his defenses. I also can't predict what his style is like or what type of creatures he’ll employ. Unless someone else has been in there and lived to tell the tale, the team will be flying blind for the initial run,” I admitted. That was another reason not to want to use Andrea or Elim in the attack group, particularly not for the first run. I could provide a great deal of support, but it wasn’t infallible. If something went sufficiently wrong they’d be on their own.

“So step one will be getting more people in the valley. Anyone interested in taking part in the raid should scout them to see if you can find someone you want to partner with,” I continued, wanting to get the main points done with. “That means the first attempt is months out, at the earliest, but it's something to keep in mind.”

“Since a deal is involved, that means they find out about you,” Jeffry said a touch sternly.

“Yeah, it's unavoidable really,” I agreed. A workaround had been found with Felix, but I doubted that would work for the more in-depth contract the raid team would need.

“Keep that in mind when you're con-considering someone. Do you believe they can be trusted?” Henry offered.

“So, aside from answering any questions you might have, that's it for this meeting,” I said. The group broke into quiet conversations at that point, but nothing was directed toward me. They all filtered out slowly, still talking in low serious tones, though I didn’t miss the odd gleeful expression. Nothing like the prospect of a raid to get them excited it seemed.