91. Mikal Mines pt3

The travel magic kicked us out in a brightly lit white room.  It was very bright.  And very white.  Walls, floors, and ceiling, all white.  There were two features in the room.  The first was a pedestal, which held the dungeon core.  Between my party and the core, however, was a chair, and in that chair was one of the tentacle faced rats, like the ones we had faced in the entrance of the dungeon.

Except, I realized, it wasn’t.  It had the same face, but its body was more humanoid than the Mikal Burrower had been.  And it was wearing clothes.  Just a simple black jerkin, but that was a clear sign of intelligence.  The party braced for a fight.

“Welcome, young Dungeon Busters,” the creature said.  “I am Mikal.  This is one of my rooms.  I greet you as my guests.”

I frowned, lowering my stance slightly.  “You would give us guest rights?”

“Why not?” Mikal asked.  Its voice was both sonorous and gravely at the same time.  “It is too early for me to try to barter my way to the surface.  This is not my only spawn point, so even though you intend to destroy this dungeon, it matters very little to me.  The dungeon core summoned me here when you declared your intentions, but it cannot force me to fight for it.  And I have so few opportunities for conversation with those from the up above.”

“We accept your hospitality, on the sole condition that you will not impede us from destroying the dungeon,” I said.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” the creature said.  “Unlike that drow pauper you saved from oblivion a few weeks ago, I have numerous connections guaranteeing my continued existence.  My link to this dungeon core is tenuous, anyway.  I didn’t need to respond to its call; I simply chose the more amusing option.  But I do not see any point in obliterating you; it would not benefit me in any way.  And with the limitations I would be under, you may actually be strong enough to give me a challenge I could not overcome.  Such a death would not be my end, but it would be inconvenient.  No.  We shall have a few moments of conversation, and then I will leave, and the Dungeon Core will be yours to dispose of at your leisure.”

I blinked in surprise.  “I’m actually very surprised.  I was really expecting another fight.”

“That could be arranged, if you absolutely insist on it,” Mikal offered.  “But I do not recommend it.”

“No, no, I’d much rather just talk,” I admitted.  “I mean, I like killing darkspawn and leveling up, but I don’t like fighting things that talk back intelligently.  If you don’t object to our goals, then we have no reason to be enemies.”

There was a guffawing sound, not quite laughter, but close enough that it clearly was a sound of amusement.  “Oh, there is plenty of reason for us to be enemies, child of the sun people.  Generations and centuries of resentment of which you are unaware.  My own brother would rip my throat out for not taking this opportunity to rip out yours.  But the Drow are hated above your kind, and the elves above them, and you humans a distant fifth on the list of our ancestral enemies.  But there is little reason for us to fight.  Not here, not now, and not for this petty little bauble that summoned me.”

“I … see.  I’m afraid that you seem to know quite a bit more about my people than I know about yours,” I said.  “Perhaps you would care to enlighten me?  What exactly is the cause of the feud your people bear against mine?”

“That you walk beneath the sun, of course,” Mikal said simply.

I paused, waiting for him to elaborate.  “That’s it?”

“Yes.  It is sufficient.”  Mikal cocked his head to the side.  I couldn’t read his expression at all, considering that it was made up of tentacles, but I thought he looked curious.  “Do you not hate those things which live beneath your feet?  Do you not hate the denizens of the Deepdark?”

“There hasn’t been an excursion from the Deepdark for centuries,” I pointed out.  “I don’t think of them at all, to be honest.”

The creature ticked.  “Disappointing.  My people delight in perceiving ourselves as the nightmares of the children of the surface.”

“Sorry,” I said.  “If it’s any consolation, I think that you wouldgive the children of the surface nightmares if they actually knew you existed.  And, um, what you looked like.”

“Thank you.  That’s a very kind sentiment,” Mikal said.

“You’re welcome.  So, may I ask, what should we call you?  When I [Analyze] you, it just tells me your name.  The creature that we – that we encountered earlier that resembled you was called a [Mikal Burrower].  But—”

“The Burrowers are pets,” Mikal explained.  “When I responded to the summons, several of my kennel were swept up in the magic.  It’s of no matter, if they couldn’t resist the summons on their own strength then their culling was a gift to the pack.”

“That is a relief,” I admitted.  “I was worried that their deaths would have offended you.”

“I did not say that I wasn’t offended,” Mikal said.  “You compared me to a burrower.  Were you of my kin, I would rip out one of your tentacles for that.”

I frowned, then bowed deeply.  “I apologize deeply for the unintended insult, Mikal.  It was not intended as a slight.  It was a representation of my ignorance of your people, and I hope that you may overlook it.”

“Your tongue is as flowery as one of the drow,” Mikal commented, making that chortling sound from earlier.

“Thank you?” I said.

“I hate the drow,” Mikal said.  “There.  We have exchanged insults and are even.  We no longer need to fight to the death.”

I cocked my head to the side.  “If the insults were uneven, then there would be?”

“No,” Mikal answered, and he made the chortling sound again.  “Besides, I have given you guest rights, in case you have forgotten.  Unless you offer me mortal insult or threaten my body, you are safe in my presence.  And being compared to an animal may be an insult, but not a mortal one.”

“I am relieved,” I admitted.  “May I ask, then, your people?  What are they called?”

“We are called Mikal,” Mikal answered.  “All of us.  I understand that is difficult for outsiders to understand, although I do not understand what is so difficult about it.”

“Your species and personal names are all the same?” I asked.

Mikal cocked his head to the side.  “As I said, I do not understand why it is so difficult for outsiders to understand.”

“May I ask how many Mikal live in the Deepdark?”

“You may ask.  I will not answer.  Both because I do not know, and because I would not give such information to my people’s ancestral enemies,” Mikal stated.  “Even if you are my guest.”

“I suppose that’s reasonable,” I admitted.

“I do try to be reasonable,” Mikal agreed.  “Now it is my turn for a question.  How does the death queen fare in the war against the living?”

I blinked in surprise.  “I am not certain I should answer that.”

“I am not asking for information of your people,” Mikal challenged.

“You sort of are,” I said.  “If I said that we were fairing poorly, then you might see that as a sign of weakness and take that information to your generals.  The surface has not seen an incursion from the Deepdark for centuries, and I would prefer that it remain that way for centuries to come.”

“You do not fair poorly, do you?” Mikal challenged.  “No.  You will keep the scourge out of the Deepdark for some time at least, I believe.  That isinformation that I will bring to my generals, sunchild.”

“They do say that the enemy of my enemy is my friend,” I said.  “Is there no way to bridge the gulf between humans in the Mikal?”

“Unlikely,” the creature said.  “The enemy of an enemy is a tool to be used against the enemy.  Do you befriend the sledgehammer with which you shape the rocks you use to build your homes?”

“That is a disappointing outlook.  But I understand.  I do hope that conflict does not come between our peoples within my lifetime.”

Mikal cocked his head to the side, and then to the other side.  “I have a message for you to deliver.  To the beggar drow you befriended.  Tell him ‘Your sister succumbed.’  He will understand, or he will not, but either way it will cause him pain.”

I frowned.  “If you are speaking of Gyudue, then he is my friend, and I would not wish to cause him harm.”

“The surgeon cuts out the cancer.  It is painful.”  Mikal said.  “Tell him the message.  I leave you now.”

“Farewell,” I said, but the creature had already vanished in a flash of magic runes.

My friends were staring at the vacated chair, or at me.  They seemed absolutely stunned by the conversation.

“So,” Corinth said.  “The Deepdark … That’s a thing, huh?”

“It’s a legend,” I admitted.  “A world of darkness underground.  There’s supposedly entrances all over the place, if you know where to find them.”

“Do you know where to find them?” Joe asked, sounding very interested.

I shrugged.  “Not a clue.  Come on.  The core is right there.”

“You guys all signed the En Dee Aye thing, right?” Corinth asked as I walked over to the core.

“She wouldn’t let us near him without it,” Ike said reluctantly.

“But you got it, right?  The epic, once only potentially game-changing conversation that just happened?”

“We’re not idiots,” Leanne said.  “But are we supposed to --”

“If Tarisha thinks it’s a good idea, you can release it,” I said, interrupting them.  “I don’t know what you Travelers know and what you don’t know.  And I don’t know which things to keep secret from you.  But I trust Tarisha to make the right decision about this.”

With that said, I put my hand forward and touched the Dungeon Core of Mikal Mines.

You have reached the Dungeon Core of Mikal Mines.

You have declared intention to destroy the Dungeon Core

Has your intention changed?

Yes

(Additional Options will be made available for the evolution of Mikal Mines)

No

(Maximized Rewards will be received for the Destruction of Mikal Mines under the highest difficulty)

I reread the prompt three times before making my selection.  Just to make certain that “No” was the correct option to actually destroy the core.  I was fairly certain that it was, but the systems prompts were not always straightforward, and this was a fair example of that.

Mikal Mines has been cleared!

Calculating Rewards

Kill Percentage

77.6%

Time

3 hours 42 minutes (.53 RT)

Gauntlet of Traps

Navigated

Ooze King

Killed

Mimic Queen

Killed

Ménage à trois

Killed

Sir William Von Barutasburg, the Iron Knight

Killed

Mikal

Greetings Exchanged

Rating

A+

Mikal Mines has been destroyed on the highest difficulty available

Rewards Increased!

Rewards (All Members)

Gold

11,457

Experience

20,000

Reputation With Kingdom of Eolstree

5,000

Reputation with House Wildeheart

10,000

Wind Up Sir William Von Barutasburg

1

Trap Sense (General Skill)

Additional Rewards (Hail Jeoran)

Dungeon Daughter Core

8

Wind Up Sir William Von Barutasburg

50

A Message for Gyudue of the Blackest Night

1

“Oh sick!” Corinth exclaimed, staring at the prompt which had popped up in front of his own face.  “I just got, like, just shy of four levels from that!”

“Four?” I asked, and I checked my own status.  I was level thirty eight now.  I had known I had gotten level thirty four, and had been hoping for another level before the end of the dungeon, but I hadn’t been hoping to get fivelevels from busting these mines.  “I guess the bonus experience we got for busting the dungeon is affected by [Through the Valley of the Shadow].

“Yeah, I guess,” Corinth agreed.

Leanne pulled an item out of her inventory.  It was a small metal ball with a wingnut attached to it.  She [Used] the item, and it vanished, turning into a vanity pet that looked like a miniature version of the knight-golem we had faced.  “That’s pretty cool,” she commented.

“You should have sold that,” Joe scolded.  “That’s what I’m going to do with mine.”

“I actually collect them,” she argued.  “They’re account wide, so there’s no reason not to use it now.”

Joe shrugged.  “Still, if that’s exclusive to this single clear of this single dungeon, that could have been, like, eight hundred dollars.”

I considered mentioning that I had actually gotten fifty of those items, but decided not to.  I didn’t actually know these Travelers all that well, after all.  I didn’t feel like I needed to increase their share of the rewards beyond what the system had awarded them for their participation.

This Dungeon has been Destroyed!

Teleporting All Parties To Last Visited Safe Zone In 9:25

“I’m pretty sure that the safe zone it will teleport us to is just outside,” I said.  “And I don’t want to wait that long.  I’m going to Fast Travel back to Prowlhaven.  I think, with the new guard system, that you guys will get the chance to tag along, but if you don’t, can you let everyone outside know that’s where I went?”

“Yeah, sure,” Corinth agreed.  “Oh, wait!  Cast your disguise before you go!”

“Thanks!” I said, and I meant it.  I’d needed the reminder.  I quickly cast [Illusion Magic: Disguise], which had risen to level four with my recent use of it.  Then, I opened my fast travel menu, and spacial magic swept me away.