Walking through the door, I found myself inside of a small, dingy brick room. A dirty cot took up the entire left wall, and a bucket sat in the corner. Everything went dark as the light from the doorway behind me faded, and it took a few seconds for my eyes to acclimate. Turning around, I saw that the wall behind me was comprised of several vertical bars and a door made up of the same.
“Great,” I said to myself. Three flashes of light appeared against the wall outside of the bars in quick succession. I heard the light footsteps of Ferrisdae, then a light disappeared, the heavy stomping of Cojisto before the second light vanished, and finally the sound of hoof on stone as Moose passed through. Darkness descended on the four of us.
“What is this place?” Cojisto asked quickly, and I heard him tapping on the metal bars. “Moose, are you okay? Is it too small for you?”
“Jail,” Ferrisdae answered as Moose stamped his hoof on the ground. “Did Himia and her boss set us up?”
I crossed my arms as I thought it over, and shook my head. “I don’t think so,” I said slowly. “I think I phrased my request wrong. I had asked that there be no help from the Dungeon Master or Himia, so this was probably how we were going to be dropped in.”
“How certain are you on that, sir?”
“Not very, Ferrisdae,” I admitted. I was about to continue when the sound of talons tapping on stone hit my ears. It was getting closer, and soon accompanied by a voice.
“We ain’t had to wait very long, did we?” came a feminine voice from down the hall. A figure half a foot shorter than Ferrisdae passed into view, and she looked down at me and laughed.
She was an Avian with feathers ranging from green to orange to yellow, though most weren’t seen. Thick leather armor with plates of metal over vital areas adorned her. Despite the darkness, I could see that her black beak was set in what I assumed was a sneer, and she held a crossbow loosely at her side. We met eyes, and I didn’t need the dark orange, almost red, aura enveloping her to see the smug satisfaction that we were locked up and she was free.
“So let’s do the head count, shall we?” she asked with cruel mirth as she walked down the hall. “We gots a speck, a knife ears, just some guy, and a big smelly mammal. I’ll let ya two fight over which of you is the guy and which of you is the mammal.”
“I am not smelly,” Cojisto claimed, causing me to roll my eyes. I heard him punch the bars once, then a second time. “Oh, wow, these are really sturdy.”
“Of course they sturdy, we knew you was coming,” the Avian laughed, but only for a moment. ”Boss ain’t ready for ya yet, but he will be soon, so just sit tight and behave yaselves, yeah? Ya time’s coming.”
“You’ve enhanced these bars with magic,” Ferrisdae said. “There’s… actually some pretty powerful enchantments on these.”
“And the girlie gets it!” the Avian yelled loudly. “Ya all will be got when its time, so for now, just sit tight and relax. Take a nap, take a shit, just don’t cause any trouble.”
“What do you have planned for us?”
While the others were speaking with the Avian, I wasn’t simply twiddling my thumbs. I hummed gently to myself as I pulled out my Hilt of Holding. Turning it over in my hands, I admired the green metal it was made out of as well as the vines that made the half-basket protecting my grip. It felt good to have back in my hand after spending the entire dungeon without it.
Spinning the notched pommel, I selected the blade I wanted most and thumbed a rune near the top of my grip. A thin, five inch blade made of a dull black metal popped out silently. It had a sharp point and only one side held an edge. I stepped towards the door to see the Avian close by the next jail cell. She stayed near the middle, not getting too close to me or Cojisto, who I assumed was on the other side of my junior.
“Ain’t my plan,” the Avian said. She removed a crossbow bolt and started to swipe it from side by side as if using the bars as a drum. “But I’m gunna enjoy it, lemme tell you.”
“You have one chance to let us out,” I said evenly. “After that, I can’t guarantee your safety.”
The bolt stopped its rhythmic banging as the Avian turned her large, black eye towards me. “Oi, the speck speaks!” she exclaimed. “And you ain’t gettin’ through them bars, so I don’t know why ya talking so tall. Ya got problems, little man?”
I smiled at the Avian and raised the Hilt of Holding. She looked at it in confusion as I slid the thin blade against the back of the metal slab that had the keyhole in it. In order to reach the actual locking mechanism I would have had to reach around and pick it blindly, but that wasn’t necessary.
“What are ya-“
The thin blade pushed through the magically strengthened metal like a hot knife through butter with just a bit of effort from me. I very quickly cut out a circle as the Avian jerked back in surprise, and the locking mechanism fell to the ground with a loud clattering sound. She turned to run, but I was already pushing the door open.
In seconds, I had tackled the Avian to the ground by hitting her in the back of the knees. She struggled, lashing out at me with her talons and fists, but it was too late. In one swift move I rolled away, putting me between her and the wall, and pushed her towards Cojisto’s cell. He reached down and grabbed her, pulling her close to the bars as I stood up.
“You had your chance,” I told her, my voice not changing from earlier. I returned the blade to the Hilt of Holding before pulling the jail cell keys from her belt. She lashed out at me, snarling, but I ignored her and began to unlock Ferrisdae’s cells.
“Is the edge of that blade coated in adamantine?” she asked, eyes wide.
Adamantine was an incredibly rare metal that had properties that allowed it to cut through almost everything except for itself. Because of that rarity, it made sense that she thought that the edge was only coated in it.
I smirked as I found the right key and opened the jail door for her. “No, the whole thing is adamantine,” I said smugly. “Gift from the director about a decade ago. It’s my favorite letter opener.”
“You have a blade made entirely of the strongest metal known and you use it to open letters?” she half-yelled incredulously.
“I did say it was my favorite letter opener,” I told her, mimicking the words I used in front of Oristrella’s dungeon.
Now that she was free, I gave the Avian a wide berth and unlocked Moose’ door. He had some trouble moving around inside of the cell, which was expected. They were made for human sized creatures, not for a moose. Still, with some maneuvering he was able to exit the cell one antler at a time. The hallway wasn’t too much larger, but he wasn’t as cramped.
“Hey, Moose, catch this for me,” Cojisto said before pushing the Avian. She fell to the ground and scrambled to stand, but Moose put a hoof on her back and pushed her back down. The pirate struggled, but she wasn’t nearly strong enough to make the healer budge. I opened Cojisto’s cell and, once free, he grabbed the Avian by the armor and thrust her into the room he had just occupied before closing and locking it.
Then Cojisto frowned. “Moose, are you as disappointed as I am that this tier upgrade thing has made things too easy?” he asked. The healer stamped his hoof and croaked, causing the man to nod. “Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking, too. This small bird person could have put up a much better fight if it weren’t for the Dungeon Master.”
“The Dungeon Master gave Razorbeak the same thing, Cojisto, have your fun there,” I said. The Human’s eyes lit up, and I shook my head before turning towards the Avian. “Where’s the captain? What does he have planned?”
“I ain’t talking to you,” she spat.
“Very well, enjoy being in the dungeon when the Dungeon Master collapses it. It’s going to happen whether we win or lose, after all,” I said before turning around and walking off. Ferrisdae arched an eyebrow at me but followed after.
“Wait, wait, what ya mean collapse?” the Avian asked.
I stopped, but didn’t turn around. “When a dungeon is destroyed, it takes time before it closes completely,” I explained. “It starts from the outside and heads inwards towards the boss or wherever the dungeon magic originated. It’s not a physical wall, but anything that belongs to the dungeon disappears. Traps, items, artifacts, even people and minions get swept up in this invisible curtain until everything’s gone.”
Ferrisdae cleared her throat. “Normally, everyone is evacuated before the process starts,” she continued. “Or dead, if they refused the subjugation. That’s why we’re here, though I’m sure you already know that.”
“When it’s a dead body, the dungeon simply makes it disappear and converts it. Because, as a minion, you belong to the dungeon.” I turned around and stopped in front of the cell, hands on my hips. “But the process on a live person is much lengthier and, from what I’ve experienced, incredibly painful. The other wagon’s dungeons have been destroyed, so I’m guessing that’s the fate of this one once we’re done here. So, enjoy your collapse.”
“Wait, no, you can’t leave me here for that,” she pleaded. “I’ll tell ya, I’ll do it.”
Sighing, I looked up at Ferrisdae. “I already gave her one chance and she didn’t take it, so it’s up to you.” Ferrisdae frowned, but I could already tell she was going to be lenient on the Avian. My junior looked down at me, and I shrugged. “I’m going to go scout, tell me what you find out.”
“Yes, sir,” Ferrisdae said as I began walking away. “Okay, so you’re going to tell us…”
As I turned the corner, I pulled my buckler bracer from the Dimensional Pocket and slid it onto my wrist. Banging it against my chest, it opened up into a full shield. Doing so again returned it to bracer form. While I was still a bit skeptic that none of my magic items had been tampered with, everything seemed to be in working order.
The corridors continued for a long while, but following the Avian’s tracks in the dust was a simple affair. The sounds of cheering and revelry washed over me, causing me to frown. The tracks were heading elsewhere, but I didn’t want to miss this chance if there were enemies who could come from behind. I started heading towards it.
My brow furrowed as the sound of people became even louder. It wasn’t just a small group, but dozens, maybe even hundreds. More than Razorbeak should have brought alone, or so I thought. Were there more of the Dungeon Master’s creations up ahead? The people who weren’t really people? Whoever they were, it didn’t sound like they were anything but excited.
Light filled the corridor as I made another turn towards the noise. The worked stone gave way to sand, and I squinted to get a good look at what laid beyond. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a good look at it. Instead of exposing myself, I turned around to start heading back.
I immediately ran into a brick wall face first. Clutching my nose, I looked it over knowing there was no way for it to have been there before. If I had started walking through walls, that was something I knew I would notice immediately.
“Come on out, Dungeon Inspector Badger,” came a booming voice that I recognized as the leader of Carrage, Keith Carr. “Razorbeak has told me much of your arrival, and we have prepared something special for you.”
I let out a long breath before shaking my head and heading towards the sand. The corridor opened up into a wide gladiatorial arena. People of all sorts filled the seats, yelling and jeering at me. Some booed, some cheered, but all of them shouted. My gaze found Keith easily.
He was sitting higher than everyone else in a gaudy crystalline throne. Regal robes flowed from his still pudgy body while a golden crown nested atop his head. Aside from the kingly aura he exuded, he looked exactly like he had back in the first dungeon. He waved a scepter towards me, but my attention had already wandered.
Next to him were two colorful Avians. Both shared a similar pattern of blue and red feathers, though one wore a tricorn hat and had a blunderbuss leaning up against his chair. I immediately pegged this as the Land Pirate Raitheus Razorbeak. He looked as smug as I thought he’d be. The other wore colorful robes and was drawing a glowing magical circle in front of them with a wand. It looked nearly complete.
“We’re going to teach you a lesson you won’t survive, speck. We’ve got control of this dungeon now,” Razorbeak yelled in perfect Imperial Standard. “Do it.”
The magic circle in front of his companion faded, and the sky began to darken. I activated my Hilt of Holding, ejecting my magical fire sword from it in preparation for whatever was coming. With no small amount of confusion, I watched as the moon sped across the sky. Then the sun, then the moon.
“What possible reason would they need time to…” I muttered to myself before it finally clicked what the Avian magician was doing. My head fell into my free hand. “Oh, gods damn it.”
