Broken Lands

Hey yourself, Xavier.

Leo’s here. He’s fine, and I went over just how stupid his idea was with him. I don’t think it changed his mind at all. He’s resentful that I can’t bring him with me right now - we’re in the World Tree, basically a huge gated dungeon, and we were well into it when he arrived. I’m not willing to go through what it would take to get him up here because he doesn’t belong up here.

With that said, he’s in the World Tree right now as well. He managed to force his way in; fortunately, the World Tree stuck him in the easiest part, the Roots. He’s more than strong enough for that. He met a couple of kids about his age who were also exploring it, so now it’s the three of them together. We picked up a bunch of gear for him, too. I think Ci’an and Xin’ri are even more determined to make sure his equipment is good than Mom was with me! It’s a little scary.

Since we’re on different levels - I’m up in the branches, about to finish the Third Branch; we need to finish the Fourth to get to the person we need to talk to about getting home - I don’t know what he’s gotten up to recently. I’m assuming this was really recent since I didn’t have a letter the last time I checked and that was only a few days ago.

I don’t know what he’s up to, but I’m sure he’s up to something. If you send me another letter, I’ll let you know what it is when I know. Orrrr … you could send me directions on how to make my own letter? I can get a lot of supplies. Monster cores are less common here but pretty much everything else is available in some form or other. I think, at least; I might have to consult with Xin’ri so be sure to include all of the requirements and what it really is so maybe we can find a substitute.

Hearing about a dungeon core here does make me think of something I don’t think I’ve mentioned before though, something I’m sure Dad would want to know about. Cliff - the dungeon core from the Cliff dungeon - he came with us. The Guide (sort of like the Voice but not as good) did something to him so he was with us and even helped out by summoning monsters for us, once he could. That lasted until we reached the Kestii Tower, which was an ancient sort of proto-dungeon that was “broken” about sixteen hundred years ago. The area around it spawned the Maze, which was sort of like a massive dungeon complex made up of individual levels and scenarios that occasionally leaked monsters, especially when “mazestorms” - basically huge manastorms - passed over it.

Oh, that’s a thing. The world was broken, too. It’s pretty clear something happened to the World Core, but it’s all weird. The landscape was split up, almost like it’s suspended in the Origin or something even though it looks basically normal. There’s even a sun and mostly-normal weather even though it’s not a complete planet. There’s supposed to be some sort of energy wall between the “shards” of land, but that’s the wildlands and they’re full of monsters. And emptiness. Our one trip into the wildlands was more emptiness than monsters, though the monsters were tougher than what’s near the cities … well, other than Mazehold, the city closest to the Maze. Those monsters were tougher.

We made it to the center of the Maze - the figurative center, not the literal center: the spot where Kestii Tower was once anchored. There were remnants there; I’ll want to talk to Aunt Amaia about them, now that I think of it. I’m not sure they passed into the River of Souls properly until I made them, and I want to make sure it did work. It seemed to, but I want to be sure. They were … very damaged. I’m pretty confident the Broken Lord went, but his servants … they were only echoes and there was nothing left to send. At least, I thought there wasn’t. I hope they were long gone, but if they weren’t, they need to be helped on their way.

After all of that was dealt with, we explored the Tower, or rather what was left of it. It was basically just a small mansion with a huge atrium. I suspect it was bigger when it was the seat of the Kestii Empire, but that’s not really important. What is important is that there was a crystalline intelligence, Ansuz, that was seated in a pillar in the Tower and supposed to control the … no, that’s not the right word. Ansuz was supposed to manage the systems that made the Kestii Empire work, provide communication, coordinate other facility-minds, even handle rank promotions throughout the Empire. He was crippled by the third Emperor, which is probably a big piece of why the Kestii Empire fell a few Emperors later, but that’s not important to Cliff.

What is important is that Ansuz’s communications and control infrastructure was laid over the infrastructure of the Kestii Tower. He could manage the interface with it, the same as a human manager could have, but he couldn’t control the Tower itself - the monsters and the scenarios. As far as I can tell, that was done by the Guide. I don’t know if that was because the Guide was afraid Ansuz could be overruled or tweaked to give better rewards or if he simply wasn’t able to handle it. Either way, he couldn’t reach those functions at all even though he was directly over them - literally as far as I can tell and I don’t just mean the fact that he on the next floor up, he was installed in the pillar that held the controls and interfaced with the nexus and then to the rest of the Broken Lands. Or, I guess, Kestii, back when it was Kestii and not the Broken Lands.

When we got down into that part of the Tower, Cliff decided to take over and the Guide let him. I got a reward for it, even, which makes me think that the Guide wanted it to happen. He said something when we first arrived, too … something about a controller and I think he was talking about Cliff.

Huh. I wonder if that has anything to do with why there are more dungeon cores here now? Maybe the Guide is trying to replicate Cliff?

The World Tree is the first of the Towers and I’m pretty sure it has its own intelligence separate from the Guide, the same way Cliff does for the Kestii Tower. There’s a different flavor to the Challenges and it’s not just the fact that a lot of them are based on local myths. I’m not even sure I can put my finger on it, but it’s very much like the difference in the way different dungeons interpret the same story. Sure, it’s the same difficulty overall, but it feels different.

Yeah, I think that makes sense. The Guide is trying to replicate dungeons and somehow they can still talk to Dad, probably because they’re based on Cliff. I don’t know what that has to do with Leo.

As for Uncle Althyr, please tell him not to come. I had a hard time calming people down after Leo popped out of a tear in space inside the World Tree. We had a high-ranking clergyman checking us out as soon as he got here. We’re lucky he was calm and willing to talk; I could easily see it going the other way. His Goddess is the Goddess of the Way (or maybe of Ways?) and her domain includes travel through the Origin.

It’s a bit weird, because they set up and stabilize Gateways that go through the Origin standardly instead of through space; that’s also how the Guide works. It’s completely different from the Voice’s portals, which go through space. They’ve got some weird black goo that they use as a Gateway stabilizer and build passageways out of inside the Origin. It leaks out and forms monsters, which they then collect the goo from. I’m not sure how that makes sense, since it’s not like they recover all of it, but maybe the Origin makes more of it because it’s been taught to?

Well, whatever it is, it protects people who travel through the Origin. The thing is, I’m not sure Uncle Althyr would be able to get here without breaking something. I can’t say for sure that Leo did, but that’s my bet as to why Prelate Varthas showed up. We don’t need the help, so it’s better to not break things. I’ll let you know if that changes.

Especially if you send me a way to make my own letters! I know you said that you need a way to anchor them on your end and that’s why I have to use the remaining paper from your letters but surely there’s a way around that? Maybe I can use bits of a letter somehow?

Other than maybe breaking things, there’s a reason for Uncle Althyr to stay away. Maybe two reasons, but one definitely. The Archons fled from our universe and the Goddess of the Way says it’s still off limits. She won’t let anyone open a Gateway there. I’m not sure what the reaction would be to having a second tear opened from our universe, but it might not be good - especially not if we’re intending to open a third to head back.

The other reason is even weirder and I don’t know if it’s a problem or not. No one here has heard of dragons, including the Guide. I have no idea what’s up with that. The closest it will come is a coatl of some sort, and isn’t that a bird?

I’m not sure that’s actually a problem but I’m also not sure it isn’t, so I don’t know what will change if … you know what, never mind. Leo’s a dragon and that didn’t cause any issues. I don’t know if the Guide knows what he is, because it’s not letting him see his full Status - long explanation, short version is that he needs someone to stand up for him and the person who did it for me isn’t allowed to because he arrived on Arcatiz instead of Kestii. So that’s probably not a problem after all.

As for That Cult … that’s hilarious! Has Dad reached out to them with … oooh you know what? What are the odds Mom arranged this to keep them busy and get them off Dad’s back since he keeps refusing them permission to set up an official Cult Nexus on Earth? All it would take is financing an actually GOOD show, and I’m sure she could figure out how to do that. Heck, she could probably find out how with her precognition if she had to, find the show and work her way backwards.

I think that might be even funnier.

It’s also a good cause, of course, but you know that’s not why Mom would do it. It might be why she picked THAT way to distract them though. On top of that, if it puts people at dungeon entrances who can save them … that will make Dad feel better. Definitely a plus.

As for how things are going here OTHER than my cheerful disaster of a brother, I think I’d say pretty well? We found out a way to reliably get through the next requirement, and I can pick up the item needed to trigger it here, so I figure we’ll be talking to Archon of Stone Issvako about making a Gateway to Dav’s homeworld in about a week.

Love you!

Sophia

Sophia frowned at the draft of the letter she wanted to send. It covered everything, but it was much too long for the space she had available. Maybe if she wrote really small?

No, that was silly. There was no way she could write that small and be legible. Her handwriting just wasn’t that good. If she really concentrated, maybe, but it would be better to cut down the letter. She could cut out the bit about dragons, at least. Was there anything else she could cut and still have it make sense?

She definitely wasn’t going to cut out the bit asking for the ability to make her own letters. That would be far better; if she could make her own letters, she could send the first draft.