A Dungeon’s Survival

Connie

While Slime Body did negate physical damage, the ability did nothing to protect Prism's core. For that reason, I was able to rule it out almost immediately. As for Mana Digestion, while I could see how it might hypothetically be able to absorb a magical attack if it were weak enough not to kill Prism outright, I also knew the only place that line of thinking would lead me to was a dead end. After all, even if it could be used like that under some specific circumstances, something I had no evidence to suggest was actually the case, it still wouldn't have done anything to protect against physical attacks. Since two of the four attacks Prism had shrugged off like nothing had been at least partially physical, that couldn't be it either.

The only ability that didn't rule out was Elemental Shift. By absorbing enough magic, Prism's form could change to reflect their absorbed aspects. In what scenario that could been responsible for what I'd witnessed, I had no idea, but it was the only lead I had that I could make sense of. My final clue only served to confuse matters further, after all.

[Achievement gained: Error, reference null!]

The message had appeared when Prism activated Cleanse Mana for the second time. The burst of light they'd shone in the Hero's face might not have accomplished much, but it had triggered a host of errors to pop up.

[Error, could not add achievement. Universal achievements are not compatible with “Familiar_Handling_Entitled_Nuisance_Fork”! Exception: Handling protocol not recognized.]

[Comparing handling errors with fallback protocols.]

[Error, solution not found! Urgency tag detected in achievement metadata. Attempting to contact administrator “Illiana”.]

[Error, System override initiated! Attempt to contact administrator “Illiana” has been canceled. Exception: Good fight so far, very interesting. I'll take a look at that later, assuming you survive. ~Twelve.]

I had no idea what to make of any of that, least of all the message from Twelve that was tacked onto the end, but it did serve to highlight one simple fact. That attack had been important for a reason. I might not have understood what that reason was, but if it had evoked that kind of reaction from the System, there had to be something more to it. With that train of thought, I tried putting the pieces together.

The ability to take on magical elements and expel them, that was what had triggered those errors. The timing was too precise for it to have been anything else. That just left me with one question. What could Prism possibly have absorbed that would get that kind of reaction from the System?

The answer lied in the magic the slime had called forth. Even now, the unyielding little blob was still glowing as they slowly purified their aspected mana. Considering the fact that there was only one source of light magic in the vicinity, it wasn't hard to put two and two together.

No, I thought in disbelief, unless …

That was when things began to click.

“Master!” Loot's voice suddenly rang in my mind, shaking me from my dawning realization, “Should I use it now?”

Distracted as I had been, it took me a moment to realize what she was talking about. Once I did, however, I practically screamed, No!

At first, my reluctance to waste our strongest weapon early had been for the sake of preserving it until we had no other choice than to use it. The powder Lawrence had used to steal away Archie's and my ability to act entirely was the single strongest anything I'd seen in this world, after all, and it what was left of it was extremely limited. Now, however, as the implication of what those errors might've meant swam through my mind, I found myself reluctant to use it for an entirely different reason.

If Prism wasn't taking damage for the reason I thought, it meant we had an unexpected opportunity here. I wasn't sure how I wanted to take advantage of it yet, but one thing was for sure. We weren't likely to get another opportunity like this again.

Save it, I reaffirmed my decision after thinking it through a little more, I'll let you know if and when the time comes for us to use it, but for now, I think I have the start of an idea. I just need to work out the specifics.

The Hero being unable to hurt Prism was an unexpected edge for us, but with how weak the slime was, there wasn't much they could do with their newfound invulnerability, and more than that, they'd already taken damage from having their core sent flying. Sean might not have done that damage directly, but he'd still managed to inflict it. I wasn't entirely sure if that was because Prism had lost their aspected slime in that moment or if it was simply due to the indirect nature of the interaction, but either way, it proved Prism wasn't completely invincible.

So long as it was enough to survive a hit or two from the Hero, though, there would be time to immobilize him with our trump card. Then, in the worst case scenario, we could finish him off. As long as I wasn't wrong, Prism enduring the way they were wasn't because of the slime themselves. That meant, there was a unique opportunity here, one that I wouldn't be willing to risk under different circumstances. As things were, though–

“–bind me!”

What?

I had been so deep in thought, I'd completely missed that Loot had been trying to tell me something.

“I said unbind me!” she repeated.

Uh, what? I echoed my previous response but for entirely different reasons this time.

“If you won't let me use it, unbind me as a familiar! All my presence is doing here is holding the slime back!”

But–

“–You can rebind me after. Prism isn't winning this as they are.”

The mere suggestion was enough to inspire a visceral reaction from me. The thought of losing Loot terrified me to my core, and without her bound to me as a familiar, if anything happened to her, I'd have been left unable to bring her back. I wanted to reject her outright for that reason alone, but my logical side forced me to considered the idea first.

Prism's level was currently being suppressed, and their last ability was unusable as a result. By temporarily unbinding Loot, I could restore the slime to their full power, but I wasn't sure a mere four levels would make much of a difference. What it might do, however, was buy me the time I needed to confirm my suspicions. I didn't like it, but for that reason, the idea had merit.

I took my time in giving an answer, but eventually, with one more push from the Shade Lurker, I found myself reluctantly conceding, Give the powder to Archie.I don't want to do this, but if this is what we're doing, you're not going anywhere near live combat until you're safely rebound to me. Understand? I'm not losing you.

“Master,” the Shade Lurker paused at my words before finishing, “understood.”

I didn't like taking this risk, but if we were doing this, I was going to make sure it paid off. With that resolution and the foundations of a plan in place, I reached out to both Adraugon and my loyal alchemist. At the first sign of things going awry, I was prepared to order Archie to use the powder with no hesitation, but first, I needed to measure the Hero's responses to a few things. As for Adraugon, I knew the little dragon wouldn't like this, but in order to ensure my plan didn't outright fail, I was going to need to increase his workload.

I had no intention of gambling the lives of those I cared about on uncertainties, and I fully intended to call it off at the slightest sign of resistance from the Hero, but even if I hadn't been paying the closest attention to him during his talk with Fable earlier, I'd heard enough to get a sense of his character and a feel for his motivations. I couldn't be sure yet, not entirely, but the term Hero seamed to fit him a whole lot better than it did me. I just needed to confirm a few things first. From here on out, how things ended was going to depend entirely on him.

* * *

Sean

I could not make sense of the situation. The slime I was facing, Prism, seemed impervious to all of my attacks. If it weren't for the cracks running across its core, I'd have thought nothing I could do could harm it. Whatever ability it had was terrifying.

As I slashed at it once again, I thought back to how it had gotten hurt in the first place. I'd knocked its core free from the rest of its slime and into a wall. That made me wonder if it was the slime itself that was protecting it somehow.

Taking a deep breath, I sheathed my blade. My sword had already proven useless, and if I couldn't wrap things up here fast, I was concerned I'd succumb to all of the harmful liquids raining down on me. I needed a change of tactics, so I was going to wait until it came close. Then, once it had, I was going to rip its core free with my bare hands.

“Noble Hero,” before I could, however, a voice called out to me from above, “are you quite certain you can't just leave us be and turn back now? No one needs to die here. We are only fighting to protect our home. Surely, that is a cause you can appreciate, no?”

The words sent an involuntary shiver down my spine. I recognized that voice immediately. It was that of the Trenti from the illusion the undead had afflicted me with, the one where I'd died in a puddle of failed alchemical gunk. I stumbled as that realization hit me, allowing the slime a chance to slip away. Was it just me, or was it moving a bit faster now? Taken aback as I was, I wasn't entirely sure, but I had a question or two of my own I wanted answers to.

Steeling myself, I called back without ever taking my eyes from my opponent, “Who are you, and what is with this place, really?”

“I thought we'd already taken care of introductions,” the voice called back, “I am Sir Archibald II, alchemist and loyal servant to the mistress of the stone.”

That thing being an alchemist made some sick sort of sense from what I'd seen, but there just was one problem with that answer.

“I already killed Sir Archibald! I asked who you are!”

“Ah, I can see the confusion. No, you did not kill me. The Trenti you felled was merely a puppet. I can control the mindless variety of my kin, you see.”

“Like the one that died to your failed alchemy?”

“Hmm? I am unsure as to how you know of my experiments, but I assure you, far more than just one succumbed to the creation of that enhancer you picked up in the first room. These past few days, I've tirelessly attempted iteration after iteration of it in the hopes that you'd accept it as a peace offering and be on your way. You did not, but the option still remains. We only wish to be left alone.”

His words warred with the cold, unfeeling voice that had cemented itself in my memories. He was painting us as the villains, but with how real what I'd experienced had felt, I could not bring myself to trust his words.

“I'll take your silence for refusal,” he called down a moment later, “Instead, allow me to ask you this: Why is it that you cannot harm that slime? Tell me; do you truly not know the answer?”

I remained silent.

“I assure you, it has no ability to make it impervious to your attacks. Really, can you still not see it?”

Again, I lunged for the slime. It turned pitch black as my hand reached it. I grasped for where its core had been, but without being able to see through it, I only found myself grasping at viscous goo. Then, that darkness gave way to a searing pain. I recoiled as it began oozing more of the failed enhancer. It must've sucked some up from all the puddles on the ground at some point.

“Enforcer of Light,” Sir Archibald called out again, “would you be so kind as to remind me of just what your Heroic ability is?”

I paused at that. Him having knowledge of it shouldn't have come as a surprise, not with everything else he'd already known about me, but the implication he was alluding to was just too absurd.

“Well?” he prompted me for an answer, even as the slime began rapidly heating to the touch.

“You know,” I shouted back to the creature, “never once since I became a Hero have I encountered an individual I couldn't harm at all due to my ability, yet you mean to tell me this slime is so innocent that I can't so much as scratch it? Come up with a better lie!”

“Are you telling me you go around attempting to cut down the innocent just to test the limits of your power? Surely, that isn't something a Hero would do, Executioner of the Wicked.”

I stumbled again at his argument. Of course I didn't, which left me room for doubt. Just as my Heroic ability amplified my power when going up against evil, I knew it could also do the opposite. It wasn't as if I'd never sparred with anyone virtuous, after all. Still, the idea of that being the reason I couldn't harm this slime seemed ridiculous to me. It had to be a trick.

At my hesitation, the slime burst into dark flames that it used to put distance between us. I watched as it fell back and began faintly glowing with a magical luminescence. I hated these kinds of mind games. I was no good at them. Even as I knew I was playing right into that crazed monster's hands, I couldn't help the doubt that was creeping its way into my mind.

“You know,” the Trenti above called out again, “we have a last resort. The reason you still draw breath is not because we are unable to kill you. It is because the mistress still holds out hope for a peaceful resolution. If she decides it must be done, however, this will be the end of your tale. Is that truly what you desire? Would you prefer to fight another Hero to death rather than to accept that all is not as it seems here?”

“Ha,” I couldn't hold back a bark of sardonic laughter at that, “so now this slime is a Hero? Just when I thought your lies couldn't get any more far fetched.”

For the briefest of moments, I felt fully confident this was all a trick. Fable would've told me if this thing had a title, much less that of a Hero, not that I was under the impression monsters could even become Heroes to begin with. Then, Sir Archibald shattered that confidence in an instant.

“No, Enforcer of Light, of course not. Prism isn't a Hero. They're only the familiar of one.”

I nearly tripped upon hearing those words. The idea of a Hero being holed up here in a Dungeon fighting off invaders was quite possibly the most insane concept I'd ever heard of, but at the same time, if there was anyone my Heroic ability would prevent me from harming, wouldn't it only make sense for it to be another Hero? Would that protection extend to a familiar? I had no idea.

“Blurb!” the slime in front of me gurgled loudly as its core suddenly launched out of its ooze and toward me.

My eyes widened, and I caught it on reflex. It felt warm to the touch, but I couldn't wrap my head around why it would've done that. Now that I had it in my grasp, all I needed to do was smash it for the fight to be over, so why? Why would it do that?

Stunned into silence as a conflicted set of emotions settled over me, I could only stare at the core in my hand. It took me a moment to even realize that at some point the rain of potions around me had stopped. I raised my head back up to face the Trenti who was staring down at me from a stone window in the cave wall. Then, I felt something cold grab my ankle.

By this point, I had experienced the sensation enough to recognize it immediately. It was another illusion. I was no longer in my body. I was an amorphous mass of floating shadows.

I tensed as I expected indescribable pain to flood my body once more or, perhaps, another order accompanied by a sense of compulsion to obey it that I couldn't refuse. Instead, I heard a voice, a familiar one. It wasn't that of Sir Archibald. Instead, it was the voice I'd heard the first time one of those shadow monsters touched me, the one that spoken directly into my mind and had told me to, “freeze.”

“Let me state this clearly,” it said, “I don't care if the System calls me a Hero. I'm not altruistic or even heroic. I just care about protecting the people I love, so if you try anything else, I swear to Twelve, Seven, whatever other Custodians I haven't met yet, and the administrators themselves; I will end you.”

In the next moment, a status screen appeared in my mind.

[Name: Connie Aldman

Race: Dungeon Core

Dungeon: Cave of Absolution

Level: 18, 17

DP: 523/840

Health: 0

Stamina: 0

Mana: 3/927 (930)

Class: Heroic Summoner

Title: Summoned Hero]

Slack-jawed, I could only stare vacantly as the mental image of that status sheet slowly began to fade from my mind. Even as the slime core in my hand began oozing out a new outer coating of goop and the shadow monster that'd forced that vision onto me zoomed off, I could not bring myself to act. I was torn between believing what I'd seen and dismissing it as an illusion. A few moments later, I caught sight of that very same shadow scaling the cave wall in front of me. Once it reached the top, it started back down, this time with a familiar Trenti in its embrace.

I began tensing up once I notice it. He was sliding down from his perch at a reduced speed, and in his arms, he clutched two things tightly to his chest. One was a small pouch. The other was the Dungeon Core, Connie Aldman if the insidious mental image I'd had stuffed into my head was to be believed.

As he neared the bottom, the shadow dissipated with a horrid screech. The Trenti stumbled a bit, but landed well enough. Then, he began making his way over to me.

I was stuck between calling on Flashing Whirlwind, the ability having come off cooldown a while ago, and letting whatever this was play out. I didn't know what to think anymore, but mission be damned, if there was even a chance all of this was real, something I couldn't outright dismiss with how vivid those visions had been, I was not about to kill another Hero just to satisfy the whims of some noble. I understood all too well that I was risking myself by holding back, but I couldn't do anything else in good conscious.

“Ugh,” I heaved a large sigh and thought to myself, I am so far out of my depth.