The Human From a Dungeon

Nick Smith

Adventurer Level: 11

Human – American

I found myself extremely disoriented, unable to remember where I was or how I got there. It felt as if I was floating, but in air instead of water. Or space, maybe. I opened my eyes and saw nothing but white. My sense of panic was stifled by a feeling of familiarity, though. I'd been here before, hadn't I? When? How?

'It has been a while, but surely I'm more memorable than that,' a feminine voice whispered within my head.

There was no directionality to the voice, so I looked around wildly. A woman stood to my right, looking downward so that I couldn't see her face. Her long, silky, and gray hair parted as she looked up at me with eyes that were nearly neon purple. The creature's lips, blackened past the point that lipstick could ever hope to achieve, parted in a smile and showed a set of razer-sharp fangs instead of teeth.

"Wh-Wha-" I managed to stammer before my air ran out.

Panic set in only for a moment before I remembered the last time this had happened to me. Just after I used all of my magic to heal Imlor, the merchant that gave us a ride a few times. I finally recognized my location, and what the thing beside me was.

"There you go," the higher one said with a chuckle. "Took you long enough."

'What's this about?' I thought.

"It's time for another nudge. You're almost back in Nuleva, where it all began. Well... For you."

I remembered leaving the town with the kobolds. Nash had been upset because we weren't stopping for rest or meals, which meant that Yulk had paid a lot. Our driver, Haq, had been using an enchanted powder to stay awake.

And I had finally been tired enough to fall asleep on the fast-moving cart.

'It's where you wanted us to go, right?' I asked.

"Needed you to go to, but yes," it laughed. "We tried our best to get you to this point naturally, but it simply wasn't meant to be."

'What do you mean?'

"I can't give you a direct answer. All I can say is that an unlikely timeline has decided to manifest, and it's rather inconvenient to the plans we had, and have, for you."

I heard the clink of chains between the being's words. I remembered the crimson links that had bound it in our previous conversation, but I couldn't see them this time.

"Here's your nudge, Nick," bright purple eyes locked with my own. "You are now strong enough to reach and surpass the true end of the Delver's Dungeon, the very one you were found in. Barely."

'Barely?'

"Yes. As I said, we had other hopes that were dashed by the choices of others. In the ideal version of this timeline, we would have been able to yank you around long enough for you to get far more powerful than you are now. Powerful enough to have made the journey by yourself, in fact. Personally, I'd have loved to see you absolutely dominate the monsters in the dungeon. So, as you can imagine, I'm quite cross with those that have moved up our plans."

'Right...' I thought hesitantly.

"The moment you arrive in Nuleva, you need to resupply and prepare to enter the dungeon. You don't have enough time to rest, you must enter by nightfall at the latest. Nash may refuse to join you, or be called away for something else, but he's inconsequential to your success. Don't waste time trying to keep him with you."

'And what's at the end of the dungeon?'

"First you'll find a boss that no one else has found. After you defeat it, you will find a revelation and an additional confrontation. The revelation will come first. Regarding the confrontation, though... Run."

'Run?' I asked incredulously.

"Yes. It would be a close fight even if you were your most powerful self. You're not, and so you should run, ideally collapsing or sealing the dungeon behind you."

'Collapse the dungeon? How would we do that?'

"Larie will be able to. It's the reason we urged him to join you. Oh, I nearly forgot to mention that the village chief will likely wish to see you and the others upon your arrival. Don't risk offending him. His cooperation is imperative for what comes next."

'And what comes next, exactly?'

"Oh, you'll see," the higher one winked at me. "Well, unless you fuck up. Unfortunately, that's all the time we have."

"Wait-" I said, my eyes snapping open.

Instead of a white void, I was looking up at the big blue sky. A few clouds lazily drifted by as the cart bumped the back of my head. Then the faces of my adoptive orc brothers popped into view.

"That's probably not good," Nash sighed.

"It might have been a normal dream," Yulk suggested.

"It wasn't," I replied.

"Damn," Nash said, leaning back as I sat up.

Haq looked over his shoulder at me as I moved to the front of the cart to get a look at where we were. The dwarf's bloodshot eyes were full of questions, but he kindly kept them to himself. I wondered if the powder he had been using was actually magical, or if it was actually just a mundane drug.

Either way, he hadn't been getting much rest. Neither had the hnarses. Apparently, though, they didn't need anywhere near as much rest as people do. My grandpa would have loved these creatures. He often complained about how lazy horses could be if you let them.

Buildings were just coming into view, and they were approaching quickly. Or rather, we were. I glanced at the sky and noted that the sun wasn't directly overhead.

"What time is it?" I asked.

"Mid-morning," Larie replied. "You didn't sleep long."

I had already suspected as much due to the exhaustion I felt behind my eyes. The Alta's spare bed was practically calling to me, but I wouldn't be given the opportunity to sleep in a bed tonight. I briefly wondered if I had enough time for another nap, but then we began to slow.

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"Alright, we're here," Haq said with a relieved sigh. "I'm gonna stick around and rest for about a week. If you need another rush ride before then, you'll have to hire someone else. It wouldn't be safe for me to drive you."

"Understood," Yulk replied as the cart came to a halt. "Thank you."

Nash and I grabbed our things and hopped off of the cart. Yulk passed me his bags as Nash helped him to the ground while Larie simply floated from the back of the cart. Haq drove the cart off of the road leading into Nuleva, seeking refuge in the nearby stable.

"So what was the dream about?" Nash asked.

I began explaining what had happened in my dream as we made our way into the village. Most of the people that saw us stopped and stared with horrified expressions. They were looking at Larie, though, and I felt bad that this made me feel a little better about all the times I'd been stared at with curiosity.

"Clearing the dungeon has been done before," Nash said, glaring at people as we passed. "What's with the urgency?"

"I don't know, there's a secret boss or something I think," I shrugged. "It was less vague this time, but still pretty cagey. Also, it said that you don't have to come with us if you don't want to."

Nash looked confused but didn't reply. I finished explaining the rest of the details of what the higher one told me, ending with us needing to see the chief. As I finished my sentence, I noticed Nima running up to us.

"Hey Nima," Yulk waved happily.

"H-hi Yulk," Nima replied as she came to a stop, staring nervously at Larie.

We stood patiently, waiting for her to say something else. She seemed to be at a loss, though.

"What is it, darling?" Nash asked gently.

"W-what... Oh, r-right, uh... The chief wants to see you," she replied, not taking her eyes off of the lich.

My first impression of Nima had been that she was incredibly beautiful and intimidating. She was a lot taller than I was, and I had no doubt in my mind that she was a lot stronger, too. Seeing her this nervous was surreal.

For the first time since I met him, it sunk home how dangerous Larie could be, were he so inclined. It also occurred to me that the higher one had placed its faith in his destructive capabilities. Actually, faith is probably the wrong word for a being that can see almost everything...

"He's not a threat, love," Nash said, maintaining his soft tone. "This is Larie VysImiro, he was turned into a lich against his will."

"I-I know that, it's just... " Nima shook her head and bowed. "I didn't intend to cause any offense, Lord VysImiro. We received a missive from High Chief Ulurmak explaining your situation and presence within the Unified Chiefdoms. Knowing Yulk's... Predilections and your proximity to him, I should have taken more time to mentally prepare myself, please accept my deepest apologies."

"Hey!" Yulk said, feigning offense.

"Please raise your head, your reaction is well within expectations and I could hardly consider it rude," Larie chuckled. "One should hold oneself to the highest of standards, and my reaction to seeing my reflection for the first time was not dissimilar."

"How would you know, though?" Yulk asked, innocently.

Everyone present paused at Yulk's question, taking a moment to decipher what he was asking. Larie cocked his head at the bald orc. After a moment of thought, though, the confused expressions that Nash, Nima, and I had quickly turned to horror.

"Oh, because I have no face," Larie laughed. "I was speaking of my emotional reaction, my friend. My physical reaction was about the same as it is now, only with my jaw agape."

"Ah, I see."

"We should probably go see the chief," I interrupted.

"Good idea," Nima replied. "Oh, and nice to see you again, Nick."

She led the way to the big building in the center of the village. It had gotten even bigger since I'd last seen it. Yulk and I shared a confused glance, but Nash looked at us both with a smirk.

"I helped with the renovations," he said as we entered the building.

"How were we able to afford it?" Yulk asked.

"The chief'll get mad if I ruin the surprise."

"Oh, I see. So Nuleva has been upgraded from settlement to village?"

"I... Fuck."

Before they could say anything else, we entered a large room. In the center of it was Chief Gluhern, sitting on a chair that looked pretty comfortable. Surrounding him were old orcs sitting on cushions. They froze as we entered, and it wasn't hard to guess why. After a moment of silence, the old orcs rose from their cushions and left the room.

"Greetings Lord VysImiro," Gluhern nodded his head. "To what do we owe this unexpected... Oh, I see you're with the Alta boys. Never mind."

"Come now, Chief Gluhern," Yulk grinned. "If you're going to put on airs you could at least commit."

"DON'T CHASTISE ME, SPELL SLINGER!" Gluhern shouted, then looked around. "Oh, for fuck's sake."

The memory of the last time I heard Gluhern shout at Yulk suddenly popped into my mind. The chief's new seat was well away from anything that could be thrown. Yulk's grin widened, but Nash put a hand on his shoulder.

"Why have we been summoned, chief?" he asked.

"Well, the surprise has already been spoiled for you, Nash, but I wanted to let Yulk and Nick know that thanks to your visit to the High Chief, Nuleva is now officially a village instead of a settlement. Since the three of you are finally gathered before me, please accept my sincerest gratitude."

"Of course," Yulk bowed. "Always glad to serve."

"Yuh huh," Gluhern's expression dropped. "Anyways, our upgrade to village comes with several bonuses. For one thing, we are no longer under an obligation to trade solely with Kirkena and visitors. Our tax rebate has also increased, allowing for some much-needed upgrades to our infrastructure, such as it is. Finally, there's the matter of the village guard."

Larie and I were kind of lost, but Nash and Yulk stared at the chief.

"Nuleva, being a dungeon-based village, is legally required to maintain a guard against threats both external and internal," Gluhern explained. "I have been looking into the matter, and it would appear that hiring people who don't live here is more likely to lead to corruption and abuse of power."

"Get to the point, Gluhern," Yulk said coldly.

"Nash Alta, I would like you to lead the guard. You will be charged with recruitment, training, and the enforcement of our laws."

"And I'll have to retire from being an adventurer," Nash said.

"Yes."

"No. Get Alurn to do it."

Nima looked at her betrothed with concern.

"Nash-"

He held up a hand to interrupt her. Gluhern watched the exchange and sighed.

"You think that a troublemaker like you was my first choice, boy?" he asked. "Alurn has opted to take up residence in Kirkena. It would seem that the deaths of Kirisaka and Pakin have resulted in too many bad memories for him to remain in Nuleva."

"Shit," Nash whispered.

"Indeed. I pulled the records for every adventurer that grew up here, and you're the only non-mage above level ten. Congrats, by the way."

"Yeah, thanks."

"So I'm left with the choice of hoping that you've matured, or choosing someone who doesn't know their ass from their elbow. Since lives are on the line, experience matters more than maturity, though. It has to be you, Nash."

"When?"

"Immediately. We're already in breach, and we can't afford more than one fine even with the rebate," the chief sighed again. "This is a good opportunity, Nash. Your brother is a professor and you're about to be married. Guard Captain is a good, steady job with decent pay and not much risk. Why are you hesitant?"

Nash gave us a guilty glance.

"We came back to enter the dungeon," Nash explained.

"Why?"

"There's something at the end of it. I can't just-"

I reached up and put a hand on his shoulder. He turned to me with shock on his face that quickly turned somber when he saw my expression.

"The village needs you more than we do right now, Nash," I said. "We'll be fine."

"You can't know that," he argued.

"Yulk and Larie are extremely competent mages, and by your own admission I'm not exactly bad with the sword. We can do it. Plus, remember what I said? Earlier?"

"I..." Nash said, glancing between Yulk and I. "But... Fine. You'd better take care of each other, though."

"We most certainly will," Yulk said.

"Chief Gluhern, I offer my deepest apologies, but we're on a tight schedule," I turned to the chief. "If there isn't anything else, may we depart?"

"Yes," Gluhern nodded. "Nash and I need to work out the details of his new career, but the rest of you may go."

We said our farewells to Nash and Nima, then went straight to the market. People continued to stare as we picked up food and potions. Larie didn't seem to mind, but I couldn't help but wonder if he felt the same way that I did when people stared at me.

"Are there guides that we can hire for this dungeon?" Larie asked as we approached the entrance.

There were a few adventurers hanging out around the entrance, but their reactions to Larie were a lot more muted. I couldn't tell if it was because they mistakenly thought they could take him, or because they had received some sort of forewarning about him.

"There are guides, yes, but they mostly help lower level adventurers survive their first dive," Yulk explained. "Delver's Dungeon is fairly straight-forward. The main issue is going to be the teleportation. This dungeon periodically resets itself, and when it does, it teleports explorers to the entrance and all defeated monsters and bosses regenerate and shift positions. Another reason that a guide wouldn't be particularly useful, actually."

"We'll figure out the teleportation if it becomes a problem," I said. "Let's go."

With full packs, determination, and barely enough sleep, we entered the darkness of the Delver's Dungeon.