Dungeon 42

Getting the House in Order

Chapter 48

I ended up putting off buying Elim’s blessing. The issue with the skeletons needed to be addressed. Quickly. A review of the security feed showed that Chris and Angelo’s mayhem was the most egregious but hardly the only example of destructive boredom.

Since I’d already made a chamber for it, I just added a door to connect the training room. I shuffled its placement around and realized my design centralized on a single room was less than ideal. Everything just ended up vomiting out into the main area, making it unnecessarily chaotic.

I pushed the central chamber up two levels and cut in a pair of offset balconies. It gave the space a grand inverted pyramid feeling that I liked. Tiered Stairs followed to allow access to what would be the upper floors.

Usually I only had the hounds to watch. This time, I had the full complement of skeletons as my audience. It was a little more than unnerving to be watched silently, but this was my jam, and I pushed down the cloying feeling the crowd elicited.

“Feel free to explore as I work, make suggestions, whatever you like,” I said loud enough to be heard. I debated moving the private chambers up a story but decided against it. Reasonably, they were the only defense if the mirror was ever breached.

I could add traps to the necropolis, but that seemed a bit pointless. It wasn’t like the skeletons could be permanently destroyed. Doing that would probably just lead to Chris pranking other denizens into them.

“Or object if you don’t like something,” I added. I decided to move the personal crypts but keep them on the lower level. A grand doorway to the left of the stairs would lead to a hall, and I arranged them on either side. It would make things easier when I expanded the number of skeletons later, so there wasn’t a downside to the new arrangement.

Easy enough to do but not exactly groundbreaking. I expanded the crypts as I went, hoping the added square footage would be appreciated. I knew Henry’s personal space was getting a bit tight with all the equipment and supplies he kept in it now.

I added another door and hallway leading to the much-expanded library and a theater on the right side. Unfortunately, I still had a pathetic collection of books if one discounted the copies of each. Likewise, the performance space was mostly just a raised platform, musicians pit, and blocked in risers for seating.

The second floor was reasonably straightforward. I just made a bunch of rooms in descending order of size. They could be used to practice fighting, duel, or whatever else struck a skeleton's fancy I didn’t happen to think of. Hell, they could throw parties if they felt like it.

With that on my mind, I picked one room out to become Chris’s obstacle course. One loaded with traps and things to really get him pushing his skills. Also, figuring out how to get it to randomize to some extent may prove challenging. Difficulty notwithstanding, I felt it was needed, given how quickly he got bored of things.

“What?” Chris asked, realizing I was looking at him. I gave a little wave and kept my thoughts to myself. He’d probably find it funny and satisfying that I was suddenly uncertain if he’d be more work to contain than a hero’s raid.

For the third floor, I just cut in a large open space. I’d probably furnish it and make it just an open chill space. Maybe put in some lightweight divisions for different places to sit, so the skeletons could have somewhere public to gather without being in each other's space.

After doubling the size of the entry hall, I felt like I had a workable design in place. Of course, it still had issues and needed a lot of fine-tuning, but it was far and away more spacious. I’d even raised the ceiling heights to increase the feeling of openness. No claustrophobic bullshit in my dungeon.

I scanned the skeletons, looking for signs of interest or dislike. Most of them watched closely, but I wasn’t really picking up anything aside from the occasional startle or stare of surprise. They were either talking amongst themselves or just sharing silent looks, for the most part, which kept me out of the loop.

I wasn’t really sure if any of them liked the design or were just excited to get the chance to watch it happen. I had to admit that I was a bit numb to that part.

Since I’d first learned to manipulate my environment in the tutorial, that aspect hadn’t really registered as special to me. But, looking at it with fresher orbs, it really was neat to watch as tiles slid about to fulfill my whims.

Chris was running around climbing on every new thing like a jungle gym and cackling. He even gleefully rode some of the tiles about as I moved. I couldn’t help laughing at that. He’d love a rollercoaster. Hmmm. Maybe put some in an amusement park-themed layer? Nah, too cliché.

Dawn and Angelo made the occasion ooh. Henry, for his part, remained more or less at my elbow, watching raptly and giving me what I felt was an occasional smile. That was reassuring, at least. He had a good sense of design.

In contrast, Kessia was pointedly not watching and giving off some incredibly pissed-off vibes. I didn’t think it was design-related and ignored her. I'd need to talk to her eventually and figure out what was going on, but this wasn't that moment.

I resigned myself to not getting any feedback and got back to work. Going out of the mirror, I came back in to test the feel of the new aesthetic. I was deeply underwhelmed.

My design was fine, but the transition didn’t do anything for me. The awe of a jarring move between the dungeon proper and the necropolis wouldn’t last for denizens who made use of it frequently.

No, it created a cramped feeling as there was no separation between the entrance and public space. I experimented with several configurations before deciding I didn’t like the lowest floor of the necropolis being on the same level as the dungeon. It lacked style.

Passing from one space to the other a half dozen times, I contemplated the problem. I played with alternate configurations before deciding that it would be cheapest and faster to move the necropolis up a layer. Unfortunately, my need for visual drama was still not fulfilled, so I moved the necropolis back a skosh.

The area behind the mirror became a room. I made risers large enough to lounge on with a staircase leading up the middle like in the theater. The stairs now led to a grand door, the kind split down the middle.

Now the entrance was imposing but also provided somewhere for any interested observers to watch future combat. Something that would hopefully happen just frequently enough to meet my tithe.

I’d zoned out a bit while working and was almost surprised when I turned and found myself observed. Despite what I’d said and the skeletons tagging along to watch as I worked, none had asked me for anything or voiced a complaint.

“Uhm… It’s fine if you all like it, but if you want anything, just ask. Even if it’s just having your crypt moved, so you're closer to a friend or something,” I said, feeling awkward again now that I wasn’t working. Suddenly three skeletal hands went up, one of which belonged to Dawn.

“Yeah? What can I do for you?” I asked, surprised by the sudden enthusiasm.

“I want to move away from Aaron,” Dawn said, and the other two nodded emphatically.

“Oh, uhm-” I scanned the group and didn’t see the sorcerer in question. It was probably for the best that he didn’t witness their candor. I checked my map and found he was still in his crypt, scribbling away.

Thinking about it, I honestly couldn’t think of the last time he’d come out. Not since he’d figured out how to text me to request more chalk, paper, and ink. Texts which somehow managed to be six words long at most, yet still come across as surly.

“Yeah, okay,” I said, pinching the bridge of my nose in irritation. I really didn’t want him going full-blown hikikomori on me. That meant a chat and possible intervention.

“In the meantime, explore things and feel free to text me if you think of anything you want later,” I said. Finally, most of the skeletons dispersed, but Henry stayed back.

“M-mistress, he’s… unsociable but but not disruptive,” Henry said, posture stiff with a nervous kind of tension.

“Okay?” I started but didn’t really know what to say. Henry sticking up for Aaron was a little unexpected. There wasn't an underlying antagonism, but they hadn't seemed friendly either.

“Just a b-bit loud at t-times… and maybe rude,” Henry added.

“I’ll try to be tactful when I talk to him. Maybe that will soften the blow?” I asked after a couple moments of consideration.

“The bl-blow?” Henry asked, head tilting in confusion.

“I’m going to ask him to move to a separate section. I know it's shitty, but I got the feeling no one really wanted him as a neighbor,” I explained. Switching the room order around was easy but wouldn’t be productive in this case.

“You don’t intend to return him?” Henry asked in shock.

“What? No, why would I?” I asked, surprised. I hadn’t even considered the idea.

“I-I… You you c-could. Others ha-have when a cr-creature f-failed to to...” Henry trailed off as his stutter picking up sharply. Something squirmed in my pseudo flesh at the way he curled in a little on himself.

“That's not something I’ll do without a good reason. Not to anyone,” I said, instinctively reaching out a hand. It landed on his shoulder, and I belatedly realized I was fucking up again. Social anxiety or not, it seemed like I was fairly tactile, which wasn’t ideal given how I looked.

Rather than pull the misguided appendage back, I found myself frozen, waiting for a flinch or a panicked skittering back. Instead, Henry just looked up at me, and I felt his posture shift, relaxing a bit under my hand. Finally, I retracted it slowly as I waited for something to happen.

“I ap-apologize for not recalling to whom I spoke,” Henry said gently and bowed. I felt myself relax as well. Elim and Chris had flinched back from me, but Henry had offered me his arm before. So it seemed like at least one person didn’t find me naturally repulsive or hid it better.

“We both have a lot to learn about each other. Now pardon me, I’ve got an awkward conversation to have,” I said, bobbing a little curtsy of my own. We parted, and, rather too quickly for my taste, I was knocking on Aaron's crypt.

There was a fair pause before he finally opened his door to look at me suspiciously. I didn’t know how to kick things off and hovered awkwardly for a moment.

“So… I was editing things and thought you might like some changes-” was cut short. Aaron had taken me by the arm and pulled me into his crypt. I managed not to make an undignified squeak.

“I want this,” Aaron said, gesturing to his very busy chalkboard. A chalkboard whose contents had spilled out onto all of the walls and part of the floor. The particular part Aaron was gesturing to looked like a small lab complex.

It would have been so easy to just agree and ignore the rest of the issue. I could play having to move him off as just a consequence of the size of the facility Aaron wanted. For a moment, I nearly did, but then mustered up the decency not to. The issue wasn’t going to get better by ignoring it.

“I’m happy enough to make this for you, but… How are you getting along with the others?” I asked.

“I’m not? Well, except Tiberius, we talk about theory sometimes,” Aaron said, apparently puzzled by my question. Tiberius was the first wizard I'd summoned, and while he was more outgoing than Aaron, he wasn't exactly a social butterfly.

“Do you feel uncomfortable with them or… mistreated?” I asked. Just because people reacted poorly to him didn’t mean he was automatically at fault. He deserved to give his side of things at the very least.

“Mildly repulsed, but that's hardly new or interesting,” Aaron replied.

“Repulsed?” I asked, entirely confused by his casual reaction.

“Mistress, I think half of them are literate, and all of six can do complex math. So I would find them unappealing even if the lot weren’t murders, thieves, and arsonists,” Aaron said and rolled his jewels.

“Pot calling the kettle black on the latter half of that one man,” I said, irritated by his attitude. We were all evil and largely chaotic. I didn’t know the personal reasons for anyone's alignment, but it wasn’t like he was good or even neutral.

I was also curious who was an arsonist for professional reasons. I did not need someone recreationally setting the furniture on fire. It wouldn't kill any dungeon denizens permanently, but it would be a pain to clean up.

“Does it even matter? They don’t care for me either, and I’m happy with the arrangement where we have as little to do with each other as possible,” Aaron snapped. I crossed my arms, unhappy but trying to reply more calmly than I felt.

“I’m not going to force you to be sociable,” I said finally. I didn’t like it, but Aaron was an adult. Forcing him to do things wasn’t going to work.

“How generous,” Aaron said blandly. Yet, despite how he sounded, I felt a sort of sincerity to the thanks.

“Just… Don’t forget you can talk to me. Even if I don’t necessarily understand the technical stuff, I’ll listen,” I added. Aaron regarded me but said nothing after a few moments. I decided to take the lack of a dismissive snort, guffaw, or sigh as a win.

“I’ll let you know when your new crypt is ready,” I added.

“Thank you, Mistress,” Aaron said without any sarcasm this time. I felt my orbs flicker in surprise. That was a first. At this rate, he might even consider me a friend before the heat death of the universe. Maybe.