Saga of the Soul Dungeon

“It was both fascinating and appalling to learn that chimpanzees were capable of hostile and territorial behavior that was not unlike certain forms of primitive human warfare.”

-Jane Goodall

==Zidaun==

Heading through the curtain led into woods that felt similar, but not the same.

Another curtain willow formed its own barrier of dangling leaves over the entrance, but it was positioned differently, in addition to having leaves in various bright colors.

The whole forest was like that.

The pathway was similar, but its curves and slope varied as it wended through the trees. The sun too, was lower in the sky, its rays longer as they pushed through the leaves. The wind whispering through the canopy mixed with the sunlight to make the forest look like it had been set aflame as leaves came free into the air like dripping embers.

The lower foliage, in contrast, was still mostly green, though a few of the bushes were patchworks of brown and green, and they stood as emerald islands in a sea of burning leaves.

“What do you want to bet that we have to do the same damn thing over again?” Gurek grumbled, his face morose as he looked out over the forest.

I rolled my eyes, but I was surprised when it was Firi that replied.

“Oh cheer up,” he said. “This place is beautiful. How far would you need to travel to go through a forest like this, huh? Sure, this one is bound to get more dangerous as we go along, but that’s part of the job.

“Besides, this is a greenwood, even if the leaves would suggest otherwise for now, and it is barely Thaw outside.”

I groaned at Firi’s pun, but at least Gurek smiled a bit.

“Not a bad point,” Inda said. “I doubt any forest on the planet looks like this one or the part we just left right now.”

Gurek sighed, but he still smiled as he spoke.

“Sure, but did it have to be a damn puzzle? It’s going to take us hours for each part, even if they are all the same size. And is anyone else started to get hungry?”

We laughed.

Of course Gurek is focused on his stomach.

“Well, if we find another fruit tree,” Inda said, her voice amused and her smile wry, “we can eat some of that.”

Gurek opened his mouth and then got a slightly stunned expression on his face.

“Huh…” he said. “That’s what it was for.”

Inda started to ask what he was talked about, but I had already understood his meaning.

If people were quite a bit slower than us, or just had worse luck, they could have been trapped in repeating versions of the last area all day. The fruit tree was the only thing we saw that was guarded, and it seemed odd at the time…

Unless the purpose of the puzzle isn’t just about the puzzle.

Gurek was currently explaining what I had just realized.

“This area is about time. How we deal with being stuck in an area. The food is just there to make sure we don’t starve. Though it is guarded so you have to fight for it.”

“Unfortunately,” I said, “I came to same conclusion. Fortunately for us, we are prepared for the long haul… Other adventurers are going to hate it though.”

Gurek snickered before he responded.

“I’m used to it and I’m already going to hate it. I was happy getting to sleep in a bed every night.”

We all laughed as we voiced our agreements.

“How quickly we get soft,” Firi said, his eyes downcast and head shaking with exaggerated grief.

I rolled my eyes at him, but I laughed all the same.

Finally, we started exploring again. Who knew how long we would be stuck here?

The crunching of the leaves disrupted the sound of the woods with every step, and pitfalls hid amongst the fallen leaves. Their design was unchanged, but the presence of the leaves concealed them far better than before.

They were still obvious enough that I didn’t need to point them out, though a caution borne of experience and habit ensured that I continued to regardless. After a certain point we stopped bothering to collect the linen. It was just filling up our packs anyway.

We had all been keeping an eye on the various animals, of course, but the tall trees offered plenty of places for flying animals to rest or hide. We had even seen signs of nesting skyrays. The nests varied from hollows cut into the trees, branches interwoven into platforms, more typical bird style nests, and more.

The first sign that this area was going to deviate in any significant way, beyond appearance, was when some skyrays dived toward us in an attempt to attack. The gleaming appearance of the skyrays was sufficient to give them away, however, the sunlight glancing off them like glittering gold.

As soon as I was aware of their presence, I used my skill to identify them.

Golden Shadow-horn Skyray – Level 11

Animal – Juvenile

A young skyray with metallic gold coloring and a dark grey horn protruding from its head. Its wings bear similarities to both bird-wings and fins, and the graceful lines of its body end in a short tail. It is a member of one of several cooperative species that are highly territorial. Acting together, the various species are able to have better odds of survival.

Golden Cut Weave Skyray – Level 9

Animal – Juvenile

A young skyray with metallic gold coloring and highly flattened body-shape. It resembles a rectangle with a curve cut into each long end. Its tail is in the middle of one of the curved sections, resembling a section of cloth cut out of the larger body. It is a member of one of several cooperative species that are highly territorial. Acting together, the various species are able to have better odds of survival.

Golden Star Skyray – Level 11

Animal – Juvenile

A young skyray with metallic gold coloring. Its body is in the general shape of a four pointed star, though its head, which is brown and white, contrasts with the rest of its body. It is a member of one of several cooperative species that are highly territorial. Acting together, the various species are able to have better odds of survival.

At level 11 and lower we were not likely to be particularly pressured, but a successful ambush could have made them dangerous.

“Level 11, Animals!” I shouted, even as we had started to engage.

There were less than a dozen enemies, but their speed in the air meant that they able to perform blitz attacks. Flying creatures were usually fragile, but flight carried enormous advantages in both mobility and maneuverability, which could make them tricky.

Each of the skyrays was only a few feet across, though how large a full grown individual would be was anyone’s guess.

Knives flew out to meet the oncoming fliers, Inda’s hand flickering in blurring speed, even as her other hand smoothly drew out her sabre with practiced precision. I had already started to crouch down before the first blade flew, and stone and earth crept up my arms as I buried them. Small areas of stone shifted beneath the surface, ready to spring up and intercept any attacks the others missed. Firi’s power wrapped around each of us as he added his own defenses, even as small discs of light, no more than a foot and half across, appeared against each of his flat palms. Faint wisps of mist seeped from the edges, the cold chilling the vapor in the air.

And, Gurek, bulwark that he was, had taken a step forward ahead of us, his two blades both at the ready and already in action.

The horns and other dark areas of the shadow-horns had proven to be as strong as steel, though the impact as Gurek slid them to the side with a blade left the skyray tumbling in the air, and Inda cut through the golden midsection of its body. It fell into two pieces, even as blood sprayed against the nearby bushes, dying green leaves a red mockery of the canopy overhead.

Inda had managed to send off three blades by the time she used her sabre, though only one killed an opponent. Another struck the horn and armor of another shadow-horn, and while its armor protected it, it tumbled across the ground as its momentum was brought to a sudden halt. One of the knives missed entirely, the target dodging gracefully through the air, but another speared one of the cut weaves in the middle. The animal was so thin that the blade passed through it entirely, and it fell to the ground flapping weakly, even as its blood seeped into the ground below.

Gurek had not been idle, nor had I, and while his blades flashed in the light as he deflected the attacks of the various skyrays, my fists and elbows smashed against anything that grew too close. Firi stood in the center of our formation now, the rest of us forming a triangle to keep the healer protected. No commands had been needed, just the years of experience making us all automatically take up the appropriate formations.

Each of the skyrays attacked in a different way.

The shadow-horns did their best to ram directly into us, trusting in their forward armor to protect them from the impact. In turn, the stars had mana that coated the edges of their wings and tail, forming blades that extended about an inch from their flesh; the sharpness was sufficient to cut passing leaves into two clean halves. And the cut weaves strategy was unclear, as they were cut down when they passed too close and flared their whole bodies wide.

After a few seconds only three of the skyrays remained, and they broke off into the air. They rose up into the canopy and settled down on a single large tree by hugging their bodies against the bark. Their eyes peered down at us warily.

High up in the tree, above them, a nest made of sticks and woven leaves stirred gently. Several dozen tiny eyes peered down at us, and an identify revealed that these were infants of the same species.

“It’s a nest.” I said, though the others had likely noticed as well.

“Best to ignore it,” Firi said, “Not like we would have cared if the parents hadn’t attacked.”

“Not the parents… probably,” I replied. “Those things are still juveniles, while the ones in the nest are infants. Not sure what the adults are like.”

“Let’s go then,” Gurek said, and he quickly started to walk off.

We each noticed signs to look for in the future. There were cuts high up in the trees surrounding the nest, which were likely some kind of warning or territory mark. There hadn’t been much near ground level, but we hadn’t actually been attacked until we were almost touching the tree the nest was in. As long as we looked for the signs in the future, we could likely avoid another similar encounter.

Fortunately, we soon found a monolith; unfortunately, it was guarded.