Worthy Core

Fortunately it doesn't take long for Xenia to summon up some clothing for the pair to wear, as outfits designed to mesh with tails and wings aren't entirely unusual in this world. The newborns change quickly without too much apparent concern for their modesty, although those present do at least avert their gaze for the minute or so it takes. Soon though it's time to resume their conversation.

Beatrice tries to restart the previous topic once everyone has found themselves a new seat at the table. "So, you two remember being a dungeon before? We don't really know much about where you came from, or how you ended up in Xen's hands."

The pair each raise a hand in her direction before turning to Xenia. "Before we begin, we believe there's a certain step that's been forgotten."

Xenia can't help but snort at the statement. "What, just one? Try more like fifteen years worth of steps! But which one's bugging you?"

The two share a look before answering. "It is traditional to give newborn children names, is it not? We would like some."

"Ah, where are my manners, I didn't even ask...wait. You want me to name you?" Xenia furrows her brow. "Don't you remember your old name?"

The twins shake their heads. "Not one worth keeping. Also, that was me, we are us. It feels appropriate that we have new names. We would like to hear what you would call us, mother."

"Gah, I suck at names! I just go by Xenia or Xenon every time I get the chance. Sarah came up with most of the names when...well, nevermind. How about..." The dungeon mother points first at the green-skinned girl and then the brown-skinned boy. "Nix and Nox?"

The pair nod. "Those sound acceptable. We look forward to being your offspring. We love you, mother."

Xenia blinks. "I...I love you too?"

Lollyp buries her face in her hands for unclear reasons. "Ahh, it's so touching! Just so...heartwarming. Bringing tears to my eyes!"

Pizola seems unconvinced. "Tears of laughter, more like. But uh, hey, welcome to the family, kiddos. Gonna be interesting having you around if we don't all die in the next month."

"Very interesting." The twins glance at the gathered council. "So, you wish to know how we ended up taken from our home? We don't remember anything after we were taken from our dungeon, but we remember how we earned the Dragonlord's ire." They nod confidently. "Kobolds and slimes are tasty."

Lollyp tilts her head. "...Thanks?"

"You're welcome. Unfortunately, when a messenger from the Dragonlord came to say that we were killing too many we disregarded their warning. And then ate him. They may have been fine with us not joining their 'collaborator' system, but that was, apparently, a bad move."

It takes a moment but Xenia eventually puzzles that out. "Right, I've heard dungeons can get core-cracked if they get too aggressive. Seems you went over the line a bit, eh?" Her expression grows concerned as a thought occurs to her. "Uh, just to be clear, do not eat the Challengers hanging out in the dungeon, alright? The friendly ones, that is. We try to be a reasonable dungeon around here. The ones in the top few floors right now are cool to eat though, if you go up that way."

Nix and Nox frown. "There wouldn't be any point in it now, anyways. It doesn't seem like we have stomachs. Only yours."

As confused expressions fill the room, Guy hovers in to explain. "I assume they're referring to your local well of souls, which collects the souls of those who fall within the dungeon bounds. That remains entirely under your control, ma'am, the children do not have any more access to it than any other guardian. Nor do they have access to the other dungeon systems which belong solely to you."

The reincarnator taps her fingers against the table. "Probably good, but I'm still wondering just how you two fit into the whole dungeon system. Are you two basically just...wandering bosses without a fixed floor range? I mean, not to put too much pressure on you kids or anything, but we were definitely hoping for some aces up our sleeve for when the Dragonlord comes knocking. Don't suppose you've got any insights?"

They answer her with mirrored smiles. "We do not have access to your dungeon system, nor can we reshape this dungeon as it is not ours. But we still have access to our system. And we do at least control ourselves."

Their response doesn't seem to satisfy Sincere's curiosity. "And what does that mean, exactly? If you don't have control over a dungeon, then what use is a dungeon system?"

"This, we imagine." The twins each raise their right hand, and as the council members watch on their arms liquefy. Or...something along those lines. Their leathery skin turns soft and transparent, and their colors quickly shift - red for Nox, and a much brighter green for Nix. It's Lollyp who catches on first.

"You can shapeshift into slimes!?"

"We ate many slimes, so yes. Also undead, kobolds, reptiles...anything we had experienced before being stolen from our previous home."

Xenia whistles. "That's pretty flexible. Although your tiers in all of those must be pretty low, right? It sounds like you were a pretty young dungeon when the Dragonlord grabbed you. Though I suppose we don't know when that was, they could've had you sitting in storage for years..."

"True, our highest tier category was only..." The twins pause before frowning and sharing a look. After a moment of thought, they turn back to Xenia and finish their statement. "We only have access to the categories we had before, but it seems as if we have them at your tier level."

Pizola breaks out in laughter of her own. "S-tier! For slimes and undead, right? With guardian-level strength? And we got two of you?" She flashes Xenia a smirk and a thumbs up. "Good work, Xenia. Maybe see if that goddess can knock you up again sometime."

"Pfft, I'm sure she'd be happy to find any excuse. Although..." Xenia peers at the two. "You two don't seem to have much of my looks, or Kahlia's, in case there was any chance of that. Is this what your avatar used to look like?"

The pair look down at themselves. "Most of our intruders were kobolds, so we started with a form like them. We noticed some reporting to the draconics as superiors, though, so we added some traits from them as well. Mostly, we did use to be much bigger than this."

Nix adds a statement of her own. "Also, we didn't have breasts." Nox stares at his sister, apparently taken by surprise with her independent statement.

"...It seems our experiences are already diverging."

"Huh, maybe that's faster than I'd've thought." Xenia gives Nix a comforting smile. "I know what it's like to swap from one body type to another, so if you need any tips on how to get used to a being a woman, maybe I can help you out."

"Thank you. Although we did see quite a few examples of that while we were gestating."

"Not what I meant!" Xenia's eyes go wide as she takes in the mostly-amused expressions of those watching on. "There's...other things! And you two are just...apparently fully grown? Fuck. I take back what I said earlier, this shit is way harder than normal childbirth."

The pair get up from their seats so that they can go wrap their mother in a double-sided hug. Xenia isn't sure how to react to that, going still for a long moment, but eventually she eases into the physical contact. Her hands find Nix and Nox's, and pat them gently. Together, the pair try to put her at ease. "We do love you, mother. We're not entirely sure how mortal children...work, but we can give it a shot for a while."

"I'm...alright, okay. You...you really think of me as your mom? Even though you remember most of the stuff from before?"

The twins nod. "As we said, we have changed. We never felt a...family connection before. Our guide was useful, but we didn't feel a bond with them like with you. We think maybe...a part of you is a part of us? We feel connected, at least."

The reincarnator swallows. "That's...good, I think. Although, could you do me a favor? Maybe call me 'mom', instead of mother? I mean, the formality does really help lean into the creepy twin routine which could definitely fuck with some Challengers, but if you've watched me for a couple weeks then you know I don't do formal."

She's answered with grins. "We can do that, mom. We can swear more too, if it helps. Fuck the Dragonlord!"

There's quite a few chuckles and laughs at that, including from Xenia herself despite her best attempts. "Usually I get at least a few years before I accidentally teach my kids how to swear! But I guess we got a lot of shit to do even with the accelerated, uh, development schedule, don't we? Rooms! I gotta make you two some rooms! Do you want to share? Also a bunch more clothes. I can do food, if you want to try eating. Toys? Do you want toys? Or books? Do you know how to read?"

"We can share, and yes, we can read - we still know the skills we learned from those we ate. Food might be...interesting? We may skip on the toys, however."

Beatrice leans forward. "Yeah, didn't figure you two were still in the 'toys' phase. How about a good sparring session or two? I'd be interested in seeing what you can do, and you probably need to get some practice in before things get hairy around here."

"Trish!" Xenia gives her friend a betrayed look. "I'm not letting you beat up my kids! I just got them!"

"It's fine." The kids give her reassuring pats on her shoulders. "We can take her."

Their mother seems unconvinced. "She's basically a Supreme-tier fighter. And you used to be a dungeon avatar, you've never even been in a fight before."

"But we have the skills of those who did!" The bright voices dim after a moment. "...Although the strongest person we ever ate was an Expert. And they were an Agent, not a fighter."

"I'll go easy on you, no worries." Beatrice pauses before waving them off. "But later, though. You've got a lot of stuff to set up, sounds like, and a...mom to get to know, it seems."

Sincere nods in agreement. "If you have mage skills, I'd be happy to train with you as well. Not to mention that you are, if I may be candid, fascinating. I am no longer a true arcane demon, but old habits die hard and I'd love to know more about your experiences."

Xenia answers on their behalf. "I'll make sure they get a proper introduction to everybody. Well...maybe not the general public, I don't know yet how the average folks will react to...all this. But uh, yeah. What else was on the list this morning? Fights in the inn or whatever? I'm sure you all can handle that, bust some heads or whatever if things get rowdy. Meeting adjourned. Dismissed. Except for you two, we've got family shit!"

The council members don't dawdle on their way out, although they do give Xenia a few more awkward 'congratulations' before they go. Even Guy gives the new family a bit of privacy, and soon it's just Xenia, Nix, and Nox - still half-embracing around the arms of Xenia's chair.

"So, mom...what's first?"

The dungeon master thinks that over for a bit, before a thought occurs to her and she grins. "Well, it's been a few since I checked in with Kahlia, might be a good time for it. How'd you two like to meet your other mom?"

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