Worthy Core

Floor Eleven had initially been set up as the dungeon's, well, dungeon for prisoners of war, those captured on Floor Four and elsewhere during the course of the siege. This was largely just due simply to the fact that the space was available and hadn't been turned to any other purpose yet. Now, however, the Domain expedition was preparing to march through the place, and Xenia was hardly about to let them just release all of those soldiers right outside of her core chamber.

So, everyone who hadn't been involved in the defense of Floor Ten had instead been tasked with moving the prisoners to new cells in the 'mimic castle' of Floor Eight. Once that space had been freed up, Xenia had embarked on a whirlwind of last minute changes, working on a new design to blunt the advantages the Domain had on offer. The open ceiling design which had made it easy to observe prisoners was now just asking for flying demons and draconics to use as a shortcut for the entire floor, so instead it had been sealed in - with only a network of hidden tunnels for the dungeon's defenders to use for ambushes or to retreat. The cells meanwhile had been re-imagined as a true, floor-spanning labyrinth, with narrow hallways, dead ends, and trapped chambers at every turn. The walls were kept too thick for geomancers to tunnel through - except of course for where ambushers would await.

And unlike on some floors, not one foot would go undefended by monsters, traps, or Challengers. Every ace up Xenia's sleeve had been played, with the only 'reserves' being the wounded and non-combatants on Floor Five, awaiting their fates. As the first Domain soldiers step through the tunnel leading from Floor Ten, they're immediately set upon by rabbit and arachnid champions.

Unfortunately, the first soldiers through are members of the elite Scale Wardens and the monsters are quickly dispatched. This is despite the fact that the floor is now kept in almost total darkness, lit up by magical crystals which are only active so long as the defenders need them, and which turn off again the moment the last monster falls. As Scale Warden Captain Yelene walks through, she sneers at the shadows awaiting her.

"Ugh, the dungeon throws petty tricks at us. You can provide us with nightvision, yes?"

Pretty Thing sighs as he comes through after her. He'd spent the last hour or so working on reconstructing his face, and although there have been some improvements it will likely still be several days of those before he can claim to have a functional nose again. "Yes, but I'd recommend against using the strongest spells. You see how the dungeon can turn the lights on as easily as off? You don't want your eyes blinded the next time it turns them to their full power."

"A bit of caution is wise indeed." The Dragonlord's androgynous voice emerges from the tunnel behind them, followed by the dragon themselves a moment later. Barely glancing at the fallen corpses, the tyrant addresses their two remaining captains.

"Our victory is near at hand, and there is no purpose in rushing towards death. I also see that this floor will not allow the kind of directness which the previous did." They wave a hand, gesturing at the crossroad of tunnels before them. "These passages are far too small to bring our entire force through any one of them. Given the losses of Commander Gerlosius and Thena, we shall split the remaining squads into three companies. Captain Yelene, you shall lead the first third down the right branch, Sensationalist Pretty, you shall lead yours down the left. I shall take the center route."

The yellow-scaled Yelene summons enough courage to disagree with her ruler. "My lord! It is the role of the Scale Wardens to serve as your guard! We should not leave you undefended!"

The Dragonlord smirks, revealing their fangs. "I shall keep one squad of Wardens with me, captain. However, I am hardly defenseless. The rank and file will need your skills and leadership more than I."

"Suppose it's been a few since I did a proper dungeon crawl." Pretty stretches his back. "What should we do if we actually find the core chamber, my lord?"

"Wait for me and do not proceed further, unless there is the utmost risk to us if the dungeon is not immediately subdued. But do not, under any circumstances, destroy Xenia Worthy's core without my presence."

The incubus bows in submission. True, destroying the core himself might grant him power beyond imagining, perhaps even telling him the secret of how that one fury demon he witnessed on Floor Six gained their ENLIGHTENMENT. But almost no amount of power would make him the match of an ancient dragon, and he didn't grow to become an old monster by making suicidal decisions. "Of course. We'll leave her to you."

"Good. Now, assemble your squads and advance."

In a hidden chamber, the Dungeon Fuckers sit, and sweat. It's not a matter of the temperature, although the ventilation in the newly designed floor is not the best. But rather, it's the question of just how unlucky they're about to be. The three Challengers are joined by Paladin Sable and Priestess Fullblossom of the Church of Bounty, but even as strong as their party may be, it's still no comparison to some of those who currently lurk these halls.

"So, who do you think we're gonna get? Those elite guards? The Supremes? Maybe we can even spit in the Dragonlord's eye ourselves, eh?" Tolla grins as she makes conversation, but some of the others wish that perhaps the dungeon hadn't kept them informed as to who they would potentially face.

Raven-haired Renriel sighs at his companion's cheer. "If we face any sort of elite, our tactic must be to divide and conquer as much as possible. All of us combined may be able to take on a Supreme or two. But if we face the dragon..." He trails off, unsure how to continue. "...Pray that we live long enough to reach the exit tunnel, I suppose."

Nallond, the Silent Striker, gestures for them to be silent and utters a short whisper. "Someone's coming." The man has his ear to what appears to be a brick wall, but is in actuality a trap - one that he can trigger. With the press of a pressure plate the wall will collapse outward, hopefully crushing a few foes, and the Church of Bounty party will ideally have a clear shot at their enemies. Unfortunately, while Nallond's elvish ears can hear the footsteps in the next hallway, that's about all of the information they have on who they're about to face.

The archer lets the first enemy squad pass them by, hoping to wait for less-aware foes to arrive, but when the second reaches the wall the man hits the trap and immediately leaps back. Bricks and heavy stones fall with a crash, certainly burying at least one or two intruders, and several of the defenders breathe a sigh of relief to see that it seems to be standard soldiers facing them. A very short sigh, that is, as all five adventurers immediately rush into action.

Nallond's arrows begin to fly towards the demons and kobolds peering at them, further stunned by the activation of the crystal lights above their heads, while Priestess Fullblossom releases clouds of spores into the hallway. The spores have something of a confusion effect for those who breathe them in, but more importantly they serve to create an organic fog, hiding the details of the ambush from other Domain squads that may be in the area. Renriel casts his magic as a Arcane Justiciar, creating chains of arcane force to pin the soldiers in place, while Paladins Sable and Tolla...

Well, the paladins leap their way over the broken debris and begin shedding blood.

It's not the first time Paladin Sable Bluehair's ever had to take a mortal life. Even before the siege of the dungeon there had been the occasional highwayman or bandit, during her long years of service. Tolla meanwhile is a little newer to the sight of actual people falling before her blade, but at least the blade in question does make things a little easier. The Legacy's Strike, the enchanted sword gifted to her by the dungeon herself, had been empowered by the Highbranches themselves. With the strength of their blood, the Paladin of Plenty has the unerring precision of a marksman, combined with the rune-crafting abilities of a Lady of Runes.

The first kobold she faces is a little surprised when she carves a rune into his cheek with the tip of the blade and his own blood, and he's almost certainly even more surprised when his head explodes a moment later. The demon behind him, suddenly caked in gore, certainly seems to have inherited some of that surprise as well.

Between the trap and their own skills the quintet manage to annihilate the first enemy squad within moments. They then begin to move on to the squad that was following behind them...but as several members of the advance scouting party return, things begin to look a little more unpleasant. Nallond shouts out a warning to the rest of the team. "Silver armor! Two Scale Wardens coming from the left!"

Indeed, leading a few more mundane soldiers is a blue-scaled draconic and a succubus mage, and if anything they primarily seem to be irritated by the bloody results the Church of Bounty's left behind them rather than afraid. The draconic charges his sword with electricity before leaping into the fray with a roar. "Puppets of the gods! Fall before true might!"

Tolla's shield handles the impact of the blade well, but the electricity coursing through it is another matter. Fortunately Sable is right there to cover for her moment of seizure, and as the demonic paladin meets the man face-to-face Priestess Lilly works to heal the damage.

That stops when a lance of ice flies from the Scale Warden mage and pins Lilly's right arm to the wall, severing it so quickly that the woman's on the ground before she even registers the hit. Nallond stiffens at the sight of the wound, but Renriel is quicker to react. "Damn you! Suffer The Consequences!"

The Justiciar's spell isn't nearly as powerful as the magics of Sensationalist Pretty, but it does manage to cause the mage at least a solid fraction of the pain she just caused to Lilly. The demon's next spell is interrupted as the woman gasps, gripping her arm - yet the grip on her wand is firm, and Renriel can see that she's too well-trained to be taken out of the fight so easily.

"We can't fight them both and the rest of the soldiers at the same time! Either we need to isolate them, or we need to retreat!"

"Tolla!" Sable does her best to get the dwarf's attention as the two trade blows with the draconic. "Pair with me on a pants blessing?"

"On it!" The two rapidly begin a prayer, uttering the chant as quickly as possible, as the warrior facing them scoffs. "It does not matter how fancy your pants are! You shall fall before - urngh!"

As the paladins finish, a wave of Kahlia's holy energy washes out from between them...and every single owner of a phallus for twenty paces suddenly grows wide-eyed and unsteady. The draconic takes an ill-advised moment to reach for his codpiece...and never quite makes it, as Sable's own enchanted blade drives itself up into his chin.

"Gets 'em every time..."

Tolla briefly eyes the stain growing on Sable's own pants. "You, uh, handling it alright yourself?"

"I'm used to it. Now, just gotta handle the - agh!" Sable's next words are cut short as an arrow lands in her leg, fired from a succubus down the hall, and the Scale Warden mage takes advantage of the paladin's own distraction to bath her with a jet of flame. Tolla quickly moves to block it with her shield, but it's obvious that their advantage of surprise is long since spent.

"They're closing in! Go time!"

Her elvish companions were also impacted by the effect of Kahlia's double-strength blessing, but they are at least capable of managing the retreat. As Nallond scoops up Lilly's shivering form, Tolla drags Sable away from the fight and Renriel casts his spell one more time. The sensation of being set on fire seems to distract the mage even more than temporarily disabling her arm did, and this time she does find herself almost involuntarily retreating for a moment.

When she returns to inspect the hidden chamber the Church of Bounty team used to launch their ambush, she finds it empty, save for bloodstains and a tunnel entrance carved into the floor. Just as she's wondering what to do, Captain Yelene arrives on the scene.

"Captain! Five combatants - two heavily wounded - seem to have fled through that tunnel. Shall we pursue?"

The Warden captain takes one glance at it and shakes her head. "Far too narrow, that tunnel is a deathtrap and we're not here to chase scurrying rats. Take five minutes to heal the injured, then we continue."

Although her words are confident, Yelene can't help but feel a bit of concern. A single ambush and she's down a Warden and more than a full squad of soldiers. She can only hope the dungeon doesn't have too many more defenders like those awaiting them...

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