Chrysalis

It is well known that different nations and cultures hold different attitudes towards the Dungeon. That the Dungeon provides resources to be used is a common thread to be sure, but the manner of their use, the manner of their acquisition and the reverence with which they are treated varies greatly across the continents of Pangera.

The Legionem Abyssi’s defensive attitude towards the Dungeon and restrictive policies towards it are well known to all major scholars.

The Church of the Path and those of the broader faith regard the Dungeon as a holy place, the battling of monsters and the harvest of materials from within a religious calling. The more fanatical branches of the church are rumoured to conduct all manner of rituals within the Dungeon and certainly encourage all members of the faithful to seek enlightenment beneath the earth.

The Cold Blades of Illirethil, the Wise Ones of Coggar Nothan, the Eastern Empire of Kallasar, all have their own traditions and expectations towards the Dungeon that they have cultivated over thousands of years.

Cultural study of Pangera and the Dungeon. Chapter 1. By the Magio Scholar Tarius

The large snake core glitters in my eyes as I pick it up and take it over to the rest of my cores. I can easily see that this core is powerful, but I’m not certain that it is powerful enough for my purposes.

Using my antennae, one placed on the large core and the other on one of the smaller ones, I activate the Core Engineering skill and try to combine the two.

Immediately I feel incredibly fierce resistance, pushing back against my mind until a pounding headache erupts between my temples. ARGGHH. These stupid cores... they think they’re all that!!!

COME ON!

Forcing with all my spirit I mentally smash the cores together and hold them tightly, refusing to allow their energies to budge even a millimetre apart.

The larger core exerts far more force than the smaller one, pushing back with an almost irresistible pressure.

But my will is indomitable!

Surrender to me you damned rock!

HRRNKASSAFRAZ.

Eventually the two cores melt together, or more accurately the smaller core is pulled into the larger one and they fuse together.

With the sudden release of pressure I collapse onto the floor of the tunnel. Ugh. This is way too hard.

I don’t allow myself to slump for long. Picking myself up I peer carefully at the massive core, my antennae tapping over it intensely and listening for the voice of Gandalf.

[Compatible core detected, do you wish to reinforce your core or reconstitute the monster?]

As if I would want to reconstitute the mess of a monster this core contains after I smashed another core into it! All I want is to try and manufacture a special core!

small core and begin the

HRRRNNNNNNNNNGAPAAAAA!

Success!

Gasp!

So hard!

special core

Yes...

YESSSSSSS!

MAUAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!

core in my mandibles and take it towards my trusting, unsuspecting pet

this

for a moment before shaking his

[Full].

can take in one

[Full].

....

BAM!

BAM!

core you disobedient ape! I just spent so much effort

BAM!

Thwick!

What the

face is scrunched in concentration and pain. I can see the energy within the core leeching out and into the suffering ape. As time passes the core grows smaller and smaller as the suffering on my friends

ape buddy. I clearly remember the pain of having that special core push your own

more time passes the expression on Tiny’s face turns from one of suffering into a snarl. His broad shoulders heave and his powerful fingers claw

it

and the core has been fully absorbed. The poor guy is

and pat him on the head with my

a strong feeling of guilt is rising in me. I really don’t want to see him in pain, I raised him from when he was just a core after all! I

need to evolve and

and pain, his mouth is wide open, revealing his fangs but no noise

on Tiny! You’ve got to evolve! It’s the only thing that will

begin his evolution. I’m not even 100% certain that Tiny has reached his max level, given the ape’s intelligence, it would be very hard for me to try and extract that information. I could have taken the skill that lets me see his stats but I’m reluctant to part with a skill point just for that. Any reasonably intelligent pet would be able to

can’t evolve right now then surely it isn’t far away. The main point of my soothing is just to try and help Tiny

breathing goes from a whistling grunt to slow and even. Slowly but surely he grows more still until his eyes slowly close and he falls back to sleep once