The last few hours slipped away, and before he knew it, Jake was walking through the dark streets of Casthorpe, preparing himself for one of the most important delves so far.

  Not only was this what he needed to advance further with his Class, but it was also a second tier Dungeon, which meant the chances of dying permanently were highly increased for that final battle.

  Even if the Drake didn’t kill them, it could still damage their soul, making whatever they chose to do next all the harder.

  All it would take was one one of them taking some nasty soul wounds, and they’d have to give up any hope of fighting the Fatesworne.

  “Worrying about it all?” Nepthys asked softly from where she was walking next to him, Moby sitting proudly on her shoulder.

  Jake had summoned the duck the day before in order to save his Manifestations for the upcoming delve. He had seven these days, but if this was anything like the last second tier Dungeon, he’d need them all.

  "Yeah, just a little,” Jake said with a rueful smile. “Silly, isn’t it? We’ve come all this way, and I’ve not worried about the actual Dungeon itself until the very last moment.”

  “Well then, don’t start now,” Nepthys said, nudging him with a reassuring smile of her own. “We’ll get this done, and we’ll get you to your next tier, just you watch.”

  Jake nodded, taking a deep breath as they reached the open area around the Dungeon itself. The huge doors leading in loomed ominously in the dark, the familiar shifting symbols carved into them seeming almost comforting now.

  Calling on the System, Jake reviewed everything he’d worked so hard to gather.

  Name - Jake Khesh

  Patron Deity - The Great Dungeon

  Class - Dungeon Noble - Knight

  Tier - II

  Rank - X

  Dungeon Network - 13

  Plexus Strength - Slight

  Plexus Manifestations - 7/7

  Plexus Points - 1

  Traits

  Physical - Lesser Noble Constitution (IV) - Rare - Descended from a Noble bloodline, you have a medium enhancement to physical characteristics.

  Mental - Delver’s Will (III) - Uncommon - Gird your will, advance endlessly. Provides a small bonus to willpower when delving Dungeons.

  Skills

  Passive - Personal Plexus (II) - Very Rare - You gain the ability to bind Dungeons and form your own Plexus, with a small increase to the strength of Dungeons that may be bound. Currently, Dungeons up to Tier II can be bound. Doubles the Wyrdgeld cost of advancing in Class Rank.

  Active - Wyrd Infusion (IV) - Rare - You are able to infuse Wyrd into any item you are touching. The effects of any patterns that you create have a medium boost to their power and stability. This effect remains for a moderate time once you are no longer touching the item.

  Bound Items

  Wyrd Infusion - Woadheart Ring - Common - The bound Skill now has a minor reduction in Wyrd cost and any effects it generates that increase impact have a minor boost to their power.

  Patron Gifts

  Passive - Agent of the Great Dungeon (III) - Very Rare - You are bound to the Great Dungeon by blood and Deed. Other followers of the Great Dungeon will recognise you and aid you as they may.

  Passive - Sense Dungeon (II) - Rare - As an agent of the Great Dungeon, you are able to passively sense the location of nearby Dungeons in a meagre range.

  Passive - Authority of The Great Dungeon (I) - Very Rare - You have the approval of The Great Dungeon and may enact rituals in its name. You gain the knowledge of the Ritual of Castigation. Misuse of this authority may result in its removal.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Plexus Boons

  Hidden Fang - (III) - Granted by the Holrswar Murk Dungeon, this Boon allows you to Manifest a dagger with inherent poisonous properties. Using the dagger, summoning it and dismissing it all draw on the power held within it on Manifestation.

  Orchard’s Gift - (II) - Granted by the Aptofir Veranis Dungeon, this Boon allows you to Manifest an apple infused with vitality. Ingesting the apple transfers this vitality, healing and sating the hunger of its consumer.

  The Mighty Drake - (III) - Granted by the Engans Deja Dungeon, this Boon allows you to Manifest Moby, a mighty drake, to aid you. The Manifestation is consumed in maintaining Moby’s presence, not his actions.

  Dauhaust’s Root - (III) - Granted by the Fyardi Veranis Dungeon, this Boon allows you to Manifest a spear which can leech from the blood of the foe. Using the leeching effect, maintaining it, summoning it and dismissing it all draw on the power held within it on Manifestation.

  Hunter’s Grace - (I) - Granted by the Kja Ascen Dungeon, this Boon allows you to use a Manifestation to receive a boost to all physical characteristics when hunting your prey. Maintaining the effect draws on the power of the Manifestation.

  Shroud of Shadows - (I) - Granted by the Valhol Murk Dungeon, this Boon allows you to become harder to see in dim lighting and darkness. You may also exert the Boon to dim the light surrounding you. Both exerting the Boon and maintaining it draw on the power held within it on Manifestation.

  Nature’s Path - (I) - Granted by the Dufsott Murk Dungeon, this Boon allows you to move without hindrance through natural terrain types. Maintaining the effect draws on the power of the Manifestation.

  Plexus Development - (VI) - This Boon may only be increased in rank by choosing it at additional Dungeons, but it has no cap on its rank level. Increases Manifestations available by one per rank. Granted by the Herrgak Deja, Julg Ascen, Firva Veranis, Haugask Deja, Wilfek Murk and Ormel Infernis Dungeons.

  Deed requirement to increase Tier

  1 - 5 Tier II or higher Dungeons bound

  He’d come a long way from when he’d first stumbled out of the Ascension Hall, unsure of what was happening and struggling to understand his new situation.

  “Alright,” Jake said, feeling his focus sharpen as he settled into his delving mindset. “Let’s do this.”

  The doors of the Dungeon swung soundlessly open as they moved inside, pausing long enough for Alan and Gargan to light their torches. The flickering light they provided wasn’t much, but it gave them enough to see by.

  Silently, they advanced through the foyer of the Dungeon, taking the first set of stairs they came to. At the base of the stairs was the familiar door to the Dungeon itself, and Jake waited only long enough to make sure they were ready before opening it and stepping into the inky darkness beyond.

  -**-

  “Well, this takes me back,” Jake said, more to himself than anything, as he looked around the warm tunnel with its porous black rock.

  Scattered rocks jutted out of the tunnel’s surface, giving off a dim red glow that added to the torchlight they brought with them. From past experience, Jake knew that they also gave off a lot of the heat that made these tunnels so oppressive.

  “Urgh, I’d forgotten how warm it was down here,” Alan said with a sigh. “It’s going to get real humid as well.”

  “Lovely,” Aspen muttered as he peered off into the dimly lit tunnel.

  “Come on, let’s get moving,” Jake said, waiting for Alan and Gargan before moving off down the tunnel.

  They were walking for all of thirty seconds before the dim light of the tunnel revealed a large lizard that was almost six feet from tail to head.

  A vivid red ridge ran from its head down to the base of the tail, and it had thick jaws that were bunched with muscle.

  In an echo of the first time they’d been here, Alan passed his torch off to Nepthys before putting an arrow through the lizard’s eye.

  The lizards had tough scales for what they were, but they still had their weak spots.

  “Just like old times, this’ll be easy,” Alan said, taking the torch back with a wide smile.

  Silence fell over the group as they all turned to stare at the Scholar with various expressions of disbelief.

  “I thought we’d got you past this,” Jake said plaintively. “Come on, Alan, you know better than this.”

  “Right, yeah, sorry,” Alan said, his cheeks flushing a bright red.

  Sighing, Jake turned back and started forwards once more. “Just for that, you can be the one taking them down for the first floor.”

  Alan groaned, but passed his torch back to Nepthys and drew another arrow as they continued down the tunnel.

  The first floor was a simple layout, with a single long tunnel running all the way to a larger open area at the end. The larger space came with much larger chunks of heated rock, which made everything less pleasant.

  It helped light up the room, though, which was something.

  Alan took down any lizards they encountered in the tunnel with single, well-placed shots, but was forced to rush a little for the larger area.

  Five of the lizards were grouped together, and as soon as Alan attacked one, the rest charged straight for the intruders.

  Once upon a time, Jake had thought these lizards were fast. By now, he knew better.

  While the lizards moved as quickly as they could, Alan’s enhanced reactions and speed meant that he was about to put an arrow in each of them before they could get more than halfway across the space.

  “Good job, Alan,” Jake said, giving his friend an approving nod as he collected the Wyrdgeld from the kills. A handful of coins would make little difference to any of them now, but they weren’t so advanced as to ignore the rewards of their work.

  Once they were done, Jake led the way down to the next floor.