[Short Story] After Landing On A Planet Delvers Peeve The Space Station Dungeon Core

Cold.

Hunger.

These two terms defined their existence. A simple sphere of crystal floating through the void of space. Around them is their one outlet, a space station they’ve slowly built up. It felt that the space is divided into five floors.

The crystal core also felt that all that allowed it to grow this big is the fact the core was traveling through space. This rapid travel is what allowed the core to absorb enough energy to survive. If it was staying in one place? Well, there is a reason it’s called the “void” of space.

That would hopefully change soon. It could not see far outside of its domain, but the core had felt an uptick in food. There is something ahead!

The core took another look over itself. Its first and now deepest floor was simple, but powerful. The walls are made partly of metal, but covered or replaced with resin over time. Their focus might have been on its more metal based monsters, but the first creature would always be the strange little hiveborn worker.

Around that original floor, the design went through a radical change. Shiny metal, polished regularly by the many janitor robots. With each step advanced, the core had delved deeper into the interesting mechanics of the physical world.

At first, this heavily leaned on constructs. Golems and the like. Though yeah, when lacking in power, those sort of monsters can be a drain. Thus, a focus on robots.

The core dimmed, time has also stripped it of its more fanciful designs as well. No longer did it have the jagged fire screamers with packs of barely contained chemicals that could spew liquid fire. The stompers and their heavy limbs that they flailed around with. Plus, any number of other monster patterns buried with time.

Not that the core didn’t have combat units! It shivered. The void of space is only mostly empty. Just as they floated free, there were other threats out there. The core avoided them when possible, but sometimes they sent out forces.

Which has resulted in their current janitors. They are quantified as spider walkers. The core didn’t care about that. It made them walkers because wheels sucked if gravity fails. Eight limbs is so it could walk around on a few while having the others to use as tools.

Those limbs? Tipped with regular grippers made with that resin material. Designed to make use of the needed tools, but they aren’t the manner of attack! Oh no, even if the grippers are quite good, the core didn’t trust them. Instead, a joint back from the end of the limbs, there is a fold out blade spike. It would swing down over the grippers and lock in place. Much more secure.

Though the core is quite annoyed at the limitations placed on its outer floor. That newest layer surrounding the station restricted how strong their janitors could be. In its memory, the core can recognize that this was simply how powerful everything had been to start. Still, it rankled to have access to much better janitors and not be able to have them out there working on the station.

There is only so much the core can do on the technology side of things. And without the high end janitors? The core wasn’t able to upgrade the outer floor. Those weak janitors simply are not precise enough. Even if given tools capable of making the changes, they could not properly use them.

Now though, the core turns away from the problem of their janitors not being strong enough. Instead, it would be dusting off some old patterns. The janitors are great for what they did. They could fight the various threats native to the void.

Except those threats were sporadic. The core had time to rebuild all the tools and attachments between fights. That would not be possible if the core ended up in a place where things would be more active. The core is going to need patterns that come combat ready from the get go. Patterns that don’t need to be equipped with tools the core can’t yet create for itself.

The core can’t help but shake side to side in disappointment. Technology is so wonderful, as it let the core jump ahead in a way that isn’t possible through other means. If only the core could spawn those advancements it made! 

But no, the core needed their most advanced janitors. A trio who could only exist within their core room. To craft the technology. Literally carving the circuit boards and such by “hand”.

Though others might refer to it jokingly as being by finger. The three janitors rested their central body on special pillars to allow the use of all eight limbs. Then instead of the usual grippers, the end of their limbs are tipped with eight miniature limbs, each a specialized tool. Their size, precision, and power allow each limb to do the work of two regular janitors. Except the work is of the highest quality.

The core glowed as the trio began to work. Not frantically, there was time. So the core sat back as old designs were taken apart and rebuilt with the newer tech.

The basic humanoid golem was streamlined and handed a crossbow the core had figured out that used magnetics instead of tension. The weapon had some strange name, railgun, but the core thought of it as the coilbow. Benefits of the golem being their simplistic interior allowing them to take a beating and keep on ticking.

There is an early robot tank, which handled gravity loss through more magnets. A robot flyer, which is more of a bomb with wings, but with a mini auto-crossbow attached to the undercarriage made them just that bit more effective. Lastly, there is the janitor’s predecessor, an arachnoid walker, except the limbs ended on weapons. Useful as it allowed them to make greater use of the robots own power and thus shock and burn those attacked instead of just stab and slice.

The core sighed to itself. There was so much more it could do to these monsters! Why use a regular crossbow on the flyers when they have the coilbow? Because that last step tips the pattern over into something the core can’t spawn.

Then there were those special weapon modes on the walker. Sure is nice, would be nicer to add them to the tank! Nope, even at present, the tank seems to be at the edge of what the core is allowed to spawn, limited to a ballista on a turret.

The core settles back down. With the patterns all upgraded, there wasn’t much else to do but wait.

A monstrous crash broke that wait. Not that the core felt anything. Its territory is sacrosanct so a minor collision with a planet wasn’t going to rattle things.

Why did the core figure on being now planet bound? Well, the atmosphere outside of its crashed space station is one hint. The odd green vegetation is another. Not that the core really knew what being on a planet meant. Well, except it seemed to now have a proper gravity field and so didn’t need to handle that anymore.

Then in basically no time at all, what to the outside world was only three years and a few months, invaders showed up. Except, not? Delvers? This is completely new to the core.

Five beings, they must be humanoids, given their resemblance to the humanoid golem. They died.

The core felt disappointment. Not in the delvers, but themself. After all, the outer floor had limited each monster’s power and they had barreled through it. Seems there was a reason. This would take some effort.

The effort is worth it though as in practically no time at all (only a month!), a new group arrived. This group of delvers managed to explore around the outer floor and leave. Which while providing less power to the core, is worth it if they keep coming back.

Then the dungeon lazed around for a while, watching as more and more delvers showed up. A few even managed to dip into the second floor and survive. Things were looking good.

That is, until some unexpected delvers showed up. A team of six who felt like suns compared to the other delvers that glowed like campfires. This new team blazed through the first floor, facing every challenge and monster to be had.

The second floor didn’t slow them down either, nor the third. It is on the fourth floor that they finally stopped their delve. Though not because of the challenge.

The core had kept the resin to the original floor for the most part. Except “for the most part” doesn’t actually mean it isn’t elsewhere. Because that is exactly what that team of powerful delvers had run across. A section of wall partially covered in resin. Which for some reason had really gotten them agitated. The core isn’t sure why, but not much they could do about it.

Then that group returned and rushed through the early floors, right back to where they left off. And since the core hadn’t wanted to do anything, the resin was still on the wall. A resin that the delvers quickly chipped off a bunch of chunks before rushing out once again. Quite odd behavior, but the core decided to not let this bother it.

So they weren't shocked when the group returned and once again rushed to that point on the fourth floor. Though this time they continued their delve. The group of delvers is even back to the whole “explore it all” thing.

It wasn’t until the group reached the fifth floor that things changed. The core had livened the place up with some stronger robots and got the single hiveborn worker to go hide. The little fellow had been the core’s very first monster and they felt attached to it.

Except the delvers didn’t seem to want to let things lay. They cleared the floor and checked in the core room. Except they didn’t leave or fight the janitors with the core. The group went right back to five and began to search, not leaving a single stone unturned.

The core watched with concern. A concern that proved justified. This group of delvers didn’t stop until they found that hiveborn worker.

Then they killed it.

This isn’t traumatic for the core or anything, but it was peeved! It had cared about that monster. Well, if they care so much about the hiveborn? Let them have all the hiveborn!

The core had been holding off on a new floor since, well; it felt like forever. Now? Well, there is a ton of power! It could expand and not starve itself. So it did.

And until now they hadn’t made more of the hiveborn for a number of reasons, but the biggest is that the core had a habit of flushing the atmosphere. In fact, the outer couple floors were always under a vacuum before arriving on this planet. Now though? Eh, it’s harder to keep a vacuum.

So, with an atmosphere, they could now have the hiveborn around without sacrificing them anytime a powerful enemy arrived. And with the decision made, the hiveborn popped up all over the fifth and sixth floor. Workers, warriors, and even a queen on the sixth.

To say the delvers are a bit peeved about this change? Well, yeah, bit of an understatement. That original group of delvers made their way to the fifth floor and we’re not happy with what they saw.

They went crazy! The six of them tore through the fifth floor, killing the hiveborn and destroying the resin that is destructible. Then the delvers found the sixth floor.

The six blasted through this floor. Even the queen isn’t able to stop them. Though it did provide a challenge.

Except it didn’t stop with that. The group advanced into the core room with murder in their eyes. This is bad.

Or, it could have been, except the core wasn’t limited within its core. Those three janitors? They can’t leave the core room because their technology was simply too advanced! And those delvers? They can’t handle it.

The group is forced to retreat. Though they didn’t give up and other groups joined them. Such a shame for them that their society seemed to be mostly magic based. There is technology of a sort, but they lacked the knowledge and tools to make headway against the trio.

This gave the core the time needed to advance itself in other ways. In particular, the core went heavily into the hiveborn, turning itself into a major danger for the entire world it landed on.

The core ignored all of this, instead focused on having fun advancing its biological monsters.