Chapter 112

AN: I know it's more than five hours and two days late, but it's here! Also unedited.

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The Creator, Atlantis, The Kalenic Sea

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I spent the next month in a sort-of half-trance.

First, I established two new islands; completing the roughly circular arrangement of the Elemental Isles. Gravity and Sound filled in the remaining two opposing spaces. Though they weren't exactly opposing concepts like some of the others were.

Perhaps my circular opposing-elemental wheel design was flawed... All well. Too late to change it now.

Ilha da Gravidade was an interesting land. It was a floating island, bobbing up and down gently on the surface and pushed around slightly by the waves. it was unsettling to walk upon, like standing on a ship. The vertigo experienced was an added hurdle. The island was taller than it was wide, towering cliffs with no easy access route to reach the top. Around the island's immediate vicinity, boulders like the one I'd used to test were anchored to the island by huge vines.

For now, no monsters inhabited the island. Gravity Manabeings, however, were a different story. 

They took a variety of forms. Most were normal stone golems, but they were unique in the fact that their body parts were disconnected. The stones floated around each other with a purple glow, looking like a certain Storm Atronach from a northern land. The fairy-sized Manabeings... Calling them fairies all the time is getting confusing. Pixies, I'll call them Pixies. Plenty of pixies populated the plethora of islands. The few Potentium golems I gave them were terrifying to behold. Like the stone golems, they deconstructed their bodies into floating chunks, which were arranged in a vaguely humanoid form. Where the Potentium golems differed was in their ability to shoot pebble-sized chunks of their bodies at their targets like a railgun, and at what seemed to be an equivalent speed.

Like I said; Terrifying.

Strana Zvuka, in comparison, was mostly underground. Sound was most dangerous when confined, and this island took advantage of that fact.

Sound Manabeings were, unsurprisingly, more ethereal than Air manabeings, but less than darkness manabeings. They could be disrupted, but not harmed by normal weapons. They were, quite literally, sound itself. I think the powers their golems and Potentium golems possessed were quite self-evident. Throughout the tunnel and caverns I scattered Sound golems, as well as smaller versions of the Hellbats. Unlike their Hellbat cousins, however, these were completely blind and far more in tune with their magic. The tunnels were soon full of thunder-clap like bursts of sound, and any who entered the bare hole in the ground would need extensive hearing protection to even approach the island.

I was still undecided on what the island's Relics would do. 

Like I'd suspected, the hole my Core Island left behind turned into a lagoon. It was populated by a huge number and variety of fish monsters, taking advantage of the high mana content of the waters left behind. It was a good thing I'd redirected the manastream in the currents around the lagoon to a now-permanent waterspout under the storm clouds, otherwise the mana down there would have started mutating the fish beyond all recognition.

When I'd done with my first pass over the islands, I turned my attention to the clouds above.

Every cloud that floated through the skies of the Eleventh now hid an island from any looking up. 

I quickly discovered Water cores could be enchanted to produce an endless stream of water, and set up a few on each island. I just liked the aesthetic of eternal waterfalls that sustained the clouds shrouding the islands, to be honest. they were heavily populated by Four-winged feathered Pterodactyl-like monsters that resembled those from a distant planet occupied by blue people. I wasn't sure what to call them yet. Banshees? Ah, it'll come to me, I'm sure.

Wave was excited to explore the islands, and had a very pertinant question to ask.

"Creator, when will you create more like me?"

He'd been playing with a couple of the four-winged monsters, but stopped to perch on a rock and look towards the storm clouds.

I'm not sure, Wave. I always intended for Dragons and dragon-like monsters and Children to be my most powerful, in the depths of the dungeon. Your current state certainly wasn't in my plans. Are you lonely?

"A little. It's fun exploring the Eleventh but... as much as I try to explain what it's like to Taura, there's so much that I just can't explain. How it feels to fly, and dive the deepest parts of the ocean, the freedom I feel..."

Could I examine your memories and feelings?

"Of course, Creator."

I examined the blue Amphibious Wyvern. It'd been a while since he'd been changed, and as far as I could tell he'd fully accepted his transformation. There was no longing for a smaller body, only a wish to share with his friend. There was some loneliness there; Aston and Towers had both left the dungeon. Taura was the only one who visited his cliff-side home. The other Children in the port town below his lair were too respectful of his status to bother him.

Something I more than emphasized with.

Alright then. Maybe a few more. 

"Thank you, Creator! If it's not too much, could I request Taura be made a Wyvern too?"

Oh boy, he really loves that minotaur, huh? Is this the first case of a cross-species romance among the Children?

I'll certainly try, Wave, as long as she agrees. Fair warning, though. Even if Taura made into a Wyvern, you probably won't be able to have children with her. You may look the same, but deep inside your genetics are very different. Minotaurs are mammals descended from cows, and you are a reptile descended from salamanders. 

"Are you sure?" Wave asked, kicking a stone off the cliff and acting bashful. He no longer processed a body capable of blushing, but he made it known in other ways.

No. I'm not. You can certainly try... just, go into it with a clear mind.

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Wyvern's Rest, The Eleventh Floor, The Dungeon

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Taura woke quickly, blinking awake as light streamed into her window. She rose from her bed with a yawn and stretch, leaving the comfort it promised behind. It was springy thanks to the metal wool springs, and the soft wool of both normal sheep and Capriccio kept in the warmth. Taura quickly dressed, and began her morning routine.

Her breakfast was a mixture of oats, seeds and hay, mixed with a decent helping of milk. The 'cereal,' as The Creator had dubbed it, had everything a Minotaur needed to start their day. It was complimented by a small helping of cut fruits, and a glass of juiced oranges. Now full of energy, Taura grabbed her bag and left her small home.

Well. Small was a relative term. It was sized for a Minotaur, so by definition it was medium-sized. It was a two-room home, is what she meant.

As Taura walked down the wide avenue that led to the water's edge, Taura waved to the Children going about their days. Drake-kin, Kobolds, Snowbolds, Minotaur, Capriccio, Scorpans, and Crabfolk all enjoying the sea breeze. Wyvern's Rest, named for her best friend, was the largest town on the floor, and certainly the most populous. Plenty of Children had made the descent to live here and there was evena couple of farms outside the town growing crops and raising animals.

The port was bustling by the time she arrived. Crabfolk, the newest addition to the Children, were the majority down here. They had an affinity for ships and sailing that most other Children lacked; a natural ability Taura could only claim had been gifted by The Creator Himself. Taura's destination today wasn't the port itself, but the bazaar that had sprung up nearby. Though trade on the Eleventh was still in it's infancy, there were enough smaller towns that had unique resources they could trade to Wyvern's Rest.

One stall was full of fruit and vegetables grown and gathered from Fons Vitae, the Life Island. Another stall sold a huge variety of fish, and the cores that'd been harvested from them. But it wasn't just the islands that provided trade. Goods from every Floor could be found here; such as the item Taura was looking for.

She quickly located the stall selling jewelry, and her eyes glittered as much as the stones. The Drake-kin behind the stall, scales a rose-gold color, was very helpful, and Taura left that day with a new nose ring! It'd cost a decent number of Talons, but it was well worth it in her eyes. Her old ring was very old, one she'd been wearing since she was very small. This one was more appropriately sized.

Taura finished the rest of her shopping afterward; stocking up on various foodstuffs, mostly. She found a set of Phoenix Feathers she thought Wave would like, remembering how he said he was originally from the Third.

Just as she was finishing up, a roar echoed across the floor. It was one she was very familiar with. Wave flew down from a cloud, his blue scales glittering against the fluffy white and grey. He was back! Taura rushed home to put her shopping away, then sprinted down the path that let to her friend's lair.

The clip-clop of her hooves against the stone road was a decent warning for the Children ahead of her to clear the way, some 'excuse mes!' and 'make ways!' sufficed when that wasn't enough. Most smiled, laughed or waved as she ran past them. 

She made it up to Wave's Lair in good time, and after a couple of seconds to catch her breath at the entrance, she walked right in.

Wave was sitting attentively, his eyes locking on her the instant she entered. At the same moment, Taura felt The Creator's presence intensify

Hello Taura.

"Creator! Is something going on?"

Well, yes. Taura, Wave has asked if it's possible for you to join him as a Wyvern.

Taura felt her breath hitch, her eyes immediately locking on the nervous flying lizard himself.

He wishes to show you the floor, not just tell stories of it. If you agree, He'll bring you to the Core Island, and I'll get to work. I know you two have feelings for each other-

Taura felt her heart beat faster in her chest, eyes still locked on Wave. He felt... He had feelings for her too?!

-I've never made two Monsters into the same species before, so I don't know what the result will be. I also don't know if you'll be compatible, but it is a possibility.

"Yes," Taura said aloud. "I want to be w- like Wave."

Alright then. I'll be seeing you soon, then.

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The Great Hall, High Temple of the Gods, The Holy City

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It'd been a long month for Tamesou Akio. His training had really intensified after that first dungeon dive. Confident that they could handle a little more and granted 'Silver' rank after being registered with the Adventurers Guild, they were taken to three different dungeons. They spent a week in each, and Akio could really feel the differences between these and Amaterasu's old dungeon.

The three dungeons they delved were 'Tamed.' Basically, they were dungeons claimed in the same way Akio claimed Amaterasu, but kept as dungeons rather than turned into equipment. They were cultivated and guided into shaping their dungeons how the dungeon 'master' wished. Monsters were carefully designed and created for express purposes, and implanted with instincts to act in certain ways. 

Akio would liken them to attack patterns and pre-programed responses, Like monsters from a video game. Compared to Amaterasu's dungeon, they felt... artificial. Constructed.

Fake.

The danger was still real, but there was a feeling he'd noticed and found Sophie and Bruce shared with him. There was a lack. Once they learned the monster's attack patterns, they were easy. Easy to bait into overextending, then take advantage of the opening. 

Each dungeon had it's own 'theme' as it were. One was a classic dungeon found in the middle of a city; made with stone walls and plenty of iron bars and doors. The monsters were large rats, dogs and cats, mostly. The boss of each floor, or 'Guardian' as the natives called them, was just a larger version of that floor's monster with a bit of extra oomph.

The second was a 'Cave' dungeon. This one was full of foxes, a couple of overly aggressive deer, and even another bear! That one was much smaller than the one they'd fought before, though. And easier to fight.

The third was called a 'slime' dungeon. It was pretty unique, according to Jinasa. It'd apparently already created the 'slimes' before it was found, and as will all unique things, it'd been exploited for all it was worth. The slimes were pretty resistant to slashing attacks, so his sword was pretty useless, but Bruce's water magic could pop the things with the wave of his hand. The small, weak ones at least. The larger ones had thicker skins and had less water in their makeup.

Honestly, Akio felt like his skills with the blade had grown more from his training with Guard-Captain Heliat than fighting the monsters. He didn't want to get too comfortable or arrogant here; these were little more than NPCs. They weren't real opponents; they couldn't innovate and change things up, nor learn from their mistakes.

He expressed his frustration to his sensei and the paladin had nodded sagely.

"Good, Young Akio," he'd said. "It is true, Tame dungeons aren't much of a challenge. It's the Wild dungeons that really push you to your limits. Unfortunetly, most wild dungeons are hunted down pretty quickly. If they're given too much time to grow and learn how to purposefully breed their monsters, they could start flooding their surroundings with hundreds of monsters! That's how most wild monsters ended up out in the world." The man patted Akio's shoulder.

"Don't worry, my young trainee," Heliat said, his voice taking on a conspiratory tone. "You're doing much better than your fellow heroes. I heard the High Priest say they were ready to send off to dungeons we just visited." Akio felt his eyes widen. Were they that far ahead? Why?

"But either way, you're right. The Tame dungeons are too easy for you three. I'm looking into getting permission to go farther abroad. I've heard tale of a Grindstone off the east coast, though that one has a Gold Rank requirement on it, and strange rumors of monsters walking in cities," Heliat's brow furrowed at the last sentence. He shook his head, and once again gave Akio his trademark confident grin. "But never mind that. It won't be for a week or so, at the earliest. Take a few days off; spend them with your friends. After that, it's back to training! We'll see how quickly you can earn that Gold Rank, hmm?"

Akio rushed off to meet his friends, excited to share the news.

They would finally be able to see more of this world! Their real journey in another world is finally about to start!

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