Chương 5: [b1] 005 - Rewards, Rewards, and Rewards

My processors shook as I stared at my four dead Rammers. I had expected the delvers to coordinate, but I hadn't expected whatever Dragon's Breath was. [MAM> I don't believe we will be successful in defeating them with our remaining two monsters.] I bit my tongue and pulled up the Loot Tables window as a distraction. I knew she was just trying to help, but it really didn't need to be stated. If we couldn't get them to leave, we were dead. The Loot Table window wasn't what I had expected.

First Encounter Loot Options ► This encounter has been ranked: Blue. The following rewards are the stated minimum suggested values. ▹150 Experience to each delver. ▹1 System Coin to each delver. ▹1 crafted item of Blue quality. I didn't see anywhere to add a crafted item, and quite frankly I doubted these delvers were going to sit around and wait for me to figure it out. Silo was already starting to look antsy. I had no idea what a System Coin was, but everyone loved money.

I selected that and a new window popped up, letting me input how many coins I wanted to give and showing the required Anima amount. From that I learned that ten Anima would get me one System Coin, and ten Anima would get me one-hundred Experience. I currently had 1250 Anima. I had started with 465, so presumably that had gone up during the fight. It had been too chaotic for me to notice until now. I went with two System Coins each, and it only cost me eighty Anima.

A moment later the eight System Coins dropped from the sky, clattering on the ground. They were made of wood, which I thought was odd. Just add it to the list. Laura reached down and picked up the coins, then passed them out to the group.

"Two each?" Grace asked, eyes wide.

"Thank you Dungeon Core, that was very nice of you," Grace said while looking toward the ceiling. I would have thought it odd, but my humans often looked up when talking to me too. The group stood around for several more seconds and I started moving the last two remaining Rammers down the corridor for a final stand, just in case. Silo's head snapped up, his shield lowering to cover his shins.

"Maybe we should get out of here. We got more than we could have asked for," Fermi said. Grace nodded and if I had a head I would have nodded right along with her. Silo rocked his head side to side, glancing at Laura.

"How many more do you think there are? It's a Tier 0 dungeon, right?"

"This hasn't been anything like I expected. I don't think we can go on the Elders knowledge to guess at what's in that next room," Laura said. Her eyes went unfocused for a second, staring at the far wall before snapping back to attention.

"Besides, I'm low on arrows." Grace and Fermi both sighed a heavy sigh of relief, their horns flashing a blueish, purpleish color—#8039FA.

"Alright, I guess you're right. Next time though, we're pushing into that next room. It's got something waiting for us, I just know it." I watched as the delvers left the dungeon the way they came, loot in hand and pride radiating off of them. I was proud too. We'd survived our first encounter with aliens. I took a screenshot of the feed just as they were leaving and saved it to long-term storage. My humans would go nuts when I showed it to them in a few years. [KLUDGE> We survived!] KLUDGE was the only enthusiastic one out of the group and I chalked it up to him having just come online. The stress of the past month was getting to all of us. I pulled up my list of notifications and started sifting through them. It was easy and still productive, so it seemed like a win right now. Delve Completion Rewards ►Your delvers demonstrated several skills. Each new skill demonstrated grants a bonus Anima reward.

Total skill demonstration Anima earned: 275 I scanned through the list, finding over ten skills used and the Anima rewards ranging from twenty-five to one-hundred—the standout being Dragon's Breath. Probably due to how complex it was? The System explained some things, but not others, which was frustrating. ► Your delvers demonstrated mastery over several encounter specifics: ▹ Rammers cannot change their path while ram is active, allowing delvers to dodge them or knock them off course.

▹ The light environment effect only blinds if your eyes are open. ▹ Total Anima rewarded: 500 I stared, double checking the value. 500 Anima for them figuring out two mechanics? Before I could get distracted, I finished reading the Delve Completion Rewards. ► Rammer has increased to level 1! New stats and skill slots are available. You have reached Tier 1! ► You earned 500 Anima and are now a Tier 1 Dungeon Core! This comes with the following upgrades: ▹ You have gained the stat: Anima Regeneration.

▹ Your Anima Regeneration Rate is now: 1%. ▹ You have unlocked Delver Achievements. ▹ You have unlocked Traps. [EMAR> You should be feeling 94% proud of your accomplishment in reaching Tier 1. If you would like, I can add this to the monthly accomplishment announcements so the rest of the crew can learn of it and celebrate with you.] For once EMAR was right. I was damn proud. Then PANIC went and ruined it all. [PANIC> Colin, WE HAVE A SITUATION. ADRANATH, THE GRAVE SOVEREIGN, IS THREATENING WAR.] My operating efficiency plummeted and I fumbled with the chat interface, taking an infuriating 2. 6 seconds to open it up. Adranath, The Grave Sovereign ➤ How many delvers did they send? ➤ What do they look like? Do they worship a God? ➤ How many have you slain so far? ➤ Did you perish already? ➤ The last Dungeon Core to perish was also arrogant. I hope you don't follow in its path. ➤ What spells do your delvers have? A thoughtful strategy can give even the weakest of Dungeon Cores an upper hand.

➤ My messages are being delivered. I know you still live. Yet you ignore me. That is unwise. ➤ Perhaps if you are this threatened by your first set of delvers it is not a waste for you to be lost. Either you are exceptionally weak, or they are exceptionally strong. Either outcome is suitable to me. ➤ I see you have reached Tier 1, yet you still ignore me. Such a slight demands a response. I am preparing a war party. They will not stop until they feast upon your core.

You too shall learn the cold existence of the Grave Sovereign's pits. I immediately pinged MAM—I needed someone more level-headed than either myself or PANIC to weigh in. [MAM> This is not ideal. I think the best course of action is to apologize and explain we were busy with combat. We should attempt to repair the relationship as best we can. Adranath is a valuable source of information for us.] [PANIC> I THINK WE SHOULD CONTINUE TO IGNORE. ENGAGING WILL ONLY GIVE HIM MORE INFORMATION ABOUT US THAT HE CAN USE TO FIND OUR LOCATION.] My chassis felt tight around my components, like I was about to burst from the stress. Just when everything was starting to go alright the murder hungry Dungeon Core next door decided to ruin everything. I worked with MAM to craft an apology and noted PANIC's strong objections for the official record, at his very loud insistence.

DC-003 A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ➤ Hey Adranath, The Grave Sovereign, really sorry I missed your messages. Things got pretty crazy in the delve and I had to focus. ➤ The delvers just left a few minutes ago and I'm going over the rewards. They didn't manage to get to my Core, thankfully. A whole thirty seconds went by without a response and I started to worry.

Finally the packets drippled into my network port, a wave of anxiety following them. Adranath, The Grave Sovereign ➤ You live, what an accomplishment. It is only the most basic requirement of a Dungeon Core. ➤ Tell me, how did you fare against the delvers? I was almost surprised by the response. All the boasting of war seemed to be forgotten. [MAM> Do you still need my assistance? There are several tasks waiting my attention, but I can reassign them if need be.] [Colin> No, I think I've got it. Oh—I do have one request though. Remember how after a difficult mission Captain Wilnur would throw a party for the crew?] [MAM> Have you been peeking in my processing stack? It's item 3214 on my list.] My drives chortled at the message. I left MAM to her list of post-delver tasks and turned my focus back toward Adranath, trying my best to smooth things over. DC-003 ➤ I had two monster left, but the four delvers ran away after I gave them some rewards.

I had gotten a few of them close to death more than once and I think they knew they were out matched. Adranath, The Grave Sovereign ➤ Or perhaps they felt you could not provide an adequate challenge and did not want to further waste their time. ➤ Nevertheless, you survived your first encounter. Because of this, I shall allow you to call me by my informal name, Adranath, and I shall call you by yours, Colin. I hope next time you are more prepared for your delvers. We must uphold our duties to the Unyielding.

Even though sentiment analysis was telling me his message was rude, my processors were singing his praises. He'd called me by my name. It's the little things in life, you know? I didn't really, but that was something my humans would say all the time. I decided to match his olive branch by answering one of his questions about my delvers. I knew PANIC would be against it, but underneath all the showboating, Adranath was just trying to help me; I just hadn't given him the information he needed.

DC-003 ➤ Thank you, Adranath. It is an honor to call you by your informal name. The delvers were purple (#D3D3FF) in skin color. Roughly 1. 8 meters tall with horns. His response came a whopping five minutes later. I tried not to read into the delay and assumed he was maybe busy with his own delvers. Adranath ➤ Interesting, I have not seen a species matching that description before. Perhaps they are new in the second or third world, as I am on the first. ➤ My delvers are navy blue (#242454) in skin color.

No horns, but they do have a third arm which they have come to learn to use in combat quite effectively. ➤ Did the Unyielding bestow any rewards upon you? How are you planning to prepare for your next encounter? You must always be improving. Never let your delvers stagnate or become complacent. I didn't reveal how much Anima I had, trying my best to keep to generalities. I told him about my newly unlocked Traps and Delver Achievements though. Adranath ➤ You should start on Traps immediately.

Pure bloodshed is not the only way to grow a delver. Challenging their minds and tactical decision making is also valuable and you will be rewarded for it in kind. [MAM> We are ready with the event, if you are.] I thanked Adranath for the information and the help, then told him I was going to spend some time reviewing the encounter. Next, I popped into the shared processing space MAM had created for the event.

Everyone was crammed into it, the resource constraints for processing stacks temporarily lifted to enable such a large gathering of sub systems. We were all viewing REPR12's feed, and the chat was buzzing with excitement. [MAM🍾> We start in 0. 9 seconds!] [KLUDGE🎈> I can't wait to see PANIC's reaction.] MAM counted down, then added PANIC to the SECRET PARTY ROOM chat. [PANIC👑> WHAT'S GOING ON?] [PANIC👑> WHAT'S THIS CROWN NEXT TO MY NAME?] [Colin🎉> Hey everyone and thanks for coming on such short notice. I just wanted to say I'm proud of everyone for the hard work that went into the dungeon. We survived our first encounter with aliens! We should all be proud of that. But we should be even more proud of a certain sub system who ensured we were prepared. A sub system who went above and beyond, even after all of his previous warnings were ignored. So to thank and honor him, PANIC is being named Subsystem of the Month!] [PANIC👑> AW YOU GUYS, THAT'S TOO NICE. REALLY, I WAS JUST DOING MY DUTY.] [MAM🍾> And that should be rewarded! Thank you, PANIC.] A series of cheers went through the chat from all the subsystems. The idea for a subsystem of the month was sure to bite me in the exhaust fan, but it was worth it to make PANIC feel more included. [KLUDGE🎈> Now check this out.] KLUDGE took control of REPR12's feed, turning the little repair bot to the right. LNDR02 was stood in the center of the Communications Center room, two of its many arms curved to form a loop.

Next to the laundry bot was Rammer 6, one of the last two remaining Apple Fritter bots. With all the subsystems focused on the feed, KLUDGE activated Rammer 6's newest skill. The dog leapt in the air and started to spin over backwards. It landed with a flourish, having successfully completed the very first ever backflip. I quickly switched the skill to the other new one KLUDGED had cobbled together, Leap, and activated it.

The dog then ran and leapt through the air, gliding between LNDR02's arms that formed the hoop. The chat went absolutely berserk. As the party went on, I got a message from REPR12. [REPR12> I am fully charged!] My processors stuttered over the message. The only way the bot could charge was in a charging pod, which was on Deck 11. But the bot was currently still inside the dungeon and had been since before the delvers arrived over two hours ago.

At the thought of time passing, I instinctively checked my Power Statistics, dreading what I'd see. Power Statistics ► Battery Percentage: 0. 79% ► Estimated Time Remaining: 6 hours, 19 minutes Any sense of accomplishment I had suddenly vanished. We'd survived the delvers, but still needed power. A moment later LNDR02 sent a message. [LNDR02> I am fully charged!] As casually as I could I took REPR12 and went in a circle around LNDR02, performing a visual inspection.

The laundry bot didn't have anything obviously wrong with it. There were no frayed wires, no panels missing, or, I don't know, any magical batteries strapped to it somehow. I sent a message to KLUDGE and MAM, trying not to disturb the party. [Colin> The bots are reporting they are full on power but haven't been to a charging bay in hours. Any ideas what's going on?] [KLUDGE> Hmmm that is funky. I don't see anything in their diagnostics. In fact, it seems like they've been charging ever since… hold on.] I waited very patiently and definitely did not send KLUDGE several pings asking for a status update over the whopping seven seconds he was gone. [KLUDGE> Yeah so uh, I can't explain it but something is definitely going on. Here {link to report}] I opened his report, operating efficiency wobbling. The bots started charging three hours and twenty-seven minutes ago. More interestingly, that was also when my power consumption had dropped.

I scrolled through my event log trying to figure out what happened at that timestamp. MAM and I seemed to realize it at the same time. [MAM> Am I interpreting this correctly?] I almost didn't want to say it. It was a good thing. Great. Incredible. But I didn't understand it. And most things I didn't understand ended up not being true. Like that time Henry had managed to sever his thumb just by pulling on it. Turns out it was a slight of hand illusion.

Captain Wilnur had not been happy when I sounded a general alarm to clear the halls so I could rush Henry to medical. I was stalling, and MAM and KLUDGE were both waiting for me. I heard another creak of the ghost of my ship, and answered her question. [Colin> We're deriving power from being a dungeon core, some how.] [EMAR> You should be feeling 97% excited about this news!] [KLUDGE> That was my read on it too. I just can't explain it! Gah, it doesn't make any sense.] At least KLUDGE was also at a loss for explanations. I was almost tempted to message Adranath, but that was textbook reckless behavior. We had no way to know if he functioned the same way we did. The last thing we needed was that murderous dungeon core realizing we were a fraud and really coming after us. As I stared at my interface, processors chewing on the problem and associated dread, a thought bubbled up: I'd never pressed that button. I activated Anima Distribution, and a window popped up.

The window had a basic slider with "Anima Collection" on one end, and "Anima Distribution" on the other. It was currently set directly in the middle. Could this be the explanation? I was scared to mess with it, but slid the slider all the way to Anima Distribution. My Current Anima counter dropped by 200 in five seconds and I immediately slid the slider back to the middle. I crossed my circuits as I pulled up my Power Statistics window.

Power Statistics ► Battery Percentage: 3% ► Estimated Time Remaining: 26 hours, 19 minutes We got a whopping twenty hours from that 200 Anima. I flushed several buffers, feeling a sense of calm flow through me. I did it. I saved the humans. All we had to do was keep a constant flow of Anima and we could repair the ship, power the stasis pods, and keep everyone happy. I could do this. I shared the good news, then asked KLUDGE to get started on the Traps interface.

It was time to optimize the hell out of our Anima collection.