Chương 61: 60-Questions and Answers

Mary Beth studied the newcomers carefully.

"Ah. The Losers. Imprinted with a broken system. Bound by defective manacles. Still manacles, though. You are of no use to me," she finished, as if that were the only thing that mattered. Billy's kick had displaced her to the far wall. The Losers were standing next to Aram, Elena, Mel, and Dawn. Anne and the horrified Milwaukee kids were standing next to the door leading to the dormitory on the other side of the room.

Mary Beth stood between them and the other group—there was no way they could exit the room without approaching her. Mary Beth looked at the kids, then at Billy, and gave her wolfish smile.

"We have an interesting situation here," she said.

"I am almost tempted to make a deal with you. I would not stand by it, and would end up eating you all anyway, but negotiating it would be fun."

"I am a predator, and a predator toys with its food."

"You already said that, asshole. You suck at villain monologues," Elena said, surprising them all. She had never sworn before. Ever. Bob took advantage of the interruption to make his move. Information was a weapon. Alarel's Wisdom (Palooga 4): Throw the ball marked with Alarel's name. If it hits an enemy, it will reveal all information that could be obtained with Gaze of the Eternal Warrior. Requires Gaze of the Eternal Warrior 4. The ball zoomed towards Mary Beth's head. She did not even move.

She did not need to. Suddenly, space shifted —the ball continued following a straight-line trajectory, but the whole world rearranged itself around that line. It no longer ended at Mary Beth's head, but at Mel's. Lawman reacted so fast that his right hand made a zooming sound as he struck the ball at the last instant, deflecting it and saving Mel from a potentially lethal blow.

"Tsk, tsk, Bob," Mary Beth chided him.

"If you wanted to know about my powers, you only had to ask. As you see, I have just shifted spatial dimensions. It is a power that was originally contained by the White Wraith, the Core of a dungeon with more than three standard dimensions known as the Broken Dirge—I ate it last week."

"I am a connoisseur of dungeons and their powers. I consume both. I know every flavor. I can taste any nuance. I would say that I am godlike, but as you know, there is no God, there is only me."

"As for my weakness, I have none. That is the same information you would have obtained from your silly Palooga ball."

"Mel, take the kids away from here," Jenna curtly ordered.

"No," said Mary Beth. She was not angry or argumentative. She merely stated how things would be.

"They are mine, and so is she." The Losers approached Mary Beth slowly. Mel ran behind their backs, taking advantage of the protection they offered, and tried to reach the children. Mary Beth sighed.

"This one comes from the Forbidden House, where repressed evil thoughts animate the shadows of those who think them. I hope you appreciate it—it is one of my favorites." Suddenly, Mel could not move: her silhouette had become three-dimensional and jumped on her. Mel screamed as shadowy hands reached her throat. No one came to help her; they all had their own problems. Lawman dodged a boomerang made of shadow thrown at him by his dark counterpart… Bob blinked out of the way of a ball of black fire.

His shadow jumped out of the wall, dreadful magic coalescing around its hands… Jenna and her doppelganger attacked each other with swords, their weapons so blindingly fast that they struck sparks each time they clashed… Dawn and her dark twin threw words at each other, neither giving ground… The kids screamed in horror as Mary Beth ignored the fighters and turned towards them, her dreadful smile plastered on her face.

"No need to be afraid. We have always been good friends, and we are going to become family. Here and now." A long, black tongue slipped out of her mouth and licked her face before disappearing back inside it. ◇ Bob studied his nemesis carefully, realizing its weakness without needing to resort to a perk: It could do everything he could, but it did not have his gear. The Skillmaster decided to take advantage of that. Gambling Die: This arcanic focus will activate any improvised perk as if it were two levels lower.

It won't work on perks over rank four. The perk must be based on the Gambling skill and becomes dismantled as soon as it is used. Bound to the Skillmaster. Bob summoned the die from its inventory and rolled it across the floor, like a polyhedral bowling ball. He created the perk before it stopped moving. Flash of Light (Gambling 3): The Gambling Die will emit a strong pulse of light when it stops rolling. There is a 1-in-10 chance it will cast Living Volcano (Flamecraft 3) instead of Flash of Light.

Requires Living Volcano. Requires the Gambling Die. Will self-dismantle once used.

"Block your eyes," Bob shouted through the now-functional Blood Link, an instant before the die stopped rolling and emitted a blast of light so white and pure Bob could feel it through his closed eyelids. A chorus of agonized screams ensued—voices identical to his own and those of his friends. No, not their voices. Those of their shadows. When he opened them, they were all gone. He used spheric polyvalence to teleport the die back to his hand—it had so many facets it counted as a sphere.

"Billy, distract her," Bob thought as he cast a Celestial Gate near the group of kids. Lawman somersaulted in mid-air, aiming for a karate chop on Mary Beth's head with a reinforced gauntlet. Mary Beth looked at him, and he froze, suspended mid-air. Jenna put all her freebies into Body and zoomed at her, wielding her Elven axe and rolling on her enchanted skates, like an out-of-control minivan. Mary Beth pointed a finger at her, and Jenna was thrown backward as if she had struck a brick wall.

She fell in a heap, most of her bones broken. She groaned as she forced them to heal; they made snapping sounds as they set themselves back.

"What you felt was the inertia of Lawman's attack. I absorbed it and used it against you as a weapon. That power came from the Blue Screamer of Thornton, bless his cute, black, poisonous heart," Mary Beth explained.

"What shall we do with you now?" she asked as she studied the floating, helpless form of Lawman.

"So many possibilities," she mumbled. Then she caught movement at the corner of her eye. Bob was gating the civilians out of the room.

"Let's go simple, instead," Mary Beth finally decided. With a movement of her hand, she threw Lawman against Bob. They both crashed and fell to the floor. The Celestial Gate vanished just as Mel was crossing it, escorting the kids. Aram and Elena had no time to cross it. Dawn had chosen not to. Six people against thirteen hundred dungeons with a very mean attitude. Billy and Jenna were still wounded. Dawn was casting some sort of healing spell on Jenna while Bob used his on Billy.

"Why doesn't she attack?" asked Billy in the Link.

"She has us against the ropes; she could finish us now."

"She is playing with her food," answered Jenna.

"She is truly like a cat." Mary Beth took the spotlight again: "Just out of curiosity, what do you intend to do? This girl is real, you know, there is a scared eight-year-old somewhere in my mind, looking through my eyes and feeling the pain of the blows you give me. Do you want to talk to her?" Then her face suddenly contorted into a mask of fear, and she began to wail: "I want out, please, I want out, I want my mommy!" It only lasted for a second, but it felt real enough.

Mary Beth turned towards Elena, smiling: "You were right, I suck at villain monologues. But wouldn't you say I have a flair for moral quandaries?" She smiled contentedly.

"Babylon is great! I should have come here sooner." For an instant, she sounded like a true eight-year-old.

"Not only do I get to recruit my Apostle," she said as she looked at Dawn, "but I also get to eat my first spatial dungeon. Think about the possibilities! I can spread through the cosmos, even to other realities. I can give answers through the whole multiverse! No one will stop me, not even the Coven."

"I was born a child, beaten and used. I am an adult now. A hungry one." ◇ Balliana gripped her spear, knowing that her time would soon come. She could hear Dignity groaning with effort as she tried to hold the massive barrier surrounding Babylon together. The force field was translucent, allowing her to see the enemies on the other side—a tactical advantage she could have done without. Kids. Kids of every age, all of them smiling that dreadful, cold smile.

All of them pounding on the barrier with their fists, with their minds, with their powers. There were heroic deeds to be done today, but if she survived, she would not go to bed feeling like a hero. Balliana was no stranger to war—she had been in situations like this before. As always, she turned to the Chant to find guidance. Her lips moved, reciting the Coda of Baldon. ◇ Billy prepared himself for what he had to do. It was time. He faced Mary Beth, who smiled at him, totally unimpressed.

"Ready for round two?" Mary Beth asked. The Losers and Dawn were again in close formation. Aram was on the other side of the room, an arrow aimed at her. The half-elf would not wander far from Elena." YOU LOVE EATING DUNGEONS, DON'T YOU?" Lawman asked her, using his intimidating voice.

"You could say that," Mary Beth admitted.

"I am quite the foodie."" HERE'S THE SPECIAL DISH OF THE DAY—JUST FOR YOU," Lawman said as he jumped towards her. That is how you do a one-liner, Bob. Charlie's voice could dimly be heard through the Blood Link. Mary Beth had time to smile one last time as Lawman approached her. Then, he exploded. It was only a single charge—a single Out with a Bang charge was not enough to kill a Core, and Billy could not risk harming the rest of the team, but it was good enough to distract Mary Beth for a second.

He checked his screen as he entered the Blue Room. He had recovered half the cost of Lawman, and he was also filled with Essence. Time to try something he had never done before: create a dungeon without having first destroyed another one. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. He activated Kingmaker and designed a rank 1 dungeon with the Manifestation tag and Mary Beth's way out as a Motif.

He spent a single achievement point to respawn in his normal form, thus activating the process. Reality rippled around him as the new dungeon took form. He could feel the Manifestation tag hungrily trying to drain all his Achievement Points from him, but this time, he was prepared for it. He steeled his mind, denying access to his power—he was going to need those points. When the world settled, they were no longer in Babylon. They were surrounded by destroyed buildings, and a sense of threat hung in the air.

The Losers and Dawn had come as a group. Aram and Elena were three hundred feet apart from them—the magic had displaced them as the dungeon took form. There was something familiar about the place. Billy did not know the final form his magic would manifest in—he had merely asked for a dungeon that allowed the Answer to manifest out of its host, granting Mary Beth a chance to escape. Bob was the first to notice.

"It is Milwaukee, just after the wild dungeons started manifesting!" he said. It was totally deserted. Nothing moved.

"I can hear something there!" Jenna said, pointing at a single wrecked car in the middle of the road.

"Mary Beth?" she said, as she squinted at the car.

"Oh, my God, I think it is her—the real Mary Beth, the kid. Not the Answer." Billy could now clearly see a frightened kid pounding on the car's rear window. crying and asking to be let out.

"I am on it," Aram shouted on the Blood Link, as he ran towards the car. It was only fifty feet away from where Elena and the cultivator had been placed.

"Aram, no! It could be a trap," Jenna told him, but the young half-elf paid her no attention. He forced open the rear door of the vehicle and took the child out. He ran back towards Elena, with the weeping child cradled in his arms.

"GIVE HER BACK. SHE IS MINE!" A powerful voice, made up of thousands of other voices, screamed from all places at once. The car started to bend, as if it were being crushed under enormous pressure. The metal screamed with an almost human voice. The wreckage started to grow, changing shape and becoming more malleable. The dungeon's magic made the Answer manifest outside Mary Beth.

"Aram, the dungeon exit is three hundred yards south," Billy told him through the Link—the Answer no longer had access to it since it lost Spaulding's hand.

"Take the girl through it, and we have won. The Answer can't exist outside a host. The Manifestation tag can sustain it only until the dungeon collapses in one hour. I will keep it distracted." The Answer kept growing and shifting until it was the size of a small building—an alien being, with a rubbery body supported by six spider legs, with a huge vertical maw crossing its thorax, and multiple rubbery tentacles emerging from its sides. Aram turned towards the exit and prepared to do what was asked of him.

Then, he looked at Elena. She was disabled—there was no way she could reach the exit on her own fast enough to escape this monster. He could carry either Mary Beth or Elena, but not both. Taking one would leave the other at the mercy of that beast. ◇ Balliana watched as cracks started to appear over the barrier; Dignity was running on fumes. There was no way to avoid the bloodshed—she was fighting kids today. She kept reciting the Coda of Baldon, an Elven chieftain who had faced the judgment of the dark.

A powerful otherworldly presence had demanded that his people commit one thousand unforgivable sins so that their city could be spared. Baldon had committed them all—he had defiled his own soul so that those he loved did not have to. He died an assassin, a betrayer and poisoner, despised and abhorred by all who knew him. And yet, the Chant had given him a Coda. Balliana repeated the last verse, seeking comfort in it. I die a hero, only in my own heart. That will be enough.

◇ Aram looked at Elena, and then at the distant exit. The normally taciturn half-elf looked as if he were about to cry. Then, something was heard across the Blood Link. It was Balliana. The grizzled Amazon was reciting the Coda of Baldon.

"Listen to it, Aram," Elena told him.

"Be a hero." Tears streaming down his face, Aram ran towards the exit with the real Mary Beth in his arms, leaving Elena behind. He knew he would never forgive himself for the sin he was about to commit. The Answer turned towards the fleeing figure, getting ready to pursue the cultivator. Then Billy tackled it to the ground. The Answer groaned, rising up. Who was powerful enough to stand up to its power? Then he saw the shape Billy had turned into.

Adaptive Tank: Two parts of Ethel Tribulation, one part of Fluid Watcher, and a few drops of Headless Machetist to lessen the cost. Serve with a lemon slice and some mint leaves. When he designed this form, he wanted it to be large enough to withstand attacks. He mentally nudged a change in the respawn screen. Adaptive Tank: The Question: Two parts of Ethel Tribulation, one part of Fluid Watcher, and a few drops of Headless Machetist to lessen the cost. Serve with a lemon slice and some mint leaves. There.

Much better now. The Question was as large as Ethel had been. His form constantly shifted, extra arms and organs appearing and then being reabsorbed, courtesy of his Fluid Watcher genes. His head was in the middle of his chest, a tribute to the Headless Machetist. He had spent as many AP in this form as he could, bringing it up to level 98. The Answer roared and charged at Billy, sprouting more acid-dripping tentacles. The drops hissed as they bored holes in the concrete.

Billy's leathery skin hardened one instant before the tentacles struck it. It secreted a powerful base that neutralized the acid. Four extra arms ending in pincers emerged from his sides, snipping the tentacles away. The Answer howled in pain as its body parts fell on the ground. It recovered and looked at Billy with glee. A worthy prey. Something to try all its powers on. Then it charged again. ◇ Aram kept running with the girl in his arms. He had embraced the Chant and followed its example.

He felt power awaken inside him as his previously inactive dantian filled with essence. He visualized the power leaving his dantian and infusing his body. Essence Impulse (x1): Spend all your stored Essence to give the Dominant quality to one of your stats for one minute. His legs suddenly blurred as his speed increased. The light blinded him as he crossed the Rift, returning to the empty classroom where everything began. Mary Beth cried in his arms.

"Shh, little one. Everything will be all right now. That thing can no longer hurt you." ◇ Elena felt the world change. Goal: Help Aram achieve his full potential. (SUCCESS) You gain five levels. You may choose a new goal. You gain one new power. Shift Burden: You may exchange your Burden for another. You may not choose the new Burden. This power has a 1-year cooldown. She chose her new goal. She did not doubt for a second. Goal: Defeat the Answer. ◇ Billy fell back under the Answer's attacks.

His body was resilient and could adapt to any attack, but it needed time to do so. The Answer was not giving him that time. It unleashed its full library of powers on Billy, often several in a second: lightning bolts fell upon him, the beast spat sprays of acid, cold, and fire, it deceived Billy's mind and drained his soul. Wounds started to appear on Billy's flesh—he was not going to last for long—the Answer's capacity to adapt vastly exceeded his own. Then, he felt his wounds starting to close.

Dawn was healing him with words, and Bob was using his Touch and Palm healing spells on him. He began to heal faster than the Answer could hurt him. Jenna used Transference on him, pumping his body full of power. Billy felt like he could do anything; Aunt Ethel howled inside his mind, her machete screaming for blood. Evolution blessed him—his body felt like an arsenal, ready to triumph in any situation. He was an alpha predator that always got its prey.

Billy charged the Answer with renewed fury, his claws tearing chunks out of it. The Answer peppered him with attacks, but his body adapted to them before they could harm him. Extra arms erupted from his chest, each one carrying a different flavor of doom. The Answer discovered what it felt like to be on the receiving end. The Answer screamed in terror. A scream that morphed slowly into laughter.

"You thought you had me, didn't you? I told you. I always play with my prey." Then a scorpion tail erupted from the Answer's body and dug deep into Billy's flesh.

"Enjoy this. I selected it just for you. Do not feel bad—you were moderately amusing," the Answer hissed in its choral voice. Poisoning of Gifts: For ten seconds, all boons and blessings on your target turn into curses. Billy screamed as Bob and Dawn's healing turned into poison inside his very flesh. Jenna's magic suddenly became a weight that dragged his stats down. The Answer seized its chance, falling on the weakened Billy and tearing him apart. He disappeared in a flash of light.

"Jenna, this is bad. I hardly have any AP left," Billy shouted from the Blue Room.

"What are you talking about? You have Silver Linings. You have fallen in combat—you should have obtained at least half of what that form cost you."

"His attack also poisoned that power, Jenna. I have less than 50 AP left."

"Stay there, Billy, we've got this," Jenna lied.

"Give me Mary Beth back," the monster howled.

"Give her back, or I swear I will make all zealots everywhere kill themselves. You will kill thousands to save one child."

"You have one minute."

"Oh, no, please, no," Billy begged inside the Link.

"Most are just kids." Jenna realized that the battle was already won. The monster would die once the dungeon imploded, unless he could return to its place inside Mary Beth. The only remaining question was how high a price they would have to pay to win. Her mind went back to the kids attacking Babylon. It could be a high price, indeed. Dawn broke the impasse.

"You will not live to see that minute end, monster," she said, using her powers to create a bridge of words between the Answer and her. She threw her legacy across that bridge, wielding it as a weapon. Activation (0): Activate one sentient being, granting them the System active in your current location. Cooldown: 24 hours. The Alpha Prime may use the power on herself, gaining a level each time she does so. Dawn grunted as she tried to imprint the system on the Answer. Jenna added her mind to hers.

The Answer could not survive being imprinted with the System; it was anathema to it.

"Bob, help us," Jenna screamed over the Blood Link. Bob used the dungeon to improvise a Harmony perk. Friendship Song (Harmony 2): Add half your Spirit to that of a friend, as long as they can hear you sing. You cannot increase their Spirit to more than twice its original value. He began to sing a song about light conquering the dark. Jenna could somehow understand it, even if it was sung in a strange language she had never heard before. She realized Bob was singing in Pantean.

His song merged with Dawn's words, becoming one. Each empowered the other. Dawn's magic slowly overcame the Answer's spirit. The beast recoiled from the System like a child confronted by a nurse with a needle. Then it summoned strength from its thousands of hosts. All around the land, zealots fell to their knees as the Answer siphoned willpower from them.

"NO!" the monster roared, and the System stopped approaching. ◇ Elena watched the whole scene, her privileged brain calculating possible outcomes. The Losers were not going to win. They almost had the Answer. Almost. She checked her own powers—she could make a difference, but not at a distance. She would have to touch that beast to help her friends. Ranged powers would not pierce the beast's protective aura. She would never reach there in time. Not if she had to walk on her crutches.

She prayed as she activated her last power. Her crutches fell on the ground as Elena approached the howling monster. She would be burdened by them no more. The Answer screamed in a thousand voices at once, showing Elena which way to go. ◇ The barrier shattered. The possessed kids crossed over, howling in glee and preparing terrible magics. Balliana readied her spear. She would do what was needed, sacrificing even her own honor. To fight for the light, sometimes you have to dive into the dark. ◇ They had the Answer.

For an instant, they had it. Then it fought back. Jenna cried in frustration as she felt Dawn's magic stop one inch away from the monster. This was it. They had lost.

"I am the Answer, and I consume," the beast howled as it gathered its powers.

"I am Elena, and I overcome," said a much softer voice, just behind the monster. Moment of Defeat (Overcome 5): Touch an enemy. For five seconds, it receives a Charisma penalty equal to half your own Charisma. It was only a touch, but it broke the stalemate. The Answer screamed as Dawn's magic finally touched it, imprinting it with the System and granting it a Competency. Which one would never be known, as the Answer dissolved in a myriad points of light.

◇ All around Babylon, children screamed as they clutched their heads in their hands and fell convulsing to the floor. Balliana caught her breath. Merciful Morrigan, grant us victory at a price we can afford, she prayed. Then, she exhaled in relief as she heard soft whimpers across the battlefield—the children were alive. The Morrigan had blessed them. ◇ Dawn fell on her knees, exhausted. Billy finally respawned and hugged Jenna. He only needed one point. It was a point well spent.

Bob approached Elena to check whether she was okay. The girl stood unmoving, staring proudly into the distance.

"Elena, how is this possible? You are walking. This is a miracle." He suddenly stopped short as he beheld Elena's face. He then understood the price the girl had paid to recover the use of her legs. Elena was blind.