Interlude 3

Kingdom of Eltor, in flight over the Hills of Sairis

Sky-Fortress of Unification, Council Chamber

"I cannot condone such a course of action."

Laria, dungeon core of the Golden Gates winced as she heard a metal fist crash upon stone.

"EXCUSE ME?!?"

The dungeon turned her avatar's head to the side, and hid a sigh as Silris, dungeon core of the Glittering Caves dungeon, made her avatar, an animated armor of exquisite craftmanship, covered in glittering runes, rise to its full height from her seat.

"You would have us abandon our kin? For what? To 'preserve peace'? Look where that has gotten us!"

Silris opened her arms, englobing the entire chamber, where over 3 dozen dungeon avatars were seated (well, for those that could sit) around a massive, round stone table. The chamber beyond them was filled with shadowy figures, projections of other avatars from dungeons who had not been elected as representative of their faction, and thus whose physical representation had not been required. There were still a few solid forms here and there of course, either from dungeons close enough to make travel costs insignificant, or who had avatars with nothing better to do. Needless to say, given the rarity and price of avatars, the latter were almost certainly lying, and trying to curry favor with the mightiest cores among them, or with a particular faction.

"We are the United Dungeon Council! Six centuries ago our people were enslaved! Crushed and abused by fleshlings who cared little of our plight, and only wanted to drain us of our mana! Six centuries ago, we rose up! And in one, fell swoop, decapitated our oppressors!"

Laria hid a frown. 11 years of total war was hardly 'one fell swoop'. And 'decapitated' was a very clean term for what had been pure, brutal extermination on a scale unseen since the fall of the Orlov Empire, and the subsequent rise of the Eris Empire. They hadn't toppled kingdoms and empires, they had eradicated them, burning every one of their villages, towns and cities to the ground, with their inhabitants still in them.

"And look at us now! Decades ago, it was the decision of this council to stop enforcing our will through force, where subtle diplomacy would do. For the last 30 years, accidents involving dungeons, core kidnappings, raids or outright murders have gone through the roof! The fleshlings have smelled weakness in our ranks, and now they are closing in!" Silris leaned forward, and slammed her fist once more on the stone table. Fortunately it was even more enchanted than the walls of the citadel they were currently in, and was completely unharmed, despite the blow, which was strong enough to shatter steel like it was glass. "How long would you wait, oh Gargor of the Great Gorges? Until they started enslaving us once more? Or until they enslaved everyone...but you?"

Gasps were heard throughout the council chamber, and even Laria couldn't contain herself. Silris had insinuated for decades that Gargor, leader of a faction of non-interventionist dungeon cores, cared little for others, and might even be working with the mortals against them. But this...this was the most explicit she had ever been.

Gargor's avatar, a treeman, leapt to its feet, its owners sputtering.

"How...HOW DARE YO-"

"Enough!"

The murmurs died instantaneously as all turned towards one of the few sources of light in the room. The avatar of Naigez of Blackstone, a flaming spirit with a vague humanoid form, nodded as he looked over the whole room.

"There is little use in tearing each other apart with words..." He looked pointedly at Silris. "Or making accusations not backed with proof." He looked around the room once more. "Still, Silris has a point. We must respond. Someone has attempted to kidnap one of our fellow dungeon cores...and it must not go unanswered."

Silris sat back down, still looking angry...but sufficiently cowed not to make a scene once more. Not that it would haves served much purpose. Naigez was one of the oldest dungeon cores there was....and one of the original members of the UDC, back when it was just a rag tag group of dungeons assembling around a single rebel dungeon core who had rejected their fate. His influence over the council far outstripped hers.

"I agree." Said the soft, almost silky voice of Eternia, and Silris almost shivered. Eternia, of the Eternia Crystallis dungeon was....a controversial figure. Like Naigez, she had been one of the founding members of the UDC, although she was considerably younger. The problem was that she just couldn't leave well enough alone. It was scarcely a secret that she constantly interfered in mortal affairs, and had started a multitude of wars around her. Some whispered it was for her sick amusement, or that she was planning to make her own empire, and hold dominion over the mortals on her continent. Personally, Silris was persuaded that her elder was driving towards some unknown, complex goal, but one far beyond just creating a petty nation. "We must respond...But how, is the question. A military expedition, as Silris is suggesting, I believe would be ill advised." Her tone hardened. "Do not mistake me, if we knew with surety who had done this, I would drive for the breaking of their armies, and the scattering of the severed heads of their leaders on the steps of this very fortress. But we know very little of what happened...and probably never will."

Most of the dungeon cores nodded at her words. For all of her faults and controversies, Eternia was still highly respected, and besides that what she was saying made sense.

"So, what do you propose?" Said Etar, of the Deepwood Clearing dungeon.

"Simple. We send a diplomatic mission to make formal contact. A heavily armed mission."

Laria frowned...and spoke up.

"Are you...suggesting that we use our customary introductory visit to hammer home the message that we are watching?"

Eternia turned towards her, and nodded simply.

Gargor laughed, and Laria almost sighed.

"And you think that sending a giant mass of warships and soldiers will do anything, but feed the sparks of war? Besides, who would volunteer-"

"I will."

Gargor looked like he was about to strangle whoever had interrupted him again, before recognizing the voice, and closing his mouth with a clap.

A figure rose from its seat. A magnificent paladin, with eyes like glittering gems, over 3 full meters in height, his armor of glittering adamantium and a grand cape of golden phase fabric hanging behind him. Laria swallowed -her avatar was very human like, and she'd found the gesture interesting- as Gift, of The Promise dungeon, one of the first dungeons ever created, by the very hands of the God of Fire no less, rose up.

Silence descended upon the room. There were some that would laugh off Eternia's proposals...but no one would dare stand against Gift. He was the last one of the original great dungeons to communicate with the outside world, and in the rare times he spoke, everyone listened.

There was also no question that he had the required forces to...make an impression. Alone he commanded a skyfleet greater than many nations, with the power to challenge even an Erisian Sky Armada. In fact, in the battle of the Salris Winds, he had done just that, taking a hundred Erisian warships from the skies and bringing them crashing down in flames. He had only relented in his victory, and allowed the crippled, pitiful remnants of the enemy fleet to retreat when a voidship of the Old World had arrived. He could have destroyed it...but even he dared not risk the wrath of it's molecular disruptors and plasma cannons. Still, his reputation had been cemented that day. If he was their envoy, no one would miss the message being sent.

A few seconds passed in total silence, and Laria slowly got up.

"I call for a vote on sending Gift as the representative of this council to formally contact Crystal, dungeon core of the Dungeon Factory dungeon."

No one even dared to vote against.

*****

Laria frowned as she contemplated the landscape through the window of her room.

Her suite was on one of the highest levels of Unification, the massive floating fortress that served as the seat of the United Dungeon Council. Currently, it was sailing in the skies over the Hills of Sairis, in the Kingdom of Eltor. The reasons for doing so were complex -Unification changed its area of residence every year, and a fierce political battle always broke out over who would have the honour of being its anchorage-, but for once it was more a case of showing a sign of appreciation for mortals...and not dungeon greed.

The Kingdom of Eltor was a young nation, as far as the multi-millennial realms of Alcheryos went. 6 centuries ago, during the first United Dungeon War, it was one of the few nations to side with the rebel dungeons, its young king pledging his help to the nascent UDC, in the name of justice. Interestingly enough, he was actually sincere. Oh, that didn't mean he turned down the lands handed to him by right of conquest, or the vast wealth the UDC bestowed upon him for his help, but it had never been his objective, or his desire.

Ever since its construction, Unification passed at least once every decade in the skies of Eltor, although the exact year varied. It was the closest thing to neutral political ground for the fortress' placement...which still didn't prevent the politics of the dungeon cores that held council within from seeping through.

Laria's fists closed as she thought about the meeting. The more she thought about it, the more disgusted she was. They were dungeon cores! They were supposed to be above the petty squabbles of mortals. They should have been united, truly, and together they could have brought all to a far greater future. But no, they had fallen into internecine conflicts, every faction out to protect their own slice of the cake, jealously guarding their prerogatives and privileges, like dragons with their hoards.

She knew she couldn't blame the older dungeons. Not truly. Those that had once been the greatest supporters of the UDC had retreated bit by bit, lessening their commitments and involvement, once the threats to their own safety were eradicated. More and more dungeon cores looked not to how they might help their fellows, like in the old days, but to how much mana it would cost them...And how much they might make in return in the form of subsidies or gifts for their 'spontaneous help'.

At least for once they had taken a direction without widespread dissent and endless debates....but Laria had the feeling that something was wrong. Gift was almost always there, as the elected representative of the Elders, the faction that represented the oldest, most withdrawn dungeons among the UDC. But his avatar sat in the shadows, limiting itself to a few comments, sometimes years apart. Having him volunteer for anything...She had checked, it had been nearly a century since he had last lead a contact expedition, and even then, only at the behest of the UDC's leader. Something else was afoot, something big enough to force the elder dungeons into involvement with the world once more.

That or maybe they saw the same trend Silris had been expanding upon. The young core might be rash, warlike, and outright psychotic, but she meant well....which was more than could be said for some other members of the UDC, unfortunately. And damn the Gods, she was right. Attacks upon dungeon cores had been climbing. Nothing like the casual brutality it used to be...but a stark contrast to the climate she had been created into a few centuries ago, where even the barest attempt of a dungeon core kidnapping would have brought the fleets of the UDC screaming from the skies, annihilating any who had dared attack one of their own.

Laria sighed, and shrugged, before relinquishing hold of her avatar, and plunging back into her dungeon. Her advisor was waiting impatiently for the result of today's vote, which was...unsurprising. The new core's advisor was her niece after all, and she hadn't heard news about her for over a month now.