Gabriel and a finally calming Liz sat on the only lit tile of the floor. A new universe of shining lines and squares all around them.

The Anchor messages, as always, manifested as burning text in mid-air.

Congratulations, Gabriel Walker.

You reached Spirit Level 25.

You have unlocked all possible Spirit Skills. You can now choose a Spirit Skill to evolve for your Spirit.

Only properly maxed Spirit Skills can evolve.

Choose a Spirit Skill to evolve.

Burst Attack;

Epiphany.

I’d say Burst Attack. Given your Resilience, you might wreak havoc physically, and I could support you from the side. Or something like that.

Liz didn’t even give herself time to think about the proposition. She opened into a big grin and nodded.

Burst Attack it is.

Evolving a Spirit Skill makes your Spirit incur a physical evolution other than a spiritual one. The physical changes will reflect the Skill you choose.

Once again, the options paved themselves in front of them.

Skills

Skill

Aquatic (Uncommon)

Description

Permanently increases Affinity by 50%. Permanently increases Recovery by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Water Resistance. Saliva can speed up Recovery.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Dread (Rare)

Description

Permanently increases Affinity by 50%. Permanently increases Power by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Dark Resistance. Becomes invisible in shadows. Random curses are applied with biting.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Flaming (Rare - Synergy)

Description

Permanently increases Power by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Fire Resistance (+). Claws and teeth apply burns. Can spit Fire.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Furry (Uncommon)

Description

Permanently increases Resilience by 50%. Permanently increases Stamina by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Ice Resistance. Claws and teeth can freeze tissues.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Rocky (Uncommon)

Description

Permanently increases Power by 50%. Permanently increases Resilience by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Earth Resistance. Can perceive vibrations from the ground.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Shiny (Rare - Synergy)

Description

Permanently increases Affinity by 50%. Permanently increases Power by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Light Resistance (+). Grow frills that can absorb light, empowering the user. Frills can shoot beams of Light.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Venomous (Uncommon)

Description

Permanently doubles Recovery. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Life Resistance. Grow venom glands Saliva can poison tissues.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Skills

Skill

Windy (Uncommon)

Description

Permanently increases Alacrity by 50%. Permanently increases Stamina by 50%. Can use Burst Attack. Gives Wind Resistance. Can perceive anomalies in the wind.

Slot

Power

Type

Passive - Spirit Skill

Gabriel wondered about the difference of those with the wording ‘Synergy’ from the others, but looking at the little ‘+’ near the Resistances, he guessed that they were Skills that synergized with previously unlocked ones.

“There’s definitely a good selection, but I think those ones of superior rarity should-”

But Gabriel stopped because he could feel that Lizzy had already found what she was looking for. Her thoughts immediately led to only one Skill.

He would really have guessed the Flaming one, but no. She was adamant in her nudging. She wanted the Shiny Skill.

“I don’t understand. Why that one?” He asked her, confused.

The image of a lizard standing upright, with a shiny crest around her head, looking majestic, appeared in his mind.

“I don’t believe it… appearance? You are choosing that for appearance?” Gabriel slammed his hands on his face.

Women… I just… He sighed.

“I guess it’s your choice. You’ve saved my life, again so, you more than deserve the benefit of the doubt.”

Alright, Anchor… give us Shiny.

You have chosen Shiny.

Right away, Liz was taken by a fit. She threw herself with her face on the ground, rolling for discomfort while emitting pitying sounds. Gabriel felt a similar pain but in his soul.

A few seconds later, a jagged, retractable circular frill sprouted around the lizard’s neck. Her still sore and reddish skin was quickly covered in tough scales, making it thick like a shield.

Hey, not bad. You really look like a badass, you know? Gabriel thought while massaging his chin and looking at her with a fake stern expression.

Liz started moving in circles, intent on catching a glimpse of her sight.

“That’s not gonna work, silly.” Gabriel couldn’t help but chuckle while looking at the lizard chasing her tail like a dog.

“We’re gonna find you a mirror once we’re out of here.

There were still pressing matters from the Anchor, but one of them was thrilling in his mind for the urgency.

Warning.

Accept the Challenge of the Tyrant prize so that you can leave the Hidden Boss’ lair.

Failure to leave the Hidden Boss’ lair will result in the space collapse and most probably death.

Time until Hidden Boss’ lair expiration: 3 minutes, 22 seconds.

Do you wish to accept the Challenge of the Tyrant’s prize?

Yes/No

“They’re kicking us out. I think we overstayed our welcome, Liz.”

He mentally selected ‘Yes’, not daring to try and select ‘No’ just to see if he would abandon it or have it asked again.

Congratulations, Gabriel Walker.

You have received a free Skill token.

You will now be teleported back to the Dungeon Challenge Stone.

What?

But Gabriel couldn’t process the information thoroughly because darkness claimed him, and he soon found himself in the middle back in the hole inside the Hole.

Only this time, there was much more light. The Dungeon stone under his feet was shattered, and the light it emitted was dying down.

All around him, instead of tight walls bathed in darkness, he could see a huge gap in the earth, it was so wide that he could clearly see the sky in all its glory and… it was on fire. Azure fire, or at least it was so for his still Mana focused Sight.

The sky was firing with what he could clearly see were exploding waves of Mana.

“What the hell?”

The ground shook mightily. Gabe e could barely keep his stability.

“Did we do this? Holy shit, lizard!”

We’ve gotta get out of here!

Gabriel swiftly took hold of Liz; then he focused on his pools.

He had barely recovered 1 point of Energy, and 2 of Mana. His Spirit was full, though.

Barely enough to escape. We barely slept an hour, damn…

Pumping his legs with the might of Burst Attack, Gabriel soared through the sky with Built to Fly.

The constantly shifting walls of rock, moving abruptly, scared him. They could kill him on the spot, and he would have no way to evade that with his lack of pools.

Thankfully, the trip through the pit was short and without accidents. Before shooting out toward the sky, Gabe thrust his spear in the rock wall and reset his momentum.

Gabriel now hanged from the spear embedded in the wall, with just a few meters to climb.

Damn, I can’t select any other Skill or whatever right now, but at least I can place some points. He thought while climbing.

Gabriel had 75 Pool points, 10 unspent Body Attribute points, and 24 Spirit Attribute points. That’s a lot, but rather useless right now… he thought. While Liz, hanging from his left arm, was more than happy to be carried around and do nothing.

Pool points were an easy choice. He placed thirty in Energy, and Spirit, bringing them both to fifty. For the remaining fifteen points, Gabriel placed them in Mana. He had a little doubt about increasing Life, now that he had a use for it, but he trusted his Recovery strategy would be worth it in the long run, and if that wasn’t so, he still had all the levels in the world to increase them once more.

As he climbed, he noticed that his crashed leg was not entirely recovered. The last dose of Helping Hand was still working overtime, speeding up his healing. Thinking about its strategy effectiveness paired with his small Life pool, and after having reached the edge of the rock platform, which could even be full of enemies, Gabriel played it smart and placed his Attribute points.

Thrusting the Sk’rayr spear deep into the walls of rock, he dumped all ten of his new Attribute points into Recovery.

The effect was immediate. Fire burst through his all body, a heat he had never felt before. He felt a tremendous fever overwhelming him. Gabriel gripped his spear tighter, baring the hazing effects. After a couple of minutes, he felt the fever start receding and decided thus to get out of the crevice.

The Hole, the eastern side of Turtle Dungeon, was empty and shattered. An eerie silence reigned in the lands, shaken only by the sound of the gurgling ground. The already dried earth around them was entirely a ruin of depicting crevices, precipices, and craters wherever their eyes could reach. Some portions of it were bathed in fire. Part of the mountain shield-walls directly in front of him was crumbling.

We have to get out of here, like, right now…

Placing Liz on the ground, Gabriel and her started running toward where the Plains should have been.

He had a rough understanding of the Dungeon structure but knew of only one exit, so he intended to head toward that. To do that, he had to leave the Hole first, heading southwest.

Liz, we might incur into problems soon. I need you in top conditions. As you can see, I’m practically empty. Do you want to go physical then? Liz gave him a wicked grin of appreciation.

Physical it is, then.

Gabriel placed twelve of his twenty-four Spirit Attribute points into Liz’s Resilience, five into Power, three into Alacrity and Stamina, and the one odd point he placed into her Affinity. He had the feeling that it would increase her magical damage.

Suddenly Liz tripped, falling on her face. Then she started emitting a dim silver light, which grew brighter and brighter, until it receded, leaving in front of his eyes a massive five-foot-three lizard from head to tail. Her overall size had drastically increased. She looked like a small-sized dinosaur. Yes, most of her size was still taken by her tail, but she began looking intimidating all the same.

When she got up from the ground, shaking a little, she started whipping her head about, once again trying to take a look at herself. Gabriel, though he could see her, there was pride in his eyes.

“Look at you! You’re getting so big and beautiful. And those frills? Try opening them up.” Liz was about to, but as she tried. A drop of rain caught her on the nose.

They both looked up. Was rain in a Dungeon a thing? A few moments later, it was pouring.

“Run!”

***

Opening her eyes, Dustille immediately noticed two things. Darkness and Mana. And a lot of both.

Scared by the lack of situational knowledge, she started squirming, yet her senses immediately screamed at her to stay still. Rarely they had betrayed her.

The Giantess didn't know where she was exactly, nor how long she had been out. What she knew was that all around her, a colossal Pool of liquid Mana, sloshed about. Moving whatever had been holding her up.

Calm down… it's just water-tainted Mana. It can't hurt you.

Dustille, a little calm now, looked ahead. On top of her was utter darkness. The dim light came from the waters of Mana. It was enough for her to recognize that they were under the earth, in a huge crater. 'They' because in front of her, Gaia Waterfront, was navigating the waters of Mana. A platform made of foam lifted both of them up and shot over the water.

"How are you?" She asked without even looking back.

Gaia Waterfront was weird, no two ways about it.

She sat in front of her, on this big water construct created only to support them, her hands were placed in the water, and she caressed its surface; in her voice, there wasn't even a tint of stress. Her hair was shining in the peculiar light of Mana, making her head a blazing light in that darkness.

"I… think I'm fine. Did you heal me?" Dustille asked her.

"Yes. We fell right in the water. I managed to recover almost right away thanks to my Skills, but you were not so lucky. Multiple bones fracture, your head was cracked... I almost thought you would bleed to death. Thankfully I managed to make you recover enough so that your Life didn't all flow out of your body." Gaia explained that without even turning behind.

"I need your help now, though," the human girl said, this time entirely stopping and turning toward Dustille. Her azure eyes shone brightly, two braziers in the dark, but she was shedding tears of blood.

"I'm holding up for now, but the adversary Mana wants to claim me. If we don't leave this place, I'm going to die, and I have no idea where to go from here. What do your senses tell you?"

The Giantess was taken aback.

Dustille closed her eyes, "Cover your ears," she said. Then she inhaled sharply and screamed. She screamed so hard that her throat raged against her, her voice cracked, but she managed to reach her objective.

"I'm sorry, Guardian of the Tree. There's only one way out, and it's up."

Gaia sighed for the first time. "Then this was a trap. She wanted to get rid of us," she said.

"Who did? Just what is really going on? Tell me, that could not be the Olivia I knew, right? The one I met, even if only for a day, was a Tier 2. That monster managed to poison an entire forest and drive me out with brute force!" Finally, Dustille asked all the questions that were creeping up on her, her voice breaking with each sentence.

Gaia Waterfront studied her. "I think you are his Sight."

"What? What should that mean? Are you talking about the Book of Heralding?" she asked back.

"Yes. Our Book describes the golden giant of beautiful virtue. And if that is not you, then I really should leave this matter to anybody else because I don't understand any of it."

"What should that say about me?" Dustille asked, adding, "I never managed to read it, the Book of Heralding. For some reason I… I couldn't bring myself to fight my fears. They assaulted me every time I opened it," she confessed.

"Seer, don't worry-" Started Gaia, only to be interrupted brusquely.

"I'm no seer; I'm just a failure. I shamed my family."

"You did not. I'm sure. And if you did, then they did not understand the Book," Gaia said, convinced.

"I won't allow anybody to talk like that to my family, even though I've clashed with them," Dustille retorted. She didn't even know why she said it, but she had to.

Gaia shut her mouth, surprised. Then she smiled. "I'm sorry. You are right. Family is sacred." She nodded.

"What I meant is that the Book of Heralding is extremely open to interpretations. What I managed to understand from it, though. Is that I'll be the right hand of the Herald. I firmly believe it. But you, you will be his eyes."

Gaia allowed a few seconds to pass. Dustille lowered her eyes in thought.

Do I need to acknowledge my gift, after all? I've run away from it for so long…

Yggdrasil's Guardian changed the subject, answering another of her questions instead.

"I believe what we faced was not Olivia Wonderlust, or at least, not an Olivia in control of her body. That was the Witch of the Depths… or someone of hers," she mused.

"The Witch of the Depths? That Witch of the Depths?" Dustille, asked, incredulous.

"If not her, someone of her caliber. But I only know of one Seer which is also a Medium, capable of such feats," Gaia said.

"So I've managed to draw the ire of one of the few Tier 9 in the whole of Alter?" Dustille felt her spirit leave her body. She brought her palms to her face.

Please, oh mighty Odin, let it not be so! Please!

A Tier 9. A transcended Class holder. Someone hundred if not thousands of years old. Someone whose sheer might could be paired with the chosen Demi-Gods of Valhalla. And she had unwillingly managed to make an enemy out of it.

"I know what it feels like…" Gaia said, before adding with a smile, "So, any ideas? Or do we wait for death?"

Dustille snorted; We might as well.