[Dungeon: Quiz Maze]

[Learning is best when it’s used, and second-best when it’s fun! Come and see how well you’ve learned your facts in the Quiz Maze!]

[Status: Stable]

[Tier: One]

[Levels: One]

[Type: Maze, Knowledge]

[Group Size: 2 to 6]

[Maximum group slots: 30 per day. Number used today: 12]

[Future slot increases possible]

[Enter Dungeon?]

[Visit?]

[Observe?]

Serenity read the dungeon’s description and wondered if someone had been filming a quiz show or something when the dungeon formed; it certainly had that sort of over-the-top feel to it.

Serenity selected ‘Enter Dungeon,’ then confirmed the correct group members were displayed before confirming his entry. It was always interesting to see different dungeons; even on the same planet, they could behave very differently.

Serenity was standing in a dark room; it was an octagon where the walls were all about twenty feet apart from each other. There were no openings, but there were vague lines in each wall that could be a closed door. As he stood there, the ceiling started to glow; it was swiftly followed by the other people in the group appearing all at once. Serenity wondered why he’d appeared first this time, but maybe he’d just accepted the list of people first.

A list of topics appeared in front of the group.

Magic

Medicine

Modern Electronics

Movies

Mythology

Pokemon

Stocks & Bonds

World History

Serenity ignored the list and looked over at Vladimir. “It’s good to see you again, under better circumstances.”

To Serenity’s astonishment, Vladimir grinned. “Much better. Times in Russia - they are hard, and not getting better. I know too much; worse, Kira knows far too much. Tutorial and invaders; they make everything worse. Better to leave before we are suspected yet while it can buy us a place to stay low. Perhaps there will be a chance to travel farther later, yes?”

A smiling Vladimir was, if anything, scarier than a dour Vladimir. At least he knew what to expect of the grouchy man he once knew!

“Portals, you mean? They’ll open for travel to other worlds once the invasions are dealt with.” Serenity bit his lip, thinking. “If you really want to leave Earth, you’ll need to find a way to make Etherium and a place to live. There are cities, but I think you’ll find that many of them are no better than where you’re from.”

Vladimir shook his head. “Cities all have problems. It is the reach of the leader that matters. No power and it all falls apart, all power and there is no room for others. With what you talked about, the Tiers and magic? There will be a place for us. I can talk, Kira can heal, Sofia …”

Vladimir trailed off, but Sofia spoke up. Her voice was soft but determined. “I’m a technomage. It’s all minor stuff right now, but I can see so many things I can do in the future.”

“There are very few worlds with technology as high as ours,” Serenity warned Sofia.

She grinned and her eyes seemed to light up with enthusiasm. “That’s fine. Even simple machines work wonders; have you ever looked at what the Romans built? I don’t mean the roads and buildings and aqueducts, I mean the precision tools and marvels, all done with simple machines. Most of it hasn’t survived, so we only know it from stories and legends, but what we have found…”

“Sofia.” Kira only said her daughter’s name, but Sofia rolled her eyes and quit talking.

“We should choose our categories,” Rissa pointed out. “We can talk as we walk. I’d like Mythology, unless someone else prefers it?”

Serenity turned his attention back to the list. An entry near the bottom grabbed his attention. Pokemon. The name brought both nostalgia and fear; for all that he’d played it, he only vaguely remembered some of the monsters - but the legendaries were certainly strong enough to be of concern if they managed to manifest, and with everything he knew about magic, it seemed likely that they would eventually. Sure, it might start with a cute lightning-infused rodent, but that wasn’t where it would end.

There was probably already a Pokemon dungeon somewhere. Vengeance never ran into one, as far as Serenity could remember, but that didn’t mean anything. He didn’t entirely remember the dungeons from the previous timeline; it was simply too long ago for most of them.

“Medicine is mine,” Kira stated.

Serenity looked back at the list; there was an obvious choice. Well, two obvious choices; he could probably manage Modern Electronics, as well. It wasn’t the best choice, though. “Magic, here.”

“Go on, Sofia. Which one do you want?” Vladimir encouraged his daughter.

Sofia muttered under her breath for a moment, before speaking up. “Pokemon.”

“Then I’ll take World History.” Vladimir turned towards Serenity as he spoke. “Is there anything else we …”

Vladimir was interrupted by the sound of stone grinding on stone. All eight of the walls had a door.

“Which door should we take?” Rissa was also looking at Serenity instead of the doors.

Serenity shook his head. “I doubt it matters at this point. The important thing is to answer our questions correctly as we go through.”

Rissa shrugged. “Fair. How about this one, then?” She turned and walked over to the door closest to where she was standing.

The door led directly into another octagonal room. There was no way there could be eight of them stacked in with doors against each other; that pattern didn’t work. Hexagons would work, but not octagons. It was another reminder that for all that dungeons tended to resemble reality, they didn’t always have to follow the rules.

Of course, that was probably necessary for a “game” like this to work. If it didn’t shuffle space between teams, people would just learn the path, especially since it seemed to close a random door.

In the center of the room was a pedestal with a sheet of paper on top. Rissa walked over to it and picked it up. “Magic: The property that colors all magic and defines the effects a spellcaster can achieve.”

Serenity shook his head. It wasn’t the definition he preferred; it was too proscriptive. “Affinity, but a very basic definition. Affinity is a launching point, not a limit.”

One of the doors to the right slid shut.

Rissa set the paper back on the pedestal and picked another door.

As they walked, they talked. Sofia was particularly energetic, especially at first, but after the first hour she started to tire. They were doing well; even the monsters that came in from the reopened door they used to enter each octagon when they missed a question were no more than nuisances.

Serenity had just noticed that Sofia was walking instead of running everywhere when Vladimir asked, “So where did you learn magic? You’re getting far too many of these right to be guessing.”

Serenity had a moment to wonder how to answer that before Rissa answered for him. “Magic wasn’t gone from Earth. It was rare and weak, but not gone.”

Vladimir smiled. “I see you did not tell her. I can tell that you avoided my question, Rissa.”

Serenity chuckled. “I did. You’re simply too good at catching evasions; I don’t think you even used your ability for that. With that said, I think it’s all the answer you’re going to get, other than the obvious answer that I’m not human. I like you and I think you’d be a valuable friend, but we aren’t there yet. Perhaps in the future, after you’ve dealt with whatever entanglements you still have on Earth.”

Two rooms later, Vladimir tried again, but he started with a comment instead of a question. “We are here on a tourist visa. I am trusted enough to be able to travel, but I am certain I am being watched.”

“So you were supposed to meet someone here to … talk about your future? Defect?” Serenity wasn’t sure how blunt he should be, but he never really managed to get anywhere when he beat around the bush.

Vladimir chuckled. “So American. No, that conversation has already happened. Today, we disappear in the dungeon. Killed or thought to be so. Easy enough with this dungeon, it has killed before and teams can take a long time even if they win. That is why they require four; I simply had not realized they would not have told him to accept us as three. We are to stay inside the dungeon until a certain time, when it will be quiet outside and we will be met and vanish forever. I want you to wait in here with us, so others cannot know we left until we have disappeared. If they know in a few days, it is fine.” Vladimir shook his head. “You are too noticeable; I should have said no to having you join us. I was too eager to enter.”

Serenity didn’t want to just stop and wait in the dungeon; he wanted to see the other two London dungeons, and spending hours upon hours waiting wouldn’t help that, especially not when he wasn’t certain if they’d have another day to try for the other dungeons. He frowned. “We may try to leave without being noticed, instead; yes, I’ll use magic to do it. You’re right that if someone is watching, I’ll be noticed otherwise.”

He could get Rissa to carry him, he supposed; his sword form would fit in one of the nonmagical pockets of her backpack and she could wear his armor form. The question was how would he get Rissa out without her being seen?

Maybe something like that Mind-based avoidance spell? That was a ritual, though, which meant that it was more powerful than could easily be managed by a person. On the other hand, whatever he did shouldn’t have to last for long. Perhaps it could cover him as well? That would be easier, as long as he could do it as a single spell. Was there a better way?

“Mythology: What household spirit, both helpful and mischievous, has lost its association with the house and become associated with dogs or dragons instead?” Rissa read the question and sighed. “Do you know how many different household spirits there are in mythology? I’d rather have had another question on the Labors of Hercules.”

“Maybe we should start with the other end, with creatures that have become associated with dogs or dragons,” Serenity suggested. “There can’t be that many that are associated with both.”

Rissa inclined her head, nodding. “There are a lot of each, but there’s generally not much overlap between dogs and lizards, it’s true. I’m just not sure what it is. Um.”

Sofia didn’t look up from her phone as she spoke. “Kobolds, but they’re not a household spirit. They live in caves. Or sometimes a swamp.”

“They were household spirits in the German folktales. The descriptions aren’t that clear, so it’s hard to tell them apart sometimes; the folktales do tend to blur the different spirits.” Rissa looked around the room. “I don’t have anything better, and there are only two doors open, and we know which one we came in through even if it opens. Do I give it a shot?”

Serenity shrugged. “Might as well. Fifty-fifty chance of the right direction even if you’re wrong, and none of the monsters have been even remotely challenging.”

Rissa nodded, set the paper down, and stated, “Kobolds.”

One of the doors closed and they all filed through the last door into yet another octagonal room. There were no other doors, only a pedestal in the center that held the dungeon core and a small chest sitting below the pedestal.

Vladimir opened the chest before Serenity could tell him not to and found five Etherium. It wasn’t much of a reward, particularly not at the price they’d paid to enter the dungeon, but that wasn’t why they were here. When the chest was opened, so was the way out. Fortunately, there was no exit timer; Serenity had seen dungeons that wouldn’t let people stay in the core room, but this one clearly would.

Vladimir and his family pulled some cushions and blankets out of their backpacks and settled down against a wall. Rissa simply sat on the floor and pulled out a book.

When Serenity knelt in front of the dungeon core, Sofia asked, “What are you doing?”

“I’m going to talk to the dungeon core. I have some questions for it.” Serenity leaned forward and tapped his horn against the crystal. If Sofia replied, he didn’t hear.