Death: Genesis

“At least it doesn’t smell down here,” Eveline said as Zeke looked around. The chamber was clean, though he’d been in enough sewers to recognize the subterranean room’s previous purpose.

“At least there’s no fecal fiend,” he muttered to himself. “Or monsters performing rituals to summon one, I guess.”

“Indeed,” Eveline said. She knew all about his history, so she didn’t need him to explain his previous expeditions into sewer systems. The chamber itself was made up like a bedroom, complete with a cot, nightstand, and a wash basin. “So, you have reunited with your undead friend. What now?”

“I think you know,” Zeke said, looking at the notification for his quest. It had been a while since he’d received one from the Framework, but he had enough experience with them to recognize what an opportunity the latest represented.

New Quest Acquired!

Quest: Life and Death

Objective: Enter the dungeon called The Pillar of Life and conquer the challenges within.

Alternative Objective: Defeat the Death Warden

Reward: Orb of Undeath

Alternative Reward: Upgrade for Orb of Undeath

“That is quite a powerful quest,” Eveline stated.

“I know. The rewards are clearly treasures, right? What attunement do you think they represent?” Zeke asked.

“A mixture. I’m not certain if they will satisfy the terms of your tower upgrade quest, though,” Eveline answered. “I get the sense that they’re for a different purpose.”

“Kind of like the holy and demonic treasures you’ve talked about?” asked Zeke. Indeed, those were considered hidden attunements because they didn’t appear on everyone’s status sheets, but they were very real. And, according to Eveline, they could help him in his quest, even though they weren’t listed.

“Sort of,” she said, seeming to hedge in her response. “Undeath is an odd one. We don’t allow it in Hell.”

“You’ve mentioned that before, I think.”

“It’s one of the few things that unites the demons of Hell. If anyone finds a pocket of undeath, we descend upon it en masse, and we don’t stop until it is destroyed,” she said. “So, needless to say, this entire kingdom makes my skin crawl. It’s even worse when I see those abominations walking around.” After a second, she added, “But I’m sure your little friend is nice.”

Zeke rolled his eyes and sat on the cot. It creaked under his weight, and he sighed. “You know what – I’m not sleeping in this place,” he said.

After that, he went in search of Talia, finding her in a central chamber that seemed to function as a command center. When he found her, she was poring over a series of maps and giving a subordinate instructions as to how they were supposed to conduct themselves while she attempted to conquer the dungeon.

“I don’t think it’s safe for you to come, Baruk,” she said, glancing at the big zombie. He carried an enormous sword on his back, but he radiated an adequate level of power. Using [Inspect], Zeke saw that Baruk was level fifty-nine, which was respectable. Talia continued, “Plus, I need you here to make sure things don’t go off the rails. Adriel needs you.”

“I don’t like it,” he groused.

“Me neither,” Talia admitted. “But this is our best chance of saving her.”

“I’m aware. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it. I think –”

Baruk cut off when he noticed Zeke’s approach. The zombie didn’t exactly glare in his direction, but it wasn’t a friendly look, either. Regardless, Zeke wasn’t concerned with him. He only wanted to talk to Talia, so he asked, “Do you have a little time? I wanted to show you something.”

“Is it important?”

“Fairly,” Zeke stated. “It might even help your people out, especially because there’s so much vitality here. I think I can help with manpower. Or…something like that. Supplies, too.”

Talia said, “Okay. But there’s a lot to do before we can go into the Pillar. My people depend on me.”

“I understand,” Zeke said. “But this will help. I’m sure of it.”

“Very well.”

After that, Zeke asked for somewhere large enough for his purposes, and he was led to an unoccupied, out-of-the-way chamber. Once he was there, he summoned his gate. Originally, he hadn’t planned to do so – having it in Adontis was strategically important. However, there were enough people who had taken up residence in the area that he felt confident that they could hold the territory with minimal input from the tower.

“What is this?” asked Talia.

“You remember the tower, right? Well, that’s where this leads. And I’ll warn you right now – it’s changed a lot. As of now, there are almost a quarter of a million people living inside,” he said, though that estimate could have been a little off. The kobolds had continued to multiply, and without any real threats to the juveniles, the mortality rate for the undeveloped kobolds had dropped to almost nothing. Their rate of reproduction had begun to slow down in recent months, but it was still as high as would be expected from any thriving population.

In addition, there were thousands of beastkin who’d chosen to live within the tower rather than return to the lands where they’d been enslaved. And finally, there was a contingent of former Knights who’d seen the opportunities Zeke and the tower represented, so they’d turned coat and joined his forces.

Finally, there were a few other races present, though their populations were largely inconsequential to the overall number. In short, the tower was a developing metropolis that, despite the losses incurred during the war against Adontis, continued to grow by leaps and bounds.

“The tower is through there?” asked Talia.

“It is,” Zeke answered. “And like I said, a lot has changed.”

Then, he stepped through. Talia followed a moment later, then gasped. It was strange, seeing her so emotive. In the past, that had only happened after she’d eaten a heart, but it seemed that more than just the tower had changed in the past couple of years. Talia had grown, both in terms of levels as well as from an emotional standpoint.

“It’s so different,” she whispered, looking around.

“It happened a little while after I ascended,” Zeke explained, looking at the entry hall with no small degree of pride. There were hundreds of kobolds going in every direction. Some exited through the normal gate, which led to the Mukti Plains. Others used the teleporter that would take them to the other levels. And finally, some had set up some small shops to cater to people like the centaurs who didn’t live within the tower but had full access. Those shops only carried basic supplies, with the more expensive gear being sold in the Merchant’s Quarter.

As always, there were ninety-nine bronze statues standing on plinths throughout the square, and other statues depicting Zeke’s exploits ringed the floor.

Zeke escorted Talia around, explaining what each statue represented. Meanwhile, she filled him in on the details she hadn’t already explained. It was a pleasant way to pass a couple of hours, and Zeke was impressed with how much Talia had matured. Soon enough, he showed her the other floors.

For her part, Talia was suitably impressed with everything, but she was most interested in the Crimson Spring. However, that quickly turned to disappointment when she dipped a finger into the scalding water and came away yelping in pain. She’d only touched the water for a second, but even then, her finger had been badly burned. Clearly, the Crimson Spring was not meant to heal undead.

“I hoped it would help my friend,” she admitted.

“I’m sorry,” Zeke said with a shake of his head. “But I hope that might change after the quest. I think my reward is meant to make the tower habitable by undead. Maybe that will include adjusting the springs to heal you and your people.

“Perhaps.”

After that, Talia was a little more subdued, but she did delight in meeting kobolds like Silik and Kianma. Oddly, she seemed disdainful of Jasper. She wasn’t rude, but she didn’t make any efforts to ingratiate herself to the dark elf bard.

However, the real highlight came when they reached the Lord’s Manor, and she saw a great, furry figure sitting on the lawn next to Sasha. The pair had clearly been in the middle of a picnic. When they reached the pair, Talia said, “Pudge? Is that you?”

“Talia?” he grunted in surprise.

“You…changed.”

“So did you,” he said.

Then, Talia let out an uncharacteristic squeal and threw herself at Pudge, wrapping her arms around him. “I was so worried about you,” she said. “Zeke never took proper care of you.”

“How cute,” Eveline remarked.

And it was. Talia and Pudge had always been close, largely because the former had considered herself a monster, so she didn’t think she was fit to be around anything but another monster. And back then, Pudge had fit the bill. Now, though, they were both people, but with a sibling-like bond that had persisted, even after being separated for so long.

It was a heartwarming reunion, especially when Pudge introduced Talia to Sasha. The boarkin was a little uncomfortable, and rightly so. In most of the world, the undead were feared. Yet, for Pudge’s sake, she made every effort to appear welcoming.

Eventually, they all ended up heading into the manor, where they settled in to catch up. Zeke remained mostly silent as Pudge explained everything that had happened to him since his ascension. He’d grown more accustomed to speaking, so his recitation of events wasn’t nearly as halting as it had once been. Still, he lacked some of the necessary vocabulary. Sasha stepped in when necessary, telling her part of the story as well.

In the end, it was a nice evening, but one that Zeke knew couldn’t last.

And sure enough, hours later, when all the stories had been told, Talia said, “We must go soon. Adriel will not make it much longer, I am certain. I need to save her.”

After that, the mood grew somber, and Zeke led Talia back to the teleporter. Pudge and Silik came behind, and once they were back in the sewers beneath the Cradle of Life, the pair were introduced to Baruk, who Talia ordered to incorporate Zeke’s army into their defenses. They weren’t capable of striking out into the death-attuned city, but they were perfectly capable of defending within the life-saturated area around the Pillar of Life.

So, that was the plan. Hopefully, it would be sufficient until Zeke and Talia completed their quest.

Because only two of them could go.

The Pillar of Life was not like most dungeons, according to the information Talia had gathered on the subject. For one, despite having existed for the entirety of El’kireth’s history, it had never actually been completed. Thousands of people had challenged it, yet none had ever emerged from within its depths. Even when the undead kingdom had brought living warriors in, they’d failed the same as the undead challengers.

The result was that it was impossible to know what was inside.

The only thing they knew was that the more people who entered at the same time, the more difficult the dungeon would become. Ideally, only one person would enter, but considering that both Talia and Zeke had the quest, they had decided to go together.

But it was obvious that it would be difficult.

“I’ve done difficult before, though,” Zeke said the next day when he and Talia stood a few miles away from the enormous green pillar of light. “This can’t be worse than the Mirror King.”

“I hope you are right,” Talia said.

“Me, too,” Zeke said.

Then, the pair set off through the ruins. Along the way, they met a few abominations, but they proved incapable of standing up to the combination of Zeke’s Will and Talia’s ability to inflict multiple afflictions with every strike. After only a little back and forth, they developed a strategy that would have Talia initiate the fight, then use her incredible speed to run the creatures in circles. Then, once they were sufficiently weakened by Talia’s skills, Zeke would strike. They normally wouldn’t last more than one strike.

The effectiveness of the strategy boded well for the upcoming challenges. Though Eveline was quick to remind Zeke that the dungeon was unlikely to cooperate. Every dungeon was meant to push the challengers to the absolute brink, and from Zeke’s experiences, that was true. The only one that hadn’t was the Arena, though that was likely because of his particular skillset.

What would happen if he encountered something that required a different set of skills?

“You’ll probably just destroy everything,” Eveline said. “That usually works, right?”

“I guess,” Zeke said.

“I suppose,” he responded inwardly. Then, he glanced at Talia and asked, “Are you ready?”

“I am,” she stated, resolve wrapping around her voice.

“I guess there’s no point in waiting,” Zeke said. They’d made the arrangements they could, and now, they just had to hold up their end of the bargain. “If we get separated, just keep going forward. Don’t look back, and don’t search. If we keep moving ahead, we’ll eventually intersect.”

That was the best advice he could offer, and Zeke wasn’t certain if it applied to every dungeon. Sure, it had been the case before, but there was no guarantee that the Pillar of Life would follow that same pattern. For all he knew, it would be entirely different.

One thing was certain, though – it was going to be difficult. Because it had existed for so long, and without being conquered, it was likely as dangerous a dungeon as was possible in the Eternal Realm.

“Sorry,” Zeke said, running his hand through his hair when he noticed Talia staring at him. “It’s just that we have no idea what to expect in here. I’ve recently become aware that I don’t always look before I leap, which is something I need to fix. Do you know what happens in a dungeon if it’s left too long?”

“It grows,” Talia said.

“What do you mean?”

“The space expands, the denizens evolve, and everything grows more dangerous,” she stated. “And eventually, it starts to affect the local environment. This one has been doing that for the entire history of the Kingdom of El’kireth.”

“So, it’s safe to say that this will be complex?”

“It will be,” she said. “But we can’t afford to hesitate. There is too much at stake.”

“I agree,” Zeke said. He had no intention of abandoning his quest. On top of that, he knew that a dungeon like the Pillar of Life would be incredibly beneficial for his progression. He might even reach level seventy-five, if it was anything like the Mirror King dungeon. So, after taking a deep breath, he said, “Let’s go.”

And after that, the pair progressed the last few blocks and into the green light. At first, it only tingled a little, but soon enough, Zeke felt like things were crawling all over his body. Talia clearly fared much worse, but aside from gritting her teeth, she gave no sign of her obvious pain.

Then, suddenly, Zeke experienced that strange feeling of nothingness before appearing in the dungeon. That wasn’t surprising. What was shocking was the fact that he was in freefall, thousands of feet above an expansive jungle.