==========

  [Dungeon]

  The riddle had occupied my thoughts for a while, luckily the sphinx hadn’t placed a time limit on it and so I had stalled for a quite a while as I looked through the shop. It had become apparent to me as I thought it over that the two bodies line of the riddle was not in reference to something alive, I believed now that it was something else, something more abstract than that.

  So, I was looking through the items in the store when I found it.

  Two bodies have I yet joined into one, check.

  The more still I stand the faster I’m gone, check.

  “I’ve got it” I spoke, drawing her attention.

  “Oh, master you have an answer. I hope it’s correct” she said grinning. I felt unnerved.

  “I believe I do, lady sphinx, it is an hourglass. Two lobes of glass make up its bodies and the more still it is, the faster the sand runs and the more quickly it is gone.”

  “Correct, a surprise really. I hadn’t thought you would have the knowledge of such an item, nor the patience to search for it. You are an unusual one master.” She spoke softly yet respectfully, and I relaxed.

  “I think I shall enjoy being with you, master, but you had better give me lots of silly adventurers to kill, I like tearing them apart, mentally and physically. The sweetest anguish comes from the proud and foolish.”

  Yes, she would fit in well. I thought to myself.

  “I’ll think of a name for you to consider later; for now I’m going to work on the volcano for my boss level, do you want to help me?” I asked thinking I was being kind. She glared at me.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Are you telling me that I am not the boss of your dungeon? That you are putting some lesser creature ahead of me?”

  Uh oh, my mind froze up and I just stared at her for a moment, trying to think. Why was I scared of her? I was a dungeon, and this was my domain I had nothing to be scared of. I was a god here what could she do to me?

  Instead of telling her that though, I cowed, for some unknown reason.

  “No… you are far more than that…” I said thinking desperately of what to do.

  Could I rework the routes through the pyramid to let adventurers bypass her? Making her an optional boss. No, I don’t think she’d be happy. I couldn’t just tell her she would be the boss, my idea of a Balefire Wisp Cluster for the boss was just too good and I was sure the sphinx didn’t want to live in a volcano. There was no way I was not having a volcano.

  A flash of inspiration later and I knew what to do, in fact it was far, far better than my original plan and I couldn’t wait.

  “What I had planned was for there to be sections, rooms of the dungeon that are just for you to inhabit. You will be able to travel between these areas freely and test adventurers whenever you wish to. If I put you at the lowest floor as my boss, as is befitting of your deadly prowess, then I’m afraid you wouldn’t get to see and kill lots of adventurers. So, I thought it would be perfect if you were a sort of wandering boss that could challenge people across many floors, though you will have to tone down the difficulty of the riddles and fights at easier floors.” I explained frantically, watching her face for a clue as to her thoughts.

  She smiled and my heart eased. Phew. Despite the near calamitous mistake, I was pleased, this was a far better plan than I had originally had, and I couldn’t wait to make it work.

  “I like this plan of yours, master, I’m glad I am not being usurped by some lesser creature, I would have had to destroy it. And I am also glad that you recognise my majestic prowess. It is good of you to do so. Now about this volcano of yours, I had better not be forced to suffer the presence of one of those sulphurous lava bugs, I despise them. They smell foul, and they look worse. No, my dungeon can’t have such vile creatures in it as them.”

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  I coughed “your dungeon?”

  “I mean your dungeon master, a slip of the tongue, I’m sure you understand.” Hmmm, she bears watching closely I thought to myself.

  “Though I suppose you haven’t a tongue to slip do you master. It must be so inconvenient to be a fragile gemstone.”

  “Oh, you are dangerous my sphinx, dangerous indeed, I think we can work well together” I said laughing.

  “And you as well master, now let’s get this volcano built aye.”

  “Yes, let’s” I responded, moving my presence down a floor.

  The sphinx perched on the edge of her room, front paws hanging over the lip as she looked down through the hole, to the cavern that I had carved out. With a little push she slid over the edge, plummeting down like a stone, before catching herself with her giant feathered wings and gliding gently to the floor, landing next to my presence.

  “What is your vision then master?” she asked.

  I thought for a few moments getting the image of what I wanted straight and then replied.

  “I’m imagining a towering peak, over there” I said pointing with mental probe to direct her attention towards the farthest corner of the room from us. Almost directly underneath the entrance to the floor.” I paused for a moment to let her process, before continuing.

  “That will be the volcano, and it will house the boss…uh, the, er, lesser boss… which I have decided will be a balefire wisp cluster. The wisp will live in the lava pool at the top and once the wisp is killed, the lava will drain away, leaving a set of stairs down through the volcano that will take the adventurers to the wind levels. Streaming down from the peak, rivers of lava will flow, branching out like threads on a spiders’ web around floor. The dark rock, basalt, should provide nice contrast to the red of the lava. To reach the volcano, the adventurers will have to descend down the inside of the support column of your temple after besting you in some manner, unlikely though that is, whilst dodging the spitting lava that will send red hot shards of rock pelting the stairway. Once below the level of the ceiling they will continue to descend the floating steps that rim the edge of the cavern until they reach the floor right here, where we stand.” I said watching her reaction, good so far, a slight smile broached her lips.

  “Jumping across the basalt islands, the adventurers will have to dodge the lava rivers before making it up to the lip of the volcano, where the wisp will attack and they’ll need to take the fight on the slopes, making sure to keep their footing and not to tumble down, into the waiting lava.” I finished.

  “Sounds good master… Have you thought about coating the volcano in ash?” she asked.

  “No, I thought the basalt look was preferable” I explained to her.

  “Lots of natural volcanoes are made up with layers of ash and rock which is why, when they erupt, huge ash clouds are blasted to the sky and cover the lands. You could even bury treasures in it, a secret prize to discover.” She continued, convincing me.

  “Yes, I could incorporate sections of ash covered basalt for sure. Thanks, Lady Sphinx.

  “Oh, and make the edges of the basalt crumbly, as if the flowing lava has eroded the edges. More perilous that way.” She said, instantly recognising where I could improve.

  “Another good idea, I’ll get to work.”

  “Of course, happy to help, master”

  Building the volcano took the better part of a day but while chatting with the sphinx the time flew and soon, I had my peak and I had my lava pool in the top. Cutting gouges in the slope and the surrounding land was easy, but making it look natural was hard. Still, by now I was adept at the process, and I thought the sphinx might have even been a little impressed. She stayed quiet for much of the task, and it gave me a chance to think of names.

  She was female and so the names of the adventurers Lorelei and Jenna came to mind, but that was silly it wouldn’t do. More human names cropped up like Lily and Jessica but that was out too. A normal name wouldn’t do for a creature of such austere grandeur. No, it had to be illustrious. Something that was not coming to mind just yet.

  By the time I had finished cutting the gouges and channels in the basalt, I had a list of a few potential names, including Dahlia, like the flower, Khala and Ekkorua. But none of these felt like the one though.

  I sighed, it would come to me in time, for now it was time to keep working.

  The rest of the day was spent making little changes to the floor and just generally perfecting it. The sphinx was very helpful, and I liked having her around. She made the process better and her company lightened the mood. It wasn’t the same as having adventurers wandering around, but it was a damned sight better than the lonely absence.

  “Hey sphinx…” I called to her. She lifted her head from her paws and blinked at me.

  “What do you think about having some flame riddled wheels rolling around the basalt islands. They aren’t a major threat, but I just find them such a unique monster, and I have a few already that I haven’t used..”

  “If you like them, get them, but I wouldn’t expect much, they aren’t very agile and most of the people who make it down here are going to be aware enough to avoid them with ease. It’s probably a waste of points, but since you already have some then go for it.” Hmmm perhaps she was right, but I just loved the idea. I didn’t have enough to fill the islands yet, but I thought that I could buy just a few more and be done with it.

  Buying the sphinx and all the monsters had cost me most of my points, well all of my points, but I had managed to get them all.

  The last thing I had to do for the fire levels was the secret rooms. The gorge had a hidden section in a dead end that I had put in a while ago and the desert had a room that could be accessed by falling down one of the sand pits.

  But the temple had nothing yet, it would be easy to create a secret passageway and so that is what I did, but I wanted it to be slightly better than that.

  In the end, the sphinx came up with a great idea. Pyramids were originally constructed as the elaborate crypts of the Ryarzi Dwarves who lived above ground. The sphinx suggested that an intricate puzzle on the coffin could allow its top to open up to reveal a secret room and that, I thought, was just fantastic.

  She too thought she was being clever and told me so repeatedly.

  “Master, how on earth did you get by without me?”

  “Perfectly well, perfectly well” I muttered.

  “But much better now that I’m giving you such good suggestions, right? I think I should be rewarded, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I’m sure” I replied, cynically.

  “Thank you master, you’re so kind.” She said, taking me literally. I snorted.

  “What do you want?”

  “You’ve no adventurers coming down right now, right?”

  “Yes”

  “Well, I’m bored, can I go hunt some of the manticores for fun, they aren’t too difficult, but it should pass the time.”

  “Of course, but be careful sphinx, I don’t want to have nothing left if adventurers come around, it takes mana to respawn them you know. Leave enough for me to still have a defence or I’ll call you Memphis.”

  “Bah, I’ll be careful. I’m a geniu…”

  ~~Congratulations: For naming your first monster you have been awarded 5000 dungeon points ~~

  Uh oh, this was not good, I looked over her, seeing a small tag floating over her head. ‘Memphis the sphinx’ it read.

  “What have you done!” she screeched, outrage showing on her face.

  “Well, um…”