Chapter 54: Pyramid In Vines (2)

Jak had seen a number of Dungeons in his life, namely during the last three years, a time period where he had traversed a number of worlds in search of greater strength.

During that portion of arduous training and continuous battles, the young redhead had come across many different types of dungeons, each world possessing its own unique style. A tree dungeon where the roots themselves were akin to tunnels, digging into the ground to make up a labyrinth dedicated to spawning creatures from hell. A stone dungeon that spewed scalding hot water through its innards at various intervals, creating hot springs and geysers within itself. Even living dungeons that existed inside of monster worms that lived underground within their respective world, a moving dungeon that would constantly relocate itself every few weeks.

However, even with all the things he had seen, Jak had never seen a dungeon that had not only been above ground, but also traversed upwards instead of down.

The Pyramid Of Araml, or at least what Jak was opting to call it, was different from regular dungeons in several ways. Even without seeing its inside, it was already an oddity, an unusual specimen for something that was already considered to be unpredictable and dangerous.

For starters, there wasn’t any detectable magic within the pyramids area.

For a Dungeon to work as they do, creating and forming monsters within its confines, an immense amount of magic was required. The dungeon itself would soak in various amounts of mana through the mana rich atmosphere as well as through the planet itself and then, after it was done, would expel it outwards back into its surroundings. Using what was ejected, WGC workers would analyze the amount of magic and then use it as a basis towards approximating the strength of the monsters within said dungeon. So, as a result, every dungeons environment was NORMALLY coated in layers of mana, sort of like an enormous onion. Sometimes, one could even feel it from miles away.

However, the Pyramid had none whatsoever. Meaning there was no way of knowing what was inside without direct exploration.

Another oddity to note were the vines. Though not local to the Desert world, Jak and Mako knew right from the start that the thick coils of vegetation weren’t supposed to be there, just like the forest back at the Village. These vines had ensnared the entire pyramid in its evergreen grip, snaking through the dungeons sloped walls and even twisting itself around along its surface, turning the four faces of the pyramid into a mossy triangle.

"I guess we found the source." Mako glanced upwards, craning his neck to see the apex of the pyramid. "Those are some pretty gnarly looking vines."

"Yeah." The fiery redhead moved forward, aiming to get a closer look. "But I don’t think this is the source."

Mako glanced away from the pyramid, eyeing the back of his friends head. Saying nothing, the blue haired rookie seemed to think it over carefully, mental gears turning as he fell in line behind Jak. Taking into account the lack of magic, the odd looking vines, and the strange feeling that had lead them to the pyramid in the first place, an idea was formed rather swiftly.

"It’s using it as a power source." The young Water Mage caught on to what his friend was suggesting after a few moments. "Meaning the source..."

"Is back at NorthClaw." Jak reached out and touched one of the vines as they arrived at the pyramids base. Upon contact, the fiery redhead could feel his internal mana slowly being sucked away. "We were following what this thing was using as its source. It wasn’t using Piertend Lake alone as fuel."

"Then....that thing you were feeling before WAS the culprit. The center of NorthClaw. - Mako

"Seems to be the logical conclusion." - Jak

"Then we should go back and...where’re you going?"

Mako halted what he was saying as his bright haired compatriot leapt from the sandy floor onto the top of the nearest vine, some 10 meters off the ground. Without a word, Jak pulled out Masamune from its sheath and began a slow trek up the vines stalk, towards a crack in the dungeon made by the same vine. Trailing closely behind the fire user was Knox, of whom had become largely interested in the whole affair for reasons unknown.

"Oh. So NOW you want to play detective." The youth let out a small sigh as he took his battle staff from his back. "You’re gonna be the death of me."

Despite his own desire to immediately double back and report the new findings to Ontoki and the rest of the Blood Guard, Mako sucked it up and clambered up the vine, ignoring the mana slowly draining from the spots where bare skin touched the vegetation.

Under normal circumstances, Dungeons would repair themselves when damage was dealt to them or their immediate surroundings, be it melted walls or shattered pillars. They were entirely self sufficient, able to fully defend themselves against attacks by speeding up monster creation and regenerating after taking hits to any part of their infrastructure. However, this process required the use of magic, the same magic that was used when the pyramid would pull mana from the atmosphere and nearby environment. With no magic, the dungeon couldn’t fix itself and would gradually deteriorate as damage to it accumulated.

Due to that very lack of magic, cracks and holes had begun to form, spreading outwards from where the vines had punctured through. It was through one of these openings that Jak and Mako made their entrance, even though the built in opening was still quite usable.

Tak. Tak. Tak.

The sound of shoes scraping the floor echoed around the vicinity, bouncing off the blackened walls and down the long stretch of hallway layed out ahead. With the setting of Ard ’Aramls two suns, of which were on the other side of the pyramid, little to no light was able to permeate through the narrow hole made by the thick vines. From what was visible though, one could see just how desolate of a place the Dungeon had become, a shell of its former self. No monsters, big or small. Not a speck of life seen or felt.

As the trio fully stepped into the pyramid, Jak opened up his right hand with the palm faced upwards, shifting his sword to his left. A large flame flickered into existence just above the free hand, sending a gentle glow through the area.

The dungeon was no better looking with a proper light source. Moss and smaller vines grew from cracks in the walls, grass and weeds traced their way along the floor, and what appeared to be thin tree roots hung from the ceiling. Just like the outside, the inside held a distinct lack of mana. All that remained was a smell of freshly formed vegetation and a heavy humidity, an odd combination for a world entirely comprised of deserts. It went without saying that everything present was far from natural.

"The poor man’s version of a dungeon." Mako stepped over a chunk of debris, azure hues scanning the sections illuminated by his friends miniature fireball. "I don’t think I’ve ever seen an abandoned dungeon. Didn’t even know it was possible."

"You see something new every day," Jak replied.

"Have you seen things like this during your travels?" Mako questioned, placing a hand on the wall covered vegetation. Tearing off a piece of a smaller vine, he observed it carefully.

The smaller vine wriggled and twisted before shriveling up and turning a disgusting shade of brown. Seconds after, it crumpled into pieces. Meanwhile, on the spot the piece had been ripped from, a new vine grew in its place.

"On this scale? No." The redhead made his way forward, hand held out far in front of him. "This is beyond anything Ive ever encountered. If it’s made by one person, than we’re dealing with a Rift Hunter."

"Or some semblance of one." Mako turned away from the wall and continued to follow behind his companion. "In other words, this might be above our pay grade."

"It was above our pay grade after we were teleported."

Mako let out an annoyed sigh, rubbing the back of his head. "This always happens when we do a quest together. I get roped into your bad luck and we end up going on nonsensical detours. I don’t get paid enough for this."

Jak stopped for a moment and glanced back slightly. "Aren’t you rich?"

"That’s not the point. Bonehead."

"Doesn’t matter. Whats done is done." Jak once again zeroed in on the current task, leading the way forward. "Let’s focus on the here and now."

"I suppose you have a point."

"Don’t I always?"

"No."

From there, the two fell into silence, the redhead no longer having any more to say. Though keeping up a conversation with the youth had gotten far better compared to when Jak had first arrived into Intok, talking to him was still the equivalent of pulling teeth. Aside from bits of banter and the occasional exchange of knowledge and ideas, the fiery haired youth only spoke when absolutely necessary, and even then he kept it short and simple. Long bouts of silence and hours without uttering a single word had become commonplace. It was enough to make a chatterbox like Mako Kunzite want to pull his pluck his hair out piece by piece.

In that instance though, the blue haired rookie wasn’t as annoyed by the lack of vocalization. It allowed the youth to sift through his own thoughts and piece together the newly obtained information.

For starters, there was the perpetrator. The one who had caused the problems throughout all of NorthClaw, sucking the dual Elemental Rookies into the crossfire.

Assuming it was a singular entity, of which was the most likely case, the one responsible was at the same tier as a Rift Hunter, a high level Adventurer recognized by the WGC. This meant that the enemy they were facing could wipe them out of existence at any time with minimal effort should they happen to come face to face with them. It also meant that the entire forestation ordeal within NorthClaw and the Pyramid Dungeon was most likely the work of the persons True Magic rather than a standard base magic. If Mako had to guess, it was probably something related to forests or some sort of plant.

On that same note, there was the next area of concern regarding the True Magic usage.

The vines currently being used to suck up magic from Lake Piertend and the Pyramid Dungeon were definitely being used to perform some sort of large scale spell. What the spell entailed one could only guess at, True Magic allowing one to add special effects to individual spells, with the more powerful spells requiring more time and magic to properly cast. Even if Mako rushed back with the redhead, it was highly likely that they wouldn’t be able to do anything about the spells activation since they didn’t know what it was or how it functioned.

Even if they knew where the source was, there was no telling what would happen when they arrived. The True Magic spell was likey close to its final phase and stopping it was pretty much impossible.

And if Mako was able to figure this out, then the youth was quite sure Jak had already pieced it together as well. The redhead probably knew heading back was pointless and opted to continue the search for some sort of clue.

Either that or he was just curious about the Pyramid Dungeon as a whole.

Around this time, the two of them had reached the peak of the pyramid, entering a vast room that possessed a giant hole leading downwards and a small staircase leading upwards. Surrounding the giant hole was nothing but crumbling bricks and heaps of cracked up debris, making the area look worse than it already did. Looking down the abyss, one could see the various floors that one had to scale just to reach the spot of land the two youths were standing on.

"Hmm. You think this was here beforehand?" Mako crouched near the side of the ledge, looking down. "Or did the vines cause a portion to crumble away?"

"I think you should back away from there." Jak gave his friend a side eye. "You’re gonna end up falling."

"It’ll be fine," Mako said, waving his hand dismissively.

"....Okay."

"Did you learn anything through your investigation? Oh great detective Yanda?"

Jak narrowed his eyes, the firelight reflecting off his crimson orbs. "The True Magic was put into place a little over a month ago, long before we came to ’Ard Araml. It wasn’t done by anyone from the Aries Guild or anyone working for the Mastermind. Messing with the locals wasn’t on their to do list. The magic is too intricate for low level Adventurers like us to deal with, let alone decipher. Additionally, the spell is too far along to actually stop."

"I agree." Mako rose back up onto his feet, twirling his battle staff. "I would also like to add that we’re dealing with a single individual. This spell is such a roundabout way of dealing with Aramlians, taking such a lengthy amount of time and preparation. I highly doubt a group would take this long to act or only employ ONE spell. To the point of using a Dungeon as a fuel source."

"Whoever’s involved is strong. But not strong enough to take on multiple Rift Hunter level beings in a fight. So, they need to rely on a more indirect method."

Mako nodded, slamming the butt of his staff onto the floor. "Then let’s get out of here and tell-"

CRACK!! CRACK!!

"You’re an idiot." Jak slowly put away his katana as the ground he was standing on began to sink. "If I survive this fall....."

"Yeah. I’ll allow you to cut me this time."

The two didn’t even try to run as the floor gave out from beneath them, sending the dual Rookie’s tumbling into the dark depths below. Knox, wanting no part of it, immediately jumped into the redheads shadow as the two disappeared into the abyss.