"It's clearly a trap"
(Zeki) "I agree orangey"
(Ariza) "Uh huh"
(Petra) "Seems that way"
All four of us are now back in Petra's tent after the message from the elf was received, we had to wake up both the other two since it's gotten pretty late now, the message was clearly that important.
As for what the message said, it basically went into great detail on how the elves want to make peace with our country and that they understand our reasons for not sending our daughter away. They way it's written, it does sound somewhat genuine but there is clearly one big problem.
The problem is that they will not sue for peace unless our entire family meet them together in an open part of the forest, alone. This clearly sounds like a trap.
"Still, we should attend such a thing"
Petra actually wants to do this? Where's her caution gone all of a sudden?
(Ikarus) "What's your thinking then?"
(Zeki) "Yeah older sis, this seems dumb"
"Two reasons, first is that we don't know if this is actual attempt to kill us, they could want actual peace"
"You can't be that naïve sis; they'll easily surround us that deep in the forest"
Me and Ariza are both in agreement with Zeki but know when to keep our mouths shut, she was going to continue on.
"Zeki, wasn't done yet. In the most likely option of a complete ambush against us, they'll get to witness how powerful we really are. Leave a survivor or two and the chances of them suing for peace increases"
I like her confidence but still, it does seem a bit risky especially when she's completely blind, unless she hasn't revealed everything she's capable of which might make sense.
"Petra, are you hiding something like a secret magic that deflects arrows or something?"
Arrows are the biggest counter to unlimited magic; all it would take in theory is a single arrow through the right spot in the head to land a kill. That's why we still need to be slightly careful especially when elves mostly use arrows, some use magic and swords but it isn't all that common.
"Not at all Ikarus, just thinking if all three of us were to combine our flame around us like a circle, it would be more than hot enough to burn any attack that approaches. We still have Ariza if any get through"
She was thinking of something like that? I guess it would work if we were to coat the area around us in oil or something else extremely flammable.
"We'd have to get to transport a load of oil though, it shouldn't prove that difficult"
"No Ikarus, we don't need anything to set alight"
Hang on, what is she on about then? Our flame comes from us, how could we make a circle protecting us if it isn't shooting from our own hands constantly? It would burn up way too quickly, I guess we could keep spinning but I don't think that's what she's on about though.
"I'm a little confused Petra"
"Yup older sis, I have no idea how to do that either"
Even those two are a bit confused on what Petra is talking about. Simply put, once fire is released from your body, it very quickly loses its heat the further away it is.
It's why something like my flamethrower doesn't have unlimited range or can shoot miles away, it burns up to fast. Fireballs have a lot more range but they're more compact so it does make sense. The tornado is just pure power so it has a long distance but needs charging.
"It's a little hard to describe how to do it but it works perfectly for a defensive situation, I'll show you all before we head over in the morning"
"Okay then sis, see you tomorrow"
"Uh huh, night everyone"
Both those two leave the tent but there's no chance I'm leaving just yet, I've still got something to do here.
At the very least despite tomorrow being hectic, I can eat Petra's homemade lunchbox now.
__________
(Ikarus) "How far now?"
(Ariza) "Not too long, should be close by"
(Zeki) "I can't wait to kill some more pointy eared bastards when they try something"
(Petra) "..."
All four of us are traversing though the endless forests of the elven country right now with Ariza holding a map being the guide.
We haven't come across any elves out here so far on our journey to the location disclosed, unsure if that's a good or bad thing though. On one hand, they might be trying for peace so they might have told all their soldiers to leave this area empty. On the other, they might have moved everyone so the ambush is going to be even more impactful.
Of course, every single knight and advisor under our command was completely against the idea of us four heading into the forest alone, it's not exactly like they can forcibly stop us though. A group of knights did try following us out here but they very quickly realized they couldn't keep with us as well as keep tracking us in this thick dense forest.
This upcoming situation could get us all out of this dungeon but with how long we've already spent inside here, I feel like there's still a lot more to do before such a thing is to come up.
Oh well, I guess it could've been a lot worse.
We walk in the heavily dense forest for another few minutes and then come up to rounded opening, this must be the place.
"Looks like we got here first, good. You three remember what I showed you?"
"Yeah yeah"
"Uh huh"
"Yup older sis"
I'm unsure what to call the magic ability she introduced to us but I'm gonna call it a rune since it looks similar to one that you might place on the floor. By setting up some magic conduit crests in the right locations, you can release fire from them using yourself as the source of power. No idea on the specifics behind it but it literally works the exact same way as releasing magic from your own body, you just need imagine the conduit is part of your body for it to work.
I was a little surprised she never showed this to us beforehand but I think she has only just learnt about this recently as well, she has been working a lot behind the scenes investigating different aspects of this dungeon world. I wonder if this type of magic exists in our own world or if this is exclusive to this place, guess we'll find out one day.
There are some drawbacks, this is very clearly only meant for defence. I can't see any situation where this would help in attack unless you can somehow sneak behind enemy lines and place something there but even then, there is a certain range limit so you have to be close by to activate and power the magic into it.
We did purposely come here a good six hours early then requested to prepare hoping we'd be alone and looks like we are alone thankfully.
If there were people already here, the intention would've been to distract them while we set up the conduits for the flames but seems we're good for now.
(Ikarus) "Let's get started then"
__________
Seven hours later...
"They're late"
Petra's the first to say something obvious that we all know, are they seriously this late? At least if you're going to ambush someone, do it on time. We're all chilling on the leafy floor as well now, no point standing around when our potential attackers still aren't here.
However, a terrifying thought has just come to mind.
"Petra... you don't think they did this to draw us out while they counter attack?"
A look of shock appears on Ariza's face and a look of anger appears on Zeki's; Petra still seems calm though.
(Ariza) "They wouldn't do a thing, right?"
"Those dirty fucking treacherous elves! I'm going to kill as many as I can if this is true"
Petra still remains calm; she has an answer more than ready.
"Relax Zeki, they won't get past the front lines, can guarantee it. Made more than enough preparations before leaving, nothing like that will work"
I'm starting to think she's a little too perfect, the only mistake I remember her making is with the love potion so once again, if she says it's fine, then it should be.
"You sure it's fine to be sticking around here for this long? Should we leave already?"
"It's fine Ikarus, they're here now"
Us three phoenixes look around to what Petra said but we couldn't see or hear anyone, has she gone mad?
"Are you sure you're not hearin-"
As soon as I say that, a couple of well-dressed elves appears from the bushes and I stop myself from speaking. I guess her hearing is better than all ours.
"To think you actually accepted our invitation, we greet the human royal family"
"Greetings"
The male elves speaks first and the female second towards us but Petra immediately gets herself up of the ground before responding, we very quickly follow her up though.
"To think you actually thought this would work, there is nothing worse than blind arrogance"
"I'm sorry king? Whatever do you mean?"
The male elf responds in a confusing manner but Petra knows what's wrong.
"You really think trying to ambush us would work?"
As soon as Petra says that, she activates her portion of the magic conduit surrounding us and a black roaring fire circle's us all. I can't help but question her, there are no additional elves here right now.
"Petra, what's wrong?"
"There's footsteps all around us in every direction. Zeki, help me inject more magic into this. Ikarus, watch them please, don't let those two do anything"
"Fine older sis, don't disappoint us orangey"
"Fine fine"
The four elves are inside this circle of black fire with us, they don't look surprised in the slightest. Zeki activates his magic and the fire turns more into an extremely dark red, his red flames have combined with Petra's black it seems.
"To think you'd see through us human king, we're impressed"
"Very impressed, you definitely are people of equal status to us"
The male always speaks first for the two elves, both do look impressed. I'm slightly curious on why they've thought this type of approach is a good idea, why ambush us if you plan to speak as well?
Wait, equal status? Are these two the elven leaders then? Could killing them end the dungeon?
"Petra, should I kill them?"
A quick look of surprise appears on the elves faces, maybe they didn't expect this queen to say that. Maybe they should've, I am the mad queen after all.
"Hear them out Ikarus, decide afterwards"
(Ikarus) "Fine, speak"
(Zeki) "Yeah, speak you pointy eared bastards!"
They take a second to compose themselves but then the older looking male elf leads once again.
"We don't actually mean you any harm if you can believe it, we got thrown into these jobs and have been stuck in this world for a while"
"Yes, more than six months, we can't find a way out"
Hang the fuck on? These two are in the same situation as us? Oh, for the love of God, this is the dungeon's theme. Put two separate groups of people in positions of power on opposing sides and see what happens. I'm unsure what to call it though.
"Yet, you still planned to kill us"
Before I have the chance to question them, Petra says something else. Are we not planning to announce we're in the same situation then?
"The only way for us to return to our home world is to win the elven war, we have no choice"
"That's the only idea we came up with though"
They literally are in the exact same situation as us and have no idea how to get out, this is just plain stupid now. Why are we even fighting if this is the case?
Both Ariza and even Zeki look shocked from this conversation.
"That still doesn't excuse the fact that you were planning to kill us right now, what difference would that make in this moment?"
I feel like Petra's irritated at them but I'm unsure if it's for the right reasons, we've done enough damage as well. Although, we were always looking to end the war and not use a peace meeting for an ambush. Maybe I'm not understanding her reason for annoyance perhaps?
I've just noticed the endless forces of the elves outside our ring of fire now, I haven't seen any arrows flying in so they are either under orders not to fight until told so or the fire is that strong stopping anything going through.
"And yet, you're the ones who hold us hostage"
"If you were in the same situation as us, what would you do?"
I can't help but give a grin, I really want to tell them now.
"That's really not how this thing works, using guilt doesn't apply in this situation, that wasn't my point but doubt you'll understand it. Did you two ever stop to think once that the opposing side could be in the exact same situation?"
Wait, did Petra think something like this might be a possibility? I'm so happy I'm alongside her, I never would've thought of such a thing until it just got revealed.
"What do you mean?"
"Yeah, what are you talking about?"
Petra stops talking to them and looks at me, I think she can sense I really, really want to reveal everything.
"Ikarus, you can continue now if you want"
"Okay dokey... us four are in the exact same situation as you two, we've been stuck here for the last six months as well trying to get back to our own world"
As soon as I say that, everything around us and us included starts to fade and I don't even get a response from the two elves, just looks of shock and horror. Why the fuck is everything fading though?
"What the fuc-"
...
__________
(Ikarus) "I fucking hate dungeons!"
(Zeki) "What kind of dickhead comes up with a twist like that!?"
(Ariza) "What's going on?"
(Petra) "..."
All four of us find ourselves returned back inside the pyramid next to the fountain we used to enter, me and Zeki are clearly fuming while Petra and Ariza are a lot calmer and more collected but even they look a little confused.
We are also obviously back in our normal bodies, gender and clothing now but that really isn't something worth mentioning.
"Why the fuck did that end it? This seems even more confusing"
"I wanted to kill those scheming elves! Why do bad things always happen to good people?"
(Ariza) "Even I'm a little confused, what just happened?"
Us three are completely confused, at least Petra might have an idea what just happened. We've all gotten up off the ground now as well.
"It's just a guess but maybe the dungeon realized the war could no longer continue? The realization that both opposing forces would've ended the war since there would've been no more reason to fight, not completely sure either"
That's the reason? I mean, she's probably right.
"I guess the war did end even if it wasn't the expected way, what about those two though? Were they actually real people or were they fake like the others?"
...
I don't get an answer from anybody this time, all of us are completely clueless on that. Once again, dungeons suck. At least I'm not the only one who understands it now, Zeki and Ariza are also annoyed.
"In future older sis, we're not going into anymore dungeons. There's no point if that's the end result, a game with an ending that shitty needs its rating dropped seriously low"
"I don't agree with everything Zeki said but I'd rather not go inside another"
It's a good thing there's two other party members waiting for us since these two definitely aren't down for another... wait, how long have we been inside there?
'Need to check, status'
[Name: Ikarus | Species: Phoenix | Level: 54]
[Health 14,825/15,000]
[Stamina 5,000/5,000]
[Magicka 7,000/7,000]
'That doesn't even make sense, it hasn't even been a day. I swear Zeki said months ago that he spent an hour inside when it was like a minute or two out here'
[
'Aesa, you're back!? Do you have idea why we couldn't speak?'
[
She was unable to communicate throughout? At least it feels good knowing she was there, no idea why she was cut off though. Maybe the dungeon didn't have a role or a position for an AI to fill? Could be the same for the other three phoenixes too.
I should probably go back to the conversation though.
"Look, I'm happy to be out and all but seriously, is that it? Where's the big climatic ending? I literally told them we're in the same boat and the damn thing just ends like that? *Sigh*"
I still can't over it, everything we've done in those six months just ends in the blink of an eye. Sure, I know that was what we were intending but still, it's just so anticlimactic.
"Might be best to try and calm yourself Ikarus, dungeons are notoriously frustrating"
She seems to be handling this better than the rest of us anyway, I guess she has her system fake eyesight back so that's a plus. Ah whatever, let's just forget about it and move on, got to take the prince and princess back home. Heh, it's good to be out of that place and back to the real world.
"Yeah, you're probably right Petra... I'm guessing the reward for this place is supposed to be that fountain once again seeing that none of us have been told of a reward"
As I say that, I get an empty bottle out of storage and fill it up. Once filled, I place it back into storage.
'Aesa?'
[
'You mean this fountain is basically just a gigantic love potion? Sighhh'
Of course, spend six months in a dungeon and this is the result, compare that to the last dungeon's reward, ah forget it, I'm just complaining like usual.
The only thing I can think of that might relate to us getting this reward is the fact this place seems to be like a drug den but that wasn't actually inside the dungeon proper. In future, might try and skip the next dungeon if I see a fountain. At least this explains why the liquid had a green tint to it this time, only just noticed that.
Well, it still makes sense not to waste it, I guess I could sell it off or keep some since Petra likes the stuff. I really doubt I'm ever going to drink it but oh well.
"Give me a hand please, need to bottle a load of it up"
"What's the fountain filled with Ikarus?"
"Yeah orangey, what?"
"Uh huh?"
"It's erm... that energy drink love potion you lot seem to love"
__________
Now that I've filled as many stamina potions as I can, it's time to leave.
At the very least, that's another dungeon done. Perversion, confusion, undead, giant and now whatever dungeon that one was. Only five more to go, I doubt I'll be able to stomach the empire for that long so might decide to change the terms of father's agreement early, basically by removing the opposing party if that wasn't obvious.
Once we make our way through the small like maze of the pyramid, back out of the drug den and just as we're close to the entrance, we are all stopped from stepping a foot outside.
"Halt!"
"Do not move!"
"We will kill you!"
A small army of beastmen block us from leaving, we complete the dungeon and this is the first thing we come across.
'Sighhh...'