At least I knew now that I could pull him inside my jewel and summon him again when necessary, as long as I hadn’t overeaten a metric tonne of rock.
It wasn’t just my champions that my new consciousness could see better, but everything within my lair. The walls, the floor, and even the dust mites floating through the air were crystal clear. I knew it all with total and complete knowledge. It was a deeper knowledge than I’d ever known in my own body back on Earth. I knew this dungeon as though each atom had its own sensations. I could feel the pressure of Bertha’s feet beneath me while Puck’s wings sent air billowing against my walls. When the imp fluttered to the ground and dug his talons into the earth, I could feel that, too. It wasn’t a painful sensation, merely an awareness.
Total awareness.
I focused on sending Puck a message. “Puck, scout the entrance of my dungeon. See to it that the Varidus aren’t a threat, and that no-one has noticed my work here.” I considered how sharp I’d been with him and softened my tone somewhat. “You’re the smallest and the fastest of all of us. Be thorough, quiet, and report back when I call for you.”
Finally, with something to do, Puck nodded enthusiastically. “Whatever pleases the Master!”
He shot up the tunnel I’d built and out into the darkness beyond. I could still sense his consciousness as he muttered to himself. His words were brimming with happiness and energy, but I was too distracted to actually make out their meanings.
Bertha’s grateful smile had captured my attention now, and I longed to be back in my elvish avatar so I could take her to me. I saw a wistful glance cross her face, guessing she felt the same. Although she was under my dominion, I had developed feelings for her. I’d known her little more than a day but fucking and fighting made the heart grow fonder like nothing else.
The half-troll settled down against the very end of the room and crossed her powerful legs before adopting a meditative position. I guessed the pose was something from her warrior’s training, making me think I’d gotten the wrong idea about her. Originally, I’d thought her the Infernal version of a berserker or barbarian, but her rage was almost non-existent outside battle. She was more like a warrior-monk who could command her emotions to greater effect, and anger worked well in battle.
She closed her eyes and flared her nostrils while she held her palms upright. She was either praying or taking some personal downtime, and I didn’t want to bother her in either case.
Satisfied my champions were occupied, I turned my attention back to the smooth tunnel, the entrance to Zagorath. So far, it was just a smooth and sharp incline into more solid stone. I stretched my mind out to the floor of the tunnel and considered it.
Stray adventurers needed a grand entrance before their messy demise, right? I caught hold of the Physical Essence within myself, but instead of drawing it inside myself, I pushed it out and away from my gem. My movements were gentle as I guided one Physical Essence at a time to see what would happen.
The essence seemed to flow directly into the room itself, making the walls, ground, and the very air vibrate with energy. My sloping entrance tunnel seemed to hum and bounce as though excited. Its formerly hard stone surface became softer, more malleable.
Excited to further test my abilities, I channeled the Physical Essence into the mouth of the tunnel. With a series of mental movements, I moulded the entrance like it was made of clay. After a moment, the smooth and sharp decline had its first stair—a polished black obsidian shelf.
Could I only use obsidian?
I visualized the other stone I’d consumed, concentrating on its molecular components, its taste, and the general feeling of its form. This time when I channeled the Physical Essence, my dungeon produced its second stair. A duller and less light-catching shelf formed directly beneath the first.
Interesting mechanics, Lilith.
I could feel the pressure on my jewel lessening after creating these two stairs. Obviously, I was still nearing full capacity, but an idea of the numbers I was using would be useful. With a thought, I brought up my essence tally.
Current Physical Essence: 9,850 / 10,000
My jewel flickered with excitement, and I wished I had a mouth, so I could grin. My dungeon was fairly rudimentary, but I was just getting started and had a whole lot of essence to burn.
12
Interlude
Ralph Kraus adjusted the noose until the coil was tight and the loop would fit over his head. He shaded his eyes from the pouring rain and peered up at the tree. It was leafless and skeletal with bone-white branches that almost look like gnarled fingers, a typical plant for the Hag Pines. Ralph would need to wrap his legs and arms around the trunk and slide a dozen feet before he could reach the lowest overhanging branch. His hands would slip from the wet, so the task would be difficult.
“To think dying would really be this hard,” he muttered.
“You can do it!” the blacksmith’s wife cried out.
A few villagers had gathered around the tree to witness Ralph end his life, and they spectated with eagerness. It was the highest level of social engagement he’d had from any of them since his mother had died. He hadn’t thought his actions would draw a crowd, but then, so little happened in the
