The Crafter's Darkness: A Dungeon Core Novel (Dungeon Crafting Book 4) by Jonathan Brooks (e book reading free txt) 📕

She stood in front of the second entrance for a few seconds, staring intently at the stone wall blocking them from access.  Suddenly, she raised her hands and pointed them towards the obstacle in their way and a giant stream of brown Earth energy shot out and collided with the wall; with a twist of her wrists like she was trying to wrench something and a snarl on her face that made her even less attractive to Wyrlin – he didn’t even think that was possible – he heard a giant crack that reverberated over the wasteland valley and slightly hurt his ears.  He looked at the stone block and saw a massive crack in the middle, which widened significantly even as he stared at it.  Within 30 seconds, the crack covered the entire surface of the stone…and then with another painful snap, the block crumbled apart, falling inwards towards the massive tunnel that was swiftly revealed.

Fyola sagged as she fell to her knees, breathing hard from the incredible amount of energy she had just spent.  Wyrlin was suddenly glad he hadn’t tried to kill the Elite before this, because the display of power frankly frightened him.  He couldn’t even imagine what she could do in her defense if her life were on the line.

“See…I told you,” she panted out, before getting to her feet.  “Now, let’s go,” she said, smiling cruelly at Wyrlin.  That smug little—  She knows exactly how impressive that was, and I can’t even say anything.  I can’t even imagine being able to control that much energy.

Rothgar shouted a command in Orcish and teams of Warriors strode forth over the massive blocks of shattered stone and into the tunnel awaiting them.  Shortly after nearly 300 of them went inside, Wyrlin and the other Elves followed behind.  As he picked his way over the pieces of the wall that had been blocking them, he couldn’t help but notice that it was only perhaps a foot thick.  It seemed like a thin protection if it were supposed to keep people out, though it wasn’t like he’d seen one shattered before, so this might just be normal.  Regardless, he couldn’t help but be fascinated as he walked inside a dungeon for the first time.

The stone was smooth, as if it were carved with something other than tools, showing a perfection that appeared impossible to achieve unless someone used something like elemental Energy.  Wyrlin intuitively knew that this was precisely what was used, or at least some sort of energy analog, to create the entrance.  He had honestly really questioned exactly what it was that made these dungeons work, and even how there seemed to be an endless number of monsters that roamed the forests; if they used energy, though, then it made a little more sense to him.  He thought he might be able to use his own Earth energy to do it, but only on a ridiculously small scale; not even Fyola would likely be able to do more than a few feet of a tunnel this size.

He suddenly realized why it took an experienced group of Elites to destroy a dungeon, and even then it wasn’t guaranteed.  To take down something that could build this was almost incomprehensible to someone like him, who didn’t have quite the power or control over his Element like the Elites with him did.

But it’s more than just Elites with us – we have thousands of Orcs, too.  Suddenly, as if his thoughts about them caused them harm, Wyrlin heard screams of pain and rage erupting from behind him and outside the entrance.  He turned back to help, but Rothgar was there in front of him, putting his hand out.

“It looks like the dungeon finally decided to attack us.  Don’t worry, we have plenty of Warriors available to take care of them – there can’t be that many.  Let’s keep going because every minute of delay gives them another minute to spawn more monsters.”

Wyrlin was slightly torn on whether to help those outside and continuing on, but the thought that this was all a delaying tactic in order to create more monsters made his decision for him.  He looked around and estimated that about 500 Orc Warriors were with them inside the secondary entrance, along with his entire group of Rangers – and Fyola and the other Elites, of course.  This should do well enough.  “Fine – let’s kill this thing and get out.”

With determination in their hearts, the screams of the dying and the roaring of the monsters outside echoing in their ears, and with their weapons in their hands or spells at the ready, Wyrlin and the others journeyed deeper into the dungeon entrance.  Not once did he stop and think why the metal monsters outside were roaring.

Chapter 37

It was a fortunate set of circumstances that led the invading army of Orcs and Elves to attack Sandra’s Roc tunnel instead of her main entrance.  First, she did what she could to seal up the roof of the workshop, which looked horrible if she were honest; she couldn’t build all the way to the top because that would be the same as trying to manipulate things aboveground.  Instead, she built a stone roof that sat right underneath the massive hole that was created by the Gravitational Devastation Sphere, but it didn’t blend all that well and it was extremely obvious that it didn’t belong.  Regardless, it was technically hidden and that – along with the obvious destruction left by the Sphere – aided in the decision by the group to locate and assault her other entrance.

As soon as she heard they were planning on doing that, she immediately sealed up her Roc tunnel with a thin wall of stone.  She theoretically could’ve put hundreds of feet of stone inside, but