The Crafter's Dungeon: A Dungeon Core Novel (Dungeon Crafting Book 1) Jonathan Brooks (sites to read books for free .TXT) 📖

same time, Sandra felt a small “tug” at her consciousness and as she watched, a forceful stream of nearly-invisible energy flowed out from her and entered the multi-colored fog.  The Mana she had provided the swirling cloud appeared to thicken it in certain places, while at the same time it condensed down into an eight-legged form with a large central body.

Within seconds, much faster than she had anticipated, a Clockwork Spider sat staring at her from the middle of the cave floor.  Well, staring wasn’t quite right, as the two multi-faceted “eyes” on the front of its face appeared as if it weren’t really looking at anything in general.

Her spider was huge, though – much larger than she thought she could create with just a tiny little copper bead.  Its body was almost completely encased in a dark-colored metal shell, with slits along the sides where the eight leg bases were attached.  Inside those slits, Sandra could see and hear small clockwork gears turning and whirring, somehow magically running through the Mana she had provided it.  The spider’s legs appeared to be made of a mixture of wood and metal; from their base near the bottom of its body, they shot upwards before coming back down to the floor, creating an inverted V shape.

It didn’t look highly maneuverable, but her Clockwork Spider certainly seemed deadly.  Each of its legs were tipped in a sharp spike, which looked like they could do some damage against anything it came across.  In addition, it had a large mouth with razor sharp fangs just waiting to bite someone.

Not that she cared about all that – because she had just crafted her first dungeon monster!

Ok, so it wasn’t much in the way of “crafting”, but she had used her abilities to create something; and unlike the basic healing ointments she had made in the past, her new creation was an impressive machine made from different elements and essentially enchanted to run by itself!  Sandra was inordinately proud of herself.

Isn’t it beautiful?  And it’s so massive – I didn’t think I’d be able to make something this large already!

Winxa was busy admiring the Clockwork Spider as well, though she laughed out loud at Sandra’s exclamation.  “How…how large do you think this spider is?” the Dungeon Fairy asked in between laughing fits.

The former merchant was confused.  What do you mean?  Based in comparison to you, It must be at least four feet tall at the highest point of its legs, and nearly that wide.”

“Ah, I see what the problem is.  Sorry to burst your bubble, Sandra, but you’re having an issue with your perspective,” Winxa said once she got ahold of her amusement, though she still smiled at the Dungeon Core.  “How tall do you think I am?” she finally asked.

Well, I first thought you were a giant Fairy, because you’ve got to be at least six feet tall.  The myths always described Fairies as being tiny, but I suppose Dungeon Fairies are an exception because you have to deal with Cores all day long.

“Your myths are surprisingly correct, though I will admit that us Dungeon Fairies are larger than our more common cousins found in the wild.  In fact, we’re about 50% bigger than they are; whereas most Forest Fairies are only about two inches tall, the Dungeon variety frequently tops a whopping three inches.  And I’m about average for my race, as I’m just barely over three inches tall.  Hopefully that will help put things into perspective for you.  Better yet, you should try looking through your spider’s eyes.”

Three…inches?  But that would mean…

Sandra instinctively connected with her new Clockwork Spider and tried to look through its eyes.  She was bombarded with multiple views again, but it only took her a moment to acclimate herself to the multi-faceted eyes of her dungeon monster.  When she was able to focus, she saw a very small, white-glowing crystal floating in the middle of the cave.  Comparing it to the Dungeon Fairy that she could see out of the corner of one of the Clockwork Spider’s eyes, she estimated that it was just barely larger than Winxa’s head.

Is that…me?  I’m so…little…

“Yes, that’s you alright.  Don’t worry, though, as you get stronger and accumulate more Mana, you’ll grow larger.  When you’re larger, you’ll be able to hold more Mana, absorb more Raw Materials, and consequently make stronger Dungeon Monsters.  Think of yourself as a newborn baby right now; you need to feed to grow healthy and strong, so by the time you’re an ‘adult’, you’ll be able to do almost anything you want to.”

How do I get stronger and larger? Sandra asked, curious despite the strangeness of looking at her new form.  She had to admit that it was a surprise that “vile and destructive” Dungeon Cores were actually quite pretty when it came down to it – like an enchanted diamond she had seen before at a different merchant’s stall.  Though, without being modest, she thought she looked even better.

“At first, it’s quite easy; all you need to do is fill up your Mana Capacity and…somehow…use every unit of it to upgrade your Core Size,” Winxa started confidently, before apparently realizing she didn’t know the exact process.  “I’ve never had to lead a Dungeon Core through the process, since it was ingrained knowledge granted to the Core through the contract,” the Fairy admitted.

“Anyway, I’m sure it will be self-explanatory when you get to that point, which, like I said, is pretty quick at these lower sizes.  Once you get larger, the amount of Mana to upgrade your Core increases, of course, until it gets to a point where it’s difficult to completely fill up your Capacity without wanting to spend most of it.  Most dungeons struggle to balance growth with the need for creating more dungeon monsters to get more, which is why a lot of them resort to attacking nearby