Chapter 425 – Rescued?
Colonel Sam Powell watched as the two Black Hawk helicopters landed in the parking lot of Fort Lauderdale High School. Soldiers helped fifteen women off the helicopters, wrapped in blankets for modesty. The last of the rescued prisoners was on a stretcher, and covered by a blanket. Between her… injuries and getting crushed under the Goblin Lord’s weight against the concrete, she was unconscious, which was probably a blessing, at the moment.
All sixteen women were taken into one of the classrooms, which had been turned into an aid station. Once they were all dressed in basic recovery pajamas taken from supplies. They didn’t have any undergarments for the women, but the ones who were awake were all glad to at least be wearing something. The last woman had awakened after getting some healing magic from the doctor, who was a Healer as well as a doctor.
Finally, when they were all settled, he walked into the room, along with Lieutenant Colonel Heidi Saunders and Kuronoth. Because if the poor women were Dungeon Bound, then the only one who the women would have to choose between death, and binding themselves to another dungeon. Which sucked, but there wasn’t anything they could do about it. The Boca Raton Exclusion Zone needed to be shut, permanently.
Powell went to the woman who had been brought in on a stretcher, first. She was laying on her cot, looking jumpy. The broken nose she’d had from her fall had been healed, as had the rope burns from the restraints which had bound her to the Goblin Lord. He didn’t ask about the… other injures, and he certainly didn’t object to the way her eyes widened as he approached. That kind of reaction was understandable, given what she’d gone through.
“My name,” he said, in a calm voice, like soothing a wild animal that was caught in a trap, calming it so you could help it get free, “is Colonel Sam Powell, commanding officer of the 75th Ranger Regiment. You were rescued by some of my forces in the Boca Raton Exclusion Zone during the ongoing operation to try and eliminate the goblin threat, there. Can you tell me your names, and where you are from? Any information you can give us will help to eliminating the goblins as a continuing threat.”
The woman looked up at him, a dazed look in her eyes. The doctor had said that she had a concussion, which was playing out as a minor confusion debuff, and Powell could see that first-hand. She could hear him, knew he was talking to her, but the words weren’t processing. “Es tuet mer leid. Ich verstah nöd.”
Now it was Powell’s turn to frown. “Sounds German. We’ll need to find someone to translate.”
“That won’t be necessary, Colonel,” Kuronoth said, stepping forward. “Part of my abilities allows me to speak and understand languages. Cannot allow translation issues to get in the way of receiving prayers, after all. She is speaking the Swiss version of German. Mentally translating English to German and back again is probably a bit much for her, just yet. I can translate, however.”
The colonel nodded. “If you would, Lord Kuronoth. We need to know these women’s names, where they came from, how long they’ve been in the zone, and whether there are any other surprises waiting for us. And we need to see if any of them have been marked, as you said.”
The other women were listening in, obviously, and they started frowning, at the bit about ‘being marked’. Which showed that the others understood him well enough. So, they all spoke at least a little English, or enough to get by. With any luck, they’d all be locals, or at least living somewhere nearby. That would be a big help.
Kuronoth turned back to the dazed woman, and spoke to her in her language. They went back and forth a couple times, and there was visible distress on her face at something the dungeon god said. Powell let it play out. So far, the assault was going more or less according to plan, and all troops were aware of the potential for magic being back in play within the Zone. They could afford to wait a few minutes and do this properly, without further traumatizing these women.
Finally, the woman said, “Ja,” which he knew enough German to know was yes. Kuronoth placed a hand on the woman’s forehead, and a black light appeared. When it faded, the god’s symbol appeared like a tattoo on her arm. Kuronoth then uttered another word, and magic put the woman to sleep, which was probably a mercy.
Turning back to the rest of the room, Kuronoth said, “Her name is Maike Riesen, and she is a native of Kreuzlingen, Switzerland, just across the border from Germany. She is a professor at the Thurgau University of Teacher Education, there, and has the Archivist class with the Scholar profession. A powerful support class, with the right team, but she’s not really the ’adventurer’ type, which makes it all the more impressive that she got to Level 15 simply by researching and teaching. The only dungeon she’s ever been to is the Prisoner’s Lament dungeon, over in Germany. It seems the goblin ritual summoned her two days ago, after the Mana Barrier went up, but before the System Interdiction Field was enacted.”
Powell nodded. “And since the ritual circle was already laid out, it kept functioning without the System?”
“Indeed,” Kuronoth nodded. “And the goblin shamans used their own mana, plus that generated by the Goblin Lord’s ‘exertions’, to power the other summonings.”
“Excuse me,” said one of the women, a black girl who spoke in a Boston accent. “But what does this mean for the rest of us? And why did you mark that poor girl? And who are you? You aren’t military, like the rest of these people.”
If being questioned by the woman annoyed him, Kuronoth didn’t show it. Instead, he turned to the woman, and said, “Lina Jordan, Level 19 Rogue and Courtesan. You’ve done well for yourself, and have already signed one of my contracts, since you are an adventurer with the Massachusetts Adventurer League, under the American Adventurers Guild. The one to use the portal network, specifically. I am Kuronoth, God of Pleasure, Domination, and Dungeons. It is in that role as a God of Dungeons that I am here, advising the military as they clean up the broken dungeon in Boca Raton.”
All fifteen women’s eyes went wide at the revelation of who the man in black was. Not unexpected. Everyone had heard of Kuronoth at this point, since the System notices about his children, alliances, and marriage would have reached even those in the most isolated communities. Most people would have seen images of him, before, but seeing him on TV or streamed video really didn’t do him justice, since he had a definite aura that cameras couldn’t capture.
“As for why I marked her, that much is simple. Miss Riesen had been marked by the goblins serving the broken dungeon, and is identified by the System as Dungeon Bound. So long as she remains bound to the broken dungeon, the dungeon cannot be permanently destroyed. The only two ways to break the binding, however, are death, or replacing the binding with another. Normally, a dungeon could simply transfer ownership of the Dungeon Bound creature, but a broken dungeon is incapable of that. To forcibly change her binding, I marked her with a [Slave Brand], overriding the previous binding and binding her to my own dungeon, though I told her I would speak with the Prisoner’s Lament dungeon, and see about transferring her binding there. It is likely she will end up being the dungeon’s public voice, when such things are needed.”
Kuronoth looked at the girls, studying them each in turn. “Unfortunately for all of you, it looks as though the summoning circle which brought you into the zone also bound you to the dungeon. Which means the fifteen of you have to make a choice, as Miss Riesen did. I can give you a swift and merciful end, or I can bind you to my dungeon, the Forbidden Chambers of Exotic Pleasures. A choice between death, and eternal life as part of a dungeon, even if you are later sent to another dungeon on Earth. Either way, I am sad to say that your old lives are over.”
One of the Hispanic girls, said in very accented English, “Is there a reason you can’t bind us and then free us?”
Kuronoth nodded. “Ana Gálvez, Level 21 Fighter and Commander. I see an officer’s rank in your titles. I’m assuming you are military?”
“Sí, I am a Lieutenant in the Mexican Army, stationed in Mexico City. I wish to understand why you cannot simply sever the binding, if you are a god.”
“Contrary to what modern religions would have you believe, gods under the System are neither all-knowing, nor all-powerful. There are limits on our abilities and powers, based on our domains, and how many followers we have. I’m afforded extra leeway in this instance, thanks to my being a God of Dungeons, and this operation being directly related to dungeons. However, breaking the bond between a Dungeon Bound creature and the broken dungeon is not something I can do.
“As for simply binding you and freeing you, I am afraid that is simply not possible. I can erase a [Slave Brand] from any creature bound to me, as can any other who owns a slave under the System, but once a soul is Dungeon Bound, those changes cannot be undone. This is because the soul is removed from the ‘mortal’ section of the System, and transferred to the ‘dungeon’ section, which has different rules and restrictions. Transferring a Dungeon Bound creature between dungeons is possible, and they can walk outside of a dungeon’s influence, but simply releasing the binding is not possible. In fact, the only reason your death would release the binding, instead of sending you to be respawned by the dungeon, is because of the System Interdiction Field surrounding the dungeon. Normally, the only way to release a Dungeon Bound creature from that status is by destroying their soul, or the dungeon they are bound to. Unfortunately, a broken dungeon can only be destroyed if all those linked to it, either by being spawned by the dungeon or Dungeon Bound, are killed, and no links remain to allow it to return.”
One of the Asian girls spoke, next. “Lord Kuronoth, what of Resurrection magic? If we are killed, and then brought back after the broken dungeon is destroyed. Would that work?”
Kuronoth turned his gaze to the girl, and named her, “Murano Tsuki, Level 25 Priestess / Shrine Maiden. You have a contract with me through the Japanese Adventurers’ Alliance to use the portals. As for why one cannot simply kill and raise you once the dungeon is gone, it is because your soul is still part of the Dungeon architecture in the System. It may help to think of things like a database suffering from data corruption. When a broken dungeon is destroyed, its database is deleted, along with all the corrupted entries in it. Meaning that, if you are killed, and the broken dungeon is destroyed, your entry will be gone, with no chance to return. However, if you wish, I can put in a good word for you with some of the dungeons in Japan, and see if any of them will take you.”
Kuronoth’s gaze took in each of the women in turn, and he said, “Any of you who choose death, please say so now, and I will make it quick, and painless, leaving your body in a state that it can be returned to your loved ones for whatever rites are appropriate to your faith and beliefs. Those of you who wish to live, as part of a dungeon, I will speak with each of you privately, once you are rebound, and find a proper placement for each of you, either in my own dungeon, or in one of the dungeons closer to your homes that are awake enough to communicate between dungeons. You have done me no wrong, and are not in this position through any choice of your own, which means I will do what I can to make this as easy on you as possible. I know some of you may have heard about my more outrageous deals, but those are reserved for those who have attacked me or mine in some way, have made choices that they are attempting to escape the consequences of, or who are seeking power for their own sake, without considering the cost.”
Colonel Powell and Lieutenant Colonel Saunders watched as twelve of the fifteen chose to be bound to Lord Kuronoth and his dungeon, at least until they could find other placement. As for the other three? They watched as Kuronoth put each of them to sleep with a spell, and then blasted them with black flames, killing them, but leaving the bodies unmarked. As he promised.