New Framework Acquired!

  Juvenile Dire Grizzly (Rank C - Steel):

  Even while young, a Dire Grizzly is a fearsome foe, standing easily twice the size of its normal adult counterparts. It faces foes with huge claws made for tearing and ripping flesh, and its jaws are powerful enough to crush bone. Fiercely territorial, this creature will not flee from challengers and will fight to the death, often taking the challenger with them. This facet of its nature proves to be true as a Dungeon Monster as well, but perhaps to the extreme, as it will guard its floor above others’ unless the Core is threatened.

  Valterra hummed. Something about the Framework was familiar. Ah! This was one of the original Frameworks that my uncles and aunts offered back when I became sapient. I chose the whales instead. Valterra hummed again. In hindsight, that was a poor decision, considering the amount of work I had to put in to make them usable. On the other hand, I got the grizzlies anyway, and I needed the whales to claim the pond, so I may have made the right choice after all.

  The System wasn’t done, reminding him of his mice and their territorial victory. Light blazed all around the clearing as mice reached the next threshold of Ascension. The Mouse Gorger, too, shone with light. Little tyrant she was; she had received the lion’s share of the Aether by dint of her stage of Ascension, gorging herself on the Aether the beast had left behind. Valterra chuckled, pulling up the list of possible Ascensions for his creatures.

  Your “Feral Mouse” is ready to Ascend!

  Please choose from among the following stages:

  Mouse Gorger (Rank E - Bronze)

  No longer merely feral, this mouse has Ascended into a larger and more fearsome form. Showing a tendency to fight and devour anything it comes across, this beast has passed into the realms of the monstrous. Often found in lower-stage dungeons as lieutenants of Feral Mouse swarms, they use their greater size to seize the choicest morsels for themselves, both mundane and Aetheric.

  Swarming Nestkin (Rank E - Bronze)

  Nestkin are voracious and repugnant little vermin, gaining increased intelligence with every successive Ascension but never truly achieving Sapience, only survivalistic cunning. The Swarming Nestkin is at the very bottom of that totem pole, running in hordes in order to gain the sustenance they need to Ascend further and climb ranks within the nest.

  Murid Stonejaw (Rank E - Bronze)

  A return to ancient savagery, the Murid Stonejaw is one of the ancestors from which all mice and rats Ascended. This Framework has remained alive through intensive use by other dungeons. With an elemental affinity for Earth, this creature enhances its already impressive bite by enveloping it in a casing of Earth, earning it its name. A burrower by nature, it makes sure to have a plentiful supply of soil and rock nearby for defensive and offensive uses.

  First up were the Feral Mice and their Ascensions, none of which had changed since the last time a Feral Mouse had Ascended. Which reminds me, Valterra thought. I need to check in on that Nestkin. It's probably done Ascending by now or is close to it. Still, the choice was easy, or it should have been. Valterra didn’t have the Murid Stonejaw Framework yet, and here he had the opportunity to establish a whole breeding population.

  The problem was that the Mouse Gorger wasn’t a Murid and therefore her ensuing Framework wouldn’t mesh with that of her kin. That’s not necessarily true, though, is it? She’s a Guardian. I would have to create a new Framework for her anyway. Would the Helpdesk guide that? Only one way to find out. Valterra set aside the other Ascensions for the moment and focused instead on his Guardian.

  Your “Mouse Gorger” is ready to Ascend!

  Error! The Ascending creature is a Guardian and therefore is considered a unique existence despite having not been one previously. Any available stages are now ill-suited and will waste potential. Due to this, the Helpdesk will now be engaged to help the Dungeon Core craft a suitable stage of advancement on its Path of Ascension. Please utilize accumulated Aether and Divine Potential to design the next stage.

  Huh, interesting. I wonder how Wenigo will be described once he reaches the next stage? He was a unique Framework before I made him a Guardian. Something to look forward to, I guess.

  Valterra slipped into the Helpdesk, that space in his core reserved for his creatures’ advancement. The Mouse Gorger’s Pool of Ascension was massive for a beast of her Rank. Divine Potential and Aether swirled together, the vibrant colors of each standing out against the pale backdrop of the Helpdesk. Valterra looked at it in wonder. The amount of each substance present was almost akin to her being a rank higher.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Shaking off his amazement, he queried the Helpdesk about what he wanted. To his delight, he watched as the basic form of his Mouse Gorger shifted into a more primal and savage rodent. It was large, with thick, bristly hair rather than the soft fur she had previously had. The tail was shorter, the legs thicker, with paws made for digging. The jaw grew more brutish, and the eyes took on a savage gleam in their dark luster.

  The changes barely made a dent in the Pool of Ascension. Valterra smiled and went to work. He realized quickly that the System had only given her the appearance and general body type of a Murid. There were no affinities present, and the change had done nothing to strengthen her body. So, the core got to work changing that. She didn’t get bigger, since she was already large, but her body grew more muscled, cords of it standing out in sharp contrast.

  He gave her an affinity for earth, matching what the rest of her clan would get. Then he added more, expanding her mind with Potential to lead her family better. While doing so, he peered inside, gaining a better sense of what she wanted. Lodged firmly in her brain was the desire to eat and consume. She had been a mouse of simple desires, and it seemed she was set in her ways.

  That was fine. Valterra could work with something simple. He began revamping her body, streamlining it for efficiency. He gave her a jaw capable of opening wider than it should, capable of snapping shut suddenly and powerfully. He changed the secondary set of teeth behind the first two pairs of incisors to be sharpened like canines. She was a dungeon monster and a Guardian besides. Meat would be her preferred meal.

  He added a pouch under the tongue to store mineral deposits. The Core imagined her latching onto a target with her strong jaws before ripping the flesh apart with the minerals contained in the pouch. He had gotten the idea from his whales and their ability to mince anything caught in their mouths. Thinking about it some more, Valterra made sure to toughen the inner skin of her mouth. That way, she wouldn’t mince her own mouth while using her new ability.

  He made sure to do the same thing with her esophagus and stomach. The murids were already a hardy animal, so he didn’t have to do much to accomplish his goal. Taking a metaphorical step back, he admired his Guardian. She was a fierce thing, but he still had some energy floating around. He hummed to himself, thinking over the battle and what might have made a difference.

  His awareness locked on the throat of his creature, and he was reminded of how close she had been to having her throat ripped out. Armor, that was what she needed. Luckily, her new affinity would make that a simple task. Valterra dived back into her mind using the rest of her Pool of Ascension to give the beast some new instincts.

  The first was the ability to sense movement above her while burrowing. The second was an instinct to come up from underneath it before attacking. And the third was covering herself in a shell of rock and other hard minerals as she did so. Valterra’s core gleamed with satisfaction as he confirmed his selections. As before, the System made slight alterations to ensure his selections wouldn’t cause any hidden issues.

  Congratulations! You have crafted a new, unique stage for a Dungeon Monster via the Ascension Helpdesk!

  Would you like to name your creation?

  Yes / No

  Yes, obviously. Hmm, what would be a good name for this species? It has to have ‘Murid’ in there somewhere, but it can’t be tacky. Hmm, she’s going to be attacking from below a lot. Big mouth. Got it!

  New Path of Ascension synthesized from an existing Framework during the Ascension process! The Framework “Mouse Gorger” may now Ascend into the following Framework:

  Error! The original Framework is not compatible with the new Ascension stage. Searching for solutions. Solution found.

  New Path of Ascension synthesized from an existing Framework during the Ascension process! The Framework “Murid Stonejaw” may now Ascend into the following Framework:

  Murid Earth-Gulper (Unique, Rank D - Iron)

  Many dungeons have utilized the Murid Framework for its savagery and durability. None have tried to innovate upon its design, until now. A unique creation by the dungeon Valterra Unok’Davaas, the Murid Earth-Gulper is a qualitative upgrade to the Murid Stonejaw. With an increased earth affinity, this beast is capable of practically swimming through dirt as if it were water. Utilizing its newly enlarged maw and seismic senses, it burrows underneath its prey before surging upward like a great white shark. Time will tell if it is as deadly as it seems.

  Due to its Guardian nature, your creature is greater than those that will come after it. The Framework listed above reflects this in the sense that it only contains the main aspects of your Guardian’s capabilities in order to maintain the proper Rank.

  Huh. Valterra had to mull that one over for a moment before he understood exactly what it was saying. Because he had changed the starting point for his Guardian, the System gave the Framework to the Murid Stonejaw Tree of Ascension as one of its stages. Likewise, because his Guardian was unique, the ensuing Framework was unique as well. That was the easy part to understand.

  More difficult to wrap his mind around was the fact that his Guardian’s Ascension had created a new Framework for the Murid Tree of Ascension, but also that that Framework only contained a portion of his Guardian’s upgrades. The main things were there, like the increased earth affinity and ambush instincts, but there was nothing about stone armor or the internal mouth grinder.

  Valterra could only give the equivalent of a mental shrug. He would have to wait until his Guardian finished Ascending to look at her new form. Since she wasn’t Named by him, he had no idea what her Framework would actually be called. With his Guardian’s Ascension settled, he turned to her offspring and mentally acceded to the Murid Stonejaw option. He then buried them underground, leaving some breathing holes for them so they wouldn’t suffocate. When they were finished Ascending, they would be more than capable of digging themselves out of it.

  So finished, Valterra turned to his wider dungeon, his senses spreading out till he found Natalia’s party. They had found a den to hole up in, one of the main ones with an Aether pylon. The mage was gesticulating madly at the thing, and Valterra smiled to himself. He didn’t bother heading over at the moment. For one thing, he was far too busy, and for another, the rest of the party was trying to rest. He would be able to get the mage’s opinion on his pylons later.