~ Chapter 16: The meeting at the top of the pyramid ~

[Tuberculus’ point of view]

History has told many stories. Some turned from a simple tale of success into a legend or myth, while others vanished without a trace. Within the annals of history, there were many moments which could be considered as major turning points, when the victor turned into the loser and a kingdom seemingly about to vanish without a trace, through a twist of fate, become the strongest force known at that time. Whether the death of a tyrant was actually the fall of the hero or the other way around was something that only future historians could argue about. When you lived in that time, the side you chose was that of the hero and the other one that of the tyrant.

This moment, when all of us were now sitting at this table, waiting patiently for Yandrea to start the meeting, was without a doubt going to be the turning point for both the nations above and those below. Whether we would get to speak of this to the scholars or whether the future historians and archeologists would mention us in a passing whisper would remain to be seen.

I looked up at my wife, she was floating above our table, a pink sphere of light with which I shared an incredible connection. Her real body, however, was the pink crystal behind the reinforced glass panels behind us. There was no way for me to tell how she was feeling right now or what went on through her head. I had faith in her and believed that this meeting would be a fortuitous one.

“Thank you, to each and one of you, for replying to my summon. I appreciate your arrival and haste. What we are about to discuss at this meeting will be something that none of us will share with others unless decided otherwise. In this regard, I will declare that the Slaves are not included among those I trust with this information. Our very lives and continued existence will depend on what we will discuss today. So, what I ask of you is that no matter what will happen in the future be prepared to lay down your life rather than spill a single word to anyone, especially the Slaves, Royals, and Adventurers. Do you have the courage and strength to follow this path? If not, you are free to get up from this table and depart. I will not stop you but I will take back your title.”

Yandrea’s voice was calm and decisive like that of a tempered court official who spent decades doing her king’s bidding.

We waited for a minute but no one dared to get up. Although glances were cast left and right, they could not read each other’s mind. Personally, I found this interaction to be fascinating and out of habit, I tried to gently comb my now non-existent beard. Oh, I missed her so much...

“It seems that you are all ready to do what is needed.” Yandrea broke the silence.

“Great One~ it wasss thanksss to you that we~ are even sssiting at thisss table~. We~ are indebted to you for life~!” Queen Skara’s melodious voice resounded, showing the great reverence and respect she held for my wife.

“It is as the scaly one said! We are here because of you and we will die for you! The first and utmost duty of the Lion Emperors is to protect you, Great One!” Guizbia Shakar declared as she showed her vicious smirk and sharp eyes.

“The Ornaks will always follow your will, Great One.” Mizu’kra Eyo said with a voice that carried the wisdom of her age.

“If there is an Ellyarian who will go against your word, their tail will be eaten for supper!” declared Mystera Orogaki.

Next to her, Samraus Orogaki crossed his arms and nodded, strongly agreeing with his wife.

“We, the Automatons, are yours to command as always.” P.A.L. made a bow with his three heads.

Their loyalty was as tall as the sky and as wide as the horizon. They would rather put down their own life than to do anything to harm my wife.

For a moment, I was reminded of that young Dungeon who was left alone in the cold abyss. The tears that fell were invisible to the naked eye, but they were saltier than the sea and carried the pain of a thousand nails. Although there were a few who stood by her side, they were nothing but ghosts now and some were devils disguised as saints. At this table, she had found maybe without even realizing those who without a magical contract would lay down their own life for her.

I was glad to see this but at the same time, I felt as though in her own sea of pain, Yandrea was unable to see them... just like a treasure hunter in the middle of a field of gold.

“Thank you. I will not forget your loyalty.” her cold voice confirmed my belief. “I will now begin to tell you about the Ritual of Suppression.”

“Ritual of Suppression? I never heard of it.” the ornak by the name of Pezmo’Va Eyo said.

“The Reiss call this event the Ceremony of Decent. The Forglore call it the Ritual of Suppression. The Negvar Elves call it the Ceremony of Renewal... as for you and the commoners on the second floor alike, it is called the Hero Festival. It has been going on for hundreds of years now... ever since I had the unfortunate fate of being discovered by the first ancestors of those kingdoms on the surface.” she began, her voice holding in the pain and fear she retained from those events.

“Hundreds of years... Before the Ornaks and Ellyarians?” asked Mystera.

“Yes. Long before this floor was even built... Tuby... if you would.” she stopped and asked me to tell the story.

Everyone’s attention turned towards me. I cleaned my throat and sat up.

“All of you are aware that this place where you are born and where you have lived your entire life was built at a point a long time ago by Yandrea, my wife.”

“Yes, everyone knows this...” Mizu’kra Eyo nodded.

“Indeed, it is the great treasure upon which the Great One allowed our people to thrive!” Samraus Orogaki said.

“None of you have ever seen the sun, the moons or the beauty of the starry sky, correct?”

“Thossse are... unfamiliar... but we have heard of them... in passing.” said Queen Skara as she flicked her long-forked tongue at the end.

They were all looking at me now, wondering where I wanted to go with my statements.

“The sky above is not a treasure that only the blessed few are allowed to enjoy. Yandrea tried to duplicate them here with the ceiling of this floor and with magic on the second floor, but they are far from the actual thing. They are a gift granted to everyone who was ever born on this world, however, when the ancestors of those living on the surface discovered Yandrea, they stole it from her. They pushed her to build more and go deeper and deeper, to make this dungeon as they desired and as they wanted in order to use it for themselves. As such, all those born in this place were also robbed of this privilege of seeing the stars.” I said and halfway through, I realized that I was completely ignoring the original speech I had prepared. I was going with the flow... and I had no idea where all these things about stars and whatnot was coming from, however, their eyes were telling me that I was striking the right cords.

Sometimes, intuition was scary, sometimes it was a blessing.

“Were we never supposed to... stay underground?” asked Guizbia as she clenched her fist.

“Yes.” I nodded “You were supposed to be able to leave this place whenever you wanted and even create your own communities above the ground. None of the Dungeons that I have ever met so far were doing anything like what Yandrea is being forced to do now.”

“Forced? What do you mean by that? What and who could possibly force the Great One to do anything?!” Pezmo’Va Eyo, the younger ornak was outraged by my words.

I let out a sigh and said “The Slaves... the envoys from the surface. Have you never noticed their arrogance? Their cruelty? Their ignorance?” I asked.

They all looked down. The Lion Empress tightened her fists to the point that I feared she was going to harm herself. The ornaks were showing their teeth in anger. The ellyarian narrowed her eyes and looked down. Her grip was relaxed but her tail was snapping behind her, while her husband placed his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down, despite he himself holding in his anger. Queen Skara was the only one who remained the same, a tough act.

“These are facts none of you can deny. You have all seen them, felt them, and they made you ponder why did the Great One, why did Yandrea allow this?” I took a deep breath in and then exhaled slowly. My hand reached up towards my invisible beard and when I realized it was no there, I pretended to clear my throat. “Ahem! So, back when the ancestors of the kingdoms on the surface discovered Yandrea, they researched a way to subjugate her, to control her. They did so through fear, through pain, through magic that forced her to believe that she is weaker than them. This is why they have forced her to stop increasing her Power Level, why the Slaves act as they do despite them being... just as the name implies, slaves. If Yandrea, right now, orders them to die, they will. That’s the type of contract they have with her. However, because she feared the retaliation of those on the surface, she never did.”

“Why? She should have killed them ages ago! Those bastards don’t deserve to live!” shouted in anger Mystera.

These boiling emotions of anger and hate that she was feeling came from the fact that over a decade ago, a Slave killed her son and slaughtered around 20 civilians and guards. His reason was even more ridiculous. He did it because he was curious to see if Yandrea was going to act or not against him. Of course, she did not as this was not the first time they had done something senseless and cruel like this in order to test her and put pressure on her. Yet, she was never able to explain her reasoning to those who so strongly believed in her.

“They don’t, true, but if she did that, their armies would have come marching down and exterminated each and every one of you. Those on the surface are cruel enough to make sure not to let even a single child or elderly go no matter if they are ellyarian or ornak.” I explained.

“That...” Mystera clenched her fists in anger and bared her sharp teeth, but then forced herself to calm down. Her anger was still boiling, but she knew it was the painful truth.

“The Ritual of Suppression is something that every one of you have experienced. Personally, I never did, but from what I know so far of it, I hope I never will.”

“What is this... ritual then? I know only that I must play the rebel leader who fights against the Great One’s oppression and my own grandmother’s supposedly bad decisions.” Pezmo’Va Eyo said as he glanced over at the elderly shaman next to him.

“The Ritual of Suppression is a gigantic play orchestrated for the purpose of allowing the future rulers of the kingdoms on the surface to gain fame, authority, and strength over their own forces. They are always displayed as heroes for their people. Every time they come down here, they do so in order to stop one of the ‘Evil’ ploys of my wife. They will fight against monsters, stop rituals, whatever it will be, all in the name of showing their troops how great the young princes and princesses are. Then, in order to remind Yandrea that they are the ones holding the power over them, she is forced to build a statue for them in the Temple of Heroes.”

“So... everything we did... everything our ancestors suffered for... was so that those living in the kingdoms on the surface could have... their fun?” asked Pezmo’Va as the horrible truth was dawning on him.

“Yes... All the deaths, all the suffering... was for their entertainment. However, their people were unaware of this detail. The soldiers, the grunts, the mercenaries that follow them down here, they never knew the truth as you are being told now. They were led by the lie that they were fighting for something greater, for the prosperity of their own family and a limitless future. The crown was then passed on to the worthy descendant and when the time for a new Hero Festival came, they too would descend to play their role in this grand theatrical play.” I said as I looked at each of them, capturing their dissatisfaction and growing hate for those living a happy life on the surface.

“What isss the Great One’sss role in all of thisss?” asked Queen Skara.

“My role was to be the organizer and helper in the shadows of those ‘heroes’.” Yandrea replied.

“When the new royals who needed to be tested came of age, they would send down a Slave to first announce the Preparation Phase for this ritual. The previous ‘heroes’, the kings and queens residing on their throne now are the ones who make up the way the play is supposed to go.” I then nodded towards Yandrea and several documents appeared on the table.

“What’s this” asked Mystera as she picked up a copy.

“The plan that was sent to Yandrea.” I replied.

“This is ridiculous! GRRR!” Guizbia let out a feral growl as she crumbled the paper in her hand but then she straightened it up to read the rest of it.

“I know it’s infuriating, but this is just one of the many that have been sent down to me... I never once agreed to them wholeheartedly, and I desperately tried every time to change the outcome they desired in a way that benefited us... Sometimes, however, it was impossible because of their tyrannical personalities. This plan, the Rebellion, is one that aims at turning the ornaks and ellyarians against me. There was never supposed to be two leaders... a rebel one and an official one, but I had to do it because... as you can see... the alternative would have been terrible.”

“The rebel leader... upon the arrival of the royal ones are supposed to... kill? Kill the current rulers?! What? They wanted us to kill our... family?” Pezmo’Va Eyo was shocked by what he was reading.

“Among other things... Yes... When I told them that I could not make you do this, they ordered me to brainwash you or use some powerful spell to coerce you to do this. As such, the rulers would become the indoctrinated enemies and my infamy would rise to a whole new level.” Yandrea explained.

“In other words, senseless slaughter.” Mizu’kra Eyo said as she placed the document down.

“So far, the Slaves believe that everything is going according to the plan in your hand. They want to see blood and carnage unleashed.. and I have 7 years to prove it.”

“Just as my wife said, this plan will be enacted in 7 years from now. Which means that we have 7 years to prepare for a counterattack. As you can see, following it... is possible. We just have to ignore everything I have said so far and come to peace with the idea of slaughtering your own kin for nothing. Perpetuating lies will destroy all your values and morals. Personally...” I took a glance at them “I don’t think anyone here is willing to do this. At least not from what I have seen so far.”

“Indeed, following this plan is ridiculous.” Mizu’kra Eyo nodded.

“I thought we were just being tested... but this... this is absurd.” I said Pezm’Va.

“This... at what stage are we on right now?” asked P.A.L. as he looked up at Yandrea.

“The entire Ritual of Suppression takes place in four different phases: Preparation, Development, Implementation, Victory. During the first one there is a lot of communication happening on the upper floors between me and the Slaves, who represent the current leading royal families. From the theme of the event all the way until the final part of it is being discussed. During the second one, both the surface and me proceed to gather the materials and individuals required for this play. All the actors are gathered for different reasons. In this case, we needed actors for the rebel army as well as those who would eventually reveal the rebellion to the surface. During the third phase, we put into motion the entire plan. This will begin one year before the time of descent of their army. The adventurers will play a key role in this as they will be the ones to encounter the rebel forces that barely managed to escape my wrath as well as the various changes appearing on several floors. As for the last phase, Victory, it will be the final theatrical play that will take place on this floor. I would be the main villain while the rebels and the armies from above would play the hero. By defeating me and making me swear to stay loyal to the royal family another century or so, they would have completed the Ritual of Suppression.” Yandrea explained.

As they took it all in, the entire floor was submerged in a gripping silence. Only the gentle blow of the wind could be heard. What went on through their head was unknown to me, but looking at their expression that changed from anger, to acceptance, then to grief and sorrow, I could make a guess. The reality of their own existence was becoming an unavoidable truth they could no longer afford to ignore or deny.

“Hm... the title of hero of the ornaks and ellyarians would also imply the ease of access of those on the surface to our own kin and culture.” Mizu’kra Eyo said as she looked back at me.

I nodded in confirmation.

“They would have new servants to play with... new toys...” Mystera let out a low growl.

The creatures and civilization that were born in the dungeon thanks to Yandrea’s power were considered, in a disgusting way, the property of the species living on the surface. To be more precise, they were the shared property of those few species and up until now no one had dared question this judgement.

“Is there no hope for us?”

Surprisingly, the one who asked this was P.A.L. While, so far, he remained silent as he considered himself and his fellow automatons the extension of my wife’s will, her dutiful servants that she had created and which she could destroy and dispose of at any given time, this was the first time I could see the spark of wisdom in him. The ability to comprehend and desire hope, how marvelous it was to see this in a creation similar but so different from a golem.

“To be able to see the light of hope, we must first begin by understanding where we are right now.” I answered.

“And where is that, exactly?” Mystera asked as she looked at me.

I glanced back at her and then up at Queen Skara.

“We are seen as the property of the royals. We are seen as monsters that they can use and exploit.” I looked at the ornaks “We are servants and disposable pawns.” I looked at Guizbia “We are weaklings whom they could oppress and stop from growing stronger.” I looked at the ellyarians and P.A.L. “We are seen as the powerless freaks led by a powerless leader.” and then looked up at Yandrea “We are seen as something... not even someone they can abuse...” I then closed my eyes “As such, we are underestimated and our true potential is ignored.” I opened my eyes “Our true strength has never been shown. Our will may have been bent but never broken. Our power may have been weakened but never destroyed. Our dignity and pride may have been spat on, stepped on, ripped apart even but never taken from us.”

Through my words, I tried to convey that I understood their suffering and hate for those who have pushed them too far. I tried to let them know that what they thought to be normal, what they believed to be just torture was in fact nothing more than the attempts of greedy fools. At the same time, while I was uncertain if I could actually make them listen to me, I tried to let them know of their own potential and the fact that what they perceived as reality should not remain as such. I tried to make them aware of the fact that just like it happened to me when I found myself unaware of what to do with my life, how to continue my research or what to expect of my uncertain future, they too could step forward and rebuild themselves. I made an academy and then gave it life, now I was here, with them, and I had no intention of letting my wife be taken from me by these unscrupulous royals.

Still, my own thoughts and reasoning could not be shared with them, they had their own. What I could do was empathize and hope that they understood the essence of my message.

“With everything that we have talked about so far, I believe it is time for us to take a break. There are some refreshments on the other side of the room.” Yandrea suggested.

Everyone agreed and got up from their chairs. Mystera and Guizbia went to grab a drink, while Pezmo’Va and Mizu’kra walked over to the snack table. Samraus followed his wife, and P.A.L. moved to the far side window pointing towards the labyrinth where the automatons resided. As for me, I looked at Yandrea, who remained still, floating in the air.

“Are you alright?” I asked with a bit of worry in the tone of my voice.

“I’m fine... I just need a moment.” she replied.

“Very well... I’ll go grab something to snack on.” I said and then got up and moved towards the table on the other side.

I grabbed a plate, which I filled with an assortment of fruits and a few pieces of smoked meat strips. On the side, I added a type of desert that had to consistency of gelatin and I prayed to all the gods that it was not some creature’s bugger. The taste was sweet, but the consistency was... wobbly bubbly.

The air around me was heavy, although the food was good, the topic of our discussion simply turned their lives upside down. With a few lines, everything they knew became the nightmare that they feared... or maybe it was just my impression?

I cannot let my pessimism take over me! I declared to myself and then approached P.A.L, the only one in this room who would not mind me eating next to him, probably.

“So, what goes on through your head... erm heads, my friend?” I then proceeded to sink my teeth into the meat.

“I am thinking about our current situation and the role the automatons might play. All we know, and this includes the others as well, is this dungeon... some only this floor. Leaving this place, even as a possibility... was unheard of before.”

“Your kind are the gardeners of this place...”

“Gardeners?” he raised a mechanical eyebrow “Hm, that sounds indeed correct. We are the gardeners of this place.” he looked back out the window, this time with a smile on his lips. “A world without the Great One... a life outside the dungeon, I cannot understand it. Our role in it, our function... what will it be?” he asked.

“You know, there are more gardens out there similar to this one. Maybe your kind, if we were to come up to the surface, would just find their own gardens to tend to. Yandrea made you, she commands you but she did not enslave you.” I pointed out.

P.A.L. looked back at me for a moment and then back out the window. “Maybe you are right... Hm, other gardens...”

The view from up here was amazing. While the rocky ceiling was covered by fake clouds, and the sun in the middle was nothing more than a big crystal that let out the much needed sunlight, everything else looked as though it was plucked from the surface world and then placed here. There were hills and rivers, plains and forests, with an enormous cubic structure where all the automatons lived in. Birds and small monsters were flying through the sky while on the ground there were various forms of animals and insects, everything that you would normally see up there on the surface.

What she built here was amazing from every single point of view, a true masterpiece, no... it was pure art. The weird desert was good too, far too sweet for my taste though.

I brought my plate back and then walked up to the reptilian woman with thicker muscles than a well-respected knight in the royal army of the Shoraya Kingdom with an attitude fit to be a noble from the Thorya Kingdom, Mystera Orogaki, the Ellyarian matriarch. Next to her was a similarly powerful woman, whose eyes were as sharp as a predator and whose very body put even the most prominent nekatar to shame, the Lion Empress Guizbia Shakar. Then, behind the two was Samraus, who looked more like a trusted servant, or a butler. He kept quiet and brought over the food or drinks the two women requested.

“I offer my greetings to the three of you and hope that I’m not interrupting?” I said with a smile.

Guizbia raised an eyebrow at me, while Mystera ignored me completely and just flicked her scaly tail in the air. Samraus greeted me with a polite bow of his head.

“You are certainly not, esteemed mate of the Great One. We were just trying to make sense of what has been discussed so far...” Guizbia started and then paused for a moment as she seemed uncertain whether or not to continue. Mystera tossed her a glance and then she continued “We have heard that you are not... from this dungeon. Is this correct?”

When she asked this, it was as if she feared she would be threading on thin ice; as if she was approaching a very dangerous subject, a taboo one.

“Indeed. That is correct.” I nodded “As a result of a teleportation incident, I ended up here. I am originally from a place... where, I don’t know how far exactly it is. What I can say that there are three big continents there: Thorya, Allasn and Sorone. Beautiful places with a diverse environment and multiple civilizations that are unique in their own way.”

“Then you have seen... the surface?” Mystera asked as her gaze grew sharp.

I nodded.

“How is it... compared to here?” Guizbia asked as she looked out the window.

“There is no limit to the sky and no walls to keep you there. The land is so expansive that it would take weeks of traveling from just one point to another on a single continent. There are countless places to discover and explore, each with their own little secret and maybe even a treasure or two. As for the creatures that live there, some are beautiful and elegant, others fierce and powerful. There are also tribes of primitive creatures that have yet to form a civilized society and are known for hunting down every single thing around them. The surface I know of... is a real jewel, a gem for which I would need hundreds of lives to fully explore.” I said as I looked out the window, reminiscing of all the times I was moving about and exploring the land as an adventurer.

Maybe returning there would not be so bad… Yandrea would love it… a wild thought formed in my mind, tempting, daring, full of hope.

“Then...” Mystera looked down at her drink “do you think that we don’t have the right to go up there?”

“I believe that you were never meant to be kept down here.” I told her.

“Yet, none of us were allowed to go up.” she looked back at me, eyes filled with uncertainty.

“If the forest near the ellyarian village was filled with monsters ten or maybe a hundred times more powerful than you, fierce and wild, with tribes living there that would kill anything that does not belong to their own kind. If you knew this... would you allow your child to explore it freely?”

She looked into my eyes and then, as if realizing what I wanted to convey to her, she said “No... I would not.” her gaze fell on the ground.

“Is the surface... that dangerous?” Guizbia asked as she lowered her ears.

“Right now, we are not welcomed there by any of their kingdoms. We are the monsters that live underground. We are the creatures that they hunt to kill...” I let out a sigh. “If it’s dangerous? As long as they hold the reins on Yandrea... yes, it will be.” I nodded.

“If there were no kingdoms above... what about then?” Mystera asked as she looked into my eyes.

“Then...” I looked down for a moment and then back up at her “You would have been born on the surface, while the underground would have been left for exploration... Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll grab something to drink for myself.” I then turned around to grab a glass.

Yandrea prepared juice, wine, and a strong type of alcohol that the ornaks preferred. I was not going to touch that one with a ten-foot pole! The wine was more pleasurable for me. Besides, this was neither the time or place to get dunk. There was still much to discuss in regard to how and if we were going to survive the next Ritual of Suppression.

The only ones I did not have the chance to talk with were the two ornaks, so I made my way towards them with a cup in hand. They were talking about what they were going to do with this information. The ornaks were already divided because of this nonsense rebellion but now Pezmo’Va had no desire to continue it. All it did was put a wedge between their people. This was not the great test that they initially presumed it was, just a gigantic play for some noble up on the surface.

“I will admit that none of us suspected this... It did not even cross our mind.” said the old ornak woman who held a drop of wisdom in the glow of her eyes.

When they noticed me, they turned and bowed their head.

“Greetings to the Great One’s husband.” they said in unison.

“Greetings. I assume you were discussing what was recently divulged?” I asked.

“Indeed... I cannot seem to wrap my head around the reason why a noble family, a royal one even, would go through such despicable and shameful ends to setup such an elaborate and shameful trial for their own children.” Pezmo’Va said with a rising anger in the tone of his voice.

I took a sip from my cup and then said “Honor and shame are such strange concepts. Depending on the point of view they can change with one another. For a noble it is honorable to kill everyone who opposes them no matter their age and gender but for the peasant it is dishonorable or even shameful to kill even a senile old man let alone children or pregnant women. Royals use whatever means they deem necessary to solidify their reign and control over nobles and commoners alike.”

“So you are saying that in their history books, their acts are justified?” asked the old shaman.

“In war the winner writes the history. Unfortunately, in our case, my dear Yandrea was not the victorious one.” I took another sip from my cup; the wine was good.

“Why do I find your words to be both vague and full of wisdom at the same time?” asked Pezmo’Va.

“Because they are. After all, at this point in time, I cannot state my true intentions and beliefs so that I do not influence you.” I looked down at my cup.

What could I tell him? That I wanted to kill those royals? That it was a good idea to form an army and march to the surface? For what purpose? To send the ornaks and ellyarians as well as everyone else here to their doom when we had no idea what awaited us there?

If this continent was anything like Allasn, then Supreme Rank Adventures, who could destroy this entire dungeon by themselves, were probably roaming around undisturbed, uninterested in the affairs of royalty like many were. Against such a force... how could we survive?

No, right now, our priority was not to seek revenge but to find a way to survive.

“You foresee a bigger danger?” as if she read my mind, the old shaman spoke these words while looking straight into my eyes.

I showed her a smile and then replied “We should return to the table, the meeting will resume soon.”

The old shaman showed me a soft smile and then nodded.