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Grand Game 570: A New Dawn
🕑 Added 2025-01-23 06:55:11 +0000 UTCThe process of replacing Kolath with Bacheus was not a short one, nor was it one Kolath was willing to let us observe. Banished to the exterior of the compound, and with nothing else to do, Shael, Anriq, Nyra, Ghost, and I sat down and exchanged tales of our respective journeys.
It passed the time, but slowly, and as the hours flew by, I grew more anxious. It was becoming more urgent that we returned to sector 18,240.
Eventually, though, a welcome Game message unfurled in my mind.
You have completed the task: Restore the Nexus Guardian. You have convinced the guardian Kolath to relinquish his hold on life and allow Bacheus to take his place. Nexus now has a new guardian.
Congratulations, Michael! You have completed a task crucial to the continued functioning of the Endless Dungeon and the survival of the Kingdom. By restoring the Nexus Guardian, you have shown yourself to be a Protector of the Ancients. This has become the second tenet of your burgeoning House.
Staying true to your House’s tenets will deepen your Wolf Mark in the future. Straying from it will see your Mark weaken.
Another tenet, I mused, and an unexpected one at that.
It was the second tenet my ‘new’—and yet unformed—House had earned. The first, Just Retribution, was more nebulous. Protector of the Ancients sounded straightforward enough, though, and it was easy to see how it would benefit me and the other scions in the short term.
Rescuing the guardians—and perhaps even assisting them with tithes—would deepen our bloodline Marks. More importantly, the tenet would give our disparate bloodlines a shared purpose, one with material benefits, and that would only help unify our House further.
Yet, I couldn’t help but wonder how many other tenets the Adjudicator had in store for us, and if I would find them all as appealing.
No use worrying about any of that now, I thought, rising to my feet. The Adjudicator would act as he saw fit, and there was little I could do to sway him.
“It’s done,” I said, turning to the others.
Not questioning how I knew that to be the case, the others stood with me. Leading the way, I re-entered the compound.
I found the same marble statue gracing the inside. It was Kolath, yet not. The statue’s features had changed, almost imperceptibly so, and at a guess, they now resembled Bacheus’ true face—one I’d never seen. More startling, though, was the statue’s new suppleness and vibrancy. It was reminiscent of the same energy I’d noticed in Draven.
The Nexus guardian had truly been reborn—and reinvigorated.
“Michael,” Bacheus intoned. “Come closer.”
That was another difference between Kolath and Bacheus. The former had only spoken to me through mindspeech.
I did as the guardian bade. “Everything went well?” I asked cautiously, not entirely sure what to expect of this ‘new’ Bacheus.
“It did,” he replied vaguely.
I waited for him to go on, but he stayed silent.
“What’s wrong with him?” Shael hissed as the seconds ticked by and Bacheus stayed locked motionless.
“How would I know?” Anriq muttered.
“I wasn’t asking you,” Shael retorted. “I was—”
“Shh! Both of you,” Nyra snapped.
Nodding gratefully to her, I took a step forward. “Bacheus?” I prompted loudly.
The guardian shook his head. “What? Oh, sorry. There is a lot about this new form that I still have to process.”
“Which is understandable,” I said. “But me and the others need to get going again, and before that…”
“You need to know if I can do what we discussed,” Bacheus finished for me. “One second,” he said, bowing his head to think.
Patiently, I waited.
A minute later, the guardian shook his head. “I can’t.”
My shoulders sagged. It had been a long shot, and perhaps too much to wish for, but I’d been hoping—
“I can’t make the guardian tower a private dungeon and bequeath it to you,” Bacheus went on, oblivious of my thoughts, “but I can stop anyone who is not a forerunner from entering or leaving.”
I straightened. “You can?” I asked breathlessly.
What Bacheus was proposing was nearly as good as what I’d asked for. We wouldn’t own the dungeon, but we would be able to control access—if only through Bacheus.
And having a say in who could enter or leave the guardian tower was vital to our cause.
Because, notwithstanding the shield generator around sector 18,240, a hostile entity could still enter the sector through the tundra nether portal. Granted, the portal was hidden away on the icy plains and was almost impossible to find if you didn’t know where to look.
But it was still a vulnerability.
One that we were now about to plug with the new Nexus guardian’s help. It meant, too, that irrespective of how the battle went tomorrow, irrespective of whether the void claimed sector 18,240 or not, the Packs would still have a safe haven to go to—one safeguarded by a guardian, no less.
“I can,” Bacheus confirmed, unaware of my musings. “Or I can permanently close the hidden portal, if that is what you prefer.”
I shook my head. “I don’t prefer.” While the tundra portal was a vulnerability, it was also our backdoor into Nexus and a second haven. And the strategic value of both those things were not to be underestimated. “Tell me more about the first option.”
Bacheus shrugged. “There is not much to it. I will key the guardian tower’s entrance and exit portals to your faction tokens. That will stop any player not part of the forerunners from using them. I can also reconfigure the internal portals in the dungeon, making them two-way so your people can pass freely between levels. And finally, I can relocate the hidden portal to this sector—” he gestured at the verdant plains beyond the compound’s walls—“and anywhere out there that you want.”
“Wow,” Anriq gasped.
I could forgive his astonishment; I was feeling no small measure of it myself.
“But doing all this will come at a price,” Bacheus finished.
Ah, so there is a catch. “What price?”
“The forerunners must provide me with a steady stream of offerings. A tithe a month should be sufficient. That will keep me powered and awake.”
That we could do. “Is that all?”
“No. You will also have to forfeit any rewards stemming from the completion of your recent task. In a very real sense, the privileges I offer will become your reward.”
I grimaced.
“How can you even do any of that?” Shael demanded suddenly. “I thought dungeons were immutable. And doesn’t the Game constrain your lot from interfering with players?”
“Dungeons are not immutable,” Bacheus said. “You only have to look at the ones owned by the factions to realize that. As for my… constraints.” His lips curved up in a dangerous smile. “I am less restricted in what I can do than you think. The new Powers’ own violations have left me free to act if they—or their followers—dare enter any of my dungeons.”
He paused. “But I take your meaning. When it comes to unaffiliated players, the Adjudicator will allow me to do what I’ve proposed only because it’s in support of my primary mission—protecting the Endless Dungeon.”
Shael’s brows drew down. “I don’t follow.”
Bacheus sighed. “In the last few hundred years, do you know how many tithes the Nexus guardian received?”
Shael shook his head.
“Less than a handful,” Bacheus replied. “It was this lack more than anything else that led to Kolath’s decline. Without tithes, I, too, will fall asleep, and if I fall asleep, I cannot fulfil my duty.”
Shael nodded slowly. “Which is why the Adjudicator is letting you strike a deal for tithes.”
Bacheus smiled. “Precisely. But the deal is not yet struck.” His gaze found mind again. “What say you, Wolf?”
For a long moment, I stayed silent, weighing up my decision. But honestly, there was not much to consider. What the new guardian offered was nearly priceless in its potential.
There were the ratmen mines in level two to consider, the wyverns in level four, and the green—and very fertile—plains of level five. Taken altogether, they would provide nearly all the resources the forerunners needed to flourish and grow.
And Bacheus had to know that.
Which, I suspect, was what had spurred his proposal. Despite his new status as a guardian, the former sorcerer was still married to the forerunner’s cause.
“We have a deal,” I said finally.
The guardian grinned. “Excellent.”
✵ ✵ ✵
The status of the dungeon has changed.
The Guardian Tower has been reconfigured to consist of 5 unclaimable sectors, 2 one-way portals, 4 two-way portals, and 1 hidden portal that has been relocated to sector 109.
The dungeon status has furthermore been falsified to hide these changes and to report its current number of players as being 6 of 6. The actual status is only perceivable by a forerunner.
You have sealed a Pact with Guardian Bacheus. In exchange for exclusive access to the Guardian Tower, your faction will deliver 1 tithe per month to the guardian. Failure to deliver the agreed offerings will result in the removal of the forerunner’s access to the dungeon during the month concerned. This Pact may be terminated by you at any time.
You have 7 / 20 active Pacts.
As an added precaution, I had Bacheus place the hidden portal ten miles from the level five exit. Doing so wasn’t strictly necessary, but it made me feel better, anyway. This way, if the worst befell us, and an enemy somehow gained access to the dungeon, there was still a decent chance the entrance to sector 18, 240 would not be discovered.
Then, it was time to depart.
“Farewell, Bacheus,” I said. The others had already set off for the ‘new’ hidden portal, and it was just me and the guardian left in the compound.
“Farewell, Wolf,” he replied. “We shall see each other again, I'm sure.”
“No doubt.” I began to turn away, then paused. “You will contact Draven?”
“As soon as I’ve settled into this new skin,” he promised.
I nodded, then hesitated, not wanting to overstep. “Any regrets?” I asked eventually.
I didn't have to explain what I meant. “None,” Bacheus said firmly. “Although…”
“Yes?” I prompted.
“I wish I could be there for tomorrow’s battle.”
“Ah, well. But never fear, I’ll do our best to see it won without you.”
Bacheus grinned. “See that you do. I’d hate to think all this has been for nothing.”
“Never that,” I murmured. “And thank you again—for everything.” Turning around, I strode away.
✵ ✵ ✵
We completed the trip back home in remarkably good time, hopping first through the hidden portal, then through a second portal—this one of my own making—and in short order, we were in the cave again.
Almost everyone else was there, bedding down for the night or already asleep. Despite this there was an anticipatory buzz in the air.
Tomorrow we would fight for the sector, and one way or the other, decide our fate.
Releasing the others and sending Ghost to truth test the last of the nagians—Adriel had finished rehoming them only an hour ago—I joined Safyre where she stood warming herself by the campfire.
“Adriel is asleep?” I asked.
“She’s finally getting to enjoy some well-deserved rest,” Safyre replied.
I nodded. Of all of us, the lich was the one that had worked the most tirelessly. And thanks to her efforts, we had one hundred powerful former-scions on our side. They would serve as the backbone of our company tomorrow. A company that was still a potent force, even without the Reachers reinforcing our numbers.
Still, I couldn’t help but ask, “Any news from the Marches?”
Safyre shook her head sadly. “None. The twins’ latest report was two hours ago. There’s still no sign of the Reachers.”
“Damn,” I muttered. “You should recall them. The twins, I mean.”
“I will. First thing tomorrow.” She yawned. “But with everything else happening, I haven’t had the time.”
“Sorry,” I said contritely. “You must be exhausted too.”
She threw me a lopsided grin. “I am. But the good news is that everything is done. All the supplies have been delivered, and everyone has been drilled and knows what roles they’ll play tomorrow.” She tilted her head. “What about you? How did it go?”
“Extremely well,” I said with a satisfied smile.
“Then we have a new guardian?”
I nodded.
Safyre’s gaze drifted to Nyra who was in the midst of an animated conversation with Shael, Anriq, and two of the forsworn. “And I see Nyra’s here. That must mean…”
“Bacheus is the new guardian,” I finished for her, then launched into a condensed retelling of the day’s events.
“Oh my,” Safyre murmured when I finished. “You’ve outdone yourself this time, Michael.”
I shrugged. “It was all Bacheus’ doing. He came up with the idea, and however he did it, he managed to sell the whole thing to the Adjudicator.”
Safyre shook her head in bemused wonder. “If you told me seven days ago, this is where we’d be, I would’ve laughed. Now look at us. The sector has been secured and ours for the taking.”
“Only nearly,” I pointed out cheekily. “There is still the small matter of one void tree and two overlords to deal with.”
She laughed, her eyes sparkling with genuine humor. “Of course. How did I ever forget?”
Chuckling, I drew her in a hug. “Whatever happens tomorrow… it’s been great.”
She squeezed me back. “Only great?” she murmured.
“Well, er… what I meant was—”
Laughing, Safyre set a finger to my lips. “I know what you meant. Now stop talking, and let’s enjoy what time we have remaining.”
Comments
Harley Dalton Jr.
This is cool. Thanks for the chapter. I like the idea of the wolf packs living on the fifth floor. I also wonder if attacks on Nexus will decrease because of the new Guardian. If so, it would be amusing if the powers couldn't figure out why.
Tom Elliot (Rohan Vider)
tx
Tom Elliot (Rohan Vider)
lol
Kyle Garfield
Or maybe the handful is the embarrassingly small count of scions that Kesh has seen become road scum. But I'm kind of dubious about this idea because didn't Micheal have to dig for it before he accidentally titled the item? When I first learned about the powers trying to bury the ancients secrets, I assumed they were the ones who buried the symbol at the real base of the statue. Remember how it took him a long time to dig it up? I guess if there were some other scions that the powers crished in the past, they may have still buried it. Maybe in the past when recruiting of scions was occurring, remember Loken asked Micheal who had recruited him? Maybe those recruiters were sending a rare scion to the guardian tower and told them how to pay the tithe. But I like the marshmen theory better, so there.
Kyle Garfield
Wasn't it a curious tidbit dropped about less than a handful of tributes being paid to Kolath? In the last few hundred years, someone *has* paid tithes, granted, not many, but some! Methinks the swamp folk are scions doing more than an occasional run through the guardian tower for a nice class stone. If anyone notices the dungeon is curiously full- all the time now- it'll be them. I wouldn't be surprised if they are seen wearing the medallions, and I wonder if getting her people access to the dungeon again will be a bargaining chip for Micheal when he finally meets the hiding power.
David Brewer
Not really. His agreement requires them to return every month... in perpetuity. And more over, the rules by which the guardians operate might hinder him telling Michael specifically about the lost Prime (she has been referred to as a Prime whereas the guardians always referred to Michael as young Wolf... so she likely "outranks" Michael in the cooperate with people opposed to the new Powers) if he lacks a favor... which he does. Finally, they don't actually "need" to know about her. Her value if any comes from the assistance she can bring to future endeavors. They don't have time to win her trust before securing the sector.
obiwann
Fcking ghost is becoming one of my faves. I initially was annoyed until she became a bad ass. When she got separated in spirit form cuz she wasn’t listening… I was like DAMNIT!!
Orion_777
the regular way it was mentioned in book two
Andrew Hollingsworth
I enjoyed the chapter. I did realize, though, along with one of the others above, that there are things I lose track of. I remember that Bacheus was one of the body snatchers from quite a bit back in the story. I also remember he’d been sent to do the dungeon, but I don’t remember who he was other than that—though I remember after the fact the plan to be the new guardian. It might help to have a one paragraph flash back or something.
Alexander C Hyde
Bacheus smiled. “Precisely. But the deal is not yet struck.” His gaze found (mine)mind again. “What say you, Wolf?”
David Brewer
It's less of a problem than you'd think. As I mentioned the guardian tower is extremely unpopular with players so it may take YEARS before they realize it's "permanently" in use. Just visiting once or twice won't prove that. You'd need to monitor the tower for an extended period as it can be slow to clear if you get "lost" on the water floor and that's an easy lie to tell. The bigger threat is players learning that the dungeon now has two way portals for its internal sectors. It was necessary to let the Forerunners clear the Tower without revealing their presence in Nexus. But a major change like that would likely scream, "Guardian!" to the new Powers. Thus, blocking access is somewhat vital.
David Brewer
I also read and re-read the books (not just Tom's but a lot books) a lot. I'm in just starting book 7... again.
obiwann
The locking out of certain members would be key enough that something changed with guardian IMO. Don’t get me wrong I don’t think anyone is going to tie it to MC persay… but once someone figures that out… all they have to do is forceably capture someone about to entire and torture/read mind / dominate / exploit etc.
obiwann
Man, some of y’all keeping track of details that matter that are way in the weeds too. I can’t keep it all cataloged
Michael valerio
Also I purchased the book on kindle. I want more and I’m here to support THANKS TOM
Michael valerio
Michafyre is a great thing. I’m here for it. And I can’t wait to see what Adriel can do in battle. Her and Safyre are my favorite characters besides Michael of course
David Brewer
Except nobody really pays attention to the Guardian Tower. It's "dangerous", "risky", and gives "poor" rewards. I won't pretend it wouldn't make Loken or one of the other Powers curious. But, I rather doubt they'll make the immediate connection that Michael not only woke the guardian... but learned the value and significance they possess. And then managed to "restore" the Nexus Guardian. Kolath has probably been on his last legs for centuries, the idea that he could be replaced or repaired would be more troubling to them than anything else. But until something changes to reveal the "new" guardian, they'll have limited ability to learn just what's going on.
David Brewer
Pack patriarch is the next official mark name, but given the nature of the marks it likely wouldn't be unfair to reference the entire collection of higher order of marks as "wolf god", "dragon god", etc. The ascendant level House marks being the ones that allow you to ascend to "godhood" after all.
Alejandro
🫶
Eriach
TFTC!
Arjun Rajesh
Tftc but why did he not ask anything about the hidden prime . To com clear all the dungeon levels and ask again is a waste of time and effort .
Sailesh Kumar Kumar
TFTC
obiwann
Dude it still is gonna be suspect very quickly. Nexus dungeon people always going to all of a sudden always full … if someone watches it long enough they gonna see people going into a FULL dungeon. Gonna be earmarked for investigation pretty quickly and probably going to change the politics in nexus very soon I imagine. The powers that exist in nexus and know about the guardians are probably going to be suspect. Remeber Loken has merchant magic… so he has the ability to sense ley lines
Tesset
With the new configurations I am not sure this restriction applies to them. The 6 out 6 is a falsified status. And Bacheus proposed this with the idea of the forunners using the dungeon as a base, so i think the restriction doesn’t apply to them
obiwann
Is wolf god next?? 🤔 if so I can see him getting that before securing sector as kinda problematic. Like… we just elevated him… can’t really do it AGAIN even though he did the ‘impossible’
Joshua Adams
I feel like it’s too soon for him to just get the “Wolf God” mark. It would seem a little arbitrary. Plus it makes more sense to me that he would need to increase his initiate mark to “Acolyte”before the “Wolf God” mark, but I digress.
Marco Ramon
Backdoor sequel? 😂
CipherFTW
Say... have we explored how children and uh.. creating them.. work in the game? I feel like that might become important sooner rather than later.. lmao
Tesset
Tftc! Okaaay, now it makes sense why Michael prioritised restoring the guardian! Draven told him that he wouldn’t receive a guardian favour for every task completed so I assume he wouldn’t get one for restoring the Nexus guardian. It’s nice that he did! Although a bit disappointing he had to use this favour for this, the benefits of having another secure base and backdoor entrance into Nexus trump exploring new dungeons. Also the small detail that every other player will not know that the Forunners own the dungeon and will simply see the dungeon as full, having 6 out 6 players… that was sexy! Well done Tom 👌
Joshua Adams
To be fair, they’re trying to claim a whole sector, but they absolutely can still use it as a base. Just remember that there’s only a handful of actual players among them. 😅
Olivier Combe
I just wish the guardian could have increased the size from 6 players to unlimited, this way they could really have used it as a base
Gregory Clifford
Michafyre!
Suraj Rodrigo
Tftc
obiwann
Why didn’t any of his marks deepen? He established another tenet… also accomplished a task… yes he gets a guardian boon or whatever… but nothing from the adjudicator? Come on! lol now is not the time for the adjudicator to be stingy lol. Give us a class point for player and familiar or something!!!
Joshua Adams
Concealing the truth about the status of the dungeon is huge. Can you imagine what would happen if the powers of Nexus saw access blocked by some unknown faction? It would be capture/kill on sight.
kingofshibainu
TFTC! Cool development. Let the battle commence!
obiwann
I sense a new baby born of the game that will evolve into a mighty player 😍😎
obiwann
❤️
