Dungeon at the End of the Universe

I once more sent out the quest to the most recent batch of adventurers. The mana saturation was rising steadily, the population was stable (the only loss from those unfortunate Dungeon expeditions), and monsters were still relatively few.

It was strange though. Without my Aspects’ effect on time, progress was slow. It felt slow, to me, even if everything was happening at the same speed as before.

But I’m sure my graduates would not feel the same way. Every time we selected some Sipalians for training, their whole life was practically turned upside down. And that’s not just because they vanished from their homes into an environment of magic and combat.

As I watched this most recent batch teleport back down to Lapis, a familiar scene played out.

In a matter of almost no time, friends, family, and neighbours found them and started worrying over them and asking questions. Not long after that, a group of government agent came by and ‘politely’ offered to take them to a safe space. For ‘protection’. Yeah, sure.

At the facility they were asked some questions – most of which they couldn’t answer, because none knew much about me at all – before meeting with the others. Yes, every single of my adventurers was there. Basically trapped.

I didn’t understand it. They should be more than powerful enough to break out. Each one was at least level 10 with two Abilities! That was the bare minimum to graduate. And yet.

If things continued this way, the apocalypse might very well happen. I needed a solution.

Unfortunately, my method of transporting adventurer candidates wasn’t exactly inconspicuous and that wouldn’t change anytime soon. Which meant I had two options. One, convince the adventurers to take action. Two, convince the government they need the adventurers somewhere other than holed up in a secret room.

…

Sigh, I’m not so cruel so as to force my adventurers to break out, possibly permanently making them criminals and outcasts of society. Plan B it is.

Well then, I suppose it’s long overdue I reveal myself to the general population.

I spend a few minutes crafting a message, then send it out. To everyone, System User or now.

There, that should work. If the government doesn’t want its population to riot they’ll have to send my adventurers out. Once they’re inside my Dungeons it’ll be up to them what to do. They could travel through the network to a different exit and escape if they so chose.

Of course, the whole thing about Dungeons overflowing was a bunch of bs. I just needed something, some kind of threat only adventurers could deal with.

I’m about to go back to leisurely spectating Lapis when I feel something I never would have expected. An intruder. An intruded in my own Dungeon. An intruder in my own Dungeon that I haven’t summoned myself.

A quick scan of my interior reveals who it is. Zemis.

No, not Zemis. It’s a figure shrouded in a golden glow just like Zemis, but it’s not Zemis. It’s a different deity.

They are quickly making their way through my Dungeon. Rushing through empty rooms, teleporting through walls. I never got around to designing my Dungeon for actual intruders, mostly just for the beginner adventurers, so the only resistance they face is the occasional monster population. But even those haven’t been instructed to fight anyone off, so only the most suicidal and battle obsessed ones even engage once they sense the deity.

Before long, they have reached Zemis’s cage. They pause for a brief moment, analyzing the enchantments. Then they punch out and break them.

I lurch. The sudden acceleration hits me in my stomach. Despite me not having a stomach.

With Zemis now free, I have two gods to deal with. Or not?

For some reason, they immediately flee.

“Dungeeeeoooon!” Faellen screams, “What’s going on?”

“Deity. Broke. Zemis. Out,” I manage to say, still reeling from the sudden time shift.

“Oh, for fucks sa-” my fairy curses, “Well, what are you waiting for? Time loop us!”

“What? Why?” I barely even have time to ask before I see it.

The two deities work together, carving out and inflating a piece of reality. It grows and grows, taking on a golden hue. A divine palace. With the two of them working as fast as they are, I can feel the reverberations in the fabric of space even here.

In no time at all its finished. And once it is, a portal opens. From which a familiar figure emerges.

The cloaked time police, weirdly unobservable. But… there’s only one of them this time.

“That’s why!” Faellen screams, “Time loop! Now!”

I don’t make the same mistake twice. The feeling of confusion from when they were trying to erase us last time was more scary enough. If I hadn’t managed to push through it, we could’ve been toast.

Without waiting further, and giving them an opportunity to mes with us, I activate Endless End.

The bubble of the Ability quickly envelops me and my whole Dungeon. Before any of the deities or the time police can react, we’re gone.