There is No Epic Loot Here, Only Puns

32: Catch & Mist

Delta hummed as she eyed the massive room.

It was a blank slate, the roots covering the floor, breaking into parts for smooth dirt floor, crawled up the walls and stopped just before the ceiling.

To Delta, the room was bright as day but she knew it was in total darkness.

Delta pretended to adjust goggles.

"Amazing, this tech is so advanced I can barely tell I'm wearing any! Can this surpass the Wooden Cog?!" she mocked in a deep voice that she took from several stealth games that she had played. Stretching, she walked forward. At her current pace, she wouldn't hit the end of the room for some time. She was used to tight halls or the Grove. Even the bottom of a pond.

This space was so much more that Delta actually felt a little like a mouse that had left the safety of her cartoon mouse door.

Hob and Gob came back a short while ago and they seemed pretty angry but they didn't say what was wrong. Hob looked like he was about to punch something. Gob just bowed his head and dropped what little offerings they had.

Delta could have pushed but the goblins immediately left, almost with a yell.

Did another spider attack them? If everything Delta had learned about Goblins were true, then they did not like losing. Delta frowned and turned to look back at the stair room where her Core sat.

They will be fine. They are, if in some limited way, immortal.

Nu, the ever practical box, reminded her. Delta crossed her arms and just sighed.

"So? Dying is not going to help anyone. They might come back changed or they might get cocky because of it. I have to pay for them, which isn't cheap, and whatever killed them might come looking for the source of where they keep coming from," Delta said aloud and Nu dinged in surprise.

That is... Yes! That is all very correct, I am impressed by your reasoning

.

Delta gave the box a look.

"I'm not a total airhead. I don't want them to die because I don't want them in pain. If they told me coming back to life was torture. I'm not sure I would bring them back ever. Not if they suffered. All that other stuff is just the best case, you know? I guess... I just thought I didn't need to remind you that I care about them every time," Delta pointed out and stopped her steps. Nu was silent for a moment.

No. You need not. I am supposed to be good at learning and adapting. Shall we get on with business? The goblins will tell us when they are ready. Not a concept I am used to but it shall be educational.

Delta smiled as Nu began to ponder to himself, little boxes appearing around his main box to contain side thoughts and random numbers or symbols. Nu was and would be for some while, upset at his evolving nature. Delta didn't know what it would be like to gain awareness. She had always had it to her knowledge.

Distracting him, even for a while, with tiny things like the nature of goblins and building a jungle in your second-floor basement was something Delta really didn't mind doing.

She opened the list and looked at the jungle room's options.

Jungle room:
Allow you to regulate the temperature to a range of Mild, Warm, Humid, and Hot: 15 DPAllow you to change the ceiling into an image of the sky: 13 DPAllow all tree saplings to grow at a much faster rate: 25 DPAllow a river to be formed through the middle of the jungle: 30 DPConstruct more objects or creature's to unlock more options.

Delta saw it wasn't too bad of a list, to begin with. With 69 mana, out of 70 now with her new room, and 32 DP. Delta had some options and Delta liked having options.

She turned slowly and tried to imagine what she wanted from this room. What function should it serve for her? Challenging the adventures? Slowing them down as much as possible? Filled to the brim with entertainment or minigames? Should it have anything dangerous about it?

It was a blank canvas and Delta felt like she was painting with her fingers and eating playdoh. She could mess this up. The first floor only sort of worked out due to a lot lucky circumstances. What if she made some death trap? Delta lowered her fingers from the menu and hesitated for a moment.