There is No Epic Loot Here, Only Puns

128: Ode to Deo

The Free Heal Hall was in full swing as the victorious party dug into the food. Delta hovered over them all as Alpha tried to keep to himself, but had trouble since Kemy and Deo stuck to him like glitter.

Delta smiled as she watched the room serve its first guests since Quiss and Ruli. This was it's first true service in the name of adventurers.

Pork sausages, bacon rashers, gleaming piles of what looked like mashed potatoes, an impressive collection of fruits and decorative veggies from the previous two floors, a fountain of various drinks from Fera's bar gurgling in choir against one wall, desserts made from chocolate and gelatin sitting tempting to the eye, and other foods appeared as if by magic.

However... the jelly was made from the slime she had defeated, their goops being refined with so much sugar that it was both safe and edible, the mashed potatoes were actually mashed mushrooms that looked creamy enough...and the veggies were mostly mushrooms of different types to give variety.

Everything but the Gutrot, of course.

The Starlight mushrooms, for example, if fried, gave off the feeling of chewing on something fluffy like pancakes!

The best thing was that Delta didn't need to research this. Fera and Jeb the troll chef had taken the initiative to cook and experiment on their own. Delta hadn't really had time to upgrade anything since the invasion of the dead... the lab... Deo's team, and other things like Alpha dropping in.

It felt like ages since she had done anything 'dungeon-like'.

She smiled as the kids all joked and celebrated. Poppy was teasing Tom the talking tome by placing very greasy items close to him. The tome was screeching about grease stains and it made Poppy grin... but there was no heat between them.

Delta had a very strong feeling about Tom the Tome... he was old and even if he was by himself, she didn't think she could just absorb him. He has too much of a core... a sense of being. Not that Delta needed more books... her library contained books on everything from how to rear bull-chickens to ripping time in a location to increase the rate in which it passed.

The issue with the time thing was that it required things like a thousand screaming souls, those of young and old, a mage of chronomancy, three antique clocks, and a well-used diary planner with exactly 45 pages. Delta knew the Silence Cultists were a little... crazy, but this was just one more example of exactly how insane.

Besides, with Dungeon Points... Delta could bend reality around her of her own volition. How many points it would take to break time could number between 5 and 5 million. Delta supposed it depended on how badly she broke the rules to suit her needs.

Amenstar was both eating ribs with his bare hands and cleaning the bones afterwards, claiming them with a burst of his mana. The bones were still 'Delta' in source, but now they were weirdly detached. Like a fruit cut from a tree.

Vas was standing in line with the fountains, seemingly quite happy to hang out with the decor, spiritually communicating with them through prolonged posing. The golem still gave Delta a weird feeling of... something that set her teeth on edge, but he was polite enough.

Alpha, the dear strange boy that Delta was so... he touched her heart which beat with a warmth that she held only for her dungeon family, Nu, and Sis before. Ruli, Deo, and Kemy were dear to her as well, but Alpha...

There was a bond that was tangible there. Not romantic, far from it, but... a deep sense to covet Alpha was rising in her like Delta was some sort of M-

A sister.

The idea made her pause. How funny, the denial made her feel funny.

Delta wondered wh-

---

"I am not your mother, stop making me act like it," she warned. The sounds of traffic rushing by resounded as silence fell around them.

"You sure act like it. Maybe you can't help it? Sucks to be old..." the voice replied sarcastically. She felt her cheeks flush... she was not old! It took a moment for her to inhale once deeply, calming herself before she could reply sarcastically.

"Hey, hey... don't make her turn the car around. Momma bear can get grumpy," a void in the image rebuked. Were they missing or blocked?...

"We should have taken the bus with the others." someone added.

"We would have if we could all stop arguing long enough to get anything done. It's all we do. Argue." Delta's voice said into the space before she reached for the radio.

"Well the others already know we'll be late, so who wants to take a detour past that little fast  food place and get some milkshakes?" she asked, voice bright. There was a silence then an outburst of noise.
"Hell yea-"

"Don't swear!"

"What are we? Five? I want a cheeseburger as well."

"I want vanilla, not strawberry, Miss D-

---

"Delta?" Alpha said quietly and Delta floated back with a startled expression. The others were all looking where Alpha was... missing Delta's location easily by feet.

"Sorry, just-" she cut herself off and Alpha nodded slowly.

"They're coming faster and faster," he said, tone knowing. The certainty in his voice made Delta swallow once aloud. Her memory was returning and that was fantastic! She could remember who she was and what happened... find a way back maybe and...

Leave... this all behind.

A sudden tightness in her stomach made her push that kettle of fish to the side for the moment. First, she would deal with the here and now. One day at a time and as a Dungeon Core, she had to cut that down even further and go one hour at a time.

It was hard to measure things in days when you didn't sleep.

"Alpha, when everyone is done eating here. I want you to do me a favour before they leave. I'll also need you to translate for me," she said softly, brushing what she thought was fluff off his shoulders, her hand doing nothing as it phased through him.

Alpha didn't even hesitate.

"Whatever you need, Miss," he promised and looked startled at his own slip of the tongue.

The word made her feel old.

"Delta," she mumbled but smiled when she thought about what was to come. She clapped her hands once in excitement.

---

Deo loved Delta.

He loved the way she made every room special. How she made every monster so amazing and funny... but Deo supposed the thing he loved most of all was the feeling that seemed to fill the very air.

A silent promise of affection and a promise of company. A friend with every step he took and someone cheering him on even if he couldn't see her. Delta, he had watched so many people say the name he was almost sure he was pronouncing each sound correctly.

'De' as in 'definitely awesome'.

Longish 'L' as in like 'laugh'!

'Ta' on 'tada'!

So, Delta was like a laugh that was so sudden that it comes in with a tada and made you feel definitely awesome.

That was how Deo remembered her name.

The massive garden was beautiful to Deo with many different doors, but the others looked unsettled. Ahead, Deo saw Grim was sitting down. He had wondered why his friend hadn't been at the feast.

Grim had been very quiet since he, Kemy, and Alpha had returned from the Core room. He raised a hand then dropped it by way of greeting.

He turned to see that Amenstar was commenting on how quiet the room was. No insects or birdsongs.

It was as silent as a grave, he told Poppy.

Deo didn't think Delta would have a weird place like that so he presumed it was more like those sacred places in his adventure books. The places where you wanted to be quiet... where the noise wasn't needed.

Usually, a plot-relevant character lived in those places. Deo would keep his eyes open for an elven maiden or a Dwarven king or an Elvish King and a Dwarven Maiden!

Before they got too far in, something crashed down before them. Alpha didn't jump, having been warned it seemed, but the rest did. The thing that stood was massive, a set of folded over wings that a head with long dark hair barely peaked over.

The wings looked grey and covered from head to toe before they slowly unfolded themselves to reveal a man... sort of. He had powerful muscles like Deo's dad, but they were compact, flexing without much movement. His arms were covered in wrappings that lead to a torso piece of thin leather straps. A kilt of some material fell to his knees and for a second, Deo thought he had a big grey belt on before it uncurled to show a massive tail.

The monster's face was angled like someone with nobility and cheekbones that were usually only found in the most royal of paintings. Deo had seen faces like that in some old paintings in the many books Amenstar brought to class.

Angelic, but indifferent.

His mouth, while having an impressive set of fangs when he spoke, Deo could understand what he said when spoke.

"I am Vanguard. Your..." he slowed and picked his words carefully as if seeing them all as interlopers, "presence has been allowed here as guest status. Delta insists that you keep to the garden. Please don't show disrespect by ignoring her request," he said finally. Deo couldn't know this for sure, but he bet the creature's tone was deep and cold.

Deo knew he must be worried about Delta. People must make Dungeon Monsters nervous.

Alpha stepped forward as well as they both listened to something. Deo looked back to see Grim frowning.

"Gargoyle," he told Deo absent-mindedly with a nod to Vanguard, the handsome man with wings.

"There's never just one," Grim added. Deo felt excitement again at the thought of more amazing things to see but was distracted when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Alpha, trying to smile but coming off as nervous.

He spoke and Grim, looking like he wasn't aware of it, began to speak at the same time, causing Deo to look back and forth like some sort of ball game was going on.

"Deo, Delta/I wants/want to offer you a chance to heal the damage inside you. Only if you agree, She/I doesn't/don't want to cause you any discomfort," they said in a confusing mix before Grim noticed his own mouth was moving without his say so.

He covered it with both hands and retreated to the safety of a door arch. Deo shot him a worried glance but didn't resist when Alpha led him to a giant statue of a window with words on it. The thing looked covered in moss and old.

"There is a secret here that Delta doesn't want to be shared, but she thinks you really deserve this and from the short time I've known you," Alpha said and Deo's smile widened, "I haven't found any issues with you as a person," he finished. Deo would take the compliment.

Alpha really needed to learn smaller ways of saying 'friend'.

"Sure, I don't mind. If Delta wants to try something and she thinks it's good then I don't mind," Deo said and Alpha winced before he looked at something.