Alan stared dazedly as Aurora worked, still amazed at the ability to literally warp reality, or at least mass, or energy, or something. He still wasn’t sure how it he’d defeat her in a duel. Perhaps he could catch her unawares, or battle her with equipment specifically designed to counteract her abilities.

The group made their way across the bridge, Alan sniping Spiderbots in the distance as soon as his weapons had the energy, carefully placing one foot in front of the other on the slippery ice. Sidestep left two images to guard the entrance of the bridge. Once they all made it across, the first of the Spiderbots were beginning to make their way onto the bridge.

With a single slice of her sword Kitana cleanly severed the bridge and it collapsed. Alan watched as the remaining Spiderbots hesitated at the doorway, then slowly began to retreat back where they had come from. He took a few potshots at the retreating forms for the XP.

“Well, that wasn’t nearly as exciting as I hoped it would be,” the healer said as they pulled back their hood. It was Void, the Mad Priest, or at least the young recruit whose form he had taken. Alan, Kitana and Sidestep looked at him alarmingly, while Aurora simply shook her head.

“What?” Void said. “I didn’t need to heal anyone that entire fight. You're all too skilled and overpowered, I think you need a handicap or something.”

“Where are the others, and what happened to the floor of the cavern?” Aurora asked evenly.

“Ah, well, that floor wasn’t really a floor, but a platform, a lift between a secure location in Black Rose territory and this here dungeon. All those scaredy-cats were probably rushed back upwards upon their return, and will be reprimanded on their return. It’ll probably be two hours or so before it comes back down. So we can wait, or,” he grinned madly, “continue exploring! Those Spiderbots were new, and I wonder what else might have changed.”

“Wait, what was the purpose of all this? I mean, if someone had just like put up a sign up sheet to go dungeon exploring, I’d have gladly joined.” Alan said, exasperated.

“Well, to teach all you recruits a lesson, of course! Never let your guard down, even when you think you’re home free. It also shows a bit of real action that generally motivates newer players to train hard.

"A few guild members like myself were hidden among the new recruits to ensure safety. It was supposed to be something of a team building exercise, but it seems like this part of the dungeon has gotten more dangerous recently. It used to be only a bunch of level 100 or so maintenance robots down that pathway. So, who’s up for a bit of exploring?”

“Um, I’m all for exploring, but I think we all need to rest for our energy to replenish,” Sidestep said. “Also, did anyone manage grab the loot?”

“I did, and I wouldn’t mind delving a bit deeper, especially with a skilled healer,” Alan said as he pulled out the two items that dropped.