Breaking Step (Dungeon Runner 3)

Breaking Step, Chapter 74

"Definitely a dungeon room," Don said as they stood before the large building. "Corruption is woven through the walls, like those on the upper floors."

It was twice as large as Tibs's rooming house, but only two stories tall. The double doors in the center of the long side looked like wood, but were made of the same essences as the walls, which looked like uneven slabs of stones stacked atop each other. The placement looked precarious, but they were actually one structure. Windows lined each floor, with ten and two steps between them. The essence flowing through them was sufficiently different Tibs figured he could see through them if he went to one.

That, or they were trapped.

"That is one big room." Jackal rubbed his hands. "There's going to be lots of loot."

"Why does it look like a building?" Mez asked.

"Because they're all buildings?" Jackal replied.

"I saw that," Mez said, annoyed. "But the others are there because it—"

"Dungeons," Khumdar interrupted the archer, "will sometimes establish a theme."

"More than sometimes," Don said, continuing to study the walls.

"They will then follow said theme regardless of how unnatural it might be to the rest of the floor. You need remember that dungeons are no more than animals. They do not understand that some things will not feel appropriate to the people exploring them."

"Like a city under the ground," Tibs added.

"Right." Mez mouthed a silent, 'sorry'.

"To the loot," Jackal ordered, and Tibs ran for the door.

He glared at the fighter. "I'm checking for traps first."

"This is clearly some sort of public building," the fighter replied. "Those don't have locked doors."

"And how would it be a dungeon know such a thing?" Khumdar asked.

"Because Runners can't stop talking and it'll.... Right." Jackal's expression became sly. "Right. It's not like it understands people. Right?"

Tibs sighed and turned to the door. Why couldn't Jackal use the same slyness that had fooled Tibs all the time? Instead of playing at being such an idiot when he didn't have to?

The double door had no visible lock; only a large handle on each one. There was no difference in the weave, but he still studied it. Done, he stepped back, perplexed. Jackal was right that Sto would have heard Runners talking. So he'd know enough about public buildings to set something in them to trick them.

Ganny certainly would jump at the opportunity.

"No traps?" Jackal asked.

"No traps on the door," he replied.

Jackal grabbed the handles and pulled. The doors protested loudly as they moved apart. Tibs stopped as he stepped in, plans to look for traps superseded by the scene.

There were a lot of people in the room, which seemed to take up half the length of the building, with the doors also in its center. Tibs could tell it wasn't so deep as to reach the rear, but he couldn't tell by how much. A counter ran the length, at what Tibs thought was ten paces before the back wall. It was divided by wooden planks on top with a line of people standing before each formed section, and a person on the other side, facing them.

Unlike the people golem they had fought, these looked like townsfolk, representing most categories of people in Kragle Rock, although nobles would never stand in such a way, behind and before common folks. The person at the counter gestured to the one on the other side. They exchanged something, stepped aside as the next person stepped forward. The one who was done moved to the back of the line, while the one now at the counter gestured to the one on the other side.