Chapter 6: CH6: Dungeon Rampage
The second he landed in the dungeon and saw the clouds overhead with spearrow flying, listened to the cricketunes playing their songs, and stomped a rattata into bloody past under his boot Vergil felt renewed. Finally, after waiting so long cooped up in his Sect, he could stretch his legs. A massive Zangoos with white fur streaked with red charged with its massive claws. Swellow dive bombed with their meat hook-sized talons outstretched. Even a few Roselia began dancing with razor-blade sharp petals whistling through the wind.
Vergil had carefully contained his psi, ki, and vital energy. Those powers weren't something that his poor disciples could handle. He had to be careful not to hurt them by accident, so he kept his power suppressed most of the time.
The monsters froze as the power Vergil contained stepped out to play. Three incredibly sharp blades were unsheathed. Curved scythes of psionic energy erupted in a horizontal swing before he plucked the swellow out of the sky. He felt the birds' bodies shatter in the grip of his power before he turned his attention to his disciples. Before he could finally have fun and play around, he had to help them.
Each of them was like his foster sons; no matter the number or actions, he was their Sect Master, and he would protect them.
Vergil grabbed the drops with a belt of pokéballs, a stylish smartphone pokédex, and a familiar hat.
Ashe's Hat – Hat worn by a pokémon master wearing it boosts the catch rate by 15%.
Once everything was looted, he stuffed what he couldn't wear in his backpack.
His feet left the ground under psionic levitation before he shot high in the air to get an overhead view; Vergil crossed vast distances of the dungeon in moments until he saw something that made him pause. Vergil raised his new pokédex.
Charmander – Even newborns have flaming tails. Unfamiliar with fire, babies are said to accidentally burn themselves.
Alpha Charmander Black – A violent mutated Charmander from the demonic ki of the black water mist. This one is female
Type Dragon/Fire/Dark
Egg Move: Dragon Rush
Ability: Underworld Beast – SP ATK and SPD increase sharply against Ghosts and Deity types.
Hidden Ability: Star Spawn – Energy is constantly restored near a star.
It was beautiful; her black scales absorbed the bright sunlight while the pokémon fought against the orange charmanders. Sleek little claws extended from its paws as the little freak of dungeon engineering battled for its life. Small flames shot off from the tip of its tail, battling against greater numbers and holding its own. Among Alpha charmanders, it held its own, and Vergil wanted her. The pokémon stood at 7ft, taller than its fully evolved form in the pokédex. Her scales looked like an obsidian suit of riveted scale armor, each layered atop the other. Her long tail ended with a large flame more akin to a campfire than the little torch of most charmander and her musculature. The pokémon was physically fit, more like a tiger than the lovable charmanders he remembered. Vergil felt himself freeze as she turned an orange eye in his direction.
She was a big, tough-looking girl, and he had to have her. The pokémon activated dragon rush, and a massive black dragon erupts around the charmander like a stand, wings spread before slamming into the others, clearing out the alpha girl's competition. The charmander turned its attention to a piece of Blastois meat it had been munching on.
Vergil shot down and uppercut the pokémon; it shook off the blow as the image of a black dragon formed around it for another dragon rush. He quickly followed up with a combo of blows before grappling the fire lizard, tossing her in the air before wrapping his arms and legs around her for a pile driver. He felt her head hit the ground, and the dragon rush stand winked out.
Vergil checked his time before tossing a pokéball. Then he flew off towards his disciples and yanked the ball to him with telekinesis after it stopped shaking.
He found some of his disciples under attack, pinned down by Feraligatr while a monster slowly rose from the swamp's edge.
A purple-streaked garados erupted when he closed in and blasted him with a venomous hydro pump. Vergil dodged the contaminated water and shot after his disciples. The dungeon was quickly growing more dangerous. While it wasn't technically breaking any rules, it was skirting what was acceptable for a dungeon's first floor to pull out. It was no wonder Vergil bought it on the cheap.
Vergil watched the serpent charge a hyper beam. Then, he saw two of his disciples hunkered down behind a rock, cornered by two Feraligatr. The blue-scaled reptiles easily stood nine feet tall and were utterly freaks of nature, muscled more like gorillas than the gen 2 starter's final form.
He shot down and threw one of the reptiles into the hyper beam. The body of the Feraligatr survived the blast but didn't soak it all up. Vergil was forced to tank the blast and save his disciples.
"Sect Master, you're here to save us." A disciple yelled.
Vergil spat out a mouthful of blood. Garados, no matter their type, were powerhouses. Fortunately, the Garados had to rest for a moment between attacks. Vergil used that heartbeat of time to strike the other Feraligatr. Unfortunately, it swung an ice punch too slowly.
He gently took the knife out of the cold grip of a deceased disciple. A swift blow from Vergil kicked one of the reptile pokémon's knees in before a stab to the brain ended it. An ice punch scroll appeared, and Vergil learned it. That was one of the benefits of dungeon drops; he could instantly gain multiple techniques of varying power and utility.
It was fortunate that this wasn't a pokémon battle. So he didn't have to wait his turn to slaughter the pokémon that bullied his disciples.
Using typing was incredibly important in pokémon, like how psychic types were super effective against poison. Telekinesis was one of Vergil's main abilities. A wave of telekinetic power swept over the Garados as Vergil let loose. He raised his hand and squeezed it.
The giant armored dragon serpent shrieked as Vergil's telekinesis ripped it apart. The monster fell, exploding into zenni, TMs, and abilities. Vergil snatched up intimidate before blasting off to save other disciples. He was on the warpath, going to the swamp where his students needed him most.
As he went through the swamp, Vergil killed everything, bug, fish, mammal, and lizard pokémon were given no mercy. Without a steady stream of people for a dungeon to consume, the pokémon Vergil slew wouldn't easily respawn. Even with dungeon breeding, there was a population cap that all dungeons were restricted to; otherwise, they would swarm adventurers. Unfortunately, that cap was in the millions due to Garlic Jr.'s nature as a being with dragon ball ki. But, for all Vergil knew, that number could increase if the dungeon found a way to train itself.
…
Mark was running out of steam as the 15ft lizard pokémon continued to toy with them. Shiro had seen better days, and observation Haki hadn't saved a member of Mark's team. Another life had been taken by the dungeon, but he hadn't lost hope. His Sensei would save them.
He could feel shockwaves even as they fled as help was on its way; if they could hold it, they would be saved. The Salizzle rose from the water and stood on two feet, stopping the other lizards. Poison began to spew from its body before it started dancing.
The giant, almost human female-shaped lizard was too powerful to contend with. Mark knew they weren't ready, but this place was supposed to be for beginners. He should have stuck with his gut and gone with my little pony dungeon. Then again, with the kind of sausage fest the Sect was turning into, some men might not have minded so long as the ponies consented.
Mark knew he would die, and crazy things went through his head when he was in mortal danger. He was tired and could barely feel his legs. Blood leaked from wounds all over his body from the lizards nipping at his heels. His ki armor had long since failed, and various bugs had eaten him alive.
The Salazzle opened its mouth, generating a large ball of fire. Mark couldn't decide what he should do. He could throw himself in the water but would be boiled alive.
"I wonder who will be master's number 1 and 2 disciples when we're gone. Sly didn't go in." Shiro said.
"This is your fault. None of this would have happened if you hadn't angered that purple cobra." Mark accused.
Shiro growled. "Me, you're the one who chased after us and lost men trying to save me instead of retreating to tell Sect Master," Shiro said.
The Salazzle rose from the water before its head was brutally smashed against it in a German Supplex.
Mark froze, thinking the poison was causing him to hallucinate and he would die soon. But, unfortunately, they were out of antidotes. Then Sensei tossed him five antidotes while a massive baggage train floated behind Sensei.
Sensei rolled out from under the Salazzle before jumping up and driving his elbow down on the Salazzle's chest. Then almost as an afterthought, he tossed a pokéball and caught the monster that gave them so much trouble. Sensei lifted his hand, and all the lizards shot out of the water, gathering in a ball. Then Sensei squeezed his hand, causing the lizards and squish together and rain blood down on the swamp.
"Sorry it took so long; I had a threat to our Sect to take care of before I could join the rest of you here." Sensei inspected them. "I really miscalculated the danger. These fully evolved pokémon shouldn't appear until higher floors. I wouldn't have sent you in here if I knew they were on the first floor." Sensei said.
Mark didn't like the sound of that. Some of them had died, and Sensei was sorry.
"Where do you get off being so callous, Sect Master?" Shiro asked.
"I handed out techniques to grow stronger, including a danger sense that borders on precognition, invisible armor, and a striking technique that boosts your attack power by up to 10 times. Then there is the cultivation technique and the spirit urn that everyone enjoys. I expected the lot of you to form a base camp, create times, and slowly explore the dungeon farming the entire time. Did anyone make write any notes about drop percentages?" Sensei asked.
When he said it like that, Mark felt slightly like an idiot for sending teams out to explore, thinking they were invincible. Since the dungeon was attached to their Sect, he didn't think they needed to make a camp. But that didn't excuse Sensei's relaxed tone.
"Some of us have died," Mark said.
A subdued look came over Sensei. "They will be avenged. But for now, we will retreat fully and approach this dungeon more cautiously than before. The lives taken from our disciples will only make the dungeon more powerful. But we will, in turn, use the techniques and abilities gained, collect information about the dungeon, and break it." Mark heard Sensei's first real sign of anger before the man took a breath.
Sensei lifted his hand, and all the loot from killing the lizards flowed to him. Then Sensei stomped his foot, and the swamp parted, making a path back to the shore, even ripping open an entire forest.
"If normal people enter this place, they will die," Shiro said as they returned to the dungeon entrance. Every time a monster came close, either overhead or thought the towering walls of water. Sensei eviscerated it.
Mark was surprised Shiro cared at all about normal people. Sensei didn't seem bothered in the least. It was like Shiro had brought up his concern about the death of bugs.
"Not as many as you would think. People will quickly realize what kind of place this dungeon is, and the dungeon itself will quickly adapt. It has needs, and if people don't think they have a chance to keep the riches they find, they won't enter the dungeon or try further floors. You will see this dungeon will quickly change its ways or starve. We won't be at such a disadvantage next time either." Vergil said.
"Sensei, please purchase the other dungeon; we need an easier one to sink our teeth into," Mark said.
"I'll tell you what place in the top three world tournament, and we will purchase the pony dungeon. The Black Water Mystery Dungeon will be for Inner Court disciples only." Sensei said.
…
Vergil couldn't find the Galar Slowbro or the Toxicroak. After killing hundreds of salandits, Vergil might have spooked them. That was a shame he could use the money and the random rolls. After his disciples were nice and put away, Vergil needed to ensure the dungeon paid the price. Garlic Jr. would pay for killing his disciples; it was everything he could do to hold back his rage and keep his voice calm when speaking to his disciples. Vergil was a step away from flying off the handle.
After collecting a few hundred antidotes, he made sure Mark and Shiro were no longer poisoned before focusing on the swamp.
A few TMs fall in his hands in the form of scrolls. He learned them immediately, rounding out his skill set. Dragon Claw, Poison Jab, and Leech Life boosted his combat effectiveness by a large margin. Unfortunately, Mark and Shiro had already sounded the retreat, so it was up to Vergil to ensure the dungeon paid for its impertinence.
Vergil raised his hand and used dragon claw. Long needle-like phantasmal claws jutted from his fingers, ready to rend flesh. He shot forward and began slicing pokémon up, killing every final evolution he saw on the first floor. The lower evolutions he left alone.
…
A Toxicroak and a Galar Slowbro positioned two humans that had entered Garlic Jr.'s dungeon on a pentagram before slicing their throats open. Blood spilled on the pentagram slowly before swirling around and forming a mirror.
A blue-skinned woman with white hair wearing a skin-tight red suit crossed her arms in the blood mirror, glaring down at the Toxicroak.
"What do you want, Garlic? I'm busy?" When she focused on him, a smile spread across her face. "A frog couldn't be a more appropriate form for you."
All he could use were animal forms trapped in the dungeon crystal. He wanted out, but when his monsters left his dungeon, they left his control permanently. Even if they entered his dungeon again, he wouldn't control them. Preprogrammed orders didn't work even when he sequenced them in a pokemon's DNA. He needed his original body, someone he could trust and work with. Only one demon could help him facilitate that.
"Towa, I want to make a deal with you. I think I might have something you want a powerful warrior with great potential." Garlic Jr. said through the toxicroak.
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