Chapter 32 of 35 · Book 4, The Gate of the Feral Gods

Chapter 32 — Acolyte of Emberus

Book: The Gate of the Feral Gods · Previous: Chapter 31 — Emberus, summoned · Next: Chapter 33 — Phase three · Floor: Floor 5 — The Bubbles · Series: the series

Opening

<Note by Crawler Justice Light, 8th Edition>

Summary

Three days and seven hours. Justice Light's 8th-edition note recalls killing an insulting shopkeeper on the sixth floor, losing the floor's only trap shop and drawing the guards. Tserendolgor's bubble survived. Carl has two new sun tattoos and a shrine in the saferoom: he is now an adherent of Emberus, God of Sun and Ash, rank Acolyte — daily blood and coins, a 5% tithe of gold, nothing of Hellik's, and a Church quest, in exchange for free access to Club Vanquisher, a burn effect and temples. The god thanks him for reuniting him with his son's lost pet, grants a 25% constitution boon, and sets two quests: Find Out Who Killed My Son (Geyrun was murdered; Hellik, the obvious suspect, was in council; see the high cleric at the Emberus Shrine; a smite if Carl leaves the eighteenth floor without finishing) and Kill Hellik, Emberus's twin, god of Sun and Life, who wants Emberus and Taranis dead — before the twelfth floor, with the warning 'Killing a god may have some unintended consequences for all crawlers'.

Quan's arm yields Rockard's Ring of Sniping, whose Ripe and Loaded benefits show weakened creatures and anyone in magical gear on the map — which explains Quan's reputation — and an unenchanted gold band, 'For Daddy', which Carl breaks the finger to remove and then pushes back on. Louis, barging into the personal space's toilet stall, has found the Coffee Shop Author Kit clipped there — the party's only unwatched channel, with Katia's coordinates on it — and Carl wipes the scratchpad blank. Under a hatch, Xander runs the All-Seeing Spleen: the prophet is dead, the Rat Queen died, and bloodworms hold the tunnels.

Phase one begins: eight qualifying bubbles, some five hundred crawlers, Elle's lie detection weeding out the liars, gated one bubble at a time to Hump Town's club door and marched by Langley to the stairwell, a feral god left behind in each closed bubble. Carl thinks of the tens of thousands they will kill in phase four ('They're better off dead. We are freeing them'), and of Coolie and Priestly, the 14th edition's ninth-floor expert: 'Coolie would do exactly what you're doing. Priestly would not.' Mordecai, with Samantha's help, has the yam potion and needs three. Among the loot are Man of God!, Enchanted Handcuffs from a first Savage Box, and the tome of Ping, which locates every non-crawler, non-mob creature for kilometres — elites and hunters. The first group comes through crying. Carl waits for the hammer.

Characters

• Carl — An acolyte with two god-quests; Quan's rings; a spell for hunting hunters; handcuffs.
• Princess Donut — Outraged by a tithe; watches the social board for leaks; Twinkle Toes.
• Mordecai — 'Which one of you two idiots'; the yam potion, three needed.
• Katia Grim — Runs the extractions at the club; Hanzo; squeezes Louis quiet.
• Emberus — A boon, a tithe, and two quests in a gravelly voice.
• Quan Ch — His rings; 'For Daddy.'
• Louis and Firas — Monkey soup; a haunted bathroom; hugged by an orc.
• Imani — Her rule: no one left behind; runs the interviews.
• Elle McGibbons — Weeds out the liars.
• Tserendolgor — Safe; a flamethrower upgrade.
• Samantha — Helped with the yam.
• Xander — A cyclops with only Jimbo soup.
• Juice Box — Bonnie on her lap.
• Langley — Escorts refugees to the stairs.
• Gwendolyn Duet — A new spear; lookout on the bowl.

Locations

• The Bubbles — The Soulless Prophet's, its saferoom a hatch in the rock; eight more to empty.
• The Royal Palace of Princess Donut — A shrine by the door; a scratchpad in a toilet stall; The Last Unicorn.
• Club Vanquisher — Free access, with an asterisk; an Emberus shrine inside.

Motifs

• The gods — Worship's rules and boons; Geyrun's murder; Hellik to be killed by floor twelve.
• The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook — Justice Light on killing NPCs; Priestly's ninth floor; a hidden channel nearly blown.
• The Gate of the Feral Gods — Passed hand to hand, bubble to bubble.
• The count — 'phase four'; 'They're better off dead.'
• Quests — Two god quests; a Church quest unexplained.
• Achievements — Man of God!; Disarming Personality!
• The marketplace — Spellbooks everywhere from one platinum box.