The Complex

The curtains twitched with the gentle breeze of the air conditioning. Beyond them, a quiet Springfield suburb was interrupted only with the jeers and music of a far-off college party. The night was growing darker, and street lamps spilled pools of pale light on parallel-parked cars and the odd stray. John took one final glance through the curtains at the real world before pushing the door open into the fake one. The others moved to follow him through the single door... except John had stopped there at the doorway. "Well, shit..." A curious murmur of the group behind him was almost lost over the crackle of fire. John daintily stepped forward, and the crunch of ash would follow his every step in this place thereafter.

The tooltip hadn't lied: the neighborhood was not merely warped here. The sky above glowed a brilliant orange, from two suns high above their heads, wherever the long, knotted trails of black clouds did not hang. Looking up, the illusion of fiery eyes peeking between clouds to glare back down at one could not be ignored. All around the adventurers, as they filed out of the door to see it for themselves, were the burning remains of the neighborhood: glittering husks that still burned with orange flames or, as was the case with the house they had just left, blackened frames that could no longer feed such bonfires. Ash gently rained in a thin fog of gray-black, and all the floor had been painted in the soot. Cars, where they had been replicated in this false reality, had suffered similar fates: blown out windows and blackened interiors. But the vehicles preserved evidence of some other, more material threat on their hulls: large dents pushed into the steel in the unmistakable outline of long, five-fingered hands. The outlines were too perfect, and the metal bubbled around the imprints as if the instruments used were heated enough to shape steel like clay.

The scent of burning wood dominated the landscape; from here, John could tell the destruction went on for as far as the eye could see, likely throughout the barrier, in every direction. A series of pop-ups suddenly stacked before John:

Achievement unlocked! "Kick It Complex"!
You've entered your first Complex! A brief tutorial will follow this message which will never appear again. Be sure to read it!
+1,000XP
+full HP/MP restore

Welcome to your first Complex! This Complex will exist here for 48 hours, until it triumphs over you, or until you defeat it (whichever comes first). Re-opening the barrier in the same way will result in entering the same Complex as long as it exists. Every Complex has a series of objectives, at least some mandatory but sometimes a few that are optional; all objectives have a reward value, noted in a "( )" preceding them, and these numbers are added to determine your reward tier. Completing them will be key to your survival and profit! That's it for this tutorial. Dismiss this message to receive the normal Complex introduction.

Curious, John dismissed them both and was rewarded by a pop-up that repeated itself before Tricia and Moira.

Scions of the Flamescales (Complex)

Main Objectives:
(2) Bring about the portent of doom to the scalekin -- 0/1
(3) Slay at least 80% of the Complex population -- 0%
(5) Slay Yunikal the Red -- 0/1

Bonus Objectives:
(4) Slay Gurkruel the Blue -- 0/1
(4) Slay Polushan the Green -- 0/1
(2) Slay Yunikal within two hours of entering the dungeon -- 01:59:22

Rewards:
10: 20 gold bars; two random magical items of decent power; extra crafting materials
15: as above, as well as: 20 gold bars; one random magical item of decent power determined by party leader
20: as above, as well as three random tomes of magical knowledge and one artifact of substantial power

"Lady help us, it really is like a video game..."

Tricia took a moment longer to respond. The tomes of magical knowledge made her eyes almost shine visibly. "With only two hours, I recommend using either your spatial magic or your flying servant to perform reconnaissance."

Fairy cursed in her tongue, but a glare from John silenced her. "Right," he agreed, "Fairy, turn invisible and start scouting, and I'll-"

A neighboring house, naught but a blackened husk still aflame, suddenly exploded and collapsed as hulking forms glided from its front to catch the group's flank. The Almiraj, with John, were the first to react; Moira was at the ready right after, and the rest were caught flat-footed as the creatures bulldozed through the remains of the fence that would have barred their charge.

Vok (Flamescale Failure)
Level 10 Warrior
HP: 400/400
MP: 20/20
Stats: Str 30, Agi 28, End 25, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 6, Lib 14
Status Effects: Berserk
Qualities: Cursed, Immune to Fire, Pariah-Slaves
A genetic failure to the Flamescale Brood. It bears in its makeup the result of the Curse of Henrick the Plain: the bloodline's persistent tendency to meld humanoid features with those of the once-proud dragon race. A Failure will never know flight, will never breathe the living light, and fears the darkness that does not fear it. Both a pariah and a servant, a Failure dedicates its life to martial training in hopes that it may serve and protect a proper product of the blood to one day breed out the malignant Curse.

John didn't have much time to process the message: three naga-like creatures were upon them, and he had to rip a tunnel open just as one of them bore down on Tricia. The raging beast toppled straight through, and so began his fall from the highest point in the false sky above.

A glowing halberd made from red steel clanged against Moira's shield. Her feet cut two short lines in the ash where she was driven back, but gave no more as she took stock of the enemy that towered more than half a man over her head. More serpent than man, the beast's lower half was that of a massive serpent with scales that glittered like garnets under the twin suns. The pale white belly and chest of the creature were closer to human flesh, however, and its awkwardly long fingers were humanoid enough to brandish the weapon she had barely deflected. Its head was a grotesque compromise between snake and man: a small, human set of lips sitting at the tip of a reptilian mouth; a chiseled jaw specked with irregular horns; a small, raised nose; and clumps of black, knotted hair parsed by three vermilion fins that adorned the top of its head. The monster's eyes, human except in how they glittered with gold in the irises, were almost beautiful in the sea of disturbingly near-human. The offending image vanished as her hammer struck true, crushing the side of the creature's head and sending it sprawling backwards.

The Almiraj deftly made their formation around the beleaguered third Failure, each taking nicks from its lower extremities as they probed for the softest spots in its hide and belly. The worm howled as it whirled with mad slashes of its polearm; every blur of red missed its target but neatly burned the tips of their furs with its natural heat.

Moira attacks Hur, dealing 103 damage with her warhammer!

Leafdie attacks Po, dealing 129 damage with his +1 jade spear! Po resisted the poison!

Skythumper attacks Po, dealing 48 damage with his bronze dagger!
Skythumper attacks Po, dealing 49 damage with his bronze dagger!
Skythumper crits Po, dealing 84 damage with his bronze dagger!

Tricia and Fairy snapped into action shortly after, and John drew his gun as he eyed the flailing form of the foe falling from far above.

Control... and neutralize, Tricia thought to herself, holding her hands up in a pose that was more inspired by anime than she'd ever admit. On the black palms of her hands appeared two black Eyes; the closed Eye on her forehead falsely opened once more to help her focus. Uncensored and alert, the destructive Eyes beamed invisible **** into the reeling beast that now clobbered the Warden with its burning halberd.

Hur attacks Moira, dealing 65 damage with his fireblood halberd!

Tricia attacks Hur, dealing 156 damage with her Eye of Hate!
Tricia attacks Hur, dealing 156 damage with her Eye of Hate!

Hur was defeated! Complex population slain: 2%.

The visceral explosion of scales and flesh had only barely escaped John's notice, but the corner of his vision had seen enough of it to not envy the Warden; her golden armor was caked in a red-orange mixture of her enemy's innards. The report of damage on her nearly drew his attention, but he kept it, and Alysha's borrowed aim, focused on the falling snake-man as he popped immaterial shots into the beast.

Your Glock 777 deals 43 damage to Vok!
Your Glock 777 deals 21 damage to Vok!
CRIT! Your Glock 777 deals 129 damage to Vok!

The creature writhed as invisible bullets tore holes into its hide, but still it grasped the halberd as if ready to fight on impact.

"Out of the way, you long-eared wretches!" Fairy hollered, and the rabbit men somehow knew she meant them. Mana blast let her spend her mana up to a limit, allowing for moderation below the maximum to conserve power... but moderation did not become a greater fae daemonica. She flew over the whirlwind of red they faced and put one hand before the other as a bead of blue appeared. "Suck on this, DSL!" The creature, and its admittingly puffy human lips, stared up at the leather-clad foe and twisted to bring its halberd up for a vertical attack-

Fairy attacks Po, dealing 270 damage with her mana blast!

Po was defeated! Complex population slain: 4%.

Leafdie and Skythumper both recoiled as their enemy's body suddenly blossomed like a scaled flower before tipping forward to spill the contents of its lower abdomen onto the soot-coated floor. It's tail-half began its violent **** throes, earning final stabs from the rabbit-folk.

The whole party turned towards John... and then followed the third creature as it finished its fall with a bellowing wet crunch into the ground.

Vok takes 138 fall damage! Vok is stunned!

"Hold on," John declared, holding his hand back as some number of those behind him began to approach. He took a sidelong glance at Ju--still paralyzed with wide eyes and horror at everything that unfolded--before slowly approaching the crushed, barely-alive enemy.

The menace slowly tried to rise, clutching its crimson halberd like a cane as it tried to stand on its broken abdomen. John narrowed his eyes in pity before he refocused on the creature's obvious intent to kill. As John drew near, it made its final, **** stab... and passed through the displaced illusion of John. With a sigh, John leaned in and struck the creature on the forehead.

Your serpent's bite deals 249 subdual damage to Vok! Vok is ****! Vok is capturable!

John wasted no time, branding the creature on its broad chest as it folded backwards from the last blow. The purple sigil, the mark that stained half of his group, burned huge onto the human-like skin before the creature vanished in a purple flash.

Flamescale Failure Vok (rename pending) has been captured! Complex population slain: 6%.

John gave it a few seconds before realizing that the usual victory announcement wasn't coming. He looked back and saw that the grisly remains of the other two enemies had vanished, along with their halberds. His allies, afforded a moment of respite, peered into the nearby houses as if ready for more to come. None did, for now. Right, the pop-up said I could lose all the rewards if we fail... but does that mean we get nothing until we're done? "Alright, I think that was just the first wave... let's regroup and heal up."

Moira grunted, apparently indifferent to the splatter of the almost rosy blood that coated her armor, shield, and the left half of her face. "No one was hurt, so we can just keep- hey!" John blinked behind her and tapped a heal into her to end her protest. She grumbled the rest of her complaints, and the rest worked to gather and clean themselves for the rest of the journey.

Fairy hovered near the ground, eyeing her Master with a coy smile. "You're going to make your new **** squeal, right? He won't matter after, right?" John said nothing. "So you don't care what happens to him after, right-?"

"Are you really asking me what I think you're asking me?" John snapped at the fae.

"What? Yesterday was bad, sure, but that wasn't my fault-"

"My rule stands."

"Hmpf."

John ignored the pouting demon and instead looked down at the squatting, trembling undead horror... the one who still didn't move, as if paralyzed forever from fright. "Ju."

The princess-concubine, now one of his most powerful monsters, looked up at him with glistening eyes. She looked ready to collapse, and the ash began to cling to the beautiful fabric of her clothes and the black of her hair in a way that further sullied her pristine image. "Yes, Master...?" It was a whimper, bereft of her earlier defiance. She couldn't defy his orders willingly, he knew; an overwhelming fear of battle, then, had kept her from following his instructions. Until that moment, John had been sure that the loyalty of his minions would override such fears.

If it didn't, then this hellscape was far from the proper way to train her. "I'm going to send you back and call in the one I just captured so he can guide us. We'll have a talk later about what happened here... for now, just get cleaned up in the temple, meditate, and relax."

Ju nodded and, with downcast eyes, waited quietly until John dismissed her.

Moira slowly approached John, her eyes looking down the road. John followed her gaze to a strange structure made from the burnt remains of a couple of houses: it was a massive wall, round in its construction, and seemed to mark an encampment or arena, John guessed. "If this is all that awaits us, I could hardly consider this worth my time in terms of training." Moira spat a bit of the monstrous blood that crept into her mouth. Far from ladylike, then, on the battlefield. "Where is this 'Yunikal,' then? Send your fiend up to find the end to this miserable barrier so we can finally leave."

"That won't be necessary," John muttered as he began his Grand Summon.