I cheated on the heart surgery bit. Once the fox succumbed to slumber, I had Ink stitch it closed. He had practice when I was learning bone. I maintained contact with the organ only to keep Ink’s stitches from dissolving. Speaking of bone, I looked around the room for the tooth. One of them must have stored it somewhere, fuckers.

  There was still no real sense of time here. Even Mord’s explanation of time had not sunk in and fully conceptualized for me. The room was a major part of the delay in understanding. It took care of all your physical needs, and because of that, there was nothing to mark time with, even roughly. You didn’t get tired or weary except from your own strain. No need for the bathroom every few hours, nor a hunger to set meals by. I think that was part of the reason I was still amazed by how much time had gone by. I had no sense of time when I was cultivating or doing deep dives. When I returned, I would have to ask Mord how long I was in those states. I was betting that they were trance-like and could have taken days or longer. It was kinda sad that these were my last few hours here, and I was only now figuring out how precious and special this room was.

  It was only after several hours, I think, that I could finally let go of the wolf’s heart. I watched as Ink retracted, the stitches then dissolved into purple ink, and then further into nothingness. The room was smart, and it healed the heart first, making the dagger unnecessary; however, I think it might serve as a bridge to start with. A little bit of forced trust could be built into actual trust. I scooted myself to the wall next to the stricken wolf’s head. I kept his heart just at the edge of my perception. I was tempted to practice using my aura skills, as they seemed to have gone unnoticed, but I wasn’t willing to take that chance. Even Ink was being silent, not wanting to alert sensitive ears. All I could do was wait for them to wake up and go from there.

  The cat girl was the first to wake. I realized she was up because the gentle purring stopped. I looked around the room, and when I got back to her, her eyes were both open and staring straight at me. They were an odd mix of a Vibrant green human-sized iris and a cat’s pupil. She stared at me, unblinking, for several minutes before she got up in the most feline way possible. Forcing her arms out, she stretched and pulled herself up through a series of yoga poses, eventually ending up standing faced in my direction.

  She padded over, almost silently, to me and the wolf, quietly dropping to his side. The room had done much to clean the blood from her face and hands. Her gaze was fixed on my face, and it was neither hostile nor friendly. I felt as if she was sizing me up for something. Her face was the only one that looked vaguely human, the eyes and ears not withstanding. If you gave her a proper hat and sunglasses, you would never know passing on the street. That was until you looked down and saw the orange fur on her arms and her still cat-like feet. Her feet, actually all of their feet as I had observed while they rested, remained anamalistic but with apparent alterations to allow them to be upright.

  She kept her eyes locked on me, and she inched closer over the body of her friend. She was kind of pretty, and I knew a few boys back home who would have traded everything they ever owned to be this close to an actual cat girl. I may have been playing the weakling, but I knew fair well you didn’t break eye contact with a predator. Finally, she looked down at her friend. I saw just a hint of a tear form in her eye as she took in the bloody mess of his chest. It was I who broke the silence first.

  “He’ll be Ok. The room is working fine. His heart sealed enough for me to let go several hours ago. I think it’s working on the lungs and ribs now; it will be a while before it cleans up the rest.” She blinked back at me but made no other response. Instead, she curled up next to him and started emitting a deep, loud purr. This had to be an ability of hers as the wolf’s healing increased visibly.

  A little while later, the rhino started to stir and sat himself up. Still parked on his posterior, he did what I would call the ‘typical male on the edge of the bed’ ritual of twisting his neck, stretching his shoulders, and popping his back. He then proceeded to start pulling out a bunch of random items out of a bag at his hip. After he pulled out the fourth large rock, I was convinced it was some sort of dimensional storage or bag of holding. He was messing with a series of metal poles when I finally realized his goal: breakfast.

  “Hey….hey,” I shout-whispered.

  “Shut it, human.” Was his grumbled reply.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  “Ok, then. I don’t know if the dungeon would appreciate you cooking breakfast in its treasure room. Plus… are you even hungry?”

  “It makes a fair point, Rogan. I do indeed feel well fed. I am more curious about what it says of treasure.” Interjected the fox.

  “Yeah, we got the dragon heart. What else is there?” came the cow.

  “Dragon heart? Ahh, so it was a dragon behind those doors. Good to know.”

  “Of course, it was a dragon, surely you saw its corpse as you followed us.”

  “Mortal no get through traps.” The rhino chimed back in.

  “That is true. He is in good shape for a human scum, but he probably couldn’t have made it through all the puzzles. Especially the one with the two pedestals.” She paused with her finger on her muzzle, a very human gesture.

  “So tell us, then, human, how did you end up here. We owe you that courtesy for saving our friend. And if you would elaborate on this treasure.” She continued as I prepared to lie, as if my life depended on it.

  “I’m not certain how I got here. I have no real memory of outside these three rooms. One day, I woke up on the floor, weak and beaten, right over there.” I pointed at the now confirmed boss room door.

  “I stayed here for a few hours or a day. I still have no judgment of time in this place. Eventually, I walked through that door.” I pointed to Mord’s door.

  “There is a man over there claiming to be the dungeon or its representative and he has a speech. He talks about rewarding you for activity in his dungeon, something about Obols. He then tells you about the three doors on the other side of the room. One is the ‘Reliquary of Knowledge’, another the ‘Armory of Eternity’, and the last is the ‘Vault of Avarice’. He then says there is a shop to spend the Obols you have earned. I never saw any of those rooms. All I get is transported to a cave with a very long staircase. At the end is a door, the exit, I think; however, it’s locked. I’m hoping that with you here, it’s open now.” I finished my tale.

  “If it’s locked, how do you get back?” the cow asked again.

  “I don’t know. I know the effects of the ‘Room of Recovery’, that’s what he calls this room, don’t extend to the other two. I almost died of starvation in the cave. I finally fell asleep at the top of the stairs. I woke up back here clean, fed, and hydrated.” By this point, I had walked over to where the three of them were now fully stirring.

  “An unexpected bonus, it would seem. Nor do I detect deceit from him. Tell us, my friend, how long were you here?” This came from behind me. The wolf had a much more human timbre to his voice; it was still deep and husky like that of a woodsman. I turned to look at the speaker.

  “I’m not rightfully sure, but surely no more than a few months, a cycle at most.”

  “Good. Hopefully, the treasure has regenerated after those who left you here.”

  “Left me?” I was curious, but this wolf was crafting me an alabi; who was I to stop him?

  “It isn’t the most common punishment, but it is known amongst our people.”

  “Our people?”

  “Petior was once a human. Your kind hated him for what he is, the gift he carries. They drove him south and into our lands. One of the few quality humans that have come our way.” The fox said ‘quality’ with both disdain for humans and a genuine appreciation for Petior. I was wondering if the cat had competition; at least she was canine, if that was a thing here.

  “I have no idea of any of this. I see a Fox, a rhino, a Werewolf, a Cat girl, and a Minotaur, and I am terrified. I didn’t know any of you existed outside of myths. Mord is a human who claims to be a dungeon. I don’t know why you all treat me like I’m trash.” Might have word-vomited there a little.

  “Because you are trash. All humans are trash.” The Minotaur stood and was looming over me as he spoke. His finger thrusted in my face, punctuating his words.

  “Even me, Graygorn?” gently asked Petior.

  “Bah….you aren’t a human, Pete, and I’m beginning to doubt you ever were.”

  “Please forgive Gorn, Human, his people live closest to the human lands to the north, and he has lost many of his kin to the wars. Such is his hate that he missed the compliment you paid him.” The kitten tried to be the diplomat.

  “Compliment?” echoed me and the bull simultaneously.

  “Yes. Did you not hear how he described us? Described you? A mighty ‘Minotaur’. Things of myths and legends. It matters not. My cousin will be leaving the camp soon with the horses. I think it’s best if we brought our new ‘friend’ with us. Perhaps there is a reward for his safe return.” I didn’t like how the cat girl said friend, and there were some subtle undertones that I caught. The fox got it; I didn’t think the brutes did, and I couldn’t read the wolf.

  “Leyla is right. The dungeon took us longer than anticipated, and Melka will leave soon with the mounts. I would rather not have to walk and camp all the way back to the city. Pete, are you well enough to move?”

  “I shall manage. I think it’s more a shadow of pain than an injury at this point. One does not recover from being eaten by a dragon in a day, Shy’rone.” Petior punctuated this by standing up and summoning a staff. He leaned on it probably more than was healthy but he wasn’t spurting blood so it was an improvement. He, in fact, was the first into the next room. The rest quietly followed. Rogan was the last as he had to pack his partial fire ring. The last except of course for me.

  When I got through Mord was already speaking.