I mean, I need to FIND the dungeon, but that's not hard… the Eagle Eye spell puts an eye six hundred feet up for me. It's a recent dungeon, and is still establishing a circle of altered terrain… rocks, huh? A mountain eventually, I imagine… I trace the circle out in my head, find the center… and yep. Okay… just a few miles, not bad… and I can Warp at will, even though I can't get very far that way. So I cast Invisibility and go. A few minutes ter, I'm standing at the dungeon entrance.

  This one looks like a mine shaft… which in a way, it is. All dungeons are made in deep holes in the ground, and then are seeded with a ritual and leftto grow to cover what they need. I have Mom's write up on it in my library… which is really just a copy of Grandpa's writings. A dungeon is basically a siphon for power, using the energy potential differences between the pnes to make magic power. The pnar energies leak a little, and that spawns monsters and alters the surrounding terrain… including changing the original shaft into a slowly shifting maze. Some of the magic also crystallizes into items of magical potential - precious metals, gems, magical items, and items well suited for enchantment. Both items and creatures continue to form, and if not trimmed regurly, the creatures spill out into the surrounding countryside… and are generally pretty hostile. Combined with the terrain warping, they're not great pces to build around, so they're always made at least a few miles outside of town… and adventuring teams are refulsrly sent in to clean out the monsters… and loot the pce, of course.

  Now, my strategy is simple: Stay invisible, kill everything with Summons (I go with small Fire elementals, as they often hurt the things beating on them), keep up a Find Traps spell to find those, and handle anything I find with more summons. My Ring supports this well on the Invisibility side, and thanks to the build from Mom, I can keep up all the spells basically forever.

  I find the strategy works well… mostly… but takes a while. Summons aren't great at this level, but they're free for me, so it takes a while to whittle down an opponent, especially things with damage reduction, like that big stupid stone golem. Direct spells would be faster, but that breaks Invisibility, putting me at risk. It still isn't a risk-free strategy: I get lightly toasted by a trap that shoots a lightning bolt down the length of a hallway when I have a summon open a door, and also get caught up in a breath weapon from a bck dragon… but my Regeneration fixes those up quickly enough.

  I do stop and loot everything, of course, tossing it in my Keyhome for ter.

  After I clear out the dungeon entirely, I find the Heart… a big glowing brown gem mounted in the wall… growing there, really. They're quite fragile… under normal circumstances, everyone leaves them alone, because they maintain the dungeon and produce the magic everyone relies on (especially the people in power). They're also really annoying to repce: The official ritual calls for the sacrifice of a dozen mbs of the first year… but any living creatures in the right quantity will do the job: It's blood magic to get the Heart established… priming a siphon, basically. A long time ago some stupid savant figured out it was easier to transport one living person than a dozen sheep, and built a dungeon on murder… and for whatever reason, THAT version of the ritual became the well-known one. Mom fixed that, fortunately, so nobody needs to die to repce this one… if anyone ever does: We're very far out. Mind you: It's possible to do the ritual without any sacrifice at all… if you already have magic. So seeding a new dungeon immediately before killing the old one is a simple matter, and because I make my own magic, I can do it whenever. Musings aside… I take a moment to make sure my path out is clear, get to the edge of the room, and take a shot with my sling… and hit the wall. Second shot… the ceiling. Wow. I am BAD at this. Third shot hits it… and as it shatters (a Heart is VERY fragile, fortunately), I run…

  …because it also colpses the dungeon.

  A dungeon isn't entirely on the material pne, you see. It's a warped tunnel to another reality, and it is only maintained by the dungeon heart. When that goes, the dungeon starts to colpse. Anyone that doesn't get out in time will end up buried on the material pne… and that's a problem for me now, as I'd be stuck there until I could trade out some magic talents… a full day of being stuck in darkness, unable to move, would suck big time.

  Lucky for me, I'm not loaded down, and I pnned for this, clearing the dungeon entirely (if slowly).

  I find I'm not winded when I hit the exit - I expect something from my build - and watch the dust plume come out behind me… ugh, I need a bath. I clean up with Prestidigitation, and then head back to the town the same way I came: Maintaining Invisibility and using the Warp sphere to travel. Side note: It rocks not being dependent on the dungeon for magic.

  Because now I'm the only one with any magic for hundreds of miles, and without magic, a wizard is just a guy with a stick.

  I bypass the gate, and look down at the city… a bunch of guys in scraps of women's clothing are fighting with the town guard… ah. Right, all the spells keeping the bordello girls as well-behaved female sves are gone. They'll be back if anyone establishes a new dungeon, but for now… those men are charging the town guards and fighting tooth and nail, seemingly unconcerned that the guards have armor and weapons… but I suppose it makes sense that many would be desperate to escape that life. I drop a few summons behind the guard to tip the scales before moving on. They won't st long… but even for armored men, fighting two fronts is murder.

  At the castle, though?

  I get in easily (the pce isn't done, the guards are occupied, and I'm invisible, so it's easy) and find an in-progress shouting match between the Lord and his advisor.

  “Why did you order the dungeon be killed, Chard?!” That's the dwarf.

  “I didn't! I'm a mage! I need the thing!” and the evil gnome.

  The local lord roars back, “You have control of the only folks capable of such things!”

  “And I'm telling you I didn't do it! This is a DISASTER for me! You had to have given the order!”

  I interrupt with Summon Monster II, dropping small fire elementals in mass around the pair… I can only squeeze out two every six seconds… but that's enough for both to be suddenly engaged in the fight.

  The dwarf tries to run… my fire elemental hits him as he goes, then closes the distance and hits him again trivially: A fire elemental is MUCH faster than a dwarf.

  The gnome seems to realize he's not going to be able to run, and tries hitting the fire elemental harrying him with a staff… which doesn't do much, but does connect before my elemental hits the gnome, singing him slightly.

  And then I summon two more, one per target.

  The fight goes on like that until I start hitting the time limit on them (just thirty seconds, but that means I have ten of them out constantly).

  When the dwarf colpses, on fire from what he's fighting, and the elementals I'd had on him surround the gnome, the advisor screams, “I GIVE UP! CALL THEM OFF!”

  Then I realize something: I don't know Ignan anymore. I can't call them off. I do stop summoning them and start dismissing them… but I need to send them home individually, and it takes longer… so I don't banish them all in time.

  Not that it's a big loss when the evil gnome breathes his st.

  Hmm. Well… I may as well loot the bodies… the lord has some money and a few items that register under Detect Magic once I toss them in my Keyhome. The gnome, on the other hand, was LOADED. His magic gear included several scrolls, a wand, an amulet, a belt, a cloak, a ring, and a robe. He also had a quarterstaff (more of a cane for me), quite a few gemstones, and a lot of cash.

  All mine now.

  I look around trying to identify quarters… I mean, I'm pretty sure the gnome, at least, had sve girls. I should find them, make sure they're not still locked up, and free them if they are.

  So I wander around the incomplete castle… and yes, find a locked stone door. It opens to a Knock spell, showing me a stone staircase. I head down… and find a dozen naked women chained to beds… all in various stages of pregnancy. Hmm… well, given their state, Mom's here. I need to make sure I address her in a more official manner, because of the witnesses… I start heading to take a look at the manacles as I start to speak, “Oh Blessed Mother, I could use your guidance….”

  “I was wondering when you'd give me a call,” my mother manifests to my sight in her “official” form… a very 'gifted' woman, leaking milk… and very nude. “Lost my graduation gift already? How'd that happen?”

  I'm also aware that I'm the only one that can see her right now, so I take pains not to react… but I'm sure I can be forgiven at least my stiffy, given the women in the room. The manacles are straightforward: I still have Disable Device, and my casting Knock while poking some pointy sticks into the lock is sufficient to hide that I still have magic for now.

  As I free the girls one at a time, Mom talks more, “Ah, right. Witnesses, and you don't want to seem crazy. Fine, tell me ter. Okay, so… only three of these people are supposed to be female. I'm keeping one of the spells on them supplied so as to not to kill the kids: I pn to let up on that after the births. Sucks for them to be stuck in the wrong bodies for two to seven months, but I have slim pickings here.”

  After all the chains are loosened, I address the crowd of women standing around, “So… I had to kill the dungeon to beat the bad guy. I'm afraid most of you are stuck like this until the births.” Hmm. I need to get them all somewhere civilized. For now, though… “Let's see if we can find you something to wear, huh?”

  I leave the room to continue exploring, and the women follow… barefoot, pregnant, and naked. As I go Mom follows, and asks, “So… care to know what I assigned for your fourth level?”