I ran through the trees at Mach 2. My Ninja Run lasts so much longer now that I have better reserves. The "target" is a candidate for the Cursed Seal, and if he's lucky he'll be a great addition to the team! I scoured the forest keeping to the trail searching for a dungeon. Then finally… I found it. A cave with skulls surrounding its entrance. As I neared I knew I found the mark,
Ping! You have discovered a natural dungeon! Would you like to go inside? Y/N?
Dungeon Requirements: Level 20
I hit the yes button and the world changed around me. I found myself in what seemed to be a stone hallway, torches lined the walls lighting the path ahead. I grabbed one of the torches and walked forward until I found a large metal door in my way. Even with my high STR, I struggled to pull it open. Once I did I quickly went inside as the door slammed behind me.
Waving the torch around I took in my surroundings. The entire room was filled with… machine parts. I mean, the machine parts from Nier: Automata. All of them strewn about in pieces all over the floor. I don't know what I expected when I first entered this dungeon but it definitely wasn't this. The room I found myself in was vast. I don't know how long I've been walking around but it seems like hours to me.
Most of these parts come from the Small Stubby line of machine lifeforms. Reminds me of my current Companion … probably wouldn't be a good idea to bring him out here. Finally, I found another door. This one was much like the automatic doors you'd find in the Factory stage of Nier. It opened and I was suddenly faced to face with a group of Stubbys .
All of which ran behind me in fright. I looked ahead and saw a green man standing at 4 feet and wielding a wooden club. I hit the guy with an Observe,
Goblin
Level 18
Description: Goblins were once great elf warriors who were corrupted by dark magic. They retain long lives. What they lack in combat prowess they make up for in sheer numbers.
Drops:
x1 Goblin Draft
x1 Poison Vial (common)
I pulled my Obsidian Sword out of the inventory and rushed the little green monster with Ninja Run. He tried to jump to the side but my sword found its mark stabbing into his chest, blood spurted from the wound like a fountain as he gurgled his last breath,
1200 x STR(500)
—600000HP!
Nice, this sword is awesome even without chakra running through it. I should try that on some higher level enemies or maybe the boss. I turned to face the group of Stubbys who had huddled together, shaking slightly. What are they doing here? I had half a mind to… you know what? I've got an idea. I pulled up the Companion Slot . This seems like a bad idea but I've been full of those lately. Stubs came out looking as brand-new as a rusted hunk of metal ever could.
The little guy looked around to face me and gave me a quick hug,
"Sister!" he exclaimed happily jumping with me in his arms,
—100HP!
I felt my back crack from the pressure so I used my own strength to push him off,
"It's good to see you again Stubs," I said with a small smile, "But stay sharp. We're in enemy territory so I'll need you to be on alert." the machine nodded and looked over to the group of Stubbys,
"Oh," he said hopping over to the group, "Where did you come from?" one of the bots moved towards Stubs and replied,
"Network admin found. Assimilating all units..." Suddenly the group shook as if they were being electrocuted before they fell to the ground in pieces. Stubs stood silent for a moment then said,
"Network established. Network Administrator: Stubs. Linking to primary administrator." Suddenly I received a new notification,
Ping! Machine Network Connection Established! You have been chosen by the Network Administrator to help control the Network! Do you accept? Y/N?
Tentatively I pressed the yes button and my mind was assaulted with new information,
Connection Accepted! Converting Broadcast to Human settings. Gamer's Mind has been successfully connected to the Machine Network!
Machine Lifeform Creation Perk Added!
Description: You can now create your own personalities to place within any machine lifeform you come across. You can also create any form of machine lifeform with sufficient materials. Creation recipes unlocked!
Machine Network Administrator Perk Added!
Description: You have full access to the Machine Network. This enables you to keep track of every machine lifeform connected to the network. This also enables you to convert any lost machines to the network.
Connecting to all machine lifeforms...please standby.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!" I screamed as the images flooded my mind. These machines were brought to the dungeons much like I was brought into the Naruto world. By some unknown means, many of them were separated. I could feel the pain of those being torn apart by the enemies of a dungeon. The ones here… god, all those bodies. I shut off my connection and breathed hard. I can't leave them to die.
From what I could tell there are two more dungeons that have machine lifeforms within them. Looking through the eyes of the ones still alive I could see that one group was in what looked to be a desert area. The other group looked to be in a snowy tundra. So I have to look for dungeons in Sunagakure and the Land of Snow. They're being tortured by the enemies in these dungeons.
Without a proper network, they can't organize themselves. They're getting picked off one by one. I will find them… I swear it. For now, I faced Stubs,
"Can you feel them still?" I asked. The little bot nodded,
"Yes," he replied with a sad tone to his voice, "I can't save them by myself sister. That's why I gave you control of the network… will you help me?" that question had a quest pop up,
Ping! A new quest has been added!
Mechanized Rescue Force!
Save the machine lifeforms in the natural dungeon of Sunagakure!
Save the machine lifeforms in the Land of Snow!
Optional:
Raise an army of machines to do the work for you!
Rewards:
?
Failure: Stubs is no longer your companion and you lose access to the Machine Network.
Do you accept? Y/N?
I hit the yes button. But what does the optional objective mean? How does that work?
Information Found!
Because of your connection to the Machine Network, it is also connected to the Gamer Ability! Machines connected to the network may access minor aspects of the game such as the Observe skill and the ability to enter dungeons. Of course, it will depend on you if you want the world to see the machines running around.
So, since I can create machine lifeforms I should look into some sort of stealth function for them if I'm gonna have them do jobs for me. But for now, I need to train here so that I can take care of Orochimaru. I turned to Stubs and said,
"I'll help you, Stubs. But for me to do that I need to take care of a problem outside this place. I need to get stronger here so that I can do that." the little bot nodded,
"Just like last time?" he asked. I chuckled and nodded,
"Yup, now come on… let's get to work"
Somewhere else...
A man wearing a large red hat and trench coat looked up at the shining sun. He chuckled to himself as he walked the road ahead. Behind him was a trail of mangled bodies. The man grinned as said to himself,
"A human world… it's been a while"
This… could be a problem. Without us to monitor these monsters from other dimensions the timeline keeps shifting. The wretched snake shouldn't even have trusted our champion so well in the first place!
Yes, you're right as always. I'll find a way to reduce these… anachronisms. It will take time of course. Especially in a place such as this...
Well, you better hope the girl is ready when that demon comes for her. She'll need the power of a god to strike a fatal blow to that monster.
Oh, she'll be fine… I'll work faster. Don't want anyone else like him getting through!
Yeah, you better...