Chapter 401: Communications Established

"You know..." Ares gave his brother a wry smile. "You really don't have to do every riddle from here on out... I enjoy riddles too! Definitely! Let me do some as well, yeah? Please? Pretty please?" The punishments for failing a riddle were still light at this stage but if Ares and Aejaz neared the end of the Riddlemyd and were still setting off every single trap because of Aejaz' stubbornness then things would get really complicated... Ares was confident in himself but there was a limit and pushing his luck over dumb riddles wasn't preferential just so Aejaz could get his runback! If Ares could at least get a break from punishments every now and then by having Aejaz relent on his prideful pursuit of a correct answer then maybe it wouldn't be so bad... The though that Aejaz would get one right any time soon was not a possibility in Ares' mind so he was borderline begging here!

"Hmmm... We'll see..." Aejaz was contemplating this matter because he really wanted to finally settle the score with these damned things called riddles! "How about we just both do them and whoever answers first, answers first? There's no rule against discussing between us as well so let's just take them as they come... But I refuse to let you answer them all! If we disagree we must either keep arguing until we settle on an answer or until the other person agrees with us! No threats of violence allowed because then I'll never have agency! These are my terms and if you disagree I will just yell out answers as soon as they come into my head!" Aejaz made his demands and Ares rolled his eyes but agreed. It wasn't fair on Aejaz to drag him all the way out here to Xasca under the pretence of getting to play around with riddles only to then deny him of said opportunity forever... Ares' duties as a big brother meant he was going to just have to suck up the failures and deal with the punishments from now on whenever Aejaz was permitted to give a guess... For what it was worth, at the very least, not every single room was a riddle... That was a silver lining at least... Though the first floor rooms were always guaranteed to be riddles, though, so until the next checkpoint Ares was almost definitely going to have to keep dealing with the consequences of Aejaz' actions...

"Fine..." Ares shook his head in defeat and turned back around to face the sphinx who was arguably more annoying. At least Aejaz wasn't acting the way he was out of spite, unlike a certain mouthy head! "You! I will put aside everything prior to now if you are willing to do the same!"

"No."

"Ffffff...." Ares had to curl his fists and hold back a curse because this damnable sphinx was aggravating beyond measure. "You were just as responsible for our poor introduction as I was so stop being a sourpuss!"

"What did you call me you dumb mutt?!"

"Oh? So you know I'm a revenant then? Been peeking at my DNA that this place stole from me? You some kind of stalker or something?"

"Don't be ridiculous! I am collecting it on behalf of my master just as I was tasked to! Why would I want your stinking DNA?!"

"So you really are Sevorus' personal pet then?"

"Tsk, why does some lower realm brat like you know about master?" Though the sphinx wanted to end the conversation earlier he was now admittedly interested given this twist. This young kid knew about Sevorus? Not even the Sheryashkans who were alive, back when Sevorus was still here, knew his name because he hunkered down in the Riddlemyd and never made direct contact with the outside world. And now somebody came along declaring his name like it was nothing? This was knowledge a common Sheryashkan should never know and thus Ares had become somewhat intriguing.

Ares wore a smug smile and taunted the sphinx. "Oh? Gone from a silent-bluffin' ragamuffin to a blabby tabby have we? Huh, how strange. I don't feel like talking now!"

"Stop acting like a child!"

"No."

Ack

Now it was the sphinx' turn to be humbled as the tables had turned. Now it was he who was met by the stoniest and most unresponsive of faces. The sphinx took a deep breath and cleared his throat. Ahem. "I do suppose we could act like adults and move on from this trivial banter. It's gotten somewhat out of hand and..."

"No."

"Son of a bitch!"

"Heh, I'm kidding. Don't get your panties in a twist you silly Persian you." Ares gave the annoyed cat a thumbs up and a mocking smile as repaying the earlier treatment and rubbing it in felt good.

"I'm not a Persian, a tabby, nor am I a ragamuffin! I'm a prideful lion in body and soul and I will not tolerate this slander from some..." Sigh. "... No, do not fall for his chicanery. He is but a mere revenant, ignore him!" The sphinx was talking to himself and giving himself a pep talk to help him get through this discussion without wanting to shout at the top of his lungs. "Alright. How about this? You tell me who you are and I tell you who I am? We start with the basics and go from there!"

"Yeah yeah, sure thing, but not all at once. I've got a feeling we're going to be discussing this matter for quite some time but I also plan on conquering this place so let's walk and talk buddy." Ares didn't bother waiting for the response as he jumped through the portal and moved over to the next room. Ares didn't quite know how it worked but the sphinx overseeing each room was the same one each and every time so which room he talked to him in made no real difference. Ares could communicate with the sphinx over the course of his exploration and didn't need to sit around to do everything in one big chunk. The sphinx even said they had no obligation to be completely open from the start anyway so sitting around was just a waste of time. The sphinx seemed to have thought things over and agreed with Ares' decision, in the time Ares was moving between rooms, so, as Ares and Aejaz walked over, he began reciting the riddle from afar to get the ball rolling sooner rather than later. He was ok with this arrangement but that didn't mean his curiosity was abated or sated just yet! His questions needed answering and he wasn't referring to his riddles!

"I am everything and everywhere. What am I?"

"Everything and everywhere!" Aejaz yelled with a smile on his face but Ares quickly clasped his hand over Aejaz' mouth and shook his head at the sphinx.

"Nonono. Ignore that! He's just joking! Hahaha, real funny bro! Good one!... Give me a moment please..." Ares dragged Aejaz behind a pillar and established a mental connection with him. [How is it possible?!]

[... Is this also a riddle?]

[NO! I mean how is it possible you can come up with so many technically correct answers that are also so woefully incorrect! You can't just repeat his description back to him! He's asking you what object he is, not for a description of what he is! It should be obvious! I know the framing of the question can lead to your interpretation but for the love of God just answer the question the way you're supposed to damn it!]

[... So you're saying I'm wrong?]

[Brother...] Ares rested his head against a pillar and took a deep breath to calm himself down. [There's wrong and then there's whatever the hell you are. Better yet, what happened to discussing the answer?! Where was my input in that one-man show exactly?!]

[But I was so certain?]

[Yes, and I'm certain I'm not making you dinner today if you try that crap again! I'm making a delicious curry tonight for the Grecian Land girls, and Leo I guess, are you sure you want to miss out on that?! Be a good boy damnit!]

[Ooh! Curry! Curry is delicious! Maybe curry is the correct answer?]

[What?]

[You know, because curry is sold everywhere and is everything you could ever want!]

[Aejaz, this is the real world. We are not in la la land. Stop speaking nonsense!] Ares shook Aejaz back and forth until he got everything out of his system and stood up. Ares patted himself off and walked around the pillar towards the sphinx who calmly repeated the question.

"I am everything and everywhere. What am I?"

"Nothing."

"Correct."

"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on a minute!" Aejaz barged his way into the conversation and Ares and the sphinx shot each other a pitying glance. The sphinx was going to have to deal with this muppet constantly debating the rationale behind his riddles from now on while the sphinx felt sorry for Ares who had to deal with this shmuck even outside the Riddlemyd! "What do you mean 'nothing?'"

"We mean nothing! What part of this do you not get?" Ares was really hoping he wouldn't have to clarify every single answer going forward but it was looking likely this was how things were going to play out from now on.

"Everything! Which apparently means nothing now!"

"No you... Ok, think about it. what can be everywhere at the same time?"

"Air!"

"Tell that to space idiot!"

"Oh right... In that case, nothin... Oh! Nothing!"

"Right... And What can be everything at the same time?"

"Ah! Nothing!... No, wait a minute."

"Oh what now?!"

"Particles!"

"Excuse me?"

"Particles! Particles make up everything and they're everywhere because they're in everything!"

"That!... Actually that's not entirely unreasonable... But why must you be like this?"

"Yeah yeah, what he said!" The sphinx joined back in the conversation as he wasn't pleased with Aejaz right now! "Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep coming up with riddles every single day for multiple different people at the same time?! Sure I was designed to be capable of such a feat but even a supercomputer level of programming has limits! I'm bound to make some mistakes here and there so just stop nitpicking already! I don't see you doing this!? You wanna give it a go punk?! Huh? How about I shove you in a wall and ask you to come up with brain scratchers day in day out for multiple thousands of years!?" This was seemingly a sore spot for the sphinx so now it was Ares' turn to clear his throat and try to move things along...

"How about we just ignore that and move on? A correct answer was given so... Uh.., Can you open the portal to the next room?"

"No! Not until I get an apology! I bust my back off and work hard every single day and this is the thanks I get?! The other adventurers are dumber than bricks but at least they don't ruin the atmosphere you know!? They're all solemn as they tread through the dangerous dungeon, ready to lose their lives at any given moment as they traipse through my carefully engineered traps and puzzles, all the while cowering under the watchful gaze of this guardian sphinx!... You two are ruining the vibes! None of this is normal and everything I spent forever setting up is ruined! Ruined!... My PTSD is flaring up... Damn you! Making me remember those three..." It didn't seem like the sphinx was going to clarify so Ares just left it at that. He'd gained some information here, even if mostly irrelevant, so he was fine with what he'd gotten for now... Although, again, this was really not how he expected to find any of this out... And once again, Aejaz was responsible! He was singlehandedly driving everyone else to insanity with his incomprehensibly blend of genius and completely moronic reasoning. Ares nudged Aejaz, who seemed indignant but eventually gave up, and watched as his brother gave a hollow apology as was asked of him.

"Sorry..." For being right... Only Ares heard him mutter that under his breath and he was thankful that was the case because the sphinx might honestly throw a hissy fit and a tantrum, the aftermath of which was unknowable. Apparently attacking this place was a bad idea and cultivators who tried to brute force their way through the Riddlemyd got a real painful experience to remember their folly by. It was clear this sphinx could dish out the hurt when it felt like it so upsetting him was also not wise. He showed restraint up until now but Aejaz was testing his patience. The sphinx retreated back towards the wall and tucked its head neatly against it while opening the portal. Ares wasted no time in hopping through because he wanted to reach a checkpoint. He was worried the sphinx was just going to kick them out at this rate and, honestly, Ares wouldn't even blame him. If they could at least reach the checkpoint before that happened they wouldn't have to redo these floors... Although getting kicked out would net Ares an opportunity to buy some duct tape to strap to Aejaz' face!

"I am nothing and nowhere. What am I?" Though the sphinx was blatantly agitated, as he was gritting his teeth as he spoke, he did his job perfectly... Only for guess who to come barreling in like the clumsy fool he was and immediately verbally assault the sphinx' ears with another wrong answer.

"Everything!" Aejaz, once more, had that sort of happy puppy innocence quality in his facial expression because, once more, he was 'certain' of his victory...

"Aejaz... You are beyond help!" Ares wanted to throttle this guy!

"Incorrect!" Before Ares could haul his brother off for a talk again, the sphinx declared the result and refused to allow another second chance again. He was merciful last time but, from now on, declaring an answer in such a fashion would be met with instantaneous judgement! This was payback for having had Aejaz' nonsense inflicted upon his ears!

"Really?" Aejaz just really didn't get it...

"Yes really! Just because the answer last time was the opposite of what he said, that doesn't mean the same logic applies to the reversed question this time!" Ares was going to try and explain the correct answer to his brother but the punishment began before he could as six giant scorpions were released into the room via spatial magic. Apparently this was a combat trap and killing the monsters was the only way out... But Ares was not in the mood for this right now! He was in a terrible mood, actually! "Esoteric Compression!" This was massive overkill but Ares just wanted to get to the damn checkpoint already! He crushed the scorpions, before they were able to even advance upon his position, in under a second flat and the sphinx was clearly shocked by this feat of strength. During the last floor Ares.. Well he didn't struggle but it took him a bit to overcome the challenge. The sphinx had underestimated this kid because of it but was now realising that something was definitely up with him. Why he was holding back earlier was a mystery to the sphinx but this guy was no ordinary cultivator, that much was apparent at a glance now that he was actually throwing his might around. Still, it's not like the sphinx hadn't seen his fair share of impressive cultivators, what with being from the upper domains originally, so he carried on as usual for now and repeated the riddle.

"I am nothing and nowhere. What am I?"

Ares glared at Aejaz, who seemed ready to pounce on the question again despite his recent failure, and gave the correct answer in his place. "Nothing. Nothing is still something, even if only conceptually, and it can't be nowhere because something is everywhere even if its only empty space. Nothing is nothing and nothing is nowhere... So to speak." A convoluted response but...

"Correct"

"Meh, I disagree." Aejaz shrugged.

"Nobody cares!" Ares rebuked Aejaz and turned around to face the sphinx again. "By the way, I have a question. Where's everyone else? I know the floors aren't isolated so I find it hard to believe we haven't run into anybody even if it's not a particularly active period right about now. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad, my brother is going to embarrass me to hell and back, but I am curious."

"The first four floors are isolated to give challengers an understanding of how things work before they're thrust into more complicated scenarios. Other room types, like mazes and combat encounters, and potentially backstabbing cultivators are introduced from here on out but everyone should have a grasp of the basics beyond this point. If you want to combine your efforts with random cultivators you happen across you are free to do so. If you wish to murder them in secret I won't tell a soul. You have no idea how many times I've seen scavengers intentionally give the wrong answer to set off a trap, distract their prey, and then go for the kill when an opportunity presents itself. It is my duty to oversee the trials, not act as some moral arbiter, so expect no sympathy or help from me should such a thing occur to you. This advance warning is more than most people get but I'll make an exception for you seeing as how we're going to be talking regularly and it would be unfortunate if our conversations ended prematurely... Not that you likely need a heads-up, you seem to be stronger than you were letting on previously?" The sphinx wasn't even trying to hide the fact it was fishing for information so Ares figured he would oblige and give him something to ruminate over. He'd already gotten some info out of him so it was only right to return the favour.

"Have you ever heard of fundamental pillars and champions?" It was common knowledge for most at this point but this sphinx had been invented a long while ago and been somewhat isolated for a long period of time. The concept might be familiar to it but there was no guarantee it would be up to date on the matter transcending concept and becoming reality. It was also entirely possible the answer to Ares' question was a no so he was checking that beforehand to know where to start with this conversation. The sphinx was quiet for a moment, as though it were digging through its long list of memories, and eventually shook its head.

"No, I do not."

"..." Ares didn't respond immediately because something interesting had just happened here! "Yes you do." The sphinx tried to pull a fast one! "You lied! Bad kitty!... Hm, I think I know why! lemme guess, you want to send my DNA to Sevorus because the DNA of a fundamental champion would do invaluable things got him and advance his research further! As soon as I mentioned it you went and checked my DNA while under the guise of outwardly looking pensive about your memories! You skimmed the DNA earlier and knew I was a revenant but you hadn't seen everything there was to see. Now though, you can see my bloodline, everything regarding Garmr, my draconic heritage, and my unique mana types! You were lying because you aren't actually able to send it to him right now and don't want me to go sleuthing through this Riddlemyd to reclaim it! On that note, you didn't kick us out immediately upon discovering this so I'm guessing you cant? It's not within your power to do so? Maybe somebody has to actually attack you first before you can fight back or chuck them out? I'm right, aren't I! So, basically, it's a race? Either I locate my DNA before you send it away or I'm too late and Sevorus gets a massive boost to his experiments going forward? Fair enough. I had just assumed the DNA sample was long gone, and had made peace with it, but if I can get it back later then that would be ideal. Sevorus does not sound like the kind of person I'd want to have my DNA anyway. No hard feelings over this matter. You're just doing your job, after all, and I couldn't attack you even if I wanted to right now because then you'd kick me out and win by default. In other words... Things will continue as normal for now!"

Ares was 100% right about everything and the sphinx' general attitude gave to understand as such. He was kissing his teeth and scrunching his face because getting found out here added an element of uncertainty to the success of his job. Sending stuff directly to Sevorus from so far away, and through the Primordial Blade barrier, was a hell of a task. He'd started immediately upon discovering how incredible Ares' DNA was but it would still take a while to accomplish yet. This Riddlemyd held a great many secrets and it was beyond the sphinx' control whether Ares found them or not now that he would be actively pursuing them... Thankfully they were mostly difficult to access without proper authorisation but that didn't mean it was impossible under the right circumstances... If any of the experiments Sevorus had let run wild were brought back here, for instance, then on certain floors, and in certain rooms, there were ways to uncover this place's mysteries and dig deeper into hidden areas that were not meant for prying eyes to discover... Ares DNA was locked away in the depths of the Riddlemyd but, if Ares was able to ascend at a reasonable enough pace, there was a chance for him to locate and recover it. All the sphinx could really do was attempt to come up with real stumpers and make Ares stay stuck for as long as possible. "I shall no longer be taking it easy on you. I will be ramping up the difficulty of the riddles henceforth. I'm sure you understand. Just as you are ok with this turn of events, I too must be. You are right in that I am prohibited from arbitrarily attacking or removing you so, though we want different outcomes, a fair back and forth is all that I can offer."

Ares nodded. "Deal. May the better person win. Or wolf / cat I guess."

"I am not a cat! For the last time I am a lion damnit! God... You really do remind me of those three..."

"Hm? That's the second time you've mentioned 'those three'. Who are you referring to, exactly?"

"Tsk, you probably wouldn't know of them anyway. Just a stupid trio of idiots I was unfortunately commonly associated with. I was considered by others to be an unofficial fourth member of their group but I refuse to acknowledge such a thing! Though I will say we were feared and respected, albeit usually for the wrong reasons. A group consisting of a dragon, a phoenix, a revenant, and a sphinx, as well as a few other legendary creatures on occasion, was naturally a line up that commanded respect... And yet we were known as idiots for the most part..." Sigh "This body is but an offshoot of my real self and I often wonder if the real me is still being subjected to their insanity to this day... Although there were rumours of Dominus having finally bitten the dust..."

Dominus? Wait a minute! Ares knew this dumb trio the sphinx was referring to! Hell he'd met one of the other members back in the pagoda, Larsh! Dominus was asleep right now but that wasn't going to last for long because Ares wanted answers!