Chapter 6
Thresh roared in anger when she arrived back at her nest to find her child had been stolen. What lowly creature dare to steal something so precious from her will pay for its crimes. Inhaling deeply, the scents of the forest tickled her nose till she found the one that shouldn’t be in this area. That putrid, unwashed smell that only came from the lowest of the mere worms that called the surrounding forest home.
Turning her head to the sky, she let loose a bellowing roar filled with rage and fire. If her child was harmed, she would lay waste to everything alive, including that small town on the forest’s edge. Inhaling the foul scent again, she took to the sky with a flap of her massive wings. Even from the sky, she could easily follow the scent of the disgusting beasts. Soon her eyes found a small group that was still retreating back to its den. Pausing briefly, she washed the area in flame, roasting them and the nearby trees instantly. The smoke and soot from the charred trees and goblin corpses did little to dampen her sense of smell.
She felt more than heard her child’s cry of pain, before her head snapped to the direction it came from and she speed off towards it. Moments later, she came upon a clearing that contained a scene of carnage. That made her gigantic heart beat thunderously. Landing, she found her child standing over the body of a human like she was protecting it.
That’s when she noticed her child’s scales were pale white instead of the glorious black like her own. Stretching her magical senses, she could feel human’s mana invading her young’s very body. Roaring in anger yet again, she stalked forward to end the pathetic worm’s life.
”Move away so I can have my vengeance!” She ordered her daughter with a mental command. Instead of doing as she ordered, her child stamped her tiny clawed foot and refused to move. Bringing her head low, she focused a menacing glare on her child as she sent another mental command. “Move!”
“No! This one saved my life. I will not let you harm him.” Came back her child’s mental plea. That’s when she took a wider look at her surroundings. All around them, goblin corpses lay. Their bodies are pierced by arrows. Near the altar, she could sense the crushed corpse of a goblin lord just under the surface of the ground. Looking down, she recognized the child as the one she saw sitting at the mouth of the old hermit’s cave that night months ago.
With a tentative sniff, she could smell a divine blessing had been placed upon him. A simple scan caused her to sit on her haunches in stunned silence. The child was only six and had the blessing of Amora. Not only that, he had levels and skills as well. “No, human so young are supposed to have access to the system.” She thought as she looked over the small boy.
“Save him. Please!” Her daughter begged.
Shaking her massive head, she replied. “You do not know what you ask. This one is already at death’s door. The price would be too high.”
Her daughter fixed her with an angry glare and hissed. “I don’t care what price must be paid. He saved my life. To disregard that would go against our honor.”
“You would willingly bind yourself to this one?” She asked.
“Yes.”
“Very well,” Thresh said, cast a spell with a flick of a claw before folding in on herself. Moments later, a woman with sharp, yet elegant features and striking, black hair stood in the dragon’s place as the boy’s body glimmered from her spell.
“What did you do?”
“I have placed the child in an undying state. His wound will not kill him, but it will not heal.” She told her daughter as she moved to where the now empty egg still sat. Glancing at the shattered remains, she could see the two bloody handprints of the boy that still held a trace of his mana. From what she gathered from her scan and the scene before her. The child had pulled the dagger free and discarded it, not knowing its true worth. Then he had used his remaining mana to heal her child instead of taking her power for his own.
“Perhaps he is worth the sacrifice.” She said to herself as she lifted the goblin dagger off the ground. Moving back to where the boy was laying, she knelt down while bringing her free hand to her mouth. Biting down with her sharp teeth, she smeared some of her blood on the wicked blade. Altering the spell placed on it to a certain degree, she began chanting in a low voice.
As her chanting rose to its crescendo, she pulled the blade still embedded in the boy’s chest before burying the other in the open wound. Golden light flared as the blade melted into dark streaks that ran through the human’s small body before condensing into a flowing black draconic tattoo. Moments later, her child hissed in pain as a similar mark burned itself in her chest scales, then faded.
Suddenly she was pulled inside the human’s memories. If it was not for her centuries of life, her psyche would have shattered. The lifetime of horrors this one had somehow experienced was almost too much to bear. Coming out of her state, she looked down on the child with newfound respect and a touch of pity.
“This child is an awakened, and a rather traumatized one at that.” Thresh said in a solemn tone. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see her daughter cock her head in confusion. “This one remembers his previous life, from what I have glimpsed. What he did here took much bravery, especially for one such as him.” She explained softly as her body unfolded into her true self. Gently she picked up the unconscious boy and her child with her claws before taking off into the air.
#
Xane drifted in and out of consciousness. Sometimes he would see flashes of something white standing above him between bouts of darkness. Other times, he found himself floating amongst the stars as he looked down on two different worlds. One he recognized as the Earth, while the other was unknown. As he hovered in this state, somewhere between life and death, he guessed, is when the pain came.
Suddenly it felt as if something was ripped from his body, then came the burning. It was as if someone had decided to finish him off by pouring lava directly into his body. Fire burnt through every muscle and nerve, all the way down to his very soul. When the unending agony finally ceased, it was replaced by a warm, golden glow. The last he remembered was a screen appearing in his vision before everything went dark once more.
Xane blinked his eyes open as a familiar stone ceiling came into focus. Tuning his head, he saw the flames of a fire burning in his bedroom’s fireplace. From the doorway came the soft glow of his lantern’s light. Sitting up, he let out a groan that became a scream of fear at the white blur that rushed into his room.
“Mother, he’s awake! He’s awake!” A child’s voice rang inside his head, making him clutch it in pain. The rustle of clothing along with approaching steps pulled him out of his misery. Though the door stepped, what was perhaps the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Tall and having all the right curves in all the right places. She was basically a goth milf that put Morticia and Elvira to shame. Even her strange glowing green eyes added to the straight up allure she unconsciously exuded, that made him forget the fear he normally felt around women.
“Daughter, you must calm yourself. Do you not realize you are causing your soulmate pain with the shouting?” Her words caught him off guard as the white blur that was actually a small dragon gave a reproachful look. It was too much for Xane to take in at once. Especially with so many questions of his own.
“Forgive me, Xane, or would you prefer to be addressed as Alex? We have much to discuss, but first. May I request you complete the bond?”
Xane’s jaw opened and closed like a fish gasping for water, his eyes moving between the woman and the reptilian face that gave him expectant looks. That’s when he noticed a flashing prompt in the corner of his vision. Mentally clicking the prompt, hoping it would give him the information he desperately desired. When he read the notification, his jaw snapped closed and his eyes opened wide.
Quest completed: Save the dragon egg
While the method you used nearly failed, your act of self-sacrifice managed to save the day.
You have been rewarded the following:
500 experience, dragon blooded
Dragon blooded
You have been given the gift of dragon blood. With this gift, you will learn to take on aspects of your draconic patron.
Blood Patron
Threshnaraxsurasslvor the Obsidian Nightwing
You have been offered a soul bond
Due to you being on the brink of death, the gift of dragon blood was not enough. In order to save your life, the very one you saved has offered to bind herself to you. By accepting this bond, you agree to bond your soul for all eternity.
Do you accept?
Yes/no
Warning: failure to accept will end your life.
“Why? Why offer me this?” He asked, balking at the thought of tying another’s life to his in such a way.
“It is because my daughter wills it. You gave up yours to save hers. Now she is willing to bind herself to you in order to save yours.” The woman, er… dragon, said in a motherly tone.
Getting the feeling his protesting would end with him somehow yet painfully forced to accept went ahead and mentally accepted the bond. What happened next was indescribable in feeling. He could remember a warmth emanating into a golden light from his chest as a similar light glowed from a mark on the white dragon’s chest. Then it felt as if his soul had suddenly become whole. Like he had discovered a part he never knew was missing and finding the missing piece all at the same time.
When he returned to his senses a moment later, he noticed a pleased smile on the woman’s face. That was covered with a new screen a moment later.
Your new companion does not have a name.
Please choose a name.
Below the prompt was a blinking courser that hovered over a floating keyboard. Looking between the woman and the white dragon, Xane took a deep breath as he gave it some thought. Her white scales, coupled along with their meeting and their circumstance, brought a single name to his mind. “Persephone,” he said as the space above the keyboard filled in with the name.
“Persephone?” the woman asked, while the white dragons hopped in happiness.
The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
“There is a myth of a goddess who rules in the underworld, named Persephone. Considering all that has happened, it seems fitting, Lady Nightwing.” Xane said, somehow calm after having almost died a second time.
“Persephone.” This time she said the name as if testing how it played on the tongue. “Yes, I like it, and as you say, it is fitting.” She said with a smile. “Now come, we have much to discuss and little time to do so.” She said before leaving out the door with Persephone following behind her.
Slipping out of his bed of furs, Xane noticed he was naked before he noticed the strange tattoo that seemed to pulse on his chest. His brow furrowed as he felt the mark that was right where he had been stabbed. Hoping he would get some answers, he pulled out some spare clothes from his inventory and got dressed.
Stepping out, he found the Persephone and her mother sitting at his table that was filled with freshly cooked food. Persephone already tearing into a raw boar flank. Taking the remaining seat, he picked up a fork as he gave the woman a questioning look.
“Most humans I speak with like this normally address me as Lady Nightwing. You may address me as Thresh. You are my daughter’s soul mate, after all. Do you prefer Xane or Alex?”
Her question threw him as he gave her another questioning look. “Xane. But how do you know…?” he trailed off, the only sound for a moment was Persephone ripping away a piece of meat from the large bone.
“That you are an awakened? It happened while I was bonding with my daughter to you. I saw visions of your previous… life.” Thresh responded, giving him a pitying glance before motioning for him to eat. “Before you ask, let me explain. Awakened are what we call those that remember their previous life. In most cases it is because they have something that needs to be finished. You, Xane, are different. Your previous life is that of another world. One that is strange compared to our own. With such memories, one would expect to want revenge. Yet you want only peace and solitude. Why keep such memories if they are filled with so much pain and suffering?” Thresh answered his question while asking why he chose the way he did.
“I really didn’t have a choice. All I wanted was solitude and a chance to heal after everything. This is the result.” He said, looking sheepish.
“That I can understand, and may help the both of us as well. Xane, I must take Persephone with me. She was forced to hatch too early and even now her life is in danger, and she still has much she must learn before she will you nine years’ time.”
“Okay,” He said, dragging out the word. Looking toward Persephone, taking her in. On the surface she looked fine, but somehow he got the sense that something was wrong and she was putting on a front. He could feel how weak she really was. It was only the emotions of the moment and the food keeping her on her feet. “If it means she will be safe, then all the better. I doubt I could protect her.” He said, startling at the confidence he was feeling in himself.
“I see you have already found one benefit of the bond. While in proximity, you take on each other’s personality traits. Persephone a proud and confident dragon.”
“And I am a meek little mouse in comparison.” Xane replied self-deprecatingly.
“While not ideal,” Thresh said with a small glare that softened. “You were literally born into a life of pain and suffering. Trapped in a world that made it impossible to defend yourself. Yet you risked everything to help one in need. You showed ingenuity and bravery in the face of overwhelming odds and came out victorious. Sadly, the boon will wane with the distance, though you will be able to communicate with one another. Of which will be crucial for what is to come.” Seeing Xane mood shift to one seeking answers, she continued.
“You have been blooded, which means overtime you will be able use aspects of myself to enhance your own abilities. When these abilities manifest, your connection with Persephone will give you an understanding of those abilities.” She paused, letting him process her words for a moment. “Besides the aspects, you will gain a boost to your stats that will also grow with time. As for the soul bond, those abilities vary depending on the strength of said bond. One done in conjunction with being blooded simultaneously is unheard of.”
“I guess all I can do is wait then,” Xane said before speaking in a slightly louder voice. “Thank you for saving my life. I know it came down to something I’ll most likely never understand. But ultimately, the decision was yours and things could have turned out much differently.” In response, Thresh gave him a motherly smile, clearly happy at his words.
“It is time for us to depart. Before I go, I wish to present you with this.” She said as she held out a small band of dark scales intertwined with a silvery metal. As his hand accepted the gift, Xane’s identify triggered.
Band of the Obsidian Cloak
Item type: crafted
Item quality: unique
Durability: indestructible
Item effect: Blocks all attempts at Identify and similar abilities.
Item is Unbound
Do you wish to bind the item to you?
Yes/no
Warning binding this item with make it impossible to remove steal or others wise separate owner from item.
Channeling his mana into the band bound it to his before he placed it on his tiny wrist, locking it in place. Looking up from the band to the woman, he noticed her picking up Persephone in her arms before she turned to face him.
“It is time we live, Xane. Do not worry, we will return to visit and see how you are faring in the meantime.” She said to him with a soft smile. Persephone reached out to him mentally with a groggy tone in her voice.
“Farewell…yaaawn… Xane. We will…” her words trailed off as she began to snore lightly in her mother’s arms.
“Thank you, Thresh. For everything.” He said as she was about to leave. Stopping short of his door, she turned and favored him with a dazzling smile.
“It is we who should be thanking you, Xane. If not for you, I would have lost my daughter, and the goblins would have succeeded in their ritual. Now we must go.” She said, stepping on to the outcropping of stone outside his door. Thresh’s body unfolded into her true form, before taking to the air with a gentle flap of her massive wings.
Watching them go, Xane could feel the bolstering effects of his soul bond with Persephone wane as they flew off into the distance. Long after they faded from view, Xane turned back to his home and the small feast the dragon had left him.
Sitting down at the table, he felt his stomach growl in anticipation of the food set before him. Picking his fork back up, he started eating while going through the remaining notifications.
With the quest reward, along with the experience gained from killing the goblins and their lord, he had shot up to level eight. The four levels added +8 to all his main stats except for luck, which stayed at stuck at 11. Deciding to save his skill points for later use, he closed out the notifications and reviewed the changes to his sheet.
<table width="423">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Name
</td>
<td width="142">
Xane
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Age
</td>
<td width="142">
6
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Level
</td>
<td width="142">
8
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
experience
</td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
175/900
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Hp
</td>
<td width="142">
3600
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Strength
</td>
<td width="142">
42
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Agility
</td>
<td width="142">
42
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Dex
</td>
<td width="142">
60
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Intelligence
</td>
<td width="142">
60
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Wisdom
</td>
<td width="142">
42
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Constitution
</td>
<td width="142">
42
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Defense
</td>
<td width="142">
82
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Luck
</td>
<td width="142">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana
</td>
<td width="142">
600
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana regeneration
</td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
60pts per sec
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
skill points
</td>
<td width="142">
8
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Skills
</td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Archery lvl 3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Compacted Mass
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Crafting lvl 3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Double Dip
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Healing lvl2
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Identify lvl5
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Fletching lvl2
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Herbalism lvl4
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Mining lvl3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Trapping lvl3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Earth Manipulation
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Animal Empathy
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Body Reinforcement
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Multi shot
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Dodge
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Item Granted Skills
</td>
<td width="142">
Stealth +32
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Precise Shot lvl9
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Boons/Blessings
</td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
Amora’s enhanced blessing
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
Blooded (obsidian dragon)
Soul bonded
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Spells
</td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Harden Earth lvl 3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Soften Earth lvl 3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Raise Earth lvl 1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Shape Earth lvl 1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142">
Move Earth lvl 2
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Bonded companion/s
</td>
<td width="142"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
Persephone (obsidian hatchling)
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
After closing out his sheet, he noticed he one more notification waiting. Letting out a sigh, he opened the prompt.
For reaching level 5 you have been granted the following
Arrow rain
Type: special
Cost: 100mp
Cool down: 10 minutes
One becomes a hundred
When activating this special attack, you launch one arrow or bolt into the air above targeted space. The arrow or bolt will split into 100 x arrow rain level of arrows to rain down over an area of ten square meters. Each projectile will inflict damage equal to wisdom x 2
Subsequent levels of arrow rain will increase area and effect.
Xane nearly fell over reading the fresh addition to his growing arsenal of skills. Reading the description brought to mind old movies with scenes featuring clouds of falling arrows that darkened the sky. Reading through the description again told him the attack could grow in power as it level up. That left him with another question. Would he have to wait till he reached level ten to gain a new level in the special or could he spend points to level it?
“System, how do I level up arrow rain?” he asked, surprised when he got a response.
Arrow rain’s level can be increased by using skill points.
The cost will be 2 skill points for the first purchased level. Then increasing to a cost of 3 for the next purchased level. Arrow rain can also gain level through use of the special.
After going over the system’s response, Xane opened his sheet once more and started searching. He found what he was looking for under his skills tab. Off to the side, he found a new area had become visible that was simply called the specialty tree. Currently, the entirety of the tree was grayed out except for the single point of light that was arrow rain. Giving it a mental click brought up a new screen asking how many points he wanted to invest. Choosing to add just two points, he clicked confirm and closed the screen. Pulling up the description to check for any notable changes
Arrow rain
Type: special
Cost: 100mp
Cool down: 9 minutes
One becomes a hundred
When activating this special attack, you launch one arrow or bolt into the air above targeted space. The arrow or bolt will split into 100 x Arrow rain level of arrows to rain down over an area of 20 square meters. Each projectile will inflict damage equal to wisdom x 2
Subsequent levels of arrow rain will increase area and effect.
As far as he could see, the cool down decreased by one minute while the area of effect doubled. Closing out the screen, Xane was left to eat in peace as he made plans for the next day.