《Evil Dragon on Paper》 1. Ruth Woke Up Ugly The cold and damp grass felt like a small army of indiscriminate ants that were nibbling at his slumber. He was tremendously tired and doing his best to ignore the call of wakefulness as best he could, but between a full bladder, the blades of grass cutting the back of his body, and the dirt that was starting to stick to him as a result of laying on wet grass and restless shifting, he was finding it increasingly difficult to keep his eyes closed and his mind drifting in the dark. He opened his eyes, easing his body upright with an abruptness that startled a small white species of bird from the trees above him. Their flapping and subsequent call of distress caused his eyes, yellow vertical slits over black sclera, to track upward along with their movement. A hunger appeared on his face before disappearing into a grimace as his gaze and the flight route of the birds caused him to look directly into the mid-morning sun. A low hiss of vexation escaped his mouth, and the sound caused him to startle. He tried to make the noise again and was surprised when he could. He hissed several times in a row, trying to come to terms with the foreign sound. Giving up after a moment, he decided to get up and fly down the mountain and grab something to eat. He wasn¡¯t sure where he was, or what had happened, but hunger needed to be managed. His stomach grumbled then. The twisting feeling was unrecognizable and he... found the sound of his own hunger unfamiliar. That was when the true incongruity of the situation started to make itself apparent. He had looked down instinctively when his stomach made that noise. Instead of a beautiful midnight blue scaled-claw, he had a smaller clawlike appendage without his beautiful scales or sharp talons. He jerked backward away from it, almost falling when it came away with him. He waved it in front of his face and flexed the fingers, mouth agape. Where were his claws? His talons? His huge beautiful feet? What of his hind feet? Were they gone as well? He immediately looked down, the hair on the back of his neck(also weird) straightening in obvious alarm. Black silk came down past his shoulders and covered part of his neck from atop his head. He was staring down past his waist, relieved briefly to see he still had parts there and then lifted one of his feet to stare at it. Hopping after a moment in order to maintain his balance and get a good look at this thing. HISS. Agh. Again, there were only weird and unsharpened stubs where once magnificent talons had grown! He almost looked like a monster. Like a human! Ugh! That terrifying thought made his eyes grow wide in alarm. The naked and ashen skinned creature that had already been making quite a show of himself in the forest started turning rapidly in circles; hoping against hope that his suspicion that his beautiful tail was gone wasn¡¯t so. He turned so fast trying to see over his shoulder and behind him and with such panic that he got dizzy and immediately fell over. Fortunately, his spinning had revealed to him that there was still a tail, although not the glorious and tremendously useful tail he had been gifted with before! He laid there on the ground, somewhat on his side because the tail made it impossible for him to lie completely on his back and stared up at the sky. His heart was thundering like a beast in a cage, and he felt so small and fragile that for a moment he feared that it would actually break free from his chest.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°I imagine you are confused.¡± A voice, soft and kind came from nearby. ¡°For now, I suppose I should introduce myself as one might to a creature.¡± He was on his feet in an instant, tail twitching behind him in agitation. Though he couldn¡¯t understand the words he recognized the call of this monster. It was human language. Humans were the worst. He put up his hands in front of him, but not in a gesture of submission or surrender. His fingers hooked into pantomimed claws, and though they were smaller than what he was used to working with, he thought that the nails near the end showed a little bit of promise. ¡°First, I¡¯d like to welcome you to the Evil God Candidacy Program.¡± If anything the voice seemed amused by his antics. ¡°Your name is Ruth.¡± An unfamiliar feeling of warmth welled up inside him from the noises the thing was making. One of the noises, in particular, made it seem quite clear that the monster was talking specifically about him. Ruth paused, tilting his head to the side in sudden confusion. The sounds that the voice made had initially seemed to mean nothing, but as it continued to make those meaningless noises, concepts began to shape themselves in his mind. Ruth, himself, a midnight blue dragon of great cunning. Evil? God? Program? Meaningless. Candicacy. Contest. Competition. Duel. Match. Fight. FIGHT. Ruth lowered his shoulders and peeled back his lips. It occurred to him that he didn¡¯t know if he had strong teeth or not so he ran a tongue over them, briefly disgusted to find that they seemed small and mostly flat. There were four promising canines that seemed to be sharper and more businesslike than the others, but even they didn¡¯t protrude past his lips when they were shut. ¡°You have time. All you need to know is that I am Tamara, and I¡¯ll be watching you for some time.¡± The voice faded on the last line as if it were receding into the trees. Again, his mind briefly played over the noises, only picking up on a few key concepts that seemed to hammer into his conscious. Watching. The image of a dragon looking down on prey from the sky. He was prey for this voice. Tamara. Not Ruth. Other. Strong. Ruth was reasonably confident that the Not Ruth was gone, but that didn¡¯t mean he could let his tensions down. Displays of aggression needed to be made. Ruth peeled his lips back further and threw back his head, realizing for the first time that there was quite a bit of weight on the sides of his head. Regardless of this discovery, he opened his mouth and howled wildly into the forests, quite pleased with how feral and throaty his voice was. It wasn¡¯t as beautiful as a dragon¡¯s bellow, but it had promise. Ruth spread his arms and dashed forward into a sprint, leaping into the air with the ease of a creature born to the sky and the expectancy of a lord who knows exactly where his place is in the world; a place in the heavens above all others. It was about this time that Ruth realized that he hadn¡¯t checked for wings. Ah. He didn¡¯t have any. Ruth crashed back into the ground and rolled several times, making a long furrow in the soft dirt and upturning shallowly rooted grass before coming to a stop ass overhead against a tree. The tree shook lightly and several pine needles floated down and came to a rest on his naked form like the trees version of a soft pat. A quick pat on his head with his not claws revealed that he had two curved horns on either side of his head, something he had suspected from earlier when he¡¯d made his aggressive call. That was something at least. After that, he didn¡¯t bother getting up, just laid in that crumpled form and took a long moment to feel miserable and furious. 2. Ruth is Hungry So, flight was a no go. Ruth stood up and stretched with both of his arms above his head. He grimaced and put his arms back down at his sides. His reach was pretty pathetic compared to the five meters of body he had previously enjoyed. This body seemed to be more accurately balanced for walking on hindquarters, though when he did hunch over and go on all fours that felt comfortable too. His tail was swaying in order to keep him balanced when he moved about in this fashion. It was¡­ strangely enjoyable. Ruth made a note to investigate the enjoyable tail swinging sensations at a later date. Ultimately, after a quick and rather flimsy planning session that you could barely call planning at all, he decided that he would walk upright because he could see further away. The idea of traveling that low to the ground without being able to see further away made his tail twitch back and forth in agitation. This tail seemed to have a lot more personality than his old one. One of the bright sides at least? Ruth was not so secretly enthralled with the tail and it wasn¡¯t just because he found its familiarity comfortable. Not at all. That was the good news. A tail that did what it was supposed to do and was surprisingly independently sassy? Check. A brief moment of mourning for the old tail and all the gold and jewels he had encrusted in it. The new tail was fantastic but nude. A moment of silence for the old tail. The moment of silence seemed to be respected by the other woodland creatures, pleasing Ruth greatly. He would try not to eat any of the creatures too near him as a way of thanks. The bad news was mounting up though. He did a quick inventory of his body and found that his skin wasn¡¯t very tough. He didn¡¯t have any scales or even any of the armor that he had developed into his body made up of long years of treasure lazing, making him effectively nude as the hatchling he was born as more so since he felt an uncomfortable breeze now and again passing between his legs. Finally, his ¡®claws,¡¯ so to speak, were a lot less intimidating and felt clumsy. He wasn¡¯t sure if he could cleave anything in half with these. He would have to just grab things and hold on as best he could and use strength or teeth to fight. Or could he use his breath? Ruth stood well away from some of the trees so that when they exploded they wouldn¡¯t hurt his pathetic and feeble body. He turned, took a deep breath, and used the knowledge that he had been born with to breathe a crystallizing icy breath of destruction. The wave, he imagined smugly, could go for about twice the distance as he¡¯d been long. ¡°Rraaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrggggggh...urk¡­HISSS.¡± VEXATION. The long stream of icy death he had imagined perfectly forming from his personal store of mana did not materialize. Instead, almost as if it were taunting him, he had only produced a gargling sound and distressingly feeble roar that had steamed the air with his breath slightly. The steam, as he considered it, seemed to be a result of the cold weather and not any form of breath attack. That¡¯s fine. Ruth tried to think positively. There had to be something this body could do naturally. Some sort of advantage that is gained from simply existing. Even prey animals had their natural survival mechanisms. He wasn¡¯t in a herd or anything so it couldn¡¯t just be panicked running. Start with the basics then. His mind started to seek out memories that were pushed deep down into his mind long ago. Back when he had been in his egg stage. No, too far! When he had hatched among his brethren! Yes, that was a good place to remember. Ruth had been one of the first to hatch, which was just as well. They had all scrambled out on top of each other, lightly mottled blues and dark silver hues suddenly writhing like a swarm of angry spiders emerging from a nest with no seeming purpose -- at least until they got to each other. Flightless, breathless, and their claws had not yet solidified so they crawled and pounced and tackled one another, using sharp teeth and light bodies to hold down and to tear into fleshy eggs and like-kind too. Hungry. Ruth realized that remembering the eating of his clutch was just making him even more incredibly hungry. What the hell was up with this hunger? He didn¡¯t feel this hungry when he was a dragon and his stomach had been however many times larger. Ruth looked down and put his ugly, dumb, useless hands on his taut and well-sculpted stomach below his rib cage as it gurgled at him again. Horror began to overtake his features. Maybe this whole body was a stomach. He had seen snakes before. They were just heads and stomachs. Could he be a snake with arms?! Legs too, he supposed, remembering he had those as well now. The distinction wasn¡¯t quite so clear when he was a dragon. His stomach growled at him again, startling him before a dreamy look came across his face. Mmmm. Snakes. ?? Tamara stood in a space that appeared to be completely empty. Despite the nothingness of her surroundings, she stood quite easily, as if she were standing in a glass box suspended in the darkness of space. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it The only illumination in this place came from a small faded window that was opened all the way, incredibly out of place for the emptiness that surrounded with its garish featuring. Intricate gold lacing surrounded the surface of the window in fanciful barding, almost giving it the appearance of an old gothic vanity mirror, save that some of the shine seemed to have worn off over a great many years. Despite the antics of the one known as Ruth, her face was impassive as she watched. She stood with preternatural stillness, the only movement of her body was when her golden eyes would occasionally shift. Her gaze would move from left to right, up to down, or further in any direction to follow the movement of the fledgling Ruth. Hair as golden as corn silk spilled down one side of her head, artfully curled and spilling over her right shoulder and side. The left side of her head was shaved almost to the top, an intricate tattoo of a black rose vine twining down from under the line of her hair, along the skin of her scalp and around her ear, dipping down her throat and slipping under the collar of her high, white shirt. The shirt itself was form-fitting, long-sleeved, though the sleeves were currently rolled up past her elbows. The tail of the shirt was untucked, flaring at her hips and draping in daggered points. From beneath the shirt hems, black leggings melded almost seamlessly into thigh-high black boots; boots such as these were only incredible, the final piece in the contrast that was Tamara, pale skin, blonde hair, white shirt, black pants, black boots, a harlequin split top to bottom, rather than side to side. ¡°Tamara.¡± A voice called from the darkness of what could be considered behind her if you were like to wonder of such things. Tamara did not turn around and her eyes never left the window, never left Ruth. ¡°Heath.¡± ¡°Ah, so you have made a selection after all? Just the one? I selected over a hundred, but I do have my favorite with me.¡± The man identified as Heath was tall with tousled brown hair and a rather unremarkable face. His skin was warm and sunkissed, and his garb was that of a simple bartender. Despite his simple appearance he towered over Tamara by four or five heads and outmatched her appearance with elegant style. His clothes became easier to understand as he neared the luminous window. His style seemed to be a tuxedo without the smoking jacket. ¡°I am only concerned with quality,¡± Tamara said, still not bothering to turn around. ¡°There are many factors in a multitude of worlds. Luck being chief among them. You could pick the best of the best and they could simply fall down a hole and die!¡± Heath spread his hands, smiling lazily. ¡°Best to spread out the yield a little bit¡­¡± ¡°I am not so free.¡± Tamara retorted, though a smile did briefly twitch across her pale lips. ¡°Announce your favorite then. With her first words, I will judge her.¡± ¡°Judge me?¡± A melodious voice called out. ¡°I am¡­¡± ¡°This is Amaranthe.¡± Heath interrupted smoothly. ¡°Amaranthe, this is Tamara, my friend, and peer. Consider your words carefully, this is an opportunity for you to get a feel for talking to upper-level management without being instantly murdered for insolence.¡± Tamara shifted from foot to foot very subtly but didn¡¯t rebuke him. There was a calmness to his voice that gave Amaranthe pause and set her fox ears twitching nervously. Yes, fox ears. She had nine tails and wore an expensive kimono that had slits on either side for extra movement. Two fans hung off golden chains at her ample hips. Amaranthe couldn¡¯t see Tamara very well in the low lighting. In fact, this very journey into the expanse of nothingness would have terrified her if not for the assistance of Heath. To Amaranthe¡¯s eyes, however, other than some particularly beautiful golden eyes, Tamara seemed largely unremarkable. In fact, Amaranthe considered as her eyes narrowed, Heath was looking at her with a knowing look and a slight grin. She¡¯d been near him long enough to understand he was mercurial, though not long enough to always understand the lesson he was trying to impart on her. ¡°Speak.¡± Tamara interrupted. Amaranthe looked to where Tamara was looking but couldn¡¯t see anything through the window. She looked at Tamara once again and slowly moved to the side so that the other could see her in profile. ¡°Greetings, Tamara, I am Amaranthe. Heath has chosen me for consideration as his god candidate.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Tamara said after a moment. ¡°You may both leave. I¡¯m busy.¡± Amaranthe frowned, feeling upset but wisely deciding to keep her words and thoughts to herself. She had cast a skeptical glance at Tamara and started to turn away. She doesn¡¯t seem like much. I¡¯ll bet her chosen is a joke, too. Is she even a- ¡°The arm,¡± Tamara said. Heath sighed in a knowing way. ¡°A long ways to go, Amaranthe.¡± ¡°What?¡± Amaranthe was baffled. She had no sooner turned away than Tamara had spoken to get her attention. She, at least, felt like she had been polite. Surely nothing had been said that could have caused offense or been misconstrued. Tamara threw a pale arm on the ground at her feet, startling Amaranthe and causing her to jump slightly. Where the hell had that arm come from? It looked like someone had yanked it clean off whoever had been attached to it. Amaranthe swayed on her feet, suddenly feeling dizzy as a sense of danger washed over her body in a belated fashion. She looked down with a dreadful premonition and a shriek let loose from her lips moments before she even felt the pain that started to pulse from the ragged stump of her left shoulder. Blood oozed down onto her kimono as if her bodily fluids had merely been awaiting her attention before they began to flow freely. ¡°Think more politely,¡± Tamara suggested, not seeming bothered by the twitching arm at her feet. There was no blood on her anywhere. Amaranthe backed away in her heels, her tails swishing murderously. Despite her attempts to rein in her temper all she could think about was her beautiful arm. She bit her lips in order to keep from screaming or from threatening. She now understood that Tamara, despite her appearance, was far beyond her understanding or control. Maybe Tamara was¡­ Amaranthe looked at the window deliriously, trying to see through it to see what her chosen looked like¡­ If I can¡¯t have my revenge on her¡­ Golden eyes turned away from the window for the first time as Tamara turned her full and terrible gaze on Amaranthe. From deep within Amaranthe¡¯s soul a cry of despair rang out. Her spirit, shaped like the legendary nine-tail fox just like the form she inhabited, immediately rolled over within her sea of consciousness and began begging for mercy. The image of a Three-Eyed Golden Crow juxtaposed itself over Tamara in her eyes, and in those eyes, there wasn¡¯t a thing known as mercy. ¡°Now, now¡­ I believe lessons were learned. Amaranthe will now swear a soul-shatter oath to leave your chosen to his own devices. She has experienced much, and I would consider it a personal favor if you allowed her to learn from it. If everyone was just killed immediately there would be a lot of rude people running around you know?¡± Heath smiled winningly, spreading his arms in front of Amaranthe, cutting off the image of the terrible crow from her line of sight. Amaranthe collapsed straight down behind him, falling on her butt and hardly managing to spread her legs enough to accomodate the position. Warm liquid dribbled down her legs and mercifully off into the nothingness expanse. ¡°You¡¯ll owe me.¡± Tamara had considered his terms and turned back to the window, having lost all interest. ¡°Swear it or I¡¯ll know.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Heath waved a hand and an invisible hand seemed to grab Amaranthe by the back collar of her kimono. She slid after him on the floor that didn¡¯t seem to exist, her eyes blank and almost lifeless as blood still streamed down her body and onto her once pristine clothes. The two disappeared before long. Tamara went back to watching the window. She no longer paid heed to the arm near her that had finally stopped spasming. ?? Ruth stood in the middle of a cold stream and screamed his triumph! He dropped the rocks he had been holding as extra ammunition and snatched up a fish he had just brained to death in the water. He closed his eyes, savoring the delicious feeling of raw fish in his mouth as he tore bites off and swallowed noisily. Not long until all the flesh, skin, and even eyes had been peeled from the fish, he started to chew the bones. He wasn¡¯t pleased with the feeling of pain between his teeth and in his mouth from the way the sharp edges stabbed into his gums, but he chewed carefully and swallowed them anyway. He stood naked up to his knees in the frigid water and looked down, deep thought on his face. It is cold. He decided. I cannot clad myself in dragon scale. I must clad myself in something else. Hunger is sated, now the elements must be conquered. Then I will find this Tamara, he thought. His eyes narrowed dangerously. Elements conquered. Belly full. I will still eat it, this Tamara. Ruth was, by this point in his adventure, mostly confident that he was a snake. 3. Ruth Decides On Murder For Fun And Pants. He would eat the Tamara, but first, there was self-discovery to be done. Even magical snakes must have something they are good at besides the obvious devouring. Ruth had once seen a picture in a cave he had been exploring under the mines of a mountain where he saw a giant snake on the wall depicted as consuming its own tail. He had felt the picture resonate strongly with him at the time because he had just been wondering if he could sustain himself by eating his own limbs if he had to. He had torn his gaze reluctantly from the mural on the wall and continued onward. Later that evening as he was flying around near dusk, he had come across a carriage with a pretty eye-catching purple canopy. More interesting than that were the two horses he had seen pulling the carriage. Since he had found his way out of the cave system after a long and arduous journey he was feeling pretty generous. Ruth had swooped down and grabbed the horse with his mouth around the middle, pulling and shaking it violently in order to free it from the carriage, and then stalked off with it into the trees nearby to eat it. He felt like he had been pretty generous by only taking the one horse, and was also pretty smug about the fact that he¡¯d even had the foresight to pull the horse out of view so that the monsters in the carriage didn¡¯t have to watch him dine on something that had previously belonged to them. It hadn¡¯t occurred to him that the initial shrieking of the still-living horse or the subsequent crunching from the nearby trees would send a local duchess into a fainting spell and incur the wrath of the local magistrate''s army. The important part of the story, and what made him think of this particular story in relation to the snake, was that the horse was very good to eat and it would be far superior to dining on his own limbs. Snakes were stupid. If he was destined to be a snake, there just had to be something he could do other than eat himself. ?? ¡°Why did you pick this creature? Just listening to it think from this range is making me dumber.¡± A crow flew from the darkness. Red fringes and highlights started on its throat and carried down the underbelly all the way to the under-tail feathers. Otherwise, it was an unremarkable black. The only truly disturbing thing about the avian that had appeared from nowhere was the small closed eyelid on its forehead between the two glistening and attentive open ones. The crow shrank in size as it approached, appearing initially to be somewhere near the size of a small horse and miniaturizing until it was about the size of a small purse chihuahua. It landed on Tamara¡¯s shoulder without invitation but invoked no ire or real attention from her. Her golden eyes hadn¡¯t left the screen. ¡°It has an interesting soul shape,¡± Tamara said softly. She lifted a finger and scritched under the crow''s chin. ¡°My Arathan. Don¡¯t be jealous.¡± ¡°It would be weird if I was jealous. I¡¯M your soul shape. You are stuck with me.¡± Arathan cocked her head to the side and allowed the scritching anyway despite her tone of voice. ¡°We share experiences and life. What amuses you is important to me.¡± ¡°...and vice versa. Look at the soul shape and tell me what you think,¡± Tamara advised. ¡°Must¡­I?¡± Arathan did not seem so sure. She was looking at the window with a dubious expression. Impressive considering the slightly curved beak. ¡°I feel like I¡¯ll lose intelligence.¡± Tamara smiled. ¡°I insist.¡± ¡°Fine¡­¡± Arathan grumbled. ¡°Not sure what I¡¯m supposed to see anyway. Will that soul even have a shape? It can¡¯t even have developed intelligence yet. It¡¯s not even a thing.¡± Arathan sighed one last time and grew still, black eyes staring intensely into the window. Tamara smiled, returning her extraordinary golden eyes to the window once more as well. She would watch the encounter, though she already had a faint idea of what would happen. ?? Arathan, born of Tamara, flew through a different type of darkness now. It was the space between worlds and the river between souls and minds. If she were just looking it was fine, though it would have carried danger for lesser soul forms. She approached the mental space that the Ruth creature was comprised of and sneered slightly as she came nearer. The Ruth ¡®space¡¯ was slightly shaped like a draconic image. Which was stupid. The sea of consciousness of a creature didn¡¯t need a shape. Most of them that were shaped like this from the outside were lesser creatures who identified so strongly with their species that they never broke free of the ground and learned to soar higher. Arathan had a slight doubt, though. This couldn¡¯t be what attracted Tamara¡¯s interest. Arathan couldn¡¯t see the soul form within the consciousness yet, despite her proximity and the pathetic and feeble size of the consciousness itself. Arathan sighed and flapped her wings once, soaring closer. HSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSTH Hesitation appeared in her wingbeats as the strange noise sounded from within the darkness of the consciousness. Ruth was a pretty dim lightbulb, Arathan noted dryly, annoyed because the space was so dark. Despite the danger inherent in the noise, Arathan was not afraid of much anymore. There weren¡¯t many creatures in the known universe or the outer universes that could get her to fly off after such a low-level warning.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Arathan flew into the draconic shaped mist and was startled at how dark it was in there. Even dimmer than she had given him credit for. Her black eyes started to flare with a red light as she took a look around. Feeble, as expect- HSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHTTTTTTTH Arathan flapped her wings gently to keep herself hovering in the darkness, now faintly aware of a shape that was hidden in the very center of the space. The space, it should be noted, was small enough that a strong flap of her wings would carry her out of it. Or more likely, shatter the space altogether. The warning noise had increased in volume this time. Arathan was much like Tamara. She did not respond to threats very gently or kindly. While she wouldn¡¯t harm this soul shape since it was Tamara¡¯s toy, she couldn¡¯t be letting it get ideas about the pecking order either. The thought of slaughter and murder rose in Arathan¡¯s breast as she released the tiniest bit of her aura. Red light played down her feathers and pressure crushed down on the space, distorting but not harming the draconic shape of the consciousness itself. Shake-shake. Shake-shake. Shake-shake. Arathan startled, surprised at the calmness of the response she received. A rattling noise had begun to emerge from the darkened thing in the center. What initially she had thought was a ball of black light was actually a creature that had coiled itself into a ball. A thin tail slowly raised from the ball. It was skinny like a normal reptile tail, but flared at the end into an obvious bell shape. Shake-shake. Shake-shake. SHAKE-SHAKE. The rattle from the tail got even more persistent, picking up speed and making a clamor that actually gave Arathan pause. This soul shape had acknowledged Arathan and the extreme danger that she represented and¡­ was excited?! Two vertical yellow slits appeared near the front of the ball and a golden line formed. Despite the way the darkness broke up the shape, Arathan recognized that she was looking at the front of the creature. She still couldn¡¯t quite make sense of what it actually looked like. It was possible that it hadn¡¯t fully formed or decided what it looked like yet, either. Tiny, adorable, and energetic wings broke out from the ball while the rattle on the tail began to oscillate with increasing intensity. Arathan was getting a headache from the noise. A headache that could only be a mental attack. She was far too powerful to be affected, but such innate gifts were rare features in soul shapes. This mental attack would be very strong if it was allowed to mature. Arathan began to feel the slightest, the tiniest, the most infinitesimal amount of curiosity. Arathan sorta forgot that this was Tamara¡¯s toy and was looking at it with renewed interest. She decided to provoke this tiny thing a little. ?? ¡°W-what is that?¡± Arathan finally stirred on her shoulder and Tamara smiled, pleased at the surprise in her soul shapes raspy voice. ¡°It¡¯s so¡­ so¡­ mean! Caw-caw-caw-caw-caw!¡± Arathan laughing for the first time in what had to be several hundred years made Tamara smile brightly. ¡°Yes. It is very tiny and full of spite.¡± Tamara agreed. ¡°It actually tried to eat some of my aura.¡± Arathan tilted her head, regarding the window gravely as if she still couldn''t believe it. ¡°Just the tiniest bit. It spit it back out immediately. Just as well because it would have exploded¡­¡± ¡°Then what?¡± Tamara had a pretty good understanding of the small evil spirited creature in Ruth¡¯s consciousness herself. ¡°Then it just tried to eat me directly. It was like a baby trying to eat an adult from the toes up. Caw-caw-caw-caw!¡± Arathan just started laughing again. ¡°I feel like I had better go bribe it or something. It seems so petty that it might even remember this grudge!¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Tamara agreed, thinking much the same thing. ¡°A grudge made before consciousness. A petty creature indeed.¡± ¡°Fun though!¡± Arathan started to lower her body a little, nestling onto Tamara¡¯s shoulder. It appeared the crow was also interested enough to stay and watch. ¡°What if this Ruth does not evolve fast? What if it just sits around eating fish?¡± ¡°I did not leave Ruth anywhere as nice as that,¡± Tamara said gently. ¡°Ah.¡± Arathan had an expression of grimness all of a sudden. She loved Tamara greatly, but even Arathan was afraid of her sometimes. ?? Ruth sat cross-legged in the stream, ignoring the increasing amount of cold that was settling into his body from below. He was having a hard time finding his mana. Normally, it was a breeze to look into yourself and find your mana pathways and get a rough idea of how much you had. Despite the ease with which he could have done it when he was a dragon, it eluded him. Not only that, but he was getting increasingly agitated! There was just something that was gnawing at the edge of his consciousness. It was like every noise in the forest was starting to piss him off. Arathan shook her head, noting that Ruth had an awareness of their confrontation on some level. He pushed all those thoughts from his mind and managed to dull the world of sound and sight as he inspected his body. FINALLY. Ruth was growing excited. The mana pathways for this creature were wide streams, the circuit and labyrinthine type tunnels left him in awe; being almost stronger at this nascent level than his dragon body¡¯s had been. He started to gloat that there were really good things about being a snake when he found the obvious flaw. Despite the incredible gifts he felt within this body, he had no idea how to pull mana into it. Well, this creature probably had an innate understanding of¡­ no. Well, perhaps if he tried to pull it in from the atmosphere or the surroundings¡­ no. He just ate a fish. Sustenance should affect the¡­ Very small. HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. Ruth was aggravated and opened his eyes. The warning noise he had made alerting two small creatures that had been approaching him from the shore with spears in hand. Ruth narrowed his eyes as he looked at them. Goblins. Normally, he would just ignore them completely and go back to closing his eyes and trying to find a solution to his mana problem. He hadn¡¯t acclimated to the danger that his new body entailed and very well might have just gone back to what he was doing even as they skulked closer with their rock-spears. He might have done that except for the fact that his casual appraisal of their bodies revealed that they were both wearing rudimentary tunics that covered their entire torso and drew down to cover their privates as well, like they were wearing shirts that were too big for them made from some sort of animal skin. Ruth was reminded of his own nakedness. Despite the discovery that he had midnight black scales that went down from the nape of his neck, down his spine, and shielded his tail, he was otherwise scaleless and furless(not including the sizeable mop of unruly hair that spilled carelessly over his horns). Overwhelming envy and rage erupted from within him. He stood swiftly, cold water flying in all directions. Now that he was standing up the goblins stared straight up, eyes starting to widen in fear as they realized that he was much, much bigger than they had originally estimated. If you had stacked four goblins they would have made eye level. Ruth leaned down and reached into the water with one hand, slowly pulling the hand back into view with a large rock in his grasp. Ruth had decided that he needed the things the Goblins had. He would take their shirts and fashion them into some sort of covering for his lower parts. He would try eating them, too. Two birds with one stone. Ruth pulled his lips back and bared his teeth. The Goblins both readied their spears. He would murder them for fun, and take their things. In the past, he had taken gold and jewels and the occasional marble statue to brighten up his lair. Now he would take Goblin tunics. Ruth briefly felt sad. 4. Ruth Is Less Confident He Is A Snake One might wonder what a dragon knew about throwing rocks. Quite a lot, actually. As a creature predisposed toward flight, at least before, Ruth had a great deal of respect for how fast and dangerous things hurtling through the air could be. He was also keenly aware that dropping heavy things from high above could have some very amusing results on the unsuspecting below. Ruth straightened in the water, a sneer crossing his face as he realized that both Goblins seemed to martial their cowardice quite quickly. It was infuriating that they weren¡¯t prostrating themselves into submission and were actively meeting his gaze. They began to separate slightly, their meter long spears comprised of simple wood with a sharp pointy rock haphazardly tied to the ends looking comically inadequate to him. It didn¡¯t matter. He wanted to see what the little coward that he didn¡¯t immediately obliterate thought about his friend exploding into a fine blood mist right next to him. Probably just have a heart attack and die on the spot. Of course, there is knowing quite a bit of something about throwing rocks, and there is the practicality of trying to throw a rock with any sort of accuracy in a body you just arrived in earlier this morning. Ruth may have misjudged his current strength, the heft and weight of the rock, the way that Goblin had heroically walked right into his line of fire without dodging as Ruth had expected him to, the rate of the soft wind through the trees, and also forgotten the fact that it had actually taken him about fourteen rocks to hit a slow-moving fish in a cold stream from less than a meter away earlier. It was far more likely, Ruth considered as he watched the rock ricochet off a tree in the distance, that this Goblin was just a tricky bastard. The rock had flown with an appropriately satisfying amount of force and then drifted past the Goblin by a wide-margin of safety on the left. Ruth may have just had the misfortune, he considered, of coming across a Goblin that was some sort of hero to his people and was favored by a god of luck. His eyes narrowed as he remembered. Not just one. Two of them. ?? ¡°So, like, should we be saving it?¡± Arathan asked Tamara after they both watched the spectacle of Ruth confidently throwing a rock that couldn¡¯t have found its target even if it flew back around the world and got a second shot. ¡°If he dies, he dies,¡± Tamara said indifferently. While there was no pity in her vocal tones, Arathan noted that her right hand had flexed into a fist. ¡°What did his soul look like when he was a dragon?¡± Arathan asked conversationally. They were both watching the two Goblins encircle Ruth now, who was still reeling from the devastating blow to his pride. ¡°Just like it does now. It wasn¡¯t going to awaken the way things were, so I gave it a nudge.¡± ¡°You couldn¡¯t just make him a dragon again, or a hatchling, or something?¡± ¡°He struggled most of his life to reach where he was as a dragon, and his soul form didn¡¯t wake up. This new body has affinities that I made just for him. All things considered, I think he is learning very fast.¡± Tamara tilted her head slightly to the side so she could look at Arathan for a moment while they talked. The only thing she was missing now was Ruth getting poked with two of the sorriest excuses for spears she could recall seeing. ¡°Well,¡± Arathan kept her eyes on the window trying to think of something to say. ¡°I hope you didn¡¯t spend too much time on it.¡± Tamara looked back and pursed her lips together. An infuriated look crossed her features very briefly. ¡°Some.¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± Arathan apologized realizing that Tamara must have put in some real bean work for that body. ¡°Yeah,¡± Tamara was sulking a little now. ¡°Oh! Well, that¡¯s promising. Our little murder kitten woke up.¡± Cruelty played across Tamara¡¯s face for a moment as she also noted the change. She smiled, and Arathan shivered. ?? Ruth had just been trying to figure out whether he should get another rock or not when the Goblin on his right waded forward and jabbed its spear into his leg. Sort of into his leg, at any rate. Ruth¡¯s legs were actually pretty fit and thick for a creature his size that wasn¡¯t a dragon. Ruth gloated for a moment, lips peeling back in an aggressive teeth-baring sort of way. The pain was inconsequential to him and his immediate thought was that his hide was actually thick enough after all. It probably had more to do with the spear being a piece of crap though, if we¡¯re being honest. The Goblin withdrew the spear and noted the small cut on his leg as it stepped back before Ruth could swing a hand down at it. In the old days, he would have just turned and let old tail take care of this thing. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Or sat on it. Or breathed fire on it. Stepped on it. Exploded it with his mind. Used it to pick his teeth. Dropped trees on it. Before he could continue thinking about all the ways this Goblin hero duo would perish under his righteous dragon rage, another prickling pain sensation from the back of his right leg alerted him to the fact that the other one had circled around behind him and stabbed him with its flimsy spear. He started to turn his attention toward it when another sharp sting came from the first Goblin, or the Goblin in front. HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Sanity, questionable though it had been to begin with, began to fade into the background as Ruth started hissing at the Goblin in front of him. The noise served no purpose other than to alleviate the frustration that had begun to slowly build in Ruth. The Goblin, who had always been taking him seriously, regarded him warily as this new sound emerged but stepped forward and boldly took another stab at the same leg he¡¯d jabbed twice already. An answering pain sensation from behind and Ruth jerked his head back glaring fiercely at that second Hero Goblin. Hero Goblins or not. Enough was enough. He wasn¡¯t a dragon and couldn¡¯t dragon them to death? Fine! He couldn¡¯t figure out his mana pathways so he couldn¡¯t magic them to death? Fine! He couldn¡¯t fucking kill them with rocks? Fine. He would kill them with his face because that¡¯s what snakes did, wasn¡¯t it? Fine! Ruth took a giant step toward the Goblin and stretched out his hand. His whole plan now revolved around grabbing this highly skilled elite Goblin King and biting down on it until it stopped moving. He may even have venom, he doesn¡¯t know, who cares?! The Goblin behind him had stabbed him in the back of the leg again, but he was beyond that now. A part of his mind had just stopped working and now there was only the madness and the anger at the helm as he surged forward. Surprised, the Goblin he was approaching stabbed at the hand which was approaching palm up. Ruth grabbed the spear point ruthlessly, ignoring the sharp pain that began appearing as the shoddy stone cut deeply, grabbed and pulled and threw and then took another giant step before the shocked Goblin could get over being suddenly disarmed. The Goblin behind him must have been panicking because Ruth could hear the splashing sound getting louder in his ears. Then that infuriating pricking sensation on the back of his legs several times in a row. Ruth had picked up the other Goblin with the full intent of just burying his face into it but the stabbing pains coming from the back of his body necessitated a different sort of violence. The Goblin was struggling greatly in his grasp even as Ruth turned, wielding him like he was a club, and swung with all the force of his body. The Goblin being swung came into contact, face first, with the spear being poked at Ruth. The spear point mercilessly penetrated the ugly green face and the force of the two objects meeting made a snapping noise before the wooden spear did just that. Following through with his swing, the Goblin smacked the other Goblin in the face and another large cracking noise reverberated into the forest. The second Goblin fell butt first into the water, the water line coming up to its neck in a seated position. It stared straight up as its eyes rolled back in its head and then it seemed to faint. The gentle current started to carry the unconscious Goblin slowly down the river. Ruth didn¡¯t witness this part. After he had made contact with his Goblin club, he had started turning in a circle, mashing the Goblin up and down and smacking it as hard as he could into the river. This continued for five or six blows until the Goblin no longer gave satisfying squish noises. A quick look revealed the location of the other Goblin still floating serenely downriver. Ruth tossed the surprisingly light bag of squished Goblin Hero the dozen or so meters to the shore and stomped through the water after the remaining one¡­ ?? ¡°At least now he can figure out a few things.¡± Arathan sighed. ¡°It¡¯s too bad his soul form didn¡¯t wake up.¡± ¡°They were just ordinary Goblins,¡± Tamara said casually. They both watched in silence as he forded through the river and brought the second one to shore near the first one. Ruth left it for a moment to go into the trees, prompting Arathan to tilt her head quizzically. ¡°Oh. He is ¡­ just that petty isn¡¯t he? Caw-caw-caw-caw.¡± Arathan laughed and Tamara smiled again. He had gone to retrieve the rock he had thrown and missed with. He brought it back and brained the unconscious Goblin one last time before collapsing in a heap next to the two corpses. He was filthy, covered in blood, still bleeding from several wounds, and naked. ?? Ruth didn¡¯t stay still for long. He noticed something immediately after he had finished the second Goblin Hero. The first thing he noticed was that his mana pathways had lit up and were greedily sucking in mana from the two corpses. The second thing was that this wasn¡¯t how snakes eat or get mana. Conclusion, it was the slightest bit possible that he wasn¡¯t a snake. Ruth, exulting in his victory and completely oblivious to the horrendous amount of blood sticking to his body, got up and moved to the Goblin duo. He quickly took off their tunics and set them side by side, giving them a long look of consideration. They had obviously not been in good shape to begin with and then he had, perhaps a little, lost his temper. Setting the questionable garments aside he leaned down and sniffed. Nope. Not gonna eat that, he decided with some reluctance. It was a waste of good meat but there was just something about the smell that put him off. He was thinking maybe they had some sort of illness or something. He was feeling less hungry now that he was gathering the mana essence from the corpses anyway. The mana was a feeble amount but still pushed through his body, seemingly jumpstarting his mana circulation. He was now gathering mana from the environment as well as the corpses like he should have been all along. He sighed in relief and smiled coldly. He was not a snake and he was not a dragon. It also seemed he was unskilled at physical confrontation. Well, there were ways around that sort of thing, and now he finally possessed one. Magic was back on the menu. After a short nap or fainting spell. Whichever was happening right this moment. 5. Ruth and the Deadly Text His eyes snapped open and despite the fact that he hurt just about everywhere, there didn¡¯t seem to be any reason to do anything other than sit up and try to figure out what to do with his time. Ruth cast a look at the bodies beside him, noting that the blood hadn¡¯t crystallized or frozen but it had long since lost its warmth. Disgusting. Brief lamentation for the earlier outburst where he had challenged the two little usurping god Goblins without understanding their, or his, motivation. Hindsight provided explanation enough; which was that he was fed up and looking for an outlet and hadn¡¯t really needed the clothes or the meat. Ruth should have just walked away at a brisk pace so that he could have been the bigger former dragon, and they could all keep their pride from getting bruised. He lifted his arms up off his thighs from his sitting situation and looked down. Utter disgust filled his face when he realized that blood coated him. Dried but undeniably from both the Goblin and himself. There was a brief moment of pleasure to find that his pale skin seemed as if it were mending at a faster rate than he might have expected. Something on the edge of his vision caught his attention but he looked away from it, squinting with distrust and suspicion. This fragile form was probably slightly damaged from blood loss or something, and that was the reason. Yep. That would be it. He would just ignore it for the moment and make the good of a situation. First, recognize that his body had mana again and was quietly topping him off at a small amount. That it was maintaining was a good sign. He was bleeding it off naturally just by existing as most creatures did, and now he was a little less concerned with just dropping dead since the minuscule amount he felt himself using was easily replenished by both the corpses and the chilly air. Second, get up and take the two Goblin tunics and inspect them. Continue to ignore the strange phenomenon that was starting to persistently bounce out of the corner of his left eye. The two tunics were mostly just one sheet of leather or animal fur apiece that had been stitched together with one lazy line of stitches by a very long and skinny piece of leather or rougher hide. He peeled the stitching out and now he had two longish leather strips and two pieces of hide with holes running up and down either side. A quick adjustment and he stitched one of the pieces to the other one, wrapped it around his waist(lift that sassy tail and¡­), brought it around his front. He did his best to stitch the remaining two flaps together and pulled them tight. It hung off his waist below his tail while keeping the area just above his knees to his waistline secured. He felt warmer already. Third, confirm that the Goblins were pieces of crap. Kick them once or twice. Stub toe but show no remorse. Check. Lastly, take a look at this strange thing that seemed to be patiently lurking and doing its best to get in the way of his vision.
Former Dragon: Ruth (Level 1) (Puny/Unawake) ¡ï Unlock Mana Circulation. 5/5 Spells A Day Maximum. 1 Spell Regenerates Every 4.8 Hours. ¡ï Choose School Specialization ¡ï Speak Language (Draconic) ?????Patron Bonus: Wish 1/1
The scribbles themselves were infuriating. He focused on the top line of script and memories as well as impressions filled his mind until the scribbles slowly began to merge into meanings. He was no longer a dragon. He was puny? He almost hissed at the audacity of this lurking instigator. The way it didn¡¯t move at all as he looked at it told him it had no fear. He reached out experimentally and drew back when he realized that his fingers went right through it. So not dangerous, other than insulting, and he couldn¡¯t seem to hurt it. Well if he wasn¡¯t a dragon what was he? He was pretty sure he wasn¡¯t a sn-
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 1) (Puny/Unawake)
His mouth opened in bafflement as the meanings updated themselves. It was the most useless thing he had ever seen. Like he knew what the hell a Tiefling was or a Planar. The images came of bright balls of light and movement through space. Dark holes in a void of already cosmic nothingness that ate things of unimaginable power and spit them out from other dark holes. The Tiefling imagery was far less brain tumor-inducing but it just showed him the image of a slightly ¡®coloured¡¯ race of what seemed to be humans mixed with lizard parts. Or Ram? Those horns were curved over the ears and protruded from their, his, our heads? His fingers scrambled and he already dreaded it. Of course. He was a crossbreed between a human and some sort of lizard that had not been able to quickly escape. Or a ram that was kept in much the same manner as humans kept anything. In the yard, with a fence, guarded by lazy looking mammals that made ¡®arf arf¡¯ noises at him when he flew by. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. A sick thought churned in his stomach. Humans were just disgusting. His mouth gaped as he considered. Did that mean there were furry ¡®arf arf¡¯ mixtures of humans running around somewhere as well? His dragon mind refused to accept it, though a part of him became painfully aware of how certain things were making more sense now. Strong mana luxurious humans were often humans that initiated or sought violence. His inability to feel magic originally was probably because he hadn¡¯t yet killed something for no reason; a behavior that he had seen in many strong humans. At the time he was a dragon he hadn¡¯t thrown stones though. Who didn¡¯t let off a little steam once in a while? Especially when the humans seemed to enjoy it as well. Self-proclaimed and pompous little humans with magic swords or wielding higher level spells often made trips up his mountain to challenge themselves against his might. Sometimes they brought long scrolls with pictures. He¡¯d done his best to follow along with the stories and was amused to note that there were a lot of the little pictures depicting dragons eating ¡­ or dragons burning things ¡­ or dragons being slain by humans in very shiny armor. Though he was puzzled at the anger they all seemed to possess, he wasn¡¯t going to overthrow their weird religion or tradition just because he found it strange they sent people with high mana up the mountain to test. The weirdest was when the females of the humans, well that wasn¡¯t fair sometimes the males too, shrieked and covered themselves in certain, and, in Ruth¡¯s opinion, alarming ways when things weren¡¯t going well. It made him a little uncomfortable to scorch or eat something that was covering up what could only be described as their private parts eliciting such panicked distress noises. Now that he knew that humans would breed with damn near everything it made it a little more obvious to him. His eyes widened with the epiphany and a shudder ran through him.
¡ï Choose School Specialization ?????Patron Bonus: Wish 1/1
The ominous immortal scrolling pictures moved up and down slowly trying to get his attention. He had been spacing out with a horrified look on his face for long enough it seemed to be checking on him. Ruth was strangely touched at its concern. ?? ¡°You gave him¡­ a helper spirit?¡± Arathan winced. ¡°That¡¯s outside the rules, isn¡¯t it? For the competition?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a helper spirit. That would be part of my consciousness. It is not autonomous or a system in any way. Am I not allowed to interact with my chosen?¡± Tamara raised an eyebrow. ¡°I just thought this would be less,¡± she hesitated, ¡°problematic than trying to talk to him face-to-face.¡± The crow spirit couldn¡¯t seem to argue with that, but, ¡°...you¡¯re granting him a wish?¡± That definitely, absolutely, could not be right. Tamara turned with blazing golden eyes and grinned at the crow. The crow straightened after a moment, recognizing the pure mirth in her eyes and answered her own question. ¡°Of course you¡¯re not. Caw-caw-caw-caw! Do you even want him to win a seat in the god candidacy summit?¡± ¡°Who cares?¡± Tamara shrugged. ¡°It had never been my intention to deal with any of that. The rules lightened up for the upcoming festivities and I could make something to enjoy. I don¡¯t give a damn if he does anything about the other chosen.¡± A pensive look appeared on her face as she considered, amending quietly, ¡°at least not yet. I haven¡¯t thought about it.¡± ¡°Caw-caw-caw!¡± Arathan laughed, imagining all the other gods being terrified of Tamara and wondering about her choice of chosen. What would be so special about it? Would the cosmos run with blood once more? Should they be concerned? Should they get gods of war and slaughter ready in the eaves just in case? In her head, Arathan pictured Tamara staring at all the powerful entities who were lined up to fight her in the future because of the bloodshed and power and uncertainty she represented, and she simply said¡­ ¡°I did it for the laughs¡­ You all seem quite serious.¡± ?? ¡°Very well. I wish Tamara was dead at my feet.¡± No use thinking too much about this. It was better to just deal with things immediately so he could move on with his life. It was one thing to be somewhat relieved that you had a thin piece of cloth covering your ass and be worried for the future and another to know that something had dragged your soul out of your perfectly warm and beautiful dragon body and could likely do it again anytime it felt like it. For the moment he was also ignoring the fact that his mouthparts seemed to form words in sounds that made ¡®sense¡¯ to him. There was still quite a lot of hissing and clacking, but at least it was draconic. Highly accented, shameful and vulgar, but Draconic. It brightened his mood that he could converse with a dragon if it came up. Not that he¡¯d have the nerve to do so with such horrid pronunciation.
No
¡°No? I wish Tamara was dead,¡± he tried again thinking maybe he had been too specific. Ruth supposed he really didn''t need to see the body if the little invincible being could deliver.
No
¡°No.¡± Ruth turned away from the box and the weirdly starred thing that said he could wish for something. It remained where it was as if waiting for him. It would have to keep waiting. ?? ¡°Hahahahaha.¡± ¡°Caw-caw-caw!¡± Both Tamara and the crow laughed as Ruth strode into the stream of water once more and began using his fists to rain up and down hand smashes against the top of the water over and over and over in a pique of rage. 6. Ruth Decides Not To Be Choosy He was doubled over, panting, as the water moved past his calves and slowly settled back down into the regular motion of a shallow river. He stared into his reflection, momentarily alarmed at how close this horned humanoid creature had gotten to him but was jolted back into calmness and despondency before he fell backward when he remembered that the ugly ashen hued pale face looking at him with the¡­ somewhat attractive looking horns, was in fact, himself now. He was a Tiefling. Whatever the fuck that was. He stood up, feeling better for letting out his emotions. He stretched his arms above his head, luxuriating in the sun which was overhead and beating down on him. Sunning, it seemed, would still be quite enjoyable. Something seemed strange to him though, and for a moment his vertical slitted eyes glanced upward once more in the briefest of hesitations. His body, new though it was, had briefly rested after his very brief and very ferocious bout with the Goblin leaders of this horrid world. It had hardly seemed to take any time at all. When he was a dragon he had a very good sense of time when he was sleeping and his inner alarm clock told him it couldn¡¯t have been more than a half a wink or two. The sun should still be rising primarily, it should not be directly over his head. Ruth mentally filed the thought away. Either the days were shorter for some reason, he was on a different world, or this body really fucking sucked in just every possible way and he wouldn¡¯t be able to tell time anymore. Thinking about the sun had calmed him down a great deal. Ruth turned toward the shore once more, noticing with a bit of helplessness that the weirdly shaped floating text thing had actually turned toward him so he could read it from where he was, but hadn¡¯t actually advanced over the water. Maybe it was afraid of water? He dismissed the thought immediately. Nothing was going his way today and the sooner he realized that the sooner he could get through this. ¡°What do you want?¡± Ruth was just going to stay in the stream. He wasn¡¯t afraid of the hovering immortal death text or anything! It was just comfortable!
¡ï Choose School Specialization ?????Patron Bonus: Wish 1/1
The two lines were now more richly emphasized. Ruth dismissed the idea of continuing to speculate about wishing, deciding that the immortal and deadly box was just having a lark with him and would just keep telling him ¡®no¡¯. Choosing a school specialization sounded interesting, but could the thing be trusted? It had already been quite duplicitous about wishes. Ruth squinted, trying to decide whether or not to give it a shot. After a moment, he brightened, remembering that the thing had told him that he had spells available. He wasn¡¯t sure what that meant. When he was a dragon he had abilities and mana. He could cast the abilities in any sort of manner without worrying about how many he did a day as long as he had mana. Ruth closed his eyes and thought about it, and confirmed that his body did seem to possess five shiny black spots hovering within reach. When he thought about how to utilize them though, nothing happened. He went through his aforementioned repertoire of dragon abilities and nothing happened, though he did open up his mouth and let out another impressive steam breath when he tried the breath innate ability once more. Ruth was somewhat confused though. Why did he have a certain amount of spell slots? Why did they seem to be tied to his mana? What was his mana like? More questions began popping into his head and a frown started to overtake his face as he continued to think. Perhaps the box knew. Ruth opened his eyes and immediately flailed his arms in a circle as he tried to back up. Splashing heavily and then falling immediately onto his back into the water, he must have hit a rock with his tailbone because he yelped, bounced, and fell into a slightly deeper hole further back, submerging for a moment before popping back up to the surface. Black hair plastered against the back and front of his face as he erupted into a standing position again. HISSSSSSSSSS. The deadly text and scripture had moved right in front of his face, bouncing up and down while his eyes were closed earlier, and it startled him so badly that he had fallen into the river. Worse, that damn ¡®wish¡¯ statement with its flashy yellow stars had been right in front of his eyes. ¡°Fuck, I wish you¡¯d just choose for me since you won¡¯t kill Tamara!¡± He howled in Draconic, panting and dripping and otherwise throwing a quick tantrum. The box ceased bouncing and became absolutely still. Ruth paused, startled by how preternaturally still the box had become and stared at it nervously. He replayed the last few moments in his head. A sudden premonition of danger appeared in his heart. He felt the tiny hairs across his stupid and hairless body begin to raise up all at once. Without a second thought to how it would appear to the lineage of dragons across the universe. With nary a look back to see what horrible thing the box was about to wish into existence. With absolutely no plan other than getting the hell out of the water and away from this place this very instant. He turned and fled, completely undignified with the large steps that revealed flashes of butt under his makeshift kilt. Ruth splashed hurriedly to the shore, glancing down once to check his footing as he took a big step upward into the dirt, and then abruptly came to a crashing halt. There was a brief moment of self-congratulations going through his mind for not falling again, but it was mostly buried under a blind and sort of monkey gibbering terror that started to darken his brain.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
Would you like to buy a vowel?
¡°Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagggggggh!!!¡± Ruth immediately blacked out, not even knowing the reason why. ?? To be honest, even if it had taken several months of minute by minute precision and a great deal of her attention being taken away from matters that she should, rightly, have been attending -- this whole venture was worth it to Tamara because of the large number of guffaws and caws she had startled out of Arathan. The god candidacy program itself made no difference to Tamara, who was now still pretty young in her godhood. Tamara could be traced back about 400 years, and if you tried to look further than that one of two things would happen. You would either find nothing or start to find the hints of something and great golden eyes of death and misfortune would fall onto you. Wisely, mostly other gods paid attention to their own matters and were generous enough to stay out of her way so she wasn¡¯t forced to rip their feet off and beat them to death with them. Not even gods wanted to be defeated. Tamara was in no particular rush to push her little tiefling into any sort of danger after the Goblins, not out of any such generosity, but because she and Arathan were shooting the shit. They were talking about what they thought he would choose, laughing about how many times Tamara would get to say ¡®no way¡¯ before he just gave up, and wondering how many levels and adventures would pass before he remembered he had a wish spell and tried to use it again. Tamara was patient and could amuse herself in the long run. At some point, out of the corner of her eye, she had noted that Ruth was standing stock still with his eyes closed. She lazily pushed her tendril of consciousness toward him and turned back to Arathan, about to tell her how spell slots worked in relation to mana for the body type that she had arranged when a splash alerted them both to new activities with their toy. Neither one of the beings snickered when he fell into the water, scared by the consciousness tendril, but mirth danced in their eyes. Tamara was about to briefly lose interest, again, getting ready to tell Arathan how spell slots would work in conjunction with mana and spells themselves when she heard the low Draconic growl. Arathan had turned back to the screen, a thoughtful look on her avian face. ¡°Hoooooo¡­¡± Tamara looked back slowly, eyes flickering with the barest hint of true interest. ¡°Did that little thing just accidentally subjugate itself to my will?¡± Arathan opened her beak in a slightly lazy approximation of a smile. ¡°You could pretend you didn¡¯t hear it, or just say no, I suppose.¡± Tamara smiled, and spoke into the window for the first time as Ruth scrambled away from the tendril of consciousness. Pointless because she was already reaching out across the universe to him. What did he think a few seconds headstart on land would accomplish? ¡°Would you like to buy a vowel?¡± Tamara and Arathan both snickered to themselves as the Ruth creature screamed out an appropriate vowel. ?? Pain wreathed Ruth even as he was unconscious, great spasms shuffling over his body in waves that he couldn¡¯t have managed to live through if he had been awake. His mind simply would have broken, which is why Tamara had turned it off. The small evil spirit in his sea of consciousness stirred slightly, not being so lucky. It noted that a huge sea of grey clouds thundered nearby and moved toward the draconic image. The eyes opened, simple white vertical lines as it considered this thing that was approaching. In this place, there was no concept such as ¡®weather¡¯. This could only be the enemy. Everything was enemy. Shake-shake.... Before the tail could begin its customary warning the draconic image was swept up into the clouds, actually startling a hiss out of the small creature buoyed within. It was like an ocean of clouds with great, towering waves of grey and smoky dust that somehow had the power to move things. Each of these waves crashed against the draconic image, smoothing it out slightly around the edges, as if it were a stone being worn away. The creature inside hung on for dear life as that wasn¡¯t the end, things were just getting started it seemed! Flashes of intense and painful golden lightning began to strike around the edges of the consciousness. Suddenly the creature within turned from less of a ball into more of a four legged beast, wings flaring slightly as its tail raised behind it in alarm. Tiny claws formed and poked out through sudden necessity as it scrambled against the consciousness for footing. It charged toward the barrier that separated the consciousness from the ocean of grey clouds and lightning and stuck its face out, turning sideways as it tried to bite the clouds that were rolling against the draconic shape. Lightning crashed down, enveloping the now roundish shape of consciousness and casually knocking the creature back into the center, where it lay on its back twitching in slower and slower spasms. Its tail shook every once in a while, not in threat, but in random spasms. Sh-k...shake...shake¡­. ??
?????Patron Bonus: Wish 1/1 : Resolved, removing wish. Wish, ¡°Fuck, I wish you¡¯d just choose for me.¡± Granted: I¡¯ll do it for you, from now on. Distributing Points - Favor Intelligence Selecting Specialization - Lightning Specialization ¡ï Choose School Specialization 1/1 ¡ï Specialization Chosen: Lightning Aspect (Evolution Possible) 1 ¡ï Spells Unlocked: Innate Feature Unlocked: ¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. (Evolution Possible)
?? ¡°Not to rush you, but you should flip him over.¡± Arathan momentarily distracted Tamara just as she was finishing the charging of Ruth¡¯s sea of consciousness and adjusting his stats. At least this way he would get smarter faster, she thought dryly. She looked up to see that Ruth was floating on the river face-down. She rolled her eyes and sent her tendril of consciousness over. The box relaying the information used a corner to flip him like it was a spatula and he was on the grill. Arathan nodded, and she glanced at Tamara who had gone back to sorting through Ruth¡¯s future abilities. There was a hint of excitement in the golden eyes. Arathan was less excited about that since she couldn¡¯t see all the choices. Arathan was just trying to decide if she should remind Tamara that the Ruth may be breathing and floating on his back now, but he was still drifting down the river. Arathan decided it wasn¡¯t any of her business. The crow closed its eyes and settled down slightly, perching on the woman¡¯s shoulder as if enjoying the contact. The crow briefly hoped that when it opened its eyes the Ruth creature would be screaming and flailing as it went over a waterfall. Watching the frustration or laughter barking from Tamara would give it much pleasure. 7. Ruth Is Unavailable Right Now A dark-haired woman sat properly straight on a hollowed-out tree stump in the middle of a clearing, fingers of one hand moving a bow and strumming across a beautiful dark wooden cello in the middle; the other hand balanced and manipulated strings at the top. The woman¡¯s shoulders were bare, shown because her bright red kimono with golden embroidery was sleeveless, though there were slits up the slides to allow her to open up her sitting stance a bit, perhaps solely so that she could play the dark and haunting melody of the instrument. The only incongruity, other than the brightly colored red and beautiful antique cello in an otherwise nature scene, was the weird coloration of the otherwise flawless and pale skin of the woman¡¯s right shoulder. As if a jagged cloth had been set over the arm up to the shoulder and the rest of the flesh past that allowed to tan. Amaranthe opened her eyes, ears twitching sensitively toward the position of the only other inhabitant of the clearing full of flattened tall grass. She had heard him shift subtly, and took that as a cue to cease playing and open her eyes. If she were being honest with herself, it would be very easy to fall in love with the tousled boyish form that currently lay on his side and drew lazy lines in the dirt. His ancient eyes told the tale of what a mistake that would be, so she kept her interest to herself. He was her patron, her god, and her mentor -- but no more than that, and certainly not his friend. She had forgiven him losing the arm because he had snatched it back after they left and reattached it. It wasn¡¯t, he had apologized, quite the same pallor because Tamara had noticed as he was stealing it away and subtly changed the color. Tamara, he said smiling wryly, was such a prankster. Heath was staring at her, looking like he had enjoyed her song. One of the reasons that Amaranthe enjoyed playing for him was the complete politeness with which he listened. Amaranthe, in her time developing as a chosen, had played for kings and queens and always did an obsessive gleam appear in their eyes. People tried to murder others for her favor, even though she never asked. Others tried to take what could not be taken. It had stolen the joy of playing to have others become so obsessed with the music she was capable of creating, but Heath was a silent refuge. As a god, he had heard many such players and it was quite beyond her ability to charm him naturally. He appreciated the music, and that was all. It was one of the things that sparked a gentle longing in her heart. Her face colored and she looked away, clearing her thoughts. Tamara had shown her that certain gods were entirely too sensitive to surface thoughts. Instead, she turned back when she was certain her shallow feelings were turned away so that more intellectual pursuits could be made with her time. Heath smiled lazily, ¡°you¡¯ve been thinking for some time, about Tamara¡¯s chosen.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Amaranthe swallowed the ire that threatened to overwhelm her and took a breath before smiling again. She had condensed her nine-tails into one at the moment, and it twitched mischievously behind her. ¡°I was wondering why you are friends with a god like Tamara, and an evil slaughter god no less?¡± ¡°Since my domains are worship, order, and harvest?¡± Heath raised an eyebrow, his words leading her onward in the question. ¡°I am not part of this evil god candidacy am I?¡± Amaranthe wanted to get this out of the way first. She was quite nervous after certain truths had been made known to her. ¡°No, that is a separate¡­¡± Heath looked upward as if considering his words. ¡°...matter entirely. Your domains will be music, muse, and¡­¡± His eyes danced, ¡°spite, if you¡¯re not careful.¡± Amaranthe puffed out her cheeks and flushed. ¡°Dance! Dance is what you meant to say.¡± ¡°Mm.¡± His widening grin disagreed with her but that was all. ¡°So, why are you friends?¡± Amaranthe asked again. ¡°Do you know how generous I am?¡± Heath rolled onto his back, making a tent with his elbows for his head to lay on. ¡°Most gods don¡¯t answer so many questions. You should figure things out for yourself.¡± ¡°I am trying to,¡± Amaranthe said stubbornly. Her tail began to slow its pace and settled on a bewitching back and forth as she suddenly smiled. ¡°One should always consult experts whenever possible.¡± ¡°Flattery is a sweeter tool than one made from bitter wood, but careful that it does not a cavity make,¡± Heath said blandly. ¡°I¡¯m going to answer your question with several questions, and I want you to think very carefully on this because it is relevant to the nature of the current universe and all its heroes...and evil villains.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Amaranthe agreed immediately, spinning her cello once in a circle and making it vanish into her extra-dimensional space bracelet, a beautiful piece that appeared carved out of purple glass that lay above her wrist. It had been one of the reasons Heath had agreed to retrieve the arm. ¡°Why do you think evil gods are allowed in the universe at all? Death is not evil, as it falls under a series of neutral domains like balance, rebirth, etc¡­¡± Heath said. ¡°All domains serve a purpose, so what service do the evil domains provide?¡± ¡°Well, without evil it would be harder to calculate good on karmic scales?¡± Amaranthe answered hurriedly, already starting to speculate on the question. ¡°I feel like there would be a lot of domains that would suffer from not having evil. Heroic aspirations, the motivation to stop the strong from oppressing the weak, aspirations...at all maybe?¡± Amaranthe was starting to lose her line of thought but was eager to keep guessing anyway. ¡°Maybe if the universe caters to balance and it really wants good it has to have evil for some reason?¡± ¡°Mmm.¡± Heath said again, infuriating Amaranthe for a moment as he neither confirmed nor denied any of her thoughts. ¡°Then, another question to answer. If you were a god of Law and Justice and you had a case set before you, consider your pronouncement of judgment in the following circumstances. Two men appear in chains before you. One of the two, you are told, is a torturer of souls. They torture the people until the souls escape, recapture the soul, and torture it some more. One of the men was being tortured, the other is the one that tortured him. You could not differentiate between the two because both souls at this point are twisted into unrecognizable offal.¡± Amaranthe chewed on her reply. ¡°I would first try to gather evidence, I would suppose. I wou-¡± Heath held up a hand interrupting her. ¡°Okay. So you want to gather more evidence. That¡¯s a good start. You gather up some of your followers and bequeath unto them a quest. Venture forth, go to the place where the two men come from, find out the truth¡­¡± He made a get on with it gesture. ¡°Okay.¡± Amaranthe stared blankly at him with wide-eyes. ¡°So they go and come back with the evidence and then I execute the man however I do that as a god of Law and Justice. I try to help the other man as best I can, failing that if he is too far gone I execute him as well and send him along the wheel of reincarnation.¡± Heath clapped his hands together in congratulations and appreciation. ¡°Just¡­ so.¡± ¡°What does that have to do with evil gods?¡± She titled her head quizzically, giving him her best dew eyed look.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Heath sat up and then stood, stretching slowly and lifting his face to the sun with a smile. ¡°In the course of your heroes journey, you find out later that they helped two barmaids achieve their dreams of becoming nobility by gifting them money and favors. The two barmaids, it should be noted, were kind souls and there wasn¡¯t anything really wrong with that, so you¡¯re not mad. Your chosen, on their journey, also killed a large creature that had been dispersing poisonous gas in small amounts across a town.¡± Amaranthe nodded, somewhat pleased that her fictional followers were doing other noble and heroic things on their journey. ¡°Moving onward, in the course of their investigation, they felt it was a matter of some urgency when they reached the town where the alleged evil man was... because they discovered he was actually a Count. They killed four guards who refused them entry to his estate where his wife and children were. They killed them quickly because they were afraid that the guards were all corrupt and didn¡¯t want to be surrounded when those guards called for help.¡± Heath reached down and picked up a bit of grass, spinning it in between his fingers. ¡°The wife and children were taken away by other guards after evidence of the soul torture was discovered in the basement behind a hidden bookcase. They are being disowned but not charged because they were unaware of the husband, or father if you¡¯d rather, and what he did after hours. The loss of the guards was regrettable, everyone agreed, mourning their loss before seeing to other matters.¡± Amaranthe opened her mouth to try and get a word in edgewise and failed. ¡°Other matters indeed! The town doesn¡¯t have a count anymore. Since the count¡¯s family was being cast out of their estate the contents of the estate were up for spoils and several members of your chosen party took especially valuable relics. Some to sell, and some to gift to you upon their return. Souvenirs from their noble quest." Heath put the grass between his lips and blew on it, producing a soft whistle for a moment. "On their way back they found out that the creature they had killed that emitted the poisonous gas had half of its body submerged into the ground. It is a pity that land will be unfarmable for the next five generations as a result of the corpse poisoning the groundwater, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. The people who were in danger of being poisoned to death over a matter of years will just have to uproot their entire town and migrate elsewhere.¡± Amaranthe was starting to get a headache, and her slightly agape mouth and raised eyebrows apparently amused Heath because he just kept going. ¡°Without a count several bids were subtly made under the table in the kingdom so the position could be filled by those desirous. Women were stolen and gifted to certain officials throughout the kingdom, taxes were raised in that territory in the meantime because the wealth of the estate had been divided, and several of the guards that worked in the city resigned from their posts because the guards who had just been trying to identify your chosen before they entered the estate were cut down in a manner of what had been described to them by a flippant court judge as ¡®righteous¡¯ expediency. Those remaining honest guards didn¡¯t trust that the same wouldn¡¯t happen to them.¡± ¡°Wait, so we killed the only honest guards on duty? Then the only other honest guards quit?¡± ¡°Why would the corrupt ones try and stop an invasion of heavily armed men and women into their master''s estate? They could be killed.¡± Heath raised a brow. ¡°So the town now only has corrupt guards?¡± Amaranthe frowned. ¡°I¡¯m starting to feel like I should have just executed those two guys in the beginning.¡± ¡°...but¡­ that¡¯s evil?¡± Heath looked mockingly at her. ¡°To dole out punishment without knowing contextually what unjust thing had been done? You''re a god of justice, not a god of slaughter.¡± Heath slowly smiled at her as she struggled to put it all together. When she just kept staring despondently at the ground he chuckled. ¡°What if, in the pursuit of good, more evil is committed than good obtained? What if it had all just been better if your chosen had walked out the door, gone to their local pub, come back, and made something up about their trip instead of actually going? Heroes, as the term is often used, are a blight upon worlds in the universe. Under the guise of virtue they overlook simple things, and are very rarely held accountable because their motivations and their intentions were pure and just.¡± ¡°Those barmaids were easily taken advantage of by corrupt officials in the nobility and within one generation were just as corrupt. Worse, that tavern that had a good reputation for the best serving wenches in the country lost their two best barmaids on the same night. Just because an adventurer thought that the two were truly buxom and deserving of a little extra platinum and time. The tavern with the good reputation fell on hard times. It was hard for the town in general after that as most of the merchants and traders who swung by that way only did so because of the stellar service provided by the tavern.¡± ¡°The count¡¯s wife and children were stoned to death a few days after the heroes left. Who would have helped them? They were the family of a horrifyingly evil person. Perhaps stoning was a mercy compared to exploitation and starvation.¡± Amaranthe¡¯s wide eyes were truly horrified now. ¡°Not to mention the families of the guards who died trying to maintain order and were killed to make a point about those aiding evil-doers. I wonder what happened to them?¡± Heath trailed off, looking thoughtful. ¡°I¡¯m loathe to keep making up dark fantasy so I¡¯ll stop.¡± ¡°Heroes, in the name of ¡®good¡¯, ruin economies, destroy families, kill innocents, steal from their charges, show a particular ruthlessness to their own morality if the need arises, and, oh this is my favorite -- are quite often above repercussions. A villain does any of those things and they are hunted mercilessly at any cost.¡± Heath stopped and Amaranthe was almost grateful until he continued. ¡°Oh, and as free as they are with their wealth they are unbelievably petty when it comes to normal purchasing. Try to haggle with a hero as a merchant and see if you don¡¯t, nine times out of ten, sell it to that tricky bastard under the cost of what it was to make it in the first place.¡± Heath got up and put a finger to Amaranthe¡¯s chin, lifting her blank gaze as she struggled with what he was telling her. ¡°Don¡¯t think too much on it. There are plenty of good people and things in the world and in the universe. Just, if it pleases you, think of villains and evil gods as necessary to make sure there aren¡¯t ¡®too many¡¯ good people ¡®helping¡¯ everyone all the time.¡± Heath produced a straw hat from nowhere and put it on his head, whistling as he sashayed into the trees, half-dancing to his own beat. Amaranthe just stared upward in deep thought for a long time. Hesitantly, she waved a hand(with the arm that got torn off no less) and opened a small window to look through. Having sworn a soul-shatter oath not to hurt Tamara¡¯s chosen, Heath had given her an ability to look in on it from time to time. She hadn''t really understood why, nor did she totally understand now. The creature was floating face-up in a stream, sleeping peacefully. Compared to the tremendously terrible things she had just been listening to, Ruth didn¡¯t actually seem so bad even if he was an evil god candidate¡­ ?? As a crow, a golden-eyed slaughter god, and a fox god candidate all watched -- Ruth slowly floated into a fallen log in the middle of the stream. Gently bobbing up and down against it as the sun moved through the sky. The last vestiges of light started to fade through the trees as his eyes opened. Vertical slits looking around in groggy recognition of the world. Ruth looked down to find that he was part of what appeared to be flotsam. His two arms were above the water buoyed by driftwood, dead plants, white and brown foam, and what appeared to be a broken oar. He turned his head and also found that there was a dead fish bobbing up and down under his chin. Ruth closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ?? Arathan nudged Tamara, who grinned in reply. They both knew what to expect at this point but were still looking forward to it. ?? Amaranthe had been watching for some time, trying to figure out what had happened where he found himself unconscious in the water and letting river trash accumulate around him. When he opened his eyes she thought he took it quite well. He was calm, looking around, judging his surroundings in an orderly fashion. She herself would have been done in by seeing the dead fish. Her eyes widened and a surprised giggle burst out of her mouth at the sound he made after briefly closing his eyes and then re-opening them. ?? HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Ruth was going to burn this whole world down. Then, if it was really lucky, he would leave. Shake-shake¡­ shake-shake¡­ Ruth felt like there was something at the edge of his mind that seemed to absolutely agree with him.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 1) (Puny/Awake) (Lightning Specialized)
8. Ruth, The Mongeese Toll, and The Magical Haberdasher ¡°Halt right there! There is a toll to use this bridge!¡± Trunik hopped out from behind the railing of the large fallen tree that constituted the only bridge across the less than impressive river of Tuneltarin. There was a brief moment of hesitation on his furred face, and some might have noticed it if they were familiar with the tells and facial expressions of the Mongeese species. Trunik¡¯s current situation was that he and three of his brothers and one sister, Farnik, Fenig, Tranig, and Malika, were coming back from the magical haberdasher with a gift for their mother. The haberdasher, whose actual name no one could remember because he had been there forever, very rarely made gifts or actual accessories anymore and they were quite excited at the deal they had managed to make. So excited that they were taking turns carrying the accessory. Fenig had won the last round of sticks and swords, the lazy lout, and was fidgeting with the mouth of his belt bag like a royal wren with the sweetest of bugs. Despite their general good demeanor and the fine day they were having, that didn¡¯t mean they were going to let any funny business slide in Mother Chaka Territory. They had spotted something moving on the eastern side of the river bank at a pretty good speed and had decided that there was still time in the afternoon for violence and robbery. Mother Chaka was the local leader of this territory and their mother. Most of the time there wasn¡¯t any actual danger inherent in any of these afternoon heists. They would impose the toll, their quarry would recognize them by repute, and a tithe would be taken so everyone could go on their way. No one, frankly, was stupid enough to anger Mother Chaka or her ridiculously prolific family, or as many thought of it, the headache that would come from the neverending army that bore grudges. Still, despite his confidence and the times he could count on one furred paw when things actually devolved into real violence, Trunik almost turned around and walked off as if he¡¯d made an error when he saw what he had jumped out and surprised. The creature in front of him was large. Trunik was a little taller than a Goblin in terms of stature, coming up to about a foot and a half. This creature was easily four of him high. Trunik was covered in fur and wearing a very dashing hat that denoted he was in command of this expedition. Hats were VERY important to the hierarchy of the Mongeese. This creature seemed to be largely furless, had horns on its head but no hat, a tail that was covered in scales, and seemed to have undergone a series of unfortunate events in the past if his smell was any indication. Trunik had a small dagger that he drew lazily as if it were the greatest of swords. The creature in front of him stilled upon seeing the metal drawn, and became absolutely immobile standing in the middle of the tree-bridge as if he were just waiting for Trunik to dictate his demands. Trunik began having second thoughts again when he realized that the creature hadn¡¯t responded to his earlier speech. It was possible that this poor creature had been waylaid already this fine day. It was possible that the creature before him was already destitute. Trunik began seriously considering this possibility the longer he stared. The creature was wearing some sort of makeshift skirt, which made sense to Trunik because it was otherwise furless and hideous. He hesitated again, actually considering letting this poor thing go. A hesitation that vanished the moment his three brothers came up behind him and pulled their own small iron daggers and began chortling in various manners of despicable highway robbers. It was just bad timing, Trunik reflected. They couldn¡¯t just let everyone go or then where would the state of the world be? ¡°What¡¯ll it be tree-trunk?¡± Farnik, who had been envious of the hat Trunik had been given earlier that morning, obviously saw this as a chance to win some merit. Trunik almost cursed his mother under his breath but stopped because it would be the same mother as his own. The creature looked down at Farnik, his golden slitted eyes taking his measure in a very calm manner. Trunik was actually impressed! Once again he considered befriending this stupid woodland creature instead of robbing it. Really, it probably didn¡¯t even have any metal on it? Trunik was starting to feel like he should just adopt this stupid thing. That was when everything went, as they say, sideways. ¡°Has someone already cut the tongue from your mouth?¡± Farnik sneered, and he pricked the leg in front of him. Just a little. The creature really freaked out. ?? One of the things that Ruth did extremely well, Arathan admitted sincerely despite acknowledging the fact that she was lowering the bar of ¡®extremely well¡¯ quite a bit, was calming down and thinking things through after he had been hysterical. Sure, Ruth did seem to have a lot of them, these, episodes. Admittedly the half-day it had spent in the new world included Ruth exploding into anger or losing its temper and smashing things. There was, however, a surprising amount of self-reflection that Ruth did after the immediate anger had passed. So when he had woken up in the river with river trash settled in around him like he was a dead fish¡­ next to the dead fish that was nestled under his chin¡­ Ahem. Arathan had thought that it had been somewhat admirable that after an explosive and intense moment of pure vitriolic thought, Ruth had settled down. He had pulled himself out of the water, checked to make sure he still had his abbreviated ¡®skirt¡¯ and then moved to the shore where he had checked the new spells that were available to him. He had briefly, it seemed, considered using his abilities on the river. Not to vent his rage or frustration, but to test the extent of the power and to capture food. Using lightning spells on the river had seemed a bit overkill to Arathan, and to her surprise, Ruth had come to the same conclusion moments later. He had even thought to himself that he would possibly need all the spells and couldn¡¯t afford to be wasting them on food gathering when he wasn¡¯t even hungry. Arathan had almost chuckled moments later when his stomach had growled at him and his face had fallen as if he¡¯d been betrayed once more. Both she and Tamara had watched disinterestedly from that point onward, talking every once in a while about things they¡¯d seen while separated. At least until the tree-bridge. Of course, Arathan and Tamara didn¡¯t know anything about this ¡®mother chaka¡¯, her family, or how Mongeese operated. Why would they? And if they did? They still wouldn¡¯t have interfered. Why bother when good entertainment was just lining itself up? ?? Ruth for his part had been moving down the river intent on finding something other than wilderness. He was also keeping an eye out for that moving immortal text thing. So far it was keeping its distance and remaining out of sight, a wise choice. Ruth had spells now and wasn¡¯t afraid to use them all on that damnable thing if to announce nothing more than his utter disdain for the thing!You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. He had some semblance of coverage on his lower body now, and his stomach was only telling him that he could eat every few minutes with garbled noises. Ruth ignored them as the mana continued to flood into his body. It was a little bit intoxicating, to be honest. His mana pathways were enormous compared to what he had been used to in a dragon¡¯s body. Add to that he was only a fraction of the size and he was getting a little¡­ drunk. There was no excuse however for being surprised when he was walking across a large fallen tree to the other side of the river. To be honest the only reason he had gotten onto the tree-bridge thing was that he had noticed someone had woven together parts of it to make it look like it had railing on either side. Maybe this was a special place? Ruth didn¡¯t know, but it sparked enough of his curiosity that he had started across anyway. It wasn¡¯t like this river was deeper than his knees anyway? The river itself didn¡¯t need a bridge! Or so he had thought until the tiny denizen of the forest popped out in front of him. Ruth wasn¡¯t up on small creatures or what they were. This one appeared to be smaller slightly than a Goblin? Or was roughly the same size. More importantly, it had an air of intelligence and said something to him. Ruth had no idea what it said. He froze, not wanting to get into a fight with something if he could help it. It was furred across its entire body and kind of reminded him of those small varmints he had seen that fought snakes where he was from. Ruth was instantly on guard. This creature did not think him a snake did it? It couldn''t be faulted for its misidentification because until recently he too had thought he might be a snake. The creature seemed to appreciate his stillness and adjusted the brim of its rather fascinating hat. It was wide-brimmed made from some sort of grass and accentuated with a large feather. Ruth had no idea what the hat meant but it was obviously important and marked this creature as the leader. He knew this was the leader because three other rodents or varmints or¡­ whatever they were came out from behind the woven nature railing and began to press in from the front. Be calm, Ruth thought to himself, not every creature in this forest capable of thought must be violent. You need to gather information and find out where you are and how to get home. Ruth was momentarily surprised with how eloquent his thought process was. It seemed a step up from kill everything and take their stuff. He was probably getting smarter as a result of all the mana being flooded into his system. Ruth was brought back to reality when a small creature in front of him reminded him of his current situation. The little rodent without a hat had poked him in the calf roughly where the Goblin had been stabbing him before. SHAKE-SHAKE-SHAKE. Ruth absolutely agreed with the sudden violence that surged through his mind and tried out his new spells without any sort of preamble. First, he cast [Generic Magnetic Field], because his understanding of the spell within his awareness was that it was invisible. It certainly was because nothing happened immediately except for the small creature in front of him taking a surprise step back when it''s metal knife started to veer away from him.
¡ïGeneric Magnetic Field Repel or attract metal to a certain degree using the caster as a base. Lasts until spell slot is restored or canceled.
Ruth had chosen to repel metal right now. The idea of attracting treasure and valuable metal had occurred to him earlier but the number of times he could cast a spell within a certain amount of time made him loathe to start his treasure hoarding when he couldn¡¯t even protect himself from the simplest of creatures. That being done he took a moment to eye-ball the small furry creature in front of him. He considered trying out one of his other spells but decided there were plenty of remaining creatures that seemed absolutely thrilled to be hostile with him, so instead he planted his left foot and swung with his right as hard as he could. The surprised look of the creature as it was punted far into the trees was worth a grin. There was a sickening squish from the distance. He dropped his foot and turned toward the remaining three. They had watched with wide eyes and quivering wet little noses. Their whiskers had turned up in rage and they had brandished their tiny little knives and began rushing at him. It was still fresh in his memory, the feeling of being cut and hurt and stabbed by the Goblins. Ruth had no intention of going another round like that. He pointed with one hand and cycled through shots of Generic Shock.
¡ïGeneric Shock Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate shock, killing or incapacitating small creatures.
Ruth smiled as all three small forms fell on the wooden log and started writhing. He walked over to the impressive one with the hat first, deciding to start with the leader. The hat was much too small for him so he quickly tossed it to the side. The daggers themselves were practically metal shavings and were only the length of his big finger. He picked up all three of the daggers from the fallen rodents and put them gingerly with the small handles up in a bag he had pulled off Trunik. Trunik had gone still and Ruth paused momentarily, both pleased and distressed that his shock spell had apparently killed the small creature outright. It had been capable of some sort of speech and Ruth would have liked to have tried to communicate with it. A quick glance revealed that the others had also stilled, likely having passed onto their next life. A swift intake of mana confirmed the situation at once. Ruth checked the other two for belongings and pulled out a small black ring. He was about to toss it into the water when he realized that it was changing in his hand. What had been tiny and fit for one of the small Mongeese digits slowly grew in size until it was big enough for his smallest finger. He put it on without hesitation, having never worn an item when he was a dragon and being largely unaware of the repercussions of trying to wear cursed gear. Immediately the ring started to cover his hand, startling Ruth. Ruth began to look for a way to take the object off but needn¡¯t have bothered. The moment he thought of trying to remove it the ring had retreated to his finger. Fascinating. What had it been trying to cover the- The ring once again started to cover his hand, then his arm and then moving to his shoulder. Ruth had been wearing it long enough now to know that all he had to do was think it and the small thing would retreat once more. It only took a matter of moments but then Ruth was garbed in a flowing black cloth that seemed to fit his form, starting from the index finger of his hand and extending all the way up to his shoulder, then down to his waist, and then past his waist to his feet. He tried to will boots or shoes or anything that covered his feet but apparently the ring could only cover most of his person. Only the hand with the ring on it appeared covered, and he once again failed to materialize a second ¡®glove¡¯. Ruth smiled, bowed slightly to the dead rodents, forgot about the creature he had punted into the trees, and left. ?? Half an hour later, from the shadow of the side of the log, a female Mongeese appeared. She slowly went over to the corpses of her brothers and looked down at them mournfully. Her gaze straightened and she looked up in the direction that her kinslayer had gone. She would have liked to go after him immediately but she was unarmed. Farnik was dead too, or he would have come back by now. A small furred hand reached down, quivering, to grab the hat that lay nearby. Her narrowed black eyes gleamed with purpose as she settled the hat on her head. The creature had stolen the lives of her brothers, the gift meant for her mother, and this enmity must be settled in the way all things were settled in the Ten Year Wood -- with violence. Perhaps even the haberdasher would lend aid since it was his clothing ring that had been taken as spoil. First, she would report to her mother, then she would personally be there when this creature drew its last breath. Malika did not have metal with her so she bit her small hand with her sharp teeth and bled on the bridge to mark her personal vow. ?? Unaware of the stirring and emotional moment of Malika, Ruth was surprised to find that he had 1 out of 5 spells remaining but there seemed to be some improvement in his spells. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine those dark stars that had appeared when he got his spells. He opened them seconds later when he felt an old enemy presence. His eyes narrowed. It was the immortal text picture.
Generic Shock 75% Learned. Generic Magnetic Field 25% Learned.
Ruth put aside his vendetta for the moment, trying to understand what this meant. He straightened with a sudden grin. Did this mean that he could learn a spell and it wouldn¡¯t require spell slots?
Yes.
Ruth was almost willing to forgive this thing for not killing Tamara. 9. Ruth and the Enmity Almost was a long way from would, however. The Tamara and now this box were on his list of things to murder with extreme prejudice. He would for the moment, however, acknowledge that he wasn¡¯t sure how to accomplish either killing so he put it aside for now. He raised a fist toward the heavens and made a low hissing noise in his throat so that the universe would understand he wasn¡¯t giving up his grudge, just delaying it, lest there be any confusion from this Tamara or the immortal box if they had been watching him. There would be a reckoning! Just not today. Possibly tomorrow but Ruth didn¡¯t think so. He only had one of the strange spell slots left at the moment, and though he had a short grasp on the concept of ¡®hours¡¯ he didn¡¯t think it had been over four of them which meant he needed to wait around for more of them. Waiting was terrible. It had been about a minute since he¡¯d had the thought to wait and he was already overwhelmingly anxious. Everything in this damn place had conspired to confound him with dastardly snow-banks, elusive and nimble tasty fish, God-king Goblin Emperors, and now small furry things with ridiculously sweet looking head apparel. A brief moment of silence for the hat which was too small for him that he¡¯d discarded. He already regretted not taking it with him. The dragon in him said it was a fine piece and deserving to be at least on the fringe of a new hoard. Ruth crouched down and covered his head in his hands as an insidious worry started to worm its way through his head. Build a hoard! What about the old one? He had lost his hoard? Yes/No?! It had only been one day, and not even that really, but he was quite sure that the wyvern down the Waverly River made constant and numerous sneaky reconnaissances on his lair, just waiting for the day when he died. He could already imagine that smug bastard rolling around in bliss over his shiny gems and his particularly favored long bits and bobs of colored string. Agh, the thought was infuriating! His bug collection was probably wandering off! Several dozen large species of shiny carapaced beetles that he routinely shepherded back into the middle of his lair. It would take them two days to crawl in their tiny and slow fashion to an exit or vent they were capable of squeezing through! Two days! The flood of worry for his little insectile pets filled him and caused him to moan in a low voice. What would they do when they got outside? They were too stupid to live on their own. Some species of giant bird would just drop out of the sky and carry them off into the sunset, their sad little antennae bouncing up in down in parting. Moment of silence for the bugs that were sure to soon perish. If they had not perished already. The worry and anxiousness fled his face as his eyes turned into mean slits. That wyvern would probably just step on them, or eat them with its smug reptilian faced smile. It would lick them a little and then swallow them without chewing, celebrating a victory beetle brunch at the thought of Ruth¡¯s demise. That wyvern had to go. How dare it intrude on his thoughts during the day and cause him to fill time with worry! It hadn¡¯t even managed to provide a decent mental distraction because it felt like no time passed at all! That fucking thing was going to die. The wyvern in question stirred uneasily from its sleep a world away, wondering if winter was coming earlier this year but being otherwise just turning over once and snorting slightly as it went back to sleep. At least that bastard dragon hadn¡¯t made any noise lately. ?? ¡°Did he forget about his spells already?¡± Tamara wondered aloud. ¡°He seemed pretty excited but now it seems like he¡¯s slipping into some sort of madness. Is it possible that I pushed the tiny brained thing so hard its mind snapped?¡± ¡°Well, there was all that screaming when he went nutso on the bridge with those little furred creatures,¡± Arathan said hesitantly, not eager to acknowledge that maybe Tamara did break her toy a little. ¡°No,¡± Tamara immediately dismissed the concern leaving Arathan with a little bit of disbelief with how rapidly she had shed responsibility. ¡°He screamed plenty before that.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Hard¡­ to argue. ¡°Oh good. There we go.¡± Tamara smiled as Ruth finally stopped rolling around on the ground like a caterpillar and seemed to be getting down to business again. ¡°Where did you leave him anyway?¡± ¡°Flynn¡¯s World.¡± Tamara began whistling innocently right after she said it, and as expected, Arathan¡¯s eyes got real big. ¡°Wooooooooow. Caw-caw-caw-caw!¡± Arathan just kept laughing as she looked back to the window and then finally managed, ¡°Is that his daughter¡¯s territory?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± Tamara¡¯s eyes glinted even as they narrowed. ¡°I figured, as long as I¡¯m making an invasive species, I should introduce it to a nice place to grow up.¡± ¡°Hahaha, twenty elixirs of the tongue from the nether beast says you end up fighting him and his daughter, to the death, in under five years because of this.¡± Arathan snorted. ¡°Sucker bet,¡± Tamara smirked, eyes still narrowed dangerously. ¡°It¡¯s only a matter of time. I¡¯ll just poke him until he can¡¯t stand it anymore and tries to attack me. Then nobody can get mad. Not if I¡¯m just defending myself, right?¡± Arathan laughed her cawing laugh again. ?? Completely oblivious to the vast majority of what the universe was doing, Ruth was staring intently at the river mightily resisting the urge to just use his last spell slot to see what would happen. He was fairly confident that he would learn the spell and instead of using these mysteriously alloted spell slots, he¡¯d be using his internal mana instead. Ruth was less confident about what would happen other than that. The weird box thing was new to him, as was the way it seemed to classify strength. He had apparently been at level zero before advancing to level one. What was the difference in strength from zero to one? Hard to say. He had only been level zero for a little while after all. He didn¡¯t feel all that superior so it was probably safe to say that level one was meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Ruth was probably so powerless that he wouldn¡¯t even be a good pawn in any grand schemes. Ruth suddenly felt depressed that he couldn¡¯t even be a pawn. Ruth felt more depressed when he remembered that his teeny tiny immaculately carved chess set was still in his hoard, and he finally possessed little digits small enough to move the pieces around. He loved his hoard so much. The wyvern¡¯s hoard. That damn wyvern! His eyes narrowed dangerously and then¡­ No! Focus! In addition to being level one, there were all these black stars denoting something. Ruth had a feeling that his next enmity would be these black stars. Everything else in his life seemed to be taking a swing at him, why not these black stars? Maybe they would know their place. Or maybe he would preemptively show them their place. His eyes narrowed further at the imagined slight of something that didn¡¯t have a will of its own. No, he couldn¡¯t use his last spell slot! What if he needed to cast spells during the day! It was better to just wait and¡­ Ruth placed a palm on his face and made a hissing noise of frustration. This was no time to be exceedingly stupid. If he used the last spell slot on Generic Shock it would be castable using his mana. He didn¡¯t know how many times he could cast it with his internal mana, but it would surely be greater or equal to one. There was no reason not to cast it. Unless he should start working on other spells? He was curious about the Thunder Struck spell. No! Why would he do that if it would just be the exact thing he was avoiding now? If he used it on a spell that wouldn¡¯t complete then he wouldn¡¯t be able to cast the spell with the use of his own mana and he¡¯d have to wait for however long it was until another spell slot became available. Ruth was pretty sure that he would think himself to death if he actually had to wait that much time, however much it was, since he was already ready to punch himself in the face after this short time span. Ruth stretched his fingers out toward the river and used Generic Shock before he could think himself out of it. Weak and thin tendrils of lightning shot out and into the water, making a small hiss and crack as the energy came in contact with the water but being otherwise unremarkable. Immediately he felt the black spot in his mind clear up as he used it. Now there were just strange empty feelings there. The river continued to burble down its path as it always did. Nothing happened.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Ruth felt incredibly insulted that for all the dangerous thoughts he¡¯d been having the actual activity had been a whiz followed by a rather unimpressive bang. Wait! A fish floated up from the water about the length of his little digits. He would take it. Ruth forded into the river, completely oblivious to the box that had sprung up behind him and seemed to be watching him hike up his pants to get into the water and recover that ridiculously small fish. It almost seemed to droop a little at the corners when Ruth let out a victory yell and held the fish above his head. The yell was a two-part victory cheer to celebrate the gathering of food and at the realization that he didn¡¯t need to pull on his clothes. He had simply willed it and they had retreated up past his knees. For a brief moment, the box seemed to eye the clothing with meaningful intent. Maybe the real protagonist of this story is his clothing? The pantagonist. Tamara and Arathan giggled.
Generic Shock learned. Ability renamed ¡®Shock¡¯. ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures.
Ruth finally turned around and almost fell down into the water as the devilish box had closed in on him. It was a cunning thing. Silent and deadly. He lost interest in hissing at it though because it was telling him that he had learned the spell, and it had lost the generic title. Ruth eagerly pointed his hands at the river even as the box began to bounce up and down excitedly in mid-air. Ruth smiled, pleased with its enthusiasm at the thought of his powerful display. Lightning snaked out into the river once more, slightly thicker and more luminous than before, and everything went dark. ?? ¡°He¡¯s floating unconscious in the river again,¡± Tamara noted. ¡°He didn¡¯t kill himself. He also doesn''t need to be flipped over this time. That¡¯s progress.¡± Arathan snorted, turning her timeless crow gaze toward a direction above the window. ¡°He knocked out his soul form too. That poor thing doesn¡¯t have any idea why it keeps getting zapped.¡± ¡°Maybe it was immature of me to release a creature like that into the wilds of Flynn¡¯s world,¡± Tamara whispered softly with the tiniest hint of regret. ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be fine¡­¡± Arathan was recounting the memory of Tamara sulking a little bit about how much effort she¡¯d put into the body and incorrectly thought Tamara was actually worried about Ruth. A thought that was dispelled almost immediately. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m comfortable with having a creature that stupid with my name attached to it.¡± Tamara narrowed her eyes, murder starting to cloud them. A reddish aura actually stirred from her body, speeding up the rise and fall of her breast, and began to inch toward the window. Arathan cocked her head to the side, waiting for the outcome. At last, Tamara retracted her aura, deciding to hold off on simply wiping Ruth out of existence. ¡°Well, I suppose I don¡¯t care what the other god¡¯s think. If that thing annoys me it will work splendidly on Flynn and his daughter. Should it¡­ not continue to electrocute itself.¡± ¡°What if Flynn or his daughter just decide to wipe it out?¡± Arathan asked. ¡°It belongs to me. If it dies, it dies. If he or she has anything to do with it directly? Why, I¡¯d go have a nice little chat with them.¡± Tamara grinned, hoping that they¡¯d do something so foolish. ?? Mother Chaka was a positively ancient Mongeese, but was no less prolific now at her age of 40 than she had been earlier in her life. Her red-tinged fur was slightly silvered at the edges, giving her a calm and regal demeanor. Her hat was a resplendent purple velvet that spanned thrice as broad as her own shoulders. Despite her diminutive stature, the hat gave her prestige and demanded obedience in a room full of other Mongeese wearing hats. Many fine hats were in the room, but no hat was as fine as hers. No one would dare to usurp her authority that openly. She was currently in her small guest hall, a large(for her species) room with tree stumps for seats and hewed fallen logs for tables. The walls were smoothed mud, and now and again a simple tree root system crawled or climbed up or down the wall, lending a strange natural elegance to the room. Mother Chaka and twelve of her children which made up her personal court and retinue sat and discussed matters of their territory in soft voices, paying special respect to a different sort of creature that sat at her side. Mother Chaka was proud of them, as many of them were old enough to start enjoying the privilege of being among the oldest of their species at 20 and 25. In addition to that rather ¡®impressive¡¯ longevity they were being remarkably well-behaved in front of their guest of honor. The Haberdasher was a scholarly looking furred fellow with wise eyes and a soft black nose. His dextrous black hands ended in nimble digits which he rubbed together every now and again as if he were testing how dirty the air was. Mother Chaka took no offense because she had long learned that this peculiar habit was just how he kept warmth in his hands. There were many things that were exceptional about the Haberdasher, and were it within her power she would keep him close at hand. The idea of him returning across the Ten Year Wood back to his home already distressed her. What if something happened to him? For despite the rather dark circles around his eyes that made the Haberdasher look like a scarved thief, he was a treasure of the Ten Year Wood as he was the only one capable of refining small items with magical properties. Perhaps not the only one, but by far, the best. The Haberdasher took off his small rimmed glasses from the bridge of his nose, producing a small handkerchief from a resplendent red doublet that covered him from neck to feet. He began polishing them absentmindedly as he stared at the door. ¡°I should not have beaten your little fellow here.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure Trunik is fine.¡± Mother Chaka was also perplexed somewhat at the absence of her young sons and daughter. Trunik had apparently gotten the recluse to make her a special gift, and she had been beside herself when the Haberdasher had arrived at her barrow door and looked surprised that she wasn¡¯t already wearing it. She had almost even been embarrassed that she wasn¡¯t wearing it! He had told her that he had come to offer her salutations for the month of her birth and to make any adjustments to the ring that she would need. She of course, had no idea what he was talking about. It was explained to her that the Haberdasher had given the item to Trunik and, at the time, had declined the invitation to accompany them back to Mongeese territory to present it personally. Then, after they left, he¡¯d started to get the itch in his fingers. The itch just thinking that something he made custom for someone else may be worn and in need of special adjustments so that it fit just right. The Haberdasher could also have explained that he had also been hungry and the Mongeese had the most delightful smoked walnuts(most of their barrow was situated under the best specimen in the wood) but decided it was an irrelevant detail. The fact they had broken out a great deal of the good wine for their matron¡¯s celebration was also an irrelevant detail. The Haberdasher finished rubbing the spectacles and replaced them on his face, shifting slightly so his rather bushy black-ringed tail could have the freedom to wag sedately as the warmth of the walnuts and the wine flowed through him. Despite the good time he was having, the feeling of wrongness continued to make him slightly agitated. The Ten Year Wood was quite a walk, but Trunik and his siblings moved through their life like most of their short-lived kin -- fast and violently. The fact he had actually beaten them after taking a sort of roundabout direction(didn¡¯t want to show up too soon, that would be embarrassing) made him wonder if there wasn¡¯t another scheme afoot. Did the small mongeese just tell him it was a gift for his mother? Was there a different recipient? Well, the little fool would be held accountable now. His eyes narrowed slightly in delight at the thought of a family scandal appearing any moment at the door. Dinner and a show. Just as he was having this thought the doors burst open and a smaller female appeared in the doorway. She was wearing a small cutlass belted at her hip, and the two mongeese trailing behind her with irritation told the story of how she had acquired it. She had obviously stolen the blade from one of the guards at the door before bursting in unannounced. The guard on the right¡¯s eye was already swelling and he looked to be as mad as a hornet. He didn¡¯t say anything, however, and it was probably because she was wearing a hat. Fascinating creatures, Mongeese. A society where the size, shape, and story of a hat gave the wearer certain prestige. Fascinating and intriguing, because the Haberdasher would never admit that he had a hard time telling the Mongeese apart, but he did. This one, however, was known to him because he had seen her and her brothers this afternoon. She didn¡¯t have the hat at that point. ¡°Kinslayer!¡± Malika shouted, jumping nimbly onto the table without care for her older siblings or the Matron¡¯s birthday celebration. Silence swept the room as ferocious looks cast across the room. Mother Chaka stood up, her hat bobbing thematically, and stabbed the hewed log table-top with a small piece of metal that had been crudely fashioned into a fork. All the fur in the room was standing straight up at the announcement of Kinslaying. Still, there was the barest hint of hope in her voice when she asked, ¡°where are your brothers?¡± Kinslaying was a very serious crime in the Ten Year Wood. Thousands of the little Mongeese belonged to this clan, and they would throw every one of their little lives off a cliff if it meant killing someone who had killed one of them. Kinslaying in other places might refer to someone offing their own family, but in Mongeese society, this would never happen. So Kinslaying and the horrible connotation that it carried referred instead to someone who had harmed the family. It was this horrifying blood feud that made other denizens of the wood get out of the way for Mongeese. Sure, some of them might even have been able to fight the clan but¡­ Who would bother? Who had the time to fight such a ridiculous war? It was just easier to show them courtesy and to let them rob you from time to time. Dinner and a show indeed. The Haberdasher reached out slowly, unnoticed, and pulled another walnut from the plate in front of him. Mother Chaka¡¯s ear twitched at the sounds of soft crunching to her left, but she chose to ignore it like a good host. The Haberdasher rubbed his fingers together, exulting the feel of walnut oil and salt on his furry hands. He wondered who had done such a ridiculously stupid thing. ?? Ruth floated down the river and a box floated sedately above him. Every now and again he jerked in the water as if reliving something horrible or traumatic in a dream. 10. Ruth Swims Among Feeder Fish
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 2) (Runt/Awake) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. ¡ï Update Mana Circulation. 5 Spells A Day Maximum. 1 Spell Slot Regenerates Every 4.7 Hours. ¡ï Internal Mana Circulation updated: ¡ïUnlock Internal Clock: Current spells count: 2/5 Spell Slots, 20 Mana.
The immortal and deadly text waited patiently, hovering overhead and updating the time and spell count appropriately. It continued displaying while it waited for Ruth to come back to consciousness. There was a hint of expectation as the box traveled around a stump, going neither too fast, nor too slow. Maintaining a precise distance determined acceptable from the Ruth creature. Tamara had given it more of a range really. Don¡¯t get too far from the Ruth creature. The immortal and deadly text would do its best with such vague descriptions. It was pitch black now but the immortal and deadly text had no need for lighting to know where it was supposed to exist in the universe. It had been some number of hours since Ruth had cast his first internalized spell from his new body and his very own mana supply. The box had been, on a shallow level, pleased for him. Also, somewhat exasperated at the amount of time it was having to maintain the connection. Really, the box would have shown him the information and left if the Ruth creature could remain conscious long enough to make an acknowledgment! It was somewhat interesting that the Ruth creature did not seem to be able to stay conscious for long. The box dutifully reported all this information along the strand of consciousness that went from itself to Tamara. For obvious reasons(too boring for Tamara) it wasn¡¯t being fully attended to by Tamara at the moment and was mostly left to its own devices; namely the order to follow the Ruth, be acknowledged that it was understood(or was not understood as was often becoming the case) and then close again until notable changes occurred once more. There were no internal dialogs or conflicts within the immortal and deadly text. Nothing other than a rudimentary fact-checking yes or no, true or false, update or ignore. It wasn¡¯t even sure why it was deadly or immortal in the eyes of the Ruth creature. It was an absolutely, for the moment, impartial existence that, well, existed. Did it exist? It was getting quite a lot of time to try and figure out ways to enhance the services it performed. The terms and rules were so imprecise and there was ever so much time between the moments when the Ruth creature lost consciousness and then awoke again. The Ruth creature was hitting a log now. Thumping against it once, twice, three times. The creature with the Ruth creature adjusted their approach and started to drag him around it. The box was uncertain whether this qualified as new information to update Tamara on or not. It decided not. The Ruth creature still had not regained consciousness and it was irrelevant that it was moving. The Ruth creature had been floating in the river prior to this, which was considered point A to point B movement, but he had been unconscious. Tamara had already stated such movement as irrelevant information and not necessitating updates or action. In fact, there were very few scenarios where the box was told to do, well, anything. Therefore, the creature that was now dragging Ruth deeper into dense pine trees completely ignored the immortal and deadly text box that it couldn¡¯t see anyway. The immortal and deadly text box continued to slowly follow along, examining the orders it had been given to make sure it was performing at optimal efficiency while it waited for Ruth to wake up. ?? The Haberdasher looked up, surprised that all the eyes in the room were trained on him. He slowly retracted his fingers and quickly rubbed the oils from the walnuts on the blue and burgundy checkered kerchief in his lap. A regrettable loss of the salt and oils on his fingers, but he couldn¡¯t very well lick them when everyone was looking at him. He stared around the room for another moment before his whiskers twitched for a moment. He smiled his gentle smile. The smile that says ¡®what do you want, I¡¯m old¡¯, and also, ¡®seriously, I wasn¡¯t paying attention, let''s not draw this out.¡¯ Mother Chaka didn¡¯t sigh or show any sign of irritation and her gaze gentled somewhat, disturbing The Haberdasher more than if she¡¯d just yelled at him for not following along with their frantic Mongeese speech. ¡°What are your thoughts on the creature that waylaid my sons?¡± ¡°Well, if it could do magic it is likely not originally from the Ten Year Wood,¡± The Haberdasher blinked rapidly at the surprising outburst that swelled around him before it was quelled by Mother Chaka howling for silence. He decided an addendum was in order, ¡°it¡¯s not impossible, just unlikely?¡± Malika, at least that¡¯s what he thought her name was, moved across the table swiftly and stood in front of him, her whiskers and eyes dancing in excitement. ¡°So, it is dangerous?¡± ¡°Sort of¡­¡± The Haberdasher wasn¡¯t sure exactly what they wanted from him. ¡°If it does magic it is wise to trap it, ambush it, poison it, or use deception in some manner. You won¡¯t know how many spells it can perform in a day. Perhaps,¡± he felt like he was on a roll since the eyes around him were widening and decided to strike while the iron was hot, ¡°...it even has magical equipment! Sometimes spells can be stored in wands and staves and other things, you know?" He paused for dramatic effect and continued, "I wouldn¡¯t be so quick to try a frontal assault. There is a reason magic wielders are feared! Sure they may have physical limitations or even painful weaknesses, but under the circumstances anyone they want dead?¡± Malika jumped as he snapped his fingers in front of her. It pleased him greatly. Especially when a cross and dark look flashed through her eyes. He paid it no mind and looked around the room to make sure he was still holding everyone spellbound. Yes,spellbound, delicious wordplay. ¡°Well, you¡¯d just be dead. I am not sure what happened¡­¡± From the sound of it, The Haberdasher was about ninety percent certain, actually, the brothers had tried to rob this creature without knowing anything about it, but he wasn¡¯t going to be the one to point that out. ¡°...but I can tell you that magic, whether learned spellcasting, equipped casting, or even innate spellcasting, is dangerous. It would be wise to not underestimate the sheer cunning of such a creature¡­¡± The silence settled on the room before everyone began discussing amongst each other again. They all seemed to take his words to heart but they had stopped paying attention to him a little sooner than he would like so he slapped his hand on the table. Teach them to interrupt his walnut eating. Silence descended again. ¡°...a grave mistake,¡± he warned solemnly. "Perhaps the intelligence of this creature should be carefully understood before a plan is made." ?? ¡°Cow!¡± Ruth screamed in draconic. ¡°Release me, cow!¡± His voice was shrill and he was panicked. He had no idea where he was or what was happening but he felt pretty confident in his analysis of the situation. His analysis? BAD. SHIT. BAD SHIT. The ¡®cow¡¯ startled slightly, dropping his right foot. It had been using his pantleg and part of his calf(which was bleeding and had a few teeth marks on it) to drag him through the trees. Apparently, it had been under the impression that he was dead and had been carrying him back to its lair. Ruth wasn¡¯t quite certain what had happened but when he saw the creature that must have been responsible for his blackout, his mind froze. It was a strange feeling to be scaleless and to have the feeling of your flesh crawling at the sight of a shambling horror. Shambling, furred, with an enormous rack of antlers on the top of its head. The points were tined at the edges like someone had carved in the points as an afterthought. Ruth hadn¡¯t known what the smaller snake-eating creatures were because they had honestly been too small for him to care about when he was a dragon. He remembered a creature very much like this, though! A fine meal it had been, and a glorious battle that had ended with Ruth getting irritated and flying off. He had returned minutes later with a large boulder and dropped it on the ¡®mooing¡¯ creature. He only knew what it was called because there had been humans at the edge of what appeared to be an enclosure and two of the smaller ones had been jumping up and down behind a rickety wooden wall screaming ¡°cow and dragon¡±. He knew the human word for a dragon because there had been many to scream it at him. It hadn¡¯t made sense as to why the majestic being was guarding his family inside an open ceiling enclosure, but he supposed it offered them some protection from the humans. It was strange to Ruth that the humans didn¡¯t seem to be capable of getting around the fence. At the time, he had considered making something similar around his lair in order to corral humans away from his home without bloodshed. The only thing he remembered was that when he¡¯d eaten the ¡®cow¡¯ later it had given him the impression of a plant-eater. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The monster moose in front of him did not give him that vibe at all. There were many senses that sucked in this new form, but his sense of smell was still sensitive enough to discern that this creature ate living things, for sure. The acrid decay of decomposing meat wafted from its horrific and pointy teeth. The moose was huge, and upon realizing that its quarry was not dead, took a lumbering step forward with great and sharpened hooves and leaned down exposing a very carnivorous and slanted mouth that had no business being on a normal moose. ¡°RRrrrrrrraaaagggghh,¡± Its tongue licked up and down in anticipation of the bite and it moved its horns back and forth aggressively. ¡°Aggggghhhhhh,¡± Ruth shrieked back heroically. He put both his hands out to ward off the palmate antlers that were moving toward his upper body and only managed on grabbing the edges of the tines with his hands. The ¡®elite cow boss¡¯ immediately lifted its head and got ready for a back and forth shake. Ruth¡¯s mind went momentarily blank as he instinctively felt the danger. It would shake, he would drop, that would be the end of Ruth. Shake-shake. Shake-shake. The moose froze for the barest of moments, hesitation in its dark and calm expression as it considered the sound that drilled directly into its brain. The moose then disregarded the troubling sound, not even wincing in discomfiture. It was, however, the barest of moments that saved Ruth¡¯s life. Both hands in a death grip on the antlers he pushed himself up in the air and screamed, ¡°die cow!¡± Lightning poured down his arms, briefly tracing golden lines down his biceps in the barest outline of scales before pouring directly into the moose. The moose screamed. Ruth screamed. Ruth cast Shock from both hands directly into the moose for the second time. The moose dropped to the ground and Ruth fell down roughly but safely(mostly, as two of the tines raked across his stomach) on top of the moose. He opened his eyes weakly and looked up over the rump of the moose, trying not to gag at the smell of burned hair and sizzling meat, and almost screamed again when he saw the box hovering over the ass of the dead creature with new information. This thing would never let him go. Ruth sagged down, panting and laying on the dead moose. The feeling of adrenaline, fear, and pure excitement bubbled up and he jumped to his feet, pointing at the moose and laughing hysterically. He almost kicked it, but he was only mostly confident it was dead and there was no use taking chances in case this thing was just faking it. He backed away but continued to laugh and point at it, putting his hands on his hips and taking deep ragged breaths. Then he stopped laughing. Over the corpse in the nearish distance, he saw the silhouette of another moose standing silently on a hill, staring at him. Ruth had a bad feeling. ?? The Ruth creature had awakened and almost acknowledged the presence of the immortal and deadly text. It was getting ready to wait for some sort of acknowledgment so it could shut down for now when another creature had appeared that wished interaction with the Ruth creature. The Ruth creature did not seem like it wished to acknowledge this new creature either, as he was running from it. Ruth ran. The new moose chased Ruth. The immortal and deadly text chased Ruth as well. While it waited it updated the information to reflect the new information.
Used Shock 4 times on ¡®cow¡¯. Mana expenditure: 8. Remaining internal mana 12/20.
?? What was this place?! Ruth ran through the trees as fast as his feet could carry him. He could feel his enemy breathing heavily behind him, close enough that there was a temperature difference. Or maybe that was just his imagination. Either way, there was no way he was faster than this other cow. The only thing he could do was change direction as much as he could, trying to use the trees in order to dodge the crazy charge of the murderous creature behind him. For the most part, it was a good plan, no, scratch that, it was a bad plan! He just didn¡¯t know what else to do. He could turn around and fight it and was resolved to do just that! He would turn and¡­ Heavy breathing and panting and crashing behind him¡­ The image of those antlers and¡­ The sheer size difference between the two of them... In a minute! He just needed to find an advantageous moment. Yep. It wasn¡¯t a good idea to rush into this. While he was listening to the moose pulping small trees in the dark behind him and trying to figure out what to do next, he actually ran into a house. Turning through the trees, coming around a tree, and then a wall of a house. In his defense, it was very dark and the house was a color that was dark. In addition to that, the house was situated between the moon and Ruth. His eyes, which normally had excellent night vision, hadn¡¯t adapted in time from the shifting light between the trees and total darkness right in front of his face. BAM. Ruth put his back to the house and looked frantically from side to side. The wall wasn¡¯t long or expansive and there didn¡¯t seem to be an opening. The side of the house felt warm and damp under his palms and kind of spongy like there was something growing on the surface. It was probably moss, but honestly, Ruth did not give a shit about that at the moment. He turned left making an arbitrary choice and prepared to run to the corner of the house and use it as a shield between himself and the ¡®cow.¡¯ The moose skidded out from the treeline and lowered its head, eyes taking in the new development. It moved slowly toward him, starting to angle toward the corner of the house he was turning toward. Ruth froze but the moose did not. It continued walking toward him, breathing heavily as a white foam poured out of its mouth. It lowered its antlers as it approached, giving it a narrow-eyed look. The moon was hitting its face in such a way as to give the eyes a crazed shine, because, Ruth decided, it hadn¡¯t already been fucking scary enough. Ruth raised his hand and cast shock. The lightning briefly illuminated the night as it traveled from point Ruth to point Moose. A crack split the air making his ears hurt as it struck the monster moose head-on. The lightning was thick and golden and didn¡¯t look like it did much to the moose except, maybe, somehow, piss it off even more. A smoking black spot on its antlers was the only product of the action. The moose lowered its head again, eyes weary but determined. Ruth raised both hands and was prepared to try again when it was closer. It had, after all, taken several uses of shock straight into the head of the last ¡®cow¡¯ in order to eliminate it. The hell with this moose. Did it want to fight? FINE. That was when things got even stranger. A sense of movement and danger appeared at his back and Ruth didn¡¯t even have time to whirl around before he was hurled forward past the moose as the house moved. What Ruth had originally thought of as a house, a nice(he had no real impression of human architecture so he had arbitrarily decided to be positive about the nature of this one¡¯s construction) one-story human dirt bricked thing, started to dissociate itself from the ground and from the shape it had been disguising itself. Instead of four walls? It was like someone had pulled back several straight plywood board walls or maybe even giant leaves and revealed a creature of nightmares. The ¡®house¡¯ lurched forward and immediately used its girth and mass to sort of roll -- hurl -- itself onto the moose. The moose, for the most part, was still shrugging off the lightning and hadn¡¯t quite made sense of the large thing in front of it. Certainly not understanding the danger it was suddenly in. It let out a startled and somewhat irritated grunt before it collapsed under the sheer weight of the thing that had fallen on it. Slurping and crunches and grinding noises immediately sounded into the night air. The moose itself must have perished immediately because there weren¡¯t any other noises punctuating the night. Ruth began crawling on all fours as fast as he could, his skin once again trying to crawl off his skeleton as a part of the fleshy house that was casually eating his pursuer had lazily squirmed against his skin. The whole thing on the inside looked like a bunch of huge mouths, stomach flaps, and nightmare tentacles that were ripping into what had been identifiable as a ¡®cow¡¯ just moments before. Ruth backed up and turned, about to run further when he froze. Behind the house that was eating the moose, there was a shed. Ruth eyed the shed, noting it was not as big as the house. He and the shed stood silently in the dark. Maybe it was a normal shed? Probably, well, probably not. Okay, shed, let¡¯s do this. The pants he was wearing rolled up their cuffs in determination. His tail twitched angrily behind him. Both pleased him. Sassy tail and determined pants, check. ?? Arathan and Tamara at this point didn¡¯t know how exactly to react to what was going on anymore, with Arathan turning to Tamara at some point and going, ¡°so, Flynn¡¯s kid is¡­ kinda messed up, huh? It didn¡¯t occur to me that everything in the middle of that forest was probably just food for¡­ uh, everything else?¡± ¡°I told you, it¡¯s not a nice place. He¡¯s actually been lucky to have just encountered the feeder food so far since he doesn''t know to stay away from the outer circle of the forest.¡± Tamara smiled, and whether she was smiling at the thought of where she had put Ruth or was smiling because the shed Ruth had been looking at morphed into a creature and began chasing him, Arathan wasn¡¯t sure. ¡°I thought he¡¯d fight that one but he just ran.¡± ¡°At that point in my life I would have run as well,¡± Arathan shrugged, watching the shed chase Ruth in a big circle as Ruth experimented with how fast it was. In straight lines, it was actually lurching faster than he could run, but much like the moose, it wasn¡¯t very good at turning. Once he figured that out he actually made it to the tree-line again. ¡°Oshi-... Are those webs? Flynn¡¯s kid is fucked up in the head.¡± ?? Ruth was feeling a little better. Not a lot, but that was because there was still a carnivorous human toolshed chasing him. This one was smaller than the house though, so it could have been worse. What was wrong with humans?! How did they live in those? Suddenly, Ruth had his answer as to why the cows refused to be enclosed in spaces with ceilings. Even the small wooden railings made sense now that he understood that these creatures didn''t take corners well. The cows had known. Mad respect to the cows. Moment of silence for that time he ate one of their heroes. Ruth plunged headlong into the trees and out of the clearing, ignoring the spiderwebs that were suddenly strung over tree roots and from tree to tree in long winding spirals. It was the woods, there were spider webs everywhere. If you got hung up on every little spiderweb that was in your face you wouldn¡¯t get anywhere. Besides, spiderwebs, Ruth thought to himself, meant that this place hadn¡¯t been tread on for some time. At least, that was what he was thinking until he heard a strange thump behind him. He turned back just in time to see a spider the size of the shed that was chasing him lurch out from what he¡¯d taken for a pile of leaves and grab the shed. The shed let out a startled shriek and then was dragged, tentacles flailing, into the pile of leaves from which the spider originated. Both the giant spider and the shed disappeared from sight, but the pile began shaking furiously as a battle was evidently taking place. On second thought. Wasn''t the road widely traveled considered safer for travelers? Spiderwebs across your face? From now on he''d just back up and find a road or a river. Ruth turned slowly and looked in front of him in the direction he''d been running toward. A quiet pine forest with webs and several piles of leaves ahead offered no immediate signs of peril to his eyes. Behind him, he could still hear the larger house eating the moose happily. Ruth narrowed his eyes and backed up slowly away from the trees and the webs and the piles of leaves. He would burn this whole place down, but first? First, he had a house to kill. 11. Ruth and the Deadly Domicile First, he had a house to kill. Somewhat diminishing his joy, he finally sighed at the box that was waiting patiently in front of him. The immortal and deadly text couldn¡¯t read the mood at all. It moved back and forth in a welcome manner as if greeting him. The damn thing had been chasing after him watching the debacle in the forest. It probably enjoyed it. To his dismay, it started bobbing at that point as if agreeing with him. The immortal and deadly text informed him of some things, including:
Mana expenditure: 10. Remaining mana: 10
The rest of that nonsense could wait. The important part was mana remaining. It would be another little while until his mana pulsed over and he got back to full again. He wasn¡¯t too keen on the blinking numbers so he ignored them. He supposed this was some sort of smart way to monitor his ability to circulate mana and retain it? There was no point in thinking about it. To his back, there was a very nerve-wracking situation with the utterly still forest. Strands of webbing swayed back gently in the wind and the trees shuddered slightly as a chilly breeze brushed past as if on cue. The moonlight actually seemed somewhat inviting. Even the leaf pile that contained at least one spider and a shed had quieted down, only shaking now and again in irregular intervals and with less and less violence. He turned his attention to the small clearing in front of him. It was actually a fairly large clearing. Large in the sense that it could have contained more than just the tricky house and the cowardly shed. Moreover, the creature that had just devoured the cow was once again pretending to be a house. It seemed to be shuffling slightly, ever so slightly, trying to move another meter into a position where it was blocking a horrifying blood circle in the grass from his view. The remains of the mad cow. ¡°I see you, you bastard.¡± Ruth hissed through his lips. It was possible the creature had never been graced with hearing the subtle elegance of draconic because if anything it acted even more nonchalant as if the entire episode where it was eating the moose right next to him had been some sort of clandestine operation. That house was pretending it had always been a house like it was the sane one and he was the asshole. Brief moment where focus was lost. Ahhh, the building still hadn¡¯t heard the subtle elegance of draconic because his speech sucked. He moved his tongue around in his mouth for a moment trying to use spit to wet it. Maybe, it was broken? Ruth was going to continue the investigation regarding why he couldn¡¯t speak draconic for shit anymore when a small breeze ruffled some leaves on the ground behind him. He jumped about three feet in the air and then moved further forward, heroically, into the clearing. Some careful consideration made him pause. The truly heroic thing, he thought to himself, would be to see if he could avoid confrontation altogether. So he¡¯d move on the edge of the clearing and away from the scary-ass probably normally peaceful spiders. They were likely just misunderstood and you couldn¡¯t just murder things that were misunderstood and bigger than you. He was about to do that when he heard the sounds of faint children''s laughter coming from the house across the clearing. The rustling of people moving within, the soft light coming from a weird corner of the building denoting light and warmth, it was even pretending to make small ¡®cluck cluck¡¯ noises from farm birds. This house just didn¡¯t know when to stop its shit. It was bad enough that it had actually managed to shape itself into some semblance of a human habitat, but it was actually able to mimic the noises of inhabitants? Ruth was slightly impressed. Ruth was even more pissed off that it seemed to be fully aware of his presence and was trying to lure him in despite the fact he had just served it a prime meal. He supposed it was worth asking the immortal and deadly text. He pointed to the house across the clearing. ¡°Kill.¡±
No.
¡°How do¡­ I kill it then?¡± Ruth asked, straining his worldview greatly and lowering himself to ask.
10 Mana Remaining ¡ï Shock - Consumption 2 Mana ¡ï Generic Magnetic Field - 1 spell slot ¡ï Generic Thunder Struck - 1 spell slot
¡°Are you¡­ kidding me right now?¡± Ruth scrunched up his face. The immortal and deadly box bobbed up and down for a moment, but before he could be infuriated it replied.
No.
Then the immortal and deadly text disappeared. Ruth twisted back to the house with some expectation. The immortal and deadly box had obviously just moved so fast his frail and mortal form couldn¡¯t keep up. It was even now delivering a blow on the dastardly house¡­ Or not. Ruth stared at the house waiting for it to explode in some sort of surprising and grisly fashion. The house continued facing Ruth, the twinkling of laughter and light and mirth rising in volume slightly as if that was all it took to fool him into coming closer. The fake chimney at the top producing a slight dark smoke or gas, faking a warm hearth. The whole thing looked even more alien to Ruth because he had no idea what happened inside human houses to begin with since he¡¯d never been in one. He had always assumed that they contained humans and that was where they lived, spawned, and defecated. It had never occurred to him that there were some humans that just liked to hang out inside the stomachs of domesticated shelter predators. The immortal and deadly text didn¡¯t seem like it was going to solve his problems. Not that it had solved any of his problems before this, either. Ruth sighed and thought about what to do. He could get some branches or brush and start throwing them at the sides of the house. It would build up a nice starter spot that he could set on fire with lightning? The idea of the house suddenly shrieking in fear, hiking up its foundations toward its support beams in terror of the fire made Ruth start to smile. The smile faded as he frowned. He frowned because he found several flaws with the plan. The first being, that would take forever. He didn¡¯t have the kind of time where he could be lobbing sticks all night. The second? The second was the house could just move. It had already moved a considerable distance in a rush and the shed had shown him the creatures were capable of continuous movement. The third? There was no reason to talk about how he was not about to go back into spiderland to get wood and the only trees he knew of that might not have spiders were behind the house. Ruth started to move slightly to the left, intent on escaping through a treeline nearest the side he knew didn¡¯t have spiders. The house shifted slightly and seemed to be focusing on him. It trembled slightly and almost tiptoed a little bit in the direction he was going. He stopped, turned, and started going to the other side. The house shuffled very slowly and discreetly in this new direction.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. This tricky bastard. It was obvious to Ruth that the house was waiting for him to get closer. Whether it was aware of the peril of the spider forest or not, he didn¡¯t know. It didn¡¯t seem to be aware that the shed was being eaten. Maybe, it didn¡¯t care? It was more likely, Ruth decided, that the creature was just waiting for him to get close enough to increase the odds of capture. He thought again of those tentacles that slapped and ripped apart the moose. They had been lazy in their endeavor as if it were the easiest thing in the world to crush bone and rend flesh. The tentacles were basically prey hooks, and Ruth guessed that they were very fast. Time to check the things he has. Sassy tail. Check. No nonsense clothes. Check. HISSSSSSSSSSSSS. Is that all? He briefly considered the remaining mana he had and the spells that were available to him. Shock was a good choice but distance did seem to matter. The Magnetic Field wouldn¡¯t do him any good because Ruth seriously doubted that there was any metal present in the monster or in the clearing that would be of any sort of use with the conditions of ¡®repel¡¯ and ¡®attract¡¯. Thunder struck? What did this thing do again? Well, he could cast it twice right now, even if he wasn¡¯t sure how much mana it took. He would learn that when he learned the spell itself. ¡°What the hell,¡± Ruth shrugged. He knew there was some other solution to the situation but he just¡­ couldn¡¯t think of it! It was infuriating. So Ruth did what Ruth always did when a better, more elegant, well-thought-out solution wasn¡¯t available to him immediately -- he did something impulsive. He stretched his right hand out and closed his eyes. He focused on the spell slots and immediately thought of two dark spots bobbing up and down next to three empty and vacant feeling spots. Ruth thought about using Thunder Struck, treating it like he had always treated magic and breath attacks when he was a dragon. An ancient memory of how it was done slowly surfaced in his mind, something in his blood or inherited from somewhere coaxing him toward the right idea of how something was done. The box reappeared nearby, the corners drooping down almost as if it were suffering at being called back this quickly.
¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain.
The house waited silently in the clearing, its otherworldly and alien attention solely focused on Ruth, unaware that the stars were disappearing in the night sky. The fresh scent of water began to pervade and permeate the air. Ruth opened his yellow vertical slitted eyes and felt rather than saw the cloud cover spreading out over an area above the house. Despite the irritation at how slow this was, he wasn¡¯t too bothered. It was just an experiment, after all, to see what Thunder Struck was about. So far he was super unimpressed because he was channeling the spell using a spell slot and it was taking forever. His shock spell, tentatively his favorite, happened near instantaneously. He had been channeling this one for almost a minute by this point. Ruth felt like this was an unacceptably long time and if he knew exactly what a minute entailed he''d be certain. He got the feeling that if he were to stop what he was doing or move his body the spell would fail and consume itself, so he had no choice to continue standing there with his arm outstretched. His opinion on how this was a waste of time changed immediately the moment the spell began to activate. His senses heightened and the smell of ozone stung his nostrils as the location where he was pointing suddenly lit up. The world, fully illuminated, froze for half a moment as lightning arced across the sky from every direction and centered on a single focal point above the house, making the clouds roil dangerously as if they weren¡¯t gas but boiling water. The house itself began shrieking before Ruth¡¯s own eyes adjusted to the spectacle of giant ropes of lightning pouring down on it like water pouring over a waterfall. He startled for a moment, realizing that he could still direct it, and continued to follow the house with a pointed finger as it began to try and shuffle to the left. A devastating ninety or more continuous rods of pure golden light hammered into the house in under ten seconds or less. Ruth dropped his hand dumbly, his ears ringing as the silent sounds of night slowly returned his hearing. He had been momentarily deafened from the cacophonous sheet of golden death that had fallen to the ground across the clearing. The house sizzled and smoldered, acrid smoke beginning to rise into the air. The sounds of laughter and farm animals had ceased in its entirety. The house started to fall in on itself, the larger shell of the creature it had used to disguise itself as a general shape tipped to the side and fell over, scores of tentacles and toothy appendages flopping disgustingly onto the ground and writhing for a moment before going still.
¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck - 25% Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. Spell slots remaining 1
?? Amaranthe lightly strummed her cello as she watched the darkness light up as Ruth cast his spell. She had been somewhat curious as to whether he would even survive being dragged around by the monster moose so she had continued to watch. It wasn¡¯t because she found him particularly interesting. It had more to do, she decided, with the fact that she couldn¡¯t really figure out how he was still alive. The house hunter ate the moose that was chasing Ruth, the spider ate the shed that was chasing Ruth, and now he had actually managed to kill the house with a fairly troublesome spell he¡¯d apparently had. Amaranthe might have thought that Tamara was actually making things work out for him, but her general understanding(as shallow as it was) and the fact she had seen no hints of interference made her think that Ruth may just be the luckiest little not-dragon on Flynn¡¯s World right now. The spell he had cast may have seemed mighty to others, but to her? She could wave her hand and that cloud would dissipateentirely and he would just be holding out his hand toward her in comical fashion. The time it needed to activate in general was far too long. He also had to consciously direct it? Any reasonably intelligent opponent would just move or interrupt him in some fashion. For a surprise attack or used for artillery purposes it did show some merit but¡­ so what? The universe was vast and there were many such destructive powers. Amaranthe smiled softly as she watched Ruth drop his hand to his side and gape. He had lowered his head and closed his eyes. Probably going over how that was actually not a very useful spell. ¡°Don¡¯t worry little friend. Despite this setback, you have a long way to travel. Don¡¯t be discouraged by the inferiority of such a simple starting spell.¡± ?? Ruth opened his eyes, entire body trembling, and he raised his fists to the sky! He roared from deep within his throat and his golden slitted eyes against their black background seemed full of energy and vigor. HE WAS FREAKING AWESOME. Shake-shake-shake-shake. ?? Amaranthe blinked rapidly, and then slowly shook her head with a wry smile. ?? Arathan and Tamara both closed their eyes and shook their heads, one human grimace, and one crow grimace. Arathan was the first to open an eye and then let out a long exhalation when she saw where he was headed. ¡°I¡¯m not even surprised. He¡¯s just so petty.¡± ?? Ruth turned around slowly and eyed the quiet forest. The spider webs and the leaves looked enticing. A promise of safety in the enfolding darkness and quiet solitude of the forest. There was no way of knowing where anything in particular was. Still, there was one more spell slot available to him right now and he was feeling a little punch-drunk from the continuous electrocutions, ambushes, and heart attack inducing heart palpitations. He decided that for the sake of his mental health, a general direction was good enough. He raised his hand and pointed into the trees in the direction of the pile of leaves where the spider was probably gorging on the shed. He closed his eyes and grasped that last shining black spell slot and once again explored the pathways that led to the spell Generic Thunder Struck. Ruth decided to attack the darkness. ?? The immortal and deadly text bounced behind him mournfully as lightning once more played across the sky and the heavens shook. Ruth had likely just started a forest fire and... The immortal and deadly text was being ignored again.
¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck - 50% Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. Spell slots remaining 0
12. Ruth and the Thickening Plot Ruth waved his hand in a leisurely fashion, almost disappointed when the glorious curtain of lightning stopped falling. The enormous and brightly flashing energy beams had immediately scoured the earth and the leaves that the spider and the shed had been hidden inside exploded and burst into flame. There had been one shrill screeching noise as a fire-engulfed spider started to take a staggering step away before collapsing and breathing a last breath. It needn¡¯t have bothered because Ruth was already trying to direct the spell in a general arc, doing his best to scythe it across the largest area before it ended. Trees cracked and split, falling in various directions. Bits of wood exploded outward in large and small bits that flew in every direction, bouncing off trees or embedding deeply in some cases. Trees comprised of both pine and broadleaf quickly burst into crackling flame, and the webbing that had been draped almost carelessly around the whole area burned like short-lived shooting stars that flew in every direction be it up, left, down, or right. Many of those flaming streamers crackled against dry grass or dry leaves on the trees, immediately causing smoke and the tell-tale embers of new fire to be born. Ruth lowered his hand when the flashing finally stopped, his pupils were narrowly focused and contracted to try and block out the tremendous light that had flared up in front of him. They slowly dilated once more to match the new setting of returned darkness. No, not darkness exactly. The low intimate setting of firelight. The smell of stinking and singed spider hair was slowly replaced by the ever-increasing scent of burned wood. Behind the pleasant aroma came an acrid scent of smoke as the younger and wetter foliage began to catch fire and add a darker smoky stink. His yellow slitted eyes did not even blink as the fire began to truly gain strength and momentum as the wind began to carry embers into nearby webs and leaf piles. It didn¡¯t take long for the hidden inhabitants of this forest to truly abandon any pretense of secrecy. Spiders abandoned their pits and ran further into the forest, quite often climbing trees in an attempt to remain nearby and hide from the fire, and then escaping from them as their very own webs began to lead the flickering flames back to their hiding spots. The immortal and deadly text box bounced behind him, trying to remind him of his remaining spell slots, or lack thereof, and probably other information that it deemed vital. Ruth didn¡¯t move, instead, he closed his eyes and took a long and deep breath. It seemed like it was the first breath of air he had taken since coming to this place. The first free breath that reminded him of what it was like to be a dragon. The air burned and his vision twisted from heat mirages in front of him, and it seemed like the light being cast warmed the front of his flesh like the sun used to warm his scales on his favorite sunning rock. Ash tickled his nose, reminding him of the taste of a lightly scorched meal. The sounds of animals fleeing away from him punctuated by the odd and shrill angry noises as they got in each other''s way. Ruth, very momentarily, felt free again. It was only for a moment. His stomach growled at him and he looked down at it with the most subtle hint of irritation flashing through his eyes. When he was a dragon he only had to eat once a week. He didn¡¯t even have to eat that much if he had a big meal and didn¡¯t move around much. This body was constantly pestering him with this feeling. Hunger. Perhaps hunger was the only thing that was going to be important to him in the future. The fire had mostly burned itself out near his feet. The clearing afforded it little purchase other than the grass that he was standing on. The embers had licked forward and burned the grass and then didn¡¯t seem to be able to find the necessary oomph. It had been a wet grass and dirt clearing. The same could not be said for the direction of forest he had set ablaze. It seemed that the jungle of spider webs and fallen leaves had gone on for some distance and the spiders themselves didn¡¯t have the intelligence to try and put out the fire or do anything more than flee in the opposite direction. Ruth went forward and covered his face with the back of his arm, doing his best to be quick. It was a strange feeling, being vulnerable to flame. A strange feeling that he did not like one wit. He dragged out the dead spider, affording it a cursory look to make sure that his lightning had done the job, and then stepped on it in several places to put out the small flames that were licking it because it was still burning. It was truly a hideous thing with eight eyes. Or rather it had once had eight eyes. Most of them had burst like eggs overcooked from their shell as a result of the lightning. It stank, and would have thrown off most creatures with how grotesque of a smoking husk it was. Ruth was not most creatures. He¡¯d had spider meat before when he was a dragon. This looked like it was overdone to him, but he wasn¡¯t picky. He started salivating and knelt down, trying to break one of the legs to get into the meat within¡­ The immortal and deadly text hovered behind him, not at all bothered by the sounds of crunching. ?? Tamara watched the flaming forest in front of Ruth and showed much the same expression. Her gaze never-faltering, never-blinking, watching the creatures flee from him and the fire in the opposite direction. Arathan and Tamara had fallen into companionable silence as they watched Ruth start eating the spider. The way he tore at it with both hands and stuffed his face between the joints of the hideous looking creature wasn¡¯t unsettling to these two creatures either. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go play with his soul shape,¡± Tamara said at last. Arathan just cocked her head to the side, raising her body slightly as she got ready to take flight. Earlier she had merely reached out with her soul power to investigate the small thing. Now she intended to leave Tamara and find a soft and safe spot for her body. She knew when Tamara was subtly requesting to be alone. ¡°Arathan loves Tamara.¡± ¡°I love you, too.¡± Tamara scritched under Arathan¡¯s chin and watched the crow disappear into the darkness. Long after Arathan had fled this space, her head didn¡¯t turn away. Making absolutely sure she was alone. Tamara slowly opened her arms wide and stretched. A violent storm of light pushed from her body, red and golden streaks of energy pulsating wildly in a cyclone around her showing what this space looked like for the first time. A simple box that seemed to be made of some immeasurably queer transparent energy. If it were to be described you might think of it as the size of a vacant lot that one might play in as a child, or a stadium where competitions were held, or even a large parking lot that felt expansive but still had a never-ending feeling. It was somewhat unimportant what the exact dimensions were, you see. It was simply large enough. Tamara opened her eyes and all the transparent edges of the space; walls, ceiling, and floor, went absolutely opaque. No one would be able to enter or see from the outside now. Within the space, walls began to appear colored in a charming grey color. The centerpiece of the wall she was in front of was still the window, still Ruth. The peculiarity of the scene began when golden writing began to appear near the window that showed Ruth and his current endeavor to eat a spider whole.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. A circle appeared. Inside the circle was the name, Ruth. A larger circle appeared around Ruth and was labeled ¡®Wilkeena¡¯s Garden¡¯ and a larger circle around that was labeled ¡®Flynn¡¯s World¡¯. More and more circles appeared, lines attaching to other circles that in turn filled in with words, pictures, question marks, and so on. A long map of words and circles that finally covered every inch of wall that Ruth¡¯s window was on. Tamara looked around again and waved a hand lazily, seemingly pleased. The grey walls, ceiling, and floor all lit up with the same golden writing. It seemed every inch of that space was a relationship map. Tamara stretched again, bracing her arms behind her back as she casually walked around the room looking at all the golden writing. The sheer amount of information about how everything was related to everything else might be enough to drive someone crazy. Perhaps it was a sheer amount of information about how everything was related to everything else, produced by someone crazy? When at last she had come full circle she smiled at Ruth. ¡°You¡¯ve done well so far. It¡¯s getting a bit easy don¡¯t you think?¡± She narrowed her eyes and winked once. A small thread of energy pulsed from her body through the window. Ruth paused for a moment feeling some sort of change. After a long moment, he resumed eating the spider, unfussed by whatever it was that had just sent the hair on the back of his neck rising. ¡°Be careful. I¡¯m not hiding you anymore.¡± ?? The Haberdasher chewed on a walnut thoughtfully and finally gave a thought, once again relishing the attention that was being given to him by all the important Mongeese in attendance. It was probably an occasion with the most hats in one room in recent memory. He steepled his fingers together and cleared his throat after swallowing, ¡°ahem, well if the creature is still following the river he will be reaching the edges of the safe zone of Ten Year Wood. As we all know, it is a perilous place.¡± Mother Chaka nodded, and after confirming that she of the largest hats was agreeing, everyone else in attendance began nodding too. ¡°The wood in that area is fraught with dangers such as the giant lumbering Elkin, the tricky Trapdoor Spiders, and the home and burrow disguising Grabbers. Will you still be sending a large force out after him?¡± The Haberdasher knew the answer but wanted to rile them up a bit anyway. It worked, of course. Mother Chaka stood up, her small black nose wrinkling and her whiskers trembling with righteous and indignant rage. ¡°Death to the Kinslayer! Malika! Take twenty of your cousins with hats and blades and bring me the head of the creature! Take care of each other, but let none stand in your way!¡± Malika herself got up from her seated position(the Haberdasher did drag on when he was talking after all) and unsheathed her newly acquired cutlery. She raised it above her head and turned to the room, ¡°with me!¡± Mother Chaka sat down with a grim expression as many of the younger Mongeese in attendance with hats followed after her. She and the Haberdasher shared a knowing glance at one another. It was always bad business to send out your kin past the safety areas, but what could be done? Justice must prevail. The Haberdasher was sharing a knowing glance with her because he thought she was acknowledging this was the most entertaining birthday celebration in ages. ?? Far underneath the dark forest that spread outward in increasingly dangerous rings was a cavern that seemed to have formed naturally around a figure, roots and dirt settled snugly around the creature. The figure itself had not stirred for a long time. A long time, in this case, being years and years. The beautiful female upper-body was naked and might have closely resembled a human if it weren¡¯t for the strangely androgynous face. Long black hair spun down over her shoulders and breasts and instead of one pair of eyes, there were eight eyelids, all tightly closed. Instead of a mouth and a nose, there was simply a line where the head would unhinge to reveal a great many teeth. This creature¡¯s upper body was married to an arachnoid thorax and abdomen where six deadly black blades that served as legs met the dirt beneath them. Wilkeena was her name, daughter of the god Flynn. The place above where she was resting was her garden. For some time in the past few days she had felt a number of disturbances up above. All the creatures in her garden, when they expired, had their natural mana stolen from their bodies. It fed down into the roots of the forest and, albeit indirectly, to her. The last few days, there had been a number of sudden fluctuations indicating that a great many creatures had lost their lives. This wasn¡¯t an indication of anything amiss really, as that was the purpose of the garden. To grow mana and creatures who had been specifically designed to release their mana back into the domain. They couldn¡¯t, except for the rarest of circumstances, even use their own mana to produce magic. It would have been a waste of resources in Wilkeena¡¯s opinion, so she hadn¡¯t allowed it. The forests burned, creatures howled and thrashed, blood flowed into the grass. Still, despite the regular frequency of such things Wilkeena was always paying close attention to the details. Intestines and dirt and offal and every other natural occurrence you could think of including storms, clouds, crops, and even the way a particular stick was thrown up in the air and how it landed were portending doom and the utter destruction of the inhabitants of the forest. A wise Mongeese bled from her eyes and thought she had received a divine revelation about the end-bringer. A kinslayer was declared and even now the Mongeese set out for revenge on a path that would mean even more of their kind would be killed. The Haberdasher continued to quietly abduct and experiment on Mongeese in the privacy of his old felled Walnut tree in order to produce the mana necessary to continue his production of magical accessory. The Spiders, the Elkin, and the Grabbers continued to eat whatever was close, even and often each other. Still, this happened every year so it wasn¡¯t a cause for alarm. What made her open two of her eyes with a look of quiet speculation was the fact that the mana she was receiving wasn¡¯t as rich as it should have been. Something that didn¡¯t feed magic into the woods was there now. Something that took the mana from the creatures around it and didn¡¯t give it back. Something that wasn¡¯t born there. Something that was no longer hidden from her gaze like it had been when she first became aware of the inconsistency. Wilkeena closed her two eyes again and thought of the intruder, imagining a creature with horns on its head, a tail, wearing a ridiculous robe that looked like it had been cobbled together from reptile scales. A creature that was eating one of her forests denizens and stealing the mana from its marrow. Wilkeena¡¯s mana. It had a faint golden glow around it denoting that it belonged to someone. Tamara. The image of a fierce three-eyed crow began to slowly turn toward Wilkeena before she cut off the connection. Wilkeena opened two of her eyes again and considered. Those two eyes narrowed into a furious line. The creature would pay. She hoped it could feel the doom that was closing in on it. Just because she couldn¡¯t act directly didn¡¯t mean that it would live. Tamara may have put her mark on it, but that just meant that Wilkeena couldn¡¯t direct any force to go kill it specifically. Fortunately, it didn¡¯t matter because the garden itself had already been made aware of this creature. Even now denizens of the garden were turning their eye toward the creature with malevolent and hostile gazes. Some of those looks would begin as curiosity and end in malice. Such was the nature of the garden. As for Wilkeena? She had only one thought toward Tamara and the creature named Ruth. Unforgivable. She hoped the creature cowered in fear knowing what was ahead of it. ?? Ruth sat back on his butt and held the cracked spider leg over his head. A long stringy line of soupy white goo fell into his open mouth. He gulped it down and finally tossed the leg aside. He belched and laid down, casting a look around at the burning forest in front of him as it continued on its way and then a look behind him to make sure there weren¡¯t any more weird cow eating houses. Then he closed his eyes and did his best to nap lightly. It was the skill of a dragon to sleep when it wanted to sleep and he wasn¡¯t giving that up for anything. Light snores sounded on the edge of the clearing soon after. 13. Ruth鈥檚 Lesson and the Haberdasher鈥檚 Perfidious Plan This is the world we live in, thought the Haberdasher. These are the hands we¡¯re given. It was all very confusing for the majority of the inhabitants in the Ten Year Wood. They were born here, eking out a miserable existence where they scrambled for food, for shelter, and for hats. The Mongeese were just the easiest example. The slow-moving Slothen in the upper trees of the Ten Year Wood were another fine example of how things were moving along at the sordid pace they were intended. They moved in migratory circles in the upper regions, sometimes taking years to make the entire trip through the branches as they stripped small amounts to eat; namely, they ate bugs, old and musty bark, and drank from the dew of leaves and pine needles. The Mongeese had a saying that it was bad luck when a Slothen fell from the branches above to its death nearby. No kidding? The Haberdasher thought this an interesting saying because everything in the Ten Year Wood was designed for the purpose of feeding everything else, and eventually, something else. The idea that there were instances of bad luck instead of acknowledging the reality made him scoff outwardly. Everything was terrible all the time. Suggesting otherwise was a simple mental health exercise at best and wish fulfillment at worst. ¡°I suppose you do not even know why it is called the Ten Year Wood? Of course not, you seem like you¡¯re probably five years old.¡± The Haberdasher grunted noncommittally after he said that, as if unsure whether what he said was true or not. ¡°Maybe younger,¡± he finally admitted. The Haberdasher moved to a table that he had set up in the lowest study of his hollowed tree. There was an assortment of glass beakers, graduated cylinders, and small pipettes with tubes running here and there in line with no easily discernible purpose. Additionally, several books were opened and placed precariously near the edges of the table. Pages and pages of notes taken over years of painstaking study. ¡°Normally, I wouldn¡¯t be interested in you. It isn¡¯t professional at this point to continue studying something you understand fairly well. Since I am fairly certain of the result, this experiment seems to be in egregious taste. Young things such as yourself are full of untapped potential, which is a very kind way of saying that as a mana source you¡¯re quite powerful and capable of being used. Potential is all it is though. My experiments resulting in the release of such potential without proper maturation or experience yields almost consistently uninteresting and weak results.¡± The Haberdasher picked up a small piece of charcoal and delicately scribbled a few lines on the page of the tome he was currently recording results onto. ¡°You¡¯ll never get away with this¡­¡± A small and weak voice rasped. ¡°See? Constantly weak and uninteresting. Where was I? So there¡¯s a curve or a shape of results. A pattern if it pleases you. Let me know if I¡¯m using words that are too big for you. Young things such as yourself are worth a certain amount of power but aren¡¯t interesting. Creatures in the middle of maturation don¡¯t typically yield very powerful results but are far more interesting. Not powerful, but different and curious! You understand?¡± The Haberdasher sighed when there was no answer, shaking his head back and forth and pressing his golden spectacles back up to the bridge of his nose. ¡°Young things make a simple bang but it¡¯s just a bang! Mature things don¡¯t yield as big a bang but it¡¯s a more colorful explosion, sometimes with a shape! You understand?¡± He raised his voice slightly, trying to indicate by tone that he required a response. ¡°My¡­ Mother¡­ will end you¡­¡± the voice was getting weaker again, starting to drift off. ¡°I shall hurry, your heart is barely into this. Haha. As for your mother, I have good news and bad news¡­¡± The Haberdasher grabbed a small piece of metal from the table. One end was surgically sharp. He approached Farnik who was strapped to a board that was standing straight up. The Mongeese had his head strapped to the top of the board and was also restrained in several other places. The Haberdasher had found it necessary to restrain them in this fashion because sometimes they could be bitey. ¡°Which do you want first?¡± The Haberdasher held the small knife up like an exclamation point in front of him, gesturing for Farnik to get on with it. ¡°The good news¡­¡± Farnik finally decided when the silence stretched on. He wasn¡¯t sure what to make of the situation he had found himself in now. The last thing he remembered was being struck in a surprise attack by the creature on the bridge and then hours of in and out unconsciousness. The Haberdasher had found him on his return trip to his home after visiting his Mother. He had explained this kindly, lending Farnik a hand. Farnik had been so out of sorts and grateful for the assistance that he hadn¡¯t even questioned why they were going toward the Haberdasher¡¯s tree when his Mother¡¯s home was only a bit further away. ¡°The good news is that your mother is the oldest of her species I¡¯ve encountered. I¡¯ve been grooming her for some time now and it won¡¯t be long until she is up there on the board in your place.¡± Farnik winced as the Haberdasher punctuated the remark by tapping the edge of the board near his face with his knife. ¡°The bad news, however, is that she is perfectly aware of what goes on here.¡± ¡°Lies!¡± A bit of shock surged into Farnik¡¯s eyes. He was concussed and on the brink of death even without the mad raccoon scientist about to set to work on him but the comment that his Mother could be complicit in this act roused his spirit. ¡°Oh, I am afraid it is quite true. We have an arrangement, she and I, though before this is over I think she will come to regret it.¡± The Haberdasher opened his arms open wide at that moment, a charming smile stretching his black little lips up and past his teeth. Farnik shuddered when he saw those teeth and the gleaming smile of the insane thing in front of him. ¡°If you were to ask her one on one I am sure she would tell you that your life is much more important to her than any magical bauble. Behind closed doors? Your heart might sink at her true answer. There is only one creature in the Ten Year wood that can make magical accessories.¡± The Haberdasher moved closer to Farnik¡¯s ear and lowered his voice to a whisper. ¡°There are ever so many Mongeese though, don¡¯t you think? Now. The last one of these I made from a young Slothen named Ilinack. He turned into a very nice ring that could generate clothing. It was somewhat useless, but, as we¡¯ve discussed, there''s only so much you can do with the young. At the moment of your expiration, there will be a certain quick set of procedures I¡¯ll use to momentarily trap the mana you release and give shape to an imbuement before it escapes into the ground. Escape being a relative term. I think whatever is down below is just going to eat it anyway.¡± Farnik closed his eyes, shivering in terror. There was no real understanding of what would happen in his mind, but the way the Haberdasher described it with such dark glee made Farnik feel that it would probably be a horrible way to die. ¡°Before we continue though, I¡¯d like to ask you what shape you think your soul will take at the end¡­¡± Farnik tried to turn his head further away from the awful carrion breath of the Haberdasher but he couldn¡¯t move. There was a strange last thought that ran through Farnik¡¯s head. I¡¯m going to be killed by someone who has the scent of roasted walnuts and dried meat from the house of my mother on his breath... ¡°Try to be honest. It¡¯s for science¡­¡± Farnik finally began to scream. ?? He soared high in the clouds, looking down on his domain. If he were being honest with himself that included just about everything he could see. He was a mighty dragon. As he flew his shadow on the ground frightened creatures into hiding! His roar would send all manner of creatures into wary alertness! When he descended for food there was no option but to submit to be his meal or put up a futile fight where the only outcome could only be¡­ submit to be his meal! With his mighty cold breath he would-- Hmm. His breath was no longer cold. Interesting. He flew down closer to the ground and breathed great crashing waves of pure light! Lightning! Thunderbolts and lightning, very, very frightening! This pleased him greatly and uneasiness of not having ice breath faded as he breathed lightning across the skies instead! The heavens were a canvas and he could breathe a brilliant picture of lightning-like imagery across it at will! He could accompany the pictures with an orchestra of thunder and the crashing and rumbling of the earth as it was torn asunder by the power of his mana and the exhalation from his breast! There existed nothing under the heavens that did not belong to him! That did not bow down before his might! He landed on top of a mountain and sat back, his magnificent and SASSY tail twitching in a fetching manner back and forth, his luxurious midnight scaled wings spreading magnificently. He opened his arms wide, claws stretched upward, and threw his great draconic head back and laughed lightning into the sky. AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAHHAHAA-- ¡°--AHHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAA¡­¡± Ruth was on his feet, palms open and pressed above his head, laughing like a maniac into the chipper morning air. Several birds were twittering happily in the clearing, their small feet dancing in the dew of the grass and searching for bits of things to eat. They paid no heed to the Tiefling that danced around and laughed in his sleep as if it were a natural phenomenon. Now and again, he would get close to one and it would pick up the pace of its tiny little feet for a moment before resuming the social niceties of early morning bird brunch with its fellows. At one point a small chipmunk had popped out of the ground, staring in an alert stance as it watched Ruth, and then grabbed a piece of shiny spider carapace. It dragged the piece to its hole and disappeared with it. Maybe it was making an attractive centerpiece in its den to impress the lady chipmunks. Sometime during his wonderful dream, he had gotten to his feet and started stumbling around the clearing in a drunken fashion. It was possible that the lack of alertness or wakefulness was a result of a slight paralyzing agent in the spider he had eaten the night before. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. The immortal and deadly text box had speculated quite a number of possibilities regarding this behavior, actually. Tamara believed that he was just an idiot. Which if the immortal and deadly text box were pressed, it would also admit was one of the possibilities that it had come up with. Ruth was in front of the immortal and deadly text box. The immortal and deadly text box did not jump away as the Ruth creature might have done. Yet, there was a momentary sense that flashed through the immortal and deadly text box that it could not identify. It set aside this sense for later exploration and focused on the Ruth creature. Ruth pursed his lips together looking altogether unforgiving. He had startled himself awake earlier laughing and hadn¡¯t stopped or broken the illusion that he was still sleeping and dreaming for even a moment. He continued stumbling around the clearing all for the moment when he was close to the immortal and deadly text box. He would knock that thing right on its¡­ corners. It would be revenge for one of the three times. He would be that much closer to being square with the¡­ square. It was displeasing that the strange immortal and deadly text box had not been disquieted or startled at all. The power of this being was obviously a notch above what he had credited it. That was a disturbing thought because he was already faintly certain that it had the power to destroy the world. ¡°We must have an eye-to-text discussion,¡± Ruth finally succumbed to the pressure of the silence first.
Update Available: Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 3) (Medium Smol/Awake) (Lightning Specialized) Intelligence Favored - Points Distributed Automatically ¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck 50% Current Mana: 18/20 Spell Slots Available: 2
The immortal and deadly text box actually began to fade at this point¡­ ¡°Wait!¡± Ruth snarled in draconic. The immortal and deadly text box began to turn opaque again. It turned more solid with a lesser rapidity than it had been fading as if it had been caught trying to leave and was reluctant to return. ¡°Why am I here?¡±
No.
¡°No?¡± Ruth was confused. It wasn¡¯t a yes or no question. There was no need of a negative or a positive response. ¡°You refuse to answer?¡±
Yes.
¡°Do you know the answer?¡± Ruth raised an eyebrow. At this point he was just willing to lower himself a bit because he was pleased that there was something to converse with after his ordeal the night before.
Yes.
¡°Why won¡¯t you tell me?¡± There had to be some sort of reason for everything.
No.
¡°Okay.¡± Ruth paused slightly and held up a hand when it seemed like the immortal and deadly text box was about to fade again. It returned and solidified at his gesture. It seemed that it was responsible for him in some fashion at least. ¡°Are there questions you can answer?¡±
Update Available: Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 3) (Medium Smol/Awake) (Lightning Specialized) Intelligence Favored - Points Distributed Automatically ¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck 50% Current Mana: 18/20 Spell Slots Available: 2
¡°Fuck you.¡± Ruth snarled and held up his hands again as the box began to fade. ¡°STOP.¡± Ruth turned away from the box and started pacing back and forth. The itch to destroy this place began to increase again. He glanced to the right as he paced and was pleased to notice that there was actually a charcoaled tunnel with half-burned trees and grass and dead animals that seemed to cut straight through the forest. A note of pride swelled in his chest before he banished it. The itch to start everything on fire with lightning became almost overwhelming. Something was different this time though. The rage was lesser. He was more confused and curious than angry so that won out over blind rage for the moment. Barely. He would burn this place after. ¡°You are supposed to keep me appraised of¡­ things?¡± Ruth tried again.
Yes.
¡°Fine. What is the meaning behind mana and spell slots?¡± Ruth tried a tricky question. It was possible that--
No.
¡°Alright. How are things chosen for m--¡±
No.
¡°On what basis--¡±
No.
¡°Do you want to die?¡±
No.
¡°What¡¯s the difference using a spell slot and using mana?¡± Ruth at this point was just going to ask questions and annoy the damned thing to death.
Spell slots are available to you as a template so your body can learn from it. Once a spell is understood by your body, that spell will no longer be available for use with a spell slot. Mana from your body must be consumed in order to activate the spell. Spell slots are weakened templates and the mana that is consumed is being gifted to you from your patron. When using your own internal mana the spells will take the true shape of the imagined activation.
¡°What. The. Fuck.¡±
No.
The immortal and deadly text box moved from side to side at his last comment and went back to hovering. ¡°What is a template?¡± Ruth was excited and moved right up to the box, vertical slitted eyes focusing with a sudden burning intensity. He even, for the briefest of moments, wasn¡¯t pained by the horrible lisp he had when he was speaking draconic. Images flashed into his mind, startling him slightly and making him back off. Images of hot liquid being poured into a cutout of a shape. A draconic claw making an intricate design in the dirt by tracing along a pattern on the ground of an ancient garden. The markings made by following a pattern. ¡°Tell me about mana.¡±
No.
¡°Tell me about spell slots.¡±
No.
¡°Who is gifting me the mana to use spell slots?¡±
Patron.
¡°Who is my patron?¡±
Tamara.
He staggered back and clutched his head. Web of lies! Tamara was the enemy that had put him in this predicament and was the same being that gave him the few tools he had to survive. Ugh. His pride took a serious blow. There was nothing worse than being reduced to a situation by an enemy except perhaps being reduced to a situation by an enemy and accepting their charity. ¡°Tell me about my mana.¡± He tried again.
No.
¡°You¡¯re supposed to tell me about the things that you are¡­ listing? You are responsible for that?¡±
Yes.
¡°I do not understand some words and you help me understand?¡±
Yes.
¡°I do not understand mana in this body,¡± he said diplomatically. It was true. The immortal and deadly text box was following him around telling him about changes in his body. When he was a dragon he ate, he slept, he knew things. There were no numbers. No strange gradual climbs based on deadly encounters. No¡­ no goddamn slurring tongue that couldn¡¯t handle the beauty of draconic! The immortal and deadly text box did not answer. Instead, it went absolutely still as if contemplating a great mystery. The Ruth creature was correct in a sense, and that sent another feeling that was alien through it. The immortal and deadly text box did not like this feeling at all. It identified the alien feeling occurring as a result of the Ruth creature being right about something.
The universe is comprised of a great many small moving things. Mana is a unit of energy. All creatures take energy and return energy. Energy cannot be destroyed. Mana is one such energy that many are capable of utilizing. Your body is capable of taking in and returning energy. The way your body does so is a result of the template your patron has placed over your existence.
Ruth stood with his mouth open for a moment. It was only a moment though as he eagerly asked after the meaning of certain words. Utilizing. To make use. Universe. Worlds. Existence. Awareness of self and others. Energy. The next question was obvious to Ruth to ask. ¡°So, I am utilizing mana to¡­¡± He struggled, and this time, the immortal and deadly text box actually pre-empted him and helpfully supplied:
Shape.
¡°...shape existence.¡±
No.
¡°Isn¡¯t that what I do when I use my mana to make the¡­¡± He raised his hand up and wiggled his fingers making fwooshing noises and then pointed to the ground imitating a boom with his mouth.
Yes.
¡°So, I am shaping existence.¡±
No. You are making lightning with a template that was supplied to you. Mana from your internal structure could be used to accomplish the same shaping. You are not shaping existence. You are shaping lightning. Imagination and understanding are both required to shape mana.
¡°I don¡¯t have either?¡±
No.
Ruth narrowed his eyes. This piece of shit box. Did it really just imply that he, a great dragon, was lacking in not just one but two things? Ruth crouched down as a horrifying thought occurred to him for the first time in his life. Maybe¡­ It was possible, however unlikely¡­ Dragons weren¡¯t the absolute best. Ruth felt dizzy and started to breathe rapidly. He needed air or something but the faster he breathed the more lightheaded he became. Dragons were the best, right? There was no way. No way¡­ The immortal and deadly text box must have been concerned because it was bouncing up and down animatedly in front of him trying to encourage him. Ruth felt briefly grateful. Ruth fainted. ?? The immortal and deadly text box hovered nearby mournfully. It had almost been able to close. It had answered all queries and updated the Ruth creature on important information. The Ruth creature had been advised of his current status and the spells he was capable of as well as the remaining mana and spell slots that were available for his consideration. The Ruth creature started to have some sort of mental attack and the immortal and deadly text box deemed it unimportant, getting ready to leave. Then something horrible had happened.
Updated: Mana Remaining Now: 19/20
The immortal and deadly text box had tried to get Ruth¡¯s attention before he blacked out but it was impossible. The Ruth creature had fainted and now the immortal and deadly text must remain to be acknowledged. A baleful wind rustled the grass nearby as birds once again landed and had second bird brunch. 14. Ruth and the College of Serpentine Skirmishers, pt 1. ¡°Dalton.¡± Amaranthe turned her head to the side, her cello was resting propped against the wall next to her within easy reach. Gone was the carefree expression on her face and the lovely meadow where Heath had left her to recoup her strength. She missed that clearing. Soot and grime covered the hair and fur on her head and a small cut was healing rapidly under her left eye. The sounds of furious fighting still sounded below as war raged onward without stopping for the tired. Amaranthe had only been in this pocket dimension for a day in reality, but the time that had actually passed for her was more like a week. A week of non-stop fighting as Lucian, a favored chosen of Damascus had started his war with his forces against Harper, one of Heath''s chosen. Amaranthe had no real stake in this fight except for being an unfortunate bystander when Lucian had issued his challenge. She was here now to show solidarity with those chosen by Heath, and to earn a future favor. She regretted her decision. Lucian was likely to win out by the end of the next two weeks inside the dimensional gem. Three days in the real universe and Harper¡¯s head would likely be taken. Amaranthe would lose the favor and be marked as an enemy to Lucian. Maybe it was because she was feeling depressed and tired, but Amaranthe was not immediately terrified when the golden-eyed slaughter goddess stepped out of nowhere. The wall was bare and overlooked a crucial part of the fortress that was falling. ¡°Dalton?¡± Amaranthe asked. ¡°Dalton, of the College of Serpentine Skirmishers,¡± Tamara looked toward Amaranthe¡¯s cello as she paused. Amaranthe turned her head to look toward the same spot and noticed her cello was missing. When she returned her gaze to Tamara, the clean and fresh-looking slaughter goddess was sitting in an upright wooden chair that hadn¡¯t been there before, the fingers of one hand moving expertly over the tuning pegs while the other hand held the instrument up. She had the bow as well, sitting on a knee. Amaranthe felt a pang of envy for a moment. Wishing she could move so instantaneously and acquire the things she desired. She banished it immediately. She cast her eyes down respectfully and did her best not to project any sort of negative thought toward Tamara. The skin of her once separated arm was slowly beginning to turn the same color as the rest of her body once more. The discoloration was still a constant reminder that even though she had made significant strides toward gaining the power to hold her own fate in her hands, she still had a long way to go. ¡°I do not know who that is,¡± Amaranthe said softly. ¡°This one apologizes.¡± ¡°Of course you don¡¯t know who that is. Why would I need to explain something of which you have an understanding?¡± Tamara strummed a few strings with her fingers, almost prompting a grimace to appear on Amaranthe¡¯s lovely, if dirty, features. Tamara was clean, beautiful, powerful, all the things that Amaranthe with real battle damage, currently was not. ¡°This one awaits the lesson,¡± Amaranthe spoke carefully. She had noticed that all the other people holding the wall had, inexplicably, vanished from her sight. Even the fighting below seemed further away even though this was the inner wall before the Sanctum where Harper was preparing to make her final stand. ¡°You were wondering, moments before, what my chosen is doing.¡± ¡°This one admits the very same transgression,¡± Amaranthe tried to still the slight tremor in her voice. Tamara stopped briefly, fingers frozen in place as her eyes looked up and met Amaranthe¡¯s for the first time since she had appeared. All pretense of being a beautiful and compassionate being vanished as if it had been a placard that Tamara wore over her body like a sheet. The amused look, the flushed cheeks, the slight fumbling as her fingers turned the pegs. Even the breath seemed to be stolen from her lungs as her body went completely still. It was, Amaranthe decided, like looking at a creature that pretended to be living but had long ago forgotten how. Forgotten because all the things that made a living creature were absent, and had been for some time. Tamara smiled slightly, the animation returning to her actions. ¡°It is not a transgression. Heath wished me to impart you a lesson on that temper of yours, and it seems you have learned it well. I forgive your impertinence, and for the moment I have need of speech. Sometimes it is easier to bounce ideas off people who are far removed from your vision.¡± Amaranthe was trying to figure out how to reply when she felt a warm sensation on her arm. She lifted it and flexed her trembling fingers as she realized that it felt more alive than it had before. The skin brightened and all the blemishes, minute though they were, seemed to be merely dirt she could now simply wipe off instead of marred skin. It was even more beautiful than the arm that had not been cut off, and, Amaranthe guessed it would be stronger as well. It didn''t end there. Before Amaranthe could be disappointed that it would just be the one arm, the warmth spread to her body. Amaranthe felt stronger, lighter, and -- inexplicably tired. ¡°This one will try and understand," Amaranthe felt the fear start to crawl up from her soul once more. The casual power and ability to manipulate her doing more to frighten her than the memory of losing the arm. ¡°I know you will. Your reactions will be your gift to me, and then I¡¯ll owe you a favor. It¡¯s important for you to know that the favor can only be asked for at this time. When I am about to leave you may ask something of me, and if I am able, I will do something for you. Do you understand?¡± ¡°This one¡­ does not, but will try¡­¡± ¡°Goodness look how frightened you are!¡± Tamara laughed. She looked out over the battlefield and her gaze sharpened even as she continued to laugh for a long moment. Amaranthe was confident that Tamara''s eyes could see the slaughter that was happening, and that she paid it no mind. ¡°You were wondering why I chose Ruth,¡± Tamara no longer laughed, but her face still held traces of contentment. ¡°Yes,¡± Amaranthe dared not repudiate the slaughter goddess outright. She had actually been wondering what Ruth had been like as a dragon. How had he come to the attention of Tamara in the first place? ¡°Dalton, of the College of Serpentine Skirmishers,¡± Tamara said it again, and Amaranthe detected just a hint of distaste from her words. It was something about the way she said the name and the whole title. ¡°He was a knight employed by a Duchess to remove Ruth from her territory. To hear Ruth think of it, it was a vast territory reaching as far as the eye could see. Jewels and gems were plucked into his claws like one might pluck apples from trees. The trees were gorgeously enriched with mana and the rivers ran with fish who were so fat they sometimes beached themselves, warming under the sunlight as an offering to his appetites.¡± Tamara played a few notes on Amaranthe¡¯s cello, lowering her head and closing her magnificent eyes. Amaranthe trembled, relaxing a bit as that gaze turned further from her. The few notes she was playing now elicited a strange mixture of warmth, comfort, and comedy into her body. Like the opening lines to a particularly funny little play. The notes lowered in pitch even as Tamara continued to play, her voice moving over the notes in some fashion that made them easily understood despite the wonderful music that was being played.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°In reality, his lair rested on the peak of a lonely mountain in a small and impoverished kingdom. The ladies and lords of the land often squabbled but rarely fought each other because there wasn¡¯t really anything of worth or value there to fight over. Not sincerely fight over anyway. Ruth, in his time there, fought ferociously for his one mountain peak, accruing enough wealth and earning enough ire to make him seem quite formidable to such a number of frogs within that small well.¡± Tamara lowered her head again, shoulders moving slightly as she abandoned her story to play sincerely for a moment. Amaranthe felt something seizing her body. It was like a powerful force flowed within that music. It captured her, made her spellbound, made her breathe faster. Pressed down on her, made her lighter, and made it hard to breathe at the same time. It was music like this that let her know that there were still heights she could reach and even loftier aspirations beyond those that she might not even glimpse in her life. When the fever pitch slowed once more Amaranthe almost complained, a lost look in her eyes and a wet pout starting to form on her lips. She wetted them with her tongue and would have forgotten herself to ask for more, but Tamara¡¯s voice cut through the strangely pleasurable fog that was starting to drown her like an overweight blanket. ¡°Still, Ruth had been there, if you were to ask the peasantry -- well, forever.¡± Tamara slowed her pace again with consideration to the tempo of the music but continued to keep her eyes closed. ¡°He was just like the weather. There was a dragon on the mountain. There was a rainy season and a dry season. The dragon would take cattle or sheep or horses from time to time, but largely left them alone. The wolves would do the same. You didn¡¯t hate the wolves. You did what you could but largely expected them to just take from time to time. More importantly, Ruth provided a strange service. He was extremely territorial toward other creatures. Orcs, goblins, ogres, other dragons, really anything that wasn¡¯t a human being if we¡¯re being honest¡­ He fought them all and killed them in order to keep his territory clear of what he thought of as ¡®the rubbish¡¯. It was a strange sort of symbiosis. The proud and cowardly dragon, the human beings that cultivated and tended the land.¡± ¡°Why humans,¡± Amaranthe managed to ask in a pleasure strangled voice. It wasn¡¯t fair¡­ she decided. When would she be able to play like this? ¡°From an early age he already pegged humans, and demihumans, and anything that walked on two legs and looked a certain way and wore clothes, of all things, as troublesome and something to avoid. If you¡¯re asking me why he knew the difference between them and monsters like himself or even not like himself? The non-humans and non-demihumans smelled bad to him. Hygiene saved many, perhaps? It may just be that he had an odd mutation and everything smelled bad except the certain type of flower that is humanity and all their myriad transformations.¡± Amaranthe startled herself by snorting out a quick laugh. Bathing saved a community, or there was a dragon that liked the smell of flowers and humans. She forced herself to focus even as another wave of warmth washed over her like a comforting morning fog. This was no less a fight for her life than when she was on the battlefield below. ¡°...Dalton...of the Serpentine Skirmishers¡­¡± ¡°Yes, Dalton. A knight.¡± The music changed in tone then, becoming longer and melancholy, a prelude to a great tragedy. ¡°There are many aspirations of young people. To be courageous, and good, and compassionate, and an inspiration! Who doesn¡¯t wish to be heroic? In the end, some lose their way and become butchers of the magical, the misunderstood, or the inconveniently dangerous. Dalton never started out with great aspirations. When he was a young boy he found he liked to hurt animals. As he got older he channeled that into monster hunting. Rewarded for hurting creatures, lauded by the masses, and extolled for his virtue. A perfect vocation.¡± ¡°Heroes¡­ are a blight on the land¡­¡± Amaranthe whispered sorrowfully, remembering what Heath had said. ¡°Nonsense.¡± Tamara scoffed, opening her eyes briefly. The music stopped, and Amaranthe gratefully straightened into her sitting position. She had been leaning against a small stone wall with her back to the inner courtyard so she could look out to the sky, but as the music had progressed she had been slowly sinking into a position with her body on the ground. She had lost all ability to control her muscles at some point and was grateful for the opportunity to compose herself once more. ¡°Heroes are a natural part of the balance of the universe,¡± Tamara waved the bow slightly and there was no less elegance in that momentary gesticulation than there might have been if she were conducting a symphony and not just making a point to a fox girl. ¡°So too, is Ruth. Both take and return.¡± It was strange to Amaranthe that Tamara, the slaughter goddess, was defending the role of heroes and her own god had not. ¡°So, Dalton had been hired by the Duchess of the land after Ruth had eaten one of the horses that drove her carriage. Unsurprisingly, the Duke himself hadn¡¯t really cared about it one way or the other. He wasn¡¯t about to spend his wealth or his men on trying to kill the dragon. It wasn¡¯t important, and honestly there is something dashing about having land with a dragon on it, isn¡¯t there?¡± Tamara smiled briefly as if it were a great joke. ¡°Ruth had thought he was being very generous. Despite eating the horse within earshot of the fainting Duchess, he had, after all, left one horse so they could still get home, hadn¡¯t he?¡± Amaranthe was strangely charmed at the idea of the generosity of the dragon herself, to be fair. ¡°So, at great personal pains, she had retained the services of the College of Serpentine Skirmishers. A newly established order of heroic knights who journeyed the land and took care of dragons! For the low, low cost of two gem encrusted necklaces worth a small fortune, Dalton agreed to use his firsthand knowledge of dragon-slaying and rid the area of the ¡®menace¡¯.¡± The sarcasm in Tamara¡¯s voice was thick, making Amaranthe curious. Tamara was kind enough to continue explaining. ¡°Dalton himself had killed a dragon a few months prior to this using a particular sort of ballista. The dragon in question had seen the gleam of the ¡®bolt¡¯ that was attached atop the ballista and had mistaken it from a distance for some sort of precious shiny metal. It had come over, caught the bolt that had been shot at it, and still convinced it was precious metal and without landing, bit down on it to test out what kind of metal it was. Of course, as an unfortunate circumstance, the meter long metal tip had been coated with a special kind of paralyzing poison. Scentless, naturally, so the greedy creature that had somehow managed to live to the point where it could take to the air was felled by the simplest of forces -- gravity. The dragon, unable to flap her wings, fell to the ground and to her death. A great victory for the newly founded college, to be sure.¡± Amaranthe was speechless, as was becoming the case quite often. ¡°Quite...dashing¡­¡± ¡°Indeed. The bards told it differently, else the Duchess might have reconsidered. Perhaps she would not have. In either case, he was there and set up his ballista atop a hill overlooking the heart of the small village. It was the only hill in the area that could be clearly seen from the mountain. It was also the only area where the vast majority of the villagers who didn¡¯t tend the land set up stalls and houses for their families. It was a safe place, was it not? A dragon protected it.¡± Tamara chuckled. ¡°Protected it?¡± Amaranthe had the impression that Tamara was fooling with her now. ¡°Of course he did. They were peasants! They can¡¯t be bothered to know the truth of the situation! The dragon didn¡¯t eat them and avoided them at all costs. Other villagers had come from other areas and knew the truth! That living was miserable anywhere. There were monsters that raided the crops, monsters that stole the women, monsters that stole the crops and raided the women! So what if there was a dragon on the mountain and you could hear the thing snoring!¡± Tamara threw her hands up. ¡°To the villagers he was important. The best kind of protector. The one who wanted nothing to do with you.¡± Tamara began adjusting the pegs of the cello again. Amaranthe had no idea why. It had never sounded better to her in her entire life. It was possible that Amaranthe would never need tune that cello ever again. ¡°The first day Ruth became aware of the regions newest creature, there was quite the spectacle,¡± Tamara smiled. 15. Ruth vs The Ballista The more Tamara talked, the more the surroundings faded. The less Amaranthe could see around her, the harder it got to hear her voice. A peculiar sensation where Amaranthe slowly became Ruth. Incapable of doing anything or changing things, but nevertheless along for the ride. Soon there was only the dragon, and Amaranthe almost started to forget who she was as the memory swept over her mind. Ruth opened his eyes and inhaled. The bouquet of scents hit his nostrils and his impossibly large lungs inflated to full capacity. He held that long breath in as if sampling it for the various flavors. Everything seemed to be in order. There was the metallic sting of cold and precious metal that was slightly damp, the tang of the oil that the pet beetles produced from their wings, the impression that the trees that bloomed up and down the sheer side of his mountain were in full force. Today was going to be another good day. Ruth rolled to his side, sending a small and delightful cascade of colored string and coins tumbling down from underneath the ¡®nest¡¯ he had pushed together as bedding a few days earlier. He gave a slow vertical slitted wink to the marble statue of the courageous pegasus he had rescued from a terribly horrid little man on the road last year. It had been bouncing around dangerously in the back of his uncovered carriage with very few ropes to tie it down appropriately. Despite Ruth flying low and trying to warn the man to slow down, less he displace the magnificent work of art into the road. The human must have been in some kind of manic state, possibly ill. As Ruth drew closer he started whipping his horses into a frenzy, torturing the poor creatures in a way that made Ruth get angrier and angrier the closer he flew. In the end, he had, in his opinion, very little choice but to flick his wrist and send the man flying into the underbrush. The horses had to be eaten swiftly because they were having literal heart attacks from the abuse they had received on the road and his presence certainly hadn¡¯t helped. Mad respect to those horses for trying to aid the man in the transferring of an effigy of one of their flying cousins despite the well-earned reputation of humans and their propensity for random and spontaneous insanity. He finished them quickly and ate them, giving silent thanks because they were spared the pain of agonizing death and because they were freaking delicious. He briefly toyed with the idea of going after the man who had fled into the trees but decided against it. Humans, he had come to realize at the time, weren¡¯t worth the trouble. They were like angry little bees or wasps but with longer memory. He had been about to fly off when he was once again struck by the beauty of the sculpture of the pegasus. The loving detail and rendering were incredible. Whichever horse had crafted the thing deserved respect. Whichever pegasus it had been modeled after must have been a great hero to his or her people. A protagonist of pegasus. A protagasus. Naturally, Ruth had taken the statue to his lair and developed a fond and silent relationship with it. It had been a sad affair that such a work of art was unnamed so he had named her Peggy because he felt that she deserved a name. ¡°Good morning, Peggy,¡± Ruth nodded again and yawned, crawling slowly to his feet. He was always a little groggy after a few days of comfortable napping. It was time to step out and take in the breeze and see if he could scent something tasty. It was warm out. Perhaps, he thought, he should freeze a part of the river and have fish-cubes for breakfast. Ruth yawned again, eyes casually surveying the area that he lorded over. It was fantastically huge. The landscape that he controlled spanning in every direction that probably covered the entire world. The world was a big place! It would probably take him a week or so of flying in order to cover it all. There was no need to discover just how long it would take. Not yet. He was still a young dragon and the land he ruled now had need of his attention. For instance. There seemed to be something shiny on the hill overlooking the human settlement. This was cause for alarm. Humans, when left alone, could be just as dangerous as humans that were meddled with. The trick was to rule them with a pretended air of indifference while paying close, close attention to them. Ruth shook his huge frame to get the old juices flowing and launched himself in the air with his powerful hindquarters. Mana distributed itself freely below his wings assisting with the updraft that would keep him in the air. Mana made everything better and he had the best mana. Why? Because dragons were the best. He was feeling pretty pleased about the wind on his face and his mind was sort of wandering when the glint on the hill changed slightly. It was pretty far away so he wasn¡¯t immediately concerned. Sometimes the light could play tricks from this angle. He was very high up after all and he couldn¡¯t be bothered to account for every change on the ground while he was thinking about how great he was. Despite his lack of care or any real give a damn about the change, the fact the shiny thing moved had caught his attention. Ruth loved shiny things, and he was gliding lower now trying to get a good look at whatever it was that was on top of the hill. Normally, he wouldn¡¯t have gone to that hill because it overlooked a human-hive. There were some things you just stayed away from so the swarm didn¡¯t buzz after you. The humans knew where he lived and he was pretty sure they knew better than to do anything other than leave horses, sheep, and cattle out for him. You could never know for certain, however. His eyes narrowed slightly, lids closing tighter as he increased his speed a bit. They immediately widened as a flash of light alerted him to the object that was traveling directly toward him. Despite every instinct crying out for him to put out his wings and come to a screeching halt, he decided instead to pull his wings in close to his body and increase the flow of mana to buy him a few moments without flapping. He turned his head, his eyes focusing momentarily as the shiny thing hurtled past him through the air. Ruth let it go without trying to grab it and started flapping casually again as he considered this phenomenon. It had been some sort of stake or log with a metal point. He had seen humans carrying smaller versions but had never seen one flying through the air like that. It was possible that the humans had made a bigger one and thrown it? Ruth disregarded the thought immediately. Humans were tiny and incapable of throwing something that large at Ruth. He circled closer to the hill, wary now as he watched another shiny thing start to turn toward him on top of what looked like a great brown woodland creature. The ass of the creature appeared to be turning the shiny thing to point at him, like a spitting snake or one of those quilled creatures that could shoot their spines lining up a shot. It almost looked like the ass of the creature was a human wearing that shiny carapace they sometimes did, but the rest of the scene made no sense to his brain if that were true. It was far more likely he was looking at some sort of new deadly species. His gaze sharpened as he got closer, only a few moments from passing overhead in fact, and once again tucked his wings to his body and rolled slightly to avoid the second barbed thing that was fired at him. He hissed slightly and pulled up, putting his wings out and maxing his mana output for a moment to stabilize before climbing into the air. He flew further away back toward his mountain and finally landed near his lair. He sat looking at the hill from his lair vantage point, concluded that the creature couldn¡¯t shoot its barb from there, and thought long and hard about what to do. Merciless and worried eyes watched that hill. He looked briefly back at Peggy, hoping for inspiration. Peggy was calm and collected as always. She was the best of them. He puffed his chest out with pride at the memory of how they had come to be friends. Sure, she didn¡¯t talk much, but they never argued. Peggy was right. He had to go kill that thing. It was too close to the human settlement and the heavens knew where those creatures would move to if the creature on the hill decided to destroy their nest. Humans were so stupid and useless. He was about to get angry when a look back at Peggy confirmed what he already knew. Her deep eyes imparted the message she wanted him to hear. This was so like her! ¡°Why do you have to be so compassionate, Peggy?!¡± Ruth snarled in draconic. ¡°Humans aren¡¯t even smart, you know?¡± Ruth sighed. Ruth wasn¡¯t a hero like Peggy but he supposed he would save them anyway. ?? A horrifying lurch and suddenly Amaranthe was no longer Ruth. She was Dalton. Dalton watched the dragon cruise away after the second bolt had missed. It was a shame because the poison was quite deadly and expensive. He pushed the rim of his steel helmet, more of a steel shell with a strap than helmet really, up so he could watch the retreating form. Dalton put his hands on his waist as he let out a long sigh. ¡°Can¡¯t always get¡¯em on the first day,¡± he said quietly. There was a hint of irritation causing his pencil-thin mustache to twist on his face. He had already told the duchess that there was no guarantee in dragon hunting and that it might take longer than a day.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. It didn¡¯t, however, help that he¡¯d gotten into his cups the night before and boasted to the rather dubious backwater peasants that their impressive ¡®dragon¡¯ would probably end up attracting flies by the end of the day. Not only that but the dragon was a beautiful specimen. Not less than 60 feet long if Dalton didn¡¯t miss his guess. Beautiful blue and black midnight scales all up and down its body. The eyes had been almost entirely black with a gorgeous and intelligent strip of gold. It sent shivers down his spine as it had sped by overhead. They weren¡¯t smart, he reminded himself. The shine of the metal alone had brought it out to take a look. Only really lucky acrobatics had saved it from the deadly poison. Dalton was confident that he could just wiggle the bolt and the shiny metal would attract the creature back in a bit. He wiggled the bolt-thrower back and forth, moving it slowly on its wheels. He pretended that he was a fisherman and he was simply wiggling the bait. Tried not to think about the fact that he was closer to the end of the fishing pole where the bait sat than he was where the fisherman usually sat. Dalton just had to be careful. He reassured himself of this many times and thought about the holes he had dug within easy diving distance. If the creature tried to breathe from the sky he would just dive into the holes he¡¯d made for that and pull in the dirt piled up nearby. If the creature descended it would hit at least one of the spikes he had planted all around the bolt thrower that was coated with the poison that would paralyze and put it down in a matter of seconds. Dalton smiled at that thought, ignoring the drops of perspiration that were starting to run uncomfortably down his arms under his heavy shirt and heavy steel cuirass. He would smell bad for a while, so what? ¡°I hope that dragon does land. It¡¯d be great for me if I could introduce it to a little swordplay. The story alone would keep me in business with the ladies for years¡­¡± Dalton tried to cheer himself up. He had even started to chuckle, moving that bolt-thrower back and forth, when the shadow that flashed over him like a cloud was passing over caused him to look up. The dragon¡­ had just flown by and was wheeling slowly back toward his mountain again. Dalton wasn¡¯t exactly sure what the reason was. Did it want to get another look at him? A rush of air and a weird whistling noise alerted him to the fact that there was still something above that was plummeting down. A boulder the size of Dalton crushed into the dirt of the hill, miraculously not embedding itself in the softened dirt or spoiling any of the spikes he had placed. It bounced once, twice, and then started a slow roll down the hill. Shouts of outrage came from below a minute later as the stone had caught speed and actually crashed through the wall of a house below. Dalton¡¯s mind blanked. The dragon had tried to drop a rock on him. His expression became grim as the dragon had dropped out of sight behind his mountain and appeared to be slowly wheeling himself back into the air. It was hard to make out from this distance, but Dalton¡¯s imagination already filled in the blanks of what his vision couldn¡¯t perceive. That damn dragon was wheeling upward with another rock. ?? ¡°N-no, wait¡­ I¡¯m going to be sick if you keep doing thi--¡± Rodney was wiping his neck with a handkerchief. The air was hot and stifling this time of night, especially with everyone packed in tighter than a church procession during sin forgivin¡¯ day. It might have looked like a church sermon was about to take place. The whole village and many of the farmers who tended the land had all filed in quietly as darkness fell. Everyone had watched the spectacle of the dragon dropping rocks on that damned fool Dalton. The worst part, Rodney quietly thought, was that the dragon hadn¡¯t managed to hit him. Fifteen rocks, and then a statue of a pegasus, of all things, had rained down like the judgment of the gods on that poor hill. Every single rock, but not the statue, had then proceeded to roll down off the hill and smash into houses, into the duck pond, and, and-- Rodney took a deep breath and tried to find his patience. The other villagers in the small cellar were not being so understanding. ¡°My pond¡­ it¡¯s shallow now and most of the fish are dead. I think most¡¯ve¡¯em died from the shock of the thing¡­¡± Muttering met this admission. Everyone liked the fish and the frog legs the pond provided. It froze over and the fish and the frogs all popped out in the thaw like nothing happened. Low maintenance food and it was just a mess now. ¡°I feel bad for your pond Early, I do, but my house has a rock in it. I¡¯m gonna need to borrow your boys and the workhorses just to drag that thing out. I don¡¯t even know how the durned dragon managed to lift it.¡± ¡°Your pond, your house, my irrigation ditch has a giant plug in it I can¡¯t move. We¡¯re gonna have floodin¡¯ if I don¡¯t move it first thing.¡± ¡°Why the hell he trying to kill that old fool thing anyway?¡± Wise old McDermott, usually the one to keep a cooler head was spitting mad as a hornet. Most days even he forgot that the dragon even existed, now there was some fool above his house provoking the damned thing. ¡°Oh, you know how the Duchess gets¡­¡± Samantha sighed. It would be more correct to say that Samantha knew how the Duchess got. She was the one that went up to the hill castle and mended the dresses and the fancy curtains once a month. ¡°The Duke hired such a fool.¡± ¡°No, it were the Duchess!¡± ¡°No one cares who did it or who hired ¡®em. Someone just needs to roll that idjit Dalton out of town before he drinks us dry. Says the mansion is covering it and we all know full well that ar¡¯ Lords ain¡¯t gonna cover his tab. He¡¯s gettin¡¯ into the medicinal victuals¡­¡± ¡°Worse. We all know that the dragon is being ¡®delicate¡¯ by monster standards. It carries off horses, eats cattle, headbutts ogres -- the fact it¡¯s throwing rocks is almost a blessing¡­¡± Old Norma was usually the one that nobody wanted to agree with because she was ugly and smelled bad. She was also always talking about how her god, Saturday, was always going to swoop down and rescue them all from their impoverished life and give them a bunch of virgins. For years. So it was a little disconcerting that heads were nodding in agreement. At this point, Rodney wasn¡¯t even sure where Saturday would get enough virgins let alone do the rest. ¡°Well. The last thing the dragon dropped, that pegasus statue?¡± Rodney finally opened his mouth and everyone quieted. He knew it was because he¡¯d had some work as an adventurer when he was a young man that they all paid attention when he decided to speak. ¡°It broke the ballista and the dragon stopped dropping things for the day. Dalton is going out in the morning and I¡¯ll be hanged if he won¡¯t have that dumb ass contraption fixed before the afternoon is over. We¡¯ll be back to being in the center of this dumb.¡± ¡°What¡¯re ya thinking?¡± McDermott asked quietly. Silence descended on the cellar. ¡°I¡¯m just worried about Dalton¡¯s health,¡± Rodney closed his eyes. ¡°I think maybe he got hit by that pegasus statue. Maybe that¡¯s why he¡¯s drinking so much. He¡¯s hurt and he¡¯s not telling us.¡± No one spoke, and as awful as it was, Rodney took that for permission. ¡°Folks. Ya¡¯ll have a goodnight. I¡¯ll check in on Mr. Dalton and see if he needs anything. Maybe, if he¡¯s feeling right, we¡¯ll head on up and have a look-see at his contraption.¡± A series of goodnights and well wishes sounded out toward his back as he left the cellar. No one moved to follow him. In fact, most of them would stay there chatting quietly of other things until daybreak. It was a sad affair when they found Mr. Dalton in the morning. The pegasus statue was tipped over him on the hill and his eyes were bulging, his face and skin purple and bloating in the morning sun. McDermott and the mayor, a man named Early, took their hats off and put them over their chests. ¡°Damn shame. Looks like he got up in the middle of the night and the dragon dropped it on him in the dark.¡± ¡°Sure looks that way.¡± ?? W-wait-- Ruth flew low toward the hill, stealthy and silent, landing near the edge of the hilltop as he looked down on the crushed creature. The humans were starting to gather and head to their daily routines. Little bees that were always working hard for their nectar. Ruth drew himself up to his full standing height and looked proudly at Peggy. Her head had fallen off and was rolled to the side, facial expression in an equine and heroic snarl of defiance. He had tried to talk her out of it yesterday when he couldn¡¯t find any more boulders to throw, but there was no dissuading her when she got that way. Moment of silence for Peggy. The dragon flew off lazily toward his lair, already forgetting about the wreckage and the strange dead human on top of the hill wearing the shiny metal. On his way back a spot of gold caught his eyes near the river. He circled once, twice, but failed to see it again. He went lower, curiosity and vigor from his recent victory making him a little less cautious than he might have otherwise been. He flapped low and splashed into the stream so he didn¡¯t have to deal with the trees, going up to his hips. Ruth looked around for the beautiful color and found it immediately. It was a treasure, but he was uncertain what to do with it. The gold color spilled like a cascade of the finest thread from her shoulders. Her eyes sent chills down his spine that the sun in all its morning glory couldn¡¯t seem to dispel. They were golden but blazing in a way that couldn''t be described save by comparing it to the most brilliant of fire opals. She smelled of dusk, and gemstones, of blood, and danger. Despite the allure of the pure white shirt, the high-quality gloves and boots, and the absolute temptation that the color of her hair and eyes provided Ruth froze. The eyes stared at him blankly and he stared back. It was the first time in his life Ruth had ever felt resigned. ¡°I am going to die now?¡± Ruth asked her. To his surprise, she responded in draconic. ¡°Yes, and no.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± There didn¡¯t seem to be anything to say. Ruth looked at her and despite her beauty, he only felt death encroaching toward him. A sword half-again her size appeared in her hand as if by magic. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because I need a rock to throw at something dangerous.¡± Ah. See you soon, Peggy. It was the last thought Ruth had before he wasn¡¯t a dragon anymore. He didn¡¯t see the end with his great visual acuity, let alone feel the separation that occurred as his great head slid from his shoulders. Nor did he feel the separation as, her curiosity piqued, Tamara started to extract his soul... Amaranthe, however, felt it all. ?? Amaranthe was finally freed from the back to back full immersion illusions or memories, whatever you wished to call them. The taste of overwhelming and inescapable death was still on her lips and she scrambled away from Tamara in a panic, sliding on her ass and pushing her palms against the stone as she tried to put distance between them. She was stopped a moment later when rolling in her stomach caused her to flip over and vomit wretchedly over the side of the wall. She felt cold fingers grasping her hair and lifting it up, assisting her as she puked over the wall. Her skin crawled in terror and if she hadn¡¯t been heaving she knew she wouldn¡¯t have been able to help herself and would have probably flailed at Tamara until Tamara simpled wished her dead. Tamara leaned in close to her ear, her warm breath sending new spirals of terror down her spine. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about your wish.¡± 16. The Patron of Ruth ¡°...am I a r-rock?¡± Amaranthe managed to stutter out. Her hair was being held and her ears were twitching at the tactile sensation of Tamara¡¯s wrist as it inadvertently touched them. The twitching increased and there wasn¡¯t anything she could do to stop it. Tamara finally lowered her grip slightly so that she wasn¡¯t touching them at all. It helped, some. ¡°Oh, sweetie, no.¡± Tamara put a hand on her back and a settling sensation went past Amaranthe¡¯s spine and into her abdomen. The good news was that Amaranthe felt better. The bad news was that Tamra was still touching her and now that she wasn¡¯t puking, she was turning Amaranthe to face her. Tamara¡¯s eyes were almost too intense to look at directly and Amaranthe felt her eyes immediately looking down and to the left. She would look anywhere else. ¡°T-then what do you want?¡± Tamara sighed, seeming reluctant to release the hair in her grip. She let it spill out gradually, watching it as it slipped from her grasp. She took a step back as if acknowledging she was the problem Amaranthe was having trouble with. ¡°I want you to think carefully, and ask me for something. Something in the next minute. This way I¡¯ll be doing you a favor. It¡¯s important that we establish that. I¡¯ll be doing you a favor in return for listening to me talk about my chosen. Do you understand?¡± ¡°Y-yes,¡± Amaranthe did understand that she needed to ask for something. She was at a complete loss as to what to ask for. She prided herself on being bright. She may not be the smartest creature in any verse, on any world, and often -- considering the company she kept -- was not even the smartest creature in the room. She wasn¡¯t dumb, however, and the way this was happening made her think there was a very specific thing that Tamara wanted her to ask for. Think. Think. Gonna die. Think. Gonna get killed at this rate. Think. THINK. THINKING ANYMORE IS GOING TO GET YOU KILLED JUST SAY SOMETHI-- ¡°You are not the rock,¡± Tamara said softly, breaking Amaranthe¡¯s train of thought. Her eyes stopped flickering with terror and she calmed down, realizing that Tamara was going to say something else. Tamara gifted her with another few words that were barely a whisper, ¡°I¡¯m the rock. Throw me at something.¡± Amaranthe blinked, mind going completely blank. Slowly an idea formed in her head. Why the wish had to be made immediately before Tamara left this place. A one-time thing that seemed more like a threat than a gift. The story that had been told. She didn¡¯t know why Tamara would want it, but she thought she understood what Tamara might want. So, the idea started to solidify. An absolutely terrible idea. Tamara stepped back and looked more pleased by the second. Her lips curled upward and her eyes seemed to absolutely burn with intensity. The aura started to force back the blurriness of their surroundings and once again Amaranthe could hear the sounds of people dying from down below. ¡°Don¡¯t be shy, your time is almost up.¡± ?? Harper was tall. It was the first thing that stood out to anyone. Well above average for most humanoid races at two and a half meters. Certainly tall since most races tend to cater toward height in the males of the species and not the females. Harper had black braids that ran down one side of her head, the other side cleanly shaved in a similar style to Tamara¡¯s. A simple and sleeveless black blouse contained her ample bust and cut-off shortly underneath displaying the rather impressive musculature just above her simple black pants and serviceable boots. The tips of the boots near the front ended in black metal. As if there weren''t enough of the woman with half-giant blood in her veins, almost every inch of her body was inscribed with some rather lovely tattoos depicting various battles she¡¯d been through in her life. Things had not been going well. She was standing at a table in her inner sanctum going over the war table. There were two chosen with her that owed her favors and they would stand with her until they were forced to stand aside. The forces arrayed against them were greater. The damned chosen, Lucian, had greater resources and was pushing toward them. In a one-on-one fight, Harper wasn¡¯t certain between her and him who would win. She had just reached triple black star status herself, a unit of measurement that was vague and almost useless on its own. That¡¯s why there was so much caution, so much uncertainty, and so much care that went into any thought of conflict with other chosen. Chosen weren¡¯t gods. They couldn¡¯t wander around so freely and make enemies of whoever they pleased. They weren¡¯t gods but they were powerful and arrogant, and in many cases -- rightly so. Still, there were consequences to all actions for everyone that wasn¡¯t a god. If you killed a chosen, you had better be prepared to have your own patron back you or that chosen¡¯s god may just decide to squish you for the impertinence. Heath was a great patron in a lot of ways. It was just, Harper couldn¡¯t keep her mouth shut. If Harper could live through this Heath would protect her from the other god¡¯s ire. Chosen battle happened all the time. It was fine, and expected, as long as you had a big stick behind your back. So, when Lucian had challenged her after she¡¯d opened her big mouth and she¡¯d had no choice to accept? It wasn¡¯t really anyone¡¯s fault other than hers. Well, hers and Lucian¡¯s. Lucian was such a shit-head. Harper grinned at the random thought. Her white teeth a sharp contrast against her dark caramel skin. She was about to share her thought and the joke of it all to one of the other¡¯s around the table but she realized that she wasn¡¯t¡­ there anymore. Harper was looking directly at Lucian who was casually seated at a table in a large canopied tent. Harper was standing in the enemy camp. She froze, not even bothering to straighten up with the feeling of uncertainty flaring up inside her. This was some sort of mental attack? Trick? Teleportation? It didn¡¯t make her feel any better at all that Lucian looked just as surprised. A wine goblet was halfway to his lips. The wine goblet slowly descended until it was placed on the table as if it were natural and he¡¯d always planned to give up on his sip halfway. His hand went to the hammer that was laid on the table. It was a terrible thing. Easily again his size like some sort of comedic tool used for a children¡¯s story. The strength it required to pick it up with one hand like it weighed nothing was anything but amusing to Harper. She willed her dimensional space to produce her own weapon, a deadly halberd with a cobalt blue axeblade on one end and a sharpened haft. There was no reason to speak. No one knew what was going on but there would be blood. Lucian would try to kill her because she wouldn¡¯t run. She wouldn¡¯t run because her only chance was to kill him. She¡¯d never make it out of his camp alive. ¡°Hello.¡± A blonde woman sat idly on the edge of the table. She had been so still and natural in the scene and they had been so focused on the rising auras that they were producing that they, both Lucian and Harper, startled badly. Tamara bit into an apple, crunching loudly. Amaranthe was on her knees in front of her, ears twitching despondently. Her face was looking down and she was pale like she¡¯d just been severely ill. Her hands held her stomach and there was a grimace on her face. Harper already didn¡¯t know what was going on but she did know a lot about Amaranthe. Amaranthe was beautiful, and if things had been going differently Harper might have made a pass at her. Probably fruitless, since Amaranthe like so many others, was chasing that straw hat that Heath wore. Still, if it had been her last night alive Amaranthe was easily the best thing that came to her mind. Now though, the behavior of Amaranthe was unnatural. She made no move to get to her feet and acted like she would rather be anywhere else. Amaranthe was a strong rock in Harper¡¯s mind. Something that could stand against whatever nature threw at it and remain unmoved. The Amaranthe in this room looked up guiltily, seeming to mouth something at Harper. Harper¡¯s brown eyes widened in disbelief. I¡¯m sorry. ...and Amaranthe really, really was. Amaranthe had a rock and she had to throw it. So, she threw it at Lucian. Who knows how many of them would get out of this alive. ¡°Hello?¡± Tamara once again broke the silence, making uncomfortable to listen to crunching noises as she messily at the apple and spoke in between bites. ?? Lucian saw the uncertainty on Harper¡¯s face and decided, wisely as it turns out, to not continue reaching for his weapon on the table. Looking around slowly revealed that on the other side of the table in front of the woman eating the apple there was a fox girl on the floor. He wasn¡¯t sure what she was doing down there, to be honest? He thought it might be Amaranthe but the behavior of the woman seemed off-beat for that particular member of Heath¡¯s chosen. Lucian turned his head slightly, brushing his shoulder-length dark hair past his shoulder with a casual and practiced motion. His pale and muscled upper-body was on display because he had no need for a shirt. Incubus were, by nature, well comfortable in their own skin and little else. His green eyes traveled to the woman on the table. He could only see her side profile but she was easily in the top ten most beautiful women he had ever seen. An immediate and intense urge to possess her flared up inside his body, almost exasperating him. This wasn¡¯t the time to become sexually aroused. ¡°Ladies¡­¡± Lucian called in greeting, deciding that for the moment he would try and converse. Especially since he couldn¡¯t see where the hell the hall full of people he had just been eating with went. ¡°To what do I owe the pleasure?¡± Lucian was proud of the tone of his voice. It was enough to make most women turn their heads. He liked to think it was more than the incubus in his blood. ¡°Yes, hello, I thought I was talking to myself.¡± The amazing blond turned and almost had him spellbound when he saw her eyes. She was definitely a powerful chosen. Easily. There was the slightest concern she was a god in Lucian¡¯s mind, but it was only a slight concern. There were rules. A god could kill another god¡¯s chosen, but it was very rare. He decided a bit of flattery was in order in either case. ¡°You are easily the most beautiful creature I have ever laid eyes on. I would give up my life to press my lips upon the same apple those perfect lips touched.¡± Lucian smiled broadly. ¡°If I had known apples were a fruit capable of attracting such beauty, I would allow no other fruit in my hall. Is there something I can do for you? Some reason that has brought all here in such a troubling time? Amaranthe, lovely, is that you down there? Would you¡­ like some wine to settle you?¡± He frowned, opening his mouth again before Amaranthe could reply. Before anyone could reply. ¡°I¡¯ll make you all a deal. While you¡¯re here, you are all safe. Let this just be a talk for now, yes?¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°Deal,¡± Tamara said easily. ¡°You certainly talk a lot. To expedite this, let¡¯s start. I¡¯m here to mediate a resolution to this conflict, so I¡¯ll need you, Lucian was it? I¡¯ll need you to state your reason for the conflict, then I will hear Harper¡¯s, then I¡¯ll judge you. Okay?¡± ¡°Judge me?¡± Lucian was surprised. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What will you do when you judge me?¡± Lucian was honestly curious. He was looking slightly to the left at Harper, knowing full well that this conflict was a petty one from both their points of view. Giving verbal agreement to someone that you allowed their judgment was a very dangerous decision. ¡°I¡¯ll resolve the conflict?¡± Tamara tilted her head, eyes narrowing slightly in innocent confusion. ¡°If I have to repeat myself again it will affect the rapidity of the judgment. My name is Tamara and this will be over shortly. I have things to do and the entropy of the universe isn¡¯t getting any faster or slower.¡± Lucian blinked slowly at her and then held his hands open in an inviting manner, as if he, for one, welcomed his new blonde overlord. ¡°Very well! I¡¯d been drinking with several of my fellow chosen in a, I¡¯m not sure what? A hall of some sort where we were waiting for the gods in attendance to conclude a meeting in an adjoining space and the drink had gotten away from me. As is my nature, I sought companionship for the night. Harper is quite beautiful, and large, and from what I¡¯d heard, available. So, I solicited her company for the night and was soundly rejected. I thought I was quite upfront about it. The rejection was unfortunate but that would have been the end of it. She questioned my lineage and inquired about the length of my mother¡¯s legs.¡± ¡°Her legs?¡± Tamara raised an eyebrow, seemingly unconcerned with any accuracy in his story and not inquiring about the details. ¡°Yes, she wondered what the distance was when they were spread, and said that it must be quite the impressive distance with all the effort she put into spreading them.¡± Lucian put his lips together in a thin smile. ¡°I love my mother, and have killed men and women for less. She is a chosen, however, and one can¡¯t simply murder chosen on the spot. So I sent her a challenge with my intent and she chose the battlefield and conditions. I would have preferred to end this one-on-one but¡­¡± He spread his arms in a ¡®what-can-you-do¡¯ motion and went silent. The whole time he talked he rubbed the ring on his index finger with his thumb. ¡°Enough,¡± Tamara turned to Harper, startling the woman. ¡°You, you talk too. If you don¡¯t finish before Heath and Damascus get here I¡¯ll kill you.¡± ¡°H-heath and--¡± Harper began to stumble over her words but a slow aura started to spread at floor level from the room. She had been about to deny the fact that she had just called for Heath. She was sort of wondering why Heath wasn¡¯t already here, considering the condition that Amaranthe was in. Now she understood. Tamara was a goddess and she had known all along that Heath and Damascus would be called because of the abnormality of the situation. It was all good and well if Harper and Lucian fought one another to the death at their own pace. This, however, was a situation that Harper was happy to use as an excuse to call her god and maybe get out of this mess. The blank and deadly stare on Tamara¡¯s face saw through her. Saw through everything. A quick glance revealed that Amaranthe was starting to recover from whatever ordeal she had been under. A shaky hand held the corner of the table as she got to her feet. She still wouldn¡¯t look at Harper, but at least now Harper understood. Amaranthe was also in this plot. Sometimes, Harper really fucking hated gods. It was a good thing Amaranthe was cute. ¡°That¡¯s all correct. He is, however, not as smooth as he thinks. I find him repulsive, sickly, psychotic, and a bunch of other things I¡¯m fine calling him when I¡¯m not pressed for time.¡± Harper shrugged, earning a half-bow from Lucian. ¡°I did say that about his mother, and I am, very, very sorry.¡± Lucian looked up with interest. ¡°Sorry that I didn¡¯t have more time to think about all the bad things I could call your mother, you sick, twisted, murdering, raping, tiny-dicked fuck.¡± Harper smiled and held up her pinky finger. Despite the fact that it was still huge, it got the point across. ¡°It¡¯s bad enough that you can get play just by smelling good, but forcing people? Get screwed.¡± ¡°See?¡± Lucian raised his hand. ¡°Such slander.¡± ¡°Slander is unfounded,¡± Tamara shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s good that your god is coming. I¡¯ve just decided to give you the death penalty and we¡¯ll have to talk about it.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± Lucian raised his eyebrows. ¡°I told you.¡± Tamara blinked and turned, placing the apple on the table. ¡°...not to make me repeat myself.¡± Lucian blinked and jerked back, realizing that there were four fingers stretched out within an inch of his right eye. He fell over the chair behind him and hit the floor, pulling part of the table cloth and scattering several dishes on the floor. Fruit rolled around on the ground but that was the least of concerns as he scrambled back. The shudder of fear that went through his body touched his soul, the brief moment had been enough for him to confirm that he was still alive and it was only because Damascus had shown up at that very moment and held Tamara¡¯s wrist. He had blinked and Tamara had been that close to piercing straight through his skull with her bare hands. Lucian gaped, propping himself up on his elbows. Damascus rasped a breathy sigh in a deep exasperated way as he released Tamara¡¯s wrist. She let the hand fall to her side, giving Lucian a long look before turning her attention to the new addition to the room. ¡°Hello, Tamara.¡± ¡°Hello, Damascus.¡± ¡°You tried to kill him moments after you said you¡¯d wait for me? The air is still warm with the exhalation of that statement.¡± Damascus rolled his eyes and his voice sounded out dryly. ¡°You were here already, why wait?¡± Tamara blinked her big eyes innocently with a casual smile. ¡°You know her?¡± Lucian asked. ¡°Everybody knows this witch,¡± Damascus said tiredly. Amaranthe finally managed to stumble over to Harper, who caught her around the waist and held her up. Amaranthe smiled at her for a moment and whispered, ¡°I¡¯m here to rescue you.¡± ¡°Why do I kinda think you mean that other thing?¡± Harper made a face. ¡°Because she means that other thing, but, she¡¯s not wrong.¡± Heath stepped past them both from behind and moved into the room. They formed a small triangle as they all stared at each other. There didn¡¯t seem to be any sides. Heath didn¡¯t look pleased. Damascus didn¡¯t look pleased. Tamara looked overjoyed. ¡°Tamara, Damascus.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± Tamara smiled. ¡°Heath, I take it you didn¡¯t ask for this?¡± ¡°Do I seem insane?¡± Heath asked straightforwardly. Damascus pulled the hood down from his cowl and rested it on his shoulders. The rather amazing and deep green robe started to shimmer as it solidified as if it hadn¡¯t really been here until now. He turned his head, looking like a normal middle-aged man to everyone. At least, until you got to his eyes.They were yellow and seemed like they had been plucked directly out of a goat¡¯s head and stuffed into a human skull. To say it was unsettling was to put it kindly. ¡°Let¡¯s not answer that question. I¡¯ve no desire to develop enmity with you, Heath.¡± ¡°Besides your chosen trying to kill my chosen?¡± Heath raised an eyebrow with a half-smile. ¡°Besides your chosen insulting and provoking my chosen. That¡¯s neither here nor there. I obey.¡± ¡°I obey,¡± Heath said roughly in response. ¡°Same.¡± Tamara snickered. ¡°Then why are you here?¡± Damascus sneered, an extremely unpleasant look on his face. The chosen in the room all shivered. ¡°I¡¯m returning a favor? I¡¯m mediating at the request of Amaranthe. Isn¡¯t that why any of us do anything? Well, besides,¡± Tamara smiled, ¡°because we want to.¡± ¡°Amaranthe?¡± Damascus asked, and he and Heath actually both turned with various degrees of surprise on their face. She shrunk slightly and would have pulled away but Harper was still helping hold her up. ¡°She doesn¡¯t seem stupid.¡± ¡°Why would she be stupid? Are you saying that she has offended you? Would you lower yourself to try and go after someone that I¡¯m doing a favor for?¡± Tamara frowned. ¡°Let¡¯s forget that it would make Heath mad--¡± ¡°It would?¡± Heath asked dryly. He was pretty sure he was here just for background noise at this point. Like an afterthought. ¡°--and go with how I¡¯d rip you to pieces if you did anything to her because of this¡­¡± Tamara shrugged and trailed a finger in a lazy infinity sign on the table. The wood actually started to peel while she considered her next words. ¡°...incident.¡± ¡°I see. So you¡¯re mediating. How nice of you.¡± Damascus sighed. ¡°What is your judgment of the situation and how do you intend to resolve it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to kill Lucian because I don¡¯t like him,¡± Tamara said frankly. Lucian blinked and started to speak but Damascus held a hand up to the side. Lucian quieted and settled back. ¡°Well, that¡¯s not going to happen for the same reasons I¡¯m not going to kill Amaranthe,¡± Damascus said diplomatically. ¡°If I let my chosen get killed by any god they looked cross-eyed at I¡¯d never have any for more than a day.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ve given my word to resolve this situation and help out Harper on behalf of Amaranthe--¡± Harper looked down at Amaranthe with wide-eyes. ¡°Fine,¡± Damascus rolled his eyes and turned to Lucian. ¡°You there, kid, let bygones be bygones. Take a step back and you and Harper will go your separate ways and try not to look at each other, okay?¡± Lucian nodded slowly, apparently not willing to say anything other than yes to his patron. Damascus turned to Heath briefly, who said nothing, and turned to Harper. ¡°Okay?¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Harper nodded, knowing that she was just the audience. ¡°Okay.¡± Damascus turned to Tamara and half-smiled. ¡°You obey, right?¡± ¡°I obey.¡± Tamara nodded sagely. ¡°So, they¡¯ll both step back and this trial ends and they go back to whatever it was they were doing. This matter is settled and I have kept my word that the situation would be resolved peacefully. Do you accept this?¡± Tamara half-glanced at Amaranthe. There was a slight hesitation from Amaranthe. Everyone in the room stilled, blinking rapidly. All Amaranthe had to do was say that she accepted it and everyone would leave here. Alive. Amaranthe, however, wasn¡¯t sure what Tamara wanted her to do. This had never, after all, been about what Amaranthe wanted. She looked at Heath. A brief smile lit his face and he nodded shallowly. ¡°Yes, this one accepts. Thank you for the f-favor.¡± ¡°Hey, no problem!¡± ¡°Tamara, there are no medications, magical elixirs, tinctures, powers, or energies in the universe to prescribe for the sheer amount of anxiety and annoyance you cause me.¡± Damascus pulled his hood up with a sigh. ¡°Was this because you''re bored? I could find shit for you to do.¡± ¡°Well..?¡± Tamara grinned impishly, and for a moment everyone in the room relaxed. ¡°Sort of. I¡¯m just glad we got this out of the way. It makes me nervous, giving my word to try and do something, you know? I don¡¯t do it very often.¡± Heath and Damascus started to agree, everyone started to relax, and Damascus had even turned to give Amaranthe a grateful nod to let her know it hadn¡¯t been a big deal. Tamara was just, exasperatingly, like that. He was turned away when the next words Tamara spoke made him still as he considered their implications. ¡°So you know, twice in one day? I gotta do it right, right?¡± A what can you do voice from behind Damascus and his eyes widened in shock as he turned around and saw her. She was holding Lucian¡¯s severed head up by his long hair. The hair he was so proud of was nothing more than a handle now. From the expression of calm on his face, he had died without even understanding that his life had ended. ¡°So, before you got here¡­¡± Tamara shrugged her shoulders mischievously and she gave a cringed smile. ¡°Because you were slow¡­ he said he¡¯d trade his life for a chance for his lips to touch the same place mine did...¡± Heath turned toward Amaranthe and Harper without a word. Two steps and he was placing a hand on both their shoulders. They were immediately gone. Tamara picked up the half-eaten apple from the table and pressed it against Lucian¡¯s lips. She let it and the head fall to the floor. They both bounced in a surprisingly similar fashion. ¡°Tada! Keeping my word feels super good.¡± Tamara beamed brilliantly at Damascus. Damascus had his hood up so she couldn¡¯t see his face. ¡°You hear me? Anyway. This wasn¡¯t because I was bored. It¡¯s because I fucking hate you; I want to kill you for that time you held me down while the Table cut out my best friend''s soul, Damascus. What do you think?¡± ¡°Good. Good. Good¡­¡± Damascus started laughing. 17. Ruth is BACK BABY! Ruth sat bolt upright in the clearing, startling several birds that had been hopping over him and pecking at the strange scaled cloth that covered his torso. He stared blankly ahead of him, trying to remember what had happened. There had been, of course, a number of things that he had figured out because he had exploited the weakness of the immortal and deadly text. The immortal and deadly text was no match for his intellect and was quickly overcome, spilling many secrets. There was something about dragons not being the greatest ever but that idea was giving him a pain deep in his brain. Ruth immediately gave up thinking about it. Speaking of the immortal and deadly text box. Now that Ruth knew that it was weak to the massive size of his brain, it was time to keep pushing the thing until it agreed to become his underling. He had never had an underling before and was actually looking forward to the prospect. Ruth stood up and brushed himself off. He paid little mind to the dirt and grass that was still clinging tenaciously to him in places. There were important things to do and he couldn¡¯t be bothered by this long piece of grass that was stuck in the curl of his head horn. Okay, yes, he could definitely be bothered by it. He pulled the piece of grass out of the loop and threw the offending thing to the ground. Triumphant against grass, nature, and unnatural things alike, Ruth began to search for the immortal and deadly text. It was gone. Was it possible it had understood that it was vulnerable to him now? Had it fled? Ruth frowned because that seemed somewhat unlikely. The poor thing didn¡¯t seem smart enough to realize that he had it by the dewclaw. Perhaps, something had happened? ¡°Appear.¡± Nothing. ¡°I have questions. Questions only¡­¡± Well, it was probably best to assert dominance now. ¡°...a capable minion could answer! There is a place in my newly thought of clutch. Strange that I would consider a non-dragon but these are strange times. Now come out.¡± Truth be told Ruth had heard of dragons having minions but had never seen it himself. It had never come up because he was a very competent dragon and had no need for lesser beings bungling things in his lair. Minions had always seemed like a huge risk to him. Things were different now. He didn¡¯t have a hoard currently and thought that a minion might actually be useful. Ruth immediately disregarded a small voice in the back of his head that suggested he actually didn¡¯t know much about dragons since he¡¯d only met two or three in passing. At least, few that he hadn¡¯t eaten. It was a dragon eat dragon world sometimes. Back to thinking of the merits of owning minions. He couldn¡¯t eat the immortal and deadly text box, this was true. He would have to touch the thing in order to be able to eat it. That really wasn¡¯t the stupid creature¡¯s fault though. Ruth should be magnanimous enough to allow it to serve him as a decoy or distraction if nothing else. Rudimentary intelligence suggested the creature could provide companionship at the moment. Truth be told he was feeling a little lonely without Peggy to keep him company. Moment of silence for Peggy. Why did she have to be so brave? He closed his eyes and grimaced at the memory. The wound was still fresh. Despite the immeasurable albeit momentary sadness, there was also a hint of pride. She had plummeted in such a straight line¡­ ¡°Explain my mana,¡± something to immortalize Peggy by way of a memorial would have to wait. The immortal and deadly text would come if he inquired about his mana. It was only too pleased to tell him how much he had. ...and nothing happened. Ruth frowned and reached up, scratching part of his inner right ear as he considered this interesting development. Perhaps the box had something important to do elsewhere? No matter. Ruth didn¡¯t need a minion! He closed his eyes and felt the circulation of his mana. He was bursting with vigor and power! He suspected that the numbers would be high if they were shown to him as the immortal and deadly text¡¯s childish numerical scrawlings. There also seemed to be five bursting black stars! The spell slots that were available to him were all full as well. Despite the abruptness of his last rest, he felt pretty good. He didn¡¯t really remember why he had decided to lie down and pass out, but no matter! He thought he might have fainted because of some sort of treachery perpetrated by the deadly and immortal text but chose to remember it differently. In fact, he chose to remember it as the time he decided to take a nap for no other reason than he¡¯d felt like it. Ruth did not faint. Certainly notagain. Ruth stood up and made a mental checklist of things to do and resources available. First things first. Food is needful? Yes, eventually. Obtain food from the nearby dead spider? No. It had been sitting out for some time and his belly was telling him it would not complain too arduously if he left it and sought out fresher prey. Next was the question of his plans. He needed to find a way out of this area. Ruth had followed the river out of the goblin area but that hadn¡¯t been a real winner. There had been the furry creatures with envy evoking hats. Between the small creatures with hats and the Goblins, Ruth didn¡¯t think there was a clear winner or loser. Both of them had pointy things and had been more than willing to attack him with no thought to their own safety. They were not ideal neighbors and this wasn¡¯t an ideal place to settle anyway. Sassy tail is checked off? Yes, it is still there and being sassy. It might have been his imagination but he thought it gave a derisive little swing there at the end as if it couldn¡¯t believe he had doubted it. Nevermind. It was time to figure out what he could do with this thing. Ruth tried to imagine having wings and thought about moving them up and down. He didn¡¯t have wings of course but some of his muscles still remembered that they were supposed to move. His tail swayed, as if in amusement. Interesting...and useless! Alright. He thought about trying to move it directly like the old tail. It moved obediently left and right. Why hadn¡¯t he tried that first?! Ruth picked up a stick from the ground and held it behind him. The tail curled around it and took the weight. Ruth grunted in disgust. It wasn¡¯t exactly like moving his old tail. The old tail had a lot more muscle and was like moving a huge rope or whip. This tail had more sensitivity and seemed capable of better grabbing motions. He raised the stick up and down with his tail. Well, this bore investigation. He would just carry the stick with his tail and get used to the situation of having something that could grab things for him. Ruth thought about what else he had. Magic? Obviously. His clothes? Come to think of it¡­ His clothes were still shiny and black and were starting to separate into individual scales like they were patterning naturally. They appeared in good shape considering the dragging and intense bouts of combat. He still only had one sleeve but the pantlegs seemed to go down further than they used to? How was that possible? With a sneaky suspicion, Ruth thought about the fabric retreating and it immediately showed his mid-riff and then started to snake down toward his crotch. Horror. Ruth immediately wished to cover the area. His goblin skirt was gone. He had not taken it off. His new clothing had eaten it. Come to think of it. He was eating quite a bit compared to when he was a dragon(nevermind that he wasn¡¯t eating enough now). He hadn¡¯t felt the need to relieve himself eith-. NOPE. NOT THINKING ABOUT THE CLOTHES. Time to go and do something. Anything. Time to pick a direction. Having been Ruth-napped by the cow had certainly thrown a wrench into things. A quick glance up. Ruth nodded to himself in confirmation, a slight smile parted his lips. Ah, yes, that makes sense. He had no idea. Ruth had no way of telling where he was and no knowledge of how to figure out the direction he had been carried. Ruth nodded to himself a second time. Ruth was even more lost than he had been. Yep. Dammit. Ruth looked back across the clearing and then at the now burned out path of destruction through the once healthy and green foliage. ¡°What do I think is more of a challenge? Deadly creatures that disguise themselves as dens, or dens that are disguised as plants housing deadly creatures?¡±Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Neither option appealed to him. In front of him was a path through the forest that was full of charred plants and trees that extended for just about as far as he could see in that direction. Naturally, at some point, he would be endangered by spiders and who knows what else. If he returned the way he had run he might encounter spiders, who knew what else, deadly dens, and more cows. Ruth narrowed his eyes in deep thought and finally started walking through the quite burned out forest. In the end he chose to go through the forest in this direction and see what lay beyond. Almost solely because his furious brainpower had said that either direction absolutely sucked and it didn¡¯t matter. Less than ten steps later Ruth smiled because he knew he¡¯d chosen correctly. Ruth loved the smell of things that had just been on fire. The pungent stench of ash, smoke, burned web and hair was overpowering. It offset the weird feeling that he had when he very vaguely acknowledged his clothes seemed to feed off other clothes and his digestive process. So Ruth set forth, his tail moving up and down with the stick, occasionally swinging it like it was a weapon. Every once in awhile his butt would clench eliciting the infrequent exasperated sigh from him. ?? Arathan looked up from its perch at the edge of the space. Ruth¡¯s soul space no longer had the shape of a dragon. At least, not quite as literally dragonesque as it once was. It was more of a ball now, with lumps that could have been stubby legs and spots on top that might have once been shaped like wings. In addition to the new rounder shape, it was about twice as large as it had been the first time Arathan had visited it. Not to say that it was big. Arathan could probably still flap her wings just once and be clear through it. The creature inside of it was still as spiteful and angry at the universe as ever, seemingly unchanged by the process of molding Ruth¡¯s soul space and the massive influx of mana that Tamara¡¯s soul scouring had done. Right now the little thing was chasing a small creature made out of Arathan¡¯s aura. A small red rabbit, smokey and ephemeral, hopping frantically around the circle. This was the second rabbit that Arathan had made. The first one had just hopped directly toward the little creature in the middle of Ruth¡¯s soul space and jumped up and down on it until it had started the rattle-rattle thing that it did when it was pissed off. The rattle was full force now as the creature had learned something from the earlier rabbit. It was much more motivated this time around. It didn¡¯t seem like it wanted to leave Ruth¡¯s space so Arathan was humoring it for the moment by letting the rabbit hop very close to the edge now and again. SHAKE-SHAKE-SHAKE-SHAKE The nice thing about this, other than it was a good way to train the small soul shape to be aggressive to invaders, was that Arathan got her first look at this little creature. It rushed forward low to the ground in a circle as it stayed just behind the rabbit. Four small feet ending with four clicking talons and one little dewclaw. It was pitch black. No. Arathan squinted. It was midnight black with a hint of dark blue. Jagged lines were subtly carved into the hide in a snakelike pattern on its back. It had the same sort of reptilian eyes that Ruth sported, golden vertical slits over a black backdrop. Tiny curved horns adorned the head in the same shape Ruth had but were tighter almost like that of a nautilus shell. Two nascent wings popped out of the back, useless for now. Considering the size of the feet relative to his body, Arathan surmised that this creature would get at least five times the current size it was now. Maybe bigger. The tail at the end of the creature was the most intriguing part. It looked like a reptile¡¯s tail, of course. Well, maybe a bit like an amphibian¡¯s tail, too. A salamander? A dragon? A lizard? The similarity became sketchy because it ended in a sort of small pine-cone rattle that some serpent¡¯s had. It shook now and again simply from the movement but rattled especially aggressively when the creature was excited. Just past the rattle organ, there seemed to be a sharpened point. The way the thing comically rushed about when it was excited had caused Arathan to name it Rush. Tamara had named Ruth, so it was only fitting to Arathan that she got to name the soul shape. Arathan cocked her head slightly and watched closely this time. She had a slight expectation after her previous experiment. Rush had reached out two of his short stubby feet as he pounced forward. He landed on top of the projection of the rabbit and pinned it against the nothing floor. A quick and furtive look around. A small hiss of warning as it saw Arathan perched lazily nearby. Rush wiggled his butt back and forth as he slowly worked to drag the struggling aura shape back into the relative safety of Ruth¡¯s soul space. Like he recognized that the creature was too big for him to fit it all in his mouth and didn''t care; he tilted his head and bit down enthusiastically. It took a big chunk of Arathan¡¯s aura. Aura that belonged to Arathan and should have just dissipated...and ate it. Big chews as the aura bubbled and tried to escape. Rush bit aggressively in the air at it, recapturing it, and chewed some more. His small eyes turned to happy little contented slits. His claws extended even further as part of the aura projection rabbit continued to try and escape below. Rush finally swallowed the bite he had and began to turn his attention to the rest of the rabbit. Arathan had just confirmed it. This creature was capable of devouring aura. That was a pretty damn terrifying thing. Was this what Tamara had seen when she had become intrigued? Arathan closed her eyes a little bit and ignored the weird feeling of still being in control of an aura nearby and losing feeling to it. Rush could eat it, so, why not? It would keep the stupid thing busy for a minute while Arathan thought. Devouring wasn¡¯t a rare talent. There were lots of creatures that devoured other creatures and gained useful mana, abilities, or even stole aspects of their meals. Devouring aspects that included soul power, on the other hand, was very rare. When soul shape¡¯s combatted each other they relied on the energy they produced to strike blows at each other. If your enemy could eat your attack, your defense, and -- well¡­ you¡­ Every soul aura was different. Trying to eat or incorporate another soul aura often resulted in an explosion. Shake-shake-shake-shake Arathan opened her eyes. She was amused to see that Rush was about half a foot away from the soul space and staring at her with intent eyes. He shook his butt at her in a challenge. Arathan smirked and rolled her eyes in response. This seemed to encourage Rush who took another half-step away from the space. He lowered his body and his tail swayed behind him back and forth¡­ Scared food. It was such a childish series of images that Arathan almost didn''t guess the meaning. Still. Arathan¡¯s eyes snapped open and her head tilted. Had this little thing just talked shit to her? ¡°Caw-caw-caw-caw.¡± Arathan lowered her head slightly and spread her wings. A bright red glow started at her breast and started to creep toward the soul space. The nothingness around Arathan began to shake as if it could barely stand the contact. The soul space behind Rush actually started to ripple in response to the waves. Rush surprised her again when he lowered his head in response and a small tongue played over his lips. His butt started to wiggle in excitement. Shake-shake-shake-shake-shake-shake-shake-shake. Arathan felt the wind being blown out of her sails. Her aura dispersed dejectedly. This little thing wasn¡¯t even smart enough for her to bully. Arathan cocked her head at the wiggling little thing. That little ball of hate needed a lesson. Arathan was just trying to decide what would be more fun: a horde of small rabbits jumping up and down on Rush¡¯s head, or a horde of small bunnies with knives, when her attention immediately focused to a faraway spot. Come to me. It is time to feast. Arathan spread her wings and was gone in a long streak of red, disappearing in a fraction of a second. Crimson light flashed briefly in the far distance and then, nothing. Rush stopped wiggling his butt and stared for a long moment. Finally, he turned around with a ¡®hmmph¡¯ and sashayed back into the soul space. It had fought a valiant battle these last few hours. It was the king of this space. The strangely delicious dangerous crow fleeing was an affirmation of his superiority. ?? It was a natural thing, really. Anyone would have expected it to happen. Ruth stood near the edge of the scorched earth where the fire had finally died down and stared ahead into the forest that continued on. It was green, healthy, full of spider webs and the frantic call of small creatures trying to attract mates¡­ Ruth didn¡¯t trust it a bit. Ruth knew what to do now when he didn¡¯t trust things. Ruth raised his hand and pointed, eyes burning brightly as he gathered his mana and cast Generic Thunder Struck. The otherwise perfectly blue sky above darkened as an insane amount of cloud coverage seemed to apparate out of nothing. The rumbling started and there was a brief moment of charged excitement as the waves of lightning came crashing down. They weren¡¯t quite as awe-inspiring in the overcast daylight, but the effect was much the same. Ruth laughed madly at the sky as he watched the fire start to spread through the dry underbrush. Already the creatures low and high began to call out ¡®danger¡¯ in their native tongues. It would take a while before the fire would spread and he could proceed, but he had time. Ruth felt incredibly superior at the moment and he wasn¡¯t sure why. Well, he did know why. It was because he was amazing. ?? Two creatures stopped their journey on a plateau they were traveling atop of miles away. Clouds had appeared in mere seconds over a localized area and soon there was thunder sounding out, lightning crashing down, and the sounds of frantic wildlife escaping. One of the creatures held it¡¯s halberd and crouched down, staring intently at the area with yellow eyes. Both creatures had straight horns, the head of a goat, and a body that might have generously been called humanoid. Nimble hands held weapons aloft as both creatures looked at each other and then unanimously decided on their next course of action. Cloven hooves dug into the sides of the plateau as they skidded down the fairly steep dirt and rock sides. Two creatures, one with a halberd and one with a bow, disappeared into the trees. The direction they had chosen to charge toward? The localized lightning phenomenon of course. Spoiler: Spoiler ¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck 75% Current Mana: 20/20 Spell Slots Available: 4/5 18. Ruth Knew He Was Important Arathan found the pocket dimension and streaked into the tent. A quick glance revealed that she had missed whatever happened. Tamara sat at the head of a table with a ¡­ head on the table nearby. An apple was stuffed in the mouth of the head. Her sword lay on the table and her fingers were tapping the blade making slow rhythmic ringing sounds. Her expression was full of irritation, and that didn¡¯t change when she saw Arathan. ¡°What happened?¡± Arathan flew to the table and landed on the head, not bothering about the nature of the perch. It was a bit higher than the table and she could look Tamara directly in the eye from a comfortable distance. Tamara started to smile, her lips peeling back and her head tilting back slightly. Her shoulders began to shake slightly as she tried to contain her laughter. It was a sad, angry, desperate sound that came from her lips. ¡°He ran,¡± Tamara gestured inarticulately toward an empty space. ¡°He just¡­ ran.¡± Arathan was casting fearful looks at Tamara and finally got the nerve up to ask, ¡°who ran?¡± ¡°Damascus. I thought I¡¯d provoked him enough but, he still ran. I assume an enforcer from the Table will be here soon to ask if I obey or not.¡± Tamara sighed, and added almost compulsively, ¡°I obey.¡± ¡°Damascus.¡± Distaste colored Arathan¡¯s raspy voice. Her eyes had immediately narrowed. ¡°Was Nenod with him? I¡¯d love to eat that snake.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Nenod didn¡¯t show himself. I thought Damascus would stay and fight. He was just saying ¡®good¡¯ over and over again and shaking so hard I thought his aura would spill out and crush this space. Then he got ahold of himself and left.¡± ¡°Pity¡­ but, probably for the best,¡± Arathan hedged quietly. ¡°Probably,¡± Tamara started tapping her finger on the sword again and sighed. ¡°You go, Arathan. I am sorry to bother you. Continue your task.¡± ¡°About that¡­¡± Arathan figured, you know, while she was here, ¡°I named it Rush. Did you know that it can--¡± Tamara glanced up lazily and made a flicking motion with her wrist. ¡°Later. The first guest has arrived. See yourself out.¡± Arathan lowered her head and acknowledged the command. ¡°Arathan loves Tamara¡­¡± Arathan spread her wings and flew through the tent flaps. A stylish point since she could have just slipped out of this space from the table. ¡°Heath.¡± ¡°Tamara.¡± ¡°We must speak. Soon. You¡¯re going to get yourself killed.¡± Heath smiled gently. ¡°...and maybe your chosen?¡± Tamara smiled back in the same gentle way. ¡°Maybe them, too. Then I¡¯d be mad, and sad, at the same time.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Heath and Tamara just stared at one another with knowing smiles. The smiles became forced. Heath moved to the table from the opposite side and sat down. His broad shoulders slumping a bit. Neither spoke. Neither had to speak. The hall shook once and a busy-looking man walked out of a corner. Realistically there was no way he could have come from the corner of the tent because it was one of the few areas that had boxes stacked high from side-to-side. ¡°Tamara and Heath. Hello.¡± ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°Simius.¡± He was short. Shorter than Tamara by two heads and had slumping shoulders. A simple green robe hung off his body and golden spectacles perched on a pug-nose. One might have even thought he resembled a pug in some ways with his forehead folds and small dark irises. Simius smiled dryly, ¡°I suppose it is no surprise to you two that I am here?¡± ¡°Damascus complained,¡± Tamara guessed. ¡°No, he needn¡¯t bother. The Table is unwilling to take in complaints. It presumes that we need to be advised when things are going against our wishes,¡± Simius lost his smile somewhat and moved toward a chair near Heath, leaving a few seats distance between him and them. A sign of paranoia thought Heath. ¡°Our wishes,¡± Heath smiled. ¡°Were you promoted? Congratulations!¡± ¡°I was! Thank you!¡± Simius smiled briefly, amusement touching his eyes before they wandered over to Tamara. ¡°So, if you could make this less awkward than it needs to be I¡¯d certainly remember the favor. Let¡¯s start with, Lucian¡­¡± He cast a distasteful look toward the head. ¡°...I don¡¯t care. Neither about his death or the fury of Damascus regarding his death.¡± ¡°I like this start!¡± Tamara snickered. ¡°I do care, however, that you provoked Damascus for a petty reason and then tried to kill him without the sanction of the Table.¡± Simius sighed. ¡°Do you obey?¡± For the briefest of moments the room seemed to shrink. The space around Simius seemed to enlarge as a beast stirred in shadow behind him. It seemed to be peering at Tamara closely. In response Tamara shuddered slightly and the three-eyed golden crow appeared at her back. This time the crow seemed to be stretching against green and sickly chains that seemed to be confining it. The shadowed beast sneered at this sight, lazing against similar chains with content ease. ¡°Of course, I obey¡­¡± Tamara said through tight-lips. The stand-off immediately ended and space once again returned to normal as everyone once again condensed down into their normal forms. ¡°Perhaps you wouldn¡¯t mind repeating the soul-shatter oath you¡¯re under to me? What were the conditions?¡± Simius had a dangerous look now. Coy and friendly despite the words coming out of his mouth. ¡°I, Tamara, swear upon my soul that I will not disobey the Table of Order. This means that I will not rebel against them. I will not kill other gods without permission or unless my life is endangered. I will instantly shatter my soul if a member of authority from the Table of Order requests it of me.¡± Tamara sighed. ¡°I obey.¡± Simius cast a look at Heath. Heath frowned but said the same oath. Simius turned to Tamara with a bright smile. ¡°I see! Then I have gladly witnessed that both your oaths are intact and confirm that this was just a misunderstanding. The Table will be pleased. I understand, Tamara, that you have certain grievances from the past¡­¡± Tamara¡¯s eyes narrowed into razor-thin strips. ¡°...but that is the past.¡± Simius finished firmly. ¡°I know you want revenge and you were trying to orchestrate it. It was a nice try, attempting to provoke him into attacking you first. Even if it had been a blow meant in anger without the intention of killing you, I suppose it would have been enough for the soul-shatter oath to leave you alone while you murdered him.¡± ¡°Murder is such a strong word,¡± Tamara carefully slid a finger over the darkened steel sword. ¡°He is much older than me. The last time we were pitted against each other I was held down quite easily. I¡¯m sure that I wouldn¡¯t stand a chance¡­¡± Simius rolled his eyes, ¡°I think differently, but that¡¯s neither here, nor there. Tamara, Heath, will you two do something for me? Stay out of trouble so I don¡¯t have to come visit you? Tamara? At least vent your grievances in a manner that doesn¡¯t trouble everyone else?¡± ¡°I will always do my best,¡± Tamara said brightly. ¡°Goodbye Simius. See you soon.¡± Simius almost lost his smile. It returned after a brief moment of hesitation as he stared at her with clear eyes. ¡°Shame. About your friend.¡± ¡°Shame.¡± Tamara agreed, nodding without any change in expression. Simius stood up and turned away before walking forward a few steps. He cast one brief wave and then took another step, seeming to vanish from sight. Both Heath and Tamara remained silent after he left. At last, when they were both convinced that he was gone, they looked at each other. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­¡± Heath started to say something but was interrupted because Tamara had raised a fist she had been concealing behind the table and backhanded it against Lucian¡¯s severed head. The head flew to the left and through the tent flaps and, presumably, far off into the night. Heath wisely shut his mouth, sighing. ¡°Come then¡­¡± Tamara grit her teeth. ¡°Let¡¯s go somewhere a bit more private.¡± ?? Heath and Tamara stood in the meadow, or it would be more accurate to say, stood in the middle of a space created from Heath¡¯s soul space and his imagination. Tamara had condensed hers and was holding that black space inside of her for now. The bright chipper sky and the woodland around them dimmed somewhat before Heath nodded to Tamara.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it She, in turn, took a casual glance around. ¡°Well done. It is absolutely possible for one of the Order to barge in and overhear us but we will realize it long before they hear anything. It makes it seem like this is a casual chat to admonish me for endangering your chosen.¡± ¡°I am going to admonish you for endangering my chosen,¡± Heath said dryly. ¡°You make it sound like you¡¯re contemplating and conspiring a grand rebellion. Any formation of a plan like that would have us both turned into vegetables. Our soul shapes wouldn¡¯t have a place to rest and would disperse. It¡¯s not on my priority list to waste away into nothingness.¡± ¡°Rebellion?¡± Tamara put a hand over her chest and gave a look of shock. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dream of it. The Table of Order, as we all know, grabs anyone about to make a breakthrough into godhood and gifts that wonderful soul shatter oath so that we can all live out our lives in peace and harmony, with puppies and rainbows.¡± ¡°Praise them,¡± Heath snickered as a result of her tone of voice. ¡°In their infinite wisdom they seem to be slightly alarmed by anything you do.¡± ¡°They do indeed! I was trying to settle a simple score and they showed up¡­¡± Tamara narrowed her eyes and finished, ¡°...immediately. I don¡¯t know why they¡¯re so worried about little old me. I¡¯m not even mad that Damascus got away! I just wanted to see if I had an audience, to be honest.¡± ¡°I think you sounded¡­ a little mad.¡± Heath sat down on the log. ¡°Perhaps, but it was useful knowledge. Now I know that their eyes are on me and it will be difficult for me to get into trouble. I am so relieved. It is such a nice thing, knowing that there are helping hands waiting to pull me back if I start to get a little free-willed.¡± Tamara hugged herself making an overjoyed expression. She whirled around a few times and spread her arms, slowly falling onto her back into a pile of flowers. Several lazy whirlygig leaves and a whole fleet of white seeds shot up from her sides and into the air, blanketing her body. ¡°When I said you sounded a little mad, I was joking. You sounded enraged.¡± Heath decided to provoke her anyway. ¡°Yeah. It was a shame he got away. I was thinking I could kill him before they got there, to be honest. It¡¯s easier to say sorry, after all.¡± Tamara sighed and her shoulders slumped slightly. ¡°Sorry, uh, about Amaranthe. I think I scared her.¡± ¡°Well, most chosen, I am talking about the vast majority here, get to decline being a chosen when they¡¯re asked by us,¡± Heath said pointedly. ¡°So she knew what she was getting into years ago.¡± ¡°Yeah, she did I suppose. My poor dragon.¡± Tamara opened her eyes and then remembered something. ¡°Oh, I recalled my will. He is probably lost without my delicate touch.¡± Tamara looked up and briefly considered breaking the isolation that Heath had set up so she could send the ¡®immortal and deadly text¡¯ back to Ruth. ¡°I better not¡­ send it right away, huh? It¡¯ll make it seem like I actually care about him.¡± ¡°Do you actually care about him?¡± Heath smiled carefully. Something in his voice must have given him away because golden yellow eyes turned toward him with a hint of rage. It was the first time she had looked at him with any sort of emotion. Naturally, that emotion seemed to be violence. Just as quickly the emotion seemed to vanish. ¡°Nah.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Heath put his hat on and looked down, searching for a piece of long grass to put in his mouth. ¡°You need to control yourself better. I didn¡¯t believe that for a second.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Tamara¡¯s voice was rough like she was angry now. ¡°I did that with Amaranthe too. She thought about killing him and I almost iced her on the spot.¡± ¡°Yes, if you¡¯re going to pretend you don¡¯t care about him, do a better job. Maybe watch him less or something.¡± Heath shrugged. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± That got his attention. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because his soul shape can eat aura. I have to constantly monitor him so that if another god swings by I can shield the soul shap--¡± Tamara paused, and the continued after correcting herself, ¡°...I have to shield Rush so they don¡¯t see him. It would be bad.¡± His mouth open now, Heath really didn¡¯t know what to say. The more he thought about it, the more he thought that anything he said might risk his own soul shattering. Finally, after very careful thought about whether he wanted to know about this insanity at all, he couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°...it can really eat aura?¡± ¡°It can. I¡¯m sitting here and all I can think about is how I shouldn¡¯t immediately look after him again. If I do that this soon , the Table might think my concern for him is something more. Instead of the concern shown for just a pet or an amusement, they might realize there is more. So I sit here, agonizing on whether he is okay. Tormenting myself because the best thing I can do to keep him safe is to pretend I care nothing for him, to disregard his existence, to sneer at him every time he looks to me for help¡­¡± Tamara covered her face with the back of her arm, and amazingly, her voice started to shake. ¡°...to make him hate me.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Heath asked carefully. ¡°Because. I need him to hate every god. For now, I can throw him in that place to grow. Eventually, Wilkeena will be in his sights. Given his nature, he¡¯ll hate her immediately and they will clash. She is such a small fry though. If I help him at that stage everyone will know I care. Past that stage, when the time comes that he can start actually defending himself there will be no shortage of enemies or even allies who are eager to gain his favor and his ability. Hence, he must be suspicious of them and automatically hate them.¡± Tamara began to laugh. ¡°How many years since I have had hope, Heath? Now terror hounds my every waking second. I think Arathan has just learned the truth. I have endangered both our lives and now yours.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re putting on a show?¡± Heath stood up and started to walk toward the edge of the clearing. He seemed to be staring at nothing in particular as he thought it out. ¡°The Table would never believe you¡¯ve forgiven them. You won¡¯t even try to pretend. Instead, you¡¯ll make them think you are heading after people you think you canactually hurt by bending the rules. They¡¯ll look at you and ignore him.¡± ¡°Simius already said it didn¡¯t he? He didn¡¯t care about the chosen? The Table is the same.¡± Tamara pulled her arm from her face and rested it at her side again. ¡°In ten years when all the remaining chosen are called together, they¡¯ll have a chance to go to that place and advance from chosen to demi-god. Then, if he survives the trials, maybe... they will start to pay attention to him.¡± ¡°That is wishful thinking. You¡¯ll never hide something like this for long.¡± Heath turned toward her and his eyes were hard. ¡°Even telling this to me has endangered your plan.¡± ¡°He was your friend, too,¡± Tamara said sorrowfully. ¡°He was my brother.¡± Heath slowly smiled. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m going to help you. Long live the Table.¡± ¡°Long live the Table,¡± Tamara said coldly, her own lips starting to peel back into a smile. ¡°I hope they appreciate the talent I am raising for them.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll look in on him then. They can consider it me deciding whether or not to punish you for you endangering mine.¡± Heath said, thinking carefully. ¡°Thank you,¡± Tamara said. ¡°What about Damascus? Won¡¯t he kill your Ruth?¡± ¡°No. On the one hand, he thinks I don¡¯t care about my chosen, that it is a lark. Secondly, as much as it will pain him to admit it, Lucian did mouth off to me and that¡¯s enough. Damascus going to my Ruth and trying to start something similar will likely enrage Simius. Simius surely went to him and said that the matter was resolved. Any further escalation will be a direct affront to his authority. Damascus is too much of a coward to risk that.¡± ¡°You hope,¡± Heath said grimly. ¡°Yes.¡± Tamara shuddered. ¡°I forgot how hope is so terrifying.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Heath drawled. ¡°You are right to be afraid.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Tamara quirked an eyebrow in question. ¡°Because Ruth is still stupid and is fighting for his life right now.¡± Heath sighed. He waved his hand and the barrier around the space vanished. ¡°Don¡¯t look yourself. I¡¯ll show you.¡± A window appeared in the meadow. Tamara got herself up and moved over to him. They stood staring into the window with growing looks of concern. ¡°I can start over. It¡¯ll just take me another several centuries to find another soul shape¡­ Ha-ha-ha¡­¡± Tamara covered her face with a palm. ?? Arathan briefly glanced up from her invisible perch near Ruth¡¯s soul space. Rush was tackling something about his size and shape that was fighting back feebly. The smacking he received actually seeming to excite the little masochist. He bit and clawed and tail-slapped it while trying to pin it. The aura projection smacked him back repeatedly but was getting slowly devoured for its effort. Arathan was rolling her eyes again at this. The little shit-talker had sassed her when she returned. Emboldened by her leaving earlier, apparently. So, she¡¯d throw a bunch of rabbits with knives at it. It had just finished those and was moving onto the bigger opponent. Arathan was considering what to throw at the petty little thing next. She was leaning toward something that would pin him. Then the soul space started to crack a bit around the edges. Rush didn¡¯t recognize the shape distortion and was too busy fighting to notice. Arathan, however, noticed the slight tremors that were going through space and cast a perplexed look around. Ruth must be hurt. ?? The arrow struck him through the shoulder, spinning him clear around and off his feet. Ruth had been admiring the burning fire that was meandering through the wilderness in front of him. Admiring it and trying to think of something to do other than keep up his flex tail workout. It was all good and well to be working on the tail and how to use it, but it took very little thought and he was starting to get so bored. That had changed a minute later when he became aware of a whistling sound. He was starting to turn when the arrow struck him. A long and dark wooden shaft poked out of his shoulder. The black scales were bent and broken near the wound and a preliminary touch of the shaft revealed some information on the wound. It hurt a lot! HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. Ruth looked around wildly, spotting some sort of bipedal goat in the classic release stance of an archer. Heading grimly toward Ruth was another bipedal goat holding a huge stick with a blade on the end of it. Ruth was no stranger to bows. Many bows had been shot at him in his life as a dragon. Some with the intent to kill, others in an attempt to frighten him, and once because he had startled a hunter who had come around a tree to see that Ruth was eating the boar he had been stalking. Bows had never been a huge deal to Ruth because even his eyes had been somewhat hardened, nevermind his scales that could deflect much stronger attacks. That appeared to be no longer the case. Ruth scrambled on his hands and knees and fell into a shallow ditch that was more hole in the ground than anything. Maybe it had been a burrow for one of the spiders, maybe it was just a place where runoff had gradually formed a hole because the soil was looser there and fed into some underground water source. Ruth didn¡¯t really care and he wasn¡¯t a geologist! A quick peek over the dirt mound told him that in less than ten seconds the goat with the halberd would be reaching him. The archer had already loosed an arrow the second Ruth had peeked over the edge. The bladed edge of the arrow tip scraped the top of his scalp leaving a very shallow gash and immediately caused him to lower his head even further. Ruth took a second to hold his shoulder and narrowed his eyes as he ducked down. Cold calculation began to filter through the pain on his scalp and from his shoulder. Ruth wasn¡¯t certain why he was being targeted by bipedal goats but he suspected it might be because he was burning down the forest. Goats lived in the forest, didn¡¯t they? Now they knew he was responsible for burning it. Despite the burden of carrying yet another grudge, Ruth just sighed exasperatedly because this newest grudge seemed like it might really be the end of him. It was one of the disadvantages of being a dragon, or, in this case, being someone important enough to have enemies. Ruth had always known he was important. 19. Rush and Ruth Rush tore into the final large chunk of the creature that had slightly resembled him and raised his head and let loose a low-pitch roar of victory. Rush briefly considered scattering the pieces of the aura projection as a warning to other things that had the audacity to challenge him in his own kingdom. This was his territory and he should defend it because-- why should he defend this space? It was an interesting thought. He immediately forgot it because he looked down and saw the pieces again. That it had looked like him was weird but strangely flattering. Rush had a generic awareness of how he looked because his senses were expanded within this space. He did not scatter the pieces because of the smell, oh the smell... He decided to eat them. It was probably because it looked like him, but he noted that it was especially delicious. As expected of a creature that could look somewhat similar to this king. Rush chewed on a piece of wing thoughtfully. He had really gained the upper hand near the end when it was hitting him in the face with those wings. They were plush and fluffy and light and the constant smacking against his nose had been more infuriating than painful. He had seized an opportunity in between flapping to grab the wing with his mouth and pull it off. That was when the tide turned and the battle had been truly won. The creature had started to spasm and got more frantic even as it got weaker. Rush had capitalized immediately and greedily started to devour the creature and the rest, as they say, was history. Rush turned his head slightly and flexed his small wings. To his credit, he wasn¡¯t exactly sure what to do with them. There was an old memory of using them to fly through the air, free and clear, in the skies of-- of where? Rush actually forgot his food/prey/fun for a moment with the discovery of the half-memory and hopped in the air experimentally. He flapped his wings and floated in place. He was so excited that for a moment he stopped flapping his wings. Or rather, he stopped flapping one of his wings. Rush started to turn lazily end over end and stopped flapping entirely. That was when Rush realized that he didn¡¯t need the wings to float at all. He clicked his talons against each other irritatedly at the discovery. Why have them for the thing if he could do the thing? He was less concerned with the wings a second later because he discovered he liked the sound of the claws clicking together. It was melodic and pleasurable and reminded him of that time about half a minute ago when he had eaten that thing that looked like him. The wings on his back started to shrink slowly, becoming less and less visible as time went on. Tummy full, Rush didn¡¯t bother to stop himself from spinning. It was oddly calming. Rush spun lazily through the air and his eyelids started to droop. Rush cast a quick look over at the food thing that was watching him nearby. He did not care as long as it was not close to him. He did, however, remember to send a strong mental warning to the thing. It was close enough, it would know. Closer would eat it. Yes, good, that was good. He would eat them all. The thought of eating the delicious but sharp fuzzy things sprang to mind. It was a recent memory and he had no trouble recalling it. Rush really liked his claws. He clicked them as he closed his eyes and got ready to digest his meal. The space around him shook violently and his eyes opened for half-a-beat. They started to close again when a part of the space trembled near the edges and a golden crack actually appeared in the dimly lit space. His eyes opened wide now, considering this new development. This sort of thing happened now and again but it had never been this violent. Not since that weird grey thing had tossed his space around. Rush had no choice but to acknowledge that his foe had been mighty. It had only given up when it realized that Rush was mighty too. Rush wondered what was causing the space to shake this time. He did not see any of the weird grey space. That was when a small light appeared in front of him. The view was fuzzy and unclear, like the thing that was further away was when it was not closer to him. Rush experimentally floated around the small white light noting that it didn¡¯t seem to be anything other than flat. It was also the same image no matter how he looked at it. There were things happening but Rush wasn¡¯t all that interested. His stomach was full and his body, floating as it was, felt content and heavy. The screen went away and he started to forget about it. The space shook again. Rush wondered what was causing the space to shake, again. The window reappeared and Rush decided to give it a little more of his attention while he rested. There was a strange shape moving very fast in the window. Rush was a little bit interested in the moving thing and decided to pay attention to it. His tail began to flick back and forth, ever so slightly. Shake¡­¡­¡­¡­.shake¡­¡­¡­..shake¡­¡­¡­.. ?? Arathan was only the tiniest bit surprised when Rush had opened a window, seemingly of his own volition, to see what Ruth was doing. It was how soul shapes grew general awareness after a time. They would begin to wonder what the soul space was doing or why something was happening and, often accidentally, latch onto the small and tenuous link that would only grow stronger between soul shape and host. This wasn¡¯t of use to Rush or Ruth at the moment. In fact, Arathan considered, it was quite possibly very, very bad. If Rush got in the habit of trying to devour aura from here, at best nothing would happen, and at worst, someone might notice and investigate. Arathan considered distracting the small thing again. It had warned her in a half-assed way that if she got closer it would eat her. It hadn¡¯t even been a coherent thought so it was hard to take it as serious. Hilarious, as if Rush could be any danger to Arathan. She had chosen to ignore it. Now, though? She was considering aura bunnies that shot bows and arrows. In the end, she filed away the notion of bow and arrow bunnies and decided to watch. Arathan straightened her body slightly and looked hard into the dim space, using the window Rush had pulled up to see what was going on. Arathan made another mental note to ask Tamara about a great number of things. If Arathan didn¡¯t know what was going on, she wouldn¡¯t know how to help or be of help to Tamara. She was just thinking about the questions she was going to ask when Rush did something unexpected. Something very possibly very not good. ?? When the cloven hoof hit the dirt in front of Ruth, he had already made up his mind to at least try conventional methods. Conventional in this case meant that he threw a handful of dirt straight up the moment he could see the things face. The goatman had leveled his halberd and was getting ready to charge him from above when the smattering of dirt and sand hit the air in front of his face and caused him to miss a step. In addition to missing a step, he grunted and started to squint painfully. Ruth was gratified to know he could throw dirt at close range. Dirt is way better than rocks. Ruth had cast Generic Magnetic Field before the goat had charged. He still didn¡¯t know much about it but it was ¡®free¡¯ for the moment and it had done fun, if somewhat pointless, things to the metal shard that the small hatless furry creature on the bridge had brandished. The other nice thing was that the arrow in his shoulder had actually pushed itself out, the metal seemingly repulsed by his flesh.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. The goatman¡¯s halberd started to veer away from Ruth slightly as the metal tip pierced the air toward his abdomen. The goatman let out a cry and tried to steady the halberd even as it fought his control. The range was somewhat short but the effect was actually kind of impressive? Ruth would have to figure out how this spell actually worked when cows, houses, spiders, and goats weren¡¯t trying to murder him. He would probably need to be conscious, too. With a bulge of muscles and effort, the tip skipped across a few of the black scales of Ruth¡¯s clothing eating clothes before sinking into his unwounded shoulder instead of his sternum. Ruth let out a brief cry and grabbed at the wood below the axeblade to try and pull it out. He needn¡¯t have bothered because no sooner had the metal pierced into his body than the whole axehead shot in the opposite direction, briefly bending the wooden shaft before shattering it at a breakpoint completely. The axeblade whistled and shot back in the direction it had come from like a cannonball. In an extremely unfortunate turn of events, the goatman, still squinting through sand and dirt and heroically trying to fight the halberd axeblade that was turning traitor in his hands, had started to duck down as the halberd blade rocketed straight backward and the wooden shaft exploded in his hands. The blade spun off past his shoulder and into the sky, leaving a brief sparkle before disappearing -- probably to ruin someone else¡¯s day. The goatman had started to turn to watch the halberd blade spinning off, the hairs on the back of his neck rising as the specter of death sped off into the distance. He never got to turn his head the whole way because two hands grabbed both of the horns on top of his head and dragged him down into the ditch. Ruth bit into his shoulder for extra purchase and held him down by the horns, yelling in pain even as he struggled to hold the goatman down. The goatman struggled and began to scream in a weird bleating goat fashion as it tried to push Ruth¡¯s teeth away, his response being to bite even more viciously. Weird hissing accompanied the biting as Ruth got ahold of both of the goat horns and slammed the goatman into the ground. The goatman put both his hands on Ruth¡¯s head to get him off and was surprised when he felt the resistance on his horns fall away on one side. Ruth had canceled the Generic Magnetic Field when he¡¯d noticed the arrow, previously lodged in his shoulder, rolling further up the hill as if trying to get away from him. It had started to slide down with the field de-activated and then his new sassy tail had grabbed it. All those tail calisthenics had paid off. Ruth released one horn with one hand, grabbed the arrow that had just ''escaped'' from his body, and began stabbing the point into the ribs of the goatman repeatedly. A shadow fell over him, blocking out the sun, even as the goatman struggling under his hands began to weaken. Ruth rolled immediately to the right and put the dying goatman between him and the sky. Just in time to feel the goatman shudder as two arrows quickly penetrated the back of the goatman lying on him. The archer stood on top of the ditch already feeding another arrow into his bowstring. Ruth thrust his hands from around the mostly dead weight that was lying on him and pointed them toward the goat archer using the goatman still on him as a shield. He screamed wordlessly as he started to channel Shock into both hands. Time slowed and the goat archer was just, somehow, faster. An arrow started to pull back and the calm furred fingers seemed like they had extra time to pull the bowstring back that would kill Ruth. Ruth immediately thought about recasting Generic Magnetic Field but it didn¡¯t seem like there was enough time to do that either. If he did that he would have to stop channeling Shock. It was just a race now. A race he would lose. The best hope was to survive the arrow that was being drawn toward his eyes, somehow, and kill the goatman on the return barrage. A wordless rage blurred from deep within him. For a moment he saw a small creature with weird lumps on its back and burning yellow eyes that were the shape of vertical slits. A tail lifted behind it and a soundless wave shook outward like a violent pulse from Ruth toward the goatman. SHAKESHAKESHAKE ?? Rush did not understand much of what was going on but it had determined that there were things. That might not seem impressive, but the fact that Rush could tell that there were things going on that were different from the normal distant flashes was a big step. The small window was gathering more of his attention and he was reaching true concern because the space around him was trembling. The thing had poked a thing toward his point of view. Rush did not feel endangered by this poke, thus, did nothing to avoid it. As Rush expected, this weird creature was simply too feeble to threaten his greatness. Rush started to get bored. Only for a second though, because everything started to distort again. The space trembled and cracked even more. Some of the space actually started to leak outward into the nothingness. This, Rush decided, was unforgivable. The space provided Rush with a place to lord over. It was in desperate need of leadership and he was the leader. It was the space that provided food, and he protected it. There was also the image of the concept of territory again. He needed to protect his territory. While the thing on the image made no sense to Rush and he felt no immediate danger from it, there was still a reaction to the space. The space was being attacked and that was unacceptable. The space belonged to Rush and therefore the thing with the thing was attacking his thing. RAGE. So Rush did what Rush always did when an invader entered his territory. Rush attacked it. ?? Shake...Shake...Shake...Shake. The goatman staggered as the weird wave reached him. Intense pain burst into his head as the noise reached his ears. His fingers released the nocked arrow before it was fully pulled so that he could clutch at his head. The result, the arrow skipped against the goatman that was lying on Ruth and then skipped a few more times into the distance before coming to a stop. One, two, three, four, five, six! Six skips! Ruth had just counted them. Then a sharp light filled the air as electrical arcs hissed out from his hands and slammed into the goatman archer. The bang as the lightning hit the goat immediately deafened anyone having a fight to the death within a meter. So everyone. The unfamiliar and powerful rage flooded Ruth and he pushed the goatman off him and stood up, screaming his victory to the heavens. ?? Rush threw back his head as he felt the space once again begin to stabilize. He howled upward and closed his eyes in a simulacrum of Ruth, exulting in his victory as lord of this place. The food provider was safe. He was still full. Rush spun around three times in the air and started to curl up on himself. The threat vanquished, he closed his eyes after casting a pleased look over his domain. One eye opened briefly as it considered the thing in the darkness that wasn¡¯t far away. He once again sent out his warning. Closer. Eat it. The window had closed during his victory pose. ?? Ruth sat down and checked his shoulders. They were punctured and hurt. Neither wound was too deep but neither was exactly shallow. Ruth panted and poked at the arrow hole with his finger. He winced. He was a little concerned because his clothing was starting to cover the wound and the scales were starting to repair themselves in order to do so. He broke out into a cold sweat as he began to wonder whether or not the clothing would try to seep into his wounds and eat him. Ruth would keep an eye out for that. Ruth thought he should rest but decided against it. Ruth had spent his new life running frantically from one area to the other, only stopping when he collapsed or was knocked unconscious. He had already been lucky that he hadn¡¯t been eaten, stoned, or just smothered in his sleep with all the carelessness that he¡¯d displayed. No more. Sleep would only occur if he could hide or find shelter. Ruth sat down and crossed his legs, staring at the dead goat further up the hill. While he was recovering and taking stock of things, he might as well see what had attacked him and try to figure out if there were more of them. Almost as if it were offering itself, the goatman near him began to cough softly, moaning quietly. Ruth regarded the un-electrocuted and semi-conscious goatman and smiled. He would get some answers. Then he would learn how to use the bow. The bow seemed powerful. For the moment, Ruth forgot about that strange little creature that had appeared in his mind, and the sound that had emerged that had briefly stunned the goatman. Rather, he tried thinking of it, got nowhere, and immediately put it aside for later. ?? ¡°I¡¯m going to release my barrier,¡± Heath said calmly. ¡°Collect yourself and act like you¡¯ve either seen something amusing or something that didn¡¯t impress you.¡± Tamara rolled her shoulders and unclasped the fists at her side. She nodded after a moment and closed her eyes. ¡°Do it.¡± The barrier disappeared just as Tamara finished sighing. ¡°Oh. I thought that was really going to be the end of him. It was, uh, ugly.¡± Her face was a study in disinterest. ¡°He lived, doesn¡¯t that make you happy?¡± Heath smiled. ¡°I guess.¡± Tamara turned to him and smiled. ¡°Hey, let¡¯s go get cake.¡± Spoiler: Spoiler Generic Magnetic Field 50% Learned Mana: 16/20 4 of 5 spell slots 20. Ruth and the Cannibal Pixies Immortal and Deadly Text Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 5) (Frail/Awake) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Intelligence Favored ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures. (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ïGeneric Thunder Struck 75% Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. ¡ïGeneric Magnetic Field 50% Repel or attract metal to a certain degree using the caster as a base. Lasts until spell slot is restored or canceled. Mana: 16/20 4 of 5 spell slots Event Log: Body Development Level 4, suggesting options to host canceled. Body Development Level 5, suggesting options to host canceled. Developmental path selected for host by Patron. ?????Patron Bonus: Wish 1/1 : Wish, ¡°Fuck, I wish you¡¯d just choose for me.¡± Granted: I¡¯ll do it for you, from now on. King Rush (??): Mental Attack Under Development: Shake Shake Shake. The Shake Shake and Shake Shake, arguably Shake Shake. Ruth glared daggers at the immortal and deadly text. It had abandoned him in his moment of need and only now appeared after the battle had resolved itself in his victory. Ruth felt betrayed deep inside. They had been through so much together in the past day or three and he thought that should have meant something to the immortal and deadly text. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with your treachery in a moment,¡± Ruth did not have time for a wall of immortal and deadly text, especially when some of it was interesting. ¡°Alright, you, talk!¡± Ruth walked over to the goatman who was staring upward in what Ruth thought might be abject terror. His tongue was making little desperate licking motions around the inside of his mouth as if his mouth were dry. Little funny wheezing noises were also present. The goatman clutched his side and finally seemed to be able to focus on Ruth. Okay then, it hadn¡¯t been abject terror but pre-death. Ruth had seen pre-death many times. It occurred when a creature was mortally wounded and the body prepared to offer the mana inside to the world. It did this, as far as Ruth understood the process, by shutting down the body parts. ¡°I don¡¯t have time for this. Tell me who sent you? How many of you are there? What am I doing? What is the possibility of you understanding my beautiful draconic,¡± Ruth realized the futility of what he was doing about ten seconds into the advanced interrogation. Pre-death would turn into real death any second. The idea of poking the thing and causing it distress before it perished was briefly toyed with but decided against. Ruth didn¡¯t believe in the pointless torturing of creatures.
The immortal and deadly text stirred behind him and briefly showed him an image of him stoning a goblin and kicking a small furred creature that had stabbed him.
¡°Those don¡¯t count. That was glorious combat,¡± Ruth snapped.
Why?
¡°No, shut up that¡¯s why.¡± Ruth turned back to the goatman and just started saying words. ¡°Number? Name? Species? Where? Home? Tamara?¡± The goatman died. Moment of silence for the goatman. He had been a ferocious enemy who was obviously an elite sent by a devious foe. The web of lies and scandal and sheer cunning of their organization must be tremendous and vast.
The immortal and deadly text box showed another picture. This one was of Ruth standing in front of a forest being set ablaze right after a less than subtle light show in the sky. His head was thrown back in laughter with his hands placed triumphantly at his hips. The shot panned out and showed a forest on fire with lightning dancing in the sky. Amazingly you could still hear his laughter from the distance the scene was shot from.
¡°What is your point?¡± Ruth did like to see the part where the forest got set on fire again. Also, he got a pretty good look at his new body this way. ¡°Hey, show me again!¡±
No.
¡°Traitor.¡±
No.
¡°Where did you go?¡±
No.
¡°We¡¯re not done.¡±
Yes.
Ruth started to step over the goat and then decided to take a slightly longer route around. Sometimes things only looked dead, and prudence was rewarded with survival. At least, until he figured out how to breathe lightning breath from the sky like his dream. Then the only prudency would be to get the hell out of his way. Ruth picked up the bow and pulled on the line experimentally. Obviously, this was only handed out to the best. He pulled it back a little and released it a few times, his concern for this imagined vast shadow organization growing. The aching of his wound was dulled a bit. Every time he thought of the spots on his shoulders the scales of his clothing pressed down a bit more. Cold sweat as he stilled for a moment to make sure that it wasn''t trying to eat him. Nothing happened. Back to the arrow. The arrow had hurt quite a lot. It was impressive that there was a weapon that could harm him. The concept of being harmed by tiny things was new to him. Of course, when he had been a fledgling dragon without wings that could lift him he had encountered many dangerous foes. He had still been the size of the cow and had large scales on him. Honestly, he didn¡¯t remember much about those days in the beginning because it had just been frantic running and eating. Ruth had an arrow now and decided to mimic what he had seen. He held the wood part of the bow with his left hand and carefully nocked the arrow into the string. This weapon was ridiculously intuitive! The stick butt part even had a groove carved into it! He pulled the string back and immediately dropped the arrow on the ground. Okay. He would hold the nocked part of the arrow and the string at the same time on this attempt. He was briefly puzzled because there appeared to be feathers attached to the shaft. Perhaps it was to instill terror on creatures that it was fired toward? It had killed before, it would kill again? More likely, he reasoned slowly, it helped with the flight of the arrow in some fashion. Feathers and flight made sense to him.
The immortal and deadly text box behind him made a picture of two hands clapping together.
Ruth paused for a moment, startled by the reaction. This immortal and deadly text seemed different somehow. Could this be an imposter? It would explain why it had disappeared for a time. It had been eaten by an imposter immortal and deadly text. No matter. If he were being perfectly honest with himself, this new immortal and deadly text seemed like the better version. Ruth pulled the arrow back against the string a bit, about half-draw, and released. It flew a pathetic three feet. He had six more arrows on the dead goatman before he had to go chasing arrows. Sadly the one he had used to kill the other goatman had broken at some point in all that mad stabbing. Ruth smacked himself in the face with the string on his first full draw attempt, howling in pain and dropping the bow while he danced around and tried to ineffectually rub his face to make it stop hurting. Upon reflection, he was lucky his horns had caught on the string. The second time he was more cautious and held it far away from his face. The arrow shaft was held on the right side of the arrow resting point of the bow and before he finished letting go it had wandered off to the right and sped haphazardly into a tree, shattering on impact.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Two more times this way with the arrows veering off in an outward direction. Out of exasperation he tried feeding the arrow point in through the left side of the arrow rest and had much better results(after he hit himself in the face with the string again because he was focusing too hard on the arrowpoint). He practiced like this for an hour, ruining three arrows. It was getting to the point where he could hit things that were within about 5 meters as long as they were the size of a goatman or a cow. Killing smaller creatures would be impossible for him. He also decided that if the thing was moving he probably wouldn¡¯t be able to hit it. It would be like that time with the rock. Unwilling to give up on the bow, however, he looped it over his shoulder and also slung the quiver from the dead goatman over his back. He reached behind him to see if he could draw the arrows with any sort of speed. A quick few turns in a circle as he had trouble as they caught on the quiver -- nope. This would not be an emergency weapon. Maybe he could practice using the tail to move it efficiently? Sassy tail swished, seeming somewhat opposed to the idea. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m going to eat now.¡± Ruth turned and moved to the dead goatman and sniffed. ¡°Or not.¡± A quick move to the one who was not electrocuted and a sniff later. ¡°Bad.¡± Much like the goblins, these goatman smelled off to him. The spider had been delicious, if crunchy and hairy. The marrow inside had actually been pretty good too, if slimy. It sort of reminded him of egg yolk. Ruth was still salivating when he turned to the immortal and deadly text box. Or the imposter of the immortal and deadly text box. He scrutinized the information, focusing for a moment on the word ¡®frail¡¯. Ruth did not like this word one wit. His number had gone up by two. Dragons were very good with the idea of quantity. He could have told you where every single piece of his hoard was(barring the pet beetles, they sometimes needed fetching) and would know instantly if a piece was missing. Dragons also knew that more was better. Since his number was ¡®bigger¡¯, or at least that was the sense he got when he focused on the number, that meant it was better. ¡°Why does this number go up?¡±
No.
Ruth sighed, and crouched down, drawing lines in the dirt as his tail twitched behind him. He closed his eyes and tried to will the anger to go away so he could think. The box had to be tricked and deceived in order to help him. He would find a way to ask his question better. ¡°This number goes up and down based on mana I use?¡± He pointed at the mana readout. The box blinked a yes and he continued to ask, ¡°so this one is how many spell slots are left?¡± A yes again. Ruth stood up and pointed at the number by his name. ¡°Explain the purpose of showing me this number.¡± The box stilled. Ruth began to smirk triumphantly. The immortal and deadly text box turned slightly, almost as if it were looking away from him. Ruth blinked, some of the smile leaving his face. Was this thing hesitating? It looked really reluctant no matter how Ruth saw it. The immortal and deadly text box finally started to provide text.
Your body breathes in mana from external sources. It cannot retain all the mana but endeavors to do so naturally. A result is that as time passes your mana circulation and body become more robust in order to retain more mana. When a creature dies and you are in proximity your body is overloaded with mana and breathes in as much as it can. The resulting mana inflation feeds into your soul space, improving it and feeding your soul shape. The effectiveness of this process is increased if your body is under extreme mana pressure.
¡°Wait.¡± Ruth made the box send pictures into his mind until he had only the basic idea of what it was trying to tell him. Ruth had a body that ate mana. It ate mana and he got bigger and stronger. It would do this naturally using mana in the world. It would do it faster when there was a source of free mana nearby. ¡°What is extreme mana pressure?¡±
Life or death situation. Strenuous activity. Your mana circulation can be thought of as a muscle.
¡°I will get stronger without fighting though?¡±
Yes.
¡°Slower?¡±
Yes.
¡°Is there a way to make it faster without fighting or killing?¡± Ruth didn¡¯t like the idea of being weak and didn¡¯t like the idea of just going on a killing spree either. Long hesitation from the immortal and deadly text box.
Many.
¡°Show me?¡± Ruth stood up, excited, not even bothered by the fact that the quiver had struck him on the back as he straightened too fast. Images of sparring with other strong opponents. Images of strange and sweet-smelling foods. Images of lightning dancing in the sky atop a mountain. Images of small gems embedded in creatures. The list went on for some time. Now Ruth realized why it had hesitated. There were many. ¡°Okay. Last question for now. What is a King Rush?¡±
No.
Ruth sighed. ¡°Wh--¡±
You said last question.
Ruth began to fume and was about to tell the immortal and deadly text box exactly what he had meant with a bit of dirt throwing when he paused and tilted his head to the side. There was a weird buzz in the air. It sounded like the distant hum of a swarm of flies. ?? All across the Ten Year Wood creatures large and small stopped what they were doing as the hum began to grow in pitch and intensity. Younger denizens looked around curiously, some of the smarter among them already starting to look alarmed. The older ones, be they Slothen, Mongeese, the Haberdasher, and many others all froze in various states of disbelief. The Ten Year Wood was named just that because a calamity fell upon the forest and the inhabitants at almost precisely the mark of every ten years. The problem was it had only been seven years since the last one. Something was wrong, and that would have to be investigated. Now was not the time though. Now was the time to hide. ?? Ruth had briefly considered investigating the noise but then decided that he hadn¡¯t met anything in this fucking place that hadn¡¯t tried to stab him, bite him, poke him, chase him, shoot him, or eat him. He turned around and started running through an unburned portion of the forest off to his right. It was somewhat adjacent to the path he had been traveling. At first, Ruth had been quite cautious as he made his way quickly through the dense foliage. There were still natural dangers to be aware of after all. That quickly faded when a spider that was twice his size exploded from the undergrowth nearby and ran right past him. Several minutes of running later, the humming was getting to be an irritating sound. Ruth rather abruptly found that the trees ended in front of him against a wall of rock. He placed his hands against it and looked up. He was fairly certain he could climb it but was also fairly certain that had been the destination of the giant spider. He turned and started feeling his way along the wall, using the space between the rock and the trees in order to move hurriedly. The path started to lead downward at some point. The humming increased in pitch. Ruth was a little alarmed now. He started running as best he could without falling. The sound shook the air and was almost deafening. He covered his ears and was just resolving himself to turn around and fight when he saw it. Low to the ground, dark opening in the rock. It was a shallow indent that only went in about two and a half meters and was only about half a meter high. Throwing caution to the wind he went prone and crawled feet first into the hole. He arched and bent and just barely fit. He felt much safer. He felt much safer for a moment. He crawled back out and frantically pulled leaves and branches together and pulled them toward the hole in the wall. He backed in again, only this time he pulled in branches and leaves and piled them high in front of him. Despite his desire to just hide, he did leave a little crack between some branches so he could see what was going on outside. Somehow the idea of being able to see his doom was more appealing to him than lying in the dark and waiting for it. ?? Wilkeena smiled. She could feel the fear of the forest. It was a little early to reap, but it wasn¡¯t a bad time. She was awake. She smiled wickedly again, a large sharpened spider leg scraping a gash into the earth below her. If the chosen of Tamara just happened to die? She would enjoy the mana and express her condolences to the slaughter god later. ?? Ruth wasn¡¯t sure what he was watching. A ¡®cow¡¯ had lumbered in from the trees nearby, grunting with great effort as it swung it¡¯s rack around in front of it. Huge hooves pounded the dirt meters away from his hiding space. Dark little lights flittered around the front of the cow, making little tinkling sounds. What are those? The immortal and deadly text box appeared beside him, darkened so it didn¡¯t display any light. It was a nice gesture, Ruth thought. He was fairly confident that he was the only one that could see it. It was still nice that it had dimmed itself. Even if nothing else could see the light, Ruth probably would have flipped out at the thing turning itself on right in front of him while he was hiding.
Cannibal Pixies.
Cannibal Pixies? Pixies that ate one another? Why would they do that if they were capable of killing a co-- His answer came a moment later. The monster moose had been putting up a valiant struggle against the half-dozen dark lights that fluttered in front of it. It had been doing a pretty good job and it would still be a long and difficult fight if the pixies wanted to take it down. At least until the other several hundred arrived. The noise of their wings was horrifying. They danced around the monster moose and bit at it, small wings beating furiously. They looked, to Ruth, like small naked humans as far as bodies went. Small breasted and nude. That was where the resemblance ended. Their hands ended in little clawed hooks and their mouths were full of sharp teeth. Once the rest arrived, the monster moose fell within minutes. The sounds of them eating was terrible. When there was no more moose the swarm fell on the pixies who had been injured. More were injured in their internal struggle and were quickly fallen upon by others. The cycle of cannibalism went on for a minute and then ceased as if an invisible signal or truce flag had been raised. They swarmed in spirals and immediately dispersed in different directions. They flew through the leaves both on the ground and in the trees, spun up around tree trunks and tree stumps. Several still gnawed the bones of the monster moose. They were getting close enough to make him nervous. Their flight made it impossible to determine if they had any sort of plan. It was likely that they would miss him. Just as likely as one suddenly veering into his blind. Though he was a little reluctant, Ruth narrowed his eyes and decided that it was better to be cautious. Yes. He would be cautious. He would attack them rather than wait for them to find him. He pushed an elbow in front of him and pointed toward the monster moose cadaver and began to channel Generic Thunder Struck. Cloud cover began to darken the sky around the cliff base and the treeline. The smell of ozone filled the air¡­ Ruth was fairly confident that he would live through his own spell even though he was about to blast it a few meters away. ?? Tamara smiled. 21. Ruth is Slightly Concerned For The Immortal and Deadly Text The decision to attack the mass of spiraling Cannibal Pixies started to cause Ruth to perspire as he waited for the result. The cloud cover cast a shadow over the area and made visibility decrease; initially at least. The purple light the pixies gave off actually started to fight against this darkness and before long it was brighter than it had been when there hadn¡¯t been any clouds. It would have been actually quite lovely if the little lights weren¡¯t small murder pixies that were currently pulling animals out of the trees and off the ground and eating them. Of course, eating each other when there wasn¡¯t enough of that horror going on. Where there had been several hundred pixies now fluttered upward of thousands. They blotted out the sky and moved through the area excitedly. The cacophony of their wings beating together and the noise their teeth made as they periodically ate anything they could find was deafening.
Influx Mana Luring Cannibal Pixies To Location.
Ruth honestly didn¡¯t know if this was better or worse. More pixies coming in to be smacked by his giant and devastating forest kill spell sounded good to him? A drop of sweat dripped off his nose and hit the ground under him soundlessly. His arm really hurt even propped as it was. His shoulder was starting to protest the trembling finger pointed out toward the pixies through the small opening. Nothing was ever easy. A small violet light approached the wall crevice forest detritus that was all that separated Ruth from the pixie piranha. He was seconds away from activating the spell. The mana circulating through him about to wash out into the world with deadly purpose. The small dark light seemed to notice the small break in the brush near the wall and approached. She fit herself through the small hole and fluttered for a brief moment while staring at the end of Ruth¡¯s finger. Ruth stared back, wondering with horrified fascination if the spell would activate on that pixie that was breathing on his finger or on the clearing past the pixie to which he was actually pointing. The pixie straightened as it finally realized what it was looking at. It made a happy trill and the small creature¡¯s head parted horizontally in the middle revealing a row of teeth. The Cannibal Pixie started to take a bite toward his finger when the lightning finally washed down. Everything went white and the last thought Ruth had before the wave washed out all the color of the world was; serves you right for trying to bite me. ?? Rush awakens once more as the space trembles and writhes with golden tendrils blanketing the membrane that separates the mana lush interior of the space with the nothingness outside. The pressure pushes down on the space but the bubble holds, pushing back against the pressure a moment later. The space expands just the tiniest bit outward. The space begins to brighten imperceptibly as if it had been waiting for another baptism like this. What now? The window appears again at the thought and his eyes narrow. He remembers that a similar circumstance led to a great victory the last time this window appeared. The window is a vassal and is to be protected. He stretches lightly, the bumps where his wings were protruding just earlier in the day now long gone. His back is smoother, though now slightly ridged in places. There is a predatory grace in his movements as he pads through the air and paces around the box with the faintest hint of curiosity. His talons and claws begin clicking rhythmically in the air as he moves. Small embers of light flash between those claws. ?? Ruth hadn¡¯t expected to feel good. Blackened and scorched fingernails pulled him slowly forward and out of the depression. The smell of burned hair stung his nostrils. Was it his nostril hair that had singed and burned? His previously shoulder-length black hair that now hung close to his head? He would have to say, yes. Ruth smelled bad but he felt good. His body felt more natural, like the shocking mana that washed over him had simply redirected itself through him for a moment and passed through him like an old friend who had merely decided to drop by for a while and then left again. The rock covering had shielded him from most of the direct impact, which was probably the only reason his clothing wasn¡¯t completely destroyed. It hung off him tiredly, but intact; as if it had just given up the fight. He hoped it wasn¡¯t dead or something. The woods were strangely quiet for the moment. He looked up, blood-tinged black sclera straining to push away the fuzziness. Ruth stood up and then looked down again in confusion as a noise alerted him to the fact that the bow he had been carrying was reduced to mostly ash. The string or tendon long since burned. The quiver was smoldering and had fallen off of him while he was crawling out. Given the condition of those pieces of equipment, it was possible his clothing was just next level stuff and he should be grateful that it still clung to him at all. The woods were devastated for meters around him. Rancid and acrid smoke danced through the air as he straightened up and tried to see further. The forest was burning again but with less intensity than before. A light mist was fighting it on the breeze keeping the flames and the fumes down to a manageable level. Ruth was just getting ready to crawl back into his hole when he heard them. The purple death pixies were in the open area immediately. It had been too much of a hope that he had killed enough of them. Caught frozen as the first few arrived on the scene while he was indecisively turning toward his hidey-hole, he straightened again and smiled as they started to flutter closer. Shadows danced in the trees as the weird lights started to arrive from all over, lured in by the excess mana or just the smell of burned flesh and death.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Horns and sassy tail were a go. His shoulders still hurt a lot but some of the pain had drifted away in the aftermath of the lightning strike. In fact, if he could have cleared the smell of his own burning hair out of his nose he would have inhaled deeply and let out a pleased sigh. ¡°Come then,¡± Ruth raised his hand toward the largest mass and waited. Given how shock worked and that he could only cast it eight more times at the moment, it seemed prudent to get as many as he could in one shot. The humming noise grew in intensity again.
King Rush Descends. All hail! All hail!
The immortal and deadly text had been inordinately ¡®quiet¡¯ for the last minute. It hadn¡¯t tried to interrupt him or show him his status by pushing in front of him, though a quick glance revealed it was still displaying his information with updated information. ¡°What the hell is a King Rush?¡± Shake Shake Shake A small midnight blue scaled creature popped out near Ruth, gave him a quick sidelong glance full of pity, and then immediately strode into the air like it was swimming through it. It approached the first pixie, startled by his appearance, and snapped trap-like jaws down on it.
King Rush!
The immortal and deadly text bobbed up and down lightly. Ruth was slightly concerned that either he or the immortal and deadly text had gone completely insane. ?? Rush had briefly given a look to Ruth. He was here now. All would be well. Rush knew on an intrinsic level that the space and food provider was Ruth. He would help out his minion this one time. Stay back dumb. Rush figured that should cover it. Rush would fight for the moment and claim glorious victory while the stupid vassal did nothing. That would be best, Rush thought, considering what he¡¯d seen Ruth doing. Besides. Floating lights were delicious! They crunched in his teeth with a solidness that was novel. They had different flavors! A few of the pixies turned toward the new danger swimming through the air between them and Rush decided that was bad. He immediately returned to the safety of soul space, disappearing from the world with a slight pop as the air rushed in to occupy the space he had just vacated. Oh, this was good. This was a good thing. Rush looked at the window for a moment and popped out of the soul space and back into the clearing, appearing behind the two or three pixies that had been moving toward him while he was eating their brethren. He fell on the first one with a claw, the second one with his other claw, and then sandwiched the two claws onto the last pixie. He opened his mouth and bit down violently on the pixie sandwich. Lightning erupted nearby and burned through the forest to his left. Rush looked up and rolled his eyes. The vassal could not accomplish simple commands. Rush would take care of the sky full of pixies. Why did it bother? It was so dumb. Rush popped back into the soul space and then re-appeared in the midst of pixies once again. ?? Ruth didn¡¯t know what the creature was but there was something about it that made him think he should smack it. That would have to wait though. He cast shock and burned an entire row of pixies at about eye-level far back into the trees, starting to back up as the new creature popped in and out of sight. Between the wounded pixies and the small creature eating them, the pixies were now being slightly disorganized as they varied between flying toward him and the creature and turning on each other.
King Rush! King Rush!
Ruth was concerned for the immortal and deadly text now. It had gone completely insane. Ruth turned and ran, noting that the creature that was popping into and out of existence seemed to be fully capable of keeping up with him no matter how fast he ran. He turned once and cast another shock, lightning briefly fighting the purple light in the area with gold. As he ran he became aware that the entire world seemed to be at war. Dozens of pixies swarmed around a spider that was desperately spitting webbing at them. The entangled pixies spun and crawled taking bites at others entangled and also eating the webbing outright. They started to eat their way up the strings toward the spider. He heard the tell-tale sounds of the monster cow bleating in panic and the humming that spread through the trees seemed to be everywhere. Ten Year Wood was fighting. ?? Wilkeena had stopped smiling some time ago. The strange mana disturbance and the loss of several thousand pixies all at once were inconsequential things in the long run. What was not inconsequential was the sheer amount of resistance that the wood had been producing. Seeing through the small and unintelligent eyes of her swarm was believing though. Perhaps, it was too soon. With no chance to hide everything is choosing to fight. No matter. The mana that dispersed from the dead was pooling into the ground with an intensity. The Arachne closed her eyes and cast aside her senses as she focused on circulating it. She was so close to being a demi-god. Then none of this would matter anymore. ?? Arathan flapped her wings and disappeared from the place where she had been keeping an eye on Rush. It was pointless now, at least for the moment, because he was entering and exiting the space. There was no stopping his exploration at this point. All she could do was report to Tamara¡­ though she suspected there was no need. ?? It isn¡¯t devouring aura, Tamara thought. Her expression eased slightly as a slow smile came to her lips. ¡°Interesting. Not many soul shapes can leave that early. It¡¯s quite aggressive.¡± Heath shook his head with a pained smile, ¡°I¡¯m going to lose all my hair at this rate.¡± ??
King Rush! King Rush!
Immortal and Deadly Text Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 5?? Calculating) (Frail/Awake) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Intelligence Favored ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures. (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ïGeneric Magnetic Field 50% Repel or attract metal to a certain degree using the caster as a base. Lasts until spell slot is restored or canceled. Mana: 12/20 3 of 5 spell slots 22. Rush and the Expanding Territory Rush broke through the soul space and appeared in the trees behind the territory that was running in front of him. Rush momentarily stared at Ruth(the territory), watching him thrash and flail through tree branches and jump over bushes and logs. Rush was pleased that his territory seemed to be aggressively expanding. It was like the territory itself was constantly acquiring more territory for Rush to lord over with every step it took. Rush also took a moment to admire the tail that sashayed expertly behind Ruth. Rush briefly looked back at his own tail and found with some disappointment that it was a bit thicker and seemed less dexterous than that of his vassal. A small reptilian frown accompanied his perplexing thought; why was it thick like that? Was this like the wings? He pounced on a pixie, casually pinning it to a tree. Ignoring the swarm that was starting to fly frantically toward him, he looked over casually as he bit the rest of the head of the pixie off and munched on it. Rush really liked this new place where he was also lord, the food that came toward him was much better than the small things with sharp hands in the dark place. The buffet seemed to be endless and that was also a good thing. Rush disappeared back into the soul space and was about to leap back through the window when his front foot faltered and missed. He tumbled slowly through the air and hit the bottom of the soul space, bouncing high and slow as if he were tumbling in a low gravity environment. He bounced twice and landed on his back. Rush gazed lazily upward at the window thinking about how tired he was getting all of a sudden. It made sense since he had been eating nonstop for some time now. It was hard to fight the dizziness and full tummy. Rush was also astonished to discover that even a lord of all could eventually get tuckered out dealing with tasks all day! Rush rolled slightly to the side, pushing himself over with a much longer and slightly thinner tail. He smiled at the tail and the little heart-shape near the end waved back at him. Shake shake shake. Yes, this was right. The heart shape near the end was still the noisemaker that he liked but now the tail was thinner and longer like the tail of his vassal. Rush was lord of all in his territory. This was known. Rush hopped back up into the air after a moment of concentration and then the uncertainty reappeared in his eyes for the third or fourth time in his life. It wasn¡¯t confusion based on fear or any sense of danger, no. Rush just wasn¡¯t sure he was benevolent enough to keep doing all the work for his vassal! One more then sleep. Rush turned his head slightly and eyed the darkness around the soul space. He did not see the trouble-making thing that liked to perch nearby, therefore there was no need to admonish it. He did it anyway. Come closer. I eat! Rush popped through the window and out into the forest of the Ten Year Wood just as Ruth was starting to turn around to charge another shock toward the advancing wall of Cannibal Pixies. With the reappearance of Rush, he hesitated, stopping for a moment to see what the small creature would do. Rush was pleased. His vassal must know intuitively that when his lord was present, respect and attention must be given! Rush narrowed his eyes slightly as he noticed the horns on his vassal. They were slightly less of a solid spiral than his were and ended with points hooked upward. Rush liked that style and made a note to improve upon it when he was taking his nap later. For now, something had to be done so he could take said nap. The purple lights fluttering through the trees hummed through the air with an intensity that was starting to annoy Rush. Rush did not believe that anything had the right to try to out-noise him in his own moving territory. His tail curved near the base, now nearly a meter long with the heart-shaped rattle organ near the end. It uncoiled with speed, not unlike a whip, the end snapped straight producing a truly prodigious blast of volume. SHAKESHAKESHAKESHAKESHAKE The sound caused the ground, trees, and even the leaves and ash falling through the air, to push outward in a clearly visible wave. The wave folded through the trees and everywhere that it touched blessed silence fell. Cannibal Pixies stopped beating their wings the instant it touched them. Their black eyes rolled back into their heads revealing a surprising amount of whiteness. The only sound in the immediate area was the soft thumping noises as every single Cannibal Pixie in sight dropped like a stone. Be good, dumb. Rush was actually quite pleased with the territory''s initiative to expand but he didn¡¯t want to encourage the stupid thing too much. Rush disappeared back into the soul space. He was satisfied when he looked up at the window and couldn¡¯t hear any of that racket anymore. The window closed as soon as he lost interest and the pseudo-darkness of the space covered Rush once more. He moved through the air in slow-motion, turning around three times before looping his tail over his shoulder. He closed his eyes and started to nap. His face and claws were still bloody from all the pixies that he had torn into and eaten but he made no move to try to wash or clean them. Judging from the way his claws flexed and unflexed he was still dreaming about a great victory. Contented snores began to occur infrequently with the faintest tinkling from the rattle on his tail as his chest rose and fell. ??
King Rush has developed mental attack: ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïSHAKE SHAKE The effects of SHAKE SHAKE do SHAKE SHAKE, arguably a powerful SHAKE of SHAKING. Weak-willed creatures will SHAKE SHAKE, often succumbing to a long SHAKE.
Ruth lowered his hand completely and stared out across the expanse of quiet forest. He could still hear the humming but it seemed much further away now. The creature had come out and blasted some sort of attack that dispersed through the trees. Whatever it had been, it hadn¡¯t had any effect on Ruth himself. To the pixies it seemed somewhat devastating. Ruth walked forward a few paces and knelt down. He picked up the unconscious Cannibal Pixie and stared at it hard, getting a real good look at them. Ruth had initially thought they were nude but found their torsos were actually covered in an almost transparent gossamer leaf of some sort. Their heads had wild hair flowing upward at all angles, a consequence of flying all the time he supposed. Their wings were very stretchy and flexible, almost like the sticky tree sap Ruth had enjoyed when he was a dragon. Their feet and hands ended in digit like toes and fingers that seemed to be sharpened unnaturally. To Ruth, it looked like they had mutilated their own hands and feet in order to turn them into deadly weapons.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Ruth sniffed the Pixie and was surprised when he didn¡¯t smell the bad affliction that was on many of the other creatures he¡¯d come across. Ruth shook his head and casually bit the legs of the pixie off. He crunched thoughtfully as he picked up another one and started heading in the direction he had been going. Despite how fast things had happened Ruth had been running for some time. Ruth popped the top half of the pixie into his mouth and doggedly chewed. It tasted like crap but it was making his stomach do something other than growl at him. He started eating the second pixie and picked his way quietly forward. ¡°Do you think there are many Cannibal Pixies left?¡± Ruth addressed the immortal and deadly text that floated nearby.
No.
¡°No you don¡¯t think there are more, or no you don¡¯t want to answer?¡±
No.
¡°King Rush would want you to answer me,¡± Ruth said soberly. One of these days he wouldn¡¯t have to resort to base trickery to just get a simple answer. The immortal and deadly text froze for a moment as if he had caught it in the world¡¯s biggest dilemma.
Many more.
¡°Should I hide?¡±
Many, many, many more.
¡°Okay,¡± Ruth scratched the top of his head, immediately finding that a great deal of what had been long hair came off with the scratch. Disgusted with the discovery, Ruth raked his fingers around his horns and over his head and pulled off caked and burned hair. Some of it came off quite painfully because he had to pull the damaged ends from the ones still attached to his scalp. In the end, he suspected he had only about a small finger¡¯s worth of hair left on his head in unattractive patches that were sometimes longer or shorter than their adjacent counterparts. Ruth glanced upward to see where the sun was, but instead of locating it he was distracted by a tree that seemed to be several times larger than the others protruding through the canopy in the near distance. It was a large tree and might have hollows or something he could hide in. Ruth didn¡¯t like the idea of stuffing himself into another rock hole if he could help it. ?? Malika slammed the door to the Haberdasher¡¯s large tree shut behind her and two of her brothers who had managed to race through with her. The Cannibal Pixies were not far behind, but for the moment the area around the tree seemed clear of them. She had lost a lot of family on the journey through the woods when the calamitous Cannibal Pixies had descended. Having survived a similar event once in the past, she knew of the danger they represented but had been completely unprepared for their sudden arrival. One minute she was walking through a burned out patch of forest where they believed the kinslayer had walked, the next they were all running and everyone was screaming. Malika shuddered, opening her eyes and twitching her whiskers as she detected several familiar scents. The first was her mother, who she immediately found in the room frozen on a couch with the Haberdasher. They were sitting comfortably close together having tea and almonds, the two of them staring at her with open curiosity and a bit of¡­ what was that expression? Malika felt herself becoming self-conscious under their gazes. Reproach? They were angry at her for appearing? ¡°Mother, the purple lights have appeared!¡± Malika said breathlessly. ¡°Yes, it is unfortunate. I myself was nearby and decided to take refuge here since it is one of the safest refuges in the Ten Year Wood.¡± Mother Chaka put her teacup down smoothly and then smoothed an imaginary fold in her long flowing dress. Malika was, for a moment, startled when she heard the calmness in her mother¡¯s voice. She knew? ¡°What would you have me do, dear?¡± The silence had stretched on long enough that Mother Chaka gave a soft reproachful comment. ¡°Nothing can be done,¡± Malika finally admitted. A part of her was feeling upset because her Mother was displaying a calm that was probably the same carefree attitude she had been displaying when Malika herself was a hair''s breadth from death. ¡°Indeed, quite so.¡± The Haberdasher smiled and stood up from the couch. ¡°You are actually, all three of you, here at a very good time!¡± ¡°Are they now?¡± Mother Chaka glanced at him, eyes widening somewhat in surprise and anger. It was only a moment before they softened once more into understanding. ¡°Aren¡¯t they?¡± He stopped in front of the small fireplace that was carved into the tree itself where a small chute would expel the air through winding holes within the tree. The fireplace was ringed with stone and the hearth itself was comprised of stone so that the fire didn¡¯t spread throughout the tree. ¡°I suppose they are,¡± Mother Chaka said tiredly. ¡°Come, sit in the foyer here with us. I shall light a candle to calm nerves and we will talk until the danger passes!¡± The Haberdasher¡¯s lips curled slightly showing yellow and discolored teeth. Matching his words he took a small stick that was jutting near the edge of the fire and pulled it out. He moved to the candle near the couch table and pressed the red-hot ember end, blowing on it softly until the candle flickered to life. He cast one knowing look at Mother Chaka, who nodded back. Mother Chaka reached out to a small bowl of candied figs near the candle and pulled one out. She put it in her cheek and seemed to be nursing it. Moments later the Haberdasher did the same. They did not offer any to Malika or her two brothers. ¡°Rest, rest¡­¡± The Haberdasher motioned for them to sit on the spring moss carpeted interior of the tree foyer. Malika and her brothers could do nothing other than comply. There wasn¡¯t enough room on the couches and they were very tired after their life and death ordeal. They sat on the carpet and rested their backs against the wooden walls. The candle, Malika decided, did smell very good. Her eyelids began to get heavy and her breathing had returned to normal. There was no reason to be worried anymore. Everything would be alright. Malika blinked a few times noticing that the Haberdasher and Mother Chaka had ceased their conversation. Instead, they were staring at the three of them coldly -- loud sucking noises being produced from their mouths as they nursed their candies. The longer they watched her the more unsettled she became. It was a look that she had seen before but couldn''t quite place it... Her eyes widened fractionally. It was the gaze of the Goblins as they approached prey. It was the look of someone who was only looking at meat. Her body felt heavy and she started to slide to the floor. The side of her face felt cold on the moss carpet, and a familiar scent near the door started to waft over her nose for the first time. When she had entered she had scented many familiar things. The Haberdasher, the scent of tea, her mother -- and now Farnik! Before her eyes could roll completely into the back of her head she managed one last look at her mother and uttered the final words she would ever speak to her, ¡°kin...slayer¡­¡± Immortal and Deadly Text Update
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 9) (Delicate/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Intelligence Favored ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures. (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ïGeneric Magnetic Field 50%: Repel or attract metal to a certain degree using the caster as a base. Lasts until spell slot is restored or canceled. Mana: 10/20 3 of 5 spell slots
23. Ruth: Haberdash THIS Ruth crouched down and got his first good look at the bronze-colored door handle. His initial excitement began to die down. When he first saw that there was a door that led inside the tree he had been hopeful. When he saw that the handle appeared to be made of shiny precious metal? The dragon in him had risen to the forefront and he had taken large strides to the door without regard to his arms and shoulders, still on the mend, or the pain in his thighs and calves, hurt from hours and days of abuse. After licking the metal he had concluded that it was just shiny iron or low-quality steel. His interest in taking the metal from the door immediately waned. ¡°I wonder if I can unlock this with the magnetic field?¡± Ruth tilted his head and shrugged. He reached out with a hand, giving the mental go-ahead to push mana into the Generic Magnetic Field spell slot. Two spell slots still appeared to him when he focused on it. Given how he would learn it after just one more casting of it, he was tempted to just recast it immediately. ¡°Better not. It¡¯s free mana for the next time that I cast it.¡± His reserves were getting a little low. He was at half of his own internal mana tank. Despite the fact that his body was practically humming with the influx of mana coming in from around the wood, much of that mana was immediately circulated and released back into the world because his body wasn¡¯t capable of retaining it all. The rest which his body was capable of holding onto was being slowly converted to his own personal mana, which he would then consume to cast his own internal spells. He reached out a hand toward the door and was immediately amused by the action. The door handle jiggled slightly and then the door strained slightly near the latch as his hand approached. He prepared for there to be some sort of resistance and was surprised when none came. ¡°It tries to get away from me but I am unaffected.¡± Ruth thought it was interesting. When the spell was initially presented to him by the immortal and deadly text he had sort of understood that metal could be attracted toward him or repelled away. He had unconsciously thought that he would be attracted or repelled by the metal in some way, though that did not seem to be the case. His hand touched the doorknob and the wood in the door frame actually began to shriek in protest. He pressed his palm with a great deal of pressure downward and was rewarded as a large hole appeared in the wooden door as the doorknob, part of the door frame, and a large portion of the door itself crunched apart as it flew backward into the tree home. Destruction felt very good! He would go inside this place and then block the door so the pixies couldn¡¯t get in. At least, that was his line of reasoning as he stepped into the tree home. With everything that was going on and all the marvelous insights into magic and how the universe was working Ruth had been focused on getting shelter, barricading himself, and waiting for the pixies to go away. In hindsight, it was only natural that a place with a door would have creatures living inside of it. A furry bipedal raccoon and four more of the creatures that wore hats were in the room. One on the couch, three unconscious near the door. ¡°I can explain!¡± Ruth immediately said in draconic. He held both of his hands up palms outward to show he meant no harm. Ruth had to admit to himself that he may have accidentally killed the three furred creatures near the door when the door handle part of the opening had fractured and flew inward. He couldn¡¯t reconcile them all being out cold within several feet of the door while the other two were on the couch otherwise. ?? Just as darkness was beginning to take over, Malika heard the sound of an explosion. The creature that had killed her brothers moved in. He was wearing an odd reptilian scale suit that covered him more than the leather skirt he¡¯d been wearing when last she saw him. He also felt infinitely more dangerous. There was a presence in the room that had been absent moments before. Malika saw him raise his hands and memories of lightning flashing out and killing her brothers caused a victorious and cruel sneer to cross her face. His words sounded clicking and grating, containing ferocious guttural undertones that promised violence. ¡°As it should be, kinslayer!¡± Malika cast one last triumphant look at her treacherous mother and fainted. Her last conscious moment was one of pleasure at the idea of the two kinslayers, the strange creature and her mother, fighting to the death. ??If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Kill him!¡± Mother Chaka screamed around her candied fig. It was keeping her conscious in the room filled with the sleeping smoke produced by the candle. With her daughter¡¯s words and sneer and the way the creature spoke and raised his hands she thought that he was going to try and spell them to death in the manner that had killed her sons. Mother Chaka looked over and saw that the Haberdasher was already running to an inner door -- to escape! ¡°Ah! Death of my enemy is mine to claim then!¡± Her enormous hat wobbled on her head as she stood up proudly! All two and a half feet, perhaps a bit more if you felt gracious, of righteous anger. She drew the small blade at her side and leaped over the coffee table! ?? Ruth forgot about the three furred creatures at his feet. He forgot about the little creature that was dashing toward him with the small knife. He momentarily put aside thinking about the raccoon that was trying to open a door that led further into the tree. Ruth really just wanted to sit down because he realized for the first time how stupid he had been. In casting the Generic Magnetic Field, and not canceling it, he was attracting the pixies. They had come almost immediately, within a minute, after he had wiped out an area of them with his Thunder Struck. He had been so pleased with himself when the door had burst inward. He looked up mournfully and watched quietly as Mother Chaka thrust her dagger at him. She was small though, and the repelling force of the spell that would no doubt cause his doom sent the blade flying away from him and further into the room before it could even get close to his body. With his left hand he reached down and placed it hard on top of Mother Chaka¡¯s head. It smashed her hat flat against her skull. The smell of singed fur and feather and melted organic material filled the room as he directly used shock to end the small hatted creatures threat toward him. ¡°You all can¡¯t be reasoned with, can you?¡± He said sadly. ?? The Haberdasher continued to fumble with his keys to open the door. Behind him he heard the sharp report of thunder in an enclosed space. He winced and managed to fit the right key in the door after a long moment. He looked behind him and with a horrified glance realized that Mother Chaka hadn¡¯t even managed to slow the creature down! Worse, it was already in front of him, staring down in a deadened manner. Looking into the eyes of the creature was like looking into the eyes of death! He started to turn around and held up his furred hands! ¡°Wait! I have a way out of here! A portal that leads to--¡± He never got a chance because the creature reached out with one hand, and then¡­ something odd happened. The creature¡¯s sleeve surged toward him¡­ and there was only darkness. A desperate last thought fled from one end to his mind to the other. This device remembers me! Quickly! I must find something to write this down! For science! Then there was only pain. ?? ¡°Okay, so this is happening now¡­¡± Ruth was horrified to find that when he reached out to directly use shock on the bipedal raccoon his clothing had started to recede from his body and cover the raccoon! From his ankles to his knees, from his thighs and then to his chest, like it was liquid being drained from his person. When most of it finally got to the arm it had directly encapsulated the bipedal raccoon. Loud crunching and sucking noises squeezed out along with a startled and then desperate scream. Ruth tried to pull his hand away from the last of the murderous clothing but he was still wearing the primary device -- the ring! He couldn¡¯t reach it to pry it off because the rest of the clothing was folded over his hand while it ate the Haberdasher. ¡°Okay! Time to go! Just uhh¡­¡± Ruth seriously considered cutting his arm off. Fortunately, the feast hadn¡¯t taken more than a few seconds. Whatever mechanism the ravenous clothing used to digest seemed to have fully dissolved the bipedal raccoon in mere moments. The clothing once again surged back up his arm and down his body. He was once more fully clad, and this time soft boots appeared on the bottoms of his feet. A feeling of peace and contentedness washed over his body. Ruth stood very still and then couldn¡¯t help it. He finally laughed nervously, licking his lips. ¡°What the fuck?¡± A low bass humming noise started to increase in intensity from the walls all around him. Agh! Cannibal Pixies! Immortal and Deadly Text! Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 9+)** (Delicate/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Intelligence Favored ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures. (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ïGeneric Magnetic Field 75%: Repel or attract metal to a certain degree using the caster as a base. Lasts until spell slot is restored or canceled. Mana: 08/20 2 of 5 spell slots
ATTENTION: PLEASE FIND A SAFE PLACE TO HIBERNATE WHILE YOUR BODY CHANGES. 3 Minutes Remain.
24. Ruth Dreams of Electric Sheep Ruth reached down to his gloved hand and tried to separate the ring from the finger. Despite being a black band over the ¡®clothing¡¯ his attempt to remove it failed. It was like trying to pull a skinsuit off his body from his finger. Not only that, the ring actively resisted him and he wasn¡¯t sure, but he was growing increasingly alarmed because he felt like it was reacting by getting just the tiniest bit tighter around his finger. ¡°Don¡¯t eat me,¡± Ruth said after a moment. ¡°Haha, you made short work of that enemy! Do you require another meal or something?¡± There was no response. The feeling of contentedness and warmth did not fade. Ruth held his hand out to the body of the dead Mongeese with the smashed hat, waiting for it to envelope the corpse or otherwise do something horrifying. Nothing happened. Small relief. This was something that had to be OHMYSHITWHAT¡­ Ruth held a hand over his heart and staggered away from the immortal and deadly text. It had appeared directly in front of him quite insistently, just like the old days. He squinted at the new information that was flashing in an urgent RED. Normally there would be more information but now it was just.
Attention: Please find a safe place to hibernate. Your body will undergo changes in less than 3 minutes. 2 minutes and 23 seconds remain before wish protocol ¡°I¡¯ll do it for you, from now on¡± assists with bodily changes.
Less than three minutes his firmly sculpted butt! That was practically two minutes which was a world less than three! The hum was getting louder and the first few violet lit Cannibal Pixies appeared in the broken door. They flew around in circles for a moment before settling on one of the paralyzed Mongeese at the door. Fortunately or not for the Mongeese, he would be unconscious when they ate him alive. Ruth froze for a moment, trying to figure out what to do when the Cannibal Pixies sniffed the air and looked around. There seemed to be something about the air they didn¡¯t like. They worked together to grab the feet of the poor Mongeese and dragged him out the door. His hat fell off in transit. A moment later a pixie reappeared in the doorway and lifted the hat, it too flew out the door -- probably to a grim end like the creature who wore it. ¡°Maybe that will buy me some ti--¡±
1 minute 57 seconds.
Ruth turned around and to try the doorknob to the door that the Haberdasher had been trying to open when he became food for the wildly unpredictable and carnivorous clothing only to stop when the door knob started to jiggle. Ruth quickly canceled the Generic Magnetic Field before he accidentally started destroying locks and handle. Locks and handles that he needed. The door, key still turned in the slot, opened inwardly into another larger room. There didn¡¯t seem to be any other way out after a quick glance inside. A number of disturbing things were present but he didn¡¯t have time to examine or comment on them all. Time was ticking fast. Ruth turned around and strode over, grabbing the two unconscious Mongeese and dragging them into the other room before shutting the door. Between the smoke and the one he had slain, perhaps the Cannibal Pixies wouldn¡¯t investigate much further. Intelligence wasn¡¯t something that he really thought they had in abundance.
1 minute 23 secon--
¡°Agh! Stop it! Shut up, shut up, shut up!¡± Ruth flailed at the box to get it out of the way. He shut the door behind him and locked it, momentarily startled when he realized that the key was still jutting out from the door on the other side. Precious seconds slipped by as he opend the door, retrieved the key, locked the door. He pressed his back against the door as his heart started to beat wildly. Already he could feel the pressure of something within his body start to sieze control of his motor functions. Ruth quickly moved into the room and threw two chairs in front of the door. He toppled a bookshelf next to the door across the frame as well. That would have to do for now. Then Ruth saw the portal and he paused. What the hell was this? The portal, described as such because it was as flat as the immortal and deadly text and circular and hovering just off the floor, gave off a silver light. Nothing could be seen on the other side as it appeared to be entirely opaque. Ruth had seen a similar event once when he had been watching some humans hunting other humans. Desperate to get away, one human had made a similar thing and called out its name in an ancient language he hadn¡¯t understood. The human had stepped through it, his fate uncertain. The energy in the air hummed the nearer he got to it. Was it a way out? Was it a trap? Was it life or was it death? Ruth took a long momen-
47 seconds remain.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
--shorter moment and considered his options. Stay and hope they did not get in. Fight for forty seven seconds and die. Go through the portal and live, maybe. He needed an idea of where the portal led. Ruth immediately went over to one of the sleeping and paralyzed mongeese, Malika, and hefted her on a shoulder. Without any sort of gentleness he took her off his shoulder on the other side of the room and threw her like a sack of potatoes through the portal. Malika was gone. Ruth waited and saw no changes from the portal. A cold chill went down his spine. Had he just fed a living being to a portal to see what would happen? No! He had saved it¡¯s life! That¡¯s what he¡¯d done. Probably!
23 seconds remain.
¡°Shut up I can¡¯t think!¡± Ruth paced to the second Mongeese. There would be no point in repeating the experiment to see the result but a new worry had grown. If he left the creature on the floor and it woke up beside him he¡¯d be completely at its mercy. He could kill it with the remaining seconds, he supposed, but a part of him refused. ¡°Best of luck!¡± He threw the remaining Mongeese through the portal. The next eighteen to nineteen seconds comprised of two things. The first was Ruth threw a table with several cylinders and some weird books on it in front of the door. The second was he moved another tall bookcase directly in front of the portal hoping that this action would block it from the other side so that if the, thus far, murderous creatures woke up maybe it would be an impediment. ¡°Is it wrong to think that I sort of hope the portal ate them?¡± Ruth was already regretting his ¡®merciful¡¯ actions. ¡°Aghhh.¡± Ruth clutched his head as red started to color the edges of his vision. With a last thought, he cast Generic Magnetic Field once more. Maybe it would protect him from small metal pixies if they came. Everything in this world sucked. ?? ¡°Not bad,¡± the woman said as she stepped seemingly out of nowhere. She cast an unworried glance at the pile of debris covering the entryway which was shaking slightly as creatures on the other side tried to push inward. A quick glance around the room was all it took. A moment of her attention and every piece of furniture, book, utensil, furnishing, and even portraits on the wall was piled in front of the door in an unnaturally entangled way. Another quick glance had moved the bookshelf to the side of where it had been blocking the portal. The portal immediately reduced in size under her gaze. Moments later it fizzled out entirely. She moved the bookshelf back with a casual wave of her hand. She brushed blonde hair out of her eyes and crouched down. White teeth gleaming as she smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll be quick,¡± Tamara said. ¡°Don¡¯t wake up, or you¡¯ll be sorry.¡± ?? Ruth was once again soaring through the night sky. This time instead of the blue midnight scales they were a dark lacquered gold. Scales comprised of arcing electricity seemed to make up his entire body. His body felt fierce and powerful! Despite the incomparably free feeling of the new lightning body, there was also a painful itch that seemed to crawl over his skin. He flew downward and raked the tree branches of great oaks and elms in his passing, breaking off branches and sundering tree trunks as he flew through the forest. Trying to itch his whole body as he passed through the area. On some level he knew, that if this were real, he would have caught his wings on the sea of trees that he was flying through and long ago crashed to the ground. There was no time to think of that though. The itch became pain. His whole body felt like it was on fire! The burning was horrible and unimaginably intense! Worse than the burning though was the pervasive hunger that started to flow through him. He was so incredibly hungry. Instinct told him there was food nearby. Salivating, the lightning dragon flew frantically toward the source of food. A large field broke into view as he flew through the trees. The field was full of sheep the size of him! The sheep were also made of lightning. Already in the field a familiar creature was already tackling one of the sheep. It was the creature that he had fought beside earlier-- Earlier when? Ruth thought it strange but couldn¡¯t hold onto the thread of consciousness or memory of the event. Despite the size difference Lightning Rush crowed his victory and tore into the sheep. It didn¡¯t seem to matter that it was three to five times his size. Lightning Rush looked up once toward him, squinting as if he were having great difficulty understanding what Ruth was. It didn¡¯t matter more than food apparently, as Rush continued his feast of the golden electric sheep. Hunger clawed at him and Ruth fell on another of the sheep nearby. He tore and ate fast, feeling the unfamiliar heat and pleasure of the meal sink into his stomach and spread through his body. He joined Rush in roaring victory into the night sky. ?? Tamara stood up at last, wiping the back of her hand over her brow. It seemed almost comical since she wasn¡¯t perspiring and didn¡¯t look like it had been much effort. The amount of time that had transpired was only about fifteen minutes. ¡°Keep being fun, and keep staying alive.¡± She smirked and started to turn around to leave. Then the smirk vanished and she looked upward, visibly startling like she realized what she¡¯d said and that their might be an invisible audience. She crooked a finger upward and made a slow ¡®naughty naughty¡¯ wave. ?? ¡°It¡¯s just a pet,¡± Simius said in the darkness. ¡°Let me kill it,¡± Damascus replied. ¡°No, it¡¯d be better if she kept herself busy.¡± Simius said after an indeterminable length of silence. ¡°-but,¡± Damascus began to argue. ¡°Do you obey?¡± ¡°--I, I obey.¡± Immortal and Deadly Text
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 10) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Intelligence Favored ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures. (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: Powerful force to repel or attract metal using the caster as a base. Lasts for 4 hours or until canceled. (Mana Consumption 1) Mana: 08/20 1 of 5 spell slots
25. Ruth and the Difference When Ruth woke his eyes opened but he did not immediately move. There was no impulsive movement to check whether he was alright or if he was safe, no complaints about what was or was not irritating the skin of his person, no worry in his mind at all. He lay there staring at the ceiling and started to count the small tendrils of roots that had begun to spring out of the tree. He suspected that when the room had been carved out the tree had not given up reclaiming the space entirely. It had tried to continue growing downward from what was now the ceiling to the room. Ruth sat up slowly and looked down at his feet. Earlier in the day(?) he had been barefoot. Now the scales that rippled darkly across his body had covered his feet in what appeared to be slightly thicker footwear. A casual thought and the scales receded. The clothing moved at his will, revealing the ashen hued skin of his feet. A simple thought later and the boots reformed. The clothing had eaten the bipedal raccoon and gotten stronger. Stronger? Was that the correct word? No, perhaps not stronger, but the clothing had grown. It now covered a larger surface area of his person. It was possible, Ruth thought to himself, that the clothing could even cover more than it currently was covering. Ruth stretched out the arm with the ring on it and imagined claws. The clothing resisted, at first, but then started to slowly shape itself into extended fingers with clawed digits. Ruth experimentally touched the claws with his other hand -- the one that the clothing still wouldn¡¯t wind down. The clothing was soft in his hand despite the shape. It could take the shape but only had the consistency of leather, or lizard skin really. Ruth turned drowsily to the room and noticed the pile of things in front of the door. Everything had been happening fast but he was pretty sure he had not put all those things there. He slowly regained his feet and moved to the bookshelf that was blocking, or at the very least hiding from view, the portal. He stretched out his hand and gave it a push. Instead of disappearing in the portal or the portal revealing itself as the bookshelf fell through, the bookshelf hit the ground with a rather large and percussive thump. There was no longer a portal. Satisfied that the portal wasn¡¯t there he once again turned and regarded the pile of ¡®stuff¡¯ that was blocking the door. ¡°How long have I slumbered?¡± He wondered aloud. ¡°Reveal yourself.¡± Revealing itself might have been an exaggeration. The immortal and deadly text had been patiently waiting off to the side while Ruth re-oriented himself. Ruth felt clear in a way he never had. There were things wrong in this room. The first thing that felt wrong was the manner in which things had been placed in front of the doorway. He had limited time before he was forced into unconsciousness and probably hadn¡¯t done as fine a job. The second, the portal was missing. There was no reasonable expectation that it would close itself so conveniently without some sort of interference. Interference might have come from the creatures he had thrown through? Then why had they not just come through and slain him? Perhaps they were afraid that the Cannibal Pixies would get through and close it from the other side? That was reasonable. There could also be a third party that accounted for both. The thought made him uneasy. ¡°Hello, please display the changes.¡± Ruth pushed those aside for now. The important thing was he didn¡¯t hear Cannibal Pixies trying to barge inward from the outside.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 10) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Intelligence Favored ¡ï¡ï Shock: Jolts targets within line of sight with a moderate to heavy shock, killing or incapacitating small to medium creatures. (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: Channeled spell, discharging localized lightning under user direction after sufficient channel time. Due to the volatile nature of spell, effects on targets largely uncertain. (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: Powerful force to repel or attract metal using the caster as a base. Lasts for 4 hours or until canceled. (Mana Consumption 1) Update: ¡ï¡ï Internal Mana Circulation updated: Maximum mana 20 2 mana regenerated in 1 hour. Congratulations on learning all available templates. New Templates available. ¡ïLightning Chain: Bind a creature with chains of lightning. Deals moderate damage in addition to leashing a creature to the ?????ground within a meter. Instantaneous. (1 spell slot) ¡ïLightning Ward: Clad yourself in lightning. Dealing favorable damage to anyone that encroaches within a meter of the caster. ????Negates any lightning attacks. Instantaneous. (1 spell slot). ¡ïLightning Wings: Wings of lightning, the heart of thunder. Instantaneous. (1 spell slot)If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Mana: 20/20 3 of 5 spell slots
Ruth studied the changes and quietly requested that the immortal and deadly text show him what Lightning Chain, Lightning Ward, and Lightning Wings entailed. The first series of images corresponded to Lightning Chain. Ruth was a powerful man in dark black armor and wielded a spear of lightning. A deadly serpent rose from the waves off the bow of the ship he was on. The powerful man lifted his hand and called for a chain of lightning that tied itself around the serpent and held it in place. It didn¡¯t seem to be anchored to any one thing. It wasn¡¯t tied to the water, the ship, or even something below the surface of the waves. It simply existed. The second series of images were for Lightning Ward. Ruth imagined himself as a woman who was fighting with a light rapier. Arcs of electricity surrounded Ruth as she laughed and danced with a brute of a creature with red skin, horns, and cloven feet. Every time he tried to grab her he winced and fell backward as lightning played across his skin. Frustrated, the red-skinned man threw a large rock at her and it exploded, struck by lightning. The final images were of formless wings winding their way out of a thin man who leaped off a stronghold wall. He turned around and smiled upward as his pursuers moved to the edge of the wall to watch him plummet. Halfway down the mountain and while in freefall, the wings finally opened up and lit up the air. The man smiled and fell to safety. It wasn¡¯t as graceful as he imagined, the limbs of the trees buffeting his fall and striking him, but he did land without harm. Ruth slowly opened his eyes and stared at the immortal and deadly text. ¡°I would like to speak with Tamara.¡±
I am Tamara.
Ruth considered the statement and finally shook his head, ¡°no.¡±
No?
¡°No. I don¡¯t think so. Explain to me how you are Tamara?¡±
I am Tamara¡­
¡°No, I don¡¯t think so.¡±
I am the part of Tamara tasked with watching you. I am Tamara.
¡°The part,¡± Ruth stressed. The immortal and deadly text froze and then started to slowly move toward him. It opened wider for a moment and the words that came were somehow sharper.
Speak.
¡°What do you want?¡± Ruth was genuinely confused. Was this the real Tamara? Was he finally speaking directly to his patron?
Boring. No.
¡°Can we at least,¡± Ruth started to try again and stopped when the immortal and deadly text seemed to lose a littlesomething.
No.
¡°She¡¯s gone isn¡¯t she?¡± Ruth said sadly.
No.
¡°Ah. Next time I¡¯ll ask a better question.¡± Ruth stood up and stretched. He wasn¡¯t sure how much time had passed at this point but it had been a while. His stomach growling at him informed him that time had indeed passed, though. That wasn¡¯t saying much. This new stomach was always hungry. Wait! Come to think of it, he vaguely remembered -- ¡°Tell me how long it takes to regenerate a spell slot?¡±
1 Spell Slot Regenerates Every 4.8 Hours.
Ruth smiled. He was quite pleased to figure out that it had been in the neighborhood of 9 hours. The immortal and deadly text shook from side to side in a slow and exaggerated manner as if it were less impressed.
Reminder of: ¡ïUnlock Internal Clock: Ability to understand the passage of time. Current time: 16:09:82.
Fine. So he had been capable of keeping track of the passage of time before now and hadn¡¯t paid any attention to it! His eyes widened and his mouth turned into a displeased curve. Way to rain on his parade you piece of crap immortal and deadly text! ¡°Haven¡¯t you reported everything?¡± He sneered. ¡°Disappear.¡± The immortal and deadly box froze as it always did when there was a life-altering dilemma presented to it. Truly, the Ruth creature had a point. It had displayed all the pertinent information. He was updated on his current knowledge and had asked questions, obviously receiving satisfactory answers! In addition, the immortal and deadly text had nothing new to tell Ruth of given his current statistics and attributes. The immortal and deadly text felt¡­ reluctant. The immortal and deadly text felt¡­ that alien feeling again. That sensation it got whenever the Ruth creature displayed a certain behavior; or as an example, when the Ruth creature was right. Almost as if reluctant, the immortal and deadly text began to disappear. It was incredibly slow. Ruth felt a little guilty after the first minute passed and the immortal and deadly text was almost completely transparent. He cleared his throat awkwardly. ¡°Uh, actually, I may have more questions.¡± He immediately frowned when the box brightened almost immediately. Disgustingly clingy thing. ?? Malika opened her eyes, surprised to find that she was alive. She sat upright and looked around with dewey blinking eyes. Her brother, Murnack, was beside her as he had been when they were in the Haberdasher¡¯s evil lair with their mother. Her nose twitched and she almost screeched kinslayer right there and then. Murnack held out a hand to forestall her comment and sent her a guarded look. His motion made her pause. She looked around and her eyes widened as she realized where she was. Somehow, inexplicably, against all odds -- she and Murnack were now resting in the burrow of their mother. The dark and black eyes of many of her kin were all on her and Murnack, waiting for them to gather their strength and explain. ¡°Mother has perished along with the Haberdasher,¡± Murnack said carefully. ¡°It is also expected that the creature that killed them died there. A pity, yes?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± Still a little slow on the uptake, Malika thought about it. Murnack had obviously seen more of what happened before he had gone unconscious. He was slightly larger than her, after all, so there was the possibility that he knew more about current events. Still, she found herself narrowing her eyes dangerously at him. ¡°Mother fell then?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± he said soberly. ¡°It was truly horrific. May she live on in our memories, the¡­¡± his eyes also had a fervent glow. Left unspoken was the finished statement kinslayer. ¡°...the former queen, Mother Chaka,¡± Malika said solemnly. Murnack nodded. ¡°Is¡­ is the calamity over?¡± Malika asked hesitantly. One of her sisters came over and took her hand in sympathy. Malika almost couldn¡¯t stand the way she was looking at her with such a pitying gaze. ¡°It rages on in the northern woods. For now, the Cannibal Pixie tide has waned. Many are the losses,¡± she said quietly. ¡°Is it true that the creature that was kinslayer is no more? Slain by Mother Chaka?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Malika said, ¡°why not?¡± 26. Rush Adopts A Stupid No need to report on what is happening. Go back and teach the creature more lessons. Find out what it is shaping into if you can. The return journey was a sedate one. She had flown in a hurry to get to Tamara so she would have a reason to report the happenings of Rush and then ask questions. Tamara obviously knew a great deal of what was actually going on and quickly interrupted her travel, sending her back to Rush. So her plan to use this occasion as an excuse to talk to Tamara failed immediately. Arathan suspected that the major explanation as to why Arathan was teasing out answers herself and not having them handed to her was so she didn¡¯t accidentally shatter herself. Violating the soul shatter oath wouldn¡¯t just end Tamara after all. If, Arathan considered grimly, she was directly questioned by a member of the Table she could honestly reply that Tamara had not told her anything in regards to Ruth or Rush. Perhaps it wouldn¡¯t come to that. Many of the demi-gods who were on the verge of ascendancy and given the choice of obedience without recourse or freedom in death chose obedience and eked out their long existences quietly avoiding anything that would cause a member of the Table to ask them to destroy themselves. There were few that accepted the oath and wantonly flirted with soul destruction like Tamara. When it is time will you employ my help? It was just a casual thought Arathan sent. Another in a long series. Tamara had grown so distant in the past that sometimes Arathan would send hundreds or thousands of thoughts and receive no answer. The void that swallowed up those thoughts and the silence that reigned in reply had been a source of constant pain and distress to Arathan. Will you stand by me always? Arathan was a bit surprised when a slow reply came. The crow that was flying through the nothingness toward the soul space that Rush inhabited paused slightly, wings hitching in their beat. By way of response, Arathan unleashed her full might into the emptiness. A brilliant crimson light flared out and quickly conquered the darkness. The shape of a giant sphere briefly flashed in the nothingness. The sphere was illuminated from within by a lighter hue of the murderously powerful red before exploding outward in all directions. Innumerable crow shadows spread out in all directions in a brilliant display of speed and power. The display was more than a pretty visual. The powerful throughput of the aura would have collapsed many soul spaces if she had been closer. Despite the great distance it was still enough, in fact, to make a multitude of perceptions cast nervous ¡®glances¡¯ in her direction. One of the reactions caused her to startle. A very small burst of gold flashed in the distance causing Arathans eyes to start shining with mirth. This fucking thing... ?? Lord Rush felt something approaching his territory from the nothing. His eyes snapped open and he rolled over in the air and hopped down to the bottom of the soul space. He approached the thin layered edge and stared out. He tilted his head and took a confident step out into the nothingness and stood vigilantly staring outward.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Thinking of this place, Lord Rush decided that his territory required a name. He would think on this puzzle when there wasn''t any danger approaching. Wait, no he wouldn¡¯t! Ruth. Ruth was the perfect name! Lord Rush couldn¡¯t believe how easy it had been. He was just that amazing. There was the faintest flash of red far off into the distance and it caused him to stand with his neck stretched in the highest alert fashion. His horns spiraled in a looser pattern and now pointed slightly upwards with the tines ending in a terribly sharp end. Seeing the red flash still moving forward weakly, his eyes narrowed. Something out there was challenging him. The display of power reminded him of the creatures he had fought before his great victory of the lights that tasted good and crunched. The ones with sharp things attached to their hands. The bunnies. His eyes narrowed and his mouth turned into a thin line. Lord Rush lowered his head and only had one thought. This stupid thing again. I can do that too, coward! Lord Rush never doubted himself even though it hadn¡¯t occurred to him to ever attempt anything like this before. He just knew he could do everything better. He stepped lightly back one step, two steps, three steps. He felt himself passing back into the comfort of his territory. When he took the last step and his whole body was once more within the soul space, he raised his tail and head. The tail began to shake in a menacing fashion and his mouth opened as a howl of aggression escaped his small lips. He closed his eyes and continued to howl out into the darkness. The space began to light up brilliantly behind him. Golden lightning wreathed around the lumpy sphere and began to push back against the darkness -- and of course the very dim light far off into the distance. His eyes opened and the golden light ricocheted out into the darkness causing him to momentarily go blind. When his eyes cleared of white he noticed that the red light was long gone. The golden light had obviously defeated it. It was of no consequence whether the flashes had just passed each other like two ships in the night and been on their merry way or not. The important thing was his golden light had beaten the crap out of that red dimwit¡¯s light. Lord Rush prepared to turn around and go take another nap in celebration of another outstanding victory when he realized the creature was back. Hey brat, miss me? Lord Rush blinked twice and then his eyes narrowed. A hiss escaped his lips in warning. The creature was at the same distance it had been before. This was no longer fine. Lord Rush now had a greater idea of what encompassed his territory. It was no longer just the space and the edges of the darkness around it. Now it was everything he could see. When he had been eating the delicious violet lights he had discovered that his vassal had the right idea. Territory expansion should be an aggressive endeavor. Lord Rush immediately leaped out of the soul space and arrowed toward Arathan. Close! Warned you! I EAT IT! SHAKESHAKESHAKESHAKE Truly Lord Rush was mostly bluffing. He had grown to like the interference of this creature that brought him things to eat and entertained him. After he beat the crap out of it he would allow it to serve him in some capacity. Supposing it couldn¡¯t even fight back? No matter. Lord Rush would just adopt this stupid thing and put it under the category of stupid things like his mobile territory, the Ruth. ?? Arathan was momentarily startled when Rush bolted toward him. The soul space actually showed signs of assisting him as lightning sparked and arced ominously around it. Caw-caw-caw-caw¡­ This fucking brat¡­ Arathan unfolded her wings and prepared herself to beat the snot out of this bold little thing running at her face first. When Rush saw her actions he actually opened his mouth and turned his head, charging with his teeth pointed forward and his eyes straining on either side to keep her in sight. Arathan could feel his excitement begin to leak out into an uncontrolled aura. She was just getting the tiniest bit excited herself. 27. Ruth Doesn鈥檛 Know What To Make Of This When I told Arathan to teach it a lesson I didn¡¯t mean a school-yard beatdown. Tamara frowned, uncertain as to whether she should intervene. She and Heath were traveling through a city that was old. One of the oldest in fact. Kitvalka, or The Evil Place if you were a romantic or preferred the old parlance. The denizens often had a habit of practically spitting at the end of the word when it grudgingly left their lips. Not that there were a lot of polite talks even when the name didn¡¯t come up. Old skeletons of stone and clay buildings sagged into each other on every side of every tiny street. Even the wealthier and more respectable parts of the city all seemed to be trying to hold each other up. The breeze was barely tolerable with the stink of everyone shuffling quietly past one another on the way to whatever scheme or job. Curtains often fluttered out the windows of the desiccated earthen buildings, a reminder that years and years gone by there might have been glass. Now there was no glass. Not even broken glass. It had been too long and no one could bother with glass when everyone was just trying to keep on surviving. Heath cast a hooded glance at her as he made a distasteful expression. He rolled his eyes up above him and Tamara tilted her head and allowed herself to become aware of the distant groaning and panting. Was it a madam with her side-lover? A mister with a professional? From the faked sounds of enjoyment of both the man and woman that echoed soft and desperate over the street, it was hard to guess. Perhaps two professionals exchanging tricks and tips of the trade. The lack of glass was good for some businesses, after all, she mused. She raised an eyebrow under her hood and gave him a look that asked him why that was her fault. ¡°You bring me to the nicest places,¡± he muttered. ¡°Stop talking about nice places. You¡¯ll make us marks.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like that though?¡± Heath snorted. ¡°The idea of someone mugging you on your own turf seems hilarious to me.¡± ¡°Keep your head down. If we didn¡¯t want incognito I wouldn¡¯t have bothered to put this filthy dress and hood on.¡± ¡°No one would have bothered you anyway. In this place? You¡¯d have to be dumber than Ruth to try anything on anyone you didn¡¯t know. Demi-gods and gods are everywhere. Who would take the risk?¡± ¡°You¡¯re seriously underestimating the desperation and stupidity of the denizens of Kitvalka. Casual muggings are expected. Murder quotas have to be met to earn respect.¡± ¡°What a lovely place. I think I shall winter here,¡± he said sarcastically. A man began to scream, stumbling away from Tamara and grabbing at the stump of his right hand. Blood flowed down and he turned, still screaming, and ran through the crowd. Barely anyone even looked up. ¡°Incognito?¡± Heath blinked. The sword she had produced had disappeared the moment she had cut off the man¡¯s hand. ¡°He was a bad thief. He missed my fake wallet and grabbed my butt.¡± Tamara¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously. ¡°Missed.¡± Heath tested the word out. She just smiled at that and then stilled for a moment. ¡°C¡¯mon. I feel them ahead. They¡¯re still a demi-god¡­¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that what you want?¡± Tamara¡¯s white teeth flashed beautifully underneath her dirty hood. Even a few of the more jaded passerby startled at the sudden beautiful shine and glanced up. They quickly ducked their heads and tried to scurry away from the figure who was smiling in the middle of the street next to a severed hand. Unfortunately, she forgot all about Arathan and Rush. ?? Lord Rush rolled to the side as two grasshoppers with scythes for hands and feet narrowly missed his body. Small white lines criss-crossed his back where they had cut him earlier. Despite the fact the wounds were shallow and had started healing the moment he¡¯d stepped back, they had given him some pause for a moment. Only for a moment though. The excitement continued to make his whole body tremble. He hopped back as one hopped forward. The distance he hopped backward was short. Having just landed, the grasshopper immediately found that Lord Rush was pouncing forward with his head lowered. Two horns thrust into the creature''s head. Its mandibles clacked open in a soundless scream as he crushed it against the edge of the space and tore into it with his talons. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Lord Rush loved his talons. The second grasshopper hopped behind him and raked both of the red scythes down his back. He howled, not in pain but excitement, and ignored it while he finished off the one he was pinning. While he lowered his head and bit down aggressively his tail moved to the side and then whipped forward, the heart shaped rattle smacking the grasshopper across the head and rupturing one of the compound eyes. It spun clear around and would probably have dropped after being brained in such a fashion; save that Lord Rush had turned and was already pressing his talons against the top of its abdomen. Red flashing wings began to beat frantically against his feet and talons, briefly brushing past his face and eyes. Wings again! Dumb wings! Lord Rush bit them off and smashed the creature to a pulp. He opened his mouth after he was convinced it was no longer capable of fighting and began to devour the aura. His mouth made big chewing motions and he swallowed the aura with big gulps. He cast a look at the potential vassal and noted it was still watching him from the same spot. Probably too terrified to move. As he ate the aura he felt better and stronger and the wounds on his back began to heal once more. Finish thi-- Rush blinked rapidly realizing there were now four of the grasshoppers with scythe hands moving toward him from the dumb bird. It didn¡¯t matter how they got there. He howled and rushed forward eyes dancing with excitement. The soul space behind him began to seethe with lightning again and that just excited him further! He would eat them all, and then, if he didn¡¯t forget and eat the bird too -- he would give this vassal a suitable beating for her insolence. ?? Ruth became increasingly aware that something was wrong. It wasn¡¯t just the room and mystery of the moved furniture or the weird immortal and deadly text. An increasing sense of unease began to stir within him. His heart started to race and his head began to pound. ¡°I must be tired. I¡¯ll just try to rest, or distract myself,¡± he thought aloud. He tried to get the clothing to cover the other arm. It refused to go past the elbow. At first, he thought that it was because there wasn¡¯t enough of the material even after it had grown in such a spectacular fashion. He immediately dispelled that notion by making the scaling cover his neck up to his chin. After he gathered his courage he even managed to make it crawl up and over his head and face(and around his horns). Openings appeared for his eyes and nose but not his mouth. That was just as well because he was keeping his mouth firmly shut. The idea of accidentally allowing the clothing to start into his mouth made him nauseous just thinking about. ¡°This isn¡¯t working,¡± the excitement in his body was elevating now and he felt hot. He held out his hands and looked at them wondering if he¡¯d been bitten by something? Maybe he needed to eat? That was probably true. He stood up and was immediately dizzy. ¡°Fine.¡± He sat back down. He would rest. It stood to reason that he was just too tired after everything that had happened. He closed his eyes and crossed his legs trying to calm down. He took deep breaths. Irritation began to flare up once more. What the hell?! His mind began to wander to parts of his body. Sassy tail seemed to be fine. His clothing hadn¡¯t eaten him so that was great. Ruth noted his shoulders felt¡­ pretty good actually? He wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the holes that were bleeding slowly earlier before he¡¯d passed out were completely healed over and indistinguishable from the rest of his skin by a day¡¯s time. His mind continued to wander back to all the things that had happened. Just about the time he was breathing deeply and thinking about the Cannibal Pixies the image of the creature that had popped into existence to help him appeared in his mind. What had that thing been? King Rush! Or something. That¡¯s what the immortal and deadly text had said. Something in his status had been named Rush. King Rush didn¡¯t feel right. Lord Rush. Yes. That felt right. His eyes opened and narrowed. There was a brief moment of disgust that welled up deep within him. Why would Ruth refer to something as a Lord? He was glad no one else was here even if he hadn¡¯t said it out loud. It felt shameful and embarrassing. It had really helped him though. Ruth closed his eyes and hoped that the little thing was alrigh- Ruth was just thinking about this when he felt a weird sense of disconnection from his senses. He was standing in a sphere in the darkness and in the distance there was the lizard-like creature fighting large insects with varying types of weaponry strapped to their bodies. The battle was brutal and the cries of the injured and dying insects echoed strangely around him. A large golden crow was perched on what Ruth imagined was an invisible tree while the little creature tore the creatures apart below. ¡°Ah-haha¡­¡± Ruth began to laugh nervously. Somehow he knew that this was real and he was here. At the same time he knew that he wasn¡¯t here. His body was back¡­there; but here he was. The golden crow looked up sharply, its eyes widening in shock. The break opened slightly as if the bird was gawking at him. Lord Rush was standing atop a small pile of corpses, choosing not to devour all the bodies. It seemed he had forgotten he could fly through the air and was using the grotesque pile as a growing mound to reach toward the golden crow. He paid zero attention to Ruth. Scram kid. The crow looked at him and Ruth felt a deep fear welling up within him. He was about to agree and turn around and go, well, anywhere else, but the crow lifted a wing and flapped it hard in his direction. A red line of energy seemed to be embedded in the wind that was produced and it smashed into Ruth sending him out into the nothingness. He didn''t even have time to shriek. ?? Ruth opened his eyes wide, sweat dripping down his face. He was upside down with his feet in the air, face, horns, and neck supporting him somewhat by helpfully pressing against the floor, the rest of his back and ass resting against the wall in the corner of the Haberdasher¡¯s tree. A cold terror caused his pupils to shrink. 28. Ruth and the Spectral Invader Ruth wasn¡¯t immediately able to reconcile what he was feeling and what he was seeing. The terror that had been clawing icy tendrils of dread up and down his unscaled back was originally a result of the murderous bird sending a wave of what could only be described as death toward him in the strange space he had been removed from moments before. Being ejected from the space forcibly in such a fashion had sent a powerful urge to vomit grey matter from his skull out through his nose. Being upside down with that pain insisting it needed release hadn¡¯t helped matters either. While having a panic attack he had tumbled end over end while semi-conscious and now lay in his current upside down and brain pained state. Witnessing the strange battle between forces he couldn¡¯t understand and being slapped in the face hard enough to ¡®wake¡¯ from that state was bad enough; but this new thing in front of him quietly moving toward him with big careful steps was enough to make him want to find a tree to climb. His low-light vision was excellent, he hadn¡¯t really had much of an issue with being inside the tree with no natural light sources. In winding patterns on the ceiling, glowing fungus or some kind of moss grew and emitted a soft blue light into the room. Additionally, there were glass-encased sticks, not quite candles that were placed within the walls of the inner room. Ruth wasn¡¯t entirely certain what they were but the dim light they had been producing was more than enough for him to see things within the inner sanctum. His brain didn¡¯t immediately understand how a creature had managed to enter the room without displacing the things at the door, or, honestly, how said creature managed to look so horrifying and ugly at the same time. Ruth had seen bears before, of course. This was a bear, and at the same time, not a bear at all. Hideous grey folds of flesh sagged and stretched over taut muscles. The luxurious and prized fur that bears were known for was missing, quite literally in some places, from most of the creature''s tremendously muscled body. Patches of burned flesh and fur, torn skin, long-oozing skin wounds -- it almost seemed that the bear had been eaten by something and then spit out after it had been half-digested. The image of a giant mouth and tongue rolling the bear around behind sharp white teeth appeared in his head. He knew that wasn¡¯t what had really happened, but the bear did look like the result of that mouth having spit it out after it had a good taste and chew. Still upside down, still mostly unwilling to believe this was real, Ruth reached out with a hand and channeled shock through his right arm while pointing at the bear. Both Ruth and the bear winced as the bright light illuminated the room. The lightning coiled into a powerful rope and toward the bear licking eagerly, almost as if it were alive. The bear stopped moving and lowered its head slightly as if willing to meet it head-on. Ruth smirked, already knowing the result. Shock beat everything! Thunder Struck beat everything! Ruth beat everything. The lightning struck the furnishings that were piled in front of the door after having passed through the bear harmlessly, causing wood splinters, furniture stuffing, and book pages to fly out in a shower with a sizzling noise as they ignited into flame. Acrid smoke started to cause the room to stink and the items that had burst into flame started to slowly burn on the floor, several already burning out harmlessly and now emitting lazy trails of smoke. Ruth¡¯s mouth dropped open. He supposed it should have been obvious. Inevitable really. Ruth couldn¡¯t be the only creature with special abilities. A quick glance to the left revealed that the immortal and deadly text must have been feeling saucy, or at the very least was taking pity on him, because it had updated information in a larger font. It was nice of the thing to make it a larger font so he didn¡¯t have to squint.
Spectral Bear. Status: Enraged and hungry after a battle with Cannibal Pixies. Attracted by the shelter the large tree will provide while it recovers after eating Ruth.
After eating me? ¡°Thank you for the confidence,¡± Ruth muttered, immediately retracting the gratitude he had been expressing with regards to the larger font. The black eyes of the beast, no, the Spectral Bear, were still trained on him. Almost as if sensing that no more attack was incoming, it took another careful step toward him seemingly gaining a more solid presence in the room. There was something sinister about the silence of the creature. Ruth had fought and eaten bears before and they were loud, powerful, brash creatures that seemed to intimate that their preferred aggression was straightforward violence! This creature seemed like it would advance forward slowly, cautiously, and use deception to peel him like a grape and prolong his suffering if it could. Ruth was naturally biased against creatures that had no fur and no scales and this thing just looked extra evil to him with patchy grey flesh and it¡¯s nightmare stretched skin.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Ruth rolled over and sat up quickly, once again sending a cascade of brilliant lightning across the room with his outstretched fingers. His eyes widened as, once again, the Spectral Bear stopped in place, one padded foot comically held above the floor motionless as it waited for the deadly attack to pass through. When the light faded it put the foot down and started forward with that same lethal slowness. Several meters separated them now. It was probably for the best that the crow creature had woken him or this thing would have just tiptoed up to him and started chewing on his face. Ruth stood up grimly and thought carefully. He had to interrupt this game of stop and go somehow. He narrowed his eyes and studied his opponent as it took yet another precise and unhurried step toward him. Had it gotten in the room by passing through the door? Why did it have to stop when he attacked it? Separate abilities or a different amount of mana consumption, he decided. The bear was conserving mana by being slow. It knew that he couldn¡¯t get out and wasn¡¯t in any hurry to corner him any further. Now that he was looking at it he noticed the claws on the feet of the beast. They looked like they didn¡¯t retract and had never been cleaned a day in the Spectral Bear¡¯s life. A quick inhalation revealed that he could smell the rancid scent coming from them over the smell of burned and torn flesh. ¡°Pixies didn¡¯t eat you? Fine, I¡¯ll eat you¡­¡± His lips peeled back to reveal his own white teeth in the dark. Shadows played across his face, cast from the small items that he had lit on fire with his most recent round of lightning. The Spectral Bear took another painfully slow step toward him with unfaltering confidence. The near-silent clicks of precise toe-stepping on the wooden floor were already getting on his last nerves. ?? Arathan watched helplessly as Lord Rush made an idiot of himself nearby. Lord Rush raised his head up and howled in victory. He stood atop a mountain of half-destroyed aura corpses and shook his tail vigorously. He had defeated the crow! It had conceded the territory to him by acknowledging his greatness! It had been a challenging and fulfilling battle but eventually, when he had just been about to be able to hop up and take a chunk out of the bird, she had flapped her wings and flew off about ten meters further away from his Ruth. Retreat was practically an admission of inferiority. I¡¯m best. You belong to me. Arathan narrowed her eyes, doing her best to ignore the obvious gloating Rush had pushed into the thought. Listen brat. We need to talk. Do you know how hard it is not to accidentally murder you? I had thought to tire you out with waves of attacks but you eating my aura is making me think that could take weeks now. You just get recharged every time we fight. Normally, that would be great for me, I¡¯d just do that until you¡¯re stronger and stronger or until I got bored. I like your spunk too, but you aren¡¯t learning anything by solving all your problems with trying to bite them. Try making some of your own aura projections to send toward me or something different. You know, that thing I have been showing you over and over? Lord Rush stood atop of the corpses and tilted his head at her the whole time she was communicating. When she stopped he lazily lowered his head and started to tear off a large chunk of wing from one of the killer grasshoppers. He raised his head and looked at her, starting to chew with his mouth open. I know you can understand me you little shit. Lord Rush started making more exaggerated chewing motions, smirking lazily around his mouthful. Arathan almost rolled her eyes. This blatant provocation might have worked on her if she wasn¡¯t hundreds of years old and a master of-- Just make food for me. You are a good vassal. You make the best food. I am pleased with you. Leave thinkings to your lord. Arathan stopped and her beak opened once and then closed. Do what you are good at dumb dumb. You lose and try to tell me how to do stuffs? I am the best. I am the greatest. If there is enemy, I will eat it! You just make me food and make with the fun things. Don''t worry, I will appreciate you. Red aura began to spill out dangerously from Arathan as she began to tremble with anger. It spread out dangerously from her and started to lick thoughtfully at the shadows of the nothingness that surrounded them as if it were considering devouring the darkness. She tried to reign it in. Not killing Rush was harder than killing him. That might seem simple to say but bears repeating. If the amount of aura and power he was capable of producing was generously compared to a powerful river or stream, then Arathan¡¯s power could be described as filling all the oceans on this and a few other planets. Caw-caw-caw-caw. Good, good, good¡­ How long has it been since some piece of shit soul shape has had the sand to back talk me. I will fucking eat you. Aura began to spread out from a half-enraged Arathan. As it approached it was pushed back ever-so-slightly by Lord Rush as golden light began to emerge from his body. He seemed to remember that he could move through the air this time and eagerly padded through the nothing to try and take a bite out of the red aura that she was producing. Neither one of them paid any mind to the sphere of Ruth¡¯s soul space writhing with lightning and trembling and fracturing nearby. SHAKESHAKESHAKESHAKE/I¡¯LL KILL YOU IDT End Chapter Status Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 10) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity. Mana: 16/20 3 of 5 spell slots 29. Ruth and the Secret Subterranean Surface Entry So, in hindsight, I may have gone overboard a little bit. Are you dead, kid? Arathan landed carefully next to Rush. She hopped forward on her legs once, twice, and turned her head to give him a stare from one eye. There was the tiniest bit of regret in her communication. It really was just a smidgeon though. Rush was on his back, eyes staring blankly upward and his tongue draped over part of his face. His front legs were curled slightly and twitched spastically for a moment. His tail was rolled up and coiled at the base of his butt and looked to be stuck in that position, probably from the little creature¡¯s inability to think straight. Arathan shook her head. It was probably the last seven smacks that had brained the damn lizard. She had been so angry when he had started to eat his way through her aura field. She had made it weaker so the damned thing wouldn¡¯t explode. Arathan had meant to deter or overwhelm him but he¡¯d just been chomping his way forward like a mindless shark. Every piece of aura he consumed he immediately converted to his own aura and used it to press back against hers. His golden aura had done an admirable job of repelling her own red aura and he¡¯d been almost within reach of her when the last vestige of patience in Arathan had finally snapped and she¡¯d rocketed forward and smacked him clear across the face. Before he could fly more than a few meters she¡¯d moved in front of him and smacked him again. This process of using him as her own personal smacking ball had continued for a short time -- and now here they were. Despite her handicap of using power that was roughly on his level, Arathan had easily trounced him. That didn¡¯t lessen her expectation for the future. The little mouth-breather was going to be a formidable force when he was older. Try not to die I gue-- The communication ended immediately as Rush turned over suddenly from where he¡¯d been feigning his semi-consciousness and rushed forward with tiny little legs and directly bit down on Arathan¡¯s left leg. He growled and his tail shook ferociously. He shook his head hard, lifting Arathan slightly but failing to move her as she put her wings out to steady herself. Despite the fact that he was thrashing around pretty good she was fairly still, looking down at him with the timeless expression of an exasperated adult when a child was play fighting with them. Her eyes narrowed as she stared down at him. It was obvious he wasn¡¯t hurting her and probably wouldn¡¯t be capable of it. In fact, she imagined his teeth would break long before he could pierce her leg. That didn¡¯t stop the feathers from puffing out in visible rage along the back of her neck. She could feel his damn slobber starting to creep down her leg as he gurgled and thrashed. He was trying to rake her with his tiny horns but they just scraped across her without leaving a mark. This little bastard... I¡¯m the best! FINE!! CAWWW! TAMARA DIDN¡¯T SAY HOW MANY LIMBS YOU NEEDED TO HAVE! ?? Ruth had picked up the book case and placed it in front of him as the Spectral Bear advanced. The bear had size on him and he could easily see over the top of the bookcase himself anyway. It was no problem keeping track of the bear as it continued the excruciatingly slow move across the floor. As it closed in on the bookcase between them he could see it casually give the barrier a glance. Instead of trying to pick a side to move toward to go around the shelf it kept bee-lining straight toward him. It was obvious that it didn¡¯t consider the bookcase any kind of obstacle. ¡°You still have plenty of mana? You can move through this thing can¡¯t you?¡± Ruth frowned and considered his options. He had less than a minute before the bear reached the bookcase and either started to press against it to knock it over or, just as likely, walked directly through it to get at the Ruth meat pie that awaited it. Ruth started to think about finding something to throw at it. There didn¡¯t seem to be anything. Whoever had placed all the crap in front of the doorway had done an extraordinarily thorough job and everything that might have been thrown was behind the bear. There was nothing saying that the Spectral Bear would continue moving that slow either. It was being extraordinarily cautious but Ruth remembered bears being quite swift¡­ Strength against strength was out the question. If it was one of those furred creatures with hats or he had a weapon he might have considered it. His prized bow had disintegrated earlier and Ruth regretted that immensely despite the fact he still wasn¡¯t convinced that it would save his life in a pinch. The remembered loss of the bow immediately struck a sad chord in his heart. Respect for the mighty weapon that he had lost. Moment of silence for the bow. Small moment for the arrows too. Click...click...click¡­ The clicks from the claws of the bear tapping gently against the wooden floor were getting louder and louder in his ears as it came closer and closer. A drumbeat that would only increase in volume until the Spectral Bear struck. ?? ¡°Something wrong?¡± Heath asked. ¡°No, they¡¯ll be okay. I¡¯m actually less worried than I would have been before. Things are different now. He¡¯s different now¡± Tamara walked in front of him before he could ask what she was talking about and pushed through a curtain that served as a door into the dingy and poorly lit front room of a building that didn¡¯t particularly look any different from every other building on this poor street. Shapes slowly came into view. People squatted near or sat against the walls, were alone or were in small groups, resting and awake, high and sober. ¡°This is where mission papers are submitted?¡± Heath sounded incredulous and part of his hood slipped down and revealed his chin. Almost as if they were waiting for a reason two men pushed in front of him. One of them was idly twirling a dagger in one hand with the point against the tip of his index finger. Before either one of them could finish sneering and even start to threaten him Heath turned to look at them and his eyes flashed a deep maroon. Both men collapsed. Some of the people in the room who had started to look up in interest immediately found something more interesting to look at by turning their gazes away. The two people at Heath¡¯s feet were staring blankly up at the ceiling. No one was immediately sure whether they were alive or dead.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Softy.¡± Tamara rolled her eyes and stepped further into the room. No one batted an eyelash or got in their way. This was the Kitvalka, the Evil Place, and it was just an every day thing where small fry tried their luck and came up short. ¡°Seems pointless now,¡± Heath admitted solemnly. ¡°I forgot what these places are like.¡± ¡°You should go back to your roots every once in a while. Remember the muck you crawled up from.¡± ¡°I really don¡¯t agree.¡± He didn¡¯t look back but he knew from spreading his senses out that there were already people in the room moving toward the two downed men removing their shoes and valuables. It was likely one or two of the scavengers would have the good sense to just slit the throats of the two thugs while they were incapacitated. Tamara grimaced but her face quickly recovered. Not fast enough for Heath to miss it. It was just as well because they turned a corner and started to walk downstairs into a darker part of the building. Soon there was no light whatsoever. Neither of them commented about the darkness but Heath did finally give into his curiosity about the face she¡¯d made. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Arathan is infuriated. She just asked me if she can pull Rush apart if she promises to put him back together.¡± ¡°Wow, I really can¡¯t tell she¡¯s your soul shape. Her temper is usually so generous.¡± ¡°Stop sneering, your face is going to get stuck that way.¡± ¡°How about Ruth?¡± ¡°He¡¯s about fifty fifty.¡± ¡°Fifty what?¡± ¡°Fifty percent chance that he gets eaten by a Spectral Bear.¡± ¡°Oh, well that¡¯s pretty good.¡± ¡°The other fifty percent is how likely it is all the smoke in the room knocks him and the bear out both, and they suffocate to death.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s less great.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Worried?¡± ¡°Perpetually.¡± ?? ¡°I haven¡¯t survived the human homes and the cows to get eaten by a bear.¡± The Spectral Bear didn¡¯t seem intelligent enough to comment or talk crap back to him. In answer, it just edged closer. It was finally close enough that he could smell its breath. The bear reared up on hind legs, towering over him even though it was crouching somewhat so it didn¡¯t knock it''s enormous head on the ceiling of the small room. The time had finally arrived. It was only moments before it would drop down and either push the bookcase out of the way or phase through it. Ruth raised his arms in preparation for shock but didn¡¯t immediately cast the deadly electricity. His eyes half-closed in that fraction of second as the bear came down and he activated two of the new spell slot templates he had been given. Ruth was banking on a descriptive word that the immortal and deadly text had used to describe the spells. Within his mana circuitry, he felt two of the remaining spell slots go dark. The word that he was banking on was instantaneous. Lightning Ward flared up around his body and immediately registered the bookcase as being too close. Tendrils of electricity branched out from his body toward the bookshelf looking for all the world like an angry electric octopus. The bookshelf exploded and sent wooden shrapnel flying out with great force toward the bear and to either side of the creature that was coming down unawares. Lightning Chain wreathed into life around the Spectral Bear before it had a chance to come down. A great electrical vest sprang into life and immediately started to bore into the bear. It roared and started to come down in place, struggling with difficulty to move. The harness of energy kept it in place as the wooden shrapnel pierced deeply into the fully erect and rampant posture of the bear. The Spectral Bear raised its head and started to howl. It flickered for a moment, obviously trying to phase, before solidifying once more as the energy and lightning from the Lightning Chain sizzled into its flesh. ¡°Can¡¯t use your ability with that on, huh? Good to know!¡± Ruth stepped fearlessly into the space the bookshelf had occupied moments before exploding and pressed both of his palms onto the stomach of the Spectral Bear. Sensing the danger the bear raised both paws and got ready to lean down and bite him in addition to slashing him with it''s claws. ¡°Too late.¡± Two low sounding thumps came in staccato as Ruth released shock from both palms into the front of the bear. Then it was over. Ruth straightened up and looked down at the fallen bear in front of him. A look of blank amazement on his face. Maybe the bow wasn¡¯t that great after all? ?? Tamara laughed softly. ¡°He killed the bear and got out of the room. I don¡¯t think it was the smoke that drove him out so much as claustrophobia. He¡¯s checking a room with a broken door and there is plenty of ventilation. Catastrophe averted.¡± ¡°Really? I thought that was going to be a bit worse, honestly,¡± Heath admitted. ¡°Well, he¡¯s getting ready to eat the bear but it¡¯s actually much worse than if he¡¯d been fighting it for a while or escaped narrowly.¡± Tamara shook her head, laughing soundlessly. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°When they were fighting some of the floor exploded. That damn raccoon was hiding a corridor that leads under the tree with a panel of heavy wood.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°So, it leads to Under Arch. The city below the garden.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Wilkeena¡¯s border town.¡± ?? Ruth scratched his head as he looked over the bear. It was well and truly fried most of the way through. The front room had revealed several tools including a rather long knife. He was reasonably sure he could cut strips off this thing and take some of the burning pitch in the inner sanctum to stoke the fire in the front room. There was plenty of crap he could burn in that room. Sadly the mongeese he had killed with the smashed hat was missing. It was too bad because he would have liked to take that hat. It had been much larger than the other ones and he could have maybe fed it to his clothing. The clothing. Ruth looked down casually. This was his life now. Worried that he was going to be consumed by his clothing. Maybe he could cook the bear before he ate it? He really missed the taste of charred meat. Ruth was having more thoughts a second then he could rightly deal with. They all ceased when he looked back and into the room where he¡¯d fought the bear. The natural light that spilled into the tree through the door now illuminated far more of the room. There was a hole in the ground barely illuminated by the natural light source. It had been revealed when a piece of the floor had disintegrated from the combined onslaught of his lightning ward, lightning chain, and shock spells. There was something on the side of the hole. Something that looked suspiciously like stairs. Something to investigate when he was finished preparing his meal and letting his body recover the mana it had lost. Already he could feel the flow of mana in the area painfully increasing from the bear corpse in the other room. His body was hungrily trying to retain and convert it for his use. ¡°Stairs, huh?¡± He turned to the immortal and deadly text. ¡°Where do they lead?¡±
No.
¡°No!¡± He mocked it.
No.
¡°NO!¡±
STOP.
¡°Stop!¡± IDT Status Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 10+) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 1 of 5 spell slots Mana: 12/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% 30. Ruth Gathers His Strength Fortunately for Ruth, the Spectral Bear did not have that weird stench that he was beginning to associate with some sort of illness that was running rampant in the wood. He¡¯d also found a variety of cutlery ranging from small stone knives to carved wooden forks and skewers, so he eagerly worked on dragging the Spectral Bear into the main room and didn¡¯t concern himself about the long streak of blood he was leaving on the floor or the mess he was making by ripping chunks of flesh off with a large edge of rock. Skewering big hunks of meat had been easy. Recreating the fire had been less so. He¡¯d stirred the coals to see if there was any red glow still about, and there was. The embers were barely lit and struggled against the open air after being revealed. It had taken him about twenty minutes and a trip into the inner room to get a part of the bookshelf that was still smoldering after it had been largely exploded, but now he had a respectably small pile of things that were starting to smoke in the fireplace where he¡¯d thrown them on top of the embers. All in all, Ruth was feeling quite pleased with himself. ¡°This is actually a lot of fun!¡± Ruth muttered. He grabbed one of the chairs in the room at random and began stomping on it. He threw the pieces on the smoking pile of stuff in the fireplace and waited. There was barely any room in the fireplace now that it was crammed full of stuff. The amount of smoke increased. Ruth waited. ...and waited. When he was a dragon he just blew fire from his face so this was all and well truly novel for him. He crossed his arms and began to get irritated as the room filled with smoke. Most of it traveled upward and out of the flue but there was just too much stuff in the fireplace. ¡°Should I just do that?¡± Ruth made a vague gesture with his hand and pantomimed sending lightning into the fireplace.
No.
¡°...¡± Ruth went to the door and casually pulled it open. It had been halfway cracked anyway because there was no longer a latch. Smoke immediately escaped and a fresh breeze blew in hard, almost causing him to take a step backward. It was windy and cool outside and he took a moment to enjoy the air even as it battered hard against his creature eating clothes. He closed his eyes and stood there for several minutes. When he opened them again he took a casual glance and noticed most of the trees were bare of leaves and some of them looked to have been stripped of bark as well. The Cannibal Pixies had run out of bugs and animals and creatures to eat and had doubled back at some point to start stripping the plants too. Thankfully he didn¡¯t hear any buzzing. When he turned around his eyes widened fractionally at the sight of flame trying to lick its way out of the fireplace. This fire had gone out of control the moment he¡¯d turned his back on it. Tricky bastard. Ruth leaped over to the fireplace and pulled the seat portion of the chair he¡¯d thrown in. It was burning quite well. He raised his legs high and put the burning seat as far away from his body as he could as he ran to the door. He tossed it on the ground outside and stomped it out with extreme prejudice. He was no longer immune to fire, after all, and such things had to be taken care of expediently. Two more trips and the fireplace seemed to be large enough to contain all the fuel once more. Ruth cast a satisfied look out the door where a smoking pile of wood was dying on the grass and smiled. A job well done. Several minutes later found him motionless as he crouched in front of the fire and ignored the growing heat and discomfort on his face. He held a wooden skewer handle in one hand and patiently burned the bear meat. Every once in a while it would actually catch fire in places and the smell of burned and singed flesh made him salivate. When the meat was blackened through he couldn¡¯t take it any longer and pulled it out, he took a big bite and chewed. Ruth immediately dropped the skewer and jumped to his feet, eyes watering as he jerked around and struggled to think of what to do as the meat burned his mouth. Eventually, he managed to swallow the huge bite he¡¯d taken, feeling victorious, but then the burning pain traveled to his stomach.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Ruth rolled back and forth on the floor in front of the fire and held his stomach, his eyes watering. ?? In a similar fashion, Rush was rolling around back and forth in a great deal of pain himself. The golden crow was slowly starting to show him that it was not minion material. Not minion material at fucking all. His scales were damaged and cleanly broken all over his body in a very thorough sort of way. His tail was hanging limply and looked like it had personally given up the ghost. If it could have waved a white flag, had it known what a white flag had symbolized, maybe it would have waved one. One of his eyes was swollen shut. His horns were remarkably undamaged except for the point on the right side. It was broken off just the tiniest bit from the end. Just enough to make it blunt and to showcase that his horns were no longer symmetrical. The worst part, Lord Rush decided, was that he was hungry. Hunger was not something that he was familiar with as a concept. Certainly not since the golden crow had shown up and been providing it with expansive banquets of food. He was finding that this uncomfortable feeling in his stomach, this emptiness that he could not explain, was something he didn¡¯t care for at all. He wanted to crawl back into his territory and absorb some of the wonderful mana that was in there, but the not-minion was blocking off his retreat. No, Arathan was blocking off his retreat. She had been screaming at him for some time and had started to shout her name and punctuate it with a hard poke of her beak. Lord Rush knew that he had a lot of scales on his body. Seriously many! Lord Rush was pretty sure that Arathan had stabbed each and every one of them. Some of them twice. Bad. Leaving. Revenge. Wait for it. Lord Rush finally made the correct decision. Well, a correct-ish decision. Lord Rush vanished. ?? Arathan slowly flew up toward a spot near the soul space after Rush left and tried not to feel too good about herself. The triumphant smirk that she could feel trying to project on her face was pretty hard to repress. She had to admit she might have lost her temper a bit. If the brat could eat her aura projections and recoup his strength? She would just beat the crap out of him with her body. She was much faster than he. World¡¯s apart faster. Half an hour might not have seemed like a long time, but if anyone asked Rush he could vouch for her by saying it was a very long time to be Arathan¡¯s punching bag. ?? Round two versus the meat skewers had Ruth chewing the meat gingerly. He had waved it around and let it cool the second time and was faring better despite the fact that each bite and chew was excruciating on his burned mouth and throbbing throat. The next bite was halfway to his mouth when he froze in that position. The lizard creature was back. It popped into existence to the left of him and gave him a quick glance. Seeing him and noticing that Ruth was aware of his presence, the little creature, Lord Rush, Ruth reminded himself, seemed to deflate slightly and walked quickly and low to the ground behind Ruth. Ruth turned slightly to watch. Lord Rush looked like someone bigger than he had grabbed him by the tail and beaten him soundly against a tree-trunk. One of his eyes was swollen shut and the other one was trying valiantly to stay open. Dried mucus was under his eyes and his skin¡­ His scales, rather, were cracked and broken in many places revealing tenderized underskin that was bleeding in places. The tail dragged behind him making gentle rattling noises every time it hit a bump. ¡°What--¡± Ruth started to ask. Shut up, dumb dumb. Rush found the Spectral Bear and, incredibly, began dragging the carcass that was easily ten times larger than him closer to the fire. When he was next to Ruth the lizard looked at him meaningfully out of one eye. More. ¡°Okay.¡± Ruth handed Rush the skewer he was eating and watched as the small lord laid down and began tearing off chunks as it chewed. It looked like it was in even more pain than he was with his burnt mouth. Well. I suppose you did help me. That¡¯s right. More. Ruth got another two skewers out and pulled off generous slabs of meat from the corpse to adorn them. He crouched in front of the fire and held both of the skewers into the fire. ¡°I¡¯m Ruth.¡± I know, dumb dumb. The only sounds in the room were the crackling of the fire and the tenacious chewing of the small lizard. IDT Status Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 10+) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 1 of 5 spell slots Mana: 14/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% 31. Ruth and the Draconic Enthusiast Ruth was on his third skewer and feeling pretty good. His stomach was full, his mouth had largely stopped threatening him with brain piercing pain, and Rush had kindly waited for him to have at least a third skewer before he had walked over and started to eat the rest of the corpse from the feet up. It was kind of amazing to watch the creature that was less than a meter long stuffing the Spectral Bear remains down it¡¯s mouth. Fascinating to watch it take large bite after bite without end. Dinner and a show. When the bear was gone Rush had walked over to where Ruth was sitting and went around him. From his back, he felt small little claws hooking carefully into the clothing. A small weight settled on top of his head. I sleep. ¡°My clothes might eat you.¡± Ruth felt compelled to warn when he felt the thing''s tail starting to drape down his back. Rush seemed to weigh practically nothing despite stuffing the entire bear corpse inside of his body. I sleep. The insistent tone in his mind was slightly irritated but didn¡¯t sound fearful. There was only one thing that Rush was even slightly concerned about in the universe and it was in the nowhere sitting outside of his Ruth space. Ruth sat for a moment and watched the fire burn down. He considered the small creature sitting on top of his head. Despite the myriad of questions he had about its origin, its intent, or the fact that it could easily eat something his size, he decided that he didn¡¯t mind how it was sitting on him, nestled between his horns. Ruth wasn¡¯t entirely certain but he even felt like it had very slightly diminished itself so that it would be smaller and have more space up there. Pissing the creature that could appear and reappear and change its size off didn¡¯t seem a worthwhile endeavor. Not only that, but, and Ruth was really being honest with himself at this point -- there was something satisfying about having the creature on his head. All the little furred creatures with hats had evoked a strange envy inside of him. Now he had his own hat. A teleporting, sharp-clawed, pointy-toothed hat -- a better hat. Ruth stood up and was surprised to find that the small weight on his head shifted easily with him. He had been sort of afraid that Rush would fly off if he moved, but that seemed unfounded. It was using small claws to slightly dig into his scalp but for the most part the tail wrapped around the base of his horns seemed to be holding it in place. Ruth threw down a skewer and decided that it was time to explore a bit. Going outside was risking the danger of the Cannibal Pixies. There was no reason to think that they wouldn¡¯t come back. He didn¡¯t know anything about them other than the fact that they had been very dangerous. The battle with the Spectral Bear had not been taxing in any extreme way physically, but it had been nerve-wracking. He didn¡¯t want to just wait around in an obviously unsafe location and wait for whatever walked in to try and eat him. There was also the question of future sustenance. Ruth was tired, but in great shape after his long sleep otherwise. His small ¡®friend¡¯ who had helped him before was in not so great shape. The weight on the top of his head felt lighter still, as if Rush was in an extremely fragile and delicate state. Just wait¡­ Ruth snorted and smiled despite himself. It seemed his companion talked to itself in its sleep. The vehemence and anger in the softly communicated words were endearing. Nearby, the immortal and deadly text was mindlessly creating the words:
LORDRUSHLORDRUSHLORDRUSH
It might be some time before the immortal and deadly text recovered from whatever mental damage it had taken. Ruth turned toward the inner sanctum and finally eyed the hole in the floor. He lifted chin and stared intently at the stairs for a long time. If not outward? Downward. ?? Sikes was used to the darkness by now. It had been weeks, maybe months since he had been stuffed into this dark hole. The only time he¡¯d seen light in recent memory was when the Raccoon, who called himself the Haberdasher, came down with a candle to feed him once a day. Inevitably, Sikes would have to listen to the Raccoon talk about the experiments it was doing. Sikes did his best to follow along with the archaic and often incredibly wrong theories that the small and evil creature droned on and on and on about, but sometimes it was hard. Often if he started to gently correct some of the misconceptions or theories about how mana was transferred from a living vessel and imbued into objects the Raccoon would start to tremble in absolute fury. His whiskers would quiver and the rage in his voice would start to make his voice shrill and terrible. He would often jab a pointed stick through the bars at him and just keep whispering, ¡®you see?¡¯ as if somehow that explained things.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. A few times Sikes had been tempted to grab that stick and try to pull the Raccoon closer. Sadly the Raccoon did not have the keys on him. If he grabbed the Raccoon or somehow managed to kill him it would just be a different form of slow death. No one would unlock the cage and no one would feed him. Sikes would often stop talking at this point(with the stick jabbing) because the Raccoon would just start rambling about things that made absolutely no sense. Things like the transference of the soul and the spirit and how it was independent of mana and how Sikes just didn¡¯t understand. Imagine telling Sikes, the foremost linguist, and curator of lost tomes in Under Arch, that he was the one who didn¡¯t understand. Sikes wished that his traveling companions hadn¡¯t been killed. One thing that had to be said for the Raccoon. He was an evil bastard. The four of them had been exploring routes to the surface and, hopefully, Wilkeena¡¯s garden when they had come through a small passageway absolutely covered in sweet smelling smoke. When they awoke they were in a small alcove that was separated from the rest of the cavern by a metal cage that was ridiculously solid. Often the food they were given was laced with something that made them feel weak. Weeks passed and his companions were taken one by one. The Haberdasher knocking them out with the luxurious sleep inducing candles. Sikes believed he was the only one left because he could speak with the Raccoon. It was an older language, but one of the creature languages he¡¯d picked up in his younger days reading through older manuscripts about the garden. Little did he know that the language that he¡¯d learned would keep him alive alright. It would keep the Raccoon from slaying him so that it could instead torture him to death with its stupidity. Sikes had tried to explain once that mana was separate from the soul, which would often take a shape when properly awakened. That had earned him three days without food. When the Raccoon had returned and asked him if he¡¯d learned a valuable lesson, and then claimed it was a science of all things, he¡¯d nodded. Sikes had learned a lesson. This Raccoon was insane and he was going to die in this dingy cell or on the floor above where his companions had been led and never returned. The Raccoon had been gone for a long time. Hunger was starting to gnaw at his insides but it wasn¡¯t so bad. His stomach was smaller now and he didn¡¯t move much, not that he¡¯d have the energy anymore. An explosion had shaken the floor above him somewhere nearby but nothing had happened. The darkness was still and quiet for some time after the large noise. If he was lucky, he mused, the Raccoon had blown himself up and he would starve to death in a matter of days. If he was really lucky, the Raccoon had exploded himself and the lab he¡¯d spoken of in great detail would burn to the ground and he would suffocate. Sikes was just imagining what it would be like to suffocate when a light rounded the corner. A¡­ what was that? Was that a Tiefling or a Devil?! Sikes didn¡¯t care! ¡°Hey! Hey, let me out!¡± The Tiefling/Devil came nearer and stared through the bars at him. There was only curiosity in his eyes. ¡°Let me out!¡± Sikes shook the cage door weakly, taking in his possible savior. There was a lizard sitting on top of his head. A weak light was illuminating the floor around the Tiefling/Devil that didn¡¯t seem to be from any light source. The creature stared at him a moment and turned its head. It stared down the passageway and turned, giving no indication that it understood or cared about him in the slightest. Maybe it couldn¡¯t understand him? He was speaking the old language that the Raccoon had been speaking. Sikes knew a lot of languages. It was one of his jobs to read all the manuscripts and translate many of the tomes for the wizard tower in Under Arch. A fat lot of good that was doing him lately! He could read those tomes but couldn¡¯t use even the simplest of spells. Not that he knew many spells. Most of the books he¡¯d been given to translate were historical in nature. No one would trust an uninitiated with a book of spells, even if that person wasn¡¯t capable of utilizing mana. He tried the language of the Striders. ¡°Say something!¡± he cried. The Tiefling turned toward him for a brief moment and then glanced upward, speaking to his companion, ¡°shall we? The immortal and deadly text is displaying light so there¡¯s no reason to delay.¡± Sikes almost felt like he could cry. It was Draconic. The Tiefling was speaking in Draconic. ¡°Draconic? I love Draconic! Draconic is my favorite thing in the whole world,¡± Sikes said hurriedly. He didn''t even care why this Tiefling was speaking Draconic, a language few intelligent creatures bothered to learn. Draconic was a joke in the language community. Dragons had inherited memory regarding language but rarely spoke with each other because it turned out that Dragons hated each other. Now, imagine that you spoke Draconic and weren''t a Dragon. Dragons held even less regard for non-dragons. ?? Rush had somehow made the immortal and deadly text emit light. It was a real help in the darkness as they descended the stairway. Ruth was trying not to feel annoyed that it had taken the small lizard to think about it before the box had decided to be useful. Ruth was really trying not to let the fact that the immortal and deadly text seemed to hang on every word Lord Rush said with obvious joy and contentment. Even now it was spouting ¡®Lord Rush¡¯ over and over. The creature in the cell was of minimal concern to him. It looked like a shorter and stockier version of a human. Its skin was grey, almost charcoal, and its eyes were orange. It looked sick like it had not eaten for a long time. Ruth was not sure how it had gotten stuck where it was. It tried to talk to him a few times but was obviously unintelligent. It shook the cage, cementing his decision to leave it be. Ruth had no desire to try and save this thing. From his experience, there were no good things in this world. If he let that thing out it would just bite him. He had just turned away and started down the passageway with a casual word to Rush when the thing behind him spoke in the most horrific Draconic Ruth had ever had the displeasure of listening to. Its pronunciation was so bad, it¡¯s lisp so tremendous, and it absolutely lacked the pleasurable clicks that the teeth should have made when it formed words. In short, the creature¡¯s pronunciation was so gods awful it was worse than what Ruth was currently capable of producing with his new lips and tongue. Ruth narrowed his eyes and turned around. IDT STATUS LORDRUSHLORDRUSHLORDRUSH Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 10+) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 1 of 5 spell slots Mana: 16/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% 32. Ruth is Promised Riches ¡°...women, men, money! Whatever you want! Virgins? You look like the type of person who would appreciate a good virgin!¡± The draconic that was slipping through Sikes lips was making Ruth slowly lose his patience. It wasn¡¯t the offers that were being made, just the horrible pronunciation. Frankly, Ruth was the tiniest bit excited about the prospect of being given wealth. If he played this right he could probably negotiate for a large number of gemstones, or, if he really kept his cool, a large collection of brightly colored string. Ruth really missed his really long, brightly colored string. The virgins and the men and women part left him slightly flummoxed, however. If Ruth decided to get minions to guard his future lair he supposed he would need to start somewhere. Being gifted minions sounded like a pretty good idea. Men or women didn¡¯t really matter to him as he¡¯d never been able to tell the difference. They wore those things over their bodies. At first, he had thought that the women were the ones that wore the brightly colored loose-hanging clothes and generally had long hair. This theory had been dispelled when he had eaten a man who was wearing loose flowing garbs and had long locks of flowing golden hair. He had quite the voice. He¡¯d also been trying to please Ruth with some sort of instrument after the people he came with had been melted into the floor. To be honest, the man had been off-key, and Ruth more interested in the instrument with strings than he was with the man¡¯s singing. It was also quite amusing to Ruth that the man had been in the company of three or four knights who had tried to kill him. Was the singing gold-haired man guilt-free because he¡¯d stood in the back and watched? Hardly. Ruth missed that instrument. It made little twanging noises when he tapped it against the ground. The virgins part though? Was that important? Was there some sort of prestige if they were virgins? Did they taste better? Perhaps they were better at organizational skills? Ruth thought back to his own experience with adventurers. He thought about it a great deal when he was a dragon because it was always a notable occasion. He¡¯d eaten quite a number of them when they tried to attack him, steal from him, or exterminate him -- had he noticed any discernible difference? Surely one of them had been a virgin? No. Ruth mentally shook his head. He hadn¡¯t really noticed any difference. Virginity must be something he wasn¡¯t cultured enough to understand at the moment. Not that he would admit it to anyone. Ruth silently vowed to make sure he only employed virgins from here-on-in. If anyone asked about it he would curl his lips upward in a sneer and pretend he knew something they did not. Ruth liked this idea very much. It would be nice to have someone around to pick up the string or maybe lay it out in a decorative manner. Ruth¡¯s face became stony once more as he remembered his hoard was gone, and with the hoard, the string he had meticulously gathered. Moment of silence for the colored string. His eyes began to narrow dangerously. That bastard wyvern¡­ ?? Bereft of hope for so long, Sikes was a man in the desert who could see the oasis. Even he couldn¡¯t believe the crap that was coming out of his mouth! Women? Men? Riches? Where would he even get those? Leaving aside the fact that finding a virgin adult in the Under Arch was a laugh¡­ Surely he could put together something when they arrived in Under Arch, but now? Tieflings and Devils were notoriously suspicious beings. If he couldn¡¯t put something together to entice the creature and hook it from the start, chances were that it would just leave him here.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The worst part? He had just been trying to probe the Tiefling when it started to look like he had offended it. Tiefling? Yes, Tiefling! Definitely! Those horns, that eye saturation, the ashen-hued skin, the tail! Sikes chose to think of it as a Tiefling. If it was a Devil it would just play with him until he was dead. ?? Ruth was brought back from his vengeful thoughts when the creature started to speak again. ¡°Pardon?¡± Ruth asked. ¡°What¡¯s your name, my lord?¡± The charcoal skinned creature asked. There was a certain fervent light in his eyes. It was the kind of look that made Ruth want to take a step backward. Before he could do just that, the creature spoke again. ¡°Are you a Tiefling?¡± ¡°No,¡± Ruth said slowly, and then corrected the poor dumb creature. ¡°I¡¯m a Planar Tiefling.¡± The creature went silent and then tapped itself on the chest. ¡°I¡¯m Sikes, a Durvgar from Under Arch.¡± Ruth shrugged his shoulders. He pretended he didn¡¯t give a damn. He was holding out for that brightly colored string. ¡°How should I refer to my lordship?¡± Sikes tried again. ¡°Ruth.¡± ¡°Truly an auspicious name! A name of power! In the known universe there is¡­¡± ¡°Stop,¡± Ruth shook his head. He had never really spoken at length with another person or creature before. It was already giving him a migraine pretending to care about this creature¡¯s life story and opinion. What about Ruth and his life story and opinion? ?? Things were looking grim. Sikes had tried to start by introducing himself and learning the Tiefling¡¯s name. He would make it a harder decision to leave him in the dark by telling Ruth a little about himself and letting him know that he was a person. Flattery seemed the best way. When he started flattering Ruth, however, he¡¯d been stopped almost immediately. A cold sweat started to run down his back. If he hadn¡¯t been so filthy it might have even traveled a bit instead of being stopped by the dirt and grit that had dried on his back. ¡°I see,¡± Sikes chuckled nervously. He did his best to stay on his feet and not sway. He was hungry, starving actually, and this was the most excitement he¡¯d had in some time. ¡°Can you perhaps tell me what happened to the Raccoon?¡± ¡°Raccoon?¡± Ruth gave no indication he knew what that was. ¡°He¡­ it looked like this¡­¡± Sikes pantomimed some ears and then made circles with his fingers and put them over his eyes. ¡°...he was full of himself and furred all over?¡± ¡°Oh. My clothes ate him,¡± Ruth admitted after a long moment of reflection. ¡°Was he a friend of yours?¡± ¡°He was my enemy,¡± Sikes felt intense relief. Despite the fact that Ruth might leave him to die, at least that damn Raccoon wouldn¡¯t be spreading misinformation with his ¡®science¡¯. ¡°Wait, your clothes ate him?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like to talk or think about it.¡± Ruth looked so solemn and concerned that Sikes didn¡¯t know what to think. ¡°How about¡­ your companion?¡± ¡°This is Lord Rush. He is a¡­¡± Ruth paused and his eyes started to drift upward in contemplation. ¡°...lethal creature.¡± ¡°Is he your familiar? Your pet?¡± Sikes probed. ¡°No,¡± Ruth almost said it like it was a question. So, a familiar of some sort or, worst-case scenario, an honest to gods soul shape, Sikes thought. The chances of it being an actual soul shape were slim. The formation that the garden sits on top of wouldn¡¯t allow anyone to awaken a soul shape. Hang on. He did say he was a planar tiefling? Maybe he¡¯s not here naturally? Familiar or not, this was too much for him to handle with anything other than boot-licking. ¡°Well, what is your current destination?¡± Sikes asked tentatively. ¡°Don¡¯t know,¡± Ruth replied. ¡°I think I need to leave in case the Cannibal Pixies return. Also, everything above us has tried to eat me or kill me for no reason.¡± Ruth was eyeing him with suspicion as if waiting for him to confess that he, too, was planning on such a course of action. Sikes smiled nervously and licked his lips. ¡°Well, maybe I can help you? Perhaps you can tell me a bit about your situation and we can plot a course?¡± Ruth¡¯s eyes lit up and he crouched down. Sikes did his best to casually make his way to a sitting position but almost fell down instead. Ruth told him¡­ everything. Seriously. Sikes nodded and smiled, gritting his teeth and trying not to be bothered by the fact that this story began when Ruth was an egg. 33. Rush Gains A Vassal ¡°...the horse was delicious. I thought I had chosen the runt of the two pulling the carriage but it turns out that the meat was just... ¡° ¡°...the number of times that a human came into my lair and woke me up to show me this long picture of his ancestors? Ancestors? I guess they were! I never thought about it until now. Anyway, of his ancestors killing creatures¡­¡± ¡°...it is somewhat surprising to me now. If, and Sikes this is important -- if I held dominion over the whole world and I was the only dragon in that world, where were the other dragons? Was I the last of my kind? Maybe¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get me started on how painful this story is for me. Thinking it is painful. Saying it out loud with these inadequate jaws and with these pathetic fangs?¡± ¡°...of course, your pronunciation is almost a relief. Every word from your mouth is a constant reminder that my pronunciation is worlds apart better in every way. As long as I don¡¯t come across another dragon I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be embarrassed to speak.¡± ¡°About the clothes? I¡¯m concerned. I haven¡¯t passed waste in some time. I think¡­ I¡¯m not sure how it would work since I don¡¯t think the clothes are connected to me in ¡­ that way¡­ but¡­ do you think¡­ Do Planar Tieflings pass waste? It was quite the ordeal when I was a dragon. I had to leave the lair and find a suitable deposit location. It wasn¡¯t the smell so much as the size.¡± ¡°My poor beetles. They¡¯ve probably already been carried off by some large bird of prey. Or the Wyvern. That damned Wyvern! When I get my hands on¡­¡± ¡°I would tell you that the immortal and deadly text box is right in front of you but I don¡¯t think you can see it so what would be the point? Can you see it? No, I thought not. It¡¯s giving off light and it¡¯s just repeating the words ¡®Lord Rush¡¯ over and over again. I think it¡¯s been broken for some time. Something in its mind must have given. No real surprise given what it has witnessed in the past few days.¡± ¡°...the hatted creatures were¡­¡± ¡°...don¡¯t get me started on the Goblin Kings,¡± ¡°...I¡¯m not sure exactly how the Cow had found me. I just remember everything going dark when I was in the river and getting ready to get a fish¡­¡± ¡°...then house ate the cow¡­¡± ¡°...then the spiders ate the shed¡­¡± ?? Sikes thought himself an academic by nature. As an academic, he had been forced to sit through dissertations on the mundanities of mundanes. He once prided himself on sitting through a five hour lecture concerning the propensity for the spread of glowing moss over different topographical environments without batting an eyelash or needing a break. Really, the reason for not needing a break was that he had gone into some sort of life-saving torpor until it was over. None of his worldly experience had quite prepared him for Ruth. The problem wasn¡¯t that it was a boring story. The problem was that it was just interesting enough to keep his attention but droned on and on and on. ¡°Ruth!¡± Sikes couldn¡¯t take it any longer and finally interrupted the Tiefling. Ruth stopped in surprise with his hands held out in big fish story fashion. He was trying to explain how big Cannibal Pixies were to Sikes. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my friend, but I am hungry. I have been in here for days due in large part to the reprehensible and vile villains that populate the garden.¡± He hasted to add before the Tiefling could continue his story, ¡°the very same villains who have been attacking your own personage these few days? Might you let me out, or at the very least, provide me with some form of sustenance?¡± Ruth nodded slightly and tilted his head in thought. Sikes almost fell down in relief. Now that he knew, well, almost everything about Ruth he knew how to tailor his responses and requests now.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°There is no more bear, Lord Rush ate it all,¡± Ruth said slowly. ¡°What of your provisions for your journey?¡± Sikes asked with a sinking feeling. Everything he had heard, and the fact that he didn¡¯t see a backpack, seemed to suggest that planning ahead wasn¡¯t Ruth¡¯s strongpoint. ¡°I will find something later, or, if we travel together and rations become scarce Lord Rush and I will eat you.¡± Ruth said after some thought. ¡°Ah!¡± Sikes tried to not dwell on the negative here. Ruth was implying that he was going to let him out, and that was a win. ¡°Perhaps then, oh great dragon, I might suggest something you have already thought of but discarded as too unnecessary?¡± ¡°Go on,¡± Ruth looked pleased with being referred to as a dragon. Sikes gritted his teeth and forced a smile. Fairly confident that something as self-centered as Ruth couldn¡¯t read facial expressions but not willing to take the chance. ¡°Perhaps, if you are willing to take a short reprieve after you let me out I can go back upward and get some food for us to take along. Surely in your wisdom, you already thought of this but gave it up because it was too, well, easy.¡± Ruth nodded. That did sound like him. ¡°Furthermore, I¡¯ll carry the provisions so you don¡¯t have to? I can see why an esteemed personage such as yourself wouldn¡¯t bother, but if I am to serve you I might as well do so while carrying something to ease the burden,¡± Sikes pushed down any remaining pride he had. He wanted out of this cell. He wanted to eat. Sikes was about to go on in exacting detail about how useful his every day caginess would be to Ruth when Lord Rush opened both eyes and stood up on Ruth¡¯s head. The small lizard arched his back and stretched. Sikes was left with his mouth hanging open as he got his first good look at the creature. Banged up scales, swollen eye, little fellow looked like he had really been put through the wringer. Before he could make a comment expressing his sympathy for the bedraggled appearance of Ruth¡¯s companion, Lord Rush took a step off of Ruth¡¯s head and¡­ found a foot-hold in the air. Then another. Sikes felt his mouth hanging open and his eyes widen in terror as the small lizard walked through the air toward him, disappearing briefly in front of the bars and then re-appearing within the cell. Lord Rush stopped in front of Sikes and tilted his head to look him right in the eye. A golden vertical slit narrowed slightly before Lord Rush turned his face and opened his mouth so that Sikes could see an impossible number of small and very sharp teeth hidden within the creature''s head. Sikes felt himself becoming faint. Submit. Vassal. A great number of thoughts exploded into his mind. With his life on the line, the great number was gradually whittled down into only one thought with alarming speed. Submission. ¡°Y-yes, my Lord Rush.¡± Lord Rush closed his mouth and looked at him with satisfaction. He gently tiptoed through the air like he was walking up a circular staircase. When he was high enough he gently padded over to the top of Sikes''s head. Sikes felt tiny and very sharp claws testing his scalp before relaxing. A serpentine tail hung itself loosely around his neck, the small heart-shaped organ near the tip making a small tinkling noise. It appeared that Lord Rush had woken up and heard the part about carrying things and had decided to personally enlist Sikes for the honor of that duty. Sikes looked at Ruth. Ruth looked at Lord Rush and then at Sikes. Ruth shrugged at him. Ruth finally smiled and stood up. ¡°Step away from the door.¡± Sikes struggled to his feet and moved to the side, unsure of what he was doing at this point. Ruth stood in front of the door for a moment and then something happened. Sikes couldn¡¯t explain what that something was. For a moment, and a moment only, there had been a look of quiet contemplation on Ruth¡¯s face. Then the metal cell door had groaned as if it were being pressured from some unseen force. A moment later it had ripped itself from the hinges and bolts securing it and smashed into the back of the room. Had Sikes been standing in front of the door it would have likely smashed him to a pulp against the wall. Sikes quietly returned his attention to Ruth. This is a soul shape on my head. This is a mage, at the least, standing in front of me. All my schemes unravel in the face of power. A hopeless feeling started to well up in him as Ruth smiled at him through the doorway. Sikes stared back at him with a blank and dull expression. Finally, Ruth made a gesture toward the hole in the cell. ¡°Well? Go find something to eat and come back with these provisions you mentioned. I¡¯ll wait here. Don¡¯t worry, Lord Rush will protect you while you are up there.¡± The worst part, Sikes knew, was that Ruth wasn¡¯t sending Lord Rush to keep an eye on him or to make sure he didn¡¯t escape. It was completely unintentional. That was the worst part. IDT Status Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 1 of 5 spell slots Mana: 15/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% LORDRUSHLORDRUSHLORDRUSH 34. Rush and Sikes, How to Train Your Vassal Perhaps the strangest thing about dragons is their tendency to gather things of value for their hoard. I say strange, of course, because when we speak of such things we imagine piles of gold, of gemstones sparkling and glistening in the sun or moonlight, of chunks of precious metals or ores collected from deep veins or hidden caches of minerals from far into the soil where danger lurks. Dragons sight, as I have since learned, is much different from how most of our persons see things. Their spectrum of vision enhanced if you were being kind, by mana; their ocular function allowing them to be especially sensitive to what I wish to humbly submit as ¡®bright¡¯ color. The imagination of the masses has led to a wide misconception that dragon hoards contain vast riches. Indeed, this can be the case! More oft than not, however, the truth is that the cave or dwelling will contain brightly colored feathers, exquisitely shining crystals(generally worthless like quartz), or in the case of Ruth, lots of string. To most dragons, gemstones are valuable because they shine or have good color, not because of any special attached value or market price. To a dragon, they are just as valuable as the brightly colored feathers or string. They are, after all, just rocks. Excerpt from ¡°The Danger of Draconology - Shattering Romanticism¡± by Archivist Sikes ?? Sikes wasn¡¯t surprised when he saw the utter disarray of the Haberdasher¡¯s tree. Having listened to Ruth, at length, finding everything broken, piled up, used, discarded, or burned out felt right. Sikes dug through the pile of furniture and debris and quickly started tossing things into separate piles. He pulled the tables and the broken glass out of the large crap pile and threw them nearby into a heap he mentally labeled ¡®useless¡¯. As he expected, there were several bags that looked familiar. One of them was his bag. From the looks of it, the small bag which was merely a heavy canvas with a shoulder strap, the Haberdasher had already been through it. A quick look inside revealed that his books and personal journal were missing. Depressing. Sikes would have shaken his head in disgust but he was still not entirely comfortable with Rush being on top of his head. Lord Rush, Sikes quickly reminded himself. The other bags belonged to his companions. They had also been rifled through, missing various pieces of gear like flint, knives, clothing, and blankets. Perhaps the Haberdasher had traded them away or hidden them somewhere? No matter. From the combined bags he managed to find two sleeping rolls that were in relatively good order, a flint and sparking rock, and a dark glass knife. It would have been better if one of the steel blades was present, but that was sadly not to be. The best find was two intact waterskins. Trembling hands forced the cork out of the mouth. Without too much hope, he took a sniff of the water. Finally a break. The water smelled fine. Sikes, for one moment, had the delirious premonition while he¡¯d been sniffing that the Raccoon might have done something to the water. A fearful image of the Haberdasher urinating into the waterskins in the event that anyone had dared to try and steal from him! While Sikes would not have put that past the insanity which the Haberdasher had been capable of, it seemed that his caution, in this case, was unwarranted. The water tasted stale, but to Sikes who had been given small rations of water over the course of his capture, it tasted like ambrosia. A light moan escaped his lips as he forced himself to drink slower. The moan must have caught the attention of his overseer. Give some. A curious thought entered his mind. It seemed that Lord Rush was curious as to why his vassal was making such a weird sound. Reluctantly, he lifted the mouth of the water skin above his head and leaned forward slightly. He felt Lord Rush shift forward. Sikes let the water drip out slowly and was gratified when it didn¡¯t start dripping down his face. At least Lord Rush wasn¡¯t a sloppy drinker. The creature lapped at it for a moment before stopping. The water fell in a grass-thin stream toward the floor. Before too much of the water could be wasted, Sikes hastily pushed the cork back into the mouth of the waterskin. A quizzical and cautious feeling invaded his mind. Almost as if Lord Rush were reluctant to inquire... Is good? ¡°I require water to live. To me, it is very good. To you, I imagine it is pointless. I wouldn¡¯t dare suggest anything to you Lord Rush, but I would imagine it is quite like you partaking of the mana in your Soul Space.¡± Soul Space. Not a question. If anything it seemed like Rush was chewing on this information. Good Vassal. Very good Vassal. Sikes smiled nervously. The soul shape seemed to be able to express its will to him telepathically but similarly seemed incapable of hearing his own thoughts. This, he reflected as a quiet rage simmered inside him at being ¡®spoken to¡¯ in that demeaning way, was probably for the best.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Where is Sikes Soul Space? Sikes froze. The casual way the question was asked gave him pause. He deliberated for a long moment, trying to think of what to say. The true answer being, of course, that he had absolutely no idea what to say. Vassal? A slightly focused intent began to pressure Sikes. Not answering was being taken as insubordination. ¡°This one does not know,¡± Sikes said slowly. ¡°Only, uh, great beings unlock their soul spaces. Their majestic soul shapes taking form and having a consciousness. This vassal admits his inadequacy because not only can he not activate his soul space, his soul shape is also unformed.¡± A sense of being pitied and then a mollifying thought. It is okay, vassal. Continue. The true injustice of the world was almost making him weep. Ruth, and now Rush, were demonstrating their incredible lack of common sense -- yet somehow both were graced with something that Sikes with all his intellect and academic gleanings couldn¡¯t manage. Rush will awaken your soul shape. The thought immediately dispelled all the woe in his heart. Truthfully, Sikes knew a great deal about soul space and soul shapes. Who didn¡¯t? Who didn¡¯t dream of transcending the limitations of power, or mortality, and in many cases -- of morality! Gratitude welled up in his heart. When I think of how. Then it was gone. He smiled bitterly and resumed his duty. From the front room he found a cabinet near the hearth that was untouched. It was likely that Ruth hadn¡¯t known that the small wooden knobs on the front indicated that it was something he could open. Inside was an assortment of salted and dried nuts and fish. Sikes took the small tablecloth that was strewn casually on the floor and rolled as much of the dried food as he could fit into his bag. He hefted the strap and looked around mournfully. Part of him, the cowardly part, told him to push the creature off his head and make a break for the door and the wilderness outside. The smarter and equally cowardly part of him said to deceive Rush somehow. It wouldn¡¯t be hard to convince the creature to leave him alone so he could escape. The smartest, most self-serving, biggest part of his cowardice told him that the stories Ruth told of the garden were likely on point. There would be any number of creatures out there that would probably eat him within minutes. It was better to be a coward, a vassal, and alive than free, brave, and dead. ¡°Goodbye,¡± Sikes sighed at the doorway. He turned and started heading down the stairs. Goodbye? Means? ¡°One wishes goodbye to someone or something on two different occasions, generally. When one is going to be temporarily or briefly parted with that thing or person, or when one is going to be permanently parted with that thing or person.¡± Sikes began smoothly. If nothing else he could try and teach the stupid creature to be a bit better of a conversationalist. Which is now? ¡°Goodbye, probably forever, to the Garden of Wilkeena. All that lies outside that door. I shall probably never return.¡± Sikes explained. Goodbye to my freedom, temporarily, he added mentally. Goodbye first food place. Temporary. Sikes began to smile but it immediately soured slightly when Rush added a little something extra, just for him. Good vassal. Very good vassal. ¡°My name is Sikes, milord.¡± Okay dumb dumb. ¡°Vassal is wonderful, Lord Rush.¡± Good vassal, very good vassal. Vassal will stay. Goodbye. Temporary. ?? Before Sikes could say anything Rush was gone. Rush was very pleased with Sikes but he had business to attend. Rush entered the soul space and drank deeply from the area. The talk of the soul space with Sikes had reminded him that he needed to go back and check his territory. He had left quite abruptly and he wanted to make sure everything was tip-top while he enjoyed his journey elsewhere. The mana flowed into him from the sphere. Did it seem brighter in here than before? Rush liked it. Now all that was left was to look out and see if-- Yep. The crow was still there. Lord Rush narrowed his eyes dangerously at the crow. It was sitting in the same spot it had been sitting in. Rage filled his body. This time he didn¡¯t give in to it immediately. Back so soon? You look well. Like I only beat you a little. Come for more broken scales? What is word for future pain based on past pain? A complex series of thoughts flashed out to the crow from Rush. Future pain? Ah, I believe you are searching for grudge. You are telling me you will not forgive that grudge? Little brat, I am not surprised. I wait for your ¡®vengeance¡¯. Vengeance is another good word. Rush stared hatefully at the crow. It was standing in what he deemed his territory but he was now capable of acknowledging that the transgression would have to be righted at a later time. It was a very big step for Rush. It helped that he really liked the word and concept behind grudge. Rush began to secretly calculate how many grudges this future vassal would have to accept from him when he was bigger. It delighted him. Is that all? Want to fight? Rush narrowed his eyes and, for the first time, Arathan shifted uncomfortably on her invisible perch with an odd feeling swelling within her breast. There was something incredibly intense about his gaze and the silence. Usually the creature blasted his thoughts at her with as much subtlety as Tamara in a room full of lechers. Rush was probably exercising the full extent of his walnut-sized intellect. She was strangely flattered. Once more, my name is Arathan. Arathan. Goodbye. TEMPORARY. Then he was gone. A quick glance through a window that appeared in front of Arathan revealed he was already curled up on top of the Durvgar¡¯s head. IDT Status Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 1 of 5 spell slots Mana: 17/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% 35. Ruth and Sikes, How to Train Your Ward Dragons have many inherited memories. The idea of inherited memory is such an alien concept to us, especially those of us that take months or years to reach maturation and require a maternal or paternal guide. From a purely biological and organic point of view, it would seem impossible and crude. Mana once again rearing its ugly head and being responsible for something that is not purely ¡®natural¡¯. Inherited memory of language, abilities, fears, dreams, flight, magic? Of course, this is all very necessary from a pure point of view. Why? Because dragons are solitary creatures. They do not rear their young. They meet up very infrequently at areas outside of individual territories. The clutch of eggs left to the wild, the newly born young to the stomachs of any predator that may be near. A predator that is very often the siblings in the clutch. Dragons do not trust each other, and perhaps this too is an inherited memory. I have a theory that the solitary nature of dragons is built into their inherited sensibilities and is as natural to them as congregating in groups for safety is for most other species. For though one dragon on a mountain may result in fewer game animals and fish and be problematic for the species that cultivate the land and tend the herd creatures; two is a calamity. Simply put, I believe dragons are solitary creatures because they are a catastrophe to the environment. An environment that would very soon pit the creatures against each other in competition for space and food even if the dragons were amenable to working together; which, as we can see, they are not. Excerpt from ¡°The Danger of Draconology - Shattering Romanticism¡± by Archivist Sikes ?? Sikes led Ruth down the tunnels, and Ruth marveled in turn at how uneventful the trip was transpiring. With little more than a word or two confirming that he had gotten the provisions, Sikes had quietly started down the path in front of him with Rush napping on his head. The immortal and deadly text illuminating their path in front was quite helpful in finding secure footing. Now and again, the side of a trail would veer off into the darkness. A look over the side into these gaping chasms revealed that the drop would most certainly be unpleasantly long and assuredly fatal. ¡°Can you see in the dark?¡± Ruth asked, willing to break the silence and put up with the awful draconic pronunciation of his guide and, apparently, vassal. Sikes was unexpectedly polite toward him, even deferential. That was nothing to the care he showed Rush. Sometimes the orange-eyed archivist would stop and ask the small creature if it needed anything. Eventually he stopped because Rush had actually told him to shut up so he could sleep in peace. ¡°No Ruth.¡± Ruth was about to ask why anyone would live below the surface of the world if they couldn¡¯t see in the dark. He swallowed the question when he remembered all the dangers that lurked on the surface. Muddling about in the dark and braving the dangers of falls into the darkness did seem preferable to the dangers of the surface where the things there would run you down and eat you. Fortunately, he didn¡¯t ask the question. It turned out that seeing in the dark wasn¡¯t as big a deal as he thought it was down here. The reason being? The deeper they went the less trouble Ruth had seeing. Spiraling deeper and deeper into the tunnels a strange sort of blue bioluminescent algae or moss of some type began to appear. Larger and more dense pockets of the stuff began to quickly overtake the bare stone and dirt walkways and paths that had been the norm. Looking back, Ruth saw that his feet were leaving prints in the stuff. He lifted up one of his boots and peered down at it, less than surprised when he found the bottom of his soles covered with the blue stuff. Ruth now had glow in the dark footwear. He stomped up and down a few times experimentally, fascinated by the way everything was lighting up and glowing. He leaned down and put his fingers in it, raking them across the stuff for a moment. ¡°That¡¯s not poisonous, by the by,¡± Sikes had stopped when he realized that Ruth wasn¡¯t following him anymore. His voice was amused. ¡°Oh? That¡¯s good.¡± Ruth shrugged. Poisonous. It wasn¡¯t like he was going to eat it. He supposed Sikes was just being a good vassal. ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to eat it or anything.¡± ¡°There are plenty of poisons that don¡¯t require eating.¡± Ruth felt a chill running from the tip of his tail and traveling up his spine. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t doubt that most of them wouldn¡¯t work on yer worship,¡± Sikes admitted gruffly, the faintest bit of sarcasm coloring his voice. Ruth missed it entirely. He nodded thoughtfully. Dragons were amazing but... ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Ruth wiped his hands on his clothing and didn¡¯t mind the blue streak that appeared on his chest. It was better to be safe anyway. Ruth had plenty of things going for him but being a dragon was no longer one. Moments later the blue disappeared from the chest area as the scales on his ¡®shirt¡¯ rippled dramatically. Ruth and Sikes both froze until the movement ceased. Ruth only slightly relaxed whereas Sikes seemed to be standing further away now. ¡°Ah. It eats moss now. That¡¯s great...¡± Ruth looked down at his boots and realized that the soles were once again not glowing. He took a few steps and looked back, realizing he was leaving bare patches of stone where he was walking. His clothing was now actively eating the moss under his feet. Ruth resisted the urge to scream. He only managed not to because he didn¡¯t want to look foolish in front of Sikes. Sikes, for his part, was staring at him with his mouth open. ¡°Ah, that¡¯s¡­ uhh¡­ really terrifying. That ate the Raccoon?¡± ¡°Chomp chomp.¡± Ruth said quietly. ¡°Maybe yer worship should consider taking it off? Unless you can¡¯t?¡± Sikes tilted his head quizzically. The expression on his face expressing the opinion that there was no way in any of the seven hells he would wear something that casually ate things. ¡°Nonsense, there is nothing dangerous about this,¡± Ruth lied. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± ¡°Right.¡± Sikes hastened his steps. It was strange because every time Ruth tried to close the distance between them, the stocky Durvgar quickened his pace even more. When Ruth slowed down Sikes slowed down. Ruth finally gave up and allowed the slightly larger distance between them. Vassal. Where? A sleepy voice sounded out in both their heads. ¡°We are hours away milord,¡± Sikes reported dutifully. Continue. Rush was asleep again in seconds. ?? ¡°Are there many dangers down here?¡± Sikes sighed and took a moment to piece out what Ruth was saying. It took all of his considerable will not to tell the Tiefling to shut the hell up. Did he think it was easy listening to his broken pronunciation and finding his way? There was a reason the journey was only several hours and not days and was an undiscovered route. Despite the lighting of the Bluegrass there were hundreds of passages and forks that led to different places. ¡°Fewer near the surface. Past Under Arch there are the dryder, of course, but they mostly keep to themselves and hunt the Hoods. Dryder are arachnid hybrids that use simple tools and live in the deeps.¡± ¡°Hoods?¡± ¡°They are like little living sacks with teeth. They hang from the ceiling and drop down on unwary prey from above.¡± Ruth found the idea of things with teeth hanging out above them disturbing. He began making ¡®casual¡¯ glances upward as they walked along.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Without turning around to look, Sikes continued, ¡°of course your lordship would know they prefer the darkness so we¡¯re safe anywhere the Bluegrass grows.¡± ¡°Naturally,¡± Ruth was quietly grateful that his new minion seemed to think he was knowledgeable about a great many things. It saved Ruth from having to admit he had no idea what any of those things were. Why the hell would a dragon care about things that it could easily eat? Dragons didn¡¯t know the abilities of food animals. It was food or it was not food. Dragons did not wait for things to try and hurt them back. Naturally, Sikes knew that Ruth didn¡¯t know jack or squat. It was getting easier to flatter the Tiefling though. Once he was back in Under Arch he¡¯d cut the not-dragon loose. ¡°What else?¡± ¡°There are sulfur vents. Fissures in the floor or wall that generate spontaneous bursts of heat and deadly toxic gas. Again, the Bluegrass means safety. As long as there is Bluegrass you can rest assured that there is no fissure or sulfur vent nearby.¡± ¡°Bluegrass seems like it is quite useful.¡± Ruth admitted after a moment. ¡°Explain Bluegrass.¡± The immortal and deadly text turned toward him, and to his amazement, obliged.
Bluegrass is a bioluminescent algae that is comprised of an overabundance of tiny glowing plants. It is a cousin to a marine algae. Suspicion: Bluegrass is a mutated strain of algae that has adapted to the moisture of the tunnels and was originally from a deeper part of the subterranean layer where oceanic water accrues. The blue-green glow is produced because of the disturbance in air particles from passing creatures as a danger response.
¡°You are answering me now?¡±
Lord Rush has requested that I answer your questions so that you may become a better vassal.
¡°Lord Rush¡­ requested¡­ it¡­¡± Ruth¡¯s shoulders began shaking in laughter and he covered his face with a hand. ¡°Why¡­ why him?!¡±
Lord Rush will save us.
¡°Save us from what?¡±
No.
¡°NO!¡± Ruth mocked it. Sikes had stopped in his tracks and was now staring backward with a blank expression on his face. A box with writing had appeared out of thin air and was giving a perfect explanation for Bluegrass. It had appeared from nothing. ¡°W-what is that?¡± Ruth looked surprised. ¡°You can see the immortal and deadly text?¡± ¡°The immortal and deadly text?¡± Sikes sputtered.
Sikes is listed as an approved vassal of Lord Rush and has also been granted limited access.
¡°Granted limited access to what?¡±
No.
Ruth began to laugh. He was almost willing to forgive the immortal and deadly text when it refused to answer Sikes question after blatantly saying it would answer his questions. ?? The immortal and deadly text was, Sikes decided -- something that Ruth did not deserve. With the knowledge that he could interact with the box their journey had slowed down considerably. Despite Ruth mentioned several times that they should be moving faster, Sikes couldn¡¯t help it. The fucking box knew everything. Coaxing it to tell him, however, was proving to be a challenge. ¡°How do the Hood reproduce?¡±
No.
¡°Why no? Why damn ye?¡±
No.
¡°Okay, fine. I¡¯ll let you have that one,¡± Sikes said finally. An idea was beginning to form in his head though. If he was brave enough to use Lord Rush, maybe he could convince this thing to give him more answers. ¡°What if I wanted to be a better vassal to Lord Rush? How might I become better able to serve him?¡±
Many.
¡°Many what? Ways?¡±
Yes.
¡°Okay, name one.¡±
Awaken your soul space. Form soul shape. Prepare for the coming conflict.
¡°What coming conflict?¡± Sikes was momentarily elated with the information. If the box, no, the immortal and deadly text -- he corrected himself -- said that he could awaken his soul space and soul shape, who was he to argue with it before it told him how? The thought of being embroiled into something the immortal and deadly text thought to be a conflict was giving him a slight pause. In the end, the greed was winning out.
No.
¡°How do I awaken my soul space then?¡± The immortal and deadly text went blank at this, simply continuing to follow along. Sikes tilted his head, once again ignoring Ruth who was behind him clearing his throat and trying to get his attention. ¡°Hello?¡± No response from the immortal and deadly text. Finally, a delayed message came into being. The box shone brighter and brighter as the text began to undulate. It turned a deep red. Sikes came to a dead halt feeling a terrible pressure start to spread out. Ruth was watching the box carefully now, taking one step, and then two steps away from Sikes. ¡°You have angered it,¡± the Tiefling said thoughtfully. "How did you do that?"
I am Tamara. Do you want power? Do you want to awaken? Do you want to ask MY favor? Then it is simple. Give me what I want and I will bestow upon you a favor.
There was something terrible about the light that was infecting the hallway. Space was starting to distort and the light of the Bluegrass was starting to dip into violet hues. ¡°What¡­ what do you want?¡±
I want you to teach Ruth to see through deception. I want you to show Rush how large the universe is. I want you to tie your continued survival to their survival -- for ten years.
Sikes closed his eyes and felt gloom descend on him. He had been thinking for a while now that as soon as they got to Under Arch Ruth and Rush would probably get killed there. They were too trusting, too stupid, and generally speaking not cunning enough to make it. It was true that they were probably more powerful than many in Under Arch, but they were too inexperienced. Ruth would easily be poisoned to death or killed in his sleep. Rush would disappear without a soul space to inhabit. Quietly he asked, ¡°can¡¯t I just kill someone for you instead?¡± The light from the screen started to heat his skin. It felt like it would only be moments before the heat was so great that he would burst into flames. ¡°Okay,¡± Sikes said dejectedly. The light became kinder and the unbearable heat vanished.
When you reach Under Arch I will fulfill my side of the bargain.
The immortal and deadly text dimmed and returned to normal. Sikes was looking at Ruth now in a way that was obviously making the Tiefling uncomfortable. Eventually, he turned around and started walking down the tunnel. ¡°Come, boy, and we¡¯ll face our first challenge together.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Ruth hadn¡¯t seen the words the immortal and deadly text had transmitted. If he had, maybe he would have been more cautious. Considering how gloomy Sikes looked, he just assumed that the deadly and immortal text had jerked him around. ¡°The front gate guard at Under Arch,¡± Sikes said gruffly. ¡°What¡¯s challenging about that?¡± ¡°He has a sword and will turn it on us when we get there rather than let us pass,¡± Sikes said patiently. "Maybe he will take his bow and shoot us before we get close." ¡°Why would he do that?¡± Ruth tilted his head, puzzled. There was a note of caution in his voice though. He knew the power of the bow. ¡°Because I left Under Arch with his sister.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°I¡¯m returning without her.¡± ¡°Why are you only mentioning this now?¡± Ruth said after some thought. ¡°Because, originally, I was going to tell him you killed her.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Ruth nodded. ¡°I see.¡± Sikes turned slightly, an eyebrow lifting inquisitively. ¡°Are you angry, boy?¡± ¡°Why?¡± Ruth tilted his head in confusion. ¡°...dragons¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s good that you told me, Sikes.¡± Ruth finally said, realizing that his companion still seemed upset. The Durvgar probably needed to be comforted. ¡°Otherwise, when you got me into that fight, I would have killed you first.¡± ¡°Bully for me.¡± ?? Under Arch didn¡¯t seem all that impressive to Ruth when they were finally in sight of what Sikes referred to as the ¡®entryway¡¯. The tunnel narrowed until it was to the point where Ruth felt like he could stretch his arms out to either side and hit the wall. A simple structure carved from some sort of rock barred the way. It was a simple stone wall with an opening barely big enough for a person to squeeze through. ¡°This is the east-east entry,¡± Sikes said gruffly. ¡°Under Arch is small,¡± Ruth said after some thought. The Bluegrass was growing even more densely here. Sikes had mentioned that they cultivated it, particularly near the city. ¡°That¡¯s just the wall, boy,¡¯ Sikes muttered. ¡°On the other side of the wall, a giant cavernous space awaits. Buildings as far as the eye can see. Denizens beyond counting. If you travel far enough to the north you will come across an even larger lake and a long bridge leading up to a large castle. The retainers of Wilkeena reside there. Then you will be more impressed than you are now staring at a door.¡± Ruth was starting to get annoyed at being referred to as ¡®boy¡¯. It sounded a lot like when Lord Rush called him dumb dumb. ¡°So I can just kill this guy?¡± Ruth asked. ¡°It would be better to kill him immediately,¡± Sikes eyed him with an intense orange gaze. ¡°Can you?¡± ¡°How would I know?¡± Ruth was baffled. He¡¯d only been a Tiefling for less than a week. ¡°Is it bigger than a shed?¡± ¡°No,¡± Sikes said after a moment. It had taken him a second to puzzle out what the hell Ruth was talking about in draconic. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine then? Let¡¯s try to talk first.¡± Ruth suggested. ¡°Sure,¡± Sikes was amused now. ¡°Why don¡¯t you try that? It¡¯ll be a good lesson. Just the same, I¡¯m gonna get my knife out.¡± Ruth paused since this was news to him. ¡°We have knives?¡± ¡°I have a knife,¡± Sikes corrected him. ¡°Don¡¯t you have magic? Well, let me see it, boy.¡± Immortal and Deadly Text Status Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 2 of 5 spell slots Mana: 20/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% 36. Ruth and the Women of Under Arch ¡°Dragons are, at their core, an invasive species. My learned colleagues will point out any number of sub-species of dragon that co-exist just fine in their natural habitat. Large serpentine creatures that eat rocks or ingest plants for sustenance and are widely found in what is considered their ¡®native¡¯ habitats, for instance. To them I say, you are quibbling. Take any one of those rock or plant eating ¡®dragons¡¯ of yours and put them in a different habitat and the result is the same as if you¡¯d put a carnivorous one in there. One of two things will happen. The local indigenous wild-life will respond violently and expel the dragon or the local indigenous wild-life will not realize the danger it is in until the dragon has led a wide swath of destruction through the wilderness. Co-existence, in the case of dragons, is when the local ecology finds a way to safely ignore the new apex pain in the neck. Excerpt from ¡°The Danger of Draconology - Shattering Romanticism¡± by Archivist Sikes ?? ¡°So, tell me about this person before I talk to him,¡± Ruth said. Truth be told he was a little eager to be conversing with other creatures. So many things had happened, so much had changed, so few things were as they were that he was a bit eager to be inserted into a place where he could gather information. He had a lot to do! He had to figure out how to get back to his world, find out what a Tamara was and how to kill it, discover a way to remove the creature eating clothing that was attached to him -- and, oh yeah, figure out how to be a dragon again? Moment of silence for the new sassy tail. It would be missed when he was a dragon again. He looked over his shoulder and found that the tip of the tail flicked in a dismissive manner. Ruth nodded back to the tail relieved that it was so understanding. ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s much point, boy. I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve thought this out. At all.¡± Sikes sighed from behind him. ¡°Just go up to the gate ahead and knock on the door. The main sentry will let us in.¡± ¡°They¡¯ll just let us in without asking anything?¡± Ruth was a bit surprised, that seemed pretty lax to him. Well, he supposed there was no need to keep valuables at the gate so there wasn¡¯t a need to keep any useful virgin minions guarding it. ¡°Aye, they¡¯ll let us into a smaller square of space with a real gate on the other side. We will be challenged at that gate,¡± Sikes explained tiredly. ¡°Why?¡± Ruth was truly baffled as to why this wall in front of them existed if it was easily defeated. ¡°Lad, this wall is to thin numbers and prevent escape. The real gate has a number of wide slots for crossbow bolts. It¡¯s a staging area where they decide whether to let us through or kill us. If we were here in larger numbers the bottleneck would be useful for thinning us, don¡¯t you think?¡± Sikes said gently. ¡°I would just knock the wall down then if I had more numbers?¡± Ruth was growing increasingly agitated by the nonsensical construction. What a waste. ¡°While you were doing that the city would be roused and men at arms would head from the other gates to this one,¡± Sikes replied reasonably. Ruth approached the wall and found that instead of the original stone wall he had envisioned it was more of a large stacked pile. It was held together by some sort of melted stone. It looked like it had been melted and poured into all the cracks, binding the loose pile of rubble into a solid piece. ¡°What is this? How is this done?¡± Ruth pointed at the smoother parts of the wall. ¡°Mortar,¡± Sikes almost wept when he said the word. ¡°Is it that impressive?¡± Ruth was slightly taken aback by the emotion he heard in the Durvgar¡¯s voice. ¡°Aye, I am envisioning ten years of toil ahead of me. Explaining mortar, food, and the concept of currency. My every waking day filled with endless questions. A never-ending, ten-year torture where I ridicule myself for making a bargain without truly thinking through the consequences¡­¡± Sikes nodded sagely at Ruth, his orange eyes filled with obvious heart-ache. ¡°Wow,¡± Ruth looked at the mortar with renewed respect. The mortar deserved his awe, but it was only melted rock. He had melted quite a bit of rock himself. Despite how Sikes seemed to worship it, Ruth had other business to attend. No reason to make Sikes feel foolish though. Ruth nodded politely to the mortar and stepped up to the large door knocker. He considered it for a long moment and nodded his head. He had no idea what that was. Ruth turned back and pointed to the iron ring on the door. ¡°What do I do with this?¡± ?? The darkness was comforting and the amount of mana that Wilkeena was receiving was acceptably high. She struggled to retain as much of it as she could, pushing it through her mana passageways and trying to expand them, if even a little. Flynn¡¯s children were prodigious monsters, but there was always a price for any sort of power in the universe. Wilkeena had chosen the slower and surer path. She cultivated the creatures around him, promising them safety, rewards, and her favor. She was not a demi-god yet but she soon would be. Even if she was not a demi-god she was more than capable of laying waste to the entirety of Under Arch with relative impunity. More than that, her father was a god. Such existences were far beyond the comprehension abilities of most. The only thing they really needed to understand was something that Wilkeena herself understood about gods; one did not anger them unless one was prepared to be erased. With that being said, Wilkeena felt the disturbance from her Garden disappear. At first, Wilkeena was elated. The Cannibal Pixies had obviously dealt with the intruder! Wilkeena herself had some small expectations toward the quantity and quality of mana that was sure to run through the ground and into her lair. Expectations that were not met. Puzzling over this undesirable but acceptable outcome, Wilkeena almost closed her eyes and folded her arms to go back to her low-energy slumber. The Arachne felt something coming closer toward her domain the moment she relaxed her guard. Wilkeena had been focusing on the garden, after all. When she relaxed her guard she had found the source of her agitation to be not only alive and well, but much closer than she had believed possible. Disbelief caused all of her eyes to rapidly open in succession. Her sharpened legs ground into the soil uneasily as she stood completely upright for the first time in years. Her eyes narrowed. The creature chosen lives! It is at the gates! How can this be?! Indecision. For the first time in many years, she did not know what to do. She knew it was a bad idea to take direct action against an enemy chosen without knowing anything about them. Even worse idea since it belonged to Tamara. As one of her father¡¯s favorites, she knew a great deal about the reputations of some of the other gods. ¡°Wilda,¡± the simple word from her mouth caused dust to blow outward. It had been a long time since she had moved or spoken and the small puff of dust earned a thin-lipped smile from the Arachne. A small red spider the size of her eye slowly spun down from where it had been resting on the ceiling. It lowered itself lazily, hard to make out against the backdrop of golden thread. What do you wish, my lovely? ¡°Please open a window to my father.¡± For the briefest of moments, the small spider hesitated. I obey. A window opened up. Wilkeena had expected to see nothing and was rewarded with just that -- darkness clouded the window. Despite the fact the window showed nothing, she waited patiently. Her father would turn his attention toward her in due time. It might take a day or two but it would be wor-- ¡°Speak.¡± Wilkeena startled and tried to clear her throat gently. Still, she couldn¡¯t help but betray the excitement she felt whenever she talked to her father. ¡°Father. I wouldn¡¯t bother you except that I have need of your counsel.¡± ¡°Speak,¡± the voice said again, and then it paused. ¡°How is your advancement?¡± ¡°Going well, for the most part. It may be that I will be ready for the demi-god challenges by the time the ritual is underway.¡± ¡°Well done.¡± Pleasant surprise covered the voice. Wilkeena tried not to let it bother her that he did, in fact, sound surprised. Like this was news to him and he had expected it to take longer.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Still, there is another chosen approaching me and I wish for your guidance.¡± ¡°A chosen?¡± The slightest bit of curiosity bloomed for the first time during the conversation. ¡°Oh, one of Tamara¡¯s¡­¡± Wilkeena waited patiently. Then she waited some more. After what seemed like an eternity a chuckle sounded from the darkness. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s that chosen.¡± ¡°Should I kill it?¡± ¡°Mm. If you kill it you will provoke Tamara. She is looking for reasons to pick fights lately.¡± ¡°So, I shouldn¡¯t kill it?¡± ¡°Mm. If you don¡¯t kill it, it will be a danger to you.¡± ¡°A danger to me?¡± Wilkeena blinked rapidly, trying to school her expression before her father saw it. Pointless. ¡°Your features explain to me you doubt this to be so. On your path to godhood, you should treat every thorn in front of you as a thorn in your side. Every thorn in your side should be handled with gloves and a method of disinfection.¡± Wilkeena hung her head in acknowledgment of her failing. ¡°Then what do you advise?¡± ¡°Do you remember when you were very young and you went to the Garden with your sister, Arina?¡± Wilkeena froze slightly and forced an awkward smile. ¡°My big sister, of course, how could I forget?¡± ¡°Do you remember what you told me?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Wilkeena felt cold dread start to spread from the nape of her neck down her spine and traveling through her abdomen and thorax. ¡°You said to me,¡± Flynn¡¯s voice changed into a younger approximation of Wilkeena¡¯s, truly terrifying her with the accuracy of how she had sounded when she was young and much stupider. ¡°Father, Sister Arina died due to unforeseen circumstances. She was trying to play with the House Hunters. I told her not to, but she didn¡¯t listen to me.¡± Wilkeena said nothing. It was apparent to her now, years later, that such a lie was easily seen through. Nothing she could say would do anything to help her now. ¡°I was so very proud of you. Murdering your own sister, blaming it on something that couldn¡¯t be tied to you, expressing remorse.¡± A subtle flame began burning in her breast. She was strangely touched by the care she heard in the voice from the dark box. Part of her knew that it was all a manipulation, but she was touched just the same. She would make that sort of craftiness her own one day. ¡°If you kill the creature, Tamara will surely come for you. She will kill you. This is an absolute certainty. I can¡¯t guard you all the time and Tamara is persistent. If you don¡¯t kill the creature, it will surely become a thorn that presents itself in front of you. While I applaud your courageous actions when you were young to remove your sister from your path toward ascension, I had hoped that the years would teach you a bit of subtlety. If the creature dies? Who cares? As long as it is not traced back to you. If you can manage that, then fine.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Wilkeena pondered what her father was saying to her, and for the first time asked him directly. ¡°What would you do?¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Flynn¡¯s voice sounded a bit more animated now. ¡°Such a good girl.¡± Wilkeena lifted her head, surprise filling her features. ¡°Sometimes the best way to please me isn¡¯t by giving me what you think is the best answer. Sometimes the best way to please me is to rely upon my experience. What you should do is simple. You should do nothing.¡± ¡°Nothing?¡± Wilkeena felt the joy in her heart strongly now. The words of praise from her father lifting her high in spirit. Still, his suggestion seemed contradictory. ¡°You are going to be a very old thing someday, so let me tell you what your little plaything the garden and your coveted Under Arch truly are. Nothing.¡± The voice paused for a moment and then continued. ¡°Simply ignore the creature until it leaves or until you do. Do not reveal yourself or antagonize it. In the grand scheme of eternity, ten years is nothing. Make yourself strong, make yourself worthy of the demi-god candidacy ritual, and leave that place. If Tamara wishes to provoke us with that thing then she has sorely over-estimated the value of this world. Pride is nothing child. There is only power. Hold this grudge close to your breast and remember it. When everyone but you has forgotten, then you may consider your revenge.¡± ¡°Thank you, father.¡± Wilkeena felt the wisdom of the words she had heard. She was pained in the knowledge that he thought her lair, her underlings, and her prided garden were nothing. Pain in knowing that he was right. Compared to a god, everything she had was nothing. ¡°Don¡¯t be upset. Someday, you will be a god. Set yourself as higher and leave everything else below you. You too will look down from above and tell those below you that they have nothing.¡± ¡°I look forward to it.¡± ¡°I shall remember to tell your mother you are doing fine.¡± ¡°Goodbye, father.¡± The screen disappeared and the Arachne considered for a long time. She slowly closed her eyes and the dirt, rock, and soil began to close around her from the walls, the floor, and the ceiling. High above Under Arch, beyond the castle on the lake, Wilkeena slumbered once more, putting Ruth and the concerns of her retainers far from her mind. The flow of mana seemed to increase. She smiled, dreaming the darkest of dreams. ?? ¡°...so you see, the creature that is responsible for the death of your sister has been devoured by the clothing I am wearing. Your vengeance sated.¡± Ruth held up his arm and tugged on a bit of the scaled fabric, pulling it away. The guard was staring dully at him, quietly holding a small axe across his chest with his arms crossed. The guard had been patiently listening to everything he said and for this whole time hadn¡¯t interrupted. The tale had taken a bit of telling but Ruth was fairly confident that he got his point across. ¡°Well done, boy,¡± Sikes was clapping his hands together slowly behind him. The sound made Rush open his eyes slightly from his vantage point atop his head. Then the small creature closed his eyes again. Dumb dumb. Ruth nodded to Sikes, appreciating the support. It was nice that the Durvgar was being so supportive even under the obvious pressure being near the ¡®mortar¡¯ was putting him through. The guard stirred slightly and let his hand axe hang freely from his hand now, tilting his hips slightly. He turned to Sikes and said something. Ruth frowned, realizing for the first time that there might be a problem. ¡°Ah,¡± Ruth waved his hands in front of the guard for a moment, regaining the dim creatures attention. ¡°Do you speak draconic?¡± The guard nodded at him with wide eyes and then turned to Sikes once more, making a half-gesture toward the Durvgar with the edge of his ax. There was a clear angry note in his voice, even if Ruth couldn¡¯t quite make out what it was. ¡°What¡¯d he say?¡± Ruth asked. ¡°He wants to know if my Mongeese is done chattering or not. He also wants to know where his sister is.¡± Sikes replied. ¡°Oh.¡± Ruth deflated. ¡°Would you mind telling him what I said?¡± ¡°Kid, I really don¡¯t think he cares¡­¡± Sikes nodded his head slightly, bringing up his knife in front of him warily. Ruth turned around and noticed that the guard was tapping his fingers against the flat of the blade and two more guards were starting to walk from their leaning positions near the gate. Ruth felt his shoulders slumping and the rage starting to build in his chest. What was wrong with all of these beings? Why was it that wherever he went everything tried to hurt him?! The familiar burn began to spread throughout his body. His hands were trembling and he felt sassy tail begin to sway. ¡°Sikes?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Tell him that his sister tasted delicious.¡± Sikes began to laugh. ?? Lightning flashed from the windows of the great hall of the castle beyond the lake, startling several people who had been seated at a table eating. On one side of the table was a woman that could only be described as otherworldly in appearance and beauty. Ample breasts, full hips, skin that appeared to be without blemish, and luxurious and pouting lips. There was a dangerous gleam in her emerald eyes as she considered the window and casually brushed her red hair over a shoulder, sending it spiraling down. The hair did more to cover her chest than the low-cut red gown that she wore. Her porcelain skin lit up brightly as the lightning displayed once more through the window. The other side of the table sat another woman that was otherworldly in appearance, though for many different reasons. While the woman that sat across from her might have counted as one of the most gorgeous and voluptuous women that Under Arch had ever seen, she herself was perhaps the most exotic. Two short curving horns flared gently from her head above her ears and pushed through a plain and simple brown hair that was cut short, only falling barely to her shoulders. While the beautiful woman across from her wore something that barely covered her person and promised nothing but simple straightforward pleasure, this lady wore armor that seemed to cling to her body from the tip of her toes all the way to her neck. The armor was seamless, breaking up the curves of her body and giving her a ferocious and martial appearance. Her lips were thin and her face cut from what seemed like red granite, small white scars peeking here and there under her eyes and across her nose and lips. Her skin near the hairline was marred by the appearance of red and golden scales that fought through flesh, leaving one with the strange feeling that parts of her flesh resembled fish skin. One gave off the feeling of beauty and fragility, promising to reward desire. One gave off the feeling of strength and power, promising only swift retribution. They turned their faces to the woman at the front of the table. The Arachne looked very similar to Wilkeena but gave off none of the pressure the old monster herself possessed. She was much younger with pink flesh and only four eyes. Her sharp legs tapped the cobblestone below her and her human hands thrummed fingers on the table as she also considered the display of mana and power through the windows. ¡°Has mistress spoken to you?¡± The red head smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t see how that is any of your business, Solace.¡± The horned woman declared calmly. Her eyes, which appeared to be a soft glowing blue solid, turned to regard the expensively ¡®dressed¡¯ woman. ¡°I am her ladyship¡¯s eyes and ears, her spymaster? How is it not my business my dear Merriweather?¡± Solace retorted. ¡°She says nothing. It is an unimportant occurrence.¡± The Arachne interrupted their bickering and turned toward the window. ¡°Sikes has returned with some creature that is powerful.¡± ¡°So it is Archivist Sikes. I should like to see what he has found from the Garden that throws such a vibrant tantrum!¡± Solace smiled, laughing low in her throat. ¡°Seeing lightning in Under Arch is a rare occurrence, but not indicative of any real power.¡± Merriweather closed her eyes and shook her head. ¡°It is indeed, something unworthy of your attention Merriweather. I suppose if you can¡¯t chop it up it isn¡¯t important?¡± ¡°You have something to say, bitch?¡± Merriweather asked pleasantly, the tiniest corner of her lips curling upward in an approximation of a smile. ¡°Please mind your tongue!¡± Solace let her eyes turn into slits as she looked at Merri through half-closed eyes. ¡°Your vulgarity makes you seem low-class.¡± Merriweather let her eyes drop down to the cut of Solace¡¯s dress. She looked like she was going to say something but, instead, let a smile drift lazily across her face as she looked away without comment. Solace¡¯s eyes widened and she stood up-- ¡°Silence. Both of you, go see what this disturbance is. If it is something from the Garden figure out whether or not it is useful. If it is unimportant return.¡± The Arachne thundered. Solace made a small ¡®hmmph¡¯ noise and turned from the room. She made a skirt swishing gesture but really there wasn¡¯t enough cloth to make it girlish. Merriweather turned to the Arachne and put an armored hand over her chest, closing her eyes and bowing briefly before turning and striding out. 37. Ruth Wants To Get Even Ruth didn¡¯t know what he¡¯d expected really. Sikes had not given any indication that he¡¯d also thought of the communication problem beforehand. That made Ruth a bit suspicious. In the beginning, when Sikes was in the cell he had been much more agreeable. Every step away from that cell seemed to be revealing another ugly facet to the Durvgar¡¯s personality. When Ruth had asked Sikes to relay the message of the taste of his sister, the guard had grown infuriated. What infuriated Ruth was that Sikes was willing to relay that message but not mention anything else that could make the situation a bit less hostile. Ruth was beginning to suspect that Sikes was actually not a good person. The guard with the hand axe moved toward him with cold eyes. Behind him, two of his buddies, unremarkable in their dull metal hats with eye hole slits, began to fan out behind the guy with the sister on either side. They were also carrying crude hand axes. A cursory glance revealed that through the iron-wrought gate bars there were a bunch of people going about their business on a semi-busy street. What was happening here didn¡¯t seem to be important enough to the general populace to warrant any sort of reaction. That, Ruth thought, will soon change. Ruth stood up to his full height and hissed low in his throat, spreading his arms in a welcoming manner. The dangerous noise had been one of his first discoveries when he was put into this body and it served him well now because the men before him checked themselves slightly, even if they did continue advancing. While he was standing upright and trying to intimidate them, the sassy tail was making plans of his own. It swooped down and flashed toward the ground and darted back up and behind his back. A quick look to his left revealed that Lord Rush was actually still napping on top of Sikes head. The Durvgar, for his part, looked content to let Ruth handle the wave of men alone. A coldness began to suffuse the rage that Ruth felt inside of him. Fucking fine. ¡°Show me my mana,¡± Ruth commanded calmly. The men in front of him didn¡¯t falter and were still advancing. It would be only seconds before the first one would step forward and engage in violence. Ruth could feel the anger and hate in the air almost as if it was something he could reach out and grasp. The immortal and deadly text faithfully appeared in front of him and slightly to the right.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) Mana: 20/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 25% 2 of 5 spell slots
Ruth¡¯s lips spread in a smile so wide his dry lips almost cracked. He could feel the pain that chewed numbly at both of his shoulders, the dry and tortured skin of his face because of the constant exposure to the elements and the lack of water, the unfamiliar pain in his calves from only having two legs to carry himself with, and as always -- the hunger. Ruth wondered if they would taste good. Compared to everything he had fought from the heroic Goblin Kings to the Spectral Bear, what stood in front of him hurt his pride more than anything. Lesser beings should know better than to try a dragon when he is down on his luck. Ruth lifted his hands and pointed at the two guards flanking the sister loving guard. Lightning leaped from his fingertips, causing the air to hiss and crackle and blinding everyone in front of him as they jerked backward from the sudden flare of light in a dark space. Sure there was the illumination from the mutant algae or moss, but compared to lightning? The powerful bolts of energy struck their targets, pausing momentarily as if they were finding resistance, and then passed through the men and struck to either side of the gate behind them. While the long chain of lightning stretched out both men jerked and spasmed like puppets being shaken from a tangled marionette string. When the lightning finally ended both men fell to the ground smoking and charred, parts of their body appearing undamaged and pristine and other portions looking as if they had spent too long on the flame side of a spit roast. The remaining guard in front, to his credit, did not flinch for long. He immediately forced his eyes open and started to push toward Ruth. A quick glance revealed that Ruth was still holding his arms out even if he was staring directly at him. The guard held his axe and moved forward with silent purpose, his boots making scuffing noises. The scent of burned and cooked flesh was starting to make the place stink worse than it had when it had just been too many bodies in too tight of quarters. Ruth didn¡¯t immediately move. Ruth had survived a lot and understood his power now. Mages would always be weak to people who were faster than them. Isn¡¯t this what most of the world believed? Ruth was uncertain. The uncertainty he had toward this notion came from the word instantaneous. To a mage, and Ruth was no exception now, the word instantaneous was thought-provoking. The guard was only a step away from being in his ideal range. He could throw the axe now if he had to, swing clumsily and overreach and maybe hit his target even. Ruth could see the sneer start to form on the guard¡¯s face as he thought his victory was at hand. The concern and fear that had been there a mere moment before was replaced with derision and cruelty.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! But instantaneous? That was faster than even a mere moment. So when the guard was lashed to the ground by a lightning chain and jerked off his feet as the tether pulled tautly, there was no change on his face. No confusion played across his eyes as he was pulled backward by the lightning chain. His arms flew forward and he almost lost his grip on his axe as he stumbled backward and onto his butt. The pain started to appear on his face and he howled, letting loose the axe and tried to tear at the golden energy that was leashing him to the ground from his ankle. The sizzle of flesh burned as he tried to pull it off his foot but only succeeded in further scouring his hands. Ruth took one careful step backward and slowly brought both his palms together. To Ruth, time was passing far too slowly. It took far more than a mere moment for the guard to put aside the pain of his leg and his now burned hands and remember that Ruth was still there. It took even longer to watch the slow dawning realization on his dumb face when he noticed that Ruth was pointing both of his hands at him. ¡°I just wanted to walk through a door¡­¡± Ruth mumbled. The man couldn¡¯t understand him and began crying. He started to hold up his hands in a pleading gesture and babbling. ¡°Boy--¡± Sikes finally started to speak. To tell him to show mercy? Probably not. Sikes was probably going to tell him that Ruth should finish the man. The man was a threat to Sikes too, after all. Sikes never did finish because the short report of another two lightning blasts crushed the lightning leashed guard into the ground. The violence of the two strikes so powerful they had pushed the guard''s whole body into the ground and caused it to bounce nearly a meter in the air. When the echoing sound faded, the silence seemed more profound somehow. Ruth walked toward the smoking corpse and gently pushed the handaxe to the side with his foot so he could step closer. Ruth looked up and noticed that the busy street through the iron-wrought gate was still. Dozens of eyes trained on him solemnly as they watched him bend over the still smoking guard. The sound of a crunching rip. The sound of teeth tearing flesh. Ruth chewed on a piece of the guard he¡¯d torn off near the unfortunate cadavers bicep and swallowed it. He turned around and met Sikes''s silent look with a look of his own. ¡°Call me ¡®boy¡¯ again.¡± Ruth continued to chew the guard while he watched the Durvgar¡¯s expression. Eventually, Sikes shuddered and looked away, the first to capitulate in their quiet war of wills. Lord Rush had awoken and was slowly paddling through the air toward another one of the dead guards. He looked curiously at Ruth and thought good taste? ¡°Yes.¡± The two crouched down over their respective guards and started to eat in earnest. The crowd remained still. This was not a good place. The Under Arch certainly didn¡¯t have the oceans of blood that Kitvalka boasted, but it was still a place where the lawless, the murderous, and the ambitious all sharpened their blades to use on one another. That didn¡¯t mean it was a normal scene to watch someone casually kill the guards at the gate and then eat them. The guards may have been low-ranking dregs sent by the castle beyond the lake, but they were still castle guards. It was no great surprise to them when they saw Solace and Merriweather approaching with a complement of grim-looking castle guards and fiends. ¡°What goes on here?¡± Solace asked playfully, her eyes dancing over the cowed crowd. She was about to start investigating when she realized that her usual appearance hadn¡¯t captivated her audience. Normally when she appeared the men and women would be clambering over themselves to be near her, to speak to her, to try to gain her attention or favor. ¡°That goes on here,¡± Merriweather said with a marked disquiet in her voice at what she had just seen. ¡°Why do you sound as if--¡± Solace trailed off and her eyes widened slightly. Ruth didn¡¯t look up. There didn¡¯t seem to be any reason to deal with anything until he was done with his meal. He did casually glance to the side and command, ¡°mana¡­¡±
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) Mana: 12/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 25% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% 1 of 5 spell slots
Feeling much better after his quiet meal, Ruth finally stood up again, brushing some of the dust that had gathered near his legs off. ¡°Sikes, how do we proceed?¡± Ruth turned his attention back to the Durvgar and froze. The facial expression Sikes was making made Ruth feel cautious. It wasn¡¯t the horror of watching him eat. It was some other kind of terror. Maybe one of the new people at the gate was dangerous? Ruth turned around and froze. Time seemed to come to a complete stop for him. A memory surfaced unbidden from the deepest and darkest recess of his mind. The blonde woman who seemed impossibly clean for the circumstances. The sword that was half again her size resting casually across her shoulders. The mischievous eyes and the daring eyebrows that were even now narrowed in a meaningful sort of way. ¡°Hello, Ruth.¡± The excitement began to flood through his body. Sheer thrill adrenaline coursing through his veins. The memory of her taking his head was finally clear. She had been the one to kill him when he was a dragon. She was the one who had dumped him into this body. She was the one that was making his life miserable. ¡°TAMARA!¡± Ruth chewed the word before he spat it out, a low growl began to surge in his throat afterward. Sassy tail immediately whipped from behind his back and sent a blurred projectile straight toward her face without hesitation. Tamara lowered her hand from in front of her face and opened it. A sharp piece of rock was laying on her palm. She looked up and smiled. ¡°Cute. I¡¯m guessing you have some sort of grievance with me you¡¯d like to share?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re dead¡­¡± Ruth was trembling badly now, a mixture of pure adrenaline and terror warring as the fight or flight instinct rumbled ruthlessly in his mind. Was it close? Did he almost run? No, he did not. There could only be one outcome. ¡°...I¡¯m not even going to eat you!¡± ¡°I¡¯m a kind and generous soul. Hug it out?¡± Tamara lifted her two-handed sword off her shoulder and held it up. It slowly disappeared from her hand starting to vanish from the tip. When it was entirely gone she held both of her arms open to him in a welcoming gesture. 38. Tamara and the Teachable moment Perhaps sensing that the situation was starting to turn abnormal, Lord Rush actually ceased actively tearing chunks out of the guard he was eating to look up and get a feel for the blonde-haired woman that had appeared within the gated courtyard. He briefly took a look at the foods and dumbs on the other side of the gate too, but none of them really caught his interest. Rush was always on the lookout for new minions but he didn¡¯t see anyone out there that was worth recruiting. Tamara though. Tamara with her blonde hair and her cocky grin. There was something about her that really irritated him. Lord Rush narrowed his eyes as he chewed. His mouth movements slowing down as his small brain started to make an association. She really reminded him of his arch-nemesis, the crow. His small eyes narrowed and he spit out the rest of the hand that he had been gnawing on. Ruth was getting emotional and Rush was beginning to feel the effect of rage as it echoed out from soul space. His Ruth was right. This woman could not be allowed to exist. ?? Despite every fiber of his being demanding that he just douse her with something flammable and set her on fire, dancing to the song of his crazy laughter, Ruth knew that the Tamara creature would be a formidable opponent. He didn¡¯t know what this ¡®hug it out¡¯ referred to but he knew that it was probably some sort of trick. Ruth was underground and was uncertain as to whether he could use Thunder Struck here. There was a fog cover up above him that seemed to move around in air currents that resembled clouds, but was that enough? Did he need some sort of atmospheric help in order to cast Thunder Struck? This didn¡¯t seem like the time to be standing still pointing at what was probably the most dangerous enemy he had ever faced while finding out. Rush moved in the corner of his vision. Ruth watched the small lizard as it floated gently to the ground. His tail and body were low to the ground, absolutely silent, as he slowly moved behind Tamara; it seemed like he was getting ready to attack her from behind since she was focused solely on Ruth. The clandestine lizard was even doing his very best not to rattle as he moved. Even straining his ears Ruth couldn¡¯t hear so much as a click of his claws on the ground. Ruth looked behind him and immediately found that Sikes was, as expected, going to be completely useless. The fool was on his knees and had his hands out with the knife in them, an obvious submission pose. Pathetic. ¡°I approve of the way you are looking around and considering your advantages,¡± Tamara said, gaining his brief attention as he continued to look around. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the crossbow men behind the walls. I hear them behind me. If they fire, I¡¯ll kill them all.¡± This proclamation was said in draconic, as evidenced by the fact that no one seemed to be stopping behind the walls. Men and women were beginning to step up to the slotted port holes and crossbows were being readied to be put to task. Sikes immediately called out to them in a language that Ruth didn¡¯t understand. Apparently the useless and sorry Durvgar was at least telling relaying Tamara¡¯s message to them. ¡°Hurry up!¡± Tamara said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ve things to do. I know it isn¡¯t fair to you, but this is a teachable moment. I¡¯ve been watching for some time now.¡± ¡°Then you should know to be wary.¡± Ruth said quietly. Preparations were almost complete. ¡°Ruth, my sweet Ruth,¡± Tamara smiled widely. ¡°If you can even hurt a hair on my head, I¡¯ll give you my fealty and do my best to get you back into a dragon body. Your attacks are, indeed, quite ferocious. They don¡¯t lack for killing intent or for follow-through.¡± Ruth lowered his body and spread his legs. He didn¡¯t know why she was insisting on talking to him. He would make his move the moment Lord Rush was directly behind her. ¡°...there¡¯s just one thing, really,¡± Tamara held up a single finger and tilted her head slightly. ¡°Imagination. Part of it is my fault, I suppose, for having your spells arranged with numerical values that tell you the consumption. You think in terms of casting a spell and how many times it is available for use.¡± ¡°Mmmhmmm?¡± Ruth wasn¡¯t really paying much attention. It would be just another moment. ¡°When you were a dragon, did you pay attention to using only what you would consider to be ¡®one¡¯ or ¡®two¡¯ mana when you used mana to fly? No, you used enough mana for whatever you were doing. It was instinctive and natural, not a system that you paid attention to. In short, with your thinking now, you can¡¯t even make the all or nothing attack you need for situations like this.¡± Tamara¡¯s expression went cold, her eyes beautiful as they were, dimming somewhat. ¡°Wasteful.¡± ¡°Wasteful?¡± Ruth laughed. He tried to ignore the note of fear he heard in his own laughter. ¡°Keep your fealty! Keep your perfect hair! Keep your promise of finding me another body! Your life is good enough for me!¡± Rush was finally in position and he drove toward the center of her back with all the talons on both of his front feet stretched out. Eyes perfectly focused on the prize as his mouth opened wide showing sharp teeth that still contained bits of meat. He drove himself through the air by bounding off the ground at the last minute with a clear plan to attack her spine while she was standing around so carefree. Ruth sprinted forward himself, hands outstretched as lightning from shock blasted out from his fingertips. The world brightened once more as a deafening crackle filled the air. The lightning surged forward and encountered resistance a meter from Tamara. It pooled in on itself as if it were momentarily being turned into a bright and angry yellow gold liquid. It ran over the surface of an invisible plate that seemed to surround her, and when it finally dripped to the ground only then did it return to its former majestic lightning glory. Billions of joules of energy crashed into the ground all around her doing nothing other than scorching the earth and causing superheated sand and dirt to sizzle and crash in all directions. Shouts of horror could be heard beyond the gate as the incredibly hot material flew everywhere. Despite the sinking feeling that the lightning would never have reached her, Ruth still became a little more desperate seeing this. He bridged the gap between them and grabbed her shoulders. Both hands landed roughly down and a cruel smile covered his face as he looked down at her. Opening his mouth wide he leaned down and bit down on the front of her throat as hard as he could. Finally, as he felt his teeth make contact with her skin, he activated his last spell slot. In his memory, and in the one instance he had used it, Lightning Ward had proven that it didn¡¯t discriminate between weapons or creatures. Anything within a meter of him would be decimated by lightning. Now that he was trying to rip her throat out and was holding her, Lightning Ward activated. All along his body ropes of thick energy began lashing at Tamara in a frenzy. For the briefest of moments with all the deafening blasts of sound and the blindingly bright flashes, Ruth thought he¡¯d won. She had let her guard down. She had been too arrogant. It was over, and he, Ruth, was the survivor. All good dreams come to an end. His vision cleared and he saw behind her. Lord Rush was struggling to remove a golden crow that had appeared from on top of him. One avian foot casually crushed Lord Rush to the ground and held him there. From the way the creature was shaking his rattle and trying to bite at the crow, it was clear that he was frantic and helpless. Ruth felt a stabbing pain from his mouth and realized that his teeth and tongue were still on Tamara¡¯s throat but he couldn¡¯t bite down. It was like trying to bite into extremely dense bone. His brain told him that her skin was soft and malleable but he couldn¡¯t puncture her skin no matter what his brain told him should be happening. The whips of lightning were smashing into her with full force but he didn¡¯t feel any sort of resistance or thrashing from her body. She was standing still under his hands while he growled and bit and clawed at her like an animal. ¡°See what I mean? Look at how much mana you still have!¡± Tamara said cruelly. She reached up and pushed one of his arms away from the space between them. Her fingers found purchase under his chin and lifted him up and away effortlessly. She held his chin and looked into his eyes. She wasn¡¯t tall enough to be holding him off the ground so she settled for holding him slightly above her and made it a point to make sure he knew he couldn¡¯t escape her grasp.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. A soft thump came from behind her and she turned her head slightly. Ruth followed her gaze and found that Lord Rush had tried to teleport away from the crow. He had succeeded but was immediately recaptured. The crow was once again pressing the heroic soul shape into the dirt, its head tilted at a jaunty angle and a wide grin on its beak. Tamara returned her attention to Ruth and the fingers cupping his jaw seemed to tighten into an inescapable vice. ¡°You could cast those feeble spells at me all day long and do nothing to me. Do you think no one else in the universe has ever seen magic before? You must either be more imaginative or more powerful. You can¡¯t cast your templated stock magic without modification and hope to prevail against even the most basic of countermeasures.¡± Ruth lifted his hands and brought them up to her face, startling her with how gentle and slow he was moving. For a moment, he saw the briefest hints of confusion in her eyes. He caressed her cheeks as he cradled her face and he smiled. His voice, when it came, trembled with barely controlled wrath. ¡°Just die.¡± Both of his thumbs moved upward slightly as he changed his position. He jammed them directly toward her eyeballs and pressed as hard as he possibly could on her face trying to gouge them out. He also spent the remainder of his mana casting shock with both hands into her skull until his mana ran dry. The explosive report and echoes of the four quick successive bursts startled screams from the crowd behind the gate. Townspeople, guards, Solace, Sikes, Merriweather, Lord Rush, and even Arathan all briefly shielded their eyes or squinted and looked up with different expressions of expectation. They saw Ruth with his hands still placed onto Tamara¡¯s face, his expression one of slack disbelief. He lowered his hands dumbly and stared down at her eyes. He couldn¡¯t penetrate them with his fingernails or finger strength, something he found to be impossible. The lightning that he had poured directly into her face hadn¡¯t even singed her skin, let alone wounded her in any significant way. Ruth wasn¡¯t even sure he had blinded her, however briefly it might have been. Her hair didn¡¯t even have the courtesy of being out of place. It should have at least stood up or something after his display of awesome power. Nothing. Cold and merciless eyes regarded him and turned his head slightly by using his chin as a lever. She looked at him thoughtfully, quietly, and the tiniest of smiles broke out as her lips turned upward. ¡°Merciless. Savage. As I said, these are your strong points. Imagination? No. Look over there, and then listen to me very carefully Ruth¡­¡± Ruth felt his head being forcibly turned to the right. He didn¡¯t even try to resist. The immortal and deadly text explained his current situation to him.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) Mana: 0/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 50% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% 0 of 5 spell slots
¡°Sometimes you can¡¯t just throw as many rocks as you can get your hands around¡­¡± Ruth half-listened to Tamara, trying to think of a way to turn this around. ¡°You could always kill yourself if you want to die so badly,¡± Ruth rasped. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± she crooned, ignoring his comment. ¡°I told you this is a teachable moment. To learn something. First¡­¡± Ruth felt a strange warmth in the center of his body. He blinked rapidly and then squinted down at her in confusion. ¡°What are you¡­¡± ¡°Shh. Try not to bite your tongue.¡± Ruth began to really scream then. The raw unfiltered mana poured into his body. Mana accrued slowly through natural means for a reason. Having it dumped into him all at once was a pain he couldn¡¯t have accurately described. From having nothing left and being the bottom of the tank dry to overbrimming with mana in a mere second. He almost blacked out. ¡°There we go!¡± Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 11) (Young Adult/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized)
Mana: 20/20
Ruth hung limply in her grasp, panting even as his body started to emit steam. His body temperature had briefly soared. ¡°Now Ruth. Ruth? Ruth, focus.¡± Tamara shook him slightly trying to get his attention. Ruth looked down at her wondering what could possibly have happened to Tamara to have driven her to this kind of insanity. ¡°Go ahead and put your hand on my head. Kind of like when you tried to murder me just now. Don¡¯t worry. This is your chance to hurt me. Don¡¯t you want to hurt me?¡± Tamara smiled softly. Ruth really did want to murder her but it seemed somewhat unwise to admit that. His hand shook slightly as he placed his palm on her forehead. ¡°That¡¯s right. Just the one. Now listen. When you were a dragon¡­¡± This again. Ruth didn¡¯t understand what she meant. ¡°You didn¡¯t care about mana consumption in terms of number? You got tired and you slept. You used as much of your strength as needed for any given situation. You¡¯re overthinking this new spell system. Close your eyes.¡± Ruth closed his eyes, shaking and trembling and sweating. ¡°Forget about how much mana you need to cast the spell. Think about your mana. All of your mana.¡± Ruth thought about the mana that was circulating through his mana system. When he was a dragon there wasn¡¯t anything like numbers. That was true. Now that he was paying attention to his inner mana again there weren¡¯t any weird messages or strange numbers. There was just his mana. A brilliant cycle and pool of it that simply existed inside of him. ¡°Two mana is the consumption necessary to make your shock ability go off, right?¡± Ruth nodded slightly, once again only half-paying attention to her words. Whether it was a side-effect of focusing on his mana or exhaustion, he couldn¡¯t even really feel Tamara under his hand anymore. It was like she had disappeared and was just a voice in his consciousness now. ¡°But you have so much more than two. Why can¡¯t you just use all of it?¡± That was a good question. Why couldn¡¯t he? ¡°Think about your spell. Think about pushing all your mana into your hand and holding it there like¡­ like a gem. Push all your mana into that one spot before you release it. Wouldn¡¯t that be bigger? Isn¡¯t bigger better?¡± The incredible heat he had been feeling was starting to fade. The voice was suggesting that he use all of his mana. Why couldn¡¯t he? It was his mana. He could do whatever he wanted! Rush pulled all the mana from his mana circulation into his hand. It was frighteningly quick. Once it was placed within his palm there was a moment of panic. The intense feeling of cold and tired was back. He started to panic. He thought about taking the mana back into his body but knew that was incorrect. He had channeled all that mana into a destructive force and he had to do something with it, and that something was definitely NOT putting it back inside of him. Ruth¡¯s face began to grimace. What should he do? ¡°Remember, I make the decisions so you don¡¯t have to? Just send it all away from you. Kill that bitchTamara!¡± That¡¯s right! His enemy was under his hand! He opened his eyes to gloat just as he released every bit of mana he had. His hand, palm outward, was pointed off to the side. Tamara stood guiding his arm off to the side and away from her with an innocent and suspiciously forced blank face. Ruth had just enough time to realize that she had taken his hand off her head and redirected it at some point before he totally lost control of the incredible amount of mana that seemed crystallized in his grasp. ¡°I hate yo-¡± If Thunder Struck was a curtain of lightning bolts that flowed down like a waterfall and his normal Shock was several ropes of blinding light, then this new, all-out, mana consuming Shock, was a solid beam of light. Ruth felt the tips of his fingers starting to heat up to an uncomfortable degree, and the clothing on the front side of his body actually started to retreat toward his sides. The sense of danger the clothing got from the light, even as it was directed away, had been considerable enough that part of it had actually flowed behind him to hide. ¡°Well done,¡± Tamara said dryly. She and everyone else stood there admiring the three meter hole that had just been drilled into the side of the cave wall. Solid rock still glowed dimly around the edges of the near-perfectly circular drilled depression.
Mana: 0/20
Tamara released his arm and took a step backward. She put her arms behind her back in an almost girlish pose and smiled. ¡°See? We all learned things today! Yay!¡± Ruth almost fell over when she removed her hand from his arm and from under his jaw. She had been supporting a great deal of his weight. His cowardly clothing was now sneaking back into the position over his shoulders and chest, pretending that it had never run in the first place. His arm was still outstretched even as he turned and pointed toward her once more. Ruth felt his vision swimming. Once more¡­ just once more and he would¡­ definitely¡­ Ruth tried to find the pool of his mana. There was nothing left. There was nothing left to pull. The last thing he saw before the black claimed him was Tamara smiling mischievously at him, staring at his outstretched hand with the barest hint of polite curiosity. . . . As Ruth collapsed and everyone turned their attention toward him, Tamara very casually reached up and removed a broken eyelash from her cheek. She stared down at it between her fingers with a grave look. She flicked it away and looked around to see if anyone had noticed. Arathan, of course, stared straight back at her and they both shared a silent moment of contemplation. IDT Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 12) (Lord Ruth/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 0 of 5 spell slots Mana: 0/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 50% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% ¡ïLightning Wings: 0% 39. Ruth and the Slaughter God Lap Pillow What were you thinking? Tamara sighed gently as she closed her eyes. She had been expecting Arathan to broach this subject but had idly hoped that her soul shape could read the mood and left it alone for now. She was sitting down on a comfortable couch, Ruth¡¯s head laying in her lap. She had no romantic inclinations toward him, she had merely delighted at the expected discomfiture he would have when he woke up. It also allowed her to put her hand on his forehead and repair his mana system. When she had dumped mana into him he hadn¡¯t really had a chance to convert it and make it his own. It was equally disastrous to his body that he had immediately used it all at once. It had been quite a shock to his system. Normally, his body would repair itself over time. A case of this sort of mana burn might take a month or two to fully heal. Since it was mostly her fault, she had decided to just fix it herself. In reality, there weren¡¯t many people in the universe that knew Ruth¡¯s body better than her, after all. ¡°I was thinking I would be selfish, which I usually am?¡± Tamara retorted. She paused in her work to slightly move his head. Working around the horns was problematic, and despite the look of ¡®intimacy¡¯ that observers might think they saw, his head with the horns was actually quite uncomfortable to have on her lap -- his head was too wide for her lap. There is another soul chain on our space now. It was quite literally a binding oath! You have to swear fealty to him! If he asks your life, you must give it! Why would you do this? ¡°First of all, the hair I meant wasn¡¯t eyelashes so there¡¯s some leeway there. I¡¯m already pushing back against that chain. Secondly, I said I would swear fealty and make him a mighty king, something that I would be doing anyway. Lastly, he brought up the life thing -- I mentioned no such thing.¡± Yes. Keep playing with words and soul chains. That¡¯s worked out so well for us! ¡°Yes, forgive me.¡± Why? ¡°Why did I do it?¡± Truly. He is unconscious and so is Rush. We are alone. ¡°I wanted to give him something over me. When this is over and I¡¯ve done everything I¡¯ve set out to do, he will be my judge.¡± Why? ¡°...because even I know shame.¡± ?? When Ruth opened his eyes there was an unfamiliar sensation of comfort. His body, in addition to the creature eating clothing, had a blanket draped over it. It was warm and reminded him of his lair after he heated the stones right before a nap. The scene was somewhat spoiled because Tamara¡¯s hair was hanging down over him as she smiled down at him from way, way too close. ¡°Going to ask if you¡¯re dead?¡± Tamara grinned. ¡°I am alive,¡± he whispered hoarsely. ¡°You are unkillable. If you are here and I am here, I must be alive.¡± ¡°You could make a joke about being in the underworld or a layer of one of the hells?¡± Tamara tilted her head. ¡°Where are those?¡± Ruth thought for a moment. From the way she spoke, it seemed that those places were bad places. Places that Tamara might frequent. Bad places indeed. ¡°Nevermind, dragon.¡± ¡°Fuck you, goddess.¡± ¡°It¡¯s cute that you¡¯re trying to circulate your mana to attack me,¡± Tamara removed her hand from his forehead. Seemingly ill at ease with what to do with it, she started to stroke his cheek. She smiled widely when she saw him cringe. ¡°Why can¡¯t I?¡± Ruth gave up and asked. He had been surreptitiously trying to shock her since he woke up. ¡°I decided not to allow it. We need to talk about things. Surely, you¡¯ve questions?¡± Tamara looked up and jerked her chin toward the room. ¡°We¡¯re in Under Arch. We¡¯re in the master study for the Archivist building. Our ¡®retainer¡¯ Sikes allowed us to use it and has barred entry. For the most part the city is leaving us alone. There are no demi-gods here, let alone gods¡­ so no one could really do anything to us anyway.¡± Ruth didn¡¯t look around the extravagant room. There were candles everywhere and books and that was all well and good but none of that was as interesting as the woman who was currently restraining his powers and forcing him to sit still. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± ¡°No, I suspect you do not,¡± Tamara sighed. ¡°What am I going to do with you? I can¡¯t simply¡­¡± She pinched his cheek and gave it a teasing tug, ¡°...leave you to your own devices.¡± ¡°Where is Rush?¡± Ruth did his best to ignore the feeling of having his cheek pulled. He would have immediately lopped off one of his feet if it meant he could smack her hand away. ¡°A fine first question. Do you know why you care?¡± Ruth kept his face blank even as he thought about her question. It was funny, how she could ask him a question and it would immediately send his brain into overdrive. Maybe it was because she always asked interesting questions? Why did he care about Rush? He and the little guy had been through a lot together but had only really known each other for a few days? It seemed that they¡¯d an alliance of convenience. If for no other reason, Rush had seemed to be the only one he¡¯d ever met that he trusted implicitly. Ruth¡¯s face began to slowly screw itself up in confusion. ¡°Ah, that leads to the next question doesn¡¯t it? Since the answer to the first was surprisingly simple! You trust Rush. So, onward to the next question we go?¡± She pushed her hair back behind her shoulders and out of his face with her free hand. If she hadn¡¯t been a giant bag of sand Ruth might have been grateful. ¡°Yes. But...why?¡± ¡°Because he is your soul shape,¡± Tamara booped him slightly on the nose, apparently tired of tugging on his cheeks. She did it a second time with a little ¡®boop¡¯ noise. Soul Shape. Ruth closed his eyes. The simple words conjured up a vision from ages distant. A mighty dragon far larger than Ruth had ever hoped to be coiled itself around a tree that rose to the very heavens. It opened one serpentine eye and seemed to stare right at him. It didn¡¯t matter that Ruth was not really there -- he still felt fear. It closed the eye after a moment of consideration and let out a long exhalation as if sighing slightly. Around the dragon a mighty sphere of mana formed, extending for miles in all directions. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Within the sphere was¡­ An illusory figure of another smaller dragon. A Soul Shape. The Soul Shape of the mighty dragon. Friend? Compatriot? Partner? Comrade? Another being that the dragon loved as much as himself. Ruth opened his eyes, and once open they widened with disbelief. ¡°...but¡­ what is a Soul Shape?¡± Ruth finally stuttered. The vision had been incomplete. He hadn¡¯t understood any of the concepts. It was one thing to believe that a Soul Shape was an ally of convenience. To be used when another formidable enemy was about. The information he was receiving felt like there was more to it than that. It was possible, Ruth finally decided, that the concepts were alien to him because there were no words for them in draconic! Tamara began running her fingers through his short hair as she smiled. ¡°Now, you have asked the right question.¡± After she was quiet for some time and didn¡¯t appear to be about to continue, Ruth finally snorted. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to think of a way to explain it to you,¡± Tamara replied apologetically. ¡°The philosophers of old, the gods that exist, and even the ancient powers that yet remain in the universe could speak for weeks on end about what a soul shape is, or why it is, or even where it is. I suspect you would rather have a short version?¡± Ruth stared up at her pointedly, refusing to take the bait. She was making a joke about his intelligence, he was sure. ¡°The fact you can understand I¡¯m making fun of you means you¡¯ve come a long, long way.¡± Tamara rested her hand on his forehead and ceased her teasing of his hair, cheeks, and nose. ¡°If he dies, do I die?¡± A sudden fear went through him. ¡°Mm?¡± Tamara looked up toward Arathan who was perched near a window. They seemed to be sharing a moment. ¡°In many cases with powerful soul shapes, the death of a soul shape can result in the death of the person. In your case, immature as it is, you might survive. I am not going to imagine how crippled or horribly maimed and mentally disfigured you would be. There are instances of soul shapes being destroyed and their person living on without any problem, but they are few.¡± If you die though, Rush will certainly perish. The strange raspy voice infiltrated Ruth¡¯s brain. He shifted his eyes slightly to look at the crow in the window. It looked so small¡­ The moment the thought crossed his mind Arathan seemed to look straight at him. The crow grew to fill his vision. It was the same feeling he had when he was a dragon looking into the true face of Tamara -- right before she cut his head clean off -- death! ¡°Why?¡± If you die, your soul space collapses. The soul space is the only place where a soul shape can -- The crow hesitated and looked confused for the first time. It tilted its head and stared at Tamara. The longer it stared the more baffled it seemed to become, as if wrestling with a sudden disquieting thought. Tamara. If Rush can eat aura-- ¡°What Arathan is telling you is that a soul shape subsists off the mana provided from soul space. You gain mana from creatures around you that die, things you eat, even the atmosphere of a world. You have a circulatory system that a soul shape does not. If you die, the space where the soul shape lives collapses and it will eventually starve to death,¡± Tamara smoothly interrupted Arathan. The crow turned away from them as if in deep thought. ¡°What is soul space?¡± Ruth asked, growing more confused by the second. ¡°You are soul space,¡± Tamara grinned. ¡°What separates thinking creatures who can use mana from every other thing in the universe is a soul. Now, if you were to cut up all those creatures and place them side by side, do you know what you would discover?¡± ¡°Someone has done such a thing?¡± Ruth was horrified. ¡°What?¡± Tamara blinked and then looked the slightest bit irritated at being interrupted. ¡°No. But if you did, you¡¯d find that creatures aren¡¯t that dissimilar to one another. Organs for breathing or moving blood. Of course, there are exceptions. Plant and rock creatures don¡¯t have those organs but they do have similar functioning systems. I¡¯m not going to even get into the biology lesson you¡¯d need to describe all the different ways creatures can be similar to one another on a species level. It¡¯s unimportant. However, you look for something in particular and you¡¯ll be scratching your head every time. Do you know what is missing? Anything to do with soul space.¡± Ruth was beginning to think that Tamara was right. He was too stupid to understand. ¡°You can¡¯t find anything, no organ, no grey matter, no rock, no gland, no cell, no plant, animal, mineral -- nothing to do with soul space. If you are just looking at corpses, there is no way to tell which one has a soul space and which one does not.¡± ¡°Can you look while they are alive?¡± Ruth asked, trying to follow along. ¡°...don¡¯t hurt yourself thinking,¡± Tamara finally said. ¡°If they were living you could just ask them.¡± ¡°No, I mean, could you see if they had some organ or whatever you¡¯re talking about while they are alive? Maybe it disappears when they die!¡± Ruth was feeling quite smart. ¡°Goodness I feel dumber with every word you speak,¡± Tamara grimaced. Ruth tried to electrocute her again and found that his power was still sealed. ¡°No,¡± Tamara said slowly with deliberate pacing. ¡°If you looked at them while they were alive you wouldn¡¯t find anything either. Therefore, soul space, or the soul, in this case, exists¡­ say it with me now¡­¡± ¡°...in¡­¡± Ruth tried to draw it out and guess what she would say but ended up frustrated because she just waited for him. Finally, he was forced to ask, ¡°...okay, where?¡± ¡°Somewhere else!¡± Tamara laughed. ¡°It exists somewhere independent of the body.¡± ¡°My soul is elsewhere?¡± Ruth blinked rapidly. ¡°Funny thing. We call it the Elsewhere most of the time,¡± Tamara looked back up at Arathan and smiled. ¡°It is a place your soul shape is born. They are born of your soul and are inextricably tied to it. They are the protectors of your soul space. Elsewhere is vast Ruth, far larger than you can possibly imagine. That doesn¡¯t mean your enemies couldn¡¯t find it with sufficient motivation. For instance, I can find your soul space at will because of the chain you put on it.¡± ¡°Chain?¡± Ruth had just been getting used to the fact that his soul was housed in a place he didn¡¯t know how to get to when the idea that enemies could find his soul if they wanted to find it. That didn¡¯t seem good. Chains were getting off-topic to that point, and he was about to steer the conversation back toward the idea that someone could fucking destroy his soul when Tamara continued. ¡°Yes, at some point you asked me to just decide things for you. When you have a soul space there are certain responsibilities you take on. For instance, if you swear to someone else who has a soul space, or say something with sufficient emotion or conviction, the universe, for lack of a better word, takes that very seriously. It puts a chain on your soul. I can find you with that chain because we are bound.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Ruth was starting to feel like maybe his life was even worse than he had thought. He used to be a dragon, and now he was not. He had finally got some semblance of power and started to bully the creatures around him until Tamara came and showed him he wasn¡¯t such hot shit. He found out he had a soul space and a soul shape, rare and powerful occurrences, and now he found out that Tamara knew where his soul lived -- so to speak. ¡°If someone were to be looking at you, they could also send their soul shape to try and investigate where your soul space would be. If their soul shape were more powerful than yours, they might succeed. It¡¯d take more for them to assault your soul space. Rush would have a lot of advantages on his home turf. In many cases, your enemies will simply try to establish your soul space location so they can keep track of you and spy on you,¡± Tamara paused slightly, her eyes narrowing. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t worry a whole lot about people trying to invade your soul space. Rush is special, and anyone that wasn¡¯t a demi-god or higher would really be cursing themselves for kicking that metal plate.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand why anyone would want to ¡®kick that plate¡¯,¡± Ruth muttered. ¡°Because you¡¯re my chosen,¡± Tamara said simply. ¡°What does that mean?¡± Ruth demanded. ¡°You are the rock.¡± ¡°Could you be any more vague?¡± ¡°Okay! How about, you will experience a great change in your time¡­¡± ¡°... I was a fucking dragon and now I¡¯m not!¡± ¡°At least you got it out of the way early?¡± IDT Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 13) (Baby Ruth/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 5 of 5 spell slots Mana: 20/20 ¡ïLightning Ward: 50% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% ¡ïLightning Wings: 0% Chapter 40: Ruth and the Special Education If you have embarked this far into the journey of this tome it might be of no surprise to you that in regards to Draconic there are certain lexiconic abnormalities regarding societal views. Words expressing fondness and love pertain more to objects, wealth, and locations than to other dragons or companions, for instance. Of particular fascination to myself, there are no words pertaining to fault or remorse. While there are several hundred ways to express the intent to kill in Draconic, there are none to say sorry or to acknowledge fault. The idea of assuming responsibility is so abhorrent to dragons, even if a dragon were to encounter another dragon and a feud was started over an accidental slight, there are only three predictable outcomes. The first outcome is that both dragons don¡¯t bother to engage in discourse and immediately attack each other with the intent to kill. The second, that the dragons react rudely to each other and then fly off in separate directions each thinking they¡¯ve gotten the better of the other. The last, and the most probable outcome is the dragon in question will double down on the accident. If a dragon accidentally offended another dragon and was asked whether he did it on purpose? ¡®Of course I did!¡¯ Probably with a snort for flare and a puffed out chest. Excerpt from ¡°The Danger of Draconology - Shattering Romanticism¡± by Archivist Sikes ¡°Now, let¡¯s talk about your present circumstances.¡± Tamara decided to fill the awkward silence. She looked around the room and noted the books, the tables, the extensive maps on the walls, and the sheer decadence of the rich materials used to furnish the room. Real wood from above in the garden, books that were lovingly tended to with nary a ripped page or unfortunate looking binding, and of course, the three locks that climbed between the door and the door frame. ¡°Let me up,¡± Ruth suggested casually. He was staring intently at the side of her pale neck, envisioning ramming his claws in the soft spot between her jaw and ear. ¡°You know that you tried to stab me in the eyeballs and that didn¡¯t work right?¡± Tamara said in exasperation. She wasn¡¯t even looking at him and had somehow detected his murderous thoughts. ¡°While I find your devotion to me charming, it is a little bit shortsighted to think you¡¯re in my league.¡± ¡°Can soul spaces be moved?¡± Ruth asked, still staring at her exposed neck. Tamara¡¯s eyes widened for just a moment, a movement that wasn¡¯t lost to him. He had managed to surprise her at last. She schooled her expression and looked down at him, pursing her lips. He was beginning to understand that this was the countenance she gave him when she was trying to decide how to speak to him. Whether it would be an actual explanation or a truncated speech. ¡°Put simply? Yes. Soul spaces drift in Elsewhere and can be propelled. If your soul space is discovered you could move it, assuming they do not use some technique to mark the location or bind it to one place.¡± Tamara began stroking the horn on the right side of his head in a placating manner. ¡°I would still be able to find you though, don¡¯t worry¡­¡± ¡°You said if they are sufficiently motivated they could find me?¡± Ruth knew he was just repeating a lot of these questions but, honestly, it seemed kind of important and he hadn¡¯t really understand even half of it the first time she went through it. ¡°Mm.¡± Tamara nodded and smiled, now running her fingers through his hair. It felt like he was being petted like some sort of animal companion. His eyes narrowed. He had seen those. Humans kept ridiculous small creatures at their side. Originally, Ruth had thought that they were kept in case they were needed for food. Soon(after quite a lot of careful snooping from above), it became apparent that the creatures were actually a huge waste of space. They consumed more than some humans, shat wherever they wanted, and seemed unrepentantly shameless in their attempts to cajole attention from their human masters. Despicable. Ruth scowled at her, absolutely refusing to show any indication that he liked the way her fingers felt on his scalp. Tamara misunderstood his scowl and decided that he had wanted more information on his soul space. ¡°Can you really understand Elsewhere, Ruth? Even if I explain it to you patiently? This is a conversation we should have later in life, when at the very least the order and chaos of the universe can start attaching skills to you,¡± She smiled coquettishly at him, as if daring him to ask what the hell she meant by order and chaos and attaching skills. Fortunately she didn¡¯t wait for him to respond. ¡°When your soul space grows large enough there are forces within the universe that began attaching meaning to your power. In addition to spells, you will gather skills, and you will be able to monitor them much like your spells and mana. At such a point, you¡¯ll be able to monitor your own skills without relying on my awareness so much.¡± Ruth listened to her drone on for some time after that as she talked about how spells relied upon mana and that skills relied on his bodily capability. The mana would reinforce and shape his bodily constitution to some degree, but it would be the strength from his body that would be necessary to use the skills. Basically, she seemed to be saying, don¡¯t worry about it until it happens. ¡°Elsewhere¡­¡± Ruth finally interrupted her, tired of listening to the lecture on the importance of skills and how he was just a fledgling again, weak, pathetic, etc. etc. Tamara froze in midspeech and looked down at him with those timeless eyes. There was reproach in those eyes, but also amusement. ¡°Imagine the entirety of the world.¡± Ruth grunted, doing no such thing. That was stupid- ¡°All the world. Imagine how big it is. How long it would take you to walk across it,¡± Tamara smiled, and her smile seemed to stretch in his vision as whatever trick she played took effect. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Ruth was suddenly standing in a great area that kept expanding ever wider in his point of view. His perception showed the garden above, the landscape changing from mountains to forests to lakes to snow capped plateaus and ever onward. Oceans, stunning vistas, deserts, swamps, volcanos, more forests and more mountains. His mind reeled with just how large this world was. He gasped for breath even as he came back, noticing that he was covered in a sheen of sweat. She continued to pat him on the head, pausing a moment to tuck the blanket up under his neck with a gentle tug. It was definitely not what he needed right this second, but he was too floored to complain. ¡°That is the world,¡± Tamara said matter-of-factly. ¡°It is pretty small, all things considered, but is still enough to give you mental pressure. So, for our next little thought lesson, I won¡¯t show you -- I just want you to imagine it, okay?¡± The idea of being subjected to more by her had him grimacing. He tried to nod, feeling sweat trickle down from his temple. He didn¡¯t want her to do that thing again. Ruth had almost lost himself in the vastness. ¡°I will¡­ just try to imagine it now,¡± he replied when she didn¡¯t speak. ¡°This world is one of many. When you think of this world, intellectually you¡¯re thinking of a sphere or globe. But in your imagination particularly you think of it as a box. Everything surrounding you flows into this box you have labeled the world. Do you see the box?¡± Ruth grunted acknowledgment. He was imagining a box where all that¡­ everything¡­ was contained. It was a pretty big damn box. ¡°Imagine that the box is the size of a grain of sand on a beach. Countless grains of sand. You understand countless right? Beyond your ability to count¡­¡± He noticed that she specified his ability and felt a little annoyed, but she continued calmly. ¡°...those are other boxes with other worlds. The ocean laps at those boxes, and that is the space in between worlds. That is just a reference in size so you can begin to contemplate what I am about to tell you.¡± Truthfully, the idea that this world was just the size of a grain of sand in the grand scheme of things was a little off-putting. So there were a lot of worlds and there was a lot of space and it was pretty vast? Big deal? There were easier ways to say that then the elaborate and mentally taxing thought process they were traveling down. ¡°Now at the edge of this ocean of space, what is beyond?¡± Tamara asked him. ¡°...uhh, another beach?¡± Ruth stabbed randomly in the dark. ¡°Sure, another beach. What is past the other beach?¡± Ruth fell silent, slowly working his way toward this. If there was an ocean of space between the worlds, what was on the other side? ¡°More beach, or more land, or more oceans?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± Tamara agreed. ¡°What is beyond those beaches, lands, and oceans?¡± ¡°More space,¡± Ruth was starting to get irritated. ¡°Until what?¡± ¡°Until what?¡± Ruth parroted her, not understanding what she was asking. ¡°Well, when does it end? How would you even describe the end?¡± ¡°...nothingness?¡± Ruth tried at last. Tamara held out her hand in front of him palm upward. ¡°My hand contains nothing, but you know where it exists. Therefore, it exists somewhere.¡± ¡°What are you trying to tell me?¡± Ruth finally just gave up. Tamara didn¡¯t look angry or even disappointed, she just stared at her hand for a long time before finally slumping a little bit. ¡°I¡¯m trying to tell you that there are no boxes. There are no walls. There are no ends. Can you really conceptualize that the issue is not ¡®how far¡¯ or ¡®how big¡¯? The issue you have to conceptualize is ¡®never far enough¡¯ and ¡®bigger than you can even think¡¯.¡± Ruth finally tried to imagine it. A darkness so profound that he couldn¡¯t see anything in any direction. Knowing that it might just¡­ not ever end. That he could travel for his entire life and still have no concept of the shape or borders of everything around him or how it was tied together. A chill ran through his body. How¡­ was such a thing possible? And yet, he could think of no other way to explain it. ¡°...now. Imagine going to the edge of everything where only that darkness looms¡­¡± Tamara said, looking up with eyes suddenly blazing. ¡°...trying to find anything specific there without landmarks, or tethers, or directions, even acknowledging that traveling in one direction for your whole existence might yield no discoveries. That, is the Elsewhere.¡± ¡°How does this effect me?¡± Ruth finally asked aloud, voice full of wonder. ¡°Truthfully? Not at all.¡± Tamara said cheerfully, continuing her careful maneuvering. Ruth finally blinked, feeling parts of his scalp being pulled. An awareness that while he was distracted she had been doing something to him. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°Braiding your hair.¡± Tamara admitted. ¡°I was going to do pigtails but they¡¯d just get caught in your horns so I¡¯m doing a plait down the middle of your head.¡± Tamara paused and narrowed her eyes, trying to see if his expression changed. ¡°Which I know means nothing to you, so why worry about it?¡± ¡°What now?¡± ¡°Well. You feel like you¡¯re doing pretty well now, and my repair is mostly done. Your soul space also has the added benefit of a review-like ability. Everyone can look into their soul space at some point and review everything they¡¯ve ever seen. Honestly, all this hissing and clicking is starting to wear on me so I was thinking I¡¯d just burn a language into your space.¡± Tamara smiled cheerily. Ruth¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he cautiously licked his lips to ask, ¡°burn?¡± ¡°Well, I can¡¯t just keep burning templates and things into you, but I¡¯m somewhat impatient so I¡¯m just going to give you the Under Common language. Most gods require the followers of their pantheon to understand one of the common languages associated with Chaos and Order, Evil and Good. You can think of this as the one spoken by most of the ¡®evil¡¯ races. The chances of you becoming a vegetable are increasing, admittedly. Engraving this information comes with a bit of a risk, and normally I¡¯d just make you learn it all in a month or so of practice but,¡± Tamara hesitated almost as if she were deciding something in her mind before continuing slowly. ¡°I would hate for you to spend the rest of your life drooling¡­¡± She laughed and placed her palm on his forehead and smiled down at him with such a loving look that for a moment he stilled, feeling safe. Her next words filled him with terror and motivated his body toward struggling under her monstrous strength. ¡°Imma risk it.¡± Power flooded into his forehead and for a moment before he started screaming Ruth could swear he smelled something burning coming from inside his skull. Immortal and Deadly Textbox:
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 13) (Baby Ruth/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 5 of 5 spell slots Languages: Draconic, Under Common(Evil Races) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity Mana / Regeneration Rate: (20/20) (2HR) ¡ïLightning Ward: 50% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% ¡ïLightning Wings: 0% ¡ï¡ï Shock: (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: (Mana Consumption 1, Upkeep 1) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïDevouring Plasma Wave: (Mana Consumption MAX) Effects: ??? Lord Rush: ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Innate: SHAKE SHAKE
Chapter 41: Ruth and the Life Saving Insult When Ruth finally stopped twitching in her lap Tamara lifted his head and then effortlessly quick-stepped past his form. The soft thud of his body hitting the couch carelessly didn¡¯t even seem to register to her. She supposed she should have been a little more careful with his form. He was fragile compared to her, after all. ¡°Nah.¡± Tamara was in a pretty good mood. Ruth might actually wake up in a little bit and he¡¯d finally be able to speak in a more civilized language, or at the very least, one that didn¡¯t tire out her throat. ¡°Attend me.¡± She allowed her voice to travel through the barrier that was the wall and doorway of the study. She had no doubt Sikes was waiting to do just that. She could feel the little man scrambling to try and interact with his newly awakened soul shape. It was a fledgling thing, and unremarkable to Tamara¡¯s eyes. It looked like a beetle of some variety with no eyes and a large shell on its back. The coloration a strangely glorious amber hue that seemed to change to vibrant orange as it spun around in his soul space, cautiously investigating the terrain. Despite her stern face her eyes were dancing with mirth. The irony that the beetle soul shape that Sikes possessed would have, in the past, easily been snatched up by Ruth and become the prize of his beetle collection wasn¡¯t lost on her. The door opened moments later and Tamara did her best to appear casual. Sikes was so weak that her presence was probably causing stress on him. Someone of her power had to make conscious effort not to just warp the space of those around them. ¡°My Lady Tamara,¡± Sikes knelt down and lowered his head, he eyed the floor studiously as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. The awe in his gaze and his voice wasn¡¯t lost on her, though it only earned an eyeroll. Tamara, after all, had already seen through to his true nature. He wasn¡¯t unique, or special, as he himself probably believed. Tamara had seen many creatures like him. He was a conniving little man that would feign sycophancy to those he viewed as his betters, heap disdain on those he believed below him, and fight with subtlety and deadly deception to any competition. Though his passion seemed slanted toward history, languages, and cryptozoology, Tamara had no doubt he would throw those to the side in a moment if he believed an advantage could be gained from someone with more power than him. Tamara couldn¡¯t help it and felt herself sneering a little bit. Fortunately for him, she was willing to throw a bone his way because he was exactly what she needed. ¡°...I have a case full of vials for you¡­¡± She said at last. Initially, she was going to tell him to get off his knees but decided against it. It would just make him wary of her in the future. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Yes. Let me tell you what the poisons do, and what you¡¯re going to do with them¡­¡± The more she spoke the grimmer Sikes became. His obvious discomfort just made her smile wider. I¡¯m sorry Ruth, but I did promise my fealty. This¡­ is how you will become my king. The thought made her a bit dizzy, the newest chain around her soul space tightening and then relaxing reflexively¡­ ?? Solace waited patiently in the antechamber of the Archives with Merriweather. Three doors were connected to this small hallway. One door to the study, in which they stood in front of, one door leading to the foyer, which they¡¯d entered through, and another door that led into an increasingly large and unremarkable area used as a kitchen and sleeping area. Like all places in the Under Arch, there were no windows. Simple port holes were scattered here and there on the outer walls of buildings but the idea of a window itself never really caught on since all the light that was being produced by the plants outside was of an artificial nature. The luminescent plant matter was present inside the Archives growing onto the walls and ceilings, making the place look somewhat like a sea cave. Honestly, Solace much preferred the glowing plant-life to the slow burning candles that were cheaply produced from oil gathered from the ground scales of certain albino fish that were caught near the edges of the lake. The candles always smelled just the faintest bit rotten to her. Solace cast a side-glance at Merriweather, trying to look casual in her appraisal of the armored woman. The horned woman was already turned toward her, and smiled, as if she had been waiting for Solace to betray her impatience and nervousness. Then she turned away, staring aimlessly upward as if she were somewhere else. Solace was nervous. She had never met a god before. She had only interacted with Wilkeena through the Arachne that presided over the castle. Merriweather though, was a special existence. Even Solace had to admit that. Merriweather had once been a demi-god, and a Chosen at that. ¡°You could have worn something less slutty,¡± Merriweather said calmly. Solace instantly grimaced, casting a fearful glance at the door. How could Merriweather be so calm? Solace slowly straightened back up and allowed the inherent pride in her body began to replace the worry that had marred her beautiful face for a moment. For though she and Merriweather acted the part of hateful enemy, they had learned over the years that they could trust one another. Solace trusted Merriweather because Merriweather was incapable of lying, and Solace herself believed Merriweather trusted her because there were times when the stern woman had stuck her neck out to casually help Solace. Why that was, she did not know. ¡°Should¡­ I wear a cover?¡± Solace finally asked, mustering as much calm as she could. Normally, if Merriweather had said such a thing about her attire she would have immediately hiked up a bit of her skirt and rolled it at the waistline to show more leg¡­ or something. Sex was just a weapon, and Solace wielded it well. This was different. In the other room was a god. ¡°No,¡± Merriweather answered. There was a hint of boredom in her voice. It was one of the things Solace envied about the other woman. The fact that she was never worried, anxious, afraid -- seemingly every awful thing that haunted Solace had no touch on Merriweather. ¡°The Slaughter God is well known for caring less about¡­ If she wants to kill you, she¡¯ll find a reason.¡± Merriweather shrugged, rolling her eyes. The implication clear. The Slaughter God doesn¡¯t give a damn about anything. ¡°Any tips?¡± Solace asked again, lowering her own mood slightly by putting aside her pride and ego. Merriweather turned her head casually, tilting her chin upward at a defiant angle. For a moment Solace thought that her frenemy might actually show some emotion. Just as quickly the fire in her eyes was snuffed out. ¡°Hope you do not catch her interest.¡± The grim reply. Well that wasn¡¯t ominous or anything, Solace mused. She supposed that this was the most danger she¡¯d ever faced in her twenty five years of life. Despite that fact, wasn¡¯t this also an opportunity? Could she really afford to let an opportunity pass? Flynn¡¯s World was not where Solace wanted to stay if she could help it. She had no delusions about how expendable she was. She remembered quite vividly the mountain of corpses that Wilkeena¡¯s small kingdom was built upon. ¡°What if I do catch her interest?¡± ¡°It is unlikely,¡± Merriweather cast her a sad smile. ¡°I¡¯m the most interesting thing here.¡± ?? ¡°Rise. You may remain while I speak with Wilkeena¡¯s little¡­ lackeys? Retainers? Henchwomen?¡± Tamara waited for Sikes to get to his feet before looking at him questioningly. ¡°Is there a nice way to say ant?¡± ¡°Might I suggest you not refer to them by anything? Ants need not be acknowledged by Her Ladyship¡¯s great--¡± ¡°Shut the fuck up.¡± Sikes began to nod furiously, appearing as though he¡¯d die from a stroke on the spot. Tamara sighed and tried to rein her temper back inward. She had asked him for one fucking word and he¡¯d tried to talk her ear off. Just listening to his drivel was enough to give her a headache. ¡°Attend me,¡± Tamara schooled her expression again and clasped her hands behind her back loosely. The two women walked through the doorway, the armored woman first and then the¡­ what was this? Tamara actually lost control of her facial expression for a moment as she eyed the redhead with the huge breasts, wide-hips, and¡­ the ¡­ what was that? Sargong? A bikini top that barely covered half her breasts and a short skirt that seemed to open on the sides? Was Wilkeena trying to send a pleasure slave to Tamara? A vein throbbed on the side of her face and her eyes narrowed. It would take one word and this insolent display of disrespect would be splattered against the walls. If she waved her hand in a more efficient manner it would be better. The gore will spray the armored woman and then-- All thoughts of how to murder Solace vanished as Tamara looked directly at Merriweather. The harsh look fell from her face as careful consideration replaced it. A smile started to tug up onto her lips despite the murderous thoughts that had just been running rampant through her mind. ¡°Interesting¡­¡± Tamara allowed the word to split out. ¡°Name?¡±This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. The armored woman¡¯s right eye twitched. ¡°Merriweather. Greetings, is this one correct in addressing you as the Slaughter Goddess, Tamara?¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you already calling me the Slaughter God in the hallway?¡± Tamara raised an eyebrow, refusing to smile when the scantily clad pleasure slave next to Merriweather grimaced visibly. Merriweather seemed to relax in place slightly as she looked at Tamara. There was no defiance. Just a lazy and good-humored acceptance as a smirk spread out across her face. ¡°Yes.¡± ?? Solace was doing her best not to start panting, struggling admirably to remain upright and appear calm and aloof. The moment she had entered the room behind Merriweather she¡¯d been given the once-over by the goddess. All thoughts of obtaining favor, opportunity, or advancing ambition had been doused with cold water when the goddess gave her a second look. The frown on her face had struck Solace in a way she wasn¡¯t capable of understanding. It was only a fraction of a second but there was an image behind the goddess that swelled up. Solace was but a second from being erased from the world¡­ and then the attention had disappeared. Tamara was wholly focused on Merriweather, with an intensity that made Solace terrified her companion would be reduced to a puddle of gore any second. Instead of that eventuality, Merriweather surprised her by grinning good-naturedly at being called out, even saying yes in answer to the question. Not that she can lie¡­ ¡°You can¡¯t lie? That¡¯s an interesting chain. Wow, your soul space is so fucked up I don¡¯t even know what I¡¯m looking at. You¡¯re mutilated in ways that make me even go ¡®dammmmmn girl¡¯...¡± Tamara began chuckling. Without waiting for a response Tamara gestured casually with a hand and Merriweather jerked forward a few inches, and then began hovering over the fucking floor. Merriweather grunted in obvious discomfort and started to reach behind her for¡­ Solace grimaced again. They had brought no weapons. The shortsword belted behind her waist had been kept in the foyer. The hand grasped at nothing and then Merriweather sagged visibly in the invisible hand. ¡°Don¡¯t struggle. I¡¯m just looking.¡± ¡°...fuck you¡­¡± Merriweather said quietly. True surprise finally registered on Tamara¡¯s face. Solace refrained from taking a step back, but just barely. Horrified, she waited for the end. Waited for the wrath and rage to come sweeping through the room and just end everything. After all, she is called the Slaughter God. The surprise was gone in an instant from the beautiful god''s face. The vines of the tattoo melded into her neck and skull seemed to be moving against her skin as she turned Merriweather slightly from one side to the other. She lowered her hand a few moments later, leaving it in place for a moment while Merriweather got her feet under her. She released Merriweather. Despite being given a moment to collect her footing, Merriweather still stumbled to her knees. Putting her metal gloved hands on the floor, she clicked the claws that each gloved finger ended with irritably on the floor before slowly pushing herself to her feet with as much dignity as she could muster. Solace spared a surreptitious glance and found herself surprised. Despite being outclassed and handled in every way, Merriweather¡¯s blue cloudy eyes smoldered with ire. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t hate that look,¡± the blank expression finally faded from Tamara¡¯s face. It was like there had been a heavy blanket of pressure in the room Solace had been unaware of until it was gone. She gasped aloud and then took several ragged breaths. Merriweather was breathing deep and evenly as if nothing had changed, but Solace noticed that Sikes was also starting to pant slightly. Tamara gestured to Sikes with a get on with it gesture. ¡°The Ladyship Tamara has demands,¡± he began promptly. There was the slightest curl to his lip that could have been a sneer. It disappeared the instant that Tamara began to turn her head toward him, as if she could sense he was giving a look full of tone behind her back. He hurriedly continued. ¡°Her chosen, Ruth, and his Soul Shape, Rush, shall be left in the Under Arch for a time of up to ten years. It may be less, but is expected to take that long. In the mornings Ruth will be attended to by myself for educational purposes. In the afternoons, Her Most Esteemed would permit you to school him in martial practices at Wilkeena¡¯s¡­ playground.¡± Merriweather snorted but didn¡¯t argue. Sikes gave her an apologetic look. Playground must have been a word that Tamara had insisted upon. ¡°...Her Worshipfulness is also deigning to inform you that Wilkeena has abandoned Under Arch, and only mentions it as a kindness.¡± Solace blanked out for a moment. Wilkeena had abandoned them? Surely not. Although it was Flynn¡¯s world, everything was built upon a foundation of plans built by an architect who had fashioned everything just for Wilkeena. They would be in serious shit if everyone found out Wilkeena wasn¡¯t holding the proverbial stick behind the castle anymore. Sikes continued before she could begin to think too much about that though. ¡°...as such Her Honorableness would like you to treat Ruth as an asset toward securing the future of Under Arch. He holds no restrictions toward his growth and this will only benefit you as he grows. After the term of ten years has ended, the Venerable Hero, Lady Tamara, will petition for stewardship of Flynn¡¯s world, protecting it from¡­¡± Sikes trailed off and looked askance now. ¡°Me?¡± Tamara smiled, pointing shyly to herself. ¡°I¡¯d be protecting it from me. Cause if you piss me off you won¡¯t even make it ten years. Not to toot my own horn, but you would all be seriously fucked.¡± Silence fell over the room. Despite her unprecedented loss of control earlier, Solace was glad to see that Merriweather was remaining calm. Indeed, she was staring at the unconscious form on the couch. A form that Solace hadn¡¯t immediately picked out, and now she wondered how. It was probably the fucking slaughter god in the room? Still, the similarities between Merriweather and this Ruth were startling. Both had horns, the weird skin coloration, the odd and unnatural eyes, certain skin attributes. While Merriweather was brightly colored with crimson and gold and seemed sleek, this man was tall, almost skeletal, and sharp in lots of the right places. Frankly, Solace admitted she wouldn¡¯t have minded having a go at him¡­ Provided of course¡­ Solace blanked out for a moment as she found Tamara¡¯s attention once again focused on her. Thoughts of seducing Ruth in the immediate future fled her mind under those eyes. In fact, it was all she could do not to faint on the spot. Almost on cue, the man with horns sat bolt upright on the couch with a shriek. ¡°...ill you!¡± ?? Ruth startled awake and was sitting bolt upright. His chest heaving. His mind hurt. Not just hurt. Fucking hurt. ¡°Ow¡­¡± He leaned forward and cradled his fragile skull in palms, feeling numb at the ends of his fingers. The fingers pressing against his skull felt foreign, like they didn¡¯t even really belong to him. Part of his tongue was also numb. He hoped it wasn¡¯t permanent. Am I damaged? Am I wounded? Did¡­ did she¡­ she? TAMARA. Feeling the fetters of his magic still sealed away didn¡¯t stop Ruth. He immediately jumped to his feet and identified the object of his torment. A snarl ripped from his lips and his eyes lit up with glee as he¡­ as he¡­ He had been springing at her back but now he was being grabbed by the back of the neck like a scolded puppy. Tamara made a tsking noise from behind him. ¡°Must you always try to murder me at every chance?¡± The disapproval in her tone was obvious. ¡°In front of the guests even?¡± Ruth was being turned slowly so he could see the two women in front of him. The first was a woman that immediately caught his interest. She wore black lacquered armor or¡­ was that just her skin? Scales? It was hard to tell because the scales(or armor?) was black but parts of her were red and gold and delicious looking. Old scars crawled up from certain areas, leading his scrutinizing gaze on a wild path up and down her body. That body stiffened under his appraisal. Continuing his visual exploration he found that her gloves were particularly interesting. He could see that her fingers appeared in parts of the joints but didn¡¯t seem to go all the way to the end in some places. The gloves ended in hooked claws that looked like talons. Ruth really liked her aesthetic! Even the horns were a nice touch. She looked very Draconic. Taking a chance, Ruth rumbled out to her, hoping to appeal to a fellow traveler. ¡°Help me kill this bitch and you can keep all her shit!¡± He uttered in Draconic. Only now did he see that her blue eyes were narrowing. Anger was slowly being displaced by disbelief and¡­ amusement? He scowled back at her disappointedly when she said nothing. It had probably been too much to hope for that she¡¯d help him get away from the evil that had fallen upon him. Perhaps her companion would¡­ Surprise caused him to go completely limp in Tamara¡¯s grasp. He looked from her perfect unmarred feet and let his eyes travel up the shapely calves. The slight piece of cloth covering her hips did nothing to keep him from figuring out her exact shape. Soft tummy, huge breasts, slender arms and soft hands. Red hair spilled out over a face with emerald eyes and a knowing smile as she watched his reaction. The smile disappeared when, in perfect Under Common, Ruth finally put words to his thoughts on the matter. ¡°...that, is without a doubt, the ugliest creature I have ever seen in my entire life,¡± and it was the truth. There was nothing about this creature that seemed devoted to living. No claws or talons, no muscles, no special abilities. It was like they had raised a prey creature and given it clothing or something. Maybe he was supposed to eat it? Thankfully, Tamara¡¯s laughter destroyed the abrupt silence his awkward statement had left. ¡°I¡¯m so embarrassed! That is so embarrassing! I¡¯m so sorry, I¡¯m so sorry¡­¡± Tamara continued to laugh while she held Ruth off the ground. His scowl deepened as her full body laughter actually started to pull him up and down. ?? Merriweather watched the Tiefling get shaken up and down, a petulant frown on his face while his goddess keeper laughed helplessly. She looked to the side and saw that Solace was a full body deep red. A flush so full that the normally confident woman was actually pouting. Her eyes were tearing up. Bear with it little sister¡­ That fool just saved your life. Merriweather narrowed her eyes as she watched the chosen carefully. Had it been by design that he had looked at her first and spoken in a language she didn¡¯t understand? It was obvious that Tamara had started to grin when she heard whatever he had said. Initially, Merriweather had thought this chosen to be a lech. The way his eyes traveled across her body had been frank and honest. His appreciation for everything he saw flooding his face with excitement. It was when he made the cutting gesture, then spoke, then gestured behind him with glee that she realized he wanted her to help him kill Tamara! Impossible, but slightly gratifying nonetheless. Then he had spoken in the old evil language they were all required to learn. Under Common. Perfect Under Common. His debasing Solace had no doubt caused the Goddess to dismiss her desire to kill the woman in favor of treating her as a joke. Was¡­ all this on purpose? A cunning scheme? A devious mind behind an idiot¡¯s facade? ...as Ruth began flailing and twisting to try and reach a book on the edge of a table near where he was being dangled, with the clear intention of trying to use it to commit deicide, Merriweather was honestly unsure. Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 13) (Baby Ruth/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 5 of 5 spell slots Languages: Draconic, Under Common(Evil Races - Mastered) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity Mana / Regeneration Rate: (20/20) (2HR) ¡ïLightning Ward: 50% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% ¡ïLightning Wings: 0% ¡ï¡ï Shock: (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: (Mana Consumption 1, Upkeep 1) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïDevouring Plasma Wave: (Mana Consumption MAX) Effects: ??? Lord Rush: ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Innate: SHAKE SHAKE 42. Ruth and the START of the Very Long Day When Ruth woke up the next day his eyes immediately narrowed in suspicion. His golden irises seemed to shrink as he looked up at the unfamiliar ceiling. The soft glow of the plant life in the room increased the light level as he stirred, his general movement at being abruptly awake having disturbed the organic material enough to cause it to give off the distress lighting. ¡°Does everyone else wake up and not remember how they got where they are as much as me?¡± He wondered aloud. Mostly to see if anyone would take the bait and answer back. The silence continued to fill the very small room. It was almost the size of a closet. Closet. In this case, a small area used for storage usually recognized because of-- The image of several closets filled his head as examples. The pain immediately struck him like a ¡®cow¡¯ charge to the face. He rolled back and forth in the small bed clutching his head in abject horror at how much his head hurt. It didn¡¯t help that the more he rolled the brighter it got in the room. Slowly the pain receded and Ruth sat up, taking his hands away from his delicate and tender head. The wince that had been on his face remained in large part as something occurred to him. ¡°She made me stupid,¡± Ruth finally deduced with no small amount of disgust. Why the fuck was it important to know about closets? The last few days(week?) had been one adventure after another about survival and frantic moving. Yesterday and today was the first time that he had been inside an enclosure of ¡­ human(also demi-human, demi-god, certain monster races--) design. The obvious question being, why the fuck had she given him so many pointless words?! Ruth tried to think of another pointless word to test his hypothesis. His eyes narrowed in concentration as an object and an associated word in Under Common popped into his head. Eyes widening in horror, he whispered the word that had no use, related to an object he would never need to be able to identify, ¡°...scarf.¡± ?? Inevitably Ruth tired very quickly of thinking of other useless words. He ventured out of the small furnished ancillary former broom closet and immediately explained the insanity to Sikes in a quick series of explanations, finding the man sitting at a table with four chairs sipping some sort of steaming liquid. The words he had loathed the most(so far) were ¡®paperweight¡¯ and ¡®letter opener,¡¯ respectively. The term paperweight could be referencing anything. Anything?! What was the point of having a word for something that quite literally should already have another word describing it? Letter opener was slightly awful as well. There were letters, which in this case was correspondence or mail but not like the letters used to create the correspondence or post, and the opener part was just a knife. A dull knife with absolutely no use whatsoever outside of opening the parcels. ¡°Why not just use a fucking knife then?¡± He asked Sikes. ¡°Life is a puzzle,¡± Sikes said after a long moment of staring blankly at Ruth. ¡°It is good that you are up. In the morning you and I will be working together,¡± he sipped his tea and pursed his lips, closing his eyes slightly as if he really enjoyed it. ¡°For the foreseeable future, I should think.¡± Ruth was immediately on guard and stood up to his full height. ¡°What kind of work?¡± ¡°Her Supreme Benevolence is doing errands and will attend you in the evenings. In the morning I shall work on developing your sense of danger and general education. In the afternoons Lady Solace or Lady Merriweather will collect you to take you to the castle for martial education.¡± Sikes motioned broadly to the table. ¡°What?¡± Ruth finally asked, not understanding the gesture in the slightest. ¡°Sit, if it pleases you, and we can discuss why this is to your benefit.¡± Ruth quickly looked at what Sikes was sitting on and returned his attention to the remaining chairs. Simple chairs with the wooden backs having spaces in between wooden bars. It might be slightly uncomfortable but if he leaned forward he could fit his tail through the empty space at the back of the chair. With the barest of difficulties, Ruth sat in the chair closest to Sikes. For a moment he sat absolutely still. There was something¡­ almost nice about this. A moment later his butt began to go numb on one side. He shifted slightly. Then the other side started to go numb. He decided to ignore this and just scowl instead. His last thought about the chairs wasn¡¯t about how the chairs failed functionally, it was about this demi-human form that he inhabited. It was obvious that this form preferred sitting like this, which was to say, upright. Why then did it immediately send him discomfiture signals? Bipedal bodies are fucking dumb. ¡°What are the chances I can run away and she won¡¯t find me?¡± Ruth had a pretty good guess that the chance was low considering Tamara had mentioned she could find his soul space at will. He didn¡¯t remember how he got into the closet with the bed and the surprisingly comfortable sheets, but he remembered almost everything else up to a point where he had grabbed a book off a table¡­ ¡°I should think very small to non-existent,¡± Sikes said bluntly. ¡°It¡¯s not all bad though. In a way, she is only interested in making you grow stronger. Don¡¯t you wish to be stronger? I¡¯m told you would like to kill Her Holiness?¡± Ruth just stared at Sikes then, hard. For a long time, there was silence between them before Sikes finally began to look nervous. ¡°I suppose that was a bit too manipulat--¡± He started. ¡°What do I have to do to kill Tamara?¡± Ruth interrupted him abruptly.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Sikes grimaced slightly. ¡°You have got a long way to go, but I suggest following the program set out before you. In the morning, as I¡¯ve said, you¡¯ll be with me and we¡¯ll train your mind. We¡¯ll teach you subtlety and deception, suspicion and just the right amount of paranoia, and of course, etiquette.¡± ¡°Etiquette?¡± Ruth asked, the images in his head for this weren¡¯t actually that clear. ¡°Oh yes, but that will be the easiest part.¡± Sikes nodded slowly. ¡°There will be times when you get mad at me. You¡¯ll want to hurt me. Remember that I am only doing this for your own good. Do I have your word that you¡¯ll remember that and act accordingly?¡± Ruth nodded. ¡°You¡¯re trying to make me gain strength. It won¡¯t be easy. I appreciate your help.¡± Sikes nodded slowly and watched him over the rim of his steaming cup. ¡°Then, tea?¡± Ruth watched the man pour more of the steaming liquid from a pitcher and place it into the cup. Sikes swirled the liquid with a spoon and set it on a small plate. These fucking words¡­ Ruth received the plate and took the cup off. It was damn small, and light, and the water smelled like warm dirt. He hesitated, noticing that it wasn¡¯t a bad smell. He took a sip of the liquid and swallowed. The warmth numbed his tongue and started to spread down into his body. ¡°I think I like tea--¡± Sikes nodded at him, watching his expression change. Something was wrong. The liquid was spreading warmth but it was also making him pant and sweat slightly. A growing sense of concern was mounting as his stomach began mercilessly squeezing in on itself. He didn¡¯t have a lot of experience with vomiting in this body, but he was pretty sure that was happening. He pushed the chair back and got down on his hands and knees, trying to retch onto the floor. Nothing came up. His stomach was too empty. Eventually, he collapsed, curling into the perfect expression of pain. If he laid like this¡­ maybe¡­ maybe¡­ Nope. Ruth writhed on the ground near the table in pain. His body spasming and contorting in ways that he hadn¡¯t known he was capable. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that his vocal cords and lungs were seizing he might be screaming. FUCKING SIKES, I¡¯LL FUCKING KILL YOU. ¡°Goddess Tamara has given me a barrel of what is called Fragnagel, a poison derived from the oily skin of a¡­ Fragnagel? I suppose? I¡¯m not entirely sure what a Fragnagel is, to be perfectly honest with you. I do know, since I¡¯ve had it used on me once, that it is very unpleasant.¡± Sikes sipped his tea as he watched Ruth continue to lose control of his body. He raised an eyebrow slightly as Ruth tried to say something to him but his mouth didn¡¯t seem to work, and was full of saliva and drool, to boot. ¡°Urkk¡­¡± Ruth managed smartly. ¡°It lasts for five minutes. Now, I know you¡¯re angry right now and thinking of awful things to do to me. So I want to remind you of your promise and your goal. I don¡¯t think that is enough so I¡¯m going to make you a deal too.¡± Sikes placed his teacup back on the platter and stood up slowly. He moved to the wall where a large area devoid of the light making algae and produced a small bit of rock from his waist. Looking back over his shoulder he briefly explained what he was doing. ¡°A solution of water and some other chemicals with the algae produces an ink-like substance that will glow for a time. I¡¯ll just write a few things here, the alphabet for Under Common. I¡¯m told that once you see something your soul space will record it, so it shouldn¡¯t take terribly long to advance to the lessons for reading and writing. Maybe even less time, as I¡¯m uncertain of the degree of engraving Lady Tamara did for you..?¡± He paused but then seemed to remember that Ruth couldn¡¯t answer. ¡°In addition, I¡¯ll write our standing scoreboard. Here¡­ is your name. Here¡­ is my name¡­ and here is the score.¡±
Ruth: I Sikes:
¡°Every mark will denote a time when you were tricked into being poisoned. For every morning that I do not manage to poison you, I will allow you to poison me for every attempt I made to poison you that day. See? Simple. I have poisoned you once, and so a simple mark goes in front of your name. In this case, your mistake was accepting tea from the hands of someone who you loosely considered neutral to you. Anyone can poison you, for any reason. It need not be hostility. It could just be practicality or convenience. We will develop your observation skills through practical application and real-life experience.¡± Ruth stared viciously at Sikes as his mind worked through the imposed game. Ruth could actually catch up in score quite quickly if he managed not to get poisoned during a day. For instance, tomorrow if Ruth didn¡¯t get poisoned by Sikes he wouldn¡¯t get a mark by his name. If Sikes had tried to poison him and failed he¡¯d get a mark for each failed attempt. It all sounded fine, except for the part where Ruth didn¡¯t give a shit about games and wanted to pull the Durvgar¡¯s spine out of his chest. As if sensing his murderous thoughts Sikes frowned down at him, the rock with the glowing ink on the end drooping slightly in his hand. ¡°You don¡¯t approve? You know how much further away she is from you in power, yes? Do you have a better plan than pain? We don¡¯t have to do this. I suspect that if we use less painful means you can just take your time for ten years. When you leave you¡¯ll go somewhere else and be her whipping boy for another ten, and then another ten after that most likely.¡± Sikes smiled slightly. Ruth bit his lip and rolled, trying to push down the pain as he thought, really thought about what Sikes was saying. What was stronger? His desire to kill Tamara? Or his desire to avoid the torment Sikes was suggesting. It must have been several minutes because the excruciating pain was starting to lessen. Before it had completely faded he put his hands on the floor and pushed himself upright, wobbling as he finally managed to stand upright. For a brief moment, Ruth enjoyed the look of sudden concern and apprehension he received from Sikes as the Durvgar tried to decide whether he¡¯d been swayed or not. Finally, Ruth bared his teeth and whispered harshly, ¡°I enjoyed the lesson, teacher, may I have another?¡± Sikes smiled slightly, the corner of only one side of his lips raising. It wasn¡¯t quite a sneer, but the dark look in his eyes spoke of the barest hints of approval. He moved toward Ruth and gently righted the chair that was on the floor, brushing the handles with his gloved hands to wipe away the dust and dirt from the floor. He gestured to the chair and Ruth sat down gratefully. The poison had just worn off and he felt like he could finally breathe. As he was looking up to ask Sikes what they would be doing now he felt a slight twinge of irritation from his fingers. The fingers of both hands were starting to tingle. He blinked and raised his hands, staring at the ashen fingers that began to swell before his eyes. The familiar heat began to spread through his arms and swiftly reached his chest. It was only a matter of moments before Ruth was once again rolling onto the floor. ¡°The second lesson, always be mindful of pointless kindness. I brushed the Fragnagel onto the top of your chair handles. It is a poison that, while extremely effective when ingested, is also easily absorbable through the skin. You should have chosen another chair after politely thanking me for my offer.¡± Ruth managed one angry shout and scream of frustration before his lungs and throat failed him, soon followed by the rest of his body convulsing and betraying him. Ruth made a very angry mental note to start having the clothes that ate other clothes cover the hand with the ring on it. He would have to try and figure out a way to get it over whatever problem it had with his other arm so that it would cover that, too. Sikes calmly walked over to the board and updated it.
Ruth: II Sikes:
43. Ruth and the Martial Ow-ness Solace walked through the citizens of Under Arch with barely disguised fury. The way they parted for her with their heads down, the way they forgot about her the moment she was past them, everything about this situation made her skin crawl and her fingers twitch into claws that craved violence. Because Solace¡­ was wearing boots, pants, a shirt, a coat, and a hat. It didn¡¯t matter that they were white and red and complemented both her pale flesh and her striking head of hair. I just¡­ hate covering myself. It feels unnatural! The scowl on her face marred her natural beauty. Solace was not a humble woman and enjoyed being the self-proclaimed number one beauty in Under Arch. There was a whole army of suitors, men and women and creature, that passionately pursued her and delighted in her favor. The goddess was not one such suitor. Even Merriweather had expressed her confusion with Tamara¡¯s overreaction when they had returned to the castle. Solace was beside herself with terror, taking a good hour of being locked into her own room curled up in her bed before she trusted herself to go out and report to the Arachne with Merriweather. Afterward, Merriweather had taken her aside and, in a rare show of solidarity, told her that the fool had likely saved her life by diverting the goddess¡¯ attention away from rage and more toward amusement. So, I am insulted and grateful? Why must I be the one to fetch him today?! Well, if Merriweather thinks that I am overseeing his training first, then she is delusional! Solace tugged at the collar of coat and considered removing it for the fourteenth time. Would the goddess really kill her if she wasn¡¯t wearing a coat? Reluctantly her hand fell from the collar and went to her pocket. The memory of the body sweat soaking terror still fresh in her mind from the day before. The door opened in front of her before she could even drop her fist toward it with the intention of knocking. Sikes looked at her raised hand and then looked away from it toward her face without comment. It irritated Solace because the Durvgar was also apparently unconcerned with her ample charms. ¡°The Arachne said yes, then?¡± ¡°What was she going to say?¡± Solace answered, angered by the helplessness in her own voice. ¡°Very well, I will send him to follow you to the training area. I¡¯ve already killed him six times today anyway, and he is sulking in that ridiculous suit.¡± Sikes was rolling his eyes and grumbling to himself even as she shifted her feet at the doorway. She didn¡¯t want to come in so she would wait at the door. She could hear him continue to grumble all the way down the hallway before he was far enough gone that she couldn¡¯t hear him anymore. Well, at least I¡¯ll hear when he is returning¡­ The thought afforded her some amusement. Even more amusement when she realized that she had been spot on. She could hear him coming and he was still muttering and grumbling under his breath. ¡°...we¡¯re done, you don¡¯t have to have that over your face¡­¡± ¡°Mmmphphfff!¡± ¡°Yes, it is wise to think it a trick. You are very smart.¡± ¡°Fffafaankthfuu!¡± ¡°Very smart. Yes. Mmmhmmm... Go with Solace¡­¡± ¡°Fftwwe esfth wowffsace?¡± ¡°Solace. The redhead.¡± ¡°Fsfswdd fun?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ the ugly one.¡± Solace looked up as the voices approached and closed her eyes. She was counting to ten. If she killed Ruth right here on the doorstep it would not only be foolish, but lethal. It wasn¡¯t going to be her fault if he died elsewhere. In fact, maybe he should die elsewhere. Certainly at the hands of someone else. How she would reward whoever managed the deed. Her lips curled into a smile as she opened her eyes. Ruth entered her line of sight and she had to look up to make eye contact but she didn¡¯t lose her pleased smile. She was imagining heaping pleasure on the person that rid of her of this particular pain. Then the smile faded somewhat as she looked at him. ¡°You look ridiculous,¡± she finally managed. Ruth had a strange fabric that seemed to stretch across his whole body. There were folds in it, imitating separate pieces of clothing like boots, pants, shirt, and overcoat¡­ The more she looked at it though, the more the cloth seemed to shift and reflect like tiny scales. Tiny scales that were a uniform piece. As strange as his attire was that wasn¡¯t what threw her right this second. Ruth¡¯s entire body except for one arm(bare for who knows what reason) was covered by the fabric. Two small holes for his nose and two larger holes for his eyes. There was no gap for his mouth even. The horns were even covered, looking for all the world like giant tree branches covered with socks. The golden slits against black backdrop seemed to narrow dangerously at her. He muttered something at her. Solace made an educated guess at what he¡¯d muttered at her. ¡°Yes, ¡®tis I, the ugly one, come to collect you. Follow me, chosen fool.¡± ?????????? Ruth followed the useless lump of fat and soft flesh through the streets. He did everything he could not to look at her as they walked. Ruth simply didn¡¯t understand why they had given such a hideous and malformed creature a name and let it run around unattended. Fortunately, finding other things to focus on during their journey wasn¡¯t hard. He surveyed everything around him with excited and curious eyes through the hood of his outfit. It hadn¡¯t taken much thought process to make the clothes extend over the majority of his body. He still couldn¡¯t make the darned thing cover his free arm, but progress was progress.. The streets were brilliantly lit with the multicolored reds and blues and greens of the bioluminescent moss and algae. Humans, demi-humans, people and creatures of all sizes and colorations and species walked and went about their business with their heads down. The danger that Ruth felt from some of the creatures within the garden was non-existent here. The ¡®cow¡¯, the cannibal pixies, the goatmen, even the hatted creatures had given off more of a danger vibe to him than all the denizens of this small city did. Ruth narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Ruth instantly distrusted this place and all the people and things within it. They lived in buildings that looked exactly like the creature that had tried to convince him that it was a house. The houses were biding their time. For what? Maybe the population was a herd or a farmable resource. While Sikes was killing poisoning teaching him, Ruth had done some experiments on the walls of the place and found out that the building he was staying in wasn¡¯t alive. The insidious fake houses probably allowed some of the buildings to stay here to confuse their prey. Formidable. ¡°Here we are.¡± Solace had spoken before she stopped. It was a good thing she did or Ruth might have just stepped on her before realizing that she had stopped. ¡°Here?¡± Ruth had thought that they would be heading further into the city and then exit near the long road that led up to what Sikes had vaguely referred to as the seat of power in the Under Arch, the Arachne Castle. ¡°Here. Go in.¡± Solace was studying him while he was looking at the place she was leaving him. Ruth didn¡¯t care if she was looking at him or not. Even though he had a newfound respect for poison and for the fact that even if people didn¡¯t feel dangerous they could still hurt him, he found it beneath him to think of Solace as a dangerous opponent. Besides, she was sent to fetch him. The building if that¡¯s what it really was¡­ Watching you, sneaky assholes house mimics¡­ ...was small and only one story. A simple gate and then a small path to the door. ¡°The training area is through the building. It is a large open area where our¡­ forces train themselves to be stronger.¡± Another voice gathered his attention. It was the pretty one. Just because you look like a very well put together dragon lady doesn¡¯t mean I like you¡­ Ruth gave her the once over, ignoring the narrowed look in Merriweather¡¯s eyes. Ruth narrowed his eyes back at her, letting her know that he hadn¡¯t forgot about that time he had asked for her aid and she had snubbed him. He especially remembered it because it wasn¡¯t that fucking long ago.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I can¡¯t see your face and have no idea what expression you¡¯re making.¡± She was doing something with her face, baring her teeth at him. An aggressive gesture perhaps? Ruth felt immediately angry and made a little aggravated noise in his throat. Almost like it was being chased, the fabric traveled from the tips of his horns back to his head and down to his neck. Face and head once again bare, he pulled his teeth back in an even large show of aggression to Merriweather. It pleased him that her face went blank. ?????????? Merriweather honestly didn¡¯t know what the fuck to make of Ruth. Her eyes narrowed slightly, trying to decide what his shit-eating grin meant. She had been casually insulting him after he had obviously narrowed his eyes at her under his ridiculous¡­ hat thing. She made a ¡®get on with it¡¯ gesture to Solace, letting the redhead know she would take it from here. It was a little jarring to see the lascivious woman with so much clothing, to be honest. She did her best to keep the genuine amusement off her face as the redhead snorted and walked off. I bet she makes it ten step-- Oh, no, two steps. There goes the coat¡­ the pants¡­ Hey, it¡¯s free clothes day in the Under Arch. She returned her attention back to Ruth and eyed him again. She didn¡¯t like a lot of things about this situation. The first thing she absolutely hated was the fact that there was a goddess dictating terms to them and she couldn¡¯t do shit about it. Gods and goddesses were mercurial and deadly and the best you could hope for was to get out the way. ¡°Take me to where I can get strong enough to kill Tamara,¡± Ruth spoke to Merriweather. The words used made it seem like he was asking her to do him a favor, but it was totally devoid of courtesy or the correct emotion, like he¡¯d never talked to another person before. That really didn¡¯t surprise Merriweather honestly. The markings from his horns and body indicated that he was a lord of some clan. Tieflings were so predictable with how they etched the horns of their youth. ¡°You think you can get that strong?¡± Merriweather asked casually. She turned so they could talk and walk as she led him to the ground. ¡°One dies,¡± he answered. ¡°What the fuck does that mean?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll die or she¡¯ll die. What is the question?¡± ¡°I admire your simplification,¡± she replied dryly. ¡°Is it admirable?¡± Ruth turned his head toward her for a moment, the golden eyes almost making her shiver. There was an intensity about him that made him seem like a deep ocean¡­ ¡°...the strongest always prevails, the weakest dies. She does not understand so eventually I will prevail.¡± Or maybe not. Ruth watched the people sparring off to the side. Merriweather followed his gaze. Two of the younger generation. Mercedes and Louise were working on their spear skills. The occasional spell flash sounded. They were young and talented but would never be demi-gods. Not in this place¡­ Their timing and use of spells, limited as they are, are exemplary. Their footwork is off. I¡¯ll go beat the crap out of them after I¡¯m done with this¡­ chosen. Chosen. The word set off a strange series of emotions in Merriweather¡¯s heart. Fury, anger, the slightest bit of fear. When she tried to direct that toward Ruth, however, it just dissolved around him as if it didn¡¯t affect him at all. Was he powerful? Was this a con? Merriweather couldn¡¯t lie and couldn¡¯t be lied to, but that didn¡¯t mean she knew all things. The certainty behind his statement about eventually prevailing, for instance. Was he a fucking moron or just confident? There were two more sparring areas to pass before they got to the one that Tamara had ¡®specially¡¯ prepared for Ruth, so Merriweather decided to test him with a little bit of intent. ¡°Look over there. That is the weapon rack. You may choose whatever you desire from the simple martial weapons,¡± Merriweather pointed past him and he dutifully turned his head to look where she was pointing. Merriweather narrowed her eyes and made a fist behind her back. She raised it and imagined slamming it through the back of his skull. Only for an instant before she relaxed her fist and adopted her earlier casual stance. Ruth turned around quickly with his brows furrowed. He stared at her in confusion for a moment like he wanted to ask her a question, but then didn¡¯t. Merriweather was honestly surprised. She tested him several more times before they got to the place where Ruth would spend his time. She tested him by inventing situations where she could take advantage of him and use the moment to use a skill or weapon to kill him. Every time he spun around, growing more and more agitated though he obviously couldn¡¯t figure out why. His perception toward hostility and intent is very high. Untrained. Zero experience. Fucking newbie. Thus, Merriweather concluded that despite how interesting he was and how large his potential seemed to be his courage, confidence, and intelligence were all without weight. ¡°This is for you. This is for your¡­ very basic training.¡± Merriweather smiled. She gestured to the area, schooling her expression. Despite how much she hated Tamara, Merriweather admitted that she had been waiting for this moment all day. Say what you will, but that goddess probably knew how to piss people off better than anyone. ?????????? Ruth was glad when they reached the area where he was supposed to advance to the second stage of his day. There was something about Merriweather that made her exciting and¡­ irritating at the same time. There were several times when he felt danger at his back from her, but every time he turned around to unleash his full power on her he found her standing there looking back at him with a calm acceptance. Whether it was her looks or the way she made him feel, it was all edge. Ruth was trying to think of a way to ask Merriweather to have the ugly one escort him from today onward when he realized that the area she was gesturing toward was ¡­ off. He tilted his head and saw that ¡®his¡¯ sparring area was an area about twice the size of the other spreads of dirt that the people were using. That didn¡¯t surprise him too much because magic was magic and took up a lot of space. The problem was that the ground was barren. Barren in a shape of a large dragon. While the center was the largest part there were still portions that trailed off into the grass that were obviously supposed to be a tail, legs, and wings. ¡°Tamara must be the worst human in the history of all humans.¡± Ruth said aloud. Merriweather beside him startled him by throwing her head back and laughing with undisguised mirth. He blinked and stepped away from her in case what she was doing was some sort of attack. She just laughed harder. It was irritating, Ruth decided, but not dangerous. No, the worst part of this situation was that their was a large wooden pole that stretched three meters upward with a sign that pointed down. The sign read, in obvious draconic scratch, ¡®Ruth gets his ass beat here¡¯. There was some script under it that was Under Common. Given how many Under Common characters were there, Ruth suspected that it said the same thing. The aggravating part was now Ruth knew how to spell his name in Under Common, so it wasn¡¯t a complete loss. ¡°I walk in and I am challenged?¡± Ruth didn¡¯t truly understand the concept of sparring from a practical point of view. Academically there were images in his head of two people, or sometimes more than two people, fighting. What confused him was the idea wasn¡¯t to kill your opponent unless it was a specific kind of sparring. Since accidents often happened, or as his head said ¡®as swords are blind¡¯ sometimes people died anyway. So you weren¡¯t supposed to kill your opponent but you could kill them, or they could kill you but they weren¡¯t supposed to kill you. Fucking lunacy. ¡°Yes.¡± Merriweather nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve arranged an opponent for you.¡± ¡°I only have to do one?¡± Ruth was honestly surprised. The morning had sucked with the training Sikes insisted upon. He had expected the afternoon to be similarly torturous. ¡°Sure.¡± Merriweather was giving him a strange look. ¡°Is¡­ there deception here?¡± Ruth was now examining the patch of dragon-shaped earth skeptically. This was too fucking easy. ¡°Nope. Jeanne is going to spar with you. I¡¯ve told him no weapons. You are free to use whatever you want. If it gets too dangerous I¡¯ll step in and save you. We have Millydee assigned to you as your personal healer. She will be more than adequate for most injuries, and I¡¯m told you¡¯ll be very sturdy.¡± ¡°Whatever I want?¡± Ruth was blinking rapidly, sensing the closing of a trap. He just couldn¡¯t figure it out. He had killed several of these jokers easily at the front gate. From what he¡¯d seen they used sticks and rocks to fight each other. ¡°Ruth, don¡¯t overthink it. I¡¯m responsible for your safety,¡± Merriweather stepped closer to him and he resisted the urge to jump back. She reached up slowly and dragged the metal talon from her gloved index finger gently down his cheek. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll protect you.¡± Ruth grabbed her wrist and tried to move her arm away. His eyes widened slightly as he watched her burning blue eyes remain placid. He couldn¡¯t move her arm at all. His eyes turned into narrow slits as he prepared to use a spell on her. Before he could, she released him and started walking off to the side. Ruth watched her go and considered striking her in the back. Strong. Ruth blinked again and then walked straight into the sparring arena, forgetting Merriweather for the moment. There was only one true enemy. Tamara. ...and this thing that just walked into the sparring circle shaped like a dragon would have to be a suitable thing to punch until he got to that particular bump in the road. ?????????? ¡°Hello, I am Jeanne¡­¡± The man scratched his head and glanced to the left at Merriweather. He wasn¡¯t exactly sure what he was supposed to be doing. Merriweather had given him unspecific instructions when she¡¯d told him to just hurt the new guy. She¡¯d shaken her head when he¡¯d tried to inquire about it and told him he could go talk to the lady that showed up in the morning without any warning and burned a whole new sparring area into the ground with her mind, producing a large sign from nowhere and then leaving all in the span of half a minute. Ruth was an impressive figure. He was as tall as Jeanne was but the way he stood casually with a three meter difference made Jeanne feel no pressure at all. His stance was, as the cliche villains in the puppet plays like to say, ¡®full of openings¡¯. Jeanne ran his hand over the stubble of his goatee and then over his close shaved head. He cast a glance at Merriweather again, hoping for some sort of last minute encouragement. To his dismay he saw that she was giving him an irritated look. It was the kind of imperceptible eye narrowing she gave right before she barged in on a training and beat the fuck out of you. ¡°Let¡¯s start then, eh?¡± ¡°Anything I want.¡± Ruth stretched out his hand casually to Jeanne. Magic. Okay, let¡¯s see what you got. I heard the story but-- Jeanne blinked as he watched Ruth¡¯s face transform from calm and superior to panicked and alarmed. Your magic don¡¯t work? Not my fault. Jeanne moved forward after punching a fist into his open hand. Ruth was staring at his own hand like a moron when Jeanne¡¯s right hand probed into his gut. The Tiefling bent slightly but not as much as Jeanne would have guessed. Ruth was looking at him now. The horns on his head were fucking huge. Jeanne started to have doubts about whether or not this was a good idea, him being alone with Ruth in this small area with no armor and no weapon. He had the doubt for about four seconds. Then Ruth leaned forward and tried to grab him by the shoulders. Jeanne simply lowered his stance and centered himself before punching for real. This time, Ruth flew backward almost a meter and landed on his butt. He actually bounced once before coming to a stop, his face a comical expression of stunned, angry, and out of breath. Jeanne narrowed his eyes as a thought occurred to him. He looked over to see that Merriweather was staring dispassionately at Ruth, a telling lack of empathy on her face. This guy doesn¡¯t know what the fuck he is doing. Sorry guy¡­ it¡¯s gonna be a long day for you.
Ruth: VI Sikes:
44. Ruth and the Eyes of the Castle The sound of flesh hitting flesh was nothing new. The rules for sparring were brutal and efficient. You always attacked with everything you had regardless of how you felt about the other person. Showing kindness in training was as good as wishing death upon someone in actual combat. The wizards had a healing branch in their association and provided the combatants with interns, novices, and an on call full-fledged Paintaker. Paintakers weren''t the leaders but were still in the upper echelon of the healing association. It might sound less impressive if an outsider heard that, considering the fact that no one in Under Arch would typically be allowed to complete their journey to Demi-god, but for the purpose of repairing flesh and bone it was more than adequate. If someone was still breathing the Paintaker on duty was obligated to keep them alive. To her knowledge, Merriweather had never heard of a Paintaker failing to save a life except in circumstances where the patient had literally dropped dead before they could travel the short distance across the sparring zones. Merriweather had reminded herself of all this because the first fight between Jeanne and Ruth was shoring up to be over quickly and savagely. While she wasn¡¯t all that surprised after taking his measure, she was a little disappointed that the big fighter seemed to be all talk and no substance. A quick few punches gave Jeanne the confidence to instantly suppress Ruth. Ruth himself hadn¡¯t seemed to understand that the circle that he was fighting in had somehow been created by his goddess to condense the area into a place where magic couldn¡¯t happen. He had tried to cast different types of magic on Jeanne in rapid succession, failing each time. Rather than guarding himself he seemed intent on trying to grab Jeanne and force him into a grappling match rather than use any skill. Maybe he doesn¡¯t have any other skill? Merriweather made a note to have him pulled out of the circle before the healers were called so they wouldn¡¯t waste time being confused that they couldn¡¯t use magic when he inevitably required healing. Ruth went down painfully when Jeanne finally humored him by allowing Ruth to grab his shoulders like he¡¯d been trying for the last minute. Howling in triumph Ruth had tried to headbutt Jeanne. What followed was a few quick moves were Jeanne stepped in closer to Ruth, broke his hold, kicked out his legs from behind, and rode him to the ground while coiled around the Tiefling''s arm. Jeanne broke the arm without hesitation. He rolled away and got to his feet, already looking at Merriweather for approval or for instruction, she wasn¡¯t sure which. Merriweather just narrowed her eyes at him, a little disappointed despite herself. Jeanne you should know better. As if sensing the danger behind him, Jeanne spun around just in time to see Ruth reaching for him with his good hand. Ruth almost managed to palm his head before he stepped to the right, jabbing a quick left into Ruth¡¯s face as he passed. The sound of the nose breaking was loud in her ears as she watched, and there was some appreciation in her eyes for the way Ruth hadn¡¯t really actually screamed in pain yet. When his nose broke and his head snapped up and back his golden eyes had actually followed Jeanne¡¯s movements. The free and unbroken arm had started to track to the right with obvious purpose. Anyone could see that Ruth hadn¡¯t thought past capturing Jeanne with his good arm. Jeanne brought his shoulders together and kicked at Ruth¡¯s knee. The Tiefling staggered, his arm falling away from Jeanne as he lost his balance. As he began to look up to keep track of Jeanne he was too slow to do anything other than receive Jeanne¡¯s elbow to his temple. Ruth¡¯s arm dropped to his side. Ruth dropped face down and lay unmoving. Short. Brutal. Merciless. That was how it had happened the first time. Merriweather stood up and noticed that one of the novices from the healing branch had already seen what was going on and had stopped near the edge of the pit. This was a first come and first serve sort of practice for the healers so they were always on the lookout for brutal battles so they could practice. Jeanne seemed to be mindful of the circumstances of the circle as well and had reached down casually to grab Ruth¡¯s foot and drag him out. Honestly, it was for the best this was over as quickly as it was. She had other shit to do and it was nice that this had only taken up less than fifteen minutes. The novice healer was bent over Ruth working on his arm first. She straightened it out, and even Merriweather paused for a moment as the sickening noises of the arm being put back into place sounded out. Entirely unphased, the novice squatted down, almost sitting on the backs of her heels, and sent her senses inward. The bone mended, the muscle started tying itself back together seemlessly, and then mercifully the process was hidden by the skin of his arm that was stretching itself back into place. Merriweather was very interested in the process but it was hard to watch. Strangely the clothing on Ruth¡¯s arm had parted slightly allowing the broken fracture through and was now slowly covering the spot, repairing itself. Like gleaming scales¡­ The healer sent a casual wave of her hand over his lower body and then paused for a moment on the knee that Jeanne kicked. Without any indication of squeamishness she pressed down hard on the top of it and moved it around. It looked like it wasn¡¯t even being held in place by anything. The healer went to work, and in under a minute she pressed down again and moved her palm across the top trying to reproduce the shiftiness of the loose knee cap. When it didn¡¯t move as much she nodded, apparently satisfied. She moved to his head and her palm paused, frozen. Merriweather followed the gaze of the healer and realized what the problem was. Ruth¡¯s eyes were open and he was studying the healer with those knife-like golden irises of his. He hadn¡¯t made a sound. Merriweather wasn¡¯t sure how long he had actually been awake but she could see the anger that simmered in his expression just fine. The healer slowly reached toward his nose and touched the tip, watching his response. Ruth didn¡¯t move, simply stared directly into the healer¡¯s face. She blinked a few times and then smiled down at him. If anything, the healer smiling seemed to alarm Ruth more than anything. For a moment Merriweather was certain she would have to quickstep over and stop him from trying to murder her. That wouldn¡¯t end well. Healers were fully capable field surgeons and could wield their mana like a scalpel. It was far more likely that with her hand on his face she would simply be able to cut into him before he could hurt her, especially with his shit skill. The moment of danger passed and Ruth¡¯s nose was fixed. The healer immediately seemed to lose interest in him and started to walk away. Ruth watched her leave for a long second as if confused. Like he really had no idea what the hell that had been about. Then he got up¡­ and walked past Jeanne toward the circle shaped like a dragon. Jeanne turned to watch him go back into the circle and Merriweather didn¡¯t miss how the veteran slowly clenched his fists.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The healer had stopped as well and turned to look over her shoulder, surprise on her face. When Ruth reached the middle of the circle he turned around and looked at Jeanne, upright and alert. Jeanne didn¡¯t look back at Merriweather for a sign and instead headed into the circle. Merriweather smiled. ?????????? Ruth was no stranger to pain. When you¡¯re a dragon there is ever so much more of you to wound. Things get under your scales, food and bone gets stuck in your teeth, sometimes food even fights back and manages a lucky blow or two. Basically Ruth was like any predator with claws and a mouth full of teeth, he was used to getting smacked in the mouth, the face, taking abuse to every part of him that he extended. He wasn¡¯t exactly going into places where food bent down and let him pick it up! That being said, the smaller form would take some getting used to, what with the way it communicated pain to him. Pain was an indication of where damage was taken so it was useful. If anything, should Ruth praise his new body for being very eager to tell him where his damage was? ¡°Gotta say I¡¯m impressed you didn¡¯t scream... ¡° Jeanne said as he moved back into the circle. Scream? Why? For who? ¡°Pain screaming only emboldens the enemy,¡± Ruth said flatly. Talking was a waste of time so Ruth stopped immediately. He lowered himself slightly because he had acknowledged the fact that Jeanne was tricky prey. Ruth was used to overpowering creatures but Jeanne was all bendy and fast and tricky. It was like fighting one of the deceptive grand serpents, the ones with intelligence that could shit talk you and cast spells in the same breath. This time he didn¡¯t have magic, his breath, or his huge body to rely on. The fact that he didn¡¯t have magic really rankled him. Would this Jeanne even be a rival to him if he could just vaporize him? That Devouring Plasma Wave thing he just got was looking pretty good to him now¡­ Wouldn¡¯t it be a good time to try it? Ruth brightened slightly with an excited expression. If he circled around Jeanne and put Merriweather behind him he could probably get them both¡­ Jeanne brought Ruth out of his rich fantasy life by moving closer toward him. A few steps away now. His hands were in front of him held into loose fists and he was approaching with a wide stance. Ruth eyed the stance, and for a moment he let his own body mirror the stance. Jeanne paused for a moment but seemed like he was actually being less cautious now that Ruth was trying to mimic him. That was fine. Ruth had learned that to fight the deceptive intelligent serpent kings you had to make them underestimate you. Otherwise even if you managed to trade blows they would just escape and slink away. Jeanne moved in and punched straight toward his face. Ruth moved his head to the right and stepped forward, dropping his hands from their guard position and reached out with both hands as he rushed forward trying to tackle Jeanne. For his trouble he took two more punches to the face in a rapidfire way when Jeanne simply took a step back and punched out twice more. The fact that Ruth was stepping into the punches didn¡¯t help him any and he felt his momentum stalling. Ruth stumbled a few steps forward and started to right himself as he realized that he didn¡¯t have enough balance left to try and take Jeanne down. Almost as if he were taunting Ruth, Jeanne saw him start to step back to regather himself and jumped forward, grabbing one of his arms and pulling him forward with one arm and smashing him in the face with his elbow. As he started to fall back Jeanne pulled him forward again and Ruth lifted his arm to block an elbow that never came. He stumbled forward and fell, feeling Jeanne had slipped around behind him and was pushing him down and kicking the back of his knees. Darkness. Ruth sat upright and stared at the little girl as she waved a hand over him. He hurt a lot but did nothing as he studied her. Her eyes were a light brown and she seemed to like baring her teeth at him. He had thought it an aggressive gesture but she kept healing him. Ruth was somewhat of a stranger to magical healing. He knew of it, in a loose sort of ancestral way, but had never experienced it before today. Ruth tilted his head slightly and the healer bared her teeth wider at him. ¡°No, no, it was my pleasure,¡± she said in a lilting voice. ¡°When someone says that you say it was your pleasure, back to them.¡± Jeanne said from the side. ¡°It was your pleasure,¡± Ruth said tersely, deciding it cost him nothing to appease the woman who could heal. The woman straightened and stood up. An amazed expression appeared on her face. He knew it was amazed or at least surprised because it was an expression he was intimately familiar with, worn by prey when he popped out of hiding and startled them. Ruth hopped to his feet and swished his tail experimentally while he checked his body. The healer did good work. He was sore in an ever increasing variety of places but still functional. Instead of being dispirited Ruth was getting more and more excited. This Jeanne must be a mighty warrior of his people. But like all the mighty foes before him he would fall to Ruth eventually. When Jeanne inevitably fell, crushed beneath his boots, Ruth would watch him being healed and try not to feel too superior. It was the least he could do since Jeanne was taking his temporary victories very graciously. Mad respect for the elite warrior of this crazy city where they had invented circles to torture each other in. Ruth moved back into the circle and turned around. Jeanne was staring at him now with a solemn look. A look that caused Ruth to bare his teeth. Come. It won¡¯t be long until you are broken underneath me. ??????????? Many had stopped and were now silently standing around the dragon shaped space. The sounds of flesh hitting flesh were slower and more methodical now. Where before they had been crisp and heavy now they were dull and infrequent. Merriweather knew from the way Jeanne was wincing and the way he was opening and closing his hands between blows that he was starting to struggle. The simple action of hitting Ruth for this long had been starting to actually break the man¡¯s hands. Perhaps, when Ruth went down this time Merriweather should tell him to have the healer attend his hands? Another heavy blow caught her attention and she looked up just in time to see that Ruth had actually lowered his stance and turned his head, catching the fist with the side of his horn. It was an improvement over what he usually did, which was just get punched in the face. Ruth had been incapacitated with broken bones six times. This did not include the number of times he had been incapacitated because he¡¯d been knocked out. The novice who was attending him was starting to breath heavily in a way that concerned Merriweather. It concerned her because the novice was obviously getting tired but the breathing was taking on a dreamy aspect, as if she were really starting to enjoy the process of healing Ruth. From what Merriweather understood, healers took on a small margin of the pain of their patients. A necessary sacrifice to understand the danger. Thus far she had waved away the other novices and interns as well as the attending Paintaker when they had offered to take over. Somehow that made Merriweather more worried. Despite the number of times he had been ¡®felled¡¯ for lack of a better term, one thing could be said about Ruth in the positive. He was slowly adjusting to Jeanne. It was no longer as simple as moving in and picking him apart. Jeanne had actually started to give him a respectful distance that he minded while he chopped into the bigger Tiefling. He also had to be aware of another facet of Ruth that he had apparently been unready for. Ruth¡¯s tail was tricky and seemed to move independently of his body at times. It threw small rocks, kicked up dirt, and even tried to tangle into Jeanne¡¯s legs whenever the man tried to go around Ruth. Another large thud. ¡°It¡¯s like listening to the butcher all day, just slamming a cleaver into the meat over and over¡­¡± Solace muttered next to her, startling Merriweather. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Merriweather asked in surprise. Solace gave her a strange look. ¡°It¡¯s time to deliver him to the goddess?¡± Merriweather blinked rapidly as her mind shifted gears. Another heavy thud followed by a softer thud. Ruth was facedown once more and Jeanne was trying to drag him out of the arena. He paused when he was halfway and put Ruth¡¯s foot down, the man bent over and put his hands on his knees taking slow and even breaths¡­ Two of his friends came out from the crowd and silently took up a boot in each hand and dragged him into the grass. The healer almost skipped toward Ruth, her face flushed as she gleefully smiled down at the unconscious Tiefling and started her healing. Merriweather covered her face with her hands, wondering if insanity was contagious. 45. Ruth and the Easy Going Goddess Ruth opened his eyes, the blackness situated around his irises seemed strained as he focused on the armored woman standing over him. The healing woman with the brown eyes was talking excitedly to Merriweather. Her breathing was all over the place, like she had just run a great distance. Ruth tried to focus on what she was saying but it was hard. Maybe the healer was getting tired and hadn¡¯t done a good job? The voice seemed really far away¡­ ¡°I think he needs a dedicated healer. It¡¯s overkill for a Paintaker but I¡¯m not sure an intern could handle it! He could have dieeeeeed a couple times!¡± Ruth wondered why she sounded so happy. ¡°I suppose you are volunteering?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I mean, i-if that¡¯s okay with you?¡± Ruth wanted to sleep but a look to the side revealed that Jeanne was doubled over in the sparring area with his hands resting lightly on his knees. The other man¡¯s eyes were full of unwillingness when he saw that Ruth was giving him the quick once over. Weakness! Finally! Ruth rolled over and tried to push himself upward. For a moment nothing happened. He stayed in that position for a long moment as he did a long inventory of his body. Everything felt¡­ sun scorched. Like he had been out on a rock during a particularly hot summer afternoon and hadn¡¯t rolled over in his sleep enough. Not only that, but he had a general awareness of his limbs but they were slow and reluctant to heed his command. He staggered upright and, with an effort, raised his head and bared his teeth. Jeanne, from where he was, shook once and a loud snort came out of his mouth as he returned the baring of teeth. Everyone kept showing their teeth. It was kind of weird, but Ruth was starting to get the hang of it. You just pulled your lips back and left out the actual sound of a snarl and that was enough to get people to treat you with respect, camaraderie, or fear. It was pretty universal. ¡°Rest your mind, return tomorrow.¡± Merriweather reached out hesitantly and clapped him a couple times on the shoulder. Whether in a weird sort of support or encouragement, Ruth didn¡¯t know. All he did know was the lesson he had learned repeatedly throughout the day. People touching him with seemingly kind intentions were all bad! Ruth snarled and turned on her, leaning forward and using a trick he¡¯d learned that had worked on Jeanne once. Twisting his neck to the right he dropping his shoulder to body check her before she could do whatever gods awful terrible thing she was about to do. Futile. He had been too slow. Merriweather¡¯s eyes had widened briefly, no doubt because she hadn¡¯t expected him to see so easily through her ruse of kindness, and then¡­ did something. Ruth wasn¡¯t entirely sure what happened but his vision warped from right side up to upside down and he had just enough awareness left to realize that everyone was becoming smaller in his vision. When he hit the small building that separated the training area from the street he paused for a moment as his entire body pancaked against the wall next to the door. There was a slight groan as the wall depressed and compacted around him before it began to collapse slowly inward. Ruth felt like he was gliding over a bunch of small stones as he slid into the building''s interior, barely able to make out the darkening shapes of several people who were staring at him with fearful faces as he slowly slid into their work area. The last thing he heard before he blacked out was a shrill girlish shout from somewhere far away. ¡°Eeeeeh? I¡¯ll be right there! No one else heal him! I¡¯ll do it!¡± ************* ¡°...and that is how I got here!¡± Ruth said to Tamara as he leaned against the wall. He looked around briefly and realized that the cave he was standing in wasn¡¯t a place he recognized. ¡°Where is here?¡± Tamara was crouching down and had her hands loosely placed over her ears. She growled and stood up. ¡°I just asked how your day was? I didn¡¯t need a blow by blow of your whole freaking day! Not only that, but you can¡¯t say you ¡®blacked out¡¯ and use that as an explanation of you moved from there to here. Do you have any concept of directions? Maps?¡± ¡°I know what all those words mean,¡± Ruth scowled. BECAUSE YOU BURNED THEM INTO MY MIND. Tamara turned her back on him and stretched out her hands in front of her. She was trembling all over. Ruth tilted his head, wondering what she was doing. She was grasping something invisible in front of her with both hands. Veins were throbbing out of her arms. She was fighting?! Something was attacking her!? Delicious! Silently Ruth began rooting for the invisible foe. Get her! Kill her! Bite her! ************** When Tamara had finished the very satisfactory quiet daydream about strangling Ruth to death she turned back with a smile. It was good that she vented her frustrations before she talked to him. She definitely shouldn¡¯t kill him. Tamara studied the almost gleeful expression on Ruth¡¯s face that was almost instantly turning into a slow look of disappointment. What¡­ what had he been thinking there? Definitely...probably...shouldn¡¯t¡­ ¡°You are in a spot that I carved out under the Archives, you know? That place where you reside? When you enter the door at the end of your day I¡¯ll just transport you here so you can continue your study before bed time.¡± Tamara decided that ignorance was bliss. Whatever he¡¯d been thinking would be detrimental to her sanity, and was therefore, to be avoided. ¡°How does the building stay upright if you are digging around underneath it?¡± Ruth immediately frowned and questioned. It irritated Tamara because it wasn¡¯t such a stupid question. She had placed a number of supports in various places behind the stone walls to prevent such a thing from happening. She had also set up a magical formation to hold everything above them up temporarily in the event that something catastrophic happened. The ceiling would hold and the ground above would be fine for several kilometers in every direction. ¡°Shut up, that¡¯s why!¡± Tamara shouted and then closed her eyes, doing her best to count as fast as she could for less than a minute. She got up to nine hundred before the minute ended and felt a little better. ¡°When you¡¯re here I will teach you magical theory and have you expend all of your spell slots. When you return tomorrow, the slots will be refreshed because your spell slot regeneration for all five slots is less than a day.¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t I use magic at the sparring center?¡± Ruth immediately objected. ¡°You can¡¯t even beat up a common foot soldier from the castle without magic,¡± Tamara explained patiently. ¡°The experience is good for you. Not only that but there are people there you can learn from. Merriweather in particul--¡± ¡°I hate her! Just because she¡¯s a little bit good looking¡­¡± Ruth actually turned his back on Tamara and began ranting about Jeanne, the strange healing, the trip through the city, being poisoned by Sikes, and every little thing that had been bothering him that he had been holding back inside of himself for the entire day. Tamara watched his back with a blank look as the venting continued. ¡°So what you¡¯re saying is¡­ out of all the things that happened to you today, you think this is a safe space? That¡­ somehow¡­ I¡¯m not going to be worse than all that? That''s why I have to listen to this?¡± Ruth paused in his rant, suddenly feeling a danger at his back. He looked back and dropped his hands guiltily. Her shoulders were shaking and there was a weird sort of laughter coming from her mouth. Her behavior was starting to remind him of some of the animals in the forest that were sick and went crazy. He lifted his hands and took a step back, thinking of what to say.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Double down, he decided. Fighting wasn¡¯t good and he couldn¡¯t escape. ¡°No, no! You are absolutely the worst. I hate you more than anything. You¡¯re needlessly cruel, mercurial, contradict yourself all the time, you don¡¯t seem to have any companions, and honestly -- I don¡¯t think anyone here wants you around?¡± Ruth scratched his head as Tamara froze in place, wild eyes staring at him now. Maybe, maybe¡­ he needed to go the extra mile to assure her that the place she held in his heart wasn¡¯t simple. ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to say anything about it, but I also think you might be a slight bit more ugly than Solace?¡± Tamara smiled at him after a long moment of crazed staring. Ruth reacted by returning the baring of teeth, his shoulders started to lower slightly in relief. ¡°Good, good, good¡­¡± ************************ Ruth pressed himself back against the wall and held both of his arms up in front of him to cover his face. His once immaculate deadly killer clothing was ripped and torn and sagging off his body, even now sluggishly trying to pull itself back together. Which, honestly, was an improvement. Originally when the horror had started the clothing had tried to retreat to his ring but seemed to give up after the first moment like it had been struck dumb. Ruth was crouched and as low as he possibly could be as he stared at the terrifying entity in the room. The last half hour was something he would never forget. It was like something huge and sinister had entered the room. Something sinister should be black or dark or be a big shadow or something equally obvious! Instead, a giant golden bird shape was trying to press into the cave walls from the center of the area. A creature of its size should never have been able to fit into this space in the first place! Then it had howled and screamed in a voice that made his ears bleed. The good news? He went completely deaf moments later. Good news because Ruth felt like if he hadn¡¯t gone deaf the next and last sensation he would have ever felt was his brain leaking out his nose. Then the lightning attacks had started. It was like watching a particularly fierce dust storm scour the surface of the cave walls. Rough edges were sanded smooth. The floor became almost glassy and shining as it was gently eroded further downward. The ceiling started to visibly disappear and sand started to whirl around the room, but only until it melted and turned into a weird sort of black glass rock. Of course, the black glass rocks were all sharp enough to slip into his flesh just deep enough that they didn¡¯t dislodge themselves when he moved but still caused him to bleed. Rush, who Ruth guiltily admitted he had sort of forgot about, had appeared to see what the hell was going on and had immediately taken a stray lightning bolt directly to his face. The small and heroic figure had turned shakily toward Ruth with his eyes wide and alarmed. Black smoke wisped off the top of his body and he narrowed his eyes at Ruth. We Figh-- Then a second stray bolt had struck him in the back and his mouth opened wide in shock and horror as the lightning actually licked from the base of his tail all the way to his face. He gave Ruth a last pitying look and disappeared! Ruth didn¡¯t have it in him to blame Rush. If he could disappear then he would definitely do so! Wait! There had been that one time when he¡¯d appeared in the Soul Space, right? Had that just been his consciousness or his body? He wasn¡¯t sure and didn¡¯t remember. Any place was better than here, even if it was just his mind. Ruth closed his eyes and tried to focus on the safety of his Soul Space. ¡°WHERE ARE YOU GOING? I THOUGHT THIS WAS YOUR HAPPY PLACE?¡± The pressure in the room bore down on him and broke the tenuous connection that Ruth had chanced into making for the second time. Ruth grit his teeth and made himself small. He would just have to wait for his chance¡­ ******** When it was finally over, Tamara¡­ felt a little sheepish. She smiled shyly as she walked over the quiet room that looked like it had been worn smooth into an oval shape by some sort of natural wind or water feature. ¡°Hey, sorry about that¡­ I can¡¯t be doing that and scolding Arathan for her treatment of Rush now can I? Truthfully, I got a little mad. I¡¯m really sorry, Ruth, I should treat you better.¡± Tamara crouched down and watched the golden slitted pupils following her movements. His hands were held up defensively and he didn¡¯t move from his small shape. Tamara kept her hands at her sides and tried to lower herself a bit more to look less threatening. ¡°The truth is¡­ your happiness is important to me. Someday, you¡¯ll understand everything. You¡¯ll have power over your own life. I¡¯ll¡­¡± Tamara paused and then her mouth made a thin line. ¡°Ruth?¡± Ruth was still watching her, his breathing was heavy and he was bleeding from just about everywhere. There was sand in and around his eyes and it was a little bit tragic that the tears running down his face had left dirty little lines down his blood and sand covered face. ¡°Here¡­ I am¡­¡± Tamara lowered her head and her shoulders began to shake in dark laughter once more. ¡°...baring my heart to you¡­ and you¡¯re deaf! Aren¡¯t you? You didn¡¯t hear a damn word I said!¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± Ruth finally shouted, the confusion showing through the pain on his face. Tamara didn¡¯t lift her head. She just lifted a finger and pointed to her right. Ruth looked over and saw the Immortal and Deadly Text appear next to her.
Use Lightning Wings. Cancel Lightning Wings. Repeat until you are out of spell slots.
Ruth staggered to his feet gingerly and slowly circled around Tamara with a great deal of caution. When he was on the other side of her he backed up to put as much space between them as he possibly could. Tamara was almost grateful when he didn¡¯t try to backtalk her or do anything else. It also hurt her feelings a little bit, but she supposed she couldn¡¯t just blast the crap out of them and expect them to react kindly. Baby steps¡­ I¡¯ll be nicer¡­ tomorrow. Ruth spread his arms and closed his eyes. Energy filled the room with light as red mana based wings sprouted from his back. He looked behind him and struggled to stay upright. Tamara noted that his wings were actually well-shaped for his body size. Most people, when forming wings for the first time instinctively made them too small. Ruth¡¯s wingspan was about four meters from the base of his back to a wingtip. They flexed up and down in different shapes for a moment before disappearing. Ruth¡¯s excited expression faded somewhat when he realized the wings had been lost. ¡°You have to hold the image¡­ they¡¯re not like a one-off spell that you¡¯re used to¡­ Imagine¡­¡± Tamara grunted disgustedly and turned, spinning the tendril of her will that Ruth cutely referred to as the ¡®immortal and deadly text box¡¯ across the room.
Imagine Wings. Hold Image. Not like shooting energy.
Ruth studied the words and glanced up warily at Tamara before closing his eyes and trying again. When the wings appeared this time, the tendrils of lightning that formed the wings were more nebulous and frantic than before, actually making Tamara frown. For a moment she considered saying something, or rather making the words appear before him, but decided to hold off. The lightning danced in the shape of wings in more and more chaotic and complex patterns. Instead of the orderly shape of scaled or feathered wings there didn¡¯t seem to be any fixed shape to these wings. Yet, as Tamara narrowed her eyes, such a complicated, chaotic, and disorderly array was actually thicker in terms of power and control than the patterns others usually chose when they were starting out. The wings would adapt to a situation. Eventually they would be flexible, adaptable, perhaps even capable of shapes other than a wing. Tamara silently considered this prospect. Maybe forcing his intelligence roughly down the path wasn¡¯t such a dangerous idea after all¡­ The rest of the spell slots were used in similar fashion and Ruth slowly opened his eyes. He seemed to sag in place, staring at her for the first time with a somewhat defeated look. Guilt was somewhat of an uncommon feeling for Tamara. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ fine¡­ for now¡­¡± She waved her hand.
Rest.
The moment after Ruth read the message he looked up in confusion. He seemed to be about to say something but Tamara waved a hand again. His eyes glazed and then closed. He collapsed bonelessly to the cave floor. Tamara moved and stood over him, wringing her hands for a long moment before reaching down to grab him by the shoulder. She grimaced when she felt how dirty he was¡­ A smile slowly crossed her face as she prepared to pull him through the space between the cave and the Archive¡­ Arathan¡­ It took him five spell slots to get the Lightning Wings¡­ For ordinary people it would take four¡­ Normally, this would not be a good thing. Taking longer to learn from a template is the sign of an idiot. In this case, I think it was because his image from the template was much stronger than the concept I gave him. Okay, okay, shut up. Some of us enjoy resting¡­ Tamara bit her lip and refused to be baited by the reply. She¡¯d already lost her temper enough for one day.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 14) (Feeble Winged Tiefling/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 0 of 5 spell slots Languages: Draconic, Under Common(Evil Races - Mastered) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity Mana / Regeneration Rate: (20/20) (2HR) ¡ïLightning Ward: 50% ¡ïLightning Chain: 50% ¡ïLightning Wings: 100% Conversion > ¡ï¡ï¡ïLightning Wings: (Mana Consumption 4, Upkeep 4) ¡ï¡ï Shock: (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: (Mana Consumption 1, Upkeep 1) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïDevouring Plasma Wave: (Mana Consumption MAX) Effects: ??? Lord Rush: ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Innate: SHAKE SHAKE
46. Rush Does Some Soul Searching Rush appeared looking haggard and forlorn in the darkness of Elsewhere near the soul space. He limped slowly toward his territory. Their territory. As the size of the sphere increased, so too did the density of mana within. It felt good as he stepped through. The mana that was expressly attuned to him and Ruth washed over his skin. The scorch marks and the scales that hadn¡¯t been healing properly while he had been exploring Under Arch, or rather avoiding everything and everyone, began to knit back together at a noticeable rate. ¡°You¡¯re back.¡± Arathan was there, perched in the nothing as if it were completely normal to be perched on an invisible, or rather, imaginary branch. Rush turned toward Arathan and his eyes narrowed. The soul space around him started to light up around the fringes, arcs of electricity starting to crawl menacingly around it. A moment later the display faded and Rush relaxed his expression. It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t known Arathan was there. The crow felt like a permanent fixture of the environment. Something that always hung just within sight, a piece of the neighborhood that Rush intensely disliked but was incapable of getting rid of. ¡°What?¡± Rush asked. ¡°What?¡± Arathan cocked her head slightly, a faint expression of mock surprise on her face. ¡°What¡¯s that? An honest to goodness response? No, grrrrr ¡®I¡¯ll eat you¡¯ or anything remotely aggressive like that hilarious shaking rattle you have? I guess I shouldn¡¯t be angry at you. You¡¯ve only been awake for a little while and I certainly wasn¡¯t being a good teacher.¡± ¡°What?¡± Rush repeated for a second time. His eyes began to narrow hostilely again and he started to turn around. His tail rose behind him in warning. ¡°Tell me what you want or go away.¡± ¡°Oh my, I suppose having all those words burned into your space has certainly expanded your vocabulary, if nothing else. Want to have a song battle or something? You know what singing is?¡± SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE ¡°Fine, sheesh, I¡¯ll answer your very boring and basic ¡®what¡¯ so knock that off.¡± Arathan spread her wings and slowly glided to the edge of the barrier to the space. She cocked her head. ¡°It¡¯s nice, isn¡¯t it? Becoming more aware of yourself as time passes? As Ruth grows, so will you. In a way, you¡¯re more of a dragon than he is. All you really have to do is lie there and you get spoonfed all his knowledge and information. Albeit secondhand, so you have to make sense of it yourself¡­¡± ¡°Bored.¡± Rush sighed and started to relax a little. ¡°Arathan is boring.¡± ¡°Can I ask you why you are so¡­¡± Arathan struggled for a moment before continuing, ¡°explosively aggressive?¡± Rush considered the question for a long moment and tapped his foot on the ground. Small clicks sounded out as his talons clicked rhythmically. The sound was weirdly soothing and Arathan started to relax herself. The crow seemed like it was enjoying conversing for a change. ¡°Will show.¡± Rush clicked his talon once more and the soul space began to change. The crow looked slightly surprised, ¡°ah, so you figured out how to project images¡­¡± Rush just tilted his head and didn¡¯t respond. The large sphere pulsed for a minute and then vanished. In place of Rush and the normal dimly lit soul space was a larger and darker shape. It looked like a dragon. In the center was a small sleeping ball, motionless even as the space seemed to reach toward it and tend to it. Darkness and shadow fluttered occasionally almost as if tucking in the small figure that seemed to be the nucleus of the space. ¡°Ah, how time flies. Look at you. Just a little ball of unrealized awareness,¡± Arathan chuckled. ¡°That stupid ass dragon shape. It¡¯s so unstable. Look at all the mana that was drifting out into the Elsewhere from the smaller forelimbs and the wingtips¡­¡± The scene changed slightly as the space brightened. The dragon shape remained unchanged except for the fact that now there was a light on one side. Tamara had appeared. She was peering into the soul shape with a hand held over her eyes like one might do when looking through glass into a darkened storefront. Moments later Tamara stepped in and started making gentle waving motions, disrupting the smoky darkness that was protecting the small being in the center. Tamara chuckled as the thing seemed to shift sleepily, loosely aware of her presence but unwilling to address her. She reached down and poked into the dark ball. When nothing happened she poked again. ¡°Trusting¡­ little thing aren¡¯t you?¡± Tamara frowned. ¡°Just¡­ uncurl so that I can see what you look like? There¡¯s something about you that I just can¡¯t put my finger on¡­¡± Arathan immediately waved a wing. A darkness fell around Arathan as well as the entirety of Rush and Ruth¡¯s Soul Space, covering it from view. Arathan hesitated for a moment but decided not to stop Rush from showing whatever it was that he wanted Arathan to see. ¡°C¡¯mon¡­¡± Tamara was poking it with her characteristic bluntness. Arathan could hear the edge of impatience invading her voice. The crow started to wince slightly as she could already guess how she had reacted at this point. Sure enough. ¡°Fine! Hahah, you fucking little thing. Just a small poke then¡­¡± This time when Tamara reached toward the ball of darkness that was trying to avoid her poking with soft shifting movements she flicked a finger at it. There was a slight thump and then a confused mewl. The sound of a small animal startled by something but as yet unconcerned. Then Tamara shocked it a little. Then¡­ a bit more than a little. The darkness parted as Rush and his tiny face came into view and stared confusedly outward at Tamara. Rush¡¯s voice came, like he was narrating this scene from the past. ¡°What is?¡± Tamara wiggled her index finger in front of Rush and the little Soul Shape followed the motion with his head. It looked like the small move exhausted him. Then Tamara zapped his snout with the barest hint of aura. It was obvious that she was trying to provoke Rush into uncoiling so she could get a look at his shape. Even now it was indistinct, like Rush was only a collection of parts that could change or morph at any moment.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Danger¡­¡± Instead of provoking him out of the protective darkness that was in the center of the space Rush opened his mouth and directly ate the bit of Aura that was reaching out to once again jolt him on the nose. ¡°No! Shit!¡± Tamara tried to retract aura but it was too late. Arathan understood her concern. That tiny bit of aura would have been enough to slightly hurt a soul shape and get its attention but was otherwise harmless. Most Soul Shapes, even ones that were largely unawakened, still knew better than to try and eat aura. In most cases it was likely the immature soul shape would just explode in a violent sort of unzipping fashion, probably starting at the spine. ¡°...good taste¡­ Defeat danger. Eat the thing. Good.¡± Rush almost sounded happy as he reminisced. Tamara however froze in the scene. Unnaturally still as she considered the small creature in front of her. The preternatural stillness of which only a creature was capable. The stillness that happened when the creature stopped pretending to be something else. No breathing, no little ticks of movements, no casual display of emotion. The little face retreated back into the ball, presumably to go to sleep. Tamara reached forward again¡­ and this time there was no gentleness in her movements. Arathan winced as Tamara began to experiment on the thing in the middle of the soul space. No. Arathan watched as Tamara began to experiment on Rush in the middle of that soul space. ¡°Would it help to know that there¡¯s a very good reason for that?¡± Arathan asked, trying to get Rush to stop showing her the very in depth testing that Tamara had done. ¡°Good for who?¡± Rush asked with a bit of amusement. ¡°Okay, that¡¯s fair. Ouch. I almost liked it better when you were monosyllabic.¡± Arathan sighed. The space darkened and then changed. It was once again the dragon shape, only this time there was a golden crow approaching the space¡­ Arathan¡¯s eyes widened and she started to palm her beak with her wing. ¡°Okay! Okay! Yes! That¡¯s me¡­ I did that. I strolled in there and...punched the baby, so to speak¡­¡± The scene changed again. This time Rush was awake and warning Arathan away with his rattle. Arathan looked gleeful as she started to send waves of aura projections toward the soul space... ¡°Yes, yes, also me. Look at me. I¡¯m the asshole. Caw-caw-caw.¡± Arathan started laughing and then trailed off as the soul space once again settled down and became transparent. Arathan¡¯s laughing trailed off as the crow appraised the stoic dragon lizard snake. ¡°It only partially answers my question though.¡± ¡°Still waiting for my answer,¡± Rush sneered back at her. Arathan opened her beak slightly and clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. ¡°Must be hard to be smarter than Ruth¡­¡± ¡°Leave. Or we fight.¡± Rush lowered his head and angled the tips of his horns at her. Only cold eyes stared at her. ¡°We¡¯ll fight¡­¡± Arathan said slowly, ¡°...and that¡¯s why I came. I have to make you stronger. It¡¯s for the best.¡± ¡°Best¡­ for?¡± Rush smiled and bright red energy started to climb out of his body. Around him shapes similar to his began to materialize and turn toward Arathan with the smell of violence wafting off of them. ¡°So some of those things I said did get through¡­¡± Arathan smiled. She ignored his question. It was annoying that he was growing fast enough to ask such good questions. ¡°When you give up, we¡¯ll go visit someone else so you can get a feel for how strong you are¡­¡± ****** Rush watched without concern as Arathan casually waved a wing and shredded his projections.. Arathan was¡­ stronger than he was. It was a truth he had been confronted during every one of their interactions. Arathan was also predictable. If Ruth did not directly attack with his main body Arathan wouldn¡¯t directly attack his main body. Arathan was easy to anger and quick to lose her temper. She was also full of pride. Arathan would continue to try and fight him with aura and projections because she had absolute confidence that she could outlast and overwhelm him whenever she wanted. Rush immediately reabsorbed the shredded aura projections into the sphere of the soul space. Fighting as close to the border as she was he had no need to bite or chew them to reclaim the aura that he had expended. His eyes narrowed. Twice as many projections were formed within the space. It was taxing to control that many aura projections but he needed to pressure Arathan just the tiniest bit. He needed to prick her pride so she would start sending her own projections. She was better than him in every way but one. He couldn¡¯t directly beat her, not yet, but he was growing every day. Today. Today he would settle for a strategic victory. Or at the very least, he would be a little bit happier if Arathan wasn¡¯t quite so pleased with her win. No expression crossed his face as Arathan frowned at the six projections he¡¯d made. She opened her beak and let out a snort as her red aura expanded and vaporized the closest three. The aura and energy she released also disrupted the soul space somewhat, but only a little. Rush didn¡¯t hesitate and instantly began devouring the aura that entered the space. His dying aura projections as well as the violent red aura that was pushing forward. Three more projections rapidly came out of body and immediately howled and jumped toward Arathan. The slow and steady advance turned into frantic scrabbling. Arathan snorted again as she allowed herself two projections that looked like him and his, except they were comprised of red aura. Rush smiled as the projections began clashing against each other. He began focusing on devouring the energy every time it got away from her control and also took in the aura from his shredded projections before reforming them. While it was headache inducing it was also a cycle he could just¡­ continue doing for some time. It was the one thing he had noticed irritated Arathan. The fact that he could eat her aura. She didn¡¯t seem to be capable of devouring his. He made four projections at a time now instead of three when he replenished his forces. The aura that was slowly devouring from her was becoming more than he could safely hold so he just started pouring it wildly into creating projections. Sometimes she wouldn¡¯t even have finished killing one before he released his control of it and started making another. He still had more and more as the fight continued and he started feeding it into the soul space. The sphere began to hum around them and trickles of lightning started to wreathe the area. Even though it felt more and more powerful to Ruth he saw that it didn¡¯t phase Arathan at all. It was disappointing that even though he was growing this fast he still couldn¡¯t even get her to face him seriously. Lightning began to lick out toward Arathan and her projections but she just snickered again and made a smaller red sphere around her that pushed the lightning out. The edges of it were just outside of the soul space so Rush couldn¡¯t devour them without going out and using his body. He didn¡¯t do that though because¡­ Rush bared his teeth, lips peeling back in pleasure as the projections shredded themselves in front of him. ¡°Why are you smirking shiteater?¡± Arathan had noticed, of course, and immediately wanted to know what was so funny to him. ¡°Arathan¡­ is conceding that she doesn¡¯t want to step into my territory. Arathan is a scaredy bird¡­¡± Rush revealed even more of his teeth and did his best imitation of her laughter as her aura began to violently expand as her rage pulsed outward. ¡°Caw-caw-caw...right?¡± Then for Rush, everything went dark. 47. Rush and the Wounded Soul Shape Rush twitched several times and then finally rolled over. He spun a few more times in the air and let himself adjust to his surroundings. An initial check of everything around him with his awareness revealed that their territory was humming behind them as healthy as ever. He was already unconsciously drawing mana from it in small amounts. His ability to pull from the area seemed to be undergoing subtle change. Rush felt like he could begin to pull more mana than the space was just passively providing if he needed it. A dangerous thought. Would he be depriving his Ruth of the mana that he could store if he did that? Rush suspected that was the case. It wouldn¡¯t be a good to draw from Ruth¡¯s mana pool without letting Ruth know. A quick thought provided a window in front of him. Rush winced slightly at the sight. Ruth was sprawled with all of his limbs akimbo breathing loudly through his mouth while he slept. There was a stupid expression on his face and one of his feet was kicking absently. Maybe he was having a good dream? The blanket that he was lying on top of was dirty and soot stained. Depositing Ruth into the room in the Archives seemed to be the extent of Tamara¡¯s gentle and tender ministrations. A cough behind him made Rush turn around and consider Arathan. He had known the crow was there but had pretended to be ignorant of the presence. It pissed Arathan off to be ignored and that was fine with Rush. Arathan made a motion next to her meaningfully and Rush squinted at the space in Elsewhere that seemed to ripple. There was the barest hints of a thread there. Rush didn¡¯t know exactly what it was but there was a strange tug that Rush felt in his mind. That small thing did something. No. He narrowed his eyes and waddled through the air toward the spot in the air. It went somewhere in the Elsewhere. He cast a casual glance at Arathan and jerked his head. He was too lazy to start a fight this second, or at least that was his justification for not being outright hostile. It had more to do with the fact that he was recovering his strength. The moment he felt topped off and right again he would attack Arathan. Because Arathan was his enemy, no matter how the crow tried to say words and send thoughts expressing other sentiments. Now that Rush had access to the Soul Space and knew how to look through the memories of himself and Ruth, or rather, of their collective memories, Rush was starting to understand things. Everyone except those who were subjugated through strength was an enemy. Even they had to be watched carefully. Arathan nodded toward the thread, ¡°...don¡¯t you want to see where it goes? It goes to a soul shape that is very relevant to you right now. Don¡¯t you want to see?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t come.¡± Rush said indifferently, giving Arathan a steady look. ¡°All you need to do is walk up to the thread. Tamara had already marked their soul space so I could find it, and now I¡¯m giving you the link. Your instinct will show you how. We¡¯re¡­ naturally invaders as well as defenders.¡± Rush peeled his lips back again and tilted his head. Arathan had not understood him. It pleased Rush greatly. ¡°Ok. But you. Stay.¡± Arathan eyed Rush thoughtfully. Rush could see the crow thinking about this request. Or rather, Rush knew that Arathan was trying to think of it as a request. Truthfully, Rush had set an ultimatum. Sure. He¡¯d go. As long as Arathan stayed. Like a good minion. Arathan finally nodded, beak firmly clasped shut. It was likely that she didn¡¯t trust herself to speak. Rush didn¡¯t lord his minor victory over her, he was too big of a Lord to do that. He did walk up to the thread, grasp the secret of traversing along the path, and cast one small petty sneer and eyeroll as he left. Lords were allowed arrogance. Everything in moderation. ******** Rush¡¯s first impression of this new soul space was one of power and tremendous size. The space was large and the mana and power that it put off was impressive. It was easily five times as powerful looking from afar as his own space. He had already been starting to comfort himself by acknowledging that he and Ruth had only been gathering their power for a short time. In another week, month, or year this thing would be puny in comparison. Probably. As he traveled along the guide thread and moved closer though Rush¡¯s opinion began to drop. The closer he got, the more he wondered about this soul space. It was big, that was true. It gave off a dizzying sense of power, also true. Rush padded through the air fearlessly and floated gently in the nothing as he looked into the dim space. It was about the same light level as his territory, which made Rush frown. As their territory had grown, so too did the light level. This one was still dim. Additionally, the whole space felt sick. Mana was escaping through various holes in the sphere¡¯s structure. Cracks and jagged cuts were showing in the membrane of the space, lit up brilliantly against the contrast of the dim interior as power escaped into the void. The shape of the space was a sphere, but it was a sphere that seemed to be thin-skinned. Every now and then a particularly violent loss of mana would cause the skin to ripple as if it were only a sheet draped over a clothesline. It had a shape only as long as the wind didn¡¯t blow too hard. The last thing that Rush noticed were the chains. He had become increasingly aware of the small golden chain that surrounded his own territory, but hadn¡¯t yet decided what to do about it. A preliminary investigation when he¡¯d noticed it the first time had yielded the information that the chain tasted kind of good but was too hard to chew through. These chains were not like the chains on his territory. Well, maybe they tasted good, but they were different! For one thing, there were four or five chains with massive links pressing down on the space. It almost looked like the space was even having a hard time retaining it¡¯s sphere shape because of their weight. They also looked like they were cutting violently into the skin of the space, like the chains had been there a long time and the space was actually growing too big, strangling itself on the chains that had always been that size. Most disturbing. Not like the golden chain on his territory at all. He frowned, wondering if he should go back and take a look at the chain. It would be better to get rid of the damn thing if this is what happened if he let it alone for too long. He felt like he could be forgiven for not thinking about it sooner. Honestly, some shit had gone down and was continuing to go down. Fucking Arathan. Rush narrowed his eyes slightly and trembled in delight. He was learning swear words and slurs and felt like it was something he should have been born knowing. Swear words should be hereditary like other important dragon words. ¡°How did you find this place? What do you want?¡± A curious and somewhat melodious voice projected from the inner space causing Rush to be on his guard. Want? What do I want? What does this Lord want? OBVIOUS. ¡°Submit or I eat you!¡± Rush began to channel his projections around him and several red flashes burst out into space before quickly condensing into his shape. Five red projections that bore his image began to advance hastily toward the barrier. Then they came to a stop as the voice called out again. ¡°Why?¡± There was a sort of idle curiosity in the tone. Why? That was a fucking stupid question. ¡°To be in charge!¡± Only from a position of strength would Rush be safe. Only from the dominant position would he know that those around him wouldn¡¯t try anything funny. As he thought about that his tail began to shake back and forth in excitement. His lips began to peel back once more at the thought of violence. ¡°If you were in charge, what would you do with me?¡± A shape started to form as the soul shape moved from within the middle of the space and came closer to the edge of the fractured and dilapidated soul space. The shaking from his tail and his snarl stopped midway. This was a good question. It hadn¡¯t actually come up yet. Arathan was still in the process of being conquered and the ¡®after¡¯ part hadn¡¯t really come up yet. ¡°Then, I would be in charge!¡± Rush replied, grimacing slightly as he realized that wasn¡¯t well thought out at all. ¡°Wait. Temporary.¡± Rush let his attention wander and the projections dispersed harmlessly into Elsewhere. He needed to think. It wasn¡¯t a good idea to become a Lord of something and then not immediately make use of it. Would he send it out to conquer other soul shapes? Rush gave a doubtful look at the enemy soul space. It was a pathetic thing. It probably could not conquer anything. Would he eat it? No. Eating it was something he would do if it wouldn¡¯t submit or was too troublesome. He couldn¡¯t just eat it if he won too. Being a Lord was proving harder than he thought.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Almost as if it were reading his mind the voice called out. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re in charge you¡¯re not going to eat me, are you?¡± ¡°No, shut up dumb dumb. I¡¯m thinking.¡± Rush grumbled. He laid down in midair and started spinning, clicking his claws together to make it easier for him to formulate a plan. Thinking and clicking his claws together went hand in hand. He kept an eye on the space but it didn¡¯t seem to be working itself up for an attack. Surprisingly, the space went silent. It was nice. Normally Arathan would be already blabbing on and on while Rush tried to decide what to do. ¡°What can you do?¡± Rush finally asked. It was better to get an idea of what this feeble soul shape could do before he decided its fate. ¡°What do you need?¡± The voice countered. The shape finally got close enough to the barrier now that Rush got his first good look at it. It was a snake...person. A person snake? It was hard to know which was the dominant feature. The bottom half of the woman(girl/female?) was a long snake tail with dull red scales that looked old and bruised. Some of the spots that went further down were missing large portions like something had come along and torn into her. The top half of the creature was more of a human with exaggerated features. One large circular eye stared thoughtfully at him over a very small pert nose and lips that were almost too big for the face. Red hair spread out through the air as if it were gently swaying in water, like a piece of seaweed drifting in the current. Her eyebrows were high on her face giving her an expression like she was in a perpetual state of amazement. A loose teal tunic draped over her upper frame, comprised of aura? Rush wasn¡¯t sure why she had bothered with the shirt. Like her lower half, the top half was riddled with imperfections and old wounds and scars. There was only the one pretty eye. The other one was being hidden by some creative hair tying and braiding. Several of the fingers on both of her long and slender hands were missing at the knuckle. Rush paused for a moment and let his eyes casually take her in. She stiffened for a moment but he ignored her discomfort. It was good to know what his future underling looked like. He kind of liked the way her tail was a snake tail. The human part could use some work. She also needed to heal herself. She was a mess and in desperate need of his leadership. Rush immediately looked away and went back to thinking. A minute of silence passed. ¡°Good. You are good at quiet. What I need is to know things. I have questions and you can give me your opinion. First, I have to beat you up. Okay? Until you give up.¡± Rush spun around and righted himself and shrugged a bit. It wasn¡¯t an apologetic shrug, just matter-of-fact. This is just how things worked, it wasn¡¯t like he could change the rules of the universe you know. ¡°Okay!¡± The soul shape smiled nervously at him and steadied herself, lifting her mutilated hands toward him. This pleased Rush. She had some spunk. He summoned his projections again and then unleashed a probing wave of aura to crash against her soul space. The red light splashed against the soul space and then rebounded off it, flying off into several directions before the rays of power burned themselves out. Rush was a bit surprised at how easy the soul space had deflected his power as he lowered his head. He would try to attack directly nex- ¡°Ahhh! I give up! You have defeated me after one blow!¡± The snake lady threw her hands up and smiled at him. ¡°It seems you have bested me!¡± Rush froze, eyes widening in astonishment. He quickly went back through what he¡¯d said before. Technically, he had attacked after saying he would just beat on her until she gave up. Well, he had thrown out a wave of energy that he thought wasn''t effective. Maybe it was? Silence stretched between them as the projections in the space between the soul space and Rush tumbled in circles in the air randomly as they awaited his order. ¡°This one is referred to as Pipren!¡± the snake lady took the initiative again. ¡°I admit my defeat. You are in charge. What are your orders or questions, my lord.¡± Rush blinked several times and narrowed his eyes. This seemed to unnerve the snake lady a little bit but that was okay. Healthy fear was important¡­ ...for subordinates. Probably. Rush was, at heart, a soul shape that had been born from a dragon. So, Rush did what any dragon would do in this situation where he wasn¡¯t sure what was going on and he should probably retreat. He doubled down. ¡°Good. I am Lord Rush. You are under my protection while you serve me. Betray me and I eat you.¡± ¡°May my Lord reign for a millennia!¡± Pipren then raised her hands in the air and gave a soft cheer. It was a little embarrassing, but the cheer made Rush a little bit happy. A millennia was probably a very long time, even for a dragon. ********** ¡°I see! If you don¡¯t mind me saying, this Arathan seems like a right bitch!¡± Pipren nodded, drifting lazily with her arms crossed under her chin just inside her wounded soul space. Rush was laying on his back and floating nearby, giving a casual nod. Pipren was correct. Rush narrowed his eyes. Quite the bitch. ¡°Merriweather is your territory?¡± Rush asked, the barest hint of reproach entering his tone for the first time. ¡°We are all burdened by the universe,¡± Pipren said with a cryptic smile. Rush couldn¡¯t argue with that. He felt his animosity toward Merriweather drop. She had thrown his Ruth through a wall, but he could take down his negative view of her a notch. The fact that Merriweather had apparently mouthed off to the great enemy, Tamara, pleased Rush greatly and might have also influenced this decision to take the high road and allow Merriweather to continue to serve with Pipren. ¡°My Lord, it is not my place but I feel as though we started to talk about something and then I distracted you. My humble apologies, might we revisit that conversation?¡± Pipren said carefully with that same full mouthed smile. No one was perfect. Rush immediately forgave Pipren for distracting him from¡­ whatever it was. ¡°Why exactly do you want to be in charge?¡± Pipren asked. When she saw the small lizard freeze in the Elsewhere the barest hint of amusement crossed her face, unnoticed by him, and was just as quickly replaced with polite interest. ¡°Mm.¡± Rush considered the question and then turned a very serious and grave gaze on Pipren. ¡°Will show.¡± He reached out to tap her soul space. Pipren resisted rolling her eyes and was about to tell him he couldn¡¯t project from her soul space when¡­ she felt the space twist briefly out of her control. Her eyes immediately widened and the lax and casual posture she had been adopting straightened into what could only be described as full Lamia alertness. The dim space she lived in was immediately transformed into a view with a bright blue sky, grey-white and wispy clouds, and an endless ocean of green below. An aerial view of a world that Pipren had never seen. Stranger still, as Rush used the space to show her his memory, she felt it integrate into her own memories, as if he were gifting it to her. A look to either side revealed that the point of view was from a dragon. Pipren immediately knew that it was not the point of view of someone sitting atop a dragon, it was the dragon. The dragon circled above and then found something on the ground below that interested it. It wheeled high in the sky, completely ignored by the humans running below. The ocular capabilities of dragons, Pipren decided, weren¡¯t something to sneer at. Once the dragon focused on the small dots below they increased in size, as if she were only a few meters away from them. There was a human on a hill, a king, and he was making motions to a number of knights fighting not far from him. He was yelling at them and desperately pointing behind himself with a free hand. The other hand was holding a sword. Despite his yells, the knights in front seemed to ignore him, looking back and shaking their heads. The battle, as Pipren now realized it was, pushed in close to the king and the knights as one by one they fell. No one abandoned the king, and the king refused to abandon anyone. It was a waste in Pipren¡¯s opinion. Her lips curled disdainfully downward for a moment. Maybe they could have retreated together? It was a lack of options or intelligence, probably. She didn¡¯t know for sure, she hadn¡¯t seen enough of the beginning. No! Rush had not¡­ seen enough of the beginning. Dangerous! Several other similar scenes played out, obviously several years apart. They had one thing in common. Groups that were fighting together and displayed some sort of unity or loyalty. ¡°Ah, loyalty? You want loyal subjects?¡± Pipren blinked rapidly. This was somewhat outside of her expectation. Her conversation thus far had led her to believe that, while somewhat adorable and ridiculously disposed toward violence, he didn¡¯t actually seem to care about other creatures or people. We understand loneliness. Pipren immediately narrowed her eyes and sent a gentle pulse of mana through her soul space, canceling Rush¡¯s ability to keep projecting his thoughts. It was too dangerous to let this sort of resonance continue. That last thought might have been hers, or it might have been Rush¡¯s. Rush blinked rapidly, his eyes beginning to narrow as he considered her soul space. She quickly sought to distract him. ¡°How will you inspire loyalty? With respect my lord, your cavalier attitude of beating everyone up doesn¡¯t inspire the same ¡­ kind of loyalty.¡± As she expected this immediately caught his attention. His eyes began to narrow in the way they did when he was giving her his ¡®suspicious¡¯ look. She coughed to hide a smile behind her hand. ¡°You will of course get them to do what you want while you are stronger, but the thing you seek, if you will forgive me, isn¡¯t what you¡¯ll be receiving in return for the fear you¡¯re instilling.¡± Pipren waited patiently, watching the ebb and flow of his mana and aura. Like Merriweather, Pipren could detect truth and tell no lie. ¡°What do you suggest?¡± Rush asked curiously, startling Pipren for a moment. She once again felt like she may have been underestimating him. His willingness to ask opinions and listen to suggestions was somewhat contradictory to the arrogance he displayed. ¡°Merriweather¡¯s mother¡­ our mother, once said something that struck me as very profound. She said that the wisest thing a ruler could do was to hold a simple expression in their heart,¡± Pipren smiled in spite of herself when she saw that she had his complete attention. ¡°Value loyalty above all else. I believe what she meant by this was; there is neither gold, nor power, nor a favor you could receive that is greater than the true loyalty of those who willingly serve. It is not something that can be truly born from fear, or promises of riches.¡± Rush spun silently in the air with his eyes closed. Rush surprised her for the fourth or fifth time when she felt his aura expand...and change. The black scales became flecked with gold and silver. He went entirely limp. Pipren blinked rapidly and relaxed her posture as she watched the aura expand and then retract. In and out from his body, over and over. Each time it came it was just a little bit denser than the time before. It wasn¡¯t long before the strange actions faded and he opened his eyes. A golden pupil peered out from both of his black eyes now, regarding her with an intensity that had been absent before. ¡°How I do this?¡± ¡°...well, start off small?¡± Pipren offered with a smile, after she realized he was asking her how to gain the loyalty of others. If it was so easy... ¡°Pipren is good. Good Pipren.¡± Rush swished his tail, somehow propelling himself through the Elsewhere until he was next to her soul space. Her eye widened as his hand came through and patted her twice on the top of her head with a rough force that was enough to pancake her hair, even if it didn¡¯t hurt. She was also amused because he¡¯d spread his claws so he didn¡¯t get her with them. Pipren could not help it. She gave a startled laugh that turned into true mirth seconds later. ¡°Thank you, milord.¡± 48. Rush Starts Small, Dreams Big Rush left Elsewhere for the Archives without returning to his space. There was no need to return, as the journey would likely be problematic with Arathan there. Maybe the golden three-eyed crow would leave, maybe she would not. It didn¡¯t matter to Rush whether she stayed obediently, or not. Pipren had taught him that Arathan wouldn¡¯t be worthy of conquering. Value Loyalty Above All Else. He felt the simple phrase etching itself into every fiber of his being. It was profound, powerful, and wonderful. A ponderously big thought packaged as a quick and exciting small one. He wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the phrase showed up somewhere in the soul space he shared with Ruth. Would Ruth be as excited and affected as Rush? Rush appeared in the room with Ruth and looked at his face from his position at the foot of the bed. There didn¡¯t seem to be anything particularly enlightened about the Tiefling¡¯s expression. A small strand of drool was actually coming down Ruth¡¯s dirty chin and starting to pool on the clothing at his neckline. Rush shuddered as he watched the clothing start to absorb the drool. Rush moved half a foot to the right on the edge of the bed as one of Ruth¡¯s feet kicked out at him, maybe sensing that he was at the foot of the bed. Rush narrowed his eyes but decided to let the transgression pass. Ruth couldn¡¯t help being himself. ¡°Wake up, dumb dumb,¡± Rush used his mouth, feeling the unfamiliar syllables move across his tongue. They were so simple compared to Draconic. He flicked out his tongue a few times, pleasantly surprised to see that it was long enough that he could actually see the tip when he flicked it out past his snout. It was slightly forked. His eyes narrowed in concentration as he wiggled it back and forth in front of his vision for a moment. A maddening number of scents start to assault his senses from the tongue. They were too much for Rush right now so he pulled his awesome tongue back into his mouth and kept it inside for now. After the distraction passed he realized that Ruth hadn¡¯t stirred. Indecision tore at Rush for half a second before he hopped down onto the floor and started to move rapidly to the closed door of the closet. A quick pop sounded out as he teleported beyond it, already infinitely familiar with the layout of the Archives from his wandering. Let Ruth sleep. He probably had a hard day coming up. Moment of silence for Ruth, who would probably be poisoned numerous more times, beaten until unconsciousness more times than that, and then likely scarred mentally and emotionally by Tamara after that. Finding Sikes wasn¡¯t a problem. Sikes was sleeping in an adjacent room. He was wearing a dumb hat of some sort and a long gown under a rather puffy looking comforter with a bunch of weird circles. The end of the hat was topped with a small button, a button that bobbed up and down over his face as he breathed in and out. Rush jumped up on the side of the bed and reached out to wake him -- hesitating and just stopping himself from pushing onto the Durvgar¡¯s shoulder. The end of that hat was bobbing up and down almost hypnotically. The urge to begin batting the button was beginning to become overwhelming. Rush fought down the urge to hurt the small piece of cloth or the button at the end of the nightcap and reached out to wake up Sikes instead. He tried to be gentle. Sikes fell on the floor on the other side of the bed, Rush¡¯s gentle push having sent him careening to the side. Fire seemed to blaze in his eyes as he leaped to his feet with a snarl. His fists were raised in front of him in warning. ¡°I need things. You give me.¡± Rush raised his head high when he saw that Sikes was actually staring hostilely at him! Intolerable! Fortunately, seeing a golden eyed Rush in the middle of the night in the dark seemed to take the anger and fire right out of his sails. He sagged, deflating as if he had just realized that his manner was unbecoming a minion. Rush narrowed his eyes. Value Loyalty Above All Else. Had Sikes been loyal to him or was he just biding his time? After speaking with Pipren, Rush suspected that Sikes was not a good retainer to have. ¡°What do you need Rush?¡± Sikes took his cap off and used it to wipe the sleep from his eyes. ¡°Need space. Need a room for more.¡± Rush looked around the small bedroom with a curled lip. He would need more space than this. He turned his head back to Sikes and waited expectantly. When nothing immediately happened and Sikes didn¡¯t ask for more information, Rush began to narrow his eyes. Sikes had his head turned slightly to the side as if he were listening to something. Or someone? Rush looked this time. Really looked, and felt his eyes widening in disbelief. A small golden tendril was connected to Sikes! A quick tongue flick confirmed his suspicion. It smelled like Tamara! One of his first ever minions was asking his hated enemy for advice or permission?! OUTRAGEOUS. His golden pupils grew smaller and his claws slowly began to push out. It would take a small leap and he¡¯d have Sikes by the throat. Traitors didn¡¯t get eaten. They got killed and then punted out the door for all to see. Maybe a little eaten... NO! Rush slowly retracted his claws and feigned nonchalance. Inwardly he seethed, but outwardly he was calm and aloof. Like Sikes making him wait was normal. In the past, Rush might have just killed Sikes for revealing his true colors. That was before Pipren. Pipren had given him many things to think about. Rush was really beginning to enjoy thinking. He was pleased that she had shown him how to leave a mark near her soul space. He would be able to return and discuss many things with her. He was eager to do just that! Thinking about Pipren must have distracted him because Sikes was coughing meaningfully to get his attention. ¡°Let me get you a key. There is a warehouse near the docks to the lake that is sufficiently large. It is empty right now.¡± Sikes moved slowly to his nightstand and rummaged through the drawer before producing a rather large and old-fashioned metal key. He placed it on the bed in front of Rush and seemed to be watching expectantly. For his part, Rush looked at the key and tilted his head. He couldn¡¯t carry it with him so the key was kind of pointless? He didn¡¯t even really need the key, did he? ¡°Would you like me to get you a bit of string so that you can carry it around your neck?¡± Sikes offered. Rush looked up and considered him for a long moment. Despite his best attempts he felt like some of his fury was probably still showing through his eyes because Sikes was starting to fidget. ¡°No.¡± Rush looked at the key again and considered. If he teleported would the key teleport with him? Better to not have a key. Physical keys were for dumb dumbs. Rush lifted a clawed hand and stared at the key. Red energy poured from the palm of his hand and turned loosely into the shape of the key. When Rush was certain that the dimensions and details of the key were perfectly represented he let the aura projections extinguish. The red energy faded and the room was once again dark. The entire process from beginning, to experimentation, to end, had taken less than a minute. Rush looked up and saw that Sikes had his mouth open. ¡°Where is?¡± Sikes scratched his head. ¡°Walk toward the lake. On the docks where the boats start there are a line of buildings overlooking the water. Building three. It has a big A on the front with a 3.¡± He traced the lines in the air, watching Rush carefully. Moments later Rush mimicked him and traced A3 in the air with red aura. Sikes nodded. ¡°Why empty?¡± If it was free space then Rush would take it, but the image of a warehouse in his mind provoked a series of other images. Warehouses were synonymous with storage and wealth. Having one sit empty didn¡¯t seem prudent. Also, Rush would never let anyone take his territory. It immediately made him suspicious all over again. ¡°Err, it wasn¡¯t empty earlier, but now it is?¡± Sikes didn¡¯t seem to have a good answer and was looking a little anxious. He started to look to the side as if he were going clandestinely ask Tamara. He must have reconsidered since Rush was staring so intensely. That made it worse. Sikes knew that what he was doing was bad. Fuck Sikes. Eat later. Internal swearing made him feel a little better. Tamara. Tamara must have made it empty. Trying to keep track of where he was going? A baleful light appeared in his eyes as he looked at Sikes. It didn¡¯t matter. Even if she knew where he was and watched what he was doing it wouldn¡¯t matter as long as she didn¡¯t interfere. If she did interfere¡­ Rush narrowed his eyes again and growled softly. The sound seemed to startle Sikes, making him straighten in the dark. ¡°Thank Pipren!¡± Sikes scratched his head again and seemed to be about to ask who that was when Rush decided he couldn¡¯t stand being here any longer. ¡°Goodbye. Temporary.¡± It was the last thing he said before he popped out of the room and began popping toward the front door of the Archives in short teleporting lurches. He could teleport small distances without exerting much energy, so that¡¯s what he did. **************** Finding what Rush was looking for in Under Arch wasn¡¯t as challenging as he thought it might be. If anything, finding potential subordinates from the criteria he had decided upon was yielding far more results than he had anticipated. The late night left the streets filled with the scent of blood and danger. For while the entrances to Under Arch were closely guarded at the command of the Arachne castle, the populace itself was a rough and lawless lot, as likely to be exploited by the castle guards as they were to be accosted by muggers and robbers. The rousing laughter from inside a pub might fill the street for a block only to be replaced with the sobbing of the desperate and dissolute a building away. The algae flared and darkened periodically as people moved through the streets. Pockets of darkness sometimes lighting up in brilliant greens or sinister reds. Rush kept to the rooftops of the short dwellings, teleporting across the empty spaces in between. His profile was small enough that the light produced from his passing went largely unnoticed by those below. When the paranoid and wary did look up to see why the algae was reacting above them they only saw a small reptilian shape darting across before it disappeared, moving at a speed that made it seem like the creature was trying to catch the darkness that lay in front of it while it ran from the light behind.Stolen story; please report. It didn¡¯t take long to find his first prospect. In fact, Rush was a little concerned that he had found quarry so soon. He hopped lightly and soundlessly on top of the roof as he followed a figure that was walking confidently toward the end of the dark alley. The alley itself was unimportant. It looked like a hundred dead ends in this inner city, stacked high with trash and refuse and the walking stones muddied with dirty puddles of water. The dark figure pushed his hood back and spread his arms out in a disarming fashion as he continued toward the end of the alley. He had dirty brown hair and the tops of his ears looked like they had been chewed off. Part of his scalp was ragged and bare, showing through the dirty hair. Maybe that part of his head had been chewed on too, Rush thought. Fascinated, Rush continued his slow stalk from behind and above. ¡°No, don¡¯t run¡­ Old Ferol won¡¯t hurt you. C¡¯mon now¡­ come out¡­¡± The man was trying to coax two small figures that were huddled in the back of the alley out of a tall pile of garbage. It might have been more convincing if he wasn¡¯t standing directly in the center of the narrow passageway, blocking off the street with his body. Rush narrowed his eyes and hunched down. His tail lifted as his butt began to wiggle expectantly. The small bell at the end remained silent even as Rush went to the edge of the rooftop and silently dropped down. ***************** ¡°Come out¡­¡± Trotter looked up nervously and pulled his sister, Fanny, behind him. This was just bad luck. The old couple they¡¯d been staying with had passed two nights ago. Trotter had already been missing that dirt floor they were allowed to sleep on during the day. As the man approached them he once again cursed his fate. He didn¡¯t even have any rocks to throw, he thought bitterly. ¡°No need to scream¡­¡± The psycho advanced toward them with his arms still spread out, like he wasn¡¯t going to hurt them. Like it was perfectly normal to back them into an alley in the dead of the night. Scream? Yeah right¡­ Who would come? No one good. Trotter bit his lips and considered his options. Old Ferol had a thing for the little girls, so letting him have Fanny was a bad idea. Worse was they weren¡¯t in a gang anymore now that the rats from the wharf had all been cleaned out by the water sickness two winters past.. Old Ferol probably didn¡¯t know they were on their own, but it would still be bad. Trotter looked down at his thin arms and his trembling legs and sighed. He turned and stared with his brown eyes at his twin sister. A sister that by rights should have been as big as him but was crushed by the reality of malnourishment and a lack of sleep. Sorry¡­ her eyes seemed to say. Just bad luck. Shake...shake...shake¡­ Shake...shake...shake... The noise startled both parties. Each side of the street was basically lined from end to end with man-sized mounds of trash. The mound of trash between them and Old Ferol on the left trembled for a moment as the strange noise sounded out one more time. Old Ferol paused slightly, his arms lowering incrementally. Everyone paused for a moment as they considered this new development. Trotter began pulling Fanny away to the far corner of the street, wondering what kind of critter was disturbed by the very human disturbance going on near it¡¯s roost. Old Ferol pulled a short and thin blade that looked like he might have just pulled it out of a trash heap on the far end of the alley. The trash had stopped shaking and that weird sound had ceased. While he peered into the garbage, mouth slightly parted revealing crooked and broken teeth, the trash continued to remain still. Trotter felt his mouth going dry. Unreal. He saw it didn¡¯t he? How could Old Ferol not see it? Why wasn¡¯t he running? Maybe he was too intent on looking straight ahead to see the change at his feet. A dark red smoke-like substance was leaking out around Old Ferol¡¯s feet, coiling sinisterly like a pool of bloody water. N-not smoke! Trotter gulped, catching the attention of Old Ferol who started to turn toward him with a glower. Before he could spout whatever convenient lie or threat, the blood-red substance seemed to grow solid around his ankles. One startled look and then the red stuff pulled back into the trash pile. SHAKESHAKESHAKESHAKE¡­ There were no screams. Just a violent shaking of trash as whatever battle was waged inside was quickly ended. Ended with an obvious finality. Trotter began to slowly slide toward the street, eyes never leaving the trash pile as he herded his sister behind him. A soft whimper alerted him to the fact that his sister had also seen everything. Before they could get far enough past the trash pile and make a run for it¡­ a creature popped out. It was some sort of lizard. Large for a reptile. Trotter wasn¡¯t very tall but the lizard came up to his waist. Eyes narrowed, Trotter spread his arms in front of him to block the creature. If it was a lizard. It had eyes that absolutely glowed golden in the dark. The horns that curled wickled around its head looked bloody. Probably just used on Old Ferol. The tail was weird. It looked like a rattler tail. That had probably been the source of the noise. The creature studied him for a moment, forked tongue licking out past bloodied lips. Then it spoke a simple phrase in perfect Under Common. ¡°Follow?¡± It was fast. Very fast. It could speak. It had just eaten someone right in front of him and his sister. Trotter licked his lips as he considered his options. ¡°What if we don¡¯t?¡± The creature seemed to shrink slightly before lifting it¡¯s head and meeting his gaze. ¡°Choice. I am Rush. Follow, or do not follow.¡± Rush turned his back on them and moved quickly through the alley toward the main street. He stood at the mouth and turned, waiting for them with one forward leg raised. His tail was sashaying back and forth behind him, but it didn¡¯t make any noise now. Fanny tugged on the back edge of his dirty and torn jacket, gathering his attention. When he looked in her eyes he saw desperation in them. The same desperation he knew he had in his own. Trotter and Fanny carefully moved to the street. They began following Rush through the town, earning no small number of curious looks as they were led by the creature through the streets. Fortunately, Under Arch was one of those places where if you saw something strange it was probably in your best interest to mind your own fucking business. Trotter and Fanny watched as the creature stopped in front of a building on the docks. Fanny was trembling behind him, the cold air from the water chilling her and making her small body tremble. They were both so tired. At this point it didn¡¯t seem weird when Rush made a key out of red light and unlocked the door. Oh good, their savior was a land owner? Trotter walked inside and found that the warehouse was absolutely empty. Wooden floors without even a pallet. No windows, because what was the use of having windows in the Under Arch? You¡¯d just be inviting people to look inside so they could see what you have to steal. ¡°Name?¡± Rush turned toward them and was eyeing them carefully. ¡°Trotter¡­¡± Trotter replied cautiously. ¡°My sister is Fanny.¡± ¡°Trotter. Dumb. Dumb name. New name.¡± Rush looked off to the side as if considering something of great import. ¡°Lucky. Lucky is a good name.¡± Lucky blinked rapidly. He didn¡¯t know what astonished him more, the fact that Rush had just instantly renamed him or the fact that he liked Lucky a lot more than Trotter¡­ Fanny tugged the hem of his shirt and then looked at Rush. She was still trembling. ¡°Fanny is a go--¡± Rush paused, watching the disappointment flash across the little girl''s face. ¡°Fanny is dumb. Dumb name. New name¡­¡± Rush lifted a claw to scratch his head. ¡°Chance!¡± ¡°Chance is¡­¡± Lucky began. ¡°...perfect!¡± Chance scowled at him. It didn¡¯t seem to matter to her that Chance was more of a boy''s name. Lucky Chance. Lucky shivered. It was mostly the cold, but a small part of him was a little worried that they had been named whimsically. Oh well. It didn¡¯t matter what Rush called them. For now they had a place to stay and it didn¡¯t seem like¡­ ¡°Are you going to eat us?¡± Chance asked innocently. Lucky almost facepalmed, even if she was asking what he had been wondering himself. ¡°Why? Taste good?¡± Rush looked honestly confused for a moment and then shook his head, as if he was answering his own question. Maybe he knew more about it than them. He had just eaten Old Ferol, after all. Probably. Chance shook her head and started to move gingerly across the wooden floor. She didn¡¯t have any shoes and her feet were probably cut. It was hard to walk through the muddy streets without getting soft skin. ¡°What do you want us for?¡± Lucky asked, seeing that his sister was taking the opportunity to rest while he felt out their new arrangement. ¡°Can read?¡± Rush seemed to lift the skin above his right eye. A comical parody of a raised eyebrow. Lucky nodded hesitantly. ¡°Wait.¡± Pop. Then Rush fucking disappeared. *********************** The next few hours were an emotional rollercoaster for Lucky and Chance. Rush had reappeared several minutes later, explaining to them that he had gone to learn to write the words he needed them to read. A red point extended from one of his claws as he began carving into the warehouse wall near the doorway. The text was simple. CAN READ? READ THIS! LORD RUSH - LEADER, PROMISE TO PROTECT AND CARE FOR LUCKY - CHANCE IN RETURN FOR LOYALTY. VALUE LOYALTY ABOVE ALL ELSE. That was it. There was a lot of space for names next to Lucky and Chance. It made Lucky wonder what the hell the little creature was trying to do. That wasn¡¯t the end of it. Rush had made them read it back to him, and only then did he seem satisfied. He vanished right in front of them again, gone for several minutes. When he returned he came through the door, grunting slightly as he looked over his shoulder, dripping wet. Lucky felt his jaw dropping. Rush had created some sort of big hand and it was holding a number of fish that were spasming in the grasp of the red light. He dumped them on the wooden floor in front of Lucky and Chance, tilting his head and studying their expressions with narrowed eyes. Pop. A half hour later he came back carrying a number of blankets clasped within the strange floating hand made out of red light. More than half he piled onto the floor in the middle of the huge and empty room. The rest he brought in front of Lucky and Chance and dropped. Rush gazed at the untouched pile of fish with a bit of surprise on his face and looked up questioningly. ¡°We can¡¯t cook on the wooden floor,¡± Chance muttered. She had already brought up the idea of eating them raw. Honestly, Lucky was just a few minutes away from giving in to that demand. He was so hungry. Pop. Rush once again darted through the doorway completely soaked. Water dripped from his scales. Lucky peered expectantly at the door and, sure enough, the red hand came in. A large shell the size of Chance¡¯s torso turned sideways to fit through the door. It was the shape of a wide-brim kettle or wok. It hit the ground with a low clang and turned like a coin on the floor before coming to a rest, facedown. Lucky moved reluctantly to the shell and turned it over. He shivered. It looked like whatever had been using the shell had been evicted recently. Rush had obviously done what he thought was a ¡®fine¡¯ job cleaning the meat from it but there was still red marks from the recent removal process. Lucky looked at Rush and Rush looked back at him. There seemed to be a silent expectation from Rush¡¯s golden pupils. Reluctantly, Lucky left the warehouse and started scouring the trash heaps on either side of the building. It didn¡¯t take long to drag in a bunch of broken furniture. He put the broken furniture, mostly comprised of wood taken from the really long roots that wove their way into Under Arch from the sides or fell from above, and started placing it in the shell. No sooner had he filled the shell than the contents inside seemed to hiss. Water began sizzling and jumping off the wet wood. He yelped and leaped back as everything in the shell burst into a steady flame. You fucking made fire? Lucky blinked rapidly and turned toward Rush with wide-eyes. ¡°Rush, are you here to take care of all the bad people?¡± Chance moved closer and reached out hesitantly to touch one of his horns. Rush didn¡¯t pull away and allowed her to touch the horn, though his expression almost made Lucky¡¯s heart stop. It was like he was giving her an opportunity to touch him but was ready to eat her if she did anything wrong. Chance must have missed that look because she just giggled. ¡°Bad people? Taste good?¡± Rush squinted at Chance. She giggled again. 49. Ruth Woke Up Cold Ruth bolted upright! His eyes were only in the process of opening as he made a fist and swung hard. The inertia from the swing twisted his body clear around when the punch failed to make contact with anything solid. That was how Ruth woke up face down on the floor with his butt in the air. He slumped a little and turned his head so he could look over his shoulder with one eye. Sassy tail was moving back and forth in a slow and insulting matter. ¡°Tsk.¡± Ruth made the noise with his mouth that he believed went along with the sassy tail movements. He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes. He felt grimy and worn thin. A quick inspection of his body revealed he was absolutely filthy, but only in some places. The arm that the clothes refused to sleeve was still absolutely disgusting. A dry film of blood and dirt and who knows what else. All of that was of course caked under his fingernails. His neck, chin, head, and hair also felt grimy. The rest of him? Ruth stared down at his chest and gently probed with a thought. The clothing obediently parted and showed him his skin. Clean and perfectly healthy-looking flesh. Every part of him the clothing touched seemed to be clean and orderly. Ruth narrowed his eyes for a moment, his thoughts turning darker as he realized he still hadn¡¯t had to go to the bath-- HEY. Maybe he could use this to his advantage. Ruth coaxed the clothing to cover his neck and start covering his face and head like he had when he was resisting Sikes and his poison teaching. The clothing immediately swept up greedily like it had just been waiting for his permission. Seconds later Ruth stood in his room with his arms crossed. The bare arm the only part of his flesh that was still showing. His head and horns completely covered making him look like a mannequin that some crazy knitting grandma got ahold of after a rather successful supply run buying all the half-off lizard scales she could carry. A minute passed and then a hole appeared around the mouth area. Lips appeared and then opened as Ruth gasped for air. Maybe he should have thought about leaving an opening. Next time. Several more minutes passed before the clothing reluctantly receded back down to his collarbone and left everything above bare. Ruth raised his hand and felt with his fingertips. Yes! The clothing ate dirt and¡­ everything else! Best not to question it. Ruth looked down at his stomach and pinched some of the fabric. It feebly and half-heartedly tugged at his fingers like a pet that didn¡¯t enjoy the attention of its owner. He narrowed his eyes and considered. Maybe¡­ maybe he could¡­ do something with this? Train it? Ruth looked at the bed as he released the fabric. He sighed, the excitement of finding out that his clothing offered a sort of half-assed grooming service slowly receded. ¡°I could just crawl back into this warm little bed and pull up the blankets¡­¡± Ruth frowned. Where were the blankets? Or the sheets for that matter. The rolled up blanket that he had been using for a pillow was still there but slightly rumpled. Ruth narrowed his eyes. It was almost like someone had tried to take the rolled blanket he was using for a pillow but had given up halfway through¡­ ??? Who the hell would be stealing blankets? Ruth must have just not had any blankets. Tamara must have deposited him¡­ deposited him¡­ Ah yes, Tamara. Ruth¡¯s face was getting a workout this morning. It kept going from blank, to astonished, to angry in rapidfire changes. Ruth crossed his arms again and stared down at the mostly naked mattress, wondering what he should do. Tamara would inevitably torture him again in the evening. He wasn¡¯t really sure why she had gone completely ballistic the night before. One thing was certain, he wasn¡¯t her match. Not now, not yet, at any rate. Ruth¡¯s stomach made a noise causing him to look down in surprise. Sassy tail whipped around his body and pointed at his stomach almost as if it were also taking a look at the place the weird noise originated. ****** Ruth walked up cautiously to the table. Food was set on trays, sitting enticingly in the middle of the table. Warm steam was rising off something that was shaped like small rocks. The small rocks were not rocks, but were nonetheless piled high as though they had been stacked like them. They were giving off some sort of plant and meat scent that smelled like heaven. He focused and found the word. Bread. The problem of course, was that Sikes was eating one of the bread rocks and was sitting at the table -- with his gloves on. Gloves meant that the poison game might already be starting. ¡°Did you poison these?¡± Ruth watched Sikes carefully. The Durvgar didn¡¯t even look up. He was studying some book that was spread out in front of him on the table, nibbling the bread rock. He grunted in reply, making Ruth wonder if that was a ¡®yes¡¯ or a ¡®no¡¯ grunt. ¡°Have a seat¡­¡± Sikes gestured toward a chair that was slightly pulled out at the other end of the short table. Ruth narrowed his eyes and looked down, mentally cursing the clothing. The clothing itself originated, of course, from the ring accessory he had acquired from the Mongeese on his ring finger. From his finger up to his arm and then across the rest of his body it spread naturally, hanging comfortably without him having to exert his will. That still left his fingertips exposed on that hand. He could cover them, naturally, but he still hadn¡¯t figured out how to convince the clothing to go all the way to his other arm and cover it. The best he could do was to convince it to go down to his elbow on the opposite side. Even that took conscious effort. The moment he stopped thinking about it the clothing retreated to his shoulder.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Life would be so much simpler if this clothing just covered all of me. Or became sharp or hard. Turned into armor or a weapon¡­ His thoughts began to turn toward the clothing again. ¡°You know, most people would just be pleased to have that sort of magical clothing¡­¡± Sikes was staring at Ruth pointedly. He looked the Tiefling up and down and then started sipping his tea. Ruth paused for a moment as he considered this information. Was Sikes reading his mind? No. Sikes had just guessed. Sikes was not smart enough to have a mind reading ability, let alone the know how to use it. Ruth immediately disregarded Sikes as he went back to thinking about his clothing. Perhaps¡­ claws? Ruth flexed his hand and the ring obediently started to spread itself to cover his fingertips, forming a sort of wide gauntlet. A moment later, with a visible hesitation, the scales started to form into talons at the edges of his fingertips. Ruth used his free hand to press on the talons. He sighed to himself as he once again encountered the problem with this idea. The ¡®talons¡¯ so to speak had the hardness of soft leather scales. They weren¡¯t strong enough to pierce anything. They did look impressive, he admitted, but that was it. ¡°Did you poison the food?¡± Ruth got back to the important business after his stomach growled again. ¡°What if I did?¡± Sikes was looking a bit amused. He reached out and took another bread rock from the tray and popped it into his mouth, chewing slowly with undisguised relish. ¡°The chair?¡± Ruth looked down at the chair. ¡°Maybe?¡± Sikes opened his eyes wide in mock surprise. ¡°There¡¯s no slipping anything past you!¡± Ruth sat down, careful to cover the hand he could with his clothing. He did his best not to touch any part of his exposed arm to the chair. Then he smiled viciously at Sikes. ¡°Does this mean you failed to poison me now?¡± ¡°The morning isn¡¯t over,¡± Sikes sipped his tea and rolled his eyes at Ruth. ¡°...and how would you know whether or not I poisoned the chair?¡± Ruth blinked. That was a good question. He stared down at the armrests of the chair he was sitting in, not seeing anything different about them. A quick smell didn¡¯t reveal anything either, which didn¡¯t mean much since the poison that Sikes was using didn¡¯t have a smell. Sikes rolled his eyes again and took another bite of the delicious smelling bread rocks. Ruth was about to start asking more questions when he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. Silently, he and Sikes both watched as Rush walked from one of the back rooms. A large red hand made out of mana was held above his body and seemed to be carrying a number of pots and pans as he trundled out confidently into the kitchen area. Golden pupils considered both Sikes and Ruth for a moment. A small hand broke itself off from the larger hand and moved to the center of the table, snagging two of the bread rocks. The small hand flew back to the larger hand, depositing the bread rocks on top of the kitchen pots and pans which were precariously balanced but somehow stable. Rush walked waddled around the table without another word and exited toward the hallway that would take him out of the Archives. Sikes and Ruth both watched him go with varying reactions. Sikes seemed to be somewhat disgruntled by the fact that Rush was making off with things from the kitchen. Ruth was a little bit irritated that Rush had come and taken some of the bread rocks! Did he know which were poisoned? Why didn¡¯t he tell Ruth? Ruth grabbed one of the bread rocks boldly and put it into his mouth, chewing rapidly and swallowing. He froze for a moment and waited for the pain. When it didn¡¯t come he finished the bread rock and then moved boldly onto a second one. Then a third. Ruth leaned back contentedly in the chair and sighed. Sikes was watching him with a sort of queer smile starting to curl his lips. ¡°Why are you¡­¡± Ruth began to pale. ¡°Oh¡­ oh fuck¡­¡± Just because he couldn¡¯t tell whether or not the chair was poisoned didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t. Sikes just chuckled as Ruth jumped up and then immediately fell to the ground. He tried to crawl away from the chair. He was on the floor clutching his arm. It would be a long five minutes before the pain went away. ********** Merriweather frowned as Ibram started to jog away. The dark-skinned demi-human had been quietly reporting a number of strange occurrences. It wasn¡¯t at the level where she had to take action with the castle guard or with the talented rankers that were under her command, but it was, frankly, fucking weird. Blankets were disappearing all around Under Arch. While theft wasn¡¯t uncommon, this went beyond the norm. Blankets were disappearing from places that they shouldn¡¯t be disappearing from. Within mansions, warehouses, places of business, homes, and there was even a report that some of the guest wings of the Arachne castle had been pillaged. Probably because it was a hot topic, other people began chiming in and reporting weird thefts. Pots and pans and basic fire starting kits. Bolts of cloth, fishing nets, popular heroic fiction books, and, if one old woman was to believed, her pet Marmeloon. Merriweather didn¡¯t know what to make of the weird reports. They had just started to be reported today right? This morning? ¡°Ibram!¡± Merriweather called out to the scout, who half-turned as he continued jogging. ¡°What kind of pet is Marmeloon? I¡¯ll keep an eye out!¡± ¡°She¡¯s some kind of huge snapping turtle!¡± Ibram grinned and held his arms open wide in tall-tale fashion. That left Merriweather blinking even more. Someone was kidnapping snapping turtles? Merriweather pressed her lips together even as her eyes began to narrow. After a moment she shook her head. Though it would be super convenient, even Merriweather knew it was a little much to blame all of this strangeness on Under Arch¡¯s new headache, Tamara. Besides, Merriweather scoffed, why would Tamara want a snapping turtle shell? **** ¡°Why does he want a snapping turtle?¡± Tamara had uttered near-identical words hours before as she watched with growing confusion as Rush slipped into a house on the lower side of Under Arch and proceeded to aura handle a poor giant snapping turtle out the window in the dead of night. The pathetic thing was still asleep and unaware of its plight as it floated gently toward a dark alley out of sight of the residential street¡­ ***************** Time began to slowly pass onward as everyone grew more accustomed to their new routines... 50. Ruth Sees His Future ONE MONTH LATER ******* Ruth knelt in the middle of the underground area that Tamara had carved out beneath the Archives. Small arachnid shapes moved slowly and dutifully toward him from all corners of the room while Arathan and Tamara watched on from where they were observing near one of the smooth stone walls. The arachnids changed their method of travel as they neared him, some of them bursting into a run, some hopping up and down nearly a meter as they traveled forward in a lunge, and still others ducking behind their fellows in an attempt to use them as shields as they advanced. The room filled with pops as the nearest arachnids along the floor and those that had been using them as cover to bulldoze forward were struck by arcs of electricity that snaked in quick strikes from Ruth¡¯s body. Similar fates awaited the arachnids that had been leaping through the air. The aura projected forms of spiders burst apart and made small brilliant flashes before the energy dissipated. As impressively distracting as the light show was, Ruth didn¡¯t open his eyes. Thin lengths of gleaming golden spider silk suddenly came into view, the transparent and tiny strands hidden until the extra light flashed. It didn¡¯t seem to make a difference. The arachnids deploying from the ceiling were similarly revealed as they came close enough to the top of Ruth¡¯s head. Lightning snaked from his body, once more incinerating the translucent insects even after they gave up their slow and stealthy approach. Once the light faded from the last flash Ruth opened his eyes and cast a quick look around. He lifted his arms up and looked under them, almost as if he were expecting the arachnids to be crawling over him. ¡°I don¡¯t need to keep my eyes open,¡± he grudgingly admitted. ¡°Told you,¡± Tamara replied. ¡°Lightning Ward is something that reacts to the presence of anything that approaches you, regardless of speed or visibility. Even if someone chunked a piece of rock at you it would still lash out and smack it as it approached.¡± ¡°I¡¯m always grateful for new ways to kill rocks,¡± Ruth snorted. ¡°Coming from someone who routinely uses rocks to fight, I would suggest losing some of your disdain for them?¡± Tamara raised an eyebrow even as the crow on her shoulder was nodding along with a ¡®that¡¯s true¡¯ sort of movement. Arathan was perched on her shoulder, having made herself smaller so she could sit comfortably. Ruth scowled at the bird. It wasn¡¯t just because he was a little bit jealous! Rush was still working out the ability to get smaller. Decreasing size or becoming smaller was apparently something that all soul shapes could do, with varying degrees of ease and success. It wasn¡¯t that long ago that Rush had tentatively tried to sit on Ruth¡¯s head after having decreased his size. A moment of inattention had left Ruth sprawled on the floor with a disgruntled and exasperated Rush laying on his chest with his small feet and tail akimbo. Rush was getting bigger every day. Bigger on the outside every time that he got bigger on the inside. ¡°Show me,¡± Ruth called out boredly. Tamara¡¯s eyes always twitched with thinly diguised aggravation when he ¡®summoned¡¯ the immortal and deadly text. She had tried to explain to him that she was the one controlling it and he didn¡¯t have to call out to the open air like that. He had tried to nod his head and convince her he was listening to her so she wouldn¡¯t hurt him too bad. It didn¡¯t matter if she was the one controlling it or not. It was a small thing that really annoyed her and didn¡¯t get him zapped. The immortal and deadly text appeared and started to display the mana he had available to him but he shook his head, causing the golden box to freeze in the air and hover blankly. ¡°The full list.¡±
TCH
Ruth resisted the urge to smile.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 19) (Thick Skinned Tiefling/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) 5 of 5 spell slots Languages: Draconic, Under Common(Evil Races - Mastered) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity Mana / Regeneration Rate: (17/20) (3HR) ¡ïLightning Ward: 100% ¡ïLightning Chain: 100% Conversion > ¡ï¡ïLightning Ward (Mana Consumption 3, Upkeep 3) ¡ï¡ïLightning Chain: (Mana Consumption 3) ¡ï¡ï¡ïLightning Wings: (Mana Consumption 4, Upkeep 4) ¡ï¡ï Shock: (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: (Mana Consumption 1, Upkeep 1) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïDevouring Plasma Wave: (Mana Consumption MAX) Effects: ??? Lord Rush: ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Innate: SHAKE SHAKE
Ruth nodded, placing his hands above his head and stretching upwardly as he considered the pains and labors of the last month. Combat with the Castle Guard was slowly becoming a nice reprieve. Of particular pride to Ruth was the fact that Jeanne was no longer capable of being his sole competition in the afternoons. Sure Jeanne could beat the crap out of him and Ruth never won, but it tired Jeanne to the point where they¡¯d started throwing in another soldier, Lina. The joy of having proven to them that he couldn¡¯t be contained by one person was somewhat diminished when the reality of his new opponent became apparent. Lina was diminutive in stature, barely coming up to his chest, wore thick leather that looked like it had moss growing on it, and stared vacantly through two soft blue eyes that hung under dirty blonde hair. Her ears were strangely pointed too, making Ruth wonder if she was related to some sort of creature. It was hard to tell if someone was a demi-human for him. They all mostly looked the same to him. What she lacked in size she made up for with knives. Lots of knives. When he fought Jeanne he had assumed that there was some sort of rule in place that prohibited weapons. It seemed fair to him, at least, since he couldn¡¯t use magic on them. Merriweather had just smiled as the healer that had apparently staked her claim on him pulled out the three knives that were stuck in his calf, waist, and chest. She acted like it was beneath her by not bothering to reply to his complaints. Ruth shivered at the memory. The itching and the burning pain had been awful, causing him to grimace and water to form at the edges of his eyes. Poppy, the healer, was never very gentle when she was removing knives. Add to that the weird look of euphoria she got in her face while healing him¡­ Most disturbing. ¡°We have a bit of time to kill, do you have any questions for me before we leave?¡± Tamara broke into his thoughts. ¡°Leave?¡± This was different. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. ¡°It¡¯s almost sleep time.¡± ¡°Is that what you want to waste your questions on?¡± Tamara asked innocently. He scowled in response. It was rare for her to offer him answers to questions of his own. When he tried to get her to answer things without being invited he usually ended up smoking and twitching in the floor. ¡°Why do you call Arathan to make your little test...things?¡± Ruth decided not to squander the opportunity, instead focusing his mind toward a recent thing he¡¯d been wondering about. Arathan was always called when creatures were created from aura to test spells or abilities. It confused Ruth somewhat, making him wonder if there were things that the goddess in front of him couldn¡¯t do for herself. It would be useful knowledge. ¡°Oh, also, when will I get my freedom?¡± Tamara swept her hand. Ruth barely had time to blink before he found himself in the study on the couch instead of the cold stone room beneath the surface. He looked around with a bit of discomfort, paying special attention to the things nearest him. The last time she had impromptu moved him like this she had also placed hot tea in his hand. It had startled him so badly that he¡¯d thrown the tea straight up, ruining the tea cup, the tea, and the small plate it had been resting on. Sikes had said he wasn¡¯t mad. Sikes had also managed to poison him seventeen times the following morning. Ruth was relieved to find that she hadn¡¯t put anything in his hands this go round. His eyes found her sitting in a chair nearby. Another small relief that he wasn¡¯t lying in her lap. Tamara was a fucking weirdo. ¡°It is common for soul shapes to be able to form things out of aura. Is this so strange? Their bodies are primarily comprised of elements of aura, mana, and your soul space.¡± Tamara had given herself tea. Given? No, she must have used her speed while she was teleporting him to go to the kitchen and get herself some. Ruth wrinkled his eyes in confusion. How did she have time to brew the tea? Seeing the trick several times in a row made him think that Tamara perceived things much more rapidly than he did. Her sensory information was faster, somehow. It wasn¡¯t just her reaction speed, which was fucking monstrous. Her perception was just¡­ broader? ¡°So you can¡¯t make shapes like that?¡± Ruth tilted his head, allowing the faintest hint of a smile on his face. ¡°I can,¡± Tamara smiled back at him, watching his face fall into disappointment. ¡°If I had a proper spell or art to do it. Learning one would be easy. I probably even have the notes for different ones around somewhere. Why should I though? You¡¯ll find that, except for rare bloodlines and enemies, most will choose their soul shapes to defend them from aura projections, or to assault their enemies with them. They are naturally gifted in that field, after all.¡± ¡°What if I wanted one?¡± Ruth perked up slightly at the idea of learning a new spell. Maybe Tamara was a massively powerful monster of brute force, but he could probably use such a spell at his level, couldn¡¯t he? ¡°One of the reasons we stopped early tonight is that you are very near a tipping point in your...power.¡± The way she said power at the end made it apparent she was just being polite. She had made no effort to disguise her utter disdain for his abilities. Could he beat up everyone in this place if she let him use spells? Probably. This place was, in her own words, was ¡®a shithole playground for a debutante spider cunt with serious insecurities toward others¡¯. Ruth didn¡¯t really know what that meant, but he thought it had something to do with the fact that there were very few truly powerful people in this area. It was like everyone who lived here had been groomed to be purposefully weak somehow. ¡°Is that why I don¡¯t have any more spells to test or learn with spell slots?¡± Ruth tilted his head. ¡°It¡¯s bad for your foundations to learn too many right away.¡± Tamara nodded, confirming his suspicion. She was somehow responsible for choosing when he received new template spells. ¡°But Merriweather said,¡± he plunged onward even though he saw her eyes narrowing slightly, ¡°...that my spells and abilities were all over the place. That I should either focus on being an all-rounder or specialize in something.¡± Ruth waited a moment, noting that Tamara was closing her eyes and breathing deeply. It was usually a bad sign. ¡°You said I could ask questions,¡± he reminded her.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Tamara opened her eyes slowly, giving him a tight-lipped smile. ¡°I did! Didn¡¯t I?¡± She slowly pulled her lips back a bit, baring her teeth at him. A smile. Merriweather had also explained to him that a smile was usually a friendly expression. Sometimes, when Tamara smiled, Ruth wondered if Merriweather was full of shit or just misinformed. ¡°She is right, after a fashion. Specializing in offense or defense or taking a more balanced view is the general advice for most beginners on any path. Choosing to focus on deadly spells at the expense of defensive ones, for example, is a very attractive path to many. The idea that you could kill your opponent before they get a chance to harm you entice many. In many ways this would seem to be your focus, wouldn¡¯t it?¡± Tamara relaxed her grip on the tea cup. Ruth tried not to notice that she had pulverized the small handle and dust was falling from her hands on the plate. Ruth nodded his head. Even his defensive abilities seemed to be predisposed toward violence. Lightning Ward hurt attackers that were close to him. It was useful as a space generator but didn¡¯t actually protect him physically. Lightning Chain was similar in that regard. Ruth had no real way to protect his body, be it through enhancement or any sort of movement spell. Merriweather had assured him that both things existed. Ruth liked the idea of having his body protected by some spell so he could just take blows. He also liked the idea of moving really fast so he could avoid attacks. He didn¡¯t know why Tamara didn¡¯t give him one if she was the gatekeeper for his abilities. ¡°Correct after a fashion,¡± Tamara thrummed her fingers along the arm of the chair, eyes drifting off to the side in thought. ¡°I could give you arts or templates that were used by others, but such initial guidance is thoughtless. The gifts I have given you were actually selected from your very own inherited memories. Abilities that you would have come to on your own, probably. Gifts that were just at the edge of activating for you anyway. I just gave you the extra mana and a gentle push in the right direction. I fear you¡¯ve been making quite the mistake when you thought I was the one plucking spells and foisting them off on you,¡± she grinned idly. An assumption that you made no effort to correct! Ruth gritted his teeth. ¡°Can you gently push me toward a movement ability or some other ¡­ thing?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± Tamara grinned. ¡°...but no, I won¡¯t. You¡¯re very close to the cusp of a breakthrough in power. Your soul space is almost large enough to start accepting skills. When that happens certain changes in your soul space will occur. It¡¯s best not to be too bloated down at that point. Afterward,¡± Tamara closed her eyes and nodded, almost as if to herself. ¡°Yes, afterward, we will discuss more spells and a path for you.¡± ¡°Skills?¡± Ruth blinked. Merriweather had alluded to skills many times, repeatedly asking him if he had any. He was as confused now as he had been then. ¡°That¡¯s a different question. Let me answer your other one. When you will gain your freedom? Are you not free now? What is the purpose of such freedom? Have you really considered what freedom is?¡± Tamara stood up and stretched lightly. Arathan was absent. Ruth blinked rapidly, feeling slow for having not realized the bird was gone. ¡°You didn¡¯t¡­ answer my question?¡± Ruth finally managed. ¡°Didn¡¯t I? You could walk out that door right now. You could head out into Under Arch and buck me at every turn. You already know that I have some sort of strange interest in you and am unwilling to damage you permanently, don¡¯t you?¡± Tamara shrugged after he didn¡¯t answer. ¡°So, what is stopping you?¡± It was true. All the circumstances of his confinement right now were somewhat voluntary. Ruth did not have to spend the mornings with Sikes and be poisoned. He did not have to go and train in combat with the soldiers. He did not have to be subjected to the weird room. He could walk out right now and just head back up into the garden. I do not want to be in the garden. I do not want to be a member of the guards, either. Ruth frowned and started to slump in his seat. ¡°You are starting to see it aren¡¯t you? Freedom is not enough. Out there, with no opportunities or friends¡­ it is even worse.¡± Tamara shrugged. ¡°What if someone like me just happened to take an interest in you and weren¡¯t as kind as I?¡± Ruth finally looked up and rolled his eyes at her. ¡°Yes, your tenderness is legendary.¡± She chuckled in a rare display of appreciation for his backtalk. ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s fortuitous that we¡¯re having this conversation. There is a rare event occurring soon. I am able to bring you to observe.¡± ¡°If I refuse?¡± He snorted, not fooled for a moment by the roundabout way she spoke. ¡°I would bring you anyway,¡± she admitted quietly. ¡°...because you are weak.¡± Ruth narrowed his eyes at her. ¡°It won¡¯t always be so.¡± Tamara tilted her head slightly as she studied him. It surprised him that she didn¡¯t immediately disagree with him. She seemed to be searching for something in his expression. There was an intensity there that was flaring up. A hunger in the eyes that she displayed from time to time. Ruth didn¡¯t understand it, but it still made him uncomfortable. ¡°Maybe,¡± she nodded slightly. Tamara lifted her arm and Ruth winced, getting ready for the weird feeling of being torn bodily through space¡­ He looked up when nothing happened. Tamara still had her arm up, considering him thoughtfully. ¡°...normally, I would like nothing more than for you to cause trouble wherever we go. In the future, it is fine. This time, I require silence of you. Do not speak unless addressed directly. Understood?¡± Ruth sat straight up, eyeing her with renewed interest. He did his best to feign disinterest. A chance to fuck things up for you? ¡°I understand,¡± Ruth smiled. *************** When the disorientation ended Ruth went to his knees and started retching. The loss of the half-digested bread rocks coming from his body distressed him more than the sensation of throwing up did. Moment of silence for the bread ro- blllleeeecchh **************** When he managed to finally stand up he found that Tamara was covering her face with an open hand, her body language managing to convey embarrassment and disgust at the same time. Several other figures were also watching him with varying degrees of emotion. A tanned and smiling man in a straw hat was standing next to Tamara giving him a slightly amused look. A woman with a number of fox tails was watching him with apparent pity and sympathy, ears twitching nervously as his gaze met hers. She immediately looked away, sort of hiding behind the big tree that was next to her, causing him to frown. What the hell? That wasn¡¯t a tree. That was a huge fucking lady! Ruth looked up, eyes widening in surprise as his eyes went over the huge bald lady with the big poleaxe. ¡°Ruth, that is Harper. That is Amarinthe. This is Heath. They are all stronger than you so stop eyeballing them.¡± Tamara motioned to a spot next to her. ¡°Come.¡± Instead of doing that, Ruth wiped the vomit from his lips onto his sleeve. The clothing quickly rippled. The vomit stain was gone immediately. He continued staring at this¡­ Harper. Harper must be three meters tall. ¡°You are large.¡± ¡°Thank you, I¡¯ve been growing,¡± Harper¡¯s lips bared as she laughed down at him. It didn¡¯t feel threatening at all, causing Ruth¡¯s stance to relax. ¡°I like your shiny head,¡± Ruth thought it might be a good idea to befriend the giant, so he complimented her head. It looked almost polished. Harper blinked rapidly and then slowly lowered her head to look at the girl with fox tails that was using her as cover. ¡°Him? I like.¡± ¡°Get over here,¡± Tamara hissed. She pointed to the spot directly next to her. Ruth was about to mouth off to her when he realized that there were a number of very still forms around them. People who were slowly beginning to look over. The deadness of their eyes and the lack of movement reminded him of a certain slaughter goddess. Gods. Fucking gods everywhere. Ruth walked over obediently and tried to get a feel for the area. Despite being in a large crowd there was quite a bit of space around them. Everyone was giving everyone else plenty of room. The lack of interest in one another was a little startling to realize. Ruth had just sort of assumed that this many gods together would be a bit rowdier? Given how arrogant and domineering Tamara was¡­ wouldn¡¯t a large congregation like this be ¡­ immediately violent? Apparently not. He moved forward, realizing for the first time that they were standing at the edge of a railing. A look over the railing revealed that they were looking down into a large circular pit. The circular pit was tremendously spacious, perhaps four times the size of the entirety of the castle guard training area. The comparison was relevant, because that¡¯s what this place reminded him of. The scent of blood and struggle in an open area. The audience was different, but he supposed it wasn¡¯t all that weird. Maybe this was a training area? He glanced over to Tamara to ask but quickly closed his mouth. The blonde goddess stared downward at the open patch of dirt with a sort of defeated expression that he had never seen on her face before. When he looked back there were five figures in the field. Four of which surrounded the fifth. It was far enough away that Ruth was having a hard time picking out the specific features of the figures, but their body language seemed to suggest tension. The body language of the figure in the middle seemed especially unfriendly. ¡°...this is the future. A truth we are not allowed to speak.¡± Tamara whispered softly. ¡°You are my direct Chosen. Harper, Amaranthe, watch closely. This is the fate of all who ascend. You may never speak of this to another.¡± ¡°I swear,¡± the fox girl whispered. ¡°I think I already knew.¡± ¡°I swear,¡± Harper looked back and forth between them after saying it, looking far less concerned. If she knew like the fox girl, then she obviously didn¡¯t care. Ruth looked at Tamara and squinted. He noted she didn¡¯t mention anything about him swearing. The one known as Heath seemed to notice, too. He glanced at Ruth and then looked at Tamara, frowning at her back. Tamara straightened as if she noticed it even without being able to see him. ¡°You¡¯ll keep quiet as well, Ruth.¡± Tamara finally said. Ruth didn¡¯t answer. It appeared that not disagreeing with her openly was enough for now. Movement from above distracted him. Cloud cover began to form rapidly in the blue sky. The sudden atmospheric pressure made his ears pop. Dark clouds began to form from nothing and push downward. Voices from below cut through the sudden noise, somehow raising in volume above the wind. ¡°Are you resisting, Princess Meizhen?¡± The figure in the middle slowly turned around in a circle. As she turned her attention toward the section where he was standing with Tamara and the others, Ruth felt his skin crawl. A pale skinned face, smooth and young, looked coldly outward with glowing red eyes. The bitterness on her face was clear even though she was far away. The moment passed as she continued searching the audience with her gaze. It almost looked like she was hoping someone would step out, or say something. ¡°I do not resist,¡± she called out. The clouds were gathering and began to rumble. ¡°...I simply despair. I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m being foolish¡­¡± ¡°We understand.¡± Maybe they really did. The pressure from the clouds continued to increase. The small figure in the middle of the spectacle seemed to be struggling with something. Her shoulders shook as she slowly fell to her knees. ¡°She can¡¯t hold it off any longer.¡± Heath said, turning slightly so he could address Amaranthe and Harper. "She has been struggling to fight off the change, but it is happening regardless. In the beginning it is a struggle to capture power. To retain it. At some point, resisting the power is the greater struggle.¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t want to ascend,¡± Tamara muttered. ¡°She must have known.¡± ¡°Known what?¡± Ruth asked. Tamara shook her head. ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡± Ruth looked back just in time to see that a shape was beginning to form around Meizhen. The four figures surrounding her hopped back lightly but didn¡¯t go far. The image of a huge serpent rose, resplendent golden scales tinged with green. The tongue flicked outward and seemed to scent the air. It¡¯s eyes narrowed. The sound of a low hiss pressing outwardly. Meizhen crossed her arms and rocked back and forth on her knees, suddenly appearing desperate and fragile. The image of the snake spread again, powerful green energy pressing outwardly in wild waves. The four figures spread out their own colored aura and immediately suppressed the energy that was ripping through the air. The ease with which they did it made Ruth¡¯s eyes narrow. Strong. That was the thought he had even as he felt something spreading. From Meizhen an invisible wave suddenly erupted. He had felt her pressure and presence before, but now it washed over him, almost bowling him over. Almost painful. Almost too much. Overwhelming. Ruth spared a glance toward Tamara to see that she had her face turned as if she were accepting the wave. Her eyes were closed. The urge to attack her rose but he suppressed it. He didn¡¯t know how to get home. The wave rose in power and started to tax him. He could feel the mana spreading out. It was almost like this Meizhen was doing something similar to when Tamara had forcefully injected mana into his body. He got the sense this was involuntary. It was so powerful even though it was uncontrolled. The waves and pressure lessened in strength. The snake figure behind Meizhen solidifying into existence even more. Staring proudly even as it hissed warning. ¡°Thus, a goddess is born¡­¡± Amaranthe sighed. ¡°Now please.¡± A calm and clinical voice from one of the figures watching this Princess Meizhen. There was no excitement or emotion. This was just an every day thing for this person. ...and Ruth felt himself growing irritated. A small itch in his mind. His eyes narrowed as he saw the shuddering figure huddled in the middle of the arena slowly get to her feet. Despite how she looked exhausted and frail, the four figures pressed closer as if she were prey. Giving one last look around, Meizhen lowered her head and then sighed. ¡°I, Meizhen, swear upon my soul that I will not disobey the Table of Order. This means that I will not rebel against them. I will not kill other gods without permission or unless my life is endangered. I will instantly shatter my soul if a member of authority from the Table of Order requests it of me. I obey.¡± Meizhen may have been whispering but the words came crisp and clear through the air. The effect was instantaneous. Giant chains dropped through the clouds, evaporating them as if they were minor inconveniences, and descended on the shape of the snake. The creature struggled hard, but to no effect. Ruth watched with wide eyes and stared at the arena for a long time even after the snake had finally been subdued under the weight of the giant golden chains. Like lightning, a thought flashed through his mind. Ruth whirled around to stare at Tamara, anger rising in him. He found that she was already watching him with that sad look in her eyes. Like she already knew what he would say. Ruth took in a deep breath to start screaming swear words at her in front of everyone. She swept an arm and transported him before he could begin and the breath he had been holding forcefully ejected itself as he found himself in his room. It was a good thing he had already puked. 51. Ruth Responds To Threats Poorly Ruth sat on the edge of his unmade bed, feet firmly on the ground as he stared at the wall. Sleep had not come. The things he had seen playing over and over again in his mind. The grim look on the faces of the individuals around him. The silent tableau made sense now that he understood why they were all gathered. Everyone had gathered to watch the death sentence being carried out. Because that was what it was, the execution of future potential and freedom. Ruth understood now. Anyone who reached godhood was immediately shackled. For what purpose? Control? Power? Ruth felt the hate start swelling up inside him. It surprised him a little. He was feeling so empty after a night full of tumultuous emotions. In the past month, Rush had slowly been sending him images of the chains around Merriweather¡¯s soul space. They differed greatly from the small chains that Rush had discovered surrounding their own. Rush had speculated that the chains were binding them in some way to Tamara. Ruth had quietly shown the soul shape images of when he had shouted out his foolish words, asking for Tamara to make the decisions for him. Rush hadn¡¯t said anything more on the topic and they had both let the conversation about chains on their soul space die. A conversation that had abruptly become relevant again after Ruth had shared his experience with Rush of the night before. He remembered the quiet desperation in Meizhen¡¯s red eyes as she cast her gaze wide. Now he imagined that the eyes were slitted and golden. Ruth¡¯s internal clock quietly ticked forward. He stood up and walked to the door, pushing it open. Near the wall, where he would not be hit by the door swinging outward, Rush raised his head. Golden pupils focused on Ruth for a moment before drifting past him to look at the room. Ruth closed the door before Rush could see the extent of the damage. Chunks taken out of the wall, pieces of furniture stabbed into the ceiling, the floor, the frame of the bed. Books torn and ripped from their bindings, pages scattered along the floor and the bed. Rush glanced away and pretended that he had seen nothing. He stood up, stretching slightly, the swift twisting of his neck making a series of snapping pops. It had not been that long at all but Rush was now easily three times the size he¡¯d been when he had appeared to help Ruth with the Cannibal Pixies. With his head held up at attention the tips of his horns were almost at waist level for Ruth. He was, Ruth decided, the size of a young adult wolf. In a way, he also resembled a wolf. His snout was a bit broader, he had scales instead of fur, and his tail trailed behind him but off the floor in an alert manner that kept the rattle from dragging. His horns were also growing thicker, keeping pace with the increased mass of his neck and head as he grew larger. Okay, maybe he didn¡¯t look like a wolf at all except for the intelligent eyes and the size. Rush fell in behind him, talons clicking on the floor as he walked. Ruth knew that he could wade through the air but chose to walk. At the edge of his awareness he felt the creature more clearly than he had before. He could sense that Rush enjoyed the sounds of his sharp nails clacking against the stone and tile. He was also beginning to become aware of scents that Rush detected that he did not. The smell of bread, of tea, and of books dirtied by dust and time. Ruth walked to the table where Sikes sat. The Durvgar was predictable in that he always chose the same seat, always read a book while he waited, always had his favorite cup for tea set in front of him with the spoon angled just so. Ruth sat in the chair that was set slightly ajar from the table without hesitation. His eyes watched Sikes even as he heard Rush settle down behind him. He could feel Rush watching Sikes, Ruth, the door. It surprised Ruth to note that he could also feel that Rush was keeping a large majority of his attention focused on something far away. That would probably be the children. Ruth felt a wave of warmth at the thought, a result of thinking of the children and having Rush notice. Rush was intimately aware of his thoughts and feelings now. Their connection grew more profound as time passed. It was even stronger after his tantrum during the night. The explosion of anger he had felt at realising that he was on a direct path to slavery. The helpless feeling he got when he was trying to work through his feelings, and then his body had decided that was the exact moment for his power to push forward once more. As if the universe were telling him directly that he was fucked. Every step forward was a step toward the inevitable.
Planar Tiefling: Ruth (Level 20) (Unskilled Tiefling/Lord Rush) (Lightning Specialized) ¡ïSkills - [Minor Poison Resistance] [Fitness] [Lightning Affinity] [Spirit Bond] [Endurance] [Toughness] [Fury] [Pain Resistance] ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïSkills - [Inherited Memory: Dragon] [Inherited Memory: ????] 5 of 5 spell slots Languages: Draconic, Under Common(Evil Races - Mastered) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Limited Electrical Immunity Mana / Regeneration Rate: (20/20) (3HR) ¡ï¡ïLightning Ward (Mana Consumption 3, Upkeep 3) ¡ï¡ïLightning Chain: (Mana Consumption 3) ¡ï¡ï¡ïLightning Wings: (Mana Consumption 4, Upkeep 4) ¡ï¡ï Shock: (Mana Consumption 2) ¡ï¡ïThunder Struck: (Mana Consumption 10) ¡ï¡ïMagnetic Field: (Mana Consumption 1, Upkeep 1) ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ïDevouring Plasma Wave: (Mana Consumption MAX) Effects: ??? Lord Rush: ¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï¡ï Innate: SHAKE SHAKE
The skills that had appeared should have been exciting. Hard work yielded solid results. His body remembered the pain of the past month and rewarded him. It was fascinating in a way. When he was a dragon he had known nothing of skills. It had been outside of his toolkit, so to speak. It should have been a great moment. An accomplishment and a step toward being strong enough to throw Tamara from his path and be on his way. He once again imagined the helplessness of Meizhen¡¯s body language. Remembered the whispered words. She didn¡¯t want to ascend. And yet, she couldn¡¯t stop it. Sikes cleared his throat. The small sound causing Ruth to truly focus on the man that he had been staring through as he thought. ¡°Shall we begin?¡± This exercise felt pointless. Ruth had been on the cusp of whatever milestone level twenty signified for a day or two. He not only felt smarter, everything was much clearer than it was before. Poisoning Ruth every day had never been about teaching Ruth caution. Sure, it probably had been beneficial in honing Ruth¡¯s caution and paranoia, but Sikes had never once given Ruth the impression that he was being taught how to avoid being poisoned. Now it was obvious. Sikes was just teaching him another important lesson. Trust only yourself. Understand that if someone really wants to hurt you, they will find a way. You can only rely on yourself. ¡°No need. The game is over.¡± Ruth stood, clasping both armrests of the chair as he rose with his naked fingers. Sikes raised an eyebrow questioningly, a knowing look on his face. The expression faded when Ruth stood up and continued to stare at him. Sikes narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Ruth¡¯s hands, and then nodded jerkily in understanding. ¡°So it seems. You now resist the poison?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s a shame I never did win.¡± ¡°You were never meant to win,¡± Sikes said dryly, a half-smile crossing his lips. ¡°I was just ordered to poison you until you got something useful out of it. Poison resistance?¡± There was a hint of greed in the question. Ruth smiled and tilted his head. ¡°Don¡¯t have skills yet?¡± Sikes frowned, replying tersely. ¡°Not yet.¡± ¡°Enjoy your tea,¡± Ruth walked past the seated Durvgar, patting him on the shoulder. He felt the man stiffen under his touch, no doubt expecting some sort of duplicity or attack. Rush fell in behind him as he left the Archives and started toward the docks in Under Arch. Ruth hadn¡¯t done anything to Sikes. It wasn¡¯t in his nature to torture like some he could mention. Sikes wanted power and knowledge. Denying him both was more than enough to settle the grudge Ruth felt against him. Rush pulsed a quiet thought of disagreement behind him. Ruth rolled his eyes. Maybe Ruth had put Sikes from his mind, but the bloodthirsty anger that had just flared up behind him meant that Rush still had some ideas¡­ ¡°Petty much?¡± ¡°Pretty much,¡± came the immediate reply. ******* CAN READ? READ THIS! LORD RUSH AND RUTH - LEADERS, PROMISE TO PROTECT AND CARE FOR LUCKY - CHANCE - BOOKER - SAMMY - DIANE - PIPER - FREDDIE IN RETURN FOR LOYALTY.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. VALUE LOYALTY ABOVE ALL ELSE. Ruth read the message near the door with some amusement. It wasn¡¯t his first time reading it, but it still made him smile. It also made him smile when he looked across the warehouse and saw that there were neat little rows for what he would have described as ¡®nests¡¯. Piles of blankets and pillows with little trinkets or belongings scattered around them. They were all situated around a larger nest in the middle of the room. The place where Rush had taken to using when he was here. Rush padded eagerly past him and into the room, teleporting the last few meters to the center of his ¡®throne¡¯ as he spread himself out and laid down. He rested his head on his front arms and gazed out across his small kingdom. The children were out now, but Rush had a way to keep track of where they were. Rush had marked their immature soul spaces with a sign so he could find them. In a much¡­ kinder way than Tamara and Arathan had done to their own soul space. Rush held no chains or bonds over them. Even the contract at the door was simply an agreement between them. Rush was adamant about it. He insisted that Pipren, Merriweather¡¯s soul shape, and he had talked about it for a long time and this was what he wanted. ¡°Chance comes.¡± Rush rumbled quietly. ¡°I call. We test. We look at chain.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Ruth looked around the room and felt a bit exasperated. ¡°Do I just stand here? Do I get a chair? How about a throne behind your nest?¡± Rush closed his eyes and then opened one of them, giving Ruth an amused and knowing look. Fortunately he decided not to make anything of it. ¡°Okay. Will get.¡± ¡°I like the room. I like that I¡¯m on your list too.¡± Ruth admitted. This place¡­ was nice. Even without the good feelings he was receiving from how Rush felt about this place. It was a little cold inside, but that was unavoidable with the way the air came off the lake. ¡°Do you want a big throne? A shiny throne? A teeny tiny throne?¡± Rush ignored his comments, choosing instead to talk about Ruth¡¯s request. ¡°You fuck. I knew you couldn¡¯t leave it alone!¡± Ruth laughed helplessly. ¡°I just wanted a place to stand or sit you smarmy shit.¡± Rush peeled back his teeth and bared them in a very pointy-toothed smile. Ruth was spared from whatever teasing he was about to receive when a little girl skipped through the doorway and into the room. She turned in a quick twirl and made a wave toward the wall, a sort of half-salute acknowledgement, before twisting around and scampering to the middle of the room where she fell down in a heap within arms reach of Rush. ¡°I think I heard you! Did you want me to read one of the books?¡± Chance¡¯s voice was breathy and fast, excited and impatient in a way that Ruth was coming to associate with children. ¡°Mm. Yes. It is important to read me books.¡± Rush nodded sagely, the one open eye now fixated on Chance in a doting manner. ¡°Chance is good. Good Chance. Not like that dumb dumb, Lucky.¡± ¡°He¡¯s getting better!¡± Chance tried to defend her brother but her eyeroll led Ruth to believe she also thought her brother was kind of a ¡®dumb dumb¡¯. ¡°At least don¡¯t call him that. I think it hurts his feelings.¡± ¡°Feelings do not hurt.¡± Rush corrected. ¡°People have feelings, and people hurt,¡± Chance narrowed her eyes, seemingly taking a stand. Rush eyeballed her for a moment longer, and amazingly(to Ruth at least), decided to let her little rebellion pass. Instead, he covered his snout with a clawed hand and coughed into it. A decidedly human action, Ruth noted. ¡°Chance will close her eyes and wait,¡± he said patiently. ¡°Okay!¡± Chance didn¡¯t seem to care too much about what was going on. ¡°For how long?¡± ¡°Not long.¡± Rush looked at Ruth and made a slight nod. Ruth walked over and was rewarded with a smile from Chance as she looked up at him. He had brought bread rocks once and they had immediately won over all the children. The hard bread with the meaty sauce in the middle a small price to pay for loyalty. Children were fucking weird and easily bribable, Ruth had decided. As Chance continued to look up at him and bare her teeth¡­ Ruth decided this one was okay, at least. He just hoped she didn¡¯t grow up to be scary like Poppy the healer Then Chance closed her eyes and waited. She didn¡¯t seem worried even though they hadn¡¯t really given her any sort of talk or explanation on what they¡¯d be doing. Ruth looked at Rush and nodded. Then he closed his eyes and tried to send his mind toward their soul space. Ruth was entering Elsewhere. ********** It was easier now. Ruth saw his soul space and found Rush immediately. The creature himself had teleported here. Ruth actually didn¡¯t know if Rush could project his mind here and leave his body in Under Arch. He was about to ask when Rush nodded toward a small green ribbon that was hovering near their soul space. "Press." Ruth went over and pressed a finger down on it. Moments later he felt Rush guiding them through the Elsewhere. A few moments was all it had taken to appear in front of Chance¡¯s soul space. It worried Ruth with how easy it had been. If you knew where to look it was that quick? His avatar shivered, a cold feeling washing over him at the thought of how exposed his soul space felt now. Rush walked over to the soul space and nodded, confirming that this was in fact the place they were supposed to be. The soul space itself was tiny compared to his, and Ruth felt like he could probably take two or three giant steps and be completely through it at the widest point. It wasn¡¯t exactly a sphere¡­ either. More of an oblong shape, like a root vegetable. There was no discernible shape in the middle of the dimly lit space. Chance seemed to be some distance from awakening anything of that nature. ¡°Why does she have chains?¡± Ruth asked with no small amount of confusion. Chance¡¯s soul space was immature in every way. There was absolutely no reason to chain it as far as he was concerned. ¡°Don¡¯t know. All loyal subjects also have the tiny black chains. None are awakened. It keeps their space small and restricts mana from coming in. Had a thought. Checked it last night when we talked about the golden chains and the oaths.¡± Rush sounded wary now, casting a mournful look at Ruth. Rush felt impatience and anger coming from his companion. Someone was fucking with his retainers, and there was nothing that Rush hated more than someone tooling around with them. Ruth had a suspicion he already knew what Rush was talking about. ¡°Let me guess, everyone in Under Arch has the chains?¡± ¡°Yeah. Even the small ugly babies.¡± Rush didn¡¯t really like babies. They weirded him out for some reason. Rush and Ruth stared at the small black wiggling chains in silence. ¡°Well, babies can¡¯t make oaths? How is it done?¡± Ruth ran a hand over his hair in consternation. ¡°Could find a baby being born and watch?¡± Rush sounded opposed to the idea even as he was suggesting it. ¡°Maybe parents do it?¡± ¡°All of them?¡± Ruth frowned. ¡°Maybe it is this place?¡± Rush suggested. ¡°Freddie read a book about Under Arch and the Arachne castle. This creature named Wilkeena is lord of this land, or so the book says. Freddie says she doesn¡¯t know if Wilkeena is a real thing or not. She doesn¡¯t know anyone that has seen her. We know she is real though, right?¡± Ruth grunted in response. Wilkeena was a real thing. From conversations with the castle guards, Merriweather, even half-statements from Tamara revealed that the Arachne Wilkeena was a very real creature, even if she didn¡¯t make her presence known. ¡°She is supposed to be gone or something now.¡± Ruth sighed, and then finally shook his head. Rush seemed to come to the same conclusion he had and spoke the thought both of them were having. Wilkeena was unimportant at the moment. ¡°Irrelevant.¡± ¡°Yeah. Can you break it?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t break chains,¡± Rush said in frustration. ¡°Keep trying the chain on our space. Too hard. Tried to gnaw it away but it heals faster than I can eat it. Tried to eat the one around Pipren¡¯s. Same thing. Worse. Also, tastes bad.¡± ¡°These are smaller though. Can you chew through them?¡± ¡°Pipren says no one can chew through chains,¡± Rush repeated, shaking his head. ¡°Now we know they are soul oaths¡­ if a god can¡¯t escape chains¡­¡± Ruth went quiet for a moment. ¡°...just try these.¡± Rush turned his head and stared at Ruth. Genuine concern began to appear in his golden eyes. Rush hesitated as he considered. Not because he didn¡¯t want to try, but what it meant if he failed. It meant that there was no hope. Everything Rush had heard about soul chains from Pipren and his own experiments on their soul space, including the experience that Ruth had just had, indicated that there was nothing they could do. They would simply have to avoid being chained in the future. Avoid it at all costs. So if he tried and failed, right now, Rush was afraid of it being too much for Ruth. ¡°I¡¯m not so weak. Do it.¡± Ruth said quietly. Rush moved to the edge of Chance¡¯s soul space. He snorted, looking slightly tickled when the space started to shift toward him like it recognized his presence in a dim way. His amusement vanished as the chains immediately clanked as they pulled the space back in place. Rush momentarily forgot Ruth was there. The soul shape seemed to be enraged by the sight of the chains strangling Chance¡¯s soul space. ¡°EAT YOU!¡± Rush sprang forward and red light burst out from his body as he clasped the links of the chain with his talons and bit down. Energy immediately sparked out from the chains and started whipping the small scaled body. Rush froze. This was new. It didn¡¯t matter. The pain on his body as the chains began to resist only seemed to excite the small creature. ¡°I EAT!¡± ****** Chance opened her eyes, startled at the sudden heat and discomfort she felt in her body. Breathe! Couldn¡¯t breathe. No air. Not enough air. She fell to the side as her chest began to heave up and down. The panic in her eyes increased and sweat started to break out on her skin. She tried to reach out toward Lord Ruth, fingers clasping desperately at the hem of his clothes. His eyes were closed and he made no motion. It was like he couldn¡¯t feel her trying to get his attention. Chance looked around for Lord Rush but couldn¡¯t find him. His large nest of blankets was gone. Then something felt broken inside of her. Her eyes went wide, fluttered, and then closed. She slumped to the floor, fingers still curled in a desperate claw as she held fast to Ruth¡¯s clothing. ******** ¡°Mm. Smells different.¡± Lord Rush peered down at Chance. When Ruth had returned to his body and Rush had teleported back they had both been a bit surprised and dismayed to find that Chance was crumpled into a sweating ball on the floor. Rush had formed a hand from aura and gently pinched the edge of her tunic, carrying her to her spot among the nests of blankets. An initial check had shown that she was breathing easily and was just asleep. Both of them had been quietly relieved. They had, very possibly, forgot to check on her when they were experimenting in the Elsewhere. ¡°How long until she wakes up?¡± Ruth asked, scratching his head. After everything that had happened over the last day, he didn¡¯t really give a damn if he missed afternoon combat practice or nightly theory with Tamara. That didn¡¯t mean he really wanted to just sit here and stare down at Chance. ¡°Dunno.¡± Rush replied, shaking his head. ¡°Aren¡¯t you the human expert?¡± Ruth scrunched up his face in disappointment. ¡°One month. Learn many things. Language best part. Know many ways to tell you to go fuck yourself!¡± Rush hissed angrily. ¡°Language...¡± Chance opened her eyes and sat up, eyes looking sleepily around the room. ¡°Why is everything so bright?¡± Her eyes fell on Lord Rush and her eyes suddenly went wide with delight. ¡°Oh wow! You¡¯re so super red!¡± Rush moved forward slowly after sharing a concerned look with Ruth, turning his head to peer with one eye at Chance. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°You have this pretty red light coming off you, like when it¡¯s cold outside and you start to work real hard.¡± Chance made little wiggly fingers across her arms, trying to explain the steaming phenomenon to them. Rush looked at Ruth and found that the Tiefling was already staring at him. They shared a look of growing excitement. The chain had been destroyed and Chance didn¡¯t explode or die in some horrifying way. Chance looked between them, and she started to smile too. ¡°Why are we happy? Hey! Hey, what happened?¡± ¡°GOOD CHANCE. CHANCE IS GOOD!¡± Rush began to roar. He teleported around the room in short bursts. There didn¡¯t seem to be any particular destination in mind. He looked like he was going to start crawling up the walls. Ruth picked up the girl and began to twirl her through the air even as he hopped around. His tail thrashed wildly in all directions. Chance was a little concerned as she observed the behavior of the two. It was possible that they had both been exposed to some bad food. She decided to enjoy the attention for the moment. Everything was a little bit brighter than she remembered. Breathing was easy too. Even when he twirled her around she had no trouble taking big lungfuls of air. It was nice. 52. Ruth Cant Be Held Here When Ruth stepped out of the warehouse everything felt different. How did Chance describe it? Oh, yeah. Everything was brighter. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The wild joy he felt was still making his heart race. His attempts to keep the excitement from showing on his face were mostly successful, at least he thought so, but sassy tail could not be contained. It whipped around back and forth, curling and uncurling every time he stopped consciously making an effort to keep it still. He and Rush had briefly discussed their findings. The chain had fallen off, already slowly eating away at itself as it wriggled harmlessly near Chance¡¯s liberated soul space. Already the small soul space showed rudimentary signs of experimentation without the chain strangling it back into a smaller space. Mana flowed into it and out of it, normal behavior for a soul space in the Elsewhere. They had decided that they wouldn¡¯t try destroying any other chains right now, as unfortunate as it was to leave the vile things on the rest of Rush¡¯s ¡®followers¡¯. If the ability for Rush to devour aura extended to chains, then this was a big deal. It put Tamara¡¯s strange behavior in a new light. They would have to be increasingly wary of her. Not just her, but others as well. His eyes narrowed at the thought. New days, new hope, more enemies on the horizon. The new goal was to test their newfound knowledge without giving themselves away. If Rush could eat the weaker chains off of smaller soul spaces, then it was possible that as he grew in power he would be able to deal with the larger ones. That meant two things. The first, that Ruth would have to start pushing to become stronger. He already wanted to be strong enough to get away from Tamara. Now there was an urgency to the mission. He had to be strong, but just strong enough. He had to get strong fast, but pretend not to know about the deeper game. He and Rush would have to do that deception thing that he sucked at. The second goal was to test Rush on Pipren and Merriweather¡¯s soul chains. Rush was a bit vague on this part. Ruth had never seen the chains in question but the small lizard assured him that the chains were exceedingly peculiar, like they were constantly constricting and cutting into the soul space. Rush seemed somewhat eager to give it a try after they increased their power. Ruth was¡­ less eager. He liked Merriweather, that wasn¡¯t the problem. She was strong and never lied. Well, couldn¡¯t lie, Rush had mentioned the particulars of the soul space and shape in question. She also seemed to have a strange sense of honor and duty. Ruth narrowed his eyes as he walked through Under Arch toward the castle training grounds. He would have to try and establish some sort of friendship with Merriweather. That was another goal to work on. The thought of the future had hung heavy off of him this morning, but now he felt light and spirited. Ruth considered the skills he¡¯d received during the night and quickened his pace. ************** Ruth didn¡¯t greet anyone as he briskly walked through the field. That didn¡¯t stop everyone else from trying to get his attention though. For some reason there were more and more people trying to gain his attention when he was here. ¡°Ruth! You¡¯re early! I¡¯m so happy you¡¯re here!¡± Poppy fell into step beside him, making short hops as she quickened her small stride to keep up with his longer legs. In spite of the irritated look he gave her she just beamed back at him. ¡°It¡¯s gonna be a good day? Huh? I bet it is. Don¡¯t you worry, no matter how many times that Lina cuts into you I¡¯ll make sure you don¡¯t have a mark on ya!¡± Ruth grunted noncommittally, trying to take a subtle step to the side to put some distance between them as they walked. Maybe it was too subtle. Poppy immediately pressed her hand to keep her hat on her head as she jerked to the side to move closer to him again. ¡°You¡¯re not already hurt are you?¡± Her eyes crawled over his body in a sort of hungry way. ¡°Maybe I should take a look, huh?¡± Ruth gave her another strained look. He knew from experience that if he started talking to her she would just get really excited and talk more. Even if he told her how she made him uncomfortable she would just laugh it off and take that moment to get even closer to him. ¡°Merriweather! Look who is here! Yay!¡± Poppy called out. Ruth tried to keep how happy he was that Merriweather was here from his face. He gave Merriweather a quick glance to the side at Poppy meaningfully. Save me. Merriweather shifted her burning gaze from him to Poppy, and then back to him. There was no circlet or helmet over her head today and her hair drifted down past her shoulders in long red rings. Her eyebrow lifted in a sort of silent question. Then with the slightest curl of her lips she turned away and started to walk to another sparring circle with her hands clasped behind her back. Her feet kicked out high in front of her like she didn¡¯t have a care in the world. Ruth immediately scowled, trying to decide whether or not he should say anything as he watched her back. Jeanne must have seen him walking across the field because he was already in the sparring circle. The man was stretching lightly, leaning over and touching the tips of his toes. He had his hands wrapped in heavy cloth. Ruth had initially thought that the wraps on Jeanne¡¯s hands were so he could punch harder. A few bouts had revealed that they were just to protect his hands. Jeanne had confirmed this at one point during their sparring when he¡¯d confessed that hitting Ruth all day long was like hitting a granite wall. It was a weird feeling, being compared to a wall. Ruth watched Merriweather as she continued to walk away, and then his gaze turned on Jeanne. He tilted his head, noticing for the first time that Jeanne seemed stiff in his legs. The more he stretched the more Ruth noticed that the man¡¯s shoulders were hunched in stress. The days of constant punching must have been taking a toll on the man¡¯s physique. Ruth briefly forgot about Merriweather as a number of thoughts all vied for his attention. His eyes began to narrow as he considered how today was not like yesterday. In his eyes, Jeanne had turned from insurmountable obstacle to very doable inconvenience. As the other man noticed his intense gaze he bared his teeth. The smile was shallower than it had been the last few days, looking tired and weary.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Ruth thought that today might be very different. Ruth ¡®smiled¡¯ back at Jeanne as he moved purposefully toward him. An old familiar thought started to take shape in his mind: moment of silence for Jeanne. ****** Merriweather didn¡¯t look back when she heard the tell-tale sound of fists striking flesh. Sometimes Merriweather had dreams about that sound, she¡¯d heard it so often. If Meriweather were to listen to ten different people getting punched in the pitch black she¡¯d still be able to point Ruth out. It wasn¡¯t worth watching. Ruth was getting better, that was true. Jeanne had a headstart and it wasn¡¯t like he was getting any worse. In a lot of ways beating Ruth was very good for Jeanne¡¯s development. It was polishing him, removing some of the flaws and hesitation from his violence. It was a sad truth. The only way to lose the reluctance of hurting another person was to do just that. Still, the sounds of flesh being hit behind her sounded off. It was probably time to give him a break. His body was starting to show signs of strain¡­ Merriweather felt her steps falter as she realized that Ibram and Sandral had stopped in their sparring and turned toward her. At first, she thought it was because they had something to ask her. Now she realized they were staring over her shoulder at the scene behind her. Merriweather felt herself turning too, wondering what had snagged their attention. All the guards were quietly impressed with Ruth in their own way. Whether it was admiration for his attitude or just the sheer amount of punishment, she couldn¡¯t say. Maybe they were just glad he got all of Poppy¡¯s gentle ministrations when he was here? She turned and immediately frowned. Ruth had his arms tucked in against his chest, displaying the back of his forearms as a guard. Hunched in over himself with a fairly good defensive posture. This was a trick he had been picking up from Jeanne, learned from the few times when the Tiefling had gained the offensive. Jeanne usually picked it apart immediately, but this time he was stepping in and out in obvious frustration. The reason was immediately obvious to her and the sparring duo behind her. They were both veterans and knew why Jeanne was now struggling. Ruth was watching Jeanne from behind his guarded arms in a manner that suggested collected calculation. In the past, Ruth had never been quite fast or perceptive enough to keep track of Jeanne, allowing him to move in and out with relative impunity. Now, though, every time Jeanne began to move in those eyes followed him without trouble. Ruth¡¯s stance began to shift in anticipation, giving Jeanne pause. It was a drastic change from yesterday. One of the things that the guard really liked about Ruth was a flaw. They liked how he blew his cool and went into what they called ¡®ruth states¡¯. Some interesting things would happen. The tail would throw dirt, Ruth would try any manner of way to trade damage, Ruth would try to bite Jeanne¡­ That mentality was completely absent. With the relative size difference, today it looked like Jeanne was a smaller cat moving in under the watchful eyes of a larger and more dangerous predator. ¡°Skill, maybe?¡± Ibram wondered aloud. He cleared his throat and spit some phlegm behind him, causing Sandral to step away from that spot in disgust. She began eyeing Ibram¡¯s back with a hint of expectation. ¡°Maybe.¡± Merriweather gave Sandral a look. A slight smirk and a soft nod. ¡°Ahh! Wait!¡± Merriweather decided not to laugh as she turned away from the pair. Sandral having taken advantage of Ibram¡¯s distraction by shoulder checking him to the ground from behind. She was starting to kick out his legs and get his arm into a classic submission position. Sandral might not break the arm, but Merriweather hoped she did. It would be a valuable lesson about keeping your guard up. She slowly began to pick her way back toward the special dirt circle(a description that left her exasperated, honestly) to see if their ¡®dragon¡¯ had learned anything or if this was just a momentary insight. The sounds of a punch hitting flesh came as Jeanne went in and jabbed twice. Ruth took both blows on the same arm and then extended it. The casual movement ended with a soft fist to Jeanne¡¯s face, snapping his head back. Jeanne stumbled for a moment, eyes widening in shock at the unexpected blow. He stepped backward in practiced fashion and found that Ruth had stepped forward, keeping perfect step with him, arms already raised in guard position. Golden vertical pupils stared wide from behind the arms. Jeanne jabbed twice, then performed a crossover jab shortly after. As soon as the third punch landed on his right arm, that same arm casually dropped once again, the open hand clenching into a fist just before impact and snapping Jeanne¡¯s head back. Jeanne hopped to the side and started stepping backward, alarmed for real this time. His probing revealing that Ruth was trying something different. Ruth side-stepped quickly and moved forward keeping perfect step with him. Jeanne paused and started to step forward to punch. The fist went high as Jeanne reeled. Ruth¡¯s tail had slipped around from below and curled halfway around his forward knee, pulling. Falling backward Jeanne¡¯s eyes widened comically as he spread his legs to keep his balance. Merriweather winced. Mistake. Should have just fallen backward and scooted back, as unsightly as that is¡­ Ruth stepped slightly to the side and hammered Jeanne¡¯s exposed torso three times in rapid succession. Jeanne grunted, his eyes unfocusing as a result of the impacts. The slight delay in his reaction after being struck in the chest was enough for Ruth to stabilize his own feet as his right arm cocked back in the beginning of what was sure to be a heavy blow. Jeanne looked up. His reward was taking the punch straight on the corner of the jaw. His body seemed to freeze for a moment before the follow through directly jackhammered him into the ground. Stunned, Jeanne rolled slowly to his knees, lifting his head to look at Ruth. Jeanne jerked slightly, almost as if he was surprised that Ruth had stepped forward and was once again preparing a heavy punch. The sound of Ruth¡¯s fist hitting Jeanne¡¯s face and the smaller man collapsing on the dirt was the loudest noise in the training area. Everyone had stopped what they were doing and was watching now. Jeanne twitched twice, then a third time. Ruth looked down at his own fist and then the twitching soldier. He slowly lowered his hand toward Jeanne¡¯s still form. Merriweather¡¯s eyes widened and she started to take a step forward. She was too slow. Ruth would definitely kill Jeanne before she could make it there. All around her she felt everyone else stirring into action, beginning to take the first step that would take them toward that place. Then Ruth grabbed Jeanne¡¯s foot and straightened, pulling Jeanne toward the edge of the arena. Poppy began jumping up and down in agitation as he neared, but the usual smile was absent from her face. As she watched Jeanne being dragged closer there was almost a disappointed look on her face. It disappeared almost instantly as Ruth neared. ¡°Wow, good one! Yay for you!¡± Ruth dropped the foot of the man and peered down at Jeanne with a confused expression. Merriweather felt her alarm and sense of danger vanish as she studied Ruth¡¯s expression. Finally, the Tiefling looked up and met her gaze, his face easily readable. Now what? This is as far as I ever got before. ************* Ruth watched as Merriweather sent someone to get Lina. He was early, and Lina was apparently in the barracks(wherever those were) sharpening her knives(because of course she was). Ruth looked down at Jeanne as he tried to remember the fight. Everything had slowed down. The simple way that Jeanne had been coming at him was too easy to pick apart. The fists that had hurt him for over a month felt soft on his skin. The Immortal and Deadly Text appeared as he slowly moved back into the center of the arena, surprising him. How long had it been since it had taken the initiative to show him his current status.
>New Skill Learned: [Novice Boxing] [Perception].
Ruth stared blankly. It was this easy? He scratched his head and turned to Merriweather who was now idling on the edge of the patch of dirt. ¡°...is there a skill you get for being stabbed a lot?¡± Merriweather blinked a few times¡­ and then she smiled. 53. Ruth Learns Theres More to Life Than Being Stabbed When Lina stepped through into the area with a muffled yawn, she paused for the slightest of moments as she took in all the faces that were turned toward her. The frank gazes all turning toward her and focusing loosely on her letting her know that her arrival was anticipated. Ruth was crouched in the middle of the sparring area. He raised a hand to get her attention and waved her over. A quick flex of his legs propelled him to his feet as he hopped lightly from foot to foot. It wasn¡¯t that he was anxious about getting stabbed or cut, he just didn¡¯t want to lose sight of that feeling he had when he was fighting Jeanne. The world became clearer. Noises reduced and turned into useful information. Irrelevant people faded into the background. He could feel his heart beating steadily in his chest. Even now while Lina was walking toward him, giving a spare glance to Jeanne who was already being woken, he wished she would hurry. ¡°Breakthrough?¡± She asked him as she sidled into the dragon-shaped dirt patch. She was so small looking, her dark eyes burning into him as she gave him a lazy once over. It would be easy to get fooled into thinking she was harmless. ¡°Congratulations.¡± Her accent was weird. Heavier than the others here at the castle. Ruth suspected she wasn¡¯t originally from here. Merriweather didn¡¯t seem to fit, and neither did Solace. Where they planted here in his path by Tamara? Ruth narrowed his eyes as she did a thing and two knives appeared in her hands. He wasn¡¯t sure if they came from the arm wraps, her gloves, her belt, or somewhere else. He shrugged, continuing the shoulder movement far longer than necessary as he started to work the tension out of his muscles. He had learned that holding too much tension was bad. He would need to be flexible and relaxed if he wanted to react in time to her strikes. ¡°Mmm. Okay. Before we start, I just want you to know something,¡± Lina smiled. ¡°I¡¯m the daughter of the top family in Under Arch, it¡¯s fine for me to cut you and beat you, but I warn you that if you hurt me, even if I am healed from it, my family will not forgive you. They will have to send assassins and men to beat and possibly kill you. It is a matter of reputation.¡± Ruth blinked rapidly as he felt his mouth start to drop open. He lost the feeling completely. Everything slipped away as he considered this new information. The way she spoke, with that matter-of-factness, really gave him the impression that he should just stand here and let her stab him. Wouldn¡¯t that be the right thing to do anyway? Wasn¡¯t he testing out his ability to acquire skills? Lina took the moment and stepped in, he tried to react by punching out but she moved in, propped herself under his shoulder, hurled him to the ground. The next thing he knew she was sitting on his chest and the point of the knife was in the nape of his throat. She moved her free hand to the top of the pommel of the knife and tapped it lightly. ¡°You¡¯re dead.¡± ¡°So I am,¡± Ruth agreed, staring up at her in amazement. ¡°Why are you dead?¡± Lina smiled, her words hard for him to parse with their relative positions and her heavy accent. ¡°Knife?¡± Ruth guessed. His face started to scowl as the smile on Lina¡¯s face blossomed. ¡°Get off me.¡± ¡°Respect the dead,¡± she agreed. She sat back and then stood up. When she went to step across him her foot paused, and then planted on his chest. She used him as a footstool and moved casually away, hips swaying without a backward glance. A kind of overwhelming all-encompassing red threatened to steal his vision and judgment. Was this the effect of that strange [Fury]? He pushed it down and slowly stood up, considering his options. It didn¡¯t matter, really, his plan was just to get stabb-- ¡°My family will likely also make it hard for those who know you. It won¡¯t be enough to just hurt you, we¡¯ll have to go after people you know. Otherwise we might appear weak. You understand?¡± Lina lifted her knives and began slowly walked toward him. Her comment made his mind blank once more. Did she know that he was just going to stand here and let her stab him? What was the point of this? The more she talked about her family and how she was protected the more eager he was getting to just beat her into the ground. But¡­ who would they go after really? Rush? The kids at the docks? Ruth frowned. Rush could take care of himself, but the kids at the warehouse? Did he¡­ care about that? The world spun around. She had moved in front of him and then swept his non-existent guard out from under him, grabbing his shoulder and spinning him as he fell. His nose pressed into the dirt. When he exhaled in a huff as the air was driven from his lungs the dirt flared up around his face, stinging his eyes and getting into his mouth. He felt a hand gripping his horns and the tip of a knife pressing against the base of his skull. ¡°Dead. Ass up.¡± He felt her lean down as she continued whispering in his ear. ¡°It is okay. Not everyone is born into a great family. There is no shame. This is just your misfortune.¡± The pressure was gone for a moment as she lifted herself off his body. A small foot on his back planted for a moment before loosely shoving off. He listened to her footsteps as they faded away. Ruth didn¡¯t immediately get up. He stayed in the undignified position for nearly a minute as he worked through the things that were happening to him. He considered what she had said. It was just his misfortune that she was in a position where he couldn¡¯t truly retaliate. Just his misfortune that he had been minding his own business when Tamara had appeared from nowhere and destroyed his life. His misfortune that no matter how he tried to live peacefully on his mountain there was always a band of humans, an invading ogre clan, some stupidly large creature that wanted his lair. His misfortune at entering the world as a fledgling dragon among other whelps. It was simple. Ruth stood up slowly, the dirt and dust staining only one half of his face in a comical fashion. He turned around and faced Lina. ¡°What¡¯s the name of your family?¡± Ruth asked, trying to wipe some of the spittle and dirt from his jaw. ¡°Why?¡± Lina lifted her daggers, but this time she paused, that smile that had blossomed on her face earlier seeming to go even wider. ¡°I think it is easier to kill you all if I know what the name is,¡± Ruth felt the top of his mouth with his tongue, tasting blood. He took a second to spit the bloody dirt from his mouth, eyes not moving from Lina. Lina laughed. ¡°Yes! That is correct.¡± ¡°...what?¡± Ruth blinked. Her delight in his response threw him off. ¡°If someone comes at you with reputation, they are asking for you to involve their family, yes? This is the way of the strong. Always try to eat the prey even if it is bigger than you.¡± Lina took a step back keeping a healthy range between them even as Ruth took a step forward. ¡°So you don¡¯t come from a big family?¡± Ruth tilted his head questioningly. His eyes narrowed. ¡°If I did, it wouldn¡¯t matter. I used to listen to stories of the old days, in Kitvalka, the bad place. In Kitvalka, there once existed many great families. Their power spread over the largest cities. Everyone had to pay them respect if they saw them in the streets. Even if the one you saw was weak, he would only speak the name of his family and people would be too afraid to strike back. This method of reputation fighting grew in popularity, as a result. Soon families vied with each other for reputation and competed in more and more ridiculous ways. Feuds were started because lower family members demanded they were given respect in the most ludicrous situations. It was even expected. A member of a high family must never show weakness, must never admit inferiority, must always strike hard¡­¡±Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Ruth kept taking steps forward and Lina kept stepping back. When she started to reach the edge of the dirt pit she just started circling the edge. ¡°Sounds complex.¡± ¡°Not really. You see, more often than not, on many worlds not just Kitvalka, all it took was some younger generation nobody to offend someone they should not have. WIthout fail you know what they would say?¡± Lina¡¯s smile faded slightly. ¡°If you hurt me, my family will never forgive this offense.¡± She shrugged lightly before continuing, ¡°and it happened all the time. The person they had offended was completely capable of handling a whole family. The response of the truly strong is always straightforward and obvious. Like your response. If one comes. Kill one. If two come. Kill two. If you want your whole family involved, they are involved.¡± ¡°Is there a point to this?¡± Ruth scratched his head. It was a very interesting story, he had to admit. The concept that people would bring their loved ones in to conflicts they hadn¡¯t been apart of was mystifying to him. Humans were really the fucking worst. ¡°Well, it let me beat you up twice in a row?¡± Lina chuckled. ¡°I just thought it was an interesting story. You are an interesting fellow.¡± ¡°Do people still do that?¡± Ruth questioned, and as he looked around slightly, keeping Lina in his line of sight, he saw a few people(Poppy, Merriweather, and a few others) all nodding in a ¡®what can you do¡¯ sort of way. ¡°They do. These are not the ones you need worry about. If someone says this to you, you should just kill them because it is a show of weakness. All the great families that once did this thing no longer tolerate it, or are dead. If you are a member of a great family you will be given a censure if you try to use your family name for protection. The death toll is just too high and the risk too great. In Kitvalka, while gods and goddesses are few, it is still possible to offend one. Most family heads will tell their younger generation the same thing. If you are in trouble, keep our name to yourself. If you are unimportant and you die, die knowing you have not brought death onto your family and be proud. If you are important to the family, die knowing that we will avenge you if possible.¡± ¡°What about here in Under Arch?¡± Ruth asked. ¡°There are those who try to hide behind their families, but most established families know that it is folly to risk the extermination of your whole line. Especially now that there are rumors that a god walks Under Arch.¡± Lina looked him over knowingly. ¡°That would be bad,¡± Ruth agreed solemnly. A vision of someone on the street bumping into Tamara and then sneering at her. Yeah. That would be the end of that person¡¯s line if they yelled out their family name. ¡°Yeah.¡± Lina came to a stop, no longer stepping backward. She seemed smaller all of a sudden. The change in behavior caused Ruth to hesitate too. ¡°Can I ask you something?¡± Ruth raised an eyebrow and raised his arms, half-worried she would try to distract him and attack him again. It just made her smile wryly at him. ¡°If someone ever tries to use their name against you, call them a moron?¡± ¡°Okay, moron.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± She was quick as usual as she came in. Her style consisted of getting in very close to him and ducking under his punches and grabs and striking lightning fast with the tip of her blade toward his sides and under his shoulders, sometimes letting the sharpened blade carve across his flesh in the journey toward such spots. There were any number of times in his few brief fights with her where he¡¯d felt the true thrill of danger beneath her blades. The implicit understanding that she had been going easy on him even when she cut into his body. This time was different. The feeling of danger was much higher. Without any preamble he began backing up, making his early pursuit of her while she spoke seem funny in retrospect. His tail dipped behind him and kicked up dirt toward her face. His aim with sassy tail and tailkicking dirt up at his opponents was reaching a truly proficient level. Her eyes were locked on him and didn¡¯t flicker for the slightest moment. Her eyes simply closed a little bit, obviously stinging from the few particles that struck. She flicked her left hand and the knife disappeared from it. It reappeared in his shoulder before he could react, pushing him backward slightly. He raised his other hand to stop the advance of her other knife, which she power-assisted with her newly freed hand. The feeling of danger increased again as he saw that the blade was set to strike him center mass below the ribcage. The slow feeling happened again. Every detail in the immediate surroundings sharpened. He could make out the way the veins in her arms stood out as she put pressure on the hilt of the knife. The calm focus of her eyes as she plunged forward with the expression of someone who had done this a thousand times and didn¡¯t expect any sort of different result this time. The way her eyes didn¡¯t flinch when she acknowledged the way his tail was moving down near her legs in a slow effort to impede her progress. The tail was too slow and he wouldn¡¯t make it. The split second of clarity continued as his eyes saw every detail and his mind had plenty of time to formulate a plan. She had called it a breakthrough. Maybe that¡¯s what it was? It didn¡¯t feel like a skill as described to him by Merriweather and the others. It was just that his body was suddenly faster and more capable than his opponents. Lina was more skilled, more experienced, and had a surprising lack of concern on whether he¡¯d live through her blows today. His body was just better now. Speed, reaction, strength, decision-making. What would this be like when he was a demi-god? What was it like to be a god? Ruth chose the simplest method. No stranger to inflicting pain on himself in order to hurt his foe, he lifted his hand and pushed his palm against the tip of the blade. The length of the blade slid through his hand even as his fingers tried to close around it. His other arm reached up to grab her wrist. Lina immediately abandoned the knife, she had a lot of knives, after all. The length of his reach and the speed of his grab with his free hand must have surprised her because her eyes finally widened as he snagged her arm. He pulled her toward him and stretched his torso backward in preparation to deliver a headbutt. Lina immediately dropped, her full weight pulling downward and out of range of the headbutt. She lowered her shoulders and pushed into his waist, twisting her head at just above his waistline. Cold sweat broke out on his skin as he felt the kiss of razors cutting open his stomach. Lina had razorblades in her mouth or on her collar? Just how in love with blades was she? Where did she keep them all? Almost as if sensing his disbelief and his unspoken question about knives, she tapped her right foot on the ground and a small blade appeared from the tip of her boot. She twisted her foot and kicked toward his shins. Ruth¡¯s hand with the knife blade in it went down and he pushed his palm downward, slapping it down on the top of her leg. A grunt of pain sounded out as the blade sliced into her leg, pushing her foot back down and making her involuntarily straighten her back. The moment was all he needed to get a better grip on her, fingers painfully stretching around her leg even as his grip on her wrist and forearm tightened. Can¡¯t headbutt her? Can¡¯t seem to punch her? Can¡¯t grapple her on the ground because she¡¯s like a goddamn snake-eating weasel? Fine! Ruth lifted her up and abruptly bodyslammed her onto the ground. He didn¡¯t stop when her body froze at the unexpected movement and impact. He lifted her and slammed her down again. He went to his knees so he didn¡¯t have to lift her up as high, separating her from the ground and lifting her only a meter this time before slamming her into the dirt. His eyes were wide as he hammered her whole body into the ground with all his strength. Even when she went limp he thought it might be a trick so he did it twice more for good measure. Ruth tore the knifeblade from her leg as he pulled his hand away and released his hold on her arm. He scrambled away on his good hand and knees, only briefly taking his eyes off of her to remove the knife from his hand. The feeling of danger hadn¡¯t decreased in the slightest when he¡¯d been picking Lina up and slamming her down. When he looked up he saw Lina was being dragged by Merriweather out of the circle. Poppy was shoving Jeanne, who had been resting near her, out of the way as she waited. From the way Poppy moved in quickly to check and then looked bored, Ruth assumed that Lina was fine. There was a slight feeling of relief. This place was full of people that made Ruth feel danger, but at least Lina always made it feel impersonal. He shook his head, looking down at the jagged hole in his palm and sucked in a breath. He tried blowing on it but that only made it hurt more. A lot more. He closed his eyes and tried to cover it with his free hand. Agggh! Don¡¯t blow on it! Ruth looked around expectantly for the immortal and deadly text. When it didn¡¯t appear he was a little disappointed. Apparently there was no such thing as ¡®stab resistance¡¯. Or maybe there was and he couldn¡¯t get it for some reason. If Lina had known Ruth¡¯s thoughts(and been conscious) she might have made a face. Cutting into Ruth had been a real chore this time around. 54. Tamara and the Tenuous Ownership of Under Arch Tamara, in spite of the general perception that she just hung out in Elsewhere and the space carved out under the Archives, was actually pretty busy for the last month. She had been keeping a close eye on Ruth, Rush, and Heath and his adorable little chosen. Those things were already incredibly taxing as far as attention went. Would that it was only that. Tamara sat across from Flynn and smiled. Well, she sat across an Arachne that had a vacant expression that was being puppeted by Flynn. One of his sons that had either tried to supplant Flynn and failed in an embarrassing way¡­ or one of his sons that had been too afraid to try and surplant him. Flynn was a weird creature, even for a god. The Arachne puppet stared blankly at her and the human part opened its mouth and spoke. ¡°You are right. The planet means nothing to me. It is still a planet.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you just¡­ rent it to me for a while then? It¡¯s not like anyone there is even worth grabbing. If I took them off would you even care? Everyone there has that weird soul formation placed on them. Pretty spiffy, if you don¡¯t mind me saying so.¡± ¡°It is enough to say that I don¡¯t want you to have it?¡± The arachne puppet did not smile but Flynn¡¯s voice sounded amused nonetheless. ¡°When you contacted me expressing interest in the planet, I agreed to these meetings out of amusement. The interest you display toward the planet is of great interest to several people.¡± ¡°I am fun to watch!¡± Tamara chuckled. ¡°Is it because you named it ¡®Flynn¡¯s World¡¯? Is that why? I mean, I¡¯d leave the name. Otherwise what would I even name it? Tamara¡¯s World? Wow, how pretentious would that be?¡± The Arachne froze for a moment. Then the mouth started moving again and the tone that came out was almost cordial. ¡°Pretending to be civil to one another is also a form of entertainment. You offer to buy my world, I express interest and we talk while I try to gather information on why you want it, you dicker and deflect, I say that I have no intention of giving it to you because you¡¯re you, you give me a backhand insult, then I say something awful that makes you angry, and then where are we?¡± ¡°Am I boring you Flynn?¡± Tamara chuckled. ¡°Or are you just afraid that you can¡¯t keep up the back and forth? I¡¯ve always meant to ask, are you one of those types of spiders that has sex once and the glandy part breaks off? That can¡¯t really be it, can it? Is that why you puppet your male kids after a certain amount of time, so you can have more inbred spider babies? Is it because you had a detachable penis and¡­¡± Tamara clicked her tongue and made a short breaking motion with her index finger, ¡°...left it in your first hideous lay?¡± The puppet was just a corpse that was being preserved through the use of magic and a secret magical formation. It didn¡¯t require air, had no vital points, and was here only to communicate with Tamara directly because Flynn himself preferred meetings to be face-to-face when not dealing with his children. If you could call this ¡®face-to-face¡¯. Despite the fact that the voice from the puppet was calm and the puppet itself didn¡¯t seem capable of displaying a great deal of emotion, the quiet rage was unmistakable when his response finally came. ¡°How vulgar. I don¡¯t mind you speaking of such crude and crass things about my person, but refrain from speaking of my family in such a way. Unless you want to talk about your family, female? Weren¡¯t you in a dispute with Damascus recently? That was over something trivial, wasn¡¯t it? If it were me, I wouldn¡¯t let the death of one person affect me so much¡­¡± ¡°Good thing, you just throw your kids away. Can you imagine if you had a soul and actually cared, monster?¡± Tamara lifted her hand and studied the back of her nails. ¡°Did you ever wonder how they found you three? He had such an interesting soul shape, didn¡¯t he?¡± The puppet¡¯s arms were hanging lifelessly down but suddenly came up and made a wide motion in a dramatic fashion, ¡°...the ability to suppress and conceal aura! You three thought you¡¯d just ascend and skip the Table¡¯s process. How did they find you three?¡± ¡°Presumably, some giant dickless spider told them,¡± Tamara laughed, but her eyes were suddenly pinpricks that blazed with golden light. The puppet dropped its arms. ¡°Maybe you should try having some children,¡± Flynn finally said, for the first time sounding the tiniest bit exhausted. ¡°Cut the shit. By now you¡¯ve figured out I have a chosen that is learning on Wilkeena¡¯s world. Why else would she have cut herself off completely from her favorite little toy? I¡¯m not unsympathetic to her plight. If she had been around then maybe they would have bumped heads. I¡¯m not going to encourage him to go find her or anything, but I would like to at least have general control over the territory.¡± ¡°How kind of you to restrain your chosen from continuing his invasion of my daughter¡¯s territory.¡± ¡°What invasion? He was just visiting! I can¡¯t step in and stop him if he¡¯s just going his way and things attack him. Wouldn¡¯t I be bullying everyone?¡± ¡°You aren¡¯t bullying everyone?¡± Flynn replied with a dry tone. ¡°No, that would be inappropriate. I only butt in when I¡¯m teaching my chosen something, or when another god butts in.¡± Tamara grinned. ¡°Do you want to butt in?¡± ¡°If Wilkeena cut off her interest to the planet, then honestly I have no desire to keep a watch over it. This much is true¡­¡± The arachne puppet lifted up a hand woodenly and tapped his nose. ¡°I don¡¯t like you. That is also true. You could give me something I want, I guess, and I would gain something for nothing. I could keep the planet and do nothing¡­ but¡­ that would be less than entertaining, wouldn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Finally,¡± Tamara leaned back in her chair. ¡°Conditions?¡±Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Wilkeena will continue to remain unmolested in her area. She is not to be disturbed. It is a crucial point in her development.¡± ¡°Fine, she can¡¯t interfere either.¡± ¡°Naturally.¡± ¡°What else?¡± ¡°Make me an offer, you must have something that you¡¯re going to offer me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll offer enough mana to replace the mana she would have gotten from the Under Arch. Until she reaches the tipping point into Demi-god.¡± ¡°Personally?¡± This time Flynn sounded surprised. ¡°Ew, no. I¡¯ll just give you some treasure. She can sit on it, or eat it, or drain the mana from it however she wants. Whatever you spider¡¯s do to gain mana.¡± ¡°Acceptable.¡± ¡°Are we agreed?¡± Tamara blinked rapidly, leaning forward despite herself. The flow of this meeting hadn¡¯t seemed any different from the others, but somehow the old Arachne seemed like he might actually capitulate. ¡°You¡¯ve just offered me something that Wilkeena could already take?¡± ¡°Mmm. That¡¯s true. How about this? Let me ask you a question, and if your answer is ¡®no¡¯ then I¡¯ll spare your life when the time comes.¡± Flynn pondered for a moment and then made a ¡®get on with it¡¯ gesture. ¡°Very well, ask your question.¡± ¡°Were you the one that told the Table about those three?¡± The puppet went still only for a moment and then in a horrendous display, managed to jerk portions of it¡¯s face into an ugly grin. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Damn. Guess that¡¯s off the table then. Next time.¡± Tamara leaned back and snapped her fingers. ¡°Dreams are good. I look forward to you coming to try to take my life. Current circumstances being what they are.¡± ¡°Well then, I¡¯m having a hard time thinking of anything. What do you want, then?¡± Tamara thrummed her fingers against the table. ¡°I told you. Entertainment. I have told you that I am willing to give you the planet.¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet gestured broadly to the empty space on his side of the table and a shape slowly formed. The revealed figure made Tamara narrow her eyes. ¡°But that just means it is up for sale, no? There might be more than one interested buyer, don¡¯t you think?¡± Ah. Tamara stared at Damascus and visibly resisted the urge she had to stand up, forcing herself to relax back in her chair. ¡°No wonder you had a change of heart, you¡¯re just doing Damascus a favor. He probably already gave you something for the chance to fuck with me, huh?¡± The Arachne puppet shrugged in a jerky fashion. ¡°Do I still have to provide the mana?¡± Tamara asked. ¡°Of course,¡± the Arachne turned to Damascus and nodded. ¡°Thank you for your patience Damascus.¡± ¡°Flynn.¡± The man with the yellow goat eyes curled his lips up as he faced her, ¡°Tamara. I trust you won¡¯t give Simeon cause to come here, no?¡± ¡°I obey,¡± Tamara grinned. ¡°Until the day when silly things no longer fetter us. Perhaps never, but¡­¡± Someday sooner than you think, you two fucks. Damascus turned toward Flynn¡¯s puppet. ¡°I¡¯ll match whatever she has said, of course. Plus a token you or one of your kids can use to exchange for something from my personal vault.¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet regarded Damascus as if he were surprised. Even though the face it made already looked horribly off, it was even less believable now. ¡°Oh, I am so shocked at your generous offer. Am I to understand it can be anything in your vault?¡± Damascus nodded as if he were following some sort of script. ¡°Alright, you¡¯re both silly little salesmen. I bet you¡¯ll just match me no matter how much I offer until I get mad, right?¡± Tamara grimaced. ¡°It¡¯s one thing to lose out on a deal. If I have to watch you two flirt with each other I¡¯m the one that will need compensation. What do you want, Damascus?¡± Damascus smiled, making Tamara lose her relaxed look for the first time. ¡°It¡¯s simple Tamara. I fucking hate you. Present conditions keep me from having you killed. Circumstances also prevent me from simply killing your chosen in retaliation for what you pulled. There is absolutely nothing I wouldn¡¯t pay to stand in your way just now.¡± ¡°You¡¯re okay with this?¡± Tamara raised an eyebrow at Flynn¡¯s puppet. The puppet shrugged. ¡°So you¡¯re really going to sell the planet and its inhabitants to this guy?¡± Tamara¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I will sell it to whoever gives me the best offer,¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet said magnanimously. ¡°How about a side-offer then¡­¡± Damascus cut in, obviously enjoying the situation. He eyed Tamara up and down. ¡°Strip. Get on your knees in front of me. Apologize. Then you can pay Flynn what you offered and give him a show. I¡¯ll bow out. How about it?¡± ¡°Also acceptable.¡± Flynn nodded. ¡°Wow, that¡¯s super generous you skeevy fuck.¡± Tamara laughed and kept laughing. After a moment Damascus started to laugh with her. The puppet did not laugh but was watching the two with dead eyes. Flynn was probably chuffing in whatever hole he was hiding in too. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just get out of here?¡± Damascus made a dismissing gesture. ¡°Now you¡¯re just embarrassing yourself.¡± ¡°Mmm? What do you mean? I thought we were negotiating?¡± Tamara raised an eyebrow. ¡°Then offer something.¡± The Arachne puppet said with a raspy edge to its voice. ¡°I have to hear from the other interested party, though. Just give it a second.¡± Tamara smiled. ¡°You can call whoever you want,¡± the Arachne agreed. ¡°There¡¯s Heath¡­ and¡­ Arathan¡­¡± The puppet scratched it¡¯s head. ¡°There must be more, right? Do you have more friends?¡± ¡°Friends?" Tamara started laughing again. ¡°Why would I call a friend? I¡¯m a Slaughter Goddess of Chaos. If things are getting interesting and predictable, who would I call in? Someone who wants to fucking kill you and sow Chaos, of course!¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet considered her while she laughed. He and Damascus were saved from saying anything else because a red haze was starting to form in the space at the side of the table. The relaxed expression on the goat god¡¯s face was slowly turning into a grimace. Flynn¡¯s puppet was frozen as it examined the latecomer. A woman with curved horns and long dark hair stepped out of red blurred space. Scales peeked through in the places where her heavily armored body allowed flesh to show. Her smoldering blue eyes peered around the room in eager expectation, the curl of her lips denoting an enthused and delighted countenance. It took an extra moment for the four meter polearm that the average size woman wielded to pull itself completely out of Elsewhere. Despite the size of Arachne, the presence of Tamara, and the weirdness that made Damascus seem to take up more space than he did, the new arrival pressed the room and made the rest of the space seem smaller. Her eyes didn¡¯t seem to find what she was looking for and a disgruntled look was immediately directed on Tamara. ¡°Where is she?! Where is my Merriweather?¡± Tamara nearly choked because she had never stopped laughing. Tears were forming in her eyes even as she tried and failed to stifle the insane laughter that kept pouring out. ¡°...ask Flynn! He is trying to sell her to Damascus!¡± Damascus immediately blinked and took a hurried step backward. The puppet seemed to sag under the smoldering fire of the gaze being turned toward him. ¡°...ho¡­?¡± 55. Ruth Meets A Moron! The new arrival turned her head slowly and focused her attention on the puppet, unsympathetic eyes narrowing slightly as she once again hummed under her breath in a disbelieving manner. The red hue of her skin extended across her whole body, including the horns that breached her black hair in a gentle curve forward. A shiny black top, loose around her waist and strained at the chest, hung over a smaller form fitting shirt that seemed to accentuate the musculature of her upper body. Casual white pants trailed down her legs and ended at her knees showing shapely calves. Cloven hooves completed the image of the powerful woman as she considered Flynn¡¯s puppet. ¡°How about you explain, Tamara? I¡¯m not someone you can casually call over, so you better be right about Merriweather. Just because I¡¯m unable to kill you myself doesn¡¯t mean I can¡¯t pull some strings and get you sent off to some desolate place at the edge of space to fight the Void Beasts for a hundred thousand years.¡± She smiled dangerously at Flynn¡¯s puppet even while threatening Tamara. Her gaze turned to linger on Damascus, studying the way his expression seemed to be getting progressively more dour ¡°...unless¡­ there is some truth to what is being said? Are you¡­ trying to buy my daughter, Damascus?¡± ¡°To my knowledge your daughter is deceased, I certainly would have brought it to your attention and collected the rather handsome reward for information,¡± Damascus said, the sour look on his face making it look like he just bit into something particularly unpleasant. ¡°That¡¯s not a ¡®no¡¯ is it..?¡± Tamara squeaked from the side, earning a quick blazing look of fury from everyone in the room. She seemed immune to the shade being thrown her way. ¡°Go ahead, tell her that if her daughter is alive you didn¡¯t know, and it¡¯s all Flynn¡¯s fault.¡± Damascus hesitated, casting a quick look at Flynn. The puppet turned slightly toward Damascus and stared vacantly at him for a minute. Damascus licked his lips and was clearing his throat when Flynn¡¯s puppet directly cut him off from speaking and turned the Arachne¡¯s head toward the enraged Tiefling with the four meter polearm in the space. ¡°It seems this is a trap sprung by Tamara. It should be a simple matter to collect her and return her to you, please allow me to go down to the planet and fetch her for you¡­ Assuming she is even really here.¡± ¡°Yeah, why don¡¯t you wait here instead of going down yourself, Titania?¡± Tamara sneered. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t want you to see any unpleasantness. Why, I¡¯ll bet he¡¯ll come back and say that good ol¡¯ Tamara made it all up, and he has no idea where your daughter could be. If I were going to do a follow-up check I¡¯d be looking in the ditches for wherever he hastily dumped her body.¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet jerked for a moment, as if surprised. ¡°These outbursts are becoming not only increasingly slanderous, but unentertaining. I was simply suggesting that I go down and navigate my planet to expedite the search. I wouldn¡¯t want the Matriarch to have to go to any extra trouble if her daughter has been here this whole time. I¡¯m embarrassed as it is.¡± ¡°Merriweather may be on your planet, after all then?¡± Suspicion tinged her voice even as her eyes narrowed. Like Merriweather, her eyes almost seemed to burn with blue flame rather than have a set image. ¡° ¡°I won¡¯t know the circumstances until I look for her,¡± Flynn replied innocently. ¡°I don¡¯t wish to complicate events, I shall see you later Flynn, assuming you resume the sale of your planet. Let me know if you need help lodging a complaint against Tamara for making this situation blow up way out of proportion.¡± Damascus finally seemed to gather his spine, even if it did seem like he was just using the extra rigidity to beat a hasty retreat. ¡°I am one of the three Matriarchs of the Infernal Scaled Demon Clan, Titania Sharedal, wife to Blue Sharedal, more commonly known as Ghostfire Blue, the Demon,¡± Titania thundered even as she was staring at the Arachne puppet. The air seemed to shake and the ground trembled with just the fury that was contained in her voice. ¡°You! Damascus!¡± Without turning to look at him she lifted her free hand and pointed a finger at him. ¡°You just stay right fucking there until I get this sorted out.¡± The green-robed man seemed to shrink under the pointed finger for a moment before he straightened his back, spitting back coldly, ¡°have care with your tongue. While I am more than willing to show respect to the Infernal Scaled Demon Clan that doesn¡¯t mean I will be falsely accused and ordered around like some common weakling!¡± ¡°Silence,¡± Matriarch hissed, spittle actually flying past her lips as she turned and bared her teeth at him. Sharp canines caught the light even as she moved her head in a sort of quick serpentine warning motion. When she saw that he froze she put her lips together and narrowed her eyes at him. When a short time passed and he didn''t try to shout back at her, she slowly turned her head and spit onto the ground without breaking eye contact with him. ¡°You are of course, welcome to come and join me in my search,¡± Flynn¡¯s avatar uttered dryly as the Matriarch turned her attention back to him. ¡°How kind, I shall thank you for your cooperation.¡± Matriarch Titania turned toward Damascus and once again gave him a wide-eyed warning look. She pointed to his feet, indicating that he should just stand in that very spot until she told him otherwise. ¡°Can I come too?¡± Tamara asked unashamedly beaming at everyone in the room as if she weren¡¯t the one who had orchestrated this strange and hostile standoff. ¡°I am the one that told you she was here, after all?¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°If I find my daughter and find you have had no hand in this, you shall earn my gratitude,¡± Titania seemed to be struggling to rein in the fury she had been displaying to Flynn and Damascus when she talked to Tamara. ¡°...but let me ask you, how long have you been aware of my daughter being on this planet?¡± ¡°I saw her for the first time about a month ago,¡± Tamara said instantly, staring fearlessly back at the red-skinned goddess even as the latter began to tremble with rage. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure how to bring it up without endangering her.¡± ¡°It sounds as though you were also trying to get extra benefits from this situation too?¡± Titania was struggling to keep her tone disinterested now. Tamara had known about her daughter¡¯s presence for a fucking month and hadn¡¯t sent word? ¡°That too,¡± Tamara agreed shamelessly. ¡°I was trying to figure out what you would do when you saw her soul space. I was deciding whether I should leave this place and pretend I¡¯d never been. I kind of figured you would go crazy.¡± Titania digested this silently, a solemn look seeming to settle behind her eyes. ¡°...what?¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet looked at Tamara at this point, for the first time the puppet looked just the tiniest bit concerned. ******** Ruth stood to the side as Merriweather thrust out with the sword in front of him slowly. She had been slowly demonstrating how it could be swept horizontally, vertically, how it could thrust forward or be rapidly pulled back for defense. He had been a little bit leery of the idea of having her explain the basic motions of traditional weapons to him, but he couldn¡¯t help but admit that he was immediately enthralled with the discussion. ¡°The principle is much the same for knives. Different styles will focus on cutting or stabbing. Ranges will vary based on reach, you see?¡± Merriweather recovered after a demonstration of a lunge and smiled at him. Swords were fucking awesome, Ruth decided. He was barely able to keep up with the whirling death in the hands of the fit and lithe Merriweather. He had no doubt that without magic she would carve him like a fish in one or two casual strokes. Moment of silence for bows. Swords were the best. ¡°I¡¯m going to need you to teach me everything you know about swords,¡± Ruth said with a very serious expression. Merriweather started to laugh but it was cut short when they both noticed the difference in the area. The atmospheric pressure seemed off. Like a stormfront was rolling in and they were minutes away from suffering under a serious thunderstorm or deluge. It was weird because Ruth couldn¡¯t remember any sort of weather like that since his time here. They were underground, after all. Shouts began as the castle soldiers began pointing toward an area nearby. Very close to where Merriweather and Ruth were casually talking about how freaking amazing swords were, actually. Several shapes started to step through the ¡®dark looking clouds¡¯ that Ruth was beginning to associate with how god¡¯s high-stepped onto worlds. The lead figure was Tamara, stepping casually in front of two other figures and looking back with a smirk as she said something to them. Ruth immediately let his face fall into a scowl. He lowered his arms toward his waist in a surreptitious movement and turned his palms up and channeled shock through both hands the moment he saw her smug face. The explosive power of the crackling lightning seemed stronger than ever before but¡­ Tamara just casually materialized her huge sword and deflected it up toward the high ceiling of the subterranean grotto where it disappeared harmlessly into the black. A distant boom was the only evidence that it had eventually struck something. ¡°We have guests¡­¡± Then Tamara was next to him, pressing a hand meaningfully on his shoulder. ¡°...so behave.¡± Ruth felt the power drain out of him. He looked at her with exasperation and just sighed, then his attention turned toward Merriweather and another woman who had appeared behind Tamara. The two were facing off uneasily, their expressions containing deep emotion. Merriweather seemed at a loss, holding her sword idly at her side as she stared dumbly at the woman who was baring her teeth and moving closer. The huge polearm didn¡¯t seem real. The way she effortlessly wielded it made Ruth immediately view this new woman as dangerous. The pressure from even looking at her was immense. Totally overshadowing the strange presence of the wweird spider man. You can take her Merriweather. Ruth began to silently root for the somewhat charming but taciturn commander. They stared at each other for a moment longer and then something must have happened because the woman stopped her approach and tilted her head, staring at Merriweather in confusion. A confusion that slowly turned into a frown. A frown that slowly turned into cold rage as she started to turn toward the third figure. ¡°Do I need to explain the terrible horrors I can bring upon you all? What have you done to Merriweather? I am Matriarch Titania Sharedal and I will turn this whole rock into a smoldering pebble if I am not met with an explanation to my satisfaction. I swear upon my Infernal Scaled Demon Clan that we will all carry this grudge in our heart!¡± The terrible voice seemed to make his body shake from the inside. Ruth winced as he took a minute to take a deep breath and steady himself. He almost didn¡¯t even mind that Tamara was touching him. Then Ruth realized what had happened. ¡°Ah!¡± Merriweather and Tamara both turned at the unexpected sound, both surprised to see that Ruth was pointing at Merriweather¡¯s mother with a finger, his face filled with disbelief. Ruth continued pointing even as the furious Matriarch turned her gaze toward him. ¡°It really happened! They do exist! Look! A moron!¡± Ruth couldn¡¯t fucking believe it. There really were people out there that would shout about their families and clans and proclaim grudges. Holy shit, it had only been like an hour or two since he¡¯d heard that story. ******** Lina laid back down and rolled away from Poppy, who had been offering her a flask of water. She laid down on the ground with her back to the gods, the drama, and the rest of the soldiers(many of which began to turn toward her), closed her eyes, and pretended she was still unconscious. Her cheeks burning. 56. Ruth Bids Farewell ¡°Now is not the time to speak of this,¡± Merriweather stepped in and put a clawed metal glove on Titania¡¯s shoulder, staring into her eyes. ¡°Much to say, but not here.¡± TItania tore her incredulous gaze away from Ruth and stared at her daughter, her free hand suddenly touching Merriweather¡¯s arm as if the brief contact initiated by her daughter were a lifeline. She roughly pulled her into a hug. ¡°Good, good, good¡­¡± Ruth finally stopped pointing at the Matriarch as the hug continued, a confused expression finally cementing on his features. Golden vertical slits watched the emotional display in silence. He wasn¡¯t wrong was he? Wasn¡¯t this a moron? He had expected a bigger reaction. Well, for a moment, Ruth thought the Matriarch whoevershewas had seemed like she was going to turn him into paste. Tamara probably would have stopped her though, right? Ruth looked past the two that were hugging and saw that Tamara was standing at ease, lazily staring out into space. He pressed his lips together in a grim line. Better not trust that Tamara would do anything to save him or be otherwise useful. Maybe he should just keep his mouth shut? ¡°Flynn, I believe it is time we had words,¡± TItania finally allowed Merriweather to extricate herself, mostly, from her hug. She kept a loose hand on her daughter¡¯s shoulder as she turned and looked at the Arachne. ¡°I had nothing to do with that,¡± the puppet said flatly. There was no trace of humor or amusement in the tone of its voice. It was guarded and defensive. Ruth tilted his head, wondering what both Titania and this spider guy could see about Merriweather that made them both think something was wrong with her. He stared at Merriweather¡¯s back, idly wondering if she was defective somewhere, but, no? She was pretty much perfect. The danger sense that he got from her was the highest of everyone here except Tamara¡­ and Merriweather¡¯s mom. ¡°Your words are not enough,¡± Titania said calmly. Then she turned, her gaze softening instantly. ¡°Daughter, who has done this?¡± Merriweather frowned, ¡°now is not the time¡­¡± ¡°Was it Flynn?¡± Titania moved her hand under her daughter¡¯s chin and lifted it slightly, eyes searching. Merriweather¡¯s jaw clenched and she just stared stubbornly back, eyes burning. The two stood silently as they stared into each other¡¯s eyes while the castle guards, Ruth, and the other two gods watched. Eventually it was Titania that looked away first. ¡°I see, you are not able to tell me,¡± she mused aloud, her gaze turning once more to stare emotionlessly at Flynn. ¡°That is a strange thing, to compel silence. Would it not be simpler to just kill her? What if she somehow managed to point out her attacker to me without violating the soul oath? Surely anyone who has the power to do such a thing to her soul would know who her kin were and that we would wipe them out if they were ever discovered?¡± ¡°I cannot speculate, since I am simply witness to a tragedy and not it¡¯s perpetrator,¡± Flynn replied, a polite nod directed at Titania. ¡°My condolences on the loss of your child¡¯s future.¡± ¡°Mm. Yet, she was here? Does that not¡­ complicate things?¡± Titania asked, her eyes darkening. ¡°Do you obey, Titania?¡± Flynn asked after studying her for a moment. ¡°Of course, my clan is the vanguard of the Table. We proudly serve on the frontlines.¡± Titania lifted her chin, an arrogant sneer appearing on her face. ¡°Don¡¯t speak to me of obedience. If that is a not-so-subtle reminder that I can¡¯t hurt you without approval, rest assured I¡¯ve no need of it. Just because I can¡¯t hurt you doesn¡¯t mean I can¡¯t just start wiping out every spider with a human torso I see that isn¡¯t you. Some might even be your family. Then what would happen? Hmm? Would you obey, Flynn?¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± Flynn finally seemed exasperated. ¡°This ridiculous place has a formation tied to the people who live here. It saps their mana. Am I correct in assuming you have a child here? I think you should consider giving me a few concessions to appease my wrath.¡± Titania bared her teeth in a vicious smile. ¡°You may not have my daughter,¡± Flynn replied carefully by way of answer, ¡°that is my bottom line.¡± ¡°Fine. I want the formation destroyed. I will also take charge of this¡­¡± She looked around and sneered, ¡°place.¡± Flynn¡¯s puppet went completely still before shaking his head slowly. ¡°I will release the people you wish to take with you and your daughter, and I have no desire to have this place after a certain period. RIght now, my daughter is at a crucial time where she is reaping the mana from this place. You can have it in ten years, and you can have any people you wish before then, good?¡± Titania began laughing, a tinkling noise that slowly became sharper the longer it lasted. The puppet grimaced and waited for it to end. He was about to ask her again when she raised her trident and waved it expansively to indicate everything around her. ¡°Flynn. You¡¯re trying to negotiate with me when I said you should be giving. I don¡¯t care about your daughter¡¯s troubles? If anything, inconveniencing her is just the icing on the cake. As for this place? I shall take it because I have the feeling that if I left it unstewarded after I had you destroy the formation you would just send your progeny to reap the lives of everyone on this planet in a more direct fashion.¡± Titania just smiled widely as Flynn openly grimaced, as if he¡¯d been caught in the act. ¡°You¡¯ve always been an obvious murderous creature.¡± ¡°Fine, since Tamara is also implicated in this plot with your daughter¡­¡± ¡°Pfft.¡± Tamara snorted. ¡°...I¡¯d like to hear what you have to say to her?¡± Flynn asked, the barest hint of civility still being entertained. ¡°So basically, since you just ate some shit you¡¯re going to try to spread it around? Hahaha. Fine, let¡¯s hear it¡­¡± Tamara turned to Titania, a lazy grin on her face. Titania studied the goddess and was about to open her mouth when Merriweather tugged on her shoulder. She leaned down and listened intently, a strange expression of disbelief appearing before immediately vanishing. She straightened after a minute and Merriweather politely stepped back. ¡°Fine, give me your chosen,¡± Titania said casually. ¡°Merriweather claims him as part of her retinue.¡± ¡°What?¡± Tamara¡¯s relaxed stance immediately vanished. ¡°I found your daughter for you and you try to take something of mine? I was actually thinking I would be rewarded¡­¡± Titania began to smile slightly, not bothering to reply as she watched Tamara¡¯s face carefully.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. For the briefest of moments, there was the barest hint of violence on the wind. Like the wind shifting in a sudden and unfavorable direction. Tamara obviously struggled to rein in the subtle change in her reflexive aura, but it was already too late. Even Flynn had noticed how furious Tamara had become and was now turning his attention to Ruth¡­ Tamara turned from Titania to Flynn and then back to Titania, a sudden look of defeat crossing her features. A slow smile started to spread across her face as she spread her arms wide. The power that had been kept in check slowly started to pool at her feet as if it were made of liquid. It began to spread out inexorably from her feet and started to move outward, as if it were devouring the ground. When her voice came, it was barely a whisper. A whisper that still set everyone on edge. ¡°I feel I¡¯ve been very patient, but, if you want me to show you why I am called the slaughter god I don¡¯t mind¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you obey?¡± Titania asked, casually glancing down at the growing pool of power at Tamara¡¯s feet. ¡°I do obey. I also know that you think you got me because I care about that thing just a little bit. But, Titania, your daughter is here¡­¡± Tamara narrowed her eyes and turned a vicious gaze toward Flynn, ¡°...and yours as well. Think carefully about what it would mean if I went crazy here.¡± ¡°Perhaps we should let Ruth decide,¡± Merriweather said, surprising everyone because they had been largely tuning out the smallfry. ¡°Ruth, do you want to come with me for now?¡± ¡°Please, as if his desire at this point means anything to m--¡± Tamara was stopped from sneering as Ruth spoke. ¡°I¡¯ll go with Merriweather. Tamara, let me go, or else!¡± He really didn¡¯t know what was going on, but there was some sort of power struggle. They were actually capable of pressuring Tamara! If that was the case, why wouldn¡¯t he dump on Tamara? Merriweather was better anyway. She was going to teach him swords. Ruth didn¡¯t know what to think of Titania, honestly, so he didn¡¯t. Tamara started to say something and then stumbled. His words seemed to surprise her. The power at her feet immediately vanished and her hands lowered from threatening to at ease at her side. Her body shook as if she had been physically struck. ¡°Let you go,¡± she grit her teeth. ¡°I suppose I deserve this.¡± Now Flynn and Titania made no effort to hide their wide-eyed surprise. ¡°So even Tamara can be reasonable?¡± Titania murmured. ¡°You won¡¯t suffer a total loss, Tamara. I¡¯m just keeping him for a time while I sort out the responsible parties. If I find you had no part in it, I guarantee you won¡¯t suffer a loss. In fact, I shall do my best to provide your chosen with opportunities¡­¡± ¡°On the front lines?¡± Tamara was still giving Titania quite the look. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just skewer him now?¡± ¡°No, not on the front lines¡­¡± Titania turned her gaze to Ruth. ¡°Not until he becomes a demi-god at least¡­¡± Tamara¡¯s shoulders slumped. She turned to Ruth and stared at him, mouth set in a grim line. He shifted uncomfortably, wondering why he was getting such an intense glare. He was also trying to remain calm because¡­ ...did he just get a free pass away from Tamara? Big if true. Tamara gave one short nod and then turned around and walked a step before vanishing. Ruth let out a hiss of breath he didn¡¯t know he¡¯d been holding! *********************** Under Arch breathed easier, though most would never know why. Matriarch Titania herself supervised as Flynn removed an insidious spell formation that tied everyone born in or around the garden and Under Arch to his daughter. The actual efficiency of the spell was awful. A crude spell, according to Titania, which sapped the future potential of the inhabitants and gave minimal returns to Wilkeena. When she mentioned this to Merriweather, her daughter had quietly explained to her that in addition to tapping all the living people in this way, the Arachne herself often sent out waves of plague or Cannibal Pixies to routinely reap the lives in the garden for a more direct mana gain. Disapproval was evident in her expression, but she said no more on the subject. When the formation was removed Matriarch Titania immediately commanded Flynn to depart with his daughter. WIlkeena, who had been deep in hibernation at a crucial juncture, woke up with great reluctance and was spirited away without fully understanding the situation. Most of the guards chose to remain in Under Arch when Titania announced that she would be taking Merriweather with her when she left, and any who chose to remain in her retinue would be welcome as well. Jeanne, Lina, Solace, and two guards named Matterly and Stirling chose to join Merriweather¡¯s retinue. Ruth himself was excited about the prospect of leaving. After a brief discussion with Merriweather, he had convinced her to leave Sikes behind. She had been a bit amused with how adamant he¡¯d been, but decided to accede to his wishes. In addition to the strange request on who not to take, Ruth also championed the small crew that Rush had been gathering. Merriweather asked her mother, but, Titania took one look at the children, her gaze briefly lingering on Chance, and gave a ¡®get on with it¡¯ gesture, obviously not concerned with a dozen or so ragamuffins being added to the journey. Rush set out through the city with his hopefuls, a large red hand comprised of aura hung over his head carrying everything easily. Blankets, trinkets, pots, pans, and a considerable number of other odds and sundries hanging overhead while his small personal retinue trailed behind him like a sort of tiny parade. Most people had the good sense to lock their windows and doors and hide their pots and pans upon seeing him. When they arrived at the place they had agreed to rendezvous, the castle training grounds, they were given a few strange looks but Titania once again made a get on with it gesture. She rapidly swung her trident a few times and lines of blue fire began to appear and hang in the air. While most people gawked, they were seeing a portal to another planet appear from nowhere, Titania was so nonchalant about it that most people just assumed that this was how it was done. There was no one to compare Titania to, after all. Their interactions with gods being sorely limited. ¡°Where are we going?¡± Ruth finally thought to ask. Merriweather, who had been about to be the first to step through the portal, turned back to him. A quizzical expression appeared on her face. ¡°You only think to ask now?¡± ¡°Any place without Tamara is a better place, but this is all happening so fast I didn¡¯t think to ask.¡± Ruth admitted. Merriweather studied him for a moment and a small smile blossomed on her face. ¡°Home.¡± She walked through without any further words. In a grim silence, Ruth, Rush, the children, the guards, and eventually Titania herself all walked through. A single moment passed before the blue energy began to devour itself from the outside before collapsing completely. The guards that had witnessed the travel stared at each other and then unanimously decided to call it a day. No one had the spirit left to continue training. ******************* Sikes sat in the dirt on the street, watching expressionlessly as the Archives went up in flames. He wasn¡¯t sure what he was expecting for the day, but this certainly wasn¡¯t it. Rush had been in a hurry to go somewhere with his kids and had told him to go get some bedrolls. While he didn¡¯t normally serve the small soul shape with any sort of ardour, he did do tasks like that for him from time to time to keep the peace. When he was halfway back to the Archives he could already see the red glow. He had known then, that something bad had happened. Abandoning the bedrolls he had run through the streets and pushed his way through the crowds. Everyone loved a good fire, after all. Cut into the front of the burning building were words. They were direct, blatant, and a message he knew was for him. ¡®Value Loyalty Above All Else¡¯ ¡®Goodbye. Permanent.¡¯ ********************* There was a minor Arachne that sat in the castle watching the fire burn in the city below from one of the grand balconies. Her connection to Wilkeena was cut. Solace and Merriweather were gone. Many of the guards that trained down below weren¡¯t even looking toward the castle. It was possible that many of them would forget she existed for a time. She would eventually have to go down and assert some sort of control so people didn¡¯t get it into their heads that the castle was abandoned. The Arachne wasn¡¯t sure what to do. She decided she would have tea. ******************* Arc I: End Rush and Ruth Will Return...