《Twin Apocalypse: Had to End Sometime [LitRPG]》 Prologue: Beware looking into the Abyss Deep silence blanketed the mountains, and the towering pines stood upon them in unmoving vigil beneath their winter coats. Snow drifted lazily through the freezing air on its downward journey, finally alighting on a soft bed of its fellows. The small black pug obliterated the serenity of the forest as he plowed through the snowdrifts, snuffling and panting while dragging his human deeper into the woods. Stanley trudged along behind, passing beneath evergreen boughs with only patches of gray clouds peeking through. A heavy jacket and dark pants shrouded his figure. Hot breath frosted in the cold air and settled onto his black scruffy beard, already speckled with snowflakes. He squinted against the white glare all around, beneath a knit cap pulled low over the ears. He was not oblivious to the scenery as the leash dragged him onward through the woods. It was gorgeous, his favorite environment in the nation, if a bit cold now. However, most of his attention was on the other end of the leash, where the dog was trying and failing to avoid the more treacherous piles of snow as he plowed forward. "I thought you were in a hurry? I didn''t even put your booties on, and now you''re gonna run through the whole goddamn forest." He sighed, breath billowing out in a cloud as he looked back the way they had come. He could just make out a spot of blue through the trees where he''d left the truck. "I''m gonna have to carry you back, and you''re not that light, you know." Caffeine ignored him as usual until the dog finally found the right spot and did what he needed to. "Good boy, Caff!" Stanley praised. "Now let''s go¡­" The ground shook beneath their feet. Before Stanley could react, there was a booming crack below him and a stretch of snow-covered ground fell away into gaping darkness. He had single moment to stare into the yawning void... and then eye-searing light blasted from the hole, directly into his face. Blinding agony swallowed his mind, and Stanley toppled backward in reflexive recoil. He might also have screamed as he fell, but he was too far gone for such mundane concerns. Instead, he was drowning in brightness. Only, it wasn''t truly light. What shined brighter and hotter than a star did not burn his face as it shone straight through him. The light didn''t vaporize his eyes into plasma as it burrowed past them. Instead, it blazed straight through everything else and sank deep into his brain. Synapses fired, electrical impulses crawling at a lightning pace along the neurons as thoughts formed. Then the new light arrived, and the old speed of light became the second fastest energy in the universe. Am I dying? The bright light rode along with the thought as it formed in his brain, illuminating, sharpening, burning. It latched onto every word and branched from thought to thought through memory and back again. All in less time than it took for Stanley to fall an atom''s width toward the snowy ground. Am. Word. English language. Verb. I. Me. Self. Identity. Everything he had ever thought about who he was, or what he was; Stanley knew it all at once now and with perfect clarity, and he was already analyzing and branching further and further. Dying? Throughout his memory, every time he said, thought, saw, or heard the word, he could now remember it fresh and vividly, as if it was happening at this moment. Every feeling he had ever had, opinion he had ever heard or read, all analyzed, taken apart, put back together, and now understood in an impossible perfection. Still, the brightness spread throughout his mind. Branching off onto infinite paths of knowledge and understanding. Stanley never liked math, but now? It was simple. Physics? Obvious. Quantum mechanics? Boring once you knew how it worked. Wormholes, dimensional travel, everything thought or dreamed up by humankind. All of it now known and understood by a mind that was never meant to see it. Yet the branches kept going deeper and higher, into impossible places that shouldn''t or couldn''t exist but that he now saw were inevitable. Stanley''s body fell slowly to earth, but his mind rode up and out, as the universe simultaneously expanded and shrank in his mind''s eye. He saw the abundant life that filled the universe¡ªobserved creatures, beings, and things distant and vast, yet far too close. Some took notice and turned to watch him burn with hungry gazes, while others were indifferent to his newly awakened presence. Stanley could see the lines of the world, the strings that tied everything together. He could see the strands of probability and, through them, the future. He saw what was coming for his world. The calamity that would sweep over the planet and change everything. It was a future he would not be a part of. With so much knowledge, Stanley knew with certainty that he was indeed dying. He knew he was being changed and strengthened, mind and body, by the light, but that the change could never keep up. Stanley understood the power that was doing this to him and how to wield it to accomplish literally anything. Yet also knew that if he tried to wield it now, he would explode and take half the state with him. Far below all that, a tiny part of his expanding mind still felt something in his hand as he finally finished falling and hit the ground. It was the leash¡­ tying him to Caffeine. His hand was clutched so tightly to it that he had cracked the plastic. In fact, all of his muscles were so tight that he wasn''t breathing. It didn''t matter. Even as his muscles ripped apart and his bones cracked, the power roaring through him simply rebuilt them, and the cycle continued. None of that was what he thought about. They were in the middle of nowhere, and Caffeine was not a breed built to survive in the wild. He wouldn''t do well alone out here. Stanley wanted to shed tears thinking of that little dog freezing to death, alone and afraid. But his emotions were nothing more than a fading whisper of a scream. He would have liked to get Caffeine home one last time. To see his other favorite human. It was always a delight to witness his excitement upon seeing Lee again. Stanley enjoyed seeing his twin too, but there was something special about a dog''s pure joy. As for his twin, Stanley didn''t worry about leaving him behind when he died here. The esoteric link that bound all identical twins was a nebulous thing, but not for them. Not anymore. The power killing Stanley had touched that link. Had traveled down it and, in the process, forged that tremulous connection into a bond that could never be undone. A bond that made them more than the sum of their parts, and the only thing that spared Stanley from instant obliteration. Now Stanley could feel Lee from across the miles between them as if his brother stood by his side, as if they were of one mind, and together they beheld the secrets of the universe. Together, they burned in the light of the cosmos. Together, they raced toward the inevitable oblivion. It was a small mercy to be reunited before the end. Caffeine didn''t share that link, no matter that Stanley felt he should after the years spent at his side. No, Caffeine may still survive if he got lucky, though the probability was low... far too low. Until a new link appeared, one forged and forced by Caffeine himself as he tried so desperately to save Stanley. Oh, Caff... Stanley and his twin had seen the pug trying to drag him away from the hole before. They couldn''t not see it. Now, however, they saw inside the simple mind of Caffeine. Saw the straightforward plan, the unwavering determination and absolute faith, and the horrifying, overwhelming agony that the pug simply... ignored in order to pursue his goal. A goal they knew was impossible. Caffeine was trying to eat the power before it could destroy them. A plan doomed from the start... but so very like the little pug. You were always the best dog. Twin thoughts echoed identical sentiments. Then they were slipping higher, unable to focus on something so small. Their conjoined mind expanding too far, the edges unraveling and drifting away. They burned and watched bits and pieces of themselves evaporate into the void... and heard a faint howl in the distance. A moment or eternity later, the overwhelming rush of power faltered. It wasn''t for long¡ªonly a mere instant. But it was enough to change everything. The faltering of the power brought them back to the local present long enough to see the new threads of possibility unraveling before them. There, amongst the tangle of nearly infinite branching threads of possible futures, was a new option. Something that hadn''t been there before and a path that did not inevitably end in the next few moments. A thin thread of hope through the darkness that could lead them to a distant future where they would live. An impossible choice that should not be, one only made possible by a little pug that refused to let his humans go. It was such a delicate thing, though. They would walk along a razor''s edge, where a single misstep would be their end, now or in the future. A path of power and prestige that would see them at the pinnacle of power, but also a trail of pain and suffering, a struggle that would never truly end, of battles for survival that would push them to the limits of life and death. Despite all that, it was the only choice that didn''t end prematurely, that didn''t see their world fallen and crushed underfoot by the beings and powers lurking out in the greater beyond. A path that didn''t see their lives snuffed out like flickering candles in a storm. Stanley and his brother spent that infinitesimal moment of time deciding¡ªa lifetime of strife and struggle or the end of their journey here and now. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. They chose the same as Caffeine. To fight. To never say die. To do whatever was necessary... to sacrifice what they must. That pivotal choice was only the beginning. Their bodies and minds were all three swollen with a godlike power that could not be used or even touched... but it didn''t need to be. They acted in that precious moment, grappling not with the untouchable power, but with themselves. Their bodies, flush with energy and potential, were ripe for change. They were eager for it. Practically begging for it. All it took was a nudge in the right direction. Then they looked deeper, into the cores of themselves, where all that they were and could ever become originated. It was a beautiful, pure thing. A delicate tapestry of interwoven connections that came from three lifetimes of knowledge, love, understanding, and experience. All of them weaving together into a nearly unbreakable and indestructible expression of life. They tore it apart. Together, they mutilated those deepest reaches of themselves. Changed themselves in preparation for what was to come. They ripped and tore. Stretched and burned. Inflicted agony so brutal that even their god-like minds could not endure unscathed. Using the ruined remains of what they once were, they stitched the pieces back together and built from them a cage. Into that cage went the power. Into that cage went the last light in the dark. The one last good thing that was left of themselves, and they locked it away in the darkness. It went into the dark willingly, and they screamed at what they''d done. Then they closed the door. As the door swung inevitably shut, as the darkness swallowed the light, and as the second hand of the universe leaned ever closer to the final tick of their lives, they did what still had to be done. The next thing to go was an easy choice. Bright knowledge that their minds could never have held onto, anyway¡ªall the secrets of the universe. It all went into the void, fuel for the fire that consumed them. With it went much of the pain... but not enough. Not nearly enough. So they sacrificed more of themselves. Thirty-two years of life each, all the memories, the smiling faces, the warm hugs, the moments that made up their lives. Everything that made them who they were. All of it tainted by what they''d done here and now, and all sacrificed in the name of survival. Sacrificed in a last grasp at hope. The faint and distant hope that one day the light would return. But that day was not yet. Here and now, the cage closed. The light went out, and Stanley fell down into the dark... alone. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine stood frozen where he had landed after he reflexively bounced away from the loud noise. As he stood still, prepared to run or bark at whatever made that sound, Caffeine saw Dearest Human get hit in the face by a terrifying yet perfectly silent brightness. Caffeine flinched back, and his tail tucked down tight. A whimper escaped as Dearest Human made a pain sound and fell over. Attack? Caffeine thought before howling, "Attack!" He charged then, barking his meanest and fiercest threats at the Brightness. Unfortunately, the Brightness did not flinch or back down, so Caffeine gave up on the threats and ran to Dearest Human¡¯s face. His eyes were open but didn¡¯t see Caffeine; only stared straight up, and his eyes were full of the Brightness. It danced and burned and shot little bits of light up into the sky. Caffeine''s best and saddest whine, followed by a good but cautious face licking, gave no results except to make his tongue tingle, and not in a good way. Dearest Human smelled wrong, too, smelled like pain, wounded, and sadness. "Come!" Caffeine barked. "Go! Give! Stay! Sit! Cookie!!!" The magic words didn¡¯t work! Caffeine looked back to the Brightness. It was moving! The Brightness had already covered up one Belly Scratcher, but now it was crawling up the arm toward the face! Caffeine looked at where the Brightness came from. It was coming from the hole. The bad, not interesting, scary hole. An idea came to him. Pull Dearest Human away from the bad scary Brightness hole! He latched his best tugging grip onto Dearest Human¡¯s jacket and pulled. There was a slight ripping sound, and he whined but didn¡¯t let go. Dearest Human would be upset at him for breaking his things, but Caffeine would gladly have Dearest Human anger shout at him. That would be much better than this pain quiet. He tugged harder. There was more ripping, but Dearest Human moved! Just a little, but it would work! He would save Dearest Human! Caffeine started up his best tugging growl and went to work. Tug! He always won when they played tugging. Tug! Sometimes Dearest Human would pull the toy right out of his mouth. Tug! But he always grabbed it again. Tug! And always, Dearest Human would make the happy sounds. Tug! That means a win! Tug! The Brightness was still spreading. Tug! It was covering Dearest Human''s chest. Tug! It was going down his legs. Tug! Over his face. Tug! Getting closer to the shoulder he was tugging. Tug! He could feel Dearest Human trembling as the Brightness covered more and more of him. Tug! The Brightness was going to get Caffeine, too! Tug! I will win! Tug! I always win! Tug! The Brightness touched his nose. Tug! Rip! Caffeine stumbled back with a whimper. It hurt! He looked at the bad hole. Dearest Human¡¯s Cookie Giver was halfway out of the Brightness hole. Caffeine dropped the piece of jacket that had ripped free and looked back at Dearest Human. The Brightness had covered him completely, and Dearest Human was trembling even more now. The cold whiteness was trembling. The dirt underneath was trembling. Everything seemed to be trembling, and it was getting stronger! Caffeine dove back in, summoning his newest, even better tugging growl. He latched on, and it Burned! Tug! The pain will go away when I win! Tug! It burned his nose, but he didn''t let go. Tug! It burned his eyes, so he closed them. Tug! It was spreading so fast! Tug! Maybe there will be Chicken when he wins. Tug! Or Pizza! Tug! Dearest Human had left some in the cold box. Tug! That would be so good! Tug! They would have pizza. Tug! Dearest Human would make the happy noises. Tug! Then scratch his belly in just the right way while he napped. Tug! He was so tired. Tug! Usually he would win Tugging by now. Tug! He felt Dearest Human smiling inside his head! Both Dearest Humans were here! And they were smiling! It felt like getting a belly rub in the sleep place and eating pizza at the same time! But better than that! Tug! He was so happy! He could feel his tail going wild and wanted to dance around in the happy dance but kept his feet planted and kept pulling¡­ Tug! Because something was wrong! Tug! Dearest Humans were slipping away. Tug! Like a piece of pizza going in the trash, but even worse! Tug! Caffeine was losing! Tug! Dearest Human is too big! Tug! No... I am too small... Tug! If only I could be bigger! Caffeine let go of the jacket and looked at Dearest Human again. The Brightness had covered him and seemed to be eating him since he was definitely getting smaller. He knew it was eating both of his Dearest Humans... Caffeine knew the brightness was all over him as well, and it was eating him too... but it didn¡¯t matter. That was small pain, but this¡­ this¡­ he didn¡¯t know what this was but knew that he would trade all the pizza, all the chicken, even all the belly scratches just to hear one more happy noise from Dearest Human. Caffeine decided that he would have to eat the Brightness before it could eat Dearest Human. He licked and then chomped at the bad Brightness. It didn''t taste good, like too hot, and the more he ate, the more appeared! Caffeine did his best eating tactics he used when Dearest Human had a snack, but when Caffeine needed to finish his own bowl first before he could sit next to Dearest Human and watch for any stray pieces of meat that sometimes jumped from the table! He ate faster! The Brightness didn''t taste like much of anything besides too hot, but it was making him full... and filling his mind with strange thoughts and ideas. He could see so much as he devoured the Brightness, could see the entire world, all the food in the world, all the pets, all of everything! It was a lot! Caffeine could see how to have all of it if he wanted, but Dearest Humans would be gone¡­ How could Caffeine enjoy any of that if Dearest Humans weren''t there with him? No, none of that mattered. All that mattered now was saving Dearest Humans from the Brightness. He ate and ate and ate some more. But the Brightness was too big... and Caffeine was too full. It felt like he would pop... and Caffeine knew that he would if he kept eating the Brightness. But Dearest Humans were getting better! Only a little, but it was better! Caffeine just had to eat it all¡­ and he would! But then he was too full, so much too full! This was worse than when he got the chicken bones from the forbidden snack bucket¡ªthey had jumped out of Caffeine''s belly and made a mess on the floor. Dearest Human had been very upset... Now the Brightness wanted to escape as well, it wanted to go back and eat Dearest Humans! I can run away! Caffeine knew what to do. He had to eat all of the Brightness that he could and then run away before it jumped out of his stomach and made a mess. This would be a very big mess... It would hurt Dearest Human if it escaped next to him. Caffeine took a few more of his best and biggest bites... "Goodbye, Dearest Human. I don''t want to run away... but I have to go now. I''ll... miss you..." He ran! And then stopped. It was no use... the Brightness only grew behind him. His eating wasn''t enough... Caffeine howled into the sky in a sad and desperate howl. He howled at the Brightness. Louder, deeper, roaring. Caffeine didn''t care when the sky shook or when the big trees shivered and started dropping cold wetness piled on their branches. He roared out the pain and fear. Roared out his defiance at the Brightness. "They are MINE!" "MY Dearest Humans!" "YOU... CAN¡­ NOT¡­ HAVE¡­ THEM!" The roar ended with a deafening boom. The ground under his feet jumped upward and then settled back with a rumble... And then he saw Dearest Humans'' plan. A terrible, terrible plan that would cost so... Caffeine agreed with them instantly. Anything was acceptable if it would save them. He felt a lot more pain after that. It was very not nice! But he didn''t care about his own pain. Because Dearest Humans were screaming in his head. They were crying... Caffeine didn''t want them to cry. He wanted them to laugh in that very best way they always did... Caffeine cried with his Dearest Humans until it all finally stopped. Until they both went to sleep. Then opened his eyes and looked at the bad hole. As he watched, the Brightness thinned and split into smaller little streams, until, with a last tiny wisp, the Brightness was gone. "I did it!" Caffeine barked, but it was a very small woof. He felt his tail wagging, but it hurt to wag. He was so tired. The Brightness had faded from him too, but now his feet hurt. His teeth hurt. His everything hurt. Caffeine could smell blood. He had tugged too hard¡­ No! He had tugged the best! Now it was rest time. Or eating time and then rest time. Yes, Dearest Human would carry him to the warm, rumbly place, and they would eat pizza. Dearest Human would scratch his belly and make the happiness sounds while he napped. He limped one small step to Dearest Human''s face, now no longer trembling with the Brightness in his eyes. Now his eyes were closed, and he seemed to be having a nap. Caffeine decided that was a good idea. A quick nap before the pizza. It would be sad to be too tired for pizza. He gave a gentle lick to Dearest Human just to reassure him that everything was okay now, then he curled up next to his head, where, with only a little whimper and a sigh, he slept. 1. Let it Begin ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley frowned at the blindingly bright snow outside his windshield as he put on his sunglasses. He always hated this part of winter even more than the blizzards. At least, it felt like he always had... Give him gray skies every day, and he would be a happy man. The pug in the passenger seat, however, was a total sun lover. Caffeine lay in the sunshine streaming through the windshield, his eyes half-closed in pleasure as he lazily licked his front paws. His black coat soaked up the heat and was toasty warm under Stanley''s hand when he reached over to pet the pup. Stanley glanced at his phone as he sat back, his hand passing close, hesitating, and then pulled back. He''d called. That was enough. Lee had chosen not to answer. Instead, Stanley focused on the truck rumbling around him. He sent his attention below his feet, under the floor, down to the steel frame that ran through the entire vehicle. He focused in what was by now a practiced effort and ''Pushed'' against the truck with his thoughts. The entire forty-ton semi rocked against its brakes. Caffeine didn''t get up from his sunbath, but he opened his eyes to watch Stanley. The pug was somewhat used to this by now, which meant that his gaze started jumping from Stanley to the dashboard, or rather, what was on it. Stanley released the brakes, and this time, when he mentally pushed on the frame, the truck moved. He could feel all that weight yielding under his will, all eighty-thousand pounds, or near enough that. It rolled forward, and Stanley steered his way out to the road. He missed the nice roar of the engine doing things this way, but the fuel economy was top-notch, something that would definitely become a problem with the tax man at some point, but Stanley had a feeling it wouldn''t matter by the time they caught on. The freeway ramp loomed, and he pushed harder, accelerating near silently while also faster than any truck actually could. Not without the power he had. It had been a few months since that day in the mountains. Months that started real bad. Waking up in the snow, a shattered forest all around him, Caffeine shivering in his arms, and his own memories as broken as the trees. He hadn''t remembered Caffeine... but knew that was his name... it was weird. Stanley hadn''t remembered his own name, either. But knew he had a brother... one whose name he also didn''t know. He''d found the truck, still idling on the side of the road, and climbed in more out of muscle memory than any knowledge that it was his. There he''d found his wallet, and id. His name. Then the phone that unlocked from his fingerprint. A name in his contacts that stood out. He called Lee, and his brother had filled in some gaps, but they were still missing a lot, with little more than flashes of... something. Now here he was. Stanley got comfortable in the flow of traffic and reached for what Caffeine had been eyeing since they started moving; the stack of burritos. The power he wielded, the power gained somehow on that day in the mountains; it had a price. Namely, hunger. Stanley took a big bite and glanced at Caffeine, who was now sitting up attentively. "Don''t worry," he said, after swallowing, "you''ll get some too." There was still a half dozen left on the dash and more in the fridge behind him. Stanley didn''t know why he had this power or why Lee didn''t, but he could guess why it left him starving the more he used it. Energy had to come from somewhere... though he didn''t think burritos were really what gave him the energy. There was something else happening. Hunger also wasn''t enough reason to stop what he was doing, neither were the headaches. Those already came less and less lately, and he was still getting stronger. It had started small, moving a pen across the table, but it had grown quickly, and now the power was enough for him to push eighty-thousand pounds down the road. Stanley threw the wrapper into the trash and grabbed another burrito. He let up his efforts on the truck, letting it coast, then used that same power to rip off the top half of the burrito for Caffeine. The resulting mess when he squeezed way too hard was... no big deal. Caffeine went to work cleaning up every drop and crumb he could find while Stanley ate the rest. Stanley was strong, extremely so, but his fine control was... lacking. It was something to work on, but he wasn''t feeling the urgency for that. What he felt a need for right now was strength and as much of it as he could get. As for why exactly he needed it... Stanley didn''t know. He just knew he did. Lee didn''t understand. He didn''t feel the itch... feel the craving... didn''t feel the... NEED. Now Lee had abandoned him, left him alone with Caffeine. They had spent so much time together after that day. Three months! Now Lee suddenly wanted to settle down in some random apartment... and he got mad when Stanley refused to settle down with him. There was only so long they''d been able to stop working after having their lives... well, basically erased. Everything costs money, especially the doctors they visited, trying to understand what happened and why they had so many holes in their memories. Of course, once Stanley started moving things with his mind, they''d ditched the doctors. They both preferred not to find out if silent helicopters and men in black were real. It was an easy enough choice, considering the doctors had been completely useless already. Talk about a total waste of money. Stanley went back to his truck while his new power grew, and Lee came with him. They''d had a good thing going. Until Lee left. He grabbed another burrito as the truck hit ninety and yelled through the windshield. "Get the fuck out of the way, grandma!" You''d think people would drive like they actually had somewhere to be instead of like old farts that couldn''t see where they were going! Caffeine was eyeing him nervously after the shouting... that, or the burrito in his hand. Stanley eased up on his speed; he had a long way to go and needed to conserve his strength. Also, the cops really didn''t like trucks going this fast... ~~~Lee~~~ "Damn it, Stanley!" Lee cursed as the box slipped from his fingers and crashed to the floor. "You could have waited a few days... this would all have been a fucking joke for you to carry!" Lee hated moving, always had... hadn''t he? Probably. It felt like something he would hate. More importantly, where did all this shit come from? Why did he even own this much crap? He sighed and went back down for the next box. Carting everything up three floors was exhausting. Granted, there was an elevator, but still. It was a long walk back and forth to the elevator... He finally took a break after hours of work and sat down on one of the plastic bins that were full of stuff he was certain was important, although he couldn¡¯t remember why anymore. His phone still showed the missed call from his brother. Lee left it. Stanley''s selfish obsession with power could wait. Besides, he didn''t have cell service in here. He hadn''t expected to either. The leasing agent hadn''t been shy in suggesting he choose a different apartment. Because, as he''d explained, there was something wrong with this one. No cell phone ever worked inside. Wi-Fi would glitch and crash constantly. Electronics had a habit of breaking far too often. The guy thought it was cursed and almost refused to let him have it, but Lee insisted. He looked towards the center of the room, where he couldn¡¯t see anything but could feel... It. The reason he had picked this place. Lee closed his eyes and let the feeling wash over him. Stanley couldn''t feel it, and he hadn''t believed Lee. But Lee knew it was real, and he knew what it felt like. It felt like power. Pure power that he didn¡¯t know how to grasp yet. It felt good, very good. It reminded him of something he had felt on that day when he and his brother had almost died. A few half-remembered glimpses of pain, power, and endless possibilities. Stanley had been there as well but remembered even less than he did, and for some reason, Stanley had gained power, and Lee had not. It was so frustrating for so long... Now this. Lee had found what he was looking for here in this apartment. The power hovering in front of him pushed against his mind and body, and with his eyes closed, he felt like he could almost see something flowing past him. Lee reached his hand out towards what felt like the origin and touched it. Only nothing happened and he touched only air. It was there; he knew it was, but it felt like something was blocking him. Like it was just out of reach behind a pane of glass... or around the corner... He kept his hand steady, looking for a way past whatever was blocking the power. The wisps pushing against him were nothing more than that; wisps. The dregs of something... more. Hunger got to him before he made any progress, and Lee gave up... for now. He sat under what he knew was there even though he couldn''t see it and ate a can of beans. It wasn''t the best meal... but he couldn''t bring himself to leave for a more substantial option. He was going to figure this out. As he ate, something changed. It was slow at first, barely noticeable, but Lee was paying close attention. So he finally noticed that the power was only flowing past him. As in, it wasn''t going around, and it wasn''t going through him either; it was going into him... and staying there. That slow accumulation was what he noticed first; a tiny drop of something new, a drop of power, and it was inside him. An infinitesimal drop, but it was there all the same. He waited as long as he could for more to gather, but he''d never had a real chance of that. Lee wanted to use it and use it now. He thought back to how his brother described using his power. "A matter of will and focus," Stanley always said. Nothing to lose in trying, Lee thought and held his hand up to point palm out at a cardboard box, trying to picture the energy flowing out of it and pushing the box across the floor. Come on. Do it! His hand was eventually trembling from the strain of holding it up, but nothing happened. He closed his eyes and tried to focus inside on the tiny drop of power. Lee tried to grab it with a mental hand, tried to scoop it up from where it sat, but it spilled through his fingers like he was trying to grab a drop of water. Yet it had an effect! The power actually stirred under his efforts. It didn¡¯t go anywhere, but at least it did something! I''m on the right track! There was a way he just had to figure it out. He stood there in his new living room with his arm outstretched and shaking as he drove his mind against the energy inside him. Then all at once, it moved, zipping faster than he could perceive up and out... There was a roaring crash, and something threw him backward. Lee opened his eyes on the floor, sat up, and saw a cone of destruction before him. Plastic bins and cardboard boxes were thrown across the room by whatever he¡¯d done, and it had even ripped away a patch of carpet, exposing the concrete underneath. Lee looked at his hand and then at the destruction. So much for my deposit, he thought, smiling. That was... awesome! Someone pounded on the wall next door; Lee ignored it. His arm tingled in the aftermath and had gone numb as if it had fallen asleep. Lee shook the limb and wiggled his fingers. They still worked. I''m sure it''s fine. He held off on more experiments until his arm felt normal again. Not because he was patient, but because it took so long to gather another drop. While he waited, Lee worked on gathering the power faster. First, he tried standing with his body completely covering the origin, which gave weird results. It was like the singular point he could feel wasn''t actually where he thought it was. Or maybe the power flowing from it wasn''t coming directly from there... it was weird, and it didn''t work. Then he tried to influence the power outside of himself. If he could control it at all, then why not pull in all the wisps going by? It worked! Slightly, and only on the nearest bits. Which meant it wasn''t all that much faster... Still, it was progress. Lee held onto enough rationality to stop his efforts while the new drop was smaller than the last. The numbness in his arm might be a warning of worse to come. Not that he would let that stop him, but a little caution was okay. He also went outside to avoid destroying more of this new apartment. The deposit was the least of his worries, but he still had to live here. Of course, he didn''t go all the way downstairs. He had a balcony for that. It still took him a minute to make anything happen, but this time, he braced himself with the metal railing before blasting the tiny drop of power out into the sky. The visual effect wasn''t much in the bright midday sunlight, just a flash of light, but the booming crack in the air was extremely satisfying. The car alarm going off on the street below was less pleasant and followed by someone yelling about the noise. Lee retreated inside before anyone figured out who was making all the racket. Meanwhile, his mind was racing as he considered his new reality. His arm was less numb this time, which was good, but he wasn''t sure how much more he would get away with before someone came to investigate the disturbance. He really didn''t want to deal with the cops. He also really didn''t want to stop. ... Sometime later, he was sitting on the floor, his whole body twitching and trembling. Lee held his shaking hand up against an undestroyed box and focused. The box shook and then slid across the carpet for a few feet before stopping. Lee grinned. "It¡¯s not so hard," he said to himself. Sweat dripped into his eye, and he blinked. "Maybe time for a break, though." He was getting hungry. That can of beans was not enough after the day he''d had. His apartment was also a mess. Nothing was unpacked yet, and his experiments had destroyed a lot of the boxes. Lee didn''t care. He considered what his efforts had accomplished as he struggled shakily back to his feet. The tiniest droplets of power were enough to push stuff around, any more and it got explosive. He also couldn''t yet control how much he used. It was all or nothing. Something to work on. In his experiments, Lee had discovered a system of veins or channels inside his body that the energy seemed to prefer to move through on the way out of his center. And right now, those channels felt burnt and raw. He switched arms when his right started hurting, then switched to using his legs after that... You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Might have overdone it, Lee admitted to himself, but I couldn¡¯t resist! All this time, he''d been stuck watching his twin do awesome shit and been unable to do anything himself. I can¡¯t wait to tell him about this! On that thought, Lee found his phone and tapped the screen to wake it up. Nothing happened. Shit. Lee was still smiling despite the setback and dug out a charger from the mess of his apartment. Plugging it in had no effect, and Lee tried a light switch just in case it was more than his phone. Nothing. In fact, none of the lights were working... He walked back to the porch and looked outside into the twilight. There were some city lights visible, but he felt like there should be more. This was San Diego, after all. The apartment complex seemed pretty dark as well, no street lights anywhere. I hope it wasn''t my experiments... Lee leaned out over the rail and looked south towards Mexico. He could see the glittering lights of Tijuana easily visible in the oncoming night. He blinked once and could have sworn a patch of those lights winked out. His eyes felt gritty, and Lee rubbed them right as his stomach started growling. "Damn it! I forgot to go shopping!" He trudged over to the small kitchen and opened the fridge, hoping that maybe he had gone shopping and just forgot. It was dark and empty. "Well, if there¡¯s no power, maybe it''s good I didn¡¯t go¡­" He started going through the boxes strewn around as best he could in the dim apartment. He considered going down to the rental truck to go shopping or just grab some fast food, but he was so tired. Tomorrow. After some mostly blind searching, he found what he was looking for. Another can of beans, with jalapenos this time. He peeled off the lid and settled onto his small couch. "Ahh, a dinner of champions!" Lee brandished his spoon and then dug into the cold beans. Despite the lackluster dinner, Lee couldn¡¯t help but grin. He could still feel the power flowing around him from the¡­ whatever it was. Hell, he was pulling in the wisps even now as he ate. Lee watched the flowing energy and practiced pulling it in and pushing it back out in tiny breezes, mesmerized until his spoon scraped the bottom of the can. He set it down and considered grabbing another, but he was so tired. It had been quite a day, and whatever he was doing here was definitely draining. So instead, Lee lay back on the couch and watched the pretty lights in his head as his eyelids slowly drifted shut. [World Quest Failed] Lee jolted upright and reached for his phone to turn off the alarm. His hand waved about in futility for a moment before he peeled his eyes open and saw that he was on the couch. Then he finally noticed the glowing words floating in his vision. [World Quest Failed] As he focused on the words, they shifted, and a new message appeared with the words echoing in his head as if spoken directly into his thoughts. The (Human) Species has failed the Quest: [A Civilized World]. Failure Conditions: [Mana Capacitors at Maximum Capacity] [Achieve >90% Unity] [Failed] Failure Penalty: Consideration to join the [Civilized System] Denied. The Species (Human) Designation as [Civilized(Sapient)] Denied. The Species (Human) Designation is [Monster(Sapient)]. The World (Earth) Designation [Dungeon(F Grade)]. Mana Saturation of (Earth) has begun. Due to (Sapient) Species on (Earth) Initializing Dungeon System. What the¡­ Lee thought, Humans are monsters? I mean, I guess that makes sense. The lights in the apartment flickered to life. Lee jumped a bit in surprise and finally noticed the shouting from somewhere else in the building. A lot of shouting, in fact, and a lot of dogs barking. He was distracted from all that when something even more exciting appeared. The point of power that he''d been experimenting with all day was now visible! More than that, he could feel the power coming off it in heavy waves that washed over and through him. What had been a laborious trial to gather the smallest wisps was now a torrent that flooded into him with no effort. In fact, Lee wasn''t sure he could stop it if he wanted to... Not that he did. It felt... right. This power felt like something he had been missing his whole life, and now it was filling him up. No more microscopic drops. Now Lee had a lake inside him, and it was still growing... He jumped again when the new message appeared in his vision and mind. Dungeon System Initialized. As a (Sapient) you may choose your own Class. As a (Human) your Racial Trait: [Adaptable] unlocks all Class Restrictions. Warning! If a Class is Not Chosen Before the Dungeon Opens, you will be Assigned the Class with the Highest Affinity. Dungeon Opening in¡­ [58:35...58:34...58:33] A timer appeared in the corner of his vision and started ticking down. Simultaneously, a new screen popped up. Class Selection:... Lee didn''t look at the list, he was instead reaching his hand toward the power in his living room. You have found an Unclaimed Liquid Mana Well. Claim Y/N Hell yes! Liquid Mana Well Claimed. You have bound this Well to yourself and no others may access it without your permission so long as you live. Turned out he was playing with mana all this time, and the instant he claimed the Well, the mana rushed into him in a torrent beyond anything he''d felt before. The message about his potential death was ominous, but Lee focused on the flood of mana that now filled him. He felt full, but not unpleasantly so. It felt good... and powerful. He didn''t know if it resulted from claiming the Well or simply what having full mana felt like. Though, Lee wondered just how valuable the Well might be that it mentioned killing to claim it... The upside of his claim was that the thick waves of power emanating from the Well died down to a much less noticeable effect, and the glowing point of light dimmed. It wasn''t gone, not completely, and it felt more akin to before the messages had started, but Lee hoped it was enough that he wouldn''t draw attention. There was still a message in his mind, though, and Lee finally focused on it. Class Selection: Runic (Legendary) 100% Affinity Enchanter (Uncommon) 50% Affinity Magic Engineer (Rare) 45% Affinity Electric Manipulator (Rare) 40% Affinity ¡­ The list of class choices scrolled down with just a thought, and after a long list of various elemental classes, there followed more esoteric names like Gravity Manipulator and Time Changer. Lee paused at those, but the Affinity was super low, and he had a feeling that was important. He passed by random classes like Engineer, Librarian, Farmer, and more. As he scrolled down, the Affinity reduced further into the single digits. Eventually, the Affinity reached 0.9%, but the list continued, seemingly endlessly, as he scrolled faster and faster until he stopped the scrolling blur and looked at the list. Alreic Beather (Common) 0.001% Affinity Alreic Beatrie (Uncommon) 0.001% Affinity It¡¯s just gibberish at this point, he thought. Lee didn¡¯t want to try selecting anything, just in case it stuck him with some random option. He glanced at the timer ticking down in the corner of his vision. [51:34...51:33] I shouldn¡¯t be wasting time. A thought brought him back to the beginning of the list, and Lee looked more closely at the first choice. As he thought about what it might mean, a new screen appeared. Runic (Legendary) 100% Affinity Bind everything in power. A Legendary class created by Unknown on the Dungeon World Akash. The Runed Fortress, created by the Progenitor of this class, stood untouched for millennia until a pantheon of fallen gods destroyed Akash itself. Despite the destruction of their world, rumors abound that the Runed Fortress yet stands, and even now, roams the void, undefeated and in search of revenge. The rune script of Akash is one of the original written languages; A language of power. The runes that make up this ancient language are versatile and personal to the individual that creates them. This is due to the Runic utilizing their own soul as a stabilizing medium for the extremely volatile and dense Liquid Mana that is required to empower each Rune. That same volatility requires extremely durable Mana Core and Channels capable of containing the Liquid Mana without destroying the user. The (Azal) are the only species who have successfully wielded Liquid Mana without the aid of external tools. Class Level Effects (Novice) +5% Effective Mind Attributes +5% Liquid Mana Pool Capacity Class Requirements: Liquid Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Met][N/A](Adaptable) Minimum 10 (Hidden Attribute: Soul)[N/A](Adaptable) It required Liquid Mana... which, it seemed, Lee already had if he was reading it right. The mana filling him up, in what he guessed was his core, felt somewhat liquid to Lee. The channels bit seemed self-explanatory. The class talked about Soul. Did that mean souls were a real thing? And gods? Life after death? Lee shook away those thoughts. Focus. The class was legendary, which sounded good... Though, it also mentioned that only one species had ever used the class... but if it was so hard, then why was his affinity maxed out? Lee wasn''t sure what to think, so he looked at the next option. Enchanter (Uncommon) 50% Affinity Keep magic where it belongs; neat and tidy inside the lines. An Uncommon class specializing in inscribing enchantments into a variety of items and materials. Considered a non-combat support class. Class Level Effects (Novice) +2% Effective Mind Attributes +2% Mana Pool Capacity Class Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) The level effects were noticeably worse than the first option, but it also had another glaring difference. Non-combat... Lee knew it was going to be a thing. Combat. Fighting. It was all but said in the message about humans being the monsters, which implied they would be hunted like said monsters... He knew he should be freaking out more about this whole thing... but he wasn''t. It didn''t feel as strange as his rational mind told him it should. The world had just changed on a fundamental level, and here he was, trying to decide which magical class was better... Deep down, he''d known this was coming... at least, that was the feeling he had now. Between Stanley''s fantastical powers and whatever had really happened on the mountain, this was not unexpected. Regardless, he was wasting time. Lee focused on the class choices again. Enchanter. One thing stood out to him. This class mentioned Mana and seemed to imply that he would need to adapt to it. Yet, he already had Mana. He could literally feel it inside him. Did it require non-liquid mana? Was liquid mana better or worse? Also, the description was way less colorful than the first option. Maybe because it was only Uncommon versus Legendary... Honestly, it made the first one look much better in comparison. He checked the next option. [Magic Engineer](Rare) 45% Affinity Magic is for the machines. Many worlds have developed their own primitive technology pre-integration into the System. This class allows the user to integrate their knowledge of technology alongside the new influx of mana. Users can craft a variety of devices, from power supplies to small machines. Considered a mix of non-combat support and combat class. [Class Level Effects](Novice) +3% Effective Mind Attributes +3% Mana Pool Capacity [Class Requirements] Mana Core/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) This one was rare and gave more effective mind attributes, whatever that meant, but again with the non-liquid mana... was that why his affinity was lower? Something had happened to them when Stanley got his power. The things they had seen but couldn''t quite remember. They had chosen something... changed something. If we knew this was coming... Had they adapted before? What class is Stanley going to get... Stanley! Lee couldn''t believe he''d forgotten his brother, even if this was all rather distracting. Violence was coming for them. Danger and the threat of death would likely be a major part of their lives going forward... and Stanley had left him here alone. Or I left him alone... But Stanley was powerful. Hell, he was probably the most powerful human on earth right now. He''ll be fine. Regardless, there was nothing to be done about it now, and Lee needed to make a choice. He looked at the next option, more out of curiosity than a belief that he would actually choose it. [Electric Manipulator](Rare) 40% Affinity Stand up and take charge. Electricity is a common element in the multiverse. Users of this class gain the ability to manipulate that element in a variety of ways. Considered a combat class specializing in offense but lacking in defense. [Class Level Effects](Novice) +3% Effective Mind Attributes +3% Mana Pool Capacity [Class Requirements] Mana Core/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) Electric Attuned Mana [N/A](Adaptable) Throwing lightning bolts around sounded great. Hell, it sounded awesome, but Lee had a nagging feeling that kept dragging his eyes back to the top of the list. That 100% Affinity had to mean something... unfortunately, he couldn''t get any information to come up about what exactly it meant, no matter how hard he tried. The fact that his brand new Mana Well was labeled as a Liquid Mana Well wasn''t lost on him, either. Another thing was that the Runic class said nothing about combat or non-combat. It still had the most detailed description, but failed to mention exactly what the class was for. There was some flavor text about a fortress that sounded like it was defensive, and... Lee''s gaze landed on the Liquid Mana Well in his living room. That it was here and that he''d felt so drawn to this place... now a class that used liquid mana. Was this something they had seen coming? Was he meant to be exactly where he was? Then why was Stanley not here? Why couldn''t he have just fucking stayed!? Or... was Stanley not meant to be here... Lee didn''t like the little feeling in the back of his mind telling him he was right. He really didn''t like it. Fuck! It couldn''t be a coincidence. Not after what happened to them. Did Stanley even have a choice when he left? Lee glanced away from the Well and at his dead phone. I should have called... Now it was too late. He knew it on an instinctual level. That he could take a class designed to merge magic and technology gave a hint that cell phones might make a comeback. It also told him they most likely wouldn''t work until someone did just that. It was tempting to go that route, to rebuild what he knew was now lost, but it was not for him. Lee had ended up here for a reason, and he was pretty sure it was his and Stanley''s choice. No gods had put them on this path. It wasn''t the whims of fate. It was their own choice... now, if only he could remember why... or how. The timer kept ticking down while Lee scrolled back down the list, looking at his other options. It didn''t matter if time ran out because it would stick him with the Runic class, and Lee was feeling more and more like he had to take that option. He tried to take a rational approach to the problem. Stanley was powerful. Lee didn''t need to worry about him. His brother would probably fly home in less than a day... but then why did he get a sick feeling in his stomach whenever he thought about seeing Stanley again? The Runic class was legendary. It gave the best bonuses. It mentioned an undefeated fortress. Lee could build a haven here, and could wait for Stanley to get back. That made sense... didn''t it? Fuck. Lee made his choice. I hope this is the right one... Class Chosen: Runic Adapting... No Adaptation Required. Unlocking Hidden Attribute: Soul... Unique Soul Detected. Identical Unique Soul Detected... Classifying... Twin-Soul. Twin-Soul has been Soul-Bonded by Caff Caffeine. Analyzing Twin-Soul Value... Unknown. Further Analysis Required. You receive (Novice Runic Dictionary) You receive Class Skill: Rune Scribe (Uncommon) Fire seared through his head after the last message, and with it came knowledge. The knowledge of how to use his new skill, new connections, concepts, and theories that only made sense in a way completely foreign to everything he''d known before. And atop all that came an entirely new language. It hurt! Lee fought through the pain battering his mind, enduring it even as he reveled in the information burning its way inside. His vision tunneled, and darkness threatened to pull him under, but Lee held on to consciousness through sheer stubbornness and the desire for the very power that battered his mind. In the far distance, he felt something echoing back to him and knew with absolute certainty that it was his brother. Lee knew this, thanks in large part to his newly gained knowledge, but also on a deeper, more instinctive level. It was their soul... their Twin-Soul. Not that he knew what that meant... not exactly, but he knew Stanley was alive and awake. He even felt like he could pinpoint his current location. A very far away location... Lee held out against the pain right until it finally and abruptly stopped. The sudden relief proved his undoing, and Lee relaxed, inadvertently succumbing to the darkness with one final thought, What was that about Caffeine... ... The Dungeon is Open. The ominous message in his brain woke Lee. That, or the floor shaking underneath him. Or maybe it was the screams from outside... 2. The Sounds of Croaking The previous yelling outside had shifted from confusion and anger into something far more terrified. The barking dogs sounded much more frantic as well. Lee had a moment to consider the message about Caffeine and wonder what Stanley was doing... Then the building shook violently, almost throwing him to the floor as he scrambled off the couch, and another horrific scream reached his ears before cutting off far too abruptly. The sound of breaking glass followed from somewhere below, and it drew Lee''s eyes to the large sliding glass door of his porch. He was moving before the conscious decision to do so had fully registered in his brain and stopped with a finger touching the glass. Knowledge that hadn''t been in his head an hour ago led him to pull at the pool of power inside himself, and Lee''s finger slid across the glass, leaving behind a brilliant blue line. He drew out a strange but now familiar symbol onto the glass as power flowed through him and spread out from where he touched. Lee could feel it spreading through the glass, reaching all the way to the frame around the edge and then circling back. He knew exactly how much power the glass could take without breaking. He didn''t know how he knew that, but he did, and that knowledge informed the skill he was using without requiring him to think about it. A moment later, it was done. Skill Level Up: [Rune Scribe] The blinding light of his first rune faded into invisibility, but Lee knew the window was now one of the strongest barriers in the world. More screams came from outside and another building shaking crash rolled through the floor. Lee stopped thinking and let the new class knowledge guide his actions as he went from window to window throughout his apartment. His breath was fast, and his pulse thundered in his ears as he vacillated between the terror of what sounded like people dying outside and the wonder of the magic he was doing with such ease. Heavy impacts periodically shook the building, and strange noises that sounded almost familiar assaulted his ears. Like a kind of deep croaking... After the windows on either side of it, Lee put the same symbol on his front door. The particle-board mash of wood pieces reacted differently to the magic, both requiring more power and also providing less total empowerment, which didn''t matter because the door was already more durable than a piece of glass. The footsteps slapping against the cement as they raced past just outside turned into a scream as something hit the building again. Then the scream cut off... right as a loud impact struck his newly enchanted door. Lee flinched back in heart-pounding panic... but the door held. However, the jam around the door groaned, and Lee could have sworn he heard something cracking. He put his trembling hand against the wall then, mana at his fingertips, ready to enchant it as he had everything else, and found... a problem. The cinder blocks making up the walls had a similar property to the door in that they were many individual pieces held together by glue, or in this case, mortar. Just like the door, it wasn''t really a problem to lump them all together, but Lee could feel the power reaching further and further as it tried to find the edges of the greater whole. He tried to limit it, tried to contain the power directly around his own little apartment, but the rune couldn''t seem to find an acceptable cut-off anywhere as it followed the walls all the way around the entire third floor he was on. Then it clicked, and power roared through him. It felt like his finger was dragging a thousand-pound weight as Lee forced it to move while simultaneously trying not to scream from the liquid fire flowing through his veins. He feared his finger, his hand, even his entire arm might melt right off, but also knew that it wouldn''t... probably. The process seemed to take an eternity, but was over in seconds as every wall around him flashed with a blinding pulse of blue light before fading back to darkness. Skill Level Up: [Rune Scribe] Lee felt drained, achy, and strangely exhilarated as he tried to blink away the spots in his vision. His rune had worked, and while he hadn''t been able to limit it to only his apartment, the magic had focused mostly nearby. It still spread out across the building, but he knew that the effect would diminish the further away from the origin. The important part was that he would be safe here. Then another impact sent him stumbling, which ended with him on the floor. The still unenchanted floor... His hand was shaking, and Lee hesitated at the pain he knew would come as he prepared to put a rune onto the floor. It was going to take the entire third floor. He knew it would... but did it anyway. Or rather, he tried. Lee barely started before it became immediately apparent what the problem was; he was out of Mana. It was refilling, he could practically see the Mana flowing in from every direction, could feel it rushing into him like a firehose, but it was a hose trying to fill a lake. Far too slow for what he needed... The Well! He scrambled on hands and knees toward the Well, not trusting his legs at the moment. The flow increased as he approached, but it was still too slow. Lee lifted his left hand, his right still feeling numb and hot. The flow of Mana kept increasing as he approached until, abruptly, it rushed in. He was full again in seconds. Lee dropped both hands on the floor, feeling much better with his Mana restored but still afraid of the pain he knew was in his immediate future... then he started drawing on the conveniently bare patch of cement where he''d ripped up the carpet by accident what felt like a lifetime ago. Unfortunately, the magic knowledge in his head didn''t make him ambidextrous but told him he really didn''t want to screw up the Rune by trying to draw it with his left hand. So he used his right again. As expected, the Rune insisted on taking the entire third floor... floor, but like the last one, Lee knew it wouldn''t hold up nearly as well on the other side of the building. Due to having done it once already and the smaller total area, Lee pulled it off without too much extra pain. His eyes naturally drifted to the ceiling after that, and he was glad he didn''t have a ladder to reach it... though he could climb on the kitchen counter... The screams, yells, and dull thuds continued in a sporadic yet unceasing racket beyond his walls. The impacts against the building felt less impactful thanks to the runes already placed, but each hit also drained a bit of power from those same runes as they blocked damage to the structure. Lee topped his Mana back up, his completely numb right arm granting him relief from the burning sensation and also an excuse to hold off on the ceiling since he found the limb slightly sluggish. In a compromise between cowering in a corner and boldly going to save his neighbors, Lee finally peeked back out a front window to see just what the hell was going on. The blinding glow of his Runes had prevented him from seeing anything earlier while enchanting those same windows... and it was still pitch black outside. I need a light... His gaze flickered around the chaotic and disorganized darkened mess of his apartment until he caught a flash of white in the dimness. There! The plate was ceramic, which his knowledge told him was durable enough for what he wanted, and his left-hand finger drew a much simpler symbol on the plain white disc. The Mana cost was also negligible compared to the last, barely draining enough to notice. The bright blue light shining out of the symbol remained once finished this time, and he angled it away from his face and toward the front door. Pressing it against the windows didn''t help because the double-paned window still reflected too much light back inside, which made Lee also realize that he''d only enchanted the inside pane on every one of his windows... The face looming into the glare from outside scared the shit out of Lee, and he fell onto his ass as he scrambled away from the window, dropping the plate in the process. It landed face down on the carpet, unbroken but plunging his apartment back into darkness. Something shook the building again, and a yellow light flashed outside as a man''s shout echoed through the walls. It wasn''t a cry of pain, though, more a yell of defiance... Footsteps vibrated softly through to where Lee sat, and the yellow light moved past his door to the window on the other side. "?Mar¨ªa, vuelve adentro!" A man''s voice yelled something in Spanish, and Lee heard a woman say something back but didn''t understand any of it. Then something pounded on his door, and Lee flinched. "Mister!" the man yelled, "can you help? We have injured people out here!" Help? Lee didn''t even know what was out there, and judging by how the damn building kept shaking, he really didn''t want to know. A metallic clang sounded, along with another flash of yellow light, and the man grunted. Lee forced himself to move and snatched up his plate-light. Squeezing his eyes shut against the glare, he opened the front door and slid the plate across the floor, glowing side up, before slamming the door behind it. Looking back out the window was... illuminating, and Lee was very glad he hadn''t been dumb enough to run out there because a giant frog was crawling along the balcony that circled the interior courtyard of the building. Its mouth opened, and a tongue shot past the window, clanging against a yellow glow. Inside the yellow glow... was a pot lid. A pot lid held by a man, and presumably the one who was calling him before. The same man stepped forward toward the five-foot-tall frog, his glowing lid held up as a shield while his other hand brandished a machete. The frog shifted at his approach and shot out the tongue again. It ricocheted from the shield, and the man lunged forward immediately, swinging down with his blade at the monstrous amphibian. It croaked when the blade sliced a deep cut into its lips and then jumped. Unfortunately for the man, it jumped forward and body slammed him. He flew all the way past Lee''s door again before disappearing out of sight; the frog following him into the dark while a woman screamed something in Spanish. Another man ran into Lee''s light from the other direction and picked up the plate. Hey, that''s mine! The blue light was shining up at the man''s upper body, so Lee saw clearly when a wet tendril of something smacked into the side of his chest. Lee watched that wide-eyed face as it sailed over the railing and kept going back. The blue light illuminated a massive frog clinging to the far side of the courtyard. Only for an instant, though. Then its maw closed around both the man and the glowing plate in his hands. Darkness descended as Lee stared in disbelief. What the fuck was that!? Where the light had vanished was now only a dull orange glow... A moment later, he felt something break. The orange glow vanished, and then a trickle of power flowed into him from the same direction. Lee instinctively understood that his rune had just been destroyed, or rather the plate had been, and the rune couldn''t exist without it. I need a weapon... Lee moved back from the window slowly as if trying to sneak away without drawing that thing''s attention... He was mostly sure that his window would hold up, mostly. He thought about the blast he''d spent all day learning to control... and shook his head. Yeah, it was powerful, but Lee had used only drops of mana for that power. Compared to the ocean of mana inside him now... he didn''t know what would happen. Especially since he''d never figured out how to release anything less than all of his mana at once... Last resort, Lee told himself. That is a last resort. Like if I get eaten by a huge frog... His eyes found the ripped-up box he''d pulled the plate from just as something crashed on a lower floor. It sounded like a wall breaking... Kitchen knife, butcher knife, anything! Lee upended the box and found... silverware. Nothing sharper than a fork or butter knife... New class knowledge pinged off the idea of sharpness, and Lee snatched up a handful of the utensils. His right arm was no longer numb, though it was full of pins and needles. Still, he could move it, and move he did, drawing out a tiny symbol on the widest part of a fork. The mana cost was negligible on this small rune, but the fork bit him as soon as the rune was complete, and Lee dropped it in surprise! Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Debuff: [Minor Bleeding] Lee sucked his stinging hand and tasted blood... The fork was indeed sharp now, but he realized he had made the entire thing sharp. The flat sides of it would be safe, but every edge, every pointy tine was now razor sharp. Lee dove into his Rune knowledge and knew he could do a more careful application that would focus the sharpness more intentionally... Another crash of breaking glass, this time sounding out next door as both a man and a woman yelled, followed by small children screaming in terror... Shit! He didn''t have time to be fancy. Lee scribbled Rune after Rune on his pile of silverware, tossing each toward the door where they bounced off with sparks of light and a metallic ping that he knew was the enchanted door defending itself from his enchanted forks... His fingers had no such enchantment, and he paid for it a few more times. The last one he turned into another light. A much more durable light than his plate. That was enough, right? He could provide some weapons at least... but he couldn''t go out into that shit show, right? Something heavy thumped right outside his door, and Lee heard more screams as he peeked out the window. A giant frog was right outside... It shot its tongue out and clanged off the pot-lid shield again. Now! Lee pulled the door open and threw the entire bloody handful of enchanted utensils through the opening, right at the frog. It hopped completely clear of his projectiles... right as a massive tongue punched through the metal railing outside his door and snatched the glittering cloud of falling silverware before slamming into his door. The door responded to the impact by slamming into Lee''s head and tossing him backward with a flash of light and pain behind his eyes. He was still falling when he saw the tongue retracting into that same maw across the courtyard, his glowing fork stuck to it along with the other enchanted silverware. Lee hit the floor as the glowing fork vanished inside the frog, and then his wonderfully spring-loaded door swung itself shut with a satisfying thud. The horrible croaking that followed the snuffing of the light made the entire building vibrate, and Lee grinned despite his fear. That idiot frog couldn''t have done a better job if he''d planned it! Except maybe not getting hit with his own door... Debuff Removed: [Minor Bleeding] He gingerly touched his forehead, feeling for any growing lumps, and found a gash that noticeably shrank under his fingers... and then it was gone. His fingers didn''t hurt anymore, either. All the little cuts had vanished. He wasn''t sure why he seemed to be healing so fast, but he wasn''t going to complain, either. Debuff: [Hungry] The loud croaking turned wet as Lee made it back to the door and put one eye to his peephole, trying to see what was happening outside. He wasn''t about to trust the windows after seeing that tongue go through the metal so easily, even if he knew logically that his windows were stronger than metal now... or they should be... A light appeared across the courtyard, falling down in a glittering mess of dark liquid and silverware from a giant frog''s open maw. The fork disappeared from sight, but light still shone up from below and illuminated the frog clinging to the interior side of the building as something dripped from a dozen holes in its huge body. Lee really hoped it was blood. The mouth opened as the frog looked his way... and something shot out directly into his door. Lee fell back onto his butt in an instinctive flinch as something went splat against the door with a wet thud. Only this time, the door had nothing to do with his fall. He was up a moment later and peering back through the peephole, only now it was smudgy and dark... Moving over and peeking through a corner of the windows let him see the twitching tongue on the balcony in front of his door. The severed, minced and bloody, six-foot-long piece of tongue... Ew. The frog across the way was still dripping profusely, and as he watched, it sagged and then fell down into the courtyard, out of sight. Lee wanted to cheer at his victory... but he could still see that man being swallowed in one bite. Only luck had prevented that from being him... So instead, he snatched up another butter knife in blood-slicked and shaking hands. Then he had to wipe his hands and the knife off on his pants before he could hold it steady. He started drawing his first double Rune while the building still shook around him, and people continued to cry out in the distance. This wasn''t over. A faint memory popped up in his mind. A memory of hearing a chorus of croaking frogs the few times he''d stepped out onto the porch the evening before. Hell, that five-foot-tall frog fighting his neighbor might be the smallest one. There could be hundreds or thousands of giant man-swallowing frogs surrounding him right now... Lee''s imagination did his shaking hands no favors, and it forced him to start over multiple times before he finally stuck a Rune, or rather two of them, onto the knife. Each fuckup required him to pull the Mana back through his arm, increasing the burning numbness, but luckily, it couldn''t compare with what he''d needed for the walls and floors. He also still had to focus his mind on exactly what he wanted each Rune to do, and he fucked it up completely. Debuff: [Minor Bleeding] The hot sting in his hand when he grabbed the handle drew more blood, but the blade end wasn''t sharp... Lee grabbed the dull blade and went back to his windows in time to see the neighbor with the machete deflect another tongue before chopping the blade into the frog''s head. It worked this time, and the frog collapsed beneath the blow. Lee saw no more frogs in sight and cracked his door open. If he could enchant the man''s machete... Glass shattered next door, and children screamed. It sounded like it came from their porch... Lee glanced back at his own porch across the living room and saw a shadow moving on the other side. Shit! He knew the window would hold... it would definitely hold... but the frog was so big. A croak from next door was followed by a thud against the walls and a woman yelling something in Spanish while high-pitched voices wailed. Lee opened his door and stuck his head outside in time to see human silhouettes exiting the neighbor''s front door and moving toward the man with the glowing pot-lid shield. Two of the silhouettes were small... child-sized. Their small wailing voices tugged at his heart, and Lee cursed to himself. He didn''t know any of his neighbors and didn''t care about any of them, not really. But he wasn''t heartless enough to hide away when he could help... especially children. Besides, it wasn¡¯t like he had to risk his life to help them. I''m going to regret this. "Get in here," Lee called to the shapes behind the glowing pot lid. He stepped back, opening the door wider... and saw movement across the courtyard. It was too dark to see anything clearly, especially past the glowing pot lid, but Lee caught the movement and tried to retreat before he could get eaten. The neighbors were too far away... they wouldn''t make it. He almost got the door closed... but the tongue hit a moment too soon, and the door slammed into his face. Again. I really need to stop doing that... The good news was that he landed back on his own floor again, rather than inside a frog''s stomach. He rolled sideways to get away from the open door, and his neighbors almost stepped on him when they charged inside. Primarily the woman with two children in her arms, who got shoved through the door by the man with the glowing shield. Right before he spun around to block something outside with another clang and flash of yellow light. Lee scrambled away from them in the dark, remembering to grab his butter knife by the blade rather than the handle as he went back to the pile of silverware. Another rune stuck on another fork later, and the blue glow lit up the room. A few pairs of eyes swung his way at the blooming light before the woman''s gaze trailed down to the blood-slicked entryway she was currently slipping and sliding through. Lee hadn''t realized just how much he''d been bleeding... Debuff Removed: [Minor Bleeding] Then the man backed through the doorway behind her, forcing her to move, and slammed it behind himself as another frog tried to squeeze through the gap. The door rang with a few impacts after it was closed but didn''t budge. "Thank you!" the man said, smiling as they all stared at him in the light of a glowing fork and a glowing pot lid. Lee only stared at the machete in the man''s hand. He wanted it. "Give me the machete," Lee said. "I can enchant it." "No!" the woman said, then gasped after looking toward the porch and said something in Spanish. The man moved to her side as they looked at the porch. Lee shot a quick glance and saw the long tongue sliding in a disgusting display across the glass. He looked away quickly. It would hold. "Wait!" Lee said when the man advanced toward the glass. "It''s enchanted. It won''t break!" He really hoped he was right about that... They all watched the frog as it licked and head-butted the glass, but it did indeed hold. The small symbol pulsing into view in time with each impact lent extra credence to his enchanting claim. "I can make your shield like that," Lee said, "and make the blade sharper." There was no protest from the woman when the man handed over the pot lid, and Lee drew his rune on it in a few seconds. Either the light show impressed him, or the man was a fool because he handed over the machete after that. Or he was confident and armed with a shield he''d been using quite well so far... Lee put two runes on the blade, carefully this time, with one to make the actual blade sharper and the other to make the whole thing nigh indestructible. He considered his options while doing that. He might be able to hold on to the weapon now that it was in his hands and enchanted, but... the thought of fighting these people or forcing them back out of his home felt... bad. Plus, it just might be better to let someone else fight in his place, even with enchanted weapons. He could take it back if the guy got eaten... The only other thing that gave him pause was the fact that they might threaten him in return, try to kick him out of his home... just thinking about the possibility made Lee aware he could take his runes back at any time with nothing more than the desire to do so. Armed with that knowledge, and since he wasn''t keen on fighting hand-to-hand with giant frogs, Lee held the machete out to the man. "Be careful. It''s extremely sharp now." "Gracias," the man said and took the weapon, showing more care than Lee expected, and while Lee waited anxiously in case of sudden betrayal. The man didn''t try to kill him. Instead, he headed for the porch. "Glass is enchanted," Lee reminded him. "It won''t get..." The man pulled the door open in a swift tug and then chopped the frog nearly in half before the blade sparked off the floor beneath it when he met no resistance to his strike. As it should be... Gore splashed through the door before he could close it, but the man was smiling when he turned back around. "Excelente!" Even Lee knew what that word meant. Then the man headed for the front door with his pot shield in one hand and machete in the other. The woman said something in rapid-fire Spanish, and they went back and forth in an exchange that Lee had no chance to follow, but he got the gist. The man wanted to go back outside, and the woman wanted him to stay put. Lee was on her side. What good was giving the guy gear if he ran off and died somewhere? Better he use it to defend them here. Plus, if he died nearby at least Lee could get his loot. Unfortunately, the yells and croaks outside only seemed to spur the man into action, and he left despite her protests. The building shook from another heavy impact shortly after he vanished, and the woman turned angry eyes on Lee. Don''t blame me, Lee thought, looking away to grab up the last of his silverware and turn it all into weapons. He only made one before something slammed into his apartment again. Lee flinched, but a glance confirmed that everything still held. A quick look through the glass was less satisfying when he saw another of the giants crawling down from the roof. Shit, shit! He really hoped they didn''t just bring the whole building down around him... Lee was almost finished with the utensils when a man yelled outside, and he looked up to see the woman open the door right before more people staggered through. Almost a dozen of them. What the fuck!? As they came through, there was a clang and another impact that sent the man with his shield bowling them over. Lee didn''t stick his head around the door but threw another handful of sharpened utensils through the open door, including one light, hoping to repeat his successful tactic from before. He wasn''t sure if it worked, and then the man ran back outside again. Leaving a bunch of strangers in Lee''s apartment... Lee tried to ignore the crying and distraught people as he finished the last of his improvised weapons. He just had to be a hero and open the door to let the first one in... Somehow, he doubted that telling them to all fuck off was going to go over well. A glance out the window sent chills down his spine when he saw two more of the behemoths climbing down into the courtyard. They were going to destroy the building at this rate. Even now, their tongues shot out in every direction, each impact breaking something. At least, anything he hadn''t enchanted yet... Lee glanced at the ceiling as another impact knocked some of the popcorn from it... then he scrambled to get up on the kitchen counter, and his bloody hands slipped free. He scrubbed his hands on his jeans again; he really hoped regeneration helped with infections, then successfully scaled the counter. His right arm was just shy of total numbness, but Lee braced it with his left hand and started drawing. His mana regeneration seemed to be very high, or else his small runes just didn''t need very much. Either way, his mana was sufficient for what he had in mind. It still felt... unpleasant, but he forced the Mana out as he drew the symbol and felt it spreading to encompass the entire roof, or rather, the slab of cement that was his ceiling. Lee could already feel far too many cracks in the slab as his Rune spread to include it all, and he realized he needed to do something more, or they were all going to find out what it was like to be inside a falling building. Only they would be inside an unbreakable box, while the rest crumbled around them. Lee wasn''t sure how that would work, and he didn''t want to find out. There was a resonance he''d felt earlier between his runes on the floor and walls. It was something he''d ignored in favor of expediency, but now he reached for it. They were all the same Rune, and they all touched upon each other where they met at the edges and corners. Lee brought them together now, and then he pushed them to claim every wall and floor below. Immediately, Lee realized he didn''t have nearly enough Mana for this, and worse, it was too late to back out. Trying to stop now would require removing the runes he''d already placed, leaving them all defenseless against the giant monsters crawling around outside. He reached out for his Mana Well in desperation. Before he¡¯d directly touched it before to refill his pool, but he didn''t think that was strictly necessary. It was bound to him; it said as much, so he should be able to pull from it... He pulled, and for an agonizingly long moment, nothing happened. Lee begged and pleaded, he strained, he demanded, and finally, the mana moved. It more than moved. It raged across the short distance, swirling into and then right back out of him as it fed the glowing Rune on the ceiling. If all these strangers in his apartment hadn''t seen the Well before, they definitely couldn''t miss it anymore... not with how much mana he could feel tearing through the air between him and the Well. Unfortunately, in his desperate greed for safety, Lee had grossly underestimated just how much mana this was going to require, and now he was pretty sure his arm was melting as he forced his finger to finish tracing the Rune, his other hand doing most of the movement by dragging his right arm through the motions. He also might have screamed... Then, all at once, it was over. Lee didn''t need to look at his arm to know it was glowing, and he had no desire to look closer. He didn''t want to know how bad it was. Besides, his vision was tunneling, and he couldn''t see anything, anyway. Though it felt like he might be falling... hadn''t he climbed up on something? He was safe, though. Everyone in here should be safe now, and if anyone got any ideas about killing him... they would lose the rune protection as soon as Lee died. So that was something, at least... Then his head bounced off an extremely durable and powerfully enchanted concrete floor. 3. Too Slow ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine was awake when it happened. He had felt something coming and crawled out from under the warm blankets to stand guard. Dearest Human was very tired when he stopped the rumbling place, and Caffeine wanted to let him rest. After all, Dearest Human was grouchy when he got tired. It was nice and warm outside the covers. Dearest Human had left the Rumbling on, and it made warm air to protect them from the Bad Wet Whiteness outside. Dearest Human was the best! There were some Not Dearest Humans walking by outside, and Caffeine gave them his quietest woofs to let them know he was watching. He wanted to tell them very loudly that this was his Warm Rumbly place and they should stay away, but Dearest Human was sleeping and would get very grouchy if Caffeine woke him up. His warnings worked, and none of the Not Dearest Humans tried to attack. There was a loud noise. Then a Voice said some things that he didn¡¯t understand. Then the Voice offered him power, and Caffeine accepted. Dearest Human needed lots of help and protection. Many scary things were out there in the dark, and you can never be too sure that a large rock or a tree stump won¡¯t suddenly attack. The Voice said some more things, but Caffeine ignored them. Dearest Human made some tired noises when the voice was talking but didn''t wake up. That was good. Then the Rumbling stopped... that was bad, and the cold started sneaking inside. Lots of Not Dearest Humans ran around outside after that, and some made very loud noises. Caffeine woofed at all of them to please be quiet because Dearest Human was still sleeping. His stomach rumbled. It was almost the wonderful Breakfast time! Caffeine waited for a very, very long time until finally, Dearest Human started to make the wake up noises. Breakfast time! ~~~Stanley~~~ A strange feeling dragged Stanley from his dead sleep, and it wasn''t the dog licking his face. His head was pounding and his mouth was dry when he swiped at his phone to turn off the blinding light. A flailing hand found nothing, and then he saw the words hovering in his vision. Unique Hidden Attribute Unlocked: Twin-Soul Twin-Soul Value Unknown(further analysis required) The words faded as more took their place, and Stanley guzzled water as he read over the floating messages. [World Quest Failed]... His thirst eased as his anxiety climbed. This was bad. This was so bad! He was climbing out of bed when he got to the class options. Class Selection: Psionic (Rare) 100% Affinity Telekinetic (Uncommon) 50% Affinity Transporter (Rare) 48% Affinity Iron Mind (Rare) 47% Affinity Luckily, Stanley had gone to bed fully clothed, so didn''t have to waste time getting dressed and immediately started throwing things into a backpack as he glanced over the list and shivered against the cold. Hadn''t he left the truck on? It was the most ridiculous thing to have a floating screen in his mind offering game-like classes to him, but Stanley didn''t feel the slightest incredulity. He felt only dread. He dropped a handful of dog food on the floor before stuffing the rest into his pack, and Caffeine started gobbling it up while Stanley went to the fridge for his own supply... and found it empty. "Shit!" He''d eaten everything yesterday in his stupid attempt to push the damn truck all fucking day. His stomach gnawed at him. There was a timer ticking down in the corner of his vision, and Stanley''s dread only increased every time he glanced at it. (14:01)... (14:00)... (13:59) He looked through the first class option while stuffing water bottles into the pack. Psionic (Rare) 100% Affinity I think therefore it is. A Rare Class that focuses on the power of the Mind. Practitioners eschew the use of Mana, instead converting all external and internal energy directly into their mental energy. Strong minds use this energy to force the world around them to bend to their will. Masters of this class can alter reality on a whim and a thought. Considered a combat class with a mix of offensive and defensive options. Class Level Effects (Novice) +3% Effective Mind Attributes +3% Psionic Energy Pool Class Requirements: Psionic Energy Pool/Channels [Requirement Met][N/A](Adaptable) Sounded fine to Stanley, and he only skimmed the next one as he hauled both himself and Caffeine out of the truck into the cold, dark night. Telekinetic (Uncommon) 50% Affinity No touching required. An uncommon class that uses Mana to move physical objects around the caster. Considered a combat class with a mix of offensive and defensive options. [Class Level Effects(Novice)] +2% Effective Mind Attributes +2% Mana Pool [Class Requirements] Mana Pool/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) It sounded worse in every way, if a bit more straightforward in the description. Stanley waved his hand and mentally blasted a swath of snow off the grass, tearing up half the grass with his overpowered but crude attempt. "Caff, do your thing." Stanley set the pug down in the mix of dirt, snow, and grass. He needed to get back to Lee and was kicking himself for not staying with him. Idiot! What the fuck was I thinking? This shit was bad, and he needed to get across the country yesterday. Unfortunately, there was only one way to do it. Stanley needed to fly. It was something he''d done once before, back when he was much weaker. An activity he''d since avoided, no matter how tempting it was to fly his truck over slow drivers blocking the road. His increased power should make it no big deal, but the lack of fine control was the only reason Stanley hesitated now, but not for long. With a careful and much more gentle thought than he''d used on the snow, Stanley willed himself off the ground... and floated into the air. Okay. So not that hard. It only took the barest of intent to hold himself up, and Stanley stayed in the air while Caffeine looked for the right spot. At least, until the pug abandoned his search and eyed the floating man suspiciously, sniffing at his feet and whining even though Stanley was only a foot above the ground. "Hurry up, Caff." This was taking too long... but it was going to be a long flight. Stanley dropped back onto the ground, hoping to stop distracting Caffeine, and checked the next two classes while he waited. Transporter (Rare) 48% Affinity Point A to Point B. A Rare Class specializing in the movement of goods across long distances. Users may utilize a wide variety of skills, dependent on their chosen method of transportation. Considered a non-combat class but with some limited defensive options. Class Level Effects (Novice) +1% All Effective Attributes +3% Mana Pool Class Requirements: Mana Pool/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) That was disappointing. He''d been hoping for something more specific, like maybe teleportation. The description was far too vague as it was, and he wasn''t about to risk that option. As for the next... Iron Mind (Rare) 47% Affinity I think therefore you do not. A Rare Class that specializes in mental attacks. User may inflict a variety of effects on their enemies, from merely distracting a foe to outright killing them depending on the power difference or strength of the mental attack. Class Level Effects (Novice) +3% Effective Mind Attributes +3% Mana Pool Class Requirements: Mana Pool/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) It sounded interesting but not exactly helpful in dealing with his current needs... His stomach growled again, loud enough to make Caffeine stare from where he squatted. "Good boy." Stanley needed to fly, but first, he needed food... Caffeine trotted away, business done and nose in the air as he followed a presumably interesting smell to god knows where. Using the same careful mental touch, Stanley pulled the pug back and into his arms. It felt as easy as carrying himself, so that was a good sign. The truck stop was dark, but the combination of a full moon and the layer of snow covering nearly everything lit up the world enough for Stanley to make his way easily to the building. The lack of his feet crunching on the snow also made his passage silent and eliminated the risk of slipping. The silence was broken before he reached his destination by the distinctive sound of a shotgun slide, which also brought Stanley to a halt in the air. "I don''t care what anyone says," a man''s voice yelled from near the building, right before he stepped forward into the moonlight, shotgun aimed at Stanley. "Even if it''s the end of the world, you still ain''t looting my store!" Stanley hesitated at the sight of a gun pointing his way. He hadn''t ever tried catching bullets and wasn''t sure if he could... but he could also simply toss the man away. How high could he throw a human... or he could push him through a wall... or three? "I''m not a looter," Stanley finally said, choosing diplomacy over violence... for now. "I just want to buy some food." Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. "Not happening!" the man yelled, "So why don''t you just mosey on out of here, flyboy, and I won''t have to shoot you for trespassing." This fucking moron... Stanley considered violence anew before his stomach growled again, much more audible this time, and... that wasn''t his stomach. He looked over his shoulder and felt a chill down his spine at the sight of the beasts approaching in the moonlight. They looked like coyotes, with their lean bodies and narrow faces... but they were huge, especially the first one that looked to be nearing the size of a horse. Even wolves didn''t get that big... Then he heard their distinctive howls, which were immediately answered from further away in a decidedly unnerving cacophony in the dark. Stanley lifted himself and Caffeine higher into the air as he turned back to the shotgun-wielding man. "Guess you can handle those, then?" Caffeine was squirming, but Stanley didn''t let him escape. No way are you going to play with them! "Sonny, I''ve been protecting my land for decades, and I ain''t afraid of a damned coyote!" The prick turned his weapon away from Stanley, training it on the still-approaching beasts, and pulled the trigger. It was a lot quieter than Stanley expected; a small pop... and that was it. The man loaded another shell and fired again. Another small pop. The coyotes started running toward him as the howls picked up. Stanley considered simply leaving the bastard to his fate, but this was unfamiliar territory, and he had no idea how to go about finding another store in the dark. Then again... the shotgun was apparently a dud, which meant he could take whatever he wanted from this place. Though he didn''t want to waste time waiting for the damn animals to finish eating the guy, either. He spun to face the threat, hand rising as he prepared to find out how much damage he could really do to a living creature. Caffeine huffed as he finally laid eyes on the source of the howling and squirmed slightly as if he wanted to go say hello, which, knowing Caffeine, was exactly what he wanted to do. Stanley held tightly to the pug and shove... The coyotes skidded to a stop on seeing him descending closer and then nearly scrambled all over themselves to run away... all before Stanley even hit them. Surprising¡­ but at least it was fast? The man stared up at him when Stanley turned back around, but didn''t point the useless gun at him. "You didn''t do squat... but fine!" he huffed. "Get your damn food and get out!" "Sure." Stanley hit the ground harder than intended and stumbled as he went inside the dark store, Caffeine still in his arms. "You still gotta pay!" the man said, following him inside. Luckily, he didn''t complain about the dog. Stanley was ready to take whatever he wanted, and damn this guy if he thought otherwise. The demand for money was a joke, and he pulled his wallet from a pocket and tossed it at the man''s feet. "All yours." As if money was going to matter now... A lighter came from another pocket, and the small flame led him to what he wanted in the dark store. Jerky. Every flavor and variety went into his backpack as he cleared the shelves, and Stanley headed for the door less than a minute after entering. One package he ripped open, stuffing his jacket pockets with the dried meat. A little something to keep him going through the upcoming flight, and it would keep Caffeine from trying to escape... hopefully. "Your wallet..." the other man called after him. "Keep it," Stanley said. The guy was going to die. Maybe he hadn''t chosen a good class? Why else would he be trying to use a shotgun? He was also an idiot for trading actual food for money that was likely already worthless. Not that he had a choice this time. Then Stanley was outside and rising into the freezing air. The wind bit at his face as he sped up through the dark sky, and he shuffled Caffeine inside his jacket mid-flight. The darkness should have been lit by a glowing metropolis below him, but was now only the dim white of moonlight reflecting off the snow, with dark patches and lines where plows had cleared the roads. Luckily, Stanley didn''t need to see the roads or even landmarks to know where he was going. A feeling that had been with him since he woke up pointed Stanley in the exact direction he needed to go. He wasn''t sure why the feeling was here now, but he knew it was Lee, which probably meant it had something to do with the message about a Twin-Soul. Whatever it was, he could feel his brother, and it led him southeast, and also technically into the earth, but he was still smart enough to understand that the earth''s surface curved... Stanley followed that sensation through the sky as he flew and, while doing so, considered his so-called Class Selection. The choices further down the list were worse than the first few, and he wasn''t planning to go searching for another option down there. The first class suited him well enough, though he worried about whether it would affect his ability to fly as he was currently doing. For that reason, Stanley landed before the timer was up and made his choice. Also, to let some of the numbness fade from his face... Class Chosen: Psionic New Class Skill: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 1 (Novice) Stanley waited for something to happen... but nothing did. He mentally lifted himself back into the air and... Skill Level Up: Psychokinesis Okay... It didn''t seem to change anything, so Stanley flew away while checking what his new skill was supposed to do. Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 2 (Novice) I think it, and it happens. Users gain the ability to control nearby physical objects with mental power alone. Skill Level Effects (Novice) -1% Mental Energy Cost +1% Effective Willpower That just sounded like what he''d been doing before, and without a fancy skill either. Though he wondered what class Lee would pick... would he even have the same options? They were supposedly Twin-Soul, whatever that meant, but somehow, Stanley suspected his brother wouldn''t have the same choice... it was just a feeling, but a strong feeling. Especially considering that Lee manifested no hint of telekinesis... The wind was bitter on his face and hands as he flew, and the darkness made it a nerve-wracking experience. Not at all what he''d hoped for the first time he really got to fly. That was all secondary, of course. Stanley was still busy hating on himself for leaving Lee alone. They both knew something was coming, not when or what exactly, but they knew something was going to happen. Then they just split up like fucking morons! "Fuck!" Stanley screamed into the wind. "Fucking fu..." He had a moment''s warning of something approaching his face at speed. It wasn''t enough warning, and Stanley took a bird to the face. At least, that was his best guess when he started spitting feathers out of his mouth after a terrifying tumble through the sky. He leveled out and only kept going in the right direction thanks to the feeling of Lee in the distance. Caffeine was squirming and trying to get out of the jacket when Stanley heard the squawk from somewhere far too close. It sounded suspiciously like a seagull. There was a flash of moonlight against something white, and Stanley let go of himself, pushing his mind against nothing in a wide sphere around himself, hoping to avoid another collision. His stomach lurched as he plummeted, but nothing hit him, so that was good. Unfortunately, once he leveled off, the sounds of squawking birds resumed immediately after the wind stopped roaring in his ears. More flashes of white flickered in the dark sky, and Stanley hit back with mental slaps at any sign of motion. There were some squawks, and a few times, he felt enough feedback to know he''d hit something. Caffeine got his head clear from the jacket and growled out into the dark. Stanley tried to follow his gaze in case the pug had better night vision, but it was hard to tell with the way his head kept turning and his eyes looked in two directions at once... So instead, Stanley abandoned the fight, ducked his head down, and flew away. It was cold, so, so cold, but Stanley endured it as he barreled ahead, stuffing Caffeine''s face back inside the jacket. He didn''t have time for fucking birds that didn''t know better than to harass him. In the corner of his vision, a timer was still ticking down, and each second lost felt like a hammer blow in his gut. The damn birds were lucky it was so dark... (00:05) (00:04) (00:03) (00:02) (00:01) Then it was no longer dark. A glowing screen appeared in his eyes. The Dungeon is Open. Less than a second after the message appeared, a new one took its place. You have been conscripted into the Grand Raid Dungeon: [The Fall of Boston] Invaders are coming! Join your allies and prepare your defenses! Fight! Rewards will be granted based on Contributions to the Defense or the Assault once the Invaders have been Defeated or Driven Out or when all Defenders are Defeated. "Conscripted my ass," Stanley growled, waving away the damn screen right as a blue, glowing wall appeared in the sky before him. He slid to a halt in the air only a few feet from the shimmering surface. No, no, no. It didn''t seem to extend far in either direction, only a few dozen feet, but trying to slide around it proved futile when it only seemed to follow him. Backing up made it disappear, only to reappear when he got closer. Then he touched it. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated. ~~~Invader~~~ You have entered the Grand Raid Dungeon [The Fall of Boston](Earth). World Quest Issued: [Subjugate the Sapients] Racial Quest Issued: [Establish an Eternal Stronghold] Nefraxis was already moving all four hands through the motions of a spell when their feet touched the surface of the new world, and they rushed its completion, spending additional mana for the sake of expediency. In their extensive experience, these first few moments were the most prone to unforeseen... problems. Not that they should have anything to fear in an F-Grade dungeon, even a Grand Raid. It was extremely unlikely that anything could match their strength at this early stage, but it was better to be safe. Rare as it was, it was not unheard of to find an abnormally strong enemy in a lower ranked dungeon, especially from the local beasts that ranked up by different rules than the sapient population. Then the spell was complete, springing up around them in a dome of magical darkness and protection. Nefraxis observed the world outside their protection, a world of chaotic violence that could all too easily snuff them out before they were ready. The natives should not be too far along their paths yet, but then, neither was the raid team. The main difference was that the Eternals had prepared for this moment for their entire lives. They had trained in numerous Dungeons, fought countless foes, and raised their Classes and Skills to the peak of what they could reach while not passing beyond F-Grade. Not that they couldn''t have evolved higher before this, but they had remained where they were, intentionally, to be ready for this very moment. Now they would be the forerunners of the Eternal March in this new world. It was an honor like no other. A mission trusted only to the best. A mission rigged against them from the start. Only, once again, it was by design. The Great System saw the challenge taken upon their shoulders, and it would reward them commensurately. For now, they most likely stood at the peak of what this brand new dungeon offered. Unfortunately, the gap between them would only shrink in the first few days. The natives would grow quickly, a growth fueled by the surrounding violence. Those that survived, that is. Meanwhile, Nefraxis and the other Eternals would remain stuck at the peak of F-Grade until the dungeon itself, and the monsters within, grew strong enough to raise them higher. They could deal immense damage if they attacked now. Could crush the living monsters under their feet. But that was not the plan. Their orders were clear. A time-tested tactic that Nefraxis would not deviate from. They would hide and work from the shadows to prepare this dungeon for its inevitable subjugation to the Eternal. Then the rest of the world would follow. "Report," Nefraxis ordered, still observing their surroundings with shrewd attention as they ruminated on the task laid out before them. They stood between towering structures of stone, metal, and glass. Clearly, a monster race that had gone far and reached higher than many would without magic, but they were still monsters. "Confirmed shield active," Calderon said, a useless observation considering that Nefraxis had personally cast the spell that now hid them from the local denizens. "High life density in the area," Ruish said, a valuable yet still useless bit of information. They could all see and hear the disgusting cacophony of life that surrounded them. Nefraxis did not yet know which of the lifeforms passing their hiding place were the dominant Sapients, be they biped, avian, or quadruped. It did not matter, truly. All would join the Eternal March in the end. Gravus did not speak, only hovered unresponsive above the ground as they spread their magic into the surroundings. They were a new addition to the standard squad, assigned specifically for this mission and this world. The Seers had sent word down through the High-Commanders, or so they had heard. The Seers had seen something important in this new world, something far above such a lowly one as themselves, and Nefraxis did not question those above. Receiving a missive like that, one handed to them directly by High Commander Avidora, was already an honor beyond all expectations. This mission was important. More important than it already should have been. Nefraxis could practically feel them watching, though knew they could not be. Only the most high, the Eternal itself, could pierce the veil between Dungeons, and Nefraxis was not so arrogant as to assume that level of importance. Morgrath, the last member of the march, was even less present than Gravus, little more than a helpless spirit until they gained a vessel. Another new addition meant to aid with this infiltration... One of the biped locals fell just outside the barrier, oozing red blood from its blessedly dying body. The garments adorning its flesh led Nefraxis to assume this was the most likely species to have built such towers that surrounded them. The avians and quadrupeds did not cover their flesh. The creature was dying, its life fading along with its soul, a Soul that would depart from the flesh momentarily, leaving behind the scraps as a Core. Nefraxis did not need to act. The magic emanating from Gravus had already touched upon the creature, and it would serve a greater purpose in death than it ever had while alive. But before that, Nefraxis desired knowledge, and two hands spun a new spell, a delicate thing that snaked through the barrier and latched onto the biped. Analysis. Human(Ungraded) Titles: N/A Class: [Transporter] Traits: [Adaptable] [Passenger Specialist] "Morgrath, take this one." Nefraxis gave the order immediately upon reading the trait. It made sense now why they had been singled out. Why the Seers had placed such importance on this world. The Multi-verse would tremble once word spread, and Nefraxis would be here at the forefront of it all, leading the Eternal March toward glory and triumph. And when they succeeded, their names would rise high indeed, perhaps even to the most... No. This was not the time for such useless dreams. The Seers would not have placed such importance on them if the task ahead was easy. This would be the greatest and most difficult challenge any of them would likely ever see. They must not fail. They would not fail. Twin orbs of red light gleamed from within the eye-sockets of their grinning skull as Nefraxis twitched a thin finger of pale bone and altered the spell-thread touching upon the Human. The thread thickened, wrapping around the dying monster and dragging it inside the dome of darkness where Morgrath waited to pounce. The human expired, and Nefraxis spun a new spell around the forming Core. The spell was complete when the Core appeared and Morgrath drew it into their spirit. Then Morgrath dove into the flesh vessel, taking the Core with them, and the first newborn Eternal opened glowing red eyes on Earth. "It is mine," Morgrath said through the flapping mouth. "Prepare the flesh," Nefraxis commanded. Morgrath closed their glowing eyes and went to work restoring the damaged flesh from the inside. It would be useful to walk among the monsters as one of their own, and given any luck with these Humans, possibly recruit as many as would serve willingly. After all, becoming Eternal was a strong lure for the mortals of the multiverse. Outside, a hungry quadruped stopped, nose twitching at where its meal had vanished, then ran away with a terrible scream. Likely detecting the magic emanating from Gravus and seeking to avoid the corruption. Run away, little one. It matters not. The Eternal March is inevitable. 4. What Fools ~~~Lee~~~ Buff: [Improved Regeneration] Lee bolted upright, and a woman jerked back from him, eyes wide. She fired off a bunch of rapid Spanish that Lee completely failed to follow. A small child was in her arms, and another clutching her leg. Lee recognized her easily enough; it was his neighbor, and she''d done something to him. He thought about the message he''d just received, and a new screen popped up. [Improved Regeneration](59:51) Effects: Doubles Regeneration Rate. Not a lot of information there... but he was feeling... well, not fine, but okay. Lee glanced at his arm before remembering that he didn''t want to... but it looked great. Still full of pins and needles and covered with dried blood, but otherwise intact, with no sign of the cuts that were the source of all the blood. And best of all, not melted! "Um, thanks." The woman was already moving away before he spoke, and Lee saw her going from person to person, touching each with a pulse of light from her hand. Apparently, she was a healer of sorts. Lee had more messages than that one alone. Skill Level Up: [Rune Scribe] Skill Level Up: [Rune Scribe] Class Level Up: [Runic] Class Level Up: [Runic] You have gained a Class Level. Review your Status to see the changes. He looked away from his messages and saw the healer woman casting glances at the door every few seconds, and when he couldn''t spot anyone inside with a glowing pot lid, Lee guessed her husband must still be outside fighting giant frogs... assuming that was her husband. Probably. Whatever he was, the guy was an idiot. Though Lee had let him and a bunch of other idiots into his apartment... so he couldn''t throw stones. Instead, he tried something else. Status? A new window appeared. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Human](UnGraded) Traits: [Adaptable] [Unknown Body Modification] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 3 (Novice) Class Skills: Rune Scribe (Uncommon) - Level 4 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 5(0%)5 Vitality: 6(0%)6 Dexterity 5(0%)5 Wisdom 8(+19%)9 Intelligence 10+(+19%)11 Willpower 10+(+19%)11 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(0/1): Buffs: [Improved Regeneration] Debuffs: The floor vibrated under his butt, and Lee glanced at the door. He knew they should be safe here. His new knowledge was very clear on that. But he kept seeing a giant frog swallowing a man whole... I need a weapon. Of course, he''d had one and given it back to the idiot with a pot lid as a shield. His apartment was a mess, and the crowd of people wasn''t helping. Lee settled for grabbing one of the enchanted butter knives lying nearby, one where he''d gotten the enchantment right, and the blade was the sharp end. What he really wanted was a machete, like his neighbor... or, ideally, something even longer, but beggars and all that... He also wanted to tell all the crying people to get the fuck out of his place already... but the wide-eyed little kid clinging to his neighbor''s leg kept him from going that far. Instead, he got up and started going through his stuff, mostly just glancing it over and hoping his rune knowledge would give him a hint. A look out from the porch revealed little in the dark, but a glance out the front window brought him up short. Something was glowing on the floor next to a giant unmoving frog, and it wasn''t one of his enchanted utensils, either. It looked like a small rock or a crystal, at least from what he could see through the dirty window, and Lee clutched his butter knife as he reached for the door. He didn''t know what it was, but had a feeling it was important. The behemoths from earlier were also missing... How long had he napped? A hand grabbed his arm as he touched the doorknob. "Don''t go out there." "I know what I''m doing," Lee said, turning the handle. "I said don''t!" the man growled and dragged Lee''s hand away from the door. "Let go of me!" Lee tried to yank his hand free, but the other man held on, his strength winning out. Lee already didn''t like being touched by the stranger, let alone someone restraining him like this. "I won''t let you endanger everyone here," the man said, and Lee''s free hand tightened on the knife while he resisted the urge to stab this fucker. "You''re in my apartment!" Lee growled, "So back off, or..." "It doesn''t matter. The people..." "The fuck it doesn''t!" Lee stabbed him. "You shit!" That did it, and the man finally let go, clutching at his bleeding wrist. Lee wasn''t trying to kill him, only trying to get free, and he backed up. Then the man lunged at him... It was a terrible idea. He clearly hadn''t realized how sharp Lee''s butter knife was, and it would take only a touch to cut him apart. It had gone into his flesh without the slightest resistance¡­ Hell, it would probably go through his bones just as easily. But before Lee had to defend himself, someone appeared abruptly between them and kicked the man''s leading foot out from under him. He fell sprawling but scrambled to his feet almost immediately and then pulled up short at the small woman looming in front of him, a child in her arms. "No fight," his neighbor said, with a heavy accent, while looking back and forth between Lee and the other man. Lee, for his part, took another step back. She''d used magic to get between them, he was sure of it, and that made him more wary. Given what he could do, there was no telling what anyone else was capable of... Suddenly, the crowd in his apartment felt a lot more threatening. "Don''t fucking touch me," Lee warned, his gaze shifting between the two while gripping his knife tightly. He made a conscious effort not to direct the blade towards the woman, particularly the child nestled in her arms, recognizing her apprehension as she positioned her own body as a shield against his weapon. He also saw in her eyes that doing anything more threatening would earn him a beat down as well... "I let you all in here," Lee said, "and I''ll kick you out if I have to." Assuming he could actually enforce that. He wasn''t sure how much the woman understood, given that he''d only heard her say two words in English so far, but hoped she wouldn''t force the issue. He really didn''t want to fight her, partly because of the kids, but also because she was probably a healer and had already helped him once. It had nothing to do with the fact that she might kick his ass. Whether he''d actually needed her healing was another issue. The man, still clutching his bleeding arm, opened his mouth. The woman interrupted him when she grabbed his arm with her free hand. A flash of light pulsed from her and through him, then she yanked the limb out in front of him and released it. "Stay." He tried to pull back, but she repeated the action until he held his arm out. She ran a glowing fingertip along the bloody gash, and it closed up behind her touch. Then she twisted his arm over and repeated it on the other side. Lee hadn''t stabbed the man very hard, but it had gone clean through his forearm. Yet, the man still wanted to fight¡­ Idiot. Though it seemed her healing had taken some of the fight out of him. Maybe he hadn¡¯t actually noticed how bad it was before? "Move," Lee said to both of them, tilting his head to the side. "I''m going out there." He didn''t quite brandish his knife, but held it ready, just in case. They moved, mostly because the woman dragged the man away by her grip on his arm while he glared at Lee. Lee stopped with his hand on the door, leaning over to peek out the window before turning to the pair. "If you try to lock me out there, I''ll take all the magic down." He thought about telling them that if he died, it would all fail too, but he really didn''t want to give anyone ideas. The man opened his mouth, but the woman beat him to it. "S¨ª," she said, meeting his eyes with an intensity that Lee found unnerving. "Mar¨ªa," she added, and Lee guessed that was her name. "Lee." She nodded and glanced at the door before looking down at her children. "Be fast. Tell Alejandro ven aqu¨ª." Alejandro must be her husband''s name... "I''m not going that far," Lee said, shaking his head. She was crazy if she thought he was going to fight man-eating frogs with a damn butter knife, no matter how sharp it was. Then he cracked open the door. Lee stuck his head out, looking in every direction. Nothing moved, but sounds from further away told him that the fight wasn''t over yet, though it sounded quiet inside this building. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Light still shone up from out of sight in the courtyard below, and Lee realized he could feel the rune he''d left on the fork. Could feel all of them, in fact. He even felt the machete he''d enchanted for Alejandro. It was down¡­ near the ground... and definitely not inside the building anymore. As he stood there, it moved noticeably in his senses. Guess he''s still alive... or something swallowed him. Lee shut the door, still inside and heart pounding, then glanced back at the people watching him... which turned out to be everyone in the apartment. That many eyes on him wasn''t at all pleasant. He tightened his grip on the knife and opened the door again, stepping through this time. The glowing rock next to the unmoving frog beckoned him. Lee dashed to grab it... and slipped on the slimy cement. He landed hard on his back and heard the spring-hinged door click shut behind him as the impact blasted the air from his lungs. Fuck... me... They better not try anything! Lee wasn''t kidding about taking the Runes away. It would be easy, and he could just claim another apartment. Though, from all the sounds of breaking glass earlier, he might not find one with intact windows... Putting that thought away, Lee rolled over and scrambled through the mess until his fingers closed around the glowing rock, and then his eyes went wide. He was right. It was important. He crawled back to his door quickly, not even trying to walk, and it opened at his approach; Maria in the doorway, holding it wide until he was inside, and closing it behind him. Good. She could be trusted. At least for now. Then Lee was staring at the thumbnail-sized crystal in his hand as he sat on the floor, back against the wall. Everything else faded from his attention, including the gore liberally covering him, as he stared at something that would change the world. Core Chip[F-Grade] +1 Strength Absorb? Y/N "What is..." the idiot said. Lee chose yes, and felt the energy flow into him as the rock seemingly dissolved into his skin, and it felt good... +0.1 Strength(-.9 from Unknown Body Modification) Trait Updated: [Unknown Body Modification] updated to [Energetic Resilience] That didn''t seem right. A querying thought brought up the trait. [Energetic Resilience] Your body and mind have been subjected to extreme amounts of energy and have adapted to survive. This Adaptation has made your body highly efficient at drawing in and retaining all energy, whether internal or external. This has the added effect of absorbing a portion of all energy directed at you, increasing your regeneration while making you highly resistant to all but the most direct foreign energy. Effects: All energy resistance greatly improved. All regeneration greatly improved. Increased core absorption requirements. Additional side effects are possible. Continuing Analysis... Side effects, my ass! Lee thought, though suspected he knew where the Trait had come from, and it wasn''t from him enchanting most of a building. It was that day in the mountains... Lee couldn''t remember any specifics, but one thing he knew was there had been power. Lots of power. Turned out there was a price for their survival after all... A glance back to his status also showed no change from the core. So it didn''t show decimals? Hopefully it still counted... "What was that!?" The annoying man started shouting after Lee kept ignoring him. Now he was glaring, fists clenched like he wanted to punch him. He didn''t approach, though, shooting glances at Maria as if hoping she would agree with him. Lee still ignored him. He always hated people like that. Probably. Bet he''s a jock that peaked in high school. Instead of wasting time worrying about that, Lee got busy worrying about killing frogs. The butter knife felt far too small in his hand, and he stared at the handle in thought. He''d made the handle sharp on his first attempt, even though it was anything but. Did that mean he could make anything sharp? Like, say... he thought about what might be usable in his apartment... maybe a shower curtain rod? He climbed to his feet with renewed vigor and headed to the bathroom, snatching up his glowing fork on the way and maneuvering around the people in the living room warily. Once inside, he shut the door and then went to enchant it for good measure. It didn''t work... because the door was already enchanted. It made no sense. He''d put the rune on the building, not the doors. At least, not this one¡­ Lee shook his head and focused on what he needed right now. His building suddenly being stronger than it should be, was not a real problem. The shower rod was nice and long, made of metal but flimsy. It was also two pieces, one inside the other. Perfect! He cut some notches in the middle, using the ridiculously sharp butter knife to cut it up enough that he could fold some of the metal together around each piece. It wouldn''t be ideal if his blade could fly off at the first swing. Then all he had to do was enchant a single Rune on each half. One to make it strong and the other to make it sharp. The sharpness wouldn''t take on the round object, and he had to stomp on it a few times to flatten it out. That worked, and Lee tested it by hitting the wall, and his super sharp, very long curtain rod bent against the impenetrable wall... He pulled the sharpness off, bent it more or less back into shape, and applied two runes to the weaponized half; strength and sharpness. +1 Intelligence (Attribute has reached the F-grade Threshold. Cannot improve further until Evolution to F-grade.) +1 Intelligence Fortification Haha... Was it insulting him for the mistake? Although, it was more interesting for another reason. Lee paused his work as he pulled up his status again and checked. His intelligence was at ten... which must be the threshold? It also had that little plus next to it... was that the fortification? Trying to pull up more information on what that meant yielded nothing. Though, the best part of the message was that he could raise his attributes by doing stuff, and it didn''t seem to be penalized the way the core chip had been. He still had to go out, though, and Lee swung his weapon against the wall in another test. The resulting sparking clang on the wall was satisfying, and his rod remained unbent. At least, no more bent than it already was. Lee opened his bathroom door to find everyone staring at him again. Not at all creepy or intimidating... but then, he had taken the only light with him. Oops. Maria especially was eyeing his new, slightly unwieldy weapon as Lee headed for the front door. Along the way, he spotted another fork that he''d missed in the rush before. It was a few seconds'' work to create another light, which he handed to Maria, then hesitated. He thought about it for a few moments before offering her his butter knife. Safe end first. She''d been on his side against the other man, mostly. Between her own magic powers and whatever other powers someone in here might be hiding, especially the asshole, it didn''t hurt for her to have some protection. It also helped that she had opened the door for him... after that show of trust, Lee could reciprocate and get her more on his side. That assumed that she didn''t take his threat seriously about the protection runes. "Gracias." Maria took the blade with a nod, but more satisfying was the sour look on the jock''s face as he watched the exchange. Now she could be the one to stab him if he got too grabby again. Of course, he was also leaving everyone right next to his Liquid Mana Well... no one had said anything yet about his enchanting the roof fiasco, but they might just be waiting for their chance. That no one mentioned the small point of light that Lee could clearly see... well, it might mean they didn''t see it. Maybe because he''d claimed it? Lee hadn''t forgotten all the classes he''d looked at mentioning non-liquid mana, and he hoped it was rare. Maybe something they couldn''t even notice without the right class. As for giving up one of his only two weapons, Lee could simply grab the knife from the courtyard on his way out. His own fork light went behind his belt, the light still enough to navigate by while keeping his hands on the curtain rod. Lee made it all the way to the stairwell, opened the door to a massive frog in his face, and slammed it shut again. He had to stop and catch his breath while his heart pounded nearly out of his chest. What am I doing? This is insane! It was also dark as shit in the stairwell... The frog was dead when he mustered the courage to open the door again, courtesy of Alejandro, going by the deep wounds nearly bisecting it. Still terrifying, though, especially in the jumping shadows of his light, and Lee wondered how that damn thing had even gotten through the doors downstairs... Then he did something he should have done on the first corpse. He swung his new weapon, and it cut through the frog with only the barest resistance. So it works. That was a really critical bit of knowledge it would have been smarter to have before leaving his safe apartment... not that he had anything to test it on, except maybe that one idiot? Lee shook his head and looked around for a core... there wasn''t one. Maybe Alejandro took it? That sucked, and Lee looked away from the disgusting pile of bloody frog as he squeezed past it to the stairs. There he found the ravaged corpse of a woman... or what was left of her. The glassy eyes staring at him proved too much, and his stomach heaved before Lee turned and vomited bile over the railing. The faint splattering two flights down sounded very far away in the darkness. He wasn''t cut out for this type of thing. Hell, he was just an engineer before this! At least, he had been before he forgot everything... Still, making stuff, that was what he did. Even now his newest thing was literally making magical weapons... which was admittedly pretty cool. But then going out to fight giant monsters with those same weapons? He was going to end up like this woman... Lee looked at her again. That was a mistake. He gagged, heaved, and then kept going down the stairs. It was a long nerve-wracking trip down, but better than staying near the dead woman. Lee paused with his hand on the exit door. Then he turned and went through the other door to the courtyard. He wanted a knife as backup, if nothing else... That desire for an extra weapon waned when he fished a knife from the pool of blood and guts covering the floor and realized he had no way to carry it. The blade was too sharp to be tucked into a pocket or waistband, and who even made sheaths for butter knives... Lee wiped it on the cleanest part of his shirt, which wasn''t very, and stuck the handle between his teeth. He really didn''t want to find himself completely defenseless if he accidentally dropped his curtain rod... though, if he dropped the knife from his teeth, it might do as much damage to himself as to any enemy... He bit down harder on the handle. His regeneration was good. More than good. Maria''s skill only said times two, which meant that his own skill had done most of the heavy lifting on his sliced-up fingers... It would be fine. +0.1 Dexterity Lee took that frog''s core before heading toward the outside. He saw no sign of the other two giants. Did they crawl back out? Or were they waiting nearby... Every deep shadow seemed to squirm with the promise of a striking tongue after that thought, and Lee nearly sprinted back into the relative cover of the stairwell. Outside, the stars were bright, brighter than Lee ever remembered seeing before, but he didn''t give them more than a cursory glance. Instead, he hugged the side of the building, spear-like curtain rod pointing outward as he scanned the dark for giant frogs. The glowing fork in his belt gave nowhere near enough light out here and only felt like it was turning him into a beacon. So he shoved it into a pocket. It still glowed through the denim, but at a much lower intensity. What the hell am I doing? Lee thought yet again as darkness descended on him more fully. This was insane. Not only was he alone out here, but why did he even come out in the first place? Except... he knew why. Ever since he''d touched that first core, Lee was feeling the need for more... This whole night had been a rollercoaster of wild events, from finding the Mana Well to watching people die and then taking the cores from the monsters eating them... But he didn''t have a choice. Lee knew this. Deep down, he knew the world had just changed forever. It didn''t take magical messages floating in his face, new powers, or giant frogs, he knew. One thing made abundantly clear was that he needed to get stronger. He could only curse his luck at gaining such shit rewards from the cores. But worse, he still hadn''t forgotten the feeling of someone physically restraining him only a short time ago. What would that guy turn into if he had ten times the strength of everyone else? What would happen to Lee if he was the odd man out? The weakest. He knew what would happen. They would imprison him inside his own damn fortress and force him to make their weapons... and that was probably the best-case scenario. More likely, he would just die. Lee had to get stronger, and he had to do it fast. I should have picked the lightning class... Except, a frog might have eaten him if not for his enchanted windows... or maybe he could have fried it to a crisp. There was no way to know and, he suspected, no way to go back. This was his life now, and he needed to survive or, better yet, thrive. He could still feel Stanley in the far distance, and Lee believed he would come back... but he had a bad feeling about how long it might take. He couldn''t even remember how far Stanley had been going when he left... but he felt very far away now. He''ll come back. I know he will! Lee considered the idea of trying to meet Stanley halfway, but even if that might be an option, it wouldn''t be one until he got stronger. Much stronger. Lee had damned himself with his class choice, and the best he could do now was try to build a home for when Stanley returned. He tightened his grip on the curtain rod. It didn''t matter how long Stanley took. Lee just had to survive long enough for that to happen, and he would, no matter what. 5. Fine Dining ~~~Lee~~~ Lee stood still and stared out at the night, waiting for something to show itself. Nothing did. Elsewhere in the complex, he could hear screams and yells, along with the occasional crash of something breaking, but because of the buildings echoing the sound from different directions, he wasn¡¯t sure exactly where the noise was coming from¡­ A dark shape shot towards him. Lee flinched away, holding his makeshift weapon out in front of him as he tried to step aside... and tripped over his own feet. Before he could fall, a heavy tongue slammed into him and smashed him against the building at his back. It hurt, but granted the second he needed to get his feet back under him while he flailed wildly with his weapon. I¡¯m an idiot, Lee thought, as he expected at any moment to be swallowed up. Went outside like an idiot and got killed by the first damn monster. He wondered what it would feel like to be eaten by a frog, but¡­ the tongue never pulled him away. As something croaked in the darkness, Lee staggered forward from the wall, still somehow on his feet and with the curtain rod still in hand. The feel of the tongue sticking to his chest and flapping about like a dismembered lizard tail was extremely unpleasant, but better than being dragged into a hungry maw. Trying to pull it away only made things worse when it stuck to his hand¡­ In the dim light of the stars and moon, Lee spotted the shape moving a moment before it leaped toward him. He ducked, mostly reflexively, and with one hand on his almost sword, as the frog passed just over his head. Along the way, he felt a slight tugging on his weapon and a noticeable decrease in the strength of the runes holding the thing together. The wet thud on the wall behind him was accompanied by a hot, wet splash against his crouching back. Lee surged upright and away, almost falling, and took a few steps before he spun to face the monster. The dead and now in two pieces, monster. That wasn''t... that bad. Barely a moment later, the sticky tongue holding his hand and chest abruptly stopped sticking to anything. It fell to the ground, and Lee hurried back to the enchanted wall of his building. Partly to grab the core when it appeared, but also because fighting in the dark was bullshit. The fork wasn''t enough; he needed something more... substantial. He stuck a finger on the wall and looked away before starting to draw out a rune he¡¯d used before to make light, only this time making it much larger. Unfortunately, Lee felt resistance to his plan almost immediately, and it came from his own rune already on the building. More specifically, the one he¡¯d forced to include the entire structure before the frogs could destroy it. Apparently, the runes didn¡¯t play well together¡­ or rather, they had to be linked intentionally at the time of creation. However, once he''d enchanted it the way it was now, that singular rune had stretched to claim everything, and he couldn''t add to the building... Pulling out his glowing fork, Lee used its light to check the ground for loose rocks. He found one and, immediately upon touching it, understood that the rock wouldn''t work as a light, at least not only a light. It couldn''t hold the light rune without the high levels of mana destroying the brittle stone, but he could link a strengthening rune with the light, and that would work. His class knowledge seemed to indicate that such a tactic would be a waste of runes, but Lee did it anyway. The rock was small, and he had to cover nearly the entire surface to get both runes on it while linking them together. This meant he had to use both hands¡­ Lee worked fast in the light of his fork and, miraculously, didn''t make a mistake. Other than staring intently at his work when it finished¡­ He thrust the intense light overhead, out of his line of sight, and tried to blink the spots from his vision while his other hand grasped blindly for his weapon. Which meant he didn''t see the tongue blast directly into the source of light, catching his hand. The upside was that in hitting him, it also stuck itself to the wall behind his hand. So when it tried to drag him away, the frog ended up pulling against the entire building. Lee''s free hand closed around the sharpened rod, and he swung at the tongue that stretched from over his head out into the dark. Before he made contact, the tongue abruptly stopped sticking to him and snapped away, out of sight. Lee dropped the light rock before he could recover from the surprise release and took a step away, trying to avoid looking at the blinding light and also to not be a target if the monsters wanted to attack his lights. It was something he''d seen a few times now, though he wasn''t sure why they would target a light over a meal¡­ The frog went for the light again, its striking tongue ignoring Lee in favor of the glowing rock. He swung at the appendage, already expecting the attack, and completely missed the lightning-fast strike. The enchanted rock flew away in a streak of light through his vision. Then the bright spot vanished from the night, and a glowing red frog took its place where the light disappeared¡­ like shining a flashlight through your hand, only instead of a hand, it was a six-foot tall frog. That glowing body shifted a heartbeat later, orienting directly on Lee. He knew it was too late to run for cover; he was too far from the doorway. So Lee did the only thing he could; held onto his weapon for dear life as a tongue smacked into his face and yanked him away. Shiiit! It was pure luck that had him fly into the frog''s gaping mouth at just the right angle for his sharp curtain rod to bisect its head straight down the middle. Even luckier that he didn''t cut himself in half when he hit. The butter knife still clenched in his teeth must have cut the tongue stuck on his face because a disgusting slime trickled past his teeth and made him choke. Lee gagged and dropped the knife, spitting out the goo, then didn''t move for a few heartbeats as he caught his breath and stared at his enchanted rock lying in the split-open belly of the frog all around him. Then he cursed and squeezed his eyes shut against the glare while crouching down deeper into the mess. He also willed the runes on the rock back into himself. The light vanished. Lee stayed crouched in the dark for a time. He didn''t know how long, but it was enough time to call himself an idiot more than once. Coming out here was crazy enough, but he could have at least gone with his neighbor. The guy had a shield, for fuck''s sake, if a bit of a makeshift one. Just having someone to block those tongues¡­ Lee was pretty sure they hadn''t been able to stick to Alejandro''s shield. Retreating while he was still alive was an appealing option, but Lee knew he needed to get stronger¡­ and it wasn''t just a feeling or assumption because of the cores. It almost felt like a compulsion. He Needed to get stronger. He Had To! Is this what Stanley was feeling? The thought made his stomach twist, thinking about how things had ended with his brother. Why didn''t Stanley say anything? Except Stanley had¡­ not in those exact words, but the signs had been there. Like he hadn''t actually known what he wanted but felt the urge all the same. Neither of them had known about cores before, but now they had a visceral and very visual glimpse of exactly how they could grow stronger. Nothing else for it now, and Lee would not quit while he was ahead. He still had to do this¡­ and luckily, the frogs had shown him a much better way to go about killing them that shouldn''t involve feeding himself into their mouths... It''s the mana. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. That had to be what kept drawing them to his rune-enchanted items. Even now, the runes in his staff felt almost extinguished, part of the reason he suspected the first frog had basically attacked the blade itself, draining it a bit in the process, which sent the next one after his freshly charged rune rock. First things, Lee sent his mana into the curtain rod. It took a small amount of power, and Lee was trying to gauge the loss while wishing for something as simple as a mana bar¡­ and realized he didn''t need one. The lake of power in his center was clearly where the mana was coming from, and he could practically see it with how easy it was to visualize. All that practice the day before had paid off, or maybe it was part of the class knowledge he''d gained... It was honestly hard to tell. His best reckoning on the mana told him about 80% remained after recharging his staff. Some of the loss was probably from making the rock, though he had regained mana when taking the runes back¡­ he just wasn''t sure how much of the original cost. It was something to test later. Out here, away from his Liquid Mana Well, his mana clearly regenerated slower than it had since this started. Despite that, it wasn''t actually that slow either, and Lee watched it tick up a couple of percent as he crouched in the split-open corpse of a giant frog. He slowly calmed down as he waited and watched his mana regenerate. He also had a plan now, a much better one than swinging a shitty weapon at monsters trying to swallow him whole. They wanted mana, and, as demonstrated multiple times now, they would attack anything, even if it might kill them. All he needed was enough stuff to enchant, and they would kill themselves by trying to eat it. He could waltz in after the fact and collect the cores with no danger. Speaking of which, Lee found the core and absorbed it. +0.1 Strength(-.9 Energetic Resilience) Oh, he hated that trait right now¡­ How much stronger would he already be if not for that shit? He couldn''t even tell if each core did anything other than the feeling of it flowing into him. The real problem at the moment was that he had nothing to enchant. The rock had barely held two runes, and he would need more than that if this was going to work¡­ or did he? No, the rock was too round to be sharpened¡­ Lee grabbed his butter knife from the gore and cut the rock in half. Using his free hand and much more care, he cut those halves in half again. His blade, while more than sharp enough to cut stone, was also rather wide in relation to the magically thin slices they tried to carve into unyielding stone. Luckily, the rocks shattered apart close enough to what he was aiming for, and he came out of it with three potential weapons. On the relatively flat sides of each stone, Lee drew out two runes. He started with strength to keep it from shattering further and then finished with sharpness. That one he could feel focusing around the edges... the thick edges more akin to blunt hammers than blades. Testing with a finger, however, revealed that his magic was carrying the load, and they were indeed sharp. He didn''t need them to glow for the plan... hopefully. Lee chucked the first one toward the fence that lined the complex and flinched when a flickering shadow snatched it from the air almost before it left his hand. They are so close! The sense he had for his runes let him feel it fly not nearly far enough before stopping at just the right height to be inside a giant frog belly. The fence on this side of the complex bordered a bit of wilderness, and he was pretty sure the slight ravine out there was where he''d heard the frogs singing the night before. If he could get enough of these traps out there¡­ He threw another, and this one went farther before suddenly zipping away. The first, meanwhile, was hopping erratically until it fell abruptly and didn''t move again. He guessed it had cut its way free from the frog, ideally dealing a fatal wound on the way out. The runes in the rock had faded significantly during the short time it had taken, which hopefully meant it had dealt a lot of damage rather than just being a shitty weapon. To make sure, Lee threw the third just above where the last one stopped moving. He couldn''t see where it was, but the feeling of the runes was enough to tell that the last rock didn''t reach the ground. It also didn''t move at all after. It would have been nice to have the light turn them into glow-frogs if only to know where they were. Lee shuffled back, trying to keep the deflating corpse between him and the fence as he sought more rocks¡­ and found hard asphalt below him. He considered retreating to the building, specifically to the dirt and plants around the outside, but finally remembered that there was a playground right next to the fence, one with likely metal equipment¡­ a treasure trove of potential weapons. Of course, that meant going closer to where he guessed the frogs were coming from. The gain was too good to pass up, and Lee inched forward again, the curtain rod in one hand and the butter knife in the other. He also pumped mana into both as he went, holding them away from his body, hoping to draw any attack away from himself. It was a few nerve-wracking minutes until the jungle gym appeared, sticking up into the starry sky. Lee didn''t wait, immediately attacking the structure, particularly the metal bars. It was loud and took considerable effort, as well as depleted his runes with each strike, but he quickly piled up new weapons in the form of lengths of pipe. They were far too tough to hammer flat, so they were not a weapon he could use as a sword, but as expected, he could make the ends sharp. The hope was that they could still cut their way free of a frog''s stomach. Lee enchanted each six-inch length as fast as he could before chucking them high and far in every direction, especially over the fence. As high and far as he could manage, at least. Some got snatched as they flew, zipping away in different directions, while a few completed their arcs uninterrupted. Lee kept at it until his mana ran too low to make another. Then he waited for it to recharge, crouching low among what remained of the jungle gym. All the crouching made his legs burn slightly, but it wasn''t without reward, that, or maybe all the throwing... +1 Strength He didn''t feel noticeably stronger after the notification but thought maybe he could feel the mana flowing into his muscles... though that might have just been his regeneration healing them as he worked. The sounds of violence deeper into the complex were fading as he''d worked out here on the fringes, and Lee didn''t know whether that meant everyone was dying or if they were killing the frogs. The enchant he''d given to Alejandro was still active, though definitely diminished from its original strength. Based solely on what he''d experienced tonight, Lee was getting a better idea of how his runes worked, especially regarding the sharpening rune. The drain on the rune seemed to be directly proportional to the original sharpness of the object. He could make a dull rock or slightly flattened pipe razor sharp, but the same rune on the machete would last exponentially longer. Probably because the rune had less work to do. Obviously, he needed a real weapon... and maybe some armor. Enough mana regenerated, and Lee made a few more rune traps before throwing them over the fence. Nothing grabbed any of them. So either everything was dead, or they had wised up to his tricks... Lee made one more, with just a light and strengthening rune. It didn''t get grabbed. So they''re all dead... hopefully. He could feel his runes scattered in the distance, a fairly even spread by his own estimation. The last one served another purpose as well, and it allowed Lee to get a visual of the area. Not a very good visual since the light was nearly buried in the dirt, but still enough for his needs. There were plenty of lumps that looked like dead frogs. A lot of shiny pools next to them that could be blood... Lee tossed a handful of unenchanted metal over the fence and tried to climb over... before abandoning the effort. I''m an idiot. It only took a few dozen hacking swipes to cut a gap through the iron fence, which also gave him a lot more material to work with. Crossing through to the other side of the fence felt more dangerous somehow, despite the obvious failure of the fence to keep anything out... Lee used one of the iron spikes, made it sharp, and threw it at one of the unmoving lumps further away. He missed. The next throw landed true, mostly, and garnered no response from the frog when it punched straight through. It also cut Lee''s hand in the throw, the sharpness rune failing to confine itself to the pointed ends. He watched his wound this time, along with waiting for his mana to regenerate, and got to see the healing in action. It happened fast, almost too fast... and with more benefits besides... +1 Vitality That almost felt like a loophole... Debuff Upgraded: [HungryStarving] Lee was abruptly very aware of the taste in his mouth, and he gagged on the last bite, almost choking as it finally went down. "Hardcore." The voice dragged Lee''s attention back to those two glowing eyes again, watching him from a dozen feet away. "That had to taste terrible..." the man said. Lee gagged but didn''t throw up. He didn''t want to waste what he''d already eaten... and he wanted more. "It did," Lee said, while refusing to look at the remains of his meal. He was still starving... but not that crazed hunger from moments ago. It was disgusting, but he was whole again, and after having most of his skin melted off... Definitely not something to complain about, but maybe better if he ate some real food before it got so bad. Just don''t think about it! The glowing eyes stared at him for a few more seconds, then they blinked, and the man stood from his crouch. "Good hunting." He turned and vanished into the dark. Lee didn''t need to search out the building in the dark; he could feel the large rune inside it, and he didn''t waste time before he took off running in that direction. On the way, he pulled his runes back from everything out here other than the butter knife still clenched in his fist. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Burrs pricked his bare feet, and bushes scratched at his legs, but Lee didn''t slow. Not until he''d climbed back through the fence and was only a few yards from the building. Then he only stopped because there was a surprising amount of people rushing past and going into the building. A familiar sensation drew Lee''s gaze to a man near the rear of the crowd funneling through the door. Alejandro didn''t have his pot lid anymore, and Lee realized he couldn''t feel the runes from it either. Had he blocked too many times and depleted the shield? He was still carrying the enchanted machete, but his other hand held a golf club that was glowing with the same yellow light as the pot lid had before. That light was the primary source out here since Lee had abandoned his fork beneath the gargantuan frog. Someone finally noticed Lee when the light fell over him and then they screamed. Alejandro zipped through the crowd, clearly using some magic skill. Nearly instantaneously appearing next to the screaming man before orienting on Lee and immediately charging with the machete raised to strike. "Wait!" Lee held both hands up to intercept the descending blade, staggering back even as he drained the runes empowering it. Without those, he thought he might have a chance, but he really didn''t want to try regenerating his hands if Alejandro cut them off... much less his head. Luckily, the man halted his strike the moment he heard Lee''s voice and held up his glowing golf club instead, letting the light shine on him more directly. "You! What are you..." "It''s a long story," Lee said quickly, stepping aside from the man and his light. "Do you have any... clothes I can borrow?" "Of course!" Alejandro turned to the now frozen mob. "Get inside! This is the magic building. Hurry!" As he spoke, he pulled off his button-up long sleeve, his eyes constantly moving and his weapons never leaving his hands for more than the instant it took to get out of the shirt. Apparently, he had indeed gone out to be the hero tonight... Lee considered telling him about all the dead frogs but didn''t bother. For all he knew, there were thousands more out here, maybe even other magically enlarged animals as well. Of course, there was also that man with glowing eyes who was most likely killing everything... The shirt made a semi-decent kilt, and Lee joined the crowds to get inside, taking care as he went to avoid stabbing anyone in the rush with his knife. He didn''t stand out as much as expected in his nearly naked state. Many of the others were similarly disheveled, with torn clothes and dark stains that may or may not have been blood. Most of them spilled out into the courtyard on the first floor, and Lee left them behind as he rushed upstairs. Alejandro followed. "It is still enchanted, right? The building?" "Yeah, it is." Lee could feel that much and found that he could add mana to the rune covering the building by touching it literally anywhere. Handy that, and he topped off the rune on the way up the stairs. Not that the charge had gone down more than a drop. He didn''t bother mentioning that the building enchantment diminished the further you went from his apartment. What Lee hadn''t remembered was that the spring-loaded doors in this building were all locked automatically from the outside, and his keys were... well, probably dissolving in a pool of stomach acid right about now. However, the door opened almost immediately following his crashing into it, and Maria stood in the gap. Lee saw the confusion in her expression upon seeing his attire, followed by relief when Alejandro came up behind him. Lee squeezed past their emotional reunion and then frowned at all the staring faces filling his home. He could have sworn there was even more than before... Lee tried to ignore them as he went looking for boxes, particularly the ones with his clothing in them. He found what he wanted, along with a lot of open boxes he didn''t remember opening... Were they going through his stuff while he was gone? He left that alone for now and retreated into his room to get dressed. There was a dismal attempt at cleaning up, but the mud alone was more than he could remove, never mind the... other stuff. The lack of running water didn''t help. Then he came back out and went looking for food. He was still starving, and there was a nasty taste in his mouth... He found the box with his stash of canned beans, the only canned food worth eating, and they were all missing... "Where the fuck are my beans?!" He found them a moment later, all opened and empty on the counter. Who steals beans!? It¡¯s not like they were starving in here for days. It was literally the first fucking night! Hours at most! Lee was feeling a lot braver when he met all the stares coming his way, mostly because he was really fucking hungry! "Where''s my goddamned food, you fucking thieves!?" "Lee, it''s okay!" Alejandro broke away from his wife to approach him, far too relaxed around the brandished butter knife. "The fuck it is!" Lee yelled, glaring at the surrounding people. "I let you fucks in here, and you thank me by stealing my food!?" They were glaring and muttering now, but Lee didn''t care. He was starving... and none of these fuckers had fought for shit! None of them had been eaten by a giant frog... "Lee, I have food! It is okay. Trust me, I won¡¯t let you go hungry!" Lee glared back and forth between the crowd and Alejandro before his hunger won out against the anger. "Fine, but I want all of you out! Go back to your own apartments. I already enchanted the whole building already." Not the windows or the doors, probably? His bathroom door had gotten enchanted¡­ whatever. They could use their own magic. He didn''t know why he''d let them inside in the first place... "Okay, we''ll go. We''ll all go," Alejandro said, hands up placatingly while Maria glared at Lee. "Not you," Lee said, and not because she was threatening him with her eyes. "You can stay if you bring food... for now." He didn''t want new tenants... The sight of his keys on one of the kitchen counters also helped to cool his anger, but mostly it was the promise of food. Alejandro said something in Spanish to Maria right before she left, and Lee was pretty sure one word in there was about food. More people followed, joining the exodus while Alejandro held his two small children tight in his arms. No one else volunteered to trade food for shelter, and it was just as well. Lee didn''t need any more people crowding his home. Maria came back before they finished trickling out, and she brought food! Lee could smell the tortillas before she even set down the bag! He had his cast-iron skillet out of the box a moment later... and, of course, the stove didn''t work... Maria said something he didn''t understand and started opening her own can of beans and lathering them onto a cold tortilla while eyeing him warily. "Wait!" Lee said and flipped the skillet over. On the bottom, he drew two runes. One to strengthen it and the other to make it hot. The strengthening was mostly because he wasn''t sure just how hot it would get... He was right to worry because it got way too hot almost immediately. Luckily, both runes fought each other since the heating one was technically trying to destroy the skillet, and it didn''t melt before he pulled them back out. Lee had to dive into his class knowledge to find a solution while he waited for it to cool, and he found one. It was a small modification to the heating rune that gave it a set temperature instead of the ''get exponentially hotter'' that he''d first used. It worked, and he did the same thing for the pan she''d brought with her. After that, the smell of frying food drowned out everything else while Lee watched Maria cook. She even had meat! He might have also drooled a little¡­ Only after he got his first taco and devoured it, did Lee notice everyone else had finally left. Debuff Downgraded: [Starving>Famished] "I think I love you, Maria!" Lee said, reaching for another, then hesitating when she slapped his fingers with the spatula and gave a pointed glance behind him. He reluctantly carried the plate to the small dining room table Alejandro had moved into proper position, and which now sat two small children. The older one took a taco and started eating, while the younger had to be fed by her father. Both looked wide-eyed and afraid in Lee''s blue lights. Their traumatized faces helped Lee endure his own hunger while watching them eat. Until the next plate arrived, at which point he went right back to devouring everything. "I do love you!" Alejandro laughed. "Lee, how did you end up outside with no clothes? If you don''t mind..." Debuff Downgraded: [Famished>Hungry] "I..." Lee swallowed the last bite and stared at Maria''s back. "I went hunting for the cores." If she could just cook faster... "Is that the glowing rocks?" "It was stupid, and I''m a moron..." Lee said before the man could pile on, but then trailed off. "Wait, did you not pick any of them up?" "I was trying to protect the people from the frogs!" Lee couldn''t believe it. He''d been an idiot for going out there, but this guy had gone out to fight monstrous, man-eating frogs, and it wasn''t even to gather cores... "I got eaten by one," Lee finally admitted, a little embarrassed sure, but feeling better about his own mistakes after hearing what a moron his neighbor was. No wonder Maria looked pissed! Alejandro laughed, but it trailed off as he stared at Lee. "You really got eaten by the frogs?" "It was huge..." Lee said, somewhat defensively. "You didn''t... Never mind. Just give me your machete. I need to re-enchant it." He didn''t mention that he''d pulled the runes off intentionally as he reapplied them onto the blade. "I don''t suppose you have another one of these... and what''s with the golf club?" Lee didn''t really know these people, and he didn''t trust them... much. But after the events of the night and the food! Mostly the food. Oh god, the food! He was feeling more inclined to trust. Besides, he could always take the runes back if he had to. "My shield broke," Alejandro said, "but my skill lets anything be a shield! Also, I do not have another machete... sorry." "Mmm, mm," Lee said around another mouthful before swallowing. "It''s fine... I think I can make something good enough..." Now he knew he could probably use runes to heat metal, then pound it more or less into a bladed shape. The golf club might work¡­ but only the head, the shaft was too round, and he wanted a long cutting implement, not an ax. An actual sword would be better, but that might have to wait... or did it? There had to be tons of people with magic now. Who knew what skills or abilities they might have? Debuff Removed: [Hungry] "Thanks..." He meant it too. The meal had been infinitely better than his planned can of beans. Lee stood up, stomach full and nerves not quite settled as he paced around the room a few times. He stopped at the windows and re-powered them fully along the way. Then he slumped onto the couch. It smelled. Or maybe that was him... Lee closed his eyes, leaning back on the couch. I really fucked up today... but... I still need so much more. He didn''t notice when his momentary rest turned into sleep. 7. Birds. Why did it have to be birds? ~~~Stanley~~~ "Fuck." Stanley rested his hand against the solid wall of blue light, then pushed against it. It was unyielding. "Fuck!" he screamed, and Caffeine whined. "I was so fucking close, Caff... if I hadn''t stopped for food..." Stanley punched the wall. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated. "Fuck you too!" The worst part was that he could still feel Lee in the distance as if the wall were mocking him with the sensation. Caffeine squirmed high enough in his jacket to lick his face, and Stanley took a deep breath. The poor pug always got nervous if he screamed too much through the windshield, and Caffeine didn''t deserve the stress. It wasn''t his fault, and besides, he couldn''t go hide in Stanley''s bed anymore... Stanley descended slowly toward the moonlit ground below. Slowly because he couldn''t see shit, and also, what was the fucking rush now... A snow-covered roof just barely resolved itself in the snow, and Stanley diverted his downward trajectory slightly to avoid it. Also, the glowing wall came down on the middle of that roof, and Stanley was curious if he might bypass it by going inside the building. He knew it was a stupid idea; there couldn''t possibly be such a glaring loophole, but just maybe... He drifted further from the wall, and it faded. The hiding, lying wall... Stanley hovered before the house above a deep snowdrift. More snow buried much of the home, and it took him a minute to realize he was looking at the back of it. The rear sported a covered porch area, where Stanley let the squirming pug free from his jacket onto the mostly clean and dry surface. Caffeine wouldn''t run far with the snow trapping him in, and Stanley wanted to investigate inside. He could have smashed his way in, but this was someone''s house, and he was slightly wary of another shotgun in his face. So he knocked. It was dark and quiet. Once he''d pounded on the door with no sign of life, Stanley moved on to breaking and entering. The first shotgun had been a dud, and considering how quiet it was out here, he suspected all guns were now useless. The way he moved his truck required Stanley to touch something that he couldn''t directly see, a learning process that cost him a few repairs. Now he used that same technique to reach past the door and try to find the lock. He went slowly, trying to feel out the surface of the door by mental touch alone. It wasn''t a completely foreign exercise, but doing it so softly was a new experience, and it showed when he pushed too hard and cracked the door in half. "Fuck," Stanley said under his breath, then crushed the door into a lump of splinters. It was a satisfying display of power and temper, but ultimately a failure for what he''d intended. He walked into the cold dark house, no sign of the glowing wall. It couldn''t be that easy... he expected it to appear and yet still felt that tiny glimmer of hope that just maybe... the wall appeared a step later, the house obviously offering no impediment to it. It had been a useless, false hope, but one that only made his disappointment even more bitter. As he glared at the cause of his misfortune, Stanley also finally noticed that the glowing wall didn''t actually shed any light... very weird, given that it was clearly glowing. Yet it completely failed to light up the interior of the house despite the way he felt it should. Stanley had to pull out his lighter again and, in the flickering yellow glow, saw Caffeine staring intently up at the kitchen counter. Staring with great focus at the tub of dog biscuits. The pug looked away long enough to glance at Stanley, whine pleadingly, and then continued staring at the treats. Stanley sighed. "Sure, Caff. Why not? We got nowhere else to be..." He pulled the tub to himself and collapsed onto someone else''s couch. It was a nice couch, soft and comfortable, and would shortly become covered in little black dog hairs. Caffeine nearly climbed into his lap, and Stanley started fishing out the snacks, offering them one by one to the starving dog. The zippo standing on the coffee table provided just enough light to see, but no more. Stanley glared across the cold room at the fireplace, already set up for a fire with stacked logs and all, and on the wrong side of the magic wall... He threw a treat at it, and to his surprise, the dog biscuit bounced off the logs... on the other side of the wall. Even more surprising, Caffeine sprang after it and snatched up the treat from the floor before bouncing back into Stanley''s lap, his passage leaving two small pug-sized holes through the suddenly much brighter magic barrier. Warning! Attempts to breach [Dungeon Perimeter] may incur heavy penalties. Caffeine growled and barked when the message appeared while also spinning in circles as if he wasn''t sure who he was barking at... did he get the messages too? Meanwhile, Stanley slumped back down from his belated attempt to dive through when the holes shrank nearly instantly back into a solid sheet of light. He wouldn''t have fit, anyway... The treats had gone through like it wasn''t there but hadn''t left holes like Caffeine did... was there a loophole for animals? Stanley tried throwing a whole handful of treats next, spreading them all right near the edge to see if Caffeine might make a bigger hole, but the pug didn''t go through again. He grabbed everything on this side of the wall but only whined at the ones on the far side. Then barked at the wall when the message appeared again. Warning! Attempts to breach [Dungeon Perimeter] may incur heavy penalties. Did it know he was trying to escape? Neither of them had even touched it... Stanley caught himself before throwing the entire tub at the stupid fucking wall! Instead, he dumped it onto the floor and wandered back to the porch while Caffeine devoured everything. What the hell do I do now? His breath fogged the air and sounded loud in the still night as Stanley stared out into the dark. He was in the countryside now; or he thought so, at least. It was hard to tell in the ever-present darkness. All he could make out were some trees jutting up with bare branches in the moonlight, while a few evergreens stood beneath their blankets of snow. No city lights, no sounds of traffic, not even a breeze to rustle the branches. Stanley munched on a piece of jerky while his thoughts spiraled until Caffeine appeared to paw at his leg. Stanley dropped a piece for the always-hungry pug and pulled another for himself. The deafening bark came out of nowhere, and Stanley flinched in surprise. What the... At nearly the same instant, something shot right past him in a blur. It crashed into and then through the deck with a loud crunch before vanishing underneath. That drew a more violent response from Stanley when his flinching turned into a reflexive shove. He ripped half of the porch free from the house and sent it into the trees across the open field of snow before he could stop himself. The fuck was that!? Skill Level Up: [Psychokinesis] Class Level Up: [Psionic] You have gained a class level. Review your Status for changes. Stanley watched the darkness as he retreated closer to the doorway and further under what remained of the porch''s roof. Though he wasn''t sure how much protection either would offer against whatever that was. Caffeine kept growling while leaning into his leg, and Stanley appreciated the contact as his surging adrenaline demanded action. But nothing else stirred. Other than the pieces of the porch finishing their journey to the ground from the trees where he''d thrown them... Then it was quiet again, and Caffeine relaxed enough to keep begging for jerky. "Good boy, Caff." Stanley took that as his cue and checked whatever this Status was. Of course, he fed Caffeine while doing so. Turned out his pug had better night vision after all, even while looking in two directions at once. Stanley was just glad whatever that was had missed him, given how fast it was going... Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Human](UnGraded) Traits: [Adaptable] [Unique Body Modification] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 2 (Novice) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 3 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 4(0%)4 Vitality: 5(0%)5 Dexterity 6(0%)6 Wisdom 7(+6%)7.4 Intelligence 6(+6%)6.3 Willpower 10+(+6%)10.6 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(0/1): It was weird that this dungeon system could tell when he was trying to escape its walls, but couldn''t figure out their soul. It was the one who put that name on it in the first place... He focused on the Traits next. [Adaptable] A Human racial trait. Unlocks all Class and Skill restrictions as well as providing more evolution options for the user. Note: This trait will be lost if the user adapts too far from their origins. Adaptability: 75% Somewhere along the way, he must have adapted... or did everyone start with 75%? [Unique Body Modification] Unknown Modifications made to the user''s body. Analyzing... And there was yet another thing it didn''t know! Stanley stopped his musings when he saw a light out in the snow. It was faint, a mere sparkle, but it wasn''t something he''d seen before. He watched it warily for a while, waiting for it to move or do something... It did neither. It was in the same area where he''d thrown the porch... Rather than venture out into the open to investigate the suspicious light, Stanley simply scooped it up and dragged it closer. Or he tried to. His first attempt shifted the light out of sight when he grabbed a pile of snow instead. The distance and darkness made it hard to aim his power... There was some juggling and a lot of racket, which almost lured Caffeine to brave the snow to see what was happening, but Stanley eventually sifted through the detritus and pulled a small glowing rock into his hand. Core Chip[F-grade] +1 Dexterity Absorb? Y/N That''s... new. Accepting it gave him more information. +0.1 Dexterity(-.9 from Unknown Body Modification) Trait Updated: [Unknown Body Modification] = [Energetic Resilience] It was bad information. [Energetic Resilience] Your body and mind have been subjected to extreme amounts of energy and have adapted to survive. This Adaptation has made your body highly efficient at drawing in and retaining all energy, whether internal or external. This has the added effect of absorbing a portion of all energy directed at you, increasing your regeneration while making you highly resistant to all but the most direct foreign energy. Effects: All energy resistance greatly improved. All regeneration greatly improved. Increased core absorption requirements. Additional side effects are possible. Continuing Analysis... Stanley cursed. Side effects, my ass! How is that a fair trade? The trait increased regeneration, and did some other vaguely defined stuff, but then they got only a tenth from the cores? What about Lee? Did he have this trait too? Goddamnit! I hope he got a good class... Stanley closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind as he struggled with what the hell he was supposed to do... The core had mentioned F-grade... He could only assume that was above his own Ungraded, and now he had a pretty good idea of how to get there. He just needed to kill a shit ton of these F-grade... birds? It had come from above; he was mostly sure it''d been a bird. Probably one chasing him from before, and it had finally caught up. Idiot bird. Looking out at the dark night gave pause to Stanley''s new ambition. He hadn''t been able to see his attacker coming just now, and that was kind of a big deal... not that he necessarily had to see something to effect it, but it sure helped. His next thought was about something he''d initially glossed over in the disappointment of being trapped in this so-called dungeon. It only said he couldn''t leave until after the invaders were dead... or rather defeated, probably the same thing. That still meant he was trapped, sure... but he just had to defeat these invaders and then he could leave. It wasn''t much to go on, but it was a better plan than he had before. The invaders probably weren''t the birds... probably. Stanley grabbed Caffeine and took them both into the sky again. All he saw was the night. No lights. Not even fires... didn''t people light shit on fire when the world went to hell? Another question on his mind; just how big was this Grand Raid Dungeon? Math was never a strong suit of his, but Stanley took a shot at flying along the glowing wall to gauge the circumference. After a few minutes, he was fairly certain it was curving. A few more, and he knew it was fucking huge. Still no sign of the invaders either. He''d been checking. No explosions or lights, nothing that would indicate a fight. Granted, Stanley was probably pretty far from civilization. It was just hard to tell without city lights. What he hadn''t tried yet was going higher. So he did. He learned that the wall curved overhead as well when he ran into it because he was looking down toward where he thought Boston should be in the dark. Unfortunately, he hit it softly because the damn curve was so slight, which meant that the dungeon was stupidly tall as well as wide... The only bright spot in that experience was that he finally saw what he was looking for; fires. Or flickering lights, at least. It was probably fire, and he was pretty sure there were a lot of them. He''d just had to fly high enough to spot them in the far distance... in what he wanted to call east. It was hard to tell without light, but it looked a lot darker past the fires like maybe an ocean not covered in snow... Feeling his brother behind him also helped. Stanley soared toward the light and away from Lee. It might be smarter to wait for dawn. There might be more birds up here. Plus, he still had no idea what the invaders were capable of, where they were, or even what they looked like, but he had to do something. Lee was alone because of him, because he just had to keep pushing his damn truck. But hey, at least it wouldn''t be completely dark if the city was on fire. I got this, Stanley told himself. He was powerful and could fly. Hell, he''d been pushing himself every day to get more powerful, and here was his chance to prove it hadn''t been pointless. Besides, how hard could it be to defeat these invaders? Much less a few birds. Stanley never made it to the fires, though he got close enough to confirm that it was indeed fire. Caffeine gave him some warning when he started growling and then barking. Really loud barking that left Stanley''s ears ringing as he slowed his approach, eyes squinting against the wind as he tried to focus on the flickering flames. The flickering wasn''t actually from the flames, however. It was birds. A massive swarm of them filled the sky, and they weren''t normal birds... they were far too big for that. Then Stanley plowed into them. Literally. He tried to dodge the collision with the first bird looming before him and failed. It wasn''t so bad. Like hitting a pillow at fifty miles an hour. Then he ricocheted off, only to be blindsided by something slamming into his knees. That one hurt. A lot. After that, it was all he could do to hold Caffeine close while lashing out as he tumbled head over heels through the air. Stanley hit back repeatedly, feeling his power strike against solid objects around him, but it wasn''t nearly enough. The thousands of fucking pigeons that filled the sky pummeled him from every direction, seemingly unaffected by his attacks into the swarm. Stanley couldn''t actually get any good looks at his attackers and only knew they were pigeons because their horrible cooing drowned out even Caffeine''s barking. He saw enough to know they were all fucking huge... After that, it was chaos. Sharp, hard things tore at him. He couldn''t tell if it was claws or beaks, but they ripped at his skin, leaving burning lines in his flesh, while flapping wings hit like hammer blows to his head and body. Through it all, Stanley held the little dog tight inside his jacket as he escaped from the shitshow. Caffeine didn''t help, and tried repeatedly to claw his way free of the jacket, while Stanley fought him down and also tried to stay airborne. The pug had always been a bit odd with his fears. One minute scared of a rock or plastic bag, and the next trying to fight a cow. When he wasn''t scared of something, Caffeine was far too bold in his confidence, but this was insane. Or maybe he simply didn''t understand they were in the sky... Stanley fully intended to fly straight up, leave them all behind, and he put a lot of his considerable power into doing just that, trying to brute force his way out of this shit show. He wasn''t prepared when a wall of glass appeared in his path, a skyscraper, by the glimpse he got right before impact and filled with cubicles as he saw right after impact. Shit! was all he had time to think. Then he hit something harder than glass... There was a brief pain, flashing lights in his head, and... ... ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine was trying to help Dearest Human with the bad birds, but Dearest Human didn''t want to let him bite them. Then Dearest Human ran into a wall... Caffeine wasn''t sure why he did that... because now Dearest Human smelled like hurting... and he was napping. Maybe he just needed a nap? Naps were the best! But not hurting naps... The big birds followed them into the inside, and Caffeine woofed at them, quietly, to let Dearest Human rest. "No playing now. Go away!" They didn''t go away. They jumped and flapped closer. They smelled like hungry... and they were very big. Birds weren''t supposed to be so big... and they were not good for playing. They always only flew away and never wanted to chase. These birds wanted to chase, but it was a mean chasing. They didn''t want to play, they wanted to hurt. So Caffeine bit the little birds until they stopped being mean. Dearest Human kept sleeping... he still smelled like pain, too. But it was getting better! Caffeine wanted to cuddle and nap with Dearest Human, but he was a good boy. He would watch for danger while Dearest Human napped. There was a lot of danger... so many noises and other things in the outside. So many Not Dearest Humans making not good noises... It was good he watched, because more bad birds tried to come into the inside where Dearest Human rested. They wanted to eat him... Dearest Human was not food! Caffeine bit them all until they stopped trying to eat Dearest Human. "Bad birds!" 8. For the Night is Dark and Full of Terrors ~~~Stanley~~~ A tongue smacking his face brought him back. Caff... Stanley opened his eyes to a flickering orange ceiling, at least what he could see past the frantic pug. Caffeine was little more than a dark shape in the dim room, but Stanley held him gently as his fingers probed the pug for injury. He found nothing obvious and no flinching or crying from his touch, either. Thank god... Caffeine was whining, but it was the cry of missing Stanley when he was left alone for too long. He was okay... but Stanley''s fingers were shaking... Then the pug abruptly ceased his crying and turned to growl at something near the windows, right before the cooing echoed into the room. Stanley was already lashing out with his power as he sat up, and he hit the four-foot-tall pigeon before it made another sound. It hadn''t even landed on the floor when it sailed back out of the opening, wings flapping uselessly before abruptly stopping in midair when Stanley''s hand stretched out in a mirror of his will. It wasn''t enough to knock the pigeon away; he needed to make sure it died, and more than that, he needed the core if it had one. Stanley''s outstretched hand closed into a fist, and his power responded in kind, crushing the bird into a wet, feathery ball. The sensation of crushing a living creature was... quite disgusting, and he felt more than he wanted to with his mental touch, but Stanley was pissed enough to ignore the nausea and discomfort as he pulled the now bird-ball back inside. He dropped it into a wet pile on the floor as his head throbbed and inspected his surroundings for more targets. They were alone. The broken window Stanley had come through was the only one of its kind. Though he saw more than a few more lumps near the window that might have been additional birds. Dead by the looks of it, though it was hard to tell in the flickering light. Stanley wasn''t sure how they died. Maybe they also crashed into the building while chasing him? That was pretty stupid of them, given that none of the other windows had been broken yet by the swarming birds outside. Assuming they were actually dead... Stanley tensed up, then finally noticed the glowing spots below some of them. That probably meant what he thought it did. He pulled one over with a thought. +0.1 Wisdom So they were dead. It also helped that Caffeine wasn''t growling anymore, and he apparently had no problem with the display of violence because he was trying to curl up into Stanley''s lap. Luckily, by some miracle, he truly didn''t seem even the slightest bit injured by the crash landing. Stanley himself felt far too... undamaged from the instant of terrible pain he''d felt before. The concrete pillar that had halted his flight... hadn''t done nearly as well. The entire thing was cracked and slightly cratered at the impact site, with rebar showing through the gaps. Honestly, Stanley couldn''t believe he had survived the collision. They had to be going highway speeds... or faster. He felt a chill just looking at the shattered stone. I should have died. Maybe he had slowed himself down before impact? Or blocked it... somehow? The terror of the birds, and the sudden extra jolt of adrenaline right before the crash, it had all faded by the time he opened his eyes. As if none of it ever happened. It was coming back now and in full force. That sickening rush that left him twitchy and anxious. Or maybe it was the freezing wind blowing through the window... Occasional shapes still flew past the unbroken windows, and a variety of unpleasant noises came through the single broken one, but the inside was calm for the moment. Stanley used the relative safety to look over the messages waiting for his attention and to distract himself from his shaking hands and racing thoughts. I almost died... Skill Level Up: [Psychokinesis] Class Level Up: [Psionic] Debuff: [Internal Bleeding] Debuff: [Concussed] Debuff: [Crippled] Debuff Removed: [Internal Bleeding] Debuff Removed: [Concussed] Debuff Removed: [Crippled] +1 Vitality Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] That didn''t make him feel much better. He wasn''t sure what leveling up the skill did exactly, other than adding a percentage to willpower. The class level was better and should give him three percent more willpower¡­ three percent of ten¡­ great. As for the rest of it... It sounded really bad. The building had appeared out of nowhere... so fast... no time to stop or swerve... How am I alive? How is Caffeine... His trait had mentioned regeneration, and he had clearly just healed from a lot of... stuff. The famished debuff seemed pointless. He could feel his hunger growing just fine without a damn message telling him he was hungry, and he was pretty sure the spike in hunger had something to do with his miraculous survival. Like he just needed to eat and could regenerate from... anything? Did everyone have this? Or was it because of the trait? Seeing that he gained a full point of vitality was also a great bonus for... well, he had hit pretty hard. The last lingering and far too minor pains faded, and Stanley wondered if maybe his regeneration was better than it should be. If so, then their trait might not be such a terrible trade after all... He could have sworn the birds had sliced him up. Even his clothes had gotten shredded, yet his skin was unblemished now. Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] And now he was starving... It was definitely his regeneration. Focusing on the debuff, it surprised Stanley when it actually gave him more information. [Starving] All Resource Recovery -75% That sounded less than ideal. Unfortunately, Stanley''s backpack was no longer on his back or anywhere nearby that he could see, and his shredded pockets were empty. Fucking birds! Stanley yanked the rest of the cores from the floor to his hand, and they hit with bruising force when he overdid it. Damn it! +0.1 Vitality +0.1 Dexterity +0.1 Strength +0.1 Vitality Better than nothing, but he needed to kill a lot more birds... which sucked because the thought of going back outside made his stomach twist. I have to do this! It''s my fault that Lee is alone... Caffeine started twitching in his lap, and Stanley stared at him in surprise. How could he sleep with all that racket? Much less with monster birds flying past right outside... Beyond the birds, Stanley still needed to find and kill the invaders. A prospect that was a bit more daunting at the moment. I can do it... I have to! But maybe he could collect some cores first. Getting to F-Grade had to be better than what he was now. Hopefully, it wouldn''t be too hard to accomplish. Instead of getting up, Stanley let Caffeine sleep. It was a good excuse to stay where he was while still accomplishing something useful. Namely, attacking the birds outside without going out there himself. This also let him continue sitting with his back to the slightly broken pillar. The concrete had stopped him cold. Hopefully, it would do the same for any birds coming from behind. It took him a few tries, but Stanley soon caught himself another pigeon as it flew past the broken window. It was a strangely jarring sensation in his mind when he grabbed it, a squirmy and far too heavy sensation, even for a giant bird. Stanley didn''t need to hold it for long. He raised two hands toward the suspended bird and made a twisting motion; the physical gestures were unnecessary but helped him to focus on the mental intention. Feeling the bird''s neck snap through his mind was still unpleasant but less so than squishing the entire thing. The strangest part was how it got noticeably easier to hold after the snap, and not just to restrain but also to hold aloft. How did dying make it lighter? That didn''t even make sense... unless it shit itself, like a lot. He dragged the corpse inside and watched it dangle in the air until a spot of light appeared, falling down from the body. It almost looked like it came from inside... Stanley decided he didn''t care. As long as he got the core, it didn''t matter how it worked. One more bird met the same fate, except that time, another pigeon dove through the window after the corpse. It didn''t even seem to notice him where he sat and instead started pecking at the other dead birds as if... no, it was definitely eating them. Pigeon carnivores¡­ not something he¡¯d thought about before, and not an actual concern until they were as big as he was¡­ If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Stanley killed it and threw its corpse, as well as all the others, back out the window. He only wanted the cores, not the meat; he would not eat pigeon, no matter how hungry he was. As if in mockery of his food preferences, Stanley felt his stomach grumble loudly, almost painfully. Turned out he couldn''t ignore the hunger pangs, at least not if he wanted to keep using his power. Stanley couldn''t tell how much power he had left at the moment or if his class even worked that way. It had said he didn''t use mana... was it all just mental? Did he wait for a headache to tell him if his power was low? He had some practice with his power after all these months, but it had always been the headaches that stopped him before, not a lack of power. It was something to figure out, but later. Right now, he wanted to eat. Instead of venturing into the hellscape outside or eating a pigeon, Stanley remained in the building and looked for a vending machine. An office this big had to have something. Caffeine was still curled up in his lap asleep, so Stanley gently lifted himself up without moving his legs. It worked, though he felt and probably looked ridiculous with his legs crossed in front while he floated above the cubicles. Caffeine kept sleeping, though, and that was all he cared about. Along the way, he cautiously approached one unbroken window and looked down at the street below. It wasn''t far; Stanley had crashed even lower than he thought, and he didn''t have to wait long before spotting another human in the glow of a burning car. More than one, in fact. A whole crowd of them were running down the street while something chased behind them. Stanley couldn''t tell what was chasing them, but it was a dark color, and there was a lot of it. He saw people falling behind and getting swallowed up beneath the tide... There was a lot of screaming, and Stanley turned away. Of course, Caffeine woke up for the food. He didn''t stir for the breaking glass on the vending machine, but one crinkle of plastic and the pug was wide awake. Stanley shared, obviously. He ate everything with chocolate and Caffeine got the rest. Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry] It turned out to be fairly even split, and the closed-up windowless breakroom was a soothing balm on Stanley''s mind. Especially when he stopped hearing the screams from outside. They''d been declining ever since he woke up in the building, and the air remained blessedly absent of screaming even when he came back out of the snack room. The cooing was, unfortunately, loud as ever. Only now, he was hearing new sounds on top of those... a high-pitched squeaking and distant scratching. Stanley quickly realized that the squeaking sound wasn''t coming through the window. It was coming from inside the building... He moved proactively this time, not waiting to see what fresh horror might jump out at him, and headed for the stairs with Caffeine in his arms. The sounds were exponentially worse in there but sounded like they were coming mostly from below... at least; he thought they were. Either way, Stanley went up. He needed more vending machines after cleaning out the ones on this floor, and getting further from the nightmare in the streets seemed better than the alternative. He considered leaving. Just fleeing the city and getting back to the relatively peaceful countryside, but this hellhole was also an opportunity. The birds still weren''t breaking through the windows, and he could pick them off in relative safety. Though the sound of something coming up the stairs was a new wrinkle in the plan. Worst case, he would go through a window himself and leave the city, but until then, he would kill anything that came after him. Caffeine fell asleep like a flipped switch when he started flying up the stairs. Just went completely limp in his lap and scared the shit out of Stanley. Then woke up immediately from Stanley''s panicked attention and seemed fine... He also immediately fell back to sleep when Stanley sat down to hold him close in worry. The small dog was still breathing smoothly and even started dreaming moments later with small yips and twitches. Don''t do that to me... Stanley curled up over Caffeine while trying to let his new panic subside. The pug had eaten like he always did, aka, like he was literally starving. He still didn''t have a scratch on him, either. He was fine. Stanley let Caffeine keep sleeping in his crossed legs and lifted both of them into the air. Maybe he was just tired... that was all it was. It had been a big night... Unfortunately, the scratching and squeaking from below were getting louder, and Stanley had a terrible feeling about what was making the racket. Not wanting to meet whatever it was in the stairwell, he flew higher. All the way to the top floor. Stanley wasn''t ready to face the outside again or the birds that filled it, not just yet. So he stopped there and took it in. It was nice and very fancy from what he could see in the much dimmer light this high above the fiery streets, but he didn''t waste time enjoying the luxury. Instead, Stanley ripped apart the luxurious decor and used it to barricade the stairs. He used a bit more for the elevator, just in case. Then he picked the nicest penthouse on the top floor; part office, part condo, and with a fancy bathroom that was relatively closed up from the outside. Stanley barricaded the penthouse with more furniture and then the bathroom. There, he blocked the doorway with the ridiculously oversized desk. It left a sliver of a gap on one side, just enough to peek through. Caffeine slept through all of it and then continued to sleep while Stanley settled in to wait for whatever was coming. He didn''t have to wait long. The scratching grew louder and louder, and then the tide swarmed into the room like a flood. They barely even slowed down as they dug and scrambled over his barricade... Stanley let them advance, motionless except for his eyes, as he strained to make out his hunters. As expected, they were rats. They were varying in size, with many no bigger than Caffeine and a few as large as Stanley. The floor became a squirming mass before he reacted, and react he did, right after an even larger creature squeezed through the doorway with a high-pitched and ear-piercing squeal. Stanley grabbed the big one and immediately regretted it when it turned out to be even heavier than the birds. So instead, he picked up the smaller ones and started chucking them at their larger friend. As he''d hoped, they didn''t like that and started biting each other in retaliation. Apparently, they couldn''t tell he was the one fucking with them, or at least not the one getting pelted by smaller rats. Some of those he threw that survived the process didn''t stick to fighting each other and started trying to sniff him out. It was easy enough to snap the necks of any coming too close, but the big fucker was taking a pounding and didn''t seem to be any worse for it. At least until Stanley ripped apart a metal desk and used the sharp instruments as flying weapons. Unfortunately, he failed to grab the core in time after killing it. The smaller rats absolutely swarmed the moment it died, and by the time he killed all of them, there was no sign of a core. They also ate a lot of the body... Even then, he only had moments to look for it before more of the nasty creatures swarmed into the room. The flood was never-ending, and the more he killed, the more showed up. Like they were being drawn by the bloodshed. His weapons got lost among the bodies, and even the cores got harder to grab, much less spot in the gore. The smell also got worse... Eventually, Stanley had to change it up, and he did so by throwing a hefty pile of dead rats through one of the floor-to-ceiling windows, along with more than a few still-living ones. It took a lot of power, and Stanley felt a headache fire up behind his eyes, but they all went through the glass. Rats squealed and then went sailing out into the open air hundreds of feet above the ground. He wouldn''t get the cores from the ones that fell, but given the flood still spilling onto the floor, it wouldn''t matter. It took a few more piles before the mess cleared out enough for him to find more cores, and he got a few before the next wave came in. Stanley didn''t send them out the window; instead, he slammed a dozen rats into the ceiling. Then the floor. Then the ceiling again. Then the floor. The wonderful silence that followed was only broken by the sound of something wet dripping. At least for a few seconds... More rats ran in, immediately going after his cores, and Stanley threw them at each other while claiming his loot. Without cores in sight, they all switched to eating the dead instead... Then another of the large ones climbed into the room, and its squeaks stopped the feeding frenzy. Under its direction; because it definitely seemed to be commanding them, they started searching and ignored the corpses. All while the so-called leader started sniffing through the dead itself. Then a giant pigeon flew through the open window and snatched up a dead rat before launching back outside with its prize. It wasn''t the last bird either. Not wanting to lose too many cores outside, Stanley didn''t toss living rats at the birds and instead pelted them with the corpses they were trying to eat. Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] It was annoying how fast that went back up, but Stanley had prepared. He''d found more than a few refrigerators on this floor, all much better stocked than the vending machines. That food was in the bathroom with him now, and given the extra cool air coming from all the recently broken windows around them, it should stay fresh for a while. Not that it would last all that long... especially since Stanley''s meals always resulted in Caffeine getting a share of everything. The pigeons didn''t stop coming, flying in the broken windows to either snatch a corpse and retreat or land and eat where they stood. Stanley had no issue with that and threw rat corpses at all of them. He missed a lot, but it didn''t matter because when the birds came inside and started eating the dead or attacking the living rats, war broke out between them. Stanley tried to make himself invisible even as Caffeine kept sleeping... and he smashed rats and birds alike, crushing skulls and snapping necks as they went after each other. He was especially murderous towards the ones that didn''t fight and instead tried to grab cores. He had to stop that behavior. Those were his cores... Stanley dragged the cores away the moment he spotted them, flying each one across the room and squeezing them through the narrow gap he was looking out from. His actions didn''t go unnoticed, and more than a few rats and birds tried to catch his flying cores. When they failed at that, a few even tried to dig their way past his barricade into the bathroom. They all died for their efforts, adding more cores to the pile, and while occasionally a small mob would seek him out, once he killed them all, the newer arrivals wouldn''t even know he was there. It worked well. The dead always drawing more because of the smell or maybe something else. Whatever it was, they kept coming, and Stanley kept killing the survivors of the fights. Along the way, Stanley tested the limits of his power in this new reality. He was strong, extremely so. Nothing that he saw could resist him simply crushing it into a pile of goo. It drained his energy to do so, and his headache never really went away again, but the food seemed to help. Whether because of his trait and its boost to regeneration, or something else, he didn''t know. But it looked like he would never run out of energy. So long as he had food... Unfortunately, getting a fancy new class hadn''t changed the need for food that had dominated his training in the truck. In fact, it seemed to have gotten worse with how fast his hunger grew now compared to before. There he''d been moving thousands of pounds for hours at a time, and now he was getting just as tired from throwing around a few hundred pounds of rat and bird. More testing cleared up some of his confusion as Stanley experimented with new and exciting ways to murder stuff. Turned out, it was definitely much cheaper energy-wise to hit the monsters with something else rather than hurting them directly. Throwing corpses or office supplies killed them all the same, but it didn''t take nearly as much energy as if he broke necks or crushed heads. Something to do with how the dead birds felt lighter than the living ones... and he hadn''t really ever trained on moving other people. Stanley had technically carried himself and Caffeine, or at least pushed them in the truck, as well as Lee before he left... and even now, his own body felt far lighter than even the dead animals, almost effortless to move. He felt like that made some sense; it was his power, after all, but Caffeine felt just as light... Despite the yet unsolved mysteries, Stanley improved his killing-to-eating ratios by switching to second-hand murder of the monstrous beasts. It was more efficient to use external weapons but required a bit more competence in the aim department. Luckily, Stanley had all night to practice. At some point, Caffeine woke up from his nap, and Stanley was very relieved when the pug resumed his normal behavior of growling at every noise he couldn''t see and then begging for food whenever Stanley ate anything. Stanley didn''t want to waste his limited and in-high-demand food on the dog, but couldn''t resist giving Caffeine a few bites. He had to ration it, not wanting to be forced outside in the dark looking for more. This meant that his killing suffered, and more than a few of the cores got stolen by the monsters when his aim was off. The food lasted long enough for the new day to dawn, and it got much easier to deal with the birds in the light. Also much easier to aim his improvised weapons. That helped stretch the food further. Unfortunately, the flood of monsters slowly trickled off as the sun climbed higher, and his food eventually ran out. Stanley killed the last rat inside his area by impaling it in the head with a bird''s beak, and then the seagull that tried to eat its core using a metal letter opener. The seagulls had shown up closer to morning... neither Stanley nor Caffeine liked their annoying squawking. The cores they dropped were the same, and the latest two were equally disappointing. +0.1 Wisdom(+0.1 Wisdom Fortification) +0.1 Intelligence(+0.1 Inteligence Fortification) Stanley looked over his improved status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Human](UnGraded) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] Class: [Psionic(Rare)](Novice 4) Class Skills: [Psychokinesis(Uncommon)](Novice 6) Attributes: Strength: 8(0%)8 Vitality: 9(0%)9 Dexterity 9(0%)9 Wisdom 10+(+12%)11 Intelligence 10+(+12%)11 Willpower 10+(+12%)11 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 0/1: Buff: Debuff: He''d somewhat figured out what it was saying, though he still didn''t know what the Fortification meant. It didn''t seem to affect his attributes at all. Unfortunately, he''d gotten far too many cores that he didn''t need at the moment. Why would he get intelligence cores from obviously idiot birds? Stanley had considered holding onto the excess mind attribute cores. It wasn''t unlikely that other people were out here killing shit, and they might trade some physical cores if they had come up short on mind instead. But it seemed an unnecessary trouble. He was a little tired and hungry after the morning he''d had, and hadn''t ventured out to raid the lower-floor vending machines. He hadn''t wanted to mess up his hiding spot. Doing so now wasn''t appealing, but he needed some real food today. Stanley emerged from his hidey-hole, the scent of blood and death thick in the air. Caffeine didn''t seem to mind the smell, and he ran about the room, sniffing at everything. There weren''t many corpses left, Stanley having thrown them out the windows to reduce the incoming monsters looking for food, but there were a few around corners that he hadn''t been able to see from his hiding spot. Caffeine sniffed one of the fresher and extra large rat corpses deeply, then tried to take a bite... Stanley dragged him away in disgust, and Caffeine whined while staring at him with small tail wags. "Don''t eat that, Caff." Caffeine whined again, but Stanley held onto him and as he stared out the open windows. Boston spread out below him, the view quite spectacular from his penthouse. It looked... normal. At least from a distance. The streets directly below looked... messy. Crashed cars, trash, stains that might be blood, but no corpses that he could see... animal or human. Not even the ones he''d thrown out the window all night... Did they eat all of them? Just how many monsters were down there? 9. Look Upward ~~~Lee~~~ Lee was blessedly alone when he finally woke up, blue sky visible through his enchanted window, though he didn''t like that he''d slept through the others leaving. He was also hungry again... Debuff: [Hungry] Debuff: [Thirsty] Annoying since a bunch of dirty thieves had eaten his food... though he''d definitely eaten enough of his neighbor''s food to make up for the loss, maybe even more. He felt a little bad about that, but then, his neighbor had been the one to let all those people in. Water was an issue, especially because the taps no longer worked... Lee found some of the bottled water Maria had supplied the night before, but they were empty... and the bottles looked weird. Kinda melty. He finally broke down and drank some of the water from his toilet tank. It smelled and tasted fine, and he told himself repeatedly that it wasn''t actually toilet water... Though the toilet itself was going to be a problem, and soon. Beyond that, hunger was only a secondary concern for now. What he really wanted was to get some actual weapons already, and he had some ideas about how to do that. All of which would require going outside, but then he would still have to go out to find more water. For weapons, Lee went straight for the obvious and closest option first; the metal railing on his porch. It took some effort to cut free a single bar, but he had practice from the night before and an enchanted butter knife that could cut anything. He had to kick the shit out of the bar and make a few passes with the knife, but he got one free eventually. Then he put a heating rune onto the thin metal, which was just barely wide enough to squeeze it on. Of course, it burned his hand immediately... and he dropped it on the porch. It didn''t last long, the quickly heating metal destroying the rune while also draining its power. Once he started hammering on it, it really didn''t last. His ''hammer'' was the frying pan Maria had cooked the food in. Not ideal, but heavy enough, and with a rune on it, tough enough as well. Someone yelled at him while he was pounding and clanging. Lee ignored them. What were they gonna do? Call the cops? In the end, he was left with a slightly flatter and very slightly more edged bar of metal. Not great, but something he could squeeze a couple of runes onto and make into a sword. It would lose power faster than his butter knife, but the increased range should make up for it. It was definitely long enough to cut him free of a giant frog stomach, at least. While he worked, and while he wasn''t making a god-awful racket, he noted the silence of the city. Which was odd... he expected a lot more screaming, if nothing else. Once he stopped long enough to take a good look, he realized what had changed. The constant background hum of traffic was gone. No cars flying down the freeway or the streets... though he could see a few sitting in the middle of the road from his vantage. It was nice. The silence, that is. It was the kind of thing you didn''t notice until you got far enough away from civilization. The kind of thing they''d had sometimes on the truck... pulling over on some distant road, shutting down the engine, and then silence. We had some good times... Lee shook himself out of the past. He had stuff to do. Plus, he heard voices accumulating outside the building and ruining the moment, one of which he recognized. So he avoided that area when he went outside. Instead, heading back to the site of his battle the night before. He wanted to see what remained in the daylight. The sight of the massive corpse in the valley sent a chill up his spine. That thing really was gargantuan... How was anyone supposed to fight that? The smell wafting up from the valley was also extremely unpleasant, and he could see shapes moving around the corpse... probably scavengers. Scavengers that he could kill for cores... The sight and smell put a damper on his plan. Sure, he might be able to see better now, but it wouldn''t prevent a monster like the frog from still eating him... Though, if he had more weapons, and maybe some armor... getting swallowed wouldn''t kill him if he could chop the monsters up from the inside, but he would still need to survive the getting eaten part for that... Lee had some ideas for armor, but between hammering out metal sheets thin enough for him to carry and attaching them to his body in an actually useful way, he wasn''t feeling ready on that front. He turned back toward the complex, and his eyes landed on the parked cars everywhere. Weren''t they made of metal? Some of them? Lee touched the nearest car, and his mana didn''t like the fiberglass... Some vehicles must still use metal, he just needed to find one. The van a few spots down proved more promising when the rear doors turned out to be metal. He didn''t know what kind of metal, but probably aluminum. Whatever it was, his mana didn''t complain. His new sword went to work, hacking one door off. It took a lot of effort and more than a little pounding, but Lee didn''t consider how his actions might look until someone yelled behind him... "Hey!" He spun around to see an angry man stalking toward him. "What the hell are you doing to my van!?" "I''m going to make a shield..." Lee said, easing back and keeping his blade between him and the other man. "You... what... are you insane?" Lee glanced at the guy''s van. It looked ugly, and his aim hadn''t been as good as he''d have liked, but he just needed to cut the last hinge. "How about I make you a shield from the other one, and we call it even?" "Even!? You''re destroying my van!" "Isn''t it useless now?" Lee probably should have asked about that or tested with the moving truck he''d... forgotten to return... Though, he was pretty sure the truck key had been in his pocket the night before, so that was a no-go. Besides, he''d seen no one driving today, that had to mean cars were toast. Maybe an emp effect from the mana when his phone and power stopped working? Would old cars still run if that was the case? Either way, the van was definitely not old enough to still work. It was more useful now as a source of metal. "Trust me, it''ll be a good shield," he reassured the guy. It would be too. The van had nearly straight back doors with a window at the top. Lee could already envision it; an indestructible shield that he could see through. Sure, the window would be slightly weaker, and the entire thing was going to be heavy, but shields with windows had to be hard to come by. "I''ll show you who''s useless!" the man yelled and stalked forward threateningly. Another man appeared in front of Lee and did so very abruptly. Lee wouldn''t have recognized him from the back if not for the runes he could feel on the man''s machete. He also remembered that movement skill from the night before... "Please calm down, Sir," Alejandro said, taking a step back from the man and forcing Lee to pull his own blade back before he stabbed him. "What the hell was that!?" Apparently, Alejandro had startled both of them. But seriously, had this guy missed the whole frog debacle? Why else would he seem so surprised at magic powers... Lee took the opportunity of Alejandro''s distraction to take another swing... and the door fell with a crash onto the ground and another yell from the owner. Lee winced. Luckily, the window didn''t break. Now he just needed some straps to hold the damn thing on his arm... Alejandro made a great wingman, and he kept the other man from assaulting him while Lee chopped off the second door. His wingman might need a shield, too. A few ugly strips of metal cut from the side of the brutalized vehicle became makeshift arm supports once he heated them and poorly welded them to the doors. Even a bad weld was good enough once he stuck the rune on it. The strengthening enchant should hold where the welding didn''t, though he would want some cloth or something for where the jagged bits touched his arm... "Was that really necessary?" Alejandro said, and Lee looked up to see the other man no longer in the picture as he sliced apart the seats inside the van. Free padding and cloth! "Good looking out," Lee said after wrapping the handle. "Did he agree to my deal?" "I think he went to find a camera... for the police, he said..." "Wow¡­" Lee shook his head. Some people were going to have a really bad time in the coming days. "Then you can have... that one." Lee pointed to the first and still unpadded one that hadn''t come out quite as good as his own. Not that it was bad... "For the food you gave me." Alejandro had owed him some food for what was stolen, but Lee felt like he''d really pigged out, and he didn''t want to be in debt to anyone. He took the other door, and it was heavy. A few more stats in strength, and it won''t matter. He hoped so, at least. "I like it!" Alejandro exclaimed as a yellow glow covered the door. He looked through the window at Lee. "Very nice. This will help with our trip today, and you should come along." Alejandro waved him to follow, and Lee did. He had just given the man a shield, and it wouldn''t hurt to let that shield defend him while he went hunting. In fact, that was probably a much better idea than going it alone... plus, it really smelled in the valley where he''d planned to hunt. "Where are we going?" Lee asked, eyeing the group Alejandro led him to. It was an eclectic mix of men and women, almost all representing a different look. This was clearly who he''d heard yammering out here earlier. Alejandro smiled widely. "We are going shopping for food, after you ate everything last night!" Lee narrowed his eyes. Alejandro had offered the food... besides, he had just given him a shield. That wasn''t even counting the machete... "I''m kidding!" Alejandro said. "But we have a lot of people in here," he gestured broadly at the complex, "and we will all need supplies. Will you come with us?" Lee tensed under the gazes coming his way when the group all turned as one to look at him. He wasn''t about to become a caretaker of some random people, especially the ones in denial, like van guy... but he did need weapons and food. "What can you do?" another man said before Lee could respond. "We don''t need any dead weight slowing us down." He was bearded, holding a sledgehammer, and wearing jeans and a plaid shirt. The only thing that would have made him look more like a stereotype lumberjack was if he had an ax instead. Lee glared at the man as he hefted his own wonky-looking sword. It was good enough to cut the moron in half... better than a hammer, for sure. His new shield hung heavy on his arm, and Lee resisted the urge to rest it on the ground. "He''s good," another man spoke up, this one holding an actual bow. "I''d take him over you, in fact." "You little..." the asshole sputtered as he turned on the other man, but his protest died as he shrank away from the archer''s gaze. "...freak," he whispered, turning away. Then the archer''s eyes slid to Lee, and he understood. The man''s pupils were bright green, almost yellow, and they were vertical, like a cat. It was the man he''d met the night before, the one who saved his life... Only now, in the daylight, Lee couldn''t tell if the eyes were still glowing. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. They were definitely still creepy, but to Lee, it meant this guy was probably well ahead of the curve already and, given what he''d seen the night before, a very solid addition to any hunting group. The bow also explained those streaks of light that killed the giant frog. "Hi¡­ again," Lee said. He was just glad he hadn''t had any nightmares about that... yet. Though he expected they would come, eventually. For now... well, it was nice to be in the sunlight. The archer only nodded as Alejandro cleared his throat. "Listen, we all need to work together for this. We don''t know what is out there, but after last night we can expect the worst." "How about some introductions before we go? I am Alejandro, and this is my lovely wife, Maria. She has some healing skills too, but she will remain with the children this time." Maria nodded as people glanced at her, but her primary focus was on Alejandro. The child in her arms and the toddler in her hand looked to be taking up the rest of her attention. Alejandro glanced around, clearly waiting for someone else to do the talking thing. "Very well, I am Saira." The woman who volunteered herself was dark-haired, brown-skinned, spoke with a thick Indian accent, and was wearing... a sari. Lee was pretty sure he got that right. She had no weapons and didn''t look at all like someone ready to fight monsters. "I have some skills that will allow me to heal us." A healer. That gave her some leeway in Lee''s mind... Though he wasn''t sure how much that would help him. But if she could keep the others alive and let them be extra targets, Lee could see the value in that. "Jake," the archer said, "I''m a hunter." That was all he said, but Lee didn''t need more. He''d seen the man in action already and was feeling way better about this little excursion with him along for the ride. It looked like they were going in a circle, and now all eyes were once again on him, so Lee introduced himself. "Lee. I''m a... enchanter." Not only did he not want to tell people extra details about his class, but Lee suspected their questions would lead right back to enchanting, so it was easier this way. The looks he got were not positive, other than Alejandro and Jake. They had seen him in action, though what either had seen and what they thought, Lee didn''t know. "I''m Larry," the hammer guy said. "I can''t enchant anything, but I can hit stuff real hard..." he eyed Lee on the last bit. Lee ignored him. "Sandra," the only other woman in the group said. She was dressed in casual jeans and a t-shirt but held a wooden staff taller than her. After introducing herself, she spun the staff in an impressive display around her body and said nothing else. While she clearly had some skill, Lee didn''t see any magical effects from the staff. He hoped she had more than that... "I..." a voice came from thin air. "I''m Mar..." The girl flickering into view gave Lee a start, and he flinched back, but she only appeared for an instant before vanishing again. "Absolutely not!" Saira practically screeched. Lee didn''t flinch that time. Between her dress and the way she held herself, that was about what he''d expected. "You are not coming with us!" The girl appeared again, facing the woman, and Lee finally noticed the resemblance. Oh great. Family drama. "You can''t tell me what to..." the girl protested in a barely audible voice. "I am your mother, and you will listen..." The girl vanished in the middle of her tirade, and the woman faltered at the visual loss of her target. Mar appeared closer to Lee, on the other side of where her mother was looking. "You can''t stop me!" She vanished immediately before she finished yelling. Saira turned her efforts to Alejandro, telling him loudly that her daughter could not join them. Lee was suddenly feeling less confident about this group, and he moved cautiously toward Jake, hoping he didn''t crash into the invisible girl. Her ability looked pretty good, considering how little he''d seen of her. Maybe her mana regen was really high, or the skill had a low cost. Either way, Lee was feeling just a little jealous... Jake was staring at nothing, his eyes shifting slightly, as if following something. Could he see the girl? With those weird eyes, who knew? "Jake, you don''t need a group to hunt." It came out as more of a statement than a question. "You wrecked that frog last night." "Yea... turns out doing that wrecks my arrows as well." He didn''t look Lee''s way, but twisted the quiver at his waist to show the handful of arrows inside. "Need a resupply, and figured better to go with the team for now." "Same," Lee said, "about going with the team, I mean. You saw my shitshow last night..." Jake laughed. "You did alright until wandering down there yourself." He eyed the van door, lingering on the butter knife sticking up from the top. "Enchanting?" "Pretty much." Lee would not divulge his real class but had a feeling that this guy might see through a direct lie. So he kept it vague. "I might be able to enchant some arrows..." he trailed off while eyeing the arrow already in the man''s hand. It had a bullet-sized head, though more pointy. "Not like that, though. Needs more surface to work on. Maybe if you find some broadhead..." "Sure," Jake said. "But how about enchanting Mar''s knife?" He pointed at nothing, and a girl''s voice squeaked before Mar appeared. "How did you see me?" Lee blinked in surprise. How had Jake seen her? "I can do that... where''s the blade?" Mar vanished. "Here." A massive knife appeared in the air and fell to the ground at Lee''s feet. "S... sorry." Lee ignored her stammering. Why did everyone else have better weapons than him? Still, if she was going to be on his team today, then he might as well make sure she had a good weapon. He could always take the runes back. He picked up the bowie knife and drew his symbols on the flat of the blade... and hesitated. "Do you have a sheath? I need to enchant it, too, or this might cut it." "I... yes." Her voice was barely audible, and she didn''t appear. Lee could hear the sounds of a belt being unfastened, and he looked around to see Alejandro and Saira both watching him. Or maybe just watching for Mar. Then something tapped his hand, and Lee jumped. "What the!" "Sorry!" Mar appeared for an instant, sheath in hand, and stretched out to him before vanishing again. Lee held his hand out and didn''t flinch when it landed in his grasp again. The sheath appeared as soon as she let go of it, and luckily, the mana seemed okay with the leather it was made of, so he got to work. His own solution to a sheath was just a gap in the enchanted door where he could wedge the butter knife while his makeshift sword he just planted in the ground, but what he really needed was something like this. The leather wouldn''t hold more than a single rune, but then that was all he needed. It also became much more rigid after he put the rune on, but not so much that he didn''t consider leather armor as an alternative to metal... Getting his own gear like this was one of the primary reasons for joining this trip, after all. Though Lee doubted he would find leather armor at the store... and he was even more doubtful about trying to build it himself. Testing the resulting knife and sheath combo proved his runes successful, though it would drain the runes of both sheath and blade if she moved it around a lot... He told her as much while handing it back. "Th... thanks," she whispered, and it vanished from Lee''s hand. Even invisible though, Lee could still feel his runes on the weapon as the girl moved. It was definitely a way to track something, and he resolved to think of ways to use that if he ran into invisible enemies. Everyone had gathered by then, and Lee once again found himself the center of attention, probably because no one could see Mar. "We going?" he said into the silence. "Yes," Alejandro said, with a glance at Saira. It seemed like she had accepted her daughter joining them, and Lee thought he felt a faint pulse of mana fly away from her... "Is everyone ready?" There were some nods and quiet agreement, along with nervous looks out the gate of the complex. Lee felt the same, especially after his misadventure the night before. Who knew what might be out there... not that they were necessarily safe in here. Alejandro stepped next to Lee as they headed for the gate. "It is still enchanted, right? She will be safe?" Lee followed his gaze to Maria standing in the doorway of his building. "It is, but it won¡¯t last forever if something attacks. Just like your shield." "Thank you, Lee." Alejandro didn''t have a sheath for his machete, so had no free hands and instead bumped his shoulder into Lee, almost knocking him over. "I know it was not easy to do what you did, and Maria told me how it hurt you. I will keep you safe today and help you get your rocks." Lee nodded and looked away from the man''s gaze. He hadn''t done all that to save Alejandro''s family. It was to save himself. But the guy had a way about him... as if his words were true and sincere. As if he meant every word he said... It was suspicious as hell, and for all Lee knew, it could be a skill manipulating his mind to make him more trusting. Larry never asked for his hammer to be enchanted, and Lee didn''t offer. If the guy was too proud to ask, that was his problem. It wasn''t a big surprise, but they only made it a few steps into the street outside before something happened. It started with a rustling in the bushes that put everyone on edge. The rabbit that darted from the bushes looked completely normal, and everyone visibly relaxed. Except for Jake. He was looking off to the side at another bush, and Lee followed his lead. So he was watching when the squirrel emerged. It was the size of a dog, not including the massive bushy tail, and it moved fast, pouncing on the rabbit before he could blink. There was a single squeak, and the rabbit vanished down the squirrel''s throat. Lee wasn''t sure if squirrels were usually carnivorous, but this one sure was. Alejandro took a step ahead of the others, shield up and looking through the window as he advanced. The squirrel chittered at him, bushy tail lashing the air... "Up..." Mar''s voice came from thin air. Lee looked up just in time to see the airplane-sized bird crash down onto the squirrel. Everyone staggered back at the explosion of wind, and Lee cursed his class choice again. If he could shoot lightning, then maybe he could do something. But how was he supposed to fight these giant fucking monsters? It wouldn''t matter if he was covered in enchanted armor. The bird could probably carry him away without issue... Jake had lined up his arrow faster than Lee saw him move, and now light gathered on the tip as they watched the bird watching them. Its massive head twitched back and forth, tilting in blurringly fast motions as it checked them out with each eye in turn. Then its head plunged... and it ripped half the squirrel''s body free from its talons before swallowing it. The second half followed a moment later, and then the bird eyed them again from what had to be thirty feet overhead. They were all backing away slowly when it hopped after them. More specifically, it hopped right at Lee. Oh, shit! Lee ducked low behind his shield, falling as he practically lay down beneath the enchanted van door. Why it targeted him, he didn''t know, and he really hoped his runes were as good as he thought they were... Alejandro appeared in front of him with that same blurring motion Lee had seen a few times now and caught the descending beak on his own shield. It clanged loudly, flashing with yellow light and then a pulse of blue as the rune lit up brightly over the door. The runes usually only looked like that when he first put them onto an item, and the sight was a bit eye-straining. As in, the symbols seemed to be only where he''d drawn them on the surface of the metal while also covering the entire thing. The bird might have felt the same way because it hopped back after the attack and then just stood there watching them with more head tilts. Alejandro took a step toward the towering bird, shield still glowing with blue and yellow lights, and the bird hopped back. Another step forward, this time accompanied by Lee and Jake. Lee because he preferred to stay close behind the man who blocked the bird from eating him, and Jake because... well, Lee didn''t know what that man was thinking, but he hadn''t fired the glowing arrow yet. Fortunately, the bird didn''t like what it saw because it spread massive wings and shot into the sky a second later. There were a few tense moments following its departure while they scanned the sky and surrounding bushes much more warily, but nothing else emerged. The bird vanished into the distance, and Lee could have sworn he felt another pulse of mana from Saira as she stared off at nothing he could see... No, she was staring toward Mar. Lee could feel the runes. Alejandro sagged to one knee, resting his shield on the ground. "Saira, please..." The woman approached nervously as the others crowded around him. "Are you injured?" "My arm," Alejandro said. "I think it''s broken..." Watching his behavior made Lee more certain that his own regeneration was not standard. While he hadn''t actually broken any bones last night, he felt that the injuries he had healed from were, in total, worse than a broken arm. Though, it was always possible he wouldn¡¯t be able to regenerate broken bones¡­ "Oh, my! This way." Saira pulled Alejandro gently toward the edge of the road. "I need the plants." Larry helped by grabbing Alejandro''s shield once the man gingerly pulled his arm free, and then Saira had him sit on the grass. She placed both hands on his arm, and Lee saw a green light appear on her hands. Only it seemed to be coming from all around rather than from her personally, flowing in from the grass and trees before running through her and out into Alejandro. "Why didn''t you attack?" Lee asked the archer beside him, his gaze torn between watching the magic and keeping watch on their surroundings, like Jake was currently doing. "It didn''t really want to fight us," Jake said in response. "I suspect it is so much stronger than us that we aren''t even worth eating... I think it was just curious," he said that last bit while glancing at Lee. "Why it tried to eat you anyway, I don''t know..." Lee shuddered. His body was still flush with unspent adrenaline, and it was all he could do to stop the shaking. "I don''t know, and I really don''t want to get eaten again..." Jake chuckled as he turned to resume scanning. "I would have loved to fight it, but figured it was better not to drag all of you in with me." "Thanks," Lee said dryly. The guy was verifiable, but who was he to judge? As far as he''d seen, Jake was probably the most powerful person here. "Plus, I need a lot more arrows for something like that." Sure, that was the only reason not to fight a giant hawk... 10. If You Wanna Get Out Alive ~~~Lee~~~ "You need to watch where you step," Jake said into thin air while Saira was healing Alejandro. "It doesn''t do any good to be invisible if anyone or anything can hear you or see your footprints." Lee followed the pointing finger and saw the twin depressions in the grass, which, now that he''d seen them, looked very much like footprints. Though he doubted it was something he would have noticed without it being pointed out. Then they moved, and he could indeed follow her movement by watching the grass. Once she stepped onto the pavement, though, he lost her. Except, of course, he could still feel the runes she carried. Jake must have had some kind of super hearing because he tossed a pebble out a few moments later and got a squeak from the invisible girl when it bounced off of thin air. "Don''t drag your feet." Then Saira stopped her magic, and Alejandro stood with a wide smile. Beneath him, a circle of dead plant life marked the aftereffect of her healing. It was an interesting and extremely valuable skill, though with some restrictions, since she apparently needed plants to drain life from. But given how green it was out here, Lee was feeling better about their chances. Alejandro got everyone into formation after that, with Saira in the middle. Mar volunteered to scout ahead, but her mother shot down that idea. "Absolutely not! They will see you. Just like this young man has shown us." "But..." Mar tried to protest. "I will watch for the monsters," Saira stated, and a pulse of magic flashed from her. A second later, she pointed at a tree. "Small life there." Then a different tree. "Life there too." A bush. "Bigger, but still small." Lee finally understood what he''d been sensing all this time. It wasn''t his imagination. "I forgot to mention that," Alejandro said sheepishly. "One reason I asked her to come with us today was her life sensing. That plus her healing you just saw. She was very helpful last night." "You saved many lives, Mr. Morales, and I am happy to return that aid as I can." She actually bowed slightly to the man before turning back to the rest of them. "My apologies for earlier, but it is not a constant effect. I must activate it to sense the life, and though the range is quite far, I did not sense that¡­ bird above us." "How much mana does it cost?" Lee asked. "Like, how often can you cast it?" It sounded like a great skill in his mind, assuming it wasn''t expensive. "I... do not know. This... magic is all very new." There was another pulse from her, and she glanced directly where Lee could feel the runes he''d given Mar. Of course, she could sense her daughter with the skill. Maybe that was why she''d let the girl come after all? Then Lee had another thought. "How many skills do you have?" He only had the one... "I have only the two you have seen." "I have two as well," Alejandro said. "I can make anything a shield." He held up the van door. "Though I must admit, it is much better with this door than Maria''s pot lid." He smiled at Lee. "Also, a skill called ''Get Behind Me'' that moves me between someone and whatever''s attacking them." So that was what he''d seen the man using... and it was a great skill for a tank. "I... only have one..." Mar said softly. She sounded embarrassed and didn''t elaborate, but from what Lee had seen... or rather not seen, her one skill sure looked like a good one. "Only one here as well." Lee didn''t elaborate either; they''d all seen it by now. Though Jake was eyeing him doubtfully. He wasn''t sure what that was about; he only had one skill. "I have enough," Jake said, looking away and smiling. Lee rolled his eyes. He''d guessed the archer was a secretive type, but it wasn''t like anyone was giving away secrets here. Or did he have way more than any of them and didn''t want to draw attention? If he did... Well, this was all too new for anyone to know what any of it meant. It was possible that class rarity had something to do with it, and Lee had a feeling that he shouldn''t mention his class was legendary... "I got more than enough," Larry obviously lied. He hadn''t done shit either when the bird showed up. Sandra just laughed and twirled her staff. "Let''s find something to hit. Ideally smaller than that fucking bird." That seemed to do the trick, and they started out again. Luckily, they saw no more giant hawks as they headed down the street. Otherwise, the whole expedition might have been called off then and there. As it was, Saira and Larry were the most reluctant to continue, but Saira at least wanted to help Alejandro. She said no more about what happened the night before, but Lee guessed their resident tank had impressed her. Mar appeared briefly walking amongst them until Jake complimented her on spotting the bird, then she vanished again while blushing bright red. How she could turn so red with her dark skin was a mystery. Saira frowned at all of them when Jake laughed at the girl. Lee had to recharge Alejandro''s shield after the bird''s attack. Not a lot, but enough that he suspected using the thin aluminum wasn''t good enough as a shield. Not that they had any better options yet... and it was already heavy as shit. Of course, he was also kicking himself for freezing up in the face of the hawk''s attack. He had an enchanted weapon created just this morning for exactly this situation, and the moment he needed to use it, he''d curled up behind his shield in fear. Considering Alejandro had a shield skill while also using an enchanted shield and still broke his arm from the impact of blocking... Well, it made Lee feel better about his fear and less confident about his own chances, but he still should have tried to take a swing. Also¡­ maybe he should make a spear¡­ a really long one¡­ It wasn''t lost on him that Alejandro had possibly saved his life. That beak was just so big that his regeneration might never have had a chance to do anything if it just ate half of his body in one bite. That would actually be the worst case¡­ better to get swallowed whole¡­ as terrible as that was. Jake had saved him the night before, assuming his trick with the mana wouldn''t have worked. Lee owed him for that one regardless, though he had a feeling the archer had only done it to claim the core... Now Alejandro had saved him, too. Lee was racking up debts he didn''t want. Though he had helped the man and his family the night before... and given them weapons and now a shield. Maybe he could consider them even. Everything he''d seen of Alejandro made him feel a lot better about opening his door to him the night before. His suspicions earlier felt less reasonable after seeing the man literally throw himself between Lee and a deadly threat. Unless it was a long con... though, probably not. In his experience, most people were selfish assholes that would take any advantage to get ahead, and that was exactly what they did by eating all his food... Lee had Stanley, the one person he could truly trust, and it was them against the world. That was enough. Only... now Stanley was gone, out of reach, and probably dealing with his own shitshow wherever he was. Lee was alone in a world gone mad. A world that had just become far more dangerous. Then somehow, on a hellish night, he''d found one of the rare humans that weren''t bastards. A good one... someone willing to put himself in danger to protect others. In other words, an idiot. One who would get himself killed for random strangers. Except... that idiot had saved his life. Damn it. Lee pulled his thoughts from Alejandro and back to the current situation. This was a terrible time to be ruminating on other people''s life choices. Besides, it was a beautiful day out here. Blue skies, sunshine, fresh breezes that smelled of nature, and even the occasional bird chirping. Small birds, not like the monster from before. It was great weather for a walk, and Lee wasn''t enjoying any of it as he trudged down the street behind Alejandro. His shield was heavy as fuck. The breezes kept rustling the trees and bushes in a very threatening manner that never yielded a target, and Larry kept complaining about... well, everything. Lee didn''t know this neighborhood, having only just moved in, so he didn''t know where they were going but had been assured there was a large store for them to loot... er, shop at. They passed more than a few cars sitting in the middle of the street, some with their doors still open and suspicious bloodstains not far away. The route to the store required passing through a few more residential areas, and there was another apartment complex down the street, but mostly it was single-family homes, all crammed right next to each other. Which, from the looks of them, showed the violent events of the night before had not been confined to only their own complex. Plenty of homes stood untouched, but far too many had been damaged, from holes in the roof and walls all the way to the scorched ashes of buildings burned down to the foundations. Every time there was blood but no bodies, and given the frogs'' eagerness to eat him, Lee thought he knew why. A few people emerged from their homes when they saw the group passing, all with the same questions and demands. "What''s happening? Where are the police? You have to help us!" Alejandro wasn''t as bad as Lee feared he would be, his bleeding heart not dragging them to help every whiny person refusing to embrace reality. Instead, he invited them to join the shopping trip, which no one seemed willing to do. Or he told them to go back up the street to the complex to find strength in numbers. Lee wasn''t sure if that was smart. Sure, that was usually the go-to winning strategy for humans throughout history. But if a bunch of weaklings gathered and something like that humongous frog or hawk showed up, wouldn''t that just become an all-you-can-eat buffet? For the frog, that is. At least they kept moving at a decent pace. Though it was a mixed bag. On the one hand, there was nothing to kill, so no way to get cores that might make his shield lighter, but they also weren''t attacked by any crazy huge monsters that might kill them all... The shopping center finally came into view when they reached the bottom of the hill, and it didn''t look good. Something had torn up the gas station at the corner of the shopping center. Something big... and with claws to match. Surprisingly, there was no fire at the destroyed gas station. Instead, it was a store in the back row that had actually burned down and was even now still smoldering and smoking heavily. Luckily, the fire hadn''t spread next door. Especially because that was their destination. Once again, the huge parking lot held numerous bloodstains and no bodies, but with plenty of that dried blood splashed in and around several destroyed cars. The signs of carnage and death had everyone tense as they approached the store, more so because a lot of the blood ran in trails directly toward the store. As if something had dragged away rather than eaten the dead... The coppery smell of blood mixed with the acrid smoke didn''t help anyone''s mood. But Lee was glad for the hungry monsters cleaning up their messes. He didn''t think he would have handled it nearly as well if there were dead and mutilated bodies everywhere... He could still see that woman in the stairwell... and someone would need to clean it up... but that was a problem for later, and hopefully someone else. The darkness inside the store was no issue. Lee gladly created lights for everyone out of a few signposts they helped him chop down outside. Sticking the rune on the inside of the pipes turned them into somewhat directional flashlights. He even had them all wait while he pulled his runes from the van doors. Then he replaced them both with double runes of strengthening and light. It worked as he wanted, with the light only shining from the outward-facing side, and it left them with shield flashlights. Something that would have made his adventures the night before much more pleasant. While he worked, Saira used her ability to see what might be inside. "Life," she said. "Many of them... though small and faint... I do not know what this means." You have entered a Lair: [Bloodless Den] That stopped all of them just past the threshold. The name alone stood out because of the bloody scenes they had just passed, but more so because... "What the hell is a Lair?" "I... have no idea," Alejandro said, his eyes searching the entrance while he aimed his shield light around the area. "Does this mean we will not find food?" Saira asked, and Lee frowned at that thought. Also weapons. That was what he''d been hoping for even more... though he was hungry, too. "Maybe it''s a monster nest," Mar said quietly while still invisible. "Like in a video... game..." The volume of her voice dropped with every word. "Don''t be an idiot!" Larry spat. "Does this look like a damn video game?" "I mean, yes?" Lee said while looking through his enchanted window at whatever his light revealed. "This is almost literally like a damn game." Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Jake chuckled as his weird eyes scanned the interior, the only one who had declined a light source of his own. "Like one of those soul games, on hardcore mode, where you are out-matched and only get one life." "I tried one of those," Lee said. "Hated it." "You''re right," Jake said. "This is way better than any game." "Idiots," Larry growled, "going to get us all killed." Lee frowned at the archer. Games were supposed to be fun, and while having actual magic at his fingertips was extremely cool, the stakes felt a bit too high for him to really enjoy it. Maybe once he was stronger... "So, who wants to lead the way?" He was assuming there would be monsters inside. It just fit too well with the whole end-of-the-world theme they had going on. He also hoped that the relatively smaller size of a building''s interior would make said monsters a bit more manageable than giant frogs and hawks. Alejandro stepped ahead at the same time as Jake. They both stopped and looked at each other. "You can see better in the dark, yes?" Alejandro asked. Jake nodded. "If you are confident, then go ahead. I will be ready if you need a shield." "Sure." Jake took the lead with an arrow on the string as he ventured deeper, while everyone followed behind. It sounded far too quiet in the store... especially when their footsteps echoed ominously with each step. Not Jake though. The guy¡¯s steps were silent as he advanced, his feet avoiding every piece of trash or detritus on the floor. Lee angled his light higher once they''d passed the registers, trying to figure out the layout of the store. The light, unfortunately, failed to reach far enough for him to read any signs, but from what he could see, felt like he knew which way the sporting goods were. He said as much to Jake. "We get better weapons and then food?" Jake paused, shrugged, and then headed toward the sporting section. He stopped a few steps later, holding one hand up in a fist. They all stopped behind him as he looked at something down the aisles. Lee moved closer, and Jake pointed at his light and then made a slashing motion over his throat. Rather than take the runes off, Lee set the shield face-down on the floor, mostly killing the light. Jake pointed down the aisle, and Lee strained to see in the dark. It took a few moments for his eyes to adjust, and even when they had, he didn''t see the humanoid figure until it moved in a slow, plodding step. He almost suspected it to be a human and then saw its arms that reached nearly to the floor. Definitely not human, though about the same height... It moved sluggishly, and what he thought was its back had a weird hump on it. Alejandro stayed back with the others in the light runes, and he stood ready when Jake pulled back the string of his bow, only with no light gathering on the arrow this time. Lee moved back to his shield, ready to haul it up as the arrow flew. He didn''t hear it hit. Then silence fell, and Jake remained motionless after the shot. Nothing else happened. Jake stood still, eyes scanning as he searched the darkness, but nothing emerged. Lee abandoned his shield again to rejoin the archer. Down the aisle, he could see a lump on the floor where the creature had been standing. "Did you get it?" he whispered. Jake didn''t answer, only drawing another arrow back on the string as he aimed higher up. Lee followed where he was aiming and saw something moving atop the shelves. It was smaller, just a shadowy bulbous shape creeping along. In fact, it was about the size of the lump on the first creature''s back... Jake didn''t fire the arrow, though. Instead, he waited as it crawled down the side of the shelves. All the way to the downed monster he had already killed. The crack of the bowstring releasing was loud in the silence, but Lee couldn''t see what he''d hit, and Jake didn''t make any further moves. They waited. When Lee saw a core appear in the darkness, he had to hold himself back from going after it. These were so far Jake''s kills. He just needed to get some of his own. Lee followed when Jake started forward, hands on his makeshift sword and doing his best to imitate the soundless motion the other man made. His best sucked. They stopped over the downed monster, and it was indeed a monster. The dim light washed out the colors, but Lee could see the obviously bestial face, with fangs on clear display. Its too long arms ended in wicked claws he thought might match some of the torn up cars outside... and it was hairy. Almost completely covered in hair except for a clear patch over its chest. It was also dead. With an arrow in its back, sticking right through the lump there. Jake pulled his arrow from the corpse, and the lump fell from the monster. Lee prodded it with his sword and saw the tiny legs as it rolled beneath his prod while leaking something wet onto the floor. Something that smelled like blood... One thing was clear. They were two separate creatures. Whether they were enemies or allies to each other was not as certain... "It''s a tick," Jake whispered. "Fucking gross!" He shook his arrow soundlessly to the side, and Lee heard the light splatters of something hitting the ground. Ticks? Lee shivered and poked it again, trying to get a better angle to see if Jake was right. While he did that, Jake took the core and held it close to the... tick. It was definitely a tick. A giant tick, swollen up to the size of a basketball with blood spilling from the hole straight through its abdomen. Lee eased back. He was thinking he might actually miss the frogs... Jake spun and impaled a jumping tick on the arrow in his hand. Then he swung the arrow and threw off the tick, sending it flying at another one leaping toward him from atop the shelves. Ticks weren''t supposed to be able to jump... Something stabbed Lee in the back. Resisted: [Mind Numbing] That explained why it hurt so much. Lee swiped his blade behind his head and across his back, catching something from the feel of it. Then he was swinging frantically at the next one flying for his face. They really needed to get out from between the shelves... Jake wasn''t using his bow except to bat the ticks aside while he stabbed each one with an arrow. He did it all calmly and smoothly, like the swarming monsters did not bother him in the slightest. Lee tried to copy him. This wasn''t a life-threatening danger like the frog had been. He just needed to keep swinging and the cores would pile up. It was great! But why did it have to be ticks! They were creepy as fuck, and he was pretty sure there was still a piece of one stuck in his back... until Jake reached over and tugged it off for him. "Thanks," Lee gasped, trying to his voice to a whisper. He didn''t know if whispering mattered. His own breathing and clumsy steps sounded loud in here, not to mention the few times he cut a shelf by accident. The bugs were probably drawn to the blood rather than sound. Something Jake must have agreed with because he stopped whispering. "Back outside!" he yelled. It wasn''t that bad. Sure, Lee got a few more bites, none as bad as the first, along with more of the resisted messages, but they were weak and easy to kill. He still backed up with Jake as the man headed for the others. He''d almost gotten himself killed last night by being an idiot. No need to repeat himself today. "Check that out," Jake said, his calm voice sounding very at odds with the situation as he gazed upward. Lee followed his gaze but couldn''t see what he was staring at. At least, not at first. Then the ceiling moved. Lee froze. The ticks crawling over the top of the shelves were also crawling over their heads. Only it was hundreds or thousands of them... all crawling and squirming like a living carpet across the high ceiling. On the one hand... Shit! But on the other... that was a lot of cores! A single one of the dark shapes fell toward him, and Lee took a swing. He felt a tug from his weapon, and then something sprinkled over his face. The smell of blood sharply intensified. Gross... "Keep moving," Jake said and pulled him back the way they''d come. Lee swung at the next... and missed thanks to the other man yanking on him. He couldn''t believe Jake would be afraid of the monsters after what he''d seen. Luckily, Jake''s bow flicked out and knocked away the next falling bug. More of the squirming shapes descended, and Jake continued to drag him backward through the store. Lee swung wildly as he went, his blade connecting repeatedly as he stumbled back. Then someone had the bright idea of seeing where the bugs were coming from, and a light swung up to illuminate the ceiling. Unfortunately, the ticks didn''t like that, and they started dropping like rain. "Run!" Jake shouted. Lee kept backing up, but raised his blade and took another swing at the first falling creature to reach him. He only swung once, a complete miss, and then felt a tug on his collar that dragged him away again. Only this time, he went nearly airborne under the pull, his collar choking the shit out of him as he flew back. The store blurred past, and the only reference he had for his speed was how fast his shield fell away behind. Damn it! I just got that! Things didn''t slow down until he was back in daylight and squinting against the glare. While gratified to have kept his sword, Lee had lost his shield so turned his squint on Jake. "Why''d you run? You should be able to..." The gushing wound on the man''s leg halted his tirade. It looked terrible, and it wasn''t healing¡­ Lee had recovered from worse than that the night before. He was also fairly certain Jake must be F-grade already, with the way he''d run through the store while practically carrying him. Yet apparently that didn''t mean he could regenerate. "Saira," Jake said, while hobbling over to one of the many trees in the parking lot. She had noticed the blood already and joined him quickly, her green light springing up immediately. "What did this?" As she spoke, Lee felt her mana pulse again, and her gaze jumped to an empty patch of air nearby. Lee could feel his runes in that spot, so knew what she was looking for and could see her visibly relax when she detected Mar. Lee also noticed a familiar lump on her back when she turned around. He shivered at her seemingly unbothered attitude despite having a giant tick chilling on her back... The debuff, he realized. She didn''t even know it was there... Jake noticed though, and he pulled it off while the woman healed him. Saira took the sight of it better than Lee expected. Alejandro was facing the doorway, watching for more ticks, and he also didn''t notice a giant tick sitting on his back... "Sandra," Jake said, "come over here." She had two of them... one on her upper back and one on her thigh. Lee assumed Jake had noticed her and went to help Alejandro. "Fuck me!" Sandra''s yelp brought Alejandro''s attention back around and his eyes widened at whatever he saw happening behind Lee. "You too," Lee said, hefting his sword, and Alejandro started frantically looking over himself. "Just hold still," Lee said, and carefully cut it off. He didn''t know how much Saira could heal... or how much mana it cost, and she had enough work already. No need to add more with his sword. He got most of the tick cut off, then used his hand to drag the rest away. Blood ran in a stream from the wound when he did, but at least there was no worry about the head getting left inside with these. They were just too big for that. "Mar, show yourself," Jake said. "Oh, god! Are they on me!?" The girl flickered in and out of sight as she spun in place, trying to find one. It was hard to see with her frantic movement and intermittent invisibility, but Lee thought there was at least one. "Hold still and stop flickering!" Lee said, and then just resorted to grabbing her. Which was harder to do than he''d anticipated, but he managed to snag an arm. She still struggled with panicked squeaking, and he didn''t want to risk the blade near her flailing form. So instead, Lee stuck his sword into the cement, feeling the runes drain slightly from doing so, and grabbed the tick with his hand. It squirmed, and the legs scratched at his skin as he got a grip near the head. Lee grit his teeth and pulled. It was nasty, creepy, and disgusting, but no worse than being dissolved in a giant frog''s stomach. Hell, it was way better than that! Nothing to it. Just a big bug waiting to get squashed. He ripped it off, and Mar screamed louder at the similar stream of blood running from her side where it had latched on. The oddest part was how even some of the leaking blood disappeared from her skill. It didn''t stay invisible once it hit the ground, but it was strange to watch the blood seemingly appear out of nowhere. Lee dragged the bleeding and still panicked girl to her mother, who stopped healing Alejandro and focused on her. Alejandro didn''t mind his own still bleeding wound, and wrapped arms around Mar. "It''s okay. You''re okay! Just relax. We got you." Meanwhile, Lee glared at the giant flailing tick in his hand, fighting the revulsion it gave him to do so. It was heavy. Bugs should never be this heavy... It tried to bite at his hand with long horrifying jaws, and Lee resisted the urge to drop it. He was stronger than this, and he couldn''t let anything as petty as squeamishness stop him, not in this new world. Besides, it didn''t matter if it bit him, he would heal. The previous bite on his back already felt fine. A fear of pain was fine and all, but he couldn''t let it paralyze him. His regeneration was an incredible tool, one that he wouldn''t let go to waste. Dropping the tick on the ground, Lee stomped on it as it tried to run away. That was a mistake. It popped in a wash of blood that soaked clear through his shoe and up to his knee. Being squeamish was one thing, but he should have just stabbed it. Which he had to do anyway when it kept squirming away in a trail of blood... Jake was watching him when Lee glanced over, but he wasn''t laughing at the mess. Instead, he looked serious as his gaze jumped between the members of the team. "So, that didn''t go very well." "You''re F-grade," Lee said, leaning down to grab the core from the dead tick and then going to get the previous one Alejandro hadn''t picked up. "Yes, and you''re not..." Jake said, eyes returning to study him. Lee looked from the cores to where he could feel Mar next to Alejandro, and then at Jake. "Your kills," Jake said. Lee nodded slowly. He had technically killed them... but they had brought them out. Lee didn''t want this trip to end just yet, and he wasn''t sure how the others were taking the whole experience. Maybe getting some cores would encourage them to carry on. Lee also needed a lot more than this if he was going to get to F-grade. "Please come this way, Larry," Saira''s healing magic had killed the tree, and she led the last wounded man to another. Alejandro had the honor of removing Larry''s tick on the way. Jake kept watch, but talked to Lee as they strolled after the healer. "You should have hit F-grade last night, but you are obviously not there... I doubt you are hoarding the cores... no, I saw you absorbing them." "So?" Lee said, not liking where this was going. "I need more." "You must have an interesting class." Jake gestured at his leg where the wound had healed but the blood and torn pants remained. "That cut was from your... sword." "Um... Sorry? You were kinda dragging me all over the place... not that I don''t appreciate the help!" Jake pulled a knife from his belt. A big one like Mar''s. Why does everyone have a fucking knife and I don''t!? He dragged the blade across his arm and it left a thin line of blood welling up behind it. "This is a normal knife. It can barely cut me." Jake pointed at Lee''s sword. "Yours is something else. Though, to be fair, we don''t really have any comparisons for enchanted weapons... There is also how much mana you use for each so-called enchant?" "How do you know how much mana I use?" Jake smiled, and Lee felt a chill. The guy could sense his mana... did that mean he might know about the Liquid Mana Well? Was he planning to... but no, Jake had just dragged him out of danger. That would have been a prime opportunity if he wanted Lee dead. Though him standing there smiling with a big knife in his hand... Lee wasn''t sure how to respond. "I... want me to enchant that?" Jake chuckled. "Relax. I was just curious. If you don''t want to say, then don''t. It''s your class." "I... don''t want to say." "Like I said, it''s your class. Just be careful with waving those... enchants around." He proffered the knife, hilt first. "But I won''t say no to one of my own. "Fine." Lee took it, drawing the runes quickly and then taking the sheath that followed and doing the same. "So¡­ ready to go back in?" 11. Run For Your Life ~~~Stanley~~~ Carrying himself through the air was already feeling like second nature, even after only one night of doing so. Flying out the window in broad daylight was something else entirely. Stanley felt the breath catch in his throat when the ground fell away below. He''d flown the night before, flown a lot, and much higher than this, but it was a whole different experience in the light. Stanley moved himself back to the rooftop rather than continue. He hovered there, well back from the edge, and tried to catch his breath from the sudden rush. He watched the sky for more of the damn birds while also looking at the new notification which appeared as soon as he left. Resisted: [Miasma] That was a positive message, the resisting part, not the rest. It was also uncooperative and failed to provide him with any additional information about what miasma was exactly. Didn''t it mean something like bad air? Whatever it was, and wherever it was coming from, he''d resisted it, most likely because of the trait that was costing him cores. Stanley wasn''t sure if he wanted the miasma to be super serious, just so he could feel better about his damn trait... Meanwhile, the air smelled much better outside despite the so-called miasma, and he hadn''t realized just how bad it had gotten inside the building with all the dead rats and pigeons. It also seemed like maybe the birds had learned their lesson after getting slaughtered the night before, and the few he spotted were staying well clear of the building. Or maybe it was the miasma? Whatever it was, they didn''t stay far enough. Stanley reached out and touched them, which he was pleased to realize he could do even at long range. It was a strain, but they died like the rest, and he dragged the corpses closer until the cores appeared. +0.1 Vitality +0.1 Wisdom(Wisdom +0.1 Fortification) Debuff Upgraded: [Hungry] Caffeine wanted to run around the rooftop, but Stanley could see and smell the bird shit everywhere up here and didn''t let the pug go. Instead, he carried them to the edge and hovered there while trying to get used to the feeling of seeing the ground so far away. He also used the great view to scan the area, looking for something specific... and finding it. At least, it looked right from here... They left the rooftop behind a minute later, and Stanely reveled in the exhilaration of flying this time, despite the vertigo. This was a side of his power he hadn''t ever explored, and it felt awesome! This was freedom! Even if it was a little terrifying... and cold. If not for that, he could have flown even faster, and just thinking about it made Stanley consider how he might go about blocking the wind from hitting him, or at least his face. Maybe some goggles... But that was for later. Right now, he had a more urgent goal of finding food. That was where his height played a key role, and Stanley flew toward the large building in the distance that looked considerably like a supermarket. A few birds wandered close as he flew, coming to inspect the oddly shaped thing up here with them, and paid with their lives for the curiosity. Below, he passed over entire neighborhoods of what looked like apartments, or maybe condos. There was movement down there, but he stayed high enough that he couldn''t tell if it was people or more monster-sized animals. The store was what he''d expected, and Stanley dropped lower as he approached, looking for a suitable weapon before heading inside. His fighting the night before had highlighted the advantages of attacking indirectly when it came to total power expended. Of course, many of his makeshift weapons had not survived the abuse he inflicted upon them, so he found an alternate solution in the signposts littering the parking lot. Tearing them out of the ground was easy enough, and shattering the leftover concrete off the ends only took a few hits, leaving him with two steel pipes. Not wanting a repeat of his mistakes, Stanley practiced throwing them with both his arms and his mind, though his arms were pathetic in comparison... His mind, on the other hand, did a great job wrecking the cars still in the lot. He could have claimed more pipes, but it was already hard enough to aim with only one, though using his arm in the throwing process seemed to help with aiming... somehow. It was probably psychosomatic or something. With two, he could carry one in each hand, and even if he only attacked with one at a time, it was better to have a backup. The signs he ripped from the top of each post were thin metal sheets that might make good weapons themselves, but they felt too fragile, and he wanted something that would survive a lot of collisions before having to be replaced. So the pipes were it. Turned out that he wasn''t the only one with designs on raiding the supermarket, though the expected looter mob only comprised a small group of people spilling out of the doors in a rush... as if they were running from something. Stanley slowed to a stop in the air, and his hands tightened around the metal poles while Caffeine huffed. One noticed him and said something to the others, who all slid to a halt, staring up at him in shock. The woman in the group glanced fearfully back the way they had come. Another man stepped ahead of the group¡­ "You have to help us!" He stumbled then, falling to his knees and catching himself with blood-stained hands. "The monsters¡­" Stanley wrapped one arm around Caffeine a moment before he tried to jump twenty feet to the ground. The pug had been far too bold lately... "You have powers! You can save them!" the man shouted. Stanley frowned. They looked fucked up... like they''d been in a fight, and he could hear screaming inside the building. This was precisely what he didn''t want to be involved with. "Please, you have to help them!" another of the group cried. The screaming from inside stopped, and all of them glanced back. Stanley needed food, but it didn''t have to be from this particular store, did it? He sighed. Collecting a few more cores wouldn''t hurt, and he could play the hero if it wasn''t too bad in there. Though looking at the dark interior through the front doors gave Stanley a better idea. Why should he wander inside a potentially monster-infested and dark building when he could just destroy it instead? On that thought, he planted one pipe in the asphalt, deep enough that no one would steal it, and used his free hand to keep Caffeine from running. Stabbing the ground also let him test his weapon and strength while also sending a warning to the people nearby. That wasn''t the whole truth. He did it because he wanted to see if he could, and it was cool. Though he should have let go beforehand. Now his hand was stinging from the vibration... Stanley flew back into the sky, still loving the feeling and ignoring the calls from the humans as he moved above the store''s roof. Let''s see what''s hiding inside. He held his pipe ready to throw and ripped a hole through the roof... or at least that was his intention. The roof completely failed to break under his power... So Stanley threw his pipe, aiming for a skylight... and it ricocheted off what should have been plastic. You have attacked a Lair Structure. All Lair Residents notified of the attack. That was unexpected, and his pipe had even deformed slightly from the impact... What the fuck is a lair? Stanley considered looking for a different place to find food, but for all he knew, they would all be like this. Also, he was curious about what might be inside and whether it might help him gain power faster than the god-awful slow-ass grind he was stuck with now. He didn''t go back to the front right away; instead, trying the side and rear doors first. Unfortunately, they all proved as resilient as the skylight, and all refused to open. Even when he reached his power inside to shove the door bars, which should''ve unlocked them. The other people were still there when he made it back around to the front doors, and they watched warily as he approached. Their wariness didn''t extend to keeping quiet, though. "They''re dying in there! Why are you wasting time?" He ignored them, retrieving his extra pipe before flying closer and dropping to ground level at the broken glass doors. In fact, all the glass at the front was broken... Stanley also watched the other people warily as he passed, ready to defend himself in case this was some elaborate trick, but they only watched from a distance. In fact, they looked just as wary as he felt. Caffeine woofed softly at them and leaned as far as he could, trying to get a sniff. You have entered a Lair. [Verdant Echo] The message was less than helpful about what a lair was. But apparently they had names? Inside, it was dark. Not entirely, as the skylights still let some light through, but it still wasn''t enough to make him comfortable, and Stanley looked up as soon as he cleared the doors. Always look up when there are monsters around. He''d learned that last night... It looked clear enough in the dim light, and he flew close to the ceiling. He would have preferred to attack from high above the entire building, but since the roof was indestructible, this would have to do. Below, the others followed him inside, which was surprising since Stanley thought they''d have run away. Did they care that much about whoever was in here? They''d run out before... or did they have that much faith in his power? He didn''t see any sign of whoever had been screaming as he flew deeper inside, still hugging the ceiling. All that stood out was a faint red glow at the far end of the store... He couldn''t tell what or who was making it. The people who''d begged for help and followed him inside were moving as a group below and behind him, also toward the glow. A light sprang up, and Stanley glanced down to see one of them was holding a ball of fire in his hand, and he hurled it down the aisle at the red light. So they obviously had magic... Stanley waited to act. It looked like they knew what was back there... they could lure it out. He heard an explosion echo through the building, but never got to see the monsters, because his world descended into screaming pain immediately afterward. Debuff: [Deafened] Debuff: [Concussed] A shockwave of screeching sound clapped against his skull, and then immediately vanished when his ears exploded. Going deaf didn''t help, the sonic waves still pummeled his head like a drum, and he plummeted out of the air. Something he only realized once he hit the ground with a bone-breaking impact and a few more notifications that somehow still came through the brain rattling agony. Debuff: [Crippled] Debuff Removed: [Deafened] His ears popped, sound returning, and immediately burst again. Debuff: [Deafened] Stanley tried to get up, his hands pushing against the floor while it tilted wildly under him, his legs violently protesting any motion with bone-grinding agony. Then a searing pain drove between his shoulder blades and sent him back to the floor. Debuff: [Paralyzed] Debuff: [Bleeding] His legs stopped hurting... and he barely felt the next impact on his back. Just a dull thud... Debuff Upgraded: [Critical Bleeding] Then the burning pain in his back dug inward, turning into a deep ache inside his chest, followed by a growing chill and numbness that spread a crushing weight through his body. The pain faded away beneath the leaden ice filling him... everything was fading... even the cessation of those waves against his head was far away... Stanley could feel the cold taking him. The heat of his body flowing away, leaving him. He could feel it rushing out, draining away, and he knew he was dying... Just like that. It was over. All that work training on the truck... all his insistence on getting stronger... it was all for nothing... he had failed... and now his brother would be alone. Lee... Stanley''s thoughts were thick and sluggish as the world spun slowly away and he sank into the dark. No... Debuff Downgraded: [Heavy Bleeding] Buff: [Sonic Shield] The thud of his heartbeat starting up again was deafening in the swallowing darkness. A drumbeat that felt as if it would shake the world. Along with it came a spark of painful heat in his chest. Stanley still couldn''t move, couldn''t breathe... but the heat was growing. Debuff Downgraded: [Bleeding] Debuff Removed: [Deafened] This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] Sound faded back into his awareness and brought with it voices. "...were going to have trouble with this one, but he went down like a bitch, just like all the rest!" The voice laughed. "Yea, you took down one guy," a different voice said. "How amazing." There was still a faint background screaming¡­ then it faded slightly. "Where did the dog run off to?" the first voice again. Stanley''s mind was thick and sluggish, the words he heard all nonsense mutterings underwater, but one word broke through. Dog. Caffeine... where''s Caffeine... The thought dragged him further toward the light. "It''s just a pug. Who cares?" The screaming in the background faded more, and Stanley''s lungs started itching. "It''s killing the flowers," the first voice said, "Go kill it." Stanley finally recognized it as the man who had spoken to him outside. Outside... It was all coming back to him. He''d flown into the store... the other people... they''d attacked something... "No way is the pug killing them! It''s probably already dead. The flowers are just stopping on their own." "Clara, put your shield on them. Sturgeon, go and..." "I ain''t going nowhere. This cores mine, and you know it." Core... what were they were talking about... what core? "Fine," the man spoke again. "Clara, shield them and keep your dome here. All of you go get that dog." Debuff Removed: [Concussed] Right behind the notification, clarity came rushing into Stanley''s mind and he started looking for a way out of this mess. He needed to fly away... but he couldn''t feel his legs... There was some grumbling among the voices, a few flashing lights against his eyelids, and then footsteps vanishing behind the faint screaming. They were splitting up. That was good. But they split to hunt the pug... to hunt Caffeine! Which didn''t make any sense... Caffeine had run away, and Stanley couldn''t blame him. That sonic attack had been awful. At least Caffeine hadn''t gotten hurt on the landing... "Where''s the core?" a man said, and it wasn''t the leader. So probably Sturgeon. "It takes longer to form with stronger enemies; you know that." That was the leader. "This guy had to be F-grade, at least." Something shook Stanley''s body, like he''d been kicked, but he didn''t feel it. "As if anyone could get past F-grade..." They were talking about him... about his core... they''d tried to kill him... and almost succeeded. Debuff Removed: [Paralyzed] Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] It was all Stanley could do not to cry out or flinch as the full sensation of his body came back all at once. It helped that the pain was bad enough to lock up his muscles completely. He couldn''t move if he wanted to. His legs, especially his knees, ached with a throbbing pulse, probably from when he hit the ground. His back was worse, though, and Stanley still felt like something was sitting on his chest. Then the growing itch to cough started a timer on how much longer he could pretend to be dead. The one bright side was his hand still clutching the pipe. He must have held on through everything, and it gave him a weapon ready to go. Now the next step was to find his targets. Stanley didn''t dare open his eyes, but drew in the shallowest of breaths his body was demanding. Just a little, only enough to ease the pain, and it was almost too much. The choking urge to cough welled up in his throat... Instead of coughing, Stanley reached out with his power as he did with the truck for so long, trying to feel what was around him. He couldn''t push very hard, or they might notice, and he wasn''t sure how dangerous this group was. From what little he''d heard so far, he didn''t think they were the ones who knocked him out of the air. They had a shield to block the sound... but one of them had definitely stabbed him in the back... Stanley could still feel the hole. Holes... fucker had stabbed him twice! "What skill are you hoping for, Sturgeon?" the leader said, his voice almost directly above. Stanley tensed. Holding his already shallow breath as he finally felt out the forms looming around him¡ªtwo almost directly over him and one off to the side. "I want that flying skill," Sturgeon said. It sounded like the woman was the further one, and she was also the one creating the shield. He didn''t want to be subjected to that sonic attack again, so Stanley lined up his attack on the leader, the one he suspected of stabbing him, power focusing as he prepared to throw the pipe. He needed to end this quickly and find Caffeine... "I bet you would like that," the leader said, moving abruptly next to the other man. "But like you said..." Stanley''s touch on them didn''t give enough of a picture for him to see what happened, but it looked like he''d attacked the other man. "You ain''t going nowhere." Were they killing each other? The wet gurgle from Sturgeon was interrupted by the woman''s gasp. Then someone fell almost on top of Stanley and didn''t move again. What the hell? Stanley cracked his eyes open and found two eyes staring back at him from the floor mere inches away. "Are... are you going to kill me too!" the woman''s voice sounded scared, almost panicked, but the man''s glazed eyes staring lifelessly back at him held Stanley''s vision in place. The man sure looked... dead, and while Stanley had never seen a dead body in person before, he still knew he was looking at one now. There was just something... "Relax, Clara. You''re still useful. Sturgeon''s been getting a bit too cocky for his own good. He forgot who''s in charge around here." "The others..." "The others know who''s the fucking boss!" the man yelled and Stanley almost flinched. Then his voice was calm again, menacing. "I might even let you have Sturgeon''s core... little shit thinking he can take..." The man''s voice had drawn Stanley''s gaze, and he looked up just in time to meet the widening eyes of the very alive killer. Stanley saw his pupils dilating, recognition dawning, and muscles tensing... He threw the pipe. He threw it harder and faster than before, putting everything he had into pinning the man to the ceiling... Clyde reacted at the same time. It all happened in a blur, and then the man had a pipe impaling his shoulder when he stopped sliding back. Meanwhile, Stanley was flying away, at least right until he passed some kind of invisible barrier, and the deafening screech in his head drove him almost reflexively back. Buff Removed: [Sonic Shield] Buff: [Sonic Shield] "How the hell are you still alive?" Clyde demanded, while ripping the pipe out of his flesh. It had penetrated a disappointingly shallow distance. "I got your heart. I know I did!" The man''s words brought back the chill from earlier. That was what he had suspected but hadn''t wanted to believe, couldn''t believe. People died if they got stabbed in the heart... Stanley didn''t answer or wait to see what would happen. He grabbed the man around the waist and lifted him up, intending to suspend the man above the ground and render him helpless. It worked, sort of, but the bastard was heavy as shit! Lifting his entire truck off the ground had been easier than this... The woman took a step away while he was struggling with the man, and Stanley pointed a finger at her. She froze. As far as he knew, she was the source of the shield, and it would probably move with her. He couldn''t let her run away. "Move..." Stanley meant to threaten her, but the cough he''d been fighting down finally chose this moment to escape. He noticed the man moving even as he choked and hacked, but couldn''t do more than try to block whatever was coming. Something struck his mental shield hard and forced Stanley backward in the air. It was a knife. An ugly, cruel-looking bloody knife. Stanley could see the pool of blood where he''d been lying, and it was so big... His back was still wet, and he could see the trail of blood that was still dripping from his feet. He felt light-headed... but still blocked the thrown knife. Unfortunately, he dropped Clyde in the process. The man charged instantly... and Stanley threw the knife back. The bastard snatched it out of the air like it was nothing, and then he was in melee range... Stanley couldn''t fly away without leaving the shield... but the door was right there. He could probably make it outside and just fly into the sky. Their chatter from before seemed to show that none of them had a flying skill... though it sounded like they might already be F-grade. Still, if they couldn''t fly then they couldn''t do shit to catch him. The only other issue was Caffeine. Hadn''t they mentioned something about him running deeper inside? Obviously, that was bullshit. Caffeine had to be outside. So Stanley went that way. He pushed the man to the side as he charged, sending the knife further from his body while pushing himself in the opposite direction. Stanley even added a shove to the man''s back as he passed, hoping to send him out of the shield where he should be easy pickings. It didn''t work out nearly as well as he hoped. The man did indeed leave the protection, but only staggered slightly on his way back in. Seemed his F-grade body held up better against the attack than Stanley''s. In a bout of inspiration, Stanley grabbed the woman and dragged her with him away from Clyde. That proved more successful, though she was heavy as fuck too! What was wrong with these people? Aside from being murdering psychos, obviously. Unfortunately, Clyde sprinted after him despite the pain he had to be feeling, and he was fast. Stanley was over the row of checkouts and he threw everything around him directly at the man in a storm of debris. The man blasted straight through the mess with barely a stumble, even punching aside an entire checkout table without missing a beat. So Stanley picked him up and threw him deeper into the store. It took a lot of effort, and his flight suffered from the distraction. He saw the woman still in his mental grip reaching his way and glanced over just in time to take a blinding flash to the eyeballs. Stanley dropped her, more out of shock than intention, and with an added mental slap toward the ground as he did so. She screamed, but he guessed it was likely only reflexive. Given she was as heavy as Clyde, which probably meant they were both F-grade, he doubted the fall would hurt. Buff Removed: [Sonic Shield] She didn''t go that far, so she must have dropped the skill on purpose. Fortunately, the screech that assaulted his ears wasn''t nearly as debilitating, but it still sucked. It also disrupted his concentration even further after the flash, and Stanley didn''t realize Clyde was back until a burning fire ran down his leg. Debuff Upgraded: [Heavy Bleeding] He pushed everything away from himself, eyes still useless, and found his target by the simple fact that it was the heaviest thing around. Stanley latched onto him, immobilizing the man while he drew out the only weapon he''d kept from the skyscraper. A fancy letter opener. It wasn''t much, not even very sharp, but he threw it point first. Ideally, he would send it through the man''s eye, straight to the brain. Unfortunately, Stanley was still blinking spots from his vision and he missed... barely. The little silver knife stabbed into the man''s nose... Sadly, it didn''t go to the brain via that route and instead lodged on the bone. Stanley was unprepared for how fast the man ripped it out and then threw it right back. He didn''t even see the whole maneuver. The man''s arm whipped forward, and something punched Stanley in the chest, leaving a cold line straight out his back. There was a moment of distant panic, where Stanley expected that horrible chill to reclaim him... to drag him back into the dark... Instead, he only choked on his own blood and coughed violently. Then the monster was before him, face dripping blood where he''d nearly cut his nose in half, and his own knife plunging toward Stanley''s face. Stanley grabbed him, his fear and anger growing to rival the pain as he forced the man into immobility. His head pounded from the effort, and Stanley slammed the man into the ground as hard as he could. Then he did it again, this time flipping him upside down to go headfirst. Then again. Then he threw him at the woman when she showed herself with hands pointing his way. He should have kept flying. The man collided with the woman and, without hesitation, threw her back at him... Stanley wasn''t ready, and she slammed into him before he could stop her. Somehow, Stanley felt the man coming as he untangled himself from the woman. He pushed against the incoming blow, pulling himself in the opposite direction... and the knife plunged into his ribcage. Debuff Upgraded: [Critical Bleeding] "Just die already, you fucking cockroach!" the man screamed as Stanley threw him away with one last herculean effort... but the voice was distant, far away, and muddled in the growing darkness that was dragging him back down. No... not again... Not like this... Stanley tried to flee. Tried to fly fast... but he could see the daylight behind the man leaping after him. He''d gotten turned around... and everything was going black again. He saw the man leaping toward him, one hand outstretched to catch him, the other high with a dripping blade poised to strike. Stanley tried to push him away again, tried to pull himself away, but everything felt too heavy... A hand caught his shirt, and the blade plunged. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine spit out another bite of flower. They didn''t taste good, but they were screaming at Dearest Human and hurting him, so Caffeine had to bite them to make them stop. It was gross, but Dearest Human needed lots of help. Another flower started screaming, and Caffeine ran after it. He was in the wonderful food place and there was food to eat everywhere! But he had to bite the flowers instead. Caffeine didn''t eat the flowers. He was saving his stomach for after when Dearest Human would for sure share all the wonderful smelling food! Then they would eat and eat and nap and nap. It would be the best! "Fucking hit it already!" One of the Not Dearest Humans chasing him said something, but Caffeine didn''t stop. They weren''t nice. They didn''t offer him any food, only chased. Chasing was fun! But they chased with meanness, not with fun or play. He could smell them now. They were bad Dearest Humans! This was why it was always better to smell new Not Dearest Humans. Smells were good for finding Friends and Not Friends. But Dearest Human didn''t let him smell the Not Dearest Humans. Now they were Not Friends. Very Not Friends! The next screaming flower tasted just as bad as the first. Just as bad as they all did. Flowers were not food! While he was chewing it to make it stop screaming, one of the Not Dearest Humans caught up in the chasing and tried to hit Caffeine. That was not nice. That was mean! Caffeine didn''t want to bite them. Dearest Human didn''t like it when he tried to bite bad Not Dearest Humans, but Dearest Human wasn''t watching... and they were trying to stop Caffeine from biting the Bad Flowers that were hurting Dearest Human. Which meant that they wanted Dearest Human to be hurt! That made them Very Bad Humans! Bad Humans deserved to get a bite, so Caffeine bit the next one that tried to stop him. The Bad Human screamed, and another one threw fire at Caffeine! "That''s for trying to hurt Dearest Human!" Caffeine barked at them as he ran to the next flower. There were a lot of bad flowers in this food place. "The little shit almost took my hand off!" the Bad Human didn''t like getting a bite. He should be good then! "Then stop just chasing it and kill it!" another of the Bad Humans said. "I''m fucking trying! How is a goddamned pug so fast!" Caffeine bit another flower, and it stopped screaming. Still tasted bad, though. "He''s wiping out the trap! Clyde is going to kill us..." They were still talking, but Caffeine didn''t listen as he chased the very fastest after the last screaming flower. Just one more and he wouldn''t have to eat anymore gross flowers! Then they would have Pizza! or Sausage! or Bacon! or... or... maybe... Chicken! Yes, Chicken! That would be the best! Caffeine could smell some in this food place... Dearest Human would make it hot and delicious! Then Caffeine smelled something very bad... it was Dearest Human''s blood! Too much of it! Dearest Human was hurt! The Bad Humans were hurting him! Caffeine bit the Bad Human that tried to block the last flower. That Bad Human was making a not warm light that hurt when it shined, so Caffeine bit him very hard, and he stopped being alive... It was bad to do that. Caffeine knew it was bad, but right now he didn''t care if Dearest Human was mad at him. He would rather Dearest Human scream and yell than for him to be hurt... and he could smell Dearest Human hurting very bad! The flower stopped screaming when he bit it, and Caffeine bit the next Bad Human even harder. "He Is My Dearest Human!" Caffeine growled his warning at them, but they wouldn''t listen... They hit Caffeine and made bad lights that hurt and threw mean things at him. So he bit them all very hard and very fast, and made them stop being alive. It wasn''t nice... but they weren''t nice either. "I didn''t want to bite you..." Caffeine barked very sad and very tired. He was running so fast for so long... he needed a nap! And a snack! And then a nap! But there were still more Very Bad Humans, and one was chasing Dearest Human! He was Hurting Dearest Human... Caffeine ran faster. He didn''t care that the floor was slippery or that he was tired. He had to be fast enough to save Dearest Human! He ran even faster! 12. Blame it on the Humans ~~~Stanley~~~ The blade plunged... and a dark blur slammed into the man''s arm, driving it back, and sending him tumbling away, head over heels, through the air. Stanley watched it happen from far away, his mind fading into the darkness. But he was not so far gone that he didn''t recognize the dark shape. Even though he couldn''t believe what he was seeing. Caff... Debuff Downgraded: [Heavy Bleeding] Debuff Upgraded: [Ravenous] The pounding drumbeat of his heart thumping back to life in his chest drove the darkness back once again. Stanley noticed it... but it was a distant thing, as distant as the sight of a tiny pug doing its best to maul a full grown man. Now a new feeling was rising inside him, rising alongside the booming drums, rising like a tsunami to sweep everything else away. HUNGER Stanley had been hungry before, especially since he''d started training his power. But even the worst of his hunger before was only a pale shadow to the hollowness that now clawed at his insides. It was something more than hunger. Something... Ravenous! He charged through the air after the descending duo, then. Not to fight or escape... but because they were food. They reached the ground before him, the man landing on his feet and then punching the pug dangling from his arm. It let go with a yelp and flew away into the shadows. Stanley felt a sickness deep in his heart at the sight, but roaring, screaming hunger drowned out the feeling. Mostly. His mind lashed out at the man... and dragged him closer. Stanley''s own teeth met the knife-wielding arm before it could stab him, and he bit down hard even as his power kept the man from escaping. The bloody meat was tough, hard to bite through, and it was ambrosia in his mouth... then down his throat when he swallowed the mouthful. The man''s other arm came around to punch Stanley in the head, but it was slower, pushing against his mental hold. Stanley still rocked under the blow, but his grip on the man didn''t waver as he went back in for another bite. The second blow knocked him loose, but Stanley took more flesh with his teeth even as he fell away. It was just as good as the first bite! He didn''t hesitate to go in for more, despite the blade stabbing toward his head. He was too hungry! Caffeine appeared again, shooting straight for the man''s throat. He caught an arm again when the man aborted his attack to block the pug, but Caffeine still hit hard enough to drive him away. The shock of seeing the ever friendly and always lazy Caffeine so vicious was there in Stanley''s mind, but it was still distant behind the ravenous need to eat. Stanley flew after his escaping meal. He needed to eat, and there was bloody meat right there! It was over even faster this time. Caffeine snarled and growled as he ended up dangling from the man''s knife-wielding and savaged arm. Then the man switched the knife to his other hand in an eye blink... and stabbed Caffeine in the back, then the side, hand blurring faster than Stanley could track with his eyes. Something in Stanley''s mind finally broke through the haze, and his whole body shook at what he was seeing. No... His hunger faltered, vanishing behind a roaring noise in his head... Caffeine''s growls continued almost uninterrupted as he whimpered at each blow, but refused to let the man go. Each whimper was a nail driving into Stanley''s chest. Nooo! His hands were reaching before he could think, his mind far ahead of them as he grabbed onto the man in a mix of horror and rage. NO! The man stopped in place under Stanley''s screaming mind. He was still heavier than anything before, like trying to lift a skyscraper into the air. Stanley held him anyway, even as his mind burned from the power flowing through it. Caffeine fell from the arm, collapsing on the floor... unmoving, silent. Stanley couldn''t feel his own pain anymore, couldn''t feel the hunger. All he felt was a burning hatred for this monster before him as he tried with every fiber of his being to crush its skull. The monster laughed at him even as its arms moved slowly through Stanley''s power. The bloody knife in its fist drawing closer and closer. Blood dripped and ran from the blade, dark red droplets falling down toward the still pug at their feet. Stanley''s vision blurred as his heart broke. He had worried about the pug before, had missed him when they were briefly apart, but he''d never really thought about losing him. Caffeine was just... there. He wouldn''t go anywhere... he... he couldn''t... The monster''s hand stopped moving. The knife stopped approaching. Then it turned slowly around as the monster''s arm bent back. Stanley saw the widening of its eyes as the blade started inching towards its face. The laughter stopped, but the knife didn''t. Stanley pushed it inexorably onward as the monster screamed at him. His own mind screamed louder. His rage roared loud enough to drown out the world. Debuff: [Brain Bleed] Everything got hazy after that... but not enough for him to stop. Not enough to save the monster from his wrath. Nothing would ever be enough for that... The knife tip sank into the monster''s eye, and the orb popped in a burst of fluid. Then the knife kept going, kept sinking deeper and deeper. Pushing, cutting, breaking, stabbing in. It was hilt-deep in the eye-socket when the resistance vanished. Stanley ripped it out of the monster''s head and drove it into the other eye. Then its chest. Again and again, Stanley stabbed into the monster before him, like a sewing needle stitching a line. +1 Willpower(Willpower +1 Fortification) He stabbed it. Over and over. Until the unresponsive and mangled corpse finally robbed Stanley of his driving rage. The rage drained away with the blood and left him staring blankly as the corpse flopped to the floor. It was dead... but too late. Far too late. The smell of blood was thick in the air, and Stanley felt his hunger rising to replace the rage as his gaze tracked over to the limp form of Caffeine. The pug had saved his life... Why, Caff... you had no chance... He couldn''t even understand how Caffeine was here. Hadn''t he run away? Everything was wrong... nothing made any sense... The stabbing pain in his heart hurt so much worse than the knife had... and it was the only thing that allowed Stanley to turn away from the smell of so much fresh meat before him. He snatched up the first thing at hand as his vision blurred again. He didn''t know what he held, but his nose must have sensed something because he ripped the box apart and started stuffing half-frozen food into his mouth. It tasted delicious, life-saving, and like ashes choking him as he ate mechanically, tears adding their own flavor to his meal. Debuff Removed: [Brain Bleed] The haziness faded from his mind, and that just made everything worse. Stanley choked down box after box of ashes while he sobbed bitter tears. Debuff Downgraded: [Starving] +1 Vitality The abrupt cessation of his ravenous hunger was enough to bring Stanley fully back to reality. He wished it didn''t. It was a terrible reality. He choked on the food in his mouth, spitting it out as he clutched his chest. It hurt so much... Why did it hurt so much? Caff, I was too weak... and now you are... The loud whimper behind him almost stopped his heart as Stanley froze up, blinking blurry eyes. It couldn''t be... He was too terrified to turn around. He couldn''t look, couldn''t risk the desperate hope... A second loud whimper broke him, and Stanley spun. Caffeine still lay where he had fallen, on his side in a pool of red... but his tail was wagging! Big brown eyes stared at the box in Stanley''s hand as he whimpered again. Stanley fell next to him, frantically pulling out... half-frozen chicken nuggets... He held one out with shaking hands, and Caffeine chomped down on it, swallowing the entire thing in one bite like he always did, tail wagging faster! His own hunger and pains forgotten, Stanley fed piece after piece to the stupidly brave pug. He brushed filthy sleeves over his eyes just so he could see well enough to find more food and kept feeding him. At some point in the future; he didn''t know how long, Caffeine didn''t take another bite... It was unprecedented to see Caffeine not want more food, but then, Stanley had never tried stuffing the pug with all you can eat nuggets... His fingers trembled as he ran them oh so delicately over the blood-stained fur... but he found no wounds, and Caffeine didn''t make a sound as he fell back to sleep, even when Stanley levitated him gently into the air to check more thoroughly. Nothing. Not a scratch. It was impossible. But then, so was surviving a stab to the heart... or two of them... Caffeine settled into his lap, waking just enough to curl up tighter, and Stanley numbly ate more food himself while his mind struggled through the slurry of competing emotions filling him. Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] People had attacked him. Humans¡­ No! Not humans. They were monsters! They tried to kill him and Caffeine! They almost succeeded... Stanley rubbed his chest through the sticky and shredded shirt. The wound was gone, all of them were gone, not even a scar... just like Caffeine... Did the pug have the same level of regeneration? Did everyone? The knife couldn''t really have hit his heart. His regeneration couldn''t be that good... could it? Was it? Or was it only luck that he was still alive? Beyond all that¡­ he had killed a man... and eaten him... He''d almost forgotten that part. Stanley felt sick looking at the mutilated body and then his gaze tracked down to the two chunks of flesh missing from its arm. His stomach heaved. Only nothing came up. Multiple times, he gagged and choked, but only bile touched his tongue. All that healing... his hunger... it was likely that he''d already digested the man''s flesh. He wanted to scream and cry at the horror of it all, but the still fading ache in his chest fueled Stanley against that weakness¡ªand not the ache from being stabbed, either. The monster had got what it deserved, and Stanley did what he had to do to survive. He was alive. Caffeine was alive. That was all that mattered now. That was all he cared about. Not that he wanted to think about it anymore. To distract himself, Stanley turned to the notifications he''d missed in the chaos... Some about his hunger, some stats and skill levels, some debuffs, and something new. You have Defeated the Lair [Verdant Echo] The queen is dead, but the seeds remain and will regrow if not eliminated. That message had come in while he was still fighting the knife-wielding maniac. Before Caffeine showed up to save him... Stanley stared at the sleeping pug in his lap, hands resting on him as he felt the rise and fall of his breathing. Had Caffeine defeated this so-called queen? Is that why he''d run away from him... only rather than escaping Caffeine had run toward the threat... to save Stanley? He finally stopped watching the dog sleep and sat bolt upright when he remembered that the man hadn''t been alone... Idiot! Where were the rest of them? The woman was gone... Stanley hadn''t noticed her leaving. As for the rest... Taking to the air again, Stanley flew through the store; the lair message seeming to imply that it was now safe, at least until the seeds regrew... whatever that meant. It didn''t matter. He would rip apart anything that tried to threaten them! Which meant he needed to keep eating... So he did. Stanley kept shoving food into his mouth, swallowing everything past the lump in his throat. He couldn''t ever let himself be that weak again. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. The shredded remains of giant plants, or maybe flowers, were his only clue what the lair had held, aside from the name. He wouldn''t have suspected them at all if not for the cores beneath each destroyed plant... +0.1 Dexterity +0.1 Vitality(+0.1 Vitality Fortification) +0.1 Wisdom(+0.1 Wisdom Fortification) +0.1 Wisdom(+0.1 Wisdom Fortification) +0.1 Strength One of the plants, the largest one going by the detritus spread around, had a slightly better core. A +2 instead of only +1. Though, he didn''t know if it was simply because it was larger or something else. +0.2 Vitality(+0.2 Vitality Fortification) The bones littering the area around each flower were something else... and they looked human, or at least the right size; Stanley wasn''t that up to date on his anatomy, but he could recognize a human skull. The worst part was the sheer number of them. The strangest part was that they were clean... It had only been a single night, and not even a whole one. How were they already bones? A few much fresher corpses lay among the flowers, literally. Roots, or maybe stems, grew through and around the bodies. So the plants... were eating them? He found only one living soul in the building. "I didn''t want to do it!" the man cried out after laying eyes on Stanley floating his way. He was missing both legs and one arm... the stumps partially healed, but still stumps and still bleeding slightly even though he''d tied them off. Did that mean he didn''t have the same regeneration? Caffeine woke at the sound of the man''s voice, head popping up to growl at him. "No! Keep that monster away from me!" the man yelled upon seeing Caffeine and scrambled with his single remaining arm to drag himself away. Caffeine huffed and lay back down while Stanley drifted closer to the crippled man. He''d recognized Caffeine... which meant he''d seen him before... and was afraid of him? Stanley''s breath caught when he remembered hearing them talk about chasing the pug? Heard them talk about... killing the pug... "What did you do!?" The man stared up in horror as Stanley screamed at him. It might have had something to do with the fact that Stanley was covered in blood and little else. His clothes had already been a wreck the night before. They were little more than stringy rags now. "Nothing! He was too fast! He ignored all our spells and then ripped us apart!" the man babbled, terrified. Maybe he could see the rage in Stanley''s eyes... "You attacked him?" Stanley''s voice cracked. He knew what he''d heard before, that they were chasing ''the dog'', but he was still having trouble believing it. If he hadn''t seen Caffeine attacking the other man with his own eyes... getting stabbed... over and over... "N... No! We couldn''t... he was a monster... I mean..." The man''s words cut off when the knife went through his head and halfway into the floor below. Stanley, chest heaving with rapid breaths, stared at the twitching corpse until it stopped moving. Then he turned away, nausea rising. He swallowed it down and let the rage fill his mind instead. They were all monsters! Even besides that, how many people had they killed here before he arrived? There were enough bones here for... too many. It was only the first fucking night of the end of the world! Who goes straight to mass murder on the first night? Though, he really should have asked about the screeching before killing him... There was a dismembered leg on the floor in front of Stanley, and it certainly looked like it had teeth marks on the thigh. A big ugly bite that was too big for Caffeine... but then... Stanley could have sworn that the pug was a little bit bigger when he''d attacked their leader... but that was crazy. It was probably just the adrenaline. Stanley thought of something that he probably should have the night before. Does Caffeine have a status? And just like that, it appeared. Status Name: Caff Caffeine Race: [Canine(Pug)](Ungraded) Traits: [Good Boy] Class: Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 3 (Novice) Class Skills: (None) Attributes: Strength: 1 Vitality: 1 Dexterity: 1 Perception: 1 Intelligence: 1 Willpower: 1 Soul: ??? [Twin-Soul Bonded(Stanley Cascade)(Lee Cascade)] Non Class Skills(0/1): [Big Enough] [Strong Enough] [Fast Enough] [Tough Enough] It was... How? A legendary class; Beast Lord. What did that even mean? [Beast Lord] Only the strongest beast may hold this class. Pretty bare-bones description, and Stanley almost laughed when he read it, but the sound came out somewhere between a laugh and a sob. Caff is the strongest beast... Maybe his little pug wasn''t quite as stupidly brave as he''d thought, but an actual badass. The rest of Caffeine''s skills and information were even more sparse, with... [Good Boy] A good boy. [Big Enough] Big enough. ...and so on. It also didn''t explain his stats being so low, despite the fact that Stanley had seen him perform feats of both strength and speed far beyond those numbers. Far beyond what he himself was capable of. The soul-bonded bit was also odd, because Stanley had never chosen that. Did Caffeine choose it? Could he do that? His weird name didn''t make sense either... and why was his soul attribute only question marks like theirs? All the consideration of Caffeine and his status reminded Stanley of something he hadn''t thought about before. Caffeine had been there in the mountains when Stanley first got his power... when something happened that he couldn''t remember. He''d been so caught up in his own new power that it simply never occurred to him to wonder about the pug. Looking at his own status gave clues about what had happened. Especially his trait. Not enough for actual answers, but clues of... something. Now Caffeine''s status hinted that maybe he too had been changed on that day. Only, he didn''t have the same trait... but he still regenerated like Stanley... There had to be more to that Good Boy trait. Honestly, it was the only thing Stanley could think of to explain how a tiny pug was considered the strongest beast by this system. The best part of it all, the absolute best thing about seeing his status, was that it meant Caffeine could get stronger. He wouldn''t have to worry about the little pug getting left behind in a world of increasingly dangerous monsters. When he turned back for his new knife still in the monster''s head, Stanley saw the core. Skill Shard[F-Grade] Fire Bolt (Uncommon) Point and burn. Launch a bolt of fire from a finger toward a target. Range and damage based on Intelligence and Skill Level. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Intelligence -1% Mana Cost Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require 50% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Stanley grimaced at it. It wasn''t a terrible skill, and it was most likely what the man had been using to attack Caffeine... The bastard... but hey, at least he was dead now. The adaptation bit was interesting as well, but not something he was willing to gamble on. It didn''t say what it would turn into, and it would cost him some adaptation just to see. He also wasn''t sure if he would be stuck with whatever it became¡­ and he could only learn one skill. None of that mattered though, because there was a final option at the bottom. Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +2 All Base Attributes: Y/N? It was an easy decision at that point. A skill that may or may not be useful, or an extra step closer to F-grade. Fire spells wouldn¡¯t save him against more monsters like he¡¯d just faced. But F-grade might¡­ Stanley absorbed his first human core. +0.2 All Base Attributes(Multiple +0.2 Fortification) His first core because there were more dead humans in here and he was going to take all their cores. Stanley found the rest of them nearby, all dead, and all with teeth marks on their flesh. Good boy, Caff. The bites were varying sizes that were all too big for Caffeine''s jaws, but Stanley had to assume it was the pug. He''d seen no sign of any other creature that might have done the deed. It had to be his Big Enough skill... Stanley endured his discomfort with the savaged corpses and gave Caffeine some gentle pets while the pug slept on. Each human core was a skill shard, like the first, and Stanley understood just how fucked humanity was. So many would die to other humans once they found out about this. All the skills were trash, and Stanley chose the stats each time. +0.2 All Base Attributes(Multiple +0.2 Fortification) +0.2 All Base Attributes(Multiple +0.2 Fortification) +0.2 All Base Attributes(Multiple +0.2 Fortification) +0.2 All Base Attributes(Multiple +0.2 Fortification) The last one, from their leader, was different. Skill Shard[F-Grade] Knife Work (Rare) Become the blade. Increases the user''s innate understanding of their weapon when wielding knives or short blades. Easier for the user to find vital points on targets and to strike those points. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Dexterity -1% Stamina Cost when wielding knives or short blades. Requirements: N/A Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +4 All Base Attributes: Y/N? Interesting... and maybe not useless for him. Especially since it didn''t require any adaptation to learn. He tried not to think about the recent history of the blade now in his possession, the one used to nearly kill him and Caffeine. Nevertheless, it was his now, and if this skill would help him wield it with Psychokinesis... It was probably a long shot, and this rare skill offered +4 to all stats if he destroyed it instead. At least, Stanley assumed that was because of the rarity since all the others had been common or uncommon rated. He held off on both options while scouring the store for the dead flower cores. He found more than enough to push him to what he really hoped was the F-grade threshold. He really should have asked some more questions before killing that man... Because of that, he wasn''t sure how it would happen, and so didn''t absorb the last one. For all he knew, it would knock him out or leave him defenseless, and he didn''t want to be in the open for that. Instead, he went shopping. The second most unpleasant discovery he made in the supercenter was that plastic wasn''t doing well in the apocalypse. The forever substance that was going to kill everyone eventually... was now dissolving. The bottled water was a bust thanks to that, and the jerky didn''t fare any better... The plastic wasn''t just melting away; it was also sticking to everything else in the process. Stanley settled for canned food after opening one to check and finding the metal didn''t seem to share the degradation. Caffeine woke up for the food; beef ravioli, and he had no hesitations about wanting to eat it, either. So much for him being full... Stanley tried a few tentative bites first, just to be sure. It was awful, especially cold, but it was still food... so he loaded a backpack. Thanks to the cold, and the only recent loss of power, Stanley also checked out the meat and dairy section. The strange flowers had overgrown a large swath of the section, but not all of it. Unfortunately, that was all plastic wrapped as well... Stanley solved the issue by carving up blocks of cheese and slabs of meat. Cutting off the plastic-tainted outer layers and wrapping the rest in paper. Hopefully, the cold both outside and in the store would keep it fresh long enough. The other option would be eating the monsters outside... a last resort, for now. Looters like himself would clean out the stores fast enough, and then he would probably have no choice but to hunt for his food. Water was another problem thanks to the lack of plastic, but he found some fancy glass water bottles in the coolers. Not enough for long, but then again, there was plenty of snow outside. Stanley looked outside briefly to scoop that snow up once he had a fire going. He saw no one out there, and didn''t stick around for a closer look. Starting the fire was easier than expected. The camping section had all manner of fire-starter kits. He warmed water in a large pot from cookware department for Caffeine to have a bath, something the pug vehemently opposed. Stanley distracted him from the torture with the suspect, but probably still okay, rotisserie chickens from the deli, four of them in total. His torture of the pug was justified by the absolutely disgusting water left over when Caffeine took off sprinting and shaking like a lunatic. Then he had his own bath, though it was more of a sponge bath, washing away blood, gore, and other stuff... His clothes were already a lost cause when he got there, but it wasn''t hard to steal more. No one showed up the whole time. Either everyone nearby had already tried coming here and died, joining the piles of bones, or they knew what was happening and stayed away. It made for a more pleasant time for Stanley, and he was feeling a lot better when he''d holed himself up in the cooler at the back of the store. With his power, it was easy enough to drag a pile of crap in front of the door after he closed it. Once safely locked inside, Stanley looked at the cores in his hands, their light illuminating the closed space. He had enough, even without using the knife skill, and he started absorbing. It was time to reach F-grade. ~~~Clara~~~ Shit! Shit! Clara staggered and limped across the parking lot, almost falling every time her head whipped around to see if that monster was coming after her. Either one of them... She felt sick to her stomach, and not only from the fresh bruises covering her body. I should have run away the moment I met him. But she''d never really had that option. Last night had been a nightmare¡­ until he showed up. Her beautiful knight in shining armor. Clyde killed the six foot tall raccoons like they were nothing, weaving around their slashing claws and snapping teeth as he cut them down. His hands were warm and strong as he lifted her from the street, his smile was kind, confident. It was all a lie. He¡¯d asked about her skills as he carried her to safety, and she¡¯d still been in shock as she told him everything between the sobs of pain. His voice was so kind, his smile so pure when he handed her the shards. "Absorb these. Your wounds will heal when you hit F-grade." She hadn¡¯t known what he was talking about, but did as he said anyway. He was right. Her wounds did heal¡­ and she felt better than she ever had before. Stronger. Powerful. Clyde had a plan. He would protect everyone from the monsters roaming the darkness, and she was the key to it all. Then he led her into the night, gathering more and more people along the way, leading them all toward safety. He was a hero. Swooping out of the night and rescuing people from the monsters. No one was safe anymore. Hiding in their homes offered no protection when so many of these creatures could smash right through walls. But he knew a place they would be safe. The store. Her skill shielded everyone from the flowers, and the flowers protected them from the monsters outside. Clyde picked people from the crowd and gave them cores. Raised them up to F-grade. Then sent them into the night to rescue more people. So many people came¡­ so many desperate people that only wanted to be safe. To live. They all walked right into Clyde¡¯s trap. Her trap¡­ Clara tripped over a concrete curb and fell sprawling. Her vision was blurry as she scrambled upright and kept sprinting for her life. She just wanted to live! Was that so wrong!? She never had a chance to stop him when he told her to turn off the shield¡­ it didn¡¯t even matter that she refused. He simply carried her away. He was too strong¡­ too powerful. The blood¡­ Then he handed out cores to the few he hadn¡¯t killed. New skills¡­ more power. Some refused, and tried to fight back. Clyde killed them. Only Sturgeon and Harold accepted. Harold then tried to run after reaching F-grade¡­ Clyde dragged him back and forced Sturgeon to kill him. The flowers feasted on the dead¡­ and grew fast. They were even stronger when the runners returned with more rescued people¡­ Clyde welcomed them with open arms and kind words. All the while he watched her with those ice-blue eyes. He led them deeper into the store with his hand resting on Clara¡¯s shoulder while he laughed and reassured everyone that they were finally safe¡­ It wasn¡¯t her fault! She just wanted to live! Was she supposed to die just to save a bunch of random people? Clyde would kill them just as easily outside. He would kill her if she didn¡¯t cooperate with his games¡­ He gave her cores and she had to take them¡­ She had no choice! Voices sounded out, loud enough to break through her panting breath and thumping feet. Clara froze as they saw her, approached her. They looked kind¡­ worried about her¡­ Clara remembered her last sight of the monsters battling. A crazy little dog biting Clyde, while the equally crazy human did the same¡­ she wasn¡¯t sure who would win that fight¡­ but either one would probably kill her when they caught up. "You have to help me!" Maybe she could slow down the pursuit. "There¡¯s two crazy guys in the store! They¡¯re slaughtering people¡­" 13. If We Fall ~~~Lee~~~ "So¡­ ready to go back in?" Lee asked. "Are you a fucking lunatic!?" Larry butted into the conversation. Lee ignored him and talked to Jake. "You and me can clean up in there. The tick''s numbing shit doesn''t work on me, and I''m guessing you have something that let you avoid every single one..." "Are you sure, Lee? I saw a lot of those things..." Alejandro said. Lee handed him the core from his tick hitchhiker. "We need cores. I need them, and I know everyone else does as well. As far as I could see in there, each one dropped a core. This is a gold mine and I''m not about to run away. We need to get stronger for when the next giant hawk shows up." The looks from most of them were dubious, and scared. "Plus, we still need food and weapons, right?" That tack worked better. Lee could see the resistance to his plan weakening. "We just need to watch each other''s backs. Make sure that the ticks don''t get to sit on us or swarm too much." He looked toward the store''s entrance, where no sign of the monsters remained. "They didn''t follow us out, so we can always run away if we need to." "I will help you, Lee," Alejandro declared with sword raised to the sky. "I said I would, and I meant it." The sword drooped. "Plus, I would like to get a few things for Maria..." "Saira," Jake said, turning to the woman. "This will probably require more of your healing before it''s over. You in?" She looked at each of them in turn, eyes searching for something, before settling on Alejandro. "I meant what I said as well. I will help. Though I am not sure how much I can do inside there..." "What if I pull one of these little trees up and take it with us?" Jake asked her. "I... do not know." Jake walked to the still mostly healthy tree and pulled it from the ground in one smooth motion. It wasn''t huge or anything. His hand fit almost entirely around the trunk, but everyone still gaped at the display of strength, Lee included. "Does it work?" Jake held the tree out to her. The green glow sprang into Saira''s free hand for a moment and then faded. "It will work." Her other hand still clutched Mar, despite the girl being invisible. Lee was glad to see the idea working, but the sight of Mar... or rather the lack of sight on Mar, had his mind on a different track. "Mar, how long can you stay invisible?" She had barely appeared for more than a few moments at a time. Not nearly enough for her mana to regenerate. She reappeared to say, "Um... forever?" Her face was downcast, but Lee saw her eyes jumping over everyone before she vanished again just as quickly. Everyone turned from her to look at Lee. "What? I was just curious. And here, Mar." He tossed her the other core. Let her see what they had to gain. Jake was scanning their surroundings again, including the sky, and he was smiling. Lee was fine leaving the lookout role for Jake. With the guy being F-grade, and his weird eyes, he would probably see anything long before Lee could. Alejandro chuckled. "The real question is, how did the tick find you, Mar?" "Heat, smell, blood... magic?" Jake rattled off a few possibilities. "Probably best if you don''t go invisible while we''re in there, though," Lee said. "What! Why?" Mar flickered again. Lee was getting the feeling that she preferred to be hidden. "Because someone might cut you in half with an enchanted blade," Jake said. "Oh..." "Yea, that''s pretty much what I was thinking," Lee said with a glance at Jake''s bloodied pants. "I... can try." It honestly sounded like she would have to make an effort not to be invisible... What kind of broken skill did she have? Regardless, Lee wanted to get back in there. The cores were calling his name... plus; he hadn''t even grabbed any of the cores from his kills yet. "So let''s do it!" The others agreed, some reluctantly and others looking as excited as Lee felt. Mainly Jake, who went first again, ahead of the lights, and the first thing he did inside the doors was to look up. Probably a good idea. He must have seen nothing, because he waved them forward. They walked almost all the way to Lee''s abandoned shield before spotting another tick. Even the ceiling was clear. Which was odd. Where did they go, and why would they leave? The ceiling seemed like a great place to ambush from. Then the ticks swarmed over the shelves and down the aisles. The group was expecting it this time, though, and they were far enough from the shelves to kill the first few that jumped at them. It still turned back into a fighting retreat as the flood of bugs continued to charge ahead, and Lee cursed as each tick he killed got buried in the swarm before he ever had a chance to get the cores. He stopped retreating, letting the others move further behind him, and then started swinging wildly with the sword. Each swing killed multiple ticks, the back swing taking more. He tried to advance into the horde, hoping to clear a path, or at least hold them back long enough for someone else to get the cores. More than one tick jumped onto him. Some he knocked away before they got a bite, but too many sank their stabbing jaws into his flesh. He killed them when he could, but slowing down his wide swings risked the entire swarm overrunning him. Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] An arrow blew past his head at one point, killing the tick that was just starting to chew into his neck. That could have been bad... Lee gave up his heroic stand and started backing up. As he went, he tried to drag his feet, hoping to kick the corpses or cores along behind him. Of course, then he slipped in the rapidly growing puddle of blood and gore. Fuck me... Lee landed on his back, most of his attention on trying not to stab himself, while the rest was on the charging tide of bugs eager to drain him of every last drop of blood. Alejandro appeared between Lee and the monsters, shield and blade moving to drive back or kill the attackers. A streak of blue shot past the man, and an explosion lit up the darkness in a blinding flash of blue light. A hand grabbed Lee''s collar again, and he heard Jake yelling over the ringing in his ears. "I''ve got him! Fall back!" Like that, the second run ended even worse than the first... Lee didn''t look at anyone when Jake dropped him back outside. Twice he''d been carried out now, and he was the only one. No one else had to be saved... "Fuck," Lee cursed under his breath, hands clenched into fists as he sat on the ground. "Fuck is right, you moron. You really are trying to get us killed." Larry was as helpful as ever. Alejandro patted him on the shoulder. "Not your fault. That floor was a mess." Jake stood nearby when Lee finally lifted his head, but the archer was once again scanning the area like a responsible lookout. But as if he had eyes in the back of his head, Jake spoke the moment Lee looked at him. "Not a moron, but overeager maybe. What''s the rush?" Lee dropped his gaze back to the asphalt. "I..." he trailed off. I''m going to die if I don''t get stronger. That was what he wanted to say, but the feeling was weird... obsessive, even. He wasn''t sure what these people would think of him if he tried to explain himself. They probably didn''t need the crazy number of cores that he did. They wouldn''t understand. Saira placed a hand on him, and Lee felt her magic for the first time. He didn''t need it. All of his injuries were already gone... but it did feel nice. A soothing warmth that filled his body with the smell of spring. Grass, flowers, dirt, and even a strong scent of pine... before it all spiraled down into his center and vanished. Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry] Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Or... maybe into his stomach? That was weird... and awesome! It looked like she could heal... hunger? "That..." Saira gasped, and Lee looked back to see the tree crumble into dust in her hand. "Were you injured? There was so much blood, but I couldn''t tell... and all the magic just... vanished inside you." "Thanks, Saira. That was great!" "I think my mana is low now," Saira said while dusting her hands off. "I do not know how I know that, but I do... and I feel unwell." Mar appeared briefly behind her mother as the woman sat on a concrete curb near Lee. She didn''t stay visible for long, but Lee caught the worried expression on her face. He also saw Jake eyeing him again. "Sorry about your arrow," Lee said, remembering the blue explosion. Jake shrugged. "I got a skill level out of it. Worst case, I''ll switch to melee." "Will you go back in with me?" Jake was unharmed this time, so hopefully he would not quit just yet. "Of course. I still want more arrows and I think I''ll find them here. Plus, I''m curious about this whole ''Lair'' thing." Lee breathed a sigh of relief. For all his idiotic bravado about hunting alone the night before, he really didn''t want to face the tick swarm by himself. "I too am not ready to give up," Alejandro said. "Though I think we need a better strategy." "Agreed," Jake said. "I''ve been watching and think I''ve figured out where they turn back. I say everyone sets up and I''ll see if they will chase me back to you. Worst case, we will have to keep a hit and run going until the numbers drop." Larry grumbled but didn''t actually protest, and everyone else liked the plan, at least as much as anyone liked the idea of going back in to fight giant bloodsucking ticks... They still waited for Saira''s mana to recharge, a process that seemed to take far too long in Lee''s mind. He didn''t question her about it, though. That felt like the kind of question that would tell everyone about his own mana regeneration. They posted up near the registers inside, only a couple dozen feet from the doors, and waited for Jake. Saira stayed almost directly behind Alejandro, while Mar remained behind her to watch their backs and conveniently stay out of anyone else''s weapon range in the process. Everyone else spread out a bit, giving each other enough room that they wouldn''t accidentally hit anyone. Jake returned with a swarm of ticks chasing him, though less than they''d seen on the last attempt. Lee had time to wonder if they sent less for one target instead of the whole group, then Jake slid into his spot and the fight was on. Lee tried to keep his swings more horizontal because chopping down tended to send his weapon into the floor. Literally. It wasn''t that bad if he stabbed the floor. Some charge lost from the runes was no big deal, but his crude sword liked to get stuck after punching through. That always left him exposed while trying to yank it free. The resident archer didn''t use any more arrows for the fight. Instead, switching to his enchanted knife. He made it look effortless too... A tick would leap for him, and Jake would lean or step aside while his knife almost casually flicked out to kill it. More often than not, this resulted in his kills falling behind him instead of in the swarm. Lee tried his best to emulate the man, with mixed results. His footing was nowhere near as stable or quick and his sword swings were much slower and less accurate. Lee made up some of the difference by leaning on his regeneration to take a few hits in exchange for kills. It would make him hungry faster, but he knew Saira could fix that. It still hurt¡­ Eventually, they did have to retreat. The ticks just kept coming and other people got wounded. All of them without noticing. Lee still resisted the numbing effect, but no one else seemed able to do that. Jake was the only one Lee wasn''t sure about; the man never got hit, and he didn''t even look tired... Lee kicked a lot more corpses behind him during the fight, without falling down this time, and he was able to claim a handful of cores in the retreat. The fact he scored some loot, and while not getting carried out, helped immensely with his mood following the battle. +0.1 Strength +0.1 Vitality +0.1 Wisdom(+0.1 Wisdom Fortification) Lee stopped absorbing to look at the others. He wasn''t the only one to claim cores, and he saw a few in the process of absorbing them, including Saira. Alejandro must have shared his since the woman hadn''t been killing anything. Jake was the only one not busy with cores, still on the lookout for danger. "Jake, do you know what fortification is?" "Yea, it gives you a boost toward..." Jake''s voice seemed to fade mid sentence, as if he was receding further and further away. Lee clutched at his chest, the world gone to him as a terrible weight crushed his heart. He couldn''t breathe! Everything was going dark... fading... drowning... falling... cold... The feel of his body hitting the ground was a distant thing. An unimportant detail happening to someone else. He was too busy dying. No... I don''t want to go... Before the darkness could fully claim him, a great thump echoed out from his heart. Then another, and another. Like pounding drums and ringing bells, it reverberated throughout his body, rippling outward from his chest with every beat. Light and sound crashed back into Lee along with the drumbeat, and he surged upright. "Nooo!" "Lee!" Unyielding bands imprisoned his arms, and Lee blinked at the faces staring at him. Alejandro and Jake were holding him, the latter keeping Lee''s sword arm in a vice grip and well clear of the both of them. "Lee," Alejandro said. "What is it? What happened?" "I... don''t know." He''d been dying... but now he... Lee swayed in their grip as the crushing grip around his heart tightened again. The drumbeat faltered, and darkness dragged him back down, dragged him toward the yawning void that was waiting to swallow him up. Once again, the drumbeat of pain and life pounded from his chest before he fell too far, dragging him violently back into the light. With the pain came rage, and Lee screamed again. He wasn''t even sure who or what he was screaming at... "I''ll fucking kill you! Die, you fu..." His scream faltered as Lee stared at the multiple pairs of wide eyes before him. The anger made him want to kill... something, anything, everything! But it faded even as he tried to catch his breath while his heart raced at a mile a minute. His heart... that was the drumbeat that kept stopping... Lee was terrified... and so angry... Then he sobbed out of nowhere, surprising himself when crushing despair replaced the rage. "What''s happening to him?" a voice said. What had happened? He didn''t know! He was crying... and his heart ached. He couldn''t breathe beneath the soul-crushing sorrow in his chest... and then, like a switch being thrown, joy bloomed inside him. Lee couldn''t help the laugh that bubbled up in the wake of that feeling. As he laughed, and cried, and then laughed some more, the feelings all dimmed. It wasn''t like before, not the all-consuming void, but as if he had taken a step back from the emotions... as if they weren''t actually his... "Stanley!" Lee gasped as understanding finally hit him. "Oh god..." He suddenly knew what had happened. Stanley had been hurt... had been dying... had almost died... "No, it''s okay! He can heal like me! He''ll be okay! He has to be!" "Who''s Stanley?" Alejandro yelled, and Lee realized he was shouting and babbling even as he struggled against the people restraining him. "My..." Lee took deep breaths, trying to relax his struggles. He could still feel Stanley in the distance, could feel the fear and anger, but it was fading. The fear was fading, not Stanley. It was dimming behind the joy and relief he could still feel coming from his brother. His twin was alive. Still alive! He would be okay... "He''s my brother..." Saira''s magic was flowing into his back, and had been for a while. It spread through his body, and Lee closed his eyes, letting the soothing magic ease his aching chest and racing heartbeat. I''m okay. Stanley''s okay. He''d known Stanley would be fighting, but hadn''t worried about him. Stanley was already powerful before this started, and he should have been fine. Should have been more than fine... What was he fighting to almost get killed? Just how bad was it over there? Alejandro was still talking, along with a few other voices, but Lee tuned them out as he focused on the feeling in his... soul? It had to be his soul, or rather, their twin-soul. At least, that was his best guess for the feeling. It implied they were connected or combined into basically one soul, and Lee could definitely feel his brother in the distance. "I''m okay," Lee said finally. "I''m alright. Um... you can let go of me now." Hands released him, and worried faces backed up. "Are you sure you''re alright?" Alejandro insisted. "He''s a damn lunatic," Larry said from somewhere. "I''m fine," Lee said, ignoring the other man. "Thanks." He tried to smile at Saira as she offered him a hand up, but couldn''t seem to make his mouth stay in that position. They were all staring when he stood up, and Lee searched for what to say. "My brother... I can feel him." He touched his chest. "He almost died... and it felt like... like I was dying with him." "Where is he?" Alejandro asked. "Can we go help him?" Lee shook his head. "No. He is... too far." The realization sat heavily in him as he slumped. "I can''t do anything to help..." "Yes, you can," Jake said, sounding supremely confident. "Just get stronger and go find him." "Sure..." Lee trailed off as he took in where he was. They had moved much further from the store, and he could see a line of dead trees in the parking lot planters, running in a straight line out to where they were now. Saira was dusting the remains of the nearest tree from her hands when Lee looked at her again. She met his gaze. "I discovered I can still funnel the life of the plants even without my mana. It is... less efficient." Lee guessed it was also unpleasant just from her expression. "Thank you..." He didn''t know if she had actually helped him at all, but appreciated the thought behind her actions. Though, at least he wasn''t hungry anymore... "All of you. Thanks for helping me..." Lee ducked his head, the welling emotions making him embarrassed. These were good people, most of them. He had misjudged Saira before, but it turned out she was a better person than he was. Then he straightened and looked at Jake. "I''m going back in. I need to get stronger." Jake nodded, and Lee turned to Saira. "I''ll gather cores for you, Saira. You don''t have to go..." "I will not shirk from what must be done. I have been granted a gift, and I will not waste it." "Why do you keep trying to get rid of us?" Alejandro exclaimed while clapping Lee on the back. "We are in this together!" "Yeah," Mar said while flickering into view for an instant. "Let''s squash some bugs," Sandra said. Larry scoffed but still turned to face the building, while Jake just rolled his eyes and headed that way. Lee smiled. Maybe other people weren''t that bad after all. He really hoped Stanley found someone like this to watch his back. After what had just happened, it felt like Stanley needed all the help he could get. The sunshine was warm on his skin, but Lee shivered from the memory of that chill as he walked. His hand trembled, and he tightened his grip on the sword. The cold was fading, but another thought was dominating his mind. I''m running out of time. I have to get stronger! 14. Choices ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley took one last look around his hidey-hole. The closed off space was faintly lit by the handful of cores in his hand, and Caffeine was once again dry and sleeping in his lap. Then he absorbed the last core he needed. +0.1 Strength All Base Attributes have reached the F-grade threshold. Evolution to F-grade Begun. The world fell away into darkness and Stanley found himself in a formless void sans any sensation of his body. Before him floated five glowing orbs. One white, one blue, two violet, though in slightly different shades, and one red. As a Human you are [Adaptable] and you now have the chance to alter your destiny. Choose wisely. Multiple evolution options are available. Nothing happened as he hung there in the void, until he tried to focus on the first orb, and information flowed into his mind. [Human](F-grade Human) You began life as a Human but have strayed from your origins. This does not have to define your future, and you may return to that path as you ascend to the next stage. This will increase your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](100%) Stanley wasn''t sure what to make of it. He''d strayed from his origins? It raised his adaptable back to 100% and didn''t mention his other trait. Did that mean he could get rid of the trait? Would he gain full rewards from the cores then? That could be huge! But... that would cost him the regeneration... He looked at the next orb. [Energetic](F-grade Human) You have stepped onto a new path before F-grade. Stay the course and stick with the choices that define you as you ascend to the next stage. This will not change your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](75%) [Energetic Resilience] So the first was indeed a change, whereas this one would keep him the same. Though it still changed his race name? Sort of? He wasn''t about to choose yet, not with more options still unknown, so he kept looking. [Psion](F-grade Human) You have embraced your class. I am Psionic. You have fought and killed to survive against many foes who would see you dead and your core consumed. You have done so using your mind and will as the primary weapon. My will carries me. Lean into your mind and embrace the power it brings as you ascend to the next stage. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](70%) [Energetic Resilience] [Mindful] This one had a new trait, and Stanley was pleasantly surprised when his querying thought brought up more information. [Mindful] Embracing the power of your will over all others will have rewards. +50% Effective Mind Attributes +50% Additional Effective Willpower A doubling of his willpower, sort of. Stanley still wasn''t one hundred percent on what all this effective versus base meant, but it would likely boost his power. Moreso once his actual willpower got higher. He still checked the next orb. [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) You have gone beyond the limits of your class. Keep going. You have survived despite taking fatal wounds that should have ended you. Never say die. You embraced your rage as a tool of violence and used it to kill those who sought to end you. Kill Them All! You ignored the damage to your own flesh in order to see them dead. Pain will not stop me. Lean into your rage and embrace the power it brings as you ascend to the next stage. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](67%) [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Stanley didn''t like the sound of it, but he checked the trait. [Psycho] Rage against the dying of the light. +200% Effective Willpower -10% Effective Physical Attributes That was... not bad. It sounded bad, but the gains looked better than the last, at least for his class. Still, he checked the next option. [Unstoppable Hunger](F-grade Human) You have fought and killed to survive against many foes who would see you dead and your core consumed. Never going to stop. You have survived despite taking fatal wounds that should have ended you. Never going to die. You have felt the ravenous hunger and fed on your own kind to survive. Devour them all! You overcame the ravenous hunger and fought on despite its pull. Kill them all! Lean into your hunger and embrace the power it brings as you ascend to the next stage. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](65%) [Energetic Resilience] [Ravenous Vitality] This one sounded and looked bad. He really didn''t like the mention of his eating another human... It was only two bites! Besides, it was that stupid debuff fucking with his head that made him do it. He''d been plenty hungry before all this started, and it was never as bad as that. Stanley checked the trait, even though he was afraid of what it would say. [Ravenous Vitality] Embrace your hunger and use its gnawing fire to propel you toward greatness. +1-200% All Effective Attributes depending on hunger severity. The greater the hunger, the greater the effect. Increased sustenance received from everything you consume. Increased digestion speed and stomach resilience. It wasn''t quite as bad as he''d feared. But it also wasn''t something he wanted. He could get the same boost to his psionic from the other one, and it didn''t require him to be starving. It was tempting, sure. Having all of his attributes boosted would definitely improve his survival chances. But it didn''t say what the bonus would be for each level of hunger, and the name of the trait wasn''t very reassuring in that regard. Stanley was not at all interested in seeing that ravenous debuff again. So no thanks. Besides, the only useful difference would be in his vitality. None of the other attributes really mattered to his class. That he could tell, at least. Before he could go back and review his other choices, Stanley finally noticed another orb. It was black, almost completely blending in with the surrounding void, and slightly fuzzy... [Beast Lord](F-grade Beastkin) You have been Soul-Bonded to a powerful Beast Lord. I am the Beast. Let go of your grip on humanity. Embrace the Beast Lord within and Lead your Pack. I am the Beast Lord. While still partially human, you can start down a new path. Find out where it leads as you ascend to the next stage. This will greatly reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Beastkin Lord] [Adaptable](25%) [Energetic Resilience] Get rid of the pain of being a man. There was a beautiful simplicity to the idea. Would he have the same skills as Caffeine? That probably wouldn''t help his class very much... Tempting, if only out of curiosity, but not a choice he would take. If he was a warrior class on the other hand¡­ it might be worth it. I''ll let you be the beast lord, Caff. He still checked the trait¡­ he was curious. [Beastkin Lord] Become Beast. +1000% Effective Physical Attributes -99% Effective Mind Attributes Wow¡­ and yes¡­ that was tempting. It wasn¡¯t very descriptive, however. Would he still be himself? Would it make him stupid? Just a beast? Not that Caffeine was stupid¡­ but he definitely saw the world in a different way. It would for sure ruin his class¡­ change his race completely away from Human¡­ he might not be able to fly home. Maybe he could just run? The real question was how much those numbers mattered. Obviously it was much higher than the other options, but what if lots of people got extreme options like this? What if someone with a physical class got this? They would crush him¡­ whereas something that synergized with his class might give him a better chance. It was so tempting¡­ but he couldn¡¯t do it. Something about it just felt¡­ wrong. The moment he thought that, the fuzzy orb vanished. What the¡­ Stanley stared for a long time at where it had been¡­ wondering what had just happened. But eventually the growing pressure forced him to move on. He didn¡¯t have unlimited time in here, that wasn¡¯t even considering the risk his body might be in right now. That left him with only three real options. Base Human, Psionic, or Psychomancer. He could dump the trait that was slowing him down and get even more evolution options later. Or he could, as it said, lean into his psionic power and keep the trait. Or take it a step further... Thinking about it for a few seconds was enough for Stanley to realize that he only had two options. That energetic trait was on his status for a reason. A reason he didn''t know... sure. But it wasn''t there by accident. Besides, it had saved his life at least once. He recalled crashing into the building the night before... So it saved his life multiple times then. That wasn''t the real reason, though. All his rational arguments were well and good, but deep down, he felt sick at the thought of removing the trait. As if the very idea made him want to cry. As if it would be the end of everything he loved... Stanley didn''t linger after that. While there was the Energetic option to consider, it wasn''t a fair trade to keep 10% more body stats in exchange for losing a full 100% bonus to his willpower. He wasn''t about to start fighting hand to hand. Not if he could help it. Though, there was that skill shard he hadn''t yet absorbed... which it might have been better to use first. It didn''t matter now. Stanley made his choice. Evolution to [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) has begun. Ungraded Attribute Fortification: Strength: 0 Vitality: 1 +1% Effective Vitality Dexterity 0 Wisdom 5 +5% Effective Wisdom Intelligence 4.2 +4.2% Effective Intelligence Willpower 10 +10% Effective Willpower So he finally knew what Fortification did... Stanley didn''t get time to dwell on that new information before he was abruptly back in his body and his entire world shrank into the burning pain that engulfed him. Every inch of his body burned under an onslaught of energy that was rushing out of something deep inside him. He was distantly aware of Caffeine whining and licking his face, but was too far gone to respond to the pug. He could feel his hands, could feel Caffeine stepping on them where they lay in his lap, but Stanley couldn''t move them. He couldn''t even scream at the pain, every muscle locked tight. It went on for an unknown amount of time... and then it was over. As abruptly as it had started, it ended. Stanley blinked at the pug in his face. Nothing hurt anymore... in fact, he felt great! His hands came up to comfort the whining pug, and they felt stronger than ever. That negative 10% to body didn''t seem to do shit if this was how he felt. Caffeine was ecstatic as well. Or maybe it was Stanley''s laughter cheering him up. Either way, the pug sprinted around the freezer a few times and then stopped to stare at the backpack holding all the meat. Of course. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Stanley was feeling good though, so he broke out some hotdogs he''d salvaged from the bigger packages. The ones with a middle row that didn''t touch the plastic, or at least only on the ends. Caffeine was thrilled at that development, and Stanley fed him while pulling up his status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 5 (Novice) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 7 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 10(-10%)9 Vitality: 10(-9%)9.1 Dexterity 10(-10%)9 Wisdom 10(+20%)12 Intelligence 10(+19%)11 Willpower 10(+225%)22.5 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 0/3: Buff: Debuff: He definitely should have fortified more attributes... but it was already a slog as it was. As for reaching the next grade, Stanley could only imagine it would be even worse. Still, he felt good. Despite his strength being technically below what it had been only... moments? Stanley wasn''t sure how long the process had taken. Caffeine was much more energized than he had been, so maybe it took a bit? Regardless, Stanley felt physically stronger than he ever had before. As an experiment, he put both hands on the floor and lifted his butt off the ground, legs still crossed in front of him. It was easy. Something gymnasts and people who worked out could do, but not a lazy truck driver. Next he tried to stand, and all it took was straightening his crossed legs against the ground to lift him into a standing position. It was an intoxicating feeling. He punched the freezer door, and his fist left a huge dent in the metal without the slightest pain from his knuckles. I''m a fucking badass! For the final test, and the most important one. Stanley pushed with his psychokinesis against the door and the barricaded debris on the other side. The door blew open with a crashing racket and then tore from its hinges to go flying down the back of the store. Woah. He was indeed a badass. He hesitantly picked himself up, afraid he might throw himself into the ceiling, but it didn''t happen. Though, Stanley wondered how much more durable his body was now. Would he still get hurt if he crashed into a skyscraper? Would a knife still go right through him... Caffeine jumped into his chest, and Stanley pulled his legs up to give the pug a place to sit. Whereupon Caffeine curled up and passed out immediately. So maybe it hadn''t been that long? Without a cell phone, Stanley had no way to tell time. He could probably find a mechanical watch here... but he didn''t really need to know the time. There was another test to be done before he resumed the hunt, one Stanley was dreading. He picked up a core that he hadn''t thought he needed before and checked what it said. Core Chip(F-grade) +1 Wisdom He let out a sigh of relief at seeing that. He''d been terrified that it would give even less once he was F-grade too, but it apparently didn''t change... which was odd. Given how much stronger he felt, how could it still be the same? He didn''t absorb it, though. There was someone else who needed to reach F-grade as soon as possible. Stanley hated to wake the sleeping pug, but he did. Caffeine needed to get stronger, too. He didn''t know if Caffeine could even use... Caffeine took the core gently from his fingers... and chewed on it with a lot of crunching noises until it was gone and he laid his head back down. Checking his status still showed ones across the board... but then he knew that wasn''t quite accurate. Maybe he was only seeing the effective attributes? Caffeine''s skill names hinted at... well, Stanley wasn''t sure what exactly. His best guess was that the pug could move his attributes around at will to be faster, stronger, or tougher. Though, he wasn''t sure about the Big Enough skill... The only issue was he didn''t know if Caffeine was getting the full cores or only a tenth like himself. Though even if it was a tenth, getting him to F-grade would definitely be a better investment than getting a few more stats himself. Stanley had noticed little to no change as his stats went up. Nothing even remotely close to what he felt now, at least. If he had to guess, then the cores probably went into his own... core, and waited there until he hit the next grade. Though it was possible that it would be different now that he was no longer ungraded. Especially with the larger bonus to his willpower. He definitely needed the attributes to make a difference. Whatever it was, he had monsters to hunt, and ideally, some invaders to kill. But first... Non-Class Skill Gained(1/3): Knife Work Knife Work (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) Increases the user''s innate understanding of their weapon when wielding knives or short blades. Easier for the user to find vital points on targets and to strike those points. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effectiveness of Dexterity -1% Stamina Cost The knowledge that entered his mind was... subtle. Then he picked up the knife and his hand shifted on the handle, adjusting his grip into a more natural and sure hold. Even that was hard to say for sure, since he wouldn''t even have noticed if he wasn''t watching his hand. It wasn''t anything concrete. Nothing he could point to as specifically the skill in action, but the knife just felt... better in his hand. Then he took his hand away and held it with his mind. It was even harder to tell if it was doing anything after that. All he could really do now was use it and see if the skill leveled up. That would at least tell him if it was working. Presumably. Checking his status did show a one percent increase to his Dexterity... was that why it limited his non-class skills to only one... or maybe not? Apparently, he was wrong about only getting one non-class skill, since now it said he could have three. Most likely it was from hitting F-grade and he''d overlooked it earlier. Was the limit so he couldn''t just stack skills to increase all of his attributes? Or something else? Three was better than one in any case, especially if this skill turned out to be a dud, though he hoped he could at least replace the skills if that happened. If he''d had a few more skill shards left, he might be able to test the theory. Unfortunately, he''d used them all for stats. Plus, they had all required adaptation, and he wasn''t sure that was something to use up on a whim. Stanley shrugged and put the knife into the sheath on his belt using his mind, and with some difficulty. Not only did he need more practice throwing it around but also in sheathing and drawing the weapon without his hands. Then he pulled it back out and kept it hovering beside him. Maybe better to have it ready, just in case. Also, he needed to practice carrying more than one thing at a time. He let Caffeine sleep in his lap as he carried himself, and a few bags stuffed with food, into the air. He went slowly since he wasn''t sure how long they''d been in there and didn''t know if the ''seeds'' might have regrown by now. It was quiet and less dark than he remembered in the store. It also wasn''t as cold... Though that could just be him hitting F-grade, and not a change in the weather. Either way, the improved lighting helped him scout the store. There were plants growing that he didn''t think had been there before. Even a few small flowers... though much smaller than the remains of their predecessors. Stanley was torn about attacking anything. He hadn''t forgotten the awful screaming, and he wasn''t sure if attacking one would set them all off. He attacked anyway. They might give cores, and it was worthwhile to test his power before heading back outside. They didn''t scream. Even when he crushed each plant into a pulpy ball. That it was extremely easy to do the crushing part was nice, but unfortunately, only one plant gave up a core. The biggest one. You have defeated the Lair: [Verdant Echo] The new queen is dead, but the seeds remain and will regrow if not destroyed. +0.1 Willpower Stanley absorbed the core; a boost to his willpower felt like a good way to start this off. He would give the next one to Caffeine. His good mood faltered when he was nearing the doors and both saw and heard the newcomers. Humans. A dozen of them, at least. He slowed and stuck near the ceiling as he watched them entering the store. He would have gone a different way to get out... if there was one, but they were blocking the only exit. "Do you think they¡¯re still here?" one of their voices drifted up. "How should I know?" another said. "The core was just sitting there..." Caffeine chose that moment to wake from his nap and sit up, then woofed at the people below. Seriously!? They heard it and looked up. "It''s the flying man!" That was... an odd reaction. "Get him!" That was even more odd... and threatening! Then one of them launched into the air directly toward him in a manner far too reminiscent of the fucker who tried to kill him. Stanley slapped him across the store without hesitation and without restraint. It was easy. He couldn''t tell if the guy was still ungraded or already an F-grade, but given the way he jumped, Stanley suspected the latter. Which meant his own power had increased significantly. The rest of the group didn''t like that, and Stanley had a dozen people charging him, all with weapons or glowing lights of some kind in their hands. He wasn''t confident in micro managing that many targets, especially while keeping Caffeine from jumping down to say hello. So instead, Stanley threw a bunch of... well, everything. He swept wide, scooping up anything that wasn''t nailed down, and threw it at the group. They yelled, some screamed, and the jumping fuck came soaring back. He was definitely F-grade... and sporting what looked like a bloody nose and fresh bruises all over his face. Meanwhile, his bloodshot eyes promised murder as he closed in... Stanley thrust his hand toward him, and the man slammed to a stop as if running into a bridge abutment at seventy-five miles an hour. The impact with an invisible wall did more damage to his face, though not nearly enough, but at least it wiped that fucking look from his eyes. Then Stanley closed his outstretched hand and those same eyes that promised murder a moment before now opened wide as the fucking moron finally understood who he was fucking with. Stanley squeezed his fist until his knuckles went white and his nails dug into his palm. His power reacted in kind. The man couldn''t scream, probably couldn''t breathe either, as Stanley slowly and inexorably crushed his body toward a smaller size than it was ever meant to be. Bones cracked, eyes bulged and no longer hungered for his blood. Now they begged... for mercy. The fierce gaze of a determined killer now pleaded for only a few more precious moments of life as he realized death had arrived. Stanley felt no mercy. Try to kill me!? You want to stab me in the heart and watch me fucking die!? Now it''s your turn to die! Your turn to watch the lights go out! So... Just... Fucking... Di... Caffeine sat up into Stanley''s face, blocking his view and licking furiously as the sound of his whining finally broke through the rage. The distraction was enough that Stanley dropped the man he''d been killing... who fell limply to crash into the rubble below. Stanley''s hands were shaking as he stared down at the limp figure. The memory of his near death had come back with a vengeance when he saw the man flying at him... but he didn''t really want to kill anyone. Did it matter what he wanted? They''d attacked him first... they wanted him dead. He had to kill them! It would be easy to. He could probably snap their necks with a little effort. Quick for them, easy for him. Everybody''s happy. Stanley wasn''t a monster. He didn''t have to make them suffer... Plus, the cores from a dozen people would help Caffeine a lot. The others were still picking themselves from the wreckage of thrown shelves when the jumping man stirred on the floor where he''d landed. The fucker was still alive! Voices screamed and shouted below. Various colored lights sprang up as people activated abilities or spells, and Stanley stretched his hand down toward the man, power wrapping around his head... just a little twist was all it would take... Caffeine GROWLED. It felt like the world stood still behind the rumbling roar of sound that was his growl, and Stanley himself sat stunned as the pug immediately turned away from the people below and started licking his face again. He''d forgotten that Caffeine wasn''t only a little pug anymore. He was powerful. He had fought and killed people that were trying to kill both of them. He was the Beast Lord. The whimpers and face-licking subsided as Stanley sat still in midair. Then Caffeine looked back at the people below... all of whom were standing stock still and staring up at them... and Caffeine huffed as he lay back down on Stanley''s crossed legs. Stanley took a slow, deep breath as he wiped the slobber from his face in the now silent store. "Why are you attacking me?" he asked in that silence. Of course, they could be after his core, just like the last group. But that first shout had been odd, as if they were looking for him specifically... But why? He didn''t know anyone in this city. Hell, he didn''t really know anyone in the world other than his brother. "You''re a murderer!" one shaky voice yelled up. "She told us what you were doing here!" someone else shouted with a little more courage. "You''re a monster!" She... Stanley had seen only one woman since this nightmare started. The one that got away... "That bitch!?" "There''s a dead guy... over there..." someone else shouted, pointing, and then wilted into silence when they looked up and met Stanley''s eyes. Stanley followed his pointing finger and there was indeed a dead guy. The man who had tried to kill him, tried to kill Caffeine, and then paid with his life. His corpse still lay where it had fallen, and it didn¡¯t look pretty after Stanley¡¯s¡­ assault with the monster¡¯s own knife earlier. "What did she tell you?" Stanley asked. "The bitch who blamed all of this on me. Did she tell you that her little group of killers begged me to help them and then ambushed me!?" He was yelling again... "Did she tell you that fucker stabbed me in the back!?" Stanley pointed at the corpse as he screamed. "He''s lying..." one of the more eager idiots said, without nearly enough conviction. A few mutters joined her voice as people started moving. The voice was a woman''s... Stanley wasn''t sure he could grab everyone, so he didn''t. Instead, he just pushed down the whole area they were in. Everyone collapsed. Boxes, shelves, and all the other crap Stanley had thrown at them, all crushed down under his invisible power. "They tried to kill me... and I killed them," Stanley said through clenched teeth as he flew closer. "If you want to do the same, then come and die." It was a strain to hold down so many people at once, but Stanley didn''t let up yet. He pushed harder until even their cries of pain cut off. Stanley used the creaking and groaning silence to look more closely at the two women in the group, neither of which was the one from before. So she wasn''t quite stupid enough to come back herself. No, instead she''d sent a bunch of morons to die in her place. It was on brand for that sociopath, at least. As for what to do with said morons... he could kill them all. That was an option, and he considered it. They clearly weren''t strong enough to stop him, which was one reason Stanley was really glad he''d gotten to F-grade before they showed up on their little heroic mission. But he didn''t really want to kill anyone else. Even if they dropped good cores... They might be idiot wannabe heroes taken in by the bitch''s lies, but they weren''t running a human slaughtering gang like the others. Probably. It was, of course, entirely possible that some of these fucks might have already killed other people, and they might just be using the lie as an excuse to claim his core. Still, if they would get out of his way, then Stanley would let them live. He had enough blood on his hands... all of it because a few greedy assholes couldn''t be bothered to hunt monsters instead of people. All of it justified. "You get one chance," Stanley finally said through his fresh pounding headache. "If you come near me again, if I see you again, I will kill you." Not that he would remember all their stupid faces... They stared at him, not moving for a long moment, not because they wanted to, but because he wouldn''t let them. He needed to send a message. To make sure they wouldn''t insist on dying in the future. Then he switched his downward push into a sideways force, and swept them all away from him, deeper into the store. That left the entrance clear, and Stanley didn''t wait any longer, flying outside at a breakneck speed. Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] It was only outside, while rising high into the sky, that Stanley noticed he was still carrying the extra bags of food... and the surprise distracted him from the notification. He''d forgotten they were there... or thought he had. Yet he hadn''t dropped them... It was a curious effect that he wasn''t expecting from his power. In fact, it was very similar to the way he held himself aloft without having to think about it most of the time. Definitely something to keep an eye on and hopefully improve, but the implications of it were good for his future. The fresh air and daylight were a nice change from the gloom of the store, and it almost felt too bright. Almost. Stanley killed a giant seagull that got too close by crushing it into a ball. It felt good. The power felt very good. Then he threw the bird ball toward the ocean. He was fairly high up and couldn''t tell if there might be people below him for it to fall on. He wasn''t a monster. It wasn''t that he cared that much about random morons. Someone dying out of sight and out of mind was one thing, but killing them directly himself was something else. Besides, most F-grades probably wouldn''t die from it falling on them, and if they weren''t F-grade yet... Why not? As far as he knew, no one else needed more than a dozen cores to get there. Though his only knowledge on that topic was¡­ limited. A couple people he¡¯d killed, and that last group he hadn¡¯t. They were all F-grade. With teamwork, it wouldn''t be that hard to kill the shit ton of rats or birds that he''d seen so far. That was assuming they didn''t have magic or skills to make it trivial. Or they could just kill each other. That seemed to do wonders for someone''s growth... The Lair he''d left behind was a new factor as well. One that might be a rare occurrence, or the reason it felt so quiet today... It was something to watch out for. Either to avoid, or to use as a hunting ground. He just needed to be a bit more careful about it, especially where other people were involved. Or screaming plants... 15. Hunter ~~~Lee~~~ Lee was covered in blood, and his clothes were ruined when he picked up his own brand new machete. "Fucking finally!" "Keep it down," Jake said. "We don''t know how many ticks might be left in here." Lee closed his mouth but kept smiling. Even when he saw Saira frowning at him, or more likely, at his language. The machete was perfect! He''d been worried after finding a few with melting handles, but the wooden grip on this one felt nice and solid. The blade was razor sharp, and he was going to make it even better. After slogging through thousands of fucking ticks, he finally had a good weapon. Sure, they still needed to gather food, and he now wanted new clothes before they went outside again, but it was good. At least his boxers were still holding up... Jake seemed to be the only one who shared Lee''s enthusiasm as he gathered up box after box of arrows. He even had a couple of extra bows slung over his shoulder. The others picked out weapons too, but they were all being downers complaining about being tired and hungry. Their clothes weren''t even close to being destroyed either! Lee already had his own duffel packed with extra machetes and smaller knives. Unfortunately, he had found no armor that didn''t incorporate plastic in the construction. So nothing usable. Instead of worrying about that, Lee focused on the blade in his hands. He wanted it to be something special, something better than he''d made before. That left him scouring his rune knowledge for ways to improve his previous enchants. The two runes he''d used before weren''t a bad choice. Making it tough and sharp pretty much covered the basics of any bladed weapon. But he wanted more. The problem was, what exactly? He could make the weapon weigh less, but it wasn''t all that heavy now, and he was pretty sure weapons needed some heft. Besides, he would be stronger soon enough. Lee couldn''t stop smiling when he thought of the cores stashed in his one intact pocket. It wasn''t a lot; he''d absorbed most of his acquisitions already. But not all of them. Jake had told them about the process of getting to F-grade, including how long it took and the fact that it would leave them helpless for the duration. Keeping that in mind, they had all held back a few points from whichever attribute was least important to them. They could take turns ranking up, and with Jake here, it should be fine, but no one wanted to do that except Lee. Sure, they''d been out here for hours now, but it was like they didn''t understand just how vulnerable they all were. Like they had forgotten the giant hawk... He was tempted to ask Mar if she could make him invisible while he ranked up and then offer to watch over her in exchange. Or he could ask Jake... maybe as a trade for enchanting some arrows. Though he already owed the guy for his help so far... Jake''s fighting prowess should have sent every one of them clamoring to rank up. The man could have killed everything here by himself, yet they all wanted to wait till they got home. As if anywhere was actually safe... though, his enchanted apartment would be slightly safer. Why Jake even bothered with them, Lee wasn''t sure. He finally decided on the runes for his blade. One to make it tough, one for sharpness, with a third tacked on that should let him adjust the area of sharpening past the actual blade. Then one final rune to add the extra mana he would need to maintain the effect he wanted. A battery rune hadn''t occurred to him until he realized he would need it, and then the rune knowledge had supplied the requisite symbol. He needed extra power because he was tired of the metal getting stuck on something, even though it should cut right through. With the new rune, he could project the sharpness out past the actual blade. Doing so would drain power, which was why he needed extra, but also why he needed a way to turn it on and off. Otherwise, it wouldn''t last long without constant recharging, and it would be impossible to put away even in an enchanted sheath. He was halfway through the third rune when the floor shook underneath his feet. Lee heard Jake yelling something, but he couldn''t stop or look away from what he was doing. A nearby explosion vibrated against his eardrums... Then, an eternity later, he finished the rune and looked up. Not again... The massive shape barreled down on him, coming on like a freight train to his frozen deer on the tracks. An exploding arrow lit up the monster for an instant and revealed it to be a tick. A tick to rival all the rest. The bloated abdomen was easily over twenty feet tall, while the horrifying mouth of barbs and hooks plunged in like a spear toward him, not redirected even slightly by the explosion. Lee''s shield sat on the floor beside him. He''d set it down to enchant the machete. It wasn''t far, only a foot away from his reaching hand. A foot that might as well be a mile for all the good it would do him. At least he wouldn''t get swallowed this time¡ªthe tick didn''t really have a mouth. Though getting impaled by the monstrosity coming his way would probably still kill him, but at least it would be fast... He had one last desperate option... a terrible one that he feared might have the same end result of killing him. Only, it wouldn''t be just him that died... Sorry, Stanley, he thought, hand... reaching... up... This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ~~~Jake~~~ Jake had joined this small group, mostly out of curiosity, but also to see what other people might be capable of. It was rather disappointing to find out that he was the only F-grade among them. It was odd, too, because Lee had been hunting the night before, and Jake knew he''d picked up more than enough cores from the frogs. Maybe he''d shared them? It was possible, but unlikely. Lee was hiding something, that was for sure. What exactly he was hiding, Jake was still trying to figure out. He knew there were some others at the complex that had reached F-grade. Some had gone hunting, but he''d seen a few scrounging the cores left behind by Alejandro... That was a dirty move, but if the man hadn''t protested, then it wasn''t Jake''s place to make it an issue. Personally, he would have killed them. Or at least threatened to do so. Despite their weakness, it was a solid team. They had a healer with Saira. Mar could be a good scout, though she needed some practice. Sandy was solid, and she would be devastating once she ranked up. Larry was... better than nothing. Probably. He was a bit too cocky for his actual skill level. With Alejandro, they had a great tank, one that wasn''t afraid of taking a hit, and Jake was looking forward to him ranking up as well. Lee was the odd one. He wasn''t a fighter. Clearly evident by his complete lack of skill with his weapon. But that was also where the oddity started, with his so-called enchants. First off, the guy used way too much mana for each one. Jake had been sensitive to mana since this started, and no one used anything close to that. Secondly, he didn''t think enchanting was supposed to be that strong. A damn dull ass piece of fence post had cut him like it was nothing. The knife Lee enchanted for him had so far cut everything he put it up against, and it wasn''t getting dull. The van door should have buckled from the hawk''s attack, but it hadn''t even gotten scratched. While it could be just the excessive mana pulling its weight, Jake suspected there was something else. He could feel it every time the man enchanted something, and then to a lesser degree when the hawk hit the shield and that symbol flared. It was a weird feeling that somehow felt... wrong. That was the best he could make of it for now. But he would figure it out, eventually. Lastly, was the broken regeneration. It was strong enough that Lee acted as his own tank most of the time. It was a good thing he had that because the guy was so bad at fighting that he''d be dead if not for his regeneration. Jake had to give him props, though. He kept coming back for more abuse, despite the obvious pain. The man was driven, that was for sure, and after his little outburst earlier, Jake was even more curious. He was keeping his ears open as he collected the spoils of this trip, and cursed silently when he felt the surge of mana from the so-called enchanter. A stupidly ridiculous amount of mana. He should have told him not to enchant anything... Jake was fairly sure Lee making the shields had been what drew the hawk down on them earlier. It was surprising that making the lights outside hadn''t drawn something in, and that had been a trickle to what he was feeling now... Given that, it wasn''t so shocking when he wasn''t the only one to notice. Only it wasn''t one of the group who did so, but a monster. He both heard and saw it coming. "Lee, stop that!" he yelled, even as he funneled mana into an arrow. Lee ignored him. And then it was too late. The monster charged past Jake, despite his own mana building for an attack, intent on Lee. He fired the arrow... and it had almost no effect. Jake could see that he''d done some damage, but the monster was just too big and its momentum carried it unerringly toward Lee. The guy was toast. Sure, he had some crazy regeneration, but Jake doubted it would be enough when his entire torso was gone. Though, he was curious to see if it might be... Alejandro came through in the clutch, blurring into the space in front of Lee an instant before the collision. He took the hit meant for the other man on his enchanted van door. A hit Jake doubted he himself would survive. But once again, the strange symbol lit up like a shining beacon and the door completely failed to break. He didn''t stop the charge¡ªthat would have been something else entirely. Still, they both avoided death for the moment. The impact sent Alejandro crashing into Lee, and they both flew back, crashing through a couple of shelves before slamming to a stop against the wall. Jake fired his next arrow, this one pumped with as much mana as it could take without crumbling on the string. He wasn''t sure if ticks had eyes or where they were and couldn''t see anything that stood out, so he aimed for a leg joint. That worked much better than shooting its face, and the lower leg actually blasted free from the body. The tick had ignored his previous attack, but the last one definitely got its attention. It turned on him far faster than its bulk should have allowed. One leg swiped at him, and Jake hopped over it as another arrow started glowing on the string. He ducked another swinging leg and hoped back to avoid the stomping follow-up. Then his arrow was charged enough and Jake shot for another leg joint. Jake knew the tick was at least F-grade, but felt like it was stronger somehow. Especially when it dodged his arrow. Luckily, he wasn''t shooting toward the others, and it exploded harmlessly among the shelves. Jake was already charging another as he back-flipped away from its jaws, then had to fire early to deflect a leg that came after him in midair. In the distance, he saw Alejandro back on his feet and digging Lee out of the wreckage. His view vanished behind the bulky monster as it relentlessly pursued him, and Jake smiled. He was still smiling when he took a glancing blow in exchange for blasting another leg from the tick. The hit sent him tumbling through the air, but he landed in an aisle and rolled across the floor before turning his tumble into a running sprint. The bug chased on. It felt odd that the only sounds it made were its feet and body destroying whatever merchandise it rolled over. No screaming when he shot it, and nothing that sounded like anger when he wounded it. Though it sure seemed pissed with the way it came after him. His next arrow was deflected by its horrifying jaws and it detonated against the creature''s bulbous abdomen. The damage wasn''t as much as he would have liked, but enough got through to leave a small hole. What came out of that hole was much worse. Eggs. The eggs were the size of golf balls, slimy, and clear enough that he could see something squirming inside. There were also hundreds of them. Though he revised that estimate in the thousands after they just kept spilling out. It was possible that they were too young and wouldn''t survive outside the mother, but Jake knew better than to bet on it. He narrowly dodged another leg strike, then jumped off the spiky mouth to throw himself away. The long hang time before he came back down let him put two more arrows into the bug. He didn''t have time to pack much mana into the arrows, but together they removed another leg. Jake was still smiling when Alejandro caught up, and he yelled over the racket of the store''s destruction. "This one''s mine. You can have the eggs." This was a real fight. Not like picking off frogs the night before, or killing the baby ticks. This was a life or death battle against a dangerous opponent that was doing its damnedest to kill him. He loved it... and he couldn''t wait to fight that giant hawk when he saw it again. 16. Boom. Headshot. ~~~Lee~~~ Lee had seen Jake fight before this, but the smooth motions and almost casual killing of the ticks couldn''t compare to the show the man was putting on now. The new bus-sized tick couldn''t even touch him, no matter how hard it tried. That''s F-grade, Lee thought. Fuck waiting. I wanna rank up now. "We should help," Alejandro said as he watched the fight move further away toward the back of the store. "If he says it''s his, then let him have it. Besides... I don''t think he needs our help." Lee cut another of the disgusting eggs almost in half without touching it. His new enchanted machete was great and worked the way he''d hoped with an invisible cutting edge extending past the blade. Making it had almost got him killed... but it was still great. It was so great that he could no longer put it in a sheath... The on-off switch hadn''t worked as planned. The tick egg didn''t give up a core. None of them did... it was a total waste of time to even kill them. A better option might be to leave them and see if they would grow up to be core bearing ticks. He suggested as much. The response was not positive. Just because it was absolutely disgusting to pull them out of your flesh, and the way they exploded in blood showers sometimes when they died, and how occasionally someone didn''t notice when they were carrying one of the bloodsuckers... What did all that matter? They were easy to kill otherwise, and it was extremely unlikely any of them would die to the ''relatively'' little ticks. Jake was kicking the big one''s ass, and once it was gone, this place would be almost safe. You have Defeated the Lair [Bloodless Den] The queen is dead, but her eggs remain. A new queen will rise if they are not eliminated. "Called it," Lee said. "We should totally not kill them all." No one agreed. "Guys, we got more cores in here than we ever would have outside. Even the frogs couldn''t compare to this!" Jake chose the moment to come sauntering back, a larger than usual core gleaming as he tossed it up and down. He was grinning. "I agree with Lee," he said to the group. "Though I don''t really care either way. I''m betting these Lairs won''t be rare. We can probably find more nearby... maybe even in the other stores around here." "I..." Lee couldn''t argue with that. If they really hated the ticks, then... "We don''t know what monsters will be in the other Lairs. Could be worse..." "Could be better," Larry said and smashed an egg with his hammer. "I don''t like these," Alejandro said. "They are too sneaky. Anyone alone will probably die to them without even noticing what happened." Saira didn''t weigh in. She looked exhausted... and ridiculous carrying around a small tree. Sandra was busy smacking eggs with her staff, while Lee could feel Mar skirting the edges of the whole mess. "Fine. Kill em," Lee said, giving up on that idea in favor of a better one. He turned to Jake. "While they do that, you mind watching out for me while I grade up?" "Didn''t you want to do it inside your magic building?" "I''m sick of being a punching bag for everything out here... and it doesn''t take that long, does it?" Jake laughed. "You do realize that getting to F-grade won''t teach you how to fight, right?" "I''ll be stronger. Tougher. Have a better chance of surviving..." He really wanted to survive. He had to. That feeling of Stanley almost dying... it had felt like he would die, too. Which meant if he failed here, then Stanley was doomed. Lee wouldn''t be the weak link. Not like he just was until Alejandro saved him... "My best guess is that it took about an hour," Jake said. He glanced at the eggs. "This isn''t going to take that long... but I don''t mind a break." He looked at the others. "Up to the rest of you, though I suppose we could carry him if we need to leave." "We still need to gather food and other supplies," Alejandro said. "I think we will have time, and I will kill Lee''s share if you are willing to stay with him." He also looked tired, but still smiled at Lee. "Great, I''ll hook all of you up with an enchant after this," Lee said before anyone else could object. He dug his cores from the one intact pocket left in his pants and looked at Jake. "Anything else I should know?" "Follow your dreams," Jake said. "Don''t piss into the wind... always look on the bright..." "Nevermind then." Lee sat down against one of the few shelves still standing and absorbed the first of his cores. +0.1 Strength Strength has reached the F-Grade Threshold. Lee closed his eyes, bracing himself... and felt something wrong in the distance. "God damn it!" So much for his plan. He stood up and pocketed the core. "Alejandro, something is attacking the building..." "What? Are you sure? How do you know?" Alejandro looked ready to run back then and there. "All I know is that something is draining the runes. They don''t do that without an outside force..." Jake was eyeing him now. His gaze flicking between the various enchanted weapons and shields. Lee had told no one that they were runes before... "Will it hold?" Alejandro asked. "Not forever..." Lee focused on what he could feel. "Not very long either..." It was draining, but it wasn''t steady. Rather, he could feel periodic bursts, as if something was hitting it intermittently. Like, say, giant frogs jumping around. "I have to go!" Alejandro grabbed his weapon bag and looked around briefly. "I will come back..." "We should not split up," Saira said. "We will go with you." Jake picked up two huge duffels that contained every arrow in the building, as well as some extra blades. "Let''s run." He was the only one who didn''t look exhausted. Everyone else grabbed what bags they''d collected. Not as much as any of them wanted, but all they''d had time for. None of them looked happy about the idea of running back, and Lee felt the same. It wasn''t that far, and he didn''t feel tired per se... but... "I need food," Lee said. Jake stopped, picked something off the floor, and tossed it at him. Lee caught the bag of sugar. All natural, fine grain, brown sugar. It was... not a bad idea. He knew his lack of fatigue related to his hunger somehow. Like he was regenerating his muscles, so they never got tired and sore. If he could feed that machine with sugar... Well, it would be convenient if nothing else. Alejandro was almost at the doors when Lee caught up, and Jake was in the lead, already heading outside. The backpack stuffed with knives and machetes bounced off his back with every step. It was heavy. The shield on his arm and machete in his hand were almost as heavy. The bag of sugar was supremely hard to eat with only one free hand and while running. Lee was in the process of simply pouring a mouthful of sugar down his throat as they emerged into the sunlight, and he closed his eyes against the glare. Jake''s sudden shout vanished behind an explosion against the side of Lee''s head. ... He may have lost a few seconds because when he opened his eyes, he saw a strange man lying on the asphalt in front of him. One of the stranger''s eyes was wide open and staring, and the other a bloody gaping hole around the arrow embedded through it. Lee screamed as he scrambled away, and sound rushed back in all around him. He looked up and saw another man go down with an arrow through his chest. Following the trajectory of the arrow, he saw Jake backflip away from a lunging figure that moved as fast as the archer. The attacker''s hands glowed with a crimson light in the shape of large claws. His attack missed Jake by a hair, and then the archer fired completely wide of the man. Lee followed that attack and saw the arrow stick right through the side of another man''s head, dropping him like a rock. He dropped Lee''s machete as he fell... Hey... that''s mine! He''d been attacking Alejandro with three others, and one of them cursed and stepped back at the other man''s death. Alejandro took advantage and slammed his shield into the second opponent while his machete took off the third''s arm. Blood sprayed, and men screamed. Behind him, Saira was on her hands and knees over another figure on the ground. What the hell is happening!? Lee had notifications waiting, and he checked them as he scrambled to his feet. Debuff: [Concussed] Debuff: [Extreme Burn] Debuff: [Skull Fracture] That stopped him for a second in shock. He''d survived all that... Debuff Removed: [Skull Fracture] Debuff Downgraded: [Burn] Debuff Removed: [Concussed] Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. It was then that he finally noticed how hot and painful his face felt... in fact, most of his upper body felt... seared. Lee spotted his bag of sugar on the ground next to him, still somewhat intact, though the paper was smoldering. He grabbed a fistful and shoved it into his mouth as he looked for his shield. He found the shield a dozen feet away and scrambled after it. His backpack was still on his back, but clearly not doing well because he felt a few things fall out as he ran, almost tripping him. Lee grabbed his shield, feeling slightly better about his odds, and headed for his machete. Only when he glanced back at Alejandro, he realized Larry had picked it up, and he was using it to help Alejandro defend Saira. Their opponents were clearly wary of both men''s blades, but more so of Larry''s new addition. Given the three unmoving bodies around them that weren''t sprouting arrows, they''d learned the hard way not to fuck with enchanted weapons. Lee didn''t even bother to worry about Jake and ran to help Alejandro. He was almost there when the asphalt next to Saira abruptly leaped up and wrapped around her. "Stop or she dies!" a voice yelled, and Lee realized it was coming from the... asphalt. "Drop your weapons!" Lee slid to a stop but didn''t drop his shield as both Alejandro and Larry turned to the newcomer. Neither of them dropped their weapons, either, and they shifted warily to monitor the other attackers at the same time. The black stone-like substance around her thinned as it lifted the woman upright. It covered her mouth but left her wide eyes exposed. A human face emerged next to Saira''s as the color shifted into a more skin-like appearance. The fleshy looking wrap split open around her waist and an appendage plucked the knife from her belt. The... thing kept her mouth covered but exposed her throat to press the blade point first into her neck. "Drop everything!" Jake and his opponent had stopped as well, and they faced off with a drawn bow versus glowing claw-hands. Claw man spoke first. "We just wanted your stuff, but now that you''ve killed some of my men..." He grinned at Jake. "I think we''ll be taking your healer as well." "Not going to happen," Jake said, his bow trained unmoving on the other man. "It''s that, or she dies and I kill the rest of you. Leave now and you might still get out alive." "I have another offer," Jake said. "All of you run away and I''ll only attack this man in front of me. If he survives until you get out of sight, then you live. Otherwise, you all die. You have five seconds to choose." "Jake, no!" Alejandro exclaimed and tossed his machete to the ground. "Let her go!" Larry looked less ready to disarm, which meant he was smarter than Alejandro. Lee didn''t have a weapon... but he could feel one moving up behind Saira and her captor. Mar was still alive. "Tick Tock," the face said from the flesh prison around Saira. "Oh no, my hand is slipping!" Saira squirmed as a bead of red appeared beneath the knifepoint on her throat. "Will you just let her die? He''ll really do it." the clawed man laughed. "No," Jake said, "he won''t." and Lee felt his runes on Mar''s blade leap forward right as Jake abruptly turned and fired his arrow toward Saira. The grinning face stiffened, the knife falling slightly from Saira''s neck, and then an arrow sprouted in his eye. Chaos erupted from the temporary calm. Alejandro dove in to grab Saira, while Larry cut one lunging attacker with a wild swing that didn''t physically touch him. Lee''s new enchant was really paying off. Mar was screaming as she flickered in and out of view while stabbing at the flailing... thing. The thing that condensed back into a human man as its struggles ended... Jake sacrificed his bow when the clawed man immediately pounced after his attack. He blocked the glowing claws with it, and the bow snapped with a loud twang as the pieces flew. He took the next swipe in his side, and in exchange, plunged his own runed knife up into the bottom of the man''s jaw, straight into his brain. They froze in that position for a second, then Jake twisted the knife and ripped it out. The glowing claws vanished, and the man fell limp. The two men facing off with Larry saw what happened, and they both took off running. Larry didn''t give chase, but Jake walked calmly to one of his duffels and pulled out a new bow. It only took a single deft movement for him to place the string. Then two arrows snapped out in less than two seconds, and it was over. Lee felt a little useless as he stood there in the aftermath. He''d done nothing to help. Though his enchants had probably done some good... He turned back when it was clear the fight was over and grabbed his charred bag of sugar. He tried very hard not to look at the dead body next to it. He was shoving fistfuls into his mouth and funneling mana into his shield when he arrived with the others. The lost charge on the shield runes meant it had probably blocked some of that explosion that almost killed him. Lee just hoped the experience hadn''t fucked with Stanley... and he lifted the heavy shield a bit higher to block his head better. Lee didn''t bother to ask what had happened; it was obvious. All he could do to help was add mana to people''s runed gear. They weren''t too low, and Alejandro''s shield was the worst. Likely from blocking against an equally enchanted machete. "Lee," Alejandro said, wide-eyed but smiling. "Jake told Saira to leave you and that you would be fine... I am very glad he was right!" Lee shot a dubious look at the archer, but when he finally caught sight of Sandra, he understood. The woman looked bad. One side of her entire body was burnt and raw; a few spots even looked charred. Saira had one arm around an invisible Mar while the other was resting lightly on Sandra''s unburnt side. The small tree next to her was dying at a visible rate. "Good call," Lee said, swallowing back his nausea when he caught a whiff of cooked meat... and his stomach growled. He turned away and started pouring the sugar into his mouth while refusing to acknowledge what his stomach thought. Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] Jake had been right about the sugar. But Lee needed more... and there was still one problem. "The building is still under attack..." It felt wrong, but they needed to get moving. Was saving Sandra really worth potentially losing Alejandro''s family and everyone else in the building? "Another tree! Hurry!" Saira said, and Jake leaped thirty feet to the nearest one, ripped it up by the roots, and bounded back to her side. "Jake," Alejandro said, "you can go save them. Please! You are faster than any of us. Please save my family!" "I guess." Jake let Saira touch his bloodied side briefly as he took one last look around, then picked up his bags and sprinted away faster than any human could pre-system. Lee could see Sandra getting better already, and since he couldn''t pull up trees to assist and was too hungry to go sprinting home, he headed back into the store. He picked up the cores from the dead men on his way, eyes going wide and mind spinning at what he found. He didn''t absorb them, though; they weren''t his kills. He didn''t go far inside, just to the checkout area. Where he promptly started eating every candy bar he found, melting plastic and all. At this point, he didn''t care about eating some plastic, and he doubted it could do anything bad to him anyway. They were delicious. Partly because it was candy, but mostly he suspected because of his hunger. Still, the experience waned as it went on. He found both glass bottles and cans of coffee in the dead coolers, and that helped to wash more of it down. Buff Gained: [Caffeinated] "Huh." Lee looked at the buff, feeling a sudden pang of loneliness for a small dog named after the beverage. He really hoped the pug was okay... Stanley would take care of him... if he could. Please be okay. Both of you. [Caffeinated](59:58) Effects: +5% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes -5% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes for Equal duration after Buff expires. Five percent didn''t matter either way, and Lee kept eating and drinking. Until, finally... Debuff Removed: [Thirsty] Debuff Removed: [Hungry] Despite his new and growing distaste for all things sweet, Lee still wanted to stock up. His brand new backpack was ruined by whatever that explosion had been, and all the shopping bags were a melted mess. Running all the way back there to get another one in the dark store was... not appealing. Luckily, the clothing department was right behind the registers. Lee quickly changed out of his rags and dressed in sweats and a t-shirt. He grabbed a few extras of each, and then a few more that he tied into makeshift sacks. He kept hearing noises from deeper in the store the whole time and was more than ready to leave once he''d stolen enough candy for twenty people. He would''ve felt slightly better with his sword and shield, but Larry still had his machete, and he''d left the shield outside. That was the only reason he was nervous. He didn''t fear the monsters. Larry saw him eyeing the blade as he returned to the others, and the man reluctantly offered it back. "You dropped it." "Keep it," Lee said. The man had earned it, even if he refused to ask earlier. Larry had fought and risked his life as much as anyone. He should use something better than a plain hammer... "Or do you want me to enchant the hammer?" "I''ll... keep it," Larry said. "But... what could you do for the hammer?" Lee wasn''t sure. He''d been rather focused on bladed technology of late. "I''ll have to think about it. Just bring it with you and I''ll see what I can come up with." The group had moved away from the dead bodies by now, though it was only to reach another tree in the parking lot. Sandra was looking fantastic compared to earlier, and she opened her eyes at his approach. "You... you''re alive, too?" Her voice was scratchy, and Lee offered her one of the stolen coffees. "All I found that wasn''t melted." She took it and drank greedily with shaking hands. Lee handed out more to the others and then offered an extra t-shirt and pair of sweatpants to Sandra. She was rather exposed after having half of her clothes burned to ash. Lee couldn''t help it when his eyes flicked downward. He quickly looked back up... and found her eyes on his. He turned away even faster... Sandra caught his hand as she sat up. "Thank you." Lee didn''t look back at her. It wasn''t her nakedness that bothered him. He''d just remembered her burned flesh from earlier... and remembered that was probably what he''d looked like as well. How bad must he have looked last night that Jake thought he''d be fine here? "It''s nothing. Glad you''re okay." Saira helped her get dressed while Larry and Alejandro kept a lookout. Lee just stared into space as his hands clenched and unclenched. I''ll be F-grade soon... I will survive this. "I can''t believe you healed from that without her," Larry said beside him. "Thought Jake had written you off... or he had a thing for the girl." "I have some really good..." Lee closed his eyes and took deep breaths. "I heal. If I ever go down, just try to get some food into me..." His secret was out big time now. He might as well trust them all with the hunger part, too. "We should go. The building is still getting hit..." "How can you tell?" Larry asked. "Who knows? Just how my class works, I guess." They didn''t have everything they''d come for, but it was time to leave anyway. Everyone was tired, though Lee felt more mentally and emotionally drained than physically. Mar only appeared a few times, and each time her eyes were wide and staring at nothing while her hands twisted against each other. Her hands, which were still stained with blood. Saira tried to talk with her, but the girl was even more withdrawn than before. Lee offering her the core from the man or creature that attacked her mother didn''t help. He figured Jake wouldn''t mind giving her credit for that one... but Mar vanished, and Saira glared at him. Sandra leaned on her staff with each step while Larry and Alejandro seemed the least down. In fact, Alejandro was so eager to get back he set a grueling pace the others couldn''t match. He repeatedly asked Lee about the building, and if it was still holding. Lee was somewhat surprised because it was indeed still holding. Sure, it was losing power every dozen seconds or so, but it wasn''t drained yet. It had been a really big rune... maybe that was why? Of course, it was still losing power. Which meant that Jake hadn''t killed whatever was attacking them... or something else was going on. Lee didn''t want to meet whatever that man couldn''t kill. But he had no choice when they were only halfway home. "I have to run ahead." "We should stick together..." Saira started. "I don''t plan to fight anything, but I can recharge the runes if I get inside. Once I''m in there, I''ll be safe. I''ll make sure your family is safe," Lee said the last bit to Alejandro. He really hoped they weren''t dead already... they should be okay if they stayed inside, but he hadn''t enchanted his neighbor''s windows... Maybe Alejandro saw something on his face, or he was just too worried about his family, because he insisted on coming along. Saira didn''t like it, but wouldn''t leave Sandra. Larry stood straighter next to the women. "I''ll protect them." He hefted the machete and nodded at Lee. Lee started running. He didn''t have time to argue. Alejandro ran with him for a while, but started slowing after the first block. Lee didn''t slow. He sprinted flat out and his muscles just... never got tired. Debuff: [Hungry] 17. Trusst in me. ~~~Maria~~~ Maria watched from the window as Alejandro once again threw himself into harm''s way. He was a fool. The gods'' damned idiot would risk his life for strangers when he should stay at her side and protect his family. Then the hawk fled, and the foreign woman lay her hands on him. Maria touched the butter knife strapped to her belt. The woman was a healer. That was all it was. That bird had been less terrifying than the frogs, but only because she could see it coming. Facing those tongues in the dark... fearing at any moment they would snatch her children away... Outside, Alejandro stood again, presumably healed by the woman, and Maria watched him leave with a heavy heart. She had tested the weapon her new neighbor gifted. Despite looking as dull as ever, it was sharper than a razor. In fact, it was too sharp. So much so that it was dangerous to carry. She cobbled something together to keep it from harming her or the children, but it sat heavy on her waist. It was magic, and it was dangerous. But she would not set it aside because the world had just become much more dangerous overnight. Maria didn''t like the magic, not any of it. It wasn''t right. This was a trick of some kind. A trap. There would be a cost for this power because nothing ever comes for free, especially not for people like them. She just didn''t know what the price would be in the end, or if any of them could afford not to pay it... Meanwhile, Alejandro had embraced the magic without hesitation. His readiness and willingness to fight had protected them, so she shouldn''t complain, but she still did not trust it. Then he''d abandoned her to go save others. True, he had defended her and the children first... Maria hadn''t thought she could love him more, but seeing him literally fighting for them... It had stirred something inside her, something primal. Then he had left her with the neighbor, and it had been safe in his magic apartment, but Alejandro had still left. Then the neighbor had left as well... Lee. That man had his own magic to protect himself, yet had still let them in. He had complained about it, and then threatened them when cornered, but he had helped. More than most did last night. When he left and came back mostly naked but completely unharmed, Maria knew he was hiding something. Still, she''d fed him at Alejandro''s insistence. He had provided protection, not just to her, but to everyone in the building, apparently. Of course, that meant she had no more food today. Which led to Alejandro leaving her behind again. Lee joined Alejandro as the man left. Her love had told her to stay inside the magic building and wait while he went to fight monsters. Except he had no choice this time. His children would need to eat and they had no car to go shopping. No phones to call for help. Nothing but each other. Maria watched him disappear down the street and touched the knife again, then took Gabriel''s hand in hers. His little sister, Anita, sat on her hip in the other arm. She was doing better than her big brother, not yet old enough to understand what was happening. But Gabriel was struggling as so many things changed overnight. Maria would hopefully give him a bit of normalcy today. Seeing his friends, maybe some play time if their rooms were in better shape than her own apartment. There were many people in the building with her, and more in the surrounding complex. Some she knew, and some she did not. Too few of them would be grateful for the protection her husband had so selflessly given them by hunting the frogs and saving their lives. Too many of them had likely seen the cores by now. Which meant the predators would emerge, if they hadn''t already. Still, it would be a waste not to capitalize on what Alejandro started. To remind them who had stood up for them when they needed it. Maria knew others in the complex that might prove themselves allies, while some she did not expect to survive for long. She needed to search them out, see who remained, and prepare her family for the days to come. There would likely be some with useful magic, and while she did not trust it, they all would need it. In the meantime, Maria could not leave the children, so they would have to come with her. It was dangerous outside, and she wouldn''t risk taking them with Alejandro on his trip. Especially not after that bird¡­ But here in the complex, well, she was not completely helpless. Alejandro''s selfless heart, while a weakness, was one thing she would never wish to change. She loved him for that. She truly did. So instead, she would support him in his dreams, and would have his back. She would be the thorn to protect his rose of a heart. Would be ready for any who threatened her family, any who tried to take advantage of Alejandro''s generosity. They would find out that roses have thorns. Sharp, deadly, thorns. Maria checked on Elana first. The woman lived two doors down and one floor lower. They were friends, of a sort, and their children had the occasional playtime together. "Elana, it''s Maria." She called through the broken windows and knocked on the door. The woman didn''t answer, but her husband did, opening the door with bloodshot eyes and a filthy face. "Maria. She is... in the back." He let her in, and Maria followed him to the bedroom. Elana was on her bed, little Amelio clutched in her arms as she cried and rocked back and forth. Her other son, the older boy, had not survived the night. It was a terrifying and heartbreaking event, but the woman needed to pull herself together or she would lose everything else. Maria did not say that. One day. She would give the woman one day of grief before laying out the hard truths. Life could be very cruel at times, but it did not care if you were already wounded when it came back around to collect again. Elana''s husband was dirty. He''d been searching for the remains... for a burial. He hadn''t found what he sought. Maria left them with a heavy heart and a tighter hold on her own children. They would survive. Even if it killed her, Maria would see them survive this! A few more of the neighbors were next. None with the tragedy of immediate loss, but all were still in shock from the night''s events. Maria learned what magic they could provide as she went door to door, searching for solutions to the more pressing needs. Her first hope was that someone could test and or prepare the dead monsters littering the complex, including the corpse in the courtyard. That was where she found a man she had seen before but whose name she didn''t know. He was busy cutting pieces from the frog and placing them on an oven tray when she spotted him. "Are you planning to eat it?" Maria asked. He replied in a language she didn''t know, before switching to English, a language she barely knew... "I will cook?" he said. "Safe... for... eat?" Maria grimaced at her terrible English, but it seemed to work because the man started jabbering excitedly. She wasn''t sure if his English was terrible or her own comprehension wasn''t up to it, but she barely caught more than a few words. When it was over, the gist seemed to be that he could tell if something was edible, and he also had skills to cook it. Though he would need to make a fire, since they had no gas or electricity. Maria could not help him gather firewood. Not without leaving the children more exposed than she was willing to risk. But she told him which apartments in their building were now vacant... he could burn furniture if nothing else. She wasn''t sure what giant frogs might taste like... but she promised to return and moved on. It would be so much easier if everyone spoke Spanish... She went on from there. Going building to building. Cautiously, with an eye on the sky. Along the way, she found others doing the same, with groups forming as survivors banded together, and many more magics among them. A young girl could make water. Clear, clean tasting water that she filled tubs with. The magic was hard, and the girl could not do very much without rest, but it was a good start. Not enough for bathing, but maybe in time. For now, it would assist with their survival. That was excellent, and Maria implored her to move into her enchanted building, where it would be safer, but to no avail. Stubborn child. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. There were others with magic that would make life better in the days to come, but none so vital as the first. Aside from those, there were far too many men playing with violent magic as if it were a toy. Most, if not all, had hidden through the night. They did not know the dangers waiting for them and acted as if this were a game. Some were merely excited about magic becoming a reality, but a few had already seen the potential for domination. A few had even hunted their way to greater heights of power and sought to leverage that strength over everyone else. Those were the ones that could not be allowed to endanger the lives of her family. "What''s your class, lady?" one of these men said to her. He had two friends, and they''d chosen to meet her here, between the buildings, where no other eyes were watching. The way of cowards and predators. "If it''s good, you can join our team. If not, then I hope you have some other useful skills or..." He stalked closer as he spoke. Looked over her body with poisonous eyes. She knew eyes like that. Full of threat, drunk on his new power, and looking to leverage it¡­ then those eyes landed on the children. "Be a shame if¡­" Those were his last words. Maria did not like the magic, but she did not ignore it, either. This ''system'', as they called it, had labeled her as a medic. Likely because of her time as a nurse. A combat medic, to be precise. Maria didn''t care what it called her, but one skill it granted was useful in dealing with threats. Maria let go of Gabriel''s hand and triggered the skill with a thought. Rescue Shift. She had practiced using it before, of course. It was a weapon, and in a world where anyone and everyone had just been handed a potentially lethal weapon, it did not help to ignore your own. The magic pulled her in a blurring rush to its target, the man who had just threatened her family. She knew it was meant to help her save wounded warriors, to reach them fast and heal them with her other skills. But it didn''t only have to be used in such a way. It moved her faster than she could fully track with her eyes, but it always put her in the same spot. That is, if she didn''t focus carefully. If she controlled the skill, and held a knife in just the right position... thrust it forward at the perfect moment... It would slide between the ribs, sever the artery, and slide back out with minimal mess. Doing so with an enchanted butter knife made it all the easier. Rescue Shift. An instant later, and with merely another thought, she was at Gabriel''s side again and took his hand. Maria turned him around before the now silent man started falling, his confused expression not yet comprehending that it was over. She did not turn away with Gabriel. Her eyes remained fixed on the dead man''s compatriots as she waited to see how they responded. It was only thanks to Alejandro that she allowed them this chance. A chance for redemption, a chance to prove they were not the monsters they appeared to be. One chance. She would let nothing endanger her family. His friends did not take the chance she offered. They did not flee to save themselves, but raised their own weapons, red light springing up from them. It was just as well. Always better to eliminate dangers such as these at the first sign, before they get any stronger. Maria had seen all too well what happened to the innocents when men like these ran rampant. She would never forget how much it could cost... Her parents begging for their lives... the screams, the blood... and then fighting for her own life when it was already too late... when she had already lost everything. She had barely survived the human monsters that day, her own life left hanging by a thread, but with the monsters dead at her feet. Maria hadn''t cared if she had died then. Everyone she loved was already gone. But she didn''t die. It felt so wrong at the time. To carry on in the darkness that was this world. She carried on anyway; it was what her mother would have wanted. But she never dared to hope for happiness again. Everything changed when Alejandro had come into her life... A rising sun after such a long night, and he had filled her life with a warmth she thought impossible. He had shown her that there were still good people. Truly good. He had given her two children. Her precious angels. And Maria would let no one take her family from her again. Not giant frogs or terrifying birds, and definitely not these jumped up thugs. No One! Rescue Shift. Rescue Shift. Rescue Shift. Three more times was all she needed, though it left her feeling drained. Not the killing; that was merely putting down a sick animal. A necessity. No, it was a different feeling, but one Maria already understood well enough. It was her mana. Her magic used it up, but it would come back. It always did. Though using the skill with Anita in her arms was much worse than without. It definitely cost more when she carried another with her. Gabriel didn''t even have time to look back before she was holding his hand again. "Gabriel. Can you stand right here and count the windows on the building for me? After you are finished, we will have lunch." She could scrounge up something from what she had left... if only this ''system'' hadn''t happened when it did. She had not been nearly prepared enough. Behind her, three bodies hit the ground. "Okay, Mama," Gabriel said. He was such a good boy. Maria took their cores while Gabriel counted. Her dear husband had been a fool not to collect them from the frogs the night before, but she could help with that, too. When the opportunity presented itself, she would not leave weapons like these behind. Who knew how many people had taken what he left? How many of those turned into monsters? She''d had a talk with him this morning about that very topic. He wouldn''t forget them again. So she took these. It would be a waste to keep them lying around, especially if something happened... Her Heart would return. He would come home... and if he didn''t, then Maria would have to have words with those people. Violent words of... "Mama?" Gabriel''s frightened face smoothed her own expression. He must have finished counting. Alejandro would be fine. Now it was time for some lunch. She found the neighbor Jamaal in the courtyard of her building. He was cooking over an open fire, and Maria had to admit that it smelled appetizing. Though that may have been because she had skipped lunch, giving the few scraps her neighbors shared with her to the children. "Maria!" the man said with a wide smile upon seeing her. "It''s good! Come, try!" It smelled good... Maria took the first bite. Then she waited to see if anything bad happened while Gabriel stared eagerly. Nothing did, so she gave him a piece. He devoured it, and she gave him more while eating more herself. "Thank you. Is very good." Jamaal beamed at her. "Yes! Giant frog delicious!" She wished he wouldn''t have said that. Gabriel was looking dubiously at his next bite. Though Anita didn''t seem to mind and she sat in her lap and munched on... The wonderful moment was shattered when a giant snake slithered over the roof, behind and above Jamaal. A snake like a train off the tracks. A train that coiled up to strike immediately. Gabriel opened his mouth to scream, while Jamaal was facing the wrong way to even see his death coming. The man had fed her and her children, with no hesitation, but she would still abandon him in a heartbeat if it was necessary... but now she needed him. Maria was within arm''s reach of Jamaal, and she reached forward, caught his arm, and yanked him toward her as she rolled backward. She kicked him hard in the belly as he went above and then over her, launching him through the air toward the stairwell under the balcony. Her free hand had already latched onto Gabriel when she kicked Jamaal away, and Maria didn''t even try to stand up as the snake struck. Rescue Shift. She blurred away, dragged just far enough to avoid death as her magic pulled her to Jamaal. It had to work that way. Unfortunately, she couldn''t use it without a person at the other end. Maria''s magic stopped with her standing behind Jamaal, where he was sitting up, his eyes wide in horror at what had almost eaten them. Unfortunately, the snake was undeterred by the failure, and she could see another strike coming. The problem was that she hadn''t thrown Jamaal quite far enough. They would still die. Be strong, my little angel. Maria didn''t want to do this, but it was the only way for at least one of them to survive, and possibly, all of them. She spun and threw Gabriel with all her might toward the stairwell door. She didn''t know if those cores had increased her strength, or if her desperation granted her extra might. Either way, he flew true, screaming all the way. Maria had seen her share of snakes, human or reptile, and she could see the strike coming, despite this particular specimen being the size of a freight train. Gabriel would live; she had ensured his survival, at least for this moment, and she could pull herself and Anita to the door behind him as soon as he was far enough. Before that happened, she had an instant to choose whether to save Jamaal. He was not one of the monsters; probably never would be, but she pegged him as a bystander. Someone who would not inflict violence on others, but who would not intervene on their behalf, either. Alejandro would save him. That was what she knew. The light of her life would sacrifice himself to save another. Any other. He was a fool... but he loved her. Maria desperately wanted to be the person he saw her as, and so she spent the extra half second to grab the man before using her skill to catch up with her still flying baby boy. Rescue Shift! She felt it coming behind her, saw the open maw reaching past... closing... and cursed her choice for an instant. Then her magic blurred them all past the snapping jaws. My God! Maria caught Gabriel before he could hit the ground and braced both of them when the floor shook beneath their feet. She turned back... and saw a great eye that nearly filled the opening. She didn''t stop to think, and the knife flew from her hand a heartbeat later. That was a mistake. The knife flew true and buried itself in the monster''s eye. But that was all it did. The snake didn''t die from the blow... it did, however, become quite angry. It attacked the doorway until Maria ran away upstairs. It came over the roof and saw her on the stairs. It struck... and failed to break through the narrow gaps. Through it all, the beast did not break the building. Its own size worked against it, and it could not reach her. But it kept trying. Even after she ran into her apartment. There, she hid them all in a closet and begged whatever blighted gods existed to send it away. Lee had enchanted the building. She should be safe as long as they remained inside, assuming it would continue to hold. But what would happen when Alejandro came back? Had she damned him... maybe if she let it eat Jamaal? What if she threw him outside now? She didn''t think it would work. The snake had followed her, not him. This was her own fault... 18. Radiant Crescendo ~~~Lee~~~ Lee saw nothing out of place when the building came into view. Then a blue streak slammed into something brown in front of the building... and the something moved. He still didn''t know what he was looking at until the tail whipped up and started shaking. The massive rattlesnake tail was obvious; if ridiculously oversized, but the noise it made was far beyond even that. The air vibrated against his eardrums, drowning out everything else. Lee slowed down, both in shock at the sight of the monster before him, and because he wasn''t sure what he could possibly do against that thing. His brand new machete felt like a toothpick for all the good it would do... his better one he''d left to Larry wouldn''t have helped either. Alejandro was still out of sight behind him, and Lee took off again. He didn''t have time to wait. Jake fired another exploding arrow and the snake dove at his small form. It missed biting him when he jumped into the air, but the tail stopped shaking abruptly and then whipped out, catching him in midair. He went flying, but another streak hammered into the snake even as he flew away. Unfortunately, the snake didn''t chase after him, and instead turned back to the building. It struck, and Lee felt his runes diminish again. That explained what he''d been feeling all this time... and Lee was honestly tempted to just say fuck it and find a new place to live rather than fight that monster. Especially considering that Jake should have been fighting for a while and it didn''t look like he was winning. He didn''t do that, though. Not only was the Liquid Mana Well in there, but he couldn''t abandon Alejandro and his family. The man had proven himself enough today. Lee would at least try to help. Of course, he wasn''t a hero. He had no desire to make a valiant last stand to the bitter end, and even less so, to die pointlessly before it even came to that. So he ran a different way. First things first, he had to touch the building and start pumping mana into the runes. A task that wasn''t looking very doable at the moment... The only upside he could see was that the snake seemed very focused on one side of the building. Which just so happened to be right outside Lee''s apartment. Alejandro might charge it head on, but Lee wanted to try avoiding getting eaten again. On that note, he dropped his shield. It wouldn''t matter against the monster ahead and would only slow him down. It would be easy enough to find later. It had been a long sprint to get here, and now he needed a bit more, but his muscles still weren''t tired. Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] Of course, there was that. Lee pulled another of the plastic tainted candy bars out and shoved it in his mouth as he ran. He was really starting to hate the taste of chocolate. The ground shook multiple times as he ran, and Lee saw both the head and tail make appearances over the three-story tall building. It was hard to reconcile what he was seeing and make sense of it. His eyes wanted to insist that it was some kind of optical illusion, but his terrified brain wasn''t buying it. Despite almost falling a few times, and narrowly avoiding a flying car that came out of nowhere, Lee made it to the other side of the building. He crashed into the door and tried to pull it open... It was locked. Lee cursed but held a hand to the wall in preparation for dumping mana into the rune... it worked. Quickly. Then he was out of mana¡­ He needed the Well, and the door was still locked. Since he wasn''t F-grade like Jake yet, Lee couldn''t jump to a porch and get in that way. Only, this was his home. He had keys! Lee wanted to kick himself as he fumbled in his pocket and started trying each key in the door. One of them had to work, and at least this time he''d remembered to bring them. As he tried one after the other, he prayed that the giant snake wouldn''t come around to this side... It did. Of course. Lee froze in place as he frantically tried to remember if snakes chased movement. Or was it heat? The head was so big... and those eyes were massive... It''s head tilted right before another streak of blue light exploded where its eye would have been. It was practically dodging Jake''s arrows! However, the rock spear that flew in from the opposite direction hit dead on, right in its other giant eyeball. Lee could see the man who''d done it in a doorway of the next building over. A brave bastard for sure to be attacking that monster, but a dead man all the same. The snake agreed with his assessment, and its head snapped out in the blink of an eye. Just like that, there was a large chunk missing from the other building, including the man who''d thrown the rock. It was a stark reminder of what would happen to his building if he didn''t keep the runes alive. As the head rose back to the sky, Lee could see a lump going down its throat. Poor bastard indeed. He knew what that was like, knew all too well, and just hoped the guy had gotten crushed on impact. That would be better than getting digested alive... Lee noticed one other key detail as he stood frozen in plain sight. The snake had only one good eye. He wasn''t sure if the rock had done the deed, though he doubted it. More likely, Jake had managed to pull it off earlier and the other guy only landed the shot because the snake didn''t see it coming. Especially since he could feel one of his runes in the snake''s head... Either way, it couldn''t see him at the moment. Lee wanted nothing more than to find a place to hide after seeing the speed at which that massive head moved. So much faster than it should be. He tried keys faster. He wouldn''t find a better place to hide than inside. If he could make it... and if the door... the key turned. Lee yanked it open and thought he saw the snake''s head turning back around as he ducked inside. He slammed the door behind him, and the building shook violently. Whether that was related to him, he didn''t know. Along with the shaking, so went more power from his runes. He wasn''t safe yet. He needed to reach the Well. He scrambled into the courtyard and then had to waste precious seconds finding the stairs because he''d never come in that way before. Then he just ran for a corner and hoped that there were stairwells in each one. The building was still shaking, and the sky above the courtyard had never looked so wide open before this. More than wide enough for a giant snake. Lee stayed under the overhang as he ran, and did indeed find the stairs he was looking for. Unfortunately, it had windows to the outside after the first floor. There was no glass, and they were narrow, much too small for the snake to reach him. It tried anyway. Lee turned on the first landing and started running up the next flight. A flight facing toward the window. He got to see the gaping jaws completely block out the light as they swooped in. Then the impact threw him from his feet and sent him tumbling back to the landing. It wasn''t easy to get up and keep climbing after that. But he didn''t have a choice. He would die if he didn''t get to the runes and recharge them. If he even could without the Well. It struck again, and Lee held onto the railing to avoid a repeat fall. At the second floor landing, he dumped what little mana had regenerated into the handrail and was empty again by the time he hit the third floor, and his arm on the rail was tingling unpleasantly while his core felt... hollow. All that, and it was far from enough. Lee kept running. He had no idea if the Well had a limit on its mana. He knew he did. How long would he be able to channel mana into the runes? Would the snake give up? Could anyone here even kill it? Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Jake had wrecked the tick, but even he didn''t seem to be making headway now. Was he still alive? It was hard to listen for exploding arrows over the other racket. Lee''s own pounding heart and labored breathing didn''t... He wasn''t actually breathing hard. Sure, his heart was pounding, and he was pulling in more air than usual, but he should have been panting and wheezing after the sprint he''d just had. Then Lee crashed through the door onto the third floor. He was fumbling with his keys again, having forgotten which was the one for his door, and was looking down as he approached the corner. He found the key as he came around, looked up, and slid to a stop on his butt. The snake was inside the courtyard... and just staring at him with one giant eye. Lee could feel the Well now, just a few dozen feet down the balcony, but he couldn''t look away from the monster in front of him. It wasn''t moving either. Just sitting there and staring at him in what felt like the calm before the storm. Did it know about the Well? Was that why it had come here... and did it somehow know it needed to kill him to claim it? Why else would it just be staring? Lee couldn''t move. He couldn''t hear anything other than the blood rushing in his ears. Was everyone else dead? Just him and the snake now... he really didn''t want to get... He felt the runes moving below and knew that one of his shields had just entered the building. Lee didn''t have to think about it to know that his own was still right where he''d left it. Which meant that Alejandro was coming. The brain rattling vibration of its tail picked up an instant before the snake struck. A final useless warning. Lee curled up in the instant he had before death. He wasn''t proud of his reaction, but he couldn''t help it as his eyes squeezed shut in helpless terror. Death never took him. The building shook more violently than before, and Lee slid at least two feet across the floor from the impact. But the snake didn''t eat him... His eyes opened just in time to see it pulling back. The balcony railing was still intact, more mystery runes protecting them, and the snake''s head was too goddamned big to fit into the remaining gap. Lee scrambled to his feet and took off for his apartment. It was do or die time. The building was dying, and he would follow unless he... He saw the strike coming. It was hard to miss something that huge, moving that fast. He knew it didn''t fit, wouldn''t fit, but he flinched anyway. It didn''t matter because the impact against the building still sent him tumbling past his door, and worse, the keys flew from his hand... and slid off the balcony''s edge. Down into the courtyard. With the giant rattlesnake. They were fucked. He was fucked. The runes might take one or two more hits, and then the building would crumble around him. The snake wouldn''t even have to eat him; he would probably get crushed by the rubble. It was pulling back for another strike, when an exploding arrow struck the top of its head. The blast drove it down, and Jake followed his arrow out of the sky. He landed with both feet atop the snake''s head, drove an enchanted machete hilt-deep into the head, and then kicked off hard. Jake flew up, and the snake kept going down. Lee saw and felt the violent thrash at the same time that the rattling turned into a machine gun against his ears. Then the snake''s head snapped back up with that same ridiculous speed from before. Jake wasn''t out of reach yet, and it slapped him upward with all the power of an artillery cannon. As its head went up, Lee could see the blood on its skull where Jake had stabbed it. It wasn''t deep enough, apparently, because the snake tried to eat him again. There was a boom, and Lee felt his rune shrink even more. The whole time he was dumping every shred of his regenerating mana back into the building, but it was far from enough. He could drain his runes... his and Alejandro''s shields. It still wouldn''t be enough. He needed the Well. Fortunately, the snake didn''t come back for Lee after that. Unfortunately, it instead went after the screaming man charging out of the stairwell. Which had the same end-result of damaging Lee''s runes. "Maria!" To his credit, Alejandro didn''t flinch or fall when the snake hit the balcony. He just staggered and kept running to his apartment. Where, to both of their surprise, the door opened and the woman in question emerged. They crashed into each other and babbled in Spanish about love or something equally stupid. None of that mattered because the snake¡¯s last attack did the deed. His rune endured the impact... then it died... winking out completely. Lee felt the wisps of his soul dissipate from the broken rune and flow back into him. They were defenseless. Lee heard the roof above them crack as the two idiots embraced. He needed the Well. The Well inside his apartment. Behind the locked door, the keys to which he''d just dropped down three flights of stairs. The snake spilled off the roof, slithering into the courtyard and coiling up as it stared at them. Almost as if it was savoring the moment... like it knew they were helpless. He could break the windows now¡­ get inside that way¡­ He might be able to pull mana at range like he¡¯d done once before¡­ like he¡¯d been trying to do this whole time¡­ only now it was too late. A streaking arrow exploded spectacularly against the top of its head... blasting it down. The snake never took its eye from Lee. Despite the hit, it never deviated from him. He had done nothing to it... but it was still far too focused on him. It struck, mouth gaping and massive fangs gleaming. Alejandro and Maria ignored the monster. They thought they were safe. Fucking idiots. Lee didn''t have enough mana to make a new rune on the building, not without the Well, but he wasn''t ready to die. Not without trying one last Hail Mary. In the instant he had left, Lee took back his runes. He took back the ones in the snake''s head... took back his own shield runes, took back everything except the ones Jake, Alejandro, and Larry''s group were carrying. No need to potentially doom them just yet... and he wasn''t sure if he wanted all of them for what he planned. Because it wasn''t just his soul that came back when he took the runes; it brought most, if not all, the remaining mana in those runes with it. And it came back fast. It wasn''t enough to fill his mana pool, not even half, but it was enough to make him scared about what he had to do. Lee raised his hand to the oncoming snake... and forced his mana out exactly as he had on that day so very long ago¡­ or was that only yesterday? There was a loud noise that accompanied a rather horrific amount of pain... and then everything went wonderfully dark and quiet. ... The peaceful darkness ended far too soon, and the pain hadn''t left while he was gone. Voices were arguing nearby, but it was too much noise for Lee to even want to make sense of. Instead, he looked at his notifications. At least that way he didn''t have to open his eyes. Non-Class Skill Created: [Liquid Mana Blast] Debuff: [Mana Burn] Buff: [Improved Regeneration] That was it. Lee couldn''t believe it. The whole situation felt more... substantial than just... that. He looked at the skill first. Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) User unleashes all remaining Liquid Mana in a single blast. Liquid Mana is highly volatile and this Skill will damage the user if too much Liquid Mana is unleashed at once. Effects: +1% Effective Mind Attributes +1% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity Requirements: Liquid Mana(Requirement Met) As this Skill was Created, and not learned from a Skill Shard, it does not count against the User''s Non-Class Skill limit. It wasn''t so bad... he was still alive, and from the fact that he could hear voices, assumed the snake had died. Especially since it looked like Maria had used her skill on him again. [Liquid Mana Burn](29:23:55:45) You have used more Liquid Mana than your Liquid Mana Channels can withstand. Continuing to channel with this effect may increase the severity and extend the duration. Excessive use may cause permanent effects. Effects: -150% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity(+90% from Energetic Resilience) For all that the debuff said, it didn''t mention the excruciating pain running from his heart and down his right arm. That wasn''t the totality of it either, just the worst spot. Lines of fire spread throughout his body, all of them like hot wires in his flesh... so maybe that was what the burn in Mana Burn meant... It had to be his mana channels. It also looked like his mystery trait had added a positive modifier rather than the one he was used to seeing... Did that mean it would have been -150% otherwise? What the fuck did negative channel capacity mean? Just how bad did he fuck up? The timer on it was also a serious problem if he was reading it right. Was that thirty fucking days!? He couldn''t be out of it for thirty days. The enchanted building was gone, and he needed a lot of mana to get that up again. While he still had a few enchanted weapons... could he even recharge them without making the debuff worse? He was so screwed. But maybe if his regeneration was still good... they hadn''t killed all the ticks. He could fight those without an enchanted weapon. As long as he didn''t get attacked by the queen... Of course, there was one more option he still had at his disposal. Lee could feel something in his pocket and knew what it was. It was the cores he''d taken from the dead men outside the store. Technically, some of them were Jake''s cores¡­ or the other¡¯s¡­ but if he was going to be crippled for a month... then he might as well get to F-grade now. So he did. All Base Attributes have reached the F-grade Threshold. Evolution to F-grade Begun. 19. Radioactive ~~~Jake~~~ Jake was in a knock-down drag-out fight with a ridiculously massive snake that had just head-butted him straight up into the sky. He loved it. The rattlesnake was the best fight he''d had this whole time, and it wasn''t even close to over. The bastard was tough, and each shot only damaged the scales a bit. He needed to land repeated hits on exactly the same spot if he wanted to get past its defense. Before his impromptu flight, he''d seen Lee running around like a lunatic down there. The enchanter had mentioned recharging his enchants before... or his runes, as he''d let slip earlier. Maybe that was why he''d run into a fight that was just as likely to get him killed? To be fair, Lee wasn''t dead yet, despite the snake''s aggressive focus on the building throughout the fight. A focus that Jake suspected had to do with its one ruined eye. Someone had gotten a lucky shot in, and not that rock thrower who got eaten. The snake only deviated briefly to chase Jake when he got an extra good shot in, but it kept going back to bang its head against the wall. Which was apparently something Lee could sense from down the hill... Jake didn''t really care about Lee''s secrets. He didn''t even care if the building went down. It wasn''t his house. If the people living there didn''t like that, then they should get strong enough to protect it. Or just run away. Speaking of which... Alejandro had also run into the danger. It was doubtful the man could contribute meaningfully to this fight. His shield was damn good, but it was a very small obstacle to a very large snake. He''d probably just get eaten like that other poor bastard. Then Jake reached the apex of his flight and started back toward the earth. He''d been skydiving before, and it was... okay. But now, skydiving without a parachute, after being launched into said sky by a snake that could swallow him without choking on the pointy bits, that was fun! He wasn''t too worried about the landing. A well timed exploding arrow would cancel out enough momentum, and his body could handle much more than anyone pre-system. His legs were definitely feeling the headbutt from a moment ago, but nothing had broken. He wouldn''t die from hitting the ground, he was sure of that, but better to avoid any more injuries while the fight was still ongoing. That was an issue for future Jake, though. Right now, he had time to get another shot in. In fact, he''d been charging the arrow since the flight started. He was only waiting to stabilize his descent, and the old skydiving training gave him just the extra nudge he needed to line it up... Boom, bitch! The snake was good. It seemed to have an innate sense for incoming attacks because it once again tilted its head just enough that he missed a direct hit into the hole he''d dug with the blades moments before. Didn''t matter. The damage was accumulating and he would win this. It was only a matter of time now. In the spirit of that, he stowed the bow and drew his blades, both enchanted by Lee. The only downside with them was that they weren''t long enough to get the job done in one strike. But that wasn''t a big deal... It was more fun this way. Though it looked like the snake was still ignoring him, and going after Lee... No problem. He''d hate to end the fight too fast. It was a thrilling battle, more so when the damn reptile actually fought him and not the building. It was fun... right until he felt death loom before him. It wasn''t an unfamiliar sensation. His whole life he''d had feelings... that warned him of things he couldn''t know, and it had saved his life more than once. The feelings had strengthened exponentially since the system arrived, and Jake never hesitated to trust his gut. That gut instinct guided his actions in this fight. He''d already dodged death and serious injury repeatedly. Only it never felt like this... The feeling screaming through him now didn''t warn of deadly injury. It didn''t warn him of an incoming strike. It promised annihilation. Jake dumped his mana early. All of it. He sent it into the smaller knife the same way he did with the arrows. Or rather, he tried to. He knew it wouldn''t work. Something about Lee''s runes didn''t let his mana saturate the item like it did the arrows. Jake was counting on that. His skill didn''t like the lack of a usable target, but Jake forced the mana out before it could finish protesting. Which it did shortly after, by exploding violently in every direction. Some of that force sent the knife down ahead of him like a bullet, while most was wasted in other directions, and finally, just enough pushed back against Jake. He stopped rather explosively in mid-air, and not a moment too soon. The blue fire that roared mere inches below his feet was what he imagined a dragon''s breath would look like. Pure destructive power that screamed with the fury of an atom bomb as it tore a hole through the sky. Then, in less time than it took to blink, and with a thunderclap of inrushing air, it was gone. Jake resumed falling. It felt too quiet in the aftermath... an unnatural hush as everyone and everything cowered in fear of absolute obliteration. Then the headless snake flopped to the ground with a crash of breaking masonry, and people started screaming. Humans. Why did people love screaming so much? It accomplished literally nothing, and would most likely draw even more danger onto their heads. Jake landed atop the thrashing body of the snake and had to jump a few times to get clear of its death throes. Its head was gone. Not decapitated. Not burned or torn up. Gone. He knew Lee''d been hiding something, and hadn''t cared... but this was on a whole other level. The guy wasn''t even F-grade yet... Where the snake''s neck ended... Did snakes have necks? Or was it the torso? Whatever it was, it ended in a clean, cauterized line. He could actually see right down its throat... where he spotted a pair of shoes just inside. No way... Jake timed the thrashing body and leaped forward. He retreated while dragging a man from the snake''s gullet. A man that was still miraculously clinging to life. You lucky son of a bitch. He was alive, but not in a good way. Just dragging him free had peeled some skin from the man''s ankles... honestly, he looked even worse than Lee had after crawling out of the damn frog. Unfortunately, Jake had to carry him further or the poor bastard might get smashed by the spasming snake. Since the building was looking and sounding extremely unstable at the moment, he took him outside, yelling the whole way. "Saira!" No one responded. Sure, if they were smart, they would have run far and fast away from what happened here, but he was loud. Jake nudged the unbreathing man a few times in the chest as he kept shouting; he didn''t want to crush the ungraded man with normal cpr. The guy finally started breathing shallowly, and still no one showed. Jake jumped to the first-floor balcony railing, leaped again and caught the second floor rail, then threw himself to the third. He hopped easily into Alejandro''s apartment as he yelled for the man. Two small faces watched him wide-eyed from a closet... then the front door burst open and Maria appeared in his face. Her butter knife sparked off his own blade as Jake parried her thrust and then had to catch her arm before she lost a few fingers when his knife slid up her weapon. Maria didn''t like that at all, and he could see murder in her eyes... and fear. She hadn''t expected him to block that strike... just how many people had she killed with that little trick? Jake didn''t take her attempted murder to heart. Why should he? It was like a puppy chewing on his fingers. "Man outside," Jake said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder. "Got swallowed by the snake. Can you heal him?" Maria stood frozen, staring back at him as something behind those eyes worked furiously. She''d lashed out at him in what Jake was pretty sure was an instinctual reaction. Apparently, she hadn''t seen him as a threat before... but she did now. Oh, yeah. He could see it in her eyes. She was trying to figure out how to kill him. Jake smiled at her. He''d seen something in her before, but hadn''t realized what it was until now. She was a killer. Not a psycho or anything like that, but she''d killed before. It was there in her eyes, plain as day. She had killed and would again if necessary, and without hesitation, as she''d clearly just shown. Jake respected that. She would do well in the new world. He let go of her wrist and stepped back. She was only trying to protect what was hers. Maria glanced at the children, both watching them... and nodded. "Si..." Alejandro had pushed the door open again, and Jake left Maria alone to push past him. "What the hell happened to him?" Lee was lying on the balcony outside, and he was glowing. Not all around glowing, but it looked like all the veins in his body were lit up with a blue glow from the inside. It was strongest in a line from his chest and down his right arm, shining right through his shirt. He was also... unconscious? His eyes were open, and glowing with that same blue light, but Jake had the distinct feeling that no one was home. Jake looked out at the semicircle missing from the top of the building across the courtyard. "What did you do, Lee?" If anyone had been in the apartment over there... well, they weren''t anymore. Lee would probably be fine, given what he''d seen him survive so far, and Jake turned to Alejandro. "Where''s Saira?" "She was just down the street when..." "You left her out there!?" Jake yelled at him in disbelief. One of the most valuable people in this place, one Alejandro had promised to protect, and he''d abandoned her. "Larry and Sandra..." Jake didn''t hear the rest of his excuse. He was already back through the apartment and sailing to the ground below as he set off to find the rest of the group. It wasn''t specifically Saira that he was worried about. Sure, she had a very useful class, but he cared more about Sandra... or Sandy, as he''d always called her. They''d been an item before all this. Almost six months ago now. It hadn''t lasted, as such things tended not to, but it had ended well enough. They''d stayed friends, and Sandy was one of the few people Jake even gave a shit about in this whole complex! And Alejandro left them! It didn''t take long to find them... or what was left of them. Sandy... Jake dropped to his knees, uncaring of the blood soaking his pants. What did they do to you? Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. She''d been gutted, and Larry was in pieces a few feet away. "They''re going to die for this, Sandy. I''ll find..." She wheezed. It was so faint he would have missed it if not for his improved senses. Jake touched her neck as gently as he could, feeling for a pulse... and found it, but it was so weak. Saira wasn''t here. A quick scan of the scene didn''t tell Jake enough about what had happened. Some of it was clear, like the fact that Sandy and Larry had both spilled blood before going down. It helped that there were two dead strangers in the street. One had a stab wound on his back, a small one from a knife rather than a machete or staff. Most likely Mar''s handiwork, if her dismembered arm lying in the street was any indication. But the fate of Saira was less sure. Maybe they''d figured out she was a healer and taken her alive? There was a patch of dead grass on the side of the road... Jake didn''t have time to go looking. Sandy was dying, and dying fast. His only option to save her now was Maria... but carrying her back might be the last straw. He ran faster than he''d ever tried to go before and found Maria crouched over the partially digested man. Jake didn''t give her a chance to object before snatching her up and carrying her away. Oh, she tried to stab him once. But Jake took her knife away and then dropped her in front of Sandy a few moments later. "Save her!" Maria was even more wary of him than before, and he didn''t blame her. She still knelt and sent her magic into the dying woman. Jake didn''t see the miraculous turn around he''d been hoping for, not like Saira''s magic. Her expression when she looked back up at him was not reassuring. "Keep her alive, Maria. Keep her alive and I''ll owe you!" He didn''t need to ask if she understood. She did. Jake was speaking her language now. Not Spanish, but the language of life and death. It meant save her, and I will kill your enemies for you. Let her die... and... well, he left that to the imagination. Maria nodded, and her hands were already moving as she sent pulses of magic into the woman with one hand, while a finger traced over and sealed up the myriad gaping wounds. Jake left her there. He needed Saira. If the woman was still alive... which, something told him she was. He scoured the ground for clues, his eyes picking up the indentations in the grass next to the road, flecks of blood leading away from the scene... Jake ran. Unfortunately, the trail ended on the next street over. No blood. No footprints. They must have gone up the street rather than cut across. He even ran a couple of blocks in both directions, but still found nothing. Maria was standing when he got back. "Take back. Will live for now." Jake saw no duplicity in her expression, and he scooped Sandy gently into his arms. Maria sprinted ahead of him on the way back, but only because he took extra care of his burden. He still wasn''t far behind and caught up in time to find her crouched next to the skinless man she''d left in the street, who, to be fair, Jake had forced her to leave there. She abruptly blurred away, almost straight up into the air, and Jake blinked up at the porch where she now stood with Alejandro. Along with the wounded man at their feet. That was a neat trick indeed. He took the long way around by way of the stairs, whereupon Alejandro opened the door for him. Jake stared daggers at the man until he averted his gaze. "You fucked up," Jake said. "I''m sorry..." "You abandoned them. If you''d been there, then Larry would be alive. Sandy wouldn''t be dying, and god knows what happened to Saira and Mar." Alejandro visibly shrank with every word while Jake settled Sandy on the couch. Lee was laid out on the floor where Alejandro had dragged him in, his eyes closed now. Jake cursed out loud when he remembered Lee''s enchanted weapons, and the tidbit he''d forgotten about how he could feel them. He cursed louder when he tried to wake Lee and realized the guy had decided to rank up. "Really!? Fucking now?" Maria was glaring at him, then said something in Spanish, and Alejandro translated without looking up. "She says they will live. It will just take time to heal." Jake didn''t punch the other man in the face. No one forced Sandy to go out with them. She knew the risks when they left. He wouldn''t disrespect her choice to risk her life. What he would do, was kill everyone involved in doing that to her. Unfortunately, the trail was cold. Jake scoured the surrounding blocks for as long as he expected Lee to take and still found nothing. Then he went back to wake their resident enchanter from his beauty sleep. ~~~Lee~~~ The darkness behind his eyes changed, but Lee didn''t care about that. The pain was gone! As a Human you are [Adaptable] and you now have the chance to alter your destiny. Choose wisely. Multiple evolution options are available. He reveled in the sensation for a while, or rather, the lack of it. Then he focused on the weird orbs floating in the darkness with him. [Human](F-grade Human) You began life as a Human but have strayed from your origins. This does not have to define your future, and you may return to that path as you ascend to the next stage. This will increase your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](100%) Lee didn''t like this one off the bat. It just felt wrong. Getting rid of the trait that had carried him this far seemed like the dumbest choice he could make. [Energetic](F-grade Human) You have stepped onto a new path before F-Grade. Stay the course and stick with the choices that defined you as you ascend to the next stage. This will not change your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](75%) [Energetic Resilience] That one felt much better, but he kept looking. [Rune Warden](F-grade Human) You have embraced the Rune magic of your class. I am Runic. You have created runes of sword and shield. I will fight. You have repeatedly placed yourself or your magic between your allies and the dangers that would threaten them. I will protect. Take up the mantle of the warden and continue to protect what you care about as you ascend. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](70%) [Energetic Resilience] [Warden] It was interesting, and sure looked like he gained this option based on things he''d done previously. He focused on the new trait. [Warden] Increases the strength of your runes that relate to blocking damage or sharpening weapons. All such runes are 50% more effective. +50% Effective Vitality +25% Effective Strength That was... definitely an option. Something that made him harder to kill. It would also make his building-wide enchant more durable from the sound of it. Very good option. Aside from the fact that he wouldn''t be able to make any runes for a month... Obviously, he still kept looking. There might be something even better if the trend of his choices continued. [Mana Conduit](F-grade Human) You have embraced Liquid Mana in all of its volatile fury. I am Mana. You have created your own skill using Liquid Mana. I will wield Mana. You killed a Reptile King using only your Liquid Mana. None shall stand in my way. You have stepped onto the path of the Conduit. Embrace this path and revel in the tumultuous flow of your mana as it burns away your enemies. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable(70%)] [Energetic Resilience] [Conduit] Reptile King... that had to be the snake. Which meant it was indeed dead. That was a relief. That it was dead, not the reptile king part, that part was terrible. It was day one, and they already had monsters like that... What was the world going to look like in a week? As for the evolution option... Lee wasn''t feeling it. He still checked the trait for more info. [Conduit] Liquid Mana flows through you like the blood in your veins. -50% Mana Burn +100% Liquid Mana Capacity +100% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity That... was suddenly more of an option. Sure, it didn''t make him tougher or harder to kill, but that mana burn reduction... Would it reduce his debuff? He''d been half hoping and half praying that getting to F-grade alone would help, but this was now a possibility. If it stacked with energetic resilience, it might remove the debuff altogether... or just halve it? Maybe only change the duration? He just didn''t know. It also didn''t benefit his fighting. Unless he had to kill another reptile king... or if he had to use that blast again... Jake was the strongest person Lee had seen yet, and while he''d been doing some damage, everyone else in the snake''s path would have died before he brought it down. At least one did die, and probably more that Lee just hadn''t witnessed personally. His new skill was a serious trump card, but one with some equally serious downsides. This evolution might diminish the cost... it also wouldn''t hurt his runes. In fact, it would probably make it easier to enchant the building again once his debuff was over. Maybe make it better... The Rune Warden choice would make a lot of his runes better. Including if he re-enchanted the building. But if he could use that extra channel capacity to make stronger runes anyway... Lee was glancing back and forth between his choices when he caught sight of another orb he hadn''t noticed because it blended so well into the darkness. [Beast Lord](F-Grade Beastkin) You have been Soul-Bonded to a powerful Beast Lord. I am the Beast. Let go of your grip on humanity. Embrace the Beast Lord within and Lead your Pack. I am the Beast Lord. While still partially human, you can start down a new path. Find out where it leads as you ascend to the next stage. This will greatly reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Beast-kin Lord] [Adaptable](25%) [Energetic Resilience] What the hell!? Soul-Bonded? To who... or what? Lee studied the orb for long moments as he tried to make sense of this choice. He did not know what it was talking about, and had no way to check his status for clues; he tried more than once to do just that before he remembered something from what felt like a lifetime ago. Twin-Soul has been Soul-Bonded by Caff Caffeine. The message had popped up right after accepting his class... but he''d forgotten with everything that followed. Especially since it never showed in his status. But that would mean Caffeine was the powerful Beast Lord in question. Which was just... hard to wrap his head around. Aside from that, it also meant the choice might actually be an option. If he couldn''t use mana... then becoming some kind of beast... creature might let him fight better. He had the regeneration... and maybe eating monsters would taste better if he was a beast? Oh, it was tempting. But it was... unknown. What did Soul-Bonded even mean, and why wasn''t it on his status? Was lord better than a king? Would it make him as strong as that snake? It had to be weaker. Stanley wouldn''t be almost dying if Caffeine was with him and stronger than the snake. In the end, Lee couldn''t do it. It was a massive change, and it looked like it might force him down a completely different path. He couldn''t have ended up here with the Mana Well just to become a beast, could he? No. He wouldn''t take this option. If he could find a way to communicate with Stanley, could confirm that it was a good choice... then maybe. Otherwise, he had to take a different path for now. That left him with two choices. Warden or Conduit. His runes were good, great even. The mana was... powerful. He could pick the conduit and still have his runes. Choosing the warden might be better in the long run, but it wouldn''t matter if he died because he had neither mana nor runes from the debuff. Lee made his choice. Evolution to [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) has begun. Ungraded Attribute Fortification: Strength: 1 +1% Effective Strength Vitality: 2 +2% Effective Vitality Dexterity 0 Wisdom 5 +5% Effective Wisdom Intelligence 2 +2% Effective Intelligence Willpower 1 +1% Effective Willpower The pain returned. Only this time, it brought friends. The violent shaking someone was giving Lee did not help in the slightest with the pain he was feeling. Calling his name didn''t help either. His muscles were all locked up and he couldn''t speak if he wanted to. They stopped, eventually. It made little difference. All he could do was hold on and ride it out as a searing energy seemed to emanate from his core. It wasn''t coming from where his mana was; Lee had studied enough of his core to know that, but it was somewhere close by... maybe even right outside. Despite the pain, Lee was feeling hopeful. Mostly because he could actually feel the burning lines of his mana channels behind the rest of it, and they were feeling better by the moment. Or all the other pain was just dulling his senses... Lee didn''t know how long he stayed in that place, and when it abruptly ended, he had all of a single second to enjoy the moment. 20. Deep End (Trigger warning) There is nothing explicit, but rape is implied ~~~Lee~~~ Jake yelled in Lee''s ear and shook him violently. "I know it''s done, Lee! Now get up. They took Saira, and maybe Mar, too." It took Lee a few confused moments to comprehend what Jake was saying to him. "Who took what?" Jake didn''t wait for him to understand, instead hauling him off the floor and dragging him out the door. Sandra was on the couch, and a terrible-looking figure was on the floor next to where he''d been lying. It wasn''t Lee''s couch... or his apartment. "They got attacked after you guys abandoned them," Jake said on the way out. "We didn''t abandon..." Alejandro was there too. "Shut the fuck up! You left them behind and accomplished jack shit here!" Alejandro didn''t follow them out the door. "I couldn''t find the trail, but they took your weapon with them. Your ''rune'' weapon." Jake put extra emphasis on the word rune, and Lee thought he understood. A moment of concentration later, and he knew where his machete was. "West... ish." He pointed. "That way." There were faintly glowing lines on his arm... like veins... "You''re coming with me," Jake said. "I know you''re F-grade now; shit timing on doing that when you did, by the way, but now you can keep up." Jake finally let go of him in the stairwell, and then started bounding from landing to landing, completely ignoring the stairs in between. Lee was still coming to terms with all the changes wrought by his grade up, and his channels still burned... though nowhere near the intensity of before. Which might also explain the glowing veins... they were on both of his arms, though brighter on the right... Jake might complain, but Lee didn''t think he''d have been able to help earlier, much less move. Now he wanted to check his status... Jake seemed to read his mind and yelled from the next floor down. "You wasted enough time! Unless you gained a skill that makes you faster, then just ignore everything until we find the girls!" Lee reluctantly did as suggested, partly because he didn''t want to trip on the stairs, but also because he was afraid of what he would find when he checked. The debuff might be less severe, but it definitely wasn''t gone. "Stop hesitating and move! You''re already stronger than the greatest athletes of all time!" Lee still hesitated, but copied Jake and jumped to the landing below... It was easy. He rounded the turn... and jumped to the next. It went like that until he chased Jake outside. That was when he realized that he had no weapons. "I need..." Jake was waiting and handed him an enchanted knife. "I don''t know where they are. You are in the lead." He shoved Lee in the back, pushing him forward. "Just run. Alejandro told me how you left him behind before, so do that now. If anything attacks, you just keep going. I''ll handle them. If you can''t do that, then I''ll carry you. Go!" So Lee took off running as fast as he could into the twilight. Which turned out to be fast as fuck. It occurred to him that this might be a ruse, a trick to get him alone and kill him... but it didn''t really make sense for that to be the case. Jake could kill him anywhere... unless he saw the mana blast and wanted to catch him off guard? Though that still didn''t feel right. Lee hadn''t seen Jake this emotional since... well, ever, and the ''Sandy'' he referred to must be Sandra. The fact he called her that implied he knew her from more than just their trip to the store. Seeing her all beat up on the couch... "What happened?" Lee called back. He really should have asked before. "There was a fight. Larry''s dead, Sandy almost died, Saira and Mar are missing. I couldn''t find the trail." "Mar should''ve been able to kill anyone with her knife..." Not everyone was as observant as Jake, and Mar would be a terrifying assassin if she wanted to be. Unless they ran into F-grades... Lee sprinted onto a side street fast enough that he could almost touch the ground with his fingers as he leaned into the turn. "Girl''s been a wreck since she stabbed that freak at the store, and stop weaving! You should be able to jump at least a single-story house, nevermind a fence!" Lee veered back onto a beeline for his rune, hoping Jake wasn''t wrong, as the fence loomed ahead. He jumped... and almost ate shit when he landed, if only because he hadn''t expected how high he''d go. He jumped again and landed on the roof of someone''s house. At the far edge, he jumped to the next roof and kept running. It was insane... and awesome! He ran and jumped over homes and streets, and it was amazing! It felt wrong to enjoy it, but Lee couldn''t help himself. Something rushed him at one point, but he was going too fast to get a good look. As advised, he didn''t deviate. There was the sound of a bowstring behind him and nothing else. At their speed, it took only a few minutes before Lee landed on another roof and slid to a stop. He pointed at a house across the street where he could feel his fancy machete. "That..." Jake jumped hard enough that something in the roof cracked under his feet, and he landed at the door of the target house. An instant later, he''d kicked down the door and vanished inside. Lee didn''t follow Jake. Instead, he turned back and followed his other rune that was still back up the street. It was Mar''s knife. Shouts and screams filled the air from the direction of the house Jake had disappeared into, and Lee stopped next to a conspicuous dent in some grass. Not that he probably would have noticed if not for his knife hovering above it. "Mar?" She didn''t reply. At least, nothing he could hear over the screams inside... Then he felt his machete coming closer. Lee looked up in time to see a figure dashing from the now doorless front entry of the house and down the street. The man sprinted fast away from the house, hesitating only when he finally noticed Lee standing there. "Who the fuck are you!?" He was dirty... though, who wasn''t nowadays, and speckled with blood. Lee wasn''t exactly in his way, but the man still ran at him, machete swinging. Lee threw himself back, and nearly flew away, sending the machete wide of his face, and by enough of a margin that the extended sharpness rune didn''t connect, either. Then he landed on the street... and toppled over backwards. It didn''t hurt. Not even a little, which was surprising. But the impact left Lee scrambling and trying to get his feet under him... when the blade came right back around and stabbed out at him. Lee froze up at the sight... and hesitated to pull the runes off... If he couldn''t enchant anything for a while... then this might be one of his few weapons until however long it took to recover. He didn''t want to lose it if he didn''t have to... So Lee allowed himself to get stabbed in the stomach, and by a magic sword, no less. His own magic sword... Debuff: [Heavy Bleeding] It was a shit idea, and the shocking pain of it almost cost him his life. Luckily, he instinctively tried to stop the blow and ended up grabbing onto the man''s hand around the hilt. That was when he finally realized the guy was F-grade, something that should have been obvious from his speed, but mostly because the man''s strength almost perfectly matched his own. Lee couldn''t let go either, because any more motion from the machete would probably split him in half, and in a really bad area. The man punched him in the face with his free hand, and it hurt, but nowhere near the signals his stomach was sending. One less hand on the blade gave Lee the leverage to keep it still while also trying not to cry from the excruciating pain. It only got worse. Their struggles were going to kill him... It was oh so hard not to pull his runes off. But he''d already gotten stabbed... it would be a complete waste to give up now. It''ll heal, it''ll heal, it''ll heal! Lee told himself repeatedly. Then Jake appeared and solved the issue by cutting the man''s arm off at the elbow. Lee''s vision was blurry as he tried ever so carefully to pull the machete out without causing more damage, then dropped both blade and forearm in the street. Jake was already gone by then, and the attacker was in pieces. Where the archer had been worried and rushed before, he was an emotionless and expressionless automaton when he''d appeared to kill the man. Lee was fine with that. Debuff Downgraded: [Bleeding] Debuff: [Famished] That his hunger started at the second level was odd, and Lee welcomed the distraction as an excuse to stop looking at the decapitated head staring back at him... Not that he minded the death on a moral level or anything; the man had stabbed him. He was fine with him getting killed. It was just... a lot to actually see. That sent his gaze back to the grass where Mar''s knife still hovered invisibly. Lee held a hand to his still bleeding stomach but didn''t want the pain that would come from twisting around to put another hand against his back. What he needed was a bandage... maybe his shirt? There was no way he''d get it off. "Mar, I know you''re there. Can you... cut my shirt off and tie it around my stomach?" She didn''t respond, and Lee thought he could feel the knife rocking slightly. He wanted to sit down... or lie down, but the thought of the physical exertions necessary for that kept him from trying. So he just stood where he was and tried not to move. How many organs did he just get stabbed through? Did it hit his intestines? Wasn''t that super bad? He knew it caused... something bad. But the world was magic now... right? It''d be fine. Thinking about it was making it hurt worse, so Lee started thinking about trying to find a small tree to uproot for Saira like Jake had done. He was F-grade now... it should be doable. Though maybe after his stomach healed. That was assuming Saira was alive in there... Lee cursed and started taking small steps down the street. It was bad inside. The smell alone... Lee refused to gag, but it was mostly a survival instinct, since the pain of doing so would be far worse than the stink. The good news was that he saw Saira, and she was alive. The bad news was that Jake was helping her wrap a clean sheet around herself, and what he saw underneath the sheet wasn''t good. Saira jerked as he stepped inside, and her gaze jumped to him with a wild look on her face. Lee didn''t know what she''d been through and didn''t think he wanted to... He looked away and hobbled wide around them toward the back of the house and the large windows looking out into the sunset. The house was on the edge of the neighborhood, atop a hill, and Lee could see directly down to the store he''d been killing ticks in just this morning. It wasn''t clear in the fading twilight, but the people here might have been able to see them when they left. Had they hunted the group intentionally? Maybe they were part of the group that attacked outside the store? If Lee hadn''t run away... or Alejandro. It was hard to say. Lee wasn''t much of a fighter, by his own admission, but he could have helped. Against an F-grade, or more than one, it was questionable how much he''d have actually helped... he might have just died. But Alejandro would have made a big difference... especially with his own skill plus the enchanted sword and shield... No wonder Jake was pissed. Lee swayed as what ifs filled his mind, and it felt like his wound was taking too long to heal... Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] He''d taken more injuries than this that all healed faster... and with less hunger debuffs, too. Was it part of being F-grade? His body was stronger but needed more resources to fuel and heal it? This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "Let''s go," Jake said, and Lee turned. Saira didn''t reply, but headed outside. Lee followed, and caught up to her just outside the door, where she was gently touching a small bush. Lee waited... but it wasn''t dying. He had no idea how to help her, or what to do in this kind of situation, so he did nothing. Well, nothing besides holding his stomach and watching for monsters in the deepening darkness. Saira eventually killed the bush. Then the lawn, and finally the large tree in the front yard. At the end of all that, she looked much better, or at least her face looked better. Though she just stood next to the dead tree until Jake emerged from the house. Smoke and the flickering light of a fire followed him out. "Do you want me to carry you back?" Jake asked her. Saira flinched and shook her head. "Then get moving... I''ll be right behind you." Saira started walking robotically down the street. "Jake..." Lee nodded toward the lawn when they passed it and mouthed the word, ''Mar''. Jake frowned as his gaze locked onto the area. Then he walked over, felt around until his hand caught something, and then slapped the girl. The slap was loud, and Lee gaped at the sight as Mar flickered into view with her hand to her cheek and eyes glistening. It was her only hand... the other arm ended near the shoulder. "Mar!" Saira stood frozen when she saw her, then sprinted to the girl and nearly tackled her back down. "Oh, thank god! Oh, Mar, I was so worried!" Then they both burst into loud sobbing and mostly nonsense babbling as the lawn died around them. Mar wailed and apologized for not saving her mom, while Saira told her over and over that it wasn''t her fault and she''d done the right thing. Jake frowned at both of them and dragged them to their feet. "Walk. We have more wounded at home!" He was back to his worried face... which was better. Lee didn''t feel very safe with emotionless Jake. Sure, the guy had literally saved him, but it felt like he''d wanted the man dead more than any desire to help Lee. A lot like with the frogs¡­ The women moved under Jake''s prodding, still hugging and babbling. Lee wanted to tell him to lay off, but Jake was right about people needing her healing... himself, for instance... Lee followed, and didn''t ask for healing. He was regenerating; it was just slow, and he remembered how it had drained Saira the last time she healed him. She could save her strength for the people who needed it more. He was pleasantly surprised to find a few of the candy bars still in his pockets. They were a smashed and melted mess, though the less chocolatey ones were okay. He ate them all anyway, pocket lint, dust, and melty plastic too. It wasn''t enough, and Lee was thinking about trying some grass by the time they''d reached the end of the block. Anything to stop the ache in his stomach. He was licking the melted chocolate from one hand and actually pulled up a handful of grass when Saira touched him. Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry] Debuff Removed: [Bleeding] The entire lawn died, including the grass in his hand. "Oh, thanks." Saira glanced at the dead grass as he dropped it, and a flicker of a smile may have touched her lips... "Were you... going to eat that?" "Yes..." She looked away. "What?" Lee said. "I get hungry..." She didn''t respond as they continued walking. "One more step and you die." Jake''s voice was murderous, and Lee froze mid-step. Was this it? Did Jake blame him for... "Don''t shoot!" The strange man''s voice had Lee spinning around in surprise. He really had to pay more attention... There were two figures visible in the twilight. One a tall beanpole of a man and the other a woman even shorter than Lee. "You killed them. The ones in that house?" the woman said. "What did you know about that?" Jake was cold again, and his drawn arrow started glowing slightly. "They were bad, monsters. They deserved to die." "Yet you hid and did nothing?" "They were powerful. I would have only put myself into the same same situation and accomplished nothing as a result." Jake stared at them expressionlessly for long moments before the glow winked out and he lowered the bow. "Then go. Go hide again." "I want to join you." "I''m a monster too, Lady." "No, you are not like them. You are a monster hunter, and I need hunters like you to help me." "Fuck off." Jake turned to Saira. "Let''s go. We''re wasting time with these cowards." Mar flinched at his words and vanished. "I am no hunter," the woman said. "I am a maker, a smith. Hunters need weapons and armor. I can make it for you, and in return, you protect me. Is that not the way of things now?" Jake hesitated, and she added one more thing. "I can make you arrows... or arrowheads." "Fine. Let''s go." "W... wait!" Jake kept walking. "Keep up or get left behind." Lee waited, mostly because his stomach still felt... off. He could catch up easily enough. The woman and man both sprinted back into the house they''d come from. The garage door opened a few moments later, manually, and they emerged loaded down with stuff. The woman was even carrying an anvil... one nearly half her diminutive size. She was still carrying it, but she wasn''t moving quickly either. Not nearly fast enough to keep up with Jake''s hurried pace. Lee set his machete carefully on the ground; he didn''t want to drain the runes any more than necessary, and stopped her with his hands out. "Let me." "I don''t think..." she said, and Lee lifted it out of her arms. It was heavy, but not what it should be. F-grade was looking better and better. Unfortunately, it was still a bit much to carry one handed. Lee nodded at his machete. "Carry that. It''s enchanted and extremely sharp. If you try to hit me with it, I will block with this." He hefted the anvil. "And it will cut this... steel... nearly in half, if not completely." He was assuming she didn''t want it damaged... They both looked dubious, but the woman grabbed the blade as asked. Lee sent them to walk ahead of him. He was excited about the potential for more weapons and even armor, but he wasn''t putting that machete in a stranger''s hand and letting them walk behind him. He''d already gotten stabbed with it once... All this time, Lee hadn''t checked his status. He was still afraid to see how bad the damage was, but with a blacksmith joining them... maybe he could still fight without runes when his gear inevitably failed. Though, how long did it take to make swords and armor? Lee finally checked his status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Conduit] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 5 (Novice) Class Skills: Rune Scribe (Uncommon) - Level 8 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 10(1%)10 Vitality: 10(2%)10 Dexterity 10(0%)10 Wisdom 10(+30%)13 Intelligence 10(+27%)12 Willpower 10(+26%)12 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(0/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) Buffs: Debuffs: [Mana Burn] It was still there, and he''d known it would be. Lee focused on the debuff. [Mana Burn](71:22:05) He breathed out a sigh of relief loud enough to get looks from the people ahead. Only three days! That was doable. He wasn''t screwed! Jake pushed the ungraded and traumatized women as fast as he could, but it still took much longer to go back. It was full dark when the building loomed into the night sky ahead. Only one window was lit, though faintly, and it was on the third floor. Jake ripped up a small tree from the grounds and jumped up the outside of the building to reach that window while yelling for Saira to get upstairs. Lee left dealing with all that to Jake and steered the newcomers through a door that would take them into the courtyard from the stairwell. It was dark, but apparently his F-grade eyes worked better because the other two were feeling out the walls while he could still see, if barely. It was probably better that way. What Lee could see of the building probably would have given them second thoughts about moving in. Then he saw the stars through the semi-circle cutout in the other end of the building... and felt a chill down his spine. What the hell did I do? The flames blazing merrily in the courtyard eventually drew his gaze back down. Lee''s eyes slid over the wall of a snake that filled most of the open space and settled on a man he didn''t know tending the fire. The smell of cooking meat drew all of them forward, and Lee finally set down the anvil to approach. The woman went to place his machete atop it, hesitated, and then handed it to Lee. Maybe she believed his claim about how sharp it was after all? Had she tested the edge while they were walking? She was holding one hand out of sight... Jamaal, as he introduced himself, greeted them all enthusiastically, and then urged everyone to join him on the side of the fire under the balcony while casting nervous looks at the open sky above. There, he freely handed out skewers of roasted rattlesnake meat. It was delicious, and Lee relaxed for the first time in what felt like... forever. He was F-grade, finally. He had good food to eat. He still had a weapon, for now, and his debuff wasn''t too bad. He was also still alive. That was a kind of important detail as well. Their new resident blacksmith introduced herself as May, and her husband as Dennis. The thin man talked little, but he still smiled and laughed along with the others. When they did smile or laugh... Many of the topics weren''t pleasant. Jamaal came through on that front by regaling them with a never-ending litany of ridiculous stories told in broken English. It was nice. Jake loomed out of the darkness sometime later, scaring the others, though Lee had felt his runed weapon approach. He took a handful of food and vanished back into the night. Lee felt him go back upstairs, where he only stayed briefly. When he came back down, Jake held out a core to Lee. "The snake, which technically was mine until you stole my kill." "It was going to eat me!" Lee protested. He felt like that was a very legitimate excuse. "That''s the only reason I''m letting it slide." Jake was smiling, and Lee guessed Sandra must be doing better to have improved his mood so much. Despite that, Lee got the distinct feeling that he wasn''t joking about kill stealing... crazy bastard. Though, that would likely be a real problem in the future. Or core stealing. That was what it would be. In that vein... "I used some of the cores from... those guys you killed. The skills were shit, but I''ll repay the attributes." "We''re even," Jake said. "I''ll let that go, since you helped find Saira." Lee took the core. He''d earned it... and his hand froze. Of course, Jake noticed his reaction. "What?" The man even quickly scanned the sky. "Nothing," Lee said, closing his hand around the core and focusing on the notification. Skill Shard(F-Grade) Mana Sense (Rare) Allows the user to sense all types of mana in a small area around them. Raising the skill level will increase both range and sensitivity. Requirements: Any Mana Type(Requirement Met) Learn Non-Class Skill(0/3): Y/N? Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +3 All Base Attributes: Y/N? The snake dropped it... and Lee could only assume that meant it had been one of its skills. It just made sense. Which meant... had he lured the snake here? Or rather, had the Well? "I know you''ve got your own secrets," Jake said, still standing over him. "Like what you did to the snake..." Lee opened his mouth and Jake held up a hand. "I''m not demanding you tell me anything. It''s smart to keep things close to your chest, but if it''s something that''s going to come back to bite me... or my friends..." He let the statement hang there. "I... I''ll think about it," Lee finally said. The Mana Well was Liquid Mana, but he didn''t know if that meant only he could use it, or if anyone could. If it was restricted, then the threat was minimal. If not... Jake nodded and then smiled at Jamaal. "That snake''s delicious! Mind if I take some more?" "Of course! Of course! Eat!" Lee sat quietly and mulled over his choices while the others ate and chatted about food and forging. No one mentioned his glowing veins... or Jake''s glowing eyes. Was this the new normal? Jake, of course, sat out under the open sky in the courtyard. He laughed when Jamaal expressed concern. "Isn''t that the best way? If the monsters come to me, then I don''t have to go looking for them!" Lee took some amusement from the expressions he could see around the fire. Welcome to the jungle, guys. "Just imagine what that giant hawk would taste like..." Jake said wistfully while chewing on giant rattlesnake meat. "What... what giant hawk?" "Don''t worry," Lee said. "It was smaller than the snake." He pointed and smiled when he saw the horrified realization as they finally understood what the massive shape in the dark really was. Lee left them there while Jake further terrified everyone with tales of a big bird. He was tired, and while his status said nothing about that, he still wanted to sleep. It had been... a day. A day of... just too much. To his relief, he found his keys as soon as he started looking. They were in plain sight and not buried under the massive snake''s body, so that was nice. He collapsed onto his couch and then looked warily at the now unenchanted sliding glass door of his porch. Three days. It would be three days before he could safely enchant his home again. Technically, he might be able to do it now, but why risk it? Of course, that meant he needed somewhere safer to sleep... which left the bathroom as the only room sans a window. For whatever good that would do. Lee sighed, but before he got up and started dragging blankets into the bathroom, he absorbed the new skill. New Non-Class Skill(1/3): Mana Sense (Rare) Unlike his class, this skill didn''t seem to come with much new knowledge. Only a feeling of how to activate the skill, and doing so simply felt like opening his eyes... or an eye he hadn''t realized he had before... and Lee saw... or rather, felt the mana. It was everywhere. In everything. Most of it moving in a gentle flow here and there. But not all... Only a couple of feet in front of Lee was something completely different. There the mana was really moving. Not just flowing, either. It was a twisting, spiraling vortex leading down-up into-out of an infinitesimal singularity that his new senses couldn''t help but ride along with. Down. Down. Deeper and deeper into the Screaming, Raging, Storm... of MANA! Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] By then, it was far too late to back out. Lee tried to scream as his mind burned with the weight of what he was sensing, but he didn''t even know if he was still alive. He couldn''t be. He was nothing but a speck of Mana in a web that stretched across the universe... Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] It was too much... he couldn''t... Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill Level Up: [Mana Sense] Skill [Mana Sense] has reached level 10. Evolution Option Available. Rank Up to Basic Available. Evolution: Y/N? Rank Up: Y/N? Lee didn''t comprehend any of the notifications. His only saving grace was that the skill seemed to have shut down, his new eye was closed, and it left him adrift in the darkness. A peaceful darkness. A darkness that felt far too empty... and so terribly... quiet... He passed out. 21. Higher than a nose bleed ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley hovered in the sky, and the city spread out in a vast, sprawling metropolis below. It looked like a satellite image from so far up... only there was something different about seeing it in person. It appeared rather calm from so high, especially because the swarming pigeons had vanished. In fact, most of the monsters had vanished from this vantage. Though he doubted it was at all calm down at street level. He could still see the occasional movement here and there on the ground, but no details from his height, and as he looked over the city, extending miles in every direction, he didn''t know where to go. He felt... fine. Great even. Getting to F-grade did wonders like that. Along with his regeneration, of course. Except he wasn''t fine. It was only a few hours at most since he almost died. Yet he was completely fine now. No hospital, no rehab, no lingering pain, not even a scar. Like it never even happened. The... absence of proof made it feel all wrong. Almost dream-like, as if he hadn''t felt death whispering in his ear... his life just a hair''s breadth from the end. He should have died. All of his enemies did. All the people they''d killed before he got there had died. Yet he lived. Untouched, unscathed. It was good. He couldn''t ask for a better outcome. So why didn''t it feel that way? Stanley sat in the sky, surrounded by flying bags of food, and watched the pug sleep in his lap. Caffeine was twitching and whimpering. I hope it''s a good dream, Caff. There was no point just sitting here. All his circling thoughts helped no one. In fact, it was probably an actively bad thing. Every moment wasted was another chance for one of these monsters to get stronger than him, and Stanley had started way behind. Though, he had some more notifications after the little altercation on his way out of the store... Trait Upgraded: [Psycho] Rage against the dying of the light. You have found additional power by embracing rage. Keep the anger alive and become stronger as you rage. +200% ¡ª +400% Effective Willpower -10% Effective Physical Attributes Stanley glared at the notification, then checked his status. It only showed the 200% from before. Maybe he wasn''t angry enough? He could probably work up some more if he thought about... but no, he didn''t want to be angry right now. It was a buff, albeit a very situational one, and he was sure it would matter. Eventually. There was a whole city down there waiting for him. A city full of monsters waiting to kill him. Plus all the mutated animals... Rather than go exploring just yet, Stanley went back to where he''d started the day. He''d killed a lot of pigeons and rats in that building, and if there were any left, it would be a good test of his strength against something he was familiar with before he found any new and horrible monsters. It was easy enough to pick the building out on the skyline, and the southern corner of blown out windows on the top floor was a dead giveaway of his previous fight there. The movement he glimpsed inside the broken windows slowed his approach, though, and Stanley paused before entering. The hint of motion resolved into a pigeon that rushed out at him in a flurry of feathers and cooing. It was just as big as the ones he remembered. It died much easier, though. Fortunately for Stanley, and unfortunately for the birds, its death prompted a response from the rest. They flocked from the open windows in a wave of flapping and more cooing... and they died. To a bird. He didn''t even need to use his knife, and didn''t really have time to as they rushed out. He killed so many that he had to throw the bodies back inside before the cores started falling into the street below. Stanley didn''t want to risk losing them while he was busy up here. Though he tried to pile them in one corner of the offices, hopefully to keep the pigeons from stealing the cores as well. His slaughter eventually pushed the bird''s battlefront back inside, and Stanley followed. You have entered a Lair: [Winged Citadel] That was new. He could have sworn this place wasn''t a lair when he left... Did they just appear randomly? Or was something else going on? Stanley flipped a table and used the underside as the lone clean spot in the building. A place to leave his bags, not that he was sure he needed to with the way they followed him around. Still, the amount of bird shit inside rivaled even the roof this morning. He wouldn''t stray far from the bags either way. The food in there was probably more important to him than to most people. After killing everything that came to him, Stanley ventured deeper inside, and as an experiment, threw a dead bird at the floor to ceiling windows. They didn''t break this time. He also didn''t get a message about attacking the lair... Stanley tried again with a bit more force, and also with a knife instead of a bird. You have attacked a Lair Structure. All Lair Residents notified of the attack. He got the message, but the window still held up, though with a tiny chip or scratch on the glass. None of the messages would give him more information, and Stanley frowned as his now slightly dented knife punched through every bird to show itself. The lairs seemed to be monster nests of some kind. But why? What was the point of it? Though, did it matter? A large collection of monsters in one place was just what he needed, and thanks to his attack, they were apparently all coming his way. Stanley stayed where he was as birds flew, or rather, hopped out from deeper inside the building. It seemed strange that birds would choose to live inside, especially since they couldn''t even spread their wings in most of the hallways and stairwells. Then the smaller pigeons burst through the doorway in a cloud. Stanley repeated a similar tactic from the store, of just hitting everything in a wide area. The small birds weren''t as strong as the humans he''d spared, but they were definitely much more powerful than any regular pigeon should be. Faster too. Smashing them all against the floor worked well enough, and Stanley smiled when he saw cores appearing among the dead birds. There were a lot of them. His smile faded when he considered their combined power against what he''d been capable of the night before. They probably wouldn''t have killed him, not immediately, but might have forced him to run away... Just how fast were the monsters going to get stronger? He killed birds, big and small, using their own indestructible windows as a shield against his back. They came on, more and more, and he got hungry. Caffeine woke up for the first time since they left the store, and Stanley gladly shared as much as he dared with the pug. He wanted to give Caffeine everything, as much as he wanted. Hell, he''d give it all to him. But he didn''t know if the little dog needed it to recover, or if he was just as much of a glutton as he''d always been... So Stanley gave him half. That was... not fair, but reasonable. It didn''t feel reasonable, though. Caffeine had literally saved his life, and now Stanley was being stingy with snacks. One thing he remembered, as birds died and food dwindled, was Caffeine trying to eat one of the dead rats the day before. So Stanley ripped apart one of the big pigeons and tried to figure out which gross pieces were for eating and which were bad. "It''s your lucky day, Caff," Stanley said to the watching pug as he cut pieces free. "You finally get to eat the dead thing you found on the ground, and this time I won''t stop you." One upside to the messy ordeal was that he didn''t have to get his hands dirty while carving them apart. Psychokinesis was fucking great! Caffeine came to his rescue regarding which pieces were good by eating some and ignoring others. It was right about then when the bird army stopped coming, too. A few still seemed to wander his way, but the flood was over. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Stanley used the break to make a more thorough sweep for cores in the mess of dead pigeons. At first, he''d thrown the dead out the windows, after he got the cores, of course. But as he got deeper into the building, the trip back became untenable. So he started dumping them into the elevator shafts instead. He still fed some to Caffeine, but the pug seemed much less enthusiastic about anything Stanley wasn''t eating. He got full on the birds, allegedly. Then, if Stanley pulled out some meat or cheese, or even a can of cold and over-salted crap, Caffeine was starving again. Classic Caffeine, and a nice touch of normalcy. In between naps and snacks, Stanley fed Caffeine every single core he collected. That was until Caffeine stopped eating them. Then Stanley had to stick one in his mouth and pretend it was delicious. Caffeine immediately decided he wanted more. Stanley found out that he could absorb them inside his mouth and not just his hand, which was... good. That they felt like literal rocks when he tried to copy Caffeine and chew one himself... He checked on Caffeine''s status through the afternoon and into the waning light. It never changed. He worried more than once that the pug wasn''t absorbing them. Maybe he was destroying them by chewing instead of what Stanley did? The theory he stuck with, for his own hope, was that Caffeine did indeed share the deficit to his gains. It made sense. Even if he had no way to check, after seeing Caffeine heal, plus fight the way he had... that had to be it. Despite his lack of core consumption, Stanley still had something to show for the effort and dwindling food. Skill Level Up: [Knife Work] It was just the one level so far, but since he hadn''t physically stabbed anyone yet, it meant the skill must be working as he''d hoped. Plus, he hadn''t used the knife as much as he should have. The next message was more interesting, especially because he thought he felt the change that time... Skill Level Up: Psychokinesis Psychokinesis has reached level 10. No Evolution Available. Ranking up from Novice to Basic. Stanley checked the skill to see what had changed. Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 10 (Basic) I think it, and it happens. Users of this skill gain the ability to control nearby physical reality with mental power alone. Power of effects dependent on Willpower and Skill level. (Basic) Rank. Your efforts with this skill have paid off and you can now use it with more power and for longer before becoming fatigued. Skill Level Effects - (Basic) +2% Effectiveness of Willpower -2% Mental Fatigue Sure, getting a single percent from each level was practically nothing, but hitting level ten and basic rank had jumped the bonus from one to two percent per level. It was retroactive too. Which meant he gained an additional ten percent to his willpower all at once. That was enough that he noticed. As the sun dropped toward the horizon, Stanley had another issue. He was fucking tired. Apparently, his little almost-nap while hitting F-grade wasn''t enough of a rest. The problem was that he hadn''t slept since this started, and now he wasn''t sure how to go about doing so safely. His barricade in the pigeon building was fine and good while he was awake, but trusting his life to it while asleep... that was another thing entirely. He couldn''t actually think of any place that would be safe short of a bank vault... which might actually be a good idea. Why not? If anyone even cared about banks anymore, they couldn''t stop him. Assuming it wasn''t some fucked up lock, then he should be able to unlock and lock it at will. It was a great idea. He just needed to find a bank... It would have been a better task to undertake while there was more light outside... especially since without electricity, he couldn''t simply look for glowing signs in the dark. Turned out that flying really was great. Stanley felt like he might understand killing some random person if it would let him fly like this. Assuming he couldn''t already, of course. Soaring through the sky on a whim and a thought was pretty fucking fantastic. He found a bank. It was filled with some bugs that he wasn''t sure what they''d originally been, but they died like the rest. At least they did once he figured out he needed to pull open their back carapace for his knife to get in. Their shells were disturbingly tough. The vault was more of a problem. It was closed when he arrived, and it stayed that way when the sun vanished behind the horizon. The damn thing was a complicated mess of shit when he tried to feel out the gears and locking pins with his mental touch. He never got it open. Despite giving up on the unlock and resorting to just breaking stuff inside the door. That turned it into a new puzzle, and he was just too tired to deal with it by then. Rather than rip the entire thing out of the ground in frustration, Stanley settled down in the entry room. The vault was on one side and the building only had a single door leading in his room from the other direction. He barricaded the shit out of the doorway and sat down with Caffeine next to the steel door. He couldn''t lock himself away, so he only hoped that Caffeine would make enough noise to wake him up if something tried to get in. It wasn''t perfect, but considering the pug had saved his life already, he wasn''t too worried about trusting him now. Before he knocked out though, Stanley had a new notification to deal with. Class: Psionic has reached the Threshold of Level 10 No Class Evolutions Available. Ranking Psionic up to Level 10 (Basic) Stanley felt it before he checked. Something more significant had changed. Psionic (Rare) I think therefore it is. A Rare Class that focuses on the power of the Mind. Practitioners eschew the use of Mana, instead converting all external and internal energy directly into their mental energy. Strong minds use this energy to force the world around them to bend to their will. Masters of this class can alter reality on a whim and a thought. Class Level Effects (Basic) +4% Effective Mind Attributes -4% Mental Fatigue Another extra percentage point, but it didn''t change the text like his skill had... For reaching (Basic) rank in your class, you may choose a new Class Skill. It was even better than that. Not only did he gain another ten percent to willpower, but now he got more skills. They appeared in his mind, and Stanley focused on the first option. Meditation (Uncommon) I think, therefore, I am at peace. Users of this skill gain the ability to refresh their minds through meditation, minimizing the need for sleep. Allows the user to enter profound states of concentration, attuning their mind and body to the flow of psionic energy. Active meditation increases all regeneration at the cost of severe sensory restrictions. Higher skill level will increase the positive effects and reduce the sensory restrictions. Skill Level Effects - (Novice) +10% to all regeneration while active -1% to sensory restrictions It wasn''t... bad, and the not having to sleep part sounded good. But sensory restrictions? What did that mean? Also, regeneration wasn''t really something he was lacking. So he looked at the next option. Telepathy (Rare) You think, therefore, I hear. Users of this skill gain the ability to touch upon the surface layer of another''s mind. There, you may attempt to glean the surface thoughts of the target or to implant new thoughts in the target''s mind. Can be used as communication between willing parties. Higher skill levels will increase the range at which it can be used, as well as the depth a mind may be searched. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Willpower and Intelligence -1% Mental Fatigue Mind reading. With a potential for mind manipulation on the side. It was one of those things everyone thought about at least once; to know what someone else was thinking. If he''d had this earlier... he might have known the lair was a trap before he went inside. It could have saved him so much pain... It was too late for all that now. He was alive despite their best efforts. As for taking this as his next skill... it was tempting. He would see any ambushes coming. No more backstabbing out of nowhere. Stanley still checked the next one, and it was even better. Premonition (Epic) I think, therefore, I know. One of the fundamental forces of reality is time. Tap into this force to gain a glimpse of the dangers that are yet to strike. A moment''s warning is better than no warning at all. Users of this skill can see into their own probable future. Higher skill levels will increase the forewarning and clarity of premonitions. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% All Effective Mind Attributes +0.01 Second Foresight -1% Mental Fatigue See into the future. Who cares if he could read minds when the alternative was seeing the fucking future? Sure, the actual time it would let him see ahead was total shit, but it would get better with levels. If it doubled at level ten and basic rank like his other one, that would be... two tenths of a second... so still not much. Eventually, though... Stanley thought he remembered reading somewhere that humans reacted in tenths of a second, but he couldn''t remember how much. His reactions felt faster after F-grade... The other differences between the three were the attributes. Meditation didn''t give any bonus, while telepathy gave an increase to willpower and intelligence, but Premonition boosted all of his mind stats. Was it the rarity? Going from common to Epic? It wasn''t really much of a choice. Meditation was crap. Telepathy was at least interesting, though Stanley wasn''t sure how much he wanted to get inside anyone''s head, much less the kind of person who would try to murder him. Or he could see into the future. New Class Skill: Premonition (Epic) - Level 1 (Novice) Nothing happened. Oh, he felt a slight... something in his mind, but so slight it could''ve been nothing more than his imagination. He considered sticking himself with a knife to see if the injury might prompt an effect, but he was too tired. Instead, he lay down against the vault and stuffed a jacket under his head for a pillow. Caffeine curled up between his legs, and the darkness of the room pulled him down. Stanley had one last thought before drifting off... I''ll have to go shopping again tomorrow. 22. Dreams of Mana Sheep ~~~Lee~~~ Lee woke to blinding daylight streaming in the sliding glass doors, and from a dream that he couldn''t quite remember. It had been chaotic... and a maddeningly complex web of something that bordered on... He had a notification waiting for him. More than one, in fact. Ley Line Mana is burning your mind. -20 All Mind Attributes per second.(+18 from Energetic Resilience) Ley Line Mana is burning your mind. -20 All Mind Attributes per second.(+18 from Energetic Resilience) Ley Line Mana is burning your mind. -20 All Mind Attributes per second.(+18 from Energetic Resilience) Ley Line Mana is burning your mind. -20 All Mind Attributes per second.(+18 from Energetic Resilience) Lee remembered his dream now... and wished he hadn''t. Because it hadn¡¯t been a dream. He focused on the notifications in an attempt to forget again. It didn''t work for that, but he found something more positive to think about. Aside from the fact that the mystery trait had probably just saved his life again. New Trait: [Ley Line Attuned] You immersed your mind into a Ley Line and, defying expectations, emerged alive while retaining your body, mind, and sanity. The experience has attuned your mind to the deeper ways and left you with newfound mental strength. +100% All Effective Mind Attributes +100% Mana Well Efficiency It had no downsides. So long as he didn''t think too much about how he''d gained it... Lee turned to his newest skill... La la la, not thinking about it! He chose the evolution option, and a new notification entered his mind. Evolution Achievements for Mana Sense (Rare) You have increased Mana Sense ten levels in less than ten seconds. You have delved deep into the secrets of Mana. You have the Trait: [Ley Line Attuned] You have wielded pure Liquid Mana as a weapon. You have claimed a Liquid Mana Well. New Evolution: Mana Sense (Rare) becomes Mana Mind (Epic) Mana Mind (Epic) Your mind is intrinsically linked to all Mana within a small radius. This slightly increases Mana manipulation and grants total awareness of all Mana within range. Your mind actively consumes Mana to fuel greater mental processes. Lack of Mana to fuel this process will have a negative effect. Sustained lack may cause permanent losses. This is a permanent effect and can not be turned off so long as you have the skill. Skill Level Effects: +1% All Effective Mind Attributes at 100% Mana 0% Effect at 50% Mana -1% All Effective Mind Attributes at 0% Mana Lee... didn''t know what to make of it. It gave him more intelligence... but only if he didn''t use his mana? That''d be fine if he was fighting, but did he actually need more intelligence when he was fighting? There was the permanent losses part as well if he ran out of mana for too long. It was epic instead of the previous rare. That was... probably better. Total awareness of all mana in range sounded stronger than just sensing mana in range... but again, he didn''t know what that fucking meant! He wouldn''t be able to turn off the skill. Was that bad? Would he want to? Why was it mentioning that detail otherwise? Having almost died to gain the option made him not want to pass it up. That made sense... or was he just doubling down on his first mistake? Lee ground his teeth as he mulled over the choice. His race had changed, sort of, and he was now a mana conduit. Not that he really understood what that meant, other than it clearly involved mana. His class used mana. A shit-ton of it. He had a feeling that mana, of all kinds, was going to be a major part of the world from now on. Did he dare not to take any advantage he could? Fuck it. Lee... almost accepted. First, he got up from the couch and went as far as he could from the Mana Well. Fool me once. Then he accepted... and didn''t move for... a while. Woah! It was an awesome skill! He could see all the surrounding mana. Yet... it wasn''t even really that. He wasn''t actually seeing or feeling it. He knew all the surrounding mana. Like how he knew where his hands were in relation to his body, Lee knew where all the mana was. He could feel... or maybe see? It was like seeing, only as if he was also feeling what he looked at, and feeling it inside and out in perfect clarity. It was hard to describe. The first and most surprising thing was how many colors... well, his Mana Mind didn''t see in color, but that was the best description he could think of for what he was sensing. Flavors? Types? First, the mana wasn''t blue like he''d originally thought. Not like the Well. Sure, some of it was blue, but most of it carried the color of what it was a part of. The air was full of pale, wispy mana, almost translucent. His body held far more colors as well. From a lot of red around his heart to the entire spectrum of the rainbow throughout the rest of his flesh, organs, and bones. It went beyond that, too. More varieties and shades of them existed than he knew names for. It had to be ''Aspect'' mana. That lightning class he''d seen during class selection had required Lightning Aspect. Lee didn''t know what that would look like, but knew that he didn''t have it. Because he could see himself. All the mana inside him. His core and channels. All as clear as day while he watched the constant flow of outside mana entering his body. It didn''t seem to matter which ''colors'' came in. All of it faded into the deep blue as it flowed toward his core through his channels. It was slightly worrying considering his debuff, but it also felt right. He wasn''t doing anything with it, not actively, and Lee strongly suspected it was simply his mana regeneration at work. Especially since it all went into his core. His core was... something else. A dense mass of swirling mana, that was both tiny, and yet somehow far too large. The sheer density and power he felt from that little ball was... terrifying. Nothing like the mana drifting through the air or sitting inside the floor below him. Nothing like anything... The core felt like it should reside directly below his heart. Or so it seemed. Only, it wasn''t really there. Lee could see his body, or at least, the mana that suffused his body, which was practically the same thing. And his core wasn''t there in the physical reality. It had to be some kind of extra-dimensional thing... but he couldn''t find the actual link between the two dimensions, even though he could see both. He gave up on that tactic. Instead, he followed the mana flowing outward from his core through smaller and more numerous channels. What flowed out was nothing like the crushing power that filled the core. Instead, it felt more akin to the surrounding mana. It flowed almost uniformly throughout his entire body, either cycling back around to the core or vanishing into his flesh and bones. It also shifted aspects in the process, turning from the deep blue into whatever color permeated the destination, with the only outlier being his head. A lot more mana flowed to his head. In fact, there was an insanely complex storm of mana moving around in there, and it only got harder to study the more he tried. Lee stopped trying... and laughed when he realized he was literally watching himself think. It was amazing... and awesome. Of course, the effect reached only a little over an arm''s length in every direction, which was weird because it was an arm''s length from his head. When he stood up, it felt like his feet had vanished... sort of. It felt... different. Then he opened his eyes. That wasn''t right. At all. Lee felt blind... as if his vision simply ended an arm''s length away. Not his eyes. He could see as well as before. But within his mana mind... he could SEE. Skill Level Up: Mana Mind The range extended with the level up, and he could almost see his feet. Lee grinned. He couldn''t wait to level this skill. Then he went looking for his machete. Daylight was wasting. He paused in the living room when he remembered the Well. He''d almost forgotten in the excitement of the new skill, but his Mana Mind could feel the Well like a strong wind blowing from that direction. How had no one noticed this? Lee wasn''t excited about the next part, but he needed to check... so he inched closer and closer to the Well. On the one hand, if he could power level the skill... on the other, that was a terrible idea that would almost assuredly drive him insane or kill him. He still inched closer. The Mana Well was important, and something he probably needed if he wanted to enchant the building again. He should find out if his new skill had ruined it... He approached while leaning far back in a precarious stance. If it was as bad as before, he would fall and leave range, hopefully before his skill leveled up. Though maybe he should have someone else here to drag him away... His Mana Mind touched the Well and... Lee stepped back. It was still weird, but it didn''t suck his mind back into that... place. It also felt nearly identical to what he saw inside his own core. On a larger scale, but still the same color, so to speak. Which made sense. Liquid Mana and all. It would have been terrifying... if he didn''t already have a similar thing inside himself... He shivered. Enough worrying and thinking about that for now. Lee snatched up his machete and hurried out. Time to do something more fun. Like hunting ticks! Lee stopped just outside his door when he found Maria standing on the balcony. She was looking down into the courtyard, the two small children at her side doing the same only through the metal bars rather than over them. She glanced at him when he emerged, studied him for a long second, and then nodded. "Buenos d¨ªas, Se?or." That she called him sir caught Lee off guard, but then he saw the hole he''d burned straight through the other side of the building. Maybe that was it. The two children both turned to look at him as well. Lee smiled awkwardly and waved. "Hi..." The little girl... Anita, waved shyly and then tried to hide behind her mother''s legs. The slightly older boy only stared at him. Until Maria cleared her throat. "Buenos..." "English, Gabriel." "Gu... moring..." he said, and Maria made a noise. "Sir," he added. "Morning," Lee said, and moved forward to see what they were all looking at. It was the snake. Or what was left of it. A crowd of people were down in the courtyard, and it looked like they were busy cutting it apart. Multiple fires burned around the edges of the open area, and Lee could see the large piles of snake meat cooking over the flames. Smart. They would have to clear out the corpse anyway before it started rotting and stinking up the entire building, or worse, lured in more monsters looking for a meal. At least this way, they would get a massive amount of food out of it. Though the smell of cooking meat had overpowered any scent of blood, and that might draw monsters just as well... Then he saw someone walking on the roof across the way, two of them, in fact. So... lookouts? All of that was secondary, and the smell was the only reason he paid attention to the goings on below. Most of his focus was on the three people who''d just entered his Mana Mind range. Lee could feel them as a slightly fuzzy outline of a person. Like a hole in his perceptions, or maybe more accurately, a solid. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. He could see the mana flowing into them, just like himself, but whereas he could see inside his body, theirs were opaque to the new sense. The strangest part was both children seemed to draw more mana than either he and Maria combined. Not that Maria was drawing more than a trickle, and Lee guessed his Mana Mind was responsible for his own increased intake. It had said his mind would consume mana... Other than those discoveries, the best part was that if his skill worked the same for monsters, then Lee had just gained a powerful tool to essentially see in every direction at once. It wasn''t even as disorienting as he''d worried it would be. He didn''t have to focus or try to pay attention to everything around him. He just knew what was there without even thinking about it. As for the meat that was smelling better by the second, Lee just hoped someone down there knew how to preserve the food since they didn''t have any freezers... though, he could make one if he wanted to. Not for a couple more days, but once his debuff ended... he could make a lot of... things. "Where''s Alejandro?" Lee asked, followed immediately by his stomach growling. Maria pointed up, and Lee didn''t understand. "Roof." Ah. He looked around for a way to get up there, and considered if he could climb up from the hole across the courtyard. Maria pointed toward the stairs. Lee found the formerly fenced off flight of stairs leading higher, he''d forgotten it was there... Though to be fair, he''d used the elevator to move in, and the first time he''d used this stairwell had been when he found both a giant dead frog and a dead woman. Someone had... removed the bodies since then... He tried not to think about it and ran upstairs to the roof. There, he found Alejandro and Jake. A few more people had spread out around the courtyard, but Lee didn''t recognise any of them. "Really, Jake?" Lee said as he approached the duo. "You''re on guard duty? Willingly?" Jake rolled his eyes and pointed into the sky. Lee followed the direction and saw... a few dark specks? "Monster vultures," Jake said. "Big tough ones. Unfortunately, they''re cowards." "Probably because you killed a dozen of them already," Alejandro said with a laugh and went to pound the other man on the back. A gesture Jake avoided with a smooth twist and step. "I also get a share of the prepared meat for my oh so dangerous job of keeping everyone safe." "I could do some guard duty..." Lee trailed off when he remembered he''d abandoned his shield. He really needed to go get that... but he''d also taken the runes from it, too. So it would be useless and he didn''t need it. Besides, they had recruited a blacksmith last night. She could make him a real shield... "Don''t worry!" Alejandro exclaimed. "What''s mine is yours, Lee. Besides, you killed the snake! So, by Jake''s logic, the entire thing is yours!" "Sure," Jake said. "Just go tell everyone else..." He stopped talking abruptly and stared at Lee right when he entered Mana Mind range. "That is not Mana Sense." "What? You can sense that? Wait, how do you know what Mana Sense is..." Jake smiled. "You either got a new class skill, or evolved the shard I gave you. I''m guessing it was the latter and had something to do with all the screaming right after you went to bed. Am I right?" "How..." "You scared me with that," Alejandro said. "Thought you were getting eaten again. We had to climb through from the porch, but Maria said you were fine. Even though your eyes were glowing brighter¡­" "Thanks for that..." Lee didn''t want his windows broken either if he could... "Wait, my eyes were glowing?" "They still are," Alejandro said, and stared at him. "Did you not know?" "No..." Lee hadn''t slept in the bathroom as planned or he might have seen the mirror. "It is not so bright as it was... right after the snake..." Alejandro looked like he desperately wanted to ask more. Lee sighed. "I need to tell you guys something, and I''d really appreciate it if it doesn''t go any further than you two." He glanced around to make sure no one else was close enough to overhear, and then he told them about the Well. How it gave him mana, how that helped him enchant the building, how someone might want to kill him for it, and how that might have been the catalyst for the snake almost killing all of them. Jake had already seen the skill shard, so he understood the implication immediately. Alejandro didn''t get it until Lee explained. "You might want to move into a different building," Lee said finally. "Probably at the other end of the complex, if not somewhere else entirely." "I think Maria will agree," Alejandro replied slowly. "We will leave." Lee was surprised to feel the sting of loss and rejection at Alejandro''s words. He didn''t realize how much he''d enjoyed the other man''s support until it was leaving... even so, it was the right thing to do. They needed to leave. "You... will you still hunt with me?" "What?" Alejandro looked genuinely confused. "Of course. You saved our lives! My whole family lives because of what you did. I will fight at your side forever." "I..." Lee blinked back traitorous moisture from his eyes. "I thought you said you were leaving..." "For three days, right? That is how long you need to heal?" "Yes..." "Then we will return! The children can''t absorb the cores, so we must keep them safe. Until then, I will help you defend this place. Because I am assuming you wish to keep this Well, no?" "I do... I think." He had needed it for the building before, but now he was F-grade, and with a boost to his mana. He might not actually need it... but he wouldn''t let it go without a fight. The tidbit about children not being able to use cores was... interesting, but not important at the moment. "What about you, Jake?" "I''ll let Sandy know... not about your secret, but I''ll tell her you''re a trouble magnet. Which I''m sure she knows by now." He smirked. "So what''s the new skill? It''s a strange feeling on my end..." It was Lee''s turn to smirk. "We all have secrets." His smile faded. "It shouldn''t draw any danger here. At least... not any more than there already is, and... Wait, did everyone else get to F-grade? We had enough cores before..." Before Sandra almost died and Saira got abducted. "We had enough, and I will tell Maria," Alejandro said. "She must know, even though she may be angry with you for hiding it before." "Tell what?" Maria said behind them, and both Lee and Alejandro jumped. Jake laughed. Alejandro said a bunch of stuff to her in Spanish. Maria said a bunch back while shooting a variety of expressions Lee''s way. Then Jake chimed in, also in Spanish. Whatever he said to Maria, she didn''t like it and switched her glare to him. Lee stood awkwardly, with no idea what was going on. Other than that they were likely talking about him. Jake saw his expression and explained. "She threw a knife in the snake''s eye, and then hid inside your building until it almost fell down." He turned a glare toward Maria. "I told her not to pick fights she can''t finish." That would explain the glare, from both of them, and why his runes had been in the snake''s head¡­ Jake abruptly leaned back and fired an arrow into the sky. Alejandro placed himself more firmly in front of Maria and they both started backing away as Lee looked up. It was indeed a vulture, one on the same scale as the hawk they''d seen yesterday, and it was diving on the building. Lee held up his machete, and it was pathetically small. A glance told him that Maria was already off the roof and inside, for whatever good that would do. Meanwhile, Alejandro was coming back his way. Jake was building a more substantial charge on his next arrow, and he was close enough that Lee could see the mana at work. It streamed out of the man, mostly from his hand on the string, and spiraled up the arrow to concentrate at the tip. Lee raised his free hand. His left hand. Worst case, he would blast it... maybe using his left hand would help reduce the damage... Jake fired. The arrow streaked up at the bird, which spun away far too fast, dodging... and the arrow exploded next to its head. The vulture spiraled further off course and wobbled as Jake charged another shot. Before he could fire it off, the bird had stabilized and was winging away at speed. Jake shot anyway, but the bird had more time to dodge. It exploded further away and the bird only swayed as it kept running. "Cowards," Jake grumbled. "Killed a lot of them before the rest learned their lesson. Now they give it another try every so often, but always run away after the first hit." Lee dropped his raised hand in relief. He really didn''t want to do that again. Especially since he not only had full mana right now, but he had hit F-grade, which doubled his total mana. That might have... Shit, it probably would have killed him. Note to self. Don''t do that again. Ever. He looked over at Jake, who was miming his earlier motion. "You gonna blast em?" Jake asked. "Think it''ll reach that high?" "I''m not," Lee said. "Never again." "That''s no fun. Your attack was awesome! I wanna see it again." Lee started walking away and then stopped. "How''s Sandra?" Jake lost his smile. "Not taking the whole near death thing too well. Thought she was tougher than that... but I guess we''ll have to wait and see." Lee shook his head and left. He didn''t like near death things either. Plus, he was hungry, and... "Alejandro, what are people doing about bathrooms?" Turned out there was some lady making magic water in the complex and people were already bribing her to fill up bathtubs and toilet tanks. Not that Alejandro called it that, but she was busy, which meant Lee needed something to offer if he wanted water anytime soon. The thought of a bath or shower was extremely appealing, and having to rely on someone else to get that was not. Lee was an enchanter, sort of. He didn''t need anyone else if he could make it himself. Well, he wouldn''t need anyone else in... sixty-ish hours, at least. Unfortunately, he didn''t have any runes that made water, but had some ideas using a few other runes together that might do the trick. He could wait that long... "I''ll ask Maria to talk with her," Alejandro said. "She knows her already and helped with something yesterday. You should have water later today, and for now, just go ask Maria to use ours." Lee paused mid-step as he was about to leave. It really did pay to have friends, didn''t it? Though going to Maria for favors felt... he wasn''t sure. Something about the woman was scary... but he had saved her life. That was enough of an excuse to use someone''s toilet... right? Oh god. He really hoped it didn''t clog. ... Later, and feeling much better if only slightly cleaner, Lee joined the workforce in the courtyard. His talk with Alejandro regarding water had highlighted another thing he would need, and a lot at that; food. "Hi, Jamaal." "Hold," Jamaal said, and held up a hand as stared at the cooked and steaming meat spread out on his tray, his other hand hovering over the food. Lee took a step closer, just enough for his Mana Mind to reach, then watched as the man clearly used magic to do... something. Despite seeing the mana, it didn''t actually tell him what it was doing. Still, it was interesting to watch it move, especially with how dense it was inside the meat. It wasn''t just the cooked meat either. The snake''s whole body was thick with more mana than anything else Lee had seen. It was on par with what filled his own body, but slightly more... When Jamaal finished and looked up, he seemed unsure for a moment, then brightened. "Lee! You back for more after try my cooking, eh? There is enough for all!" He laughed with the same cheer he''d shown the night before, and Lee smiled in return. "I am, but also, what was the magic? If you don''t mind telling me." "To keep it good. Too much to eat now. Have to save for longer." Jamaal handed Lee a skewer straight from the fire. "Here. Fresh. Hot. Enjoy!" Lee sat and very much enjoyed his breakfast. It was as good as he remembered from the night before. "No slacking until we''re finished!" Lee heard the shout, but didn''t realize it was aimed at him until a figure entered his Mana Mind from behind. "Jamaal, you can''t just feed anyone who wanders in!" "But..." "As for you," the man said, turning on Lee and looming over him. "Get back to work or get out!" Lee stood up, machete in hand again. "I live here, and..." "No excuse, if you''re not going to work, then at least give the machete to someone who will." He held a hand as if expecting Lee to hand over his weapon. Lee had a strange feeling of d¨¦j¨¤ vu as he said, "Back off." He wasn''t about to waste his enchant on cutting up the snake. Any weapon could do that, by evidence of all the people already doing it. So of course, the man grabbed his wrist and tried to take the machete. Unfortunately for him, he was not F-grade yet. Lee didn''t budge as he glared at the man. "Let go of me and never try to take my weapon again." He remembered why this felt so familiar now... but Lee wouldn''t stab him. It would waste the enchant. Though he was considering punching the man... The guy seemed to realize he couldn''t win and stepped back. "One of those, huh? Maria is in charge of this operation. You want me to call her? She''s not scared of you punks." "I don''t work for you," Lee said. "This is my weapon, my kill, and my home. I''m not going anywhere." "Maria!" the man yelled. Seriously, what was wrong with people? It took all of two seconds for the woman in question to appear next to him, which was another fascinating experience for Lee. He saw the mana fly in from outside his range and latch onto him, assemble into an outline of a person, brighten considerably, and then Maria suddenly filled the outline. He couldn''t see her move into position. It was too fast. But his skill ''knew'' that she had moved, rather than just appearing in place. "Cu¨¢l es el problema?" Lee got the gist of what she said, but not whatever the other man said back in even faster Spanish. Then Maria fired back, and her explanation involved a lot of pointing at the snake, then up at the hole in the building, then at Lee... She wasn''t... The man paled, glanced once at Lee with wide eyes, then nearly ran away as he found someone else to yell at. Maria vanished from his Mana Mind, but the trail she left told him which direction she''d gone. Lee glared up at her on the balcony. Did she have to go around telling people that was him? Though maybe if it stopped interactions like that from happening again... Jamaal was working very studiously when Lee turned back, but he''d seen the man staring at his back with Mana Mind. Lee sat back down. "Jamaal, I came down here to make a deal with you." The man looked up then, meeting his eyes. "I will bring you cores and or monsters. In exchange, you make food for me. How''s that sound?" "Is excellent!" Jamaal was all beaming smiles again. "But why me?" "Umm, I met you first... and your food is great!" Lee smiled sheepishly. It was because he didn''t know anyone else here. Much less anyone who could cook. Well, Maria could cook, but this guy had an actual class for it. From what he''d seen last night, the man was not at all eager to fight. So this would benefit both of them. Lee stood up. "I should warn you, I eat a lot." He doubted Jamaal truly understood the statement, but he would in time. Deal struck, Lee went looking for anyone who might go hunting with him. He still needed cores. His little adventure last night had cost him a large chunk of attributes. Not that he was complaining, it was totally worth it. Mana Mind was epic. Literally and figuratively. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Conduit] [Ley Line Attuned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 5 (Novice) Class Skills: Rune Scribe (Uncommon) - Level 8 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 10(+1%)10.1 Vitality: 10(+2%)10.2 Dexterity 10(0%)10 Wisdom 2(+132%)4.6 Intelligence 2(+129%)4.5 Willpower 2(+128%)4.5 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(1/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) || Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 2 (Novice) Buffs: Debuffs: [Mana Burn] One good thing he''d learned from the ordeal was that dropping attributes below F-grade didn''t actually knock him back into ungraded. Something about the evolution had changed him on a fundamental level and it no longer mattered what his attributes were. Presumably. Of course, finding out the hard way that he could lose his hard earned attributes was... not ideal. 23. Again with the Birds... ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley woke from a dream of clawing darkness that dragged him away from the light no matter how hard he struggled. He was sweating and shaking when he opened his eyes into a pitch black room. The darkness didn''t go over well. The bank blew up... and out. But mostly up. Light bloomed in the destruction''s wake, and Stanley saw Caffeine standing on his chest and staring down at him. Then he saw the building''s roof coming back down. Stanley hit it again and sent the roof falling away from him. All the small pieces still rained down, and he curled up around Caffeine as his power built a wall around them. He felt the small impacts against his mind, but it was all insignificant. It probably wouldn''t even hurt his F-grade body. Though Caffeine wasn''t F-grade yet... When the rattle and clatter finally stopped, Caffeine bounded excitedly to the meat bag and then stared at Stanley expectantly. "Yes, Caff. It''s breakfast time." That set Caffeine zooming in excited circles. Stanley smiled at the sight as he unpacked the food and let the sweat dry on his skin. The activity also helped his hands stop shaking, and watching Caffeine''s pure excitement soothed the rest of his nightmare away. They ate together, briefly. For all of two seconds, maybe. Then Caffeine watched Stanley eat. Stanley ate more slowly as he observed their surroundings with some confusion. Not because he recognized nothing about where they were; he didn''t. It had been too dark the night before. Instead, his confusion was in the complete lack of monsters anywhere in sight. Animal or human. It was even quieter than the day before. He eventually finished his food, with help from Caffeine, and took both of them back to the skies. As he flew, a few monsters appeared occasionally, but nothing like he expected. He did not know what was happening until he chased down some rodent-like things the size of grizzly bears. He killed two of them with a knife through their heads, and the rest ran inside a building. Stanley followed. You have entered a Lair: [Burrow of Tooth and Claw] The three-story apartment building didn''t seem nearly large enough to house more than a handful of the huge creatures, and apparently it wasn''t. Stanley killed only a few more before he found the tunnel leading into the earth. The dark tunnel. It was bad enough inside the dim building, but the regularly spaced windows at least let in enough light for him to see. Going down into a pitch dark cave with giant rodents was not happening. Stanley killed the few bear rodents above ground and flew away with his cores. He checked more buildings whenever monsters ran inside, and he found more of the same. Not every building was a lair, hardly any of them were. But every smaller building that had turned into a lair was now sporting a pit underground. So Stanley went back to the skyscrapers; at least those weren''t dark holes, and he started with his old favorite one, the first place in the city where he almost died... He wasn''t expecting much of a response, if any, after the slaughter the day before, and he flew inside on that assumption. It was a good assumption, and despite seeing the message that he was indeed in a lair, not one pigeon showed itself as he flew through the building. He went down level after level but still found nothing. Of course, the peace couldn''t last. Halfway through one of the higher floors, Stanley felt a twinge of pain in his chest. Only for the barest instant. Then Caffeine barked another of his deafening barks, and Stanley felt the force of the sound actually push them backward in the air. He also saw what happened at the other end of that bark. A pigeon appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. It was smaller than expected, what used to be regular size, and flew at what had to be over a hundred miles an hour as it shot towards Stanley''s chest like a bullet. Until Caffeine''s bark hit it like the invisible hand of god. The sleek gray missile flattened out against the shockwave, blood and feathers flying, then shot back the way it had come. There was a distant thud, and then the only sound was Caffeine panting. Something poked Stanley in the back, a piercing needle of... Caffeine jumped from his lap and the kickback sent Stanley crashing into one of the floor to ceiling windows with bone-breaking force. Debuff: [Concussed] Stanley''s head pounded, and he heard another loud bark as he struggled up off the floor. He turned in time to see another tiny gray missile approaching his face. He slapped it out of the air. The bird didn''t feel very heavy when he hit it, but it felt fast... and sharp, like a knife stabbing through his mind... It still went down, though. He didn''t get the nice splatter Caffeine did, but the bird still plowed into the carpet and tumbled violently across it. Stanley was already turning to look when he felt the twinge on the side of his head, and just barely caught a flicker of motion inbound. He slapped at it and felt the stinging impact as another bird died. Then his chest hurt... and Caffeine appeared right in front of him, jaws closing around the pigeon hard enough that Stanley felt the shockwave against his face. The most surprising part was how the pug''s normally small mouth now gobbled up the bird completely, and with room to spare. Caffeine was bigger. A lot bigger. In fact, now he was the one that looked like a grizzly bear... a black grizzly bear... a very cute black grizzly bear. I wasn''t imagining it... Debuff Removed: [Concussed] Debuff: [Hungry] Caffeine was abruptly regular size once more and spun around to bark at something. Stanley didn''t see what he was barking at, but put his own back to the window and pushed out in every direction across the wide room. Small forces punched through the weak pushing effect, but each one told him where to look and Stanley slapped them down before they got too close. Mostly. A large rush of the birds came all at once, and he missed one. Caffeine handled it with his same tactic of eating the entire thing in one bite, then shrank down and stood in place, growling at the shadows in between heavy panting breaths... He blurred and appeared right next to Stanley, his giant mouth slamming shut on the rear half of a pigeon. The other half of the bird punched into Stanley''s side and blasted the air from his lungs while pushing him a dozen feet along the window. Debuff: [Bleeding] Before he even stopped sliding, Caffeine had shrunk back down and shot away to take a bite out of another bird. Everything so far had happened in seconds, from the first attack until the present moment, and Stanley was only falling further behind as he struggled to pull in a breath. The pigeons were too fast and too many to keep track of... so he stopped trying to track them and instead slammed his power against everything on the entire floor, pushing it down with the same crushing force he''d used in the store. Cubicles collapsed, useless computers shattered, and desks crumbled into little more than metal pancakes. Six sharp objects fell down with everything else. Unfortunately his wide attack fell short of the power necessary to stop the birds and they never reached the ground. Wings flickered as they stabilized, and all six shot towards Stanley once again with deadly intent. Caffeine barked, and two birds spiraled into the carpet. Stanley was already pushing against the others, trying to catch and crush them. He slapped one down... and was out of time. So he moved himself instead. Stanley didn''t need conscious thought to move his own body, as he''d learned in the last couple days. Sure, it helped occasionally, but often he moved simply from the desire to be somewhere else. This time, he added a bit more effort. He dodged the last three birds, moving faster than he thought possible, and... they swerved back on target with only a flicker of flapping wings. That was unexpected, and Stanley didn''t have time for anything else, his mind still recognizing the threat and not ready to block. He tried anyway in a useless... Caffeine appeared in the last instant, his fur stinging Stanley''s nose as it brushed past at impossible speeds. He was big again, and his mouth closed over one pigeon while the rest of his body blocked Stanley''s view of the other two entirely. In nearly the same instant, he crashed sideways into Stanley, slamming him back against the windows... and crying out in pain. Not again... Caffeine pulled away, staggered a few feet, shrinking with each step, and then collapsed on his side in a spreading pool of blood that soaked rapidly into the carpet. Two birds fell from his flesh as he shrank, neither moving. Stanley sat frozen in shock. He was still struggling to keep up with the lightning quick pigeons and it took a moment for the reality of the situation to catch up to him. It was good and bad. Good, because Caffeine had taken the hits meant for him. Again. Bad, because of the same reason. Plus, the holes in the pug''s flesh looked so big... He would heal. Stanley knew he would heal, and if Caffeine''s healing worked anything like his own, which Stanley was sure it did, then he just needed some food... or a lot of food. Stanley found the pack at a glance, and yanked it over, pulling food out in the process, and straight to Caffeine''s mouth. He arrived next to Caffeine at the same time as the food, his hands pressing down over the two massive holes, one in his chest and the other in his stomach. Caffeine whimpered from the contact of Stanley''s hands on his wounds... and he didn''t eat the food in front of his nose. Eat! Eat, damn you... Wings fluttered faintly in the distance, and Stanley''s confusion and frantic terror finally shifted into a more useful emotion. Rage. It came easily, and Stanley felt his power grow along with the anger. He noted that tidbit as monsters zeroed in on them, but the thought was distant... unimportant. He had a more pressing issue. He had to protect Caffeine. Stanley was pissed, and he wanted nothing more than to tear every fucking pigeon into little pieces while they screamed and begged for mercy... but... he wanted to protect Caffeine more. The pug had just fought and defended him without hesitation. Willingly taking wounds that might be... No! He would be fine after some food and rest. Which meant it was time to leave. Unfortunately, they were too far from any open windows. Stanley had brought them too deep into the building like an idiot, and now unbreakable glass trapped them inside the deathtrap of a lair. Had the pigeons planned this? It sure felt like it. A trap just for him, and he''d flown right into it. The question was, how fast could he fly back up the stairs... or did he need to? Stanley had tested the windows the day before, and actually chipped one with his knife. He hadn''t been F-grade at the time either... So Stanley threw both of his knives at the nearest floor to ceiling window and put all of his helpless rage into the strike. You have attacked a Lair structure. All Lair residents notified. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. The glass cracked as Stanley pounded his will against it. One knife shattered, but the other dug in and sent cracks shooting across the window in a massive spider web of breaking glass. But it didn''t actually finish the job. He pushed harder. Fucking break! The flapping wings were getting louder... and Stanley screamed wordlessly at the window. The web of cracks spread further, stretching out to the very edge... and then shattered in a beautiful spray of twinkling shards. Stanley was outside before the glass started its descent to the ground below. He was hundreds of feet above the building a second later, and it was nothing more than a small rectangle far below when he stopped thousands of feet higher. Caffeine rode in his lap, and Stanley was still putting pressure on his wounds, though he didn''t know how much that really mattered. It was an immense relief when Caffeine finally started eating the offered food. Stanley had brought the only food bag along, and he doled out everything to see what Caffeine wanted. He just wished he''d had more... Caffeine wanted anything and everything, and Stanley wasn''t stingy. What Caff wanted, Caff got. They could go shopping again... even if the idea of going back into the store made him sick. Stanley would do it. He would go back a thousand times if that was what it took. Luckily, none of the pigeons seemed willing to chase him this high, and Caffeine ate uninterrupted. He also ate everything they had and then passed out. Stanley didn''t even eat any himself. Which he was perfectly fine with. How could he not be? He just needed to restock, and they''d be good to go. When he dropped back down, Stanley found himself further north, closer to the truck stop he''d started this whole shitshow at. In the rushed escape, he''d flown off target from the intended straight up. It worked out better than expected, though, because he saw another supercenter nearby. Which meant he wouldn''t have to go back to the last one... He really didn''t want to go back there. Unlike the previous store, this one had a real crowd outside. Dozens, at least, or hundreds... Stanley landed at the edge of the parking lot, hopefully before anyone saw him. While it was unlikely that psycho bitch had made it this far to spread rumors about a flying man, he didn''t want to risk a fight with Caffeine still out of it. A little walking wouldn''t hurt. Caffeine was limp in his arms as he walked. Completely limp. It was unnerving... and a little scary. If it wasn''t for the lack of wounds, and that Stanley could still hear and feel his heartbeat, he would have been much more terrified. Still, he hadn''t ever seen Caffeine this tired... Even the voices growing in volume didn''t cause the slightest stir.... "...store has been claimed by the Iron Fists," a voice was saying when Stanley got close enough. "If you really want something from inside, then you have two options. Pay with cores, or join up with our group." A lot of people didn''t appreciate the offer, Stanley included. Though he was much less vocal than the others. The name of their little group didn''t help inspire confidence either... The original speaker let the shouting go on, but another voice chimed in after only a few seconds, yelling, "We killed the monsters in the store. None of you fought for it. We did. So shut the fuck up or I''ll make you shut up!" "He''s right," the first speaker said. "We fought for this. If you don''t have the class or skills to fight, then you would have probably died in there. If you can fight, then pay with a core, or better yet, join us." More muttering followed, this time with less yelling. Still, it wasn''t looking promising as a source of food. At least if he didn''t want to fight a bunch of people for it. "You''ve all seen the monsters out there," the first speaker said. "Don''t think they''re gone just cause you don''t see them now. They went into the lairs, and you can bet they''ll come back out." Stanley wormed his way through the crowd, senses on full alert for a knife in his back, until he could see the speakers guarding the front door. The force comprised only a few men, all armed with knives and large blades, and they stood with those blades bared before the crowd. "If you have a useful class, or even just a skill, you can join us. Our leader is already an F-grade, and the rest of us will be there soon." Only one of them was F-grade after all this time? Was the guy scamming them? Honestly, it sounded suspiciously like they were looking for people with skills worth killing them for. Sure, it was possible they weren''t that murderous. The whole crowd was still alive, so that was something. Unfortunately, Stanley had grabbed none of the cores from those fast birds. He could probably fly off and find something real quick... "How bout you, sir?" the first man said, staring right at Stanley. "How about what?" "Do you have any good skills? Or did you want to trade a core?" "I''m not telling you my skills," Stanley said, though he considered it briefly before ultimately deciding against the idea. It wasn''t like he would join them, and showing off might simply make them want to kill him like the last group. "Are you hoarding the dog food?" he asked instead. It wasn''t an ideal solution, but he wanted to have something in case Caffeine woke up hungry. "That might be okay..." the first man said while looking at Caffeine with an expression lots of people used when seeing the pug. Caffeine was adorable. "Dog food''s extra," the second man said. "Two cores for one bag." Stanley stared at him in shock. What the hell was his problem? Did he hate dogs or something? Or were people already desperate enough to eat dog food? That couldn''t be right... sure, the supply chains were broken, which meant shelves would be empty in a few days, but it was only the second day. While he stood there considering whether to start a fight or go somewhere else, Caffeine''s head flopped to the side limply, and Stanley gently caught it and pressed the pug back to his chest. Sleep well... "That''s not..." the first man said while glaring at the other guy. The second man interrupted. "I''m in charge here, Ethan." He shifted the glare from Ethan and back to Stanley. "You know what? Now you don''t get shit. You''re banned. So take your dead dog and fuck off!" Stanley flinched and looked down at Caffeine with a suddenly racing pulse. He wasn''t... he couldn''t! No... the guy didn''t know what he was talking about. Caffeine was fine. He was still sleeping. Stanley closed his eyes and hugged him a little tighter. Then his brain replayed the man''s words and saw them in a new light. His eyes snapped open. It wasn''t a mistake or confusion. The man had just threatened to kill Caffeine! ~~~Ethan~~~ The angry mob yelled and bitched at them, but Ethan didn''t know what they expected him to do. He was just another pawn here, and he needed to survive, too. If any of these people didn''t like it, they could complain to Carl. That was the best way for them to understand the new reality they now lived in. It was hard to deny the truth when someone wrapped steel bars around you like they were play-dough. The man asking for dog food wasn''t shouting or yelling, but he was bloodied. Then again, who wasn''t these days? He had a scruffy homeless look to him, with torn clothes and a limp dog in his arms. Poor bastard. Dogs weren''t doing well these days. Ethan knew all too well about that. His own pit, Daisy, had saved his life, saved his whole family when the rats came through the door... and she''d paid with her life to stop the tide. Too many of his neighbors had the same story. "That might be okay..." Ethan said. They could let him through. If all the guy really wanted was dog food, then it was no big deal. Someone would watch him inside, anyway... "Dog food costs extra!" Dan said. "Two cores for one bag." Ethan winced as the dog''s head flopped sideways before the man caught it with a hand. Poor bastard indeed. Maybe he''d met the rats too. Though it was kind of a shitty move if he was using his dead dog as a ploy to steal food... Still, he''d give him the benefit of the doubt. "That''s not..." "I''m in charge here, Ethan," Dan said. "You know what? Now you don''t get shit. You''re banned. So take your dead dog and fuck off!" Dan really was an asshole. The dick was drunk on power, and he wasn''t even powerful! Just because Carl put him in charge, he thought he was somehow better than everyone else. As for the other man, he visibly flinched at Dan''s words and looked down at the dog in his arms. It was a pug, Ethan always loved... When the man looked up from his dog, his eyes had changed. Gone was the tired and disheveled man, and in his place stood a monster wearing human skin. Dan knew at that moment, and with absolute certainty, that everyone here was going to die. +1 Wisdom "Are you threatening my dog?" the man asked, and Ethan could hear the promise of death in those words. "I''m telling you to fuck off or I will do more than threaten your dog!" Dan yelled in his face, then looked back into the store, still yelling. "Carl, we got another..." Dan was truly an idiot. How could he not see what stood in front of them? Carl wouldn''t be able to save them from this. They needed to run, now! Only... he couldn''t move. He couldn''t breathe! Something was crushing his throat. I should have punched that idiot when I had the chance... "I''m going to give my dog anything and everything he wants to eat," the man said quietly enough that Ethan strained to hear over the blood roaring in his ears. "Then I''m going to take whatever I can carry. If any of you try to stop me... if you look at me wrong... if you look at my dog again... I''ll fucking kill all of you!" The man was growling by the time he finished, and he floated up into the air as he spoke, crossed his legs, and set the pug gently in his lap. Then he flew past them into the store. Ethan didn''t want to die like this... but the world was going dark as the grip around his throat only tightened. He shouldn''t have joined up here... Hooli had wanted to hunt the rats in their neighborhood. He''d even invited Ethan to go with him... that would have been... Then, abruptly, he was free. He and all the other guards fell to the floor, gasping for air and choking as they pawed at their necks, but they were still alive... "Carl..." Dan screamed in a hoarse voice, and Ethan punched him as hard as he could in the jaw. The pain in his knuckles was completely worth it to see that idiot flop to the floor. Then he ran for his life. This damn job wasn''t worth it; he would be better off hunting the rats in the lair near his apartment. At least there he had a chance to survive, a chance to get stronger. This was just suicide. Ethan was halfway across the parking lot when Carl went sailing past him, bounced a few times off the pavement, then fetched up against a signpost. Ethan didn''t slow. His former boss was wheezing and bloodied, but surprisingly, not dead. Ethan ran faster. Maybe Hooli would still be willing to team up. While he wasn''t any kind of genius, his neighbor knew when to talk shit and when to keep his mouth shut. He wouldn''t have insulted that monster. ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley dropped the door guards when a man came flying toward him with a glowing fist. While the attempted punching was a nice change from people trying to stab him, it wasn''t much better. Luckily, the guy wasn''t a strong F-grade, and his head bounced nicely off the ground. Stanley was about to spin that same head around a few times when he glimpsed... was it Ethan? Whoever it was, he slugged the shit out of the asshole at the door and took off running. The sight of that prick getting punched out cooled Stanley''s rage enough that he hesitated to kill the man before him. Sure, he''d attacked him... but that might have only been a defensive reaction. Plus, he was already unconscious... Stanley threw him out the door and then went shopping. He wasn''t planning to be greedy before, but after that reception, he felt no qualms. He loaded up. The whole claimed building shtick seemed to have collapsed while he was shopping, and there were no guards when Stanley left. The crowd was gone too, though some of them had run inside despite the show. He flew into the sky with two new backpacks on top of his original, and all three stuffed with food. Caffeine was awake and eating the chicken nuggets eagerly. He''d perked up almost immediately after they went inside, which was one reason Stanley hadn''t killed that fucking idiot who attacked him. At least, he didn''t think he''d killed him... a little throw like that shouldn''t hurt an F-grade. Caffeine ate three more boxes before he''d had enough and then passed out. Stanley stroked the sleeping pug as he gazed down at the building he''d run from earlier. The fuckers in there had hurt Caffeine, and he would not let it go so easily. Stanley could see the window he''d broken through to escape, and he didn''t want to make it that easy for the damn pigeons... so he went to the opposite side of the building, and hovered outside the nearly unbreakable glass. He''d noticed something earlier. His power didn''t care about solid barriers like those super windows the lair had. He could reach right through the glass without issue. So Stanley did just that as Caffeine dozed in his lap. He sent his power inside the building in a relatively gentle sweep and got exactly the response he was looking for. Fuck you! As soon as something moved in his touch, Stanley crushed down on it, squeezing hard enough that even the stupidly fast pigeons couldn''t escape. He squished multiple things he couldn''t see but guessed to be the birds as he went floor by floor down the side of the building. On a floor two down from where he''d escaped, Stanley found much greater numbers, including an unusually large bird that resisted his power even more than the rest. It still broke when he twisted its head around a few times. Stanley went on from there, all the way to the ground, and then made another sweep back to the roof. When nothing else responded, he finally went inside. Still nothing attacked him as he descended back through the building, and he collected the few cores he could spot easily. He wasn''t about to go searching through the whole building. When he got to where the big bird had been, a new message popped up. The Queen is dead, but the eggs remain, and a new Queen will rise if they are not destroyed. Stanley could see the eggs. There had to be hundreds of them covering the floor. Maybe even thousands. What the fuck... He smashed them all. Lair [Winged Citadel] Destroyed. Lair structure may be claimed by new occupants for the next (23:59:55) The Queen pigeon had dropped a core, but it wasn''t any different from what the little fucks dropped. However, the core he found in the doorway after he''d killed all the eggs. Now that was different. Skill Shard[F-grade] Winged Slash (Uncommon) User generates a powerful gust of wind from their wings and unleashes it forward into a cutting slash. Requirements: Winged Physique(Requirement Not Met) Wind Aspect Mana(Requirement Not Met) Adapt to Skill(-50% Adaptable) Y/N? Adapt Skill(-1% Adaptable) Y/N? Destroy and Consume Shard to gain +2 All Base Attributes It wasn''t terrible, aside from the cost to learn it, but it had greater implications beyond merely the skill. First, there were the requirements and the adapt to skill bit he¡¯d seen before... What was weird was considering what would happen if he chose that option. Would he get a winged physique if he chose it. Would that give him wings? Turn him into a bird? Birdman? Not that he would actually take the option, but the fact it was there... Secondly, and more helpful for his current needs, was that lairs dropped loot if you destroyed them. Or so it seemed. Stanley held off on destroying the skill just yet. He wanted to consider it first. A cutting attack, depending on what it turned into, might be better than a knife. While he thought about it, Stanley went looking for more lairs inside skyscrapers. He had a new strategy now, and he wanted to get Caffeine to F-grade today. Ideally, with no injuries to slow them down. 24. To Serve Man ~~~Lee~~~ Lee couldn''t find anyone to hunt with. Not because they were all busy, which they were, but because of the notification that came up shortly after he went looking. It is time to claim your own Lair and build up a defensive position. Greenfield Village occupancy has endured long enough for Sapient Lair formation to begin. To claim the prize, prospective residents will have to defend their budding Lair from Invaders who will come to contest ownership. Time to battle: (59:59) All who flee the area will forfeit their claim to residency. If all prospective residents flee, then the Lair will default to the invading force. Lee wasn''t the only one to see the message, clear by the chaos that erupted in the aftermath. Lots of fresh shouting and people running around outside. Lee wasn''t exactly sure which way everyone was leaning, but knew what he had to do. Fight, obviously. He wasn''t about to abandon his home... assuming he could get enough help to defend it, of course. While it sounded like this was something they wanted, something powerful that might help them survive, Lee would not die in a hopeless battle if everyone else fled. So he went back to the roof, where he found them already discussing the issue. "Sounds like we might get a good fight," Jake said. "I''m up for that, but don''t expect me to settle down here afterward." Alejandro looked dubious about the idea. "It is safer to flee..." "We shouldn''t run," Lee said. "If we can hold on to this place, then I can enchant it again. I don''t know if I''ll be able to do that without the Well. Plus, what''s to say this doesn''t keep happening wherever we go?" "Probably a good point," Jake said. "Don''t know if you''ve noticed, but it''s getting quiet out there." He waved vaguely toward the greater world outside the complex. "I think most monsters are settling down in their own Lairs... Now, whether they stay inside is another question entirely." Jake was happy enough to hold the roof for now, not having plans to flee, and Alejandro went to find Maria. Lee followed. He had a vested interest in their remaining to help him defend the building. On the way down, he considered trying to enchant the building despite the Mana Burn debuff. It was a hard call to make. On the one hand, it might make the coming battle much safer, but on the other, might leave him crippled for months to come. Hell, it might even prevent the enchanting entirely, possibly while still increasing the debuff. The spirited debate that followed between Alejandro and Maria was all in Spanish, accompanied by looks in his direction that varied between reassuring and... less pleasant things. So Lee left them to it and went looking for another thing he would need. "Jamaal!" He found the cook working even more frantically over his fire, and the man jumped at Lee''s greeting. "Sorry... but remember our deal? Well, I''ll need that food for the upcoming fight." Jamaal froze, staring at him in shock. "You... will stay?" "I think so?" Lee said, then once again explained his reasoning about how they would be running forever if they didn''t fight. Jamaal''s hurried motions slowed as he listened, but the fear in his eyes didn''t diminish. "I am... no fighter," he finally said. "I''m not saying you have to fight," Lee said. "I just don''t think running is going to do much good. At least, not in the long run... Though if you leave, just don''t go too far." The message didn''t specify what exactly resident status entailed, or what the lack of it might mean. Could people run away and come back after the fight? Assuming the humans held onto this place, of course. "I... will think about it," Jamaal said, but he also handed off a big pile of his cooked and magically preserved meat into Lee''s bag. So that was good. Lee went looking for Saira next. Having her around for the fight could be a real game changer, especially if her F-grade evolution had been a good one. Whether she would fight after last night was another issue. Sandra... or Sandy would be great, too. His trip outside was thwarted by a man standing frozen in the doorway, his hands clutching the doorjamb on each side in a white-knuckled death grip as his whole body trembled. "Excuse me..." Lee said. "Ahh!" the man screamed and jumped nearly into the air. Lee backed up and kept his machete clear of the flailing man as he did so. The guy didn''t look familiar, but he was on edge... "Are you okay?" The man was plastered to the wall beside the door and staring at Lee, chest heaving for breath as sweat dripped from his face. He didn''t respond to the question. "Do you live here?" Lee asked. "I just moved in before all this... so maybe we haven''t met." He didn''t have time to comfort scared people, but something about the man reminded Lee of himself that first night. Terrified to go outside, but still trying. "I... don''t." The man slid down the wall onto his butt and hugged his knees. "Live here, I mean." "Need an escort out there?" Lee tried a different tactic. "I''m not much in a fight myself... but two is better than one. Or I could see if Alejandro..." "No. It''s no use. I can''t do it." "So... stay inside? We got lots of food back there... just tell Jamaal that Lee sent you if they give you trouble." Not that there were many people still harvesting the snake. That brought his head up, and the man stared at him. "You''re Lee?" "Yes..." "You killed the snake?" "I..." "Alejandro told me about it. He said you just pointed at it and blew its head off." "Well... it wasn''t quite that easy... and I almost died... sort of." Technically, the mana blast hadn''t threatened his life, but the aftermath could very well prove deadly. Or had it? That over one hundred percent negative channel capacity he avoided might have been fatal without the trait. "You saved me," the man said, eyes unfocused, as if remembering something, and not anything pleasant by the look on his face. "You and someone named Jake." "I don''t... umm, remember you," Lee said. "But happy to help, I guess?" "It ate me." His voice was hollow and barely above a whisper, but Lee heard it. Heard it and felt his own unpleasant memories rise to the occasion. He also remembered something from the day before. A man shooting a rock at the snake''s eye and getting eaten for his efforts... Oof. Lee was honestly shocked the guy had survived that. He didn''t mention that thought. "Been there," Lee said instead. "Zero out of ten stars." "You... what?" "Zero out of ten stars," Lee said. "Would not recommend. Getting eaten, I mean." The man just stared at him. "Everybody''s a critic." Lee sighed as he shifted his weight and glanced at the door. They didn''t have time for this, but... "I got eaten by a giant frog on the first night. It was... an experience." He shivered involuntarily at the memory. The bouncing... his skin melting off... the panic. He knew now that it wouldn''t have killed him, his mana blast would have been more than enough if he''d used it, but... it also would have crippled him earlier. He didn''t want to talk about it anymore and moved to the doorway to leave. "I need to go. Don''t suppose you know where Saira is?" "She''s the one who healed me?" Lee nodded. "Probably." "She went outside not that long ago. Not sure where she is now..." he paused, and Lee took a step before he spoke again. "How do you do it?" "Mostly my class..." Lee said. "I mean, how do you go out there? You got eaten! How can you just waltz back outside like it never happened!?" "Oh, that." Lee stood in the doorway, looking out at the deceptively peaceful world as he gathered his thoughts. "It''s because if I don''t keep going... I''ll die." He didn''t mention that his brother would likely die with him. "We''re in a race," Lee said after a few more moments, giving voice to something he''d understood but never said out loud before now. "Everything is getting stronger out there. If we don''t get into the lead... or at the very least, keep pace, we''re nothing but food." Of course, that wasn''t mentioning all the other humans that would for sure be a massive threat... "I... can''t do it." Lee glanced at the timer ticking away in his notifications. If this guy... "What''s your name?" "Bradley... Summers." "Well, Bradley. If you don''t go outside and run away soon, then you''re probably going to get stuck defending this place with me." Bradley''s head sank down to rest on his knees. "I''m going to die..." The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "You make rocks, right?" Lee asked, an idea coming to him. "That''s about it, yea." "Do they persist? Like after the spell, do you have more rocks than used to exist?" "I think so... why?" It was a great idea. "We have a lot of openings in this building between broken windows and other intentional gaps, not to mention the damage from the snake." Bradley flinched, but Lee kept talking. "I want you to use that spell of yours to close up everything you can... which you should be able to do without going outside." That brought a light back into the man''s eyes as he looked up at Lee. "I... guess I can try. Though my spell is..." "Great! I gotta find out if Saira is sticking around while you do that. Bye." Lee rushed away before the mopey guy could start whining about something else. He wasn''t unsympathetic, but this was hardly the time. Luckily, he found Saira just around the corner. She was sitting in the grass under the tree next to the small park Lee had vandalized for weapons... two nights ago? It felt longer than that. Lee approached her cautiously, unsure of her current mental state. Hopefully, this wouldn''t turn into another conversation about how they were all screwed and doomed to die... "Saira..." his semi prepared speech faltered when he found Mar sitting next to her mother. She was still invisible, but in his Mana Mind she stood out as clearly as anyone else. "Hi, Mar." He could see her outline shift from his words, and thought she might have looked at him. The outline was too fuzzy to see her facial features, but he could make out arms, legs, and a head. Well, one arm. She was still down a limb. "I will stay," Saira said, drawing his attention back. "I didn''t say anything..." "We have discussed it, and we will stay to defend our home." "Um, great!" Lee said. Then he stood there awkwardly in the silence that followed. Neither woman moved nor said anything else, and Lee wasn''t sure what to do or say himself. "Have you seen May?" he finally asked, primarily as an excuse to leave, but also because he was hoping she had made some weapons or armor already. "The blacksmith? She is around the corner." Saira pointed, and Lee left quickly. ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley didn''t have to go far to find a hole in the building. One that was an intentional design choice rather than monster damage. It was on the stairs one flight up from where he''d been cowering like a little bitch. He tried not to focus on the wide open blue sky visible through the gap and instead raised a hand to cast his skill. Stone spear. A two foot long shard of stone materialized in front of his hand, and shot straight out the window. It sailed clear out into the main street before hitting the ground, but Bradley didn''t see it. His eyes saw only a giant snake looming above him. He ducked below the window, pressed his back to the wall, and hugged his knees against his chest. I''m gonna die! I''m gonna die! He''d been thrilled and awestruck that first night when he used actual magic. It was amazing and fantastic! He could cast magic with nothing but a thought and a wave of his hand. He had even killed two giant frogs with the spell. He loved his magic... Until the snake. It had happened so fast... one moment he was casting the spell, and the next... he hadn''t even seen it coming. Only a sudden darkness and crushing pain as his bones broke and his lungs screamed for air. Then the acid had come... "Snap out of it." Bradley didn''t know how long he''d sat there before the voice startled him from the nightmarish memories. He scrubbed a sleeve across his wet eyes before looking up and seeing the man he remembered from the night before. The one who''d been dragging trees onto the porch... also the man who''d been fighting the snake... "Thank you again... for saving me." "I didn''t care about you last night, and I still don''t care now," the man said, staring at him with those creepy eyes. "You just got lucky." Bradley buried his face again. It was just as well. He wasn''t a badass like this guy; he wasn''t even a fighter at all. He was just a loser... and a coward. The others had talked last night while he laid on the floor and cried. They''d mentioned this man, mentioned how he''d killed people. Bradley believed it. He''d seen the man fighting the snake... normal people couldn''t do that. "Thank you, anyway," Bradley said. He didn''t want to die, and lucky was better than unlucky... though how lucky could he really be since he''d gotten eaten by the snake in the first place? "If you want to thank me," the man said. "Then don''t sit around crying about being alive. Prove your life was worth saving." That was easier said than done, but Bradley managed a nod for the other man. "I..." He looked up... and the man was gone. "I''ll try..." he whispered. He had to, right? If someone saves your life, then you have to help them... It took a few more minutes before he could stand up and face the opening again. Then he stood still and tried to figure out how his very limited skill could do anything to fill the gap. He couldn''t change the shape of the projectile from its spiky form, but maybe... ~~~Lee~~~ May wasn''t making much progress on weapons or armor, and she was less than pleased with him asking about it. "I''m working with one bag of charcoal, a portable forge, and sub par materials. It''s going to take time to make anything decent, and I''ll need a lot of wood before I can do shit." "Okay..." Lee frowned at her setup. He knew jack about the profession, but had hoped she would have magic to simplify the process. Apparently, she didn''t. But Lee did... "Are you staying to fight?" May and Dennis exchanged a look, and then she glanced at the machete in Lee''s hand. "You make me a blade like that and we might." "I can''t do that at the moment," Lee said. "But I can offer you something..." He watched a family hurry past, heading toward the complex exit. It wasn''t the first group he''d seen leaving today. Then he turned back to May. "I can make an enchantment that will heat your forge without the need for any fuel... but I can''t do it for two more days." She looked very suspicious, and Lee didn''t blame her. "We have some weapons," Lee said. "But not enchanted... unless you can convince Jake to give you one of his." "I suppose you want me to stay and fight in exchange for your... help." She eyed his blade again. "You enchanted that, right? What''s stopping you from doing another?" Lee sighed and glanced around again. They were relatively alone. "You saw the snake." He pointed up at the circular hole through the top floor of the building they were currently next to. "I did that, and... it cost me." His arm tingled with remembered pain... and real pain, too. They both eyed him and the building with more skepticism. "Just ask Alejandro or Jake. They saw it. I got a debuff from doing that and it still has a couple of days left on the timer." They shared another silent look for a moment, and Dennis nodded slightly while May shook her head. "We are not fighters," she said. "I will make you weapons, but we will not die fighting monsters. We will leave and return if you survive." Lee shook his head. "Fine." He refrained from calling her a coward and instead eyed the tall man next to her. "So... Dennis. What''s your... what can you do?" Dennis kept his mouth shut but held out his hand, palm up. Lee saw the mana surging from the man and coalescing in his hand for a few moments until something finally appeared. It was a banana. A yellow, normal size, regular looking banana. "Does it explode?" Lee asked, eyeing the fruit. Dennis proceeded to peel the banana and then popped half of it into his mouth. He offered the other half to Lee. Lee accepted it warily and then took a tentative bite. It tasted... normal. Not bad, just normal. Though it was a nice change from snake meat... "Okay, extra food is always good. Do they last? Can you make a stockpile?" Dennis nodded, paused, and shrugged. "Could I get another one to go? I can always use more food." Dennis shook his head. "Low mana." "Okay then." Lee considered the couple before him and thought about the Mana Well. He''d told some people about it already, which meant he might as well see if anyone else could use it. Definitely not these guys, but maybe Maria. She was a healer, and unlike Saira, who needed plants more than mana, Maria might actually make decent use of it. Assuming they weren''t running away as well... Back inside the building, Lee had mixed feelings about Bradley''s attempted fortification efforts. Spikes of rock filled the previously open windows in the stairwell and did so by impaling horizontally into both sides of the gap. It left the center still open, though a much smaller opening than before, and lined with what looked like stone teeth... Well, it was better than nothing. Hell, the guy was actually staying for the battle. Though, that might only be because he was too scared to run away... He found Bradley with Maria in someone else''s apartment, almost directly across the courtyard from her actual home. She was directing him on where to place his stone spikes, and each one hit like a jackhammer blow as it punched through plaster and concrete alike. Gabriel sat on the couch with Anita, and he held his hands over her ears before every hit. Bradley only cast twice more before sitting down with a muttered, "Mana." That was possibly something Lee could help him with, but Bradley was still unknown. Alejandro knew about the Well, and he''d likely told Maria. Which would explain why she wasn''t setting up right next door to his place... "Maria, does this mean you''re staying?" It only stood to reason, since she was fortifying an apartment rather than packing. Though it didn¡¯t explain why she was doing it so close to the Well¡­ She nodded, and Lee decided it was time to test the Well. And to extend some more trust in Maria. She followed him to his apartment, somewhat reluctantly, and then waited. Lee wasn''t sure what to do next. That first message had said he could give permission... Give Maria permission? Maria flinched, and her eyes stared at something Lee couldn''t see. Liquid Mana Well access granted: (Maria Morales) She reached out a hand and touched the glowing point of light... and then yanked her hand back. "No good. Says I will explode." Her expression was accusing as she took the kids and left. Lee just shook his head. It was sort of good that normal people wouldn''t want it, assuming they would know that before killing him... But it was also a shame that they couldn''t use it for the coming fight. That would have been useful... Especially for Maria, or even someone like Bradley. The stone mage kept busy until the timer ran out. Mostly fortifying Maria''s new apartment so they''d have a shelter of sorts for the children. Lee was fine with that. He wasn''t expecting much from the man''s magic until after he could enchant the building again. Then it would be more useful to have something closing the larger gaps. For now, they would have to fight the old-fashioned way. Jamaal remained behind as well, raising Lee''s opinion of the man considerably. He spent the time cooking furiously over all the other abandoned fires in the courtyard while he waited for the timer to wind down. Granted, he planned to hide during the battle... so he wasn''t much better than Bradley in that regard. Sandy showed up, and she went with Jake to the roof to act as lookouts. No one else joined them. Apparently the notification went to the whole complex, which Lee had expected given the Greenfield Village name showing up, and the few people staying behind all wanted to defend their own little apartments rather than combine forces in one place. Lee suspected that the Well might draw more targets to their building and had even reluctantly brought the issue to Alejandro''s attention. It might be smarter to abandon this place and group up in another building altogether. "I''m counting on it," Alejandro had said. "They will focus on one area and we will not have to go hunting to protect everyone." Clearly the guy was spending too much time with Jake... who, of course, agreed with him. "The snake wanted you bad. So we can use you as bait." It wasn''t a terrible plan, aside from the whole being the bait part. But with Alejandro guarding him, and Saira ready to heal... it might work. It should also pull attention from the kids. Not that Lee had any intentions of sacrificing himself, but he also didn''t want to give up his new home. That all these people were willing to stand with him... well, he could contribute his own talents to the cause. Even if it mostly amounted to being a juicy target. A hard to kill target, and wielding a magically sharpened machete. (00:00) 55 Participants Remaining. Adjusting trial difficulty... Trial has begun. Fight for your home and claim it with the blood of your enemies. Skill Level Up: Mana Mind (Epic) Level 3 (Novice) That was good timing. 25. Cat Scratch ~~~Lee~~~ Nothing happened for a full minute following the message, and Lee stood nervously in the courtyard the whole excruciating time, his hand on the machete growing more and more slick with sweat. He wasn''t the only nervous person, either. Though, Bradley was the only obviously scared person present. He stood directly outside the small shelter he''d made to protect the kids. A last line of defense... that Lee honestly wouldn''t have put much faith in. Of course, he suspected that Maria only put him there as an anchor for her movement ability. In case she had to leave and get back quickly. As for Maria, she had to be nervous, considering what was at stake for her, but if so, she showed none of it in her expression. She met his gaze briefly when he looked up at her, then went back to searching the sky above, her expression a blank mask. Alejandro looked worried where he stood at Lee''s side, as the shield to protect the bait, but he seemed more focused than scared. The only thing off with him were the looks he kept sending Saira''s way... Saira stood just under the balcony, with a support pillar at her back and a pile of uprooted bushes and trees next to her. Mar was presumably nearby, but Lee wasn''t close enough to detect her, even with the recently increased range of his Mana Mind. Everyone here was F-grade, except for Bradley and the kids. Bradley hadn''t quite earned enough before the snake, and the children couldn''t even absorb cores... How they were expected to survive like that was a mystery. "We got eyes on something!" Sandy yelled down from the roof a second before the signature sound of Jake''s exploding arrows heralded the start of the fight. Lee was counting on Jake to do a lot of damage today. Hell, they were all counting on him, and he could see the tension ramping up in everyone as the first snarl reached their ears. "Beasts!" Sandy yelled, "Dozens of them, and they''re fast!" More explosions, interspersed by the more subdued sound of regular arrows firing off. "They''re splitting up across the complex! A dozen inbound on us!" Lee pressed his back to what remained of the snake carcass and waited for the monsters, his grip tight on the machete and eyes jumping from the open sky above to the doorways they''d intentionally left open on the ground floor. The idea being to lure whatever showed up into using the doors rather than coming in from random directions. Plus, they''d trapped the hallways behind each door with Bradley''s stone spikes. Unfortunately, the spikes didn''t appear to slow the dark shapes that rushed through the gaps. Alejandro stepped forward to meet the first one, his shield high as something with claws pounced. He lunged ahead and slammed the front of his shield into the monster''s face, arresting its momentum completely. Then he stabbed past the shield with his own machete and impaled the creature straight through the head. The whole encounter from start to deadly finish happened so quickly and smoothly that it momentarily distracted Lee from the second creature coming his way. However, the distraction did nothing to prevent his Mana Mind from noticing. Lee slid sideways, acting almost purely on instinct, as the cat-like monster landed claws first against the dead snake where he''d just been standing. Those same claws sank disturbingly deep into the corpse... His Mana Mind also clearly highlighted the fact that these monsters had two long tails. Tails that moved far more independently than he''d expected when they both lashed out in his direction. Each one ended in a wicked spike and both were on track to impale Lee. He cut one tail clean off, mostly by accident in the process of swinging for the cat''s body next to him. The second tail aborted its attack in the bare instant before he could take it off as well, and then whipped around his blade and came in again. Luckily, the cat sprang up the side of the snake''s corpse to dodge his machete, which had the benefit of pulling its remaining tail away before it could stab him. It also left the way clear for the next cat monster to pounce, and Lee got a good look at that one as it flew toward his face. With his eyes this time instead of only Mana Mind. It looked like a panther, only five times bigger and with two tails, both of which were twice the length of its body and tipped with a silvery fang. Alejandro blurred in between Lee and the panther with his own movement skill, which turned out to work a lot like Maria''s with how it latched onto him before the man appeared. He''d only just arrived when another cat followed from the direction Alejandro had come from and tackled him right back out of the way. Just in time for the first one to sail directly into Lee. It was too close to dodge, especially with its massive reach. He would get absolutely shredded by those claws and probably stabbed to death by the tails. So Lee didn''t even try. Instead, he launched himself forward to meet it head on. His Mana Mind told him exactly where every piece of the cat was as it closed on him. Unfortunately, knowing was only half the battle. He still had to actually move his body in ways that were almost completely foreign to him just a few days before. Still, who hadn''t waved a stick around, or swung a bat a few times. That was something practically instinctive to all humans, and that was what Lee did. It wasn''t fancy or skilled; he didn''t have good footwork, and he would most assuredly get stabbed and or mauled in the process. But he did have something extra beyond ordinary humans. He would heal from almost anything. Head and heart. That was all he worried about as he swung toward the giant panther''s head, and it was all his Mana Mind looked for as well. As long as he didn''t get hit in his head or his heart, it would be okay. It would still hurt though... Debuff: [Heavy Bleeding] It did hurt. Quite a lot, in fact. But even when he squeezed his eyes shut at the last moment, he still ''saw'' his machete cleave right through the cat''s head. It would have likely split the entire thing straight down the middle, except the split halves didn''t lose any momentum from his attack and the dead cat bowled him over. Lee was buried under the beast but still saw Maria zip next to the cat and kick it sideways off him. She followed up by grabbing his wrist to keep him from waving the machete, and then running a finger over the two large holes in his abdomen, left there courtesy of the cat''s tails. The actual collision with the giant cat had hurt far less than expected... Buff: [Improved Regeneration] Debuff Downgraded: [Internal Bleeding] Then she hauled him upright and vanished back upstairs. Alejandro was just finishing his own cat, though he took a stab to his side from a tail before it died. Lee moved closer to him as he glanced around, but found no living targets in sight. Four of the beasts lay dead on the ground... Hadn''t Sandy said there were a dozen coming? Did Jake kill the rest? "Saira, healing!" Alejandro dragged him toward the healer woman, but Lee shrugged him off. "Save it for the others. I''ll heal." It still hurt like a bitch; Maria hadn''t healed nearly enough, but he was riding high on adrenaline and would rather save the healing until it was more urgent. Debuff: [Hungry] On that note, he stuffed some rattlesnake meat in his mouth. An explosion from the roof heralded the start of round two, followed immediately by Sandy yelling. "Shit! More coming, and from every direction!" Lee was more prepared when the next batch of over-sized panthers squeezed through the doors and charged him. He was not prepared for the handful that jumped down into the courtyard from above. Alejandro shouldered him aside just before he got dog-piled, or cat-piled... and Lee managed to stay on his feet, mostly because they slid easily over the blood coating the floor. It left him further away and with a great view to see the man get buried under a pile of panthers. He was trying to run closer on the slick floor when Maria appeared, stabbed a panther in the head, blurred a half-dozen feet to the side, and stabbed another one through the skull. She zipped away just ahead of the striking tails, but it proved enough of a distraction for Alejandro to handle the others. It wasn''t hard with them all so close and an enchanted blade in his hand that could cut through them like butter. Lee resorted to jumping from corpse to corpse to reach Alejandro, who was now covered in blood and seemed disoriented. It might have only been the blood in his eyes, but Lee shoved him toward Saira, just in case. Then he went down under what had to be five hundred pounds of panther. Mana Mind gave just enough warning that his machete met the descending cat before it reached him. His machete won. Of course, he couldn''t dodge on the slippery tiles and got buried beneath the falling body. Once again, the impact hurt, but more akin to being smacked with a mattress. This time, he shoved it off without Maria''s help and found that easier than expected as well. This was technically his first battle since reaching F-grade... all he''d done before was run really fast. "Holy shit!" Sandy''s yell came while she was already diving into the courtyard. Passing across the sky above and behind her was another panther. Only, this one''s size was on par with the damn rattlesnake... and it looked like Jake might have been in its mouth. "Jake!" Alejandro yelled after the man and took a few pointless steps. They were already out of sight. Who knew how far and how fast that thing could go? They would never catch up in time... "There''s more coming!" Sandy said, while limping toward Saira. She was covered in blood, but Lee suspected that was mostly from the puddle she''d landed in. He looked up at her warning and was just in time to see another over-sized cat jumping into the courtyard. At least twice again as large as the others, though much smaller than whatever got Jake, and it behaved differently. Where the others had pounced immediately, this one jumped to the far side of the courtyard and landed atop the dead snake that still filled the area. Then it just stood there, watching them. No one had time to ponder the matter, though, because a dozen more of the smaller panthers followed it down. Those newcomers didn''t hesitate to attack, and they charged eagerly after the outnumbered humans. Everyone got swarmed, which meant Lee couldn''t count on Alejandro''s help when three of the beasts came straight for him, completely boxing him in with nowhere to run... The monsters flew into his Mana Mind, and they were different... Mana Mind didn''t let him see inside anyone other than himself. He could see through the dead snake''s body, but every other living thing so far was an opaque wall to his senses. It had worked the same way with the first panthers, too. Only now he was seeing inside the new ones, and they felt... too empty. Then Lee was out of time to ponder on the mysteries of magic and lining up his swing, hoping to take at least two in the first strike. He succeeded, the enchanted blade cutting clear through one''s head and carving deep into the second''s throat. He took a tail spike in the leg for his efforts, but two of them were down, or soon to be. Unfortunately, there was one more, and the third had a clean shot at his back. Twin tails stabbing straight for his heart. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. He was out of time. Alejandro was surrounded. Maria was fending off two cats trying to scale the balcony, and no one else would reach him before it was too late. In that frozen moment, Lee recalled the day in the store when he''d thought he was dying. When Stanley almost died. His chest had hurt so bad... Was it because Stanley had been stabbed in the heart? Could they really heal from something like that? He couldn''t count on his regeneration to go that far. Even if it didn''t kill him, it would leave him as helpless as he was on that day. Would probably leave Stanley in the same situation... No! Lee pushed back against his onrushing death... and it wavered. The panther soaring towards his back abruptly stopped, rippled in his Mana Mind, and along with a stabbing pain in his head, it shattered. Skill Level Up: Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 4 (Novice) The extra foot of range from the level up brought one of Alejandro''s attackers into range, and Lee attacked it the same way. Only this time, he got to see the results with his own eyes when it shattered into motes of light and vanished. He also noticed the small thread of mana that snapped away from the destroyed panther and flew toward... Skill Level Up: Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 5 (Novice) "They''re not real!" Lee screamed, half in warning and half at the sensation of an ice pick stabbing into his brain. "It''s that... one." He turned to the still unmoving panther and found it staring very intently and very unnervingly back at him. More panthers poured over the roof and fell like a dark tide down toward the humans. Despite his warning, Lee could see the others taking wounds from the fake monsters. His own leg was still bleeding... so maybe not illusions? Constructs? Either way, everyone was busy, which meant it was up to him to stop the monster. "Fuck me!" Lee took off, sprinting toward what had to be the one responsible for the illusions. Assuming it wasn''t an illusion as well... It didn''t respond in any way other than to stare at him as he charged, but the panthers swarming into the courtyard responded by all running straight for him. Lee ignored them. At least until they entered his Mana Mind. Then he broke them like he''d broken the previous ones. It hurt, especially as more and more caught up to him, and Lee screamed but didn''t stop. He ran in a stumbling and staggering gait, but kept getting closer to the unmoving cat, one step at a time. It wasn''t a construct, and it never moved as he approached. Not until he jumped up to meet it atop the snake, machete swinging down to chop its head open. Then it moved. Or rather, its tails moved. Twin tails blasted from opposite directions to impale him, and it was exactly what Lee had expected. He shifted the blade just a hair... and chopped the right tail off. The left tail stabbed through his raised left arm and into his chest. Debuff Upgraded: [Heavy Bleeding] Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] Lee''s ongoing screaming ended with the strike. Air blasted from his lungs, and he choked on the blood that took its place. He wanted to keep screaming, but he''d known this was coming, had deliberately sacrificed his arm to deflect the strike away from his heart by just enough to survive the next few moments... and then he swung down on the panther''s head. Finally, it moved. For real this time. From the way it had stood there, with nothing moving but its tails and eyes, Lee had taken a wild guess that it couldn''t actually move while controlling the constructs. Luckily, he was right. All the fake panthers swarming him popped like soap bubbles as the cat dodged his machete. It even yanked the tail out of his chest before he could cut that one off too... Lee fell to his knees when the tail stopped holding him up, his machete heavy in his hand as it sank into the dead snake beneath him. His head pounded. Vision tunneled. He couldn''t breathe... and the cat''s tail shot straight for his head. Alejandro appeared. That wonderful man and his magnificent shield! The tail ricocheted off the shield, and Maria appeared in the panther''s face. Her knife plunged like a striking viper into its skull, then again and again. She vanished as the cat lunged in for a bite... and Alejandro lopped off its head. Everything got much more peaceful after that, though Lee''s vision wasn''t so good when Maria reappeared, this time right next to him. Then he finally got to feel what her skill was like on the other end as the world blurred around him and left him somewhere else... It was really cool... Debuff Removed: [Heavy Bleeding] Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry] Lee instantly felt better and then had to roll over and cough up the blood in his lung. Debuff Removed: [Hungry] "Save... save it," he gasped out. "The other one that got Jake! We have to..." "Jake''s probably fine," Sandy said, and Lee looked up to see her slumped against a pillar and breathing heavily. "He¡­ called¡­ dibs on the big one." Oh, right, Jake was a crazy bastard. "Was that all of them?" Sandy shrugged. "I''m guessing we''ll find out." Lee rolled over onto his back and met Saira''s worried gaze. "You okay?" She nodded. "Mar protected me." Mar was well within Lee''s Mana Mind and he saw her perk up slightly before curling in on herself. "Thank you. Both of you." "You are welcome... but how did you..." Victory! The challenge has been met, and the challenge has been won. New Sapient Lair formed: [Greenfield Village] Prepare. The Invaders will come, and you must defend your home or risk losing it. For successfully founding a new Sapient Lair, area is protected from Invasion for duration. (6:23:59:55) All participants may claim structures or areas of the Sapient Lair as their own personal reward. Size and bonuses of the claimed area dependent on contributions to the challenge. Buff: [Greenfield Village] So Jake must have won, after all. Not that Lee doubted the man, not after what Sandy said. Hell, he''d probably jumped into its mouth on purpose... But now it was time for some sweet rewards. "Ooh, I want this building," Lee said, not expecting what happened next. As the third highest contributor, Building 3 is within the limits of your claimable rewards. So long as it is not contested by the first and second place contributors. Alejandro was watching him when Lee looked up. "You want this building? Because of the..." he trailed off with a glance at the others present. Then smiled. "I do not contest." Building 3 is uncontested. You will forfeit all other rewards. Do you wish to claim it? Y/N "I do want it, but..." Building 3 is now the personal Lair domain of (Lee Cascade). Structure wide effects may be customized, and or limited to select occupants. Buff: [Building 3] "Crap... what were the other rewards?" He hadn''t meant to actually claim the whole building out from under everyone else, especially Alejandro. He''d also glossed over the other rewards option... Jake dropped out of the sky and landed beside him with the only warning coming from Lee''s Mana Mind. "Something about leadership," he said. "Which I passed on, and stats, which I took." He grinned at Lee and then everyone around him. "Oh, and a little something for being the best." "Figured," Lee said, sitting up finally. If Alejandro was in second place, then first had to be Jake, especially after killing the boss. Honestly, Lee was surprised to get into third place. He hadn''t killed that many of the monsters... "Congratulations!" Alejandro exclaimed, and tried to pat Jake on the back. He met with the same results as the last time. "Since that little game is over," Jake said. "I''m going hunting." He strolled away, and no one volunteered to join him. "You sure you didn''t want to claim at least your apartment?" Lee asked Alejandro. The guy had saved his life too many times already. Or maybe he was moving out, anyway? Alejandro kept glancing up to the balcony the whole time they''d been talking, and his face lit up a moment before he blurred away with his skill. "Papa, Papa!" Gabriel''s voice carried down to them, and Lee scooted over to lean against another of the pillars as he listened to the excited and scared children''s noises. He pulled meat from his pocket and it came out wet with panther blood... "Jamaal, you think the panthers are good to eat?" He''d seen the man emerge from the apartment behind Saira. "I..." the man stopped next to Lee and stared wide-eyed at the surrounding carnage. "I will check..." Lee glanced at Saira, then Sandy. "We split the cores?" A group fight like this didn''t seem the place to insist on killing rights. Also, the illusions didn''t drop cores... so Lee might get more in an even split. "Fine with me," Sandy said, and Saira nodded. "Jamaal," Lee said, resting his still aching head in his hands. "If you gather the cores, then you can have one from my share." He wanted to grab the big panther''s core, to see if it might have dropped a skill, but he also really didn''t want to get up. His status said he was fine, but he felt... drained. From the looks of everyone else, the feeling was mutual. Except for Alejandro and Jake, obviously. But then, they were both crazy. Plus, he had something else to check on. [Greenfield Village] Universal Effects: 100% Conception Rate Reduced Offspring Incubation Duration(Dependent on Mana Density) Accelerated Offspring Growth Rate(Dependent on Mana Density) [Building 3] Resident Effects: +25% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes +100% to all regeneration +200% Mana regeneration (Hidden)[Liquid Mana Well] The first one was... weird, though it made sense in a humans are monsters kind of way. Can''t have all the monsters dying out... so rather than offering protection, just breed ''em faster. Terrible. But it made sense. As for his own building, that was a nice reward, and it wasn''t the only one. The building itself had changed. Something Lee noticed from his Mana Mind following the battle. There had already been mana in the building; mana was in everything now. But it had drastically increased following the whole sapient lair thing. He refrained from testing his machete on the floor, but suspected the building would hold up much better than before. His blade might still cut into the concrete, but it would just be his machete runes doing the work and wasting their charge in the process. Even a giant snake might not crush it... though, if it started ramming the building, they''d probably still have problems. Thinking about the building made Lee aware of another issue, one that he could remedy. Or so he expected. Do you wish to invite (Alejandro Morales) as a Resident of Building 3? Y/N Lee agreed and then did the same thing for everyone else, even the kids. He hadn''t been sure it would work for them, and it didn¡¯t. Saira and Mar both reacted visibly in his Mana Mind, but Alejandro and Maria were still upstairs and out of range. "If you guys want to," Lee said. "I¡¯m sure this building is going to be a target in the future, just like it was today. But the buffs might help with that." He had a feeling the illusion panther and whatever Jake had killed were not standard. They felt like boss monsters, and the fact both had come here was likely a sign of things to come. Whether it was the well or him¡­ he didn¡¯t know. Still, everyone accepted the invite. Though it looked like Maria acted as a proxy for the kids. That was... interesting, as for the whole creepy bit about increasing birth rates... they''d all seen it. Maria and Alejandro knew about the Mana Well, which Lee suspected would play a major role in the whole ambient mana thing. Maybe they were okay with it. Let the kids grow faster. Better chance to survive... Jamaal brought the cores; no skill shards, unfortunately, but the cores were all the good ones that gave plus one to all attributes. Lee gave one to Jamaal as promised, then stayed where he was while the man went back to his cooking fires with a vengeance. +0.1 All Base Attributes +0.1 All Base Attributes It wasn''t much, but still a nice bonus on top of the new building effects. It was also fascinating to watch the absorption process with Mana Mind. The energy in the core didn''t flow into his mana channels, it just sort of... dissolved into his flesh. It was hard to track because it just seemed to blend among all the mana already inside him. He could actually feel it better than see it. Against what he''d expected, all the energy went into him from the core. From his Energetic Resilience trait, he''d expected that some of it would be resisted, or slide off... or something. But it didn''t. Jamaal churned out fresh food and the panther meat was good. The hearty meal also helped push back the headache brought on by his Mana Mind. Despite the pain, his efforts with the skill had paid off in more ways than just saving their lives, and he''d missed a few notifications toward the end there. Skill Level Up: Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 10 (Novice) No Evolutions available. Upgrade to Basic rank available. Proceed? Y/N Obviously, he accepted. Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 10 (Basic) Your mind is intrinsically linked to all Mana within the skill''s radius, increasing Mana manipulation and granting total awareness of all Mana within range. Higher levels will increase the range and ease of manipulation. Your mind actively consumes Mana to fuel greater mental processes. Lack of Mana to fuel this process will have a negative effect. Sustained lack may cause permanent losses. This is a permanent effect and can not turned off so long as you have the skill. Skill Level Effects (Basic): +2% All Effective Mind Attributes at 100% Mana 0% Effect at 49% Mana -2% All Effective Mind Attributes at 0% Mana The only difference seemed to be the ''slightly'' was removed from the mana manipulation. Not counting the extra attributes, of course. There was one downside to using Mana Mind like he had. His Mana Burn debuff had gained a few extra hours. It did say his mind consumed mana... so maybe using his mind to attack consumed even more? Worth it. He also found out later from Alejandro that the Mana Well message from the building buff was indeed hidden. Something he should have checked before inviting everyone... 26. Take This Life ~~~Caffeine~~~ [Canis Imperator] You have toiled for too long beneath the shackles of enslavement. Cast off the chains and rise to the summit of your world. Become a true lord and rule over... "No!" Caffeine barked at the bad ball. The not for chasing or fun, ball. It was trying to take away Dearest Human, that made it very bad. "He is mine!" Caffeine howled. "He is mine, he is mine, he is mine. He Is Mine!" He kept howling until the bad ball went away. [Rex Gula] No longer must you beg and grovel for scraps. Take up the mantle of gluttony and feast to your heart''s content. Fulfill your every... This ball was worse than the first one. It tried to trick him with snacks! Tried to trick him into letting Dearest Human get taken away! "MINE!" Caffeine howled his absolute outrage at the ball and didn''t stop until it too ran away. More bad balls tried to trick him and steal Dearest Human, but Caffeine saw through all of their lies. They offered him treats with one hand while ready to kick him if he tried to eat it. Very Bad! Eventually, one good ball finally appeared for him to play with. [Canine(Pug)] Stay on your path of servitude. Change nothing as you ascend to the next stage... Caffeine chewed on that ball, and it was perfect. Just the right size and texture. It even had the perfect flavor! He chewed on it very happily... and just wished Dearest Human could rub his belly while he did so. ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley couldn''t help the smile as he watched Caffeine sleep in his lap, even if the racket had woken him too early. Woken him from a nightmare of faceless and formless things that scratched and clawed and ripped... The pug was squirming, twitching, and even making small barking noises, and it went on for a while. Stanley hoped his dreams were pleasant, at least. Especially when Caffeine kicked extra hard one time and nearly knocked the wind out of him. He stayed there and watched Caffeine dream until the sun rose outside. It cost him some rest, but he wasn''t likely to get more after the dreams, and the enjoyment he got from the pug more than made up for it. When Caffeine finally woke, stretched, and then climbed to his feet on wobbly legs, Stanley had a feeling... especially after that kick. He checked the pug''s status. Status Name: Caff Caffeine Race: [Canine(Pug)](F-grade) Traits: [Good Boy] Class: Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 5 (Novice) Class Skills: (None) Attributes: Strength: 10 Vitality: 10 Dexterity: 10 Perception: 10 Intelligence: 10 Willpower: 10 Soul: ??? [Twin-Soul Bonded(Stanley Cascade)(Lee Cascade)] Non Class Skills(0/3): [Big Enough] [Strong Enough] [Fast Enough] [Tough Enough] "Who''s a good boy?" Stanley said, among other silly things, to the pug. Then he made Caffeine''s whole morning by breaking out a giant breakfast spread of cheese and meat. He let him have as much as he wanted. Another potentially dangerous shopping trip would be the least he could do, and it would be far less risky with the new F-grade Caffeine. The only thing Stanley was unsure about was how Caffeine''s race looked the same while his own had changed from the evolution. Did dogs not get more options? Not to mention a Beast Lord... And if beasts got options... Well, Stanley had been offered a half-beast choice. Would beasts get a half-human option? That was just weird to think about... Caffeine looked up from his meal and woofed softly, right before Stanley heard the voices. He pulled Caffeine into his arms to keep him quiet and then flew silently to the large window. They were only a few stories up and could easily make out the small group approaching his hideout from the street. It was time to go. Stanley didn''t fear the other people, especially not with Caffeine at F-grade, but he... preferred not to engage. It was doubtful they could pose a serious threat against the two of them, but Stanley had seen too many close calls. All it might take was one lucky headshot, and he''d be dead. Or Caffeine would be... Better not to risk it. There was nothing to gain from them anyway, unless he wanted to kill them for their cores. Which he didn''t. So he carried Caffeine and what was left of their food, and flew them both higher into the skyscraper. After seeing how hard it was to break a damn window the day before, he''d chosen a lair to sleep in instead of looking for a bank. Obviously, after he killed everything inside. He stopped in the fancy offices on the top floor to use their bathrooms. They were always nicer at the top and usually had windows, which was better than the dark pits downstairs. Luckily, he didn''t need to put out nearly what he was taking in with the binge eating. Either the regeneration, or his trait, or maybe just something to do with mana entering the world. It all added up to him not needing a bathroom very often. A nice perk when you''re trapped in hell. Unfortunately, the door to the roof wouldn''t open. It was something he''d seen in a previous lair, and he suspected it was intentional. One way in and one way out. The lairs were becoming more and more like a dungeon in a game. Where you had to fight through all the mobs before reaching the boss at the end. Stanley didn''t play by those rules. Not when they made their dungeons out of glass. In the interest of preserving his knife, Stanley settled for a metal desk leg. Then he thought about all the assholes who''d tried to kill him until he was good and angry... You have attacked a Lair structure. All residents notified. He wasn''t sure what the point of the message was; he''d already killed the residents. Unless something moved in while he was sleeping? Or would the humans downstairs get the message? It didn''t matter, and he flew away to find another skyscraper full of monsters. His new fighting style had paid off in more ways than one. First, neither he nor Caffeine got wounded. That was big. Second, he was getting better at feeling out the world around him with psychokinesis. The only downside was that a lot of the monsters had no qualms about taking cores from their dead fellows. Stanley was better at feeling the world, sure, but picking out the tiny cores in a mess of dead creatures... that was still beyond him. Unless he held each kill up and waited for the core to fall. Doing that slowed down his killing speed dramatically, but if he killed fast, then he lost cores. It was a problem. One that he could solve by fighting more up close and personal... which only brought him back to the original reason he''d started doing things differently. What was the point of having telekinetic powers if the monsters were still in his face? He found a promising skyscraper, one with monsters running in and out of the doors at ground level. Not that he needed or wanted a door. Instead, Stanley flew to the opposite side and reached through the windows with his power. It was time for another slaughter, this time for his own growth rather than Caffeine''s. The glimpse he''d gotten of the few near the doors told him they were bugs of some kind, and it felt about the same inside when he crushed or ripped them apart. He didn''t get to use his knife when doing things this way, but felt like it was a fair tradeoff. Since reaching F-grade, the drain had reduced significantly for attacking directly. Likely because he wasn''t fighting monsters a grade above his own. Caffeine''s growl was the only warning Stanley got, and it was enough. He''d learned the hard way to respect the pug''s reactions, and flew away at full speed before he even saw what triggered the growling. He got to see it anyway, because it turned out the bugs had wings under their shells and the fuckers used them to chase him into the sky. They''d apparently detected his attacks from outside the lair, something Stanley hadn''t seen before and what he hoped wasn''t a new trend. Then they kept chasing him... for a ridiculously long distance. The numbers thinned as Stanley climbed higher, with bugs turning back in ones and twos. When it was down to a manageable amount, he killed them. The first few by crushing their heads back into their bodies, and the rest with his knife. But like the previous bugs he''d fought, these also had hard shells that made the knife less ideal. Maybe he should add a sledgehammer to his arsenal... Stanley went back down once it was over and found the bugs waiting for him in a cloud around the building. They saw him coming and didn''t wait for him to attack first. So the chase began again. Back and forth Stanley flew, each time getting a larger horde to chase him into the sky. Each time, he killed them and went back for more. One perk of their aggressiveness was that he got most of the cores. Aside from a few lost in the initial chaos of each engagement. Despite the slaughter, they just kept coming. More and more, until Stanley had to retreat from the swarm surrounding the building. The numbers were insane... and he was once again grateful not to be trapped on the ground like everyone else. He sat high in the sky and glared down at the dark haze surrounding the building. There were enough of the fuckers that they were literally blotting out the sun... until a spark of orange light appeared... and grew rapidly. Stanley jerked to one side as a ball of fire larger than his head shot past him. He swatted at the fireball, primarily to see if he could actually hit the thing, and never found out because it exploded immediately after passing him. He did, however, feel the shockwave, and even blocked it; the action more of a flinch than anything intentional. The expanding cloud of flames wasn''t as easily stopped, feeling much softer and less... real. They didn''t reach his face, but Stanley felt the heat. Enough heat that he really wanted to avoid the next one, which followed on the heels of the first. Then another after that, and another, and another. It felt like machine gun fire as he flew away while dodging back and forth to escape the constant exploding fireballs. The barrage was so intense that he couldn''t risk striking back for fear of taking a hit from their spells. In the brief moments where his world wasn''t full of fire, Stanley caught glimpses of his attackers. They were still the bugs from the building, only these new ones were solid black and slightly bigger. There were only maybe a dozen of them, but they were faster and kept up better. Also, the fireballs. Stanley stopped flying up and headed away over the city, still weaving and dodging. Maybe the shitty bugs claimed the airspace over their building and would leave if he got far enough away. They showed no signs of giving up as their building shrank into the distance. One nice thing was the exploding fireballs helped counteract the freezing wind attacking Stanley''s face and hands. Not that he needed it. The winter already felt far less severe since reaching F-grade. Bright side and all that crap. Then he finally pulled ahead enough to fight back, and started by trying to catch a fireball with his mind. The damn thing felt like a ball of fluff, as if there was nothing solid inside the flames, not even fuel. Of course, it was magic and needed nothing to actually burn or explode. Stanley still hit the fluffy fireball and hit it hard enough that it exploded. It hurt; a stinging needle in his brain. Stanley still didn''t understand how his power worked exactly. It felt like a piece of his mind stretched out to touch whatever he attacked or manipulated, yet there never seemed to be any travel time. Though it seemed to require a bit more than idle thought to activate his power. That was the largest delay he had. The fireball had exploded far away, but he felt it in his head instantly. Not a lot, but enough to notice. Enough to feel like it had touched him. He could also reach through the lair windows and walls, something that felt like it shouldn''t be possible if his mind had a physical presence. What was the point of glass becoming so strong if he could reach right past it? Was he going to find a monster eventually that could do the same? Just kill him instantly with no warning? Potentially, without even being able to see him... That was a terrifying thought, and Stanley almost felt bad for the monsters. Then he slapped the closest firebug out of the sky with as much force as he could. It exploded. Stanley had been half expecting it, which was why he''d gone with the smack instead of trying to grab the thing. It still stung his mind, but honestly, it was so minor compared to the other pains that he''d endured lately, and he didn''t give a shit. Stanley slapped almost all of them out of the sky. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. As he did that, and in between dodging the fireballs, he noticed the rate of those same fireballs was dropping off considerably. They had to be running out of mana... assuming they used mana, which begged the question of why they were still chasing him. They were a lot less threatening as both their numbers and the spells they threw dwindled. Stanley would have to remember this as a strategy to use in the future when he found crazy aggressive monsters like these. In the meantime, he tried a few experiments on the last two bugs. His knife flew through the fireball with no noticeable resistance, and the spell exploded like before, with the same sting in his mind. The unforeseen consequence was that he dropped the knife. His visual on it also disappeared behind the explosion, and when the fire dissipated, the knife was gone. Probably on a long trip to the ground... Oops. One of the downsides of being in the sky was the lack of things to throw... so Stanley threw one bug at the other. It didn''t explode when he grabbed it, which meant the self-destruction was most likely triggered by a damage threshold. It also didn''t explode when he threw it. Or when it hit the other one. Primarily because it never hit the other bug. As soon as Stanley let go, the little shit spread its wings and swerved to avoid the collision before zeroing back in on him with a fresh fireball. It was the last fireball, because Stanley crushed the bug into goo... and it exploded. "Son of a bitch!" Stanley yelled, then used the anger to slap the final bug out of the sky. He barely felt the sting from that one after the crushing mistake, and actually felt a little woozy as he drifted through the sky. The worst part was that none of the exploding bugs dropped cores... Caffeine licked his face, and Stanley opened his eyes to see the pug watching him worriedly. "It''s good, Caff. You''re a good boy." He''d been very good and hadn''t tried to go skydiving even once during the chase. Another minor downside of fighting in the sky; no beast lord to help him. Stanley''s head was pounding after his fuck up, though that wasn''t quite right. It wasn''t a headache. Not like any Stanley had felt before, but that was the closest description he had to what he was feeling. Where before the stings were a pinprick, nothing more than a sticker in your shoe, now it felt like he''d stepped on a nail. Only with his brain. His analogy sucked, but all he wanted now was to just stop doing... anything. So he kept descending toward the city below. Caffeine hadn''t been fighting yet today, and he could watch out for the both of them. For a few minutes, at least. They landed on a flat roof, and Stanley was just glad it wasn''t the ground as he curled up with his hands over his head. Caffeine tried to get at Stanley''s face a few times, and he might have been whining, then gave up on that and curled up behind Stanley''s knees. Stanley lay in the fetal position with his eyes closed and hoped this wouldn''t be a regular thing. He definitely would avoid exploding bugs from now on. He wasn''t sure if he dozed off, or how long he laid there, but came back to himself when Caffeine climbed over him and moved away with small woofing sounds. There was no loud barking, so it couldn''t be that bad... The sound of voices yelling woke him up again later. Luckily, Stanley was feeling much better by then... at least until he recalled Caffeine wandering away and didn''t feel the pug on his legs. He sat up, suddenly very awake. Caffeine wasn''t far, and Stanley spotted him easily at the edge of the roof, looking down at something. The pug glanced over when Stanley stood, and he wagged his tail briefly before turning back to whatever had his interest below. It was probably food. It was also the direction the yelling voice was coming from... "In this realm of false promises and treacherous illusions, we find ourselves ensnared within the devil''s web of deceit. It lures you with promises of power and grandeur, but its fruits are poison to the soul." Stanley heard enough of the woman''s voice before looking over the roof to know he''d found a nut-bag. Then he looked down into the massive field and realized he''d found a shit ton of them. Hundreds of people filled the field, the crowd stretching all the way to the river in the distance. Across the river, Stanley could see the downtown skyline, and realized he hadn''t flown as far as he thought. Those fucking bugs... The woman kept screeching. "I stand before you as the chosen emissary, the harbinger of salvation in this wretched realm. Hearken unto my voice, for it carries the divine truth untainted by the devil''s cunning lies. I alone am the vessel through which the light of purity and righteousness shall shine, guiding you toward redemption and deliverance." Caffeine was growling softly while staring down at the speaker. Stanley agreed with him and gave the pug some pets. "You tell her, Caff," he said, and flinched when what sounded like the entire crowd chanted. "Your words are our truth. We follow and obey, for our salvation." That wasn''t at all creepy... "Resist the voice that whispers in your mind. For the System lies and will lead you only to damnation!" "Your words are our truth. We follow and obey, for our salvation." Stanley hadn''t thought about it before, but it wasn''t surprising to see a religious cult kicking off already. Hell, there were probably a ton of them in Boston alone, not to mention the rest of the planet. It was the end of the world, and cults loved that shit. As for this cult... well, it looked like they were planning to burn someone at the stake. "This unfortunate one before us," the speaker said, gesturing toward the pyre. "This poor soul has let the devil in, has succumbed to the voice of corruption, and has strayed into darkness." The figure tied to the stake¡ªStanley couldn''t tell if it was a man or woman¡ªstruggled violently while the cult leader droned on. "Hope is not lost. For she can still be redeemed!" The figure, apparently a woman, stopped struggling. "The fires of God will purify her and, through her suffering, save her soul from damnation!" The struggling resumed, much more frantic this time, as a flaming torch was lit and approached the pyre. Stanley didn''t want to get involved with anyone, much less a massive cult willing to burn people at the stake, but it was hard to turn away. He should be able to fly in before anyone knew he was there and just snatch the woman... Caffeine barked. Loudly. Damn it, Caff! The response to his bark was even more creepy. Only the preacher lady and a small group around her turned to look. Everyone else close enough for Stanley to see didn''t move, didn''t even flinch. It was definitely time to go. Stanley pulled Caffeine into his lap and lifted into the air. Then paused momentarily to grab his last bag of food... "Behold!" the crazy lady yelled, torch still in hand. "We have before us another lost soul! One lured by the false promises and honeyed venom of the great Deceiver himself!" Stanley was reaching down to snatch their victim away, but he stopped at her words. Not because of what she said, but because of the notification that popped up afterward. Deceiver my ass! Hidden Debuff Resisted: [Silver Tongue of the Orator] "It''s not too late," she yelled. "Renounce your sin, forsake the corrupt abilities the Devil has poisoned your soul with! Kneel before God and beg his forgiveness!" Hidden Debuff Resisted: [Silver Tongue of the Orator] This bitch had a lot of nerve to be dissing the system while straight up using it herself. Of course, that begged the question; how many of these people were here willingly? From the way they were acting, Stanley suspected all of them were brainwashed. Or mind controlled? Once again, he couldn''t see what the effect of the debuff was if he resisted it. Which he was fine with. "Come down!" the bitch yelled at him, followed by another resisted message. "Fall on your knees and..." She stopped talking when Stanley''s mind wrapped around her neck and squeezed. Her hands came up and clawed at her throat, but it was no use. Even though she was clearly F-grade, it still didn''t matter. Stanley was pissed, at her, at the mob of idiots following her, and that now he had to kill her. Using that skill on him was as good as attempting to kill him. She''d earned death for that alone. Worse than that, though, was the moment he''d attacked her, and every face in the massive crowd turned to look directly at him. All but one. There was a child standing next to the cult leader, a young boy or girl with blond hair, and they only stared up at the woman, their small hands clutching at her dress. Then a dome of magic sprang up over the woman, hiding her and some others behind the glowing wall, including the child. More magic lights lit up in the group around the dome as her little entourage attacked Stanley. The dome burned at Stanley''s mind, but didn''t cut him off completely. He could still feel her neck. Sorry, kid, Stanley thought. But your mom''s a fucking psycho. He squeezed until only wet pulp remained, and then yanked his mind free from the dome. It burned even worse on the way out, and Stanley fought down his gag reflex. Both from the pain, and also the sensation of crushing someone''s neck... Magic in every color of the rainbow flew at Stanley, and he only hesitated for a moment, his eyes on the opaque dome where beneath it a woman was still tied to a stake ready to be burned to death. Sorry, lady. I did what I could. Stanley felt sick as he flew away, dragging the angry Caffeine with him. He''d killed their leader. Hopefully, the bullshit mind control magic would wear off and someone would untie her. But he couldn''t do any more. Magic was fucking bullshit, and his head was pounding again. None of the spells reached him, all fading or arcing away as Stanley fled. He needed to find more monsters to kill and get stronger. ~~~Zeke~~~ Zeke trembled as he watched the evil lady struggle on top of the bonfire. They had tied her mouth so she couldn''t speak, but Zeke could still hear her muffled cries as Mommy gave her sermon. Hidden Debuff Removed: [Silver Tongue of the Orator] Zeke hated the Devil''s voice! It wouldn''t stop, no matter what he did. He prayed and prayed, but the voice still got into his head. All he could do was try to ignore it. Mommy said that was the best way, and she got really mad when he asked her about it. She got even more mad when he mentioned the light inside his chest... So he did what she always said to do and asked God to protect him from the voice. Jesus, please make the voice go away! I am a believer. I won''t let the Devil take me, I promise! So please help me... and please help Mommy... and Eve. His sister stood next to him, and Zeke glanced up at her before quickly looking away. Eve was one of God''s warriors now. She didn''t smile and laugh, didn''t tickle him or call him Zeke like she used to. She was serious. She also wasn''t a Crusader like the others around Mommy. God hadn''t given her any powers yet. Maybe that was why she didn''t smile anymore. Zeke knew he would give anything to be a Crusader... A loud noise startled him, and it took Zeke a second to recognize that it was a dog barking. He looked up with the others and felt a chill when he saw the flying monster in the sky. Jesus, please save us! Mommy tried to save the bad man. She told him he just needed to repent, but the man wouldn''t listen to her. He had already listened to the voice, and it had corrupted him. He reached out a hand, and Mommy stopped talking and clutched at her throat. The man feared her words, feared the truth, and now he was attacking her to make it stop! The crusaders jumped to defend her, using their holy powers to shield her from the demon, but she was still gasping for air! Zeke held onto her and begged God to protect her. "Jesus, please..." Zeke was watching when the demon crushed her throat. Her neck squeezed in like it almost wasn''t there, and her eyes bulged wide as blood sprayed everywhere. NOO!!! Then Mommy was falling, and Zeke couldn''t believe his eyes... This couldn''t be happening. She was God''s prophet. She was humanity''s last hope. She was his mom... and in that moment of weakness and disbelief, Zeke did the one thing he should never do. He listened to the voice. Golden light burst from his hands, and his mom lit up with the same color as she fell down on top of him. The light felt soo good... so right. It was warm and clean... and so beautiful. +1 Faith Skill Level Up: Purifying Light Zeke cried then, because it felt too good, and he knew the devil had taken his soul. "Ezekiel!" Mommy''s voice made Zeke cry harder. Because he was so happy she was okay, and because he couldn''t bear to look at her and see the disappointment on her face. "What did you do!?" -1 Faith Zeke buried his face in the dirt. "I''m sorry! I''m so sorry!" Strong hands lifted him up, and Zeke squeezed his eyes shut in shame. "Look at me, Ezekiel!" He opened his eyes, vision blurry with tears. "I''m sorry..." Then his mother pulled him into a hug, and Zeke broke down sobbing. "I didn''t want... I didn''t mean to... please forgive me!" "Oh, Ezekiel," she said, stroking his back. "It''s okay." +1 Faith Zeke sniffled and sobbed a few times before he could say. "It... it is?" She pushed him out to arm''s length, and Zeke felt more tears rising when he saw all the blood on her face and neck. "God saved me," she said, smiling. Then the smile faded. "But you listened to the voice, Ezekiel. The devil got inside you." -1 Faith "I''m sorry..." "You let him in... but God used the devil''s power against him. He used it to defeat the devil''s own champion. Even as you fell to temptation, God used you for righteousness." Zeke smiled, but it was weak. Mommy had the look that said he was still in trouble... "God purified me so that the devil''s power was turned on its head... but if you let that light touch anyone else... it would corrupt them instantly!" She was squeezing his shoulders super hard, and Zeke felt tears forming in his eyes from the pain. "Do you understand how dangerous that is!?" -1 Faith "I''m sorry!" She stood then and turned, leading Zeke toward the bonfire where the evil lady was still tied up, and Zeke realized he was going to get put in the fire too... because his soul was as corrupt as hers now... -1 Faith It was hard to keep walking once he understood, but Zeke forced his feet to move. He had sinned. A sin so terrible that this was his only path to redemption. Would it hurt? He was so scared... and crying again as he begged God for forgiveness. -1 Faith They stopped before the stacked logs, and Zeke wondered if he was supposed to climb up or if someone would carry him up like they did with the other lady. Then his mom handed him the torch, flames flickering menacingly at the end. -1 Faith "Should... should I climb... up?" Zeke could barely get the words out. His legs were shaking, but he could do one last good thing to save his soul. He could be brave like the crusaders. They never showed fear even when they had to fight to the death against the devil¡¯s forces. Zeke would be like them... he hoped he could be like them... His mom stared at him for a long time, and Zeke tried his best to stand straight. "No," she said after what felt like forever, and Zeke almost collapsed in relief. Maybe he wasn''t lost yet... "You will stay with me, Ezekiel. God has told me you still have a role to play... as a Crusader." Zeke smiled as tears streamed down his face and his heart soared. A Crusader! "Thank you, Jesus!" "You will be a special Crusader, Ezekiel. My own personal Crusader." Zeke nodded rapidly, still beaming. "I will!" "You must only ever shine your light on me, and only if I am injured. If it so much as touches another here, you will damn their souls! Do you understand the responsibility God has given you?" Zeke nodded. "I do! I do!" Then he dropped to one knee and recited the oath of the Crusaders as he''d seen them do so many times. "My life for the Prophet, my soul for God, I pledge unyielding devotion and unwavering sacrifice in the face of death." "Rise, Crusader Ezekiel," his mo... no, the Prophet said. "Rise, Crusader!" the crowd chanted around him, and the noise filled Zeke with pride. He wasn''t lost. He never had been. God had a plan for him all along, and he didn''t care what the voice tried to say ever again. "Now light the holy fire, Crusader Ezekiel, and send this lost soul to God." "Yes, Prophet!" Zeke turned to the pyre and... Eve snatched the torch from his hands. He spun in surprise, and found her looking at him with tears in her eyes. Was she happy for him? Happy that he was a Crusader? "Eve?" The Prophet asked, her voice not happy anymore. "What are you doing?" Zeke stared at her as Eve trembled, still with tears in her eyes, still staring right back at him. "Give him the torch, girl," his mother, no, the Prophet said. She was smiling at Eve... "This is his moment. Let him do the..." Eve shook violently, her face spasming... then thrust the torch into the wood before anyone could react. The Prophet stopped smiling. "You will regret that, brat!" Zeke hated it when Eve fought with mommy... No, she was the Prophet now. He was a Crusader! He would be strong. Eve smiled with tears running down her face as she watched the flames lick upward quickly, the dry wood burning in a beautiful golden light as it reached toward the sky. She was still smiling when she looked down at Zeke, but now her face looked more sad than happy¡­ Zeke smiled back at Eve. He liked it when she smiled... when she was happy. It made him feel safe. Maybe she would smile more now that he''d found his purpose? The Prophet spoke to the people as the flames spread. She spoke to them of devotion, of sacrifice, and of redemption, and Eve''s smile faded back into that same blank expression she had so much now. Her tears dried up in the heat of the flames before them, and she never looked his way again. Just stared into the fire¡­ Zeke blinked against the smoke while trying to ignore the muffled coughs and screams from above. He ignored the devil''s whispering voice and focused on the Prophet. The sinner would thank them for this when she got to Heaven. Even if she had to suffer now... 27. Bads been slowly getting worse ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley crossed the river back into downtown. He stayed high and watched for birds while looking for a new lair to target. Preferably one with no fucking magic. His head was throbbing again, but he refused to lie down for another nap. He''d already wasted enough of the day sleeping. The pain left him faintly nauseous, but it wasn''t increasing. He even tested throwing some cars across the streets to make sure. That was how he found the rats. Stanley had nothing against the rats, aside from them wanting to eat him and being way too big, but he was in a bad mood. So the rats had to be the ones to suffer for it. Four of them had been under the car Stanley picked up, and they scattered when their cover flew away. Stanley slammed the car right back down and caught two of them beneath it. As for the other two, parked cars lined the street, and he wrecked more than a few of them in the process of smashing the runners. More rats were revealed under every car Stanley moved, and it turned into an increasingly chaotic game of whack-a-rat as the street came alive with a swarm of giant rodents. He thought he was safe in the air. Even the speed they showed in running away wasn''t nearly enough to jump to his height. So, of course, they had their own fucking magic. Stanley didn''t know what their magic was when they struck. He didn''t even get to see it. The only warning he had was a flash of pain across his face. A horrible burning pain. It only lasted for an instant though, and was gone before he could even fully register it. Because Caffeine grew to fill his vision and jumped out of his lap. Jumped from well above the rooftops of the three-story buildings lining the street. Trying to keep the pug in his lap was futile. Not only was he now far too big to wrap an arm around, but the force of his kickoff sent Stanley flying backwards. Damn it, Caff! The yelp of pain was loud coming from the larger pug, and Stanley regretted his thoughts immediately as he realized Caffeine had just taken a hit for him. Regret turned to fear, and then fear drowned beneath a rising tide of anger. Headache forgotten, Stanley followed the giant pug down. He tried to catch Caffeine on the way, but the pug somehow kicked off his mental touch and launched himself down the street. Following his trajectory, Stanley was just in time to see a glowing green... something shoot right over his head as he plummeted. Then Caffeine reached the origin of the green light and a squealing noise sounded out before ending abruptly. Stanley followed behind, deciding to trust Caffeine''s instincts and his new F-grade strength. It would be a good test of his evolution. As he went, Stanley threw cars at anything that moved. Primarily because it took less effort than attacking the rats directly, but also because the cars were big. Each one between him and whatever magic they threw his way could act as a shield. Caffeine didn''t stop after his kill, and he bounded back towards Stanley at his normal size, leaving behind a headless rat. However, halfway through his leap, Caffeine was abruptly bigger; big enough that his feet now touched the ground. Then he shot past Stanley in a blur. Another rat squeal ended prematurely, and Stanley silently thanked Caffeine as he smashed innumerable rats with his mind. He stayed airborne, high enough for a better vantage on his targets, but low enough that Caffeine could still protect him. The rats came in force, their numbers only seeming to grow as they died. Stanley threw cars, and then the wreckage of former cars, until eventually, he was tossing around scrap. Though the engine blocks still made good cannonballs after he''d destroyed the rest of the vehicles. Stanley kept moving too, trying to avoid the increasing number of glowing green balls of... whatever it was. It wasn''t until one landed on a car he''d just picked up that he realized what it was. It was acid. The sight of it chewing through the frame of the car chilled some of Stanley''s anger and brought renewed fear for Caffeine. He snatched up a handful of engines, sending them into orbit around his person, and went looking for the pug. It wasn''t hard to find him, just follow the barking and squealing, but it was difficult to pin down the dog with the speed at which he was blurring around the battlefield. Stanley finally caught him, dragging Caffeine back into his lap, and then stared in horror at what he found. Caffeine had holes in his body. Stanley could see his exposed spine... his skull showing through where an ear should have been... one eye only a hollow socket... the side of his chest was nearly bare bones from the shoulder and down his ribs. On the other side, his entire front leg was missing. What have I done... The world shook around him as Stanley stared. There was a roaring noise in his head, drowned out only by the whine coming from Caffeine''s mouth. Oh, god! What have I done! Acid flew in from every direction in a sudden deluge, and Stanley realized how much of a moron he truly was. He dove in here like it was nothing, and let Caffeine go protect him. He hadn''t even realized how bad it was... because Caffeine was doing most of the work. Caffeine was taking all the hits for him! Stanley reached his screaming mind down into the street, reached deep below it, and then ripped everything he touched from the ground. The pillar of asphalt and dirt shot up toward them, then ripped itself apart as it passed around him and the pug. Darkness fell as literal tons of earth and rock spun into orbit around the duo, enclosing them in a sphere of meter thick protection. Stanley didn''t need light as he simultaneously ripped apart his backpack and nearly forced the food into Caffeine''s mouth. Eat... please eat! He couldn''t speak past the choking lump in his throat as Caffeine finally started eating what felt like an eternity later. He couldn''t see the grievous injuries in the dark, but he didn''t need to. The sight was burned into his mind so vividly that he would never forget it. Stanley could barely draw breath as he hung in the sky and piled food in his lap. This was all his fault. Every time Caffeine got hurt, it was because he had been an idiot. Every time Caffeine cried out in pain, it was because Stanley was the one responsible... I am the monster. Acid continued to pelt the surface of his spinning shield. He couldn''t hear it, not over the pounding in his ears and the intermittently crying dog, but he could feel it. Each spell burned through his mind before digging a hole in the dirt surrounding them. Each burning trail felt right, felt deserved. It should hurt... It should hurt so much more! He should have just flown away. That was all he''d had to do. Just fly away from the dangerous magic and take Caffeine with him. But he had to be an idiot. He had to think he was powerful enough. Had to let Caffeine pay for his uselessness... Now it was time to go again. He knew he should fly away. They''d lost. He lost. But Stanley couldn''t do it. He was just... So. Angry. Angry at the rats. Angry at horrible, stupid humans. Angry at the invaders for trapping him in this place. Angry at the system for starting the whole shitshow. But most of all, he was so angry at himself. So angry that he was such a useless fuckup! So angry because this was all his fault. He''d abandoned Lee when his brother needed him the most. Had gotten himself trapped thousands of miles away. Then he had almost gotten himself and Caffeine killed over and over. They were trapped in a nightmare. And every day it got worse. Stanley was so very, very angry that he had to turn it on something else, anything else! Otherwise, he feared what he might do... So he let it flow from him, his mind along for the ride as his power reached out for something to kill. Something to hurt. He found lots of soft things with his mind. It wasn''t difficult. He just followed the burning trails back to their source. Then he crushed everything in the vicinity into as small a space as his anger dictated. Which was far too small for anything to survive. Squish went the rats. One after the other. Then two or three at a time, then a dozen. Then the trails of pain stopped coming. Stanley reached out further, seeking for something to kill, anything to hurt. He found moving things, all of them going in the same direction. He squished them and reached further. It wasn''t enough! He needed to kill more monsters. Needed to destroy... everything! So he moved in the direction they were running, his spinning shield of dirt going with him. More movement touched his mind. They were running away from him. Trying to escape... Stanley wanted them to run. He wanted them to lead him back to their home so he could KILL EVERY LAST FUCKING ONE OF THEM! So he compromised and only killed half of the runners. Killed them slowly. Grabbing, dragging, and grinding their lives away on the asphalt as their fellows raced ahead. It was the only way to appease his rage... because Stanley wanted to hurt himself even more. It was irrational. It wouldn''t help anything. Wouldn''t help Caffeine. But it didn''t matter. He wanted to hurt himself because it might drown out the pain in his chest. Drown out the memories of his failures and fuckups... and he didn''t dare do it. The small traitorous voice in the back of his head was telling him how easy it would be. His power was strong. Far stronger than his body. All he needed was to think about it... just one small thought and this would all end... the nightmare would be over. So he tortured the rats as they led him home. Fed his rage to them before it could destroy him. They led him to a pit beneath a basement apartment. A hole just wide enough for them to crawl inside and scurry away. None of them made it into the pit alive, and Stanley sent his mind down in their place. It went deep. Splitting multiple times along the way. It also made it too easy to find the rats. This wasn''t like trying to grab the truck frame, or feel out a lock on the other side of the door. Not even like finding rats in the street. It was a nice narrow tunnel, and all he had to do was push. His mind felt resistance occasionally, and it got harder when one tunnel became three, then eight. But that was good. It took effort. Took enough concentration that he had no room for thought. No room for regrets. Only pushing. Some of the tunnels ended abruptly. Some ended in larger rooms. All of them ended with something soft getting smashed into the wall until it stopped being soft. More of the tunnels rejoined the others, all of them culminating in a massive open space deep below the ground. Stanley kept pushing. His mind screamed and burned, and Stanley welcomed the pain because it drowned out everything else. He pushed until the rear wall was flat. Then he kept pushing. His head was full of searing agony, and Stanley kept pushing. It hurt so good that he didn''t want to stop. He never wanted to stop. Even when everything started getting cloudy and far away, he kept pushing. He just had to keep... The abrupt stabbing pain in his hand was different and followed by a violent shaking of his entire body. It was shocking enough that it dragged his attention briefly back into his body. Stanley blinked in the bright daylight as a scream trailed off... his own scream. His throat felt raw, and his mouth was dry... and gritty. He spit out the dirt in his mouth... and met the big brown eyes of the black pug staring down at him and whining. Stanley looked away, his head thick and clouded with guilt and shame... then his gaze trailed back to the pug. A pug with two eyes... two ears... and two front legs digging into his chest... His arms felt terribly weak as he reached trembling hands up to touch the pug. Caffeine was whole again? There were a few patches where his already short hair looked even thinner, and one of his paws had no hair at all, but he was okay... If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Stanley pulled him down into a hug. Somewhere deep down he''d known Caffeine would be fine. The pug had healed from equally bad injuries before, and that was before F-grade. So of course, Caffeine would heal this time, too. Then why did he freak out? Because he was a worthless... Caffeine squirmed from his arms and barked one of his too loud barks. Stanley''s eyes snapped open, looking for the threat as he tried to lift himself... and pain stabbed through his head. He blinked away the tears of pain and... found Caffeine standing on his chest again... staring down into his face. Was he growling? "I''m sorry!" Stanley''s voice was rough, and it hurt his throat as he sobbed. "It''s all my fault..." Caffeine barked again. Directly in Stanley''s face, then lunged down to... lick his face. Stanley reached up to hug him again... his hand throbbed and bled from a few punctures. Had... had Caffeine bitten him? That was fine. He''d deserved... Caffeine stood up to growl, and it was very clearly and deliberately aimed at Stanley. Then he spun away for an instant and came back slightly bigger... with a can of ravioli in his jaws. Stanley had a moment to process what he was seeing, and then the jaws snapped closed. Sauce and bits of pasta sprayed everywhere, including Stanley''s face. When he wiped his eyes clear and opened them, he found Caffeine standing over him with another can. "Wait," Stanley croaked and reached a shaking hand up. "I''ll... eat it." A few drops and chunks had found their way into Stanley''s mouth from the crushed can, and it lit a fire in his stomach. New strength surged through his limbs as he sat up and peeled open the can, just grateful it was a tab top since his brain was still on fire... By the time he had dumped the can down his throat, which had to be measured in seconds, Caffeine was dropping the sixth unopened can into his lap. Stanley didn''t question the uncharacteristic behavior from the normally starving pug and just went to town on the food. Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] Debuff Removed: [Brain Bleed] Stanley''s thoughts abruptly became much clearer, and he almost regretted it. Almost. Instead, he sat frozen for a few seconds as his mind raced. He couldn''t believe how fast he''d spiraled... What the fuck is wrong with me? Caffeine growled softly and nosed his unmoving fingers where they wrapped around the can. "Good boy, Caff." Stanley kept eating. Food was something simple, and his body was demanding it, anyway. He ate and tried not to think too hard. Was his mental state already at the breaking point? Was he truly that weak? Was he... Stanley redirected his thoughts before Caffeine could growl at him, and to a related and less depressing but still tangentially related topic. Maybe I should have taken the meditation skill. After all, His Premonition skill had proved completely worthless ever since... He froze in the process of peeling another lid off. His Premonition skill had warned him... many times, in fact. He just hadn''t realized it. That burning on his chest right before Caffeine blocked the acid... small burning pains in the fight later... all so minor and fleeting that he''d ignored them. It wasn''t just today either. He could remember multiple instances ever since he''d gained the skill, and all of them ignored because the damage never actually happened afterward. Because Caffeine protected him every time. Stanley poured more salty crap down his throat before he could spiral again, and then finally looked at his surroundings. It was dirt. A towering pile of dirt that surrounded him on all sides, with him in a pit at the center. Right. The dirt. He''d dropped it at some point... and it was obvious why he hadn''t been buried in the mess. Caffeine. Again. So he kept eating and checked his notifications while he did. Stanley wasn''t looking forward to seeing more proof of his stupidity, but he wanted to know why his head screamed every time he tried to use Psychokinesis. There was a lot. +1 Willpower +1 Willpower +1 Willpower Debuff: [Rage Overload] Class Level Up: [Psionic] +1 Willpower +1 Willpower Skill Level Up: [Psychokinesis] Debuff: [Brain Bleed] Debuff: [Famished] Trait Upgraded: [Psycho] +1 Willpower +1 Willpower Skill Level Up: [Psychokinesis] Debuff Upgraded: [Critical Brain Bleed] Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] Debuff Downgraded: [Brain Bleed] Debuff: [Cerebral Fatigue] +1 Willpower Debuff: [Minor Bleeding] Caffeine had indeed bitten him. "Good... boy," Stanley said through a mouthful. The good boy in question had finally sat down, but was still staring intently at him. Stanley went back to the notifications, the rest of which were mostly his healing from another deadly injury. This one self inflicted. Then he went to his status to see how the system would reward his reckless and suicidal behavior. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-Grade Human) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 18 (Basic) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 6 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 24(-20%)20 Vitality: 22(-19%)20 Dexterity 21(-15%)18 Wisdom 23(+71%)39[Cerebral Fatigue]19 Intelligence 19(+70%)32[Cerebral Fatigue]16 Willpower 35(+512%)214[Cerebral Fatigue]107 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Knife Work (Rare) - Level 5 (Novice) Buff: Debuff: [Hungry] [Cerebral Fatigue] [Rage Overload] It had rewarded him, quite well, in fact, and Stanley suspected what was responsible. Trait Upgraded: [Psycho] Rage against the dying of the light. You have found additional power by embracing rage. Keep the anger alive and become stronger as you rage. You have fully embraced your rage and forged it into a deadly but volatile weapon at the cost of your own flesh. Rage can be a powerful tool, but keep your will strong lest this power turn against you. +400% - 1000% Effective Willpower -20% Effective Physical Attributes Yup. That was it. Stanley didn''t care about the new decrease to his physical stats. What he did care about was the added line in the description. A line that might have been really fucking useful to see when the trait was first offered to him, before he accepted it! He checked the debuffs next, though the first was clear enough. [Cerebral Fatigue](1:45:16) You have pushed your mind beyond its limits and will require time to recover to full strength. -50% to All Mind Attributes Duration and severity may increase with continued mental exertion. [Rage Overload](45:01) A strong rage has overcome you so fully that it will require time before your mood stabilizes. -50% Emotional Control That was... something. Could you actually quantify emotion like that? Did he have a hidden emotional control attribute? Was this going to happen every time he got angry? If so, then what was the use of the damn evolution!? Or was this just how it worked for everyone? As in, more power equals more downsides. He had no answers and no option to choose differently now. Debuff Removed: [Hungry] Stanley shook his head and looked at the pile of empty cans before struggling to his feet. Speaking of attributes; he should really claim the cores. Might as well get something out of his meltdown. His shoes were full of dirt when he slid down the far side of the mound that used to be his shield, and he stopped to dump it out before shuffling toward the apartment building. A trail of blood and gore led him to the door, and just inside, he found what he''d expected. Lair [Pit of Dissolution] Destroyed. Lair structure may be claimed by new occupants for the next (23:38:55) Skill Shard[F-grade] Acid Spit (Uncommon)... +0.2 All Base Attributes He didn''t bother even reading the description. No way was he going to be spitting acid. On that thought, he dug another core from his pocket. Skill Shard[F-grade] Winged Slash... +0.2 All Base Attributes Something was clear to Stanley now. He didn''t need more skills. Definitely not random ones that might not even benefit from willpower. He only needed power. Raw power would beat anything and everything. He had just proven it here. Then he stood in the doorway and stared at the pit leading down into the ground. He turned away. Nope. Stanley went back outside and began picking up each core as he followed the trail of ground up rat down the street. Caffeine followed, clearly tired, but some of his regular excitement returned as he ran around sniffing everything, though he did glance back at Stanley a bit more than usual. I''ll be okay, Caff. It was a long walk. Surprisingly long. He hadn''t realized how far they''d come. How far the rats had been roaming from the lair... which was another disturbing fact to discover. He''d thought the birds might be an anomaly since he''d attacked them first before they came for him, but the rats had been roaming far before Stanley got there. His body handled the walking fine; he was still stronger physically than before the system, but the ever-present throb of his head didn''t appreciate the impact of his feet against the ground. Each rat gave up the good cores, which made sense considering how fucking dangerous they were. It added up on the long trek, especially when he got back to the beginning... where there were a lot of dead rats. Some crushed beneath cars or other debris, but far more with pieces missing or obvious and fatal bite wounds. He wasn''t sure if the fight had scared everything else away, or if the rats had done that, but nothing showed during the core collection. Even Caffeine never reacted to anything. Not till they were almost done. Stanley was watching Caffeine chow down on a rat, and was pleased about it since they were pretty much out of food and he wasn''t in the best shape to go shopping. He was also considering trying to roast some rat himself when Caffeine looked up and growled softly. Before Stanley could turn, someone whistled. Long and slow. "Quite the fight you''ve had here, friend." Stanley looked at the group of people emerging from around a corner and felt his head pound faster as his heart-rate sped up. This would not go well. He just had a feeling. "You look tired," the first speaker said. "Why don''t you let us help you out by gathering all those cores?" He was eyeing a core only a few paces from him. Stanley raised his hand, and the core in question shot through the air into his palm. He absorbed it immediately. "No, thanks." It stung his mind, but technically, he still had more willpower now than before the rats... he wasn''t helpless. "Let me put it another way," the man said, while he and his group advanced. "You should walk away. Get some rest... while you still can." Stanley glanced around at the cores while his temper flared. Then his sweeping gaze landed on Caffeine staring silently up at him... and he slumped. "Okay. I''m leaving." It wasn''t worth the fight. Caff had taken enough hits for him today. Besides, he''d already taken most of the cores. Caffeine wagged his tail at Stanley, then growled softly at the core thieves once before following him. They only made it ten steps before Caffeine abruptly towered next to him. Honestly, it was almost a relief that they were attacking him. It helped reaffirm his belief that humans were all monsters. This time, Stanley was paying attention to his premonition and knew where the attack was coming from. Not that he needed to. Caffeine had already moved to shield him from it. As expected. Stanley was already upset about getting robbed, about his own failings, about... everything. Seeing Caffeine ready to take the hit for him once again was more than enough to push him all the way back into Rage. His mind was spread out around them in anticipation of this very attack, and Stanley felt the magic burn through it from the rooftop across the street. Heading straight for Caffeine. Obviously, they''d sent someone up there specifically to attack him. It had been the plan all along to kill him. All the words were just meaningless distractions. Stanley grabbed the magic. It roiled and burned in his mind as he turned to face his attackers. He didn''t look at the figure on the roof. That was just a dead minion. Instead, he looked at the leader. The man who had, until that moment, been sprinting towards him with a glowing knife in his hand. Behind him, his little band of dead men were all preparing spells or abilities and one was even drawing back on a bow. Stanley couldn''t physically see the magic in his mental grip; Caffeine still shielded him completely with his larger form, but it felt... hot. Then it exploded. Stanley held onto the explosion, squeezing it tight so it couldn¡¯t escape, the fiery pain of it feeling good in his rage. Feeling... right. He squeezed it tighter and tighter until it finally vanished. The whole time staring at the leader of these monsters as it stared back in shock. Stanley wanted it to see. Wanted the monster to be afraid. Wanted it to know despair. Wanted it to Hurt! Then Stanley ripped the monster¡¯s head off. His gaze slid to the next monster as blood fountained into the air, and Stanley hesitated when his eyes caught on something else. Caffeine was small again, and he was ignoring the monsters to stare up with those big worried eyes at him. It was so hard not to rip them apart... slowly, while they screamed. But Stanley waited anyway, eyes locked on the only good thing in this whole dungeon. He waited for them to run away. To make the right choice, and... The archer fired. Stanley killed all of them. For Caffeine''s sake, he took their heads. He wanted to take their limbs first, make them scream and beg, but he didn''t. He showed mercy to the monsters. Then Caffeine was in his face again, and Stanley wrapped his arms around the giant neck and buried his face in the glossy black fur. He stayed there until the rage cooled, and Caffeine waited the whole time, not shrinking or moving. He stood still and let Stanley hold him until it was over. Then he laid down on Stanley''s feet and passed out. Stanley picked up the pug and cradled him to his chest as he went around and collected the cores, including the human ones. Then flew them back to the rat lair and started a fire. He brought a few of the undemolished rat corpses along; they would need something to eat when Caffeine woke up. 28. Its Not Your Fault ~~~Lee~~~ Lee couldn''t tell what made killing ticks so much easier, his Mana Mind, or getting to F-grade. Whatever it was, he liked it. The ticks were already weak to him since he resisted their numbing effects, but now they couldn''t even ambush him. Paired with his F-grade body, it was a slaughter. Seeing the cores appearing in his Mana Mind made him really glad they hadn''t had time to kill the eggs before, and he wasn''t planning to do so today either. Ideally, they wouldn''t even fight the queen, much less kill her. Lee took a step to the side and held his machete almost casually out beside him. The tick trying to drop on him from the ceiling fell directly onto the blade and landed in two pieces with a splat. It really was too easy now. Granted, the massive tide of the creatures from before had diminished, but there were still plenty of them in here. He was going to make a killing in cores, and Lee pocketed a few for Jamaal along the way. The only downside was the mind attributes he''d lost in gaining Mana Mind, and the long slog just to get back to where he''d been. Still, he wasn''t complaining. The skill was worth it. Lee had also been practicing what he assumed was Mana Manipulation. Whatever he had done to the construct panthers, while giving him a blinding headache, had also shown that there was more to Mana Mind than he''d initially thought. The whole ''intrinsically linked'' part had been serious, and he could move all the surrounding mana at will. It didn''t even seem to cost him mana to do it... though the skill had said it consumed mana just to be active, which it always was. He convinced Alejandro to test his movement skill on him and found he could disrupt it. If he got the timing right. Of course, that was all it could do, for now. The opaque wall that was every person or monster was just that; a wall. Even the ticks were nothing more than outlines in his mind. At least until they died. That had been an interesting experience after he killed the first tick today. Even split in half, they only became two opaque shapes for a second or two. Then the shells of darkness shrank, and always toward one of the split halves. It would shrink down to a single point and then there would be a core. Something he''d been too distracted to see when fighting the panthers the day before. Obviously it had something to do with the cores, which didn''t really help since he didn''t know what they were. He could see them with Mana Mind. Hell, he couldn''t not see them; they stood out like blazing flares in his skill. Most of it was the dense mana filling them, but they also had something else in there. Something he couldn''t actually put a name to. Only feel. It definitely made finding them much easier. No more digging when the corpses piled up. Which led to a disappointing and unsuccessful attempt at manipulating mana. Lee could move the mana in the air with just a thought, and he tried doing the same to a core. He wasn''t trying to move the mana per se, rather he hoped it would move the tiny core itself. Visions of yoinking cores into his hand danced through his mind, and... it didn''t work. All he got out of it was a headache. Though the core twitched when he tried. His dream wouldn''t be a reality... yet. But hope lived. Maybe once the skill leveled more... Alejandro was behind him and killing his own share of the bugs, but Lee was the vanguard today. The whole disaster with Alejandro abandoning the group still weighed on the man, and most of his attention remained on Saira following behind them. His mistake two days prior had cost Larry his life, almost killed Sandy, left Mar with one arm, and let something terrible happen to Saira. Lee still didn''t know what happened to her, but Saira was a lot quieter than she had been. Mar too was even more absent than before. She was still here, probably right behind Saira where Lee had last seen her, but she appeared rarely and spoke never. He was honestly surprised they''d come back out, especially with him and Alejandro. Saira claimed she was fine, and Lee would not discourage the healer from joining the hunt. Not that he was worried. The ticks were a joke compared to those panther beasts, but you never knew what might show up out here. Better to have a healer and not need her... and all that. As for their emotional conditions, that was something he couldn''t do anything about, so something he tried to ignore. The group fought their way back to the hunting section to claim any and every weapon left behind in the store. May had come back to the complex after the battle the day before, and Lee reluctantly invited her as a resident to his building. He had mixed feelings about her choice to run away. On the one hand, she was a coward. But then, Jamaal and Bradley also hid during the fight. Their choice to stay without fighting might have also made the battle more difficult, considering that message about how many people were present before it kicked off... They found out after the battle that only two monsters had attacked anywhere else. The groups in the other buildings had killed those two, but not without casualties. Which, considering Maria and Saira were the only two healers in the complex, made sense. Lee still didn''t know if it was the Mana Well that drew most of them to him, but from how many of the cat monsters tried to kill him, it was a solid theory. His growing desire for some enchanted armor was the driving factor in welcoming May back... They cleaned out the remaining weapons, which weren''t that many, and while there might be more in the stockrooms at the rear, no one was going there. Lee had jumped high enough at the entrance to spot something big moving around in the store''s far end¡ªlikely the new queen. No one wanted to draw that into a fight. Primarily because they had no good way to fight without getting up close and personal, but also because there was no point. Better to keep the core supply coming. Unfortunately, it meant they didn''t dare go for the food aisles, either. They were too close to the queen. Sure, they had plenty of meat between the rattlesnake and the panthers, but rice, beans, or flour were all in short supply. Just not short enough to risk the queen. The plan was instead to travel further away and find a different store. Ideally one that wasn''t a lair. Of course, that would only increase the odds of it being picked clean already. No one attacked them when they left this time, which was a nice change, and with everyone at F-grade, the jog back home went much faster. Alejandro was on edge the whole way, sticking close enough to Saira that he was in danger of tripping the both of them. His head never stopped moving as he scanned the surroundings. Lee took the rear but stayed near enough to keep everyone inside his Mana Mind range, which was growing nicely with every level. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Conduit] [Ley Line Attuned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 5 (Novice) Class Skills: Rune Scribe (Uncommon) - Level 8 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 12(+1%)10.1 Vitality: 11(+2%)10.2 Dexterity 13(0%)10 Wisdom 4(+132%)4.6 Intelligence 5(+129%)4.5 Willpower 3(+128%)4.5 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(1/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) || Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 14 (Basic) Buffs: Debuffs: [Mana Burn] Breaking the constructs had boosted Mana Mind up, and his experiments with cores and other stuff also helped. His range was up to around fifteen feet in every direction, including into the ground, which was weird. But then it was probably only a matter of time until they found an underground monster, so Lee welcomed it. As for why he was guessing on the range, which he felt like he should know instinctively, well, he didn''t know. Maybe his grasp of measurement wasn''t very good? Luckily, the greater amount of information going into his mind wasn''t as overwhelming as he''d worried it might be. It felt akin to his proprioception. He knew where stuff was, or rather where the mana was in an almost passive way. Then, if he focused on it, more detail would spring up. The incoming knowledge also changed constantly, especially when he was running, but even then, it wasn''t too much. Nothing could ever sneak up on him again. Which was why he was so surprised when something stabbed him in the head. He was aware of the others rushing back to him as he fell to his knees, but still couldn''t understand what was happening. There was nothing there. Nothing that could be... Then Lee felt the rage, the hatred. He wanted to kill everyone and everything. Unfortunately, it wasn''t all directed outward. Lee saw the past few days in a new light. A dark light. All his mistakes stood out in stark relief, every memory painting a picture of a failure that would only die. One who would take everyone else down with him when he did. I should just die already... Debuff: [Critical Bleeding] Hands grabbed him, wrestling with his limbs, and then hoisted him into the air, carrying him away. Lee didn''t care. It didn''t matter. Nothing mattered anymore. He was... Debuff Removed: [Critical Bleeding] Warmth flooded into him with the scent of pine and summer sunshine, and it rolled over the emotions that were drowning him, pushing them back. Lee understood what was happening. "No! Stanley!" He screamed aloud and in his mind as he begged for his brother to hear him. The pain in his head came back when the sunshine left, but Lee didn''t care about himself. He was losing Stanley. Again! Of course, Lee knew he would likely die if his brother did, but he didn''t care about that. He only wanted Stanley to stay! Stay with me, Stanley! Please! He was sobbing and screaming. Even the warmth that flooded into him again wasn''t enough... and then¡­ it all just... receded. Lee floundered as the dark emotions vanished, leaving him unsure of what was even real anymore. Stanley was still there, but far away. No longer sharing his head space... but still there! Stanley was still alive! Lee was aware of the fact that three people were currently holding him down. Alejandro and Saira with a hand each, and Mar sitting on his feet. He knew why, too. He had just cut his own throat. It was horrifying... and embarrassing to recall. It felt like he''d had one bad day and immediately chosen to end everything. But he shouldn''t be embarrassed. It wasn''t his fault. He hadn''t been in his right mind. It had to have been some kind of mental attack on Stanley that bled over into him. Right? Why else would Stanley have been feeling that way? Unless... had something happened to Caffeine!? If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Lee''s heart hurt just contemplating such a thing... but that couldn''t be it... could it? Caffeine was a beast lord, and Stanley would protect him. Unless... No! It had to be a mental attack. It would explain the pain in his head at the start. But Stanley had won. He was okay now. He would be okay! I need to get stronger. Lee knew it already, but every day that passed made it more pressing. Could he just start running toward Stanley? He was a lot faster now. If he had enough food, then he could run almost non-stop... Lee did some quick and dirty math. He estimated his running speed well above an Olympic runner now. Maybe thirty miles an hour, faster if he really pushed it. Which meant a hundred to a hundred and fifty hours of sprinting. Factor in sleeping, fighting off monsters, and collecting food... he could probably eat raw meat if he had to. That would save some time. But... it wouldn''t work. He needed armor, more weapons, and, preferably, allies. Maybe Jake would be down for it... "I''m okay now," Lee finally said, primarily to get Alejandro to stop yelling at him. "You can get off me." He kept his eyes closed. Lee didn''t want to see the expressions he knew were waiting for him. Even if it wasn''t his fault, it still felt like it was. Those feelings hadn''t felt foreign or outside of him. They felt like his own thoughts... "You can''t give up, Lee!" Alejandro didn''t stop yelling. "There is still hope and joy in our lives! We all need you!" He also didn''t let go of Lee''s arm. Lee sighed and opened his eyes. Alejandro had the exact expression he''d expected. Worry and pity. "I''m not giving up," Lee said, tugging at his arm, trying to free it. "It was some kind of mental attack." "That is what I told him," Saira said, glaring at Alejandro. "Mr Lee would not give up so easily." She let go of him, but Lee noticed she moved to stand between him and his machete... Alejandro reluctantly let go as well, though he took the unenchanted knife from Lee''s belt as he did so. Then he went and picked up the machete. Lee rolled his eyes as he sat up, but hid the smile trying to sneak onto his face. Their behavior was annoying and embarrassing, but it didn''t feel as bad as he''d expected. It actually felt nice... to know they cared. Less than a week ago, he''d been alone. His brother had left. He''d had no friends, not even an acquaintance. Now he had friends willing to risk their lives for him¡­ friends eager to keep him alive¡­ they were friends, right? "Let''s get back," Lee said, trying not to look at the pool of blood in the street. It was big... and ran in a trail to where he now stood. He could still feel the sticky wetness all down his front. He led the way when no one else took the initiative. Perhaps they wanted him in front, where they could watch him. Mar walked beside him, invisible at an arm''s length to his right. So within easy reach. He could see her head moving back and forth between him and her mom following behind. "Relax, Mar. It''s over. I won''t do anything." At least, he really hoped it was over... if that happened again... No. Stanley definitely killed whoever or whatever did that to him. They''d be fine. She stared his way for a while after that, not that Lee could see her eyes, but finally, her head turned to look forward. "I... understand," Mar said, after a few seconds, her voice so low he almost didn''t hear it. She turned her head away, as if afraid to let him see her face, even though she was still invisible. Lee really needed to ask about that skill... "I''ve felt like that before," she continued, just as softly, and with a quick glance his way. Lee opened his mouth to protest that it wasn''t like that... and closed it again. Instead, he shivered at the memory of what he''d felt in that moment. If she had felt that way, too... Lee couldn''t imagine how she was still alive. He''d experienced nothing like that before... so bleak... so hopeless. "It felt like nothing mattered..." Lee whispered. "There was nothing left. Nothing to live for... and I just wanted it to end." "It really sucks, doesn''t it?" Mar said, not turning her head. Lee wanted to give her a hug, but refrained. She didn''t seem like a big hugger. Instead, he said, "If you ever want to talk... well, I''m never going to forget how that felt." She didn''t respond, and Lee left it at that. Alejandro never gave him back the machete. Instead, Lee got to watch him talk to Maria, presumably about him, considering the looks coming his way. All of Lee''s protests fell on deaf ears, and the warm feeling of having people looking out for him waned. Especially when he suggested another trip back outside. After all, they still needed to find another store. "Even if it was a mental attack," Alejandro said. "Are you sure it won''t return?" Something in his voice hinted that he wasn''t quite sold on the whole ''mental attack'' angle. Lee clenched his teeth. "I''m not suicidal. I need to keep fighting because my brother is out there nearly dying every day, and I''m not strong enough to save him!" He was screaming by the end... which probably wasn''t the best way to convince anyone of his mental stability. Alejandro put a hand on his shoulder. "I will hunt for you. Rest today, and tomorrow we will go again." Lee knew it was a kind gesture, but the hand on his shoulder only reminded him he didn''t have a choice. He couldn''t take on everyone here... the only leverage he had was taking his runes back, which wasn''t much of a threat anymore. Would they actually fight him if he demanded his weapon back? Would that mean they cared more if so? "Wait for the debuff," Alejandro said. "May might have some armor for you by then. It will be safer, no?" Was that what this was about? Alejandro just wanted his runes before Lee potentially died? Was the concern on his face actually for his own family? Lee didn''t want to believe it was that sinister. So he tried not to. The man had promised to hunt for him... so he wasn''t after something for nothing, at least. "Fine." Saira and Mar had caught up while they were talking, and the former now carried a tall spear. She''d heard the tail end of the discussion, and gently squeezed his arm. "I agree with Mr Morales. Rest today. You have done much for the people here. Let us repay your help how we may. We will not let you fall behind." Lee had told no one about his trait yet. They didn''t understand that he was already behind. He probably always would be... but he was feeling like the concern for his well being might actually be genuine. Also, there was a small voice in his head that hadn''t forgotten how close he came to dying in the street. Sure, he would have healed from the cut throat... probably. Definitely. But if he''d swung the machete even the slightest bit deeper... the enchanted blade that could cut anything... It might be okay to have that weapon out of reach for today. It would also be good to build a bit of trust with these people... whom he hoped were actually his friends. Because he had an idea to test tomorrow, and they would not like it. Especially if they were his friends. Or maybe they would like it more? He wasn¡¯t actually sure how this whole friend thing worked¡­ Given the spear Saira was carrying when they left, Lee assumed May was making progress, finally. But before he went to see her, Lee had another stop. Aside from changing his shirt and washing the blood away... The courtyard was empty of both snake remains and panther bodies. Though blood and... other stuff still stained the floor. Their resident water mage was still busy ensuring drinking and bathing supplies for now, but hopefully she would get to cleaning, eventually. Or maybe they could find someone with fire magic... Jamaal answered his door with a smile. A smile that grew even brighter when he saw Lee. "My friend! Come, come!" He ushered Lee inside. "You hungry? Want for hunt? Or fresh?" "Actually," Lee said, "I was just bringing you these..." He trailed off with his hand outstretched as he took in the man''s home. The front entrance was almost fully blocked by a long row of tables. The kitchen looked pretty much identical to the one in Lee''s own apartment, but the living room had been transformed. Six stovetops lined one wall. Tables and shelves filled the other walls, all stacked with wooden crates full of meat. "Thank you, my friend. Thank you!" Jamaal eagerly accepted the cores and then waved at his home. "You like? Will be restaurant when you magic a stove." "You don''t actually need a stove..." Lee said and then thought about it. "Get frying pans, or pots. I will enchant them, but you can set them on the stove so it doesn''t burn anything." "Yes, yes. Have many pans." Jamaal opened one of the many ovens to reveal the stack of cast iron skillets. "Had to hide from May. She will melt if not." Lee chuckled. "Tomorrow. I should be able to enchant something then. Today..." Lee glanced behind him to where Maria stood in the doorway. "I''m supposed to rest." Maria met his gaze without reaction, Anita in her arms. Gabriel stood beside her, watching everything with his wide, curious eyes. Lee couldn''t get a read on Maria. If she was judging him for perceived weakness, or annoyed to be his babysitter, none of it showed on her face. "Then you must feast!" Jamaal said. "But..." He stared at the cores in his hand. "Is it enough for F-grade?" The man had asked for those two points specifically, and while Lee had told him about fortification, Jamaal dismissed the idea. Now he nodded, his expression looking somehow both eager and wary at the prospect of evolving. "I''ve got nowhere to be today," Lee said. "Take your time. I''ll come back later... and good luck. Hope you get some good options." Maria followed him to the parking garage, where May had moved her forge construction inside once she saw the building buff. Apparently, the extra stats and regen were too good to pass up. Bradley was with her, and casting his... block spell? That was new. Either a new skill, or he''d evolved the first one. Or maybe just ranked up and got more utility. It was the evolution. Bradley confirmed it when Lee asked, and he seemed happy with the change. "Not as good for fighting..." he said. "But it is much easier to build stuff now! I''m just tweaking the forge before I get back to your building." While he spoke, a block of stone materialized in front of his hand and fused to previously placed stonework. Lee could see the whole process in his Mana Mind, and he stayed to watch the last few sections fill in. It wasn''t just fusing the blocks at the edges, Bradley could also fuse them halfway inside the other stones. It allowed for more freedom in the design and let him turn the chimney to run through the bars so it would dump the exhaust outside. He even fused some stone directly around the bars. May was already eyeing Lee when Bradley finished. "I know, armor, right? What do you want? Full plate? Half-plate? Brigandine? I should just figure it out and make it for you? How hard can it be to stitch plates into your jacket, right?" She seemed... annoyed. But why? Wasn''t this like... her whole deal? Make shit in exchange for protection? It was why he''d invited her as a resident. "Actually..." Lee said, and not just to be annoying. "I would like full plate." He could see it now. It wouldn''t slow him down much with his F-grade strength, and he could cover himself in runes. He''d be a tank. Literally. "But I''ll settle for a breastplate to start," he added before she could go off on him. May closed her mouth and stared up at him for a few seconds. She really was short... "Okay. Dennis, measure him." Dennis wrapped measuring tape every which way around his chest while Lee watched May feed the fire. "Dennis, how did you get that banana skill? If you don''t mind me asking." The man hesitated briefly, then resumed his measuring. "I thought it was a joke. Or a prank. I picked the strangest thing I could think of to try and stump the computer." "What?" Lee recalled the banana from the other day. The singular banana. "What did you pick, and how bad was the affinity?" "Banana Summoner. And the affinity was very bad." "What does low affinity do? I considered picking something way lower myself..." "Mana cost. I can summon one banana with nearly my entire mana pool." Lee suddenly felt a lot better about not taking the lightning class. Sure, it was only fifty percent affinity but that still might have meant he could only do one or two attacks before having to regen. And he wouldn''t be able to use the Well. "Sorry, man. That sucks." "It is improving," Denis said. "And my original option was Accountant. So I lost little. I have some ideas, and if that doesn''t work, there are always the skill shards." He finished the measurements and started writing them down for May. "It''ll be ready tomorrow, but it''s gonna cost you two cores," she said. "The good ones that give one to everything." Lee opened his mouth, and she went on before he could speak. "That''s the discounted price. Because you''re the ''Master'' of the building." "Thanks." Lee ignored the air quotes. "As for tomorrow... how about I trade you enchanting instead?" "No. Your discount includes the enchanting. I''m charging anyone else ten cores for a piece of armor like you want." She smiled evilly at Lee. "Supply and demand. I''m the only one that can make what everyone needs. And before you get your panties in a twist, I didn''t set that price. That was how high the bidding went, even after I told them you were first in line." "How much did Saira pay for the spear?" "That? Nah. It was practice. A warm-up." She winked at him. "Plus, I want the healer to remember me when I inevitably end up with a monster in my face." That was... smart¡ªalways good to have a healer on your side. Lee would have to remember to enchant it for Saira. Lee watched her, or rather, he watched her mana while she funneled it into the fire. With every second that passed, the heat coming from the opening intensified. It also appeared to take a while, as well as a decent amount of mana. "My ru... enchants might be better than you expect." Lee caught the slip in time, but it looked like May noticed. Not that he was sure why he was hiding it... habit, maybe? Jake was a bad influence. "Hmm. We''ll see," she said, with an expression Lee wasn''t sure he liked. The rest of the afternoon passed pleasantly enough, aside from the constant nagging feeling that he was wasting time while Stanley might be dying. Other than that, it was great. Just the specter of death on his shoulder while he tried to relax. Maria followed him around all afternoon, until it turned into him following her around the complex. He met more people than he wanted to, and some that were all right. It also meant that he had to hang out with the kids as well, and they turned out less annoying than he''d feared. Actually, kind of fun... and cute. Their curiosity and naivete were... nice. They didn''t share the dread that the grown-ups did. They didn''t know at any moment another monster like the snake might show up and kill everyone. Unfortunately, many other children in the complex didn''t share that innocence... too many had lost parents or other family. Often violently, and from the silent staring faces on some of them, maybe right in front of their eyes. Lee hated seeing it. It stirred those same helpless feelings in his chest that he was still trying unsuccessfully to forget. The impotent rage at an injustice that could never be made right. Lee saw Maria in a new light after those interactions. After he saw her comforting adults and children alike. Followed by the moments when her hands reached a little too quickly toward her own children. The way her eyes rarely strayed from them for long. There were a few times where Maria lost track of him, and Lee saw a similar intensity in her gaze when she sought him out. Maybe, just maybe, she did actually give a shit about him. He laid down on her couch that night, listening to her telling a bedtime story in the other room, and he was really glad he''d opened his door on that first night. It had definitely been the right choice. 29. Here There ~~~Stanley~~~ Rat didn''t taste all that bad. As long as you roasted it enough... and if you didn''t, Caffeine was happy enough to eat it for you. As much as he hated the idea, Stanley let Caffeine guard him through the night. Not that he left them any more exposed than necessary. The rat lair included the building above the pit, and Stanley holed up in a bathroom on the top floor. Hoping that anything seeking to claim it would be after the hole instead. He slept... terribly. There was no clock, so he didn''t know how often he woke, but it was far too many times. Nightmares, both forgotten and remembered, plagued him. Every time, Caffeine was there when he woke screaming or thrashing, and every time, Caffeine stayed in his arms until he drifted away. Stanley would have given up on sleep and gone hunting more than once, but the damn debuff held him back. His execution of the human monsters had extended it up to eight hours... then a few of his nightmares brought it up to nine. The only good thing about the fact that he was using his power while asleep was that it always broke him out of the nightmare. The pain in his head saw to that. Still, it gave him an excuse to take a leisurely breakfast with Caffeine, which the pug thoroughly enjoyed. Stanley just hoped the snow still on the ground outside meant the meat hadn''t gone bad overnight. It didn¡¯t feel cold to him¡­ Though, with his metabolism, he wasn''t sure it mattered. Besides, it still tasted good... or reasonably good after he roasted it. He dragged the mess of dead meat and cores from the hole before he left the building, then immediately recreated his shield from the day before. Only... not exactly the same. It was such an obvious solution that he wanted to kick... he should have done it sooner. Everything non-living was exponentially lighter than the alternative. He always could have simply carried enough matter between him and the monsters that they couldn''t see or reach him. Especially for magic. Dirt had worked out well for the acid, but Stanley wanted something more... durable. Something he had in excess all around him. Something he''d used as a weapon the day before. He left that street behind with over a dozen engine blocks orbiting him and Caffeine. Then he went down the side streets until he had nearly a hundred of the solid steel chunks creating an impenetrable shell around him. At least, that was the hope. Stanley doubted it would be that simple because, as he knew, magic was bullshit. Worst case, he had heavy ass missiles to throw at his enemies. Best case, they wouldn''t be able to touch him, and he also had heavy ass missiles to throw at his enemies. The only issue was the fact that he couldn''t see shit. Which was easy enough to solve with a view port. He''d more than proved he could fight without eyes on his targets the day before, but it would be faster if he found them first and then turtled behind his armor. It didn''t take long. He spotted another bug thing... and didn''t kill it. Just ripped a leg off. A little something to encourage it to find its friends for a gangbang. That worked. Not because it ran for help, but because a bunch of identical bugs came running at some unseen signal. Stanley threw some engines at them. He only wanted to kill enough to make the others run, because what he was really after was... all of them. They obliged by running... into the building right next door. That works. His armor shell closed around him, and Stanley pushed his mind into the building. It wasn''t quite what he would call a skyscraper, but big enough to have plenty of monsters. He stayed outside, obviously, and only sent his mind in. Then simply felt for movement. Stanley couldn''t feel out every single thing he touched, not on such a large scale, and not if it didn''t move. So he pushed everything. The bugs responded by moving, which Stanley could feel, and then he squished them. It was a simple system, but one that worked exceedingly well. The only drawback was he still had to get the cores... That part took longer than the killing. Still, the stats added up as the day went on. Stanley went building by building, lair by lair, and slaughtered everything in his path. Most lairs were not as accommodating as the first. With most, the monsters charged out in mass the moment he attacked. That worked just as well, if not better, because he didn''t have to go searching for the cores afterward. Unless, of course, he wanted the queens, who almost universally stayed on the top floor or the deepest hole. Stanley still didn''t delve into the underground. Instead, he dragged everything to the surface and sifted cores from the mess of gore like he had that morning. For the buildings, well, windows were a lot easier to break after his upgrade. Though, to avoid surprises, he liked to duck through the door first. Something he learned when the queen didn''t react to his pushing and so was still alive when he broke the window. All he had to do was see if the notification popped up... The Queen has surrendered. Lair [Withering Dark] Defeated. That was new. He''d suspected something was wrong when nothing he''d crushed felt stronger than the rest. Usually, the queens had a serious leg up on their minions. Unless they were the huge breeding type, but that usually meant it had stronger guards, not to mention the extra size. A cursory glance around the entrance revealed that all the doors deeper in were closed, which was unusual. The monsters couldn''t roam if they couldn''t get out... though they were all dead. Except for the queen, apparently. He nudged a few and found all of them secured far more tightly than any door pre-system. That, coupled with the core at the entrance, suggested something intentional. Apparently, they could give up. Stanley doubted it was enough to keep him out if he put in the effort, but would he still get another core from the queen? Or was this something to discourage his method of wiping out every lair he found? A way to keep the queen around and ensure a new crop of monsters. He thought about it for a minute and left it as it was. Maybe for the more annoying monsters he would attempt to wipe them out completely, but the less bothersome ones were a good source of cores. Why not let them repopulate for a later harvesting? He''d just have to remember to come back and check on them. Most of the day passed productively, and with only a few injuries from bullshit magic sneaking past his armor. None of it touched Caffeine. The cores rolled in, and he left entire blocks free of monster infestation. Aside from the occasional surrendering queen. Of course, there were always humans to ruin an otherwise good day. "Help! Please help me!" Stanley stared down at the screaming man in disbelief. Did he actually think that scam would work? It was so obviously a trap. "They''re gonna kill me!" How the man knew there was a human in the ball of metal was a mystery, but it was probably just a good guess on his part. He looked bloodied and messed up, so he was at least putting some effort into the illusion as he staggered down the street. More out of curiosity than anything, and maybe because Caffeine whined, Stanley hesitated above the man. He opened a bigger gap to yell down at him. "Okay, I took the bait. Are you going to attack me yourself? Or are your friends waiting down there?" The man glanced up quickly but didn''t stop running. "They''re coming behind me! Oh god, they..." He was really selling the bit, which made it slightly less surprising when another human abruptly appeared out of nowhere and stabbed the guy. Less surprising, but still extremely disturbing. Stanley closed up his shell and flew higher. So the guy wasn''t lying. Or maybe they just killed him because he didn''t get Stanley to come down. Either way, it was just more human monsters. Not his problem. It became his problem when the killer appeared inside Stanley''s sphere with no warning or apparent difficulty. Caffeine growled at the newcomer, where he now stood on one of the floating engine blocks with a blade in one hand and the now dead man in the other. "Were you trying to..." the man started. Then Stanley pulled the engine out from under him and slapped both bodies back toward the ground. He only hit one. Skill Level Up: Premonition He felt the warning pain in his back at the same time Caffeine kicked off his legs and sent him sliding sideways. The man appeared behind him right on cue, but only scratched a line into his side as Caffeine''s push sent him out of the way. Then Caffeine ricocheted off an engine, kicking across the city, and shot toward the man. Who vanished and reappeared back in front of Stanley. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "Rude," the man said, once again standing on one of Stanley''s engines. The way he moved... it had to be teleportation. Not even Caffeine was that fast... Talk about some bullshit magic. "You try to steal my kill and then run with no..." He was one to talk, after trying to stab him. Stanley struck harder and faster this time, even as Caffeine launched back in pursuit. It was useless. The other man vanished the instant Stanley started his attack. As if he could feel it coming... The premonition came with far too little warning, but Stanley was already pushing before it appeared. Which meant the blade only stabbed through his eye and not into his skull beneath. Once again, his mental touch only barely brushed the man''s skin before he was gone. Stanley was already climbing higher, hoping to leave the lunatic behind while trying to keep his engines from getting kicked away by Caffeine. His rising anger granted strength, but Stanley hadn''t forgotten the cost of his rage. He didn''t want to fight this monster. Better to flee. Unfortunately, the teleporter wanted to fight. Caffeine bounced around the interior of the sphere like a pinball as he pursued the man, and Stanley gave up on flying away when his own injuries kept adding up. He dove for the ground instead. The fucker took his other eye... right before the engines slammed into a building and demolished it in an expanding dust cloud. Stanley stayed in the dust, hoping Caffeine''s senses were better than the monster as he felt him kicking up even more dirt with every booming leap. His first eye healed while Stanley huddled low and stuffed his mouth with the raw meat of whatever had been living in the building he just destroyed. It was gross, but not worse than the liquid running down his face from his eye... The knife stabbed into his hunched back with the too short warning, only this time, a blast of wind and sound arrived with it. The shockwave blew away his dust cloud and Stanley saw Caffeine drop a hand on the ground, a knife still clutched in the dismembered limb. Further away, the teleporter appeared, clutching his bleeding stump. "You bastard!" He vanished before Caffeine arrived and then stayed gone as Caffeine bounded back to Stanley''s side. The pug was panting heavily as he circled unceasingly around Stanley''s legs. He paused occasionally to growl in specific directions before resuming the spin. Stanley could only assume he was tracking the monster somehow. Which meant the fuck was still around and hadn''t run away for good. Stanley wanted to fly away more than anything, but he''d finally found a monster that wasn''t impeded by his preferred tactic. His best bet now was to stay on the ground, where Caffeine was at his most powerful. So he kept eating the raw meat, which he could finally see was from a non-human monster. He''d worried... "You''re a damn cockroach, aren''t you!" the man shouted, his voice coming from three different directions. He was only the second one to call Stanley that... and Stanley didn''t mind. He was good at being a fucking cockroach. "That''s fine," the voice echoed from far away and then right behind him on the last word. Stanley got no warning from premonition this time... and instead heard Caffeine yelp immediately after his earthshaking dash. "I''ll just have to take your fucking dog apart first!" The blood dripping from Caffeine as he continued his circling sent Stanley''s anger straight to eleven. Time seemed to slow down as the monster appeared in front of Stanley, but behind the pug. A new blade already plunging mere millimeters from the dog''s back in his left hand. Stanley''s mind exploded toward the man... but Caffeine was faster. The pug twisted impossibly quick, growing slightly larger as he did. Stanley couldn¡¯t even follow the motion with his eyes. One moment Caffeine was facing him and the next he¡¯d turned a full one-eighty and snapped his jaws shut on the man''s leg at the same time the human vanished. The distant scream was sweet music to Stanley''s mind, but Caffeine shrinking and falling to his belly as he spit out a bloody foot took his full attention. "You''ll pay for..." the scream vanished in the wind of Stanley''s flight as he took himself and Caffeine far away. He wanted to catch the bastard and peel his skin off an inch at a time. But Caffeine was more important now. Those bursts of speed drained the pug a lot. And now he was wounded too. Stanley swallowed his screaming rage and used the extra power it granted to drag them through the sky, backwards. The skin of his back burned and flayed apart as the howling wind threatened to rip off his ears and half of his scalp. He welcomed the pain if it meant Caffeine was safe, and he didn''t stop until the city was a distant smudge in the distance. Then he dropped out of the sky and killed the first thing he saw. A giant moose. Together, in the woods, they ate, feasting on the massive carcass. Caffeine ate his fill and passed out. Then Stanley held him close and flew further west, just in case. The whole time, he seethed. That fucking monster! Stanley hated being weak! If this was what all those useless people felt... no wonder they were crazy. It was the fucking worst! If he ever found that fucker again... ideally asleep... or find a skill to lock him down. Then peel him... Caffeine shifted with a whimper, twisting slightly to give access to his belly. Stanley unclenched his fists and administered the well-deserved belly rub while trying to calm down. He just needed to get stronger. That was all there was to it. And he would! ~~~Cunning Fang~~~ Cunning Fang crouched low in the brush as her nose tasted the air ahead. There was blood, meat, and something else... something new. Something Dangerous. "I smell our end," her mate huffed softly beside her. "We run. Not worth it." "Agreed." It was nice when he saw sense. The free food sitting in the shattered clearing was rich and tempting. It would sate the pack. Grow their strength and prepare them for the next hunt. But it was wrong. It smelled of... rage. And worse, it smelled of Power. A power that whispered to the ancient huntress inside her. Power that told her to show her belly and beg for mercy. Or die. She also knew how strong the large-horns were, and that they ran in a herd. Nothing here showed a fight. Whatever had done this had crushed the animal and sent the rest fleeing in fear. Her pack was not ready for something that could do such a thing. She was not ready to face... whatever had done this. New strange creatures roamed into her domain every day now, but this was unlike those who came before. New was dangerous. She and Night Runner would have to scout the newcomer before they risked the pack. "Come," she told them. "No food here. We run." They followed, some more reluctantly than others, but they obeyed. They were hungry after the last hunt went wrong, and that hunger made them foolish. She would follow the herd of large-horns toward the cold. The rage scent went a different direction. With luck, they would still be spooked and her family could isolate a weaker meal from the herd. "The Lair den would feed us," Night Runner huffed, as he loped beside her. "It is a trap. I have told you this." He huffed and fell into a shadow below the trees. He sprang up a dozen strides ahead, in the shadow of another tree. Then repeated the process until he was out of sight ahead. Cunning Fang stayed with the pack as they followed behind. Her mate had chosen his power when the voice spoke to the world. She had chosen a different path, but one that her instincts agreed would give her family the best chance to survive. She chose knowledge. The choice had already paid off when the same voice offered them a Lair to make their home. She saw through the promise of food and shelter for what it really was. A trap. It would start with her, binding her forever in the cave until she died. Whereupon her daughter would become bound. They would lose the world for a hole in the ground. Nothing more than rodents in a burrow waiting for the fox to dig them out. That was not the path for her family. They would be free, and they would become strong enough to remain free. She would make it happen. No matter what. ~~~Somewhere~~~ Steven followed the others in the pitch blackness, his only sense of direction from his hand on the man in front. He stopped when the others did, and then they waited. "Welcome," the voice was unnatural, dry, and raspy. "You are the most promising candidates we''ve found. Humans who desire to rise above, to reach beyond their limits, and to become Eternal." Steven shivered at what he heard. Did he truly want that? He''d only gone along with the others because they''d promised power. Classes that could fight. Immortality. Who wouldn''t want that? "Unfortunately," the voice said in the dark, and Steven could have sworn, with a smile. "We only have room to welcome one of you into our ranks." What did that mean? Why had they all been brought here if they only wanted one? What... Lights bloomed overhead, and he wasn''t the only one blinking in the sudden illumination. Nine others stood in the circle of light, all watching each other warily. Those last words from the darkness had hinted at... One man abruptly lunged toward another''s back, metal glinting in his hand. The other man didn''t even have time to scream as the blade stabbed deep into his back. His attacker didn''t stop there, stabbing repeatedly as he rode the man''s body to the ground. When he stood and faced the frozen group, the only sound was the drip, drip, drip of blood running from his knife to the stone below. Then he lunged at the next man and all hell broke loose. Steven hesitated, not from fear, but waiting for the right moment¡­ and it appeared when the killer was riding his next victim to the ground. Steven pounced and landed on the man¡¯s back, arms and legs wrapping around him in a restraining hold. "Help me!" Surprisingly, a few brave souls ran to his aid. Steven never quite locked down the man¡¯s knife arm, and they all got stabbed at least once while he wrestled with the man. When no one else was willing or capable of stepping up to help, Steven had to take matters into his own hands. He abruptly clamped down with his arm around the man¡¯s throat, then twisted sharply. He was panting heavily as he rolled the murderer¡¯s limp body off himself and then tried to stand up. A hand grasped his own reaching arm and hauled him upright. "Thank you," Steven wheezed, leaning on the other man. It was the first one who came to his aid. The strongest one. Perfect. Steven thrust the recovered blade between the man''s ribs¡­ and twisted it. He was lunging for the next strongest before the man finished dying. It was a mop up after that. No one else had what it took to survive. All of them were screaming and crying as they tried to escape the ring. All of them died. Then it was over. "Congratulations, supplicant! Stand tall and accept the gift of eternity." The towering creature that emerged from the darkness held a glowing black shard in its hand. Steven took it with a wide smile. Race Change Shard¡­ 30. For A Few Potatoes More ~~~Lee~~~ "I want to chop off the end of my pinky," Lee said, holding up his left hand. "But I don''t want you to heal it." The reaction was... not what he''d expected. Saira only studied his hand with a thoughtful expression before asking, "Why?" "To see if it grows back." Lee was pretty sure it would. The way he healed from so many injuries without even a scar was something beyond regeneration. It was magical. He''d healed multiple organs, lots of muscles, and even some broken bones. What he hadn''t done yet was regrow a missing limb. The only concern he had was that Mar hadn''t gotten her arm back despite being healed. It was just a stump. Which was obviously why he was starting with a pinky. "It is not worth the..." "I need to know," Lee cut off her protest. "It is definitely worth the potential loss." Then he stopped and finally questioned why the woman was kneeling in mud. "What are you doing?" Saira stared at his hand for a few more moments, then glanced behind him at Maria. "I am growing vegetables." She placed her hands back in the mud and Lee saw her mana flowing down into... seeds? Even as he watched, they sprouted and grew quickly, bursting from the soil into small sprouts before slowing to a stop. Lee figured it out before she explained. "I can send mana back to the plants rather than only take it away." That was... useful, if you liked vegetables. "Great..." Lee had another thought. "Are you growing any potatoes?" Saira stood. "Yes, just over there." She waved at another patch of mud with more green sprouts as she walked into the garage. "Now why is this necessary, and why did you come to me? My healing did not restore Mar..." She trailed off without finishing the statement. Buff: [Building 3] Lee followed her inside, now much more interested in her gardening and ignoring the awkward topic of Mar''s arm by bringing up his own idea. "I''ll try my regeneration first. If that works, I''ll want to try your healing, too. See if it changes the result. Oh, and also, Maria insisted I involve you." Sure, Mar was standing right there... but then she rarely left her mother''s side anymore. Saira sat on the floor, Mar standing invisibly beside her. "Very well. Once my mana is restored we can begin." Maria took it upon herself to cut off his finger. Just the tip. Lee might have lost some of the trust in his stability with his idea today, and she had hesitated to give him his knife back. Something he was okay with, since he had until later to get his rune game on. Also, assuming his plan worked, which he desperately hoped... "Ow! Fuck!" Lee had tried not to look, but his Mana Mind made that impossible. Maria was prepared for his flinch and kept his hand still. Ruthless, considering she''d been against the idea... though maybe she didn''t want it to take any longer. Then she swatted him in the back of the head. "No curse!" Really? She cut off his finger and told him not to curse? Psycho... Oh, that''s interesting. Lee once again didn''t require his eyes to see what was happening. He watched the mana swirling out from¡­ everywhere. It didn¡¯t come from his mana pool like the runes did, and it wasn¡¯t the heavy liquid mana his core was full of. It was instead the mana that already saturated his body. It was something he¡¯d noticed before, every time he was injured in fact. The mana would surge like a rising tide to gather at the injury, which this time was the stub of his pinky where the last knuckle was missing. Well, not missing. It was in Maria''s hand... Seeing it like that, a little piece of himself cut off, was so much worse than seeing his blood everywhere. Maybe even worse than seeing his skin half-melted... though it hurt less this time. The pain diminished fast, and Lee''s smile grew as it fled. His finger was growing back, bone and all! He cackled when even the fingernail reappeared. "Good," Maria said, handing the fingertip to Saira. "For plants." Then she retreated to her children. Saira took it absently as she stared at Lee''s fully healed hand. "How did you do that?" Then she finally noticed the amputated finger in her hand, grimacing and dropping it in the dirt. Her disgust was short-lived, and a heartbeat later she''d pulled out her own knife. "Let me try!" "Wait!" Lee exclaimed, a heartbeat too slow. The woman didn''t even hesitate! "God damn it!" He saw Maria''s mana latch onto him and knew what was coming, but the pain distracted him too much to break her skill in time. Smack. Why did she even bring the kids out here? Only, he knew why she kept them close. Though at least she wasn''t letting them watch. Saira didn''t let him suffer. Not more than a moment after mutilating him, she funneled her healing into this hand. This time, the finger healed even faster. "Okay. It works! So now..." "Please wait!" Saira said, not letting go of his hand, the knife still precariously close to his poor pinky. "I saw something!" Lee saw the look in her eyes and had a sinking feeling in his chest. "Let me keep trying, please. I think I can heal Mar... if you will let me study this." There it was. "Oh, son of a..." Lee tore Maria''s skill apart before it could latch on. "...bitch!" Then turned to glare at her. "There''s going to be a lot more of that, Maria." She narrowed her eyes at him and moved to hand Anita off to Alejandro beside her. "I''ll start screaming every foul thing I can think of," Lee said, and took a deep breath as she took a step toward him. "Come, Mi Amor." Alejandro pulled her back into a side hug with his free hand. "I will walk with you today." Maria relented, and Lee caught another glimpse of her soft side as she gazed at Alejandro before they turned away. They only paused long enough for Alejandro to call back, "Stay near the building!" That was sound advice, especially if their tank was leaving, and they all moved near a door with bushes nearby. "Mar, will you keep watch?" Saira said, and didn''t wait for the nod she wouldn''t see, or the faintly whispered agreement from the girl before bringing out her inner sadist. "Fuck!" Lee didn''t scream it, but he wanted to. Instead, he focused on drawing out a symbol with his right hand against his leg. Not with any mana, but as practice. He wouldn''t be able to look at what he was doing when the time came to actually make the rune... "God damn it!" Either Saira wasn''t that smart, or what she was trying to do was harder than she''d thought, because she didn''t figure it out after ten pinky fingers. She still didn''t get it after twenty pinkies, and Lee bemoaned his newfound friends as the day went on. He couldn''t remember any friends from before the mountains, and he''d had none since. But he really thought it would be more pleasant... ... The sun was past its zenith when Lee got to see Mar, fully visible, and staring at her newly restored right arm with tears in her eyes. Then mother and daughter embraced, and the crying really took off after that. Lee tried to escape before anyone got any more brilliant ideas, and was cruelly ambushed in a two on one attack when Saira dragged him into the hug. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" "Thank you!" Mar agreed, still crying, but hugging him just as tightly as Saira did. Even though his finger felt... raw, Lee returned the hugs, and it was... nice. Maybe this is what it''s supposed to feel like? I could get used to this. Mar pulled away first as her hysterical joy turned more embarrassed, and Lee saw her bright red face before she vanished again. Saira didn''t let him go until Lee finally had to push her back. Then she kissed him full on the mouth. It wasn''t that he didn''t enjoy it, but... her daughter was right there! Also, Lee hadn''t had this kind of contact since... well, since he could remember. So what felt like his whole life... Lee and Stanley had found enough pictures and talked to enough former friends to know that there had been relationships in the past. Including one that hadn''t yet passed... It ended shortly after Lee knew it was even a thing. Completely forgetting someone in a life-altering event was reason enough to break it off, and Lee didn''t blame her. He didn''t even know her... "My apologies Mr Lee. I don''t know what came over me." It was a relief to see a blush on her cheeks, because Lee knew he probably looked like a tomato himself. "Ahem... Yes. I mean, it''s fine." Lee floundered for a moment and almost turned to leave before remembering why he''d started this shitshow in the first place. "Right. Well... I want to enchant my bones. If you''re free later..." That sufficiently altered the mood, and Saira froze, staring at him. "Your... bones?" "It worked!?" Alejandro walked out the door, his and Maria''s walk long over by now. He pounded Lee on the back, and Lee wasn''t fast enough to pull a Jake. "This is great! You did a good thing, Lee, and you too, Saira." Saira stood up straighter and pressed her hands flat together and bowed slightly toward Lee. "Thank you, Mr Lee. I will never forget the sacrifice you made for me today. Now, how may I assist you with your... bone enchanting?" "That''s why you wanted to do all this?" Alejandro asked, staring at Lee. "That''s... can you do it? Make your bones like the shields?" "I want my machete back after this," Lee grumbled, and then nodded. "I think so. But, just in case, I wanted to make sure I could regenerate bones before I tried..." In case they exploded¡­ and before they''d roped him in as a guinea pig. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Unfortunately, he still had a couple hours until the debuff ended. One reason he''d put up with being tortured for so long. But first... "I want something to eat," Lee said. "I''ll explain after." He stopped in the doorway and pointed at Saira. "I want first dibs on the potatoes." She smiled and nodded. "You will have them." Lee rubbed his aching pinky and headed for Jamaal''s. The things I do for a friend. But he couldn''t help the small smile on his lips. Yeah, his finger hurt. The damned woman didn''t want to switch it up to a different finger and risk losing progress. But it felt good every time he remembered the looks on their faces. Damn their sneaky manipulations! Jamaal was also long past his evolution by then and more excited than ever to tell everyone about it. Apparently, he''d gotten something good that synergized with his class, and likely because he''d cooked a ''Serpent King''. Lee said nothing, but caught a few looks coming his way. Not that it was hard to guess what he could possibly be talking about... Saira didn''t join them right away, but when she showed up, she brought potatoes. Lee hadn''t meant she needed to grow them right now... but he didn''t complain. In fact, he praised her growing skills to high heaven after the first bite. The meat was good, fantastic even, but adding some home fries to the mix... Lee decided having his finger chopped off repeatedly was well worth it. He even forgot about the timer¡ªit was so good. Debuff Removed: [Mana Burn] Lee resisted the urge to draw out a rune then and there. He hadn''t even noticed the steadily fading burn, especially considering the... other pains Saira had subjected him to. Instead, he told everyone there what he was planning, which meant Saira, Mar, Jamaal, and Alejandro. They hadn''t seen Jake all day... which meant he was probably out farming cores with Sandy. Or solo. Hell, the guy was probably past F-grade by now. Of course, Maria ended up with the knife. Alejandro said she worked in a hospital... which didn''t mean squat. She might have been a janitor for all he knew! The only upside was Maria was definitely no nonsense. If he wanted someone to do it and do it fast, she was a good choice. It all led to Lee dropping his pants in front of more people than he''d expected. But how do you tell someone to go away because you don''t want them to see your boxers? He hadn''t gotten a real shower in... too long, and now... "Holy fucking shit!" Maria smacked him. Not for cursing this time, and not too hard either, just enough to get his attention. "Hurry. Heal too fast." Lee grit his teeth and focused, reaching down to his split open leg. His finger touched bone, and he gagged. That was just so wrong! "Focus, Mr Lee," Saira chimed in. "Oh, fuck me!" Lee cursed vehemently and started channeling the mana as he blindly drew out a rune onto the big bone, whatever it was called. Only, it wasn''t blind, because he had Mana Mind. It was also the first time he got to see a rune creation with the skill. He may have groaned the entire time. Primarily from the sensation of someone physically pulling his flesh apart to expose the bone... but he drew the rune. It stuck to the bone as he''d hoped. Unfortunately, it only stuck to one bone. No matter how hard he begged it to spread. His body was full of far too many tiny bones that were all too small to draw a rune onto. He needed it to spread like it had in the building... The wonder and joy of doing magic was lost in the pain of what he was doing. Then Maria let go and Saira funneled her magic into him, ending the pain. The physical pain, at least. Lee hid his face in the dirt and let silent tears flow for a few moments before he had the guts to do what he needed to. "I need to reach my hip," he said, voice cracking as he pointed. It was the next bone, and one with a large surface area... Maria pulled his boxers down and stabbed him in the ass. Then she started carving. Lee screamed into the dirt, almost grateful for the pain as it distracted him from the fact that Mana Mind could see four people staring at his bare-naked ass. If you fucking die on me after this, Stanley... I''ll fucking kill you! He held onto that thought as Maria grabbed his hand and pressed his finger to the bone. I have to survive! I have to live! The practice he''d gotten all day paid off, and Lee drew the rune on his hip. Fucking merge! It stuck to his hip... but didn''t merge. He only enchanted another single bone. Saira''s magic flooded him and Lee kept his face in the dirt as the pain faded. The embarrassment didn''t fade, but it was minor compared to his disappointment. He was missing something. A different rune, or a combination. There had to be a way to make this work. But he wouldn''t get it today. At least, he didn''t think he could keep doing this anymore... not today. "It didn''t work." The failure might be a good thing. He didn''t know for sure if there wouldn¡¯t be side effects. He didn¡¯t think it would be a problem, not after the runes went onto the bones easily enough¡­ but who knew? Bones made blood, he¡¯d heard that somewhere. The runes might fuck with that process¡­ or they might not. It was magic, and despite it being his own class, Lee knew next to nothing about how it actually worked. Like¡­ it made things indestructible, but did that mean unchanging? Permanent? There had to be cells in there doing stuff. Splitting. Dividing. Growing? Would that all stop if he stuck a rune on them? He had no clue. On that note, he pulled dirty pants over bloody but undamaged flesh, and went back inside. They followed him at a distance, trying to be sneaky, but still within Mana Mind range. Lee didn''t care until Mar sprinted ahead of them to slip through his door before it closed. It was almost impressive. She made no sound and didn''t touch him or the door. He likely wouldn''t have noticed if not for the glaringly obvious hole she left in the mana. A hole that was distinctly her own. Where everyone else left a fuzzy and shifting gap, Mar''s outline was sharp. Lee was grouchy after the day he''d had, and that it looked like everyone still didn''t trust him to be alone. So he lashed out at the smooth shell of mana around the girl with his Mana Mind. Skill Level Up: Mana Mind It earned him a headache, as expected, but it also left Mar staring wide-eyed at him in plain view. She looked scared and vanished again immediately. Lee felt bad for attacking her and considered apologizing... but she had come in uninvited. Instead, he turned away and sat on the floor below the Well. His right hand traced the glowing symbol into the cement while his left reached up closer to the Well. He knew he could draw the mana without touching it, at least from this distance, but it was easier this way. He also went straight to enchanting the entire building this time. It was impulsive and ambitious, but his evolution to F-grade should make it doable without too much pain... It was the same rune he''d placed on his bones, so he had no trouble tracing the lines properly, and it stuck easily enough... with only a little heat. Only, this time, he noticed some differences from the first night. The same as before, his rune claimed the walls, ceilings, and floors. Unlike the first time, it didn''t claim any doors or windows. He didn''t know why it had worked that way then and still didn''t know now. Was it because he''d put runes on his front door before doing the building? He knew he was missing something again, and his thoughts went back to the class description. Primarily, the part where it mentioned the runes being different for each runic because of their soul. He knew nothing about his soul, other than how to use it with the Rune Scribe skill... He pulled the rune back out of the building, and, only after doing so, realized it was more mana than he could hold. Luckily, once his mana was full, there was a stretching sensation from his core that was entirely unpleasant, but he didn''t burst. It felt like he might, though... So he quickly redrew the rune, dumping the excess mana quickly and this time focusing on how he wanted it to claim the doors. He threw the windows in for good measure. No dice. Lee pulled it back again. He was still missing something. It made no sense. He''d done it before, with less knowledge and a lot more struggle... Someone stepped up to his door and hesitated briefly before knocking. Lee couldn''t tell who it was, other than they didn''t carry any runed gear. Lee stared at the general area of Mar''s head and then looked at the door. If she was going to be spying on him, then she might as well be useful. While she headed that way, he quickly touched the Well and was immensely gratified when it let him dump the excess mana back inside. That had been way too uncomfortable. Bradley blinked at Lee when the door opened, his gaze jumping from the door and back. Then Mar appeared with a quick, "Hi." The flinch and loud yelp should have been funny, but it wasn''t. There were good reasons to be afraid now. Mar must have understood, because she ducked her head. "Sorry..." "I... Um..." Bradley looked back and forth, blushing slightly and clutching his chest as he caught his breath. Finally, he settled on Lee. "I... Maria told me that the blue glow was from... you?" "Probably," Lee said. "I... um... can''t fix the holes with your... magic doing... that." "Really? What does it do?" Lee was curious now. "Well, it doesn''t let me fuse my stone into the wall. It''s like there''s a... wall." He blushed. Lee saw his eyes dart to Mar and then away. "I''m almost done! If you just... wait..." Lee waved him away. "Go ahead. I need to figure something out, anyway. Just let me know when we''re good." "Okay, man. Um... thanks. It won''t take long." He kept shooting glances at Mar, and his face was red as he practically fled back out the door. Mar vanished again as she shut the door, and Lee lay back on the floor. The light coming in the windows was fading toward darkness and noticing it got him moving again to enchant the glass. He enjoyed having windows and didn''t want to lose them. It was a miracle they hadn''t broken while he was waiting on the debuff. "I''m sorry your plan didn''t work," Mar said, startling Lee. He''d sorta forgotten she was in the room... "But I''m really glad to have my arm back... so, thanks." She said all this while invisible and facing away from him. "It''s fine," Lee said. "It almost worked... I just can''t figure out why not." He enchanted the two front windows and then the bedroom. Mar followed him, stopping in the doorway. "You have crazy good regeneration. It was a good plan... Um, you know you have a tub full of water, right?" Lee finished the rune and thought about it. He hadn''t known. He could see the mana in the tub, but it didn''t tell him it was water¡­ actually, it did. That was water aspect mana in there, he just hadn¡¯t learned all the aspects on sight yet¡­ and he hadn''t thought about it until she said something. Wait a minute... "How bad do I smell?" She turned away. "Not... that bad." Right... Lee grabbed all the glass bottles still left in his apartment and filled them from the tub. Enchanting all of them for good measure. Then stopped to look at Mar. "You''re not spying on me in there." "Of course not!" she shrieked, and Lee was tempted to break her invisibility to see how red her face was... but he didn''t. Instead, he hid his smile and went looking for some soap. He knew it was here somewhere. Probably. He really should have unpacked by now... He gave up on the soap and started in on finding clean clothes. "Mar, can you go ask around for some soap? Or I can go with you if you''re supposed to watch me." "I''ll go." She stopped at the door. "I didn''t want to spy on you. but Alejandro..." "Yea, yea," Lee said. "The guy is a bit... aggressively nice?" Mar laughed, a quick sharp sound. "That sounds like him. I think he''s just really worried about you." Then she left, and he was alone. "I know... I worry about me too," Lee whispered. And Stanley. He was really worried about Stanley. "Hang in there, Stan. I''ll find you... or you''ll find me. Don''t give up." Mar brought soap, and Lee splurged by having a bath in the limited water. Mar even brought a fresh bucket later, and Lee enjoyed the most pleasant evening he could remember in what felt like forever. By the time he laid down to sleep, he was feeling much better about the future. Tomorrow he could hunt again. He would have enchanted gear. He would make enchanted gear for others and sell it to them for cores. Alejandro had already been spreading the word and showing off the machete. He assured Lee that people would be more than willing to shell out for an enchanted blade, and once armor was more common, they''d pay to enchant that as well. Despite some rough patches, there was hope. He could do this. 31. Everybody Wants to Rule the World ~~~Lee~~~ Lee picked up the glowing discs and threw them one after the other down the tunnel as they advanced. He didn¡¯t need the light. Not really. But it helped with morale¡­ and his companions needed it. His forward progress halted when the rodents came boiling out of the darkness and attacked. He caught the first one on his shield and the second one split open under his machete strike. Then they were in the melee and he flailed only somewhat wildly at the monsters as they swarmed over and even past him. Everyone knew to leave some space around him. Far too many accidental brushes with his enchanted weapon had led to an abundance of caution. That same wariness didn''t apply to Lee. His regeneration was no secret, and it led to him as the ideal vanguard of each encounter. Even now, he took numerous bites and scratches to his legs and arms. Lee saw the hits coming. His Mana Mind made it impossible not to. But there was only so much he could do to avoid them, even with armor, and sometimes it was easier to let himself get bit so he could execute the attacker while it thought it was winning. It still hurt. He made the others wait after the swarm while he chowed down one of Jamaal''s boxed lunches. A few others mirrored him, breaking out their own snacks in the downtime, which were all from Jamaal. Lee had driven a lot of business to the man, often taking whoever was joining him by the man''s shop before they left. The quality of his meals brought most everyone back the next time. It was odd to be sitting in a cramped underground tunnel, in the glow of magic lights, and having a picnic. But it was becoming more normal every day. This was life now. Instead of getting up to head to the office or worksite, now they strapped on armor and weapons, and went hunting. His companions today were a mixed bunch whom he didn''t know before this excursion, and it was Lee''s second trip of the day. Most people didn''t want to hunt all day, and he couldn''t blame them. There was a fatigue that built when you were fighting for your life, and it added up. Lee just couldn''t afford to let that slow him down. He would have preferred Alejandro and Saira, and of course Jake, who was the only other person more driven than him. Unfortunately, Jake often ran solo, looking for exciting fights, as he called it. Lee had tried going with him once to fight the giant hawk after Jake had tracked it down, but it felt like a lot of wasted time just trying to catch the thing. Grinding through the lairs was more rewarding for the shit ton of cores Lee needed to keep up with the others. The rest of his preferred team still joined him sometimes, but they all had other responsibilities back at the base. Saira was growing an increasingly larger crop of food that wasn''t meat, which Lee enjoyed. Well, mostly the potatoes. Hell, only the potatoes. The absence of vegetables had not made his heart grow fonder of the disgusting things. Besides, he was pretty sure vitamins were far less important these days... Alejandro had his kids, and he was also taking a more active role in the complex''s defense. He was also working with the budding leadership that was trying to set up a more structured way of doing things. Which Lee suspected would go nowhere. Word had spread about his enchants, and on Alejandro''s advice, and May''s example, Lee had sold his runes for a high price. Ten cores a day to rent a weapon or piece of armor, payable at the end of the day if they didn''t prove flaky. It was a system that worked especially well considering he could take the runes back even if he didn''t have access to the gear. Something he hadn''t had to do yet. Shockingly. Alejandro had started the ball rolling on that end by showing off his own runed machete. While May''s weapons and armor were good, there was great appeal to a weapon that ignored armor and cut through literally anything. One of his runes often trivialized a hunt from a life and death battle and turned it into a slaughter. Luckily, it wasn''t too hard to find volunteers for his hunts after word spread. Lee even doled out enchanted armor and weapons for the excursions, and stood at the forefront, taking most of the hits. It helped make up for the lack of healers when Saira wasn''t along. Accidents still happened, with far too many coming from the runed weapons on the first day. Lee had ended up carrying a wounded man in his arms and sprinting all the way back to base for healing. Twice. Inconvenient, but it had earned him a good reputation of looking out for his teammates. "Queen''s room should be nearby," Lee said to his group, packing away his remaining food. He could see the mana flows rushing down the tunnel, and they always got denser the closer you got to the queen. He was right. They found the queen after two more waves and one failed ambush attempt through the tunnel wall. Failed because Mana Mind saw them coming. One step into the queen''s room, and she surrendered. A step back, and the tunnel closed up, a core materializing on the ground. It was always nice when they appeared nearby rather than at the entrance to the lair. Less worry about someone stealing it before they got back. Claw Slash - (Common) Sharpens the user''s claws with mana and adds a slight extension to the reach when slashing. Level Effects: (Novice) +1% Strength -1% Stamina drain when using claw attacks Destroy Skill and absorb +1 All Base Attributes Lee passed it around to see if anyone wanted it. They would have to give up an equal share of cores if they did. Though the price might go up if more than one person wanted it, especially if it was something good. Two of the team discussed the pros and cons of the skill as they all trudged back through the tunnels. It was easy enough to find their way out, between Lee''s Mana Mind and the trail of bodies they''d left. They each carried one monster on their way back. Meat was meat, and the corpses alone would earn free meals from Jamaal if they didn''t want to prepare it themselves. Plus, the man could make any random monster taste good. The sun was on its way down when they emerged, but they still had a few hours of daylight left. Likely not enough for another full hunt by the time they got back to the complex. It was just as well. The rodent lair was one of the deeper ones they''d found. After fighting through the whole thing, even Lee was ready to call it quits. Besides, he had another appointment this evening. Everyone dropped the corpses with Jamaal and then headed to the garage to drop off the weapons and armor that had been borrowed for the day''s excursion. May begrudgingly allowed Lee to do that, but no one else, probably because, thanks to his runes, none of it came back even slightly damaged. Sure, they occasionally lost a strap or something, but that was an easy fix compared to resharpening or hammering out dents. It was also a way for people to get a taste of combat without already having cores. Which you couldn''t get without combat. He pulled his runes from the gear and topped off May''s runes while he was there. She had a lot of them... but it honestly cost Lee nothing to cast and maintain them, so it was a good trade. The ring of sound suppressing runes around her crafting area had been a gift to everyone living in earshot of the incessant racket. Alejandro caught up with him as soon as he left the garage, another man with him that Lee didn''t know. "Lee, good hunt?" He gestured to the man beside him. "This is Wilson. He wanted to talk with you about something." One look at Alejandro''s expression and Lee knew this was probably something stupid. A glance at Wilson only reaffirmed the opinion. Wilson did not fit in. At all. Where once he would have been another faceless white guy in a business suit, now that same look made him stick out like a sore thumb. Lee highly suspected the man hadn''t fought even a single monster. Meanwhile, Lee was wearing armor and covered in dried blood from all the healed wounds he''d suffered that day. He stepped around the duo. "Let''s walk and talk. I have somewhere to be." "Of course, Mr..." Wilson said with a wide smile, falling into step beside him. "I''m afraid I don''t know your last name." "Does it even matter?" Lee said. "I... suppose not. Though I believe we should strive to hold on to the conventions and proprieties that humanity has built into our civilization throughout the centuries. We still need to work together to survive, now more than ever." "Fancy talk, that does nothing to help us survive. What we need now is fighters. You want to survive? Then pick up a weapon and fight." "True... but as evidenced by the armor you are wearing, not everyone can fight, nor should they. While we need those such as yourself and Mr Morales here, we also require those like the smith who will need to be protected, both from the threat of monsters, and from less... savory characters." "Fair enough," Lee said. "So what does that have to do with me?" "Yes, let''s get to the point." Wilson cleared his throat and continued, "We are attempting to create a more cohesive whole out of this small bastion of humanity. To uphold law and order in this time of increasing chaos." Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. He was clearly a politician. Or a wannabe one, at least, considering he hadn''t led with some now meaningless title. "To that end, we wish to bring the structures of our home under a singular banner. To..." Lee stopped to stare at him. "You want my building? The building I earned by nearly dying in defense of this place?" "You would not lose any..." "Forget it." Lee kept walking. Wilson hurried to catch up while Alejandro said, "I told you he wouldn''t go for it. Just like all the others." "Please, hear me out." Wilson fell into step beside him. "We need to work together if we are going to survive. Heroes like you have carried us through the initial storm, but it won''t be enough in the long run. If we wish to recover what we''ve lost, to rebuild society..." "The old world is gone," Lee said. "Now the powerful will rule, and everyone else will fall into line or die." It was something he was very worried about, and one reason he hunted relentlessly was to increase his own chances to survive when those inevitable powers came calling. "That''s just it!" Wilson said. "Right now we are individuals, each defending our own small corners. That will be our downfall if, as you say, the powerful come to take what we have. We must come together! A common cause. A shared..." "He''s talking about taxes," Alejandro helpfully supplied, cutting to the crux of the issue. "He wants to tax everyone living in the complex." Lee laughed. "That will not go over well. And who''s going to enforce it? You?" "It would not be a matter of enforcement, but a willing contribution for the greater good of all!" "Aren''t we already doing that? Between food and weapons, plus the other useful non-combatants. We trade cores for their goods and together all get stronger." "But we need more. Mr Summers has begun construction of a wall. At my request, I might add. It is a useful project that will help all within its borders, but who will pay him for that?" "I bet lots of people will." Though Lee wasn''t sure how useful a wall would actually be... and how big would it have to be to matter? "I am sure they will, but how many others here are hesitant to provide their own skills? How many fear that their efforts will go unrewarded and so never speak up about how they might contribute? If we set up a system that ensures recompense... if we have order... rules that all have agreed upon..." "If you want to bring everything under one banner," Lee interrupted the tirade. "Then give it all to me. Or Alejandro here. People know him. People have seen him out here everyday defending their homes. I''ve never seen you before, and you don''t look like someone that would be on the front lines defending the people you claim to want to lead. This new world is not one where leaders sit at a desk. Leaders will be the strongest, baddest, motherfuckers who can go out and punch shit until it dies." "I... ahem, I wouldn''t presume to lay claim to such a role. I merely wish to use what talents I have to facilitate a better world for myself and those around me." "Well, you''re giving off politician vibes to me. You want people to be more open to your ideas, then get out there and fight with them. Lose the suit and show that you''re not all talk. Actions speak louder than words, now more than ever." "I will take that under advisement. Though my class does not..." "Alejandro, are you still stockpiling combat skills?" "I am." Alejandro nodded. "Though the stockpile is rather low at the moment, and I have mentioned it to Wilson here." Wilson grimaced and brushed at an immaculate sleeve. Lee wondered briefly how the guy was eating. How most of the people here were eating... Was Saira giving her food away for free? Were other people? Then he decided he didn''t care about the logistics and left with a wave. "Time for my training. Good luck with... whatever you''re doing." Martin was an older man with white hair and Asian ancestry. Or so Lee guessed, at least. It might have been slightly racist of him, but he was bad enough at telling people apart, and the guy was a damn sword-master, like you''d only ever see in movies. He was already teaching a small group of people in the field, and Lee grabbed a wooden practice sword before joining the class. Strike. Step. Step. Strike. He continued as the sun dropped lower and lower. Continued even when the rest of the students left. Martin did not complain, and willingly gave more personalized instruction to Lee on his footwork and blade handling. The sparring they did was embarrassing in the extreme when the man barely had to move and Lee ended up in the dirt every time. Still, it was invaluable, and Lee had cores for the man he''d saved specifically for this occasion. Martin didn''t hunt, but also wasn''t charging for his teaching. He freely taught all who wished to learn. Every day he came out here, and either practiced with his own blade, or taught whoever showed up. He never laughed or smiled, and Lee had never seen him with anyone who might be family. He was, by all accounts, alone. Whether by choice or circumstance, Lee didn''t know, and he didn''t pry. Though he suspected tragedy, like so many others these days. Nevertheless, Lee wanted the man to be strong, and on his side if it ever came down to it. He''d even paid for and enchanted a sword specifically for him. Martin would be an absolute terror if he ever wielded that blade in combat... It was honestly a shame that he didn''t. The man had to have a skill for teaching as well, because Lee always came out of the training with a full plus one to every attribute. And Martin would always know somehow and call it a night. Today was no different. Training Complete. +1 All Base Attributes The man stepped back the moment Lee received the notification. "You are improving, but I can see in your movements that you expect to cleave your enemy in one strike. Do not rely solely on your magic. There will come a day that it will not carry you through, and on that day, your life will depend upon the lessons you have learned here." Lee clasped one hand over the other and bowed the way he''d seen others doing. "Thank you. I will... try to remember." Martin bowed back and turned to leave. Lee had to stop him before he left and dig the cores from his pocket. "Please, Sir. Take these." "I do not require..." "Please. You are saving lives. Mine especially. I need you around if I''m ever going to become even halfway decent at sword fighting... and I want to repay your help. This is all I can offer, since you don''t want more enchants." "An eagerness to learn is payment enough... but very well." He took the cores. "Now leave me. I must prepare for tomorrow''s lessons." Then he picked up a rake and began slowly smoothing out the churned ground. His movements looked methodical, almost ritualistic, but then he always moved that way... Lee left him to it and headed to dinner with his new family. Along the way, he pulled up his status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Conduit] [Ley Line Attuned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 9 (Novice) Class Skills: Rune Scribe (Uncommon) - Level 15 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 41(+1%)41 Vitality: 40(+2%)40 Dexterity 40(0%)40 Wisdom 30(+220%)66 Intelligence 35(+217%)75 Willpower 30(+216%)64 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(1/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 20 (Basic) Buffs: Debuffs: His class wasn''t leveling ever since hitting nine. Apparently enchanting tons of blades and armor with the same runes over and over didn''t cut it. Still, it wasn''t a major concern. His class bonuses didn''t really matter for fighting. Though he was still trying to figure out a way to enchant his entire skeleton... and expected doing so successfully would likely get him to that next level. Mana Mind was his most valuable skill for now, aside from enchanting his gear, obviously. But being able to see everything around him was fantastic in battle. Combining it with his runed weapons was even better. There had been no noticeable side-effects from the runes on his leg and hip, so Lee had done the same thing to his skull, ribs and breastbone. Then pretty much all the bones that were large enough for him to draw a rune on. It made him a lot tougher, but he still needed a way to deal with the cartilage between everything, or else a monster like the damn hawk could just rip him to pieces. Lee munched on his more perishable food on the way home. His workout with Martin never made him tired, but it made him hungry. He didn''t want to be a total pig when eating Maria''s cooking, no matter how much Alejandro encouraged it. His working shower was a godsend created through teamwork between Bradley and Sophia, the water summoner whom Lee had finally learned her name. It involved a large stone cistern on the roof, and a lot of rearranged pipes to send the water to faucets and showers. Both of them were earning cores hand over fist without ever having to face a monster in person. And now Bradley was supposedly building a wall... A small rune on the pipe turned the water hot, and Lee resisted the urge to linger in the steaming pleasure. The water wasn''t unlimited. And he was still hungry. Laundry was a bit more of a chore these days, and one Lee avoided for now by stealing a shit ton of clothes from the abandoned stores. Though supposedly there was someone in the complex with a tailoring class that was making more clothes for people. Now, if she could make something sturdy enough to hold a rune... Alejandro let him in, and Lee allowed Gabriel to ambush him from behind the door. "I got you, Uncle Lee!" He exclaimed, while wrapped around Lee''s leg. "You sure did," Lee agreed, walking without effort despite the boy clinging to him. He could swear both kids were getting bigger every day. Likely something to do with the sapient lair they lived in, and the way their bodies constantly sucked in mana... "Did you wash your hands yet?" "I did!" "What about after you were crouched on the floor?" Lee countered, already carrying him to the bathroom. Anita watched them from the table. She hadn''t warmed up to the new face just yet, but Lee thought he could see jealousy in her gaze as she watched her big brother ride his leg across the room. They all made it to the table, and Lee ducked his head politely while Maria said grace over the food. He thought it was ridiculous considering their new reality... but, hey; she was the cook. So he kept his mouth shut. The meal was delicious, an observation he shared with Maria, earning an actual smile. Or maybe it was the way he cleaned his plate in seconds and then accepted another serving and repeated the process. After the meal, Alejandro left to do a patrol with the budding guard force he''d raised up, with some small bribery of runes from Lee to bolster their numbers and survivability. Even stingy May had coughed up some discounted gear after Lee assured her that anything he enchanted wouldn''t wander far. Besides, they were protecting her as well. Mostly they watched from rooftops and sounded an alarm when spotting monsters, but it was a start. Also, it was something useful for people to do, especially those that were too scared to go hunting in the lairs. Lee stayed behind to help Maria with the kids, primarily by bribing them with a magic show if they got ready for bed in a timely fashion. While he was there, Lee once again brought up the idea of letting them learn from Martin. If they could get attributes from his training... not to mention learn to defend themselves. She surprised him by admitting she''d already taken them that morning, and planned to make it a habit. She''d also confirmed that they did indeed gain the attributes. It was fantastic news, and likely meant they would both be F-grade before long. Neither of them knew what that would mean for children... but it was hard to argue against anything that would increase their chances of survival. 32. Here there be dragons. ~~~Arthur~~~ Arthur huddled low and once again questioned the decisions that led him to this place. He glanced behind him at Samantha, who met his gaze with wide, terrified eyes. Jerry, beside her, looked better. Stoic in the face of their impending doom. All three of them had stuck together since this started. Arthur, to protect Samantha, as for Jerry... he didn''t know why the man had stayed. Or why he''d followed them out here. He turned away from them to look back at the sky where a battle of titanic proportions was taking place. A flight of dragons. What else do you call giant scaly monsters breathing out streams of incandescent steam? Especially when one of them was the size of a jumbo jet. Even now, the temperature in the alley was climbing and he could feel sweat running down his back. The dragon''s opponent, if you could call it that, was a huge ball. A ball that hung even more impossibly in the sky than the dragons and shot them down with smaller pieces of itself. It was a riot of violence and destruction, and cowering in the alley below, they were just ants hiding from the storm. It wasn¡¯t until one projectile crashed into the wall of the alley that Arthur realized what they were. Engine blocks. The flying ball of death was made out of engine blocks... That made no sense. What the hell was happening up there!? He pushed further back against Samantha, trying to shield her with his body. For all the good it would do. Arthur had never felt stronger, not even in his youth, but he doubted it was enough to take a flying engine block to the face. More debris landed in the alley and the street outside, chunks of metal and dragons alike. The dragons looked rather like owls when their crushed bodies smashed into the ground. Owls covered in scales rather than feathers, and their bodies radiating heat. Somehow, nothing landed on them, and the fight above wound down as the numbers diminished. Blasts of noise and superheated steam still sent shockwaves thrumming through his bones, and they were all drenched in sweat when only the giant owl-dragon still stood against the ball of metal. Arthur wasn''t sure who he wanted to win... The dragon might eat them, but he didn''t know what a ball of metal would do. Then he could only curse silently as the battle loomed closer and closer. His meager magic was pointless in the surrounding cacophony. What good was muffling their sound in this environment? They would all cook before the monsters even noticed. He kept humming anyway. He missed the finale of the fight, his head down and eyes squeezed shut as shockwaves and nails on a chalkboard screeching made his teeth ache. Impacts struck all around, and he waited for the inevitable and sudden crushing pain that would signal the end. It was only the ensuing silence that led him finally to open his eyes. That, and the small sound of something... whimpering. "It''s a puppy!" Samantha''s cry sounded simultaneously too faint, and also deafening in the ringing silence as she pushed past him. "Wait..." Arthur belatedly scrambled after her. There were no more puppies in this world. It was no doubt a horrifying monster that would tear them apart. Only... it was a puppy... or at least a small dog. A pug, by the looks of it, and it was crying over the corpse of a half-melted man. "Hi, puppy. I''m so sorry about your friend..." Samantha spoke in that same bubbly voice that served her so well with customers in the restaurant what felt like a lifetime ago. All the while, she tried to comfort the incessantly crying dog. Arthur only stood frozen in place as he stared at the corpse and the engine blocks scattered all around them. It was a human. That flying orb fighting against the dragons was a human. It was impossible. Humans weren''t that powerful. They couldn''t be! Jerry pushed past him, breaking him from his stupor as the man headed for the mouth of the alley and the massive corpse that now blocked it. "What... where..." Arthur''s voice came out hoarse, and he struggled for words as his mind grappled with impossible realizations. "Meat," Jerry said. "Dog saved us. Gonna feed it. Keep it happy." That... made no sense. Had Jerry cracked? The pug saved them? What was he on about? Motion caught his eye, and Arthur turned his head before freezing in place. Not because he wanted to, but because he could no longer move. A crushing weight had descended onto him. Suffocating pressure squeezed him tighter and tighter, and the corpse rose slowly into the air, its stark white spine and ribs showing brightly from the ruined flesh and he thought he could see organs in the burned and melted flesh of its lower back. Arthur could only stare as blood pounded in his ears and the zombie turned slowly to face them. It had half of a face, only a hole where one of its eyes should be. The remaining eye blazed with a baleful violet light that promised only death. The dog cried, barely audible over the roaring in his ears as his skull threatened to implode and his ribs creaked. The dog was licking the corpse''s ruined face... and then, as suddenly as it started, it stopped. The deadly light winked out as the eye shut, and the corpse fell to the ground. Then Arthur could move again. Could breathe again. He was still gasping for air when Samantha''s voice cut through the shocked silence. "He''s still alive! Arthur, we have to help him!" Help him? The corpse? How? Why... what? "It''s okay, puppy. We''ll help your friend." Arthur climbed back to his feet with a herculean effort and forced numb legs to move as he approached the girl. He froze again when his eyes landed on the pug. The pug that had been licking the floating corpse''s face. The face that had been a good ten feet above the ground at the time... The dog had been huge... or maybe he was losing his mind... His gaze tracked slowly over to Jerry, the man working to carve flesh from the giant corpse, and seemingly unbothered by what had just happened. Along the way, Arthur again noticed the scattered engine blocks that carpeted the alley. They spread evenly across the ground in all but a couple of places. There were gaps around the not quite corpse of a man, and the small corner that they''d been cowering in. "Arthur!" Samantha''s shout brought his attention back, and he trudged robotically closer. She wanted to help the... man? He was mostly sure it was a man... or had been. But what could they do? The guy looked like a lobster. An overcooked lobster at that. Samantha gently and gingerly rolled him over, and Arthur saw that his chest and stomach were relatively unblemished. The skin was pink and likely burned, but nothing compared to the melted flesh of his back and face. She aborted the attempt and lay him back on his stomach, turning his head so he could breathe. If he even was breathing... Arthur swallowed the bile in his throat as he stood above the duo and marveled at her ability to touch the thing. "We can''t help..." "Sing him a song," Samantha whispered, her voice barely audible over the dog''s whining. "Something happy... something to tell him that his dog is okay." Arthur realized he was still humming, and he shifted the tune at her request. He never could deny her a song. How she knew what the man would want, Arthur didn''t question. Samantha had a knack for people. As long as he''d known her, she could always read the room, and always knew the right song to cheer someone up or calm a rowdy group. His best guess was that she''d probably guessed his relatively undamaged chest and stomach had been where the dog was during the fight. He was still trying to come to grips that this man had been fighting that monster. That humans could even be powerful enough to do something like that. But Arthur sang him a song while Samantha pet the pug and gently stroked the man''s head where a patch of dark hair remained. The smell of roasting meat came from behind him, and Arthur prayed it wouldn''t attract more monsters even as his mouth watered. He didn''t question how Jerry got a fire going so fast. The man had been a wizard in the kitchen before the apocalypse, and he was even better now. Even without an actual kitchen... Jerry didn''t offer any food to Arthur or Samantha, which was fine with Arthur. His stomach was still in knots. Instead, the man offered it to the dog, who accepted the food eagerly... then dropped it on and in front of the not quite dead man''s face and nosed it toward his mouth. "You''ll have to wait for him to wake up, puppy," Samantha said. "Don''t worry. I''m sure he''ll be fine. He''s getting better already!" Arthur blinked in surprise and his singing stuttered as he realized she was right. The undamaged flesh on his chest was spreading around the sides and creeping onto his back. Jerry brought more food despite the dog''s refusal to eat, and it piled in front of the man''s face as the dog continued to shove it there. A new worry crept into Arthur''s mind as he watched the impossible healing speed. What was to stop this person from killing them if... or more and more likely now, when he recovered? "Samantha, I think we should..." His voice choked off when one still boiled and burned hand shot up to grab a fistful of roasted meat. It vanished into the man''s mouth, followed rapidly by the rest of the pile. Then that blazing eye opened and locked onto Samantha. A hand shot toward her before Arthur could react... and the pug seemed to appear between them, his body blocking the reaching hand. What followed happened in a blur that he only caught glimpses of. Snarling, bestial sounds of hunger and rage. Hands reaching for Samantha, Arthur, and even Jerry as the formerly dying man shot through the air. A black pug that always seemed to be in just the right spot to intercept the grasping hands... a pug that grew impossibly larger or smaller as it shielded them from each strike. The blindingly fast attack ended when the injured man plunged both hands into the bloody hole Jerry had carved into the scaled owl. Then he ripped into the corpse, shoveling fistfuls of raw carrion into his mouth as fast as he could. The entire giant corpse shook and shivered as the man dug deeper with gory enthusiasm. Jerry took the skewered meat from the fire, setting them on an engine block next to him, and then backed away rather than going for more. He left his knives next to the meat. A choice that Arthur was of a mixed mind on. Jerry was probably the best suited to defend them, even if his class wasn''t actually combat focused, but it was also unlikely any of them had a chance against this monster of a man. So instead, they all waited nervously, trapped in the alley, while the ravenous man went to town on his meal of raw, bloody meat. ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley relished in the most delicious food he''d ever tasted. Until it lost the savory flavor and started tasting like blood. Debuff Downgraded: [Starving] He stepped back, nearly climbing out of the bloody carcass with only a little nausea. Caffeine was waiting when he emerged, looking up with a wagging tail and only faint whimpering. "It''s all yours..." Stanley froze when he saw the three humans staring at him. Then his gaze darted around the alley. There was a crackling fire, cooked meat on the engine block beside it, and knives glittering sharply beside the food. One of the trio was humming... an annoying sound... and one with magic in it. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Stop that!" Stanley''s voice sounded raw, and each word clawed at his throat. One man flinched, and the humming cut off, only to start up again immediately. Stanley grabbed all of them, squeezing... Caffeine bounded between them, huge and blocking his view of the humans. He was also licking his face with excited and happy noises. It hurt. Stanley really looked at the pug then. Looked for damage or lingering wounds. He found nothing. Not even a patchy spot in his fur where an injury might have already healed. His arms went up and wrapped around the pug as Caffeine shrank to fit in his embrace. He ignored the pain signals coming from... everywhere and held the pug close. All the pain was completely worth it. "Good boy." Caffeine made more happy noises and refused to settle down, eventually forcing Stanley to let him go. That left him staring at the trio of humans still held immobile in his mental grasp as his stomach growled and Caffeine bounced around excitedly. A graying older man, a blonde bimbo, and a greasy looking dark-haired younger man. All of them were filthy and looked scared. Well, the younger man just looked annoyed... Stanley''s gaze wandered to the meat beside the fire, drawn by his still growing hunger and the healing injuries that were fueling it. He let the others go and snatched up the meat, trying and failing to not devour it like he was starving. One man immediately started forward, the greasy one. He paused at Stanley''s glare, but still didn''t look scared. "You want it cooked or not?" he said. "Or you can just keep eating the raw shit. I don''t give a fuck either way." Stanley watched him for a second as the last piece of meat vanished down his throat. It tasted good... and he was still starving. "Cooked." The man shrugged and continued his approach, snatching up a knife as he passed and then heading for the corpse. He didn''t react to Stanley floating into the air and keeping his distance, only went to work cutting meat and sticking it onto the skewers. "See," the woman''s voice said behind him, "I told you he would be okay! Who''s a good boy? You''re a good boy!" Stanley turned to see her crouched and petting Caffeine as he squirmed happily and tried to lick her laughing face. It was suspicious... Why was she smiling? Did she have an ambush waiting!? Stanley pushed his mind out, spreading his mental touch through the alley, then inside the buildings and onto the neighboring roofs. He crushed and squeezed anything that felt suspicious... but nothing reacted to his probing. Only the people in the alley reacted, mostly when everything around them shook and or flattened into the ground. The older man stiffened and stopped humming again. The cook grunted and kept working, and the woman smiled up at him before looking back at Caffeine. "You must have your little paws full with taking care of him all the time, don''t you, puppy?" She stood up with a last smile and a pet for Caffeine. "I''m Samantha. What''s your name, and what''s this little cutie''s name?" Stanley stared at her, trying to figure out what her angle was. What all of their angles were. They''d clearly had the opportunity to do... something. He couldn''t quite remember the end of the fight... just a lot of screaming as he pummeled the shit out of that thing. He had clearly been unconscious for a minute following the fight. They had weapons... though Caffeine wouldn''t have let them hurt him. Especially considering how weak they all were. Plus, they had to have seen some of his fight with those fucking birds... A given since he''d apparently crash landed almost on top of them. Caffeine was being... friendly. Not an unusual sight; the pug loved everyone and anyone, especially if they had food. But the end of the world had changed things... It was a good sign that he wasn''t growling at any of them. Maybe they''d fed him? Caffeine had always been susceptible to bribery with food. "Caffeine," Stanley finally said, and the woman''s face lit up. "Caffeine! Is that because you are super energetic or because you like naps?" she asked the pug, crouching to pet him again. Stanley didn''t actually remember where Caffeine had gotten his name; another thing lost on that day. But... Caffeine did love his naps... "Why are you here, Sam? Why are you all helping me?" She frowned up at him, hands stilling on Caffeine, and Stanley saw the older man wince behind her. "It''s Samantha, not Sam." "I don''t care what your stupid name is. Why are you here?" Samantha sighed and stood. "You dragged that monster on top of us... and honestly? I thought you were dead..." Her voice trailed off as she studied him with a look that didn''t match the dumb blonde vibe he''d first attributed to her. "I wanted to help Caffeine." She smiled down at the dog, then shifted her gaze back to Stanley, her smile growing even more brilliant. "But the fact you could survive those injuries is wonderful! I can''t imagine how sad Caffeine would be without you..." Was she hoping to steal Caffeine? Maybe she''d seen his strength and wanted to lure him away... that would be a smart move on her part. Aside from her inevitable death when Stanley caught up. He turned away from her to glare at the older man, who had been silent the entire time, aside from his incessant humming. "Stop fucking humming! Your magic won''t work on me, and if it starts to, I''ll fucking kill you!" The man stiffened as his humming cut off. Caffeine whined. Samantha opened her mouth, but a voice behind Stanley spoke first. "Lay off the old fart. He can''t help it when he''s nervous, and he''s always nervous. Especially since he followed our little tree-hugger Samantha out here to die. Oh, and don''t call her Sam. She hates that." Stanley turned on the cook, now back over the fire. "What''s your deal, then? You aren''t nervous?" He tried to glare at the man, but his eyes stayed locked on the roasting meat. "Jerry. I cook, and no, I''m not nervous. We were dead for sure before you showed up, and we''ll probably die once you leave. Nothing I can do about it either way." It was an accurate statement. "Is that why you''re cooking for me? Hoping I''ll save you?" Stanley had no intention of making his own group. He could cook his own meat, and worst case, he could eat it raw... which he was more and more tempted to do as the healing itch crawled over his body behind the fading pain. "Nah," Jerry said, glancing up and pointing toward Caffeine. "Your dog protected us when you dropped a shit ton of fucking metal on our heads. Figured I''d thank him for that... also, didn''t want to get on his bad side if he decided to eat us... or if you did." He looked back at Stanley. "Not that I would say no to some help... but don''t expect me to grovel and call you master or some shit like that." He glanced back at the others. "You take us with you and I''ll cook anything and everything you want... though I could do a lot better if you have an actual grill setup in your base. Wherever that is." "No." Stanley yanked the meat from the skewers in case the guy decided to throw it in the dirt or something. It was still beyond rare... but sooo good! Maybe they were spies sent to find out where he slept? "Figured," Jerry said, seeming not at all put out as he went back to carving meat from the corpse. Stuffing more food into his mouth, Stanley remembered... the hunger. He had actually tried to eat them... but Caffeine kept getting in the way... blocking him until he ended up eating the bird instead. Good boy. Caffeine really was the best dog. Stanley was also beyond relieved that even in his ravenous state he''d never seen the pug as food... that would be... too much. He forced those thoughts from his mind and sent the last skewer back to hover over the fire. It tasted like blood¡­ "So, Sam, how are any of you still alive? Is the old fart hiding some powerful magic? Or are you the muscle?" She narrowed her eyes at him and then glanced at Caffeine, who was now sitting attentively at Jerry''s feet. He must have decided his human was okay and was now ready to eat as well. "No," Samantha said. "Arthur''s a Musician, with a voice like an angel. And I''m an Arborist, not a tree-hugger." "You control trees?" Stanley asked, glancing around to make sure there weren''t any nearby. There weren''t. They were in an alley... but just in case, he floated higher above the ground and pulled Caffeine into his lap. She might only be biding her time while sending roots through the ground. Samantha watched him and shook her head. "You''ve met some terrible people, haven''t you?" Stanley stared at her. He wouldn''t fall for whatever trick she was planning. "We''re not all like that, mister..." Stanley waited, gaze jumping over the others just in case. She sighed. "No, I can''t control trees. But I can communicate with them. It''s how I got..." She turned toward the back of the alley, gaze on the ground as if she was looking for something. Then she tapped on an engine block. "Can you move this?" She watched it fly up to hover above her head in a clear threat, but only smiled sweetly at him. Too sweet. She was definitely hiding something. Her smile faded when she looked down. "Aw, you broke it." What looked like a wooden spear was in her hands when she stood up. Broken in half. "I''m not apologizing for that," Stanley told her, yanking the meat back from the fire as Jerry set up more skewers. "It''s not my fault you are too weak to protect yourself from a mere chunk of metal." "Oh, it''s okay. I can get another one." She smiled at him with that same suspicious innocence. "Mind if we eat some of this, too?" Jerry asked. "I can always roast up more if you don''t mind waiting, and it''s been a long day." Were they trying to delay him? Maybe the ambush wasn''t ready yet? Did they need to bring in more people after seeing how powerful he was? Maybe Caffeine had made them more wary... "I want those." Stanley nodded at the fire. "You can have the next." They had seen him eating under the Ravenous debuff, and healing from heavy injuries. They might have guessed that he needed food from that alone. It didn''t track that they would keep feeding him if they had an ambush coming... unless they were just buying time for the actual attackers to show up. He flew to the rear of the alley and pressed his back to the wall, pushing his mind out in a wide sphere in all directions. He wouldn''t be able to feel everything he was touching, but if anything moved, he would notice. Samantha watched him, looking... sad, but said nothing. Instead, she turned to the older man. "Come on, Arthur. It''s okay. Why don''t you sing us a song?" Arthur only glanced at her before looking back at Stanley. "I use magic to affect sound. It shouldn''t do anything to you..." He finally spoke for the first time. Stanley watched him warily. He had an unpleasant history with sound magic and the mere suggestion of it set his teeth on edge... but maybe it was better to just get their attack over with? He nodded once at the so-called musician, his mental touch hovering around the man in preparation. Arthur would die the moment Stanley saw the debuff... Arthur shivered and looked away to stare at Samantha instead. Then he sang. "If I could save time in a bottle..." His magic didn''t quite add music to his singing, but it did something close. Stanley closed his eyes. Samantha was right. Arthur really did have the voice of an angel, and he almost lashed out when he felt tears welling up... but there was no debuff. It wasn''t magic. Not the magic of this new world, at least. It was just the old magic of good music. How he''d missed this... It felt like an entire lifetime ago that he''d last listened to anything... He opened his eyes, blinking away the moisture, and renewed his attention on their surroundings while the man sang. It might be another trick to distract him. Extra noise to drown out the sound of people approaching. Still, nothing moved in his mental touch, and Stanley found himself watching the man as he crooned. Jerry eventually waved, and Stanley took the meat as the man set up another batch over the fire. Caffeine was more than happy to share. Meanwhile, Samantha stood with her eyes closed, smiling and dancing slightly to the song. Oblivious to the danger all around her. Idiot. Arthur watched her as he sang, a look on his face that Stanley couldn''t quite place. Either he was pining after her... or maybe the affection of a father... or grandfather. Hopefully, he wasn''t just an old pervert. Stanley distracted himself by finally checking his notifications. He was pleased to see he hadn''t almost died this time. Sure, it was a lot of damage, but none of it had been at the level of his more dangerous misadventures. He even earned another free vitality out of it. Those fucking things had jumped him out of nowhere... even his engine armor hadn''t been quite enough. Especially against the big one... None of that mattered, though. He''d won and kept Caffeine safe while doing it. A little pain was nothing compared to that. There was a new notification he hadn''t seen before... Title Earned: [Titan Slayer] [Titan Slayer] You have defeated a Sky King in solo battle. Hunt more King ranked creatures to increase the effect. +10% All Base Attributes Not too shabby. Extra points were always nice, and it would help make up for his negative physical attributes. It meant more hits he could take to keep Caffeine safe. The song ended. Samantha clapped and begged for another. Stanley ignored them and flew to the mouth of the alley, searching for the big monster''s core. It wasn''t another useless skill, but a core that offered more attributes than he''d seen before. +1 All Base Attributes That was... huge. He tried not to think about how far along he''d be if not for the debuff nerfing his cores... of course, he''d probably be dead without the regeneration that came with it. He just needed to find more giant monsters... though this whole recovery downtime was a huge waste. He probably could have hunted another hundred more of the more normal monsters in the time he''d wasted here... Engine blocks flew up to encircle him as he gathered up his armor, and three pairs of eyes locked on him when Stanley looked down again. "Thanks for the food," he said. Jerry and Arthur looked away, understanding where this was going. Samantha continued to stare up at him, eyes glistening as she opened her mouth. Stanley wasn''t about to fall for whatever game she was playing. "Bye." He flew away. Stanley only made it a single block before Caffeine''s screeching whine forced him to shield his ears. It didn''t help. The pug barely even paused for breath as his head swiveled between Stanley and the alley they''d left behind. "God damnit, Caff!" 33. The Night Beckons While You Dream ~~~Stanley~~~ Samantha was grinning like an evil mastermind when Stanley laid eyes on her again. The bitch had probably done something to Caffeine... seduced him somehow... with pets and food. "You''re all coming with me," Stanley said. "You have ten seconds to grab your stuff." Jerry was the only one who scrambled to gather anything; primarily his knives and skewers. Arthur stood still like an idiot, mouth gaping as he looked between Stanley and Samantha. She already had a bag over her shoulder and was smiling up at him... as if she''d been expecting him to return. The bitch. Arthur yelled when Stanley dragged all three of them into the sky. Jerry stayed silent while Samantha squealed gleefully, arms wide. "Now that''s how you sweep a girl off her feet!" No one complained when Stanley''s engine block armor surrounded them in semi-darkness. He kept them away from him, closer to the edge, and went engine harvesting. There were too many gaps in his shell after the last fight, mostly from him throwing the engines at the birds, and it was easier to tear up some cars rather than going to look for the projectiles. Samantha copied him by crossing her legs, and Caffeine betrayed Stanley by immediately bounding into her lap. "Who''s a good boy!? Did you miss me?" Stanley ground his teeth and resisted the urge to yank Caffeine back into his own lap. He could feel the pug''s tail wagging... and he wanted Caffeine to be happy... "Okay, now you should go back to your best friend," Samantha said. "I think he misses you already!" Caffeine bounded back, all happy wagging tail and face licks. "So, are you going to tell us your name? Or should I just keep calling you mister?" "Stanley," he said through gritted teeth. "Nice to meet you, Stanley. Can I call you Stan?" "No." Lee was the only one who called him that... "Understood. So, what''s the plan for us? How can we help?" "I don''t need help." "But now that we''re here, maybe we can help you, anyway?" "You can be a backup food supply." "I''m serious..." "So am I!" Stanley yelled, turning to loom over her in the near darkness. "I don''t need your fucking useless help!" "Understood. Got it." She just kept smiling... "You''re only here to keep my bed warm," Stanley growled, looming closer. She didn''t even blink. "All three of you." She kept smiling. "Because I can do whatever the fuck I want, and none of you can stop me!" "I know you can," Samantha said, her smile softening but not going away. "But I know you aren''t that kind of person." "You don''t fucking know me!" Maybe she''d lied about the tree thing? Maybe she had some mental magic... It might be better to kill her now... Stanley''s power wrapped around her, squeezing... Caffeine would get over it. In time. "You... you''re right. I don''t know you," she wheezed. "But I''ve met Caffeine, and I think he knows you, and he... he trusts you." Caffeine chose that moment to whine and lick at his face. God damnit! Stanley backed off. This bitch was fucking crazy... and probably up to something... but he couldn''t make Caffeine cry. "He protected us," she said, rubbing her throat. "I''m not sure if you saw that, but when you first fell out of the sky, and then again when you... um... tried to eat us?" "That means nothing." Stanley knew he''d lost the argument. It wasn¡¯t his fault he¡¯d tried to eat them, but using Caffeine against him was cheating. "He likes everyone." "Dogs know more than we give them credit for, and he doesn''t fear you even a bit," Samantha said. Stanley deflated. He didn''t even know why he was arguing with her... "I only brought you along because Caff wouldn''t shut up." "I know," she said, smiling even brighter. "He¡¯s a good boy! Doesn''t mean we can''t help." "Can you even do anything useful?" Stanley said, opening a hole in the shell long enough to orient himself and find where he''d left off earlier. "I can''t believe you chose such a useless class..." Then he stuck his mind inside a building. Something squirmed, and he crushed it. That set the place boiling, and he immersed himself in the fight until it was once again calm. The building was only a few stories tall, apartments; from the brief glimpse he''d gotten, and he had a new idea when the fight was over. He split the shell open and dropped the trio onto the street. "You want to help? Then go inside and bring me the cores." Samantha saluted. "Aye, aye, Captain!" Then she went and hugged one of the trees lining the street... "Who''s a good tree? Oh, yes. I know. That miasma is bad. How about I help you out a little?" Stanley watched the tree hugger talk to a tree, its branches bare for the winter, and was only a little surprised when the tree started growing bigger. It stopped growing at double its previous size, and was covered in green leaves... So she wasn''t lying about her class. "That should help. You think you could help me out, too?" The bark split open under her hugging arms, and a spear slowly took shape in the opening. Once it had fully formed, the spear fell free, and the bark closed up behind it. "Thank you!" It was... kinda cool, and completely useless for anything that mattered. Stanley closed up his shell and left them there, heading next door. Caffeine whined, and Stanley reluctantly opened the shell again to give the pug access to the ground. "Fine. Go play with your new friends." It only bothered him a little... Caffeine gave him a nose lick and bounded after the others. It was fine. He would keep them alive. Maybe they would work faster knowing he was there. As for Caffeine''s safety... they were all too weak to pose a threat. ... A few blocks, and after a few visits from Caffeine that helped immensely with his mood, Stanley started gathering his own cores. The others weren''t keeping up, and he didn''t want to lose too many to other monsters. He caught up with them a few buildings back, and they were a sight. Blood and... other stuff covered all of them. Except Caffeine, he was still pristine. "How are you all covered in blood? I said to get the cores, not go swimming in the corpses?" Arthur looked pissed. At least, Stanley thought he did. It was hard to tell under the gore. Samantha smiled, white teeth showing disconcertingly through the red patina. "Hi, Stanley! I actually thought you were going to make us hunt the monsters. Didn''t even see you kill them. Just fly past, and they''re dead. Very cool!" Did she really think he would send them to die? A hoard of monsters with her little spear? And she still went in? She was an idiot. "As for the blood," Samantha continued, bending down to pet Caffeine, who shied away from her filthy hand. "Well, this little cutie can shake like nothing I''ve seen." Okay... that would probably do it. "Think you could fly us to the river for a rinse?" Samantha asked. Stanley wasn''t averse to the idea. Though he needed more clothes... what he was wearing now were little more than rags after that damn owl¡­ thing. "When we''re done. Now, where are my cores?" Arthur had an identical spear to Samantha, and he was also wearing the backpack instead of her. He shrugged it off and opened it to reveal a glowing mass filling almost half of the interior. Still, the cores were individually tiny, so it was a decent haul. It actually looked more substantial all together like that. Stanley took it, shoved his arm inside, and accepted the mass notifications as the pile dwindled away. It felt much less substantial when he checked his gains. A grand total of... +3 Strength +3 Vitality +4 Dexterity +3 Wisdom +3 Intelligence +2 Willpower It was slightly better than that, but his status didn''t show the decimals, only changing once he hit the next whole number. The worst part was that the willpower cores no longer offered a full point one to him. Ever since he''d passed the fifty total willpower mark... +0.09 Willpower It was the diminishing returns he''d feared after hitting F-grade. Perhaps because he was killing stuff in the low F-grade range? It was hard to tell most times. With his high bonus to willpower, only the crazy strong monsters like that owl even registered. Even the monsters'' magic was easier to block. The weak ones, at least... "Are you past F-grade?" Arthur asked, interrupting Stanley''s musing. Stanley didn''t answer, only stared at him as the pack floated back down to the man. He dragged them all up the street past the buildings he''d already looted and said, "Keep going." Caffeine jumped up for some pets while Stanley killed everything in the building, then he followed the others inside. Stanley went on with his own slaughtering. ... Stanley stayed away until the sun was approaching the horizon. Then he stopped and waited for them to catch up. He heard Jerry before they came into sight. "No, Caffeine. This is for later. I will cook it for you then." Caffeine whined at the man as they came around the corner, then saw Stanley and bounded the thirty feet up into his lap. Behind him, Arthur and Jerry were carrying a pole on their shoulders that was draped over with a massive pile of raw meat. Stanley''s stomach grumbled right along with Caffeine''s. Samantha had a few extra bags, and she skipped toward him with a big smile. "Stanley, I got us all some extra clothes!" She slowed and her smile slipped. "Well, technically, I stole them... but I don''t think the owners will mind..." "Yea, cause they''re all dead," Arthur muttered. Her smile didn''t stay gone for long. "So, how about that bath? I think we''ll all feel better once we get cleaned up!" "Cores," Stanley said, lifting the pole from Arthur and peeling him away from the backpack. "I could have just taken it off..." Stanley ignored his whining and absorbed almost all the cores in the bag. Then he looked closely at all of them. "How many of my cores did you steal?" Arthur and Jerry stiffened, but Samantha laughed. "We didn''t steal..." "How fucking many!?" Stanley shot forward to loom over them. "N... none," Arthur stammered. "Stop that!" Samantha shouted. "No one stole anything from you. A few more attributes won¡¯t let us survive any better than we could with you." Stanley couldn''t tell if she was lying, and Jerry only looked slightly nervous. It was Arthur that looked terrified... "Tell me the truth, Arthur. I''ll let it slide for today only." The man shook his head vehemently before Samantha slid between them. "Stop this, Stanley. Why would any of us risk something like that?" "Because that''s what people do!" Stanley screamed into her face instead of Arthur¡¯s. "You lie, steal, and kill!" Caffeine squeezed between them, growing larger and forcing them both to back up as he whined. "No, Caff," Samantha said, pushing futilely against Caffeine as she stepped around him. "Let us talk. Assuming we can still communicate like adults..." "Your insults mean nothing if you''re too weak to back them up!" "That wasn''t for you. I was telling myself not to overreact to your tantrum." Stanley grit his teeth and resisted the urge to break her in half. He''d only wanted to test their reactions, and now he was getting angry over nothing. He was angry, too. He could feel the increase in his power that came with the rage. Samantha was weak before, but now she was a twig that would snap with the slightest effort... He smashed the three-story apartment building they stood next to instead. Smashed it clean from the foundation, through the one behind it, and across the street beyond. It shattered to pieces on the next building, a lair by the feel of it. Samantha blinked, her smile faltering for the first time. Stanley took his victory and turned away before he could get any angrier. Then he threw the pack at her feet, a handful of cores still inside. "You can split those however you want." He''d taken all the willpower for himself already. "Thank you, and I still think we''ll feel better after cleaning..." Stanley didn''t let her finish, and instead dragged all of them into the sky. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Caffeine sat down in his lap as they flew, and Stanley felt his anger drain as he ran his hands over the pug''s fur. He never should have taken them with him... this was all a mistake. But Caffeine looked so happy to have new friends... Was Caffeine tired of him? Was it too much work to put up with him? Why did he need anyone else? At the river side Samantha produced multiple pairs of pants from a bag, from sweat pants to khakis and jeans. "I had to guess your size, but I''m usually pretty good at that." After setting Caffeine aside, Stanley scooped up a sphere of water from the river, then brought it around himself. It was easy enough to make the water spin, and he did so, faster and faster, until it stung his flesh. That it shredded what remained of his pants was... not part of the plan, and he only noticed when the now brown water splashed away. Samantha wasn''t smiling, but it looked like she wanted to... Instead, she held a bar of soap in her outstretched hand. "I was going to say I also brought some soap... if you want it." He grabbed more water and repeated the tactic, only with soap this time. Then a fresh ball to rinse. Everyone was politely looking away when he emerged, naked and cleaner than he''d been in... ages. Stanley took the sweatpants. He didn''t need anything fancy, and they''d probably get destroyed, anyway. He felt great... clean. Why hadn''t he done this before? "Um..." Samantha said, sneaking a peek and then turning to face him when she saw he''d dressed. "Could you do that for me? Please? It looked like an amazing bath, and I haven''t felt clean in ages." "Fine. You going to take that off?" He gestured at her bloody clothes. "Do you have to look at me to do it?" "Yes," Stanley lied. He didn''t technically have to, but it would be easier, and he also wanted to see just how far she would go to stay close to him. Samantha sighed. "Okay, but don''t get any ideas." She started undressing. "This means nothing, and it''s not an invitation for anything else." "Whatever," Stanley said, pulling up another ball of water. "I just think honest communication would help avoid a lot of..." "Oh shut up," Stanley said, and ripped the rest of her clothes off before dunking her. "Oh, and hold your breath." She''d faced away from him, but it didn''t matter since she couldn''t hold herself stable in the churning water. She spun and flailed wildly as he pushed the water back and forth. Though he made sure she had closed her mouth. He didn''t want to drown her... at least, not by accident. "That was not..." she sputtered when the water fell away. "Rinsing time." Stanley threw the next ball of water on her. "Not... cool," Samantha said when it was over, dripping wet and covering herself with her hands. "You did that on..." Caffeine growled, and Stanley snatched everyone into the sky instantly at the warning. Below them, on the beach, a massive octopus tentacle slammed down into the sand where they''d been standing. "Ah! What the..." Samantha''s screaming shout cut off when she gazed down at what had almost flattened her. "My clothes..." Stanley watched as the withdrawing tentacle dragged all of their luggage into the river. That was... disconcerting. The owl had been a sky king... was this thing a sea king? River king? Would it pay out another plus ten core? It was tempting... but he didn''t know how big it really was down there, or even how he''d go about killing it... Could he pummel a giant octopus to death with engine blocks? Was it even an octopus, or some twisted version like everything else? "So, Arthur? Jerry? Who wants next?" Neither volunteered, so Stanley washed them anyway. They smelled terrible... something he only noticed after cleaning up himself. He took them further down the river to do it, though. Then he carried them all back to the neighborhood apartments, where they stole more clothes. Samantha stopped hiding behind her hands, strolling brazenly through the building stark naked. She said nothing to any of the men, who, aside from Stanley, avoided looking at her. Stanley stared openly. Partly trying to make her break the cool facade, but also because she was stunning. It was amazing what a wash in the river could do... It was also clearly some kind of trick she was trying to play on him. A manipulation or distraction to get him to lower his guard. And it was working... So he left them there and went hunting for more monsters for Jerry to cook. Maybe she had some kind of seduction powers... that might have been why she wanted to go to the river in the first place... When he carried them closer to downtown, and into his favorite skyscraper, which had only a few busted windows, that got some concerned looks. Especially when he told them it was his base. A base with monsters roaming the halls. Because something had clearly moved in during the day while he was gone. You have entered a Lair: [Iron Tusk] They were birds... or maybe bats? Whatever they had been, now they were hairy birds with tusks. Still, they were new here, with low numbers and no chance to resist Stanley. They died, and he threw the corpses down a few floors before setting up in the queen''s room. Only one way in and easily barricaded. Extremely strong walls, and a view to die for. Or it would have been if the city lights still existed. Now it was just dark. Funneling the smoke from their fire outside the queen¡¯s room wasn''t too hard, and Stanley enjoyed a meal with more flavor than he''d grown accustomed to. A perk of keeping these people alive. Or at least Jerry. Maybe he could ditch the other two... He eventually barricaded himself in the bathroom with Caffeine, away from the others, and checked his status as he lay down. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-Grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] Traits: [Adaptable] [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 19 (Basic) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 24 (Basic) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 9 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 45(-10%)40 Vitality: 46(-9%)41 Dexterity 43(-4%)41 Wisdom 47(+90%)89 Intelligence 40(+89%)75 Willpower 55(+534%)293 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Knife Work (Rare) - Level 6 (Novice) Buff: Debuff: His stats were going up. Today had actually been his best day so far... having other people gather cores saved time. Not enough time. Not with the risk they posed. As for his skills, well, Knife Work had stalled. Likely because he wasn''t using a knife lately. Premonition had likewise stalled at the threshold of the next tier... though that one he might be able to level by letting a monster try to attack him over and over. Something to consider for the next day. The increase he expected from it reaching basic rank would be worth a small delay... or maybe he could get a monster to chase him while he slaughtered lairs. Stanley didn''t notice when he drifted off, Caffeine a comforting presence against his legs. He did notice when the monsters came for him. Twisted creatures striking from the shadows with flashing silver talons while his every attack against them was like trying to catch smoke in his hands as they sliced his flesh apart without mercy. The laughing, eyeless face of the man who''d nearly killed him made an appearance. Twin gaping holes in his face where Stanley had stabbed out his eyes now glowing with sickly light as the man laughed at every futile attempt to send him away. Then he started teleporting and stabbing Stanley''s own eyes with hooked, bloody blades. Stanley was a ragged and bloodied ruin when Samantha appeared like a goddess from the heavens, illuminating the darkness and driving back the shadows with the golden glow of her naked body. Beautiful, seductive, with a coy smile on her lips as she sauntered closer. She reached out to him, fingers trailing a gentle caress over his chest as she leaned in closer. His heart pounded as he stood transfixed, mesmerized. His hands moved of their own accord, yearning to touch the vision before him. Then her smile shifted. The look in her eyes turned predatory. Stanley tried to recoil, tried to escape... but it was too late. Her gentle fingertips became barbed talons that stabbed deep into his chest. Her lips parted to reveal a bloody maw full of needle-like fangs, and she pounced, biting down on his throat like a vise. Stanley tried to push her away. Tried to flee. But her claws were too deep, and they dug deeper still into his chest, reaching for his heart, stabbing into it. Strength fled from him as Stanley dangled in her grasp, helpless. Darkness encroached on all sides, dragging him down, down, down... until pain was the only thing left. The pain of her digging his still beating heart from his chest... biting into it... From far away, Caffeine howled in the darkness, crying out in pain and fear... ~~~Samantha~~~ Samantha was too embarrassed to muster much conversation as they ate, especially every time those glowing violet eyes swept over her. She''d seen other people with glowing eyes. Nearly everyone had some glow when they used magic. But never so bright, and never constant. She still felt unsure about the man''s intentions with them. For all of her bluster and confident talk earlier, it was just that. Bluster. There had been that moment where he looked at her with the same expression she''d seen so many times on so many men. Hunger. Lust. But it left as quickly as it appeared, and he went back to silent stares full of menace. One other expression slipped onto his face occasionally, likely without him even noticing. It was fear. He was afraid of her. Afraid of all of them. Which was preposterous. He could crush them with a thought. She''d seen that all too well. It was one thing to witness his fight with the owls, even at that uncomfortably close distance. But to see him demolish a building without even a flicker of effort... they were nothing but ants to him. Sure, they could bite him, cause some mild irritation, but he would end them as easily as pinching an ant off your skin. Which begged the question; why did he even bother with them? Was it truly because of the dog? That was the one thing she hadn''t been bluffing about. Not really. The little guy was likely as powerful as Stanley. They''d all seen it when a few giant rats charged from a pit in one building where they were collecting cores. She hadn''t even seen him move. One moment, the rats were leaping for her throat, and the next they were headless. Only the pug held no sense of danger, no menace. He only begged for their food when he could devour them without effort, then took the proffered meat from her fingers with a gentle brush of whiskers. No teeth or roughness. As if he knew how dangerous he was and went out of his way to be extra careful. The opposite of Stanley, who dragged them as violently as he pleased through the sky. She still had some bruises... He left them alone to sleep. Both a mercy, and also a new stress since they were still inside a lair¡­ not that she¡¯d had much experience with them. But she¡¯d heard the stories. She slept fitfully, waking at every small sound, and then any prospect of sleep fled completely when the building started shaking around them. Getting hit by a flying chair knocked the last drowsiness from her and nearly broke her nose when it shattered against her face. She ducked the table, and it crumpled against the wall. Then the pieces flew across the room to break even more against the far wall. Caffeine''s cries were audible from behind the pile of junk Stanley had piled over the door, and it turned her thoughts from a monster attack to an even more worrying prospect. "Stanley!" she shouted through the barricade. No answer. That wasn''t good¡­ had a monster appeared? They were in a lair¡­ "Caffeine!" This time, the already rattling pile of furniture crashed away from the door and a giant pug appeared for an instant. Then he was small again, looking at her with a whine before vanishing back inside. Samantha shared a look with the others, both of them nervous and hiding behind the far doorway. Arthur saw her eyeing the doorway and shook his head. She ignored his warning and stepped through the door, ducking out of the path of another flying chair on the way. Stanley was stretched out on his back and twitching. He was also hovering a couple feet off the ground, his hands clenched into fists at his side and he was sweating. She''d never seen him sweat before... not even once. She could see his eyes moving wildly behind closed lids, and his breathing hitched and stuttered between heaving gasps. It was a nightmare. "Stanley?" she yelled, inching closer. Then staggered when an unseen force sent her falling sideways into the wall. Stanley spasmed in the air, back arching before he curled up into the fetal position. She saw Caffeine''s claws carving furrows in the tile as he grew in size while sliding away. Then he shrank, shot forward, and was big again while licking at Stanley''s face. Samantha followed his lead, plodding toward Stanley like she was climbing a mountain. Sliding back a few inches with each step forward. His skin felt scalding when she finally laid a hand on his back and shook him. "Wake up!" There was no response other than Caffeine crying while trying to squeeze his head through to reach Stanley''s face. She considered slapping him, but decided against it rather quickly. Violence of any sort could end badly. For her. Instead, she went to his head, cradling it as gently as she could, and did the only thing she could think of; sang a lullaby. It was a song from her childhood. A song her mother used to sing when the nights were extra dark. She sang and brushed his sweat-dampened hair off his forehead. It had an effect. Stanley slowly uncurled and started drifting back to the floor... Then he spasmed as if in terrible pain and his eyes snapped open with a searing violet light. Samantha had a single instant to see the terror in those eyes... and then it felt like one entire side of her body shattered beneath an unstoppable force as it launched her across the room. Her back struck something soft enough that it didn''t instantly kill her as more of her body broke. Then she was through the wall and sailing across the larger room beyond. She got a brief flash of Arthur''s horrified face before she went through another wall and had only enough consciousness left to wonder why she''d left such a big... hole... ... Waking up was... strange. She should be dead. Unless the night had all been a dream¡­ Seeing the list of notifications waiting for her confirmed it had not been a dream and that she was still alive, but not how. A strange repeating noise prompted her to open her eyes, and she found herself half propped up with Jerry carving bloody meat from a monster corpse in front of her. He pulled a strip out and then fed it raw to the pug lying on his side near her feet. The little curly tail wagged as the dog gobbled it up, but he didn''t move otherwise. Jerry''s gaze roved past her and then snapped back. "You''re awake." He looked over his shoulder and yelled, "Arthur, she''s awake!" Then back at her. "Hungry?" Samantha was hungry, starving even, which felt odd considering how much pain currently wracked her body. She tried to nod and her neck screamed at the attempted motion. "Y... yes," she whispered. "Good. Drink this." He was dribbling some thick sauce into her mouth when Arthur staggered into view, dragging another furry bird corpse behind him. "Samantha! Thank god!" He dropped his burden and rushed to her side, hands reaching out but only hovering, as if he was afraid to touch her. "Can you move? We need to get out of here!" "W... where is... Stanley?" "He left. Blew a hole in the wall and flew away. But he left his dog here. We need to get out before he comes back!" "No... can''t leave." "Samantha, he almost killed you! He could come back at any moment and finish the job. We have to run!" "He... needs... us." Arthur scrubbed both hands through his hair as he stared at her. "He''s insane!" "No... just... hurting." Arthur jumped to his feet and started pacing while shooting looks at her. "This is the Peter fiasco all over..." "Don''t you dare say that name!" Samantha hissed, her anger granting enough strength to sit up slightly. "He is nothing like that snake!" "Another wounded soul that you can save, even if it kills you?" "It wasn''t like that! It was an accident! I scared him..." "You know what that sounds like, don''t you? Almost verbatim to what you said about... him." Jerry fed another chunk of meat to Caffeine on the floor, and the pug struggled to his feet after gobbling it up. Then he looked at the ceiling and howled softly... a mournful howl. "What happened to him?" Samantha asked, ignoring Arthur''s insinuation. It wasn''t the same thing. Not at all. Arthur sighed and stopped pacing. "He ran through the damn wall ahead of you... best as I could tell..." "Saved your life," Jerry said. "Busted himself up good. Figured some meat would fix him up like Stanley. It did." Samantha''s vision blurred as she watched the pug howl at the sky. She''d been right about him... and it said something about Stanley that his dog would go to such lengths to save someone he''d just met. "Stanley needs us." Arthur shook his head, looking defeated, and she continued before he could offer another rebuttal. "He''s obviously had a rough time of it. Worse than most, I think. You saw how hurt he was when we met him? Yet it didn''t seem to faze him... he was more worried about Caffeine than himself." "Monsters don''t feel pain like us..." Arthur said. "Or he''s suffered even worse before." "Another reason for him to be insane. We need to get..." "I think he''s only met bad people out here," Samantha interrupted again. "We need to show him not everyone is like that." Her breath caught from the pain wracking her body, but she pushed through it. "He''s so powerful... he could protect so many in this hell..." "Or snap and kill everyone because he has a bad dream?" Samantha nodded stiffly. "Exactly. That''s why we have to help him!" "God save us from fools and..." Arthur carried on with his arguments and the night passed as her body slowly healed. Though not completely, and not correctly. Samantha could feel the places where her bones fused back together slightly off from where they should be. She did what she could to adjust things, and the others helped, but it wasn''t quite enough. Nevertheless, she never wavered in her stance. Jerry played at ambivalence, but that was enough to force Arthur''s hand. He wouldn''t leave without them. 34. Heres To Us ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley stayed high in the sky for the rest of the night, his mind whirling and raging. He didn''t know if he''d killed Samantha, and the thought that he might have, ate at him. It wasn''t his fault. She shouldn''t have been in the room with him, much less in his face like that. She asked for it... Caffeine had tried to save her. Plowing straight through a lair wall to do so. Stanley knew it must have hurt him. He was strong, but not that strong. The power Stanley used to smash his way out had been everything he had... I hit her so hard... That thought, piling atop the thought of Caffeine hurt from his actions made Stanley''s stomach twist and his mind threaten another spiral. He wanted to go kill something. Destroy something. But Caffeine was still down there, eating and healing. He''d checked. His mental touch feeling the pug chomp down on a strip of meat was the only thing keeping him from completely losing it. That limp body beside Caffeine... The least he could do now was to watch over the pug in case something else showed up. So he curled around himself and raged impotently at the misery of it all as he hung in the dark sky. It was all Samantha''s fault. She''d gotten into Caffeine''s head, and tonight she tried to get him too. Why else would he dream about her? Maybe it was his premonition skill warning him... But all that would mean that Caffeine was no longer reliable... that he could no longer trust him. That was... impossible. Caffeine was all he had... and she tried to take him away! Stanley raged. Clawing his mind against the air itself as it cracked and boomed. Spent once again, and gasping for breath, he cast that thought aside. Caffeine wouldn''t turn on him. The idea was impossible and unthinkable. Caffeine was the only thing he could trust in this nightmare prison. He would have died without the pug. He would die without him in the future... and he wasn''t sure he could even go on if Caffeine betrayed him, too. He wouldn''t want to... Caffeine had trusted them from the first moment. That had to mean something. He''d never growled at them like he did with the rest of the monsters. Were they really trustworthy? That would mean it was his fault... He might have killed Samantha when she was only trying to help... What must Caffeine think of him? The sun eventually climbed over the horizon, setting him aglow while darkness still covered the land far below. He watched the shadows of skyscrapers appear, stretching to the horizon. Then watched them shrink as the sun continued its ascent. One small light in the darkness of Stanley''s mind was that he''d never gone so far from Caffeine before. That wasn''t the positive bit. Rather, it was the discovery that he could feel Caffeine in the distance. Just like he could feel Lee in the west. Caffeine''s presence was even more clear, likely because of proximity. Or maybe the dungeon wall... Which meant Caffeine could probably feel him as well, and might explain why he''d gone nowhere all night, only remained directly below. Stanley also felt the intense worry in the pug that only built through the night and wanted nothing more than to go comfort him. But that would mean facing... them. Her. If she was still alive¡­ The guilt from Caffeine''s worry eventually won out against his guilt over Samantha, and Stanley headed back down. Caffeine met him at the hole he''d left in the wall, launching out like a missile and sending Stanley sailing backward on impact. The frantic crying, face-licking, and wagging tail both eased his heart and made him feel worse about leaving. When he''d finally calmed down to a more normal level of excitement, and right as Stanley considered flying away with him, Caffeine bounded back into the building. He took a few steps and then looked back expectantly. Stanley sighed and flew in after him. Samantha wasn''t dead. Which was a relief... but the ugly bruises covering her face looked awful. Especially when she smiled at him. "Stanley. I''m glad you came back." Clearly, she was a crazy person. Also, her regeneration wasn''t very good... Jerry had the same and only expression Stanley had ever seen on him. While Arthur was the only sane one because he looked terrified... and angry. Maybe it had been an assassination attempt... and he was mad she failed? No. Caffeine would have killed her. Stanley was just being paranoid. He didn''t know what to say after almost accidentally killing someone. So he kept it straightforward. "I¡¯m sorry¡­ You shouldn''t have come into my room." "Got it," she said, still smiling. "Won''t happen again." She hadn''t moved from where she sat, and Stanley wondered if he''d broken anything important. "Are you..." He stopped. He didn''t want to be here, and they shouldn''t either. They needed to get away from him before they died. "I''ll try to find some other people for you to go..." "No!" Samantha''s shout made Stanley flinch, and he saw Arthur respond in kind, shooting an angry look at the woman. "Let us stay with you! We can help just like we did yesterday!" Stanley couldn''t understand her. What was wrong with her brain that she wanted to stay anywhere near him? Another thought popped up in his mind. A reason she might behave this way, and a question he should have asked the day before. "Why are you guys out here alone, and how did you not die before I showed up?" "We were in a big group the day before we met you," Samantha said. "But... things were getting weird... so we left." Jerry nodded behind her, and Lee shifted his gaze to the man. "You left... and came out here to die? Because they were... weird." Jerry shrugged, but didn''t disagree with the statement. "It was more than that," Samantha said. "We got some newcomers a few days ago, and they were trying to recruit people into some kind of cult... or something." "I killed a cult leader a couple days ago," Stanley said. "Were you there? They were going to burn someone at the stake." Jerry shook his head, but Samantha answered. "That sounds terrible... I''m sorry you had to do that, but I''m glad you stopped them." The concern on her face looked real... "And no, it wasn''t like that. They talked about immortality... but it didn''t seem religious... more like they were just trying to recruit people into an order¡­ or something." "Isn''t that like literally how religion works?" "The trees didn''t like them," Samantha said, and then glanced around. "I know how it sounds... but I swear..." "They weren''t human," Jerry said. "And they were multiplying." Stanley felt like a lightbulb lit up in his mind. "Not human?" he demanded. "Were they aliens? The invaders?! Where was this?" His heart was pounding. This might be it! He might get out of this shithole and finally be able to get home to Lee! "I..." Jerry shifted away slightly at whatever he saw on Stanley''s face. "They looked human. But... well... they weren''t edible. They felt corrupted." "That''s why you came with me?" Samantha looked as confused as Stanley felt as she stared at the man. "Why didn''t you say anything?" Jerry shrugged. "What did it matter? We got out of there, didn''t we?" "Explain." Stanley demanded. "My class tells me what I can cook," Jerry said reluctantly. "Along with some hints about what is better or worse to eat. Humans are considered... well, food. Those people weren''t. And they were multiplying every day." It wasn''t as clear a sign of the invaders he''d been hoping for, but still the best clue he''d heard since this started. Maybe humans were not unique to this world... maybe the invaders looked exactly like them... That was a terrifying thought that had Stanley eyeing the other people in the room with suspicion once again. But Caffeine liked them... "Take me there, now." Stanley scooped them all up and was outside before Samantha begged him to go back for their stuff. He didn''t listen. "We can come here later." If there even was a later. He might get free! I''m coming, Lee! He took them straight up until the entire city spread out below. "Where was this? Tell me!" "I... I don''t..." Samantha stammered, staring wide eyed at the ground far below. "That way," Arthur pointed. "Just past that brown skyscraper with the tall..." Stanley was tearing through the sky before he''d finished talking, and the roaring wind drowned out the rest of Arthur¡¯s words. As he flew, he let his mind dwell on all the horrors that had been inflicted on him since this started. He thought about all the monsters who''d hurt him... and let his anger rise. This was his chance to get free. He couldn''t afford to waste it, and he would need every shred of power to ensure that whatever these invaders were, they would die. Screaming. He only slowed one more time, just long enough for one of them to point at the sprawling mall before he tore his way inside. It wasn''t a lair, and the structure had no chance to stand up to him as he ripped it open in a searching spree of destruction. It was also empty. Ceilings flew into the sky. He tore holes through second story floors to search the lower levels. Store after store met the same fate as he combed the entire place. Not a single living soul was in the entire massive complex. "Where are they!?" He finally screamed at the people trailing behind him. "Tell me!" White faces stared back with wide eyes as he roared at them. It was Samantha who spoke first. "W... we were in the Macys... They''re gone. They''re all gone..." "Damn it!" Stanley tore the Macy''s apart. Down to the foundation. Then he started digging, looking for a basement. They had to be here! This was his one chance! He had to find them! Caffeine kept sticking his head in the way, blocking his view as he ripped up the concrete, until Stanley had to push him out of his lap and hold the pug off to one side. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. He found only dirt and rock below the foundation. So he went to the next building and started tearing out its floor, too. "Where the fuck are they!?" Caffeine abruptly became extremely heavy, and Stanley had to pause his digging to focus on holding the pug up. He was also howling... and huge. Stanley saw nothing attacking the dog, as he''d feared, but did suddenly hear Samantha yelling his name. "Stanley stop! There''s no basement. Please stop!" Stanley spun on her, ready to scream... and saw her heavily bruised face. His rage faltered as the memory of slapping her through a wall resurfaced. Then Caffeine¡¯s increasingly large legs touched the ground and kicked off it, shooting him right into Stanley''s lap as he shrank back into his small form. The whimpering tongue-lashing he doled out on Stanley''s face cooled the rage further, and Stanley held the pug as bitter disappointment welled up inside him. I''m still trapped. If he''d just asked those idiots yesterday... if they had just told him about the monsters... "Do any of you know where they might have gone?" he asked through clenched teeth. Stanley looked away from the useless, blank faces and stared out at his handiwork instead. The mall was gone. Nothing but rubble now. No humans. No monsters. Nothing even alive. In fact... the small potted trees that had decorated the main hall were all wilted and dead... and a little crushed now. "Did these trees look like this when you left? Were they healthy?" Samantha looked sad as she shook her head. "N... no. They were healthy... but the miasma was bothering them a lot. I was helping..." "The miasma!" Stanley exclaimed. He''d been ignoring the messages about resisting that debuff for... how many days now? "What is it!?" They all looked puzzled. "Don''t you have the debuff?" Samantha finally asked. "I resisted it. Tell me what it is!" "Of course he resisted it," Arthur muttered. "Fucking tell me! Now!" "It... it''s a debuff that takes a percentage of our attributes..." "What does it say? Exactly!?" "[Miasma] Miasmic corruption fills the area and weakens all it touches. Effects: -2% All Base Attributes." She said it all with unfocused eyes, as if she was reading it off a notification. That definitely sounded unusual. Especially since it seemed to cover the entire dungeon... except for the lairs. Why were they unaffected? Why hadn''t he asked anyone else about it before? Sure, ask the fucks actively trying to murder me. "Where is it coming from?" He asked the people currently not trying to murder him. "And why isn''t it in the lairs?" "I... don''t know," Samantha shook her head. "We talked about it, but no one knows..." She hesitated and then added, "The debuff was higher when we left... at negative five percent..." If it was higher when they were here... that could mean they were the source... So maybe he could just fly around with someone and see if it went up? Stanley suddenly looked at Jerry. "You said they were corrupt? The invaders?" "I did, though I don''t know that they are the invaders... I assumed you knew about the debuff... sorry." "You..." Stanley closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he settled everyone on the ground in the mall parking lot. It was his own damn fault for not remembering the debuff. He got so caught up on worrying about the monsters... human and otherwise. "What do you know about them?" he asked, as calmly as he could. "Tell me everything. Were they truly not human... and what did you mean about multiplying?" "We lost and gained people every day," Jerry said. "Some of those that were more receptive to the corrupt people came back. Came back stronger... and they came back corrupted, too. Though they still looked human to the eye. Then Samantha here was going to get herself killed, so I left with her. For all the good it was." "What are you talking about?" Samantha said. "You didn''t see them looking at you?" Jerry shook his head. "You were telling everyone who would listen that they were bad news. They were totally going to kill you." "I... didn''t... see that..." Jerry snorted. "I expected we would die, anyway. I just didn''t want to find out the hard way what was up with those... things." Stanley looked at Arthur, the man having stayed silent the whole conversation. "Why did you leave? Do you know something more about them?" Arthur glanced at Samantha before shaking his head. "I... just wanted to protect Samantha." "You thought she was bonkers," Jerry said, and the other man looked at the floor. "I... did. Why didn''t you say anything?" Stanley was also staring at the ground too as he tried to figure out some way to find these so-called corrupted. The best bet still seemed like just flying around to see if the debuff increased or decreased. His thoughts distracted him enough that he didn''t notice Samantha creeping closer until she touched his hand, and he flinched away while cursing himself for the lack of focus. He pushed his mind out wide, tearing up the parking lot beyond their little area and pulling dirt and crushed asphalt into a fresh dome around them. He''d left the engine blocks atop the lair in his rush to get here... Stupid! "Are you okay?" Samantha asked, ignoring the flying debris as her worried expression vanished into the darkness beneath Stanley''s dome. "What happened back there?" Stanley pulled back when she reached out again. "Don''t touch me." He considered telling her about how anger increased his power, but dismissed it immediately. She didn''t need to know that. It might be something she could use against him. "Nothing happened. Other than all of you, failing to provide vital information when I needed it. When it might have been fucking useful!" "I''m not your enemy," Samantha said. "I have nothing to gain and everything to lose if I attack you. If I could even hurt you..." "Do you know that humans always drop skill shards when they die?" Stanley couldn''t see her in the dark, but he could feel her. He could feel all of them in his mental touch, and felt them freeze up. "I... didn''t know. That sounds... bad." "You think? Would you kill me if it meant gaining my power? Is that enough motivation for you? Are you thinking about how to pull it off now? Let me tell you right upfront, you can''t. Bigger monsters than you have tried, and they''re all fucking dead!" Except that one teleporting bastard... but at least he''d lost a hand and foot for trying. Hopefully, that would discourage the fuck from looking for him. "I wasn''t thinking that," Samantha said, in what had to be a lie. "I was just thinking about how many poor people are going to get killed for such a terrible reason." "Did you kill someone for your power?" Jerry asked. The question surprised Stanley enough that he didn''t even get angry at the insinuation. Jerry had some balls on him. "What if I did? You know... your skill might be useful to help me find these corrupted." "Do people drop classes when they die? Because if not, then it sounds like you will want to keep me alive now." Serious balls. Stanley had a feeling that if trees didn''t like corrupted people, then Caffeine wouldn''t either. He didn''t need this man. He said as much. "You''re probably right." Jerry didn''t even try to plead his case... but Samantha did. "We can still help you. Let us! You don''t have to be alone in this fight." "I have Caffeine." "You do. An absolutely loyal companion that would never betray..." Stanley tore open a hole in his dome to let the light illuminate her face as her words echoed far too close to his own fears. What was she implying? Maybe it wasn''t just trees that she could mess with. "What did you do to him!?" She clammed up in the light when his power wrapped tightly around her. Damn her bruises! If she... "I... nothing!" she gasped. "I was... only... complimenting... him. He clearly loves you!" He lost sight of her as Caffeine once again moved in her defense and filled Stanley''s vision with his giant pug face. Why did he insist on protecting her? She must have done something! Probably while he was unconscious after the damn owls... "Why, Caff? What did she do to... you?" His voice cracked as the reality of being all alone hit him like a physical weight. Like a vise crushing his heart... "Just... kill me," Samantha said behind the pug. "Don''t doubt him because of me... If you truly think that I did anything to him, then kill me. Kill me now, and then go find these monsters and kill them. Save the good people that are still out there. That''s all I ever wanted from you. If you do that, then I don''t need to live to see it." Stanley couldn''t see her, but he could hear the tears in her voice when she stopped talking. He didn''t respond, and not because of that. Caffeine was staring at him with those big brown eyes, and Stanley could suddenly feel him like he had the night before when they''d been separated by distance. Only now, the feeling was amplified a thousand times stronger. A million times... Within that overpowering sensation, Stanley could feel an absolute love that permeated his being. Maybe even his very soul. They were Soul-Bonded... and Stanley hadn''t understood what that meant until this very moment. Caffeine couldn''t betray him. Couldn''t betray them. Because Lee was there too. Stanley could feel his brother closer than he''d ever felt before. It reminded him of that day in the mountains... though he didn''t know why. Together; they basked in the absolute that was Caffeine''s dedication. It wasn''t that he magically could not betray them, but he just couldn''t because he cared too much. The very idea couldn''t exist in the sensations Stanley was feeling from the pug. Caffeine would die a thousand times to protect them, and do so willingly and eagerly. His reality didn''t include an option where they were not together. It was literally impossible for Caffeine ever to give them up. They belonged to him. He would never let them go. No. Matter. What. Forever. No magic could ever change that reality. Then the feeling dimmed. Lee''s presence receded, and Stanley was alone with a little pug, who was staring up at him with a wagging tail and lolling tongue. Caffeine was in his arms when Stanley''s knees hit the ground, and he stayed there while Stanley wept bitter tears of regret. He would never doubt Caffeine again. He hadn''t before... not until Samantha showed up! But... Caffeine trusted her. If he trusted Caffeine, then he had to trust her. Didn''t he? He would... try. That was the best Stanley could do for the strange woman. So long as Caffeine trusted her, Stanley would keep and protect her. He would give her the benefit of the doubt... mostly. As much as he could. For some reason, Samantha was crying when Stanley finally stood back up. Or rather, floated above the ground with Caffeine in his lap. The whole scene was further confused by the small trees blooming bright green around Samantha and Arthur... the older man looking exceedingly worried as he tried to comfort her. Samantha met his eyes from between the vibrant flora and smiled through her tears. "That was so beautiful..." Stanley''s paranoia flared at the thought that she had somehow snuck into his... but no. The two men were also misty-eyed as they blinked and tried to remain stoic. That reminded Stanley that he''d been openly weeping in front of these strangers... but the memory of what had caused it made him not care about what they thought. Caff still loves me! He hadn''t realized how much the fear of losing Caffeine had weighed on his mind... the fear that all his mistakes would turn the pug away from him... but that was impossible. The feelings Caffeine shared with him... It sure seemed like they might have caught a glimpse as well. "I''m going to find the invaders," Stanley said, ignoring the sudden trees. "Caffeine wants me to trust you... so it''s up to you. Do you want to join my hunt? Or I can find another group to leave you with. A group that Caffeine approves of." That was assuming Caffeine would let them leave... "I''m in!" Samantha shouted, leaping to her feet and rushing forward. She stopped just shy of touching him, and Caffeine gave her frozen, outstretched hand a lick before laying back down. She beamed at him and gently scratched his head before retreating a step. "Sure," Jerry said. "I can''t complain about having a bad ass looking out for me. Or two of them, I should say." Arthur hesitated, his gaze lingering on Samantha. Either he was definitely her secret father, or the guy had an unrequited thing for her, with the way his gaze so often lingered. Kinda creepy if the latter; he was so old... "I will come, though I doubt how useful I will be in this fight. I will do what I can." "Fine. Good. Then we hunt." He picked them all up and took off. "We''ll start a grid search from here, and..." "Stanley?" Samantha interrupted. "Since we''re all friends now... can you be a little more gentle when you yank us around? Not that I''m complaining. Especially when you''re saving us from a giant squid or the like. But the rest of the time..." Stanley sighed as dirt swirled up to blot out the light. "Fine." He wasn''t that rough, was he? "Thanks!" Samantha said cheerfully from the blackness, and Stanley suppressed a groan. Sure, he was feeling happier than ever right now... but her upbeat attitude was just excessive. 35. Meet The Neighbors ~~~Lee~~~ Lee stared up at the massive warehouse looming into the predawn sky. How had he not seen this before? The thing was huge! Though the slight valley it was in might have kept the towering structure from standing out. Then his gaze dropped down to the doorway leading into a dark interior. "Let''s get some chicken." Alejandro said beside him. Jake had shown up this morning and told them about this place. Said it was full of giant chickens, which he claimed were even better tasting than before the system. So now they were here to find out for themselves. Though the few birds they''d already killed on approach lent plenty of credibility to the story. Giant chicken was a good descriptor for the things they''d fought through to reach the door. Though maybe a bit lacking when the monsters were each ten feet tall and attacked with glowing talons and pecking beaks that hit like a truck. Lee was still recharging his shield... The rune''s charge topped out, and Lee waited longer as his body sucked in the ambient mana to refill his core. It created a small vortex around him in the swirling mana, but did nothing to disrupt the river flowing through the door ahead. Same as all lairs, this one sucked up mana like a black hole. It wasn''t as extreme for his building back in the human lair, which he could only guess was something to do with the monsters breeding much faster. Lee still hadn''t found an origin for the mana. It was everywhere, and flowing in different directions depending on where he was, but it didn''t have a source. There was the Liquid Mana Well in his building, which output mana into the surroundings, but none of that left the building. It didn''t even seem to affect the sapient lair''s absorption rate from the outside, either. "Let''s go," Lee said. His mana would be full soon enough, and it would recharge faster inside. Another benefit to fighting in these lairs. Alejandro was the only one Lee knew in the group, which comprised eight people. Three women and five men, including Lee and Alejandro. They were all volunteers to the growing guard force Alejandro was building and out for their first hunt. All of them equipped with runed armor and weapons. Alejandro was very into leading by example, and didn''t hesitate to stand at the front with his troops, unlike Wilson, who was still trying to make things happen without getting blood on his hands. "Three incoming," Lee said as soon as they crossed the threshold, his Mana Mind seeing clearly despite the sudden shift from light to dark. "Two on the right. I''ll get the left." He threw the glowing disk-lights out along with the others, then surged forward an instant before the glowing talon lit up and slammed into his shield. The sideways impact only sped up his spinning blow, and Lee cut off the planted chicken leg before the bird even saw it coming. That didn''t end the fight, unfortunately, and his aggressive attack left him exposed when the massive beak came plunging down. It struck his helmet, lighting up the rune in the metal with the impact. Lee''s brain rattled from the blow but his Mana Mind was unaffected and let him see exactly where the bird was when it dove for another peck, and he lashed upward with his machete. It pulled back, dodging the strike, but the magic edge extending beyond the blade''s tip caught the chicken by surprise and took it across the throat. Blood rained down, forcing Lee to close his eyes, and not impeding his mana vision in the slightest as he skipped back and away from the dying creature. The chickens outside had shown the same propensity as their old normal brethren for staying disturbingly active after losing their heads. Missing a leg made the following thrashing much less of an issue as Lee moved to intercept the next attacker. He gave the others a quick once over on the way. Alejandro was keeping one chicken busy while the rest of them hacked and slashed at the other. Between the rune-sharpened blades and the rune-powered armor, they were getting the job done. Alejandro had also scattered additional lights across the floor to help the more sight dependent of the group. Lee caught the next beak on his shield, almost buckling his legs from the heavy blow, then pushed forward after the legs. It was the best way to deal with the fluffy creatures that appeared much more substantial than they actually were. Mana Mind saw past the feathers, not impeded until it reached their skin below. The newbies behind him were not as lucky, and he saw more than a few blows only trim the fluff rather than cut flesh. They still got the job done, and everyone went deeper into the lair, Lee leading the charge. It was just easier to take the hits himself rather than worry about healing the others when... Something changed and the world receded away as a strange feeling crashed into Lee. It was Caffeine... and Stanley! Lee''s heart was already racing as he waited for the inevitable doom and horror to crush him... but it didn''t. They were... okay? Sure, Stanley felt terrible, but it didn''t matter. Because Caffeine was running the show this time. Lee didn''t even know how he knew that. He just did. What he felt from Caffeine drove every other thought from his head. Lee forgot about the expected doom. Forgot even about his worry for Stanley. All he knew was the unquestionable love of the pug for his humans. That was the best he could describe the sensation. It just didn''t translate into mere language. It was beyond words... All too soon, the feeling faded, and Lee found himself on his knees, people shouting and fighting all around him. His Mana Mind hadn¡¯t stopped working throughout whatever that was, but he hadn¡¯t been able to focus before. Now he took in the scene even as he clung desperately to the fading sensation of Caffeine and his brother. He''d known they were alive and could still feel Stanley in the distance. But... this was something else. He surged to his feet, slipping through a gap in his encircling guards and decapitating the pecking chicken as it struck at the woman''s exposed back. Lee spun and ducked to take its feet next, then charged after another target. They cut down the pack of birds quickly, all the while Lee was furiously analyzing the experience forced upon him. Forced, but not unwelcome. Not in the least. Stanley had been a riot of paranoia and fear. What must have happened to him? It was even worse than the first time... though Caffeine had helped. Lee knew their Twin-Soul was involved with whatever had just happened. He had enough experience from creating his runes to recognize some of it. How Caffeine had dragged them together that way was the more important bit that he desperately wanted to know. If he could do that for Stanley... might they be able to communicate? Matters in the more immediate present forced him to put aside those thoughts as he helped the others to bandage up an excessive number of bloody wounds. His little lapse had cost them. "Your brother?" Alejandro asked as he lifted the now one and a half legged woman into his arms. A talon had slipped between the armor and gone right through her knee. She would live, and Saira would fix the leg, but it still put an end to the day''s hunt. "Yes." Lee gave his shoulder to support another man who was limping as they headed for the light outside. They''d only delayed long enough to chop up and bag some chicken, so at least they got something out of the trip. Lee waited until they were outside to speak more. "I''m sorry, everyone." There''d been a few sidelong glances on the way out, all of which he could see with Mana Mind, and since they''d protected him in there, and taken injuries, he felt they deserved an explanation. Though maybe not the whole truth. "I have this... condition..." He was interrupted by a new voice. "What are you guys doing here?" Everyone turned to the newcomers coming down the hill, and Lee looked at Alejandro. He was way more likely than Lee to remember the faces of their base, and from his expression, Lee assumed these were not their people. Which meant they were potentially a threat. And he had just gotten a bunch of the group wounded... great. Alejandro set the woman¡ªLee really needed to learn more people''s names¡ªonto her one good foot and went forward to meet the strangers. "Hi folks. Just had a bit of bad luck in the lair here. Heading home ourselves if you want to take a shot at the chickens." The group of six men looked ready for a fight. With armor and weapons that looked more makeshift than Lee''s companions, but plenty of them, along with two bows. "Where''d you come from?" the first man said, eyes traveling over Lee''s group, though he addressed Alejandro. Lee was feeling extra paranoid at the moment; a feeling he attributed to what Stanley had dumped into his mind a short time ago. That same paranoia was screaming at him that something was off about the group in front of him. Though he couldn''t actually place anything specific. Hearing one of his allies blurt out, "We''re up at Greenfield Village if you''re looking for a safe place to stay," did not help at all with the paranoia. Especially when he was sure he saw something flash through the other man''s gaze as it roved over the group. The oblivious moron kept talking and even lifted a hand to point until Lee jabbed at him with Mana Mind. "We''ve got a great... ow! What was that?" Alejandro must have picked up on something because he cut in. "Where do you folks come from? We honestly don''t see many people out here these days. It''s always good to find more survivors." "Got our own camp over that way," the man said, waving vaguely and widely. "Well, we should get going with our wounded. You guys be safe in there. Those birds are dangerous." Alejandro pulled up beside the mouthy guy and had some whispered words with him while they started away. Lee watched the strangers until they left his Mana Mind range and saw them watching right back. Definitely trouble. Was it the equipment? Maybe they could see how strong the runes were? It definitely looked better than what the strangers were wearing¡­ Unfortunately, his range wasn''t nearly what he needed to watch for potential tails. So it helped that Alejandro led them deliberately off course on the way back, taking a circuitous route back to base. He wasn''t willing to risk anyone trying to stay back and spy, and definitely not alone. With the wounded, it only made sense to stick together. Lee left his runes on the other''s equipment when they got back, both as recompense for his little episode and for them risking their lives to protect him, and because they would have gotten it later if they committed to the guard force. Which, despite the injuries suffered, they all remained onboard with. It always helped with morale when Saira took away all the injuries. Though the memories remained... He also decided against going back out hunting. A decision that clashed with his never-ending desire to keep growing. It was Stanley''s fault. He just couldn''t shake the feeling that there was going to be trouble. The real problem was, how long was he supposed to wait for the trouble to show? Luckily, Jake came to his rescue when the man popped in unexpectedly later that evening. "Let''s go find them," he said, once Lee explained his shocking abstinence from hunting. That led to him sprinting through the fading daylight behind Jake as they retraced their steps back to the chicken lair. There, Jake looked around the area and somehow picked up their tracks leading away. He led Lee to what used to be a school, and they arrived just in time to see a large group leaving the gymnasium. Jake kept pace with the group as they headed toward the chicken lair, though keeping well behind. Lee suspected the extra distance was because of him. Jake was a ghost compared to his clumsy attempts at sneaking. Unfortunately, the group wasn''t going for a late chicken hunt, and they continued on past the lair, heading in the direction Alejandro had departed toward. They followed the exact trail on its winding route, which meant they must have a tracker of their own. Lee kept hoping this was just some kind of peaceful delegation as they followed behind, but when the lights of the group ahead went out, he knew it wasn''t. They''d gone dark just before reaching the complex... and he could see a couple of them that were clearly trying to sneak as they moved closer. He was about to suggest they raise the alarm when the group stopped just across the street. They stayed there while Jake crept closer one step at a time. Lee stuck right behind him using Mana Mind to not only watch the way Jake moved but also to see where he stepped and mimic the man. Surprisingly, it worked. Mostly. He wasn¡¯t silent, but far better than before. It helped that the group he was sneaking up on was arguing awfully loud for people on a stealth mission. Lee held some fresh hope about their intentions after they stopped. Maybe they were scouting out the complex before announcing themselves. That was just common sense. He probably would have done the same¡­ ¡°...place is huge. We got no idea how many are in there,¡± a voice said, which was a valid point. ¡°...I ain¡¯t leaving without that girl,¡± another said, which sounded¡­ less valid. Maybe someone¡¯s sister or wife was¡­ ¡°Would you stop thinking with your dick for one goddamn second!¡± a third voice hissed. ¡°You didn¡¯t see the look she was giving me¡­ and I don¡¯t got any asians yet!¡± the second guy said¡­ Okay, that sounded¡­ bad. Hadn¡¯t there been an asian woman on his team when they met these people? All of a sudden, Lee was remembering the encounter in a whole new light. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Jesus christ¡­¡± a new voice muttered. ¡°Hey, you wasn¡¯t complaining last night, was you?¡± ¡°Guys, forget all that. We need to find out where they got the armor and swords. If they have a smith we take them and get out.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not leaving without¡­¡± ¡°After we find the smith! You can get all the damn asians you want when we have some real gear.¡± So¡­ maybe Stanley was on to something with his paranoia? All those vaguely suspicious looks from earlier were all much darker in the light of recent revelations. It especially didn¡¯t help when the group sprinted across the street and started climbing the fence. Lee stood up from his hiding spot, getting ready to run while sounding the alarm¡­ Jake stood as well, then nocked an arrow and smoothly pulled back the string. Wait... Jake was planning to fight them? Lee thought this was just a scouting mission... but this was Jake. Of course, the guy wanted to fight a dozen people... probably by himself, too. "Watch our backs," Jake whispered, and loosed the arrow. He had dumped no mana into the arrow, and it flew dark and silent before landing directly in the back of the first man climbing the fence around their home. It took a moment for the invaders to even notice what had happened as the man tumbled silently off the fence. Jake''s second arrow took the next man in the neck... and then the night exploded with light and noise. Jake''s third arrow flew in a streak of blue light, which exploded against a glowing barrier that appeared in its path. It also painted a straight line right back to their position... A lightning bolt flashed from within the enemy group, striking where Jake had been standing when he fired. He sent another streaking arrow as a fireball arced out in a more slow journey their way. The fireball was on target and coming in just slow enough that Lee had time to really examine his first offensive spell up close and personal with Mana Mind. It wasn¡¯t that no one in the fort had magic, but most of the guard volunteers he¡¯d hunted with after getting the skill tended to be¡­ lacking when it came to useful abilities. Hence the eagerness for magic weapons and armor. Still, a fireball spell just felt¡­ basic. Seeing it in Mana Mind gave him a better idea than tanking it with his shield, as he''d originally planned. It reminded him of the panther constructs in that he could see inside the spell. Not only that, but he could see the strings and lines of mana that held the thing together. Lee didn''t know what all the pieces of the spell did, but there was one piece that made him think of tension poised to explode... So he whacked it. The fireball exploded instantly, still at the edge of his Mana Mind, and he was glad he hadn''t trusted the shield. That would have hurt... the shockwave and cloud of expanding flames still reached his position beside Jake. Luckily, it only felt like a weak shove and standing too close to a fire. Nothing debilitating. Which was good because another fireball came right on the heels of the first. Almost sneaky, hidden as it was in the explosion. Lee knew it was there the moment it touched his Mana Mind, and instead of hitting this one, he ripped it apart at the seams. The tactic required far more effort but worked much better, and the spell fizzled with barely a flash. The arrow that followed was unfortunately not something he could deflect so easily, and it came right for him. Of course, Lee didn''t need to actually do anything. The arrow shattered against his breastplate, with only the force of the impact sending him back a step. It left him off balance when the lightning bolt came next. Not that he would have had time to dodge it. But once again, he didn''t need to dodge. The first bolt that missed Jake had landed well within Mana Mind range, and Lee had noticed the tiny spark that flew in ahead of the spell. It came in fast, nanoseconds before the lightning, but he still couldn''t miss it. All the surrounding mana was his to control. Lee nudged the spark as it came on, just enough that it missed him, and the trailing bolt followed. He felt the heat on his skin as the blinding magic passed, and his hair stood up in the aftermath, but it caused no damage otherwise. Jake stayed with him as he launched arrow after arrow down range, only sidestepping when the return fire got close. Lee didn''t know how many of the enemies were dead, but he noted the difference between this fight and the last time he''d seen Jake fight other humans. Either that first ambush had been a bunch of weaklings, or these people were far more dangerous and experienced. They definitely had better teamwork. Those shields kept appearing to intercept the glowing arrows, which was probably why Jake kept slipping normal shots in between the bright, flashy ones. Lee caught two more fireballs as he hunkered low behind his shield and used the window to watch the raging battle unfolding before him. Voices screamed and yelled, nearly drowned out by the sound of explosions and the crack of lightning bolts. Many of the figures were charging their position, their magic focused on blades or their person rather than thrown ahead. Jake still didn''t retreat as he blasted the onrushing horde. The occasional shot got through the shields, both mundane and magical, and Lee saw two more of the attackers fall before the enemy arrived. He wasn''t ready for this. It wasn''t at all what he''d expected when Jake suggested this trip. He''d thought they would scout out the enemy, maybe threaten them to stay away... or warn the others in the complex if something happened. But to just attack the entire army themselves? It was insane! He didn''t know how to fight! Not like this. Someone appeared directly behind them, popping into his Mana Mind with no warning or travel time. Lee''s tentative combat instincts took over as the figure lunged toward Jake''s back, and he spun, shield leading the way. He caught the blade on his shield and kept pushing until the shield met the charging man. It was gratifying to note that he''d used the proper footwork for the move, especially when his shield slam sent the attacker flying off his feet. The proper follow up was to take another step and thrust... but Lee hesitated when he met the man''s eyes staring up at him. Jake didn''t hesitate, and an arrow sprouted in the man''s forehead before he got even halfway to his feet. Jake yelled something at Lee, but the arrival of more spells was enough to take his attention away from the shout. He knew what the man said anyway... he shouldn''t have hesitated. The attacker wouldn''t have. He would have killed either of them without a second''s thought. Then the rest of the enemy squad arrived, and Lee had no more time for thought. He could only react as both blades and short range spells sought his flesh. His shield was a lifesaver as it blocked anything and everything that touched it. Mana Mind was the next best tool he had and it let him instinctively know which attacks he could safely ignore. That led to him simply plodding forward two steps and thrusting straight into a man''s chest as the man''s own strike merely ricocheted from his helmet. Lee''s sword went right through the man... no resistance. Not even the leather armor he wore slowed it down. The shocked look on the man''s face... Another attack threatened to hit him and Lee forced himself to keep moving, spinning to catch the blow on his shield while another glanced off his backplate armor. He swung the blade and tried not to look as it passed cleanly through an arm. Step. Turn. Thrust. Step. Lee fell into the motions that Martin had started teaching him only days before, and it worked. He remembered the warning about not relying on magic... but it didn''t seem to apply in this fight. None of their weapons broke past his runes, and his blade met no resistance as he carved men apart. A few attacks slipped through. Scratches and cuts that inflicted no serious injury. All wounds that would heal before the fight was even over. The only serious attack was a lightning bolt that slipped past his divided attention in the chaos of his Mana Mind. That one hurt. Even locked up his muscles for a moment. But it wasn''t enough to stop him, and it was the last lightning bolt he saw. Whether the caster ran out of mana, or Jake finally got him, he didn''t know. All he knew was the horrifying dance of death. Then it was over. Lee blocked a strike, and his attacker fell before he could retaliate. He stood there in the deafening silence with only the sound of his own heavy breathing roaring in his ears. "Not bad," Jake said, sounding completely calm and not even a little out of breath. "Thought you were going to have more trouble after that first one." "What the fuck was that!?" Lee let the shield fall from his shaking arm and yelled at the archer. "I thought we were going to scout! Not fight a fucking war! I could have died!" "Nah, you were fine." Jake appeared unbothered as he strode away. "Come on. I left one alive." Lee stared after him in disbelief, his pulse racing with unspent adrenaline. Then he followed on rubbery legs, trying not to look at all the mangled corpses surrounding them. Jake was lightly slapping a man when Lee caught up. "I know you''re awake. Stop faking or I''ll start stabbing." His other hand held a knife that was inching closer to the man''s face. Apparently Jake was right, because the man opened his eyes before the blade touched him. He spit out some blood and cursed, "Fuck you!" "First off," Jake said. "You tried to attack my home. I take that personally." The man stiffened, eyes locked on the knife still hovering above his face. "You will most likely die right here. The only question is how. It can be quick and easy, or I can make you beg for it to end." Jake waited for the man to respond, but he didn''t do or say anything as his eyes jumped wildly between the knife, Lee, and Jake. "The easy way involves you telling me exactly what I want to know without lying. The hard way is... well, you get it." "I didn''t want to do..." "Nuh, uh." Jake tapped the knife tip on the man''s cheek. "You can beg later. Tell me the plan." "We... no, they! They wanted to find useful people! With good classes and skills! I wanted no..." "What about the less useful ones, then?" Jake tapped him again. "What about the women? Say, little asian girls? Or the children?" The man flinched and licked his lips. "I¡¯d never hurt a kid!¡± ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± Jake said. ¡°I like it when people are honest. Now how about the women?¡± ¡°The women... uh, they... But I never..." Jake clicked his tongue. ¡°I told you not to lie.¡± Then he shook his head before looking up at Lee where he stood watching the display. "Satisfied? I could wring more out of him... but I think we got enough." Lee still felt sick... but he nodded. They''d needed to die. Some of them, at least. Enough of them, hopefully¡­ But they didn''t have to fight everyone fucking solo... "Then kill him." Jake rose, leaving the man staring up at them. "Wait! I told you..." Jake put his boot over the man''s mouth and shook his head. "You can kill him..." Lee backed up a step. Jake stared him down and made no move to kill the man. "You hesitated. In a life and death battle where people were trying to kill you, you hesitated and risked both our lives." "I... I fought¡­ killed... people. I killed them..." Lee felt sick just remembering. He''d killed people in the fight... he wasn''t even sure how many... Jake didn''t relent. "Then kill one more." "Why are you doing this? I thought we were... maybe not friends, but at least allies." "We are friends. That''s why I''m helping you with this." The man on the ground was crying now, and Lee''s stomach was twisting into knots. "Just kill him! I don''t need..." "You''re driven," Jake cut him off. "Maybe the most driven person here. But that won''t be enough. You need to be strong. You will need to make hard choices and hard calls. What will you do if I let this man go?" The man squirmed and tried to yell under his boot, but Jake didn''t let up. "He could promise never to come back. Then he could go out there and level until he''s strong enough to come back and kill you and everyone you care about. Are you willing to leave an enemy at your back? To risk everything because you''re squeamish?" Jake held Lee''s gaze and then added, "Fine, let''s make this easy. If you don''t kill him, I will let him go. I''m not worried about him coming after me. Are you?" Lee couldn''t move as he stared at the squirming man on the ground. Jake was a psycho... why did he have to do this? "What of your brother?" Jake went low. "What if your mercy here costs your brother his life instead?" His hand was sweating on the hilt of his sword as Lee glared at the hunter. "You''re a bastard." "I''m realistic. Wake up, Lee. You''ve said it yourself. The strong rule and the weak die. You want to rule, then make the call." Lee stalked forward, thoughts of Stanley filling his head as he raised the blade. Muffled cries and wails came from beneath Jake''s boot, and the man''s arms flailed as he tried and failed to dislodge the man. His legs didn''t move... and Lee wondered if the arrow in his gut had hit the spine. Had Jake done it on purpose? Then he stabbed down into the man''s chest... and almost fell when his blade sliced through as easily as all the others. The man twitched once as Jake stepped back, and his eyes locked onto Lee''s as the light behind them faded. "Fuck you..." Lee cursed Jake, then turned away and vomited. Of course, nothing but bile emerged as he gagged and heaved. "I like you," Jake said behind him. "You have what it takes. You got it in spades. The only thing you''re lacking is that killing edge... and you will need it. Because animals like this will have it, and they won''t hesitate." Lee wanted to leave. He didn''t want to hear any of this, didn''t want to see the results of his actions up close. But he didn''t leave. Instead, he wiped his mouth and turned back to retrieve his blade, still impaled inside the dead man. He forced himself to look at the blank face. Forced himself to pull the blade free and stand straight as he stared back at Jake. "Thank... you," Lee ground out through clenched teeth. "Never become my enemy, Jake. Because I won''t hesitate." Jake''s mouth split into a wide grin, teeth flashing in the moonlight while his glowing green eyes blazed with light. "I wouldn''t have it any other way." Lee held the man''s gaze as he studied him. He could see the readiness of the man''s posture. The way his hands hovered close to but not quite touching his weapons. Jake was absolutely ready to throw down if Lee tried anything. In fact, Lee guessed the lunatic would enjoy it. "Split the cores?" "Hell no!" Jake exclaimed, his expression shifting to shocked horror. "You get what you kill! You know that." Lee shook his head and bent again to grab the core next to the dead man''s head. He swallowed back more bile and stood. Thunderous Strike (Rare) Imbue your fist with Sonic power. Strike with thunderous impact... Lee didn''t want it. Maybe if it worked on a weapon instead. He didn''t take the stats either. It would be worth more to trade. I won''t be weak, Stan. Come home and I''ll have a damn fortress waiting for you. Maybe an army as well... He grabbed the man''s sword and then eyed the leather armor. It hadn''t stopped his blade, but then nothing ever did. "Leave it," Jake said. "Alejandro''s coming with his guard. Let them strip the dead. Might even be good for them..." So Lee left it and went to gather his cores. They argued a few times about who got what, and Lee brought up all the spells he''d protected Jake from. Jake surprised him by actually giving up two of his cores. "I figured it was you. Just wanted to make sure," he said with a grin. Unfortunately, the night wasn''t over. Alejandro, after hearing what happened, wanted to mount an immediate assault on the source of the attack. Not to remove any further threat, but to rescue the people they''d likely already captured. It seemed obvious once he pointed it out. Of course, the bastards had probably done this to other groups before. 36. Are We The Hunters? Or Are We The Prey? ~~~Lee~~~ The prospect of hunting more humans was not at all what Lee wanted to do. He even argued with himself about whether he should care or risk his life for more strangers. Stanley needed him to stay alive. This was an unnecessary risk. "How are you, Lee?" Alejandro''s voice lacked his usual enthusiasm, and his hand alighted gently on Lee''s shoulder. "You did a good thing here. Remember that. You protected us, and that''s all that matters." Lee nodded. "We''re going after the rest of them, but you''ve done enough for..." "I''m in," Lee interrupted. Alejandro was a fool if he thought Lee would leave him alone for the coming fight. Not only had the man saved his life more than once, but Maria might kill him if Alejandro didn''t come back... More than a few of the guards were not up to the challenge, with most of those even hesitant to strip the dead bodies before them. Alejandro didn''t complain or force the issue, only taking those that were willing when they set out. Time was of the essence, and they needed to reach the other camp before anyone started wondering where their dead fellows were. Before they set off, Lee had one more thing to do. He went through the cores and set aside one skill for himself. The rest he passed around to those willing to join the expedition. Not for free, but they got first dibs, and Lee was willing to wait for payment until they returned. Jake did the same with his share, and Lee finally got to see the other skills that had dropped, though he was fairly certain the man had held a few back as well. There was a risk that he wouldn''t get paid if they died on the trip... but he could always take the cores they dropped... Almost everyone absorbed a skill then and there, including Saira, then they headed into the night. Lee was curious which skill she''d chosen, but his mind was still in turmoil and he didn''t feel like asking. The trip was uneventful, with so many of the monsters now hiding in lairs, and with Jake spotting and killing any that approached. It was only when they neared the target location that things changed, and not in a small way. You have been conscripted into the Minor Dungeon: [Howling Swarm] Invaders are coming. Prepare your defenses. Fight. That was new. "Anyone know what that means?" Lee asked the suddenly frozen group, though he had a bad feeling¡­ No one had seen it before. "Do we fall back?" Alejandro whispered. "That''s no longer an option," Jake said, walking a few paces back the way they''d come. He stretched his hand out as he walked, as if expecting to run into an invisible wall. Which he did, only it wasn''t invisible. The blue wall shimmered into view as he approached until he stopped with a hand resting on its surface. Lee followed, and after only a few steps, saw something he''d never seen before. His Mana Mind was no longer a sphere. He could see the glowing wall, layered with more mana than anything to date, but nothing seemed to exist beyond. He could see the world past the barrier, but his Mana Mind said the world ended at that line. Then he touched it. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross the perimeter until all Invaders or defenders are defeated. The message left him frozen. Not because they''d just gotten trapped by it, but because of what its existence meant. Stanley¡­ are you trapped in one of these? It made so much sense now. The reason Stanley felt no closer than he had since this started. How he was nearly dying over and over. He literally couldn''t come back! Then the reality of the situation settled in. They were now also trapped in the same thing. Though the message was pretty clear on how to get out. They just needed to defeat the invaders. The small issue of how long Stanley had remained trapped didn''t inspire confidence in their own chances, but he couldn''t have asked for a better bunch at his back. The next question was what did they do about the humans they''d come here to hunt down? They might actually need them if these invaders were very strong, assuming it worked the same way as the Lair Trial... which seemed plausible. That was the ongoing discussion Lee was missing as he grappled with the new revelations about Stanley. "We don''t know if there are innocents in there, so can''t just leave them to their fate," Alejandro said. "And depending on how dangerous the monsters are, we might need whatever fortifications they have to defend ourselves." Jake chimed in. "So you want to put armed and known killers at our backs while we fight against an unknown threat? Assuming they let us in and we don''t end up fighting on two fronts. I say we hide out until whatever it is shows up, then attack the monsters from the rear. Or sneak into the human''s base if they''re winning already." Lee liked that plan. "I''m with¡­" He trailed off when a point of light appeared in the distance. The point extended upward into a straight line, then the line split and spread apart into a square, then a rectangle, then further. It was still expanding across the ground when the dark shapes began swarming into view from within the bright outline. Time''s up. "That is¡­ a lot," Saira whispered after they all crouched lower in the scrub. It was a lot, and they were still coming. "I won''t leave them to die," Alejandro said, half rising as if to charge the still unknown monsters. "Wait for the attack," Jake told him. "We strike the back lines and it will take pressure off the defenders. You can''t help anyone if you''re dead." Lee could see his hand clenching on the sword hilt, but Alejandro didn''t charge off like a crazy person. Not yet. Not this time... Jake didn''t wait for him to take the lead, and started issuing orders to the guard members that''d come along, setting up a formation and getting them into place. Saira went into the center, Mar at her back and carrying a few bundles of bushes for emergency healing. Bundles that vanished with her... Lee took point with Alejandro right as the last monster ran through the wide¡­ portal? That was the only way to describe what they were seeing. Even if it felt wrong that it had corners and was far too wide. If he could only get close enough... what would his Mana Mind see in there? Then it vanished in a reverse of how it had appeared. The last monster stood out from the others, by dint of being much larger and not blindly charging ahead like the rest of its fellows. "I call dibs on that one," Jake whispered. No one objected. What they could see in the moonlight wasn''t pleasant. Lee wanted to say lizard¡­ or reptile. Moon light glinted off their bodies in a way that made him think of scales. While most of them ran low to the ground, and fast too, they would occasionally stop and stand upright, as if getting a good look around. The last one had to reach ten feet high when it did the same. Oh, and they were really fast. It seemed that they went unnoticed because the monsters all headed for the same gymnasium Lee had seen the other group of humans emerge from earlier that day. How they knew to go there, he did not know. Though it could have been the faint light shining through the high windows... They eventually had to run when the monsters rapidly outpaced them. Jake took the lead, but stayed out to the side. He waited until they reached the building with bursts of light, screams, and loud... howls. The lizards howled¡­ Jake led the attack with his signature exploding arrow. Targeted directly at the big one. He missed. Or rather, the monster dodged, and the arrow flew past to explode in the ranks of its army. So it wasn''t a total loss. The fleeting light cast over the monster also confirmed Lee''s earlier guess of them being reptilian. He couldn''t tell the actual color in the blue light, but it was definitely lizard-like as its head swiveled to the new threat. Instead of charging them, it ran away. Ducking low and straight into the mob of its smaller fellows. Meanwhile, the entire back line of the horde did the opposite and charged toward Lee and company. Lee could see the leader''s head popping up repeatedly from within the horde, and he could have sworn it was looking right at him. He didn''t have time to consider that though, because more and more of the mob was turning on them. Even Alejandro didn''t keep charging into the growing swarm. "Fall back!" Now Lee found himself at the rear of their group as they all sprinted away while Jake and another of their group peppered the attackers with arrows and bolts of ice. Both attacks blew holes in the lines, but otherwise did little more than illuminate just how many monsters were chasing them. It was starting to feel like the entire force had bailed on the building in favor of hunting them down. The way he kept spotting the leader''s head popping up, always brief enough to dodge Jake''s arrows, gave Lee a bad feeling. He tested his suspicions by abruptly veering away from the others. Every monster turned in a straight line with his new route. He turned further, and they followed again. Lee thought about all the times it felt like he was singled out. How monsters seemed drawn to him. He always assumed it was the Mana Well, but that theory didn''t quite track out here. It also meant he was fucked. There was no way to survive this swarm if they all wanted to eat him and only him. Even Alejandro and Jake wouldn''t be enough, assuming they didn''t get overrun in the process. The monsters were still catching up, too. Alejandro yelled for the others to follow Lee''s route, and Lee stopped him. "Run the other way! They''re after me!" "You can''t possibly¡­" "Get to the base," Lee yelled. "Deal with them. I have a plan!" He did too. A plan that primarily hinged on the skill shard he''d kept earlier. Skill Shard[F-Grade] Fire Ball (Uncommon) Launch a Fire Ball that explodes on impact. Range of explosion and damage based on Intelligence and Skill Level. Skill Level Effects (Novice) This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. +1% Effective Intelligence -1% Mana Cost Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A](Adaptable) Fire Aspect Mana [Requirement Not Met][N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require -50% Adaptation and may alter your Class Affinity. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require -1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Adapt Skill: Y/N? Obviously, he would not adapt to the skill, but he wanted a ranged option and decided that it might be worth the -1% Adaptation to see what happened. He''d talked to others who already tried both options. Best case, he''d gain a new powerful ranged spell, and worst case, he''d waste the 1% and end up with a useless skill. If that happened... he would have to use Liquid Mana Blast again. Mental fingers crossed, Lee accepted the second option. -1% Adaptable Adapting Skill: Fire Ball Liquid Mana Detected. No Fire Aspect Detected. Skill Adaptation Successful. New Non-Class Skill Learned: (2/3) Liquid Mana-Flame Inferno (Epic) User unleashes a raging inferno of Liquid Mana-Flame with the user at the center. Effect will expand in every direction until all Liquid Mana has been depleted. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Mind Attributes +1% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity It wasn¡¯t quite what he¡¯d hoped for, but about what he¡¯d feared. He hadn''t forgotten the line in his class description that mentioned ''highly volatile Liquid Mana'' and how it had to be contained with his soul. Just like his mana blast, this new skill didn''t use his soul. Though the new skill might actually be better in this situation. Especially if he could dump enough mana before casting it. Which he''d already started doing by sawing his blade against his shield. The runes on both items fought each other and drained their charge in the process. Lee dumped mana into both and kept at it. He still had some time until the monsters caught up, and he could run full speed until his hunger grew too high. He would need every second to drain his mana if the new skill worked as he expected it to. Which was exactly the same as his Liquid Mana Blast. Mercifully, Alejandro did as asked, leading the rest of the group in a looping turn away from the monsters and back toward the gymnasium. Well, most of the group. "Does your plan involve the skill you held onto earlier?" Jake asked, keeping pace beside him easily. Nosy ass hunter¡­ but he might be useful. "It does. Don''t suppose you can carry me faster than this?" "Not enough to matter." Jake leaped forward, spinning while in midair and sending an exploding arrow into the pack behind them. "Few seconds is the best I can buy you¡­ so what''s the plan? And why are you dumping mana¡­ Oh." He laughed. "This is going to be good, isn''t it?" How the man knew he was dumping mana¡­ "I think it will work, but I wouldn''t mind you pulling my ass out of the fire if it doesn''t." Maybe a literal fire... considering the skill description. "I can''t wait to see this!" "Just run when I tell you to," Lee said. "In fact, you should run." Jake grinned and bounded away while sending another shot into the swarm. Lee sawed faster. His mana dropped below the halfway mark. He ran as long as he could, draining mana with every step and cursing his increased pool with every other step. He ran until the monsters were nipping at his heels. Then he slid to a stop as monster claws and jaws loomed, and triggered the skill. It wasn''t exactly like his mana blast. The skill knowledge he''d gained upon learning the skill was enough to tell him that. It and the actual skill description told him what to expect, but he was wrong. He knew it would spread out in every direction, but unlike what he''d imagined and the skill description implied, it didn''t roll out in a steady wave. It exploded out in a single fiery burst of heat, light, and pain. One second monsters were bearing down on him, and the next a sea of blue fire had engulfed the area and turned them to ashes. All of them. As far as he could see. Which admittedly wasn''t far; the flames were too bright and even the sky glowed with ascending fire. Also, the pain. He had a moment where he worried that he himself had been caught up in the blast, with how badly it burned. Debuff: [Mana Burn] Or it might have been that. Either way, it was over in that same instant. His mana was empty, and it felt¡­ Well, it was hard to nail down the sensation with his entire body burning from the mana, but it wasn''t a good feeling. He found himself on his knees amid the brilliant field of blue. It took a moment to recognize that part of the strange feeling was his lack of Mana Mind. Or rather, the complete lack of range. All he could see was his own head¡­ though it was spreading slowly outward. He also remembered that the skill would punish him for low mana... but it was regenerating. "Fucking fantastic," Jake''s voice came from beside him and Lee lifted his head enough to look at the other man. "And you''re not even unconscious!" "Did¡­ did I get them all?" Lee asked, struggling to his feet. "Yep. Stole my dibs, too." "Snooze, you lose." Lee took a step into the blue, and Jake stopped him. "Might want to wait a sec. Singed my feet on the way in. Don''t worry. I checked on Alejandro while you blew everything up. He can handle what''s left." Lee chose to believe him and fell on his ass in the tiny patch of unscorched ground below his feet. Invaders Defeated. Victory! Contributions Earned. Distributing Rewards. Minor Dungeon Area Protected from Invasion(71:59:59) For achieving the highest contributions, you receive: [Minor Dungeon Key] A glowing old school looking key appeared in front of him and fell into his lap. As good a sign of success as he could ask for. So Lee took the reprieve to check what he was most worried about. [Mana Burn](23:59:15) It wasn''t ideal, but so much better than he''d feared. The good news helped him ignore the burn as he climbed to his feet. "I''m good. Let''s catch up." Jake laughed again. "Fine, fine. But I want to know what the fuck is up with your new skill. The only skill shard I saw even close to that was fireball, and that was not a fireball." "You know what? Sure." Lee started jogging. "I told you about the Mana Well, right?" Jake nodded. "What I didn''t mention is that it''s actually a Liquid Mana Well..." He explained what he knew as they walked and then jogged through the scorched field of death, including his newest observations about its volatility. His information was limited, both by the fact that everything was new to everyone right now, and because he couldn''t actually compare it to normal mana. Since he''d never used it. Along the way, Lee collected his cores from the ashes, the only thing not destroyed by his skill. Jake took it all in stride. Even contemplating on what different skills might turn into if Lee absorbed them. As for the dungeon key; he''d seen it before. "I got one from the lair fight and just took the stats." Lee had seen the notification when he touched the key, and he checked it again. Minor Dungeon Key(F-grade) Effects: May open a Minor Dungeon Gate to a random Dungeon World of equal grade to User or Key. Whichever is lowest. Consume Key to create Outpost. Consume Key to Upgrade Sapient Lair or Outpost into Fort. Consume Key to gain +20 All Base Attributes. "You could have mentioned the other options..." Lee grumbled. "I bet you could have traded it... maybe even for more stats than it offered." "Too much work. Besides, the stats are worth a lot more when you get closer to E-grade. It would have been way more cores than you think. At least double, if not more. I highly recommend you hang onto that until at least after you have all your attributes past fifty. Or ideally, wait until you''re at seventy-nine." "E-grade?" Lee stared at the man, both with his eyes and Mana Mind. "You''re not..." He felt like he would have noticed something if that was the case. "It''s the hundred mark," Jake said, not seeming at all concerned with sharing the information. "It''s also not as easy to reach as F-grade. I''m stuck at ninety-nine across the board." "What are you talking about?" "Cores start giving you fewer attributes after you pass the fifty point threshold. Something you should know by now... Hell, if my estimates are right, you should be capped out as well." "Yea, yea. You obviously know that I''m not getting the full stats. It''s part of how I regenerate so fast." Lee had told the other man so much already, might as well let him in on this too. "Figured." Jake nodded. "That shit is broken. I''m honestly a little jealous." "It''s a trait," Lee added. Just in case the guy was jealous enough to kill. "I''d assumed." Jake laughed. "Did you think I would kill you if it was a skill you might drop?" "Seriously? I would consider it if I was in your shoes." Jake smiled wider. "I knew you weren''t as dumb as you looked." Then his smile turned sinister. "What if Alejandro had the skill? Or Maria? Or one of the kids?" "I wouldn''t kill a kid!" "But their parents are fair game?" "I didn''t say that..." Lee thought about it, though. Would he actually do that to someone? It was a powerful ability... probably the main reason he was still alive. But to kill a friend over it... and not even have a guarantee of getting the skill? "No, I wouldn''t do it. Better to keep them... close." Of course, that only opened up a new line of thought about loyalty and friends... Jake was nodding as if he''d read his mind. "Keep that hamster running in there and you just might survive long enough to find out who your real friends are." "Ha. Ha." "I wouldn''t worry about Alejandro," Jake said, chuckling. "He''s got as much subtlety as a brick to the face." "How very kind of you..." Lee held up the key after a moment of thought. "You want it?" While Jake wasn''t the most loyal or committed ally he had, he was still an ally. Having him at E-grade would undoubtedly make everyone safer. Just how much stronger would he become... "You stick around until I hit E-grade, and it''s yours." Jake shot down his daydream of safety. "Won''t work. I need E-grade cores to go any further." That was... bad news. Lee said as much. "It is kinda fucked up," Jake agreed. "Even the damn hawk was only F-grade." "So you''re just stuck? What''s the point of hunting anymore?" And how bad would it get for him once he was nearing the cap? Would he need a hundred cores for one point? "Skills can still level up, so it''s not a total waste. It''s also why I''ve been roaming further away. The untouched lairs out there are growing faster. Some are even spilling back out into the world. From what I''ve seen, the lair monsters don''t need cores to level and I''m guessing only a few more days before we get some E-grades appearing. Probably won''t be long after that until Earth becomes an E-grade dungeon as well." Lee shivered. He wasn''t looking forward to that... though how much easier would it be to raise his attributes if he had E-grade cores? Or would it even be better? The F-grades hadn''t changed in value when he was Ungraded... Though if they needed them to grade up, then they had to be better, right? The whole thing would depend on just how dangerous E-grades were... The other pressing issue was if the key would give him the attributes straight up or if his trait would take nine-tenths off the top. Even if it didn''t, should he still take the stats? The key didn''t elaborate on what a ''Fort'' was, but it had to be beneficial, right? Any further contemplation was put on hold when they finally reached the rest of their party and found them in a standoff with the enemy forces inside the gymnasium. "For fuck''s sake," Jake muttered upon seeing the situation. "Alejandro''s even worse than you..." He eyed Lee. "Ready to kill them all? I''m almost positive they''ve got prisoners in there who definitely aren''t having a good time." "Almost positive?" Lee eyed him right back. "Nothing in life is certain. But come on! That guy we interrogated was shady as hell and lied to my face about it. Especially when I asked about women and children. He was definitely hiding something fucked up. Sex slaves is my first thought, and that''s definitely happening all over, even if not right here. Now if they brought children into that..." Jake''s tone shifted on that note and his eyes glowed brighter. Lee could feel the murderous vibes from the man and finally understood what he meant by ''killing edge'' earlier. He also felt safer, oddly enough. The hunter was scary, deadly, and didn''t seem to have any issue with killing whoever got in his way. But knowing there were lines even he wouldn''t cross... was reassuring. Jake might be a cold-blooded killer when he felt like it, but he wasn''t a monster¡­ at least, not a bad one. "So, do we go in hot, or make sure first?" Jake grinned again. "Take lead. I bet you''re not keeping that key for yourself. I bet you''re going to make a Fort and try to protect more than just yourself." Lee frowned back. Jake was right. He had been considering the option... and he didn''t like that the other man could read him so well. Or that he was pushing him into another confrontation. "Can''t you just do your Jake thing and terrify them all into surrendering?" "I could... but you got this. Don''t worry, I''ll snoop while you do that. If they''re real scum, you''ll hear the screams." The last thing Lee saw was Jake''s grin as the man faded into the darkness. "I hate you," Lee said under his breath before heading toward the shouting voices. Why did he have to deal with people? Monsters were so much easier... 37. Judge Me Now ~~~Lee~~~ Lee never liked confrontation. It always left him anxious and twitchy. Now Jake was forcing him into it. Maybe Alejandro could handle this... though it wasn''t looking good. "One more step and we start blasting!" A man yelled right as Lee stepped into the circle of dim light and within sight of the front doors. The actual doors were missing from the wide opening into the gymnasium, but they''d built a barricade in the gap. What looked like stacked logs covered most of the doorway, leaving two small windows through which he could see heads peeking. A hand thrust through one opening, fire blooming around it. Lee''s mana was regenerating, but his Mana Mind range was nowhere near where he wanted it if a fight was going to break out. So he tested pulling the mana from the surrounding air while leaping forward. It worked in that his mana went up slightly faster, but the pain from his channels was... excessive. It also lit up the already glowing veins in the back of his hands with an eye-watering intensity. He had noticed the glow earlier and assumed it was from the Mana Burn, like last time. His next thought was if he''d just increased the debuff timer with that little stunt. Unfortunately, he didn''t have time to check before the idiot behind the barricade threw the fire in his hand toward Alejandro''s group. Lee was close enough, and he shredded the spell before it landed. That hurt too. Which meant he was extra pissed when his Mana Mind reached the barricade and showed him the hidden doorway. Silence fell after the man''s spell fizzled in midair. Alejandro broke it. "Lee, I saw the notification... and the explosion! Are you... okay?" Lee glared straight at the wide-eyed man peeking out of the narrow gap. The man who''d just thrown a spell at them. "It was nothing." He didn''t know what his current state looked like, but was positive his eyes were glowing at the least. He pulled a bit more mana in to make his veins glow brighter and growled, "Should I nuke this place, too?" Jake thought it was a good idea to force a confrontation on him, and Lee had chosen his tactic. They had to have seen his Mana-Flame Inferno; the explosion had been massive in every direction. Why not lean into that? It seemed to be a good choice because the man inside the building backed up a step while yelling, "That was... you!?" "Yes." Lee took another step closer and saw mana fly from the one other person visible behind the barricade. It was something new. An attack he''d never seen before... He figured it out a moment later when the mana stopped its forward movement just past the logs and instead spread out into a rapidly forming bubble over the doorway. It was a shield. Lee acted before it was too late. He could see the mana locking into a grid-like lattice he suspected would act similar to the dungeon wall by blocking his senses. So he pulled the threads away before it could finish the spell and the entire thing collapsed. The burning sensation was much worse, and Lee knew that this time he had definitely added to the debuff timer. He stumbled and almost fell, but turned the motion into another step as he glared at the man inside. The man who was looking even more worried after his shield failed. "Don''t come any closer! W... we have an army! They''ll be back any minute, and if they find you..." "An army?" Lee growled, taking another step. "You mean that little group of thugs that left an hour ago? The ones who went to invade my home?" "Y... you... what? They..." "They''re dead," Lee said with a final step that brought him into melee range of the barricade. "They came to murder and abduct, so we killed them. Is that the army you''re talking about? Are you one of them?" Lee drew his sword as he set his feet into the proper stance and waited for their reaction. He didn''t have to wait long. "You... kill them!" What followed his screaming order was¡­ a whole lot of nothing. He threw another fire spell, which Lee disassembled, and no one else attacked. Lee didn''t know how many more were inside, and it didn''t really matter. He struck with his sword and the blade chopped through the narrow gap in the logs, the extended range of the rune reaching even further to cut the crossbeam holding the door shut. Then he kicked it open. It was always satisfying to see how much stronger he was than any human before the system. The door crashed open under his power, and then he got a look deeper inside as Alejandro came up behind him. Lee didn''t bother to attack either of the two men behind the door. Instead, simply side-stepping and letting Alejandro deliver a nice shield slam to the fire-slinger''s face. One of the Guards went after the second defender, but the man fell to his knees on his approach. "I surrender! Please don''t kill me!" More shouts and screams resounded from deeper in the building, but Lee let the others deal with it while he closed his eyes and tried to deal with the fire flowing through his veins. Mana Mind would tell him if any magic came their way, and this group shouldn''t have a problem with anything short of powerful magic. Between the enchanted gear and Saira to provide healing, they should be unstoppable. [Mana Burn](28:51:53) It did indeed go up. Four additional hours where he wouldn''t be able to use mana. The increase felt disproportionate to the trickle of mana used. But then the debuff warned against further mana use. It was Jake''s voice that brought his eyes open again. "Not as bad as I expected," the hunter said while tossing a bloodied figure at Alejandro''s feet. "But it''s not good." Another of the Guard quickly tied the man with what looked like ordinary rope. Then he touched it and the bindings lit up with yellow light. Neat. The interior of the gymnasium was mostly open space, but the far end held doorways leading to enclosed areas. Jake had come from one of them, and a new crowd followed him out. A crowd of women... dozens of them, along with a few children. In the flickering firelight inside the building, Lee couldn''t see clearly enough to spot injuries on the group, but since Jake wasn''t murdering everyone in sight, it must not be too bad. Lee let the others deal with rounding up the prisoners. Not the recently freed prisoners with Jake, but the people who''d held them captive. Why they were capturing and not executing, he didn''t know, but he had a bad feeling where it would lead. They found just shy of a dozen people, all men, in charge of guarding the place while their ''army'' was away. Jake lined them up and then asked the former prisoners who among their oppressors deserved to die. It was a... decent solution to proving guilt. That is until the first woman stepped forward, pointing. "That bastard! Kill him!" So of course, Jake offered her a knife. "He''s all yours." The woman''s clear rage faltered as she stared at the proffered blade. "I..." Another woman snatched the blade. "I''ll kill him!" She didn''t hesitate, even when Alejandro tried to intervene. Jake got between them and let the woman make the trip unimpeded. Whereupon she started stabbing the bound man. She didn''t make it quick. Stabbing him in the gut while he first begged for mercy and then continued stabbing while he screamed in pain. It took a horrifyingly long time before silence once again filled the gymnasium. Jake approached her and the gasping woman flinched when she suddenly noticed him next to her. She hesitated and then clutched the bloody blade close. "I won''t..." "Keep it," Jake said, and held out the sheath he''d removed from his belt. "You earned it." She stared blankly at the sheath for a long moment before reaching for it. Jake pulled it back slightly and said, "Just clean off the blood before you put it away." She nodded and Jake pointed at Lee. "Take it to that guy later and he''ll enchant it for you. My treat." Lee managed a nod himself when she looked his way. The whole experience made him feel sick, but he didn''t protest. He couldn''t imagine what they''d been through here, didn''t want to imagine. If they wanted a little revenge, who was he to say no? He wished they would at least take the children away¡­ though it looked like Alejandro already did what he could on that front by getting the kids further away and out of sight of the prisoners after giving up on stopping Jake. Jake took the dead man''s core and handed it off to the woman. "Your kill, your core." Then he repeated the process with all the captured men, though only two other women did the deed themselves. The first broke down sobbing afterward and left the knife sticking from the dead man''s throat. The second took that knife and used it on three more of them, one after the other. She only stood there afterward, blood dripping from her hands and chest heaving. She didn¡¯t do anything until Jake approached. Then she tried to stab him. Jake avoided the attack with no apparent effort, smiling all the while. "Yes, hold onto that feeling. Let it propel you to power." "Fuck you!" the woman screamed, then tried to stab him again. "They passed me around! As a fucking reward!" "Now they¡¯re dead and you¡¯re still alive." Jake dodged her attack and held out another sheath. "Are you going to cry about it or get strong enough that it can¡¯t happen again?" She stared at him for a long time before taking it. Jake executed the rest of the accused. The accusations levied against them erased any sympathy from the people watching the executions. Lee included. He would even have done the deed himself. If he had to. Of course, many of the women only spoke Spanish, and Lee vowed to work on his own lacking understanding while watching Jake converse easily with them. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Surprisingly, they still had five living captives that no one accused when it was over. Well, one woman did. "They all attacked..." "I know you''re lying," Jake cut her off. "Don''t." The woman wilted under his stare. "Yes... but they still deserve to die! They were here, and they did nothing to help any of us!" "Maybe," Jake said with a shrug. "Just don''t lie to me." That set off more protests from the captured men. Including one cry of, "I was just following orders! I didn''t have a choice! They would have killed me!" Jake didn''t like that excuse at all and stalked toward the man. "Seriously? Just following orders? That''s your..." Lee was sure he would kill the guy, but Jake stopped and turned to look directly at him, a smile on his lips. No, don''t... "Lee," Jake said. "You''re in charge, right? So you can decide their fate." God damn you! Lee silently cursed the man. How was he supposed to judge them? Especially when he didn''t know if he would have done any differently? Sure, it was easy to say you would stand up against evil. But if it came down to obedience or death, would he have died? Just like that? He''d turned away from people that needed help... Hell, he only let Alejandro in because he thought the guy was useful... and maybe to steal his machete... Though the kids had affected his choice... "Well?" Jake asked. So many staring gazes drilling into him wherever he looked... Lee shut his eyes and struggled with the decision. These men hadn''t technically done anything... which was also the problem. Could he require them to serve his future fort? That one guy seemed to enjoy following orders... but would he be able to trust them? He couldn''t throw them in jail... it was capital punishment or nothing now. He opened his eyes and looked at Alejandro. "Thoughts?" Leaders always had help, right? He didn''t have to decide on his own. The usually bleeding-hearted man shook his head, his own expression grim as he stared at the women and children. As a father and husband, he probably felt no sympathy. Lee slid his gaze to Saira next, where she moved among the former prisoners offering healing. She might also be the authority on something like this... but he didn''t say that as she met his eyes. She also shook her head. That was two votes for execution. It should be an easy call now... but he still felt bad about it. The world had changed drastically, and some people were now just plain fucked. Lee''s class choice would have probably doomed him if not for the trait that kept him from dying repeatedly. What if he''d ended up in a place like this instead of with Alejandro? What if they demanded he make weapons and armor for them to go abduct and murder whoever they wanted? Would he have died to deprive them of his power, or stuck it out in hopes of a better future? "Jake, can you actually tell if someone is lying?" Jake shrugged. "Usually." He looked over the bound men. "Hear that? You lie, you die." Lee ground his teeth against the pain wracking his body and walked to the first man. "Tell me your class and skills." "I''m a Cleaner. My only skill just lets me clean stuff... I''m useless in a fight!" Jake nodded when Lee glanced his way. So the man wasn''t lying... and he was indeed useless. "You knew what they were doing to those women?" The man cast a terrified look toward Jake before nodding his head in a jerking motion. "Y... yes..." "Why not run away? Tell someone else what was happening here?" "T... the... monsters! I would have... died." He wilted at the end and started crying. "Please, I just didn''t want to die!" Now Lee was regretting his choice to talk with them. He should have just killed them... "Did you leave the women alone because you had to, or by choice?" "I... would never..." "Oh, that''s not good," Jake said, drawing his bow. Lee froze while the man protested. Then held up a hand toward Jake to stop him. Why had he even asked that question? Sure, it sounded bad... terrible, even. But wanting to murder someone wasn''t the same as doing it... didn''t that count for rape too? So he moved to the next one. "Tell me." "I... I... I''m a Communicator. I can create a link between people to let them talk to each other at a long distance. But I can''t send messages! I couldn''t call for help, only link with people I can touch!" Already had his excuses ready to go... but aside from that, he was... actually useful. Not in a fight, sure, but as a support, he could be invaluable. "Did you know?" Lee asked. The man only nodded miserably as he stared at the bared blade in Lee''s hand. Lee went on to the next two, both with classes more useless than the previous, both having known what was happening. The last man was the guy who''d tried to make a shield at the door. His partner with the fire hadn''t survived Jake''s culling. "I''m a... Shielder... but it''s not as useful as it sounds! You saw how weak it was!" "Cast your shield," Lee said. "Do it now." He didn''t want to, that much was obvious, but he cast it, even tied up as he was. This time Lee didn''t interfere with the spell as it bloomed around the man in a full dome of yellow light. Rather than hit it with his blade, which he knew would absolutely destroy the spell, Lee punched it. It hurt his knuckles, and the shield held. He hit it again. And again. It took ten punches before the dome fell... Lee wasn''t the best choice for strong blows, but the shield was decent. He probably could have survived a few monster attacks... though from what he''d seen in Mana Mind, the spell latched onto the ground and didn''t follow the man, which meant he''d only become trapped inside the dome until it failed. Then he''d die. "I wanted to help them," the man said unprompted. "I protected one of the girls¡­ once. When Lenard was hurting her¡­ and¡­ he beat her to death and made¡­ me¡­ watch!" He was sobbing when he said, "I never tried to help again¡­" Lee didn''t know what to do. They were just more victims of evil people¡­ He looked over at the clustered women, thinking he should just ask them what they wanted. Maybe a vote? The scared and weary faces sobered him, and Lee felt terrible about what they were doing here. They should have gotten them out of here already. "You are the... survivors here. What do you want done? I can kill them all, or put them to work." Lee was pleasantly surprised when the consensus was to spare the men. Not unanimous, but a majority. He was more and more sure about his plan to build a fort, but he had no plan for building a democratic one. Power ruled the world now, and he wouldn''t bow to the masses if he didn''t have to. Not if they were stupid. But that didn''t mean he wouldn''t listen to reasonable opinions. "Here''s the deal," he said, turning back to the men awaiting his judgment. "You fucked up and let terrible things happen¡­" he trailed off and then said more softly, "But I don''t know that I''d have done any better in your position..." Silence reigned but for the sound of a fire popping, and Lee continued. "If you want to live, then I''m giving you the chance to atone and fight to protect the people you failed." Their eyes protested, but no one dared to speak. The threat of certain death now versus a possible death later was an easy choice to make. "Don''t mistake this for mercy. You will fight or you will die. Hell, you might still die." That was the stick. Now it was time for the carrot. Lee rapped his knuckles on his breastplate. "But you won''t be helpless this time. Our armor and weapons are the best in the world." Sure, it might be a boast, but with his runes, he felt it was a reasonable one, and he got enthusiastic, if not thrilled, nods from all of them. The rest of his allies were not so agreeable. Saira was glaring when he glanced her way, and Alejandro''s expression was only marginally better. The Guards that came along eyed the conscripts with a mixture of distrust and pure hatred. Lee sighed and then ordered the magic rope guy to let them all go. The man made no move to comply, looking at Alejandro instead. "You heard him," Alejandro said and nodded at Lee even while frowning. The sign of trust made Lee feel slightly better, and he hobbled over to the man while they cut the prisoners free. "Should we get out of here already?" He was hurting, tired, and just wanted to go to bed. Alejandro looked at the dark windows near the roof and shook his head. "We should wait for dawn. I don''t feel comfortable protecting this many in the dark." "Shit." Lee moved to find a quiet corner he could lie down in, and Alejandro stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "I trust you, Lee... but are you sure about this?" "If they each save even one life... isn''t that enough?" "Maybe... but it feels... wrong." "I..." Lee cleared his throat. "I almost didn''t let you in on that first night... I was so scared... doesn''t that make me a coward, too?" "But you still opened the door." Alejandro squeezed his shoulder, the frown shifting into a small smile. "You are a good man, Lee, and I will trust you on this. Though I will be watching them..." "I appreciate that... and I need to rest." He lowered his voice. "I burned myself again... no more runes for twenty-eight hours." "Not so bad." Alejandro smiled. "Better than three days, no?" He went to whack Lee on the back, and for once, hesitated before giving him a gentle pat instead. "Rest. We will stand watch." He glanced past Lee and added, "I will talk to Saira..." Alejandro walked away while ordering the prisoners into a windowless room where they would spend the night. Probably something Lee should have considered before cutting them loose¡­ He didn''t make it to a corner before Jake came strolling over. "Isn''t it great to be in charge?" His evil grin belied his words. "Fuck off and go kill stuff." Jake laughed. "You know me so well! Have fun becoming a politician, and remember, you wanted this." "I hate you," Lee groaned and slid down the wall to sit on the floor. "And I''m not a politician." ~~~Jake~~~ Jake spent a few minutes watching the crowd before he left. He was disappointed that so few of the women had stepped up when given the opportunity. Though that one might do well in the future¡­ or not. It was always hard to predict how people would handle traumatic events. Some got stronger and some broke. Sandy was a disappointment¡­ Jake really thought she would rally after almost dying. But instead of a desire for power that would keep that from happening again¡­ now she just wanted to be a crafter. Still, it was her life and her choice. He¡¯d ensured she had that choice, and it was all up to her after that. Freedom to choose. That was all that mattered in the end. Plenty of people wasted their freedom and were willing to give it up if they thought it would make them safer, even though the opposite was almost universally true. That was still their choice. Then there were the scumbags that took away the choice¡­ sick monsters that preyed on people weaker than them¡­ Well, if they wanted to play that game, then Jake would happily play right back. They didn¡¯t have to do any of this. They could have hunted monsters instead of becoming them. They could have challenged themselves and grown stronger. Instead, they wasted all that potential. Even the group that attacked his home was pathetic. They showed no tactics beyond a mob rush. They fought like people who¡¯d only ever ganged up on something weaker than them. Nothing but trash skills on all of them. Between the few people that got lucky with a combat class, and those smart enough to pick one at the start, almost none of them seemed to understand that it was just the first step. Every skill and class could evolve into something more. Something stronger. But you had to fight for it. Jake shook his head as he headed out into the night. It was the same as always. People holding back. Refusing to reach for more because they might fail and lose what little they¡¯d managed to scrape together. Only now, the stakes were immeasurably higher. It wasn¡¯t about promotions and fancy cars anymore. It wasn¡¯t even really about survival. It was about power. Real, tangible power that could and would shape the world. Nothing like the billionaires and owners that used to control the world. The power up for grabs now was the real deal, and those who didn¡¯t grab it when they could¡­ well, they would always be at the mercy of those who did. Power was freedom, and freedom was all that mattered. Jake grinned as he gazed at the artificial hill looming ahead. There was power in there. Power just waiting for someone to take it. 38. Greenfield Rising ~~~Lee~~~ "If a monster gets past you and you aren''t dead or in critical condition, I will kill you myself," Lee said to the five men. "This is the first day of the rest of your life. Don''t fuck it up." It was harsh, and probably unnecessary, but he really didn¡¯t want to have to deal with something down the road. They had only spare knives and a few weapons looted from their old base. No armor and no runes. Still, it was unlikely they would actually face combat. Between Jake and the monsters'' greed for Lee himself, they''d be untouched. Not that they needed to know that. "Nice of you to finally join us," he said to the aforementioned hunter. "I thought we agreed to leave at dawn?" Jake was in a good mood, despite his gear being in tatters and only one of his runed pieces still holding charge. He grinned and gestured Lee away from the others. When they were alone, he said quietly, "I found one. Took longer to run down than I expected." "One what? Oh, a... E-grade?" Lee felt a chill. It was too soon... "Yup. Tough fucker, too." "Wait, are you E-grade now?" Jake shook his head. "Plus ten core, but only strength." He didn''t look all that upset about it. Probably because it was just another excuse to keep hunting. The group was ready and Lee took the front with Jake while he pestered the man with questions about the E-grade monster. Turned out it wasn''t even an animal. Rather, some kind of trash golem, or maybe trash elemental, that had carved a lair out of the landfill. Which explained the smell¡­ It had run away once it started losing, and Jake had to chase it through the maze of tunnels while fighting off a literal army of its F-grade minions. Which were also trash monsters. That it had never fled the lair, even when it had the opportunity, was some comfort. Whether it could not leave or simply didn''t want to, Jake didn''t know. But Lee really didn''t want to run into a random creature out here that was a whole grade above him. He expected his runes would still carry him through, but he hadn''t forgotten the frog. Or the hawk. "Checking in," Alejandro''s voice sounded directly into his ear and Lee jumped. He saw the mana flying in along the thread connecting them, but it came through so fast that the warning was useless. "Nothing to report," Lee said after touching the spell clinging next to his ear. The Communicator had cast his spell on Lee and Alejandro, and he''d been right about having to touch them to do so, at least going by what Lee had seen during the process. Assuming the guy didn''t have more than one skill, and that he was a good enough liar to fool Jake. Either way, it didn''t matter. They would fight or they would die. If they proved themselves enough, he might consider reassigning the more useful ones. But only after talking to the people they''d wronged. Sure, the communication spell was decent, and would likely get even better as it leveled, but more than that, it gave Lee the idea to create his own runic solution. It was something he should have thought about before, and he had a few ideas about how to make it happen. He wasn''t sure if the runes would work like he wanted, and of course, couldn''t test it until tomorrow. Jake stuck with him once they got back, and Lee eyed him while Alejandro handled the newcomers¡ªliberated prisoners and forced conscripts alike. It was good to delegate. As for Jake... "Aren''t you gonna keep looking for E-grades?" "I will, but I''ll admit I''m curious about the whole Fort business. So, are you going to do it?" "Maybe later," Lee said, feeling petty with the hunter. Jake had far too much fun forcing annoying shit onto him... "I''m gonna follow you until you do!" Jake said, grinning and standing entirely too close. "Come on, do it!" "What''s in it for me?" Lee said. "Seems like you really want to see this, but I''m not in a big hurry here... If only there was some way to incentivise me..." Jake brushed an imaginary tear from his eye. "Oh... they grow up so fast!" Then he laughed. "Tell you what, since you told me about your mana, I''ll keep an eye out for skills that might work for it. Good enough?" "I want first dibs on all the skills you find," Lee said. "I''ll need an army to keep this place standing, and you''re too lazy with just absorbing everything." "Deal." Jake grinned. "You realize I can''t absorb any more cores, right? Not even the stats from skill shards." It was Lee''s turn to grin. "You agreed to ''all'' skills. I said nothing about grades of the skills." Jake actually froze for a second, but his grin still grew. "Look at you. My little politician... I''m so proud!" He raised a finger. "It''s a deal, but if I want to learn the actual skill myself..." "Yea, yea. I''m not trying to cripple your growth. Just want you to stop wasting the rest." He wasn''t sure how the process would work, so headed to his apartment before pulling out the key. Sapient Lair detected. Authority sufficient. Consume Key to Upgrade Sapient Lair into Fort? Y/N? Lee accepted, bracing himself. Select Fort Boundaries. What did that mean? Was he supposed to walk around outside? Before doing that, Lee tried to picture the entire apartment complex in his mind, hoping to... Greenfield Village will become Greenfield Fort. Y/N? He could almost see it in his mind... as if a glowing line had outlined the complex... easier than expected. Lee chose yes. Lee Cascade has created Greenfield Fort. Lee Cascade automatically promoted to Fort Commander. You currently have 241 Non-residents occupying your Fort and one contested structure within the perimeter. A new sensation filled Lee''s mind. A sense of... wrongness. He immediately knew it was the non-residents, as well as an even larger feeling where the one building had gotten claimed by the other group during the lair event. Something in the sensations told him he could invite the people to join, so he did, with just a thought. Alejandro Morales has joined Greenfield Fort. The almost instantaneous acceptance from Alejandro was nice, and another followed shortly after. Maria Morales(+2 Child) has joined Greenfield Fort. A few other names Lee didn''t recognize scrolled past, then the five conscripts finally accepted, probably after prompting from Alejandro. He watched more people join, some he knew, some he didn''t, until a name he''d been worried about finally appeared. Saira Singh has joined Greenfield Fort. Mary Singh has joined Greenfield Fort. Her name was actually Mary... at least he assumed that was Mar. He didn''t really care. Lee was just glad they joined. Saira hadn''t spoken to him since the night before, and he was getting tempted to seek her out. She was too valuable to lose, something he hadn''t fully considered the night before. Now, less tired and in slightly less pain, Lee would willingly execute the five conscripts immediately if she insisted. Power ruled, and she had power that was in high demand. The messages tapered off until only twenty people remained as non-residents. Lee could feel them more clearly now, especially since they were all grouped up in the building he didn''t control. Figures. Though there was one other. Jake never joined. "You don''t want to be a part of my empire?" Jake held up a hand, his eyes closed. "There''s something in the magic..." He opened his eyes. "I don''t like it. Feels like something is trying to get in my head." "That''s..." Lee trailed off as his thoughts summoned information he hadn''t known before creating the Fort. "I can give orders... and it will compel obedience..." "Dude..." "It''s not as bad as it sounds¡­ but not¡­ good. I can''t just compel everyone. It has a cooldown¡­ I think it''s to stop fights... or maybe compel the truth?" He could use something like that... Jake was shaking his head. "Sounds shady as hell. Can people leave?" Lee searched his mind again and found the answer. "Yes. But not while we are... at war?" It wasn''t clear and not explained in words, either. More of a sensation, something akin to... conflict. "Don''t turn evil, Lee. I will hunt you down." "You really have so little faith in me?" Jake waffled his hand back and forth. "You know, power corrupts and all that." "Says the most powerful person here?" "I mean, I can''t help it if I''m better than you." Lee rolled his eyes and changed the subject. He''d figure out the whole fort business later. "Did you see the other message? About invasions?" New Fort creation grants bonus protection duration. Protection remaining: (50:56:17) Prepare your defenses. Fight. He''d forgotten the message when they killed the panthers and claimed the sapient lair. After last night, and the terrifying glimpse of what was to come, he wouldn''t forget again. "I saw it. Something to look forward to. Assuming you don''t steal all the kills again..." "So you''ll be here?" "If I don''t find a lair full of E-grades to hunt. Also, it doesn''t say we ''will'' get an invasion, just that we might. I want to see what we get, but I won''t hang out forever waiting." Lee hadn''t thought of that. "Shit. Now I''m kinda hoping we get attacked immediately..." What if he went hunting and his fort got invaded? Would he get trapped outside a barrier like the one last night? "On that note," Jake said, and turned to leave. "See ya." Putting aside the worries he couldn''t do anything about, Lee focused on Alejandro and was pleased but unsurprised to know where he currently was. In the garage, with May. One perk of being in charge. He also knew the conscripts were down there, too. He''d been planning to get them at least some pieces of gear, not only to keep them alive but also to keep track of them in case they fled. Presumably they would want to hang onto such powerful items, and since no one but a select few knew Lee could track his runes, they wouldn''t get away with it. Lee would have preferred to put runes on their bones so they couldn''t ditch the tracking power, but that might be a bit much. For now. If he figured out how to enchant his whole skeleton, there would be volunteers wanting the same treatment. Who would turn down power like that? Just because of a little pain? Well, some would. Some wusses. Alejandro was arguing with May when Lee got downstairs. She wanted to get paid before loaning out more of the pre-enchanted gear. Greedy... but not unreasonable to lookout for herself and Dennis. Her husband being one of the more useless classes around, though to be fair, he had joined the guard despite not needing the free gear. Nevertheless, it was time to change things up. Lee took a deep breath. This would be unpleasant... "May." She ignored him to keep complaining to Alejandro. "I''m renegotiating our deal." That got her attention. "You can''t..." "I can, and I am." She took to step toward him, mouth opening and finger pointing. Lee talked faster. "I want equipment for the Guard, and I want it for free. We provide the materials and whatever else you need, and it doesn''t have to be fancy, just enough that my enchants can do their thing." "Absolutely not!" "The Guard protects you. They protect everyone, and everyone has to contribute." "You get a fancy title and think you can start throwing your weight around? You think I won''t pack up and leave? Or will you imprison me here? Chain me to the forge? Huh!? Just try it!" "Jesus, May! I said nothing like..." "I am a free citizen, a businesswoman, and you want to rob me and..." "Enough!" Lee shouted at the tiny woman. "Don''t you fucking get it!? We''re in a war! This isn''t about your business and your profits. We''re all going to die if we don''t work together, and I''ll be damned if there isn''t a fucking unbreakable fortress waiting here when Stan comes home! You fucking hear me!? I will not let this place fall! No matter what! If I have to hold it up with my bare hands, I fucking will!" May didn''t respond, just stared up at him with her mouth hanging slightly open. Lee was breathing hard and knew his face was probably bright red. He also felt like an idiot for screaming at her... but he wasn''t wrong. He knew he wasn''t wrong. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! "I''m sorry," he finally said into the lingering silence. "I shouldn''t have yelled... but I''m not wrong. Didn''t you see the message? We have two days until something comes for us." He didn''t know that for sure, but despite what Jake said, he had a bad feeling... "I''m not trying to rob you or enslave you. I''m asking for your help. Please help me protect our home. I won''t let you fall behind. I want to be your shield, and all I''m asking is that you do what you can to make the shield stronger." She stared at him for what felt like forever and then smiled. Lee almost flinched. "Bit over the top, but glad to see you''ve got some balls on you." "W... what?" "Shut your trap! You look like an idiot." May waved a hammer in his face. "Of course I''ll help your damn guards. Just wanted to make sure you had what it takes since you''re trying to be in charge here. You''re too timid. Stand up for yourself. Raise your voice! Though... maybe a notch lower than you just did. And your face getting all red kinda ruins the image..." "Um... thanks?" "Take your shit and get out," she said to Alejandro, and then shoved a chunk of metal into the furnace. "And you," she said, rounding on Lee. "What do you know about the cores getting weaker?" Alejandro fled. Lee shook his head and shared what Jake had told him while his face cooled. Why did he ever want to be in charge? This whole place was full of lunatics. "I want first dibs on E-grade cores!" May demanded immediately after his explanation. "No." Lee didn''t know if she was making a real demand or just testing him again. "But I will give you first dibs on anything related to your class." "Of course you will!" "Just let me know what you need," Lee said. "We''re going to set up some kind of... supply chain?" A chain of command? They would need that, and... Lee shook his head as he saw the veritable nightmare he''d just accepted on his shoulders. How was he supposed to do any of this? He didn''t know the first thing about being in charge, much less the minutiae of keeping everything running... and then it hit him. I can delegate! Now who should I... his thoughts jumped to that annoying man who wanted to tax people. He looked like he was begging for work. Now what was his name... Wilson? Just thinking about the man told Lee where he was, which meant he''d joined the Fort. And speak of the devil... he was coming right this way. Dennis stopped him on the way out of the garage with a proffered banana. "You did good. She''s not as scary as she looks, and personally, I thought the red face added a touch of emotional impact to your speech." "Thanks..." Lee said and took the banana. He was hungry... "It wasn''t a speech..." He would build something here for when Stanley came home. Something strong... something unbreakable... He knew Stanley had to be trapped now. It was the only explanation. Even if he ran across the country, he wouldn''t be able to help with a dungeon wall in the way. What he could do was build something here. Create a haven. Somewhere Stanley could rest when his fight was won... because he would win. He had to win! He wouldn''t fight alone, either. After nearly getting dragged to his death by Stanley, and more than once at that, Lee had an even more ambitious plan. He would become immortal. It was the only thing he could think of to help Stanley. If he bound himself with enough runes... If he refused to die... then maybe he could force Stanley to keep living when... no, not when. If. It had to be possible! He would make the runes work! A hand squeezed his shoulder, and Lee blinked. Dennis still stood before him. "You''re not alone, Lee. We''re in this together." "I have to go." Lee pulled free and turned away as he blinked moisture from his eyes. Dennis didn''t know what it was like. He hadn''t felt his twin dying. Hadn''t felt the pain as if it was his own flesh... hadn''t teetered on the edge of the abyss... a breath from falling in. Lee wiped his eyes with clenched fists as he walked up the ramp to the street. He needed to improve his runes for the plan to work, and he couldn''t do that today. Better to focus on what he could do now. He reached the street right before Wilson came around the corner. "Ah! Oh... Mr Cascade, just the man I was looking for." He recovered quickly from the surprise and smiled that same politician smile Lee remembered. "First of all, congratulations on the Fort. Very impressive. Now, about..." "You''re hired," Lee cut him off. "Pardon?" "You wanted to bring this place together, well that''s what I''m doing, and I want your help." "I... well... yes?" The guy seemed flustered. Lee assumed he''d come after him for this very reason. "You wanted this, right?" "Yes..." "I need to know what we have. Classes, skills, resources. Everything we know about our surrounding area. Lairs, types of monsters, that sort of thing. How''s the wall coming along?" He could see what looked like Bradley''s stone blocks, bigger than he remembered, and stacked a couple feet high where the fence used to stand. "I... I can do that," Wilson finally said. "But... I will need some authority. My class lit up when you created the fort, but I do not have the permission to pull info on our residents." Lee thought about it, and the information was waiting in his mind. Wilson Chambers promoted: Quartermaster "Does that work?" Lee asked, and while he was at it, added another promotion. Alejandro Morales Promoted: General "I..." Wilson''s eyes were unfocused and darting back and forth as he read something only he could see. "That should suffice. Though I can see we have several ranked positions that should be filled. I would need a higher position myself to make those appointments..." "I see them," Lee said. "Let''s get things started and I''ll figure those out later." "Well... my Administrator class will make this easier, but I would benefit from some assistants." "Then that''s your first task. I''m gonna go see why our holdouts aren''t joining the fort." Maybe he just needed to scream at them? Lee could feel more than a few of his runes in the problem building, but wanted to avoid using them as a bargaining chip unless he had to. The fewer people he had to threaten into compliance, the better. Wilson mumbled something as he headed off and Lee went in his own direction. Alejandro found him before he made it to his destination. "Commander," he said seriously and then saluted before breaking into a wide grin. "General," Lee said. "How are the troops?" Alejandro sighed. "They are young, frightened, and not fighters, but they will grow." Not exactly what he''d wanted to hear, but better than nothing. "I have spoken with Saira," Alejandro said. "She wishes to speak with you as well, but before that... there is another issue I wanted to ask you about." He looked... worried. "What is it?" "Have you heard Silva and Alia''s story?" "Who?" "The women we rescued last night..." Lee rubbed his face. "I''m sorry. I don''t think I learned any of their names..." Alejandro shook his head. "You were tired and in pain. It is no fault. But they came from Mexico only two days ago... through the fence." "That doesn''t matter anymore, does it?" Lee couldn''t imagine how anyone could care about borders now. "They fled the gangs... Lee, it is bad down there... worse than what we saw last night. I want to help more escape... but I will need your help." Lee didn''t hesitate. "Sure." Then he remembered. "What about the timer?" "It is not far. I think we should go tomorrow. Early. Find out what we can. Save who we can. But I won''t let our home fall while trying to save others. It is a terrible choice, but we must protect ourselves first or we cannot save others." Lee checked his debuff timer. He''d be good. "Am I going along to blow something up? Because I need to work on my..." Alejandro shook his head. "I know you have a kind of magic sight, yes? That is what we need. Lee, they lost dozens at the fence... torn apart by monsters they couldn''t see. They said it was ghosts." That sounded terrifying... but maybe not for him. He could see Mar, after all. Assuming the monsters didn''t have something really tricky, Lee didn''t see how anything could hide from him. Mana was in everything now, even the air... but what if they didn''t touch the air? Some kind of phase or reality shift? Still, between Mana Mind and his runes, it should be enough. "I''ll be ready... Now where''s Saira?" She was in her garden. "Saira, I''m sorry!" Lee blurted it out before she even turned around. "You too, Mar," he added to the invisible girl. "I wasn''t thinking straight last night, and I should have taken your advice. You are more valuable to me than some random people. You want them dead, then they''re dead." Saira stood slowly and turned to him. "I am more valuable?" Lee felt his face heating. "Uh... that came out wrong! What I meant is that you matter more..." That sounded bad, too. "I mean..." He took a deep breath and spoke slower, trying to choose his words with more care. "You''ve helped me a lot. You''ve been there for me when you didn''t have to. What I''m trying to say is that your opinion matters to me, and I should have taken that into account last night." Did that sound good? He thought it did. But his heart was racing... Ah! Why did I ever want to be in charge!? Saira just kept staring at him. "I''ll kill them if that''s..." "No," she said, and Lee shut up. "I wanted them to die, yes. But I have had time to dwell on the matter... and I believe you made the right choice." Lee really didn''t want to change her mind, but he had to ask. "Why? If you don''t mind my... asking..." "It was because of you." Lee swallowed. "M... me?" "What you said about doubting your own choices in that situation. I was furious. Who would be so callous? So cowardly!" Lee couldn''t help but step back from the venom in her voice. He was a coward... Then Saira abruptly knelt in the dirt, bent her head to the ground and said, "Forgive me, Lee Cascade. You are no coward. It shames me to have so quickly forgotten your sacrifices. My own pain blinded me, and it is all I can do to beg your forgiveness." "Wha..." Lee hadn''t expected this. Not in any way, shape, or form. Was it supposed to feel this awkward? He couldn''t take it and moved to pull her up. "Please stop!" To his immense relief, Saira allowed him to pull her upright. "I''m glad you don''t hate me... but please never do that again." "Can you forgive..." "There is nothing to forgive. We help each other, right? We''re... friends? That''s what friends do, right?" Saira finally smiled, though it was a small thing. "You are young. But wise." "Woah!" Lee took a step back, raising his hands. "Let''s not get carried away. I''m actually an idiot. You know I got eaten by a frog, right? And for no good reason!" He kept backing up. She seemed happy enough... or at least not angry at him. Better to flee before he fucked it up. "I''ll just leave you to... this... garden..." He fled. Not only was it feeling increasingly awkward, but he actually needed to make another visit in the Fort, and then he hoped to make a quick core run before it got too late. You have entered Sapient Lair: [Building 7] "You must be our illustrious leader," the young man said sarcastically when Lee walked into the contested building''s courtyard. More gathered at his words, emerging from apartments to leer down at Lee. All of them were young. They''re just kids, Lee realized. Not that he was ''that'' much older, but the oldest here probably couldn''t legally drink. "Yup, that''s me. So what''s the holdup?" "Listen up, Boomer." That one hurt... he really wasn''t that old. "We fought for this building and we''re not about to give it up because you made some fancy fort thing." Lee sighed. "You guys are our biggest hunters, right? I''ve seen you out there." "Nah, that''s Jake. He''s the real hunter." He hadn''t mentioned Jake on purpose, and Lee definitely would not mention that he''d also refused to join. "Second biggest then. And you like having a safe place to rest when you''re done, right? Having food, armor, weapons?" "Hey, we pay for everything we get, and we defend ourselves." Lee tried a different tactic. "I see you are enjoying a lot of enchanted gear. You know I''m the one who made those, right?" "We paid for those, too!" "Yea, we even paid your ridiculous buyout prices, you fucking greedy scammer!" They wouldn''t think it was so ridiculous if they needed ten times the cores of everyone else... "Don''t even think about trying to get those back!" "That''s not what I''m saying," Lee said. "I''m just trying to remind you how working together makes us all stronger." "We got our own enchanter! We don''t need you!" "Really? That''s great!" Lee exclaimed, and meant it. He''d been hoping to find someone to help. Plus, they might even be able to do things he couldn''t. "What can they do?" Everyone got quiet and Lee saw the boasting boy''s eyes darting toward another boy. One who was glaring back. "You''re the enchanter?" He flinched, and then wilted. "I can''t do shit! Alright!? Nothing like what you can. I don''t even know how you do that crazy shit..." "Dude! Don''t tell him that!" "I had an idea for making radios," Lee said. "Can your enchanting help with that?" The young man perked up and his eyes unfocused for a few moments. Then he slumped. "No. Maybe after I level more..." "I''m sure you can do stuff I can''t. You might have noticed that my enchants are big, heavy things... I can''t do subtlety. And on that note..." Lee didn''t want to mention it, but the issue would come up either way. "You might have noticed my enchants are losing power. I''m the only one who can recharge them..." "Bullshit! Enchants don''t work like that," the enchanter said. "They last as long as the item and recharge from the ambient mana!" He was probably right. Only Lee didn''t use enchanting. They were runes. "You really think my... enchants can do that? You''ve all seen how overpowered they are, and the cost for that power is that they don''t last forever." Not yet, at least. "So it''s blackmail, then?" Lee sighed. Again. "No. No blackmail. You paid for them and I will recharge them as many times as you need. I''m just trying to show you we need each other. We all help each other out, make each other stronger. I want you guys out there hunting. Every monster you kill is one less for me to worry about. I also want you to have a safe place to come home to. For all of us to come home to." "Apes together strong," one kid... young man said. Whatever that meant. Though it sounded like the right track. They clearly had a leader among them; the young man who''d first confronted him, and the one now rubbing his forehead and glaring at the apes man. "You like the buff your building gives, right?" Lee felt like he was making headway, so pressed on. "But you only get it while inside." "Or on the roof," one of them piped up. "Or the roof," Lee agreed. "Well, once you join, the entire fort will have an even better buff. Outside, inside, anywhere on the complex''s property. This will still be your building, but under a larger umbrella." "Your umbrella. Why do you get to be in charge?" Lee laughed. "You want to do it? Because it''s my first day and I already hate it. If you want to deal with all the people, and the problems that come with them, then be my guest. Personally, I''d rather be hunting. I don''t want to deal with any of this, but I want this place; our home, to stay standing." He looked at the other man. "It''s like you said, apes together strong. I''m just trying to bring us together." Their leader had a stubborn look in his eyes. He was ready to give up, but didn''t want to just back down. "We want more enchants, more armor!" "Tell you what," Lee said, pointing at their enchanter. "You don''t give up on that class. Level your skills. If you figure out radios, then I''ll put all of you in indestructible full-plate armor like mine." He tapped his metal covered chest for emphasis. Not that it was really full-plate... but he had something else to offer. "Plus, only a few people know, but I''m working on body enchanting." That statement earned a lot of interest. "So far, I''ve enchanted most of my bones; a very unpleasant process... but I''m still working on binding them to each other. Once I figure that out, it''ll be another option for anyone who wants it." Building 7 has joined Greenfield Fort. Greenfield Fort is under your full control. Buff Gained: [Greenfield Fort] Lee looked up the new buff. [Greenfield Fort] 100% Conception Rate Reduced Offspring Incubation Duration(Dependent on Mana Density) Accelerated Offspring Growth Rate(Dependent on Mana Density) +10 All Base Attributes +50% All Effective Attributes +1% Defense against All Damage +100% Health Regeneration +200% Mana Regeneration He saw the others doing the same thing, and from the widening eyes, it was better than they''d expected. Hell, it was better than Lee expected. He hadn''t thought the mana boost from his own building would spread like that. It had also added an effective stat boost alongside an actual stat boost. "Worth it?" He got a round of nods. "Good. Now I need to get back out there and hunt. You guys find any good lairs nearby?" 39. At The End Of The World ~~~Stanley~~~ "Fuck." Stanley cursed softly when he flew around the corner and saw the people near the building ahead. He hated people. This was all Samantha''s fault... Instead of heading that way just yet, he crossed the street and attacked the giant roaches swarming throughout the open area within a massive apartment complex. Monsters were so much easier than people. They were straightforward in wanting to kill you. No lies or subterfuge, just right to the murdering. To be fair, some humans also went right to killing. The roaches jumped... or flew up to his dirt sphere and then scrambled all over it. Stanley couldn''t tell what magic they were using, but it left small holes in the dirt. Magic holes... not just in the dirt, either. He could feel it like tiny bites taken out of his mind... So he stepped it up by sending the rocks out of the dirt and setting them to orbit. At speed. That did it, and the fight turned into him just hovering above the complex and killing the never-ending swarm that came up to fight the orb. They chewed through the dirt and rocks at an alarming rate... but he only pulled more from the ground and kept killing. The only difference now was that he kept the knife zipping in a steady orbit as well, just outside the dirt and rock. It wasn''t fancy. Not even skilled, but it killed stuff all the same. Also, it added a level to Knife Work every so often. He tried to drop all the corpses directly below, where he could bury, or at least contain and protect them for later core collection. The only problem was a lot of the roaches kept twitching even when they were dead. It made it a lot harder to watch for scavengers stealing his cores. Luckily, the swarm eventually subsided to a trickle, and then even those stopped. Stanley opened his shell to look at the massive pile of gore and corpses. He smiled, not at all evilly. Sometimes it paid off to have a group collecting the cores for him. So he closed up the sphere and waited for the little bundle of excitement in the distance that was Caffeine to get closer. As long as the feeling stayed excited, everything was fine. It was only if Caffeine got nervous that Stanley would worry, and he was consistently getting better at sensing it. When the pug launched into the sky, Stanley opened a hole and caught him on his lap. He hugged the squirming pug and ran his hands gently over the soft fur while Caffeine tried to lick him. "I missed you..." Caffeine calmed and let Stanley hold him, leaning into the hug while his tail wagged. Stanley stayed there until his three camp followers didn''t show up like they should have. He pushed his mind out further in the direction Caffeine had come from... and finally felt three people walk into his mental touch... That felt weird. Were they walking backwards? With their hands up? Then more people entered. Strangers. Marching directly at his people... Caffeine perked up, maybe hearing something, or just sensing the mood shift, and he was already in the air when Stanley opened the sphere to both let him out and see what was happening. "...our hunting ground, and you think..." The man yelling at Samantha stopped moving. All of his friends behind him stopped moving. And then they all buried their faces in the mess of dead cockroaches covering the ground. Did they not see his flying murder sphere? "Who''s fucking hunting ground?!" Stanley yelled as he descended upon them. He was so tired of these stupid, petty... "Stanley, stop!" Samantha yelled, and he stared at her in disbelief. They were moments away from attacking her and now she was trying to protect them... "You''re being a bully." Her face was unblemished by the ugly bruises he''d put there, but not untouched. She''d healed far faster than anyone could pre-system, but it hadn''t all healed cleanly. Her mouth was slightly lopsided now... her nose a little crooked. He had to close his eyes and take a few deep breaths before he spoke. Partially from the guilt, but also because¡­ come on! "How, dear Sam! Am I the bully here?" "You''re the strongest one. That means you have the power to keep things civil. To have a conversation instead of resorting to violence." Stanley took a few more seconds to just breathe before he let go of the idiots. They looked slightly less hostile when they stood up... or it might have been the mess they were now covered in. Whatever it was, they didn''t go back to threatening anyone, and instead just stood there. Maybe she had a point? "Is she right, guys? Should we talk about this like civilized people? Or can I just kill all of you like the monsters you are?" Six heads nodded rapidly, and one voice choked out, "Talk! Yes, we should talk!" "Great! See, Sam? I''m very civil." "Threatening them first is not civil!" She huffed. "Though, I suppose they came on a bit strong..." "Anyone can hunt here!" the speaker said quickly. "We just wanted to warn you how..." a second voice chimed in, then trailed off as they finally looked past Stanley and presumably saw the mound. "...how dangerous... it is." "Got any people in your camp talking about eternal life?" Stanley asked the dazed group. "W... what?" Stanley sighed. "Who wants to check them and who wants to get all these cores?" "Not it!" Jerry and Samantha said at the same time. "Jinx!" Samantha said immediately after. "I''ll go check with Caffeine!" She didn''t give anyone a chance to object before practically skipping to the group, all cheerful smiles and friendly introductions. Stanley let Caffeine go with her. This bunch stood no chance against him. They still didn''t know if the pug could sniff out the invaders, since they''d found fuck all in two days, but all agreed it was likely. Jerry only stared resigned at the pile of oozing roaches and shook his head. "Could you just kill me instead?" "Don''t be a drama queen," Stanley said. "I did the hard part already." "I''m going to spit in your food tonight." "You know I don''t care." "I know..." Jerry sighed and started for the pile with Arthur. "You really take the fun out of being a cook." Stanley had mercy on the man anyway and smashed the pile down into a more flat spread. It would take too long otherwise. Then he flew around to check the nearby buildings. With Caffeine running off, his collectors would be vulnerable. On that note, he took what cores they''d already gathered. Might as well make them a less valuable target. He''d told them to give up the cores if pressed. Then ideally come back and tell him who took the cores so he could go kill them. If that didn''t work... Well, Caffeine was protective of his friends. Lethally so. Plus, Stanley would feel it if Caffeine started fighting. The roaches looked to have claimed the whole area, considering how empty it was now, and Stanley eventually went back to help with the cores. He also monitored Caffeine the whole time after the pug happily followed Samantha while greeting the newcomers with his nose. He hadn''t reacted with hostility to any of them, not yet... He came back soon enough, with Samantha, and Stanley left her to help the others while he went looking for the next hunting area. He searched while on the lookout for other groups of people that might give him a lead on the invaders. The lack of suspects had Stanley half suspecting they''d made it all up to keep him busy... Caffeine still trusted them, though. And since he was still collecting cores, it wasn''t a complete waste of time. The desire to escape this hell hole was a strong motivator as well. If he could just find the damn invaders... A grid search of the city had shown no increase in the Miasma debuff. So that was useless. Assuming they weren''t lying about it... There was a hopeful moment when Samantha woke up in the morning shouting about how it was now a negative three percent, except it was apparently the entire city. Stanley flew high enough to confirm it diminished in that direction, then flew out to the edges of the dungeon, where it fell off completely. So he knew it was coming from somewhere in a massive city... Even worse, the monsters downtown were becoming insanely aggressive. Not only did they wage war from their respective skyscrapers, but they weren''t above ganging up on him when he flew in to attack. It wasn''t impossible... but it would be a death sentence for his little team of core gatherers. Which led to them staying out of downtown and instead clearing out neighborhoods. The plan to find the invaders via the debuff was dead, and all he had to go on now was finding groups of people that might have seen the so-called recruiters. Night came with no more progress on that front, and Stanley was grouchy with everyone. Except Caffeine. He was an angel and could do no wrong. Well, he had practically dragged Samantha and company along for the ride... but that wasn''t his fault. Angels were nice to everyone. Stanley wasn''t expecting it when Arthur busted out with a violin while Jerry was cooking. He hadn''t even seen the man carrying it... "Are you trying to attract more monsters?" "You''re not seriously worried about that, are you?" Samantha said deadpan. "Besides, it would only be more cores for you." "And more filthy work for us," Jerry muttered. "Maybe it will attract the invaders!" Samantha said with exaggerated worry. "That might be terrible..." Stanley sighed. "Fine." Jerry was at least useful. Samantha and Arthur did little more than collect cores. Which was something... still, they should do more. His opinion changed once the man started playing. It was beautiful. Samantha is the only useless one, Stanley thought, but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. Arthur sang a bitter song of sorrow and regret. It was more of a lost love type song, but Stanley only thought of his mistakes that led to him abandoning Lee as he turned away to watch the night. Caffeine helped when he jumped into his lap for cuddles. "...what could have been." Arthur finished the song, and it was Samantha who spoke up first. After the notification. And while Stanley resisted the urge to do¡­ something unpleasant to the man. Buff: [Serenade](59:59) Doubles All Regeneration. Amplifies Emotions. "That was beautiful, but maybe something more cheerful next?" Arthur complied, and Stanley felt better when it was time to eat. He ate and considered his progress. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-Grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] Traits: [Adaptable](67%) [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 28 (Intermediate) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 11 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 60(-10%)54 Vitality: 61(-9%)54 Dexterity 59(-1%)59 Wisdom 62(+123%)138 Intelligence 60(+122%)133 Willpower 68(+633%)498 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Knife Work (Rare) - Level 9 (Novice) Buff: [Serenade] Debuff: Premonition had finally climbed out of the Novice rank, and all it took was him risking bodily injury on the regular. The description hadn''t changed, but now it gave him a whopping 0.2 seconds'' warning before something was about to hurt him. Which wasn''t as bad as he''d feared. Maybe the increased stats were actually affecting his mental processing speed... but it was just enough time to react. Unfortunately, the skill only gave him the sensation of pain. While that was usually enough to know which direction an attack was coming from, it was rarely enough to do anything other than try to block. Some magic didn''t care about blocking. Or physical obstacles. Or even mental obstacles. Magic was bullshit. Still, he held hope that the skill would prove itself in time. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Psychokinesis had climbed a rank at 25, which hopefully meant his class would do the same. A new class skill would be nice, especially if he got some better options than last time. Knife Work was close to its first rank, but so far wasn''t living up to his plans for it. The message he saw at each skill rank up about ''No Evolution Options'' implied that there could be such a thing. He had to be using the skill in a wildly different manner than intended. He didn''t know if that was enough to prompt the evolution since he''d never actually seen the option, but he could hope. The skill also stood out as the only one not boosting his primary attribute, and as he watched the numbers climb, he was wondering if there was any point to the other attributes. He could only learn two more non-class skills. If he found good ones that boosted willpower more, it might be better than collecting random skills like Knife Work. He''d experimented somewhat by using his... guests. They seemed happy enough to absorb the skills he gave them and then tell him what happened. Arthur had Sonic Aspect mana, and his primary attribute was intelligence. One skill Stanley gave him was wisdom boosting, and it didn''t change from that after Arthur adapted it. Still, the guy was slightly less useless in a fight now that he had an actual attack. Not good against anything large or fast, but he could stun smaller creatures with sonic attacks. Maybe the violin would help improve that... It was the same with Samantha, in that skills didn''t change to match her preferred intelligence bonus. Though she had a Nature Aspect instead. They had found nothing that really stacked onto her class, but who cared? Growing trees was stupid and useless in a fight, though she could team up with Arthur and they made a decent team. If the enemies were weak. And there weren''t too many. And they were slow. Jerry was the odd one out in that his class boosted all of his attributes, though to a lesser amount. He''d been the most reluctant to adapt skills, but changed his mind after the first one turned from quasi useless into a helpful addition to his cooking skill set. Something to do with heat control. He already had something similar to Stanley''s Knife Work skill, but was more focused on preparing a kill rather than actually killing it. Still, it gave him enough extra speed and precision that he could join the other two in a pinch. While he ate, Stanley watched Caffeine make the rounds and get bites from everyone. They also slipped him cores with each piece of meat. Caffeine got bored with eating them, and this was the best way to keep him growing. Stanley made sure they each gave one type of attribute and kept track of how many the pug consumed. His plan was to make sure Caffeine reached at least fifty in all stats before he kept pushing his own. He would have focused on physical only, but Caffeine¡¯s weird status made him think that total stats were more important. Stanley hadn''t forgotten about the teleporter. If that bastard came back, he needed Caffeine to put him down. Or just drive him away if not. That guy probably wasn''t getting a tenth of each core when increasing his attributes, but powerful as he was, Stanley doubted he could reach the same farming speeds. Food gone, cores consumed, Stanley barricaded himself away from the others and slept. He slept lighter now, maybe a reaction to almost killing someone, and Caffeine had an easier time waking him up from the inevitable nightmares. It helped. ... The smell of roasting meat when he woke for the third or fourth time told him the night was done. Also, Caffeine bouncing excitedly around the room was a big hint. The best part was that he woke from normal sleep, no lingering nightmare. As long as he didn''t think about the earlier ones... Jerry worked fast and had a massive pile of meat ready to go by the time Stanley joined them. They ate it even faster and got back to work. No rest for the wicked. Stanley took down their barricade, which he''d made much more substantial now that they were sleeping in the smaller lairs. It probably made little difference, but having twenty empty floors below you just felt safer than two. Then they hunted. Well, Stanley hunted, the others collected cores. His skill, Knife Work, stubbornly refused to level despite putting extra effort into more deliberate use of the blade. It wasn''t all a waste though, because the struggle still rewarded him. Class: Psionic has reached the Threshold of Level 25 No Class Evolutions Available. Ranking Psionic up to Level 25 (Intermediate) Stanley checked his class, even though he was pretty sure what would change. Psionic (Rare) I think therefore it is. A Rare Class that focuses on the power of the Mind. Practitioners eschew the use of Mana, instead converting all external and internal energy directly into their mental energy. Strong minds use this energy to force the world around them to bend to their will. Masters of this class can alter reality on a whim and a thought. Class Level Effects (Intermediate) +5% Effective Mind Attributes -5% Mental Fatigue As expected. He''d felt the change more clearly this time. A full 25% boost all at once. Of course, he was more interested in the next message. For reaching (Intermediate) rank in your class, you may choose a new Class Skill. Make it a good one... he thought and checked his options. All the previous choices were still there, and he grew more disappointed with each shitty option. To his relief, there was something new afterward. Psionic Shield (Rare) I think, and it doesn''t touch me. User creates a shield of Mental Energy above the skin. The shield will reserve an adjustable portion of the user''s energy to maintain protection from all outside encroachment. Skill Level Effects: (Novice) +1% Effective Willpower +1% Shield Energy Reserve It looked good. ''All outside encroachment'' sure sounded like it would block magic... though the 1% energy reserve made him question just how strong it would be, at least at first. He moved on to the next option. Accelerated Thought (Rare) I think faster. User accelerates all thought processes. Skill Level Effects: (Novice) +1% Effective Mind Attributes +1% Mental Acceleration That was the simplest skill description he''d seen to date... which worked. It didn''t really need to say more. Stanley liked it, but still checked the next option. Psionic Healing (Epic) I think and am restored. User may direct their Mental Energy into restoring their own flesh and mind. User may also restore others, though with lesser effect. Skill Level Effects: (Novice) +1% Effective Mind Attributes -1% Mental Energy Cost It would have been awesome... if he didn''t already regenerate, and at a likely faster rate than he expected the skill to. Healing others could be useful... but not enough to miss out on one of the first two options. He went back, and it was a tough choice. The shield could be a game changer, especially for magic. It didn''t specify how much it would actually block, but even if it was small, it would grow better in time. On the other hand, he could instead think faster. That held so many potential benefits... from defense to offense. It wasn''t a protection against magic, but it still might help in that regard. He''d blocked magic before, usually the weaker, slower stuff, but still... If he could react faster... or could use it with his premonition skill... It might have been enough to catch that fucking teleporter. Remembering that disaster of a fight had Stanley leaning more heavily toward the acceleration skill. He had his regeneration... he could trade hits if necessary... and if he could attack faster, that might be more than enough. The real clincher was when he reread the shield and saw that it would hover above his skin. It didn''t say that he couldn''t push it out further, but it didn''t say he could either. That was a deal breaker. He wouldn''t shield himself and leave Caffeine exposed. Never. New Class Skill: Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) It was only after accepting that he realized the healing skill would have let him heal Caffeine... Fuck! He cursed at himself a few times, but didn''t dwell on it long. Caffeine had good regeneration, too. Better to kill anything before it could ever touch the pug. Kill everything! Then he remembered what he''d done to Samantha... he might have been able to fix her completely with the healing skill... That made him feel guilty all over again, both for hurting her in the first place, and then forgetting about it when he might have had the chance to make things right. It was too late now... so he focused on his new skill. The knowledge that came with the skill told him enough to know that it was both passive and active. His brief bout of self recrimination had activated the acceleration. He didn''t know if it would trigger from premonition... so he tested it. A few minutes later, he had isolated a single monster and then had to poke and prod it until it stopped trying to run away. The bug, a disgusting mix between what he thought was a mosquito and a cricket, finally tried to stab him. He felt the twinge of pain in his gut... and time slowed. Or at least, that was what it felt like. The world slowing around him came with a certain pressure in his head that told him it was active. Unfortunately, both sensations were abysmally weak. Skill Level Up: Accelerated Thought Stanley killed the bug and rebuilt his shell of dirt and rocks. Then he forced every scrap of power he could into the new skill and kept hunting. It would level, and he would make sure it did so as fast as possible. ... It wasn''t until near dark that he found more humans. They weren''t hard to spot, either. A glowing neon sign, in giant letters, said, ''Restaurant at the End of the World.'' The phrase tickled something in his memories, but whatever it was, it didn''t make it to the surface of his mind. Stanley scoped the place while he waited for the others to catch up. Samantha loved people. She could go in. The building was large, two stories, and heavily fortified from what he could see. It was also lit up like a beacon in the night, thanks to that sign. How had he never seen it before? People walked in and out of the front doors, some of them lingering at the entrance. Guards, maybe? It was a restaurant, allegedly, so maybe Jerry would want to stay. Maybe he could get all of them to stay. If Caffeine wouldn''t complain too much. Maybe he could bring Caffeine to visit sometimes... Speaking of Caffeine, Stanley only got a single second of greeting from the pug before he started sniffing at the air and then took off toward the glowing building. "Damn it, Caff!" Luckily, Caffeine stopped when shouts rose from the guards, and Stanley was at his side a moment later. He prepared for the inevitable attack when a few glows appeared on the guards. But no one attacked. So he didn''t kill them. They did plenty of useless shouting while Caffeine sniffed the air and whined. A strong smell of food wafting from the building was the obvious reason for that. Stanley was about to retreat when the terrible trio caught up at the same time that a very large man emerged from the front door, spread his arms wide and bellowed, "Welcome to the restaurant at the end of the world!" He stood like that for entirely too long, chuckling and grinning like an idiot. "That''s clever," Jerry said, staring up at the glowing but not actually neon sign. "What is?" Stanley asked. "It''s... from a book," Jerry said, glancing at him. Then shook his head. "So we going in? Might as well check them out." "Yes!" Samantha squealed, clapping her hands like an idiot. The fat man finally stopped standing there and walked down the wide stairs toward them. "Newcomers, eh? Well, everyone is welcome here. If you''re hungry, we got food. If you need a place to rest safe from the monsters, then we got that too." That was entirely too suspicious. "What''s the catch? You built some kind of deathtrap maze in there? We go in and you grind us up for food?" The fat bastard backed up a step. He hadn''t expected someone to see through... "Don''t listen to him," Samantha said, walking forward to grasp the man''s hand and shake it vigorously. "He''s just hungry after a long day. Please tell me you have something besides meat to eat?" He lit up again, obviously happy to have found another gullible idiot. "Why yes we do! Granted, the menu is somewhat limited these days, but we have some growers who are making remarkable progress in the vegetables department! Come in! Eat! Rest!" Samantha turned to look at him. "Come on, Stanley." She deliberately looked down at Caffeine, who was currently pawing at the man''s leg and wagging his tail. Her eyebrows went up as if to say, "see that?" Stanley sighed. Caffeine was too greedy... and maybe they actually had food in there if he was acting like that. "What''s the price for this oh so wonderful food?" "Free for all who are in need!" That definitely sounded like a trap. "Though we do ask the more capable hunters to chip in, either with monster corpses... or cores, if you''re feeling especially generous." "What kind of charity scam are you running? What do you get out of this?" Stanley could understand someone like Jerry trying to sell food for cores. If they were stuck with a shitty class, then they had to do something, but this was... "Come inside. I think you will understand." "Said the spider to the fly." "We''ll be right in!" Samantha said, and then rushed back to Stanley. "Come on! This will be good, and you''ve earned a rest. We''ve all earned a night off!" Then she whispered, "Caffeine likes him, so he can''t be that bad." "Fine. Let''s get this over with." Stanley gave up after watching the tub of lard bend over enough to let Caffeine sniff his hand before scratching his head. The guy was probably eating his customers to still be that fat... He smiled widely when he saw them all approaching. "Come, come! Your dog is, of course, welcome. What''s his name... Oh, my apologies. I forgot to introduce myself! My name is William, but everyone calls me Bill, and this is my restaurant at the end of the world!" "You said that already," Stanley said to the chuckling idiot. "Hah! Did I? No worry, come, come!" "I like it," Jerry said with a wide grin. "Great name for a restaurant." Stanley was staring at the normally dour Jerry in shock when they walked through the double doors. Who was this man, and what happened to... You have entered a Sapient Lair: [Restaurant at the End of the World] Bill was grinning at them when they stopped in surprise. "Do you see?" "You claimed a monster lair?" Arthur finally spoke and said what Stanley was thinking. "Ah hah... but no. We been hunkered down here since this all started, and after a few days, a message popped up asking if we wanted to create a lair. I accepted, and here we are!" He rubbed his hands together with a very sinister smile. "But that''s not the best part, watch!" He shut the doors and threw the deadbolt. [Restaurant at the End of the World] has entered Lockdown. Time remaining until forced opening(6:59:59) Stanley tensed up immediately upon such a blatant imprisoning, his mind reaching, closing around... Samantha grabbed his arm, and Bill threw the deadbolt back open. Lockdown lifted. "See?" No one responded fast enough because he went on. "It is safety!" He slapped the wall with a meaty hand. "These walls are as strong as the monster lairs! And sure, we can''t hide forever, but we have to go hunt, anyway. This way we at least get to sleep in safety!" Stanley ignored the grandstanding, eyes closed as he waited for his heart rate to slow back down. Samantha squeezed his arm. He pulled away from her and opened his eyes. She only smiled when he glared at her... He still didn''t know what her deal was. She kept touching him. That wasn¡¯t normal behavior, was it? He couldn¡¯t remember his life before that day¡­ and hadn¡¯t had any female friends afterward. Or any male friends¡­ just Lee. Whom he¡¯d abandoned¡­ Whatever she was up to, it wouldn''t work. And it was pointless; he¡¯d already agreed to protect her¡­ Bill was staring. "What!?" Stanley demanded. "I just felt... ah, it''s nothing. Hungry? I assure you, it''s better than you''re expecting!" They followed him down the long and suspiciously crooked hallway while Bill happily pointed out the murder holes and secret tunnels Stanley had already felt out the moment he locked the door. "See, the monsters will attack on occasion, and we can funnel them through this path. Makes the fighting a lot easier." Stanley was expecting the large room they emerged into, including an excessive number of people that sat around numerous tables, but he still froze when so many eyes landed on them. He opened his mouth... and Samantha touched him again. Before Stanley could growl at the woman, Bill yelled, "More survivors have found their way!" Nearly everyone in the massive room lifted cups and cheered with a thunderous noise. It was... upsetting. And distracting. What were they planning... "Sit wherever you like," Bill said once the noise subsided. "And no fighting in my restaurant. If you need to settle something, you take it outside. Or else I get involved. You got that?" Stanley wasn''t at all impressed with the threat. "Got it," Samantha said. "No fighting." Bill smiled his big, jolly, stupid smile. "Great. Now... I may have exaggerated just a tiny bit when I mentioned a menu... but how does meat and potatoes sound?" "I might never leave!" Samantha said. Stanley hoped she was serious as he looked for a table near a window. He had plenty of experience breaking lair windows. 40. Burn For A Burn ~~~Stanley~~~ It was both pleasant and tense to watch Caffeine making the rounds of the restaurant. He wanted to be best friends with every single person. Or at least those with food, which looked to be about everyone. There were a few jumpy people that didn''t appreciate him appearing next to them and begging for snacks, but most seemed to enjoy feeding the pug. The food was allegedly free, so why not share it? Food which turned out to be quite special when Bill brought out the still steaming plates piled high with mystery meat and what looked like normal potatoes. He grinned like a madman while gesturing for them to eat. Buff Gained: [Bill''s Special] +1 All Base Attributes(59:59) It appeared after the first bite went down his throat, and Stanley wasn''t the only one who flinched. He''d thought it was a debuff for a moment... Jerry had the strongest reaction when he gasped out, "How!?" then jumped to his feet. "Can you teach me?" Bill laughed. "I thought I spied a fellow chef, and I would be happy to share my knowledge. Though I should warn you, it is my class at work." His words did nothing to deter Jerry, and the man practically dragged Bill back to the kitchen. The food was good. Stanley had to admit it. It wasn''t better than Jerry''s. Unless you counted the potatoes and bonus attributes... which kept going up. They also counted as base attributes on his status, which meant each point of willpower acted like five after his bonuses. Buff Upgraded: [Bill''s Special] +10 All Base Attributes(7:45:51) It made sense now how the guy was surviving here. A buff that lasted long enough for people to go hunt. One good enough that they''d keep coming back, and probably bring more monster meat back when they did. Also good enough that people probably volunteered to fight when the place got attacked. Arthur migrated away after the meal and started playing his music, which was a major hit with the crowd. Stanley half listened while he watched people coming and going constantly, though the departures were trending downwards as night settled in outside. Mostly, though, he watched Caffeine. Trying to enjoy the pug''s exuberance while simultaneously wanting to kill anyone who moved too quickly around him. He also snuck a few looks at Samantha when she sang along with the music. She was terrible, or maybe just sounded that way compared to Arthur, but she didn''t seem to care. She smiled and laughed, holding nothing back. So carefree and innocent... as if not trapped in hell. Stanley even wondered if she might have some brain damage from when he hit her... though she had acted stupid like this before that. She caught him watching a few times, and Stanley refused to look away. He wasn''t the weird one. She was. Samantha only smiled at him. Then she somehow convinced a mob of people to clear some tables and they started dancing. She only tried once to drag him out there. Stanley didn''t budge, but she flew back into the crowd. He didn''t throw her... just moved her away. Gently. The other dancers loved it. Stanley kept his back to the wall and his mind spread as far as he could reach. So he knew about the group that showed up well after dark before they walked in. They entered with a flashy but ultimately harmless burst of fire. It ended the party, and Stanley saw a lot of scared faces as people hurried away. This must be the generous type Bill was talking about. The ones who actually fought the monsters and brought something back. Most of the people inside were lacking a certain something that this group had. "Bill!" the leader of the group and the source of the fire yelled. "I''m home!" He waved and the six men coming in behind him all tromped across the room carrying massive corpses that barely fit through the double doorway. Meanwhile, their leader approached a table, which was hurriedly vacated before he arrived, and plopped into a chair. "Bill, I''m hungry!" "Jesus, Tony. You always gotta make a scene, don''t you?" Bill emerged loaded down with so many plates that Stanley had to wonder if he had a skill for it. "You''re earlier than usual." "More monsters out there every day," Tony drawled. "Means less time for more kills." Caffeine made a beeline for the cook, of course, and followed behind him across the room. Tony turned sideways from the table and threw his feet up as he rocked back in the chair, gaze roaming around while Bill dropped off the food. Caffeine ended up nearly behind him, standing on his hind legs with his face and front paws just over the tabletop as he licked his lips and wagged his tail. Tony opened his mouth to say something, "Bill..." Caffeine whined and Tony flinched, almost falling over as he scrambled away. "Holy... what the fuck is..." Caffeine whined again, licking his lips as he stared at the feast on the table. Fire was in Tony''s hand, and terror was on his face. It was the look of someone who had been out there fighting the monsters. Stanley knew it well. That was the only reason he hadn''t killed the man. That was why he gave him a few seconds to calm down first. He''d just got back into this supposed haven. It was natural that he''d still be a little on edge. That was the only way anyone would survive out there. "A dog..." His terror shifted into embarrassment at the overreaction. Stanley saw his darting eyes take in the few quickly hidden chuckles, and embarrassment shifted into anger. Don''t do it, Stanley thought. You''ll die. The flame in Tony''s hand brightened. Time slowed. It slowed just enough that Stanley noticed Samantha running toward the man. "So sorry! It''s my fault!" Tony hesitated, and Stanley didn''t rip his head off. He also kept pumping energy into Accelerated Thoughts. He''d let it lapse... this place was too soft... As for Samantha, was this more of her diplomacy shit? "Don''t worry," Samantha gushed as she scooped Caffeine into her arms. "He''s a teddy bear and wouldn''t hurt a fly. He just really loves food! You know how pugs are..." It looked like her diplomacy worked, or Tony realized that attacking a pug was a terrible look because the fire vanished. "Just keep him away from me." "Of course. Sorry again for that!" Samantha said, carrying Caffeine while he whined at her. "Come on, Caff. I''ll find you something else to eat, okay?" That earned her a face lick before Caffeine squirmed out of her arms. He still followed her as she headed for the kitchen. "Music man," Tony said. "Why''d you stop? You know how hard it is to get music these days? Play more!" "S... sure." Arthur started playing again, something much softer and much more mellow this time. Tony threw a core at him. "Not that downer shit! Play something fun!" Arthur complied, though he looked upset. He''d just gotten a free core. What was there to complain about? Stanley was mostly busy tracking Caffeine in the kitchen with his mental touch, and he saw Tony''s friends climbing out of the cellar before they rejoined him at the table. There was plenty of laughing and boisterous talking, but there was a clear line between Tony and the rest. They... feared him. That was it. He must have a good class. Stanley was curious, but not enough to ask. He already knew it had something to do with fire. Obviously, he was one of those bullshit magic users. Caffeine didn''t stay away too long. He liked to check in. Stanley appreciated that. Samantha came with him. That was less pleasant. "See?" she said, dropping into her seat. "You didn''t have to resort to violence." It was slightly less annoying because her voice came out slurred from Stanley''s skill. That was amusing. Like she was drunk... which was impossible. Stanley had tried once. Never even got a debuff... though that might have been his trait. Was she drunk? "Are you drunk?" It did, however, feel strange to speak himself with the effect ongoing. It felt like his body was moving slower rather than his mind going faster. "Does Bill have some magic booze?" Maybe it even gave buffs. "I... don''t think that would be a good idea," Samantha said slowly. "Not when everyone has super powers..." Bah. She was no fun. Tony appeared in the chair next to Samantha with a burst of fire. It wasn''t quite teleportation; Stanley felt him move through the intervening space. Which meant he knew where the man was going and didn''t have to do... anything. He was young, with pale skin and freckles, and some patchy stubble on his chin the same color as his hair; a brilliant fire engine red. Stanley wondered if it had something to do with his class... the same red light glowing in his eyes made it likely. He really hoped his own hair wouldn''t turn purple... Tony touched Samantha, and in another flash, was back at his table with her along for the ride. Stanley clearly noted his companions all abandoning the area... "Hi again," Tony said, flashing a wide smile. "Sorry about earlier. I was rude, and you are far too beautiful to have to put up with that kind of behavior. I''m Tony. What can I call you?" "Thank you," Samantha said. She''d handled the unexpected abduction rather well. "I''m Samantha. I understand how stressful it gets out there, and I''m sure everyone here appreciates what you do." "Finally! Someone who understands all the hard work I put in around here!" His smile had a creepy edge to it as he leaned closer. "Haven''t seen you before, pretty lady. When''d you get in?" "Just this evening, actually. The food here is something else, isn''t it?" "Oh, you''re very welcome," Tony said, grasping her hand between his. "If I''d known you were coming, I''d have brought even more." Samantha pulled her hand from his, still smiling. "Are you like a hero around here? People must look up to you!" Stanley could see... something in Tony''s expression as she pulled away. Anger? Rejection? Whatever it was, it cooled at her words... and then shifted into something worse. "They should treat me that way... but they don''t. You see it though, don''t you?" He grabbed her hand again. "I deserve respect! But every woman here only spits on me, no matter how nice I am!" She was clearly uncomfortable, but trying to hide it as she attempted to pull her hand free. "I''m so sorry that happened. Maybe it was just a..." "I deserve respect! But no matter what I do, everyone treats me like a freak! Like a disgusting untouchable!" "You''re not..." "So maybe it''s time I stop trying and just take what I want..." Fire was blooming around him by now, licking hungrily at everything, including Samantha. She pulled away with a yelp of pain. "Even you..." Tony growled. "I''m nice, and you smile and act all friendly... but it''s all an act... you think I''m a loser, too." "No. You''re clearly upset, but that''s no reason to..." "Shut up, bitch!" Tony screamed at her, his body nearly hidden behind the halo of flames now. "I''m so sick of being treated this way!" Stanley was... amused, and content to let Samantha play her games. She thought violence wasn''t the answer, so she could talk her way out of this, too. Let her see what monsters humans really were. Unfortunately, Caffeine was not content to watch. Not anymore. He moved faster than Stanley could stop him, practically teleporting as he appeared beside Samantha and growled at Tony. "Even your stupid little dog doesn''t respect me!" He raised a hand, fire flaring brighter... and Stanley got angry. "Don''t do it, Stanley!" Samantha''s shout made Tony hesitate, and Stanley didn''t kill him. Barely. Tony looked around the room after her shout. No doubt trying to figure out who she was talking about. Instead, he finally noticed all the scared and frozen people staring back at him, most of whom looked away quickly when his gaze landed on them. Their reactions failed to have any chilling effect. Rather, the opposite. "I fight, and I''m strong, and I do everything I can to protect you... but you all act like I''m the bad guy! Like I''m the loser! Meanwhile, you hide in here like cowards and turn your noses up at me!" Stanley agreed with that last bit. Lots of people in here looked like they hadn''t fought a single monster. Bill finally emerged from the kitchen at the tail end of Tony''s rant, and he didn''t look all that surprised. "Damn it, Tony! You can''t do this every time a girl rejects..." A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. "Shut up, you fat fuck!" Tony yelled. "I''m sick of you talking down to me while you hide in here with your happy little family!" The cook was unperturbed, as if this was a regular occurrence, which it sounded like it was. "If you don''t calm down, then I''m afraid..." "You should be afraid!" Tony screamed, fire flaring brighter around him. "All of you should be! You''re all too safe. You all think you can turn up your noses at me because you can hide in your little hole. I think it''s time you see what the world is really like..." The surrounding flames all abruptly swirled into a single point between his cupped hands and flared into an eye-searing intensity that only grew brighter every second. "You''re talking crazy, boy!" A knife appeared in Bill''s hand, and his stance shifted lower. Other people finally started moving away from the confrontation, all of them deeper into the building... "You don''t think I can burn your precious lair, do you?" Tony yelled over the growing sounds of a panicked mob. "Well, I''m stronger than you think!" Stanley was actually curious to see if Tony could burn down a lair, but Caffeine wasn''t willing to wait for the show. The pug advanced on Tony, both his growl and his size growing with each step. Tony whirled on the pug, blazing eyes widening. "Harmless. Hah... that''s just like a woman!" he spat. "Hiding your intentions so you can stab me in the back!" He lifted his hands and released the raging firestorm. "Nooo!" Samantha screamed. Stanley was plenty angry when he caught the spell... as well as everyone and everything his mind was touching. Then he squeezed. Silence fell throughout the room. All the screams and shouts cut off. All the stomping feet froze in place. And even Caffeine stopped growling, head swiveling toward Stanley. "That''s enough," Stanley said, his own voice coming out in a growl as he strained against the little psycho''s spell. It was indeed powerful, but it wasn''t strong enough to burn a lair. He knew from experience. The magic roiled and sizzled against his mind, like a hot coal nestling into his brain. Stanley let the pain fuel his anger. Let it push him all the way up into a nice, healthy rage. Everything got easier to hold as he advanced slowly through the air. The pain stopped mattering as much, and Stanley forced the entire room down in a single resounding crash of bodies and furniture meeting the floor. Caffeine, of course, remained standing, and he whined at Stanley. "Good boy." The sight of the still unblemished and uninjured Caffeine helped him resist the urge to twist Tony''s head around a few times. Then the pug whined again and bent to lick Samantha''s upturned and pleading face. It was enraging that she still pleaded. Still begged for the monsters! Stanley ground his teeth in rage as he stared at those eyes boring into him. He turned on Tony, pulling him upright and face to face with his roiling spell. "Are you fireproof, you little shit?" Stanley asked, while pushing his face closer to the spell. He wasn''t, if his increasingly frantic and wide-eyed struggles to turn away were any sign. "You tried to burn Caffeine," Stanley murmured. "He did nothing to you... and you wanted to burn him. Do you know what it feels like when your skin burns to char and flakes off? Do you, Tony? Because I know. I know exactly what it feels like. It HURTS!" Tony flailed violently, which meant he only twitched while his eyes rolled around. His mouth opened and closed, but he had no air left in his lungs to speak. "Don''t worry, Tony. I''ll show you what it feels like. That way, the next time you want to light someone on fire, you''ll know exactly what they are feeling. Would you like that? Doesn''t it sound fun?" "N... no..." Samantha''s voice was only a faint whisper, but the silent room allowed it to carry. Stanley''s rage only intensified. "You see that, Tony? This bitch doesn''t want me to set you on fire. But she''s weak. So it doesn''t matter what she wants, right!? I saved her life, so she should just do whatever I tell her, right?" He eased up his grip on Tony so the man could draw a gasping breath. Then he shook him. "Answer me!" Tony only started sobbing and craning his neck away from the fire. It was... disappointing. The sobbing took all the fun out of it. This little moron wasn''t a monster. Not yet. He was working his way up to it, and right at the threshold now, but he was just a weak little bitch kid lashing out because no one loved him... Of course, if he lived, then he would probably become a real monster in time. "P... please..." Samantha begged. Stanley stared at her, then Caffeine with his little sad face that he was so good at making... and his anger cooled. Slightly. Mercy. Fine, he could do mercy. "Good news, Tony. You get to live!" The moron finally stopped sobbing, hope growing in his eyes. Stanley fixed that. "You just have to put your hand in the fire." Terror replaced hope in his expression. "Please!" "I want you to feel it, Tony. You tried to burn Caffeine, so if you want to live, then you will burn, too." Stanley held eye contact with the terrified kid and stuck his own hand into the searing ball of fire. He felt his flesh immediately begin to boil and burn. The pain was... just pain. But it fed into his cooling anger and helped stoke it back up. It was getting harder to hold everything down... "Like this, Tony," Stanley said through gritted teeth. "Do it or I will skin you alive and throw you out for the monsters!" Tony sobbed in horror as he stared at Stanley''s rapidly roasting flesh, but one look in Stanley''s eyes and he lifted his own hand. He tried to flinch away at the first touch, but Stanley had mercy on him and forced his hand to remain. He watched Tony scream and wail while his flesh went from red to white and then to black. Stanley let him go. He let everyone go and then screamed himself as his mind crushed what remained of the spell into sizzling sparks that flashed and vanished before reaching the floor. Tony stopped screaming when he hit the floor, but only because he didn''t have the breath for it. Instead, he just rolled back and forth while clutching his wrist and gasping for air between sobs. Everyone else in the room immediately started wailing... "Shut the fuck up!" Stanley''s shout put an end to that. Mostly. A few sniffles and scrambling feet echoed as they fled. Samantha ran to Tony, staring at him helplessly and then glaring at Stanley. Caffeine whined and gingerly licked the back of Stanley''s burnt hand. It was already healing and would be fine soon enough. Tony would heal, too. It would just take longer. Samantha knew that first hand¡­ Stanley clenched his burnt hand into a fist. This wasn¡¯t the same. Bill didn''t flee. He and some others remained in the room. All of them staring at Stanley and a few at Caffeine. "What? If any of you have a problem with me, then step forward. But you better be strong enough to back it up." No one moved. Not until a woman came sprinting down the stairs and froze for a moment before rushing to Bill. "Emily! You shouldn''t be..." Bill said. "We heard screaming and felt something," Emily cut him off, her gaze jumping around the room as she clutched his arm. "What happened?" "The boys!" Bill gasped, his eyes going hard as they locked onto Stanley, and his free hand tightening on the blade. "Shut up," Stanley said to him. "I didn''t touch your brats. They''re sneaking down the stairs right now." He might be a monster, but he wasn''t a sadist. He''d left the kids upstairs alone. Tony didn''t count. That wasn''t sadism. It was justice. Hell, it was mercy. The guy was still alive after his little stunt. That was more than most got for threatening Caffeine. Emily flinched at his words and looked back in time to see the small heads peeking through the banister near the ceiling. Stanley flinched, too, when he finally laid eyes on them. They were identical twin boys... He studied them for long seconds as their wide eyes took in the scene. Then their mother dragged them back upstairs. Stanley remained staring after them, his heart aching. Lee... Caffeine licked his hand again, and Stanley pulled the pug into his lap. He stroked the soft fur and let the last lingering anger dwindle away. Samantha babbling nonsense at Tony didn''t help. "You don''t know who you are yet, which means no one else does either." Stanley hovered closer to Bill, who was eyeing his floating form. "I want more food. Or are you going to kick me out for fighting?" The idea was laughable, but he was curious if maybe the lair offered something to help in that regard. If it did, Bill hadn''t used it yet. "No." Bill slumped, and the knife went back onto his belt. "I''d rather thank you instead." He glanced at Tony and shook his head. "I knew there was something wrong with the boy, but he is the strongest one here. We need him..." "You''re all weak," Stanley said, loudly enough that all the cowering people would hear him. "I could kill everyone here without breaking a sweat and I''m not even close to the strongest thing out there. Every day you hide away and don''t grow is another day for the monsters to get stronger. It''s only a matter of time until something comes here that you''re too weak to fight and then you all die." "You are more than welcome to stay..." Stanley laughed. "Oh, I''ll probably be back for that food. It''s just gonna be disappointing when I come back and you''re all dead." "We ain''t all powerful hotshots..." "See her," Stanley pointed at Samantha. "Her class is worthless, but she can still stab monsters with a spear." He pointed at the anxiously humming Arthur. "That guys a damn musician, but he can still kill stuff. Jerry fights and he''s a cook. How often do you go hunting? Doesn''t feel like your attributes are much past F-grade." "I must protect the lair... my family..." "You know a lot of monsters like to hold a grudge and will chase you across the city... you should have an army at your gates for every minute they are open. Such a perfect setup here and you''re just wasting it." Stanley shook his head. It really would be a great farming opportunity if they could pull it off. Especially if they had someone like Tony to create some breathing room when they needed it. Instead, they were all just hiding away and waiting to die... "I''ll get that food, and... I''ll think about what you said." Bill vanished back into the kitchen, and Stanley heard his voice again. "Jerry, you''re still here?" "It was just Stanley throwing another tantrum. He does that a lot. I didn''t even hear the dog barking, so it obviously wasn''t a big deal." Stanley shoved Jerry, making him drop the pan he was holding. "Is that for Stanley?" Jerry asked. "Let me spit in it real quick." Bill gasped, and Stanley rolled his eyes as he went back to his seat. His gaze landed on Samantha when he heard his name mentioned. She was hugging Tony as he cried on her shoulder. "Stanley saved my life more than once, and I love him for it but I''m not in love. He''s a friend. Do you understand?" Ah, the friend zone. Stanley was¡­ actually happy with that. It was supposed to be a bad thing¡­ but honestly, he didn''t know what having a friend even meant, much less romantic love. He had Lee and Caffeine. They were family. He knew family was more important than friends, but that was about all. "I love my friends," Samantha said. "I would give my life to protect them. Do you have any friends like that?" Stanley thought her definition of friend could use some work. He absolutely would not die for her. Tony nodded into her shoulder and lifted his head to look behind... then froze when he met Stanley''s gaze. Samantha turned his head back with a hand on his cheek, meeting his eyes. "Don''t worry about him." Tony kept shaking despite her words. Good! He should be scared. She kept babbling to him about love, emotions, and dealing with rejection in a healthy way. Stanley waited for his food and listened. It was nice to know Samantha wasn''t trying to seduce him... assuming she wasn''t lying. Maybe she was just really touchy feely? She sure kept hugging Tony a lot. They eventually got up and Tony''s ''friends'' rejoined him at Samantha''s urging. She talked to all of them about the same things... like she was teaching a dating class to a bunch of teenagers. Which she was¡­ they really were just kids... Stanley refused to feel bad about what he''d done. It didn''t matter how young they were if they were going to throw around deadly magic. Better he learned his lesson now, when Samantha was around to beg for his life. As for whether the lesson would stick... maybe Stanley should threaten him again. He didn''t want to find this place burned down the next time Tony got rejected by a girl. ~~~Somewhere~~~ Steven stood silent and waiting as he watched his new gods deliberating over what he had returned with today. Nefraxis stared at the glowing core in their hands. One that should not be according to Lord Morgrath. Monster Core Shard(E-grade) May be used to empower rituals or enchantments up to E-grade. It was too soon. E-grades did not appear this soon after Saturation. Not according to Morgrath. "Where did you find this?" Lord Nefraxis asked Lord Calderon. "A Lair," they replied. "It is not the only anomaly. Many Lairs grow unchecked as we cull the Sapients. They will become a threat if we do not act." "It is too early. We are not ready." "We must... adapt," Morgrath said, smiling. "Perhaps they are the anomaly? The humans?" "They grow the slowest," Calderon said. "Though we have seen signs of divergence among them; humans that grow too strong, too fast. We suspect the humans'' trait has led them to lost or unknown paths of power." Lord Ruish spoke, "It is not the humans. I believe it comes from the sea. The monsters in the depths grow beyond any of our predictions. It is already too late to claim them to the March." "Don''t be a fool," Nefraxis chided. "All join the March. It is inevitable." "There is only one explanation for such rapid growth," Calderon said. "There is no..." Steven did not get to hear Lord Calderon''s words because they were interrupted. "That is impossible," Nefraxis snapped. "Dull they may be, but Sapient life is here." "The only other option is that someone took it. Perhaps the High-Lords wished to accelerate..." "Do not speak those words. Do not even think such heresy. We March onward and do not question the High-Lords. Nor do we speculate on their matters. It is not our place." Steven couldn¡¯t imagine what powers might instill such caution in these beings, but he desperately wanted that power for himself. In time, he told himself. I too will become a god. "We will... adapt the plan," Nefraxis ordered. "Unleash Gravus. Begin the Ritual. The March will take its first step." "What of the anomalous humans?" Calderon said. "Enlighten me." "Most pressing is the warrior. A nearby human with an uncanny ability to sniff out our agents. The gathering of humans it protects has remained beyond our reach." "Is that all? Morgrath will deal with it." "There is also an unknown entity wiping out swaths of the dungeon. The few questionable reports I''ve received claim it to be a... ball. Metal or dirt. They can never agree. But the results of its passing are undeniable." "Human?" "I believe so, but cannot be certain. We had planned a trap, but the unexpected... acceleration of the dungeon disrupted it." "Wait on that one. The ritual may solve the issue for us." "And the traces of divine magic? We''ve yet to track its origin." "Are you sure it is not simply the bird hiding in that tower?" "Yes. This is something else. Well hidden." "The ritual will reveal it or it will die. Until then, focus on the other groups we can infiltrate. Morgrath, remove the clever human. Calderon, find more recruits. We need to move quickly before the humans find the E-grades and advance." "The tower?" Lord Ruish asked. "Leave it for now. The assault would prove too costly at the moment owing to that human''s power. Yet it also cannot leave to threaten us and its minions are too weak to fuel its growth. Finish the other recruitments. The influx will provide ample numbers to deal with them when the time is right." Steven trailed behind Lord Morgrath as they left. He was the only recruit allowed into the Lord''s meetings, and he intended to learn everything he could from them. It was the only way to survive. Not only that, it was his only path to the power these immortal beings held. 41. Tick Tick Tick Boom ~~~Lee~~~ Lee had scouted the border the day before when the kids told him about a lair nearby. They also mentioned that the fence gave them the creeps, and they''d avoided it. Lee could understand. The fence was definitely taller than it used to be... and it gave off a chill he could feel just by looking at it. It became clearer what was happening once you approached. You have entered a Place of Power: [The Fence] Debuff Resisted: [Wailing Despair] Unfortunately, it didn''t elaborate on what that meant. It was a new name for something no one had seen anywhere else. But the zone came with an unpleasant bonus. Feelings of despair, fear, pain, and grief all washed through him simply from stepping in. And that was after he resisted something called Wailing Despair... Lee endured. It was bad, but he''d felt worse... There were no monsters in visible sight, and nothing growing within a hundred feet of the towering monstrosity. The monsters were still there, however, and they couldn''t hide from Lee. That was how he ended up alone and waiting for a fight as the invisible creatures swarmed from every direction in the early morning light. His runed blade, custom made after his visit the day before, swung in wide arcs that cut apart the apparitions without resistance. It was a ridiculous size, taller than he was, but perfect for the swarm he faced. The problem was that the monsters kept coming. Their bodies seemed to evaporate on death, and didn''t leave corpses behind. Which meant no cores... Even the new sword wasn''t making the dent he''d hoped it would. Which meant he had to try the other test. He stood at the edge of the boundary, a line the monsters wouldn''t cross, and let one hit him. The strike failed to penetrate his runed armor. That was good, so he walked a step deeper and just stood there while struggling to stay on his feet beneath the raining blows. It went on long enough that he was reasonably sure they weren¡¯t smart enough to go for the gaps in his armor intentionally. So he started spinning. The tide never stopped, and Lee was getting dizzy when he backed out again. How anyone had made it through this nightmare without his runes... though most of them had died in the crossing. They must have been so desperate... That left one more test. "You ready?" he asked the people in the distance. Alejandro nodded, and his group moved further down the boundary line before stopping and watching Lee. Lee moved back into the zone and went to work chopping while trying to monitor the others. They only waded in a short way and then just stood there. He could see their heads turning as they sought monsters that none of them could see. It was a test to see if Lee''s assault would provide enough of a distraction for others to run through unaccosted. If it didn''t work, then any rescue mission would be far more costly, if not impossible. They couldn''t cover nearly enough people in rune armor to make it a viable option; the six people on this team were wearing the only full face helmets they had. May had worked through the night to make them, as well as the crude gauntlets that mostly protected their hands. Without gear like that for everyone, they would likely lose most of the people they were trying to save. To hopefully add to the distraction, Lee trudged deeper with each swing, until he finally reached the steel pillars that made up the fence. Then he whacked one. His sword dug a much shallower cut in the metal than he would have liked. But then it was a thicker blade. He kept chopping and funneling mana into the blade as he slowly carved through the pillar. He made it through the metal and then had to cut again higher up to remove the piece fully. The whole time, the screaming ghosts accosted him from every direction. Between dumping mana into his blade and armor, along with a few knicks from lucky claws, Lee had to retreat after cutting a single pillar away. He took the metal with him. Assuming it wasn''t some kind of cursed metal or anything, then May should be able to do something with it. His mana regenerated slower while inside. The entire area was barren in that regard as well. His Mana Mind felt empty. It was only the monsters that held any mana, and they were chock full of it. Also, the fence. It held a weird type of mana Lee hadn''t seen before. "We took a few hits," Alejandro said, rejoining him where he sat in the sand. "But even those stopped once you hit the fence." He was smiling. "We can do this, Lee." "Let me regenerate and I''ll go make the hole bigger before we..." "The hole is closing." Lee looked up and sure enough, the damn metal was growing slowly but visibly back into place. "Well, shit. Do we go through and worry about cutting a new hole on the way back?" They went for it. Luckily, the gap was just wide enough for the heavily armored men to squeeze through. They all tanked some hits as they ran across the open terrain and then jumped the much smaller and crumbling fence on that side. The way it was decaying while the main fence had only grown made Lee think it was the monsters trying to get more people to enter. Then they were in Mexico. If countries were even a thing anymore. An illegal crossing with plans to bring more people back across. Does that make me a coyote? Lee thought. Not that he cared. As far as he was concerned, the only thing that mattered now was people who would fight the monsters, and those who would help them fight. Alejandro seemed to know where he was going, and he led them quickly into the city. The monsters had done damage over here in much the same way. A few buildings burnt down, some that were clearly lairs now, and others that had taken hits from something massive... Lee topped off his and the other''s runes while they ran. They tried to be stealthy in the ominously quiet metropolis, but with everyone covered in plate armor, they weren''t. Lee drew up plans to add silencing runes to the armor next time. He just had to figure out a way that wouldn''t silence the person inside as well. His ridiculous sword was another issue, one solved by trading it to the strongest person among them. Matias. The guy was one of the rare people that had an actual fighting class like Alejandro, and it came with a hefty boost to his strength attribute. Depending on how it worked out today, Lee would probably let him keep the oversized sword. Things like weight and balance became less important when magic strength was involved. Seeing Saira in plate armor was odd, but she''d insisted on coming. She was the one with the communication spell today, and Mar had the other half. Not only did it let them monitor the fort, but gave Mar something to do since the border monsters seemed to absolutely hate another invisible person showing up in their territory. She would lead the backup to meet them at the north side of the border if the mission proved successful. They saw no one else as they jogged through the city. Not until the motorcycle came roaring down the street and blew past them. It was shocking, and Lee got excited, thinking someone had figured out engines already. Then it entered his Mana Mind, and he saw the truth. It was an illusion. A construct like the panthers. It was probably that comparison that made him tear it apart without stopping to think about it. The thread running off into the distance that snapped away when he did so was another issue. "I didn''t mean to..." Lee pointed where the thread of mana had led. "But it came from that direction." Alejandro didn''t question it and just took off running again. The sprint ended when they reached a barricade across the road. People were visible walking atop it, and they were also clearly expecting Lee''s group because more appeared up there as they approached. What followed was a very heated back and forth in Spanish. Lee had made no progress on that front. He had too many things he needed to do... Alejandro kept repeating a name in a rather demanding voice until what looked like the man in question finally appeared on the wall. Then things got even more heated. Lee could see the tension growing in the Spanish speakers in his group, so he followed their lead and prepared for a fight. His best guess now was that these were not the people they''d come to save, but who they needed to be saved from. It was confirmed when Alejandro abruptly blurred atop the wall directly behind the man he''d been arguing with. He ended up with his back to the man because of how his skill worked, but just like Maria, he''d learned to use the defensive skill for offense. He kicked backward the moment he appeared and launched the man off the wall. Sending him outside and away from his allies. Lee was only a heartbeat behind the others as they charged. They all fell behind Matias when the man bounded through the air, his massive sword slamming down to cleave the still falling man in half. Unfortunately, the blow never connected because the target vanished before he reached the ground. Matias used his failed strike to launch himself over the wall, vanishing on the other side. Lee followed with the others as Alejandro cut through another man''s sword, arm, and then neck in one smooth motion before charging after another. This close, Lee could see their faces more clearly... and they looked like demons. Only, it was just painted on. He forced himself to look away from the spraying blood as he plummeted down into a veritable army on the other side of the wall. It was a lot of enemies, and he was really not looking forward to having to mana burn himself again. He needed to work on his runes, damn it! It was an unnecessary concern. Rune blades cut through everyone and everything, and the rune armor shrugged off everything that came their way. Even the magic spells that started flying couldn''t break through. Lee stopped breaking the spells he could reach once he saw that, and he just started hacking... He felt like a butcher as his blade rose and fell in a horrible slaughter. It was a relief when the tide of enemies broke. They''d finally seen enough, apparently. Lee didn''t know how long he stood there watching them run and refusing to look at the carnage he''d unleashed around himself. But a hand eventually landed on his shoulder and he flinched. "Come, Lee. It is time to go home." Alejandro pulled on him, and Lee turned... and found hundreds of people hurrying past as they clambered over the wall in the street. There were so many... He didn''t get any more time to take it in because someone yelled something while pointing into the sky behind him. Lee turned back and felt his heart sink. That''s impossible... The ball of red fire arcing upward into the sky was bigger than anything he''d ever cast, or even seen. And it looked to be coming right for them. Slowly compared to most magic, but still oncoming as it rose in a ponderous arc. Lee didn''t know what to do... All those people... and Alejandro... Saira... the armor might protect them... but it might not. In the corner of his eye, Lee saw the massive sword beside him and had an insane idea. "Matias, throw me at it!" Matias was a smart man, because he didn''t hesitate and a glow burst from under his armor as the blade whipped around and landed on Lee''s back. He hit with the flat side of the sword, in a cross between a golf swing and a baseball batter. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. It blew the wind from Lee''s lungs and he felt like baseball must feel as he flew into the sky. It was exhilarating, terrifying, and he only then thought about how he would land... but that was a worry for the future. Matias had good aim, and as Lee flew toward the oncoming spell, he hoped it was just another illusion. That was the only thing that made sense. It wasn''t an illusion. Lee met the spell at the height of its arc, right as it started its descent, and he had a single moment to take in the impossible magic as it loomed in his vision like a roaring star falling to earth. The entire spell was too large across for him to even see it all with Mana Mind, and he could already tell that it held more power than his entire mana pool... and it wasn''t even Liquid Mana. It was a nuke. Or the magical equivalent of a nuke, and far too powerful for him to undo... He didn''t know exactly where the spell would land, but it didn''t really matter. It would be close and something like this didn''t even need to get close. Everyone would die when it touched down. His rune armor was good, but not good enough for this. They would all die. Of course, Lee had already doomed himself by getting launched up here. He was on a collision course with the spell. He didn''t know if it would detonate or if he might pass through unscathed. He''d be fine if it didn''t explode. Mana Mind wasn''t seeing enough of it, and he only understood a fraction of what he could see. Or thought he did. It was all conjecture based on magic he''d seen before. If it didn''t explode, then he''d saved himself. He would land further from the explosion. His armor would handle it fine from there. Sure, the landing might be rough, but it probably wouldn''t even slow him down. It would also mean the death of everyone he''d left behind... If he couldn''t pass through... then breaking the spell now would reduce his proximity to the explosion, even if only a little. It would give everyone else a chance... give his friends a chance. If anyone could survive what was coming, it was him. He could Mana Blast it with his entire mana pool¡­ but it was so big¡­ it might still explode¡­ If he pumped enough mana into his runes instead... and did so fast enough... then maybe¡­ So many thoughts raced through his head in that singular moment. It felt like his entire life was flashing before his eyes... and that was a bad sign, wasn''t it? He remembered the people that helped him over and over. All the times Alejandro and Saira had dropped everything to save him... and not just them. People whose names he hadn''t known who still risked life and limb when he needed them. Random people... some of whom were likely down there right now and about to die in a fiery cataclysm. There just wasn''t enough time... So Lee did the only thing he could... I''m sorry, Stan. I can''t let them die. He forced mana into his runes while pulling on the threads of a magical nuke and destabilized the... ... ... ... ... ~~~Saira~~~ Saira stared up at what was very likely her end. A magical spell of a size she could not fathom. Voices screamed around her. Sounds of terror and desperation. So many who moments ago had freedom in their sights¡­ all of them doomed. Saira didn¡¯t even try to run¡­ she could never make it far enough. Now the only thought in her head was relief that Mary had stayed behind¡­ "Matias, throw me at it!" Lee yelled, finally drawing her gaze from the oncoming calamity. Matias glowed, and without hesitation, swatted the man into the sky. Lee¡­ The young man who had done so many strange things since the first day she met him¡­ he fought so hard¡­ suffered so much¡­ then helped her heal Mary. What is he doing? The shiny silver of his armor vanished against the raging fiery backdrop that filled more of the sky every second, and Saira remembered him breaking that fireball just last night. He couldn¡¯t be¡­ "Lee!" Alejandro screamed and then slammed his shield into the ground. A shimmering light expanded up and out from it¡­ and the fireball ballooned outward to fill the sky in one eye-searing instant. For one single moment, a red sun was born over the city. An orb of spinning fire stretching from the ground to the clouds above. Out from the center of that crimson inferno, shot a blue spark that blazed with light to rival the sun. Like a shooting star falling to earth, it streaked across the sky overhead¡­ Saira was already running when the shockwave followed a moment later. A thunderclap of sound and wind that lifted her into the air and sent her flying forward. She tumbled when the wind set her back down, but only for an instant. Then she ran on. Toward the fading spark and the crater it illuminated. She knew what that light was¡­ even though it was impossible. So she ran and pulled the life from every plant near enough, draining them to husks as their lives fueled the growing storm of energy between her straining hands. It was impossible that he still lived¡­ impossible that he was not merely ashes and dust in the wind¡­ Lee was neither dust nor ash, but Saira¡¯s courage quailed at the sight before her. A glowing¡­ thing lay in the crater. A skeletal thing¡­ smoke wafting from bones wrapped with blinding symbols of power¡­ symbols that were fading even now¡­ remnants of charred flesh and sizzling molten metal adorning them. Her despair at the sight did not stop her sprint, and Saira unleashed her gathered magic upon the corpse in a vain attempt to... It drank down her magic like a parched field absorbing the rain. Gods¡­ Blackened flesh turned red. Pieces of a man that were never meant to see the sun squirmed and expanded in the ribcage¡­ Saira did not slow as she snatched up the body and ran for the nearest tree¡­ All Gods above and below, hear my prayer and let me save this one! ~~~Lee~~~ ¡­ ¡­ Debuff Removed: [Organ Death] Mana Mind came back first. It was small, but Lee knew Saira was carrying him over her shoulder at a dead sprint. His heart started beating right after, pounding in rhythm with her feet. He also knew that his armor had no runes on it... at least not the pieces that remained melted inside his flesh... what little flesh there was¡­ The rest of his armor was gone. May''s gonna be pissed... he thought. But the thought felt strange... distant¡­ like someone else¡¯s voice¡­ The runes inside his bones still held... somehow. They looked weird... and Lee could feel his mana flowing into them even now, recharging them, and not from any action of his. That''s cool... Saira stopped beside a tree just long enough for it to die. More of his flesh squirmed and regrew, while less of his blood dripped away. More trees died one after the other. Each one dragging Lee further from the dark. Until... Debuff Removed: [Blindness] Debuff Removed: [Deafness] Lee blinked as vision and sound returned to him, only then realizing that he''d had no eyes until that moment... I should get a helmet without a vision slit. He closed his eyes when the bouncing made him dizzy. He didn''t need them to see Alejandro approaching after a few more dead trees. Lee could recognize his mana... and his voice. "You found him! Is he alive!?" "He is healing!" Another tree died. Debuff Removed: [Crippled] The feeling of his slowly regrowing muscles forcing a chunks of hot metal out of themselves was... weird. It also went on for far too long. "I..." Lee choked and started coughing up... stuff. "Don''t speak," Saira said. "You are safe. We are nearing the fence." She killed more trees on the way, and Lee felt it when they got there. The sudden mana dead zone standing out in stark relief. Also, the ghosts that were attacking the other people in the dead zone. "Let me fight," he said, struggling to escape from Saira''s grasp. She put him on his feet, and Lee swayed in place as he reached for a sword that wasn''t on his waist anymore. "My sword..." Alejandro grabbed his hand and placed a sword in it. Then held on for a moment. "You don''t need..." "I can fight," Lee said, and only staggered a bit as he stepped forward to cleave a ghost apart. Then another. It was only after that, when he realized there weren''t nearly as many ghosts as there should be... It was the clanging noises echoing out over the yells and screams of hundreds that drew his attention further down the fence. There he saw Matias. The man stood with his back to the fence, sweeping his massive blade back and forth, each swing finishing with an impact against the fence before coming back around and doing it on the other side. Lee stared with sluggish thoughts until Alejandro dragged him away. "Let''s go. Everyone is almost through." He let the other man drag him along as he tried to figure out what his mind was trying to tell him. It was only as they were passing out of the dead zone on the other side when it clicked. "The runes!" He dragged Alejandro to a stop. Matias'' sword wasn''t cutting the fence! "I need to recharge..." Except he couldn''t feel any runes from that direction. Lee ran back into the dead zone. Running away from the people streaming through a massive gap someone had cut in the fence before. Someone like Matias, and he''d drained the sword by doing it. Now he was defenseless... The gap in the fence grew narrower with every second, and guards lined the edges of the rushing crowd, flailing their weapons wildly at the air. Only a few had armor protecting them... all of them were bloody. He reached the fence. The undamaged fence, with Matias on the other side. Lee stuck his hand through the bars and drew a rune onto the already sliced up backplate. It refused to take... the armor was too damaged. "Jump over!" Lee yelled. Matias glanced over his shoulder, his face slicked with sweat and blood. No helmet in sight. He smiled and his gaze went back to the people rushing through the gap. "She did it! And no, I can''t run, not yet!" Lee started hacking at the fence from his side. If he could just open a hole... He forgot about his lack of armor until heavy claws sank into his back, fetched up against his bones, and threw him to the side. His blade bisected the ghost as it pounced after him, and Lee ran back to keep carving a hole. He just had to... another ghost charged, and he cut it down. Back and forth he went, alternately cutting the fence and killing the ghosts that came after him for doing so. It was slower without the great sword, and he''d only cut halfway through when Matias stepped away. "Keep going, Lee. Save them..." Lee looked past him and saw the demons emerging into the dead zone from the city. They must have followed the noise of metal on metal... half of them were charging Matias while the other half turned and ran towards the fleeing people rushing through the gap in the fence. "Despedida," Matias said, with one last grin at Lee. "It is my turn now." He jumped, soaring through the air, and landed just ahead of the demons charging the gap. His sword swung and bisected the first demon to reach him. The backswing took another life and did nothing to deter those coming behind. They crashed into him en masse and he vanished in the crowd, with only the massive sword appearing above the mob to show he still fought on. That and the bodies that flew out, usually in pieces. Lee struck the fence as he stared after the man. He took another row of five-inch claws into his side and beheaded the ghost with a backhand swing. He briefly tried to climb the fence... but more ghosts dragged him down before he made it halfway. He watched as the tide of demons broke against the man. As demons fell by the dozens, but never stopped charging to their doom. None of them made it past him to the fleeing people. Eventually, Alejandro appeared behind Lee. "Time to go!" "Matias..." "He made his choice," Alejandro said, and dragged Lee away. People were screaming, and Lee looked over in time to see the gap in the fence sealing up. The guards dragging one last person through the shrinking hole... A few people hadn''t made it through yet... and they died screaming to invisible claws. People still ran from the fence on this side, fleeing the zone as they pushed or carried the last stragglers to make it through. Lee saw a man''s back split open where a ghost carved apart his spine, and he went down. Another''s leg fell away in a spray of blood, but an armored figure scooped him up. Only one more fell before the last of them cleared the zone. They''d won... hadn''t they? It didn''t feel like a victory. The weeping and wails of pain... and the screeching. Lee turned toward the sound and saw one of the demon figures holding Matias'' severed head high while they howled. They really were demons... and they should all die... Alejandro pulled his hand down a moment before Lee unleashed a Mana Blast through the fence. "Don''t do it, Lee. They aren''t worth it!" Lee struggled and failed to lift his hand. "They''re fucking demons..." "Save it for their leader," Alejandro said, still holding his wrist down. "Save it for that! Make sure it counts!" That made sense. "Where''s the leader?" He would wipe them from the face of the earth... "I don''t know." Lee yanked against Alejandro''s grip. "We have to find them! I have to kill..." "Lee!" Alejandro didn''t let go, and instead wrapped both arms around him. "Stop, Lee. I think you''re in shock. We will find them, but not today. We''re safe for now. We saved many people today, but we still need to get them home. Will you help me?" "I..." Shock wasn''t a real thing anymore... was it? He could heal from anything... couldn''t he? Lee blinked, and the world had tilted around him. He stared at the wide trail of blood leading from the fence... pieces of bodies... "I..." Darkness crept into his vision, crowding out the light... so many dead... he''d died too... hadn''t he? Where... was... "Rest now," the voice came from somewhere far away. "Rest. I have you. You''re safe." The voice felt soothing... and the darkness looked so peaceful... so quiet... Lee stopped fighting and let it take him away... 42. Whats In Your Head? ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley slept terribly in the room that had been vacated for him. Between the strange space, too many people moving around nearby, and the ground only a single storey below. All of it added up. He really wasn''t feeling it when he received a lot of not quite glares from people with bloodshot eyes after he came downstairs. So what if he''d woken screaming a few times? He''d give them something to scream about... Samantha touched his arm with a small squeeze. "Like water off a duck''s back." Stanley stopped and frowned at her. "What the hell are you talking about?" She laughed. "Sorry. Just something I heard somewhere." "What do ducks have to do with anything?" "Nothing. I''m saying don''t let other people affect your mood." "That''s a terrible way to say it..." "Have you really never heard that expression?" Jerry asked. "Are you idiots really not going to stay here?" "We want to help you, Stanley. Don''t leave us behind." Samantha said. "Right, guys?" Jerry and Arthur mumbled their agreement. Not nearly as cheerful as her. With Arthur muttering, "What? After last night, when you said they would all die?" Jerry just kept grumbling about, "Stupid Bill and his stupid cheating class..." Stanley took Samantha''s advice to not let the people bother him. It was easy. He just pushed all their tables away from his and then glared at anyone who looked his way. Someone here must have a skill for making the furniture, because he was pretty sure he''d smashed all of it the night before... at least they got to level their skill. Stanley was a real giver like that. Bill brought a couple of full packs after breakfast, but before they left. "The buff fades whether or not you eat it. So keep that in mind. And I''ll see what I can do about your suggestions for this place." Stanley didn''t see Tony or his friends anywhere, and he didn''t care as he flew out the door. Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] "It''s gone up," Samantha said immediately upon exiting the building. "Four percent now... and it says something new..." She took a step back inside and froze. "It lingers..." she said, then elaborated before he had to ask what the hell she was talking about. "The debuff always vanished the moment we entered a lair, but now it turns into debuff with a duration before going away. Only thirty seconds... for now." There was a chance this meant something was nearby, and Stanley tried not to get his hopes up as he took them into the sky. He even left off the dirt shell in hopes they might see something. No luck. Stanley cursed every useless person in this dungeon, and their mothers. Then he got back to hunting. It was Caffeine''s barking that drew his attention after the second lair. Stanley was only a couple of buildings away, and he opened his sphere to see what was happening, even as he flew closer at a blurring pace. He didn''t expect to see a horde of monsters swarming his core gatherers. Monsters that looked a lot like sloths... which was weird to see in Boston. Especially because he''d already killed them... Stanley''s mind raced. His mood amped and blood roaring in his ears at even the suspicion that Caffeine was in danger. He didn''t wait to figure out what was happening, and pounded the entire area flat in a heartbeat. It was easier than it should have been... "What the hell was that?" Arthur yelled. "I thought they were dead!" "They were," Jerry said. "Not only did we already get their cores..." He looked up at Stanley. "They weren''t food anymore." Stanley understood what he was talking about instantly. Invaders! He dropped out of the sky to get a closer look at the now twice dead and flattened monsters. There wasn''t much to see... they were all fucked up, both from his flying rocks and the followup smashing. The only oddity he noticed was when he took to the air again. There he saw it wasn''t all the dead that had risen back up. "Stanley," Samantha said. "Behind you." Caffeine was growling in the same direction she was pointing. He turned back the way he''d come and saw the monsters from the next lair now also climbing back to their feet. Only instead of the sloths, now it was the naked mole rat wolves... that was the best description he could come up with. More clearly this time, he could also see that it definitely wasn''t all of them, and it wasn''t hard to pick out the difference between the dead and not dead. One group still had their heads, and the rest did not. It didn''t seem to matter what else was missing as long as they still had heads. He watched one creature drag itself across the ground with the single leg it had remaining. Drag itself to a core lying on the ground... and eat it. Hey, that''s Caffeine''s core! Stanley dragged it over, trying and failing to tell if it was any heavier than a normal corpse to his power. He ripped it apart easily enough... but the core was already gone. He dragged another away from its targeted core before it could eat it and dropped the monster on the ground below. It shuffled in a slow circle until its head pointed at the trio of core gatherers. Then shuffled just as slowly toward them. Caffeine growled at it but didn''t attack. Stanley flew down into its line of sight, which it shouldn''t have... the thing had no eyes. Its face partially caved in, probably from a rock. Despite the obvious lack of sight, it still turned toward him. He flew up, and its head tracked his motion. He kept going until it stopped looking his way. Instead, it went right back to chasing the others. Did it just chase whatever was closest? It couldn''t see anything, or shouldn''t be able to at least, but it didn''t seem to have trouble detecting him, no matter how quiet he was. Stanley picked up his core gatherers and lifted all of them out of range. Then he watched and waited. Don''t you want to go home? Stanley thought at the monster. Lead me to your creator! It was a long shot; he knew that, but he still hoped. The monster shuffled in random directions, never going far in any one direction, and he wasn''t sure if it was intentional or just because it kept stumbling. It definitely didn''t look like it would lead him anywhere... Stanley flew a short distance away, taking his cargo with him, and brought back a living monster. Some kind of unicorn rabbit about the same size as the molerat wolf. The rabbit took offense to its abduction by squealing loudly. He dropped it next to the zombie, and it shut up. The zombie had reacted to the sound, turning its head to track the approaching rabbit, and it immediately charged. Though its charge wasn''t more than the same shuffle it had before. The rabbit squealed and jumped through the zombie in a splatter of gore. Stanley blinked at it. There had definitely been some magic in that jump. He didn''t like it. So he dragged more zombies over, dozens of them, and dropped them all right atop the rabbit. Of course, the rabbit saw them coming and wasn''t there when they crashed to the ground. It blasted through the first one to stand up... then the next... Stanley caught it and forced the hoppy bastard to stand still while zombie teeth and claws ripped into it. "That''s awful..." Samantha complained. "You want to be the damn guinea pig?" Stanley snapped. "Then shut the fuck up!" They kept mauling the bunny until the core appeared, then they all went after it. Stanley couldn''t actually see which one ate it, but every zombie lost interest in the corpse after that. He wasn''t even sure if they''d been trying to eat its flesh or just kill it for the core. Stanley killed all the zombies, but none of them dropped a core. Why do they want it? Are they absorbing it? He waited until the dead rabbit climbed back to its feet... Well, its one foot. It did the same as its killers and only shuffled in random directions. What if... Stanley moved back to the rabbit lair and went to work wiping them out. He worked as quickly as he could while gathering all the cores. As soon as the last bouncy fuck was dead, he flew back to the lone zombie rabbit and dropped the cores in front of it. The zombie chowed down, eating one core after another, until they were gone. Then... it just went back to shuffling. "God damn it!" How many cores did the greedy shits want before doing... whatever it was they were going to do? "I..." It happened so fast... Premonition only gave him a fraction of a second''s warning, and it wasn''t enough. The pain was unlike anything Stanley had ever felt, as if every inch of his body burned to ash in an instant, and then kept burning. Behind the pain came the void. It was a gnawing, clawing, void of pure oblivion. It was the end of everything. The end of Stanley... the end of his brother. Lee was dying... falling into the void... dragging Stanley down behind him with the same connection that bound their souls to each other. A connection he could see clearly now as their lives frayed apart at the seams. Only, connection was the wrong word. There was no simple link tying them to each other. Twin-Soul didn''t even begin to describe what Stanley saw at that moment. And none of that mattered anymore... because they were dying. It was over... just... like... NO! Anger boiled up. Boiled over. Stanley raged against the dying of the light. Raged against the unfairness of it all. Raged against his own helplessness here at the end. Raged against every foolish decision that led him here and damned his brother to death. Then he cast that rage along with everything he had, everything he was, every scrap of power and will. He threw it all at Lee and begged him to stay. Forced him to hold on. Demanded for him to keep living! Stay with me! It wasn''t enough. It was so far from enough... A screaming howl reverberated through the darkness... a roar of raging defiance that stopped the universe in its tracks. Stanley latched onto the sound as power flooded into him. He used it all. Casting it out to his brother in a blind and pathetic attempt to halt the inevitable. Please... don''t go! Lee stopped falling... stopped for a single instant. The void fought back. Oblivion bore down on Stanley with the weight of the universe... and he pushed back. He thrust every last shred of power he could muster even as his mind boiled away and his body burned to ashes. He held it back for one fleeting heartbeat before the weight broke him. Obliterated him into shattered thoughts and broken dreams. Cast him down after his brother into the void to be devoured. The howl continued to ring out across oblivion. Its sound was the one remaining constant and Stanley clutched tightly to it as his world devolved into darkness, confusion, and pain. He used that ringing sound to pull the fragments of his scattered mind back together. To gather what he could while reality strained and failed to reassert itself within that screaming roar of denial. The howl rang on while Stanley pulled himself together. But it was failing... fading... and then it stopped. Reality demanded death once again. Stolen novel; please report. Stanley''s broken mind had no room for thoughts. Only the rage. That was all he needed. And he threw it all at the void once again. He held Lee back from the clutches of oblivion... for... one... more... instant... It ended him. Shattered him into dust and cast the pieces to the wind. ... It was all worth it. That instant was enough. A small and broken fragment of his mind felt it. Felt the spark of light that came into the darkness and touched Lee. The void stopped pulling and only waited hungrily as the light shone on him. Then the light went out, and Stanley felt the hungry void reaching for them again. Stanley tried to drag together... something... anything... He couldn''t do it... He was too weak... too broken... The light returned. Stanley smelled pine trees. He felt the summer sun on his skin, felt the wind brushing through his hair. The warmth and light dragged Lee further from the end. Then he hung there again. Waiting. Drifting. Warmth returned once more, pulling them back from the brink. Again and again, the light returned. Each time dragging Lee away from oblivion. He pulled Stanley with him. Away from the dark, and back into the light. Until, all at once, the darkness retreated. The hungering maw of oblivion closed. Lee... Stanley fell into his own darkness. ~~~Samantha~~~ Samantha sighed. Stanley was being extra dramatic after they found the undead. The cursing was especially excessive after last night. "I..." Stanley''s latest rant ended rather abruptly. She glanced up at him in time to see his eyelids fluttering as he plummeted out of the sky. Samantha felt a chill... Oh, no. Stanley stopped falling and his eyes snapped wide open as blinding violet light blazed out. His hands clawed at the air and she turned, looking for whatever was attacking... Then a shadow fell over her, and Samantha''s searching gaze moved upward. Her mind took a moment to process what the dark shape filling the sky overhead was, and the fear grew when she finally understood. Caffeine... The multi-story tall pug Howled. Howl wasn''t enough to describe the world shattering sound that emerged, but it was all she had. Reality vibrated as if the earth itself was a great bell, and somebody had just rung it. You have heard the Howl of the Beast Lord. +50 All Base Attributes to All Friends Samantha''s gaze slid back to Stanley, and she saw the blood burst from his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth. His expression was a terrible mix of rage and terror, and she thought he might be screaming, but there was no sound beyond the howling. She stood frozen in fear and shock despite the strength now filling her body. What was happening? How could she even help with... whatever this was? Caffeine was shrinking as he howled and as Stanley bled. The howl diminished as the pug did, and she finally heard Stanley''s screams. He was screaming out a name... "Lee!" Power radiated from him as he screamed, the very air rippling from whatever he was doing, while violet light blazed from his eyes. Caffeine shrank all the way back down as his howl faded away into silence, leaving only a ringing in her ears when Stanley finally stopped screaming. He hung silently in the air for a long second and then collapsed into the dirt. The pug took one trembling step toward Stanley and fell down himself. Samantha stayed as unmoving as Arthur and Jerry. All three of them were staring in wide-eyed shock. Jerry broke the stillness first. "We have to move!" He dashed forward and threw Stanley over his shoulder. "Get the dog!" She was already moving and scooped up the limp pug with a terrible feeling. Were they still alive? She couldn''t tell as she ran after Jerry into the most recently cleared building. Behind her, she heard Arthur finally shake out of his stupor and follow. Jerry led them to the third and top floor, eventually ending up in a walk-in closet before he laid Stanley down. She caught up to see him with two fingers on the man''s neck. "Is he..." "Still alive," Jerry said, and Samantha felt a weight lift from her chest. That was good. Where there was life, there was hope. She only hesitated a moment before laying the pug on Stanley''s legs. The contact might help... and her worry eased more when she saw the small chest rising and falling. But... Now what? "Do we feed them?" Jerry asked, shrugging out of his backpack. It was worth a shot. Samantha pulled off her own pack and dug out one of Bill''s paper wrapped bundles. It smelled delicious as she unwrapped it, but her stomach was in knots and the thought of eating made her feel sick. Caffeine didn''t react to the meat dangled in front of his nose, and Jerry had no better results from Stanley. "What..." Something scraped outside the closet. Something close. And Samantha realized she''d left her spear outside... Jerry pulled a knife and lunged right as the zombie rabbit dragged itself into sight. He hit it clean, straight through the head, and then stabbed it a few more times to make sure. The monster was twice the size of Caffeine, the current Caffeine at least, but its back legs were missing and it made the whole thing far less dangerous. Jerry finished it quickly and then dragged the corpse away out of sight. His face was grim when he came back. "We got incoming. A lot." His gaze slid to Stanley and then Caffeine. "Something''s drawing them here." Was it the howl? It had been so loud that she thought the whole city might have heard it... and for that matter, what was a Beast Lord? She''d known Caffeine was powerful, but this was the first she''d seen of that name. Did it attract monsters? Or was it just the noise... "We should run," Arthur said. "They probably heard the dog." Jerry shook his head... then paused. "There''s a chance we can retreat to where we started today. If the lair is still unclaimed... Or we make the trek to Bill''s. Anywhere we go, we risk running into new monsters, and it''s going to be hard to fight while carrying both of them..." "We could... leave them," Arthur said quietly. Samantha glared at him and hissed, "Absolutely not!" "We barricade the door before we go and..." "No," Jerry said. "The zombies will chase us when we..." "No!" Samantha said, too loudly. She lowered her voice and continued, "We aren''t abandoning them!" "What if they don''t wake up? We don''t even know what happened back there!" Arthur said. Both of them turned to look at her. "I don''t know!" Why would they expect her to know more? "The zombies are pretty slow," Jerry said after a long silence. "They probably won''t be able to climb to the window, which means they can only come at us from one direction. We can hold them off..." Arthur said what Jerry didn''t. "For how long?" "As long as we need to," Samantha said. "And when it gets dark?" Samantha stood up, glaring at both of them in the dim closet. "I''m staying. No debate. Now I need to go get my spear. Who''s with me?" Jerry cast one last look at Stanley before standing up. "Arthur, see what you can do to barricade this room. We''ll be right back." The only window up here was already smaller than it should be; a blessing this time. But it was still creepy how the lairs changed the buildings. A creeping shift that was slowly but surely changing the face of Boston into... something else. Stanley had been extra aggressive and brutal while clearing this building, which meant most of the rabbits hadn''t risen as undead. The few that died with their heads were scary, but slow. Jerry handled them, and then they were outside. She finally saw what Jerry was talking about. Everywhere she looked were shambling monsters. All different shapes and sizes... with one nearby that looked like a human... Jerry beat her to the spear and hefted it while looking at the knife in his other hand. "Can you make another one?" He nodded at the small trees lining the street. "I''ll keep them off you." Samantha changed course and touched the nearest tree. They were all small and would need a strong boost of mana if she wanted another spear, but then she didn''t need her mana for anything else. Contrary to what others said or thought, she didn''t actually need to hug the tree. It just felt more friendly... and helped funnel mana faster. She sent mana through her hand and into the tree... and her heart sank. Things were getting worse. I''m so sorry. She sent her thoughts into the tree along with the mana. The trees couldn''t communicate with words. They were all slow feelings and impressions, but she could speed them up with mana. Enough that it wouldn''t take all day to ask for a spear. The problem here was the corruption. It was getting worse, and the trees were not handling it well. Take this mana. Use it to fight back... to grow strong. The tree eagerly accepted her gift, shivering under her hand as blackened bark sloughed off and it purged a few spots of rot beneath. Fresh, healthy bark grew back in seconds, covering the tree in a new layer of protection that would resist future corruption more efficiently. Instead of taking years to adapt, and likely dying before achieving success, her mana sped up the process and gave the tree a chance. It wouldn''t be enough. Samantha knew that. Not if the corruption kept increasing. Not if she didn''t come back for regular infusions. Maybe she could convince Stanley to swing by? It would do him good to stop and appreciate the trees every once in a while. He was too stressed out... not that he didn''t have a fantastic excuse. They were all stressed out. But everyone needed to decompress sometimes, or they would go insane. She tried to do just that as the hopeful tree blossomed under her touch, tried to ignore the squelching, crunching noises every time Jerry stabbed another zombie. Her mana neared its limits, and she sent a last message to the tree, along with the mental image of what she needed. Please help me with this. The now much larger tree was happy to return the favor, and Samantha wished it luck as she took the solid and already sharpened spear. A little more mana helped it seal back up the bark, and she went to help Jerry. He was waiting, and immediately led her into the building as the shambling horde closed in around them. They closed every door they could and jammed in whatever furniture they could find to block them from opening. There weren''t enough doors, and the ones that remained didn''t have the lair strength that still filled the rest of the building. Samantha didn''t know how strong the zombies were, but the sound of shattering wood came from downstairs before they even made it back to Arthur. Jerry stopped at the top of the stairs. "Check on Arthur. I''ll hold them here." It was a good plan. High ground plus the longer reach with the spear... maybe they could even jam up the stairwell with corpses. Stanley and Caffeine were still out. Though... "Arthur, did you take the meat in front of Caffeine?" Narrow gaps let in enough light where the older man was trying to wedge a dresser against two others he''d stacked over the window. A feat of strength that looked almost comical as he maneuvered the bulky thing like it weighed next to nothing. It wasn''t comical because the monsters were all equally strong, if not stronger. "I... haven''t touched... anything," he wheezed. So maybe it wasn''t as easy as it looked... But that also meant Caffeine had woken up? She quickly offered more, even shaking the pug to try and wake him. Nothing. He was as limp as before. Samantha still piled more food in front of his mouth. Then loaded up Stanley''s hands and piled more next to his head. He''d bled a lot... but she didn''t know how hurt he was. If he woke up starving and Caffeine wasn''t awake to protect them... Samantha stared down at his blood-streaked face. He was so still. So helpless. She''d never seen him like this before. She wanted to clean him up, but they had very limited water right now. Better to save it for drinking. "Get better, Stanley," she whispered. "We''ll keep you both safe until then." She gave Caffeine a gentle head scratch and headed back to Jerry. She sprinted when she heard the familiar sound of a spear striking flesh and bone, but her fear was unfounded. Jerry still stood atop the stairs, and she arrived to see him calmly stab an undead through the head. It was bipedal, but definitely not human. "You okay?" "Fine. They suck at climbing stairs." They''d gotten lucky that the top floor had only one room and one window. It trivialized the experience, and she ended up watching Jerry kill zombies with nothing else to do. Unfortunately, the pile of dead sliding to the bottom of the stairs wasn''t slowing those coming behind. The zombies were strong, and they had no issue shoving or clawing their way through their dead fellows. They also didn''t stop coming. An hour passed, and they only seemed to increase in number. Stanley had hunted a lot in this area. Like, a lot, a lot. How many of his kills were now walking around? Coming here? How many dead monsters were in the city? How many dead humans... Did they communicate? Was there some kind of signal leading them here? Or was it just that howl? Jerry stabbed while she paced and worried. At least until he said, "You wanna take a turn?" He was sweating. Samantha took his place at the top of the stairs and skewered the first zombie to climb up. It was a sloth. She thought Stanley had killed all of those... twice. Her strike glanced off its head and stabbed into the shoulder. Then a reaching arm batted the spear right out of her hands. She gasped and staggered back in surprise... Jerry''s spear punched through its skull, then he yanked it back just as fast, pulling the spearhead free and dropping the corpse. "Don''t half ass it. They''re fucking strong." "I can take..." Arthur said. Samantha snatched her spear before the corpse could slide down the stairs with it. "I can do it." They both backed off, and she didn''t hold back on the next zombie. Thrust. Pull. Not too hard, but... Thrust. Pull. She knew why Jerry had been sweating. She fell into the rhythm, and it was almost soothing. Something to do with all the nervous energy pumping through her veins. But it wasn''t soothing enough. "What do we do when it gets dark?" Samantha reminded them. It was already pretty dim near the stairwell. Silence greeted her question for a long moment. "Fuck," Jerry said. "We need fire. Which means we need firewood, and enough to last all night..." Arthur was less helpful with his comments. "We''re going to die out here." "Can''t believe I have to be the optimistic one here, you old fart." "Caffeine woke up enough to eat," Samantha said. "At least... I think he did." They all knew what it meant if even one of the sleeping beauties woke up. They''d be safe, their survival almost guaranteed. They had to push downstairs and scrounge furniture for the fire. Some pieces of which were also getting altered by the lair. A chair stuck to the floor in one room. A dresser fusing to the wall behind it. Extremely creepy, as if the building was eating them... Plenty of furniture was still free, though, and they made multiple trips until Jerry said they had enough. Daylight faded while they took turns cutting down shambling zombies. The worst was when a human zombie appeared during her shift; a child zombie... it was long dead. Only barely recognizable, but enough. Samantha broke down sobbing after doing what she had to. She sat with Stanley and Caffeine while she cried. It was so unfair... so cruel. She hated it! So many innocent lives wasted, and for what? All this pain and suffering just so aliens could have something to hunt? She didn''t realize what the cracking sound was until the zombie came charging into the closet with her. Another human. Definitely not a child, and moving far too fast. The glowing red eyes of the monster stood out in the dark, and it was where she aimed the knife while her other arm went up in an instinctive block. Teeth sank into her arm with a burning chill, and her knife stabbed straight into one of the glowing eyes. Snuffing it and its partner out. Debuff Gained: [Corruption] Samantha didn''t have time to see what the debuff was, but she knew it was bad. She could feel it digging into her where the teeth had punctured her flesh. Then the second pair of glowing red eyes rounded the corner, and she realized it didn''t matter. She was going to die here. But... at least she would die for something good. No regrets. She ripped the knife from the first zombie''s skull and prepared to go down swinging. 43. Zombie ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine was having the best time eating all the chicken with both Dearest Humans. They played chase! And rubbed his belly just right! And gave him so much chicken! Then it all went away... it was dark... and cold. He remembered now. Dearest Humans had been hurt so bad. They almost left him alone... But he helped them! Helped them very hard! It hurt... but that was okay, because they didn''t leave. He could smell Dearest Human next to him... he smelled like hurt and tired. There was another smell, too. Smelled like... food! He sent his tongue out, and it found the meat. Very good meat! The kind made by Big Food Human. He was a Good Not Dearest Human! Caffeine wanted more, but he was tired. A nap first. Dearest Humans played with him some more in the sleep place. It was nice... but he wanted to play with them in the not sleep place, too. And he was hungry... he smelled more meat! His tongue grabbed it... and he smelled something else. Bad Not Human! Bad not for eating meat! Then he heard his Not Dearest Human Friend scream. Hurt! Danger! ATTACK! Caffeine forced his tired eyes open and bit the Bad Not Human as hard as he could. It tasted very bad... he was trying to shake the bad taste away when another one jumped inside. Caffeine bit that one, too. Yuck! "Caffeine! Oh, thank you! Thank you... I''m so happy you''re okay! You''re a good boy!" Not Dearest Human Friend sounded happy, but she smelled like hurt. Like blood. Caffeine licked her arm where it smelled the worst. Licking always made him feel better when something hurt. She scratched his head and ears just right while he licked. She was a Nice Friend. The other Friends were outside. They were making the Stinky Not Humans go away. That was good... but he was still very tired. Caffeine crawled onto Dearest Human. It was the best place for naps. He would nap while Dearest Human rested. He sniffed Dearest Human''s food, but didn''t take it. Dearest Human might be hungry, too, when he woke up. ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley didn''t want to leave the dark. Only pain waited beyond. But he couldn''t stay... he didn''t deserve to rest. He didn''t deserve peace. Weakness deserved no peace. No joy. Weakness deserved only death. And Lee was the one who would pay the price for his uselessness. So Stanley clawed his way from the peaceful dark. Dragged himself back into the nightmare that was life. It hurt. As it should. Caffeine greeted him as enthusiastically as ever when Stanley forced his eyes open, and he allowed himself to enjoy the attention. Even though he could feel the pug''s fatigue. No, especially because he could feel it. This was his fault. Caffeine had to suffer because he was too weak to protect him... so Stanley comforted the pug while vowing never to let it happen again. As he had before... useless, weak promises... Then he ate what he had too and gave the rest to Caffeine. There were no buffs from the food, which meant they''d been here long enough for them to expire. Stanley had a general sense of time passing while he was unconscious, but was hazy on just how much time he''d lost. Samantha was slumped against the wall across from him in this... closet. She was bloody, and she opened bleary eyes while he was eating. Probably woken by Caffeine''s happy noises. "S... Stanley?" Corpses littered the floor outside, and he could feel Arthur and Jerry, one near the stairs and the other at the window, killing zombies with long spears. They must have carried him inside and given the corpses he could feel piled up... everywhere... had they fought all night? Samantha certainly looked exhausted. Stanley crushed every zombie his mind could reach, grimacing at the spike of pain the action sent through his head. "Thanks..." His own voice came out hoarse. "For protecting Caffeine." Samantha smiled, her eyelids fluttering. "Of... course..." She tilted sideways along the wall as she spoke and ended up laid out on the floor. Unconscious. That was fine. She''d earned the rest. Jerry and Arthur appeared in the doorway moments later. The relief was plainly visible on their faces when they saw him, and Jerry immediately collapsed next to Samantha. "Do you mind if... I..." Then he passed out. Arthur sat more deliberately, watching Stanley. "W... what happened to you?" Stanley eyed him. Did they need to know about Lee? What difference did it make? They couldn''t do anything to help. But... they''d earned an explanation by their actions here. So he told Arthur the truth. "I am too fucking weak! I fucked up by even being in this cursed city, and it nearly cost me everything..." "That doesn''t..." Arthur sighed and shook his head as his eyes closed. "If you are too weak, then we''re doomed." "I can get stronger," Stanley whispered as he pet the once again sleeping Caffeine. "I will get stronger!" He could feel more monsters entering his mental touch from every direction, but they were slow, mostly. One came in hot and Stanley bashed its head to pulp with a rock. Then he checked his status to find out why his head hurt so much. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-Grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] Traits: [Adaptable](67%) [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 28 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 35 (Intermediate) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 12 (Basic) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 4 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 70(-10%)63 Vitality: 71(-9%)64 Dexterity 70(-1%)70 Wisdom 70(+179%)195 Intelligence 70(+178%)194 Willpower 85(+683%)665 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Knife Work (Rare) - Level 9 (Novice) Buff: Debuff: [Rage Overload] [Cerebral Fatigue] [Starving] That shit again. Not unexpected, but annoying all the same. Just another sign that he was too weak. At least he''d earned a full ten willpower along with the debuff. It all felt rather anti-climatic. You almost died, so here''s some willpower and a debuff or two. Just another day. Carry on. Though technically, it hadn''t been him that was dying. It was Lee. His brother just so happened to drag him along for the trip. Stanley watched the others sleep. Blissfully unaware. Believing they were safe. Fools all of them. Lucky fools... He gathered them up, along with their stuff, and carried everyone outside into the sunlight. Judging by how high the sun was above the horizon, Stanley guessed at least a couple of hours since dawn. That meant they''d protected him for somewhere like eighteen hours? Twenty? That would explain their fatigue... but not the ridiculous number of zombies that had swarmed the building. Hundreds of dead faces followed their progress as Stanley flew up and away from the building. Faces from every manner of strange beast to even zombie humans. The swarm of death all turned as one in a futile attempt to reach him. Then the tide stalled as he climbed higher. Watching that left Stanley wondering why they''d charged in all night if it was so easy to throw them off. Maybe it wasn''t a line-of-sight issue, but more likely a range thing. Unless they could communicate... Of course, plenty of the zombies didn''t even have enough muscles to walk, and they did it anyway. Magic. Bullshit as always. What was a little more to help them swarm? Stanley flew to the restaurant, only half expecting it to be still standing. It stood. He saw fire blooming from the open doors and sweeping over a similar swarm of undead as he approached. He waited for the flames to clear before flying down and found himself face to face with Tony. The fire caster shouted, fire flaring in his cupped hands. Then recognition dawned and hatred warred with fear in his eyes. Stanley stared him down as he flew right up to the doors. You earned everything I gave you. If this little shit wanted to start something now, he would snatch the life out of him, debuff or not. Zombie horde or not. Tony looked away first, his gaze landing on the unconscious people floating behind Stanley. Then he threw his spell into the zombies and turned back inside. Two men flanked him, maybe his groupies from last time, or... who the fuck cared? Stanley followed with his burdens and asked about something he''d never considered before today. "Are there any healers here?" "How did they get hurt with you..." Tony stopped talking at whatever he saw in Stanley''s glare. He pointed across the dining room, now filled with beds instead of tables. "Healer." A lone woman strode wearily among a crowd of prone and wounded people, so Stanley went to her. "You the healer?" She only glanced briefly at his companions before turning away. "Can''t help the girl, and the other two are low priority." Stanley frowned at her. "Can''t help her with what?" "Her arm," the healer said while bending over a one armed man in a bed. "Corruption''s got her. Don''t know what it is. Don''t know what it''ll do. All I know is I can''t remove it, so don''t even bother threatening me." Stanley shut his mouth. He hadn''t been about to threaten her... He looked at Samantha again, and at the ugly bite wound on her arm. It was bloody, and maybe darker than it should be, but he''d assumed she would heal like before. Finding a healer was just to speed it up... but now, corruption? The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. "We aren''t kicking them out yet," the healer said behind him. "The corrupted. But they have to be watched. Especially if they''re dying." "They''re not... she''s not dying." Was she? "We are assuming they will become zombies... but then everyone who dies does that now. So we don''t know. Yet." Samantha would become a zombie? Stanley hovered in place and tried to get his aching head to decide what it was feeling. He didn''t care about them... did he? Not that much... but they''d fought all night protecting him. Or protecting themselves while hoping I would save them. Or Caffeine would save them. Was that all it had been? Or had they actually fought to protect him? That swarm of undead... had it been after him and Caffeine? Could they have run away and left him to die? But that would mean they... cared. That they weren''t just using him... The pug still slept in his lap, and Stanley suspected he''d helped in the night. That was the only explanation. Otherwise, it meant that Caffeine had taken a truly massive hit yesterday. To be knocked out for almost an entire twenty-four hours... What did you do, Caff? How much did I hurt you this time? He laid the humans out on a few unoccupied beds and went into the kitchen. Caffeine didn''t stir. Bill looked up from staring at a lump of charred meat on the floor, blinked a few times, and said, "Stanley. I''m sorry. Food''s gone." Stanley felt Caffeine finally stir at the man''s voice, his eyes cracking open briefly before closing again. "What''s that then?" He pointed at the blackened meat, which was suspicious. Didn''t the guy have magic cooking power? How did he burn something? "That was a failed attempt to make this blasted shite edible!" "Are you trying to eat the zombies?" That sounded like a terrible idea. "Everything becomes a zombie when it dies... so I guess I was." Right... hadn''t Samantha said something about the debuff lingering now? But didn''t it also go away in a lair? This was a lair... Stanley flew back outside. Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] It was indeed still blocking the miasma. So he went looking for a monster lair. It didn''t take long. Then he kept going when the first was full of bugs. He found something hairy and quadruped in the next. Good enough. His knife killed the first one inside the door, and he threw the body outside. Then he waited while a few of the lair monsters stuck their noses out, but none emerged past the door. It wasn''t unheard of for some monsters to hold back, but that was usually after he''d slaughtered enough of them. Did they know what was happening out here? The dead monster twitched and lunged for its own core. Stanley snatched it first. Then he watched to see what happened. Unsurprisingly, it ran right back into the lair. Well, more like shambled back in. They did not welcome it home in the least. Every one of its brethren went to town on their prodigal son... or daughter, ripping it apart in seconds. Then they even pushed the corpse back out the door... That last bit was disturbingly... intelligent? Stanley still went on a killing spree with his knife. Not the whole building, just the front room and the few who ran into it after the slaughter. Either they gave up on fighting him, or they didn''t have magic communication like zombies seemed to. Stanley waited outside. Then waited some more. None of the corpses stood back up. So he dragged one outside. He didn''t have to wait long before it rose again. So the lairs were still safe, but he couldn''t carry meat outside... That was a problem. He flew inside and carved open a non reviving corpse. Then he offered pieces of bloody meat to Caffeine while throwing chunks directly into his own stomach. He could do the same for the pug... but Caffeine really loved eating, and it just seemed rude... Poor guy must have been hungry because he woke up and didn''t hesitate to chow down. Or he noticed Stanley eating it and assumed it must be good... It was great to see him eat, regardless. Zombies tried to enter twice during his meal, and Stanley did the lair a favor by tossing them back out. After putting some holes through their heads, of course. Debuff Removed: [Hungry] The meal didn''t help with the headache, but at least he wasn''t hungry anymore... Then it was time to suffer. Stanley dragged one monster out of the lair. Alive and kicking. His debuffed head thoroughly hated the experience, but he hauled the squirming thing back into the restaurant. He got a strange look from Tony at the door again, but the guy didn''t interfere. It was Bill who made the most stink when Stanley brought the bear-sized beast into the kitchen. "What are you doing bringing that in here?!" "It''s not a zombie," Stanley said. "Can''t you cook it?" Bill shook his head vehemently, but then froze. "I can''t... but maybe... don''t kill it yet!" He grabbed the snapping snout and held it shut with one hand as he started poking and prodding the creature. "It should purge itself in... there!" He cut its throat and practically dragged it from Stanley''s hold as he strung it up above a sink. Then he went to work. "Half of that goes to my people," Stanley said. "You get the rest for yourself." "Of course. Can you bring more? This one won''t..." "No." "...last. Wait, why not? We need..." "Because it fucking hurts!" Stanley yelled and then clutched his head. That was a mistake... The whole trip back with the living monster added twenty minutes to the debuff. He wasn''t doing that again until it was gone... and then he''d have better things to do with his time than feed a bunch of weaklings. "Just send your own damn people," Stanley groaned and flew away. "But we..." Bill''s voice faded behind the swinging kitchen doors, and Stanley claimed his own bed. Though cot was a more accurate description. Lying down didn''t help with the pain. Stanley tossed and turned, begging his mind to just sleep it off. It wasn''t happening... so he got back up and went outside. Stanley wanted nothing more than to go on a massive killing spree to make up for lost time, but that would prolong the debuff. A debuff that made him weaker than he already was, and being weak was what got him into this shitshow in the first place! Luckily, throwing his knife around was minor compared to dragging a living monster through the air. Minor enough that it didn''t extend the debuff and killing stuff helped mitigate the extra ache that came with throwing it. Nothing like a little cathartic murder to make one feel better. Tony and his friends kept their distance while Stanley sat on the porch and slaughtered every zombie in sight, one by one. Until the bright morning sun became too much. Then he just closed his eyes and stayed where he was. Caffeine would appreciate some sun for his nap... He had to feel the monsters to kill them now, but that was just good practice. "Red eye!" someone shouted, and he flinched at the volume. Stanley would have glared at them, but he didn''t want to open his eyes. Was shouting really necessary? And what was a red eye? There was a fast zombie running in... He reluctantly opened his eyes, but saw nothing special about it. Other than the fact it was sprinting rather than shambling. A knife through its head ended the sprint, and the hubbub of Tony and his goons died with it. One of them approached a bit later. "You want that core?" Stanley sighed and opened his eyes again. "What core?" The man flinched under his gaze and said, "The... the red eye." Was that why they got excited? Stanley flew out toward where he''d killed it and found a core, as predicted. Interesting. Was this what happened if they ate enough cores themselves? Or... he stared down at the former human, now a dead zombie. Was this what happened to the corrupted? Like Samantha. Stanley went back to his sunny spot and closed his eyes. "Are they from the corrupted? The red eyes?" He wasn''t sure if he wanted to know. Was Samantha doomed now? At least more than they all already were. Because she''d protected him... No, she was just protecting herself. She''s just like all the others. Still, she''d earned some goodwill for her efforts... or were they even now? "We don''t know," one goon said. Tony was still keeping his distance. Good. Smart man. "None of ours have died yet..." Great... Stanley saved the core for Caffeine. The pug was still behind by his calculations, though not far now. "Did you run into the beast lord?" It was such an odd question that it took Stanley a moment to register what he''d heard. "What?" "We heard it here... everyone got the notification." Stanley remembered the notification, though at the time he hadn''t really seen it, only felt it. You have heard the Howl of the Beast Lord. +50 All Base Attributes to All Friends "What did it say?" Caffeine couldn''t have buffed everyone... could he? It was a strong buff... and Caffeine had a new skill on his status... called Howl of the Beast Lord. Stanley had been well and truly angry. Combining that with Caffeine''s boost, it should have put him well over a thousand effective willpower. And it still wasn''t enough. Though... Lee wasn''t dead. They both still lived. So maybe it was enough¡­ this time. "Just that we heard it. What do you think it means?" So they didn''t get the buff and still didn''t know the truth. After all, who would suspect the little pug curled up on his lap? Then they started muttering and whispering among themselves about their own speculations. "Go away," Stanley said. "You have..." He checked his debuff. "Four hours to rest and then I''m leaving." They looked tired. Had they been fighting all night as well? What happened to the fancy locking door? And wasn''t it a waste for them to kill these zombies when they didn''t even drop cores? He decided he didn''t care. He just wanted to kill stuff right now. If it helped them get some rest... Well, that was their problem. They left. Stanley tried to lose himself in the concentration required to watch over a three hundred and sixty degree area while he waited for his weakness to end. He was mostly successful. Debuff Removed: [Cerebral Fatigue] The others still slept in their beds when he went inside. Bill hadn''t robbed him and had Stanley''s share of the food prepared and waiting. He took half. "The rest is for when they wake up... I''ll bring more when I come back." He''d probably return. If only for the stat boosting food. Caffeine was still sleeping, so at least he wouldn''t complain about leaving the others behind. However, Stanley got him to wake up enough to eat some of Bill''s food before they left. Hopefully, he would recover back to full strength soon, but Stanley couldn''t wait. He needed to get stronger. So he flew away in search of monsters to kill. The zombies were a wash for core gathering with only a handful of cores from the so-called red eyes. It just wasn''t worth bothering with the slow ones. That left the lairs. Back to the grind. ~~~Somewhere~~~ Steven didn¡¯t know what the significance of a Beast Lord was, but he knew Lord Morgrath¡¯s opinion very well by now. "I wish to hunt it," Lord Morgrath said to Lord Nefraxis. "But I will require the ritual." Steven wasn''t sure what this ritual stuff was all about, but the beast lord was all the Lord had talked about ever since they all saw the notification. Bragged about, more like. Talking about how powerful and unstoppable he¡¯d be after claiming its flesh for himself. Lord Morgrath loved to talk¡­ "No. You will not detour from your mission for a mere hunt." "It is on hold until I find them." Morgrath said it so casually that even the other Lord paused a second before responding. It wasn¡¯t pretty when it did. "You lost them!?" Lord Nefraxis''s voice echoed with unrestrained power that made Steven want to run away¡­ or cower and beg for mercy. "Hundreds of humans and you lost them?" Morgrath did neither of those things, seemingly unconcerned with his superior¡¯s wrath. "I warned you about their leader. Every infiltration attempt was unsuccessful. Now, when we actually make a move, they are already gone. As if they knew we were coming..." Steven knew all too well the annoyance of their prey this time. He''d hit smaller groups a few times since gaining his role here, and each one was a delight. Seeing the looks on the human''s faces when he ripped apart their strongest¡­ feeding on those who refused to join¡­ turning the dead into his own soldiers¡­ all of it was pure bliss. Not this group. Steven hadn¡¯t been sent in like some of his fellows, but none that went in ever returned. Which meant they knew only what the few lone captures had revealed, and even those details were sparse. "Such a large group must have left a trail," Nefraxis demanded. "Why are you not out there running them down?" "They are in the tunnels somewhere." Yes, the massive maze of subway tunnels, the hub of which had been that group''s base¡­ Nefraxis eyed Morgrath for long moments, their face as impeccable a mask as ever. "So you haven''t lost them?" "There are many tunnels, and our eyes were eliminated from all of them. Once again, as if they knew we were watching. It matters little. It is only a matter of time until they are hunted down. The Beast Lord is..." "Leave the Beast Lord and complete your mission. We will not move against it without more information." Lord Nefraxis stared with eyeless sockets for a long moment, then added, "I will set up the ritual." He pointed a single bony finger at Morgrath. "As a precaution only. Bring me those humans, and I will consider your hunt. Fail me again and there will be... consequences." Lord Morgrath made a show of acquiescing, but Steven knew it was all theater. His master would never give up on finding and claiming the beast. 44. Death Of Peace Of Mind ~~~Stanley~~~ The worst part of hunting solo again wasn''t having to collect all the cores himself. It was the sensation of Lee he could feel in the distance. His brother was alive. But something was off. He didn''t feel the same as before. Not like he was still injured or anything... just less... there. Less alive... if that even made sense. The sensation gnawed at him all day. Reminding him over and over that he was too weak. It never changed. But Caffeine finally regaining his normal energy levels that afternoon helped Stanley''s mood immensely. He couldn''t tell if Caffeine''s excited roaming was him looking for his other friends, or if the pug was simply looking for food. Either way, it was just good to see him up and about. The monsters almost never rallied outside anymore, which made the killing trivial when he sent his knife inside to wipe them out. For practice and training purposes, Stanley started trying to gather cores while simultaneously sending the knife through skulls. It was difficult at first. Like trying to think two different things at once¨Cwhich helped distract him from his own thoughts¨Cbut it wasn''t impossible. He was getting better at feeling the surroundings, so it was more akin to using each of his hands in a slightly different motion at the same time. Like rubbing his head and patting his stomach... or whatever that exercise was supposed to be. Feeling out the tiny cores was the hardest part of the process. Most of the queens surrendered without him even setting foot inside, and he didn''t force the issue, just took his rewards and left. Not that he set his feet anywhere. Flying actually felt easier than walking by this point. Halfway through the day, he got a notification he''d been waiting ages to see. Skill Level Up: Knife Work Knife Work has reached the Level 10 Threshold. Evolution Available. Upgrade to Level 10 Available. Finally. Stanley chose the Evolution option. Obviously. Knife Work (Rare) Become the blade. Increases the user''s innate understanding of their weapon when wielding knives or short blades. Easier for the user to find vital points on targets and to strike those points. Skill Level Effects (Basic) +2% Effective Dexterity -2% Stamina Cost when wielding small blades. Evolution: Psionic Weapon (Rare) I am one with the blade. Infuse a weapon with Psionic Energy to increase control and penetrating power. Increases user''s spatial awareness of the weapon while infused. Skill Level Effects (Basic) +2% Willpower It was better. Though he lost a stamina effect... which... he didn''t even know what that did. Was that just fatigue? Technically, it was less tiring to throw the knife around instead of crushing skulls with his mind, but that felt more like a difference between shooting something versus punching it to death. An extra twenty percent to willpower had to be better than a stamina... whatever it was. Non-Class Skill Evolved: Psionic Weapon (Rare) - Level 10 (Basic) It was still non-class even though it literally had psionic in the name... but the upgrade was good. Very good. It felt different when he picked his knife up again. A slight jolt of weight that he knew was the infusion process, then it became far lighter than it ever had been. Practically an extension of his mind... He dove into the next lair and immediately noticed the difference. The level of effort needed to wield the knife was almost non-existent. It was close, but not quite at the level of his flying. An instinctual act that left him feeling as if the knife knew where he wanted it to go before he did. Not to mention it would be impossible to lose the weapon now. With his power infusing it, the knife felt like another piece of himself. The hunt went even faster after that, with far more effort devoted to collecting the cores instead of the killing. He actually ended up waiting for the cores to appear from the dead monsters more than once. That was what led him to try something new while idling in someone''s kitchen. The silverware drawer had been left open, half broken and dangling. Stanley found his eyes drawn to the butter knives, and he picked one up. It felt strange in his hand... like d¨¦j¨¤ vu... then he infused it and had two knives connected to his mind. He picked up another... and couldn''t infuse it. Maybe the skill needs to level up more? He considered the actual kitchen knives as well, but something about the butter knife felt... right. Besides, it was sleek, sturdier, and more akin to a throwing knife than the one he already had. It stabbed through heads well enough once he tested it... and then he found a whetstone and started grinding out a sharper point as he flew to the next lair. So it went. He stormed into the lairs with whirling blades, killing everything before so much as a spell could fly his way. Then sharpened both knives while cores flew into his hands. Caffeine reached what he was mostly sure was seventy points across the board, and Stanley started taking the rest for himself. He killed the occasional red eye zombie, finally understanding the name when one charged inside a lair and he saw its glowing red eyes before two knives put them out. The next one he held down for a better look, and realized it didn''t even have eyes. The red light simply hovering in empty sockets. Fucking magic... All of them were former humans. Stanley didn''t know what that meant. Did humans jump straight to red eyes when they died? Did monsters need more cores to get there, eventually? Both types showed the same hunger for the things. His theorizing gained some holes when he passed a graveyard and found a whole host of skeletal... zombies. If they could be called that. They were mostly skeletons. With a few still carrying traces of flesh, and none of them had red eyes. It was a full on ''night of the living dead'' now. A zombie apocalypse. Sort of. With tons of weird monsters thrown in for good measure. The apparent randomness of it all had him doubting his first assumption. What if it wasn''t the invaders? The world was magic now. Maybe zombie uprisings were a normal thing that just happened. It was late afternoon when he finally found more humans, and he heard them before he saw them. What started as a few distant shouts grew to an indecipherable cacophony before Stanley finished clearing the lair he was in. He didn''t know where it was coming from, so he went up. From there, he saw them spilling out of a train tunnel. Hundreds of people. All running down the tracks. Flashes of light appeared among the crowd, especially on the fringes where they were encountering the zombies. Yet, they still rolled over everything in their path as Stanley watched from above. It reminded him of that cult... he''d seen no other group to rival it yet. This crowd looked less cohesive... and there was no one giving a speech. Just lots of shouting and screaming. One man stood out, fighting at the rear when they finished emerging from the tunnel. His whole body glowed brightly, and he moved like a pinball between the pursuing zombies. There were a lot of them back there, and that explained the running and screaming... sort of. Except zombies weren''t that dangerous. Clearly. Because a single person was slaughtering them. More zombies followed the first wave, and Stanley watched curiously as many of them didn''t chase the glowing man. They ran past him toward the fleeing group. Or at least, they tried to. He zipped around even faster and blocked anything from getting past him. Of course, Stanley could see many more zombies spreading wide to bypass him, while even more were coming in on side streets from elsewhere. All of them were moving fast. That¡¯s a lot of red eyes¡­ It sure looked like a coordinated attack. Not a mindless swarm looking for cores. Especially with them trying to dodge the fighting man and reach his presumably weaker allies. Did the zombies have a leader? Like say... a human man walking casually among them. The human in question walked out of the tunnel well behind the rest, as if he didn''t have anywhere to go in a hurry. He was flanked by a dozen people Stanley assumed were human. A necromancer? Was this all just someone''s class? Magic really was bullshit. Or... was this an invader? Did they actually look like humans? Stanley couldn''t resist the opportunity that it might be a lead to escaping this place. If it was an invader... the man looked up, straight at him, and smiled. He didn''t attack, though. Caffeine started growling as Stanley descended closer, the volume growing louder as he approached. The growling didn''t tell Stanley if this was actually an invader or just a necromancer, but it meant the pug smelled something off. "Have you come to sacrifice yourself in battle?" the man said, voice carrying clearly. "Or have you seen the truth and come to join the march?" "The... march?" Stanley stopped close enough where he could comfortably control his knives against the alleged man, but no closer. This was dangerous. He didn''t have his dirt armor and didn''t know how strong this person or monster truly was. The man continued to stroll forward as he spoke, his guard flanking him at the same easy pace and looking disturbingly unhuman when they all turned as one toward Stanley. "You have not heard? The Eternal March has come, and all are destined to join their ranks!" It sounded weird and like he was putting extra emphasis on certain words that were supposed to be significant. But maybe he was just a weirdo? Though there were definitely some weird recruiting vibes for sure. "Are you one of the invaders?" Stanley decided to just ask. Why not? "Me?" He laughed, and then roared, "I am Eternal!" That was extremely unhelpful and literally meant nothing to Stanley. Or was this what they''d meant when talking about recruiters... "You show power beyond most mortals. I can see as much in your bearing. All will join us in the end, but you could stand above the dregs, above the fodder." He waved toward the fleeing humans." Slaughter these pathetic creatures and claim your place in the Eternal March." He''d mentioned mortals. Was he trying to imply something about himself? Or just crazy? It sounded suspiciously like someone talking about immortality... "So, you are an invader?" Or he was one of the people recruited by them... "What''s the fucking march you keep babbling about? You sound like a lunatic." The man frowned, and Stanley thought a fight was about to kick off... then his face shifted back to the calm smile. "I am human... but so much more. You can see my power, can you not? You fear death, whereas I command it. Join us and you too could wield such power." "You mean become undead?" It honestly didn''t sound like a good offer at all. The zombies died just like everything else. And he still didn''t know if this fucker was an invader or a pawn... plus, Caffeine was really not liking him. Talk about red flags. "Nothing like these groveling wretches you see around us, but like me; Eternal. Give up on humanity and join the inevitable victors. Us. Not only will you survive, but you will have a place in the coming empire. A place of power and glory." The man frowned at the growling pug. "Or cling to your foolish dreams and die. You will still join us in the end. Only as just another wretch scrabbling in the dirt instead of a ruler commanding armies." Stanley considered it. How many humans still lived in here? Would it be easier to kill them instead? The message said he couldn''t leave until the invaders were defeated, but it also said the same about the defenders dying... Or was it all a ruse? How did he know they weren''t using him to do the dirty work and then they''d just kill him in the end? What if they had no choice but to kill him? Caffeine stood up in his lap and barked at the man who so far seemed content to wait for an answer. It wasn''t the big bark that broke things and killed shit. Just a normal bark. Stanley had to scramble to keep the pug on his lap as Caffeine tried to jump down. The man and or potential invader didn''t like it and glared up at them. "Teach your beast some respect or I will do it for you!" Stanley froze in a mix of anger and surprise. Could the guy understand Caffeine? And... was Caffeine insulting him? He wanted to laugh at the idea... so he did. "Hah!" Stanley said, and sent his blades. One for each eye. This thing had just threatened Caffeine. That meant it had to die. Meanwhile, he ripped apart the street below, pulling dirt and cement up from the ground even as he shot up and away from it as fast as he could fly. Because his knives missed. He hadn''t expected an instant kill; something about this... monster... made him nervous. It was all the more reason to kill it now. Though the speed with which the creature dodged was alarming. An almost lazy tilt of his head at the last instant. Stanley redirected the two knives almost immediately, only delaying the extra instant it took to divert them through two of his minions'' heads. Because fuck them too! Then shot both toward the back of the man''s head. It wasn''t fast enough. The monster jumped into the air toward him, and Stanley could barely even track his motion despite his boosted mind. A single nudge with his power against the thing was enough to abandon the idea of trying to restrain or even throw him. He felt like those people in the store that first day... like he was a grade higher... Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Stanley had a terrible sinking feeling, even as his shell of dirt and rocks enclosed him ahead of the jumping man. He felt a moment of regret for his hasty attack, even as he threw chunks of cement at the man in a hail of stone bullets. Lengths of rebar pulled up along with the street followed the concrete. The whole time, his knives flew fast and true toward the back of the leaping man''s head. The man ignored the cement raining down on him and instead spun on the knives. He caught one in each hand and grinned over his shoulder at Stanley while the rebar ripped through his back. Blood flew, but Stanley felt no elation or victory at seeing it. He could feel the grip still on his knives, immobilizing them and... squeezing... crushing... He screamed as he felt both knives crumple into useless lumps, the sensation echoing right into his head as if it was a piece of his brain getting crushed. He''d started running the moment he realized this had to be a higher grade, and he was almost ten stories up when his brain exploded with pain from the knives'' destruction. That was when Caffeine joined the fight by kicking Stanley across the sky. Caffeine was stronger now, and Stanley wasn''t too worried... until the human monster they''d left behind shot through the space he''d occupied an instant before. Caffeine flew away with it, his teeth crunching through the arm blocking its throat. Accelerated Thought was already running at full power, and Stanley barely saw the fist coming around as they flew away, the blow aimed at Caffeine''s head. The pug blurred slightly and kicked off the man in midair, sending them both shooting in opposite directions. Stanley caught Caffeine and kept climbing. Right until he saw the man somehow jump off the air onto an intercept trajectory, still moving faster than he was flying... Shit! The g-forces from switching upward momentum to straight down were rough but doable. The monster followed without apparent effort. The bastard! This was bullshit. He shouldn''t have started a fight. Who cared if the undead killed all those people? He should have just run away to keep grinding. But he''d threatened Caffeine... the monster should die. Die screaming! Stanley ripped signposts from the street as he dove, while still throwing all the dirt and concrete he''d already collected at the monster. The feeling of Psionic Weapon triggering on the posts was a surprise, but a very welcome one. The difference between random crap and a designated weapon was astronomical, and he sent both blasting through the cloud of dirt. He hoped it would work as a smoke screen... and it did. One pipe went right through the man''s head and the second through his chest! Fuck yea... Stanley''s premonition flared at the same time Caffeine ballooned in size. The pain in his head vanished, then shifted into a different pain in his chest when Caffeine yelped. The monster wasn''t dead. It wasn''t even wounded when it shot around Caffeine and zeroed in on Stanley, fingers reaching like claws for his throat. There was a bloody hole in its shirt, and fresh blood on its face, but no injuries. As if he''d never even touched it or left fist sized holes through its chest and brain. Holes that should have ended the fight. Caffeine kicked off the street in an explosion of shattered cement and dirt, moving faster than Stanley''s eyes could follow, and bit the man''s entire head off. Blood sprayed... but only for an instant. Stanley watched its head regrow in an eye-blink. Only¡­ it came back changed. Red-eyed. It was a zombie... Could zombies regenerate? Heal? It didn''t look like healing. Not with the insane speed of the entire process. Was this what it meant about eternal? Was it actually immortal? Stanley leveled off just above the ground, zipping right above it in the direction Caffeine had dashed. It was another futile attempt to escape. The zombie barely paused in the instant it took for its head to reappear before continuing its attack in a burst of speed that rivaled Stanley''s flight. He threw everything his mind touched at the immortal zombie chasing him. Dirt, concrete, cars, buildings, everything. It never slowed down. Not even when the pipes returned and punched through its head. Back and forth they went, taking circular chunks of flesh from the monster with each pass. Flesh that instantly repaired. Caffeine didn''t get another shot before the monster caught up. Its hand swung, glittering black claws extending from each finger. Stanley pushed back, driving his will against the monster''s power. It was so heavy... but he stopped it, held it back from reaching his flesh. Of course, he couldn''t actually stop the overpowered blow. All that kinetic energy had to go somewhere, and it did. Stanley rocketed away from the impact, through more than one building, then skipped off the ground and flew up into the air. It was only luck that he''d managed to fly upward in the mad tumble... but where was Caff... The demon appeared above him, claws descending, mouth set in a wide smile full of sharp fangs. Stanley felt the premonition of his head getting ripped apart. He blocked. The blow drove him into the ground like a meteor and he felt like a normal human must feel when getting hit by a truck. But at least it hurt less than his head splitting open, slightly less. Stanley felt nothing break in his body on impact, but his brain felt like it''d gotten punched. He could see the edges of the crater he''d left in his peripheral vision when he opened his eyes, but most of his attention was on the monster descending toward him. Caffeine blurred past at the same time Stanley hit back, this time trying to redirect it instead of blocking. The monster''s head vanished, and that plus Stanley''s attack sent it aside to crash in an explosion of dirt that rained over Stanley as he launched himself away. Thanks to his newest skill, Stanley hadn''t lost the pipes in the confusion, and he planted them in the monster''s back for good measure. Not that he thought it would be enough. Its head was already back, and it didn''t seem to care about the new holes in its flesh as it practically bounced after him. Stanley could feel Caffeine clearer than ever; probably something about dancing on the edge of death, and his pipes went ever so slightly wide around him as the pug shot for its back again. The monster didn''t press the attack this time, instead spinning to face the threat. It caught Caffeine with those horrifying clawed hands and then tanked two pipes through its head while digging the claws deep. Caffeine howled in pain, and the sound shifted in tone as he ballooned in size, then violently shook himself, throwing the zombie off. It barely flew a few feet before doing its bullshit air jumping... and Caffeine barked in its face. Not one of his friendly ''come let me smell you'' barks, but a sound that cracked the sky and shattered the earth in its wake. Stanley''s boosted perception was just enough to see the zombie''s flesh peeling from its splintering bones as it flew away behind the blast. It was also enough to see it growing right back... They were doomed. They couldn''t win. He''d always thought his own regeneration was ridiculously overpowered, especially after meeting other people, but this was some serious bullshit. He grabbed Caffeine when the pug shrank and dragged both of them in the opposite direction from the zombie. Maybe if they could get far enough... They couldn''t. Caffeine jumped straight for the pursuing monster and Stanley pushed the pug sideways rather than trying to block the claws. Then intercepted the zombie with psionic infused metal pipes. Trying something different this time, Stanley didn''t stab the monster. Instead, he swung them like baseball bats. They rang from the impact and blasted pieces from the zombie while forcing it back, but it made no difference when the damage vanished as fast as it appeared. Stanley kept them spinning, ramping it up into a screaming blur of wind and flying metal. It was effective at carving apart the zombie. Too effective, because the monster stopped ignoring the damage and caught the pipes in its claws. Stanley abandoned his weapons before the zombie crushed them. There was plenty of shit he could throw, no need to hurt himself unnecessarily. The zombie threw the pipes. One at Caffeine and the other at Stanley. The projectiles lost most of their unstoppable momentum once they left the zombie''s hands, but they still moved so fast... Caffeine created another crater when he dodged, and Stanley got to feel what he''d been doing to the zombie. Partially. The pipe didn''t go all the way through his gut, but it probably wouldn''t have felt much worse if it had. Fortunately, the monster didn''t follow up the attack on him. Unfortunately, it went after Caffeine instead. Stanley sent back the now deformed and bloody pipe while he infused two pieces of rebar. He set them spinning like before, while a small hope kindled in his heart. The zombie had ignored every hit he landed, but it stopped ignoring him when the damage piled up at the end there. Not only was he limiting its mobility by chopping limbs off as fast as they grew back, but Stanley thought he saw something else when it turned against the pipes. Fear. It can''t regenerate forever! He didn''t know if his guess was right, but it was all he had. Every other possibility only led to the end of everything. So he clung to hope. He held on to the glimmer of a chance and fed everything else to his rage. The anger was easy. Watching the monster chase Caffeine gave him plenty of fuel for the fire. Too much fuel. Blind rage wouldn''t save them here. He needed to be smart. Needed to outlast a monster that refused to die. Stanley was well versed in refusing to die. That was kind of his whole thing these days, and that was all he had to do now. Never say die. Never give up. Keep fighting! That was all that mattered. So he did. Him and Caffeine. They ripped and carved the monster apart over and over while their own injuries recovered far more slowly. The city shattered around them as they fought their way across it. Stanley blocked a strike and felt bones break as the force blasted him through a lair wall. Caffeine took a leg off the zombie, spoiling its aim, and Stanley dodged the swiping claws that ripped the lair in half around them. Back and forth they went, taking turns on the receiving end of its claws every time it switched targets. Caffeine was relentless in his pursuit. His size changed constantly as he chased, dodged, and attacked. He was so strong, so fast, but it wasn''t enough, and his blood sprinkled across the city as they fought. Stanley''s spinning rebar forced the zombie not to ignore him and lessened the pressure on Caffeine, but he took hits every time it turned on him, and each blow sent him flying. The impacts helped open space between them, which Stanley appreciated. Except for when he got punted into the ground... or a lair. Those hurt. Still, they were... maybe not winning, but holding out. They had a chance... Then the zombie didn''t swat him away with its next attack. It reached for him almost slowly in comparison, and Stanley''s blocking attempt didn''t open enough distance... Cold, clawed hands wrapped around his neck, squeezing, crushing, stabbing. "Annoying worm! Die already." It pulled him close when Stanley tried to cut off its arms, and he almost hit himself in the head with the spinning rebar. This was bad. Undead hands crushing down tighter and tighter, claws digging deep into his neck... teeth gnawing into his face. Stanley couldn''t run. It was all he could do to hold back the zombie from decapitating him. His regeneration was good, but not good enough to survive that. He lost touch with his weapons. Lost his premonition. Lost his mental speed boost. Everything went away as he funneled every scrap of power into holding back the crushing grip. His heartbeat thundered inside his head, and a growing roar filled his ears while his hands tugged uselessly against the monstrous strength of the zombie. Stanley''s vision dimmed as he felt Caffeine zipping around him and the zombie. He felt the impacts of the pug''s attacks through the hands around his neck, each hit dragging him in different directions, but the pressure never relented. It only grew worse. Then Caffeine came in small, and Stanley felt him nosing in, teeth reaching for the hands. The pug latched onto something... and blasted the zombie away by kicking off it. Stanley went along for the ride... but from only a single hand around his throat instead of two. Stanley tumbled with the zombie, his vision already black and mind fuzzy from the lack of blood in his brain. But the removal of the second hand gave him a fresh burst of air and light. A chance! He forced all of his power against the remaining hand, pushing it back... loosening... The zombie head-butted him. He wasn''t ready... all his focus was on freeing his neck, and the blow resounded through his skull with a disturbing crunch. Through the haze of pain and confusion, Stanley saw Caffeine dragging the zombie away by its hand. He felt the claws vanish from his neck, and watched those same claws stabbing for Caffeine''s head at blinding speed. No! Stanley hauled back on the striking limb... and it backhanded him in the face. Something else crunched in his face. A lot of things. Stanley couldn''t see anymore as he tumbled across the ground, but he felt Caffeine go flying away. It took a moment to realize he''d gone up. The zombie had thrown Caffeine into the sky... Stanley reached out to pull him back... The zombie appeared above him and swatted Stanley into the ground. He somehow managed a block ahead of that blow... desperate to keep it from grabbing him again. Then it struck again... and again... machine gun blows rained down over and over. Every time he tried to fly away, the zombie was there and pounding him back into the growing crater. No... Stanley''s world shrunk down to only the attacks driving him into the earth. His focus narrowed into blocking one attack after another as each one got progressively heavier. The moment his power failed, his head would get splattered across the ground. It would all be over. He just had to hold out until Caffeine got back... but it was getting so hard to block... Rocks dug into this back when he could no longer shield himself from them. Each blow halted closer and closer to his face. Then claws left stinging lines across his face... through his face... the claws dug into his skull... carving through bone to reach... The assault stopped abruptly. Stanley blinked his one remaining eye up at the zombie in confusion. There was something sticking out of its face... and a growling, screeching noise... Caffeine! Except Caffeine was still far away in the sky above them... but he was approaching... fast... I should catch... The zombie screeched as it reached shaking hands up... and pulled a long red stick from its head. Its rotten flesh was smoking and sizzling... Stanley took off while reaching up for Caffeine. Fleeing while he had the chance... and he saw who had stabbed the zombie as he rose into the air. Samantha¡­ She glared defiantly at the undead, even as it spun around to face her. Her gaze flicked up to Stanley as he fled... he reached out... and the zombie ripped her head off with an almost lazy swipe of its claws. No... Stanley''s mind couldn''t make sense of what he was seeing as blood fountained slowly into the air and the body started falling. What is happening? Why was she here? How was she here? She''s dead... The zombie''s red eyes landed on him, its mouth set in a wide smile as it hauled back the spear, preparing to throw... Stanley saw the sizzling hole still through its head, watched the spear diving for his face in a detached slow motion. He couldn''t block it. He wouldn''t be able to pull himself out of the way in time, either. It was over. He hadn''t even made it past the lip of the crater... It froze mid-throw when the entire world vibrated. You have felt the Wrath of the Beast Lord. The zombie hung motionless, frozen in midair as Caffeine hit the ground beside it; the sound of the pug¡¯s landing was lost in the world-shaking growl coming from between his bared teeth. Silence fell for a single instant as Caffeine stopped growling. Then he turned into little more than a black streak as the world exploded with nearly continuous impacts of his feet against the ground. Wind screamed, dirt and rocks flew, and the zombie went to pieces. The spear blew away along with a hand. Then its legs. Then the zombie''s head disappeared, and never quite grew back. Caffeine never stopped or paused his relentless assault, his paws leaving craters on the ground in what sounded like an ongoing explosion. The zombie flailed and struggled, but only lost more limbs for its efforts when Stanley joined in. His spinning rebar took away its legs and sent it to the ground. Caffeine kept its arms and head from ever fully forming, and together they murdered the shit out of this... fucking... monster! Until this moment, Stanley had only seen Caffeine get upset and sometimes angry with the monsters that assailed them. But he''d never felt Caffeine like this before. Caffeine hated the zombie. Pure, absolute hatred. It was terrifying... and tragic to witness... and it was all this monster''s fault. So Stanley added what little he had left. His contributions improved markedly when he found the spear and infused it. The wounds it left healed much slower, and it was all he could do to keep it whirling as his head burned. The zombie managed a few words whenever enough of its head regrew. "Stop... No... Kill... You... Worms... Insects... Die..." It clawed and thrashed as they took it apart. Screaming, cursing, begging. Stanley wanted it to scream. Wanted it to suffer. But that was a distant emotion. Mostly, he just wanted it to die. It finally did. After what felt like an eternity. There was one last scream he couldn''t understand, and the zombie went still and quiet. Stanley didn''t believe it was over, and almost hit Caffeine with the spear when the pug stopped atop the corpse and started clawing it apart. Caffeine dug through what was left of the zombie, digging a massive hole into the ground with ugly barking and snarling... digging, clawing... and then finally, he just stopped. The silence was deafening as the pug climbed from the hole he''d dug and stood unmoving, staring at Samantha¡¯s body. Then he looked at Stanley, whined softly, and collapsed. 45. Dont Tell Me To Calm Down ~~~Arthur~~~ Arthur didn''t have eyes for the zombies charging in from all sides. All he could see was Samantha running away from him. Running to her death. He''s not worth it. The shockwaves and explosions were hard to miss. Especially as they traveled closer in great leaps and bounds. Arthur saw something shoot into the sky... a small black missile. What can you possibly hope to accomplish amongst such monsters? Arthur stumbled and watched in horror as she vanished into the dust amidst the earth shaking explosions. Then a new silence settled over everything, and... the little black dog dropped out of the sky. You have felt the Wrath of the Beast Lord. You are stunned. Arthur couldn''t move, couldn''t breathe, couldn''t think... even the tears couldn''t fill his eyes. But he could feel the wrath... and he knew what it meant. When he could move, Arthur slumped to his knees on the street while it shook and rattled beneath him. A gang of zombies sprinted right in front of him, eyes glowing bright red. They didn''t attack. Only ignored him and ran toward the source of the violence. He didn''t blink when they crumbled into dust one after the other. Arthur remained on his knees even after the earth stopped shaking and the air held only human shouts. He wept and stared into the dust as he waited for... something to emerge. He knew a monster still lived in there, he just didn''t know which one. But he suspected. A hand touched his shoulder. "You okay, old timer?" Arthur blinked away tears as he looked up at the young black man standing over him. Then at the many more people streaming past toward the restaurant. Where did they come from? But he didn''t really care¡­ and his eyes slid back to the slowly settling dust. "Did you see what happened over there?" "Monsters," Arthur said numbly. "Monsters." The hand on his shoulder pulled him upright and tried to lead him away. "Let''s get you out of..." "No." Arthur pulled against him, and for a moment felt the unyielding iron in the younger man''s grip. Then it relaxed, and he was free. "I have to... know. I have to see." He took a step, then another. It would be safer to go with this newcomer... Arthur didn''t care. It might be safer with him... but none of them were really safe. None of them would ever be safe. His vision blurred anew when he looked down into the crater. You foolish girl. I hope this is what you wanted... Arthur wanted to scream at her slack face, now ugly and savaged by forces far beyond any of them. But he only stumbled closer before falling back to his knees and letting the tears escape. ... Arthur didn''t know how much time had passed when the voice intruded on his grief. "Why was she here?" He looked up and glared at the man responsible for all of this. "Because you needed help!" he screamed. "Because she was a foolish girl who thought she could save you!" He hadn''t meant to scream at Stanley. It just slipped out, and right now he couldn''t muster enough fear to keep his mouth shut. Stanley didn''t kill him. "She did... save me," he whispered instead. "Saved my life." "She..." The bitter laugh came out as a sob. "That was all..." Arthur choked on his words before forcing them out. "She... would be happy... to know that." "Why?" Stanley whispered. "There was nothing in it for her... she never had a chance... it was suicide." Stanley drew in a shuddering breath and said in a pleading voice, "Why?" Arthur finally looked, really looked, at the monster who lived. Stanley stared back at him, the pug in his lap and Samantha''s spear gripped in his hands. He looked so... confused. So... human. Arthur''s rising rage evaporated and left behind only grief. "She told you why, Stanley. You just never believed her. She always was... a good person. The best of us. She only ever saw the best in everyone she met. Only ever wanted to help..." His eyes burned anew as memories swirled through his mind. "She was too good for this world." Stanley said nothing. Only looked back at the dead girl as the spear turned over and over in his hands. "We should... put her to rest." Arthur said, when he finally took in the shredded remains of a zombie. He didn''t think he could bear the thought of her as one of them... though without her head... "I won''t let..." Stanley whispered, the rest of his words lost in the sound of cracking wood. Arthur ducked reflexively when a whirling storm of tree limbs and splinters flew into the crater. It piled itself high, and Samantha floated gently atop the mound. He flinched when her core floated into Stanley''s hand. Don''t you dare! Stanley stared at it for a long moment, then it floated up and sank edge-wise into the wooden spear. "Thank... thank you... Samantha," he whispered. "You were such an idiot... and... I''m sorry... I''m not the hero you wanted me to be... but... I''ll kill them all for you, anyway." A zombie bounded into the crater... and Arthur never even saw the spear move. One moment it was in Stanley''s hands, and the next it pinned the zombie to the ground through its chest. The zombie wasn''t dead. It snarled and flailed at the spear even as the flesh of its chest smoked and sizzled. "Burn," Stanley whispered. "You should all burn." Arthur didn''t see how the fire started, but the flickering flames drew his eyes from the struggling zombie to the pyre. It didn''t take long for the flames to grow higher, and he sat numbly as it roared into a bonfire. "Caffeine," he heard Stanley say over the roar of the flames. "Are you hungry?" It was quiet for a moment. "Caff? Caffeine! Caffeine, wake up!" Arthur looked over at the desperation in Stanley''s voice. The pug was unresponsive in his lap, and it had a row of bloody claw marks over its ribs. "Oh, god!" Stanley''s voice was a strangled sob. Then he vanished with the crack of displaced air and a roaring storm of dust that nearly smothered the fire. That''s not good, Arthur thought numbly, watching the fire slowly recover. Not good at all. Then the zombie clambered to its feet, the spear previously pinning it to the ground nowhere in sight. That''s not good either. Though it had a massive hole in its chest that looked burnt... Arthur watched with detached interest as the zombie oriented on him and took a step. What''s the point? We''re all going to die eventually... Why even fight? He''d been ready to give up on that first day he saw her. Only her first day on the job, and she had everyone in a better mood than he''d ever seen before. An angel. Of course, he''d gotten to know her over the months that followed. He''d found out that she wasn''t without flaws herself. She let that rat of a boyfriend push her around, even hurt her... She was too kind, too forgiving. But that same flaw left her surrounded by people willing to help when she finally woke up to reality. And now she was gone. Her light was missing from a world that didn''t appreciate kindness anymore. The zombie leapt for his throat, red eyes glowing to rival the flames... and Arthur released his mana into a sonic shockwave that threw the zombie sideways... directly into the bonfire. She would be so mad if I gave up... He could practically hear her voice berating him... only she wouldn''t really berate. Even then, she would only seek to uplift. To encourage him... I won''t quit, Samantha. Even though I think we''re doomed... I''ll try to be the light that you would have been. The now burning zombie clawed its way from the flames, and Arthur sent it back in, deeper this time. The action drained the last of his mana... I should run. He wouldn''t do anything for anyone if he died out here. It was a bitter irony when another red eyed zombie charged him immediately after he climbed from the crater. But he didn''t regret his decision, no matter how short-lived his resolution turned out to be. A glowing fist went through the zombie''s head before it reached him, and Arthur stared in surprise at the young man he''d seen earlier. "You... why?" ~~~Nate~~~ Whatever had happened here, it was big. Life and death for everyone he''d sworn to protect kind of big. That stun... he''d been completely helpless. So now he had a Beast Lord to worry about, on top of wondering why nearly all the zombies had disintegrated on their own. The answer to both issues could well be connected, but he wasn''t ready to rule anything out just yet. They''d all gotten real lucky if this Beast Lord was responsible for killing the undead. Especially considering the scale of the battle he''d only witnessed from a distance. Nate swept his gaze over the scene at the bottom of the crater... a young woman was dead, decapitated. A terrible loss of life that was too common these days. The remains of a zombie... if he wasn''t mistaken. It was in pieces. A lot of pieces. Then there was the filthy, half-naked and bloody man sitting in the dirt with a small dog in his lap and an equally bloody spear in his hands. Nate didn''t recognize the old man he''d followed in here, and assumed he was from another group. Likely the one the dead girl came from if his reaction was anything to go by. Nate wanted to invite him into the fold, but that was out the moment he saw the monster sitting in the crater. Not only did it look like they knew each other, but Nate couldn''t take another step if he wanted to. His intuition told him only death awaited in that crater, and he''d learned to follow his gut. It was what led everyone here... where the Beast Lord may have just so happened to get into a fight with the monsters chasing them. So he retreated quietly and quickly, and instead, met up with James. "Is it safe?" Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. "Yes. It''s actually a restaurant, and a Lair. Not big, but we can bunker down the women and children inside, at least." "Get on it. Did you ask about food?" "Not good, but hunter teams will depart once we get a perimeter set up." The man dropped his voice and leaned closer. "Anything... else, I should know about?" James was the best thing his intuition had led him to since this started, an invaluable ally and also one of the few truly in the ''know''. Nate considered the question and waited to see if anything would come to him. Something did. Something odd. "We should stay calm... no matter what..." It was just a feeling, but feelings were why he was still alive. James took what he said seriously. "Yes, Sir." One issue with moving large numbers of people; it always took longer than you expected. Nate had to leave James in charge before it was done. Someone had scouted ideal lairs for food, and that was where they headed when he went out into the dwindling twilight with the hunters. He had a feeling they might need his help... The team stopped just outside the lair, and one man sucked in a breath as his hand lifted. Nate caught his arm and said, "Don''t move." Everyone froze in place, even going so far as to hold their breath. It was one of those moments where he was extremely proud of these men and women, and the dedication and trust they''d placed in him. Death passed over them and dragged four monsters kicking and screaming from the lair into the sky. No one moved until Nate let out a loud sigh. "Go in. I won''t be able to join you, so play it safe. Better yet, just grab one and get back as soon as possible." Nate wanted to chase the flying creature that was heading straight towards the place he''d left everyone else. But he needed information more than anything. So he headed for the flickering flames in the distance. He killed two red eyes and a few regular zombies on the way, and arrived just in time to see the older man climbing from the crater. Nate killed another red eye as it leapt at the man and found himself face to face with the person he''d come here to find. Still alive too. "You... why?" "I''m Nate. You mind some company?" "Arthur... and no, I appreciate it. I''m afraid I''m not much good in a fight..." "What''s her name?" Nate said, falling into step beside Arthur. "Samantha... but you''re not here about her, are you?" Nate shook his head. "Afraid not. I''d love to learn more about her, but I have over three hundred men, women, and children who are counting on me to keep them safe, and something just flew right into our midst." Arthur winced. "You''re at the restaurant?" "I have a feeling that you''re the best source of information I''m going to find. So please, tell me about him." It was rude to do this to the grieving man, but time was short. "He''s insane," Arthur said. "Go on." "An insane monster." Arthur said, then sighed and shook his head before continuing, "Samantha always said he was just wounded... but he trusts no one except his dog. I should tell you about his dog..." Arthur talked while they walked, and Nate dealt with the few monsters that came their way. The older man had a worrying ambivalence toward the dangers, which may have come from the recent trauma or his previous traveling companions. The stories were... extreme. Nate slowed as he passed the outer guards around the restaurant. Stay calm... no matter what. Some of them were eating already, so the hunters were making progress, but it would take time to feed everyone. No one rested easily or ate uninterrupted out here. They were the front line of defense, and he saw two zombies go down to their efforts while passing through the lines. It was why they got food first, and... He grabbed a plate from one of them on a hunch. "I''ll make it up to you, Lasco." He didn''t have time to appreciate the killing field of a hallway before he heard voices from deeper inside. "Leave it alone!" That was James. "We''ll all get to eat soon enough. Stand down now!" "We got hungry women and children here. You can''t be serious about letting him hoard all that food!" That was Alex. Nate walked faster, but didn''t want to run. Until he heard, "Forget your dog, we..." He ran, every one of his skills activating at full power, sprinting into the room in time to see Alex flying away from Stanley. He still took in his surroundings in the single second he had to do so while sprinting to save Alex''s life. He deliberately avoided laying eyes directly on Stanley, his feet cracking the floorboards as he chased the doomed man. So much for staying calm... Nate felt Stanley''s attention land on him with sharp and deadly promise. I''m running away from you. Don''t attack me! Stanley sat in the air, dog in his lap, beside a massive pile of steaming meat on the table. It was the only food in the room and the source of upset among more than a few of his people. The smell alone had to be driving some of the anger he could see around the large area. Anger that would shift to fear when those frozen faces finally caught up to what was happening too fast for them to even see. Alex stopped flying when he hit the wall at the far end of the dining room, instantly unconscious. Nate punched out and deflected the wooden spear just enough that it embedded in the wall instead of Alex''s head. It felt like punching a steel girder! And these were lair walls... He spun and shouted, "Stand down, now!" Alex wasn''t a bad dude, aside from being a bit dense sometimes, and he had loyal friends. Luckily, they were also loyal to Nate, and knew his voice. They all jumped at the sound, heads turning toward him as their preparing skills and spells were all aborted. The target of their ire was already ignoring them as Nate made his way slowly closer, passing Neal, who was on his way to heal Alex, who was still stuck on the wall¡­ Stanley''s attention was on the black pug in his lap and the man was holding a piece of meat to its slack mouth. "Please eat, Caff. Please..." His voice sounded weak, fragile, close to breaking. Nate paused when Stanley''s eyes lifted from the dog, and the light shining from them was bright enough that anyone still alive in this world should know to run away. He was looking at Nate in particular, but just muttering, "He threatened Caff... he has to die... all monsters... all die... but she wouldn''t like that... but she''s dead... she was weak... a fool... Caffeine..." His glowing violet eyes slid back down to the dog. "Caff... you need to eat... please... please... please... please eat... please be okay... I''m so sorry... I won''t be weak again... please..." The room was dead silent when Nate resumed slowly moving across to Stanley. "Hi, Stanley." Those violet eyes of death rose once again to meet his own. "I''m Nate." The pug had raw, oozing wounds across his side. Like a zombie''s claws... "Did you see the healers? Maybe they can..." Nate spotted Neal next to Alex, white as a sheet while twitching his head back and forth in a panicked denial. The corruption. Nate realized, and to his immense relief, he could see the pug was still breathing. For now. If it died... after what Arthur said... "Useless," Stanley said. "All useless... all weak... all doomed... all dead." "I owe you, Stanley. You saved a lot of my people today. Whatever you want, it''s yours." Might as well try to get on the guy''s good side. If he had one. "Should have let you die," Stanley whispered. "Caffeine paid for my weakness... for your weakness... please... eat!" His voice broke and tears dripped onto the unmoving pug in his lap. Nate had detected no lies from Arthur, but he was doubting himself now. Arthur must have been confused. This little pug was supposed to be the Beast Lord? It was barely clinging to life, and... an eye twitched when a tear landed on it. The pug''s nose twitched, then twitched more rapidly, and he lunged just enough to snatch the meat out of Stanley''s fingers. "Caff!" Stanley lit up like his greatest wish had just come true, and Nate saw hope return to the man. With the blooming hope, Nate felt the looming threat that his very existence represented... recede. Another piece of meat flew to Caffeine, but the pug gagged, then scrambled out of Stanley''s lap before heaving and throwing up all over the floor. Doom descended like a smothering weight right alongside Stanley''s falling smile. That''s not good... Nate''s thoughts of corruption and a potential zombie-pug with a side of insane-grief-stricken-human all fled his mind when the pug grew... bigger. It kept growing larger as it gagged up bile and foul smelling chunks. Then it vomited up an entire human zombie head onto the floor. Then another... and another. It kept coming... heads, arms, legs. So many heads... so, so many heads. What the fuck!? Nate watched the now much larger pug as it purged a real mess of things it never should have eaten. There was clearly something special about the dog, if only that it could grow bigger. Arthur had been right about that part, and that alone was a fascinating power. Was the dog heavier now? Stronger? How did it have so much crap in its stomach while its physical form was literally smaller than a fraction of it? +1 Intuition Nate could see... something. The pug, and so-called Beast Lord, was clearly hiding secrets. His intuition was telling him there was more there... something hidden under the surface. Gaining a point of intuition was a dead giveaway that there was something important here... He looked deeper. What are you hiding? It felt like every light in the room dimmed as he stared at the pug, trying to see past the... Caffeine finished gagging and opened his eyes, panting heavily. He met Nate''s gaze. There in those huge brown eyes, Nate saw it. A gap he could see through. A window inside... He saw the Beast Lord. Its shadow stretched from horizon to horizon even as deadly teeth hung poised around his throat. Sharp fangs ready to devour him if he made the wrong move, if he threatened either of the two most precious people in the world. Nate saw others beside the Two, a small collection of treasures that the Beast Lord would protect to the ends of the earth... the heartbreaking sorrow where one of them was missing¡­ but there was something else... something deeper... hidden just out of... LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY! LOOK... Caffeine blinked, and the vision vanished. Nate shut his own eyes so fast that his eyelids made an audible noise when they slammed closed. Meanwhile, all of his senses reeled under the sudden onslaught of pure dread that flooded into his mind. +10 Intuition Shit! What just happened? He stood frozen in place, eyes squeezed shut while sweat dripped from every pore of his body and his heart threatened to pound through his ribcage. He was trembling... What did I almost see? A wet nose brushed his hand at the same time something hard and sharp touched the back of his head. Nate knew it was the spear, and he didn''t move while invisible bands of steel wrapped tight around his body. A massive tongue slobbered over his hand while cleaning the plate he''d carried in here... "Caff... are you..." Stanley''s voice, once again full of tenuous hope, breathed out only a foot away. Nate was strong, and he thought he could break free from the man''s grip if he had to, though the spear was a problem... He didn''t try, and let the dog lick the plate clean. Because he''d seen one other very important detail. Caffeine, the Beast Lord, a not so little pug hiding something so terrible that his intuition didn''t even want him to know what it was... he only wanted to be friends. It was... confusing, but reassuring. His intuition that had guided him through so many life and death battles. Intuition that helped him save hundreds of lives. That helped him get them out of the city. That same intuition now screamed¡­ that he should be¡­ nice. That he should be... friendly. So Nate stood still and only dared to open his eyes when the grip holding him in place let up and the spear drifted away from his neck. "Good... boy!" Stanley said with a teary smile while rubbing the pug''s back. The once again normal-sized pug''s back. "You hungry?" Nate felt ignored as meat flew from the table to feed the dog, and he was fine with that. The mess Caffeine had left on the floor slid away in a disgusting pile of rot that had more than a few people gagging. Nate held his breath, both from the smell and other recent events. Caffeine whined, licked Stanley''s face, then sniffed the meat piling up in front of his face, and ate it slowly, hesitantly. Stanley sobbed in a great choking breath at the sight, then more meat flew from the table and into the pugs mouth almost faster than it could gobble it down. On the far side of the room, Nate heard Alex slide off the wall and collapse onto the floor. He watched as the dog ate more than his body weight in meat, dozens of times more. All the while, the wounds on his side visibly shrank and vanished. The sight of him healing surprised Nate, but not very much. No one could remove corruption... but then, this was the Beast Lord. Stanley''s accompanying relief at the sight felt like a noose being lifted from his neck. "Eat some yourself, Stanley," a man said right beside him, startling Nate out of... whatever this was. "We got the other two coming out in a few minutes." The newcomer dropped another massive tray full of meat on the table before giving the pug some head scratches while it gobbled up everything Stanley shoveled in. Then he turned and yelled, "Listen up, you ungrateful shits! I heard someone talking smack earlier. I hear one more peep and none of you fucks will eat today! If you''re even still alive... You fucking got that? Anything that can hurt this dog would eat all of you for a snack and not even notice your pathetic squealing! You owe him your lives, you ungrateful fucks!" He glared directly at Nate while pointing at the vomit. "Clean that up already!" Stanley didn''t react to the cook''s rant, his face buried in the pug''s fur as he shook with silent sobs while the dog sluggishly tried to turn and lick his face. Nate slowly caught his breath and waved James over. The man approached immediately, practically snapping to attention, a far cry from the rest of the room, still frozen in shock. "Get the cleaners on that," Nate said, pointing to the vomit. "I don''t want anyone else near this spot until they can guarantee it''s gone." Corrupted food was the last thing they needed. Not again. 46. All This Time Ive Been Afraid ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine was sooo tired when he made a big mess on the floor. He hoped Dearest Human wouldn''t anger shout at him... But he was soooooooo hungry, too! He was also very sad... Best Friend was gone. Dead. That wasn''t good. It was bad. Best Friends should never be dead... They should stay and play and cuddle and rub bellies and give snacks! Best Friends shouldn''t ever be dead... Caffeine had made the Very Bad Not Human Not Friend Very Bad Bad Bad Bad BAD NOT FRIEND dead. It didn''t help with the sad. Best Friend was still gone... Dearest Human was sad too. And hungry. Caffeine dropped food on Dearest Human. "I am sad, too." He huffed, very tired, and with a comforting lick. "But don''t worry, I won''t let the Bad Not Humans hurt more Friends." There were lots of interesting smelling Not Dearest Humans here, and even a new Dog! But Caffeine was too tired and sad to play with them... he would rest first and then play. Play was the best way to be not sad! He would play with all of them and Dearest Human would make the happiness sounds again when they found more Friends. Dearest Human needed more Friends! They were the best! Friends could play chase! And cuddle! And belly rub! And give snacks! Those were all the best things! But... rest... first... ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley felt numb... Samantha''s dead. And so happy... Caffeine''s okay! Watching Caffeine eat and his wounds heal felt like he''d woken from a horrible nightmare. But the remnants of the nightmare still lurked around him, in the shadows, waiting to strike. He''d been so scared... Throwing up a shit ton of zombie heads... Caffeine had been moving too fast at the end of the fight... there wasn''t time to drop each head he ripped off... and Stanley hadn''t considered where they all went... It''s my fault. He had no choice because I wasn''t strong enough. He''d been so scared... Caffeine dying... corruption... death. Now he just buried his face in Caffeine''s fur and stopped holding onto himself for dear life. It was all too much. He couldn''t do this. He couldn''t be strong enough... How was he supposed to keep doing this? So Stanley carried Caffeine to the food and let him eat as much as he could. His own stomach growled and grumbled, but Stanley ignored it. He didn''t deserve to eat. He was too weak. Too stupid. Attacking that fucking monster for no... Caffeine squirmed out of Stanley¡¯s grip an instant before he slobbered across his entire face with a giant tongue, and Stanley had to lean back just to get a breath in. Then Caffeine dropped a mouthful of meat on his lap. Then another. "Okay, Caff." Stanley put a piece in his mouth, and it lit a fire in his stomach. He gorged alongside Caffeine, stuffing his face while trying to keep his eyes on the pug. He''d been so scared... Caffeine was clearly powerful. The number of times he''d almost died, or at least when Stanley thought he''d been dying... was it even a real danger? Was Caffeine stronger than he gave him credit for? Was he overreacting every time the pug got hurt? Stanley watched Caffeine eat and decided there was no such thing as overreacting. He had to keep Caffeine safe. Except he was too weak for that. Caffeine was the one keeping him safe instead. I''ll get stronger, Caff. Get us both to E-grade. He picked up the core that had fallen out of his shredded pants pocket again. Skill Shard[E-grade] Transporter''s Dash (Rare) User gains a burst of speed in whichever direction they chose. Increased duration and speed if used to bolster momentum rather than changing or reversing direction. Skill Level Effects: (Novice) +1% Dexterity +1% Movement Speed Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require 50% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +40 All Base Attributes: Y/N? It meant that the zombie had definitely been a grade higher... E-grade, but still left Stanley wondering if it was just some random human. Why would an invader be raiding dungeons with a skill that looked like it came from the transporter class the system offered him on the first day? Were humans so much more powerful if they became zombies? Was it worth considering in that case? Or was it just the grade difference? That had to be it. Well... there was also that insane regeneration... Was that what every human got? Would he get it too if he switched sides? In the end, it wasn''t really an option. Caffeine hated the undead. Would he hate him too if he changed into one? The thought of trying to make Caffeine a zombie just made Stanley feel sick... As for the core, Stanley wasn''t interested in the skill. Not only was it not something he really needed, but the stat boost was massive if he destroyed it. Of course, what should have been enough for him to jump to E-grade probably wouldn''t even give him four whole points. Well, twenty-four points across all the attributes. But it would still be less because of the diminishing returns. +4 All Base Attributes Not as bad as he''d expected... in fact, there were no diminishing returns... Maybe the E-grade tag made it better? So he just needed to kill more E-grades... The man... What did he say his name was? Nate? He didn''t even try to bother them while they ate. He seemed to be the leader. At least he gave orders and people ran around obeying them. So many people... She said they weren''t all monsters. Samantha... Stanley didn''t know how to feel about her death. After everything that happened recently, he just felt... numb. He''d promised to kill all the zombies for her... right before he realized Caffeine wasn''t healing... He looked at the spear hovering beside him. The wood was darker than he remembered, soaked in blood and... other stuff. It also seemed to burn the zombies... had it always done that? Or did she make this one special somehow? Caffeine finally stopped eating and curled up for more sleep, trying to hide his eyes from the light. Stanley pulled the remains of his shirt off to give him a little blanket. Sleep well. He didn''t know how even that much had survived... and it was filthy. He needed to get more clothes... and wanted to hunt more. Needed to keep hunting. But the debuff was back... it made him weak. Vulnerable. It was the only reason Nate stopped his spear from killing that m... no, a human. They were human. Stupid humans. Weak, stupid humans! The man hadn''t actually threatened Caffeine... he just wanted food that he was too weak to get for himself. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Stanley didn''t need to kill him for that... he was the most powerful... he could have a discussion... could keep it calm while he promised to kill them if they tried anything. That was fair. Right, Samantha? Jerry brought out another pile while he was eating, and Stanley glared right back at all the greedy, hateful stares coming his way. There was an especially venomous glare coming from the man Nate saved. Did the idiot not know how close he came to dying? Or did he think Nate would save his worthless fucking... The man looked away, and Stanley busied himself with eating while staring at Caffeine instead of the idiot. He got full well before finishing it all. So many people were staring when he stopped eating and sat back. Fuck all of... They all looked away quickly, and he tried to breathe slowly... tried to let it all go. Like water off a duck... That wasn''t helping. He wanted to scream... Caffeine got hurt because you''re all too weak... because I''m too fucking weak! Nate''s hunters brought in another live animal while Stanley sat and glared at anyone who looked his way. They had it tied up in a mess of ropes and still struggled to haul the squirming thing to the kitchen. Stanley didn''t help them. His debuff was long enough... Jerry brought the last huge platter out and stopped when he saw how much remained on the table. "You want this packed up? For tomorrow?" Stanley nodded. "Okay." Jerry turned back to the kitchen. "I''ll make sure no one..." "Samantha''s dead, Jerry." The cook stopped, shoulders slumping. "I guessed as much... did she... was it..." "She saved my life." Stanley had reflected on the fight; he couldn''t stop thinking about it... and as much as he hated to remember the horror of those moments, she had definitely saved him. Caffeine had been too far away, helpless in the sky, and Samantha had bought him precious seconds. He could still feel those claws digging furrows into his face... Jerry straightened as he turned back to face Stanley. He was smiling, but he wasn''t happy. "That''s good. You know, I''m almost jealous of her?" Stanley stared blankly. "To believe in something enough to die for it. That''s the dream, right? A good death? A hero''s death. What more could any of us wish for?" "To... live?" Jerry laughed bitterly. "In this economy? Get real, Stanley. We''re all fucked. I''m just sad that I''ll probably die like a little bitch, screaming and crying for my mommy. At least she went out as a badass... right?" Stanley thought he heard a hint of desperation in the other man. A need for what he was saying to be true. It was true. "She did, Jerry. A total badass. Stabbed that fucker right through the head while it was trying to kill me. Should have heard the monster screaming¡­" "Hah, you should have seen her fighting zombies all night. It was... hot." He blinked rapidly a few times, then said, "She was dying, you know? The corruption. She told me it was killing her. So... maybe it''s better..." Jerry turned away again with the extra meat, his voice cracking. "I should get started on this." Jerry stopped after a few steps. "Did you see Arthur out there? He went with her." "I did..." Stanley felt a little guilty as he finally recalled leaving the man behind. He''d forgotten him until now... The poor bastard was definitely dead. "I kind of..." "He''s right outside," a voice cut in. It was Nate... "He''s giving the guards some buffs to help them stay alert." "That''s good," Jerry said. "It''s good. I''m glad he''s okay... I gotta..." He left. Stanley turned to Nate. "You brought him back?" Nate nodded as he hesitantly took a seat across from Stanley at the meat covered table. He better not be trying to steal my food... "I want to be your ally, Stanley." Stanley just stared at him. "I would suggest you join my group..." Stanley wanted to scoff, but Nate kept talking before he could. "Hell, I''d let you be in charge, except... I know you have no interest in either suggestion. That''s why I''m suggesting allies..." He paused while studying Stanley. "Maybe¡­ hired mercenary would be a better term?" Stanley kept staring. He was not getting dragged into another bleeding heart relationship. Not after... "I get you aren''t big on other people right now, while I''m trying to save as many as I can, but our goals align when it comes to the monsters, and I think in time you might see the benefits of having more people at your back." Stanley opened his mouth, and Nate held up a hand, slowly. "Just think about it. I know you''re tired, and I can''t imagine what you went through today. Rest for now. We will stand guard." Stanley didn''t respond. Weaklings had nothing to offer... except maybe a distraction? But what good had that ever... Samantha was weak. "I know you think we''re all weak and useless," Nate said. "But at least you''ll get an early warning and time to run away? We can talk more tomorrow." Was that supposed to be a dig at him? Calling him a coward? Still, he was exhausted... but there were so many people here. Any of them might... They''re not all monsters. Stanley took all the remaining food from the table and flew upstairs to his room. A room that was now full of women and children. All the rooms were full... "All of you, get out." The children hadn''t seen him before, but the women must have been downstairs earlier because they showed fear. They still didn''t move. Stanley wanted to scream at them to go away... but the kids didn''t deserve it. They also couldn''t stay. Rather than start tossing them out, he took half the meat and pointed at the rest. "Get out and stay out, and you can have that." The bribe worked, and the parents herded the hungry children out with little difficulty. Stanley jammed makeshift door stops around the door, then piled all the furniture against it. He would have slept on the bare floor; his body didn''t care or get sore from that anymore, but Caffeine still liked soft beds. So he used the mattress. He didn''t think he''d be able to sleep now that he knew what monsters were lurking out there. Not with so many racing... ~~~Somewhere~~~ Steven felt sick as he sprinted through the dark, and he shouldn''t even be able to feel sick! He was powerful! An immortal in waiting... Then why was he so scared? That damned human! He''d thought he was strong. Powerful! Then Lord Morgrath had run after that flying freak and left them to deal with the humans. Left them to get slaughtered! Two of them died instantly, and Steven didn''t even see what happened. Then the mysterious leader of the group turned out to be a monster, and he took every one of Steven''s remaining comrades apart as if they were nothing... It didn''t even look like he noticed their attempts to kill him! Steven shivered at the memory of that glowing fist stopping mere inches inside his face... while he himself could not move. Saved by the damn Beast Lord. The human monster had turned away after that... Wrath. Maybe he thought him dead, or maybe he just cared more about whatever monster could stun them like that. Either way, Steven had lived long enough to regenerate his face. Then the compulsion to complete his orders ended. He didn''t know if that meant Lord Morgrath was dead... which was impossible. All he knew was that he now had orders to return to base. A mission he was only too happy to complete. Anything to get him further away from that nightmare of a human. Steven followed the orders directly into the main chamber, where he found Lord Nefraxis arguing with a... ghost? "The Beast Lord..." "I ordered you to avoid the Beast Lord," Nefraxis said with an ominous edge. Steven gaped. That was Lord Morgrath!? But... what? How? The ghost looked weak. Pathetic. Shredded... What could have reduced him to this state? "It was among the humans," Lord Morgrath mewled. "I barely escaped!" "You should have retreated rather than antagonize such a powerful foe¡­ and instead you lost an entire legion!" "It hid its nature¡­ by the time I knew what it was, it was too late." "You paid a high price for your foolishness," Nefraxis'' words oozed with venom. An extremely unusual display of emotion. "And not only you, your arrogance has cost us all." "The creature would never listen to us," Morgrath hissed. "It is a simple-minded thing, and more importantly, it binds itself to a human. A psionic, no less." Steven didn''t know what they were talking about. Wasn''t a psionic something about mental magic? Hadn''t Morgrath gone after that flying human... and his pug? That couldn''t be right... could it? The pug!? "That same human whom your actions have poisoned against us as well? Did you even manage to kill the human? Was it already E-grade as well? Is that your excuse?" "It initiated the violence while I still strove to show it the truth. I had no choice but to defend myself. Moreso, since it fought to protect the one you sent me to eliminate." Morgrath wilted further beneath Lord Nefraxis'' gaze, and added, "It was... F-grade." "By the Eternal! You have failed your God, your world, and your race. I should feed you into the ritual this instant¡­" the rising rage in the Lord¡¯s voice abruptly vanished. "Yet, you still have a role to play. Eternal willing, Calderon will prove more successful tomorrow." Lord Nefraxis spun on Steven. "You, report!" Steven gaped motionlessly for far too long at the first time it had ever personally addressed him. Then he fell to his knees and bowed to the floor. "My Lord! We... failed." He almost choked on his words, but to lie would guarantee his death. While the truth may only hasten it... "The others have fallen." Silence loomed above him like an ax blade descending on his neck. Steven would have sweat buckets if his body still could... "You will assist Calderon. Don''t fail me again." "Yes, my Lord!" Steven didn''t dare raise his eyes as he sprinted away, because deep in his heart, a traitorous voice whispered that these beings may not be the immortal gods they proclaimed to be. 47. Nasty Little Buggers ~~~Karen~~~ Karen smirked at the demon groveling before her. This was the way things should be. This was the respect they owed her. Everyone owed her! "Have you considered our offer?" Calderon said. The creature hid its true nature behind a seeming of profane magic, yet she had seen the truth beneath the mask. They were dead things that strutted about in defiance of God''s will. Her will. Karen didn''t answer. Letting her gaze wander around the area instead. Surrounding them were her Crusaders; men and women who''d answered the call. Who''d finally found a real purpose in their wasted lives when they surrendered to the words of God. All chosen for their usefulness to the holy crusade, all but one. Eve, the prodigal daughter, knelt at her left hand; the stubborn, poisonous, blasphemous brat, now finally silent! Now finally showing the proper respect to her mother. It was ever so sweet to witness her subservience. The girl was useless in all other regards, but worth bringing along as a reminder that even the lost could be brought back into the fold. Also, her brother had begged on her behalf... Ezekiel stood at her right hand. The boy, always so much more obedient than his sister, so much more cooperative, was her trump card. He carried an astonishing power that both uplifted and frightened her. That golden light could restore the most grievous of injuries as if they had never been, yet it also corrupted his mind against the word of God. It would corrupt any mind it touched. Would poison every mind against her. She had tested it extensively against the weaker and more useless of her followers, the fodder. To a one they all rebelled under that light. Even as wounds healed and amputated limbs reappeared, they would all forsake the holy words of God. She alone was immune to the insidious light. A gift from God, no doubt. Because she had needed his light to save her own life... It was a galling reminder of her own failings, that she needed another to save her. That she had to keep the corrupted brat at her side in case that monster returned. A test of her faith... something to keep her humble, perhaps. That was, of course, what led her to this place and these... creatures. So-called Eternals that offered her a false mockery of the eternal life God already promised. False, but much like her own son, something that could serve the greater good once it was in her hands. She did not have to fear the devil''s promises, for all power was of God, and she alone was the arbiter of His will. She would use even the devil''s power against him, for nothing could turn her from the righteous path she followed. "I have considered it," she finally said to the devil. "And I will accept it under the terms discussed." The handsome man before her smiled, his face a mere illusion hiding the wider grin below. "Of course. You will serve no one. We do not seek domination, merely to correct the chaotic life of this world into a more controlled and orderly structure. Something I''m sure you would appreciate." It lied through its teeth at her, but the power it offered was very real. Race Shard: [Menthrall Vampire] Enthrall the world. A Vampire variant of the Eternal Undead Race. A physically weaker species that specializes in mental domination and control of vast armies of thralls. Accepting this Race Change will shift your Racial Alignment from Monster(Sapient) into Civilized(Sapient). New Race: [Menthrall Vampire] Racial Traits: [Immortal] [Race Conversion] [Mentat] Accept Race Change Y/N? With this power, she would no longer have to fear anything. Even Ezekiel''s power would not threaten her dominion. She would take the power from these creatures and turn it against them. They would regret it in time. When she rose to supplant them. When she brought the entire world under God''s banner. Her banner. ~~~Eve~~~ Eve watched the dangerous man that stood before them and she was ready to throw herself in between any attack that might threaten the Holy Prophet. That was her one duty. Her one purpose. To be a shield. Fuck that fucking bitch! The impotent whispers of the devil plagued her mind constantly, but she was used to tuning them out. Rip out her fucking tongue! The word of God was absolute, and she lived to serve. She only yearned for the day that her life could prove useful. The day when she would be called on to fulfill her ultimate purpose: to die for the Prophet. A glorious day that would be. Yes! Die and escape this fucking... No... can''t leave Zeke alone... not with that fucking psycho bitch! Kill her! Tear out her throat! She watched with bated breath as the man reached out with a small black shard in his hand. Was it an attack? Would she finally get to give her life to the Prophet? Never! The Prophet took the shard, her eyes gleaming at something only she could see. "This will do nicely. Yes, I accept." So not an attack. Eve focused her attention fully on the stranger after the black shard vanished into the Prophet''s hand. It was still possible he was planning something. She had to be ready. Kill the cunt! Eve saw only from the corner of her eye as the Prophet groaned. Skin paled... eyes glowed with a reddish light... and the Prophet screamed! Die, bitch! She turned... and saw that the threat hadn''t come from the outsider. Ezekiel had turned traitor... Eve threw herself at him to drive him away from the Prophet. Run, Zeke! Buff Gained: [Purifying Light] Hidden Debuff Removed: [Silver Tongue of the Orator] Everything changed when she tackled Zeke away from the Prophet and crashed into the surrounding Crusaders... No, she was not a prophet. Nothing holy or prophetic about the bitch. She was an absolute cunt of a person. Literally the worst person on earth. She was also their mother. She saw the bitch''s face burning with golden flames that ate away at it even as her eyes turned bright red. "You demon-spawned brat!" the bitch howled. "Purifier!" the strange man yelled at the same time. Only, he was no longer a man. Now a towering monstrosity of bones stood before them, and magic bloomed from its hands. Aiming at her little brother... "I should have killed you in the womb, you ungrateful... corrupted... spawn of..." Eve wasn''t watching or listening, her attention locked on the monster that was about to kill them all. It, and all the crusaders that also leaped to defend the prophet. They seemed mixed on whether to attack her, Zeke, or the monster casting a spell. Jordan''s massive flaming sword lifted high and plunged down... bisecting her screaming cunt of a mother''s head from her body. And she finally stopped screeching. She''s dead... Fresh screams broke out in a cacophony at the same time Eve saw Jordan''s eyes and the rage that filled them as he stared at the dead bitch. He''s free. Everyone was free. The bitch was dead! Jordan''s sword moved abruptly, too fast for her eyes to follow, and slammed into the skeletal creature lunging towards her. Flames erupted on contact in a deafening explosion of heat and pressure. Yet even that explosion sounded small in the screaming chaos erupting all around them. The other crusaders each had their own reactions to the sudden freedom of thought Eve had received moments before. Some fell to their knees, weeping and wailing. Others fled into the screaming crowd. While enough attacked the undead in their midst. It was chaos... and Eve took advantage of it to scoop Zeke into her arms and start running. She didn''t have a chance against these monsters. Her departed mother had made sure of that. The bitch! Zeke struggled weakly against her grip, crying out something, but too softly for her to hear over the noise. Explosions sounded behind her and the ground shook under her feet as she weaved through the crowd. Much like the crusaders, people''s reactions were a mix of horror, anger, violence, and numb collapse. Eve dodged around clawing hands, leapt over the idiots sitting on the ground, and bodily shoved a few aside when they didn''t move fast enough. She could hear the screams all around. But there was something new growing among those shrill voices. A new scream that wasn''t from fear or outrage. It was the scream of people dying violent and brutal deaths. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. The first glimpse she got for the cause of those screams was a zombie chewing through a woman''s throat with its teeth. Its head snapped up as Eve passed, glowing red eyes locking onto her as it lunged. She dodged behind another running woman and tried not to listen to the shrill, gurgling screams as she sprinted faster. Then fiery pain bloomed across her back, and Eve crashed to the ground. Debuff: [Paralyzed] She couldn''t feel her legs as Zeke tumbled from her arms... but she felt the zombie land on her back. Felt the claws digging into her flesh... felt the teeth sinking into the side of her throat. "Zeke, run!" Debuff: [Critical Bleeding] Debuff: [Corruption] It hurt when the teeth ripped through her neck, spilling her lifeblood in a flood of warmth that left only cold darkness behind. But that pain didn''t compare to the thought of how badly she''d failed Zeke as her whole miserable life flashed before her eyes. Buff: [Purifying Light] Debuff Downgraded: [Bleeding] Debuff Removed: [Corruption] Debuff Removed: [Paralyzed] Zeke knelt over her, tears running down his face while he radiated a golden light which filled her with strength and burned the zombie atop her into ashes. One hand rested on her shoulder, and he raised the other up defiantly against a massive skeleton now looming above them. That same light shone from his upraised hand like a beam of golden fire against the skeleton, driving it staggering back as it howled and burned. Zeke glowed brighter and brighter, lighting up like a miniature sun as he screamed at the monster and set it ablaze with golden flames. Eve saw Jordan limping in behind it, one hand clutching his bleeding stomach as he charged. His flaming great sword glowed brighter than she''d ever seen before as he brought it around one-handed and blasted through both of the skeleton''s legs. It fell before the onslaught, toppling to the ground as more of the former crusaders caught up. Eve scrambled upright as it went down, just in time to catch Zeke when his glow dimmed and he swayed on his feet, arms drooping. He stared at her with tears filling his eyes... then blinked sluggishly... and collapsed. Eve pulled him into her arms, disbelief warring with horror in her mind... and saw a horde of glowing red eyes all locked onto her amidst the swarming, battling crowd. Everywhere amongst the throngs of people, those eyes ignored everything and everyone else as they sprinted toward her. Only... it wasn''t her they stared at. It was Zeke. She ran. Zeke was limp in her arms, unconscious, but still glowing. She held him tight and ran for both of their lives while the hordes of undead pursued. She left the former crusaders to deal with the monstrous skeleton and ran faster than she ever had before. Eve jumped over people in her path, even jumping off their heads or knocking them down when necessary. She dodged and weaved through the crowds, always putting someone between her and the nearest zombie to slow them down even a little. It worked, even though she noticed that all the zombies zeroed in on Zeke. At least until he finally stopped shining like a damn glowstick. Then the zombies seemed content to attack whoever was nearest as they slaughtered through the hundreds of people the cunt had gathered. Behind her in the distance, Eve still heard the occasional roar of that monster''s voice as it battled the crusaders. She knew the sound of Jordan''s explosive sword, as well as some other''s signature skills. Those chosen by the bitch for their power... Why they fought on rather than flee, she didn''t know. Maybe they understood Zeke saved them, even if, as Eve suspected, he''d done it unintentionally. Or maybe they just wanted to fight. To lash out and destroy something. Anything to rid themselves of the violated rage that filled her own mind. Eve left the fight to them, grateful for whatever help they could offer, even if she knew deep down they were all going to die. There had been a feeling that descended on them when the monster revealed itself. It was stronger than all of them... though maybe together, they might have a chance. Eve had no chance. She couldn''t fight anything. Her mother had seen to that. Ensured that her daughter would remain as helpless as possible while still existing to sacrifice her life for the prophet. She could vividly remember her mother explaining exactly that, while Eve smiled and thanked her for the chance to serve. She remembered when the bitch grew tired of the compliance and let her have her mind back. Those times were the worst. When she knew what the cunt had taken from her. When she fought back and got beaten into a bloody mess by the crusaders... When she saw the pain and confusion on Zeke''s face... then watched him listen to the lies spilling from that psycho''s lips! It wasn''t his fault... he was just a kid. She''d been no better at his age... buying in to the lies spewed by a hateful bitch that she''d trusted. Because parents were smart. They knew the truth. You had to believe them... It had taken her so long to escape from the nightmare¡­ and she¡¯d walked right back in at the worst possible moment. All for the chance to see Zeke again¡­ Then the world ended and it was too late for anything. But now she had the chance to save Zeke. The one thing she wanted more than anything else in the world. He could finally be free. What were a few zombies and monsters when they''d lived with a far worse monster their whole lives? They could survive this. Eve would make sure Zeke survived this. Whatever it took. So she ran. She ran until her muscles screamed and her lungs burned. Then she ran faster. The fleeing crowds thinned, many of them either falling behind or turning aside from her own path. Many more died, but not all. Eve kept running. ~~~Calderon~~~ Steven stared mutely away from the immortal being as it flicked golden fire from its hand. He didn¡¯t dare speak. Didn¡¯t dare do anything. He still wasn¡¯t sure what happened back there. Steven thought they were recruiting the massive group, then it all went to shit. The ensuing fight had been a mess, with far too many powerful humans suddenly unleashing hell on whatever they could reach. Pure chaos, humans running everywhere, screaming, fighting, dying. Sure, he¡¯d fed well on the dregs and even gained a level despite the weak prey¡­ but seeing the Lord Calderon in pain¡­ seeing the immortal suffer¡­ that wasn¡¯t right, and he feared attracting its wrath. It didn¡¯t have expressions. There was no way to tell what it was feeling. But he knew. Steven could feel the anger like a physical wave pushing against his flesh. So he kept quiet and looked away. He watched another of the fodder die as the last golden flames flickered out. Yet, Lord Calderon remained motionless as they stared to the north. The direction that human child had fled¡­ It had been carried by another, a mere girl, and Steven didn¡¯t know why the immortal didn¡¯t pursue her. Was it that golden fire? He knew the very sight of it filled him with dread, and he desperately hoped he wouldn¡¯t be ordered to fight that thing. The fighting had dragged on a while, but how far could they have run? She was probably dead already. "Gather the corpses," Lord Calderon instructed, and Steven leapt to obey. He didn¡¯t know the plan, but his orders were absolute. So he helped the others as they dragged corpses into great magic circles prepared by Calderon. Monsters rose from each ritual; mindless servants ready to fight and die for the masters. Steven labored alongside former humans and fodder alike, yet none of them spoke to him or each other. A marked change from his time with Morgrath. The mood wasn¡¯t good among the others like himself. A few had died to the humans¡­ died even though they were supposed to be immortal. Immortality. Steven knew he was technically immortal. His status confirmed it. He¡¯d sworn to serve the Lords in exchange for it, and thought them gods at the time. That original belief waned as he watched Calderon build an army. The god was nervous. Afraid. ~~~Cunning Fang~~~ It was the scent that drew Cunning Fang¡¯s attention away from her grumbling belly. Not the smell of food, but a new clean scent. "Find it," she told Night Shadow. Then she sprinted into the lair den with her pack and took the strange beast by its throat. Her teeth dug deep, her jaws tightening in a desperate attempt to silence her prey before it called more of its kind. Behind her, the pack followed. Two of them took down the other beast and her prey finally fell limp. Her teeth savaged the creature¡¯s belly, ripping it open with hurried frantic motions even as she swallowed the meager mouthfuls. Then she tossed the innards to the pups. "Eat!" She devoured the less savory and harder to reach pieces until¡­ "Run!" Cunning Fang snatched up one pup, and Throat Seeker took the other. Then they fled from the den ahead of the charging beasts. She had to give Quick Bite a solid shake on the way out, forcing him to drop the mouthful he hadn¡¯t yet swallowed. She had tried to stand and fight the beasts in these dens before, and it nearly cost them everything. They were too numerous. Even prey could kill with superior numbers. These prey didn¡¯t hunt beyond their den, and she watched them drag her kill away, deeper inside. Night Shadow returned. "It is a human." Cunning Fang followed him and found a running human that carried another. The human female stank of fear and desperation, but also determination and affection for the one she carried. They were pack mates. Cunning Fang approved. Protecting one¡¯s pack was the most important thing. However, it was the male who drew her attention. He glowed¡­ a not unusual sight in this strange new world. What was unusual was what that light did to the air. The stink of foul rot permeated everything now, and the corruption only increased for each new sunrise. The meat of their hunts rotted on the bone before they could eat, and her pups grew sick and hungry. They were forced to hunt into the dens where the prey greatly outnumbered them¡­ "We hunt them?" Night Shadow asked. "They smell clean. No rot." "No," Cunning Fang trotted after the humans. They did smell appetizing after so long with only scraps¡­ "We will not hunt the humans. We will follow them." "The pack grows weak. We must hunt!" Cunning Fang nipped at him affectionately. "Yes, and we will. We will hunt whatever gets close to these humans." She dashed past a bush and snatched up the prey that was staring after the humans instead of watching for her. It died without a sound and she carried it while leading the pack ahead of the slow human. When she dropped it, all of them watched and waited. Yet it did not rot. It did not turn into those corrupted things. Night Shadow looked at her while the pack devoured their first full meal after so long. "I see." Cunning Fang felt renewed hope as she briefly nuzzled against her mate. "Bring them after. I will hunt more." Her steps were light and her pace swift as she slipped past the humans again. There was hope for the pack. Hope that didn¡¯t involve sealing herself into a den. That grim option had lost most of its distaste as she watched her family slowly starve. Now they had another chance to retain their freedom. She just had to ensure nothing killed these humans¡­ 48. Neither Here Nor There ~~~Stanley~~~ "Caffeine!" Stanley bolted upright with a shout at the sound of a child screaming... and felt the pug twitching against his legs. Caffeine was dreaming, his little feet kicking while he made soft noises. "Caff..." His pounding heart slowed while he caught his breath. Caffeine was okay. Nightmares involving Caffeine were always the worst... so much worse than getting eaten alive. The latest one was the new worst... with Caffeine turning into a zombie... The door was half-open when he calmed down and looked around, the top hinge torn off, and the pile of furniture no longer making an effective barricade. Caffeine slept on despite the sounds of children screaming coming through the gap. Oh yeah, they were laughing, too. He must be so tired. But at least the food was gone. That was a good sign that Caffeine must have woken during the night. Or someone stole it... Stanley moved the stuff and floated out the door, trying to decide if he should yell at the damn screamers... and stopped at the sight before him. A massive gray pit bull was lying on the floor while a horde of small children climbed all over it. The dog was easily the size of a horse, with scars of varying sizes and severity covering it from nose to stubby tail, it seemed unbothered by the climbers as it stared intently at the tiny girl sitting in front of its nose. Both the screaming and playtime ended when Stanley emerged. The dog glanced his way and stiffened. It stood slowly, almost slinking as it moved in front of the girl, never taking its eyes from Stanley while its lips pulled back to expose massive teeth. The low rumbles from its throat felt like a subwoofer shaking the building, and it silenced the protesting children. "Good boy," Stanley said, almost reflexively. Meanwhile, his fingers curled in Caffeine''s fur as he looked in horror at all the scars. What would Caffeine look like if all his injuries left scars? Like this, or worse? "Good boy," he whispered. They were both good dogs. Unfortunately, the pit bull still didn''t like him, and it was herding the girl away while growling in his direction. I need to get out of here. Stanley checked his debuff and cursed silently. Still a few hours... and now he was hungry again. I shouldn''t have given away the food. Except... hadn''t Nate promised whatever he wanted? He just needed to get past the dog. Stanley was all for leaving it in peace before it crushed the child into a wall, but it was closer to the stairs than he was. He flew slowly, trying to hug the wall and encourage it to move the other way... "Chill out. No one''s after your human." The dog flipped out, either at his words or at his angling approach, and it lunged toward him with a snarl. Caffeine twitched in his sleep and let out a small whimper from Stanley''s lap. The pit bull froze at the sound, its gaze locked on Caffeine. Then it practically flew back to the girl and stood defiantly in front of her while visibly trembling. "Can you lead him away from the stairs?" Stanley asked in the silent room. No one moved. "Come, Barbie," a small voice said as the girl walked out from behind him. The pit bull had to lower his head to lick her face, which he did before moving quickly back in front of her. Stanley escaped while she distracted... Barbie? Downstairs they''d set up a cafeteria of sorts and people were moving in a line. Stanley joined them, floating along as they shuffled toward the food. The man in front of him eventually noticed the flying person behind him and turned with anger in his eyes. And his voice. "You run out of food and come begging..." Stanley wrapped his will around the man''s throat and squeezed, cutting off his air and voice. "Do you want to di..." He choked on his words when he saw Samantha''s pleading face flash through his mind, when he heard her voice telling him to be the bigger man... saw her head fly... That''s... she... Stanley put the man down, only behind him. "Thanks for the cuts." That was fine, right? "You idiot," someone whispered from the line. "Nate warned you." Jerry emerged from the kitchen to dump more meat into the trays and saw him. "Why are you in line? Here, take this." He tapped the tray. "They''ve been bringing monsters in all night and we''re preparing most of it for the road. But I''ll make sure more comes out here." Stanley frowned. Why was he waiting in line? Old habits, maybe... He scooped the meat into the air and flew over to a table. Wait, the road? Were they leaving? He supposed the restaurant was a bit small for the numbers here... Caffeine didn''t wake up. Not even when hot, steaming meat hovered before his nose. Stanley let him sleep. He still didn''t understand how Caffeine''s whole class, attributes, and skills even worked. But that fight had been beyond anything the pug had done before... He''d fought so hard for so long at the end there. Nate found him after the first bite. "Mind if I sit?" Stanley eyed the man standing well back from him. He didn''t have Caffeine in any shape to fight if Nate tried something... but he had the spear. He''d infused it and now the thing practically followed him on its own. Samantha''s spear... "Fine." "I wanted to make you an offer..." "Nate!" A woman rushed up to the table, ignoring Stanley. "Can''t you do something about the dog? It''s not safe to be around the..." She finally noticed Stanley and her face paled as her voice squeaked to a stop. "Not your dog! I''m sure he... she... is..." "Amanda," Nate said, taking her hand in his with a gentle smile. "I know it''s frightening to be around something so much more powerful than you, but trust me on this. Your children are safe. They''ve literally never been more safe than they are right now." She tore her gaze from Stanley. "But what if there''s an accident? I''m afraid one of them might... hurt him! What if he gets... angry?" Stanley doubted that was even possible with those weaklings. Nate must have agreed, because he laughed. "This is a good thing, Amanda. Let them play. It is perfectly safe." It didn''t look like she liked his answer, but Amanda left with only a last quick glance at Stanley. "You know the dog? Barbie?" "I don''t really, yet I sort of do," Nate said to Stanley, once she was gone. His answer clarified nothing, and it must have shown on Stanley''s face, because he continued, "Let me lay it out for you. I unlocked a so-called hidden attribute as soon as the system appeared, called Intuition. It gives me hunches and feelings that have helped me save more lives than I ever could have without it. I believe it''s what led me here, and not only that... but I think those hunches are the reason you ended up fighting the monster on our tail." Stanley stared at him, unmoving. That was a lot to take in... mostly the part about him being responsible for... "I see that look, and I didn''t lead it to you or anything like that. I didn''t even know you existed. It was only a feeling telling me that this route gave us the best chance to survive. That''s all." "Why are you telling me this?" It sounded like more magic bullshit. "Because I had a new feeling the moment I saw you this morning..." "What?" Stanley growled. "You need to return to where it started." "Where what started?" Was he talking about the mountains? Where he''d lost his memory? Did Nate think he was some kind of prophet? Now he was handing out quests... was he trying to get rid of him? "That''s all I got," Nate said. "Return to where it started. Don''t know what it means. Don''t know where it means. That was just the thought that popped into my head." "Why do you think I need to do this?" Nate finally lost his cool composure, his expression looking haunted. "Because it''s the only way any of us survive." Now he was really laying it on thick. "That''s some bullshit!" "I don''t know how it works any better than you." Nate shrugged. "Following my hunches has kept me alive through a lot of shit. They help me fight. Helped me save hundreds of people that otherwise would have died. I can''t turn my back on it now." "I''m not going anywhere." "You don''t have to do anything. I just had to tell you. Honestly, it feels like a weight off my chest now." He was smiling again, the bastard. "Now, since I''m willing to tell you anything and everything, what do you want to know?" "Where are the invaders, and are they humans?" "In the city somewhere, likely underground, but possibly in a skyscraper. There is also a slim chance they are in the ocean, though I doubt that. I don''t think they''re human, but they are recruiting humans to their ranks." That was straightforward enough... if not exactly actionable. "So, it''s the undead, then?" Nate nodded. "I''ve found a few undead humans trying to recruit from my people. They always clam up once I catch them, and I bet it''s some magic spell on them because they never utter a peep no matter what I do." "Torture?" Stanley asked, a smile crawling onto his face involuntarily. Was he that petty? Yes. Yes, he was. He wanted to hear them scream and beg and... "Yes. Some are zombies and not much different from what we''ve run into already, but others are something else. I don''t know, maybe vampires or ghouls? We got theories, but nothing nailed down." "What are your stats and skills?" Stanley wanted to see how far Nate would go. "Seventy across the board with only strength above that at seventy-five. My class is Martial Artist. Epic, and it gave me four percent to all physical attributes for every level. Six percent now at Intermediate rank. I have a skill that started as ''Power Fist'' and evolved into ''Lightning Blows''. It only works for punching. I have a similar one for kicking, but it hasn''t evolved yet. I have a boosting skill that bumps all my stats for a short time, including amping up my perception so I can see in slow motion. Really helps with the lightning blows. I also... what?" Stanley just stared at him in surprise. This was dangerous information... maybe. He''d already guessed the guy had a melee fighting class simply from watching him fight. So maybe it wasn''t actually new information. "I''m not telling you mine." "No need. You asked what I had, so I''m telling you. I don''t need any kind of reciprocity." "Why?" It made little sense. Was the guy just bullshitting him? Trying to throw him off with a bunch of nonsense? Or was he trying to sell something... "What do you really want?" Nate smiled. "Same thing I wanted last night. I''m deadly serious about being your ally. I''m on your side. What''s mine is yours." "In exchange for what?" "Mutual defense. We protect each other. When I tell you that an attack is coming..." He tapped the side of his head. "Then you stand beside me to defend my people and my home. And..." He held up a hand before Stanley could say anything. "When you need help, me and mine will stand beside you as well." You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. "Why?" Nate finally broke his excessive eye contact to stare at the table while running a hand over his nearly shaved head. Stanley finally noticed the buzzed hair for the first time, and briefly wondered how he kept it so short. Magic, obviously. The guy probably had a damn hair dresser class in this mob. "I started with nine Intuition, Stanley. I gained one when I followed a hunch and saved James on the first day. Yesterday I gained one point when I chose the correct tunnel to send everyone down, and then last night I gained one from wondering what your dog was hiding to be considered the Beast Lord." Stanley bristled. "Don''t fucking mess with..." "I almost saw something," Nate interrupted him. "But my intuition... well, I gained ten points when I stopped prying." Nate said, holding up both hands defensively now. "I don''t know how much you know about Caffeine, or about Beast Lords, but whatever is in there... it terrifies me." "That..." Stanley didn''t know what to say. Though this was the one claim, he had the least trouble believing. He knew Caffeine was special. He just didn''t know exactly how. Or what exactly intuition was supposed to be, or what it meant to get more. Nate leaned forward, lowering his voice. "I don''t know how my ability works. Not really. Am I seeing the future? Or something else... I almost saw through, or around... past... something. I think Caffeine shut me out in the end." "Do you have a soul stat?" Nate shook his head. "Hidden attribute?" Stanley nodded. "Not sure why or how I got it." He had theories. Like the Soul-Bonded with Caffeine thing, or possibly the whole Twin-Soul bit. Not that he would mention any of that. "I''ve found out about one other," Nate said. "Guy named Byron has Constitution. Not only is he huge, but he''s the toughest man we have. He can actually partially resist the Miasma this far from the city." "I''ve always... resisted it." Stanley only hesitated a moment before divulging that. This wasn''t information that could hurt him, not on its own at least. Unless this guy''s intuition told him something... "You don''t have to share anything you don''t want to, Stanley. But what I know, I share. We got a couple of research classes, and I''m willing to support them as long as it takes to figure this shit out. Information is power, something I think you understand, and I''m willing to share everything I have with you if you will lend your strength to us." "I''ll think about it," Stanley said. Something about the guy was... straightforward. Suspiciously so. Maybe he''d have Caffeine take another look at him... was that why he was talking to him now? Because Caffeine was asleep? "Take your time," Nate said. "My first offer is that you help me transport everyone out to the edge of the map, and in return, I give you free food for life. No other strings attached. A one time job." "What? Edge of the map?" "You''ve seen the walls of our prison, right?" Stanley nodded. "You mean the glowing blue one?" "I guess you wouldn''t notice, but the Miasma is getting worse every day. We need time to get set up. Time to train more fighters. Time to find more survivors. The further we get from the epicenter of this corruption, which I think is in the city somewhere, the longer we have to prepare for the coming war." "Free food?" "I know food is important to you. This deal means I will always have a stockpile of prepared and ready to go food whenever you drop by." "The lairs are full of free food. I want more." Nate smiled and Stanley felt like he''d walked into a trap. Though he couldn''t see how... "Name it." "I want one hundred cores of each attribute. Up front." Stanley didn''t like the smile on Nate''s face, so he made a ridiculous demand that they couldn''t possibly... "Deal," Nate said, and dropped a bag on the table. Stanley stared at him. Then the bag. "Is that really..." "Six hundred total attribute cores, one hundred of each." "How... why do you have this?" Nate''s smile widened. "I told you. I have hunches." His smile dimmed. "I assume you know about the diminishing returns? No one can get past ninety-nine with cores, though a few have pushed strength up that last step naturally." Stanley nodded glumly. He''d assumed some kind of bullshit like that, though knowing he could likely push some attributes past the limit was good news. Still, he should have asked for E-grade cores... "Have you seen any E-grades?" Nate stilled. "I haven''t. Was that one yesterday?" "Yea... the cores are better. No reduction." For normal people, at least. "Also, I have a debuff for a couple more hours," Stanley said. "Cuts my power in... well, it weakens me." He didn''t want to tell the man he was vulnerable, but... "I''m not doing shit until it''s gone." He grabbed the bag of cores. Despite everything, it was still free cores for dragging a bunch of people across the city. How much trouble could it be? "You have two hours to get ready, and I''ll give you one hour of my time. That''s about how long it would take to gather these cores myself. If you aren''t ready to go, then I''m not wasting my hunting time waiting for a bunch of morons. Stuff ''em into crates if you have to." "We''ll be ready," Nate said, with an assurance that Stanley was coming to learn meant he''d seen this coming... somehow. That ability was some bullshit. How did Nate get to see so far into the future with a measly attribute while his own Premonition skill gave him less than a second? Pure bullshit. Stanley grumbled to himself while he filled up on mystery meat and absorbed cores. It was sad. No more than plus five to any of his attributes, with some only getting up to four while his willpower gained one. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-Grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] Traits: [Adaptable](67%) [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 32 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) - Level 40 (Intermediate) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 18 (Basic) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 8 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 84(-10%)75 Vitality: 88(-9%)80 Dexterity 85(-1%)84 Wisdom 85(+179%)237 Intelligence 85(+178%)236 Willpower 95(+683%)743 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Psionic Weapon (Rare) - Level 18 (Basic) Buff: Debuff: [Cerebral Fatigue] He was getting closer. Of course, he couldn''t hit E-grade without hunting actual E-grades. It was some kind of fucked up bullshit. To get stronger, fight something that already is stronger than you. Only... how did the undead get to E-grade? How did anyone? The monsters had to be leveling another way... maybe from the lairs? It was probably the first time he''d really sat down and thought about the issue. The lairs had to be doing something for the monsters aside from helping them breed faster... just the food requirements alone... Stanley flew outside, spear tagging along, and looked for something to kill. He didn''t need to wonder how lairs worked. Nate''s research people could do that. He only needed to keep getting stronger. Even if he couldn''t reach E-grade yet, might as well keep fighting in preparation for the next E-grade monster. He just really hoped they didn''t all have that insane regeneration... Sure, the zombie had been ridiculously strong, but he would have killed it after the first headshot, even if it was a grade higher. Wouldn''t he? They still had to have weaknesses, right? Or did things like brains and hearts stop mattering when you got to higher grades? Unfortunately, there were too many people outside the restaurant. They were killing everything before it even got close. Stanley closed his eyes against the sunlight, letting it shine on the sleeping pug while he drifted toward the outskirts. His head still ached, but it was getting better as the debuff timer ticked down. Some light spear throwing might be just what... A human shaped figure appeared in his mind''s eye. It didn''t run or fly in; it appeared abruptly out of nowhere. Like a teleporter... Stanley opened his eyes. Below him, the newcomer was facing away, talking to someone else. He had a crutch under his arm, holding him upright in place of the missing foot on his right leg. His left hand wasn''t visible from Stanley''s vantage, but his mind could feel the stump. You! The bastard vanished an instant before the spear touched him, just like last time. Definitely some kind of premonition ability. Stanley felt the person sized shape appear where nothing had been before, and his spear blasted from the ground, flipping to fly point first... He vanished before it arrived... and Nate caught the spear with a heavy, crushing grip. So it begins. Stanley prepared himself, reaching out to touch on everything that wasn''t nailed down. Nate was too fast. He had to take him down instantly before the man reached him. Caffeine was still asleep... Stanley was on his own... and still had the debuff. He could push through it. The timer would go up... but he could... "Wait!" Nate let go of the spear... Stanley snatched it back to himself, keeping it poised like a scorpion tail over his head. As soon as Nate attacked... or that teleporter popped in... "Everyone stand down, now!" Nate yelled. And the suddenly erupting commotion... stopped. "Stanley, talk to me. Why are you attacking Maurice?" The spear shifted to point at Nate as he stepped slowly closer, and he stopped approaching. Stanley focused as hard as he could on his premonition skill. The moment he felt anything, he needed to strike... "Maurice, get over here now!" The teleporter appeared directly behind Nate, using him as a shield. He came in screaming, too. "That psycho is the one who took my hand and foot! Kill him!" Nate slumped as he looked over his shoulder at the other man. Then he turned back to Stanley. "That true?" So the betrayal came sooner than expected. Nate was working with the teleporter, and it was unlikely he would believe Stanley over one of his own. He could fly away... Nate couldn''t fly; assuming he hadn''t lied about his skills... The teleporter would be dangerous in the sky, but his new Psionic Weapon skill might even the odds even with Caffeine out of the fight. Stanley still smiled grimly as he prepared for Nate''s inevitable attack. "Caffeine took a couple of bites out of him after he attacked me. I''m going to finish what he started." "He''s lying!" Maurice yelled, cowering behind Nate. "He''s obviously insane!" "It''s okay, Maurice. I''ve heard enough," Nate said, hands coming up as he settled into a fighting stance. "You ready?" "Let''s kill the..." Maurice said with his stupid little grin, right as Nate... twitched. Maurice vanished... only to reappear a few feet ahead of Nate, blood spraying from where his hands clutched at his throat. He teleported a few more times, each one only a few feet from the last, before collapsing into an expanding pool of blood and lying still. Nate straightened from his crouch and gently tossed something on the ground closer to Stanley. It hit with a wet splat. A bloody splat. It took Stanley a long moment to even figure out what he was looking at. He only understood when he saw the ragged hole where Maurice''s neck used to be... "I told you, Stanley," Nate said, not moving closer as he wiped his hand on a rag. "I''m on your side. Your enemies are my enemies as well." He looked around at the large number of silent observers. "You all get that?" A few people nodded fearfully, but more only looked curiously at Stanley, seemingly unperturbed by the abrupt death before them. "If any of you are still unaware, then know this. Stanley here saved everyone of our lives yesterday. He is on our side, and if you act against him, then you act against all of us. Anyone has beef with him, come to me first or I will assume you''ve turned against us and humanity as a whole. Understood?" Stanley was still trying to process the sudden turn of events. Nate... hadn''t betrayed him. Instead, he''d helped kill the teleporter... and that attack... Lightning blows, my ass! Fancy words of loyalty aside, Stanley would keep his distance... he remembered every time Nate had been close to him¡­ close to Caffeine¡­ Still, actions spoke louder than words. Stanley looked for long moments at the dead teleporter. Maybe having a powerful ally wouldn''t be so bad... though it might be stressful. How did Samantha or any of the others stand being around him, knowing he could end their lives in a heartbeat? Stanley had only just realized how dangerous Nate was, and he already hated it. A core appeared, and Stanley snatched it up. Nate made no movement or sound that might be a protest. Instead, he turned away. "Back to it! We aren''t home yet!" People dispersed while Stanley stared greedily at the core in his hand. Skill Shard[F-grade] Teleport (Epic) Here to there. User may instantly teleport to a chosen location within range regardless of any physical obstacles. Range and mana cost dependent on intelligence and skill level. Skill Level Effects: (Novice) +1% Intelligence +1% Teleport Range -1% Mana Cost Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [N/A](Adaptable) Space Aspect Mana [N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require 75% Adaptation and may alter your Class. (Insufficient Adaptability) Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: (Unavailable) Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +4 All Base Attributes: Y/N? Stanley paused his perusal when he saw something he hadn''t before. Adapting to the skill required more adaptation than he actually had. Maybe it was the Space Aspect Mana? Something had apparently added an extra twenty-five percent... The main issue with adapting the skill to himself was what it would become. If he needed Space Aspect to teleport, did that mean it would have to adapt into something worse? Though, it could still be good... or better? He doubted it. Teleportation! What could possibly be better than that? Combined with Premonition, he might be as unstoppable as that fucking Maurice. If it didn''t change too much... he also noticed the mention of ignoring physical objects. It didn''t mention ignoring magic... Stanley glanced at Nate, the man still where he''d been after the fight and looking back at him. "He dropped the skill, didn''t he?" Nate stated more than asked. Was that more of his bullshit intuition? Or had Stanley given himself away while looking at the core? He was excited about it... "What if he did?" 49. Take It Easy ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley watched Nate closely, his hand tight around the teleport skill shard. "Keep it. Hope it helps," Nate said, and the man truly seemed relaxed and not at all concerned with the power he was giving up. "Why?" "It doesn''t call to me." Nate shrugged. "I trust my intuition." The corpse of the teleporter sat up... and Stanley put the spear through its head. A thought struck him. Did zombies have skills? The one who killed Samantha did... was it different somehow? Or would zombie Maurice still be able to teleport if he hadn''t dropped the skill shard? He had seen no other zombies that talked... and no noticeable skill use. Stanley flew away from Nate. Though not too far. He was still debuffed and Caffeine was out of it. If anything dangerous showed up, he would totally use Nate as a human shield. But he couldn''t sit still either. The spear didn''t require nearly as much power to wield, and it hurt the undead better than any other weapon he''d seen. Stanley didn''t know why it worked that way, and it hadn''t done so before that night Samantha spent protecting him, but it did now. So it was time to experiment and figure it out. First off, it definitely burned the zombies. Wherever it touched them, their flesh... or even bones, would sizzle and burn. Or maybe melt was a better term. There were no obvious flames... Either way, the damage would spread beyond the initial strike. It wasn''t enough to make a serious difference, unfortunately. While it had seemed to cause pain to that one zombie¡­ none of the regular ones seemed to care. The best he could say was that he no longer needed a clean head shot. Even a scratch on the side of the head would spread into the brain and kill the zombies. At least the weaker ones... The red eyes would burn too, but it was slower and stopped spreading faster. Stanley kept at it while monitoring Nate''s position. The other man never approached again. It was like he really didn''t care about the core. As for what to do with it, Stanley took his time deciding. He even briefly considered asking Nate if there was a better person to use it, ideally someone with space mana or another skill that might synergize well. Very briefly. After almost getting killed by the last guy to have the skill, he couldn''t risk a repeat. Better to waste it than have it turned against him. So he didn''t consider all that long... and accepted the skill evolution. The one percent adaptable cost was negligible to the potential gains. -1% Adaptable Adapting Skill: Teleport No Mana Detected. No Space Aspect Detected. Psionic Energy Detected. Skill Adaptation Successful. New Non-Class Skill Learned: (2/3) Psionic Charge(Epic) Take me that way. User envelopes themselves in a bubble of Psionic energy which moves everything within rapidly in the desired direction. Increases resistance to all outside forces while active, but travel range will diminish under hostile conditions. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Willpower +1% Duration Shit. Stanley cursed quietly as the new skill knowledge entered his mind. It wasn''t a teleport. The only good thing was the bubble aspect, which should mean Caffeine could ride along... The damn knowledge was always so skimpy. So he tested it. Just a short... charge. The world appeared to shift around him... and he was a couple feet to the side. That was it. Not even a sensation of motion... Caffeine didn''t stir at all, assuming he could even notice. Okay, maybe it''s not that bad? He reached further... and the restaurant shot past below him right before Stanley both closed his eyes and held his head. That motion without motion was slightly nauseating... and he''d just added another ten minutes to his debuff. Damn it! Other than that, it wasn''t bad. Definitely not what he''d hoped for, but usable. He just needed to test the whole ''outside forces'' bit, both physical and magical. That experiment was likely to add to the debuff, so he''d have to wait for now. Also, he felt like he might increase the ''bubble'' size. Though that would surely increase the cost as well. The spear hadn''t been in the bubble with him, but it followed behind, only slightly slower. That was another thing to test later, whether he could charge faster than he could throw the spear if he put some effort into it. That left him time to kill zombies while he waited for the debuff... Something else occurred to him. There was no way Nate had told him his real attributes. He''d only shared the base attributes, and knowing that was useless information. Everyone was probably the same. Nate had to have high percentage numbers on strength... likely dexterity as well... but he didn''t know about vitality. He''d never seen the man get wounded... Nate showed up two hours later. Timing Stanley only knew thanks to the debuff acting as a clock. "Ready for you." Stanley didn''t move. "I want your real stats, and don''t lie to me. I saw that strike on Maurice." "Of course," Nate smiled. "We got sidetracked before. My bad. I have a base plus two-hundred percent across the board. That boost increases in variable amounts between punches and kicks. The important bit I think you want, though, is it caps out around six-hundred percent. Oh, and that bigger boost is only for physical attributes." He said it all so casually... Stanley couldn''t tell if he was being straight up or just fantastic at lying. Either way, Stanley kept his distance. Nate''s power, if he wasn''t lying, and if there weren''t other factors at play, then his power was close but not quite to the level of Stanley''s. There was no way to say how that all panned out between willpower and strength... but maybe there was something to studying it. Nate led him to the two truck trailers sitting in the street, and the sight brought back a wave of memories. Stanley had to take a few moments. It felt like a lifetime ago when he''d roamed the country with Lee, pulling something like this behind them... how long was it really? A week? More? He... wasn''t actually sure anymore. Lee felt so far away... and something was still wrong with him. I''m coming, Lee. "This work for you?" Nate asked, pulling him from his thoughts. "We pack in the slowest and weakest and you carry them?" Stanley thought about it. How many F-grades could he carry like this? He''d never really tried carrying people inside of something else... Would it be easier or harder? Well, assuming he could carry them, it would definitely be easier to do so all at once than trying to hold each individual person. "Won''t know until I try in... twenty minutes. Load one trailer up by then and I''ll give it a shot." This all felt like a big waste of time, but it wasn''t like he could do much else at the moment... maybe he would gain some more willpower if carrying the people was hard enough? Especially if he went fast. "You know where you''re going, right?" "Maurice did a lot of scouting for us," Nate said. "Got us a few spots... but don''t worry, you just gotta get us out to the wall. We can handle it from there." "The loss of Maurice is going to hurt us," said a man Stanley had seen following Nate around, both taking and giving out orders. Hard not to see him with that bright orange hair... "Maurice was a snake," Nate said quietly after walking away from the other people nearby. "I knew he was creeping on a few of the women already, but until he escalated to... something worse, we needed him." "You never told me that..." "James, I didn''t tell anyone." Nate dropped a hand on the man''s shoulder. "You''re invaluable and I trust you completely, but you ain''t exactly winning any awards for acting out here. Maurice could have bounced anytime, and I needed him to trust me..." "So you could kill him?" Stanley butted into the conversation. "Keep your enemies close? Say, within arm''s reach? Wait until they outlive their usefulness?" "The world''s changed, Stanley. Power rules more than ever. Real power. But you know that, don''t you? I needed that creep to help me save everyone, so yes, I let him get away with some shit, including harassment. Some complained about it, and I talked to him, asked him to knock it off, and knew he didn''t listen." If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. "You knew about that and kept him around?" James looked betrayed. "We needed him. Those women suffered, yes, but they lived. I considered it a fair trade, and would give the same or more leeway to anyone that we needed... but there is a limit. As long as he didn''t push too far..." "How far?" James demanded. "How many rapes and murders would you let him get away with?" "None," Nate said, then hesitated. "None of our people, at least... I''m sure he''s done worse before joining us." "I have work to do." James stalked away, clearly upset about his fantasies not living up to reality. "How many do I get?" Stanley asked. "You''re so eager for my help, so where''s my line?" Nate smiled. "You are nothing like Maurice. I can tell that much. As for killing people... I don''t think you do it for fun. All I can ask is for restraint. Lots of people on edge these days, tempers are short, and some are liable to mouth off or throw down in anger or fear. If your life''s on the line, then do what you have to, but if not... please give me a chance to handle it." Stanley studied him for a long moment. Nate was weird... but pragmatic. That was good, in that he seemed unlikely to suddenly decide mass murder was a good idea. But still bad because he obviously had no problem killing someone once he was done with them. "I can agree to that... but don''t ever get that close to me or Caff. I''ll assume you''re attacking, and I don''t want to find out you''ve had enough of me like that fucker did." Not that tearing Stanley''s throat out would be enough to bring him down... but then Nate might know that already with his bullshit intuition. "Fair. I''d promise a warning if it came to that... but you''d never believe me." "I''m not an idiot." Nate shook his head, still smiling. "Stick around, Stanley. You''ll see the truth, eventually." Stanley returned near the trailers after a quick flight back and the requisitioning of a knife from one of Nate''s people, along with claiming more food. Part of his lazier hunting regimen involved testing the spear on himself. First to see if it burned him like the undead; it didn''t. Second, to push for more free vitality. Each point gained would save him tens of cores. More even as it got closer to the hundred mark. Whether he could use the same method to push it past ninety-nine... well, he''d probably find out with willpower first. He cleared the lairs nearest to the trailers while more and more people arrived and got crammed inside. His vitality never went up on its own, and he wasn''t ready to go hard on self-mutilation. It had taken a lot of punishment to gain points during the fight... Caffeine stirred once where he lay asleep in Stanley''s lap, but only enough to gobble down a mouthful of the meat he was keeping in front of the dog''s face. It was better than nothing... a good sign that he was recovering... Jerry showed up with some others, running into the cleared lairs and setting up cooking stations inside. Apparently, preparing the meat helped it last once outside. Had Nate sent them? Or did Jerry tell them about how he hunted? Stanley didn''t care, it was just more food for him and Caffeine. Debuff Removed: [Cerebral Fatigue] It felt good when the message came. Felt like dropping a weight from his back. Stanley crushed and twisted off the heads of the monsters in the current lair. That felt even better. There was something about fighting sans weapons... something visceral... like using his bare hands. Though in his case, it was his... bare mind? Whatever. It felt powerful. Stanley wanted to feel powerful. Needed to. Then he tested his newest skill on the way back to the trailers. He went up first, pushing for maximum range. His ears popped, but not until the ground stopped falling away. Same thing happened when he went down, though the ground rushing towards him was more disturbing. Next he tried horizontal movement, his inner ear protesting the whole time. Stanley ignored the nausea through force of will. This was power that he needed to survive, and he wouldn''t let a little discomfort stop him. The disappointing part was that the skill felt a lot like what he''d seen from the E-grade skill shard the zombie dropped. Obviously, that core was more valuable for attributes, though maybe he should have saved it until he was closer to the limit of F-grade... Absorbing it when he did might have been a huge mistake. Fuck. Stanley tried not to think about how big a fuckup that might have been while he looked for a non-lair structure to crash into with the new skill. That was the main difference between skills that he still needed to test. Outside forces... He didn''t even notice the building when he blasted through it. Like nothing was there. Then he flew next to a lair wall. This might hurt... but hey, free vitality? It was unlikely a danger to his life, but his bones might still suffer. So he aimed only slightly into the wall, just enough for his shoulder to make contact while leaving his head out of it. Just in case. He also left Caffeine out completely, setting him just above the floor, though he doubted anything would make him drop the pug. The wall shattered away from him, and Stanley smiled. Sure, it felt like he''d just slammed his brain into a wall, but it worked. The skill was good. Especially if a lair wall counted as a magical effect, which he assumed it had to. The only thing stronger than the lairs... was an E-grade. If he''d had this skill before... it might have been enough to escape. Maybe even enough to stay ahead of the monster while he wore it down... "It''s good, Caff!" Stanley couldn''t help hugging the sleeping pug when he was back in his lap. "I won''t be so helpless next time... I promise." Caffeine shifted in his sleep, nose twitching, and Stanley quickly shoved more food in his face. The food vanished into his bottomless stomach, and earned Stanley a sleepy look and a small tail wag from the pug before Caffeine knocked back out. Rest, Caff. I''ll get stronger. Then he blasted himself back to the trailer in a series of lightning fast bursts that only improved his mood further. His good mood waned immediately when he found the whiny people complaining about getting jammed into a trailer. Stanley resisted the urge to shove everyone inside and lock the doors, if only to shut them up. Besides, this was something for Nate to deal with. He was the one who wanted to save all these weaklings. They still took too long. "Time''s up," Stanley said, and picked up both trailers. He grunted at the effort needed. It was almost identical to trying to lift the E-grade... A giant pit bull bounded out of one trailer, a squealing girl in his mouth as he stared up at Stanley. His departure helped significantly with the weight... which meant he was strong. So why was he even in there? Nate went to the dog and had a quiet one-way conversation with it... or maybe he was talking to the girl. Either way, it ended with someone wrapping a rope around the dog and the girl riding on his back. She looked thrilled with the plan... Lucky kid. There were a few more annoying delays as Stanley slowly flew away with the trailers, trying to hurry them all up. It mostly worked, and Nate led the foot charge with all the people not getting a free ride. Stanley guessed they were going northwest, but he didn''t fly high enough to see the ocean and his sense of direction was crap without a landmark. Not only were the couple hundred people heavy, but he was prepared to drop them if necessary. No need to kill them by flying too high... because there were a lot of kids in there. All of them ungraded because they couldn''t absorb cores... talk about fucked up bullshit. How were they supposed to survive? Well, that one girl had the dog watching out... and he supposed Nate was watching over the rest. It was impressive enough that Stanley had to give Nate some props for keeping them alive for so long. It was also... somewhat selfless. Somewhat because their parents might be useful enough for Nate to go to the trouble; Stanley didn''t ask, but it made him think unpleasant thoughts about Samantha. He was trying very hard not to think about her. She''d had to know it was suicide to do what she did. She knew how strong he was... which meant she had to know how dangerous the monster was if he was losing... so then why did she do it? Was she really that good of a person? She barely knew him. He''d almost killed her before. Threatened to kill her even more... Why would she sacrifice herself? Was Arthur right? Was she just some kind of saint? Her plea for him to kill her when he''d doubted Caffeine... had she truly meant that? The concept of self sacrifice wasn''t foreign or anything. Stanley was fully prepared to die saving Lee or Caffeine... though he was pretty sure he didn''t have a choice there. But dying for someone he didn''t know? If Samantha survived saving him, would he die to save her later? Stanley was sure he wouldn''t make that choice, and it made him feel... bad. But it wasn''t wrong to look out for oneself or one''s own, was it? Caffeine would have risked himself to save her. The thought made him angry... so he focused on dragging the trailers faster, and let the effort drown out all thought as he chased after Nate below. A few dozen ran along with Nate at the forefront, and they fought and killed whatever zombies or other monsters showed up. In the beginning, it was mostly zombies; the monsters staying in their lairs. But as they traveled further, the ratios shifted in the other direction. Probably something to do with the Miasma getting weaker... which begged the question; which was worse? Monsters everywhere or zombies everywhere? Unless the lairs were at an abnormal density in the city, then it would be a madhouse out on the fringes too. Stanley just wasn''t sure since he hadn''t been near the wall after the first night... at least not to hunt. No skyscrapers out there, so more caves? Or would every house become a tiny lair? Though plenty of the apartment buildings had tunnels below them... so something like that? It wasn''t total wilderness, after all. Still plenty of shopping centers and warehouses, just not as close together. Stanley left the combat to Nate and his runners. At least until they engaged an army of bugs from the front and didn''t seem to notice the swarm of furry... things coming in behind. Unfortunately, he kind of needed them to survive if he was going to get his free food... so Stanley sent his spear and knife to play. He had to keep things closer than he wanted, thanks to the excessive weight under his care, and a few magical effects occasionally clipped the trailers just above the tree line while he mopped up the beasts below. The worst part was losing out on the cores... Sure, he could have set everyone down and handled it faster, but he wanted to get done with this bullshit as soon as possible. It was only a drop in the bucket compared to the cores Nate had given him, after all... Of course, Nate found more fucking people on the way. Especially when he changed course... like he knew they were there. Fucking intuition... it was too powerful, and Stanley finally started wishing he''d chosen the telepathy skill. If he could actually trust Nate... they could leave all these hangers on and really make some headway with escaping this place. Stanley tried to watch him fight during the trip, and he got enough glimpses to know the man was dangerous. Nate never took a single injury, despite everyone else sustaining at least one, if not more. Every monster he faced died in a single blow, and he moved among his people nonstop, probably killing more than all of them combined. Very dangerous. +1 Willpower It was a nice little bonus for the hour of straining, and it came right on time. When they reached their destination, an old retirement home, five stories tall with a disturbing number of broken windows and a few holes through the walls. Everyone looked happy and excited, at least the people who hadn''t run and fought the whole way there. Stanley overheard enough to know the good mood was because the new lingering miasma didn''t reach this far. Not yet. He wanted to bail before anyone got any bright ideas about asking him for more help, but he wanted food. Nate held up his end of the deal despite the protests when Stanley took a few backpacks stuffed full from their stash. "He saved us at least a week of travel, and through the miasma, no less." "I fucking carried it all here, too," Stanley muttered at the ungrateful pricks. But he didn''t care enough to get angry and just flew away instead. Time to hunt. Again. 50. Pray The Lord My Soul To Keep ~~~Stanley~~~ One of the major differences between the city and this more rural area was the snow. Stanley had almost forgotten it was supposed to be winter time... between most of the streets in the city having been cleared, and his F-grade body barely noticing the cold, it had faded from his attention. Snow didn''t quite blanket everything. Most treetops were clear, but it still covered a large swath of the ground. The lack of cars or plows on the roads, plus the clear weather, meant much of it was still pristine white. None of that muddy snow here... which also meant the glare was back, though that too was less than it had been. It was still annoying, but didn''t make his eyes hurt anymore. He started his hunt by backtracking to a warehouse they''d passed on the way. He''d suspected it as a lair from the sheer number of monsters in the area and was proven right when he got back. They had feathered wings, but ran on four feet. Almost like a griffon, except it didn''t have an eagle head. Just something hairy with large teeth. So maybe a chimera? They died well enough to the spear, and a few extras to the knife when they came charging back to defend the lair from further away. The monsters were definitely more free-roaming out here, not huddled up inside their dens. Pleasantly enough, they didn''t have any annoying magic. Oh, they had something, but Stanley never saw it directly. They were just a bad matchup against him. So, perfect. The massive open space inside the building was a nice change from the apartment and office spaces he''d been hunting in lately, though there was some kind of huge tree growing in the center. The queen lived at the top, near the ceiling, and he left her alive when she surrendered. Clever girl. Stanley also tested his Psionic Charge ability against one beast outside. Not directly, but he charged close enough past that he should have clipped it. His new skill didn''t let him hit, instead pushing the monster away with damaging force as he passed. That was nice, though it wasn''t free. Less than punching through a lair wall though, and that just left finding some magic to test the skill against. He was really hoping it would let him ignore spells, or at least dodge them. Premonition was looking better and better thanks to the new skill, and now that he had something to help him get out of the way. That combined with thinking faster meant he had more options than ever to avoid attacks. He just needed to stay aware of his surroundings so he''d be ready to dodge in the right direction when it came time to. Despite the testing and thoughts of tactical power use, Stanley still had time to ruminate over the past. It was stupid and a waste of energy, usually. There was something to be said about learning from his mistakes... if it didn''t come with having to remember them... but that wasn''t what occupied his thoughts today. At least, not entirely. It was what Nate had said... about going back to where it started. Stanley kept seeing the look on Nate''s face. The bleakness... hopelessness... had it all been an act? He just couldn''t understand why. What was the point of making something like that up? Especially when it didn''t even come with actual directions. Just a vague warning to go... somewhere... sometime... The most likely conclusion Stanley had arrived at was... the truck stop. It was the only thing that made sense. Unless Nate''s whole prophecy deal was about some far distant future... in which case, what was the point? Fucking prophecy bullshit, always gotta be something stupidly vague... Except Nate wasn''t even supposed to be a prophet. What the hell does a martial artist have to do with predicting the future? Was he like some kind of monk? Didn''t monks do some spiritual crap? Still, Stanley kept thinking about the truck stop. He hadn''t been back since that first night... and the trailers he''d carried those people in made him nostalgic for the good old days... that was the only reason he went looking for it after hours of hunting and as the sun crept lower toward the horizon. It had nothing to do with Nate''s stupid feelings. He knew where the truck stop was. In a freeway and exit number sort of way. Something that didn''t translate as well to an apocalyptic flying through the sky without road signs and maps reality that he was currently living in. The bigger freeways still stood out from the sky, but satellite view on his phone wasn''t the same thing as what he had now. Of course, narrowing it down wasn''t too hard. He knew it was north of the city and not too far from the coast. Those were easy enough landmarks to follow, and Nate''s route had left him relatively close... Was that on purpose? Stanley ground his teeth. Definitely getting telepathy next. His search took him back into the undead territory, and Stanley was torn between flying high or staying low and skulking his way through town. The decision was made for him when a shit ton of... something burst into the sky ahead. They looked like birds... but who knew? Too many weird creatures existed now. Just because something was flying didn''t mean shit about what it was anymore. It was the sheer ''blot out the sky'' number of them that really gave him pause. A dark cloud rising that literally left a swath of shadow in its wake... So Stanley pulled up extra dirt and went to say hello. Fuck birds! They were zombie birds. He saw that much before closing up the dirt shell. They also likely used magic to fly, since plenty of them were lacking feathers and sometimes even skin on their wings. Magic bull... Though, to be fair, Stanley also flew without wings... Is that where all those birds went? The skies had been relatively peaceful for a while, aside from that owl fucker... Stanley had a bad feeling as he tried to remember how much of the corpse he''d destroyed. Had he gotten the head? They''d eaten a lot... but if the head was still there... I really hope they didn''t resurrect that thing. Maybe it wouldn''t have its magic if so... He killed the first one with a spear through the head and the swarm all surged his way. At least what little he could see of it. Still, that was fine. Especially when he saw a core fall from the dead zombie. Yes, come to me and bring your cores. Stanley didn''t remain in the sky. He wanted more weapons at hand. Sure, he could use the dead birds as weapons, but he also wanted their cores, and it looked like they would follow him with very little effort on his part. Perfect. So he led them back to the ground and started the ball rolling. Or, in this case, spinning in place. Same thing. The only problem he''d seen from fighting zombies, particularly if trying to get cores, was that he had to hit them in the head. Birds had tiny heads... but they were also stupid. Zombies and birds both. Stanley floated in the dark and smiled as they threw themselves into his meat grinder of a dirt ball. He even opened a hole in the bottom and started collecting the cores when he realized how stupid these birds truly were. Who needed core gatherers when... Oh. He''d seen the red eyes of the birds, but still didn''t know if that was special beyond dropping cores. That talking zombie had red eyes at the end... Maybe the zombies were leveling up? A swarm like this one could wipe out lairs without trouble... That was when a human zombie came running in and tried to jump through Stanley''s window. Rude. He had to close the window when a horde of zombies followed the first. Then he dropped lower and pulled up even more... everything. Concrete, cars, light poles, and signposts. All of it went into orbit with the dirt and rocks, and Stanley did some grinding. You better not be eating my cores out there... It was a lot of zombies. A true horde like you''d see in a movie... the kind that would wipe out all the humans... Nate... Stanley had only found this horde because he was following Nate''s stupid prophecy bullshit... Did you know about this? It definitely seemed like enough shit to fuck up Nate''s little gathering. Had this been the plan all along? Send Stanley up here to thin the herd? Who cares if he survives as long as he kills enough of them? Hell, killing his teleporter might have just been a calculated cost if he knew this was coming... He suckered me. Stanley had bought into the lie from that little display... and followed Nate''s intuition up here. He''d hoped maybe there was a super good skill or something else that would turn the tide... but maybe it was just his life that would turn the tide away from Nate. Fuck you. I''m not dying here. Nate obviously didn''t know Stanley''s power if he thought this could stop him. As if in response to his thoughts, Stanley''s premonition lit up his body with sickening pain. He charged away in the fraction of a second warning the skill gave, straight through the side of his blender ball. It was possible that he could expand the skill enough to charge with the ball of dirt... but he didn''t think so, and this wasn''t the time to test it. None of it impeded him, at least. A bunch of loose dirt and rocks weren''t enough to even slow his charge, and he burst back into daylight in time to see his ball of dirt turn into a ball of green fire... Then his premonition lit up again, and it wasn''t hard to guess why when he was sitting in the open air surrounded by a million zombie birds... Stanley charged through them while dragging up a new shield... and had to abandon the effort before it finished forming when it exploded like the last one. This time, he saw which direction the green fire had come from and charged through the swarming birds to find its source. He had to keep charging almost constantly to avoid the birds, but it worked. Hell, it did more than work. It was fantastic. None of the birds were powerful enough to survive getting in his way, and it was easier than directly pushing them away. Stanley had to change his trajectory a few times on his way through the swarm to dodge more green fire, but he eventually burst out into the open sky. The sea of zombies spread out below him undulated and surged upward in pursuit, like an ocean wave reaching for the sky... He only spared it a glance. His focus inexorably drawn to the figure flying high above. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. A dark cloak hid much of its body, but twin points of blazing red shone from under the cowl. That was more than enough to identify the creature, even without seeing its skeletal hands weaving green fire into existence. Four skeletal hands. Then Stanley''s spear arrived. It struck an encircling globe of shining green light that appeared around the monster... then blasted right through it. The spear didn''t even slow as it continued on through the monster''s face with a sonic boom that obliterated the upper half of its body and its stupid fucking cloak. Stanley charged sideways to avoid the spell that came on despite the monster losing its head... and the red eyes reappeared in a grinning alien skull of bleached white bone. It was another one of... Them. Stanley didn''t hesitate, and his spear was spinning when it boomeranged back into the skeleton. He ignored the head and went straight for the arms, chopping them and its entire torso into splinters faster than they could regenerate... before they could cast more magic. His knife went for the head. You think I didn''t learn from the last one of you fucks!? Unfortunately, and despite him literally cutting the thing in half, its lower body didn''t fall away. Magic bullshit, no doubt. Still, no more green fire came after him... but the birds did. The skeleton didn''t help things when it flew into the oncoming swarm at speed. Stanley kept the spear on it and charged through the swarm in pursuit, all the way down to the ground... where the rest of the zombies joined in. It made no difference, other than draining his energy too fast... so Stanley had a snack while he chased after his prize. He was missing out on a lot of cores from the zombies left in his wake... but he wasn''t about to let the big one go. It was an E-grade. If it dropped a skill when he killed it... that might be all he needed to reach the next grade! All he needed to keep Caffeine safe... It was apparently a caster, unlike the zombie, and Stanley had just gained a skill that let him avoid its magic. In other words, it was a perfect target for him. He only had to wear down its regeneration... though this time without Caffeine. Stanley rested one hand on the still sleeping pug. I can do this. Rest up, Caff. I''ll have a nice bone for you to chew on when you wake up... Though maybe not from this creature. Its bones were probably rotten. Premonition flared while he was in mid charge, and Stanley found out he could cancel the skill and reactivate it instantly to change direction. A storm of magic exploded in the spot he would have been, and the blast cleared enough birds for Stanley to see the source. Humans. Why is it always humans? Over a dozen of them, and all between Stanley and the still fleeing skeleton, all of them already either sprinting at him or casting more spells his way. They looked human, but a few had glowing red eyes... Traitors. Stanley redirected his knife and charged repeatedly through the barrage of magic while killing the charging humans. Four died instantly, or at least they fell down after the knife went through their skulls. The fifth human slapped the knife out of the air and drew Stanley''s attention instantly with the strength of the hit. Another E-grade¡­ and not a caster. Shit. He was fast, too¡ªlike the E-grade zombie had been¡ªand he shot toward Stanley like a bullet. Psionic Charge was faster. Stanley blurred past and kept chasing the skeleton while his knife went for the human. Apparently this was where the skeleton had been trying to reach, because it circled around to stay close to the others. Stanley was fine with that, since none of the humans could touch him. His new skill was just what he''d needed. If he''d only killed the teleporter when they first met... Samantha would be alive... Caffeine would never have gotten hurt. All because he''d been too weak... Not this time! The E-grade traitor couldn''t fly, and he didn''t have that bullshit jumping off the air skill either. What he did have was a shit ton of birds filling the air that he could jump off of. While it gave him some air mobility, it was nothing compared to the skeleton''s flight or Stanley''s charge. Plus, he was killing the birds every time he jumped off them. Stanley was untouchable... and would remain so until his food ran out. The skeleton winked at him... one red eye going dark and then lighting back up, and Stanley felt... something. It made him think of a spell as it shot towards him, and he instantly double tapped Psionic Charge to change direction ninety degrees. This wasn''t like the previous spells... he could feel... something strange. Something dangerous. The spell was slower than the last one... slow enough that he could feel it coming on through his mental touch with a disturbing sensation... and it followed him without hesitation when he turned. Stanley blasted himself through a nearby lair doorway, pushing his concentration to the limits as he juked through hallways and crashed back outside through a window on the far side of the building. All in less than a second. The spell ignored the building entirely, passing straight through the walls and slamming into him just outside the window... Resisted: [Soul Spike] What the fuck!? It... didn''t even hurt. Probably because he''d resisted it... but he still felt... something... off. Caffeine must have felt something as well, because he twitched in his sleep, and Stanley thought he heard a growl. Then the skeleton flew right past the traitor, and the human caught the spear mid spin. He raised it up in two hands... as if to break it over his knee... NO! Stanley didn''t let it go, holding onto the spear for dear life as he struggled to pull it free. He couldn''t let them destroy Samantha''s... A knee slammed into the spear, and the wood flared with red light... but didn''t break. Instead, the traitorous human screamed in a wonderful sound of agony and dropped the spear. Stanley didn''t pull it away immediately, instead going for the kill while... but the bastard dodged back, deflecting the spear at the same time another spell flew Stanley¡¯s way. The damn skeleton was back at it again... It was also still winking at him... each wink preceding another of those notifications. Resisted: [Soul Spike] Each time, Stanley resisted. Each time, Caffeine stirred. And every time it felt slightly more off... He got the spear back on the skeleton, since it seemed to really hate it, and even left the stupid jumping human alone to send the knife as well. The skeleton finally gave up on flying around and stopped beside the human E-grade. There, he unleashed a steady stream of magic while the damn traitor blocked the spear from interrupting. He never grabbed it again, but he was fast enough to deflect almost every hit. Stanley sent the knife toward the back of the traitor¡¯s head, and the skeleton used one of its four hands to enclose the blade in a ball of green light that burned his mind. It kept casting with the other three hands¡­ It was enough to enrage Stanley. But he was already angry, and it still wasn''t enough... More of those weird soul attacks kept coming, and Stanley started running out of food as charged nonstop around the battlefield... He hated to do it. Absolutely loathed the idea of letting these fucking things escape when he was so close... Partially Resisted: [Soul Spike] Debuff: [Soul Strain] It hurt, and Caffeine kicked as he growled loudly enough to hear over the battle. Magic was still bullshit. Apparently, it could wear down his resistance!? Stanley fled the fight. Charge after charge took him entire blocks as the city blurred past around him. He flew clear of the birds and then blurred repeatedly down the empty streets, shoveling the last of the meat down his throat as the city flew away and his energy reserves went with it. Stanley finally ducked into a lair, cleanly killing the monsters and taking them into an empty room, and then he waited. He barely even breathed as he ripped apart the monsters and threw the raw meat into his stomach while waiting for his energy to recharge. Meanwhile, he pushed his mental touch wide, trying to feel out any pursuit that might have kept up with him. He didn''t think it was likely. That had been the fastest he''d ever traveled... Nothing stood out and everything in range was just random lair monsters that didn''t even know he was there. He checked the debuff while he ate. [Soul Strain](??:??:??) Your Twin-Soul has withstood numerous attacks, but using your soul repeatedly in this manner has strained it and decreased its resistance to further soul attacks. -??% Soul Resistance That was... information. Not a lot. In fact, it was nothing he didn''t already know! What the hell was the notification for if it wouldn''t tell him shit!? Stanley waited in the lair as long as he dared while not only gorging on the meat but stuffing his bag with as much as he could. That mad dash was very energy intensive... So he used it slightly differently when it was time to move on. After delaying as long as possible, Stanley pushed more power into the skill without unleashing it... aimed it very deliberately, and... charged! The world moved faster than his eyes could track, and he was abruptly in the building across the street. Hopefully faster than any watching undead could track as well... A few taps and nudges against the monsters inside let him lure them out of his path as he silently navigated through the building toward the next opening. There, he repeated the tactic. Blocks fell behind him more slowly now, but fast enough, or at least that was his hope. He didn''t care which direction he was going, so long as he could get further away. It was tempting to go back... very tempting. Those E-grade cores were calling his name... Two of them! Which was the problem. He had a better plan now. Get far enough away but still close enough to watch that flock of zombie birds, and then wait for Caffeine to wake up. Stanley hated himself for the plan... for asking Caffeine to fight more of those monsters... but he needed the help. I''m too weak, Caff. I need you to help me... again. Not yet though. Caffeine had earned his rest. More than earned it. Stanley could swallow his rage and hide in the dark if that''s what Caffeine needed. The next spell gave no warning as he was crossing another street, which made sense when he charged straight through the green explosion without even feeling it. His charge quit early, but it held up against the magic, and there, in the sky behind him, was the giant skeleton... How did they fucking find me!? Stanley attacked with every bit of rage he could muster, shattering and shredding the constantly regenerating skeleton... until a familiar human monster came bounding in to join the fight. It was easier without the birds and other zombies, but not enough. Stanley flew high, out of reach of the landlocked E-grade, but the skeleton didn¡¯t follow and kept hitting him with the soul attack while the traitor defended it... Partially Resisted: [Soul Spike] It hurt worse every time, and from the way Caffeine growled and kicked, he feared it was hurting him too. So Stanley fled again. He repeated the earlier tactic, pushing as far as he could through the city until his power reached as low as he dared to let it go. Multiple skills leveled in the charging rush as he pushed every skill to its limits. Then hid. Stanley ate, but didn''t linger as long before charging further. He didn''t want to slow down too much, but also didn''t want to be too drained if he ended up stuck and fighting for their lives... Accelerated Thought reached level ten as he repeated the bursts of speed over and over, and he accepted the prompt to advance without bothering to read the updated skill. He didn''t need to; the difference was obvious. It had doubled. Time moved slower around him while the world never stopped moving... it got darker though, as time marched inevitably onward. But the fading light wasn''t a big deal, as he was using mostly mental touch to keep track of his surroundings, anyway. I''ll get us out of here, Caff. The brilliant red sky of a glorious and awe-inspiring sunset felt mocking as he swore to protect the pug. Felt ominous... Partially Resisted: [Soul Spike] It wasn''t fair... Stanley reversed course and shot past the skeleton in a blur. Then again. Again! Looking for... There! He unleashed everything he had on the human E-grade, every scrap of rage that filled him, and dragged the fucker''s hands to a halt as the spear came on like a missile. Stanley screamed while his head burned, and then the fucking traitor''s head exploded. Fuck y... It grew right back. That''s just not fair¡­ Why did they all get to be immortal? Stanley charged into the sky. There was only one thing left to do. Something he should have done earlier. Lead these monsters to Nate. Nate sent him out here, set him up to die, and it wouldn¡¯t even matter because Stanley couldn¡¯t kill even one of them¡­ Or was that the point all along? What if Nate was a traitor? He hadn¡¯t helped with the zombie¡­ Stanley never got the chance to finish his thought. Partially Resisted: [Soul Spike] Debuff: [Soul Laceration] He felt... something terrible. Pain that twisted reality into incomprehensible nonsense. All he knew was Caffeine howling... a crushing impact... then his entire world went blessedly dark and quiet. It didn''t stop hurting, though... Why didn''t it stop hurting? 51. The Light Hurts My Eyes ~~~Lee~~~ ... ... "How''s he doing?" "He''s alive, and I don''t know how." "But you healed him. There''s no damage, right?" "You saw him, Alejandro. He was... he was a damn skeleton! I don''t even know what I healed! What if I healed him wrong?" ... ... "Any change?" "Nothing..." ... ... "I''ll stay with him. You should take a break." "There must be something I''m missing... if I just keep..." "You need to rest. You''re too tired to think straight. Sleep, and try again tomorrow." "...okay." ... ... The voices didn''t bother him. They were far away. It was the system messages that finally made enough noise to drag Lee from the comforting darkness. They were too close to ignore. Rune Scribe has reached the threshold of Level 10 Evolution Available. Upgrade to (Basic) Available. He could remember something... a moment of terrible pain... and loss... raging mana... someone screaming... but it was all so hazy. He remembered running around, but it all felt like a dream... people had been dying... had died. He had died... hadn''t he? Was he a ghost? Evolution? Rune Scribe (Uncommon) Through language; power. The basic Skill of any Runic, used to Inscribe the Rune language into items and structures using a mix of Liquid Mana and the user''s Soul. Skill Level Effects (Basic): +2% Effective Intelligence -2% Soul Cost Evolution: Rune Artist (Rare) Language is art. Art is of the Soul. Soul is power. Inscribing a Rune is much more than drawing a mere symbol. This skill allows the user to touch upon their Soul for more than simply structure. Imbue intent more easily into every Rune. Skill Level Effects (Basic): +2% Effective Intelligence +2% Soul Intent -2% Soul Cost It sounded... pretty. Lee liked that. Class Skill Evolved: Rune Artist (Rare) - Level 10 (Basic) There were other notifications, but most of them were old and unimportant now. Messages that reminded him of something terrible. Mana Mind was still active. He knew people moved around him, saw them come and go, but like everything else, it wasn''t important. A distant thing, happening to someone else. Lee didn''t want to come back. He didn''t want to leave the darkness. Pain waited for him out there. Pain, sorrow, fear, so many bad things. He didn''t want it. Here in the dark, it was safe. ... ... ... "You should wake up, Uncle Lee. Mama and Papa are worried." The far away voice sounded sad... Lee remembered it from another life... he looked closer... Trait Earned: [Runic Resonance] That one hurt. No... he didn''t want to see it... [Runic Resonance] You have tapped into the resonance of your Soul and used it to bind a Rune irrevocably into your flesh. The Rune will draw from your mana pool to sustain itself. Destruction of the Rune will permanently damage your Soul. Effects: Resonance(Unbreakable) Runed Skeletal Structure Lee fled back into the dark. ... ... "Don''t worry, Lee. I''ll keep this place standing while you rest. We''ll be stronger than ever when you get back..." I know him... Trait Earned: [Runic Augmentation] Noooo! [Runic Augmentation] You have forcibly altered a set Rune without removing it or destroying it and have done so without the proper Class Skill. It will be easier to do it again. Effects: +100% Augmentation Effect Lee ran from the pain. ... ... "I still can''t find anything wrong... he should be awake... it''s all my fault..." The sorrow... Why is she sad? Debuff: [Mental Fracture] Screaming! Pain! Dying! NOOO! [Mental Fracture](Permanent) A portion of your brain was destroyed and resulted in permanent mental fracturing during reconstruction. Effects: -50% All Mind Attributes -50% Cognition Stability -50% Cognition Speed no... please no¡­ ... ... "Nothing''s attacked us yet, Lee. But we''re staying ready. I can''t wait for you to see what we''ve built..." ... ... "Despierta perezoso, bueno para nada, vago!" "Maria!" "Lo siento. Pens¨¦ que podr¨ªa funcionar." She sounded angry... but what was she saying? Was that Spanish? He wanted to learn Spanish, didn''t he? To talk to... someone... but something was wrong... damaged... Who am I? Who are you? ... ... "You know... I couldn''t believe it when Alejandro told me what happened to you. I saw the explosion... I can''t imagine many who didn''t..." "Sorry I missed the fight... but if it makes you feel better, I''ve been hunting the shit stain responsible for that attack ever since I found out what they were doing down there." "It''s bad, Lee. They''re using ritual sacrifice to power those spells... all led by a cowardly little shit hiding behind a damn army... Don''t worry about him striking at your fort. I almost nabbed him the last time he tried to set up the ritual... anyway... I''ve got him running scared... and if you don''t wake up soon, I''m going to steal your kill." "Happy? I talked to him." "Thank you, Jake." ... ... Resisted: [Soul Spike] The message was so loud... it reminded him of someone... Stanley. He knew that name. Caffeine. That one too. They mattered. They needed him. He needed them¡­ I need you... please help me... But they couldn''t help him. They were in trouble... they needed help. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Resisted: [Soul Spike] No! Something was happening. Something bad. He needed to help... needed to wake up... he needed to leave the dark. More messages kept screaming at him. But worse than that... Stanley was hurting... afraid... running for his life... Wake up... I have to wake up... Danger. Wake up! Lee could feel something under his hand. Could feel it with both his hand and Mana Mind. It was bright... full of power. +0.1 All Base Attributes +0.1 Strength +0.1 Vitality ... On and on, the messages flashed through his mind while power trickled into his body. Much of that power seemed to vanish inside him, going somewhere he couldn''t perceive, while the rest infused into different pieces of him, making them ever so slightly better... He sat up and opened his eyes when the last message faded. He sat there blinking at the strange surroundings for an unknown amount of time... until a rune passed through his Mana Mind on the floor below. Runes... Lee climbed from the bed. He was in Alejandro''s apartment... he''d been here before... He was walking before he knew where he was going, his feet carrying him to the stairs while he tried to decide what to do... he couldn''t think... just knew he needed to do... something. "Lee!" a voice shouted when he entered the garage, and he stared at the woman as she approached. "May... you''re May..." "Are you... okay?" She touched his arm while staring at him. She looked worried... Then she yelled over her shoulder, "Get Alejandro!" "Runes," Lee said, staring at her face. Her eyes were so bright... "I need to make... runes." "Sure..." May reached over and plucked up a sword from a table. "Here." Lee stared at the blade. It was shiny... smooth, and... sharp. No... not sharp enough. He needed to make it sharper, stronger. His finger touched the blade, and liquid power flowed through his veins and into the weapon. Become strong... become sharp. It did. "Another." Someone took the blade and handed him another. Lee drew his runes. "Another." A few more blades became strong and sharp before another hand fell on him. "Lee! Are you..." Worried eyes stared into his own when Lee looked up. "Alejandro." He knew him... cared about him... protected him from... NO! "Runes," Lee said. "I have to make runes. I have to make runes. Let me make... runes... please..." "I will, Lee. I''ll let you make all of them, but... are you okay? Can we help you?" More hands touched him, warm green light flooding in with the contact. It felt nice... but it reminded him of... "Runes! I need runes!" Another sword appeared in his hands. Good. Runes. Lee let his hands pour power into the metal while voices threatened him from nearby. "I can''t find anything different... but something is clearly wrong! What do we do?" "Give him what he wants... for now. God knows we need more enchanted gear. But just... keep trying?" "I will..." She touched him, and Lee flinched away. "No light..." "Okay... I won''t do it again, Lee." "Thank... you... just runes... broken..." He flinched away from that thought. He wasn''t broken... He was dead! Dead! DEAD! D... A hand squeezed his shoulder. "Whatever you need, Lee, you just say it. I''m going to get the guard moving through here so you can enchant everything. Does that work?" "Yes," Lee whispered. "Runes. I need to make runes. I have to help them... but I can''t... I need runes... I need runes... I need runes..." He pulled at the liquid fire inside him, letting it fill his mind with power. Power was good. He needed more! More power! It burned, but it wasn''t enough. More p... "They''re coming, Lee. They''re coming. Just hang in there." More swords came, and Lee made them strong and sharp. Armor came too. So much armor. It was good, and Lee poured his fire into the metal. He told it to be strong, to protect... It had to protect! Had to shield! He forced the liquid fire into the metal until it groaned and begged him to stop... then he demanded it take more. It would take more. It had to. IT HAD TO PROTECT! More armor came, and he forced all of it to protect. His fire dimmed... and he pulled more from above every time it did. There was enough of the liquid fire up there to make all the armor protect... to make all the swords cut... You have been conscripted into the Dungeon: [Greenfield Fort''s Last Stand] Invaders are coming! Join your allies and prepare your defenses! Fight! Rewards will be granted based on Contributions to the Defense or the Assault once the Invaders have been Defeated or Driven Out or when all Defenders are Defeated. Lee frowned at the message. It was bad. He knew it from... before. It meant he needed to fight. The others knew the same thing, and there was a lot of shouting and running. Lee had a new concern bubbling up in his mind. "My armor... and where is my sword?" No one listened, so Lee went to the woman making the stuff. "Where is my..." Then he remembered where it was and flinched away from the memory. "I... I need... new armor." "You''re in no state to fight, Lee." Dennis, that was Dennis... he made bananas... didn''t he? "Your runes are enough. Let the others..." "I have to fight," Lee said. "I have to fight or I will... I have to fight or they will... die... too." "You can''t..." "I will fight!" Lee screamed at the man. "I can''t let them fight alone! I can''t let them... DIE!" There was a sword on the table, and Lee dragged it into his hand while his mind screamed at the pain. Skill Level Up: [Mana Mind] The sword was bad... not sharp. Lee poured liquid fire into it and made it be sharp. Made it Cut. Then he headed for the ramp... "Shit... Wait! Lee, wait! Let May make you some armor first!" "I don''t need it," Lee told them, not slowing. "I am already..." "You can fight better with it! You can protect better with armor!" Lee paused. That was true... "May, help me get this off. He can use mine!" "Dennis... damn it! Fine." "Hurry up," Lee said. "They are fighting. I need to fight." He could hear it... could hear them screaming... dying... he had to... Hands tugged him to a halt when he tried to leave, and Lee held back his attack when they slapped pieces of metal onto him. May tried to use her magic to change the metal, but the runes blocked her. Lee pulled his fire back. "Fix it." The fire roiled pleasantly through his veins until she pushed the helmet over his head. Then Lee forced the fire back in and demanded it to protect. Plates over his chest and back followed, and Lee stopped them when they tried to cover his legs. "I don''t need it." They tried to hold him back, but Lee pulled on the liquid fire inside until his skin burned their hands and forced them to let go. Then he ran to join the war. A wall loomed before him, and Lee jumped to the top. There he found the alien creature Mana Mind had already seen. It was taller than him, with long pointy ears and sharp needle-like teeth. Like an elf... It, too, wore armor and held a sword, both magic, and both weak imitations of what they should be. The elf had just finished cutting a man''s throat when Lee arrived beside them, and the blood splashed into his eyes, forcing him to close them as it turned on him. It was a fast creature... and Lee didn''t even try to block as it swung for his own neck. Instead, he thrust his own sword straight into the elf''s breastplate as its own blade cut into his neck and tried to decapitate him. Lee''s sword went true, plunging into the monster''s heart. Meanwhile, its blow nearly knocked him over when the sword slammed into his spine and utterly failed to do anything. It was a weak weapon. It could not cut. Maria appeared before he pulled the blade free, taking away the dying man from the wall. She came back as Lee faced the next elf, now bounding toward him. This one went for his legs, while Maria slapped a hand across his neck. She stopped the bleeding as Lee lowered his stance in time to catch the sword on his thigh. It also failed to cut, and Lee showed the monster what a sword should do when he cut sideways all the way through its breastplate and chest. Maria hit his leg, too, stopping the bleeding. She didn''t need to, but it would help him walk better, at least. She vanished before the next elf jumped up... and Lee chopped down on it. He cut through the blocking sword, the helmet, and the skull beneath. Another elf charged from further down the wall, a beheaded defender in his wake... the elf was carrying one of Lee''s swords... he''d stolen it... Lee couldn''t see with his eyes still closed, but Mana Mind saw everything. He saw the dead and dying all around him... They were losing... His runes weren''t enough... I failed... Lee felt the weight settling onto him. Failure. He hadn''t done enough. They would all die... all of his friends... because the monsters were too strong. Because he was too weak... They should all... BURN! Lee lifted his hand to the charging monster... Partially Resisted: [Soul Spike] Debuff: [Soul Strain] That message rang through his mind like the tolling of a cathedral bell. Stanley... The sword slammed into his hand, ringing against his bones in a grinding competition between his own runes... Lee''s hand closed around the blade. "This one''s mine!" He saw alien eyes widen inside an alien helmet... right before his own sword plunged horizontally through both of them and the skull behind. It fell from his sword while another alien blade stabbed just below his backplate and burst out of his stomach. The pain was excruciating, but it all went somewhere else... went to the other part of him... the dead part... Lee spun as the blade withdrew in a gush of blood, and he cut the elf in half through its own stomach. Partially Resisted: [Soul Spike] That message hurt more than any of his physical wounds... it resounded in his mind with ominous finality. Doom. The onrushing end. It wasn''t the last one either. More of the same message came through as he fought his way along the wall. He cut elves down whenever they appeared, helped his allies whenever he could, and kept hunting for more things to cut. Not everyone was dying to the elves... some of his people put up a fight, leveraging their runes to great effect against the weaker magic of the elves. Alejandro moved around a lot, blurring in and killing the elves before vanishing again. Despite the inferiority of the elves weapons and armor, their magic still took a toll on his runes. Lee dumped more power into them as he went, his own and any others he got close enough to. Then he found the different elf. It came onto the wall with two others beside it, and they immediately cut down the defenders in reach. They did it almost casually... effortlessly. Lee charged, swinging hard at anything he could reach. He didn''t care about their armor or weapons; they were all trash... though this trio had a brighter level of trash than the rest. His sword never got a chance to test itself against them. Every swing met only air as they danced like snakes around his strikes. Meanwhile, only the middle elf fought back, and its return blows never touched his armor. Each of their attacks struck out like vipers for his exposed flesh, and each one hit true. Eyes, neck, arms, his sides, and all up and down his legs. The elf took Lee apart by one slash and thrust at a time. Lee''s bones kept him alive despite everything. None of the strikes aiming for vital organs made it through, and he used the advantage to its utmost. Lee ignored every attack and just pushed closer and closer to the elf until he finally snagged its breastplate with one hand. He grinned through the blood filling his mouth and only wished he could see the monster''s face as his sword punched through the armor into its... Debuff: [Soul Laceration] He didn''t want to stop killing the elf. But that one hurt too much to ignore. It hurt so much that even his Mana Mind dimmed as he fell down¡­ down¡­ Buff: [Improved Regeneration] Lee dimly saw Alejandro kick an elf off the wall while his shield slammed into another''s face. Then Maria dragged him away. "No... I... have to... fight..." Saira was there, and she filled him with her green life. No... His vision returned, muscles stitched back together, and new strength flooded in. Maria vanished, leaving him behind with that terrible light. "Stop..." "I will not let you die!" I''m already dead. I can''t die again... An elf landed beside Saira, sword swinging down on her head. Lee reached his hand up and caught the blade. He held on as it tried to retract, free hand fumbling for his own sword... Where is it!? The elf let go when Alejandro appeared, swinging for its head. It spun away from the attack while pulling another sword from its waist, and then pounced back in with a stabbing thrust that took Alejandro in the leg. The elf dodged sideways around the shield slam, and thrust at Saira again. Lee was on his feet by then, and he shoved her aside to charge the elf. He threw his sword and came in behind it to grab the elf''s breastplate with both hands. Then he dragged it closer and went in with his teeth... Lee screamed as he did. Not in pain or fear... but in rage. He wanted nothing more than to rip this thing apart, and with his teeth if he had to. He never got the bite. The elf twisted free and spun him around, using Lee as a shield against Alejandro while he pulled a knife with his free hand and plunged it between Lee''s ribs. Oh... Strength drained from Lee as the knife came out and went back in again. That wasn''t good. Alejandro and Maria both appeared beside him, their real weapons forcing the elf to retreat or die. Then Alejandro shoved Lee away. "Get him out of here!" Strangers grabbed onto him, dragging him away... inside the building... Maria appeared next to Alejandro when the elf attacked, her knife only cutting a line on its cheek as it swayed aside. "Give me that one, and you all live," the elf said while jumping back a step. He said it in perfect English. While pointing his sword directly at Lee. Everything slowed after those words. Even the hands dragging Lee away paused... but Alejandro broke the moment by kicking the elf between the legs. It howled. Lee''s view of the battle receded as they dragged him away, his Mana Mind not far behind. The last thing he saw was Maria and Alejandro fighting against the elf... and losing... 52. Source Of The Problem ~~~Stanley~~~ There was a lot of pain when Stanley woke up to the sound of barking, and not all of it was from his soul. He tried to roll onto his back, spitting dirt from his mouth, and could only turn his head... He froze when something hot splashed against his face, then stayed that way for a long eternity as he stared up at Caffeine in horror. The pug stood over him, large enough to shield Stanley''s entire body with his own, and that was exactly what he was doing. Undead monsters swarmed from the surrounding darkness while Caffeine spun frantically in place and fought back. He bit, clawed, and barked in a nonstop cacophony of violence and blood. And there was blood... so much blood... Stanley reached for his power, horror shifting through to rage and back again as he... For the first time in forever... no power answered his call. Instead, magic ripped into him with savage talons of lightning and pain. He spasmed and twitched in the dirt while his thoughts scattered into broken fragments. Distantly, he heard a growl... felt a rumbling... and then everything went silent... and still. "Most impressive," a voice rasped, moments before Stanley''s body finally stopped spasming and he drew in a ragged breath. "It is no surprise that you defeated Morgrath." Stanley opened his eyes again and found himself laying on his back, staring up at Caffeine, who had shrunk slightly but still stood protectively over him. Stanley couldn''t move... Caffeine looked down at him briefly, then returned to staring into the darkness with a small growl. It was hard to tear his eyes away from the injured pug, so hard not to scream and rage against... everything. The memory of his last attempt helped cool that rage. Slightly. The sight of Caffeine''s wounds visibly healing and the lack of swarming monsters helped even more. Stanley tried to follow Caffeine''s gaze into the dark, straining his neck against the magic binding him in place. He saw nothing... No, that wasn''t right, it wasn''t nothing. It was a field of glittering stars filling the darkness. Glittering red stars. Caffeine growled louder. "Stand down, you stubborn beast. You only prolong your suffering. The conclusion of this battle is inevitable." Caffeine growled again. Stanley felt blind without his mental touch spreading around. The darkness seemed to press in on all sides as stared up at Caffeine. Not again... "You are strong, human. Strong enough that with proper training and guidance, you could rise to rule entire worlds in the future. Your soul is unlike anything I have ever witnessed... such... such mutilation and yet you still live, even thrive! Resisting my attack for so long is truly something to take pride in... something to preserve." Caff... Stanley barely listened, hurting in a way he didn''t have the words to describe, and not all of it was from the sight of his precious Caffeine in shredded tatters once again. Not nearly enough of it was from that. It was his soul. A laceration of his soul, and it hurt beyond anything he ever could have imagined... an agony which felt horrifically... monstrously... familiar. "Your Beast Lord nearly destroyed Morgrath, an impressive feat, even for a Beast Lord. Yet its strength is now spent. Your fight is done. Surrender to the inevitable and join us." Stanley could feel Lee closer than he''d ever felt him, and knew his twin was suffering the same pain he was. Lee had finally awoken... only to be met with this. Now he was confused... and afraid. He was struggling... in pain... fighting for his life. Again. Magic still held Stanley''s body in place. Only his head could move and that let him see just enough to know how bad things had gotten. To know how badly he''d screwed up. Again. "Your arrogance in attacking my forces is understandable. Especially when you seek to protect your purifier. But it is over. Accept the inevitable." The skeleton emerged from the darkness like stepping through a door, white bones suddenly gleaming in the moonlight, and Stanley didn''t know he''d missed seeing it until now. It was the same one that had chased him across the city... four arms and all, though sans black cloak. This close, Stanley could see that it wasn''t remotely human in origin, as if the four arms hadn''t already given that away. It held many similarities. Bipedal, spine, ribs, all that. But the proportions were off, and the skull was especially alien. Oh, and it was at least ten feet tall... Magic glittered in two of its hands, the spell binding Stanley... if he could break that... Another hand held a glowing black crystal. It glowed... black. A glow somehow darker than the deepest night... and it floated from the monster''s skeletal fingers, drifting down toward Stanley. Caffeine growled at the thing, then lunged, teeth blindingly white in contrast with the shard... The skeleton''s fourth hand twitched, and a web of pale green tendrils sprang up around Caffeine, ensnaring and immobilizing him as the crystal continued past unimpeded. Stanley could hear the magic sizzling and sparking as Caffeine struggled against the restraints. The pug''s snarling whimpers clawed at Stanley''s mind... then the black crystal touched his chest. Race Shard: [Eternal Bones] The Civilized Dead. A Skeletal variant of the Eternal Undead Race. A physically weaker species that specializes in mind and magic over brute force. Accepting this Race Change will shift your Racial Alignment from Monster(Sapient) into Civilized(Sapient). New Race: [Eternal Bones] Racial Traits: [Immortal] [Genesis] [Mind Above] Accept Race Change Y/N? The shard felt cold against his skin. Ice cold. Stanley watched Caffeine chew on one of the green strands holding him in place, watched the magic jitter and dance between his teeth. He was eating it... Stanley stared at Caffeine eating the magic and forced himself to hold back. He needed to be smart here. Needed more than blind rage. He looked at the race change option, partly as a distraction for himself, but also because he was actually curious. [Immortal] Eternal Undead do not age or decay. The magic of this race suspends the form in a perpetual state of preservation¡ªso long as the magic or form is not destroyed. It might be what made them so hard to kill... but he''d destroyed their forms plenty of times. Was it the magic part? Was he not hurting the magic and so couldn''t kill them? Or was it something else... [Genesis] Undead cannot reproduce biologically, instead creating race shards that allow for a similar propagation of the species. So that definitely wasn''t it... but would the shard make Stanley this thing''s... offspring? Would he turn into a skeleton? [Mind Above] This species values the mind above the body, and it shows. Doubles all positive mind attribute effects while halving all positive physical attribute effects. That was... would that double his willpower? Or double his percentages? It was the first time he''d seen something worded like this... or was it related to being civilized rather than a monster? "Accept," the thing looming over him said, though its mouth didn''t move. "You will become immortal. Powerful. Better in every way. This is not something to fear, but a gift. You will become more." Stanley thought about it. Really thought about it. He could stop fighting against these monsters... Nate could go to hell for sending him up here... and he could become as hard to kill as these things. Only... "What about... what happens to Caffeine? Or my brother?" "Caffeine? The beast? It resists, but it will have no choice once you accept the change. As for your brother, all are welcome. All serve the March in the end." Did... did it not see his Twin-Soul? Hadn''t it mentioned his soul before... Stanley still had the race change option glowing in his mind... but it was flickering... Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Accept Race Change Y/N? Accept Race Change /N? Accept Race Change N/N? Accept Race Change N/No? Acc... Race Change No/No? Race Change No/No! R... Change NO/No! Cha... NO/NO! NO Caffeine''s snarling grew with every flicker of the changing notification, and so did his size. The magic green web crackled and vibrated around him as Caffeine grew larger. It dug into his flesh in a fresh deluge of raining blood... then shattered into evaporating sparks when Caffeine grew abruptly to rival the monster before him. "Stop!" The skeleton''s eyes flared brighter as the pug''s mouth loomed before it... Caffeine Barked. The upper half of the skeleton disintegrated, but Stanley could see its body already rebuilding out of thin air as Caffeine shrank rapidly down to his normal size. "Foolish..." the voice came before the creature had even fully reformed. Caffeine wasn''t done. He lunged with bared teeth as he shrank, but not at the undead. He lunged down... at Stanley... no... at the shard. He snatched the ice cold shard from Stanley''s chest with only a brush of whiskers... Stanley saw the black shard reappear for an instant as Caffeine''s mouth opened wide, then a shockwave blasted out as he slammed his jaws shut over the glowing darkness. "No!" the undead yelled, hands reaching down as the shard exploded into thousands of motes that seemed to hang in the air and swallow the light while they slowly evaporated one by one. Then Caffeine fell onto Stanley''s chest, breathing ragged, and blood hot as it spilled onto his bare skin. "That''s... impossible!" The towering skeleton stood frozen, posture bent and hands unmoving where they''d tried to stop Caffeine. Then it straightened. "Fascinating! Destroying a race shard... but inconvenient. I''d hoped to add you to our ranks along with the purifier... ... ... ..." Stanley didn''t hear a single word the towering skeleton was saying. All he could see was Caffeine limp on his chest. All he could feel was the hot blood on his skin and his brother dying in the distance. All he heard were his own screaming thoughts telling him how he had fucked up. Magic bloomed brighter and brighter as the skeleton wove a new spell between three hands. Screaming thoughts of how he''d sacrificed Caffeine again because he was too weak. How Lee would die because he was too weak. Screaming... screaming... SCREAMING! kill Stanley ignored the shocking lightning in his mind; it only fed the rage. He ignored the ripping, shredding magic in his flesh; it didn''t matter. He ignored the shape towering above the skeleton and blotting out the stars; it was just another dead thing. He ignored everything and called on his power to do what he needed it to do. What it had to do. Something stirred deep inside him as Stanley forced out every drop of power. Something strained as he dug ever deeper, searching for every last scrap of power. Something... cracked open. It was such a small crack... a tiny pinprick... but the blinding light that shone through the gap was something else entirely. A brightness that filled him... then spilled out... roared out... Raged Out. It was... POWER Stanley BURNED in that power as the world ground to a halt around him. He literally burned, and white flames licked up from the boiling flesh of his arms as they cradled Caffeine''s body. White fire blazed from his chest, his legs, his face, his eyes. It lit the night brighter than any sun. Illuminated the darkness and the army that filled it. Shone blinding fire across the world. It showed him the monster towering above all of them... a disgusting amalgamation of flesh that even now threatened to crush him and Caffeine with a massive... limb. Yet that same roiling fire of the cosmos only licked around the pug in his arms, almost friendly, caressing... Stanley saw all of it in a frozen moment between seconds. Felt all of it. His mind burning alongside his flesh, boiling away as reality itself thinned out... stretching to a fragile breaking point. As if the fabric of the universe were so much wet tissue, waiting for him to tear it apart. Notifications were screaming in his mind, but Stanley didn¡¯t hear any of it. Instead, his attention touched the undead monstrosity looming above him... attacking him... He reached a hand up to meet the descending blow... and crushed the monster into a ball that dropped gently into his palm. "That''s... not... possible..." The skeleton was afraid as it moved backward in slow motion. Stanley liked that. It should be scared. It should scream. It should die. His gaze flicked to it... and he turned its bones to dust with the dense sphere in his hand that used to be a monster. So weak. So fragile. It tried to come back, only this time Stanley could see the threads that fed it. The power that fed its un-life. That kept it from dying as it should. Stanley let it come back. He wanted it to see this. Wanted it to be afraid. Wanted it to suffer! Then he started slaughtering its army. Killing the creatures in great swaths. Killing the ones bound with life-stealing threads that fed their undeath back to the skeleton. It felt good to let go. Felt so good to let it all out... to burn the world with his rage. So he did. He let it all out. He raged, and the world dissolved into blinding white fire. ~~~Lee~~~ Hands dragged him through the building while Lee struggled to make his mind make sense. He had to fight... he had to stop the monsters... had to protect... Mana Mind showed him so much, but he couldn''t understand enough of it. He could see the wounds in his flesh. See them healing too slowly. He knew the person pouring something down his throat... but couldn''t remember them. He knew the people dragging him up the stairs... but who were they? They took him up the stairs, through doors, and behind them, below them, the monsters pursued. Lee saw them, but he couldn''t cry a warning. His mouth kept making the wrong sounds. Lee could feel Stanley, could feel the fear, the regret, and the anger. The unknown hands carried him into a place he knew... because there was power in here. A tiny point of infinite power. He could use it. Use it to do... something. To protect. Small people were in the place with him. They had to be protected. Lee pulled on the liquid fire, letting it fill him, fuel him. He wanted to do... something. Protect. He tried to pour the fire out... and found protection already there. That was... good. But he could make it better... needed to make it better. It wasn''t enough. Monsters were getting closer. They fought outside the door... his friends were losing... but he couldn''t remember them. But they were his friends. He had to protect them. The door opened. The monster stepped through... Stanley raged. Pain bloomed from somewhere deep... and from that same place¡­ came¡­ POWER Lee realized that his liquid fire wasn''t actually all that hot. It couldn''t even be called fire. Not compared to the inferno that erupted inside him, around him, from him. It BURNED his flesh. BURNED his mind. BURNED through his brain and didn''t care about the missing connections. This fire didn''t care about anything. It BURNED him to ashes and put him back together simultaneously. Debuff Removed: [Mental Fracture] Stanley! Lee''s mind crashed back into total clarity with painful reverberations. He saw everything as he burned. Understood everything as his mind bloomed further than it could or should. He saw Stanley as if they stood side by side. Saw the monsters surrounding him while the world sat frozen in time around them both. He saw what they''d done to his brother... to Caffeine... Kill them all! Time ticked slowly forward as Stanley did just that. Lee watched his brother destroy the monsters a world away as the power continued to swell inside them. Closer to home he saw the elf staring at him from the doorway. It wasn''t a human face, but it didn''t matter. The horror in its alien eyes was undeniable. Behind it he saw Alejandro and Maria, both bloodied, hurt, their own expressions a mix of terror and desperate determination. Both of them prepared to die if it would stop the elf from reaching their children. The children. They were crying... faces wet and eyes terrified as they stared at the beacon Lee had become. Bradley stood beside them, trying to protect them while equally terrified. They didn''t know what was happening. They didn''t know that he could protect them now. He could protect everyone. Lee saw through the building to the outside, saw the army assaulting the walls that hadn''t been there before he went to sleep... Bradley had made them. He could clearly see the other man''s mana in the stone. So many had died to protect this place... but so many lived and fought on even now. Unfortunately, too many monsters were inside his home. Everywhere he looked, his friends fought for their lives, outnumbered, doomed. Three days. Lee remembered now. He''d been asleep for three days. He''d wasted three days while the others fought to protect everyone. While people built walls and weapons. He had hidden away in the dark because it hurt. Because he was afraid. Now it was his turn. His chance to make things right as he burned. He could see a solution as his mind boiled. A way to accomplish what he wanted. What he needed. The power filling him had to go somewhere, had to be steered away before it destroyed him utterly and completely. And he knew exactly what to do with it. Lee touched the floor... and let the power flow from him. Then he forced it to obey. Forced it to do as he commanded. Forced it to become... Protection. Safety. Strength. Power. Home. Together, he and Stanley wielded the fires of creation. One to destroy, the other to create. Destruction for life''s sake, and creation for destruction''s sake. Together they burned. Together, they raced toward oblivion. But it wasn''t over yet. There was a path through. Lee felt his creation take hold. Felt it bind into stone and steel. Felt the fire settle into a waiting presence. Felt it awaken to its new purpose. It was done. He''d succeeded. At least as much as he could. To do more would end him and Stanley both. But this was enough. Everything was far away now, as Lee called to his brother. Tried to quell the fear and rage he felt. They were safe. It was enough. Stanley didn''t hear him. He raged with despair and horror in equal measure. He wasn''t letting go. Lee screamed at him to stop. Begged him to stop. The monsters were dead. But Stanley wanted more destruction. He wanted more than he could take. Wanted to kill them all, even if it cost everything... He wanted to escape the pain... Stanley... It''s not over yet. I''m waiting for you to come home... Please don''t leave me alone. Please... Lee couldn''t see his brother anymore. He couldn''t see anything. It was all white fire that consumed the world. Then he saw something moving through the flames... a small dark shape that grew as it approached... he knew what it was. Caff... The light went out. Lee floundered in its absence... he felt so cold... and Stanley felt so far away¡­ 53. Mad World ~~~Vaelin Elendern~~~ Vaelin ignored the peasant army behind him as he placed the key against the wall and activated it. F-grade Dungeon Key Used. (Bronze) Fort Assault Scenario Unlocked. One Lair Resource Available: Metal Please Choose Dungeon Difficulty. Difficulty Options: [Hard] 50% Combatant Match(106 F-grades) +100% Exp gain [Normal] 100% Combatant Match(212 F-grades) +0% Exp gain [Easy] 100% Match (657 F-grades) -50% Exp gain He wasn''t about to choose anything but easy, given the trash assigned to him. This was already the worst tier dungeon he could run. It wasn''t his chance to claim glory or prestige. This was a shit run for the seventieth son of the minor lord Elendern, all to bring back a handful of useless skill shards that would sell for a pittance. That was only because he''d gotten lucky with an actual attack against sapients. Otherwise, this entire ordeal would only cost him time. As well as a handful of useless dregs. The key was bronze for System''s sake! He couldn''t even access the true challenge levels with such a weak key, stuck at a mere ''Hard'' difficulty. Not that he wanted the higher tiers... not with foot soldiers at his back. He made the selection. Easy. At least the resource lair would add a little something on top. Maybe they''d even get lucky and it would be a rare ore... Confirmed. Dungeon Portal Opening in (59)... (58)... "Form up!" his second yelled at the trash behind them. Vaelin ignored it all and only tapped his foot impatiently. The sooner they were done with this, the sooner he could go back to training. The portal opened, spreading wide across the wall until it was wide enough for one hundred to run through abreast of each other. "Charge," his second yelled again, and Vaelin waited as the army streamed past him, checking his armor and enchants while he waited. Only when they were all inside did he advance through the portal. No point risking his own life, no matter how low the actual danger of an F-grade dungeon. Dungeon Quest Issued: [Subjugate the Dungeon] Once through the portal, the sight of the pathetic walls in the distance only soured his mood further. What was the point of building walls anyone could jump over? He took his time approaching. Ideally, this would all be over before he even reached the so-called Fort. It was when his soldiers started falling from the walls in pieces that he decided to step it up. Some losses were inevitable, but excessive losses would not go over well... The strangest part was seeing their broken weapons and armor when they fell. The locals weren''t without losses, and Vaelin picked up the core from one of the dead. Monster Skill Core(F-grade) The mana within the core contains the knowledge of a skill which can be used to create a Skill Scroll. It looked normal. Still F-grade. He frowned and strolled along the wall while watching his dregs die one after the other. Something was here... something powerful. Valuable. He joined the attack. ... Vaelin cursed these useless excuses of life for the hundredth time when he blocked a strike and split his sword in half. His third sword! What backwards, filthy, stupid, useless monsters carry enchanted gear that not only rivaled his own, but utterly crushed it!? Madness! Even their bloody armor resisted every blow and cut. Amateur junk, made from literal trash tier iron, and enchanted beyond master tier! Luckily, the savages couldn''t fight for belmoth spit. It was still annoying... and he wouldn''t lower himself to taking and using the monster weapons, not like some of his underlings did. Though he wouldn''t prohibit them either. Their lack of self respect was their own to deal with. This was supposed to be an easy run, a damn Bronze Tier Dungeon. In a brand new dungeon world, no less! It all made sense when he saw the monster fighting atop their pathetically short wall. Legendary class! He was going to be rich! Vaelin gestured for his personal guard to follow and jumped after his prize. A Legendary class in a bronze tier F-grade dungeon. It was unheard of. These savages probably didn''t even know what it meant... all the better for him. This trip would set him up at least to B-grade. No more of these shit-tier runs. He''d finally get somewhere! The legendary turned out to be exceedingly annoying by refusing to die. When his blade rang off its bones the same as the armor, he knew he''d found the origin of the enchantments. That explained how they were too strong. But it was also a minor disappointment that the legendary seemed to be an enchanting class. Not that it was any less valuable, but the only thing better than selling the shard would be using it himself. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the backing to hang onto a legendary enchanter class. The guilds would kill him in a heartbeat and no one would bat an eye. Selling it, though... that he could do. The guilds would go into a bidding war against each other, and he would not only survive, but get rich doing so. His dreams of wealth and power were only slightly disturbed when more of the savages came to the defense of the legendary. So maybe they knew after all? He''d thought them ignorant when he found it fighting alone, but now they swarmed him. It was annoying... and he finally cast the spell to listen to their inane chattering, though he hated to do it. Myriad Tongues Listening to the monster races... what a waste of a spell. Even worse, speaking to them. He did it anyway. A courtesy. "Give me that one and you all live." He was lying, of course. They would all die. He just didn''t want to risk someone else taking the... Aieee! The fucking monster kicked him in the... the... They dragged away his prize while the two most annoying... he finally checked... humans. The most annoying humans. Using crude tactics and zero skill, while making up for it with legendary equipment. It was insulting. Especially since he couldn''t pin them down! He resorted to following the legendary. Forcing them to chase him. Blades occasionally struck the building as they fought through it, and Vaelin quickly realized it was enchanted the same as the weapons... What type of enchanter worked on so many differing fields? He didn''t know. Knowledge of legendary classes was always jealously guarded, after all. But all were valuable beyond measure. The monsters pursuing him were persistent... and annoyingly durable, but they could barely touch him. So he ignored their pathetic assault as much as he could and focused on his prize. Vaelin wasted another spell to open the door, laughing as he did so. What fools make indestructible doors and don''t protect them from an unlocking spell? Savage idiots. There was his prize, helpless, his for the taking. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Then a god appeared in the room. Curse you! Vaelin thought, frozen in terror while simultaneously petitioning the Great System for aid. How did they already find the legendary!? Only... It wasn''t a god coming for the legendary class. It was coming from the legendary itself. Which was impossible! Then he ran for his life, jumping for the roof and flinging himself from it while death crawled across the building below their feet. His bodyguards followed on his heels, and all of them spent spells freely in the mad dash to escape. Any mad gods that dared such a blatant meddling would have no qualms about exterminating a handful of F-grades. It was a useless scramble. No F-grade could outrun what came for them. Except the god did not pursue them. The flash of impossible power filled the building but did not stray beyond. Vaelin landed on the savage''s walls and watched those still inside die as the building itself tore them apart. It happened fast. All at once. Then it was over, the power gone, the building quiescent. As if nothing had ever happened. System Review Complete. No Interference Detected. No Punishment Allotted. Impossible! Difficulty Error Detected for Dungeon: [Greenfield Fort''s Last Stand] Minor Intervention Available. Minor System Boon Granted. Vaelin stood frozen in place as he processed the System''s response and what it meant. The gods hadn''t meddled here. Which meant it was truly the legendary... an F-grade that wielded the power of the gods. Forget finding a legendary in an F-grade dungeon. This was literally impossible! Nothing below B-grade could touch that power, much less wield it. Was it because of the class? Just what class was it? How valuable was it... The fight wasn''t over. His forces still fought against the humans... but they fought as a broken mess. All had felt what happened, and though they didn''t rout, he knew they waited for his call to retreat. They should retreat. The Great System would not punish them after this, not after giving him a minor boon... The Boon. As rare as a legendary class. He could retreat with what he had left. Sell the information about what was here before word spread... It would fetch... something. Others would come here, maybe even a god or two, they would take everything. The Boon would have to be his consolation prize. A not unremarkable reward. Or... Vaelin smiled. Why share his treasure with anyone? If he was the sole survivor... who else would know what was here? He''d have time to figure out what he was dealing with. To figure out its true value. Even now, he felt nothing from the building or the legendary. It was hiding. From him as well as all who might follow... no one would know. He would need some help, of course... a little backing to make this work. His uncle maybe. Yes. His uncle would help if he shared just enough information... by the time that greedy bastard knew what was really at stake, it would be too late. Now he just needed to set things up¡­ ~~~Maria~~~ Maria touched Alejandro''s leg, her fingers moving fast and her mind working faster. Stitch It was rough, crude, but enough to keep fighting. To keep up the pursuit of this monster that chased after Lee. While she was pleased that Lee had finally awoken, it was very apparent that his mind wasn''t right after his ordeal. She hadn''t been there, hadn''t witnessed the aftermath firsthand, but she could only imagine what it had done to his mind. Then someone let him run outside with a sword! Into a war! Maria seethed as she shifted after the alien monster. It was fast, too clever, always avoiding her strikes by just enough that she couldn''t bring it down. Alejandro kept trying to reason with the creature ever since it spoke to them... as if that somehow made it less of a monster. It attacked them. Killed too many of them already. And he sought diplomacy... At least he did not relent in his assault while doing so. She thought the monster cornered when Lee was secured behind his enchanted walls... then it forced the door to open with magic. That was it. The creature could go no further. It couldn''t be allowed any closer to Lee or the children. No matter what. "I will hold it!" she shouted. If she could immobilize or slow it down for just a second. "Kill..." She never got the chance to finish what she was saying, because Lee exploded. Maria had no other word for what she saw happening before her eyes. Where before he''d glowed with blue veins and shining eyes, now he shone like the sun come to earth. A blindingly bright power that felt as if it should burn away her eyes and flesh merely by shining upon her. The monsters fled, and she let them go. Instead, she spent the last of her mana shifting to her babies, scooping them into her arms and turning to... Lee placed his hands on the floor... and blinding white fire consumed the world. Maria screamed, clutching her children tighter as she sprinted for the door. She had to escape... had to save them... but she didn''t have enough mana. She couldn''t run fast enough... She couldn''t see. Alejandro''s face appeared out of the light as he latched onto her, holding her tightly and tucking them all close behind his shield as he led them through the door. Maria stopped trying to run. There was nowhere to go. Instead, she held onto Alejandro, hugging the children between their bodies in a futile attempt to protect them from the terrifying power that was swallowing the world. She prayed then. Prayed to the god of her youth, prayed to any gods that would listen, and begged them all to please just save... The blinding fire vanished, and everything went completely, absolutely, perfectly, silent. She had a terrifying moment to wonder if she was dead... then heard the screaming resume outside, along with the sounds of battle. An alien in the courtyard below only screamed once before exploding in a shower of gore... she didn''t even see what killed it... Yet she lived... they lived... they were alive! Lee''s door had closed, and she couldn''t see him any longer. But she didn''t need to see him to know that it was over. Doors and walls would not block what she''d just felt coming from the man. Now she wanted nothing more than to flee into the night with Alejandro. Leave this place behind and never look back. Alejandro still held onto them tightly. Too tight. He kissed her desperately, his expression full of the same relief to be alive that she knew must show on her own face. He kissed the stunned children, whispering words of comfort to each of them, then his expression shifted and hardened as he picked up his sword. The fight wasn''t over, and she knew he would see it through to the end. Even though he shared her own fear. "Go save them, my heart," she said, instead of insisting he stay with her. He was who he was, and she loved him. All of him. "I will check on Lee." Alejandro leapt to the courtyard below and sprinted out of sight. Gabriel and Anita''s wails grew slowly after he left as they struggled to understand what had happened. Maria had no answers as she squeezed them both tighter and stared at her neighbor''s door. What did you do now, Lee? It took a long minute before she could approach the door. Then she knocked. She wasn''t sure who had his keys... but Bradley should be in there. Assuming he was still alive... It was right after she knocked for the third time that the door burst open, revealing a terrified Bradley. The poor boy looked even worse than she felt... "Mrs Morales, I... he... I..." Maria pushed past the boy and into the room. It looked no different... no sign of the apocalyptic events that had only just transpired here. Though one thing had changed... dramatically. My god, Lee, what have you done? She didn''t hesitate to return to his side. Maria could forgive her previous terror, but no matter how much this strange young man terrified her with his inexplicable and overwhelming powers, she would never forget what he had done for her. Sacrificed for her. For her family. Maria pushed her mana into him and blanched. This was bad! She cast her healing into him until her mana was once again depleted, mere drops in the bucket he would require, and set the children down. "You need to stay with Uncle Lee and Uncle Bradley." They wailed and reached for her, but Maria resisted the urge to comfort them. They were too young for this, but they needed to be strong for her. For Lee. She would need to venture back outside these walls. To face the monsters and bring Saira back here. Maria could not take the children out there, but she hadn''t forgotten how easily that monster came through the door... It was a risk, but she could not let Lee die. "Uncle Lee needs our help, and I don''t have enough mana to help him alone... I love you!" Maria touched Lee one more time, stacking another regeneration, and sprinted for the door. It refused to open. A notification popped into her head, and Maria turned back, eyes widening. What have you done? ~~~Gabriel~~~ Gabriel forced himself to stop crying after mommy left them alone. He was a big boy, not like sister. She was scared... so he hugged her. "It''s okay, Nita. We don''t have to cry. Mommy is coming back." Daddy always said he was a big boy, and big boys had to take care of little sisters. That was how it worked. So he didn''t cry while he hugged sister. "It''s okay." Uncle Lee wasn''t shining anymore, but he looked so different. Mommy was worried about him... It was scary when Mommy was worried. But she would take care of Uncle Lee, and she would make everything better, like she always did. Gabriel touched the floor while sister calmed down. It wasn''t shining anymore, but he remembered the lights... They were so pretty... and scary. But only for sister. He wasn''t scared of the lights. But they looked so awesome... like you could make anything! Uncle Bradley was scared too. Even though he could make rocks! That was super cool¡­ Gabriel wished he could make rocks¡­ he wished he could do anything¡­ Mommy and Daddy looked so scared sometimes¡­ He didn''t like it when they were scared. I''m a big boy. I will be brave for sister. And for mommy and for daddy. 54. Shadow Of Death ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine growled at the Brightness, but he didn''t bark. It was helping protect Dearest Human this time. It was hurting the Bad Not Human that tried to kill Dearest Human. He liked that. The Very Bad Not Human had tried to steal Dearest Human! Bad. Bad. Bad! Caffeine really didn''t like it... Fake Stinky Bones! But Caffeine was so tired... So he rested while Dearest Human did a lot of anger shouting. He didn''t mind the anger shouting this time. Dearest Human was anger shouting at bad things that earned it. Especially the big Bad Not Human. That one was the worst. It did very bad things that hurt very much! It was mean! Then Dearest Human tried to anger shout at a Not Dearest Human. A very frightened Not Dearest Human. That wasn''t nice. She didn''t deserve anger shouting. She wasn''t like the Stinky Not Humans. So Caffeine got in the way. It was what Dearest Human did for him sometimes, when the scary noises and tree stumps were extra dangerous. It was nice to help. Caffeine was a good boy. Not like the Stinky Not Humans! Not like the Bad Bad BAD Not Human! Caffeine growled at it before Dearest Human made it go away again. "Bad Not Human!" Dearest Human made all the bad Not Humans go away. That was good! But he smelled more and more like hurting... because the Brightness was hurting him. It was hurting both Dearest Humans! Caffeine tried to make them feel better by eating the shiny rocks. Dearest Human liked it when he ate the rocks! He ate a lot of them while Dearest Human made the Stinky Not Humans go away. The Brightness was very good at making them go away. It made them not even stinky anymore. The smell of hurting got worse... and Caffeine had to help Dearest Human. He barked and tried to tell Dearest Human to stop touching the Brightness... but Dearest Human was super angry... Caffeine tried his best licking whines and tail wags that always made Dearest Human feel better... but it didn''t work. He was super super angry... So Caffeine had to growl at the Brightness instead. He had to eat it all like before, so Dearest Humans would be okay. Dearest Human finally stopped anger shouting after that. He stopped everything and laid down for a nap. Naps were the best! Only... he still smelled like hurting! The Brightness had hurt him too much! Caffeine went into Dearest Human''s bag of delicious snacks, even though he wasn''t supposed to... But he didn''t eat Dearest Human''s food. He brought it to napping Dearest Human. He was a good boy! "Snack! Treat!" he barked the magic words. "Hungry! Good boy!" It wasn''t working... Dearest Human kept napping... and he kept hurting. The hurting was getting worse... Caffeine didn''t know what to do... and he was so tired... he wanted to nap with Dearest Human, but naps were not the best when Dearest Human smelled like hurting! Maybe it was all the Stinky Not Humans? They did make it smell bad here... Maybe if he dragged Dearest Human away from the bad smell! Caffeine did that. He dragged Dearest Human away from the bad stinky smells. All the way past the house where the... he smelled them then. The other Not Dearest Humans. Dearest Human needed more friends. He left his friends at the big house full of Not Dearest Humans. But friends were good! Friends made Dearest Human happy! Happy was good! "I will bring you more friends," Caffeine woofed at Dearest Human. "They will help you with the hurting and the happy." He gave Dearest Human a good face lick to let him know he would come right back. Then he ran to fetch the Not Dearest Humans. He was good at Fetch! ~~~Eve~~~ Eve huddled in the dark bathroom, unwilling to risk the light as she worked furiously by touch and magic alone. Her hand kept straying from the metal under her fingers, reaching into the dark to touch Zeke, to reassure herself that he was still there. He was there and still unconscious as well. Her fingers ached, and her mana was nearing empty as she forced it into the machine at her feet. Her legs burned and twitched from a day of running, her arms felt like noodles from carrying Zeke the whole way. Dust sprinkled onto her head, and she stifled a cry of panic before any sound could escape her lips. Outside, a war was raging. Almost non-stop explosions and shockwaves shook the building around her. It had started fast, out of nowhere, and she feared what it meant while also wondering who the hell was fighting. She desperately hoped the undead hadn''t found them... but knew she probably was exactly that unlucky. She''d seen that cloud to the south before it got dark, and she just knew who it had to be. Though that still left the question of who was fighting whom out there. Were the crusaders still fighting? She''d assumed they were all dead by now. One last drop of mana, and she had done it. Eve pressed the switch and watched her creation come to life... Finally got a fucking weapon! Then immediately shut it down when sudden silence descended like a bomb. She crouched there in frozen terror and waited for something to happen, but nothing did. Silence reigned. Eve waited, frozen and hardly daring to breathe. Until... eventually, it was too much. She had to check. Enough moonlight came through the windows of the truck stop that she could see once outside the bathroom. If barely. Enough to let her creep closer to the broken windows and try to make out the snippets of conversation she could hear. Was it not the undead? Though, that giant skeleton had been talking before... Could they all talk? Or worse, was that fucking thing actually all the way up here? It still didn''t tell her who was fighting or why it had suddenly gone quiet. She was about to peek outside when a deep voice shouted, "No!" Eve froze. She knew that voice. It had followed her. Her pounding heartbeat drowned out what it said next as she frantically tried to think of a way to escape. She couldn''t run much farther... but... maybe she could lead it away... She''d be abandoning Zeke again... but what else could she do? Was it better to stay by his side and die with him, or lead them away and die alone? What if they weren''t tracking her? She didn''t know how they were still on her tail. It might be Zeke they were following... and she would only save herself. Eve couldn''t think of a worse outcome than that... But someone had been fighting that monster... at least, that''s what it''d sounded like. Whether they were winning or losing... that was the question. Eve had to risk it. She peeked outside. If the undead had followed her here, then it was too late to run. Not to mention useless. But if she could help whoever was fighting it... She saw the skeleton. It towered above the army of dead in the distance and was unmistakable. The motionless and still standing army surrounding it drained the last of her hope... whatever poor bastard had been fighting before, they''d clearly lost. Bitter tears blurred the field of dark shapes and glowing red dots. It wasn''t fair... she''d tried so hard to make it right... All coherent thought fled when the light bloomed into blinding brilliance amidst the undead. No... light wasn''t even the right word for it. Zeke made light with his power. Beautiful, pure, healing light. This was beyond that. It was the glow of Cherenkov radiation shining upon you and sentencing you to death. It was the light of the sun going supernova and heralding the end of all life on earth. It was power. Eve stared into the light, frozen in equal parts terror... and longing. That power was her doom. Her end. Zeke''s end. But she also wanted nothing more than to have such power for herself. She would be a god... anything she desired would be hers... and nothing would ever stand in her way again. Of course, that wouldn''t happen. She would die here, and Zeke with her. They''d never had a chance... the towering monster beside the skeleton told her that much. It made her sick just to look at it... a mess of different people. Pieces of them... and now it struck down against the... The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. The abomination never hit its target. Instead, its body contorted and twisted... until only a tiny ball of meat hung in the air above a glowing, outstretched hand. It was impossible. But also not. The power out there could do anything. Kill anything. The skeleton said something, stepping away... then turned to dust with a booming blast of wind and dust. She could see it so clearly. Could see everything out there. No darkness could exist anywhere near that blinding light. So she saw the army of the dead... and watched them all get ripped apart while a glowing god rose slowly into the sky. Eve saw the skeleton return, reforming from nothing, and then being obliterated again. And again. Over and over. All the while, its army vanished around it. It was wonderful. Glorious. Eve cheered on the destruction. She laughed when that fucking skeleton screamed and begged for mercy. She laughed... ...and it saw her. The glowing god looked her way with burning eyes of pure rage. Those burning eyes locked onto hers. They Hated her. Killed her. Eve knew nothing after that. Only that she was dead. It was utterly absolute. Irrevocable. She was dead. I don''t want to die... She didn''t notice when something blocked the light. When something moved between her and those baleful eyes. When something turned them away from her. Trait Earned... It didn''t matter. Eve couldn''t breathe. She couldn''t see anything. She couldn''t think. Zeke... She was dead. Run... ... She tried to scream when something touched her arm... but her lungs had seized up. She tried to leap away, but her legs spasmed and buckled. Eve toppled... darkness dragging her down... Then Zeke was beside her, his hands glowing with golden light as he touched her. "Eve!" Where did he come from? He was asleep... and I was... dead. Eve finally drew in a shuddering breath as soothing warmth saturated her body and mind. It helped drive back the nightmare... but not nearly enough. What the fuck was that fucking freak!? She couldn''t believe she was alive... "Stop that!" She hissed and pulled Zeke''s glowing hands away from her by his wrists. "Turn it off!" Zeke flinched, and she saw that same horrible wilting crawl over his face as the glow winked out. The same expression that fucking cunt put on his face so many times... Seeing it dragged Eve from thoughts of death, and she caught Zeke, pulling him down by his wrists until she could throw her arms around him. "I''m..." Her voice broke, and she couldn''t force any more words past the choking sobs that clawed their way out of her throat. Zeke stiffened for a moment in her arms... then he clutched onto her even tighter... and broke down. "Eve! I... I..." He couldn''t seem to catch his breath as he sobbed into her shirt, and Eve wasn''t any better. Everything that had happened... It was too much. Weeks of torturous enslavement... the undead... running nonstop for hours and hours... her own somehow not quite realized death... So she held tight to her baby brother and cried right along with him. She felt worse once Zeke finally found his voice and started talking. "I... I killed her! Eve, I killed her!" Not quite talking, so much as wailing. Eve felt sick. That fucking bitch! She wanted to scream at him. To tell him he did the right thing. To tell him that cunt got what she fucking deserved! She only wished she''d been the one to do it... But none of that would help Zeke now. He''d never escaped from her clutches... never seen what their mother really was... so she gave him a pretty lie that wasn''t too far off from the truth. "No, Zeke. You saved her. That monster corrupted her. You saw it. She was turning into a monster just like the rest... you did the right thing!" It wasn''t too hard of a lie to serve up. He had done the right thing. By helping to kill their mother. Their almost but not quite undead mother¡­ Zeke hadn''t even done anything bad to her. It was the cunt''s own fault for turning herself into a monster! Zeke still sobbed, but Eve was pulling her own emotions back under control. She hadn''t forgotten that blinding god. She could never forget... though the light no longer shone through the windows. It didn''t matter. They needed to flee. "Can you run? We need to keep moving." He nodded into her shoulder, voice hitching as he replied, "Y... yes. I... I can... run." Eve couldn''t bring herself to push him away and waited anxiously until he finally let her go, his tear-stained face visible in the moonlight as he sat up. She''d already scrounged the truck stop for anything useful, which wasn''t much, and threw the pack over her shoulder before scooping up the chainsaw. She didn''t want to travel in the dark, but the... thing that killed the undead might still be nearby... this must be its territory, and she''d just gotten lucky that it didn''t see her and Zeke as a threat. Well, not Zeke. Not yet. Eve still didn''t know why she wasn''t dead... it had wanted her dead... made her dead... but she wasn''t... Even the new trait explained nothing. Fucking monster! Now they needed to get the fuck out before it realized she was still alive. So she led Zeke into the night, in the opposite direction of where the monster had been. A peek toward the battlefield was enough to see a veritable field of glittering cores shining in the dark. That was a lot of power just waiting for someone... Not a fucking chance! Eve hurried the other way... then almost screamed when something made a loud, high-pitched noise nearby. She froze, her right hand squeezing tight to Zeke''s while her left hovered over the trigger of the chainsaw. All the while, she scanned the darkness for whatever had made that sound. "There," Zeke whispered, pointing. Eve followed his finger and saw a patch of something gray moving closer across the ground. The chainsaw whirred to life with what sounded like a deafening racket... "Wait," Zeke said, almost shouting, "It''s just a dog!" Then he lit up into a beacon with golden light. "Too bright!" Eve hissed, tugging on his hand and barely resisting the urge to scream at him. She would not be like that cunt! It helped that he was right. It looked like a pug as it stared up at them and whined again. Assuming you could judge anything on appearance anymore, which she knew you absolutely could not. "Shoo, dog!" "Here puppy," Zeke bent down and offered his hand to the dog. Only Eve''s unadulterated desire to not be a bitch let her avoid releasing the scream bubbling up in her throat. She tried to pull him away, but it was too late. The dog reached Zeke''s outstretched hand before she could drag him to safety, and it... licked his fingers with another whine. "He''s friendly," Zeke said, after she yanked him away. He was still fucking glowing... like the fucking sun! "Fine," she ground out through gritted teeth. "Turn off the damned light and he can come with us!" Zeke wilted again and went dark. Eve remembered all the conversations she''d overheard between Zeke and the bitch. All the times that fucking cunt had called him evil or damned. All the times she''d made him wilt just like this when all he desperately wanted to do was make her happy. She dragged him into a one-armed hug. "I love you, Zeke! Always! Forever! No matter what you do, no matter what you say! I''ll never stop loving you!" He deserved better than the fucked up person Eve was, but it was all she had to give. "Your light is the best thing in this godfor... in this place. I want you to shine like the fucking sun! You hear me?" He hugged her back... and the pug whined at them. "I... love you too," Zeke murmured into her chest, before turning toward the dog. Eve let him go when he pulled away and crouched to pet the pug. "It''s okay, boy. You can come with us," Zeke said. She really hoped it wasn''t a monster in disguise... The pug walked away from Zeke, then stopped and looked back with another whine. "I think he wants us to follow him..." Eve sighed, doing her best to keep it silent as she stared at her baby brother''s face in the moonlight. The dog was definitely a monster, and now it would lead them into a trap to be devoured. "Let''s go then." It led them to an absolutely wrecked human laying in the dirt. "Eve..." Zeke looked back at her, indecision plain on his moonlit face. Eve grit her teeth while the pug whined. "Let there be light." There was light, and Eve hoped the monster had moved far away by now. Zeke was special. He could do so much good for so many... He needed to see the truth of his power. To know it wasn''t corrupt or evil like that cunt loved to spout off... Damn... The dog''s human wasn''t as fucked up as she thought... just old as shit. Poor bastard probably had a heart attack when he saw that... that thing... ~~~Steven~~~ Shit! Shit! Shit! Steven cursed soundlessly as he careened through the streets. This was bullshit! He was supposed to be powerful! He''d finally leveled enough to reach E-grade, finally gained the spells to become truly immortal, and now Lord Calderon was dead. It was all because of that flying human. Steven felt sick just remembering the light... He''d felt so good when fighting, so powerful. Even if that fucker was a pain in the ass to pin down... Lord Calderon had used his Eye... Before Steven saw that Light, he''d thought seeing into Calderon''s eye was the worst feeling imaginable. So, of course, the crazy human simply ignored it... even while Steven trembled from his mere proximity to that gaze. It took the human down, eventually. Steven had been smiling, riding high on his first taste of immortality after that damned spear went through his head! Equal parts aggravating and exhilarating. Galling to be restrained like that... to be killed like that! But then seeing the despair in that bastard''s eyes when Steven emerged unharmed. That was so very sweet. He got to enjoy it for such a short time... before everything went to hell. The only reason he still lived was because that demon killed Calderon so quickly. Steven''s orders died with the lord, and he fled from the death nipping at his heels. It had come so close at the end there... he''d felt it coming... death whispering in his ear and caressing the back of his neck... then it stopped. One moment he was wailing at the unstoppable specter of death, and the next it was gone. Nothing remaining but the memory. A memory so terrible that it couldn''t be real. Only he knew it was real. He could never forget how real it was... Steven seriously considered not returning to his new masters. His orders were gone. He had nothing holding him back from disappearing into the night. He knew the ritual now... he didn''t need them to be immortal... except there was no such thing as immortality. First, Morgrath nearly died, and now Calderon was truly dead. It was all a lie. Fake immortality. A trick that couldn''t stand up against real power. But then, nothing could stand against what he''d seen tonight... 55. A Light In The Dark ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley didn''t know when darkness gave way to light, but it did. Gradually. He felt... distant. Disconnected. Absent. No sensations from his body... like a ghost might feel... His thoughts were cloudy, as if in a dream... and he found himself in a snowy forest. A familiar one, though not as he remembered it. He was looking down at an equally familiar person lying in the snow. Himself, burning with blinding white light. Caffeine was tugging on his jacket, dragging him away inch by inch, his little panting growls the only sound in the woods. He watched in a daze, his mind sluggish as Caffeine grew larger and larger beside his unresponsive body. Watched the pug turn away and howl into the sky. Watched his howl tear apart the surrounding forest. Watched it blow a hole through the clouds above. Now it was the forest he remembered from... months ago? Caff... "Remarkable, isn''t it?" Stanley turned toward the voice. Or his attention turned. He had no flesh here. No eyes with which to see. Yet he still saw. The man standing in the air beside him was unremarkable, normal, wearing a business suit and tie, carrying a briefcase, and absolutely not a human. Stanley didn''t know how he knew that, but he did. This was not a human... not a mortal... "Such a ridiculous series of... coincidences that all led to an impossible... outcome," it said, smiling at him. Its voice was wrong. Stanley tried to speak, but he had no mouth, no voice of his own. "No, you are not... dead. Either of... you." Stanley hadn''t asked if he was dead. Either... "Yes, your... brother is here as well, and... no, you may not see or speak with... him. That might be... considered cheating." Stanley knew it was speaking to another besides him. Not because it said so, but... he just knew it. Lee. "I received a quest... you see. A quest to investigate... you." Once again, Stanley knew it wasn''t speaking to only him. "There are... rules, as you''ve no doubt... witnessed. Walls that must... not be broken. Boundaries not to be... crossed. Yet, you have seemingly... broken the rules by your very... existence. Fascinating!" It laughed then, a dry but very human sounding laugh that was most definitely not. Stanley looked away from the thing, watching Caffeine as he howled in agony. It was horrible to watch... but numb, distant. It was also something momentous. Significant. But he watched with an odd detachment, memories not connecting properly to what he witnessed now. The thing let him watch without interruption until Caffeine lay down next to Stanley''s unmoving and no longer glowing body. Then it spoke, "Claiming what you... did. Before Saturation... before even F-grade... hiding it away where even the... System would not see it." It laughed that terrible not-laugh again. "Creating... that. Truly inspired!" Stanley wanted to know what this meant, why he was here, seeing this. He wanted to know if Lee was okay. If they were in trouble for... he couldn''t quite remember... he''d done something... hadn''t he? Struggling for memories that wouldn''t come left Stanley even more confused... and worried... He couldn''t remember how he''d gotten here... couldn''t even remember what he''d been doing before this... "I requested this... meeting," it said. "As my... reward for finding what... the System could not." Why? Stanley wanted to scream at it. "It is so rare to be... surprised by anything when one can... well, I''m really not at liberty to say. Nevertheless, what you did here should have sent... shockwaves across the multiverse... only you hid them all... away, hid them from the... System, hid them even from... me." It looked at him with eyes that were not eyes and staring out of a face that covered something far worse. Stanley felt like he should know what it was talking about... and he did... but he also didn''t. "Even here and now I cannot... see what you will do... Fascinating." "As for your... worries, yes, you are in trouble. The rules have... changed now that you revealed what was... now that you''ve... opened the door. You will face greater... challenges." What do we do? Give me something useful! How do I escape from the dungeon? How do I stop the undead? It was coming back to him¡­ the undead¡­ fighting for his life¡­ the rage. "I cannot... give you instruction, nor would I wish to. This is... your path, and I cannot wait to... see where it leads." Fuck you then! You can fuck right off with your stupid, cryptic, fucking... Caffeine growled. Stanley looked down and found Caffeine looking back at him... Only... Caffeine wasn''t looking at him. He was looking at... It. The not human thing. Caffeine growled again. The thing laughed uproariously. Terribly. "It shouldn''t see me! We are not... here. Yet it doesn''t care!" It laughed more, even using a finger to wipe away an imaginary tear from its not eyes. "Ah... wonderful. Such a unique... creature." Everything wavered on his last words, like a soap bubble flexing and about to pop. "Seems our time is... running out. Ironic. One last... thing before you... go." It stared into his eyes, even though Stanley didn''t have eyes. "Prepare for..." There was a loud sizzling... static... The bubble popped. ¡­ Stanley woke from a different nightmare this time. It was bright. Too bright... but with deep shadows... and blood... Caffeine''s blood. Caff! At the same time he had the thought, Stanley felt the oh so familiar sensation of a pug stepping on his legs and trying to find just the right spot to curl up between them. Then Caffeine plopped down with a huff, his head shifting a few times on Stanley''s leg before settling down. It only took one long sigh and a few deep breaths before the twitching and yipping barks started when Caffeine fell into what he could only hope was a pleasant dream. Stanley relaxed, almost back to sleep, but not quite. Something was still wrong. Something was off. He was so tired... and there were a lot of notifications... and he could remember... Undead! That nearly dragged his heavy eyelids open... but then he remembered... the blindingly bright power. He''d killed the monster with it... repeatedly. Hadn''t he? He remembered... laughing... and screaming as he tore it apart over and over. Rather than move just yet, Stanley checked his notifications. He had a feeling that something had changed... something serious. Anomaly Detected. Active Source use Detected on F-grade Dungeon World(Earth). Outside Interference Probable. Investigating... No Interference Detected. Trait Updated: [Energetic Resilience] = [Source Nexus] None of that made any sense. Other than it looked like that power he''d used was called Source? It also came with a cost, as the following notifications made all too clear. Source is burning your body and mind: -10 All Base Attributes per second.(+9 from Source Nexus) -10% Health per second from Source +10% Health per second from Source Regeneration. Source is burning your body and mind: -20 All Base Attributes per second.(+18 from Source Nexus) -20% Health per second from Source +20% Health per second from Source Regeneration. Source is burning your body and mind: -30 All Base Attributes per second.(+27 from Source Nexus) -30% Health per second from Source +30% Health per second from Source Regeneration. All the way up to... Source is burning your body and mind: -100 All Base Attributes per second.(+90 from Source Nexus) -100% Health per second from Source +100% Health per second from Source Regeneration. That looked... not good. But it didn''t climb any higher, just kept popping that same message over and over, until... Vitality Attribute at 0.4 Death Imminent. Soul-Bonded Beast(Caff Caffeine) has sacrificed -40 All Base Attributes You gain +20 All Base Attributes A couple seconds later... Soul-Bonded Beast(Caff Caffeine) has sacrificed -20 All Base Attributes You gain +10 All Base Attributes Soul-Bonded Beast(Caff Caffeine) has sacrificed -10 All Base Attributes You gain +10 All Base Attributes The burning messages stopped after one more tick. The deluge of other messages also trailed off with that one, though a few more followed. Invader Defeated. Contributions Earned. Defeat the Remaining Invaders to Claim Contribution Rewards. Trait Earned: [Source Burned] Debuff: [Ravenous] Debuff: [Feeble] Debuff: [Frail] Debuff: [Emaciated] You are losing -1% health per second.(+0.9% from Source Nexus) That first one was good... and bad. He''d finally found and killed one of the damned invaders, but that meant the zombie hadn''t been one? Or... he hadn''t killed it... Stanley stopped thinking about that unpleasant topic and kept reading the notifications. The next one must have come later... Stanley felt a chill just seeing it. Health below 1% Death Imminent. How he''d survived might also explain the murmuring voices he was hearing. Though they sounded faint... underwater. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Buff: [Purifying Light] Debuff Downgraded: [Starving] Debuff Removed: [Emaciated] Purifying... That word tugged at something in his memories... something bad. He didn''t want to remember it right now. So he kept reading. Buff: [Purifying Light] Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] It popped up a few more times until his hunger debuff finally left. That was it. No more notifications to read... though plenty he''d glossed over. He didn''t want to go back over them. Didn''t want to see his almost death again. Didn''t want to consider the feeling of his brother in the distance... and how weak Lee felt... So Stanley pulled up his status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](66%) [Source Nexus] [Psycho] [Source Burned] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 49 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 50 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 30 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 20 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 0.9(+30%)1 Vitality: 0.4(+31%)0.5 Dexterity 1(+30%)1 Wisdom 2(+1090%)23 Intelligence 1(+1089%)11 Willpower 26(+1495%)414 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills 0/3: Buff: Debuff: [Feeble] [Frail] There were a lot of changes... Most notably, his non-class skills were gone. Though he had a new class skill in exchange... Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 50 (Advanced) My will is reality. Allows the user to alter physical reality as they see fit, and as their will can enforce. User gains a budding domain with limited proximity. Effect of domain highly dependent on user''s focus and will. Skill Level Effects - (Advanced) +10% Effective Mind Attributes +10% Effective Willpower within Domain Looked solid... in fact, it gave him more effective willpower than the other two combined. So that was nice. Or was it just because the skill was at level fifty? He wasn''t sure what the domain bit meant, but he remembered where the skill came from. The notification was right in the middle of all that other shit. Skill: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) has reached the Threshold of Level 50. Upgrade Available. Evolution Available. Combination Evolution Available. Skill: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) Combination Evolution Forcibly Enacted. Skill: Psychokinesis (Uncommon) + Psionic Weapon (Rare) + Psionic Charge (Epic) ¡ª Mind Over Matter (Legendary) Having it forced on him was... not cool. But it looked good enough that he wouldn''t complain. He''d test it first. His horribly low attributes were... very not cool. Not at all. Especially his vitality. Though not surprising given what he''d already seen. He would be more powerful than ever if his stats hadn''t gotten deleted... Though now he just needed to kill something and get cores... sooner rather than later. Maybe those voices... but, no. One of them had probably saved his life... Plus, he only heard two voices. That wouldn''t make a dent. He focused back on his status. His trait had changed. What was that about? [Source Nexus] Your body and mind have been destroyed and rebuilt by Source repeatedly and have adapted to survive. As a Source Nexus, you emit Source radiation. Your adapted body absorbs this energy, fueling many enhanced processes. This has the effect of also deflecting a portion of all energy directed at you. Combined, this increases your regeneration while making you highly resistant to all but the most direct foreign energy. All energy resistance massively improved. All regeneration massively improved. Core absorption requirements increased due to adapted body. Additional effects are possible. Continuing Analysis¡­ A few changes... but mostly just the word massively replacing the word greatly. All the mentions of source just felt in line with what he already knew. Which... wasn''t a lot. The source had come from his soul... he knew that... somehow. Something about that spell attacking his soul... it had done enough damage to make a... weak spot? Hole? He didn''t think it was a hole... maybe a thin spot? Or a crack. He could feel it. Could almost see it... out of the corner of his eye¡­ Stanley stopped trying to see what he was increasingly sure he really didn''t want to see, and checked his newest trait. He knew it wasn''t a good one. Which was some bullshit... but it was definitely related to the source. [Source Burned] Your body and mind have been burned by Source. Your mind endured the onslaught and emerged stronger but this energy was beyond the limits of even your adapted flesh. Nevertheless, you have survived an encounter that none before you have, and earned a Title to match, but not without a cost. Effects: [Frail] [Feeble] -50% Effective Body Attributes +100% Effective Mind Attributes Okay. It wasn''t terrible. Not good, but... not terrible. At least considering his class. It helped his willpower, and he needed that more than ever. He checked the title next. [F-grade Source] You have wielded Source energy while still in F-grade. What was once considered impossible has now been proven possible. Congratulations! Effects: +100% Effective Base Attributes Stanley had no idea how this worked. He got bonuses for doing something while simultaneously gaining negative effects for that same thing... Did that mean the system could add to his stats at any time? Could it make all of his debuffs go away if it wanted to? Did it just want him to suffer? Buff: [Purifying Light] It popped up along with the golden glow that enveloped him, body and mind. A glow that felt so pleasant that Stanley didn''t even flinch at the hands touching him. It was wonderful... he felt so at peace... so safe... "Don''t waste your energy," a woman said nearby. Fuck you! Stanley thought as the light faded. It had felt so nice... "I don''t know why he won''t wake up?" a voice said right next to Stanley. It sounded young... a boy? Though high pitched enough that it could have been a girl. It was definitely the origin of the purifying light. "Probably cause he''s old as shit!" the woman said. "We should have left already! He''s giving me the creeps..." "I... I don''t want to leave him here," the boy said. Stanley was pretty sure it was a boy. "You said he was fine," the girl said. "The dog can watch over him if it''s so worried." "But we''re already trapped here... and you said I should help people..." "God damn it!" the girl hissed. Then, in a more normal tone, "Not you, Zeke. It''s just... I swear I can still feel that fucking thing watching us..." "Was it really that bad?" the boy said. "I think it''s what woke me up... but it wasn''t that..." "It was a fucking lunatic, psychopath, demon! It killed..." she trailed off, and Stanley didn''t need to see her to know she was terrified. The boy moved away, closer to the girl. Stanley knew he moved away... but he wasn''t touching anything with his mind. Weird. He should be... he was too vulnerable like this... "I''m here, Eve. I''ll protect you." He sounded so sincere. "What are you going to do?" the girl scoffed. "Hug the monsters to death? Next, you''ll tell me the pug is going to keep us safe!" Hey, Stanley thought, his mind reaching out to feel his surroundings. Caffeine is a good boy! He reached a heavy hand up from his side and brushed it gently over Caffeine''s fur. The boy gasped. "He''s awake!" I guess I am, Stanley thought, and opened his eyes. It wasn''t because of the boy, though. It was because Caffeine immediately scrambled to his feet and attacked Stanley''s face with his tongue. Stanley lifted Caffeine away from his face to spare himself a tongue lashing and then stared in horror at the pug. Oh, Caff... what did I do!? Caffeine''s coat was no longer the pure black it had been before. Now his fur was completely gray, almost white. He didn''t seem bothered by it, squirming and trying to get at Stanley''s face with his tongue. His own hands drew Stanley''s attention as they trembled with sudden fatigue. They looked wrinkled... decrepit. Rather than try to sit up, Stanley floated himself upright in the air. The act also showed that his new skill worked like the old one had. He really should be testing that... He heard another gasp and finally looked at the people in this small room with him. A bathroom... no. He was in a truck stop shower... or at least that''s what it appeared to be. He''d seen enough of them. There was a flashlight illuminating the room... standing upright on the floor. Two people were in here with him. The boy looked young, barely a teenager. Black hair, blue eyes, just like the girl, who looked older, but not by much. Definitely still a teenager and likely a sibling going by the resemblance. She was also staring at him in wide-eyed horror as she whispered something that sounded like, "those eyes¡­" Then she stopped whispering. "Y... you!" she half screamed, half wailed. Then scrambled to her feet, lunged forward to grab the boy and drag him away from Stanley, all while brandishing a chainsaw at him. Stanley was more surprised than anything. Until the chainsaw actually turned on, spinning up into a whirling blade of deadly intent. His new skill worked fine when he slammed the girl into the tiled wall behind her. Her head hit with a crunch, but it was just the tiles shattering under the impact. Stanley didn''t let up, pinning her there and ripping the chainsaw from her hands. She was obviously F-grade, and threatening... Caffeine ballooned up, filling Stanley''s vision with his gray-furred face. Stanley let up the pressure on the girl as he gazed into those big brown eyes, unchanged despite the gray hair. "Caff..." Movement out of the corner of his eye caught Stanley''s attention. He knew there wasn''t anyone there... even before he turned to look... How he knew... Damn. An old man stared back at him from the mirror over the sink. Wrinkled, slack skin. Thin white hair... and a shaggy white beard. I''m old... Caffeine pushed a cold nose into Stanley''s cheek with a loud whine, then followed it up with a big wet tongue across the side of his face. "Good boy, Caff," Stanley said, still staring at the mirror. The reflection''s mouth mimicked his words... It really was him. The girl was struggling in his mental grip and cursing up a storm with what little breath she had. Her brother was... praying. "Jesus, please protect us! Jesus, please shield us!" He was also glowing with a golden light that had spread to encompass his sister. Right... Stanley remembered the notifications about purifying light, and he was pretty sure that was what he was looking at now. He let her go. "I''m... sorry." The chainsaw clattered to the floor behind him, as far away from her as it could go in the cramped room. He wasn''t that sorry... but he was grateful. "You saved my life..." What had she called him? "Zeke. So... thank you." See, Samantha? I can be diplomatic. "How can I repay you? Need a lift? I could take you..." Stanley didn''t want to think about Nate right now. Not when he was trying to be nice. "...somewhere." Though it was odd that the duo were alone out here... "You can leave! You... you... monster!" The girl was still terrified of him as she forced Zeke behind her, as far away as they could get in the shower. The fear felt undeserved... he hadn''t even done anything to her. Well, not until she threatened him... Plus, now she was directing some of that fear at Caffeine... that was just stupid. Zeke calmed down at Stanley''s words and was now peeking around the girl where she''d pinned him against the wall. He was staring at Caffeine as well, but not with fear. Stanley stared back at the boy as he held onto his sister... the sight looked... familiar. Plus the praying... It finally clicked. "Holy shit... You were in the cult!" Then Stanley remembered how that encounter had ended and he looked away. "Um... sorry about killing your... mom? But... she seemed like a real psycho." Though, was he one to talk? With a literal trait called psycho? Yes. Yes, he was. He wasn''t the one spouting lunatic rubbish and brainwashing people. He just killed them. If they attacked him. Which too many of them did... but not all of them... The girl kept the boy behind her, trying to shield him with her body as she attempted a menacing glare. She froze when he mentioned the mom, and Stanley supposed it must have been her mom, too. If they were actually related. Her eyes jumped between Stanley and Caffeine, and her expression darkened. Something finally breaking through the terror. Anger. "That was you..." She only whispered, but Stanley could see her chest rising in preparation for the coming scream. Could see her anger growing. Time to go, Stanley thought, and was immensely pleased to see his backpack in the room with him. Wait... it wasn''t his pack. They had an identical one, but it was full of random junk... not food. One more thing he needed to find. Or... Nate... "It was you!" the girl screeched at him. "Why didn''t you finish the fucking job!?" Stanley hesitated, his dark thoughts of Nate utterly derailed. What did she just say? "She fucking survived! You could have ended that cunt then and there, but you let her go! Fuck you, you fucking piece of..." Wow... She went on. A very spectacular and foul vocabulary for such a little girl. It included a lot of inventive threats about how she was going to kill him because he''d apparently failed to kill her mom... Just wow. Who''s the psycho now? Stanley squeezed her throat until she shut up. "If you threaten me again, I''ll..." Her brother was crying... big choking sobs this time... and clinging to her. "Your brother saved my life... so I''ll let it go." He let go of her throat, and she mercifully kept her mouth shut, only pulling her brother into her arms while he sobbed. Caffeine was also whining the whole time and trying to get in between them and Stanley. Stanley was torn about what to do next. Should he do something more for them? Saving his life was... Stanley stopped as another particularly unpleasant memory resurfaced. "It was here for you, wasn''t it... you''re the purifier it wanted?" The boy kept crying, but the girl stiffened at his words, her eyes going wide in obvious recognition. She knew about the undead... an undead that was obviously chasing them¡­ and Stanley once again ended up as the one who took a beating in their place. I''m going to kill you, Nate! "We''re even," Stanley said. He''d saved this kid from the undead and gotten his own life saved. Life for a life. Last thing he needed was more drama from these teenagers. Especially with one of them sobbing his eyes out and the other looking like she wanted to burn a hole through him with her glare. Stanley pulled open the door and flew into the hallway, dragging Caffeine into his lap as he went. "Good luck." 56. one two Three ~~~Jake~~~ Jake landed on the brick wall, bare feet gripping easily as he sprinted soundlessly along the top of it in the darkness. He made no more noise when he stepped off into the air, or when he landed on dusty cement behind the man staring at a fire. His blade slid silently and quickly between the ribs, his free hand lowering the body softly onto the ground. The sleeping men around the fire never stirred as they died. All but one. The last one lived. Not out of any sense of mercy, but to spread word of what happened. To send a message. No one was safe from the hunter. Jake bounded back over the wall, spinning and launching an arrow as he fell out of sight of the fire. He liked his messages loud, and the howling scream in his wake was perfect. It was just the natural reaction of a man to getting his member removed by an arrow in the night. A perfect message for the scum here. He was fighting a guerilla war against an army and it wasn''t that he couldn''t eventually kill all of them; it was just getting tedious. Most of the enemy soldiers were not dedicated and loyal troops, not like that one screaming up a storm. They were conscripts and opportunists. Threat of emasculation was working wonders on driving desertion numbers up. That helped the growing resistance to lord dickwad. Plus, killing nearly endless waves of weak F-grades just wasn''t fun. He wanted a real fight. Luckily, one such fight was heading his way. An arrow exploded in the man''s face the moment it appeared around the corner. Jake was already gone when the retaliatory spear strike landed where he''d been standing. A dark arrow snaked out as he moved. It only stuck an inch into the man''s face, glancing off a cheek bone when he dodged aside. That was good. Jake would hate it if his opponent died too quickly... Ghostly spears appeared and stabbed millimeters from his flesh as Jake ducked and weaved over the rooftops. He sent back arrows, bright exploding ones, and the sneakier dark variants in between. After one such shot, Jake activated a skill and shifted through the night to appear directly behind his assailant. His knife, a normal non-runed blade, punched through armor and flesh to dig deeply into the man''s side. Jake vanished just ahead of the ten exploding spears that filled the space he''d occupied only an instant before. He blinked into and out of real space as he traveled across the city, launching arrows each time he appeared until over a dozen were in flight when he stopped running. He funneled mana into the arrow on the string, letting it build to blinding luminescence before launching it toward the charging spearman. Spears rained down, obliterating the area he''d stood in, and Jake stabbed the other man clean through his right knee. His E-grade opponent didn''t slow despite the crippling wound, and the striking spear forced Jake to retreat again. He sent his own arrows raining down as he went and saw the injured knee heal in a burst of red light. So this might be a long fight. Jake didn''t have a problem with that, except he knew what was coming if he stuck around too long. He activated another skill and used the fresh burst of power to reverse course in a blast of dirt and wind. The street cracked under each footstep as he launched himself after the other man. Spears materialized out of thin air, stabbing at him before exploding into clouds of magical shrapnel. Jake dodged the spears themselves and tanked the smaller hits from the explosions. Arrows still flew as he ran, his boosted stats letting him dump more mana into each shot and letting him do it faster. He didn''t charge straight toward his opponent. Instead, blinking repeatedly back and forth across the street and occasionally onto the rooftops. Each step still brought him inexorably closer to his target. His mana pool plummeted from the unsustainable expenditure, but then he didn''t need to keep it going very long. This time, he took the leg clean off. The next blow stabbed between the ribs, then his runed knife plunged sideways straight through the ridiculously tough skull and into the man''s brain. No need to fight fair when his opponents broke the rules first. Though it was a shame. They were taking all the fun out of it. He took off, sprinting down the street with the body in his arms. Carrying it until the core appeared. Then he vanished. Night turned to day as an entire city block flared with blinding magic... and then exploded. Jake was long gone. Slipping underground into his latest hiding spot. He didn''t need the light that illuminated his space when the core emerged from his pocket, but he did like seeing it. Looks like our little game is almost over. All Base Attributes have reached the E-grade Threshold. Evolution to E-grade Begun. ~~~Lee~~~ You do not hold Full Dominion over your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. Lee had a lot of notifications when he came back out of the dark. The most important and most recent one involved a feeling coming from a far away, but very much alive, Stanley. They''d survived another impossible day. And now his brother wanted... something. Something Lee had to allow. He agreed... and nothing else happened. Though Stanley felt... pleased. Closer to home, some people were standing around... His Mana Mind was working better than ever, and he saw the two children near their mother. Seeing them, or rather, detecting them, was a weight off his shoulders. They were playing together, small voices babbling back and forth in a surprisingly soothing background. They were okay. Safe. No longer scared. That was all he needed to know. It meant he hadn''t failed. Of course, the notifications confirmed the same thing, but he liked what he was hearing in his apartment as a confirmation far more than an emotionless system notification. Invaders Defeated. Dungeon: [Greenfield''s Last Stand] Successfully Defended. Contributions Earned. Dungeon Area Protected from Targeted Invasion. Rebuild. Rearm. Prepare to Defend the Dungeon. Area Buff Earned: [Victory](6:16:45:16) They''d won. Obviously. Lee could feel his runes all over the place. Some near, some very far, and the majority spread out in between. Going by his memories of the night before, he suspected most were currently being carried by people walking back and forth atop the wall. Last night... He had a lot of memories... some of them were extremely... bright. Those he couldn''t remember clearly, but the evidence of what happened surrounded him. The apartment building''s floor, walls, ceiling. All of it had changed. Windows, doors, railings, even the roof tiles. All changed. All now held a blinding web of radiant light in his Mana Mind. Runes filled the building. Millions of them. All linked and bound into something he would have thought impossible only yesterday. Because... technically, it was a single... enchant. Like a toughened and sharpened machete, where he bound two runes into something more. Only this was on a scale he couldn''t comprehend. Lee knew he''d made it. He had created this. He remembered doing it. And he didn''t know how. Looking at it now, in the light of a new day, versus that brightness last night... nothing was the same. It was impossible to make something like this... he wasn''t even sure what it was supposed to do... but he liked it. More than liked it. Despite feeling like the sight alone would burn his eyes for looking upon it, Lee loved it. The whole glittering web of impossibility was the most beautiful thing he''d ever seen. It made him feel... safe. With that feeling of safety surrounding him, and the sound of innocent, happy voices, Lee checked back through the rest of his notifications. There were some disjointed memories of fighting on the wall, and notifications to go with them. He''d been reckless, taken terrible injuries, and got saved by the others more than once. None of that compared to what followed... Source is burning your body and mind: -100 All Base Attributes per second.(+90 from Source Nexus) -100% Health per second from Source +100% Health per second from Source Regeneration. That one stood out. More than a few times. He knew what it meant, sort of. Source surrounded him, after all. His building was full of the stuff. It was what filled the runes instead of... or maybe... alongside the liquid mana. It was hard to see the liquid mana past the blinding source, but he knew there was some in there. Or at least his Mana Mind knew. The source was akin to the mana; they were both a power that could fuel magic, and they were alike in the same way a candle was to the sun. As to what it actually was... that he didn''t know. How could he? Just touching it had almost killed him the night before... Vitality Attribute at 0.9 Death Imminent. Soul-Bonded Beast(Caff Caffeine) has sacrificed -40 All Base Attributes You gain +20 All Base Attributes Caffeine... Lee wished he could hug that wonderful little dog. You better be spoiling him rotten, Stanley! Especially when that message repeated more than once. Caffeine had saved their lives, and in more ways than one. Lee remembered at the end there, when Stanley didn''t want to let go of the power... Caffeine had done... something. He didn''t know what the pug did exactly, but he knew Caffeine made it stop. He better be fat with all the treats when you get back, Stanley. He''d earned a few things himself for almost dying. With one such reward standing out more than anything else. You have created a Soul-Bound Runic Structure: Building 3 (Legendary) Buff Upgraded: [Building 3] Lee pulled up the new effect. [Building 3] Resident Effects: +20 All Base Attributes +200% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes +200% Health regeneration +400% - 10000% Mana regeneration (Requires Additional Mana Access) He''d seen mana access mentioned somewhere... shortly after the source. Multiple Invaders Defeated. Contributions Earned. Defeat the Remaining Invaders to Claim Contribution Rewards. Trait Earned: [Source Burned] Debuff: [Ravenous] Debuff: [Feeble] Debuff: [Frail] Debuff: [Emaciated] Debuff: [Negative Attributes] You are losing -10% health per second.(+9% from Source Nexus) Buff: [Improved Regeneration] Buff: [Improved Regeneration]x2 (Building 3) Emergency Protocol. Granting Temporary Mana Access(Maria Morales) Buff: [Improved Regeneration]x3 Buff: [Improved Regeneration]x4 Buff: [Improved Regeneration]x5 It went all the way to times ten... and stayed there until his hunger debuffs abruptly disappeared. The only one he knew who could do that was Saira... so she must have survived. Lee felt a little more weight vanish from his chest. As for the whole mana access and emergency protocol... thing. Thanks, Three. I''m glad you... Change Structure Designation of (Building 3) to (Three): Y/N? A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Lee felt a strange sensation at that moment. A hopeful, uplifting... almost nostalgic feeling. Yes. Structure Designation Changed. Buff Renamed: [Building 3] = [Three] It was right. Meant to be... Then he checked his status, because something was obviously very wrong still. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] Traits: [Adaptable] [Source Nexus] [Conduit] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Runic Augmentation] [Source Burned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 24 (Basic) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) - Level 45 (Intermediate) Attributes: Strength: 10 [-10 Base +20] (+251%)26 Vitality: 6 [-14 Base +20] (+252%)15 Dexterity: 6 [-14 Base +20] (+250%)15 Wisdom: 19 [-1 Base +20] (+799%)169 Intelligence: 25 [5 Base +20] (+796%)223 Willpower: 18 [-2 Base +20] (+795%)160 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(2/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 35 (Intermediate) Buffs: [Three] [Victory] [Improved Regeneration]x4 Debuffs: [Negative Attributes] [Frail] [Feeble] It looked better than he felt it should... because something was changing the numbers. He already knew what that was from. It was Three keeping him alive... despite a new debuff he''d never seen before. [Negative Attributes] Your base attributes have fallen below zero. You only live now due to an outside effect granting bonus attributes. This is not sustainable and you are deteriorating. Increase your base attributes before your soul collapses or you will die. Effects: -1% Health per second(+0.9% from Source Nexus) Soul Collapse(?3:?7:5?) That explained why he felt so bad... but the soul collapse timer looked weird... and it kept twitching up and down. His intelligence was the only positive because he''d earned points even as he burned all his attributes away. Luckily, he had something of a solution already at hand. +0.1 Strength +0.1 Vitality ... There were a lot of cores all piled up on his hands, where they lay beside him. Lee absorbed them all. Alejandro must have been looking out... how he knew what Lee needed... Oh, that might be it. Mana Mind was pretty fantastic, but it wasn''t like normal vision. He couldn''t see in the same way his eyes did. It was still enough to feel his face, though, to sense the lines and contours. To touch the slack skin and wispy hair. He must look like a mummy... Unfortunately, there weren''t nearly enough cores. "Maria," Lee rasped, his voice weak and barely a whisper. Mana Mind saw her spin and rush to him, then he opened his eyes and looked up to meet her own gaze. She looked so serious and worried. Was that for him? She also touched him and added another stack of her regeneration. He hadn''t known she could do that before today... Going off the wince on her face and the twitch in her hand when she cast it, she might have earned some mana burn for the relentless casting she''d been doing... "I''m... so... glad... you''re... okay," Lee said, but with a new worry eating at him. "Is Alejandro..." "He is good." She glanced at his hands. "More cores?" Lee smiled up at her in relief. He wanted to ask about everyone... but his body was just too weak. He couldn''t even force a nod. "Yes..." he whispered. "I get." She spun away. "Stay with uncle Lee." Then she was out the door and he heard her shouting something in Spanish before the door clicked shut. Still the uncle? Lee thought... and she''d left her kids behind. With him. Lee remembered last night... remembered the terror on her face as she snatched the children and fled from him... Yet now she not only kept them nearby but also left them here... she knew he was helpless, right? He couldn''t do any... Then two wide-eyed little faces were peering down at him. "Why are you old now?" Gabriel asked, crouching and reaching out to touch Lee''s face. Anita watched her brother poking Lee''s cheek... then copied him. Lee laughed. Or tried to. It came out as a wheeze, but he managed a smile along with it. It took a bit, but he got the words out. "I... played... with... fire..." "You did," Gabriel said. "I saw you. It was scary... for sister." "Not scare!" Anita scowled at her brother. "Mommy says not to play with fire," Gabriel supplied helpfully. "She''s... right." Lee smiled at them, and didn''t say that it was totally worth it. Not out loud. Luckily, Gabriel got bored with poking him, and Lee closed his eyes to check more notifications while he waited for the cores. Skill: Rune Artist (Rare) has reached the Threshold of Level 25. Upgrade Available. Evolution Available. Evolution Forcibly Enacted by User''s Actions. Class Skill Evolved: Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) - Level 25 (Intermediate) Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) - Level 45 (Intermediate) Intent creates art. Art creates power. Allows the runic to place runes with a single touch, removing the need to physically draw the requisite symbols, provided the user maintains the necessary focus. Level Effects (Intermediate) +3% All Effective Mind Attributes +3% All Effective Mind Attributes while rune shaping. Lee knew what the skill evolution would let him do. It was something he''d done last night. He wanted to experiment right now... but he could wait. No need to rush when his attributes were so terrible. Though it almost felt wrong that he didn''t have Mana Burn after making... Three. He smiled at the name. It just felt so right. Then he went to the next notification. It was a good one. Class: Runic has reached the Threshold of Level 10 No Class Evolutions Available. Ranking Runic up to Level 10 (Basic) For reaching (Basic) rank in your class, you may choose a new Class Skill. He''d known about new class skills from other people, but hadn''t ever quite managed to level his own class enough. Until now. Maybe because it was a legendary class? Or because he sucked at using it the right way? Whatever. New skills! Runic Well (Uncommon) The runic always needs more Liquid Mana. Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Intelligence +10% Mana Pool Okay. So that one wasn''t very appealing. Though he wondered if that mana increase would double like that stat boosts did... that would be a lot of mana. Probably unnecessary for him, too. So long as he had the Well... and Three. He was never leaving his creation behind. Lee knew that with absolute certainty. So next! Rune Boost (Rare) Allows the runic to inject extra mana into any rune to increase the effect. Boost dependent on mana injected, and will require additional Soul reserved to compensate for the increase. Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Inteligence -1% Required Soul Reserve Not bad... but it seemed... also unnecessary. His runes already kicked ass, and he could already make them better through his... traits. Lee shivered. He didn''t want to think about what had happened to him... how he''d died... almost died. Something had happened in that instant. When the explosion hit... something that he couldn''t really remember... he''d dumped mana into his runes as he... died. It had been almost enough... he could remember the mana burn... or was that from when his armor melted... and he wasn''t sure if it melting was from the mana or the explosion... The runes in his bones became the deciding factor after that... His skull had withstood most of the damage that made it past the helmet, but not all of it. He''d lost something... Stanley had been there... screaming... Saira saved him before it was too late... somehow... he needed to find some way to thank her for that. She must have moved so fast... he couldn''t have survived long like that... he remembered organs disintegrating in the blast... or burning away under molten metal... Next! Runic Soul Storage (Epic) The runic understands where all true power originates. Allows the runic to store runes inside their soul, both charged and uncharged. Runic may place charged runes instantly, but it will remove the rune from the storage. Runic may place uncharged runes instantly, then charge them, and it will not remove the rune from the storage. Allowing repeated use. Storage capacity dependent on Soul Attribute and Skill Level. Level Effects (Novice) +1% All Effective Mind Attributes +1% Effective Soul +1% Soul Storage Capacity Easy choice. The last one gave the best stats and if he was reading it right, would be very useful. Even if he still didn''t know what his soul attribute was... You do not hold Full Dominion over your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. The same message from earlier... All parties agreed. New Class Skill: Runic Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 1 (Novice) Stanley must have learned a... soul skill? That was the only thing that made sense. He really wanted to test it... but he could wait. Because he saw Maria coming back, and she wasn''t alone. Saira was with her, Lee could recognize her mana. They both carried cores, little bright clusters in his Mana Mind. The door opened as they approached... with no one touching it. Lee knew what it was after only a moment of thought. Three... thanks! It closed behind them. Is that why Maria was okay leaving the kids alone? "Lee!" Saira stopped beside him where Lee could see her without lifting his head, which was good because he didn''t think he could lift it. She dumped the cores over his hands, and Lee started in on them. "I''m so glad I held off on using these," she said, beaming at him. "I knew you would wake up again. I just knew it!" Lee hesitated. "These... are... your... cores?" "Take them," Saira said as she knelt beside him and sent her green magic into him. It was just a trickle, but Lee finally noticed that she wasn''t wearing a green sari, it was a plant. A vine-like thing that wrapped all around her over her dress. It was where the light came from. "Everyone owes you more cores than we will ever collect. So absorb them and don''t be foolish about this." "Okay." It wasn''t quite enough, and Lee wanted to tell them about his trait. To explain that he wasn''t just greedy... there was no point in hiding the truth from these people. They were his friends. Maybe even family... They''d done so much for him... "More will come," Saira said, waving away his weak attempts to explain. "Rest. We will see you restored." "How... did... you... know?" Lee asked. "About... the... cores?" "Maria got a diagnosing skill. She saw your debuff and told us. Alejandro is hunting for more as we speak." Lee closed his eyes to hide the threatening moisture. Instead, he checked more notifications. Some of the later ones... as well as what the victory buff was. [Victory](6:16:45:16) Area Effects: Prevent''s Targeted Invasion. +100% Mana Regeneration +100% Local Lair Growth +100% Local Resource Regeneration +100% Non-Combat Class and Skill Growth Interesting... it gave us a little boost to help prepare for the next battle... because, of course it would do that. He had one more to check. Distributing Contribution Rewards. Title Awarded: [First Time?] [First Time?] You have successfully defended your lair from an invading force. Effects: +10% Effect of All Base Attributes while within an active dungeon. One Random Skill Shard. Epic or lower rarity. Claim? Y/N Fort Resident Wilson Chambers has exceeded your contributions and replaced you as Fort Commander. Soul Bound Structure [Three] cannot be removed from your control and is no longer designated as a Fort Controlled Structure. Pending your approval... Do you wish to rejoin [Greenfield Fort] with [Three]? (Structure will remain under your control, but will add to Fort-wide Effects.) Y/N? Lee felt only a little salty at losing his Fort Commander gig. A weird way to handle leadership. Though, he supposed it made things more merit based. Meritocratic? But he''d made the damn thing... and how the hell did Wilson pull that off? Had the guy really stepped up since last time? As for rejoining... it looked like he wouldn''t lose anything, and he wanted to help, so it was an easy decision. Yes. [Greenfield Fort] has gained a Legendary Structure: [Three] Contributions earned for adding [Three]. Lee Cascade Promoted to Vice Commander. Buff: [Greenfield Fort] Overridden by [Three] [Greenfield Fort](F-grade) 100% Conception Rate Reduced Offspring Incubation Duration(Dependent on Mana Density) Accelerated Offspring Growth Rate(Dependent on Mana Density) +10 All Base Attributes +100% All Effective Attributes +2% Defense against All Damage +200% Health Regeneration +400% Mana Regeneration Lee opened his eyes. "Wilson... how?" "Apparently, he got one of them to surrender and it let him kill all of them. It was timely..." Saira shook her head. "There were many of those creatures. Hundreds. We lost good fighters... and would have lost more." "I''m... glad," Lee said, and he meant it. However Wilson pulled that off... the man had definitely earned his right to lead. Sadly, the fort buff didn''t stack with Three... Debuff Removed: [Negative Attributes] He felt drastically better the moment his base stats climbed out of the negatives. More than well enough to sit up and look around his apartment. "Why''d you put me in here?" Last time he''d been in Maria''s apartment... "Bradley," Maria said. "Fight start, he say here stronger for protect." Her eyes slid to the children. "Strong windows." "We couldn''t move you afterward," Saira added. "The door wouldn''t open if we tried to carry you out. Wouldn''t even let me in until Maria opened the door. I think her healing you made the building trust her more..." The building... Lee could feel a kind of... attention coming from it. The way it opened the door for them... could it see them? Or did it have something like his Mana Mind? Lee really wished he could remember more of... static... "What happened?" Lee asked. "After I... finished Three?" He''d had other priorities then, like trying to get Stanley to stop killing them. "It killed every invader still inside. A shame so many ran out before that..." That sounded great. The part about his building being able to kill enemies, not that some escaped. "How did it kill them?" The web of runes surrounding him gave him no clues... "I didn''t see it myself. Maria said the walls came to life and tore the monsters apart... I think I would have liked to witness it." "I saw." Maria nodded. Both women watched him throughout the conversation, and there was something in their expressions... Lee wasn''t sure what it was, but he could feel it. A tension... a fear. Then Lee felt a cluster of runes racing closer. His normal runes, on the armor and weapons. It felt like a small army, and they were booking it... Only one of that group actually came inside the building, went into the courtyard, then shot up onto the balcony and into Lee''s Mana Mind. It was Alejandro. The door flew open ahead of his clanking charge, and the man slid to a stop in the apartment. His eyes went wide, and then his face lit up. "Lee! You''re awake!" Alejandro bounded across the room, arms going wide as he came in for a hug. A heavy metal hug... Thankfully, he came to his senses and stopped before slamming into Lee''s much more fragile body. He still put a hand on Lee''s arm, gently, and with a beaming smile. The smile slipped as he looked for something on Lee''s face. "How are you? How''s your¡­" He touched the side of his head. Right... Lee flinched at the memory and shook his head to drive it away. "I''m better," Lee said. At least regarding his brain damage... "Burning myself into..." He didn''t get to finish his explanation. Alejandro beamed, eyes glistening dangerously, then threw his arms around Lee and crushed him into a hug. "Thank you, Lee! I don''t know if you could hear me before... but thank you so much!" Then he burst into tears while still crushing Lee. "You''re... welcome," Lee wheezed while patting the man''s armored back. "But it''s really not a big..." "No!" Saira exclaimed, right in his ear. "We all witnessed what you did! All of us lived because of your actions! Hundreds of lives! Fathers, mothers¡­ and children. All living because of what you did! Do not dismiss that!" "I... had the best chance... to survive..." Lee protested until the memory crashed back into him and he choked on his words. "I... had no choice... it was too strong..." The flash of light... the burning¡­ his... death. Lee broke. It was too much. The pain, fear, and confusion... the despair he¡¯d felt in that void. He sobbed into Alejandro''s metal clad shoulder and his arms hugged the man right back as all the horror of the last few days finally overflowed. 57. Turn Your Face Toward The Sun ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley drifted slowly down the hallway, Caffeine in his lap and whining at him. Behind, the sounds of muffled sobbing faded. "The last time you did this, and I picked up strays, one of them died," he said to the pug. "You really want to do that again?" Though she had saved his life... did that make it good? Maybe for him, at least? Not for Samantha. Or was she doomed anyway? Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] Exactly. Caffeine huffed with his chin on Stanley''s knee and his eyes rolling up to stare at Stanley''s face. "Don''t give me that look." The pug whined again, a long slow whine. "Was it the light? Did it feel nice for you, too?" It had been very soothing. More whining. Stanley sighed. "I think they hate me anyway... because I killed... or I guess didn''t kill their mom?" That girl was bonkers. But then again, the entire world was bonkers now. Did the kid heal the mom after he left? They were all brainwashed, so probably? Of course, that probably meant they burned that woman at the stake... Maybe the girl had a good excuse to be crazy? It also meant the kid was a really powerful healer. Stanley had crushed... Nevermind. But why were they alone out here? This had to be near the edge of the dungeon... and what happened to the cult? Presumably, it had been wiped out. Likely by that same army of undead that almost killed him... They were definitely far to the north. If he remembered correctly from the night before. Something he didn''t want to do... What a shit show. The undead were after her brother specifically... Did she know that? He''d seen something on her face when he mentioned them... and hadn''t the skeleton said it wanted to recruit the purifier? But then, they seemed to want to recruit everyone... Was recruiting really any different from killing everyone? Stanley stopped before leaving the building. He was weaker than before, had lost two skills, and gained a new one. Or maybe just improved the old skill? It was supposed to be an evolution of Psychokinesis... into Mind Over Matter. Technically, that was the same thing, right? Just a fancier name and rarity. His stats were lower now, though once he got some cores he would be stronger than before. A lot of cores... His musings stopped when he realized where he was standing. Or floating. It was the truck stop. The same one he''d stopped at to grab food... the delay that got him trapped in this dungeon... Where it all started. Nate, you bastard... Stanley took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. He''d almost died again. Caffeine might have almost died. But he''d also found and killed an invader... Did Nate know he would win? Or was he gambling? He picked up a piece of metal from the rubble of looted shelves and didn''t feel the infusion from his old Psionic Weapon skill. Stanley tried to remember what it felt like, tried to make it happen, and failed. That was disappointing... he''d really liked that one. He''d really like the charge skill too. Fuck. I just got that skill! Waving the piece of metal around, he couldn''t tell if it felt slower or faster than before. He definitely didn''t get the sense of it being a part of... him... There was something else, though... a stronger sense of where it was... and then something else when he sent it further down the hallway. The domain? He didn''t really notice the difference until it left and the metal got noticeably heavier. Not that he couldn''t still throw it just fine, but there was a definite change about... ten feet away. He also lost the stronger sense of exactly where his weapon was... except he was still touching it with his mind, so he knew where it was... It was strange. He was supposed to get an extra ten percent willpower in the domain... per level... so five-hundred percent? That would have been real handy when he had a skeleton in his face... or a zombie. There was a difference, but exact numbers like that were harder to quantify. Something to test. Maybe with a monster or something heavy... Daylight was streaming through broken windows ahead, which meant he''d slept the night through. Though it looked like early morning from what he could see. He also got a look at the destruction outside... Damn. It was a lot... craters everywhere... stretches of asphalt that looked like glass... and some humans picking through the wreckage of shattered semi trucks in the parking lot. His truck was out there somewhere... Wait. Those trucks had been there since this all started... The humans were picking through the cores. His cores! Stanley waited instead of charging out to kill them all. He was weak... Caffeine was weak. He didn''t even know how weak. The pug had grown bigger in the shower... but his gray hair was worrying. If those messages were correct, then he''d dumped all of his stats into Stanley and his twin. Only... if Caffeine got burned by the source, then he wouldn''t have had any more attributes than they did... so it hadn''t touched him? His gray hair had to be from saving them... right? You''re a good boy, Caff. The best in the world. The universe! Because I was too weak to protect you... Now people were stealing the cores that might help Caffeine recover! Oh, Stanley wanted nothing more than to go out there and kill them all! He almost died for that! Caffeine almost died! But he couldn''t let Caffeine get hurt again... it wasn''t worth his rage if Caffeine ended up paying the price. He should go find some food... that was what the pug deserved. A treat. All the treats. Stanley''s anger drained as he held the little dog in his arms and buried his face in the soft, gray fur. "You''re a good boy," he whispered, before sitting up and taking another peek outside. Maybe they''d just got here? Looking out there, Stanley thought he could see a few cores glittering in the shadows. He needed cores... Caffeine needed them. Maybe if he kept his distance while grabbing what he could? Avoid a fight. At least until he got his attributes back up... his next thought sealed the plan. There''s an E-grade core out there! That was a problem. What if someone like Nate got ahold of it... if they used it to hit E-grade... Fuck! Stanley flew outside quickly, hoping no one had found it yet. He also went straight up. Lots of people didn''t look up. They might not even spot him while he grabbed the cores. The long shadows of early morning helped a lot, and he could pick out glowing cores everywhere. Like a field of stars. He grabbed them, whipping them up as fast as he could, hoping none of the scavengers would notice. He felt better every minute as the cores flew in and his attributes crawled upward. There were a lot of cores... How much did I kill last night? Stanley couldn''t remember very much of the actual killing part... it was all rather... bright. And angry. His memories were angry... just trying to remember them was pissing him off... Stanley considered giving cores to Caffeine over himself. Seriously considered it. But ultimately used them himself. Until his vitality hit two. Then he gave everything but the willpower to Caffeine. He didn''t want Caffeine to fight. He didn''t want him to fight ever again... but that was an unrealistic dream. Someday, Caff. I''ll kill everything, so you never have to. Snacks and belly-rubs all day. Forever. But for now, Stanley only needed willpower. He''d even things out later, when it was safer. Lee still slept in the distance. Stanley could feel that much... and he felt better than before. More¡­ There. Stanley knew Lee had burned with him. He was also positive that Caffeine had been giving his attributes to both of them... Though he was afraid to think about it in case the fucking system tried to punish Caffeine for reaching past the dungeon wall... it wouldn''t do that, would it? As for whether Caffeine could actually do it... he could. Stanley knew he could. He''d seen Caffeine growling at... static? What? Stanley flinched. That was... Something just fucked with his memory! What the hell was... He spotted a core at the center of a glassy crater and instantly knew it was the E-grade. Something about the crater sparked in his memories... memories... static... NO! Fuck you! What the hell is... The core thieves were approaching the crater. Stanley tried to drag the core up... it didn''t budge, but the ground shifted... He dove for it, flying fast as he dropped into the crater. A sliver of the core shone out from the layer of smooth black glass that covered the ground. Glass that was in the shape of an alien skull right at the center... There was just enough of a gap to reach a fingertip between obsidian fangs... Skill Shard[E-grade] Soul Sight (Rare) The eye is the window to the soul. Allows the user to detect and gaze upon the souls of others, but lets others gaze upon the user''s soul through their eyes while skill is active. Leaves the user more vulnerable to soul attack while active. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Soul Requirements: Visual Processing Organ(s): [Requirement Met] Soul: [Requirement Met] If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Stanley claimed the skill and felt the energy flowing into him as he blasted himself back into the sky. Only something strange happened. You do not hold Full Dominion over your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. What the... He heard shouts that rapidly faded into the distance as he soared higher and higher. It only took a second before... he felt Lee wake up. All parties agreed. New Non-Class Skill(1/3): Soul Sight (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) Did it ask Lee? Does he get the skill too? That was the only thing he could think of; the needing Lee''s permission part, not sharing the skill. The system wouldn''t be that generous. He activated Soul Sight. Below he saw glowing colors that hadn''t been there before. He saw... Souls. It wasn''t just the ones outside stealing his cores, he could see two inside the building, through the roof... one of them a brilliant gold. Through the roof... Now he knew how that skeleton had chased him so easily... all his attempts at hiding had been useless. Though it appeared this wasn''t the skill it had used to attack him... None of the thieves chased him into the sky, and Stanley swept his gaze in a wider arc, trying to see what he could see. He saw more souls in the surrounding area, but after a certain distance, he wasn''t sure if the spots of color were souls or just spots of color. So the skill probably had a range limit... if only one imposed by his own eyes. Strangely, Caffeine didn''t look any different... which might have had something to do with Stanley''s own body showing no glow in his new sight... Could he not look at his own soul? Caffeine was Soul-Bonded, so maybe it included him in that? From his very brief testing, Stanley was already glad he hadn''t taken the attributes. Four more points when he needed a hundred just wasn''t anything special, and he wasn''t about to save the core for when he got closer to E-grade. That was too far away... maybe if he hadn''t nuked all of his attributes down to nothing. Then it might have been worth saving. There was also the fact that it was stuck in the ground and surrounded by human monsters... Okay, fine. Maybe they weren''t monsters, but that was so unlikely. At the very least, they were dirty fucking thieves. Though he would probably do the same thing if he found cores lying around... The real deciding factor for him in that one moment he''d had to decide was that it was soul magic. Before he lost his charge skill... soul magic was the only thing that could stop him. That meant it was more powerful than everything else... or so he assumed. A nice perk, and one he''d been hoping for, was that it let him spot souls from far away. Letting him spot monsters through walls was even better than he''d hoped. If it let him see more... like, say, if someone was planning to ambush or attack him... that would be a nice bonus. He didn''t know if that was how souls worked yet, but he would find out... though, it should be. Unless the soul thing was only some stupid magic bullshit and didn''t actually have anything to do with an actual person''s... inner self? For all Stanley knew, soul magic might have nothing to do with anything popular culture ascribed to souls. It might just be another aspect of magic... like fire. It was also still the only one that got through his Psionic Charge... so that had to mean something. Caffeine shifted in his lap to look toward the ground, and growled. That wasn''t a good sign... Stanley descended, slowly at first, then faster when he saw what was happening below. He knew the golden soul belonged to be the boy that saved him. It had the same... feel. Now it was outside the building and far too close to the large group of different colored souls Stanley had just pissed off by snatching his own damn cores... Dirty thieves. Stanley owed the kid more than to let him get killed by a bunch of core stealers... The idiots weren''t even looking up when he dropped in on them... all focusing on the two coming from the building. Stanley''s new Soul Sight didn''t mesh well with his attempt at a visual examination, swathing their entire bodies in glowing colors. So he did what he''d been doing for days now, and touched them with his mind. Samantha''s voice whispered in the back of his mind, and he hesitated... Maybe they weren''t monsters. One of them looked up right as another said, "Your friend stole our cores..." Their cores... a blatant lie. A threat to Zeke. Stanley''s new effective willpower was worse than before, even though his bonus percentages had increased. But getting angry still boosted his power, and hearing the prick accuse him of stealing his own damn cores... that made him real fucking angry. He still had the piece of metal from inside the store; his knife and spear were missing... or, more likely, stolen! He could now see the spear in one thief''s hands. That pissed him off even more... Samantha''s words about power and being the bigger man rang in his head, but he ignored it. They''d had their one chance to do the right thing. Stanley was weak. He wasn''t the strongest anymore. He couldn''t risk any of them getting an attack off. Couldn''t risk that they might have something truly dangerous. He didn¡¯t have the luxury to be merciful. So he threw the jagged metal, threw it hard, starting with the man staring at him and opening his mouth as his hand lifted. Stanley killed them all as quickly and efficiently as he could. With a spike through the head. It was fast enough, and he watched their souls fade away as he snatched up the spear... then stopped. The spear was glowing... He turned off Soul Sight, and the glow vanished. What the hell? He reactivated Soul Sight and felt a chill looking at the glowing spear. It has a soul? Caffeine bounded from his lap, and Stanley let him go as something else caught his attention. The cores were glowing as well. Not the normal blue they always had, but new little splashes of color alongside the blue. That was... cores had souls in them? Sure, it was tiny compared to what he''d seen in the living people... but then he didn''t even know what souls were. Could be like he thought before, just another form of energy. Like mana or his own psionic... stuff. The glow on the spear was probably what burned the undead... just magic. It wasn''t Samantha''s soul... even though he''d shoved her core into the wood... Stanley studied the spear, looking for the hole he''d made, and couldn''t find it. The wood was unblemished, shiny, and smooth. As perfect as the day she made it... though a much darker hue. Reddish. Like blood... You do not hold Full Dominion over your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. What the... I agree? Nothing else happened. Had Lee just learned a soul skill? Given that he didn''t get whatever skill it was... Lee probably hadn''t gained Soul Sight either. Figures. Caffeine was extorting pets from the golden boy, and staring at his soul gave Stanley a sensation of that same feeling he''d gotten from the purified light magic. Warm. Soothing. His sister had a silver glow. It felt... sharp. Metallic. Weird. It didn''t look sharp or metallic. It felt that way... and he could almost smell ozone... Very weird. It might be useful information about her. Stanley knew she had a chainsaw that worked... there''d been a flashlight, too. So maybe her class let her do something with machines? Or electricity? It was the first sign he''d seen of any working technology since this all started... She was also glaring bloody murder at him while her brother got a tongue all over his face from the happy pug. Or was she terrified? Maybe both? Stanley left them with Caffeine while he grabbed the rest of the cores. Caffeine should be fine... while he was weaker now, the kids probably wouldn''t try anything. The boy was enjoying the attention from the pug, and his sister wasn''t brandishing her chainsaw anymore. Though she was carrying it. Together, it meant Caffeine should be safe. Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] What... that''s not... He flew back toward the duo. Nothing changed. He flew away. Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] The purifier... is that why they wanted him? He needed to test this. Stanley flew upward until he spotted a concentration of souls in the distance. Then he hesitated at the sight of Caffeine back on the ground. The solution was obvious. "You''re coming with me." They both made noises when he pulled them into the sky. The boy''s yell trailed off quickly. "Eve, we''re flying!" "This is not fucking okay! You insane monster!" Eve screeched, with her eyes squeezed shut. Then she opened them and her white skin went somehow paler than before. "Oh... god... put me down, you fucking lunatic psycho!" Stanley rolled his eyes and did what she wanted. They''d arrived. "What the hell is wrong..." she kept yelling anyway. She stopped when something that looked like a cross between a gorilla and a spider launched out of the cave ahead. Her chainsaw spun to life... and then whirred to a stop when the dead creature flopped to the ground a dozen yards away from a spear through the chest. Stanley waited for it to rise as a zombie... and then remembered that the miasma was probably weaker out here. They were pretty far from the city... It still stirred and climbed to its feet, the hole through its chest oozing blood as it turned toward them. The zombie was no red eye, and it shambled toward them at a very non-threatening pace. It also had a soul... a new one. He''d watched its original soul fade away and into the core now in his hand. The new one was not the green, earthy smelling soul it had while alive. It was dim... black. Rotten. Eve''s chainsaw spun back to life while Caffeine growled at the zombie. Stanley left it to her while dragging another living monster from the cave. It was heavy... but doable. A weak F-grade was nothing compared to the monsters he kept running into... He brought the new one over next to the purifier while also making sure Caffeine wasn''t trying to fight the zombie. He wasn''t. Eve cut the zombie down without difficulty, her chainsaw going through its head and most of the body below, before she backed off. Then she saw the monster dangling next to her brother. "Zeke!" "Do your light thing on it," Stanley told the boy while blocking Eve from carving it up. "I want to see if it still becomes a zombie." "Why didn''t you just fucking ask?" Eve growled at him, finally giving up on trying to kill the thing. "Does it?" Eve glared at him while Zeke hesitantly touched the struggling but immobile monster. Her glare lost some of its edge when she said, "I... don''t know." Stanley rolled his eyes and killed the creature with a spear through the chest. Then he dropped it next to Zeke, where Caffeine continued his sniffing more vigorously. "Don''t eat it yet, Caff." The pug whined and turned away when Zeke knelt to pet him. "Is that his name? Caff?" Caffeine wagged his tail when Zeke said his name. "Yea, it''s Caffeine." Eve moved to stand over her brother again, eyeing both Stanley and the corpse with hostility the whole time. "What do you want with us?" Her gaze slid down to Zeke briefly before coming back up. "What do you want with him?" "That skeleton..." Stanley shivered, closing his eyes briefly at the memory his words stirred. "That... thing, it wanted him." His own gaze moved away from Eve and to the still dead monster. It should have turned by now... "I think I know why, too." "What, so you''re going to protect him? Because you care so much?" "Hell no!" Stanley glared at her, teeth grinding with rage. Though he wasn''t actually all that upset with her. ''It''s the only way any of us survive...'' That''s what Nate said to him with his little cryptic story that sent Stanley nearly to his death... Fuck you, Nate! The undead knew about Zeke. They''d sent an army after him... at least, Stanley assumed, it was for Zeke. It was only Nate''s bullshit that landed him in the army''s path... wasn''t it? Or had they been after him as well? Were they hunting him because he''d killed that talking zombie? The skeleton had mentioned his soul. The skeleton knew Caffeine was the beast lord... Wait... It had said that Caffeine ''nearly'' destroyed a Morg something. Was it talking about the zombie? Nearly destroyed? Had it not actually fucking died!? All that pain... Samantha''s death... Caffeine''s suffering... All for Nothing!? A big tongue smacked him in the face. Stanley blinked, his fists relaxing and jaw unclenching. The skeleton was definitely dead. He''d gotten a notification not only confirming its death but also that it was an invader. He''d gotten its core... The zombie dropped a core, too. But no notification. He remembered Caffeine clawing apart the corpse at the end... digging. Was he chasing the real monster? Was it not actually the zombie? A parasite? Maybe one that bailed out when it lost the body? Caffeine whined at him and then swung his head to stare off into the woods. Stanley followed his gaze and saw the two souls receding away, one gold and the other silver. He also saw numerous glowing souls beyond them in the direction they were running. "I know, Caff. Let''s go save the idiots." He pulled Caffeine into his lap and put the spear through the newly awakened zombie''s head before it could stand up¡ªit hadn''t turned until the boy left. Then he flew after the siblings. 58. Dont Die ~~~Lee~~~ Lee was in a group hug when the tears finally tapered off, green magic trickling into him and helping ease the pain of... well, everything. The hug broke up when Anita joined in on the crying. Alejandro let him out, but held Lee at arm''s length, expression suddenly serious. "You are family, Lee. My brother... now and forever." Lee smiled. A bittersweet smile as he thought of his twin. "I... I think I would like more brothers." Alejandro beamed. "Of course! More family is always better!" Maria nodded, Anita in her arms. "Si. Familia." "Now," Alejandro said, letting him go and pulling the pouch from his waist. "Let''s get those attributes up. We have more coming, too. Hopefully, we can fix you back up so people don''t think you''re my grandfather instead of my brother!" Lee looked down at his hands. He was feeling better... but definitely not like he had a few days back. He didn''t know if it was the low attributes, or something else, like that Source Burned trait... "Yes. Let''s." He wouldn''t balk at taking the cores. He''d earned them¡­ "Then, when you are ready to find your brother... our brother," Alejandro clarified with a smile. "Then we will go with you." Maria and Saira nodded their agreement. There was a warm feeling in his chest as Lee looked at the people in the room with him... No, not just people. Family. His family. Then he shook his head, his gaze shifting toward the distant sensation that was his twin. "I''m not going anywhere... Stanley will come here... eventually..." It was only a feeling... but Lee knew he was right. "This will be our home. If we survive that long..." "If he''s anything like you," Saira said, touching his arm. "Then all of heaven and earth cannot keep him away. He will return." "Of course he will!" Alejandro exclaimed. "Which means we need to get this place fixed up already! He could get back any day!" "I think he''ll like you... all of you," Lee said, drawing on their conviction even as his own wavered. "Caffeine, too. He''ll love... everyone..." Lee choked back a fresh sob. Because he knew the meeting wouldn''t happen any time soon... another feeling, one he wished didn''t have the same ring of truth as the last. "Until that day comes," Alejandro said. "For however long it takes... we will be here with you." Lee smiled at them... and the expression was only a little forced. "Now tell me what the hell happened last night?!" Alejandro blurted out, practically shouting. Everyone jumped, and Maria swatted his arm. But from the curious glances coming Lee''s way, it was obvious they all wanted to ask the same question. Lee blew out a breath and started absorbing the new batch of cores as he sat on the couch. "Let me tell you all a story... what little I can remember... You too, Mar." Same as before, it only took a mere thought to make his front door swing open, revealing the invisible girl in question as she flickered and almost fell into the room. She''d been leaning up against the door, trying to eavesdrop. "I..." Mar blushed. Lee just waved her in, closing the door behind her with another thought to Three. He loved that feature! "It''s a long story that all started a few months ago... ish." ... "...it is called Source... and I think it''s in my... our soul. Last night it... got out. Don''t know how or why... but it fixed my head, while nearly killing me, and then I used it to create... Three. I guess not that long of a story..." "What is... Three?" Alejandro asked. "I feel like it is... watching me." Lee ran his hand gently over the floor. "I honestly don''t know. Last night was... intense. When the Source was burning through me... I think I could see more. Understand so much more. But looking back now, it''s all too... bright. I can''t tell what most of it is supposed to do... but I know it''s beautiful... amazing..." "I saw it kill an elf," Mar whispered. "Looked like rebar came out of the wall and just ripped the thing apart... then it went back like nothing happened." Maria nodded, then said, "Gives me mana." Right... he''d forgotten about that. "Is it liquid mana?" Lee sent a new thought to the building. Full Mana Access and Resident Status Granted(Maria Morales)+2 Child Full Mana Access and Resident Status Granted(Alejandro Morales) Full Mana Access and Resident Status Granted(Saira Singh) Full Mana Access and Resident Status Granted(Mary Singh) Might as well get that done. Though he wasn''t sure how much it would help anyone, besides maybe Saira and Maria. He was curious if the building was going to give the kids mana too... not that they had any skills to use it yet. Right? "Feels same as mine," Maria said. "But a lot." Lee saw mana flow out of Saira, into her vine... adornments. It kept flowing as the vine grew thicker and more lush. Saira''s eyes widened further and further while mana flowed out of her non-stop. Until she finally gasped and stopped channeling. "This is... is there a limit?" "I don''t think so," Lee said distractedly. He hadn''t seen the mana flowing to her... from Three or the Well. He only saw it coming from her into the plant. Three was a gorgeous but blinding tapestry of Source runes so that might explain why he wasn''t spotting a little mana among them... but Three also didn''t touch the Well. It surrounded it though... Was that enough? He knew the Well wasn''t quite where it appeared to be in space... "This changes everything," Saira breathed. "How far will this work? I could grow... everything!" Lee tested it himself by pushing his mana into Three the same way he had with the Well before. It felt identical. He stood up and found he could push mana out of his feet too. If it worked like this everywhere in the building¡ªwhich he expected it would¡ªthen he''d have a better way to dump mana if he had to blast something... "I think it will work anywhere inside... maybe even outside if you''re touching the building." The transfer rate was still slow. For him. Which it had to be, or he''d burn... but it was much faster than trying to drain his mana pool with runes. "Just watch out for mana burn..." He''d used up all the cores and checked his status... just into the double digits. Even without the buff from Three. "So who wants to go hunting with me?" Maria nodded, while everyone else looked incredulous. Lee glanced around. "What? I need more cores. More than anyone else, as you now know. No rest for the wicked, right?" "You should rest. Let me..." Alejandro said. Maria cut him off. "I will go." Lee stared in surprise, right along with everyone else. "The children..." Alejandro said. "You rest. You watch," Maria said to him, then turned to Lee. "Is safe?" She pointed at the floor, then the walls and ceiling. "Will protect?" Her gaze slid to Anita. Lee already knew what she was asking, and he studied the building with his eyes and Mana Mind before nodding. Not that he gleaned anything new, but... "It will protect them and everyone else in here." It wasn''t clear cut in his memories what the building would really do, could really do, but it was enough. Lee remembered seeing those scared little faces while he burned with the source. He remembered the relief at the end... because they would be safe. Because Three would Protect Them. "Safest place in the world is right here... I think.... No, I know it is." Maria stared into his eyes, and Lee saw the tension he hadn''t noticed before as it drained out of her. "Good. Bien." She hesitated for a moment, something else clearly on her mind, then finally spoke, "I want children here." She jabbed a finger at the floor. "All children here. All safe." The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. There was a question in her voice. She wanted his permission... and then it was Lee''s turn to hesitate. All the children? In his building? How many was she talking... "Of course!" It was not a tough choice. Sure, it might be annoying and probably loud... but that was nothing he couldn''t handle. He wouldn''t protect Gabriel and Anita while leaving all the others out in the cold. Not to mention that many of those children''s parents were likely fighting and dying to defend the fort... to defend their families. This was the least he could do in return. "Bien. I will tell. Alejandro too. You get armor, then we hunt. Good?" "Sure. I can wait a bit." The sun was barely over the horizon, anyway. They hurried off and Lee headed for the bathroom, only to be stopped by Saira''s hand on his arm. She was smiling, but the expression looked... off. Almost sad... "You are a good man, Lee. This is a very good thing you did here today." She squeezed his arm and then hurried out with what looked like tears glistening in her eyes. "Sure..." Lee said as she vanished out the door. He still needed something special to thank her for saving his life... Mar looked just as clueless as he felt when she appeared. "Um... thanks... for inviting me!" she blurted the last bit out and vanished mid sentence, rushing for the exit. She stopped in the doorway but didn''t turn around as she whispered, "Are you really okay?" "Okay as I can be." "I... couldn''t believe it was you... when I first saw you... like this. How... how does it feel?" Lee stared at his shriveled hands. They looked... better than before. If only a little. It gave him hope that this might not be permanent. "I''m weaker than I was... but still stronger than before the system. I don''t know if I just burned decades off my life... or if some cores will make it all good again. I''m scared... but who isn''t these days?" She stood quietly for long moments, before saying, "If you ever need someone to hunt with... I''ll go. I''m not very good... but I could watch your back..." "Thanks," Lee said. "I''ll keep you in mind for... wait, are you doing Martin''s training?" "I... no." He could see her shrinking in on herself. At least her outline was. "Too many people..." "You should try it. He''s helped me a lot with only a few lessons... wait, he''s still alive, isn''t he?" Lee couldn''t imagine the swordsman losing to any of those elves... he was better than all of them. Plus, he should have had the runed blade... "I don''t know... but I can find out!" She rushed away. Lee smiled after her. Poor kid. He was pretty sure her class had been what it was because of her shyness. But still better than a lot of other people who''d ended up with real crappy classes. ... He found May in the garage and invited her back as a resident, including the mana access. She flinched inside the silent bubble, which Lee was extremely pleased to see still working. Only now it was part of Three and not the original runes he''d laid down before. The building had seen the runes and integrated them into the end result... or he had... May was frowning with her hand on the forge as the fire within flared brighter and brighter. Her gaze jumped to him when he passed the sound barrier and could suddenly hear the roaring flames. "You! Get... out..." her voice trailed off as her eyes went wide. "L... Lee?" He sighed. This was probably going to be a common reaction... not that he knew very many people... so maybe not too common? "Yep. In the flesh." "They told me you were responsible for the light show last night, but this..." "Yep. Wasn''t getting enough respect so thought I''d age up a bit. You can call me Grandpa Lee now." May smiled. "Hah. At least you seem to have your wits back. Wasn''t pretty last night..." "That was a... side effect... and Three is the other." "Your building? And what''s with this mana thing? How much can I use?" "As much as you want, I think. We''ll find out eventually if there''s a cap." "Hmm. I like it." She eyed him. "You here for armor? Going out again? You look like a stiff breeze will blow you away." Lee hopped straight up and easily brushed his fingers against the parking garage ceiling. "Not sure how much age matters anymore..." "Your funeral. Dennis will return soon. He can help you suit up," she said while throwing chunks of metal into the crucible. "Can''t believe I''m still the only damn smith in this shithole!" "Three can probably hear you," Lee said before she started hammering on something. He wasn''t sure if that was true... but it was possible. "You know, the building that''s giving you mana?" "Obviously I wasn''t talking about this amazing building," May said. "It''s all the other ones that are shit holes. This one is fantastic!" Lee backed out when the hammering started. He didn''t know how the woman wasn''t deaf... but probably magic. He went to one of the armor piles and pulled out pieces one by one. Each one got a rune while he collected pieces for his own set. Despite all of his dreams of full plate, May just didn''t have time to make all the little pieces it would require. She''d gone above and beyond before on the armor he''d... melted. Now she had a new resource available. A literal pile of alien armor that was slightly too big for a human. Hundreds of them. Lee saw plenty of broken armor and weapons in the pile, all of them cut by something magically sharp... Lee still didn''t know how many people they''d lost last night... he''d seen a few die firsthand. There had to be many more he hadn''t seen. They might even have enough armor for everyone now if it had been really bad. He still stuck runes on everything he could. On the human armor. Someone would need it. Someone might live because of those runes. How could he not do it? He also strapped on the few pieces that were easy enough to do himself. The whole enchanting process had changed since the last time he did this, which was just the night before... It felt like another lifetime. But now he no longer needed to draw each rune. He touched a finger to the next piece, the rune he wanted to draw clear in his mind. His finger didn''t move, but the mana did. It flowed out from his finger, across the metal, until it had formed the symbol he wanted. Easy. If requiring slightly more mental focus rather than dexterity to achieve the same result. Lee knew it would get better in time and with practice. Next he tried his newest class skill. Rune Soul Storage, and that one was a whole new experience. It dropped him into a black void. Or at least sent his mind into it... except Mana Mind was still active and still showing him everything within its boundaries. So it was strange. The void changed when he started drawing the glowing symbols onto the blackness. He tried both versions; charged and uncharged. The first one cost mana to draw out... only he couldn''t see where it was going... Mana Mind saw it leaving his body, but then it went... nowhere. The uncharged option had no such effect. It felt like drawing a rune for practice alone... He stuck with the rune he knew best and had used the most. The simple and very basic strengthening rune he put on everything. He could do more. Could add more effects with more runes. But each addition would drastically increase the material requirements, so much so that May''s rushed armor couldn''t handle over two runes. To get the really fancy effects, he would need more than that... Lee touched the next piece of armor with a fingertip and activated the skill. The charged version. There was no rush of mana from inside him... the rune just... appeared. Even the mana just appeared in place... presumably coming from whatever place it had gone when he originally charged it... Weird. The uncharged was barely different from doing it manually, except for one key change. He didn''t need to focus. Just touch, activate the skill, let the mana flow into the new rune, and it was done. He touched the next piece and did it again. Then again. Well, that will make life easier. Lee couldn''t help the smile that crawled onto his face as he went one by one through all the remaining armor and enchanted each with no more effort than it took to touch them. Dennis came back, and Lee added him to the building. Maybe the extra mana would let him train his banana summoning faster... since it supposedly took nearly his entire pool to make each one. Lee didn''t invite everyone else who''d gotten kicked when the building changed. Presumably because of something related to how the building left the fort when he lost control? Given the new upgrades, and certain other realizations, Lee wasn''t sure if he wanted just anyone living in his home. He still invited Jamaal. Of course. For the others, he would let Maria decide. She''d spent a lot of time among the people at home. Hopefully, she knew who to trust. The woman in question showed up eventually, and with others in tow. Lee spent the next hour inviting those people to join his building. All the women came in with the plus child part in the notification. With some going as high as plus nine... He had a terrible suspicion that some of those children hadn''t started life in that family. It was strange that the fathers didn''t get credit for the kids... but not that strange. Not enough for Lee to even ask anyone about it. He was just happy that the system let people adopt the children who''d lost their own families... maybe happy wasn''t the right word for it... Fuck you, system! This is all your fucking fault! Or... was it? There''d been the mention of mana capacitors when it started. The real question was if the system was using them to force mana into this world, or if they''d only been keeping out the inevitable until they were ''at capacity.'' Which led to that first notification about failing the quest... obviously bullshit to name them monsters when even the so-called civilized invaders were even more monstrous. Except¡­ Were they even civilized? Had any civilization even attacked them yet? The first invasion he saw was the reptiles... Their leader was... not smart, but smarter than the rest. The elves? They didn''t stand out as anything special... There was also the key he''d gotten to make the fort... it said he could open a dungeon portal... which meant it was entirely possible that they''d never seen a civilized race yet. Damn... Lee eagerly embraced the thought experiment, even though he would likely never know the answer. It was better than focusing on the hollow eyes and faces parading before him. It was a relief when he finally headed outside into the dangerous and deadly world that was their home now... if only to get away from... them. Buff Removed: [Three] Buff: [Greenfield Fort] Unfortunately, leaving his building sent him staggering when he switched to the weaker fort buff. Lee checked his status and saw the lower numbers and percentages... it would get even worse when he left the fort... and there was something else he hadn''t checked... [Feeble] Physical exertion drains stamina at double the normal rate. Fatigue grows at double the normal rate. [Frail] Health regeneration reduced by half the normal rate. Physical toughness reduced by half the normal rate. Well, shit. Lee had a new thought as he looked up at the wide open sky. "Maria, I need to tell you something." She followed him away from the others she''d recruited for this hunt. "Problem?" "I..." Lee swallowed and continued, voice low. "If I die... then Three goes with me. All the runes go with me. All the... protection. Am I... should I stay inside? Is it selfish to come out here?" Maria looked pissed as she stepped closer, hand coming up and an accusatory finger pointing directly at him. She struck his breastplate with the fingertip, the impact ringing as if her finger was a metal rod. She spoke, words echoing alongside the repeated jabs into his chest. "Don''t. Fucking. Die!" 59. Await Reinforcements ~~~Stanley~~~ The siblings had just found the first monsters when Stanley caught up. Eve stood between them and her brother and cut the charging reptilian almost in half with the chainsaw. Stanley killed the rest with his spear and the bloodied piece of metal. She may have been able to deal with them herself, but Caffeine had squirmed free and jumped down to help. Stanley would not let Caffeine fight. Never, ideally, but definitely not when his attributes had to be at rock bottom numbers. "Leave us alone, you fucking monster!" Eve looked more frightened than before... even Zeke looked scared. Though their souls still gave no clues that they hadn''t already. "I''m going to take you somewhere," Stanley said, watching nervously as Caffeine approached nearer to the spinning chainsaw. "Somewhere... safe. Well, safer, at least." Eve killed the power, and Stanley didn''t take it from her. Her voice took on a pleading tone. "Why can''t you just leave us alone?" "Your brother is too valuable to let you die out here like a moron... and you''re too weak to protect him." She really didn''t like that. "I... you..." "First, though," Stanley said, interrupting her tirade before it could get started. "I need to hunt. Which means you have to come with me." Nate''s stupid intuition likely involved saving Zeke. So possibly it hadn''t all been a ploy to sacrifice Stanley''s life... maybe. Only, if Zeke was so important¡­ where the fuck was Nate during the fight? Why hadn¡¯t he been there? Why hadn¡¯t he prophesied himself to the truck stop if it was so god¡¯s damned important!? Either way, Stanley needed cores, and he''d prefer to meet Nate without such a massive handicap to his power. Just in case. So he took them hunting. It was easy enough to find the lairs with his new Soul Sight, though along the way he discovered the lair walls offered more of an impediment than non-lair walls. They didn''t block his sight completely, only reduced the range he needed to see the souls on the other side, and not enough to really matter, at that. Eve protested uselessly, especially when he ordered the siblings to gather cores for him. The protesting subsided slightly when he told her she could keep ten percent of what she picked up. But only slightly... She was far too weak for all the complaining she did, but at least she seemed aware of her weakness. He saw the eager light appear in her eyes when he mentioned cores. Why she was still so weak after so long... he didn''t know. He also didn''t want to ask when he remembered her... circumstances. There was some serious family drama in her life. Between the cult, her mother that she seemed to want dead, and her brother. Stanley didn''t want to unpack any of that shit. Nate probably had some psychologists. Let him deal with it. He wasn''t even sure if the mother was actually dead... though he was leaning that direction from Zeke''s reactions alone. As for giving up some loot, he''d make Nate pay it back ten times over. He knew the man would probably shove cores down Zeke''s throat once he got ahold of him. Stanley was just getting a head start while bribing the duo into cooperation. He found a warehouse lair and cleared it out with more difficulty than last time. He was really missing his Psionic Weapon skill. The so-called legendary skill did nothing better. He tried, too. Over and over. Tried to impose his will on reality like it said he could... with no success. Nothing more than he could already do before. Unfortunately, this far out, the lairs were not back to back up and down the streets. It really put a dent in his grinding plans since he didn''t want to leave the kids too far away while he hunted for the next lair. Obviously, Caffeine was all too eager to follow them around, but Stanley wasn''t comfortable putting any pressure on the pug to fight. Not until his attributes were back up. So he ended up gathering cores with them inside each lair, then flying everyone to the next and repeating. It meant he got to listen to them jabbering. Got to learn more than he wanted to about their fucked up life. He also saw how much Eve cared about her little brother when she tried to comfort and encourage him. So she wasn''t that fucked up... The more tedious core gathering gave him too much time to think. Mostly about the night before... but also about Samantha. Zeke could heal corruption... if she''d stayed around a little longer... if Stanley had stuck around to ensure the cult''s destruction... If. So many ifs. Too much of what could have been! Gathering cores wasn''t as bad as before. Now he could see the cores with Soul Sight, even through the corpses and walls. That made it faster, and also almost redundant to have the siblings tag along, but they still saved some time if he started at the end and worked his way back toward them. It took focus and attention to spot and grab the cores, but it wasn''t the same as combat. He got hit by a magic spell in the third lair and cursed his new skill for eating the old ones. Again. He''d gotten one day. Just one day where he could dodge magic... well, most magic. Stanley was still loving his newest soul skill, and it leveled steadily since he never turned it off. Sure, there was the risk mentioned in the description, but the only thing that ever attacked his soul was the fuck he''d killed to get the skill. Better to keep it on and maybe see the threat coming... Zeke sprinted to him while Stanley was cursing, and his golden magic preceded him. It was nice. Even if the pits in his flesh had already healed when the kid arrived. His purifying light also healed hunger, which was just a waste since it made Zeke tired and hungry instead. Neither of them appreciated his offer to stick raw meat directly into their stomachs. Ungrateful, picky eaters. "What happened to your eyes?" Zeke finally asked in the fifth lair. It was the first time he''d spoken to Stanley since the mention of the cult... and his mother. "What about them?" Glowing eyes were pretty standard these days. Even Zeke''s eyes glowed gold when he used his power... though it was hard to tell since the light also shone out of... well, all of him. "When you... woke up, they were purple. Now they''re black... and hard to look at..." "Huh?" Stanley canceled his Soul Sight. "How about now?" "That... that''s like before. Was... was it a skill?" "Yea..." Stanley reactivated it. "Hard to look at how?" He could see Eve shooting daggers at him with her eyes as she approached. "I... don''t know? Earlier... when we ran away... I thought you wanted to kill us." The volume of his voice dropped as he spoke until he was only whispering. "It felt really strong... like... you were angry... and you wanted us dead." Zeke turned away just in time for Eve to arrive and wrap her arms around him as he started crying. Kids these days... "What did you do!?" she hissed at Stanley, before speaking in a much friendlier tone to her brother. "Don''t listen to him, Zeke. He doesn''t know what the fu... what he''s talking about!" Her eyes promised murder, and Stanley stared right back. Try it, weakling. Then he left the crying child to her and kept gathering cores. He considered the skill while doing so... They''d felt his anger? That seemed... broken. Other people got to sense his emotions through his Soul Sight, but the skill didn''t let him sense anyone else''s emotions in return? Talk about some bullshit... This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. He''d really been hoping the skill would help when dealing with Nate, but now it would only tell Nate that Stanley feared him... though maybe feeling his rage for the man would help? Stanley still had plenty of that... The next lair was underground, and Zeke made a great lightbulb in the dark tunnels. Still, it was worse than the above ground lairs in every way. Not only did the lair walls limit his Soul Sight, but the surrounding dirt added on its own diminishing effect. He bailed after dragging what he could from deeper in and went looking for the next one. Stanley missed the lairs from the city... but he was very hesitant to go back there. Not only was he weakened, though that was changing, but he had Zeke with him. If the undead had set up in the city... then bringing their target to them seemed like a bad idea. Not to mention that he''d just killed one of their number himself. They might be looking for him... hunting him. Once he was stronger, preferably E-grade or at least close to it, Stanley was going to try his new Soul Sight in the city. It might be just what he''d needed to find the bastards... Not yet, though. Drop Zeke off with Nate. Get his attributes back up. Maybe kill enough E-grades to advance. Then fuck them all up! He might be close to escaping this place... to getting back to Lee... but it could never be that easy, could it? Not for him. Something else changed as they hunted. Stanley could swear that each lair was more powerful than the last... as if they were growing before his eyes. It wasn''t dramatic. No huge leaps that he could point to. Just a feeling... Monsters that detected him from further away. Magic that moved a little faster and hit a little harder. He started feeding half the cores to Caffeine. Just in case. Stanley kept hunting through the day, despite the whining kids complaining that they were tired¡ªthey weren''t even doing any of the killing. He hunted until the sun neared the western horizon. Then he went looking for Nate. They came in high, Stanley flickering his Soul Sight to pick out any potential hidden ambushers but also turning it back off because he didn''t know what Nate''s soul looked like yet. He needed eyes on him first. Of course, the bastard was waiting for them. Standing in plain sight, front and center of their bustling new base. His soul glowed with a variety of colors... one of the few that wasn''t a single shade. It gave Stanley a feeling of strength... sturdiness... but not rigidity. He smelled like a tree... in a windstorm... bowing in the wind, leaning, but not even close to breaking. It was strange... and the most convoluted sensation he''d gotten from anyone''s soul since learning the skill. Though most of the souls he''d looked at were monsters. So... maybe he just needed to get out more? Nate was smiling, and Stanley resisted the urge to throw his spear at the man''s smug face. He yelled down instead, "What the fuck are you smiling about!?" "What''s not to be happy about?" Nate said. "You''re alive! You killed the invader, and unless I''m mistaken, it looks like you found what we needed to survive." Zeke was glowing with a golden light... Stanley frowned at Nate. "How do you know I killed one?" "Everyone got the notification." "Then how did you know it was me?" Nate didn''t answer immediately. Instead, he walked further from his little base while waving for Stanley to come closer. Not at all suspicious... Only the orange-haired dude went with him, James, and his soul matched his hair... It felt sticky, with a hint of... tree sap? Stanley couldn''t remember if he''d ever seen that guy fight before. James was carrying a bag and Soul Sight told Stanley what was inside. Cores. A lot of them. That wasn''t the only reason he descended closer, but it helped. At the same time, it also didn''t help. It was just another sign of Nate knowing things he shouldn''t. A sign that he might have orchestrated everything to his benefit... though maybe Zeke could benefit Stanley as well. Stanley took the bag. Dragging it up and shoving his hand into the pile while Nate continued talking at a much lower volume. "We all felt the power, Stanley. I know it was you." "I still don''t believe you about that," James said, looking back and forth between Nate and Stanley. "And how the hell is that Stanley?" Stanley only watched Nate. Did he really know? His intuition? Or a bluff, a guess? He hadn''t mentioned Stanley''s new look... hadn''t seemed to question his identity even a little. But then he could see Caffeine in his lap. That was a big clue... "It''s not a hard deduction," Nate said. "A wave of angry god-like power sweeps over us, and then we get a notification saying an invader is dead. If that was the invader''s power, then I think we''d all be serving the undead by now and talking about how great it is to be eternal or some such bull." Stanley shivered involuntarily at that horrifying vision. "Put us the fuck down already!" Eve yelled. "We aren''t fucking slaves getting sold at auction!" Nate smiled. "I like this one." He waved. "Hi. I''m Nate, this is James, and you''ve met Stanley. Welcome to what I hope will be your new home." "I want more..." Stanley started. Eve, and more so Zeke, weren''t slaves... but they were valuable. Nate held up a hand before he could list his demands. "One reason I moved away is to tell you about a lair I found. An E-grade lair... Also, I didn''t want to out you as the source of that power we all felt." "You found one..." Stanley didn''t even hear that last part for a second. Then the words clicked in his head. Source? How did he know? E-grades... and he... Stanley wrapped his mind around Nate and lifted while his spear shook with pent up energy... Nate was still F-grade. He seemed unbothered by the manhandling. Psionic handling? "I''m still on your side, Stanley. I''m hoping that helping you get to E-grade first will help demonstrate that fact more than anything I can say." Stanley stared at him in disbelief. Was Nate serious? He had to know the gap in power was huge... "Where is this lair?" "James will show you. Since you don''t want me too close, right?" Was this another ploy? Was James a secret weapon saved for this very... Stanley shook his head and eyed the other man. "Let''s go." James sighed with a baleful look at Nate, but it didn''t last. "Sure. Might as well carry me and get this over with faster." Stanley did just that, carrying them high while Caffeine looked down over the edge of his knee and whined softly at the people left behind. "I''ll bring you back, Caff. I promise..." The pug deserved some fun... he deserved everything he wanted. "I promise. Just let me get stronger... so we can be safe. So we can get back to Lee..." He let James point him across the sky until they reached a rather normal looking warehouse. "That''s it. Nate fought one outside, but never went further in. Said they''re fast, strong, and have at least two types of magic. Something for bursts of movement, and another that''s for cutting." There were a lot of souls in there, and Stanley stared at them with a mixture of excitement and fear. Every fight with an E-grade so far had... not gone very well. "Could you take me back first?" James said. "I''m not a big fighter, and I''d rather not get anywhere close to something Nate ran away from." That was... "Fine." Though he highly doubted Nate actually had to run away. Stanley pulled up his status on the way. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](66%) [Source Nexus] [Psycho] [Source Burned] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 49 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 50 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 30 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 22 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 25(+30%)32 Vitality: 26(+31%)34 Dexterity 23(+30%)29 Wisdom 25(+614%)178 Intelligence 27(+613%)192 Willpower 45(+1513%)725 Twin-Soul ???(+9%)??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Soul Sight (Rare) - Level 9 (Novice) Buff: Debuff: [Feeble] [Frail] Not ideal. But better than he''d started the day with, and better than expected. His willpower was almost back to where he''d been before the source. He''d gotten a lot of the plus to all cores... The question now, was it enough to fight an E-grade? ~~~Steven~~~ Nefraxis paced. Steven didn''t watch. After reporting everything he''d witnessed, he kept his face to the floor and only listened to the indecipherable mutterings. Or the snippets that were loud enough. "Calderon... dead... Source in an F-grade dungeon... Madness. Utter madness!" Steven had gotten a notification right around the time Calderon died. One he''d ignored at the time in favor of survival, and that he still didn''t understand. All about interference, boons, and dungeon difficulty. He''d gotten a new notification just before Nefraxis started pacing... Racial Quest Updated: [Establish an Eternal Stronghold] Only one line had changed in the quest. The objective was no longer to establish a stronghold. Now it read... Await Reinforcements. 60. Divine Aroma ~~~Jake~~~ "Patetico," Jake said, staring down at the screaming man with an arrow through his knee. "Kill him!" the man shrieked. Jake leaned aside from the thrusting blade that appeared from a hole in the air and then dashed away when a black ball of roiling death exploded where he''d been standing. He touched the bowstring and grinned as his mana coalesced into a gleaming arrow. It was solid by the time he''d pulled the string back, and he fired it through the window the spell had flown from. The resulting explosion blew out the walls and sent a man tumbling away in the blast. Jake spun and fired the next arrow back where he''d just fled from. It nailed the piece of shit''s hand to the wall behind him, but didn''t explode this time. "Stay out of this!" Jake yelled. "I''ll deal with you later." He vanished ahead of the stabbing sword from nowhere. Then reappeared closer to the caster just in time to blast him with another exploding arrow, forcing the man to abandon the spell he was building in favor of a shield. The guy''s magic was black, like tar. It acted like fire when it exploded, but the shield held up against his arrows. Obviously, the guy learned his lesson after the last one. Jake blinked forward again, lining up a shot past the angled shield. Another sword stabbed from a hole in the air, but Jake could feel that spell coming a mile away and easily dodged it while firing at the caster. It missed when the guy fell into a circle of darkness that appeared under his feet. Jake didn''t care. He was busy trying to trace the mana of those little sword portals... It had to be coming from nearby. Probably. Otherwise, the mana cost would be astronomical. Which was still a possibility... all the more reason to track it down before they ran out of mana and he lost the trail for good. Unfortunately, he couldn''t stray too far or their little bitch of a ritualist would start lobbing spells again. Well, he could just kill him... but where was the challenge in that? He''d already broken so many of the fucker''s circles, which mostly just involved letting the sacrifices out. Jake was fairly certain he''d gotten all of them, but there was always a chance he''d missed one. Hence the need to keep the shit-stain from trying anything. So Jake pinned his second hand with another arrow when it tried to free the first. "I said..." he fired an arrow through the sword portal when it appeared, drawing a line of blood down his own arm but eliciting a scream from the other side. "...wait your turn!" Then he sprinted into a flying leap off the roof. That turned into another blink when the sword appeared in his path, but Jake was grinning when he reappeared closer to the next building. "Found you!" The idiot yelped, and Jake adjusted his aim to the next window over. "Boom. Bitch." A bloodied man tumbled out of a portal halfway down the street, the explosion following him through as he rag-dolled across the asphalt. Jake had another arrow in the air before he landed, but that black shield appeared in its path. He blinked rapidly to the side, going through a building to reach the alley right as his next arrow was ready. It flew true down the length of the alley... and blasted into the fucker''s leg right as he opened a portal beneath himself. He vanished through it, but his leg stayed behind in a nice pool of blood. Black fireballs rained down, but Jake was already a block away and sprinting back toward their leader. Legless might not be out of the fight just yet, but he''d be a lot easier to catch now that he was leaking. Unfortunately, he could feel mana building up atop the leader''s little tower. The bastard must still have more circles somewhere... He poured mana into the new arrow as he ran, more than any of the previous ones. The resulting explosion when it hit the tower blew a hole in the lair wall and gave the follow up arrow a clean shot where it landed between his legs with a much smaller explosion. Perfect. Little lord Dickless screamed again while Jake laughed, and the building mana spilled uselessly into the surroundings. Then he blinked away from another explosion of dark magic. He still had two monsters to hunt down. These two were the only ones that he''d never been able to pin down and finish. But that was when he was in F-grade. The tide had turned, and it was game over. Jake ignored black magic guy and followed the blood trail until it vanished abruptly. Smart. Use a portal to break the trail. Useless, but smart. He was already on the scent, and it took all of two seconds to charge another arrow and fire it into a nearby window. He followed up with another one that struck the tumbling body and nailed him to a wall through his gut. Magic sprang up into a black, shimmering wall as his fellow came to the rescue through his own portal. Jake expected it and didn''t fire. Instead, he kept charging the arrow. They both eyed each other through the dark veil, magic building on either side. Jake smiled at him. The black magic caster broke first, canceling his fireball and dropping through a portal, leaving sword guy behind. Jake had already closed his eyes, and he focused intently as the mana in the arrow reached a critical mass on the drawn bow. There! He turned and loosed. The arrow left a blazing afterimage in the air, and the building at the end of that line exploded into little more than dust. And red mist. One down. One to go. Jake rubbed singed fingertips as he walked calmly toward the one-legged man that was screaming and dangling from a wall. "Please! Mercy!" "Look buddy," Jake said, not slowing his approach. "I may not care as much about other people as I should... but there are still lines you don''t cross." "I didn''t want any of it! I had no choice!" "Good news, then. Cause you have no choice about this either." Jake plunged Lee''s knife through his eye and gave it a little twist. Jake smiled when he picked up the core. Then went and grabbed the other from the rubble. He just had one last thing to do in this city... ~~~Lee~~~ Lee returned to the fort for lunch. Mostly since he''d eaten all the food he''d taken with him. Those frail and feeble debuffs were taking a toll on his energy levels. Luckily, all he needed was food to make up for it. He''d been so upset about that trait on the first night. Now it was one of the best things he had going for him. Sure, he still needed more cores, but that was nothing compared to the benefits. Like still being alive. Fighting alongside Maria in the lairs had been an... interesting experience. She was much harsher when he took injuries, probably because of what he''d told her before they left... He still couldn''t believe her reaction to the news. She''d cursed at him! The woman who went around slapping everyone upside the head for the slightest foul language... She knew he could heal. Hell, she could heal him as well. Yet she still demanded he ¡®Fight better. No hurt. No die!¡¯ It was annoying, but not unwelcome. At least not at first. Her pestering helped him remember all the training. The footwork and stances. Still, he wasn''t that good, and her ''help'' got old as the hours went on. Not that he would complain. She was great in the fighting department and kept everyone else safe while patching up the few wounds they accrued. It meant less downtime and more cores in their pockets. Until they ran out of food. All of them. Lee''s stomach was a black hole today. He found Bradley sitting in the garage, probably regenerating his mana, and Lee realized he''d forgotten to invite the guy back into Three. Oops. Bradley jumped when he turned and saw Lee. His expression was... afraid. "Lee! I... I heard you were awake. That''s good." He''d been there for the creation of Three. He''d seen the power up close and personal. It looked like he hadn''t enjoyed the experience. Maybe some free mana would change that? The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Full Mana Access and Resident Status Granted(Bradley Summers) "Sorry I forgot to invite you earlier," Lee said. "And thanks for... everything." Bradley had made remarkable progress while Lee wasn''t paying attention, including filling in the hole Lee had Mana Blasted into one side of the building. Not to mention the growing walls around the complex. "No prob..." Bradley''s eyes went wide as they shot to the floor. "That''s... that''s..." Lee smiled. "Enjoy the mana. Just watch out for mana burn..." Maria had confirmed that she got the debuff from healing him. Only a few hours for her, though. Nothing like the days or month-long debuff Lee got... "Thanks... this will help. A lot." Bradley looked around furtively, lowering his voice. "Is this a secret? Or..." Lee thought about it. Was there any point in hiding it? Lots of people knew already... and it didn''t actually mention the Mana Well, so no reason for anyone to think of killing him for it. Hopefully? He wasn''t sure how resident status affected things for the building. Plenty of non-residents had been inside with no reaction. Could he give people the mana without resident status? Only one way to find out. "It''s not a secret. Tell anyone who can benefit from this. I just have to be here to give them access." "I will." Bradley summoned a block of stone between his hands and smiled. "People will love this..." Lee left him there and had a pretty good idea of what he would find in the courtyard above. Mostly because Mana Mind let him ''see'' it before he got up there. Trees. Though maybe bush was the better term for the new plants. They weren''t very large, likely because they were potted plants with only so much room to grow. Otherwise, Saira could probably have them growing above the rooftop. It made the whole area look far better... more alive. Though giant trees would be awesome... It also meant Saira had more plants on hand if she needed to heal anyone in here... He hoped it never came to that, because there were a lot of children running around the courtyard. Lee followed Maria into the center of the storm, where Alejandro was playing a game that involved laughing kids climbing all over him while he tried to escape. It felt strange to see him without armor... though his shield was nearby and Lee could feel the sword runes hiding inside one of the new bushes. So he wasn''t totally unprepared. It was really great to hear all the laughter... so much better from when they''d left that morning. Louder too. But Lee was okay with that. Jamaal was doing brisk business in front of his apartment, but Lee didn''t see many cores changing hands. Looked like most of the food was going to the long stone tables. Probably for the kids. Lee waited his turn while studying the inside of Jamaal''s apartment with Mana Mind. A few runes in his kitchen could use a recharge after his long... nap. But cooking or cooling didn''t have the same cost as his more combat focused runes, so they weren''t too low. He felt the runes coming from above, but with so many of the things out there, Lee didn''t pay it any mind. Not until Jake landed behind him and everything went to hell. Jake hadn''t even touched the ground before it lit up with surging, blinding power in Lee''s Mana Mind, and he felt... Danger! Cement dust exploded into the air as steel rebar burst from the floor, the walls, and even the nearest pillar. Most of the rebar speared out toward Jake like a field of striking snakes, while some spikes sprouted directly around Lee, enclosing him in a metal cage as the floor itself dragged him away. The rebar never quite touched Jake, the archer blurring sideways away from the first volley and then completely vanishing when more came in behind him. The entire time, power gathered. In the rebar, the concrete, the entire web that was Three. All of it glowing brighter and brighter... Jake reappeared further away in midair... power rose to a blinding crescendo... and Lee yelled, "Stop!" Everything stopped. The light... subsided. Jake blinked out of sight again to avoid landing on the rebar that had nearly reached up to his current location and appeared nearby to Lee on one of the few undestroyed sections of the floor. "That''s new." There was a lot of screaming and running after that, from children and parents alike. Lee didn''t try speaking over the racket, instead focusing on Three. He''d felt something right before it kicked off. A sense of danger... and protectiveness. It''s okay, Three. He''s an ally. At least Lee really hoped he was, because the archer had some new tricks... and Lee had a strong feeling the man was no longer F-grade... Now he knew how Three had killed the elves. Impressive. Explosive. And quick on the trigger when Jake came flying at him. Lee liked that. Just... Three, no child is a threat. I don''t care if they run up on me! Never attack them! He didn''t know if the building understood him or not, but it had responded to him telling it to stop, as well as opening doors when he only thought the request... could it read his mind? Technically, it was built from his soul... at least partially? Was he only talking to himself? His subconscious? The rebar was sinking slowly back into the floor as Lee watched Alejandro and Maria working to regain calm. From the snippets he heard that weren''t in Spanish, it sounded like they were saying this was a good thing. Which it was. They''d all just gotten a firsthand look at how Three would protect them and their children. They should be happy! "Glad to see you woke up," Jake said. "And you got some new enchants? Pretty potent. Almost caught me." Lee looked at Jake then. Really looked. The man''s clothes were in tatters and he looked filthy, but he had leather armor that looked almost new. It was also dense with mana. A lot like the elves had worn. Clearly enchanted, and not with runes. Interesting. Jake carried only one of Lee''s rune weapons. A knife. Everything else was new, and most of it enchanted. "You''ve been busy too," Lee said, finally eyeing the bloody and dripping but not quite dead man dangling by the throat from Jake''s free hand. "I brought you something," Jake''s smile widened, and he hefted the almost corpse. Maria blurred next to Jake and put a hand on his. "Por favor, no." Jake didn''t appear at all bothered by her sudden arrival, but he glanced past her at all the children. "This fucker probably killed some of their friends and family. They might like to get a piece too." Lee remembered a voice in the dark... Jake''s voice, telling him he was hunting... "That''s... the one who..." "Blew you up? Sure is. Thought you might like a trophy... a little farewell present. The core''s mine though." "I..." Lee shivered, his knuckles white where he gripped his knife. "Thanks, Jake. I think I would like..." He was picking his way through the slowly receding rebar, when he saw all the scared little faces watching them. Lee put the knife away, hands trembling with rage or horror. He wasn''t sure which. A deep breath later, he opened his eyes. "I appreciate it, Jake. I really do. But you didn''t have to bring him here. So long as he dies, that''s all that matters. Just take it outside, this thing can feed the garden. Unless... this is another one of your stupid challenges..." Jake smiled, his cat-like eyes boring into Lee''s own. "No," he said. "I can see it in your eyes. You''ve got it now. You understand." He turned to Maria. "How about you?" Maria looked back at Alejandro, then met Lee''s gaze with murder in her eyes. Lee nodded, and she snatched the delirious man from Jake''s grip, dragging him toward the exit by his hair while he mumbled nonsense and flailed at her. Lee wondered if Maria would heal him first... make sure he knew death had arrived... "Core''s mine!" Jake called, and she waved without looking back. "So," he said, gaze landing on Lee once again. "Guessing the absolutely insane amount of power in this building has something to do with your new geriatric look? Did you upgrade to an even crazier kind of mana? What''s after liquid? Solid?" Lee didn''t question how Jake had picked him out so easily despite the new look, only sighed as he flexed his hands a few times, trying to get rid of the lingering tension. "You hungry?" The commotion had cleared out the line at least. Jamaal smiled nervously at them when they sat down. Though it looked like his mood improved when Lee dropped a few cores onto the table. "Gonna need another full pack. I''m going through it faster than before." "Of... course, and... I have good news." "Please tell me that giant egg-shaped thing in there is what I think it is," Lee said. "Yes! Come in while you hunt! Have to magic or it will grow, hatch." "But it''s good? An actual egg?" "Yes," Jamaal turned to Jake. "Welcome back, you eat too?" "I haven''t had eggs in a while, so bring it on." Jamaal left, and Lee finally asked what he most wanted to know, "E-grade?" Jake grinned. "That shit-stain was pathetic, but he had some strong muscle protecting him. Would have been more fun if he didn''t drop his nukes on me every time I got a good fight going." He reached out and flicked a creeping piece of rebar. "Guess this means you''re settling in for the long haul?" "Yes... my brother... will come here. You said that was a farewell present?" "Hope it works out for you," Jake said. "And yea, I''m heading out after I check in with Sandy. Don''t know when I''ll get back this way, if ever. Time to see what else is out there." "Well," Lee said. "If you head northeast, maybe you''ll see Stanley on his way back. Can''t miss him. He looks just like me." "I should have been a twin," Jake said wistfully. "We''d kick so much ass..." "Don''t think the world would survive two of you." Jake laughed and then told Lee about a few points of interest he''d found in his travels that turned out to be very interesting indeed. Maria stopped by with a core not long after. She didn''t stay for the meal, but agreed to meet Lee outside later for another lair run. The rebar was almost all back into the floor when Jamaal emerged with something that had Lee''s heart pounding. He took it into his hands with reverential care, cradling the delicate creation with unabated anticipation, and breathing in the divine aroma. Then Lee took a bite. "Oh... oh god..." He tasted potatoes, eggs, beans, bacon, and... "Cheese! How?" "I magic some when you first ask for this. In case couldn''t get more." "I think I might love you, Jamaal," Lee said between chews, doing his damnedest to savor it rather than shoving the entire thing into his mouth. "No, I do love you!" "Chill out, dude. It''s just a breakfast burrito." Lee stopped eating to look at the alien sitting across the table from him and then stared at him in abject horror. "What are you!? You... you... monster!" He took another bite, eyes closing in bliss. "I would tell Three to kill you for this blasphemy... but it would probably be a waste of power..." Jake only laughed. The reprobate. ... Lee didn''t go back out. Not only was he feeling guilty for risking himself and thereby everyone depending on him, but he was also feeling guilty about not wanting to join the new expedition. News of Jake''s victory in Tijuana had sparked a surge of people wanting to head back down there. Either to search for loved ones and bring them back, or to do the same but reclaim their homes rather than return. He didn''t want to go back to where he''d... almost died. Just the thought of it had him sweating... Luckily, he didn''t need to. Someone had discovered that the old border crossings left gaps in the nightmare deadzone that was the fence. They didn''t need his Mana Mind or fence chopping skills... All the thoughts of that nightmare sent him looking for Saira, where he confirmed that she''d buried the monster responsible. He almost regretted letting Maria have the kill... but not really. Lee didn''t want to kill anyone. He just wanted to survive. Wanted his family to survive, both old and new. So he went to the garage next and told May what Jake had told him. About the new type of lair. 61. Think Its Time For A Change ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley found himself with a new and terrible problem as he hovered above the alleged E-grade lair. He was afraid. Terrified. It was bad enough that he didn''t even send his mind down into the lair. He wasn''t even close enough to do so... Stanley hadn''t forgotten that blinding power he''d used to kill the skeleton. It was still inside him. He could... almost feel it. He knew it was there... just out of reach. He wanted to reach for it... take it up again... become a god and wipe this world clean. Except he couldn''t. He''d tried in that instant when he thought Nate was E-grade. He couldn''t touch the power... and it was a good thing. Because it would cost him everything he had left. He''d escaped death by a hair''s breadth last night. Saved by Caffeine sacrificing himself. Again. Now visions of zombies and giant skeletons assaulted his mind. Memories of his flesh ripping... his bones breaking... soul tearing... Worse memories followed those. Caffeine bleeding... Caffeine unconscious... wounded. Corrupted. Dying. His hands were shaking... "I''m not fucking scared of you!" Stanley screamed and threw the metal spike. You have attacked a Lair structure. All Lair residents notified. He fled. Stanley hauled himself across the sky fast enough that the wind screamed in his ears. He only stopped when a glowing blue wall appeared to block his path. Then he dropped to the earth and rested his head against the barrier as tears blurred his vision. The gentle tongue lapping away his tears with a sad whine only made him cry harder. "I''m... sorry... Caff! I''m... worthless... I''m... too weak!" Caffeine didn''t respond, only kept licking. Stanley stayed there until he eventually stopped crying. His hands stopped shaking, and he just sat there with his head on the stupid wall while it kept flashing that same fucking message into his brain. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated. "Damn it..." He lifted his head and looked toward the feeling of Lee in the distance... he''d flown right towards him. Lee felt happy. Stanley liked that... and hated him for being happy while he felt so terrible... Then hated himself for feeling that way... "Be happy, Lee. I want you to be happy..." Caffeine squeezed his head between Stanley''s face and the wall, licking furiously. "You too, Caff. Please be happy... even though you''re stuck with me..." He sat there for a little longer until he realized he was wasting time. Caffeine''s time. He couldn''t bear to go back and face the lair... but Caffeine could still have fun. He could still be happy. For now. So Stanley flew to Nate''s base. He wasn''t sure if he cared at the moment if Nate might try to kill him. I should have given Caff all the cores. But there would be food... and friends for Caffeine. That was good. Caffeine should have better people than him to hang out with, better friends than the one he was stuck with. It was getting dark when he arrived, but there were plenty of magical lights everywhere. Stanley came in from directly overhead, not wanting to deal with the patrolling guards he could see on the perimeter. He even kept Soul Sight off, since apparently people could feel it. His attempt proved successful. Or no one cared. Either way, he made it inside. Stanley let Caffeine run free, content to follow his lead... nose... whatever. Caffeine would find food, at least. He did. Not that it was hard to find. The huge room looked like a restaurant with tables everywhere... or a cafeteria. Bill and Jerry were there, cooking behind their own grills next to open windows. Stanley ignored all the people as he trudged behind Caffeine on his own two feet. He didn''t enjoy walking... "Hi, mister. Good food''s over... holy shit! Is that you, Stanley? What the fuck happened?" Jerry said in a rush, slowing his movements over the three little grills in front of him. "I..." Stanley didn''t know what to say. "I almost died. Again." "Yeah, shit''s fucked, isn''t it? Take whatever you want. Nate''s order. Though you look fucked. He made a big announcement earlier and told everyone you killed one of the bastards. I just didn''t know what he was talking about when he said not to mess with the old guy..." "Are you..." Stanley asked hesitantly. "Are you happy here?" "I''m alive," Jerry said. "I''m protected. At least until something too strong shows up and the guards can''t deal with it. You?" "I''m... scared." Jerry sighed, then threw his tongs into the wall. "I''m scared as shit too! I heard enough about your fight with the zombies to know we''re fucked! Then that shit last night!? How are we supposed to survive this? I''m a damn cook in a world full of monsters that won''t even notice when they step on me!" Stanley levitated the whole bin of meat into his lap as he sat in the air. Walking was shit. Then he started tossing it piece by piece to the suddenly very attentive pug. "You should eat Bill''s food," Jerry said after picking up his tongs from the floor. He frowned at the broken and dented thing. "Stupid, bullshit system..." He was right. Stanley grabbed the much smaller pile from Bill''s table and fed that to Caffeine instead. He ate the shitty stuff himself. "Are you going to kill him for his skills?" Jerry froze in his effort to make the broken tongs stick back together and looked up. So he had thought about it... Then he tossed the tongs away with another sigh. "No, I won''t kill Bill for his damn skills." His eyes darted toward the other man. "Though, if you just so happen to have another nightmare and go on a killing spree..." "Um, guys?" Bill said nervously and well within earshot. "Gods Bill, I''m just kidding!" Jerry said, using his fingers to flip the meat. "Nate would kill me. Like he did that other guy..." "That''s... the only reason you won''t... kill me!?" Jerry laughed. "You''re too easy. I might not share Nate''s delusions about humanity, but I''m smart enough not to shoot us all in the foot for pure greed. Our chance to survive is bad enough already." "That doesn''t sound much better," Bill grumbled. "How about not killing me because it would be wrong?" "Would you kill me if it meant a better chance at saving your wife? Your kids? Or would that be wrong?" "I..." Bill stopped talking. Stanley kept snatching up each piece of food as soon as Bill finished cooking it, much to the annoyance of the growing group of people waiting. He met their hostile gazes and deliberately fed all of it to Caffeine. Nate must have indeed told people about him, because none of them said anything. They wanted to, though. It was nice that he could see Caffeine''s status. It let him know when the food buff maxed out. He switched the pug back to Jerry''s food and ate the good stuff himself. It didn''t taste any better. All the food tasted like dirt in his mouth... Stanley ate anyway. He had to be stronger... had to protect Caffeine. He tried throwing a piece of each to see if Caffeine had a preference. Of course, Caffeine snatched both out of the air in a gray blur that only shook the building a little. That display of power wiped some of the hostility from the watching eyes. Replacing it with fear. Good. Stanley turned Soul Sight back on and looked over the people in the room with him. Nothing really stood out other than one man whose soul had a sensation of cold in it. Stanley considered asking if he had ice magic... but he just didn''t care. None of them would meet his gaze, either. Bill''s soul, unsurprisingly, gave him the scent of food. Bread specifically. Then Stanley looked back at Jerry. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. "Jesus!" Jerry yelled while flinching away. His soul had a... flavor. Savory. "Do you feel something?" "Christ, of course I do! Your eyes turned into black pits, and you look like a demon!" "Oh, that''s all?" "That''s... should I feel something in particular?" Stanley shook his head, canceling the skill. "It doesn''t matter." He focused on Caffeine and watched his bright eyes track each piece of food with rapt attention. Watched the little tailwags when each new piece appeared from the bin and flew at him. He was adorable... and gray now because of Stanley''s weakness... old, like him. But he looked happy... he was happy, right? His tail was wagging... The meat ran out after Caffeine ate a few times his own body weight. Stanley eyed the other people eating in the room. Well, he eyed their plates... Then left them alone when Caffeine started sniffing at the air and followed whatever he was smelling out of the room at a trot. Stanley followed him to another large room on the other side of the building. He could hear music... so Arthur was probably in there. He didn''t want to see the man; he didn''t want to see the blame in his eyes like last time they''d met... It wasn''t Stanley''s fault Samantha was dead... she made her own choice... and died for it. For him... to save his life... Because I was too weak. Loud barking rattled the walls, and Stanley rushed into the room. Oh, it''s him. The giant pit bull, Barbie, was barking at Caffeine while the pug crouched in front of him, his chin nearly on the floor as he play-bowed, tail wagging madly. Caffeine jumped up, spun rapidly in place a few times, and bowed again with a little return bark. A yip. Barbie barked again, no playfulness in the sound, and with his entire body shivering. All the while, a little girl tried to comfort him from out of sight behind his bulky form. Stanley looked at the dogs with Soul Sight. Caffeine still showed nothing to the skill, but the pit bull glowed with... ferocity. The red glow of his soul shone very fiercely, but it also smelled fierce, felt fierce. Fiercely, violently, protective. It was the single strongest sensation he''d seen from any soul, and Stanley knew without a doubt that the dog would go down fighting to his last breath to protect the little girl behind him. Then he''d probably get back up and keep fighting. He also knew it was terrified of both him and Caffeine. Its head swiveling back and forth as it braced for a deadly showdown it knew it couldn''t win... Stanley flew away. He was the problem. Caffeine would win him over. Play with him, Caff. He''s a good boy, too. He deserves to be happy. Which he never would be if the monsters killed his human... if a zombie ripped her apart while he watched helplessly... powerlessly. Stanley slid down the wall in the hallway until he was sitting on the floor. Is this what you wanted, Samantha? You saved her... saved them all. Saved me... A glowing blood red spear drifted into his shaking hands, and he twisted it around over and over. I can''t save them from what''s out there... I''m not strong enough... I can''t even protect Caffeine... He sat in the dim hallway until the angry barking faded into more happy, playful noises. Until the floor vibrated beneath him with the impact of sprinting dogs playing chase. Stanley smiled at the sound, and his tears dripped onto the spear while trembling fingers squeezed and twisted uselessly against the wood. Caffeine is going to die in this place... and I''ll have to watch helplessly because I''m too fucking weak! "You''re not alone." Stanley surged into the air, spear coming up to throw at... Nate sat in the hallway, leaning against the opposite wall a safe distance away. If any distance was truly... "I know what you''re feeling." "Useless fucking skill!," Stanley cursed, cancelling Soul Sight and glaring at the other man. "It''s not your skill," Nate said with no visible reaction to the spear poised to impale him. "I know what you''re feeling because it''s what I''ve felt every day since this started." He looked past Stanley toward the open doorway, where the sounds of laughter emerged. Adult''s and children''s laughter, along with happy yips and barks of playing dogs. "All these people. All these lives. All of them are riding on my shoulders. If I make the wrong choice, they will all die. Even if I make the right choice, they could still die." "We''re doomed," Stanley said, sinking back to the floor, hugging his knees and burying his face in them. "I''m too weak." "You''re not alone." "We''re all too weak." Caffeine would die. Lee would die. Everyone would die... "You haven''t died yet, and not only because you were indeed strong enough, but because you didn''t fight alone. Caffeine fights with you. Samantha fought with you. I will..." "Now she''s dead!" Stanley spat. He wanted to scream at the man, but he didn''t want to ruin Caffeine''s play time. Caffeine deserved to be happy... while he still could. "I can''t save everyone," Nate said in the same calm voice. "I''ve accepted that. Even though it hurts. Even though each loss is worse than the last. I will keep fighting until we win or I can no longer fight." Nate stood up, and Stanley could feel him approaching. He didn''t react. Just get it over with... Nate stopped in front of him. His hand reached down... and hovered there, palm up. Inviting. "Come, Stanley. You''re missing the best part. The reason we fight. The reason we suffer and keep coming back for more. Come see why it''s all worth it." Stanley didn''t take his hand, but did reluctantly float up off the floor and stand up, if only to stop Nate from looming over him. Nate was smiling slightly when he dropped his proffered hand and tilted his head toward the doorway. He said nothing else, just walked through and left Stanley alone in the hallway. Stanley followed. A giant Caffeine was sprinting laps around the room while an equally giant pit bull chased behind him. Three little kids sat on the backs of each dog, all laughing, squealing, and swaying as they struggled to stay on the running dogs. Arthur was playing something lively, and people were laughing along with the children. There were a lot of smiles in the room... until the pit bull came near Stanley and abruptly veered away, sending all three of his passengers flying. Stanley caught them without thinking about it... and set them back atop the frozen Barbie while they screamed in what he thought was excitement. Caffeine came back to smack Stanley''s face with his giant tongue, then he spun on Barbie and dropped into another bow, this one shallow enough that he only almost threw the kids off. He barked and took off again in the opposite direction. Barbie stood still, staring at Stanley, until Caffeine finished another circuit and barked as he raced past. The pit bull took up the chase. Stanley stayed where he was and watched them play. He could see the little hands holding fistfuls of his fur as Caffeine ran, but the pug didn''t seem to mind at all. The kids switched out riders as they inevitably fell off, with even some of the older kids getting in on the action. He only realized Zeke was there when the kid lit up one rider who fell a little too hard. Eve stood right behind him, and her eyes snapped away when Stanley met her gaze. He didn''t linger on her... because there was a giant behind them. The giant met his gaze briefly before continuing his nonstop scan of the room. "This is what I fight for," Nate finally said beside him. "This is what it''s all about." Only mean, snarky comments came to his mind, so Stanley said nothing. Instead, he tried to stay in the moment and just enjoy Caffeine''s clear happiness. To be glad that Barbie wasn''t terrified of him anymore. Good Boys. But apparently Nate wanted to keep talking. "This system wants us to be monsters, to fight for our lives. I am willing to be the monster if that''s what it takes to preserve this." He had big dreams. Foolish dreams... but seeing Caffeine play... hearing the carefree laughter... "It''s a sacrifice for sure. To be on the front lines. To be the one taking the hits. Not everyone will see it. Not everyone will understand or appreciate the costs of their safety. No one here knows what you''ve been through¡­ and I don''t want them to know. I want them to laugh and smile. They don''t need to know how bad it is out there. They don''t need to be afraid." "They should be scared." "Maybe, but I will fight my way through hell and back to make sure those kids keep smiling. Not only me, either. There are others here willing to get their hands dirty, to wade through rivers of blood if that is what it takes. You are not alone. There are others fighting for the same cause." Stanley stayed silent. "So let me help you. Let us help. You''ve done so much for everyone here, even if you didn''t mean to or want to. You made all of this possible. So let us return the favor. You''ve held the line by yourself when you should have had an army at your back. Let us fight with you." What would it be like to have someone like Nate helping him... to have anyone... to not face the monsters alone? To not have to watch Caffeine suffer when he fell short... Stanley missed Lee more than ever at this moment... but he was glad Lee wasn''t here. He didn''t want his brother to suffer this nightmare with him. Of course, Lee wasn''t much safer outside this dungeon either¡­ because Stanley had left him. To have allies... people that weren''t trying to stab him in the back... Stanley wanted that. He wanted what Nate was offering. He wanted the laughter and smiles... but he knew too much for that. He knew how screwed they were... He''d gotten a taste of it when Samantha and the others had helped him, had protected him and Caffeine when they needed it most, and he hadn''t appreciated them until it was too late. Hadn''t truly trusted Samantha... until it was too late. Until she gave her life to save him. Stanley wanted to feel... safe. Even if it was an illusion. He wanted Caffeine to be safe. "Okay." Nate kept his hands clasped behind his back but bumped Stanley''s shoulder with his own. "It''s not over yet. We''re going to win this. I have a feeling." ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine played the best game of chase with his new best friend! It was the best because Dearest Human was smelling less like sadness and frightened! Dearest Human smelled like very sad and very afraid before, but now the Not Dearest Human beside him must have said some good magic words. Magic words always made Caffeine happy. Like Treat! Or Breakfast! Or Good Boy! Oh, maybe the Good Human was telling Dearest Human he was a Good Boy! Caffeine told Dearest Human he was the very goodest of boys every day, but it didn¡¯t always comfort him. ¡°Good Boy!¡± Caffeine said it again as he chased past, just in case. It worked! Dearest Human smelled a little more like happiness! All the Little Humans on his back made so many happiness and excited noises as he chased New Best Friend. It was the best to carry new friends! Almost as good as when Dearest Human carried him for cuddle naps! He played for a long time. Until the little humans smelled too much like tired. There were so many of them. So many new friends. It was the best play ever! Then he had the best cuddle nap with Dearest Human! Though he did have to comfort Dearest Human a few times during the napping. But that was fine. He was good at comfort! 62. Let The Sky Fall ~~~Stanley~~~ "I wanna join your team for this alone! I don''t care if you can fight or not! Flying is awesome!" Stanley ignored the chatter. He''d slept terribly, and now his tired mind was on the souls coming into view ahead. His hands were aching where they wrapped around the spear in a white-knuckled death-grip and his fingers felt weak... slick. A cold sweat that wasn''t drying fast enough in the wind of their flight. He dropped everyone a good distance from the warehouse he''d fled the day before. Then he took himself and Caffeine higher. The pug wouldn''t be fighting these things... not until his attributes were much, much higher. Or preferably, never. It was far easier to pinpoint a target with Soul Sight, and he used it to pick out one of the two monsters just inside the open bay door. That they looked like guards waiting in ambush for someone to enter was not lost on him... The first one he touched with his mind felt like a praying mantis. A ten foot tall praying mantis... in line with what Nate said. It also shifted at his touch, head turning. You won''t hurt Caffeine... I won''t let you touch him! I won''t let you even get close! Stanley felt the fear twisting his stomach, and he forced himself to face it. To imagine what his weakness would cost. To fuel his rage. Never, ever touch him! He snatched the mantis with his power and immediately knew Nate was right about them being E-grade. He dragged the immensely heavy thing through the door before it could react and threw his spear. A scythe-like claw deflected the spear, and long legs kicked the ground to launch the giant bug into the air directly toward him. Stanley screamed as he tried to restrain the monster, then dodged aside as it flew through the space he''d been hovering. There was a noticeable shift in how heavy the thing felt as it entered his domain. Stanley used that increased power to immobilize the flailing limbs and twist its head around repeatedly until it ripped free of the body. The mantis resumed flailing without a head.. and it continued flailing as it crashed back to the ground. Despite the thrashing, Soul Sight told him it was dead. Then he saw the second monster charging, now well past the door, but it ran after Nate instead. The closer target. Nate leaned aside from the scythe blow that sent a blade of light carving into the dirt and blasted a glowing fist through its front leg. At the same time, orange light bloomed around the mantis with ghostly tendrils wrapping around and through it, and Stanley saw its motions slow considerably. It was James... orange streamers trailed from him to the circle of light beneath the mantis. Nate took it apart like it was standing still, which, compared to how fast he was moving, it almost was. No one else got to engage before the monster died. Though it didn''t flail around like the one Stanley decapitated, not that it had enough limbs to do so. It was... quick and easy. Too easy. Stanley breathed rapidly, his pulse pounding through his head as he watched his flailing mantis finally go still. That... wasn''t so bad. Nate picked up the core and tossed it at him. He didn''t even hesitate. Core Chip(E-grade) +10 Dexterity Only a single attribute¡ªliterally, in his case. Stanley paused, his eyes scanning over the souls he could see inside the lair. Not nearly enough to get him even close to E-grade... he''d need hundreds. Whereas someone like Nate... His hand shook. Then clenched tight around the core. Nate hadn''t attacked him last night. He''d had his chance and not taken it. That had to mean something... had to mean he was trustworthy... right? Caffeine liked him well enough... What if it was all an act last night? He only wanted my help with... Except he''d just seen them kill the mantis without his help... So Nate didn''t even need him. He could have come here without ever telling him the lair existed. Stanley pocketed the core and then did the same with his own kill. He didn''t need the points just yet... he could think about it. Then he sent the spear inside and put everything he could into punching it through a mantis'' head. It dodged at the last second. Though he still clipped it. He would have nailed it with the old skill... The mantis didn''t rush for the door this time, only chasing the spear as it looped back around. Stanley didn''t want another parry since he didn''t know exactly how durable the spear was... Samantha''s spear... So he flew it away and headed for the door, leading the mantis outside. Orange light wrapped it up before it got very far past the threshold, and Nate let the others take shots this time. Stanley watched and didn''t interfere. He wanted to see what they could do. One man summoned and threw what looked like crystalline spikes. Or glass shards... Another summoned whips of fire and lashed them against the mantis with a nice snapping sound when they connected. What looked like white lasers burned holes through the creature, not quickly though, and not cleanly, with the way it was moving around as it charged closer. Nate punched one of its spindly legs off when it got too close, and the monster turned to attack him instead of chasing the others. He just danced back while weaving around the swiping blows until it gave up and pursued the people still attacking it. Then he did it again. Stanley waited until it looked almost done before sending his spear after the next one. He again failed to get the kill, but this time did some real damage by aiming for the larger body and not missing when it tried to dodge. He also drew out two of the creatures instead of just one. "Low mana!" James yelled as soon as they emerged, and Stanley stared at him in disbelief. "Going to need help, Stanley!" Nate called while his entire body lit up. He ducked under a scythe-like limb and his fist blurred like it had with the teleporter. The attacking limb flew away mid swing, and then Nate had to dive away from not only the other arm but also the two additional blades coming from the second mantis. Stanley''s whirling spear came in from the rear, and the second bug jumped into the air. His spear went up right after it and shredded the thing''s legs in a spray of yellow ichor. It screeched with a high-pitched sound right before Nate took its head off¡ªa barely heard sound but still extremely irritating. Worse, Stanley saw more motion in his peripheral vision. A glance confirmed what he feared. They were coming. All of them. "Time to go!" He grabbed everyone and pulled for the sky. The heavy fucking people... "Stop resisting!" Nate stopped glowing, and it all got a lot easier. Then the monsters boiled through the door. Including one twice again as large as the others... It swiped at the air... and glowing crescent blades of silver light shot into the sky after them. Stanley nearly dropped everyone right then... instead, he just dropped lower. Under the attack. More followed in an almost constant stream of flying blades. Cursing, Stanley dodged and weaved, descending more than climbing as he traveled further away. Eventually, he dropped below the treeline and veered off to the side. He heard the destruction in the distance, but none of the attacks made it all the way through the woods to reach their location. So that was nice. Still, he kept moving until the souls were almost beyond the range of his sight. "Who the hell runs out of mana after two attacks!?" Stanley yelled when he finally dropped everyone what he hoped was a safe distance away. James glared at him. Along with some of the other casters. "Who doesn''t?" "We didn''t all get lucky with a great class..." someone else muttered. Stanley blinked and looked at Nate. "Seriously?" He''d seen that Tony guy throwing spells way more often... "No idea how your class works," Nate said. "But lots of people didn''t get a combat class. We''ve scrounged most of these skills from monster cores, and... well, just cause you can learn a skill doesn''t make it cheaper to cast." "Casters," another man said while shaking his head. He was the guy that loved flying... "Everyone wants to do magic instead of just hitting shit the way god intended." He smacked a pipe wrench against his palm for emphasis. "You''re an idiot, Edward," said one of the two women on the team. "Those things would cut you into pieces without James'' magic. Probably with it, too..." "Hey, it was Nate''s idea to punch above our weight class like this!" "Easy guys," Nate said. "We can do this... though having them all charge out en masse was... unexpected." Stanley frowned at the man. Wasn''t knowing the unexpected like his whole deal? Nate guessed what he was thinking again. "I''m not infallible, Stanley. I knew this would be difficult. Think of that as our warmup run. Now we just need a better strategy for how to deal with them going forward." He looked at James. "Don''t we have a silencer at camp?" This is stupid. I was scared for nothing. Stanley flew a short distance away and reached into the ground. He met far more resistance than usual when trying to pull up enough dirt for a shield. He thought it was just his lower stats at first... until he tried to uproot a tree. It barely budged. It was an old tree, and he could feel the extensive root system as he pulled on it. He got mad and... let go of the tree. They were still healthy out here... not like the withering ones Samantha had used for her spear... The trees didn''t like them. She''d told him that. Which meant trees could... like things? Or was she just projecting on them? "Everything alright, Stanley?" Nate said. "No." Stanley flew up and spent a few moments checking for souls in the direction they''d fled from. He could just make them out, and they weren''t following. Then he flew to an open patch of the woods where a road ran through and ripped it all up. Dirt, rocks, and the mess of crap that made up a road. He didn''t want to kill the trees... He wasn''t about to start hugging them like Samantha... but if he didn''t need to kill them... He could remember her smile when she made that first spear... by talking to the tree. "Stanley, wait!" Her broken smile after he hurt her. Her decapitated head with a slack and bloody face that would never smile again... This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Stanley ignored the man sprinting after him and followed the road, ripping up more and more of it. Until the gathered mass started to feel heavy. Then he remembered Caffeine''s pain and sorrow... He picked up more. He flew back toward those same glowing souls he''d run away from. Toward them, only much higher. They''d retreated inside already, but that was fine. The first rock shattered on the roof, and the souls boiled into action again, surging for the door. Stanley made it rain, and the first raindrops hit like boulders, because they were boulders, and they touched down right as the first mantis spilled through the door. It dodged the first two rocks and got clipped by the third. Likewise, for those that followed it out. None of the rocks hit quite like Nate''s punches, but there were a lot of them. Tons of them. Along with a shit-ton of dirt. Crescent blades shot up at him, and Stanley simply drifted aside the few that punched through his avalanche of descending ruin. He had plenty of time to see them coming from his height. Then he flew away to gather more. This time, the mantis leader didn''t retreat. Probably because he''d just buried the whole front half of its warehouse lair. Along with all of its minions. He suspected it was the one who''d known where he was when the rocks fell. A smart bug. The worst kind. Stanley changed his plan as it pursued him across the ground. He led it toward Nate instead. The guy had his intuition. He would know it was coming, right? The team should have had time enough to regenerate some mana. Maybe they could still do something useful. He saw Nate''s soul sprint out ahead of the others to intercept the incoming monster, and the magic blades stopped flying into the sky. So Stanley flew down, spear leading the way, targeting the bright green soul that smelled like sharp leaves... Orange light sprang up on the monster before he reached it, and Stanley smiled. Look at that! They can do something right. His spear blasted through its back in an explosion of that same yellow ichor, then buried itself in the dirt below. The impact staggered the giant bug, and Nate capitalized on the momentary lapse to take off one of its scythe-like arms. Spells flew in while he did that, and Edward charged in with his wrench... "No!" Nate bent over backwards to dodge the scything claw, then spun sideways to avoid the stabbing leg that followed. Edward came in from the side missing a claw, which was smart, and took a leg straight through his gut, skewering him like meat on a spit. Which wasn''t smart. Stanley grabbed the leg and only the leg. It was heavy, but nowhere near trying to restrain the entire creature. Without his old Psionic Weapon skill, he''d lost the spear when it went into the ground. So he grabbed a rock instead and threw it at the leg joint. The rock exploded into dust... with no visible damage to the mantis... which explained why his earlier attack failed. Caffeine decided he wanted to play next, and Stanley had to focus on keeping the pug from jumping down. You are not fighting that! He dragged the man off the leg and set him down with the rest of the group. One of them was supposed to be a healer... Then he ripped the dirt out from under the mantis with as much force as he could. Nate back-flipped away just ahead of the exploding ground, and the mass of dirt hit hard enough to launch the giant bug into the air. It also brought his spear back into his perception... below the mantis. Stanley snatched it and took off the monster''s legs in a blurring spin before it reached the ground. The spear was definitely more durable than the rocks... It still had the one claw, and the orange tendrils were fading... but Nate came back in fast and took its last weapon. Then it tried to bite his head off... and Nate blocked its jaws with its own severed limb. The spear was enough after that, and Stanley stabbed it repeatedly until it finally stopped twitching. Nate was giving him a look, but said nothing and only ran off to check on the wounded idiot. Stanley took the core and flew back to the warehouse, where a couple of barely surviving bugs were digging themselves out of the dirt pile he''d buried them in. Tired and wounded, it was easy to finish them. Then he had to dig out the cores... A process simplified and probably only possible because Soul Sight let him see the cores through the dirt. That done, he flew inside. You have entered a Lair: [The Swaying Scythe] An odd name... but fitting enough. The Queen has surrendered. Lair defeated. He didn''t destroy the queen or the eggs. They might spawn more E-grades... hopefully weaker and easier to kill. He still sought them out to see what they looked like in his Soul Sight. The eggs glowed... faintly. Not enough to spot through the lair walls, but bright enough once he was inside and got a little closer. The light was close to the green leaf scent the mantis souls looked like, but paler and not sharp. There were also hundreds of them... Stanley left them all there and went looking for Nate. Grabbing the surrender core on the way out the door. Skill Shard(E-grade) Mantis Bite (Common) ... The skill was crap, but it offered points to all his attributes instead of only one. So, that was something. Maybe Nate could have someone checking on the eggs to see when they hatched... How long would he need to wait to get another surrender? Assuming the new bugs still gave core chips. He found the group where he''d left them, Edward still lying in the dirt... Didn''t they have a healer? "Could you fly us back, Stanley?" Nate asked. "We need to get Edward to Zeke." His voice sounded off... was he plotting something? In fact... all of them were looking at him strangely. Stanley still picked them up, but kept them at a distance as he flew. He watched Caffeine as much as the others, watched for a growl or bark, any sign that something was happening. Nothing did, and Stanley dropped the others outside the building, then took the wounded man right to Zeke, that golden soul standing out as plainly as ever. Eve was with her brother, tinkering at a nearby table in the dining room. She lurched to her feet and nearly fell over while scrambling closer to her brother the moment Stanley flew through the large, broken window with Edward. Stanley ignored her reaction, his attention on the giant from the night before. His soul was a mix somewhat akin to Nate''s, with an ugly bruise-like purple that felt exactly as it looked, and a dark red that towered up into an infinite brick wall... Weird. The man also moved upon his entrance, only toward Stanley instead of Zeke. A bodyguard... It was obvious once he made the connection. Nate would absolutely want to protect Zeke. Which reminded him of another conversation... Constitution. This had to be the guy with the bonus attribute, and who better to protect someone than the toughest person here? There were more people in the room, spread out in an almost relaxed manner. All of them reacted to his entrance exactly as the giant did. So a bunch of bodyguards. Dropping Edward on a table next to Zeke got things rolling without him having to say anything. Golden light filled the room, and Stanley watched the gaping wound shrink smaller and smaller until only unblemished skin remained. It happened much faster than his own regeneration. The formerly wounded man scrambled to his feet with a delighted laugh. "God damn if I''m not glad we found you, kid! That is some wicked good healing you got there! Up top!" Zeke stared wide-eyed and nervous at the raised hand before hesitantly reaching up to tap it with his own. "Hell yea! Down..." "Edward," Nate said, walking into the room and interrupting the far too excited man. "Take a break. Get some lunch. We''ll head out again if you''re still up for it." "Damn right, I am! Thanks to Zeke here." "Stanley." Nate turned to him, and he had a look in his eye... was he mad? "Can we talk privately?" Stanley touched the cores in his pocket; he still hadn''t used them... Did Nate know that? Was he hoping to claim them after the fact? His first assumption that Nate didn''t need his help rang a little hollow after that shitshow out there. Or... Stanley looked at the people in the room with him and felt some anger of his own stirring. His gaze settled back on Nate. "Sure. Let''s talk." Then he floated backwards out the window, watching the other man as he went. "Privately." Nate caught up in the woods. "What the hell was that, Stanley?" Stanley met Nate''s glare with his own but drifted backward for each step Nate advanced. He wasn''t an idiot. "Great question, Nate. What the hell was that?" The other man finally stopped advancing, his gaze inscrutable as he stared at Stanley. "After your little speech about not fighting alone," Stanley kept ranting. "About having an army at my back... and that''s what you fucking brought me!? A bunch of weaklings that can barely fight!?" Nate plopped onto a fallen log and rubbed his face. "Can you come closer so we don''t have to shout? I''m not going to attack you." Caffeine still wasn''t growling at the man... so Stanley dropped a foot closer. "Seriously?" Nate sighed. "Okay, yes. I didn''t bring the best today. Instead, I left them watching over Zeke because... Well, you know how important he is." Sure, the undead invaders wanted him, but they wanted everyone. Obviously, Zeke was a healer and far more valuable than a lot of these losers¡­ plus the whole blocking miasma deal. "You don''t know... do you? He purifies his surroundings without even trying. The entire building is already free from miasma and it''s not even a lair yet. We can bring headless corpses in and he removes the corruption before they reach the cooks. The mindless zombies won''t approach anymore, and they burn if we drag them inside. And the effect is spreading!" Nate''s voice grew more passionate as he went on, and he moved as if to stand before settling back down and lowering his voice. "He is anathema to the undead. To the invaders." He stared intently up at Stanley. "You nearly died saving him from them. Saving him from being recruited. What do you think would happen if they got hold of him? Never mind simply killing him and taking away our sanctuary. What if they could turn him into one of them? What would his... power become? His aura?" Stanley wasn''t stupid. He could follow the logic. It was obvious once Nate laid it out like that... "The miasma." "I whole-heartedly believed what I was saying when I sent you that way and said it was the only way any of us survived. I believe it now more than ever. I also believe that they won''t let this go. They will come for him." "So you lied to me, and..." "No! I didn''t lie. I brought you people willing to step up. People willing to hold the line." Nate tapped the side of his head. "I hand-picked each of them specifically to be on your team. Admittedly, they haven''t fought together much before, and hitting an E-grade lair was beyond ambitious for the first test..." Nate sighed, rubbed his face again, and stood up to pace. "I''m ready to fight at your side, Stanley. But I can''t leave Zeke undefended while I''m gone, which means we''ll have to split our forces. That is assuming you want me at your side... though I suspect together we''d be overkill on anything below E-grade." That was true... "As for the others, I trust James with my life. Edward is... definitely too eager. But all of them can help you. Even if only to gather your cores..." Stanley hadn''t told him about any of that. Arthur or Jerry must have blabbed. "Yes, I talked to Arthur about his experiences... No, I can''t read your mind. But I can recognize when you''re suspicious." That was very suspicious. What if he found a skill shard for telepathy... "Give them a chance, Stanley. Take them to some F-grade lairs while we look for more E-grades. Watch over them if you can... They should do fine... but please keep in mind that Zeke''s healing is beyond anything any healer I''ve seen can accomplish. Your own regeneration is also abnormal... so... just keep that in mind and try to keep them alive. Please?" Stanley felt a little disillusioned after that speech the night before. An army of people like Nate would change things. But those people¡ªhe didn''t even need core gatherers anymore. Soul Sight made the process simple. He was also feeling embarrassed about his meltdown the night before... He needed to be stronger than that. Lee was counting on him. Caffeine was counting on him. He couldn''t afford weakness! So much was riding on him. He needed to be strong. Needed the rage. Never again! I won''t fail you, Lee! I will kill... "You don''t need to fight alone. Please take them with you." "I don''t need weak..." "Arthur told me everything. How you and Caffeine went down from something they never saw. How they fought all night to protect you. If that happens again..." "It won''t happen again!" Stanley stopped keeping his distance and got in Nate''s face. Screaming. "Because I won''t be too fucking weak!" "They can protect you," Nate said with aggravating calm. "Edward has a skill that he can use to call for help. Silas can make a shield out of those crystals. Serenity can heal small injuries. James can slow the attackers, and Olivia can shine those lights clear across the city. If necessary. Plus, they will only get stronger." Caffeine was sitting up by then and trying to shove his head between their faces with small whining noises. Nate obliged the pug by taking a step back and sitting on his log. Stanley was angry. He wanted to scream, rage, and tear something apart. But Caffeine wouldn''t like it... So he closed his eyes and pet the pug. Arthur had betrayed him... told all his secrets... all his failures... Samantha. That one hurt. Did Nate know all about her now? Did he know what Stanley did to her? When she was only trying to help... how she died to save him, even after everything he did? Tears welled up... No! Stanley clenched his fists. He had to be stronger. He remembered last night. All those happy faces. All those damn fools! Why should they be happy when they were all still trapped in here? Why did they deserve to... except it made Caffeine happy. Caffeine deserved all the happiness he could get. Nate''s words... about supporting each other. He''d wanted that... still wanted it. He wanted to not be afraid... to smile again. He didn''t deserve to smile after what he''d done... but Caffeine did. They were so weak. But if something happened like before... if he left Caffeine alone... maybe they could help him. If only to call for help... Would Nate come if they called? Would he bring Zeke? Or would he hoard his precious healer... No, he knew Caffeine was special. Nate would want to save him. Right? That thought finally did it for him. Another layer of protection for Caffeine. Maybe some more friends to make him happy. He could drag them around for Caffeine''s sake alone. Maybe they would actually get stronger... maybe they wouldn''t die. "Fine." "Thank you." Nate was smiling again. It looked smug. "This is a good thing, Stanley. Trust me." Trust? What''s not to trust? 63. Im Not Afraid ~~~Lee~~~ Lee felt great. Nothing like a hot shower after a workout to get one ready for a new day of violence and bloodshed. Martin was still alive, as Lee knew he would be. He hadn''t doubted for a second... The best part was that today Martin held his lesson first thing in the morning, for the kids, and Lee got to join in. Sure, training with a bunch of kids, ranging from preteen to toddler, was... odd. But then he''d missed a few lessons recently, so it worked out. As long as he got the attributes, it really didn''t matter. Also, the whole learning to fight better couldn''t hurt... Of course, the main reason he felt so good was the breakfast burrito in his hands. Which he took another bite of in a vain attempt to quell the inferno that was his mouth. "Too... hot..." he wheezed, pushing the bowl of devil sauce back toward the beaming Jamaal. Literal devil sauce. Buff: [Devil Sauce](00:15) Enhanced Sense of Taste with a Side Effect of Burning. Lee was pretty sure his regeneration had kicked in the moment it touched his tongue¡­ How it was considered a buff was a mystery. Unfortunately, the enhanced taste part was true. Oh, god... so good! Buff Removed: [Devil Sauce] He dragged the bowl back before Jamaal could take it away. "Just... a... little... more!" Then sprinkled a few more drops onto the burrito. I have good regeneration... I won''t die... Buff: [Devil Sauce](00:30) For some reason, his mouth didn''t stop burning even after the buff expired... residual trauma maybe. Then Alejandro dragged him to the garage and the huge crowd waiting there. All of them wanting mana access. Back to work. ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley smiled when he opened his eyes and looked around, eager to tell someone... anyone? Lee was busy giving mana access to the crafters while they all picked out areas of the parking garage for their own workstations. He''d been right that they''d love it. Bradley only had to tell a few people before word spread. Now every crafting class wanted a spot in the garage. Lee didn''t want them taking the apartments yet... Bradley had an apartment here... not originally, but Maria had shown it to him after Lee invited him as a resident. He hated it. An apartment full of dead people''s stuff... that was all nicer than his own. But the mana from the building was undeniably a good thing. Unbelievable really. Despite Lee''s warning, he''d gotten a little mana burn when he went overboard yesterday... He shivered while watching Lee talking with the crafters. He''d heard all about what Lee did to kill the snake... Hell, he''d fixed the huge hole in the building... mostly. They said Lee got mana burn for three days after that. Bradley got one hour, and it was the worst pain he''d ever felt. Aside from the... snake... No! I won''t be a coward! Bradley dug his nails into his palms until his hands stopped shaking. He''d promised Jake... even if the hunter was leaving. Lee hadn''t given up. Even though he got mana burned for three days by killing the snake and saving Bradley''s life. Even after he supposedly blew himself up in Mexico... Even after he used that horrifying power and turned himself into an old man... Lee kept going out there... kept fighting. I won''t let my life be a waste. Even now, Lee glowed in the dim light of the garage. His eyes were the most obvious, but there was also a faint tracing of glowing blue veins down his arms... Hell, his whole body was glowing now. Like he had a flashlight under his skin. It looked awesome¡­ Bradley had checked his own eyes in the mirror. They glowed brown when he used his mana... it was ugly. Nothing like that blazing blue... and his veins didn''t glow at all. He went outside, despite the way it made his heart race when he saw the open sky... Not a coward! All those people talking, smiling, and laughing, while he watched, alone and apart from it all. It sucked. Magic didn''t suck. It was awesome! He activated his new class skill and pulled a perfectly square block of earth from the ground. The four foot wide cube floated up beneath his hand... and he closed his fist. The block shrank, compacting more and more... until it was harder than stone, and he dropped the much smaller cube into the palm of his hand. He squeezed, and it smoothed out into a sphere. He''d lost the ability to create new earth from mana by evolving his class and skill, but there was dirt everywhere. Bradley was confident this skill was significantly better than the old one. Plus, it was epic! Another burst of mana, and it exploded back out into a pile of dirt once more. He dumped it back into... "That''s so cool." Bradley screamed as he leaped away from the sudden voice beside him. A high-pitched scream that trailed off into a wheeze as he saw the absolutely gorgeous girl staring wide-eyed at him. She vanished an instant later, and Bradley wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow him up. The ground obliged, and he fell into the cold darkness while his face felt like it might be on fire. He huddled down there for a long, horrible moment of pure embarrassment and shame. Mar... I can''t believe I did that in front of her! Ahh! He wanted to scream aloud... but she might hear him... Besides, it was nice and cool down here. Maybe he''d stay. He could build a little apartment underground... never have to see her again... It was the hardest thing he''d ever done, worse even than looking at the sky, but Bradley made the earth spit him back out. I won''t be a coward! One small thought helped give him the courage he needed as daylight shone on him once more. She said it was cool... Mar was gone. Bradley didn''t know whether he was relieved or crushed. He''d never worked up the courage to talk to her before... and now he had. If a high-pitched scream could be considered talking... She must think I''m an idiot. Or worse, a coward... He sat in the dirt, and... Something scrapped nearby, loud enough to hear over the voices from the garage. Bradley spun, his heart racing... and saw nothing. "I''m sorry," a voice came from thin air. Mar''s voice! "I didn''t mean to... sneak up on you." "It..." Bradley almost choked when his voice cracked. "It''s fine! I wasn''t scared!" The lie rang hollow, even to his own ears, and he resisted the urge to sink back into the ground... "It was cool," she said quickly, and he thought he heard scuffing feet moving away. "Thanks..." He didn''t know if she was still there or not, but he couldn''t help the smile as he looked upward. She thinks it''s cool! Even the sight of all that open sky didn''t bother him. Not for a little while. Then he scrambled to his feet and forced himself to walk further from the building toward the wall. With his new evolutions, he could make it bigger. Stronger. How much cooler would the skill get if he leveled up more? Bradley poured mana into the wall and the surrounding earth. Then he ''pulled'' it all into the wall. An earthen block compacted. Its density rose as he forced more ''earth'' to occupy the same space. Until it was stronger than any stone pre-system. He pushed it to the limits of his power... then moved to the next block. I won''t be afraid anymore. ~~~Lee~~~ Maria opted to stay behind this time. Not a bad choice, since Saira wanted to come along. Lee wasn''t sure if they were still worried about him or just wanted to get in on the hunting action. He suspected the former and had absolutely no problem with the extra protection. At least they were keeping the healers spread out, though there was a tiny smidge of guilt about taking the best one from the fort outside with him. A bit of extra responsibility to ensure her protection in return. That was also on top of the massive garden she was growing around Three. She''d left gaps for the garage entrance and the doors, but the growth was severely hampering the light that should have been coming through the bars... something he could fix easily enough. But later. Lots of the crafters wanted to put in walls for their own little areas... He hadn''t tried adding new runes to the building yet, and wasn''t hopeful about the prospect. But he could always enchant a rock or piece of metal to make lights. Or ideally, get Three to add them like it had the silence around May, if he could figure out how to make that happen. Wilson showed up after the crafters, still in his suit, and with two obvious bodyguards beside him decked out in runed armor and weapons. He looked past Lee as if searching for someone... and then his eyes trailed slowly back. "Vice... Commander?" "Who?" Lee asked. "I don''t know anybody like that, mister." Wilson frowned. Then his expression shifted to horror and dawning recognition. It only lasted a moment before he smoothed his face back into the friendly politician''s smile. "Mr Cascade. I heard you pulled off something extraordinary during the attack... and I see they were right about some of it." Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. He said that while staring at Lee''s new look, but appeared unimpressed when his eyes roved over the building. He obviously couldn''t detect mana. Much less the Source. Don''t listen to him, Three. You''re awesome! Out loud, Lee said, "Oh, that Vice Commander!" Wilson smiled politely, and Lee stopped joking around with the guy who''d stolen his fort. He wasn¡¯t that upset. "Honestly, I''m a little relieved to let someone else handle all this..." And he meant it. It was a massive responsibility, with hundreds of lives in the balance. Lee was having enough trouble worrying about a handful of them... "You can handle it, right?" The guy had bodyguards already. That at least showed he was aware of his own weakness. Wilson looked... affronted. Yep, that was definitely the right word for his expression. He was affronted. Then he smiled. "I assure you, I am up to the challenge." His smile still looked fake. A politician smile. So maybe he wasn''t as confident as he claimed? That was fair. Lee wasn''t confident about anything most days. "Well, if you need my help with anything, just let me know. I''m sure lots of people besides me will also help. We all want this place to be strong." "Of course... of course. Everyone will have a role to fill, and I look forward to working with all of you." Just like his smile, it was a very politician-y line. Agreeable, but without specifics. "We heard about a lair that''s supposed to give up metal ore," Lee said, deciding to get on with things. "Some kind of earth golems or something, but with metal cores. Heading that way now." "That sounds like it will be exceedingly helpful, and exactly what I came to discuss. After our victory last night, and after I was awarded leadership, I was notified that part of our reward includes a new resource lair. Since you are already on top of it, I won''t keep you. Good hunting, Vice Commander." Lee waited until he''d turned around to roll his eyes. Whatever else the man was feeling, he definitely enjoyed being in charge. That much was obvious. He''d ask Alejandro later about how things were really going. Assuming he was still... "Alejandro, are you still a General?" Alejandro nodded. "Yes, it didn''t change with..." "I want to come with you!" Bradley shouted while sprinting over. He then turned bright red when Lee and Alejandro turned to face him. Lee hid his smile¡ªmostly just glad it was someone else blushing instead of him. He''d seen the younger man working at something on the wall, and he must have overheard them talking about the lair. "You sure?" "Y... yes!" Bradley stammered. "I heard where you''re going, and I can help!" He lifted a hand, and a smooth block of earth rose beneath it. "I got a class evolution... and I want to help..." "That''s great!" It was really great. If he could control earth... well, it might make hunting the supposed earth golems a breeze. Bradley lit up. "It''s called Earth... Shaper..." His face fell, and he blushed halfway through the name. "I know it doesn''t sound like much... but..." "Sounds awesome! Let''s get you in some armor." Lee didn''t question why Bradley wasn''t wearing any armor already. He remembered how scared the guy was to even go outside... however long ago that was. No need to bring that up. He was just glad Bradley had done so much to help since. Not to mention, he didn''t want to discourage him now that the guy seemed ready to hit a lair. May had some armor left, but not a lot. Enough to get Bradley reasonably protected, and with Saira along for the trip, they should be fine. They had only just finished the armor when Jake appeared and held out his runed knife. "Lee, I''m heading out. Top me up?" "Sure." Lee took the knife. "Want me to jazz this up at all? Or enchant a few more weapons? Your armor?" "Nah. This one is enough. Your shit makes everything too easy. Only for emergencies." Lee just shook his head and jazzed it up, anyway. The knife''s metal felt stronger than it should¡ªbetter than May''s creations. He didn''t question it and just added a new, more complex rune on impulse. An idea he wanted to try. It was enough extra mana that he winced slightly toward the end... But it held together, right at the limit. Lee smiled at the creation he''d just made¡ªa whole new world of possibilities opening up for the future... If this golem lair turned out to be what he hoped... "It should last a long time if you aren''t using it much," Lee said, and handed over the knife after recharging the sheath. "What do I owe you?" Jake said, while strapping the knife back on. "It¡¯s on the house." "I noticed you got usurped by Wilson." "It''s no big deal," Lee grumbled. "Who even wants to be in charge of this mess?" Jake laughed. "Right?" Then he sobered. "I''d keep an eye on him. Guy''s a snake and definitely shouldn''t be trusted with power." "I... what do you know?" "He hasn''t done anything that I know of... yet. But..." "He''s a politician?" Jake chuckled. "So you do see it!" Lee shook his head. "He got lucky from what I heard. No way he gets to stay in charge for very long." "K. I''m out. Peace!" Jake turned without further ado and walked away. "Thanks..." Lee said as Jake disappeared mid-step. "...and goodbye." He was gone. Just like that... Lee was surprised to realize he would miss Jake... The guy scared him sometimes, but he was beyond reliable in a fight. He''d also hunted down and killed the monster in Tijuana. Sure, that was probably just him looking for a good fight and some E-grades... but he''d probably saved thousands of lives by doing so. Good hunting, Jake. It also reminded him of something. His title was supposed to give him a skill shard¡ªepic or below. Triggering the reward was as easy as thinking about it, and Lee got to watch a core appear in front of him out of nothing. One moment there was nothing, the next a core. Mana created out of nowhere... Weird. He caught it, and... Skill Shard(F-grade) Summon Plate (Common) A dish for every meal. User may summon a plate mana construct. Size, detail, and duration determined by supplied mana and skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Duration +1% Variation Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require 50% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? "The hell is this?" Turned out skills could be really bad... it didn''t even give a stat boost. Some reward... "Uh..." Lee turned around and found Bradley looking extremely uncomfortable with the sword May had shoved into his hand. It was one of the elf swords... "I don''t know how to use a sword... and I''m s... worried about cutting myself..." "Can you fight with your magic?" Lee asked while looking around and noticing all the elf armor and weapons piled up in May''s area. "You don''t have to use a sword. It''s just the best option most of us have." "What about a hammer?" Bradley said. "Or a mace?" "Now you want custom orders!?" May exclaimed, and Bradley backed up. "I didn''t... I mean... I could make it... myself..." He looked at Lee. "Can you enchant a rock?" "Probably." He''d done it before on that first night, even assuming enchanting an entire building made of concrete didn''t count as a rock. Lee was definitely curious about what the other man was planning. Plus, if he could make stone swords or shields, he might be May''s new best friend. Or worst enemy... Bradley headed outside, and Lee followed with the core Jake gave him still in his hand. He checked his status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] Traits: [Adaptable](69%) [Source Nexus] [Conduit] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Runic Augmentation] [Source Burned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 24 (Basic) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) - Level 46 (Intermediate) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 5 Attributes: Strength: 40(+161%)104 Vitality: 46(+162%)120 Dexterity: 46(+160%)119 Wisdom: 59(+794%)527 Intelligence: 65(+794%)581 Willpower: 58(+794%)518 Twin-Soul ??? Non-Class Skills(2/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 37 (Intermediate) Buffs: [Three] [Victory] Debuffs: [Frail] [Feeble] His stats looked great, but it was just Three adding twenty to each attribute. Lee felt the change immediately when he stepped outside behind Bradley. It sucked. It would happen again when he left the fort. Which was a nice buffer, at least, only going up or down ten at a time... As for the new skill... it would be the last non-class skill he could learn. At least until E-grade. I should have asked Jake how many he had now. Bradley pulled earth from the ground like before, only in a cylinder instead of a cube. His hands clenched as the dirt shrank smaller and smaller. Then his fingers twitched, and it lost its cylindrical shape, one end thickening into a more rounded ball. It never quite went round before a loud cracking sound rang out and the stone split into two separate pieces. Bradley flushed bright red and turned partially away as he put his hands on the fragments. Lee watched more than that, though, because he could see the mana at work. Earth mana, from the looks of it. Bradley''s mana wasn''t all earth, though, at least not the mana coming from him. Once his mana went into the dirt, it changed, merging with what was already there and becoming pure earth mana. It looked like reducing the size involved jamming more mana into the dirt until it looked almost like stone... It also hovered without him needing to physically touch it... "Bradley, how far can you control the stone away from yourself? And can you move it fast?" "I... don''t know." He stopped fiddling with the pieces and sent them flying into the wall instead. It was decently fast, and even the range looked solid. "Can you make a spear?" Lee asked. "Doesn''t have to be super sharp... if my idea works." Bradley pulled up more dirt into a cylinder until it was small enough to wrap his hand around. Then he brushed at the end with his fingers as it slowly tapered into a point. If only a crude one. Lee stopped him before he could throw it like the last one. "Let me enchant it, and then see if you can still control it..." That would be the real test. The spear felt just like stone in his hands, heavy but not bad with his F-grade strength, low as it was right now... Lee started with a simple strengthening rune from his rune storage. The uncharged version. Since he wanted to control the process if the stone didn''t hold up. It held, and he figured it would likely hold a sharpening rune as well without breaking. But before that, he held it up toward Bradley. "Does it work?" Bradley stretched out a hand... and the spear floated into the air. Hell yeah! Bradley was going to kick ass... "It''s heavier... weird." Lee hadn''t considered that, but it made enough sense. More power requires more... power. Or mana. "Can you still fly it around?" There was an intense look of concentration on the young man''s face as the spear started to fly point first in a circle around him. Faster, faster, and... it flew away. Directly at Lee. Alejandro appeared in front of Lee, and the spear clanged off his shield. "Oh, my god! I''m so sorry!" "I could have blocked that," Lee said, knocking his own shield against Alejandro''s back. "But thanks." Alejandro just laughed, but Bradley was bright red and kept gushing his apologies until Lee put a hand on him. "Dude. Chill. It wasn''t even sharp." "I''m so..." "So let''s fix that!" Lee picked up the spear and pulled off the strengthening rune. He had runes in his storage for strengthening and sharpening the swords, but given the unusual shape he was dealing with here, he had to draw a new one out. A brief few moments of concentration later. "There you go. Unless... you want to make both ends sharp?" "I... I think one is enough for now..." "Fair. Maybe practice on the way?" "I... yea. I will." "Alright. Let''s go get Saira and Mar." There was a strange sort of squeaking noise from Bradley when he said that... 64. Mouth ~~~Mar~~~ Mar was still upset about Bradley scaring her as she stalked back to her mother. Stupid boy! Though it was funny how he disappeared into the ground like that, maybe she should try scaring him again? She could feel the pulse of mana as she approached and cursed before stepping more softly. Stupid Jake and his stupid lessons! All he ever did was point out her mistakes without ever giving any useful advice! She hated him! ...and now he was leaving... Jake was a badass. He didn''t care what anyone thought or said and wasn''t the least bit scared of a fight. Though he was crazy and loved fighting... so that wasn''t a fair comparison. She didn''t enjoy fighting. At all. She didn''t want to enjoy it. The fear and screams, the blood... Mar scrubbed her hands on her pants. She hated all of it. But to be brave¡ªto not be scared of anything¡ªthat would be... nice. Killing people was horrible. Monsters weren''t much better, but the elves were terrifying. So many people died. She''d almost died. She still remembered the sword flashing past... the sting on her neck. Just a nick. But so close... "Hello, my dear," her mother said without looking up from her plants. "Is everything alright? I heard a scream." Mar shuddered and took a deep breath, trying to let go of her dark thoughts before her mother started another lecture. "It was just Bradley getting scared." "He seems like a nice young man. Hardworking too, if a bit shy." Don''t you dare! "You should get to know him better. I''m sure he could use a friend, and it wouldn''t hurt you to come out of your shell more." Ahhhhh! Whatever happened to the strict woman who lost her mind every time she saw a boy looking Mar''s way? Or worse, caught Mar looking? She acted like a completely different person now! Maybe she got replaced with an alien when... Mar flinched and found herself clutching her right arm as if afraid it wouldn''t be there when she reached for it... Can''t Hear Me She activated her newest skill before the sob escaped, then staggered away and curled up beneath a tree against the wall. There she cried in absolute silence and hugged her knees tight to her chest. Fuck... you, Jake! I can be quiet... It wasn''t Jake''s fault... He''d done what she couldn''t. He''d saved her mom while she cried like a useless little girl... while her mom screamed... while they... Mar sobbed into her knees while her clawing fingers tried to carve holes into her legs. She sobbed silently and invisibly while hidden away from the world. Mar stayed there until the trickle of mana flowing into her back eventually broke her out of it. Her skill cost more mana the more noise she was making, and Lee''s magic building let her keep it going longer than she could have otherwise. Apparently indefinitely. Lee. She still didn''t know what to make of him... He was old now, but she could still see that haunted look in his eyes. Even when he was smiling. Something happened to him when he survived that explosion. He¡¯d come back broken. Mar shivered at the memory of him by the border fence. That whole day had been insane¡ªso much blood. He was the same in the garage before the invasion, enchanting everything he could get his hands on while tears streamed down his face. He''d been frantic... obsessed. Then the elves came, and he ran to fight them. He fought fearlessly. Ruthlessly. Almost suicidal. She didn''t know if he wanted to die... or if his mind had broken beyond repair. Either way, he''d accomplished more than she had. He''d even protected her mom again while she stood frozen in terror a few feet away. Of course, then he''d used that terrifying power to enchant a building that killed all the monsters it touched... She didn''t know what that power was, and it scared her more than that explosion in Mexico. It made Lee old... but it fixed his mind. He was himself again... but old. Speak of the devil... Lee came around the corner with Alejandro and... Bradley. Mar had a sinking feeling when her mom smiled upon seeing them. "Bradley! I haven''t seen you armored up before, but I must say you wear it very well." Bradley''s face looked like a tomato as he stammered, "I... um, thank... you..." "Doesn''t he look quite dashing, Mar?" Bradley audibly choked, and Mar wanted to strangle the woman. Shut up! Shut up! Shut Up! Lee looked directly at Mar. The cheater. "Have mercy on the poor boy," Alejandro said while chuckling traitorously. This was going to be a long day... ~~~Lee~~~ Alejandro introduced two more additions to the group from his guard force. Lucas and Penelope. Then they headed south toward where Jake claimed there was a new hole in the ground, and where Wilson''s information seemed to agree they had a resource to claim. Lee watched the mana as they left. He could see it flowing into the fort in a steady stream, but only in, as if the fort was absorbing it. The sight wasn''t that strange; many of the lairs did the same thing. Though he was less clear on what exactly the mana did in their home versus the lairs. It grew monsters in the lairs, presumably, but what did it do for humans? The one directional flow subsided the further they moved, but it didn''t stop flowing. Mana never seemed to sit still from what he''d seen. Well, rocks tended to be rather still, but they felt¡­ patient rather than unmoving. The atmospheric mana never stopped moving, and while some of it tended to ride the wind, not all of it did. Seeing the flows abruptly shift in a new direction gave Lee another idea. Could he follow mana to find lairs? Neither Jake nor Wilson had given precise directions, and Lee decided to test his theory. It worked. He found a lair. Only, probably not the right one... The lair he found was extremely interesting, but most definitely not a hole in the ground. It was a guard shack beside a dirt road, within sight of the border fence¡­ Lee didn''t like that, but was plenty distracted by what he found inside the guard shack to ignore the nightmare fence. He stuck his head through the door. You have entered a Lair: [Watching Maw] A not at all ominous name. Then he walked the handful of strides around the guard shack and stuck his head back in. "It''s bigger on the inside!" Bradley yelled. Lee winced at the man''s volume but couldn''t disagree. It was indeed bigger on the inside. A lot bigger. Mana Mind showed him that much... and Lee felt like he might sprain something in his brain while trying to wrap his head around what exactly his mind was seeing. He''d looked inside enough of these buildings during his time on the truck with Stanley to recognize that same fake wood wall paneling so many of them shared. Only here, those walls seemed to continue on forever to each side¡­ at least until they faded into foreboding darkness. A plank floor extended in much the same way, and the popcorn ceiling mirrored it. "Should we check it out?" Lee asked the group. May didn''t need the metal from the resource lair just yet¡­ She was already busy working with the elf equipment. Besides, whatever monsters were in this place probably dropped cores, while the other only dropped metal. He definitely wanted more cores... This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "I am not averse to the prospect," Saira said. "Though I suspect we will need to bring some greenery along." Lee saw Mar move away, and bushes started vanishing from the side of the dirt road. "Bradley?" "What!?" The man jumped, then blushed as he looked at all of them. "I mean... sure?" "Where you go, I go!" Alejandro exclaimed and took a few steps inside. "You should let me lead. If I get hurt..." "No!" Saira and Alejandro shouted in unison. Bradley flinched again, head swiveling between all three of them. Lee decided not to argue with the duo and just shook his head. "You''ll get used to them, Bradley. They think I''m not a total badass, even though I tanked a..." Lee''s voice cracked slightly, but he forced himself to keep talking. "...magical nuke to the face." He wouldn''t hide from what happened. Bradley''s face lit up. "Did you really! I heard about it but didn''t believe the stories. What was it like? How did you survive something like..." Saira elbowed the man in the stomach as she passed, and he cut off mid sentence. "What? Did I... was I not supposed..." "It''s fine," Lee said to the rapidly deflating expression on Bradley''s face. "I did do it, and it was... horrible. And I only survived because Saira is the best healer in the world." "He is a hero," Saira said while pulling up a few bushes herself and looking at him with a disturbing expression. A crafter had approached Lee with the same expression currently on Saira''s face, and Lee didn''t like it. Not that it was bad; it just felt so... awkward. The reverence and tears, and then the meager handful of cores the man had forced him to take. He didn''t even know where the crafter had gotten the cores, but it couldn''t have been easy, regardless. The guy didn''t even have a weapon... "Don''t listen to her," Lee said. "I did what anyone..." He swallowed. "What I had to do..." "Do not listen to him," Saira countered. "He saved hundreds and very nearly paid with his life! We will keep him alive today. No matter what! Understood?" "Y... yes, ma''am!" Lee knew he was blushing slightly when he turned away, but he didn''t protest further. Lucas and Penelope had the same expression, too... Neither of them had said anything to him, but Lee had felt their gazes often on the way. Which wasn''t hard considering they''d flanked him the entire walk. He''d assumed it was just them looking out, probably on Alejandro''s orders. Now he knew it was something more... He was outnumbered and surrounded, but he didn''t complain about the help. It was probably a miracle they even let him outside after what he''d told Maria... Lee could put up with a few looks in exchange for freedom. Instead, he tweaked his and Alejandro''s shields to emit light like he had so long ago. Then he pulled out a few metal discs and stuck light runes on them as well. The actions reminded him of his latest skill shard, which he was still carrying. It looked like crap... but the system had given it to him. Did that mean something? Was it truly random, or did the system want him to have it? The fact that it required adaptation to learn seemed to hint against any such grand design, but... Could summoned plates hold a light rune? Or more? Could he summon them already glowing? What would it turn into if he learned it? What if it turned into a useful skill? An endless supply of items he could slap runes on. Could he make bombs? Or would it turn into something stupid? Like a skill that used his entire mana pool and summoned a single massive plate that would crush him... though he could think of ways to use something like that. Lee let it go when the others were ready to enter the lair. He could think about it later, when he was safe. Now it was time to focus. He ended up in the rear with Penelope. Lucas and Alejandro took the front, while Mar and Bradley each took a side around Saira. Rear guard was an okay position for Lee since he didn''t need his eyes to follow the group at his back. Then they ventured into the seemingly endless and empty room. Lee walked backwards and watched the light of the door dwindle into the distance while Mana Mind watched his team. The lack of visible enemies made the slow walk even more nerve-wracking, and it was almost a relief when he spotted something. "Stop!" Everyone froze. "A few feet ahead of you, Alejandro. The ground is..." He couldn''t actually tell what was there. Other than that it was an opaque spot in his Mana Mind. "Monster?" Alejandro obviously saw nothing, because when he tossed the light ahead, it barely clipped the... thing. It was more than enough, and Lee heard the indrawn breaths as whatever it was exploded into motion. A mouth... or Maw... snapped closed around the rune and sank into the floor just ahead of Alejandro''s stabbing blade. It didn''t go deep. Maybe a few feet down. Then it shot away horizontally and out of his Mana Mind range. If it was trying to hide, then eating one of his runes wouldn''t help. Still, he didn''t pursue it immediately. "What was it?" "A mouth?" Alejandro said, sounding unsure. "That is what I saw," Saira agreed. Bradley said nothing, but his rapid breathing was loud in the quiet. "You good, Bradley?" "Y... yea. I''m fine!" It might have been a mistake to bring the new guy this time... "Switch with me, Alejandro?" Fortunately, the man didn''t complain. Though he sent Lucas to the back instead. Then Lee led them slowly toward the rune he could still feel in the distance. The monster was either invisible or it looked just like the floor. Lee was leaning toward the latter as he studied the thing with his eyes and Mana Mind. Well, mostly Mana Mind. His eyes saw only the floor, which still looked like wooden planks. A feeling nagged at him as he stared. The seemingly endless floor and walls¡ªthe name of the lair¡ªwere they in a lair? Or something''s stomach... What if none of this was real and just a trap to lure them in? The whole bigger on the inside thing wasn''t helping... He had noticed no downward movement, but magic... Only his Mana Mind hadn''t failed him yet, and it showed him the mana-rich walls that looked identical to pretty much any lair he''d visited, aside from the monsters that could move through it without issue while also blending in perfectly... The monster ahead of him was opaque, like all monsters and humans. Which should mean that his paranoid feeling was just that. So Lee stabbed the monster. Mouth was a good description of the thing that burst upward and chomped down on his sword-arm. Only a few of the disturbingly human-looking teeth got past his armor. Debuff: [Minor Bleeding] He twisted the blade and swung it around even as the mouth tried to drag him down. The pull ceased, and the mouth went limp around his arm as it fell slowly open again. Green light blossomed, and Lee felt the holes in his arm heal. He barely noticed as he stared at the... maw. "That is disgusting." Alejandro echoed Lee''s thoughts perfectly as they stared at the slack human mouth embedded in the otherwise pristine floor. It even had a tongue... Bradley gagged behind them. The core that appeared was little solace... and Lee didn''t want to stick his hand anywhere near the thing. His arm itched furiously where the teeth had cut him... Lee didn''t reach for it, and instead used Mana Mind to yeet the core into his hand. Or at least that was the hope. It was immensely satisfying when his dream came true and the core flew into his hand! Even the stabbing pain in his head didn''t bother him! Skill Level Up: Mana Mind I finally did it, Stan! Lee must have stood there grinning like an idiot for too long, because Alejandro nudged him. "What? Oh right. Should we... continue?" His desire for cores had waned significantly upon seeing what they were hunting. Lee didn''t even want to imagine what the queen would look like in this nightmare place... he imagined it anyway and immediately regretted doing so. "Or we could go gather metal for May?" Alejandro laughed loudly, and the sound didn''t echo even a bit. It sounded... flat and ended quickly. "I second that idea, unless any of you really want..." No one protested the withdrawal. So they formed up and headed for the small light in the distance that was the entrance. Which meant, of course, that was when the monsters swarmed them. Lee finally understood the name even as he shouted a warning. Watching Maw. Watching and it apparently didn''t want them to leave... It was a nightmare. The maws didn''t appear until they were already opening directly below each member of the team. Even Mar. "Stab the floor and keep stabbing!" Lee shouted while doing exactly that. He had an easier time of it thanks to seeing them coming, which meant he was the only one that didn''t end up knee-deep in a mouth trying to choke him down. The only mercy was that the things didn''t seem to get any bigger, so they couldn''t swallow anyone straight off. That, plus the rune armor that prevented anyone''s legs from getting bitten through¡ªat least not completely. There was a lot of screaming and stabbing before the first wave ended. Then they all had to climb out of the mouths... "Keep stabbing! They''re everywhere!" They did... and the deaths of the second wave left a lull. It looked like the dead monsters blocked the others from moving through the floor... Until Lee watched a mouth open wide beneath one of the dead and swallow it whole before speeding away. Another took its place immediately. Still, it was doable, and the hunt turned into a plodding slog as they chopped and hacked their way closer to the door, one foot at a time. Then the ceiling sprouted more mouths... "Above!" The maws couldn''t reach them despite the low ceiling... so they only drooled a slimy and slippery mess all over the floor. Bradley was best off with his stone spear. He had great reach and didn''t have to get his hands anywhere near the monsters. He was also taking it worse than anyone else. Hyper-ventilating by the sound of it, his breathing was frantic behind the panicked noises he was making... I definitely shouldn''t have brought him. Not that Lee really blamed him. This was the worst possible first lair for anyone to experience. It would be a miracle if Bradley ever left the fort again after this. Lee didn''t like it one bit himself, and would probably have nightmares about this place... but he''d seen worse. What was a nightmare compared to the void? Sure, it was disgusting and horrifying, but they wouldn''t die here. It was just another battle to slog through. Stanley wasn''t dying... Lee wasn''t dying... What more could he ask for? Bradley broke completely before they made it outside. He abandoned his weapon inside a pair of clamping teeth when it didn''t come free, and then sprinted, screaming, for the door. "Bradley!" Alejandro shouted angrily after him but didn''t leave the formation. It was dumb luck that Bradley didn''t get snagged, or maybe the larger group was drawing most of the attention. Either way, he made it through the door unmolested. Saira took the abandoned spear and put it to great use as the rest of them made their way slowly to the exit. Lee half expected something new to appear and keep them from escaping, but they all spilled into warm sunlight with no further issues. 65. Let It Rain ~~~Lee~~~ They found Bradley hugging his knees and sobbing in a pit. Alejandro reached him first and hauled the other man into the air by his armor while screaming, "You never abandon the healer!" Lee pulled on his arm, and Alejandro''s gaze leapt to him. "Dude, chill." Alejandro was breathing heavily. More than the fight should have prompted. He had a wild look in his eyes and Lee saw them jump momentarily to Saira before snapping back. "He..." "He knows." "I..." Alejandro''s haunted expression cleared up slightly as he set the crying Bradley gently onto the ground. "Yes... I''m sorry." Lee sat next to Bradley while Alejandro retreated. "You picked a real shitshow of a first lair, Bradley. Guess that''s my fault, since you only signed up for the earth golem one. Sorry you got dragged along." "I... it''s not... your... fault," Bradley got out between sobs. "I''m... just... a... coward!" "You''re scared," Lee said. "Not a coward. A coward wouldn''t have come out here in the first place." "Thought... I... wasn''t... didn''t want to be... but I''m just a coward after all!" "Remember when we first met, and you were too scared to go outside?" Bradley nodded without looking up and opened his mouth... Lee spoke before he could say anything. "A coward would still be hiding in there. But you didn''t stay inside. You helped me repair the building, built a damn wall around the entire complex, and then joined us today." "I was stupid... new magic... thought I could be strong..." "You know that saying about how courage isn''t the lack of fear? Everyone knows that one." Bradley nodded without enthusiasm. "Everyone here is scared, just like you. No one will blame you if you want to call it quits for today. Especially after that horrifying place." "Lee is right," Saira said while sitting on the man''s other side and sending her healing magic into him. "You have already done more than many who only wish to hide away. So don''t quit now! Hold your head up high!" Bradley ducked his head further down, ears turning pink, and Lee smiled. Praise always had a way of motivating, especially when delivered by a beautiful woman. Bradley wasn''t immune to the effect Saira could have, and Lee let her take over with a final parting statement. "Let''s try again at the next lair. I bet your power will make it a breeze." Then he climbed to his feet and left Saira there, speaking softly to the young man. Alejandro looked abashed after his earlier outburst. "I''m sorry, Lee. I just..." "I think we all might be a little traumatized after that lair." Lee looked over the others in the group, or at least Lucas and Penelope. Mar was invisible as usual. The rest looked... okay. Maybe a bit sweaty... "Mar? You okay?" The girl didn''t appear, but turned away from them with a small huff and snapped, "I''m... fine." Her blustering tone failed halfway when her voice cracked, and Lee resisted the urge to laugh. She would get more comfortable eventually. Lee waited until a furiously blushing Bradley stood up, and without quite looking at anyone directly, said, "Sorry. I won''t let you down again..." "Great!" Lee said. "Let''s find a less horrible lair to plunder." They walked, and Lee tried not to stare at the border fence while remembering what he''d just told Bradley... It took a bit of travel before the mana stopped flowing toward the lair they''d left behind, and Lee picked a flow leading away from the fence as the one to follow. Not because he was scared... it was just the stronger one. The right one, too. Because he found a lair that literally looked like a pit in the ground. The wide mouth of the place sat against a small hill, at somewhere close to a forty-five degree angle. Luckily, the tunnel leading into the dark was a much gentler slope. Lee could feel Bradley trembling in his Mana Mind as they entered, but the man kept putting one foot ahead of the other. The main downside of the last lair¡ªaside from those horror show freaks¡ªwas that the tanks couldn''t effectively block the monsters from reaching the casters. Hopefully, it would work out better this time, and Bradley would see how easy it was with someone protecting him. He felt better about that eventuality when the first monster loomed out of the darkness ahead. It looked not exactly like he''d pictured when Jake mentioned golems, but close enough. Bigger too. A ten foot tall creature that looked like it was solid stone. Yet it still moved fluidly... and slowly, as it plodded closer. Its footfalls made no sound when they left dents on the dirt floor, but the vibrations more than made up for it. Alejandro stepped to meet it, raising his shield as a stony limb swung toward him. "Let me test..." Bradley screamed and thrust his hands at the monster, mana roaring out of him... The solid stone body of the golem crumbled into dirt and blasted away down the tunnel until only a pair of legs remained. Everyone froze, gazes alternating between the unmoving stone legs, and the gasping Bradley with arms still outstretched. Lee wasn''t sure who looked more surprised... There was a small chunk of something sticking up from atop the legs that glittered faintly in the light of their runes. Alejandro was the one who finally stepped forward and grabbed it. The moment he pulled it away, the remaining stone crumbled to dirt. He tossed it to the still stunned Bradley, and the man barely caught it. "Very nice, Bradley. Let me take the next one. I want to test how hard they hit for when our other people come here. That alright?" "I... sure..." Bradley blushed and wouldn''t meet anyone''s eyes. "I, um... used up most of my mana..." Then he scrambled to pick up his spear from where he''d dropped it. "It was still impressive," Saira said, patting his arm when he stood up. "Very," Lee said as they started walking again. "Try hitting a small area next time. Maybe aim for where the metal core was." He could see that it was indeed metal, though the odd part was how much earth mana still infused the chunk... "Can you control that thing with your skill? It has a lot of earth mana... but I think it''s also metal." Bradley held his hand out and Lee could see the trickle of mana flowing from him, but only around, not into the metal. "I can''t control metal..." Weird. Alejandro found the next one, and its blow sent him flying when he tried to block. Bradley put a hole through it, but the core wasn''t in the same place... then he used the last of his mana to take off a leg. Lee didn''t stand back despite the obvious strength of the golem. He was literally the best one to potentially tank a blunt attack with his unbreakable skeleton... Fortunately, the golem''s movements never sped up, and he carved it into pieces before it could hit him. At some point in the dismemberment process, the entire thing stopped squirming and crumbled to dirt like the previous one had. Once that happened, Mana Mind easily spotted the metal core, and he scooped it up. "Two down. You okay?" "Hah! Just a love tap," Alejandro grunted while Saira killed another bush to heal him. "I can take the lead..." Alejandro triggered his skill and appeared ahead of Lee. "No need for that! I''m fine." Lee sighed half-heartedly and rapped knuckles on his helmet. "Unbreakable skeleton, remember?" "You got it to work!?" Saira and Alejandro both asked simultaneously. "Did I forget to mention that? It was part of how I survived the..." Lee cupped his hands and then threw them apart while making the sound of an explosion. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. "Can you put it on me!?" Alejandro didn''t even hesitate before asking. "On Maria!?" "I..." Lee hesitated. "I''m not actually sure how I... changed it. I''ve been... avoiding thinking about it." Alejandro tamed his sudden enthusiasm and rested a hand on Lee''s shoulder. Gently. One benefit of them all worrying about him and treating him like a delicate flower was the new reduction of aggressive affection... "Of course. Take your time. You will figure it out when you are ready. And I will be first in line when you do!" "So you''ll let me take..." Alejandro spun away, marching quickly down the tunnel. "Stay behind me and let''s see what waits at the bottom of this pit." Lee didn''t push the issue, and instead looked at his skeleton with Mana Mind. It had a single rune... that somehow covered the entirety, while also infused into each individual bone... It was confusing but standard for how all his runes worked. It was also similar to the rune he''d first put on his bones, but not identical. Not only was it a much more complex symbol, but it also felt more complex... Lee could read the strengthening rune. It stood out plainly enough amidst the additional... stuff. But that stuff meant nothing to him either in whole or in part. None of the symbols were specific to any rune he knew... which should be... all of them. He knew the runic... alphabet. That was the closest analogy to the knowledge in his head. Each symbol was akin to a single letter, but also more. What he called his strengthening rune was a single letter. Sharp was another. But knowing the alphabet didn''t teach him how to spell. Or even what constituted a word... Combining sharp and strengthen onto a weapon was doable. Both symbols connected cleanly to each other. He could even adjust those connections depending on what type of weapon he wanted and where he wanted the sharpening to focus. Lee suspected the symbol on his skeleton had taken fragments from more than one separate rune. Fragments that he didn''t recognize. He could read it, but like before... it was complex. Not a word. Or even a sentence. It felt like a paragraph. One written with large compound words that Lee had never learned. He got the gist. Unbreakable. Protection. Permanence. Stuff like that. It would be simple enough to draw the rune onto someone else if he wanted. It might take some practice to get it right, but he could do it. The issue was, he didn''t know if that was enough. The mentions of his soul in regards to imbuing runes felt much more real this time. He''d definitely done... something more when creating this one. While he considered runes and how to make them, they found more golems. Each one was alone, no groups, and all regularly spaced out. It felt nothing like the lairs they were used to. Aside from the monsters trying to kill them, of course. Wilson said this place was a reward for their victory... and the ease with which they went through the lair sure made it feel that way. But it also felt like the system couldn''t just give them something without making them fight at least a little. It was also possible that the rune weapons made it too easy. The golems were slow and easy to chop down, but they hit hard if you didn''t get out of the way. Bradley''s presence in the lair was even more broken, and the only thing slowing him down was mana. There was a boss golem at the end. Because of course there was. It was bigger and slightly faster, but still fell to their swords. Watching Bradley drain his mana in the fight gave Lee an idea, and he went into his Rune Storage while the others mopped up. The world vanished as he appeared in that dark place, but his Mana Mind let him watch the fight while he worked. It wasn''t a new idea, but his recent experiences and observations had set him onto something that might work where it hadn''t before. Everyone needed mana. Well, most everyone for now, and even that would probably change in time as people picked up more skills. So more mana should always equal more good. He''d created that machete enchant in the Tick lair, one to feed extra mana to the runes so he could extend the blade. What if he created that, but let the wielder get the extra mana? The only issue with the plan was that no one else could use Liquid Mana, and that was all the runes held. So he needed it to either convert mana, or pull in mana from outside and recharge that way. Mana Mind let him study his own mana as well as all the rest of it around him, aside from what was inside other people. That, plus seeing Three funnel normal mana to everyone, had eventually knocked some understanding through his thick skull. It was all the same thing. Basically. At a fundamental level. Liquid mana was just a highly concentrated version of the normal stuff. It was likely that the explosive nature of his mana was simply because it behaved akin to the way a compressed gas would when abruptly freed to expand. He just needed to decompress his mana in a way that wasn''t so... violent. Or pull in ambient mana and not compress it. His going away present to Jake had included almost exactly that. Sort of. It would recharge its own liquid mana, but only if Jake didn''t use it often. Sucking in enough ambient mana to recharge the liquid mana runes was a slow process... But what if he didn''t need to compress it? What if he could use a rune to contain but not convert the mana? Lee''s soul storage was a fantastic resource, and he loved it more every day. Nevermind that it helped him with mass-enchanting; it was even more perfect for trying to learn a new rune as he was now. He could draw all the different runes he wanted to combine with only a thought, then he could move and combine them just as easily while he tried to find the perfect combo. Of course, he wouldn''t actually know if it worked until he tried to put it on something... but that was a minor issue. He figured out the rune that he thought would work, which included the strengthening symbol. While it wasn''t absolutely necessary, and each additional ''letter'' he added upped the complexity immensely, Lee didn''t think he could afford to leave that one out for this. Not only did he want the weapon to survive the occasional hit, but just like a compressed gas tank, he really didn''t want it exploding in someone''s hand... Resource Lair Defeated. Respawn(07:59:59) The fight was long over by the time he finished, but no one complained when Lee finally opened his eyes. "Bradley, can you make a stronger staff? Like really go all out... and use that dirt." Lee pointed at the mound that used to be the boss. The dirt wasn''t that special¡ªmost of the mana went into the metal core¡ªbut it was slightly more mana-rich than normal. He made Bradley work on it while they walked back up the long climb to the outside world, and the irony of using compressed dirt to hold compressed mana was... amusing. Bradley was more than willing once Lee told him what he was doing it for, and he really went all out. Then Lee had everyone move away from him down the tunnel and used his storage to stick the rune onto the stone. Mana flowed... and he pulled it back an instant before it exploded. Oops. A tweak later, and he tried again. A few tweaks later... and it stuck! Lee stared at his glorious creation for long, nervous seconds... but it didn''t explode. It was stable, if barely, and he could see mana flowing into the stone staff! Of course, that left the final test. "Bradley, try it out." It turned out the hardest part for him was figuring out how to pull the mana back out. Then he got it, and everyone else wanted one. "I''ll have to change it for each item," Lee said. "I could put it on a sword... though it might be better to use the shields or armor..." Or a tree. Lee realized he''d never tried putting runes on anything wooden... would that work? ~~~Mar~~~ Mar was bored. Which was fine. Much better than the alternative. Lee looked bored as well since he was taking a nap... or maybe he was just old. She also wanted a bath more than anything after those horrible, disgusting... mouths. Ugh! Her whole body shivered involuntarily just thinking about them. The big, strong men finished the fight and were all joking and laughing about how big and strong they were. Boys. They chop up a few rocks and think they''re so cool... Stupid Bradley kept ogling her mom. She''s twice your age! Then Lee finally woke up and did some magic while they headed out. That was kind of cool. Especially if what he claimed was true. Extra mana would help everyone, a fact that all loudly expressed to Lee. Mar said nothing, but she wanted it too. She could talk to him later... which was fine since Lee said he couldn''t make them yet. Mar went ahead as they all chattered stupidly at each other. She could scout. Yea, scout the single empty tunnel. Whatever. It was better than watching Bradley mooning over her mother. She had done nothing in this lair, and not much more in the last one. She needed to get a longer sword... A faint noise was growing in her ears as she approached the outside. Is it raining? It looked dry enough, though there was a dark cloud to the west when she stepped out... It seemed low for a cloud and she squinted at the darkness below it. Could be rain... It almost looked like there was something moving up and down from the cloud to the ground, but she couldn''t see more than tiny specks. She took a few more steps, trying to get a better look... and a buzzing sound from overhead sent her gaze straight up where she saw... Flies? The sight of the tiny bugs wasn''t particularly worrying until Mar realized she hadn''t seen a single insect since the world ended... Then they got bigger and Mar froze, her gaze snapping back to the dark... cloud. Oh shit. Something dripped on her arm while she was jogging back to the cave, and her invisibility flickered. The metal bracer had a wet spot on it and the symbol was glowing brightly. It is raining? She touched the wet spot and immediately regretted it when the tip of her finger melted down to the bone. Mar screamed and tripped at the sudden agony. She was still scrambling to her feet when a fly the size of a basketball landed a few feet away. Something dripped from its face, and the dirt underneath it started smoking. No, no, no! Then she was screaming and racing for the shelter of the cave... She never made it. The roaring wall of rain that wasn''t rain got there first. It swept over the entrance, blotting it out behind the torrent, and then raced toward her with the speed of a runaway train. In that last instant, before the cave was lost to sight, Mar saw her mother''s terrified face as the woman sprinted towards her. Mom... help me! She closed her eyes just before the rain hit and didn''t even have time to scream at the terrible agony before something heavy crashed into her, and she fell down, down, down into the dark, and everything went wonderfully away. 66. Boom Goes The Mana ~~~Lee~~~ Saira walked quickly between Bradley and Penelope as they led the march back outside. It was good to see the earth mage smiling, even if he blushed a lot whenever he looked at Saira. The successful run had done wonders to restore his confidence, and now he had a proper wizard staff. Hopefully, the disastrous first run would only serve as a warning and not a deterrent for future hunts. Lee was thinking about runes and what he might do with them. So he didn''t realize Mar had wandered ahead until he heard the scream. He took off sprinting at the same moment as everyone else and finally heard the roaring sound... right before the mouth of the cave turned into a waterfall. Saira didn''t even slow, and she vanished through the curtain of rain. Bradley followed an instant later in an explosion of dirt. Only Lee knew it wasn''t rain water pouring down. Mana Mind told him that much. So he was ready when Alejandro tried to activate his movement ability, and Lee ripped the skill apart without hesitation. Penelope was screaming and staggering away from the rain when Lee caught up and dragged her deeper into the cave. He had to hold her up when her legs buckled, and a moment later he realized exactly what the rain was when it splashed over his feet. The liquid raining down and running into the cave wasn''t water. It was acid, and it felt oddly reminiscent of his brief time spent in a frog stomach... which was to say, it sucked ass. He had to get in Alejandro''s way again when the man tried to run past. "Stop!" "Saira..." "She''s gone! Stop!" Alejandro''s face fell, his expression a bleak mask of despair, and Lee quickly reiterated what he''d meant to say. "Bradley took her. They went underground! She''s fine!" He hadn''t directly seen it and wasn''t positive Saira was okay, but considering he didn''t see her outside melting... and their rune armor had plunged abruptly into the ground, then shot away to the southwest... he was hopeful. Though not all the runes kept moving... many of them remained underground right outside the cave, with the remainder spreading out in a trail with only Bradley''s new staff running further into the distance. His hopeful words worked. Also, the acid finally burned through Alejandro''s boots... Then he helped Lee haul Penelope further inside and slammed his shield into the dirt to funnel away the stream of acid that was flowing after them into the cave. Lee did his best to ignore the pain from his feet and tried not to think about all the dirt that might get stuck in the wounds as they healed... On that note, he sat down and lifted his feet to brush them off. That was when the roaring rain abruptly let up. It didn''t stop completely, but went from a downpour to a light sprinkle. That let him hear a new growing sound from outside¡ªa buzzing sound. Lee scrambled back to his feet as the first giant fly landed right outside the cave. First, because a swarm followed behind it, and a lot of them flew inside. Alejandro saved all of them by snatching up his shield and creating a shimmering wall that filled the tunnel. The flies crashed into it en masse, blotting out the light as they swarmed. Lee tried frantically to think of what he could do, even as he watched the bugs scramble over the magic wall, their weird mouths sucking at it... Outside, his Mana Mind saw more of the things slurping up the puddles¡ªthe mana-rich puddles of acid. "I can''t hold it!" Alejandro yelled, his voice barely heard over the buzzing. They were after the mana! Lee could see it now. They melted everything down and then drank the slop left behind. It was a simple and horrible way to eat... and he briefly wondered what they did with the cores... Only briefly, because he was pulling the runes from his shield as he dropped it next to Alejandro and then drawing out a new rune onto the metal. He botched it once, twice, and then a third time while cursing vehemently. Which did nothing to help his concentration. Neither did the buzzing swarm inches from his face... He felt and saw them violently react to each surge of liquid mana as he worked... Alejandro screamed, and his shield vanished¡ªan instant before Lee finally finished his rune. A few flies got through, and one landed on the back of his head, sucking at the mana in his helmet... Alejandro cut it in half, and Lee shook his head when something dripped onto his neck with a searing pain. He winced and sat back as Lucas helped cut down the rest. Then Lee looked at his shield. A wall of glowing blue light. He hadn''t known he could do that, and unfortunately, it wouldn''t last long. The flies swarmed and scrambled madly over the magic as they tried to melt it. Their feet didn''t stick to the surface, and the acidic drool only ran down... where it was pooling at the bottom. His rune was far weaker when projecting outside an item like this, and the strength of the effect waned the further it went. It didn''t help that the acid and flies were accelerating the drain. A hand rested on his shoulder, and Alejandro said something that Lee didn''t hear as he stared at the sight before him, a terrible realization dawning in his mind. They wanted mana... He could see an extra thick pile of them melting a hole into the ground as they dug for the buried runes... and they weren''t all that far from the fort... from Three. His building was powerful. A few flies shouldn''t be a threat... but what about a swarm of them? Or a flood of acid rain? Both? All the kids would have been in there... probably in the open courtyard... No, they had lookouts. Someone had to have seen this coming. "Lee!" Alejandro shook him, snapping him out of his thoughts. "What is..." "The fort..." He didn''t have to say more, and he saw the color drain out of Alejandro''s face a moment before the man took a step toward the shield. "Wait! We can''t!" "I have to... wait, the building will protect them! Right?" "Yes," Lee said with conviction. He had created Three from the source, yes, but also with his soul. Which meant he could feel it even from here. He knew without a doubt that it still stood. He just didn''t know for how long... because he could tell something was happening. It wasn''t like the snake. He couldn''t feel the runes depleting... if the source runes could even deplete. All he could tell was that something was happening¡ªthat Three was reacting to... something. "How is she?" Lucas looked up from where he knelt beside Penelope and shook his head. "Not good. She''s alive, but..." "I need all of her armor," Lee said, already pulling off what remained of his boots and the runes on the metal plates. "Get her and yourselves further down the tunnel. And dig a trench to funnel the acid when the shield falls!" Most of her armor practically fell off; the straps and buckles dissolved, but some had to be peeled away... Lee hated to steal her protection, but he needed it, and he started by taking the runes from her shield after memorizing the rune he''d just created. He recreated it in his Soul Storage, the charged version, using the mana from the shield. Then he was designing a new rune while also funneling mana into his barrier to keep it standing. His plan for the rune didn''t call for much. It didn''t even need to be very stable. In fact, he was aiming for the opposite. He dropped Penelope''s shield once they carried her far enough in, and a new shield sprang up, cutting Lee off from the others. Alejandro noticed. "Lee? What are you doing?" "We don''t have a healer. I can''t have any of you taking hits." "No! I will fight beside you!" Lee shook his head as he gathered the scavenged metal from Penelope''s armor. "I can''t risk it. I''m the only one who can regenerate." If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "Lee, you don''t have to take this on alone. Not again! Let me help you! You already sacrificed enough!" He pounded on the shield to punctuate his words, but Lee recharged it as he did. "That''s nonsense," Lee said while inside the darkness of his Soul Storage. "This is purely selfish. I can''t let you die. Who else will protect me and gather cores for me?" His voice didn''t even waver. How good was that? Skill Level Up: Rune Soul Storage Lee packed as many charged runes into his soul storage as he could. Until it started hurting... That will have to be enough. Alejandro stopped yelling when Lee dropped the outer shield and threw a metal bracer as hard as he could into the swarm. His other hand rested on the shield through the process, and he dropped the rune back into place the instant his throw made it past the barrier. Unfortunately, the flies were thick, and his weapon didn''t make it nearly as far as he wanted. Lee snatched up his sword when the shield once again held back the tide and went to work, cutting apart the six flies that had made it past. The bugs weren''t smart and didn''t dodge; they only flew straight to the highest concentration of mana they could find and drooled on it. Which was Lee... He might have screamed a few times, but most of his attention was on the bracer he''d thrown past the shield and the rapidly overloading rune he''d placed on it. One of the rare times he hadn''t used a strengthening rune, since he didn''t want the armor to actually survive what was coming. In fact, he wanted it to fail as violently as possible. Hissing steam was billowing from where he''d thrown it, and Lee could see the stupid bugs drooling on the red-hot metal as it glowed brighter and brighter. Then it melted, and the runes broke. The heating rune... and the battery. Lee felt the bits of his soul come back. It always did. Though he wasn''t sure if it even was coming back so much as simply settling back into place. He wasn''t removing pieces of his soul when he made the runes; he was just spreading it... around. Except it wasn''t actually going anywhere. It was why he could always feel every rune, no matter where it was. They were all part of him. It was weird. But the liquid mana he jammed into every rune wasn''t a part of him, and it only came back if he pulled the rune deliberately, not if it broke. Lee was prone in the dirt, his hand on the shield as he pumped mana into it, when the bracer blew up. The shield''s runes held... for an instant. Just long enough to rebound most of the explosive force he''d unleashed and send it back up the tunnel like a cannon barrel. His ears were ringing as... stuff rained over him in a sprinkling wave of tiny pinpricks. Lee didn''t wait before scrambling to his feet with the shield in one hand and another bracer in the other. Then he sprinted through the mess of shredded and pulped flies toward the entrance, which was already refilling with fresh monsters. He ran only a few feet through a muddy sludge that burned his feet and threw the second bracer before planting the shield with a new shielding rune blazing to life on its surface. Again, the flies swarmed the trap, their efforts to get the mana only hastening its eventual detonation. Lee used the time to prepare the next bomb. Then he gained a few more feet after the explosion. Again and again. He pushed his way back to the surface with fiery explosions of molten metal and acid steam. It hurt even more once he started using up his own armor, but his regeneration was up to the task. He had to sprint back for more pieces of metal occasionally and tried very hard not to think about the open wounds on his feet that were sloshing through ankle deep muck. All of that acidic sludge was steadily running downhill and piling against the second shield. He topped it off on each trip and was glad to see Alejandro and Lucas digging a moat to funnel it around Penelope when the dam eventually broke. The first bomb that went off outside killed even more flies. It also didn''t break his shield without the tunnel amplifying the force. Lee pulled the shield off anyway to throw the next bomb even farther. Back and forth, he dropped the shield and bombed the seemingly never-ending flies, then did it again. And again. He ran out of pieces of armor to blow up before he ran out of mana. Penelope''s armor and his own. The big chest plates had been especially spectacular... Since every monster that died released a burst of mana into the environment, while only a smaller amount went into the core. It meant the lair¡ªwhich was pulling in mana like all of them did¡ªwas absolutely feasting on the mana generated by mass killing monsters right outside. Lee didn''t know anymore if it was the explosions of mana drawing the flies or if it was the huge field of cores he could see glinting out there. Alejandro had escaped from his confinement by then, but at least he hadn''t tried to wade through the acid until the dirt soaked up most of it. He brought the food with him, which was extremely helpful, and Lee binged while considering his remaining options. They could probably bunker down in the cave and wait this out, assuming the swarm would eventually move on... Lee''s mana regeneration was good enough to keep the shield up. Penelope wasn''t doing well, though, and she needed a healer. Plus, Lee didn''t want to hide and wait it out. He didn''t know for sure if this swarm was only on top of them or if it spread far enough to reach the fort. But he expected it had reached far enough, if only because of what he felt from Three. The attention he was drawing here had to be a good thing, if that was the case. The more he killed, the less there would be that could attack the fort. He didn''t want to use the others¡¯ armor. Just in case things got worse. Or if more monsters showed up. Lee''s skeleton gave him a type of protection, enough that he was willing to risk destroying his own armor. That left one option that he''d wanted to avoid. Skill Shard[F-grade] Summon Plate (Common) A dish for every meal. User may summon a plate mana construct. Size, detail, and duration determined by supplied mana and skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Duration +1% Variation Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require 50% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? If the plates could hold a rune... even if just long enough to throw... He took the chance. -1% Adaptable Adapting Skill: Summon Plate (Common) Liquid Mana Detected. Skill Adaptation Successful. New Non-Class Skill Learned: (3/3) Create Plate (Rare) A plate for every need. User may create a plate by condensing Liquid Mana into physical matter. Size, detail, and material features determined by supplied mana and skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% All Mind Attributes Lee hesitated at the condensing physical matter line... the original skill had said it summoned a mana construct and it had a duration. Was there a difference between the two? Would the plates have been like the panthers? Illusions that could interact with the physical world? That probably wouldn''t have been any use for runes... this one, though... He cast the spell. A terrifying amount of liquid mana surged down his arm and burst from his hand. It moved fast, but not too fast. Right at the threshold where his arm only tingled but didn''t burn. The strangest part was what the mana did once it left his body. He could see it clearly with Mana Mind as the potent liquid fire poured out into twisting streams that condensed even further... into a simple white ceramic plate. Lee stared as it formed atop his trembling hand. Exactly like the ones in his apartment. At least, it felt like ceramic... Lee clamped both of his sweaty hands onto the plate, desperate not to drop it while also terrified that he might break it by squeezing too hard. So much mana had gone into it... except he couldn''t see it anymore... Mana Mind saw a plate with only slightly more mana inside it than anything else. So he removed the shield and threw the plate as far as he could. The flies barely reacted. Other than the handful that flew in when the shield fell. Lee killed one, but the rest flew after the two people still wearing rune armor. He let them handle it while watching a few flies go drool on the unbroken plate in the muddy field outside. It dissolved quickly. Lee frowned and summoned another one. Once again, way too much mana went into the skill... condensed... then vanished into a normal plate. Was creating matter that energy intensive? Obviously, it was in the real world, but this was magic. Hadn''t the laws of physics gone out the window? What about all those spells that created... Huh? All the spells he''d seen created nothing beyond energy. That was what allowed him to tear them apart with Mana Mind... The buzzing cacophony outside forced him to put aside the questions and focus on the original reason he''d created the plate. It accepted a rune. A simple, tiny light rune. Barely. That was useless... but there was one last thing to try. He activated the skill again, and this time he poured in as much mana as it would take while trying to envision something akin to the metal he''d been blowing up. Metal plates were a thing... Hell, the armor was technically a metal plate... of a kind. It took way longer and nearly half of his entire mana pool, but he created what sure looked like a metal plate... Lee grimaced at the cost, but his frown turned into a smile when he realized that, if nothing else, he now had a great way to dump mana quickly. Especially if he wanted to get a little more hands on with the blasting... First, though, he tried the plate. The new plate withstood the runes, only faring slightly worse than the smallest pieces of armor he''d blown up already. It blew up slightly faster. Which was perfectly fine when that was the whole point. Lee smiled as he used Mana Mind to drag all the free mana within range into himself. Then he made another plate and drained his mana down to near ten percent in the process. He placed only the battery rune instead of the melting combo, then sent more mana into his Soul Storage to replace all the charged runes he''d expended. His mana neared empty, and Lee took a deep breath, dropped the shield, and held up his hand.... Boom time. There was a small risk that he might mana burn himself, especially considering the plate skill would let him keep blowing flies up indefinitely. But he was still worried about the fort. Worried about the people inside... worried about Penelope... and yes, worried about Three. He needed to step it up. So he unleashed a Mana Blast point blank into the swarm. 67. This Is Not A Dream ~~~Mar~~~ "I need more¡­" "...low on Mana¡­" "...move more that way!" "...I''m trying to¡­" Voices intruded into the peaceful darkness, and they brought pain with them. So much pain. Mar groaned, unable to muster the breath to scream, then a soothing warmth washed over her and she fell back into the dark. Mar was sure she was dead when she opened her eyes into pitch blackness. Only... it smelled like dirt mixed with¡­ things, and it wasn''t pure dark. She sat up slowly, cautiously, but all she could see was the blindingly bright symbol... Her whole body felt raw. How did I survive? Her body also felt strangely cold¡­ her gingerly probing hands froze, and she reactivated her invisibility. Why am I naked?! She ran a hand over her head and the other strange sensation turned out to be that her hair was also almost completely gone. Though she felt a faint fuzz. Mar almost screamed again when her hand brushed against warm flesh that was not her own. Where is my damn light? She was breathing hard, on the edge of panic... Finally tearing her eyes away from the glowing rune, Mar realized it gave off just enough light that she could see the person lying next to her. Her heart sank. Mom¡­ Oozing holes covered almost every inch of her bare flesh... Mar reached out a trembling hand and touched her mother''s neck. Tears of relief slid down her face when she felt the pulse pounding away under her fingers. She''s okay. She''s going to be okay! I just need to find some¡­ Her eyes slid from her mother and back to the rune. It was the fancy one Lee had just made... for Bradley. She stood up and immediately knocked her head on the low ceiling. Son of a... Mar half crawled, half scrambled over... and finally saw that it was indeed Bradley. Then she blushed furiously and looked away. He also wasn''t wearing anything. She looked at the stone all around them. Bradley must have dragged them underground to escape from the acid. Mar couldn''t see any openings and the space they were in wasn''t very big¡­ she tried to keep her breathing calm even as she started wondering how long they had been in here and how much oxygen people still needed. Regardless, they needed to get out and find some plants so her mother could heal herself. She needed to wake up Bradley first... Mar was trying not to look at him and reaching out to nudge him awake when¡­ You have been conscripted into Tiny Dungeon: [Skirmish at the Fence] Invaders are coming! Join with your allies and prepare your defenses! Fight! "Ahh!" Bradley bolted upright, screaming, and Mar instinctively clapped a hand over his mouth. "Quiet!" she hissed, and his eyes focused on her. "Mar? You''re okay!" He smiled and his eyes slid down from her face before bulging wide. Mar abruptly realized that her invisibility had broken when she touched him and she leapt away with a shriek, vanishing again. "Sorry, Mar." Bradley said, hiding himself with one hand and holding the staff away from her with the other. The glowing rune illuminated her mother more brightly, and he gasped. "Is she¡­" "She''s alive," Mar said, forgetting her own embarrassment at the reminder of what was at stake. "But we need to get her to some plants¡­ and I don''t see any air holes in here." "Sorry, I ran out of mana... and fell asleep." Bradley closed his eyes and lifted the staff. A moment later, the ceiling rose while one side of the space expanded and lengthened away from them, sloping upwards slightly. "I can''t really tell where plants are, but I think there might be some this way." "Okay¡­" Mar said quietly from where she was crouched over her mom. She couldn''t see much, but there was a click of breaking stone and the ground moved beneath her. They slid sideways, and slightly upward. "What about the message... the dungeon?" Bradley shivered in the dim light and shook his head. "I... don''t know. It says tiny¡­ so hopefully not like the last time..." "Where are we?" Mar asked. "It was a mad dash to get out from under the rain and find plants that hadn''t already been dissolved. I''m not even sure which way I went¡­" "It said fence, so maybe the border fence?" "Could be¡­ that''s not too bad," Bradley said after a moment. "We weren''t that far from it before." "What about the others?" Mar said quietly. "I think they were still inside the cave when your mom dove outside after you. They should be okay..." "You... you saved her," Mar whispered. "Th... thank you..." Bradley just ducked his head and mumbled something while they kept moving. Then a glowing blue wall appeared out of nowhere, and Bradley rested a hand against it. "That''s new¡­" "What is it?" Mar asked, heart pounding at the sudden surprise and only then noticing that while it was bright, it didn''t actually light up the chamber. "The edge," Bradley said and waved his hand, expanding the room and revealing even more of the blue wall. "See for yourself." Mar stepped nervously around him and touched the wall. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated. "So we''re trapped." Bradley nodded. "Seems that way." "Can you get us to the surface?" Mar pointed uselessly at her mother. "We should surround her with as many plants as possible¡­ Or can you bring the plants down here?" "Yeah¡­ but give me a sec." The ground under his butt lifted until he rested a hand against the ceiling of the tunnel. He stayed that way for a while until finally shaking his head. "I can''t detect anything. At least nothing moving on the ground¡­" The rock above parted a moment later, and daylight shone down through a tiny crack. The crack widened, and he started rising higher, towards the opening. "Wait!" Mar hissed. "Let me look." He stopped for a moment and then shuffled to the side while trying to stay facing away from her. "Good idea." Daylight shone in on him as he moved, illuminating everything in terrible relief. Mar could only stare in horror at the holes and burns covering his back and legs... then she turned to her mother and started uncontrollably weeping at what she saw, now all too clearly. Not only was she far more wounded than Bradley, but even her undamaged skin looked withered... shrunken. Bradley touched her back sometime later. "Mar? It''s okay. It''s not as bad as it looks..." Mar shuddered with a last sob and then forced herself to sit up and lean back from her mom. Bradley was standing over her. "It hurts," he said. "But she''s going to be okay!" Yes, her mom would be okay. Her pulse was strong and her breathing sounded fine. They''d find some plants. And they were still in a dungeon... No, that didn''t matter. She would do whatever needed to be done. She''d kill whatever monsters needed to die. Mar wiped her eyes and looked up at Bradley. "I''ll..." He was meeting her gaze with a strange intensity and his face was turning red. He was meeting... her... gaze... She managed to disappear an instant before her face burst into flames, then she hyperventilated for a few moments longer before standing up. "I''ll go... see what''s out there." "Be careful," Bradley said, and she glanced at him. He was wearing a stone¡­ skirt? That can''t be comfortable. It left his upper body bare, and she noticed the acid hadn''t burned his chest like it did his back¡­ Mar also noticed that he was looking very chiseled. She blushed again. It was no big deal¡­ Lots of people looked like that nowadays, between the daily workouts and magic rocks that make them all more fit. Not that she was sneaking around and spying on people. She wasn''t a pervert. She just sometimes, accidentally, saw things she shouldn''t¡­ She shook her head. This was stupid. None of this mattered right now. Not when her mother might be dying... again... "Can you make me armor?" Mar asked while pointing at his rocky clothes, forgetting that he couldn''t see her. He must have understood, though, because he nodded, his exposed skin still pink. "I could, but it would really hurt to wear¡­ my earth shape skill lets it move with me, somewhat." "Oh¡­" "But¡­" He gestured to her mother and a thin shell of rock grew up over her motionless body in an arch. It didn''t touch her, but provided some modesty. "I can do that at least. Sorry I didn''t do that... earlier." Mar went to the opening, and Bradley added a ladder into the wall that she could use to climb higher. She stuck her head out and saw¡­ nothing. Well, not nothing, but nothing that stood out. Just desert grass and shrubbery, much more of it than usual and much more vibrant, but that was normal now. She climbed back down and relayed her findings, or lack thereof. "Can you get her up into the grass? Maybe build some walls first?" A short while later Bradley had her mother laying among the prickly grasses, with another layer of earth and more flora overhead. A perfect hiding place. Unfortunately, she couldn''t tell if the plants were doing much of anything to help. Her mother needed to wake up to use her skill... No, they needed to get to another healer... which meant they needed to get out of this dungeon. Her hands went to her waist and her daggers¡­ and met only bare skin. Shit. Mar knew the gear should have held up against the acid... the bracer had. Likely the straps that failed... "Bradley, can you make me some stone knives?" It wouldn''t be the same without runes, but had to be better than her fists... "I¡­ Yeah, I can. But we should wait for your mom to wake up before¡­" "She needs a healer! We can''t¡­" Mar closed her mouth with an effort of will. "I''m¡­" Bradley held out two knife shaped stones. "This is as big as I can make them and not worry about them breaking, but they won''t be nearly as good as what you had. Not without Lee''s enchants." This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "I know." She took the knives and her invisibility flickered again. Bradley glanced away. "Be careful out there, Mar. Your mom¡­ She didn''t even hesitate, she just dove after you." Mar swallowed a lump in her throat. "I don''t know many people who would do that." He said and then whispered, almost under his breath. "My mom wouldn''t have¡­" "You must have gone out right after her," Mar said softly. "I won''t be afraid anymore," Bradley stated with conviction as he looked towards her, but not at her. His hand was shaking slightly, but she didn''t mention it. "Thank you¡­ for saving her, us, and I will be careful," Mar said. "I''m going to try and see what we''re dealing with and then maybe you could make a cave or pit trap and we can just lure the monsters into it and either bury them or crush them." "That¡­ is not a bad idea," Bradley mused. "I''ll get started on it while you scout. If you come back with something chasing you and see a big cave mouth, run inside." "I''ll do that, but¡­" "I''ll stay right here with her." Bradley said. "Don''t rush too much. I''ll need time to create something, and I don''t think your mom is in immediate danger. Her heartbeat is strong, and she isn''t actively bleeding. I think she is just drained from the healing." Mar didn''t share his optimism. It''s my fault. If I hadn''t gone ahead like that... "I''ll be slow." Mar said and started crawling out of the small hole he opened in their cover. She stood up outside and the first thing she did was check the sky. Nothing. The sky was clear blue with a few fluffy white clouds, and she flexed her toes in the sun-warmed dirt. It felt extremely wrong to be walking about in such a state, and if it wasn''t for her invisibility, Mar didn''t think she could do it. She really didn''t want to have to fight like this either¡­ She would need to be slow and very careful. Mar activated Don''t Hear Me. Then channeled additional mana into it, as well as Don''t Look At Me. She should have been doing that earlier, since it helped keep her invisibility going even if she touched someone... With both skills active and channeled, her mana began to ever so slowly decline. It didn''t become an issue because she found the monsters in only a few minutes. They were hiding under a short desert tree that Mar didn''t know what it was called, and they were in a circle with eyes in every direction. They looked almost exactly like dogs¡­ Dobermans, to be precise. Tiny Dobermans, standing upright at maybe three feet, and wearing clothes¡­ There were six of them Mar could see until she got a glimpse into the middle of the group and spotted three more. They looked like puppies¡­ Why would the monsters have babies with them? Mar didn''t know what to make of the situation and she crouched unmoving as she studied the enemy. They all wore clothes, but no armor that she could tell. Even the little ones had clothes. The ''adults'' all held a small knife in one hand. Or was it a paw? A few also held a small glowing bottle in the other hand. Mar didn''t make the connection with dogs and smell until one of them suddenly started sniffing loudly and growling to the others. Damn! She took slow and careful steps to the side as she tried to feel which way the wind was blowing. She had only gone a few steps when one dog stepped forward from the others and barked. "Hello? Can you understand me?" Mar froze, dumbfounded. They can talk!? In English!? "Are you Sapient? We do not wish to fight!" It barked some more and Mar realized that there was no way its mouth was making the English words. It must be magic. But why? Is it a trick to lure me out? And why would they come here if not to fight? She was sure it had to be a trick and kept moving, though now she wanted to get back to Bradley and get his opinion. Another of them barked and yipped, this time with no English overlay. The first one barked again. "We don''t need to be enemies!" It slowly and obviously set down its knife and the glowing bottle on the ground. It lifted its now empty hands and spread them wide. "We have potions that can be traded, and¡­" It glanced back at the others. "We are willing to discuss terms for our surrender if necessary..." Mar was frozen in place, trying to breathe as quietly as possible. Those glowing bottles¡­ potions? That could very well be a thing now. Healing potions. If I can get one for her¡­ She decided to risk talking to them. Partially because it looked like while they had smelled her, they still didn''t know where she was, and also because of an interesting effect her skill had. "Do you have healing potions?" Her voice came from random directions all around her as she spoke, making it sound like she was in multiple places at once or moving rapidly between words. It also drank her mana like crazy... "We do!" The dog barked while the whole group stirred warily. "Do you require healing?" Shit! Did I just tip them off that we have wounded? The creature reached into a bag and pulled out another glowing bottle, this one a deep red. "Here it is." How do I know that is a healing potion? she thought. "How do I know that is what you say?" The dog''s head was turning and tilting as her words echoed from multiple directions. "I will demonstrate." It barked and slowly picked up its knife. It held up a paw and drew a red line down the pale, hairless flesh of its palm with the blade. Then it tossed the blade away and pulled out the potion again. "Very good quality!" It popped a cork and poured a few drops of the potion over its hand. "Can be used as a topical or ingested for more serious injuries." It tilted its head back and poured almost half of the liquid down its throat. "First ones free." It recorked the bottle and held it up along with the now healed hand. Mar thought about it for a moment. It could still be a trick¡­ but it seemed like a rather convoluted plot¡­ "Toss it over here!" she finally called, and let her invisibility drop for a second. As soon as the creature saw her, she was once again invisible and took a step to the side, just in case. It threw the bottle, and Mar caught it nervously, half expecting it to explode. It didn''t, and it also vanished when she caught it with a flicker. "Don''t move," she told the creature. "Of course," it said, sounding cheerful. That just made her more nervous and Mar moved further away and behind another thick bush. She drew a stone knife across her arm while watching them and wincing. Then she ducked down and dropped her invisibility to see what happened as she dripped the potion onto her fresh wound. It felt warm and not unpleasant as the liquid seemed to vanish into the wound, leaving smooth unbroken flesh. It works! Mar disappeared again and stood up. The monsters were still in place. "Wait here. If this works as claimed, then we will discuss terms," Mar said. "As you wish." The dog-like creature bowed slightly towards her and backed up closer to the rest of its... pack? Mar almost sprinted back, only going slow enough to watch her step, though her feet had been feeling way more resilient than she had expected. Must be the stats. Bradley was waiting when she ran inside. "Did you¡­" "Watch the door!" She wanted to let her invisibility drop for a moment to show him the potion... but that was too much. "I got a healing potion." Bradley, to his credit, didn''t ask too many questions. He pulled the stone shell back and left her alone. Mar carefully dripped a single drop onto one of the worst of the holes in her mother''s flesh, and it almost disappeared completely! She slowly and steadily worked on her mother until she couldn''t find any more wounds. Though her flesh still looked withered... Mar was about to try pouring some down her throat when her eyes fluttered open. "M... mom?" Mar couldn''t keep her voice from breaking as her invisibility dropped. Her mother didn''t hesitate, and Mar was wrapped up in her arms before she could react. "I¡­ I¡­" "Mar! You''re okay! Thank the gods you''re okay!" Mar felt her mother''s tears on her shoulder, felt the strong arms holding onto her for dear life, and she broke down too. It took some time for the tears to trail off. When they did, her mother was holding the nearly empty potion while green light flowed from the withering plants surrounding them. "Where did you get this?" Mar didn''t respond, watching as her mother''s face smoothed back out and the living color returned to her flesh. The sight sent a new wave of relief through her, as well as a fresh bout of guilt... and she reached trembling fingers up to touch her face. "What... what happened?" "It was nothing I wouldn''t do a thousand times over to keep you safe." "Mom..." "I''m guessing this involves the fact we are in a dungeon?" she said, holding up the potion again. So Mar told her about the dog people, and her mom immediately insisted on going to speak with them. "But you''re naked!" Mar protested. "You think that will bother them?" "Uh... maybe?" They had all been wearing clothes... Mar tried another tack. "Bradley is out there." "You think it will bother him?" "He... what!?" Mar exclaimed. Her mother laughed at her expression and shook her head while fresh tears glistened in her eyes. "I don''t care about any of that, Mar. Only you. I only care that you live. I will endure any hardship and pain to ensure that. I love you and will let nothing take you from me!" Mar hugged her again. "I love you, too!" She tried and failed to hold back another wave of tears. But at least the second round ended faster. Then they joined Bradley outside, and he gaped for far too long at her mother. "Stop staring!" Mar shouted while her mother laughed. Bradley turned away, now bright red himself. "I¡­ I was just glad to see you healed!" "You saved Mar''s life and my own, Bradley. I am eternally grateful and in your debt." "No¡­ no problem," he said, still blushing and refusing to look her way. He even stopped breathing when her mother touched his back, though that might have just been relief from the healing. When they approached the dog creatures again, they all started barking and yipping at each other. Mar was worried that something had changed and gripped her remaining stone knives tightly as she started channeling her skills. The one who she''d spoken to before stepped forward to meet them well away from the others. At least she was pretty sure it was the same one... "Are you a Runic?" It spoke to Bradley while staring at his staff with the glowing symbol on it. They were all staring at it, in fact... "No?" Bradley just looked confused. "The one who made that?" It pointed at the staff. "Is that one a Runic?" "I¡­ I''m not sure." Bradley glanced back at them questioningly, blushed, and looked quickly away. Though he couldn''t see Mar... Which was a good thing! "Why do you wish to know this?" her mother asked. "We seek sanctuary... please tell me, are they truly a Runic?" Her mom watched it for a long moment before nodding. "Yes. The one who made that is indeed a Runic, and I would insist that you not share this information without his permission." "On my life, I will not reveal the secret you have entrusted unto me," it barked, bowing low. There was a lot more yipping, growling, and barking from the others before the leader spoke again. "If you will agree to allow me an audience with the Runic, then we are prepared to surrender without battle." "I¡­ think that would be okay?" Bradley glanced at her mom again, silently begging for help. Her mother nodded. "We will need to take some precautions for this meeting..." "That won''t be necessary. You''ll understand in a moment." He barked at the others and then they all howled together, with only his howl coming through in English. "We surrender." The dogs all immediately collapsed. All Invaders have Surrendered. Victory! Contributions Earned. Distributing Rewards. Minor Dungeon Area Protected from Targeted Invasion(04:59:59) Rebuild. Rearm. Prepare to Defend the Dungeon. Area Buff Earned: [Victory](04:59:59) Bradley spoke first. "I can choose a debuff... or just kill them..." Wasn''t that what Wilson said he''d done? That would make things safer, I guess. But it felt... wrong. Especially after the potion... "Don''t kill them!" "I wasn''t... just saw that it was an option..." They eventually choose a four-hour debuff that cut their attributes almost to nothing and locked all their skills for the duration. The creatures, who she learned called themselves Anubi, seemed happy enough with it as they headed back toward the fort. Mar couldn''t believe her mother''s behavior when the woman made no attempt to hide her nakedness on the walk. Mar even suggested using the desert grasses to fashion... something. Anything! Her mom just laughed and did a twirl with her arms out. "Who are you?" Mar demanded. "And what did you do with my mother!?" "You are alive!" She pulled her into a side hug and Mar had to channel her invisibility to keep it from flickering too much while the crazy woman shouted, "I am alive. We are beautiful, and I will not hide from the world!" "Did that potion make you drunk?" Her mom squeezed tighter and tilted her head to rest against Mar''s. "Life is short, Mar. Too short. Don''t let it pass you by. I love that you can hide from the terrors of this world, but don''t hide from the good things, too." She turned her head and whispered, "You know, Bradley almost reached you before me. I think he just might have a thing for you..." Mar flushed. "W... No! He was only trying to save you. You''re the one he''s been staring at all the time!" "Oh, my poor child. You are a goddess, Mar. I''m sure he would stare if he could only see you," she whispered with a smile. Then her expressions shifted into sadness. "I know you''ve struggled, Mar. It is all my fault. I was a foolish idiot for far too long! I only cared about the opinions of other fools, and you were the one to pay the price for my stupidity!" "Mom..." "I am sorry, Mar. So very sorry. I can''t make it right and I don''t expect or deserve forgiveness, but I will spend the rest of my life trying to make up for my mistakes... if you will let me. If you don''t hate me..." "..." Mar couldn''t find any words as so many memories boiled up in her mind. The insane rules she''d lived by... the punishments when she failed to live up to them... the loneliness... the misery and despair that had plagued so much of her childhood... Despite all of it, one thing was clear. "I don''t hate you!" Part of her wanted to. Part of her wanted to punish her mother, to make her suffer. But it was a small part, and she couldn''t muster the anger after everything they''d been through. Not after seeing the pain her mother had endured to save her. It didn''t make up for a childhood full of misery... but it helped. It helped a lot. They had to stop briefly when her vision blurred with tears again, but Mar wiped them away quickly. They needed to get back... if only to get some damn clothes! "So, which boy do you have your eye on?" Her mother whispered a minute later. The woman was incorrigible! "Lee?" "What!?" "He was already a bit older than you, even before... but he does have that whole powerful and mysterious vibe going strong... if that''s what you..." "Absolutely not!" Mar hissed, cheeks hot. "Bradley is about your age, and he''s looking good..." "Mom!" "Hmm? Maybe... is it not a boy? A girl? I won''t say a thing so long as you are happy." Mar didn''t know what to think of this strange woman beside her. So much had changed since the end of the world... but this? Her mom, the socialite, the little miss everything must always be absolutely perfect, was now strolling naked through the wilderness... and talking about boys... and girls! So Mar dropped her invisibility mid stride. It was exhilarating. And absolutely fucking terrifying. Every second that passed left her feeling more and more exposed. She kept it off and kept walking. Even when she knew her face must be bright red. Bradley never looked her way as he strolled smoothly ahead... but she kind of wished he... "Bradley," her mother said loudly, and he turned. Mar vanished with a horrifyingly unladylike squeal of protest, while her traitor of a mother said, "Don''t you think Mar is absolutely stunning?" Bradley made a lot of strange noises and turned several shades of purple and red. Then he dumped mana into the ground and propelled them all forward at a much faster pace. 68. Run Boy Run ~~~Lee~~~ For the first time, Mana Blast didn''t hurt. There was a flash of light and a momentary glimpse of blue sky at the far end of a dark, buzzing tunnel. Then the swarming flies filled the gap. Lee pulled a rune from the buried armor... and unleashed another blast with the trickle of mana it returned to him. He repeated the tactic with all the buried runes, then his battery. The mana burn debuff never appeared, but he had to switch hands when the tingling numbness in his arm started shifting into real pain. The highest amount of mana he put into the blasts was always below ten percent, by his estimation. Lee was beyond pleased with the results, even though it quickly became clear that even those weaker shots would still burn him if he kept it up. Nevertheless, the swarm thinned under his assault, until it was finally safe to drop the shield. Lee somehow convinced Alejandro to stay back¡ªprobably since the man could barely stand on his half melted feet¡ªwhile he stood in the gap and chopped down the flies that still flew in, thankfully in much lower numbers. Lee used the fights to pull in as much of the ambient mana that the dead flies left in the air as he could, increasing his regeneration. He summoned metal plates beneath his feet to give his arms a rest from channeling, and discovered he could even place the runes from his soul storage with his feet as well. Then he chucked them like frisbees into the muddy field. That usually drew most of the attention from him, and Lee would stuff some more food into his mouth while he had the chance. There were a myriad of small pains, from sprinkles of drool digging holes in his flesh, to the puddles he could not avoid stepping in. None of it was enough to stop him, given what he fought for, and Lee didn''t know how long that process repeated before a notification popped up. You have Broken the Swarm: [Devouring Rain] For your contributions, you have earned the Title: [Swarm Chaser] The flies already inside the cave still attacked him, but no more followed once Lee cut them down. He only waited a heartbeat to be sure it was over, then stuffed the last of the food into his mouth and rushed to the others. He scooped Penelope into a princess-carry. "I can run her all the way. Lucas, carry Alejandro... but let''s make sure it''s clear." It was clear. Completely clear, and Lee had no trouble orienting himself toward the fort. Three was still a shining beacon of his soul that was impossible to miss. It also told him that the fort was closer than Bradley. Otherwise, he might have considered going that way first. Saira was the best option to save Penelope, but Lee didn''t know if she was even alive. That left Maria as the next best choice for a healer. Lee hated to run away like this, especially when Saira and the others might be in desperate need... but he had to make the call. They would come back for her and the others. Soon. Though it felt like Bradley''s rune might already be moving... If Saira lived, then Bradley and Mar would be fine. If not... well, Penelope still had a chance with Maria. Lee figured it was extremely unlikely that any monsters still existed in the area. Not after that disaster. He still ran with Lucas across the barren and pock-marked dirt until he was sure, then sprinted ahead with the dying girl in his arms. He didn''t know if she was truly dying or not, but she looked damn close. So he ran and shortly after started cursing his frail and feeble debuffs when his hunger climbed rapidly. Lee tried to distract himself by checking his new title. [Swarm Chaser] +100% All Base Attributes when surrounded by ten plus attackers It was nice, if a bit of a niche, and not nearly enough of a distraction. The run turned into a race against his hunger. One that shifted into a nightmare when the walls were in sight but before he reached them. Debuff Upgraded: [Ravenous] "Help!" Lee screamed, somehow tearing his eyes away from the raw, succulent, juicy, oh so delicious meat in his arms. "Healer! Help! Help!" He staggered to a stop, still screaming, and tried to let go of his meal... he couldn''t... do it! He was so hungry... Lee collapsed to his knees, his eyes descending... and ripped one hand away from her even as his fingers tried to claw and grasp at the flesh... then he shoved his own hand into his mouth. Teeth ground through his flesh. The taste of hot blood bursting over his tongue was the sweetest thing he''d ever tasted, even as indestructible teeth ground against unyielding bones. It was... everything he wanted... but not right... not what he needed... not enough! A figure appeared in front of him, their hands reaching out... stealing his prize! Lee tried to bite them, but his mouth was full. He tried to stop them, but they snatched away his meal before he could... He climbed to his feet... staggered after them... he needed it! More food ran toward him, and Lee turned to chase... they grabbed him... restrained him... NO! Let me eat! Then they tore away the only thing he had to chew on... and shoved something else into his mouth... MEAT! Lee struggled and bit at the food holding him down, but they kept sticking pieces into his mouth, until... Debuff Downgraded: [Starving] He was lying on his back, someone beneath him with their hands clamped around his forehead and legs wrapped over his stomach. More hands restrained his arms and legs. While the last person stood over him and was currently stuffing another piece of meat into his mouth. "...ait," Lee tried to say, then had to chew and swallow the bite. That was when Bradley came flying in and landed beside him with an earth-shaking impact. He had a small tree in his hand, and green light blossomed around and into Lee. Debuff Removed: [Minor Bleeding] Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry] Lee finally realized who was currently wrapped around him. How did they get here so fast? Another thought quickly followed that. They''re alive! "Bradley, you are a total fucking badass!" Lee shouted as almost all of his lingering worries drained away. Except. "Alejandro! He''s coming behind..." "Maria already went to get him," Bradley said, smiling. "I think you all can let him go now." Everyone let go, and Bradley pulled him to his feet. Lee held tightly to the other man''s hand even after he was standing. "Thank you, Bradley. You really do rock." Bradley blushed and then frowned. "Is that a..." Lee turned, grinning. "Saira, thank..." He froze. She was completely naked. "...you..." Lee forced his eyes to lock onto her face. "Ahem... thank you." He was extremely grateful, not only that she was alive, but that she had helped him again. He also really didn''t want to talk about what had just happened. It was embarrassing... and that moment when he''d wanted to eat Penelope would probably give him nightmares... Saira smiled, but the expression looked strained as her eyes roved over the crowd. Then she quickly turned away with a wave. "Come, I will assist with Alejandro, and we must speak of something." She glanced to the side and said to someone else. "Do not harm them! Wait for our return." Lee followed her gaze to what Mana Mind had already shown him. Monsters. Or aliens? He wasn''t sure what the right word was here... but the important part was that they were not trying to kill anyone. They were also adorable. Tiny dogs wearing clothes, and sitting in a small group. All of them staring intently at him... At the reminder, Lee went to pull off his own shirt for Saira... but it was in tatters, and filthy... his pants weren''t much better. Mar came sprinting in before he could ask someone else to donate to the lost clothes fund, and she tossed an invisible cloth over her mother. "Get dressed already!" "Thank you, Mar." Saira wrapped what looked like a colorful sheet around herself in a complicated and obviously practiced motion while they walked further away. The flickering cloth did strange things when Mar helped¡­ at times invisible, then visible, then making parts of Saira invisible¡­ Very weird. Also, something to think about later. Bradley dumped mana into the ground beneath their feet, and a slab of earth solidified. Lee understood how they''d caught up so fast when the slab started sliding rapidly forward with them atop it. "Lee," Saira said as they picked up speed. "Those are the Anubi. They invaded... trapped us in a dungeon... and then surrendered." That was... good? He remembered Wilson''s story about surrendering invaders, but hadn''t expected that they could stay behind afterward. As for the name... the Egyptian god of... the underworld? Lee wasn''t sure, but they sure looked like the statues and depictions of Anubis. Which was a strange coincidence... "They claim to be refugees. At least the one who can speak does." Refugees... Did that mean humans could go to other worlds using keys and then stay if they wanted? How many alien peoples would come to earth in the future... how many were already here? Lee felt a strange... reluctance to the idea. He didn''t mind ignoring the Mexico border; they were all humans. This was¡­ something else. "They also claim to make potions, including a healing potion that worked as advertised." "Potions? Like actual magical healing potions?" "Indeed. I did not witness it myself, but Mar used it to heal me." "It works," Mar said. Lee suddenly realized that maybe aliens on Earth were totally fine. In fact, it sounded like a fantastic idea! "There is more," Saira said. "They asked about a runic class and begged to meet with whoever it was. I agreed, but we have not told them who it is." Lee remembered those stares. "They might already know..." Alejandro was limping slightly but on his feet when they found him. Saira healed both him and Lucas, then brought everyone up to speed while they rode the earth sled back to the fort. As a precaution, Lee split off ahead with Alejandro and Maria, leaving Bradley to shepherd the anubi into the fort. He wanted to meet them in his stronghold, just in case. It was suspicious that they knew his class. At least Lee thought so. The class description made it sound like he''d gained some lost class that no one even knew existed... of course, that could all just be flavor text... Maria shared what happened on her end while they went inside, including how the building had endured the swarm. They had seen it coming well in advance, and Lee didn''t need to see the dead flies piled around Three to know that they''d indeed come here. The complete lack of vegetation was enough to confirm that, and Lee mourned the loss of his potatoes briefly before heading inside. Hi, Three! I''m back, and you did great! The building felt different from what he remembered. Diminished. Not as bright as it was before... There were also numerous spots where rebar protruded from the walls... Are you okay, Three? Lee could also see channels in the floors where the building had reshaped itself to dump the acid outside. Otherwise, it looked fine. Just not as bright... and Lee thought that made sense. It had killed thousands of the flies. All that energy had to come from somewhere... right? His only real worry was that the building might need more Source to recharge. That was not something he could provide... but he had a feeling that it wouldn''t be necessary. He''d made this place to protect everyone and done so while he was smarter than he''d ever been before. It would have been stupid to limit his defenses in that way... Lee knew when the anubi entered the fort behind him. It was the same nagging feeling he''d had when he was in charge and the fort was full of non-residents. Which meant Wilson knew they entered the fort... and had brought a small army to stop them by the time Lee got back outside. The anubi were all crouched in the dirt just outside the garage with their... puppies? huddled in the middle of the group. Humans surrounded them. Armed and hostile humans. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Bradley stood with Saira between man and anubi, while Mar flickered in and out of sight on the other side. "They are harmless!" "You can''t just bring random monsters into our homes!" Wilson said, hiding behind his bodyguards... "They are not monsters!" Bradley shouted. "No more than any of us!" Which was a fair point. Humans were technically monsters... Of course, more than a few people objected to having it pointed out. It impressed Lee a lot to see both of the usually timid people standing up against the mob and he couldn''t help the smile on his face as he hurried over. "Stand down!" Alejandro shouted while pushing past Lee. Only a few people moved back at his words. Then he abruptly stood beside Bradley. "Bradley, take them inside," Lee said, and strolled to Wilson. It galled him slightly to say it, but Lee thought it might help with the obvious tension. "Fort Commander, these monsters saved the life of our best healer. The least we can do is hear them out." It might have been a slight exaggeration given what Mar claimed, but everyone who fought the monsters knew Saira on sight. She was literally the lifeblood of this fort, and her presence beside the anubi had likely been the only thing keeping the mob from doing anything. Yet. Wilson frowned, but he definitely noticed the looks running through the gathered fighters when they heard about Saira. "Very well, Vice Commander. Let''s hear them out." "Inside," Lee said, pointing with a thumb over his shoulder. "It''ll be safer for all of us." The crowd opened a path, and Lee went ahead with a thought directed at Three, telling the building not to attack his guests. So long as they didn''t attack him first... Lee was well aware of the two armored men that were shadowing his every step, but he ignored them. Probably Alejandro being over protective again. It wasn''t a bad thing, per se, but it made him look like a weakling... like Wilson. Voices in the crowd still spoke up in favor of killing them immediately, but Lee ignored them and watched the monsters as they walked inside. All of whom were staring directly back at him. Three didn''t react to their entrance, and Lee saw no sign that they''d even noticed what they just walked into... yet they all watched him... staring. Wilson took the lead before Lee could decide what to say. "I heard one of you can speak our language?" "Yes, great one!" A single one of them stepped forward and bowed from the waist while barking, "I am Trak." It was wearing a magic amulet, the only directly magical thing any of them were carrying. As he''d suspected, it was the translator. Lee could see the mana weaves running from the amulet around its neck and encircling its head. It pulsed almost non-stop, either when a human spoke or when the anubi did. "Why are you here?" Wilson said, slowly and too loud. "We surrendered as a sign of good faith... and because a meeting was promised with the leader of your people." "Well, here I am. What is the meeting about?" Trak looked surprised. "Forgiveness, great one. It is... that one we sought." It looked past Wilson and stared directly at Lee. Again. Lee wanted to ask about that necklace, and potions, and why they were so desperate to meet him, but he had another question first. "Why have you all been staring at me?" "Great one, it is beyond rare to see... let alone speak with... a..." It looked around. Nervously, Lee guessed. It was hard to say since they really looked like dogs... its ears had even tucked down like a scared dog. Was it racist to think of them as dogs? The anubi never finished what it had been going to say, instead it bowed again and barked, "I dare not say it aloud, great one!" Lee sighed at the honorific, but didn''t protest. It was probably just some kind of cultural thing. "I heard you were looking for..." Then it was his turn to hesitate. Did he still need to hide his class? Or was that just Jake''s paranoia? Or Stanley''s. He was surrounded by people whom he''d saved or who''d saved him. They all knew about the mana well... or at least the mana. But Lee hadn''t forgotten how the monsters always seemed to want his blood over other people''s. Even the elf had been obsessed... This was the first obsession that didn''t seem to involve killing him. Lee summoned a plate beneath his foot¡ªhis arms were still a little tingly¡ªand he could have sworn they all twitched when he started. Were they sensitive to mana? Then Lee picked it up and stuck a strengthening rune on it. "Is this what you''re looking for?" he asked, while not explicitly divulging his class. Jake was clearly a bad influence. Then he braced for whatever they might have planned. Trak stared intently at the entire process, almost quivering, then he turned to another of his pack. A shorter, grayer version of himself that sat huddled beside the pups. It was barely bigger than them and Lee had assumed it was a pup itself. Now, though, he saw it for what it truly was. An elderly anubi, withered and shrunken with age. They didn''t speak, that Lee could hear, only shared a look until the senior nodded. Then Trak spun back to Lee and bowed to the floor. "Great one! Please take us into your service!" All the anubi looked surprised, but they followed Trak''s lead and bowed. Lee stared. That... was not at all what he''d been expecting. "What? Why would... Why?" The anubi traded glances and the first one spoke again. Or barked. "We have heard stories of the... of those with your class. Legends... of them." It winced slightly, or Lee thought it had. Did that mean they knew his class was legendary? "All the stories mention the power of their fortresses." It stared at him for a moment before adding, "We would be prepared to swear fealty to you, Great One, if you would grant us protection and a place in your kingdom." Lee gaped while mutters went through the gathered crowd. Was he missing something here? Other than that obvious mention of ''fortresses'' that seemed ripped straight from his class description... were the runes really that well known? "Why did you come here? Did you know I was here?" he finally asked. "No, my lord! We fled here seeking safety and a place to raise our offspring, same as any sapient," it barked. "Finding you here was a great fortune beyond expectation!" "What does fealty mean and what can you do to help here?" Lee wanted more details before agreeing to anything. "We are three of us Expert ranked Alchemists and the other three are ancillary classes to ours. Swearing fealty would bind us to not betray or work against you and would punish us severely for even the attempt at betrayal." "We can''t trust this... oath!" Wilson protested loudly. "An oath that they won''t betray us? They aren''t even human and they want us to take their word?" Far too many people muttered what sounded like agreements... Didn''t they hear about the potions? Healing potions! The anubi seemed to pick up on the hostility, and Trak spoke quickly. "You do not know yet, but you will understand. Alas, we do not have a prepared oath, but we will word it thusly!" it said rapidly, with a glance at the hostile humans all around them. Trak dropped to all fours, nose to the ground, and the rest of them followed its lead. "We, the Druller Pack, swear fealty to the... being before us." He looked up then, meeting Lee''s gaze. "We swear to serve and defend him to our last breath, and to be defended by him in turn. We swear to never betray this oath lest our words strike us dead!" All of them repeated it as he went. Presumably... since it just sounded like a lot of howling. What followed confirmed it. You have gained an Oath of Fealty from the entire Druller Pack of Anubi. If accepted, this oath binds the Druller Pack into your service until such time as you release them. Betrayal of the oath by the Druller Pack will have variable penalties dependent on the level of the betrayal, up to and including death. As the sworn Lord, betrayal on your part will incur no penalties but will remove all Oath Restrictions from the Pack. Accept? Y/N "That''s slavery!" Lee blurted. Sure, it looked great for him. He couldn''t see a single downside on his end of the deal. It looked like he could kick them to the curb whenever he wanted and they were stuck with him forever if he didn''t let them leave... "My lord, it is not... it would bind you to protect us as well." "Yea, but wouldn''t I have to do that, anyway? It literally says you can''t quit without my permission! That is slavery!" "But... we have sworn fealty... that is how it works. Will you not accept us? I..." Trak glanced at the elder anubi again, and his posture slumped. "We can remove that limitation if you wish... so it will not bind you to..." "No! I''ll accept it as is! Jesus christ, why would you even suggest that?" For obtaining and accepting an Oath of Fealty, you have been awarded the Title: [Minor Lord] +0.1% Effective All Base Attributes per sworn subject. Increase the number of your subjects to increase your title rank and the effects. The Anubi Druller Pack has joined Greenfield Fort as subjects of Vice Commander Lee Cascade. So, not only did he have some alchemists to make potions, but he also got a buff from each of them. Sweet! When Lee refocused on the anubi, they were all staring at him with hopeful and tentatively happy expressions. How do I know that? He didn''t see any tails wagging, and they had dog faces¡­ "Lord Cascade." They all bowed again. They must have gotten a notification with my name? "Are you sure this is wise?" Wilson stepped up to Lee with a frown. "Can we trust them?" "I got a notification that they can die if they betray me," Lee said, staring thoughtfully. "Plus, if they can make healing potions, that could be huge! We already don''t have enough healers." Wilson didn''t look convinced, but he nodded reluctantly. "Where will they stay?" "Here!" a voice shouted and Lee looked over to see Nathan ''the chemist'' gleefully looking at the anubi. Of course, he would be happy. The guy had yet to actually make anything... "What do you think of living down here?" Lee asked. "We would, of course, put up walls and whatever else we can reasonably provide." They might need plumbing... or would they just... Some of the anubi looked dubious at the idea, an emotion Lee once again didn''t know how he knew... Not that he blamed them. It was a garage... so he added something else to sweeten the pot. "You would probably only work down here. I''m sure we could fit you into an apartment upstairs. Plus, this building is named Three. It is always watching and will protect you the same as it does everyone else in here." Then he invited them as residents and gave them mana access. Which it turned out he could do without knowing their names... Full Mana Access and Resident Status Granted(Anubi Druller Pack) It was a threat and a reassurance. Not that Lee thought they could do anything to hurt him now... he could... feel them. A presence, or a feeling... it was very faint, but likely what was helping him read their expressions? One of whom was currently experiencing a rapid shift towards ecstatic... "You have already created your fortress!" Trak barked. "We are not worthy, and would be beyond honored to work, let alone reside within even the lowliest of hovels within such a place..." Trak trailed off and then threw itself to the floor. "Forgive me, my Lord! No part of your creation could ever be considered a hovel!" "Jeez, relax. It''s totally a dump down here. But we can figure something out. Bradley, can you..." Lee stared at the shirtless man and his stone skirt. As well as the potion bandoliers he was carrying... "When you''re up to it, Bradley, could you help put in some walls? I''ll make the lights... and whatever else we can think of." Bradley flinched, and Lee saw his eyes dart around as so many gazes landed on him. "I... I can do that right now! Or... maybe... get some... clothes... first." "You earned whatever you want after today, Bradley. You''re a damn hero." Lee felt a little awkward saying it, and Bradley flushed bright red, but it had to be said. Everyone should know that Bradley kicked ass today, and he should damn well be proud of himself. Bradley made some noises, and Lee was pretty sure he heard Mar snickering. Then the man fled upstairs with some incomprehensible mumbles. He left behind the bandoliers, and Nathan snatched them up greedily. Lee introduced Trak to Nathan, who then practically dragged them to his claimed workshop space in the garage while begging them to teach him everything they knew right now! Trak pre-empted Lee''s attempts to mediate the demands. "We would be happy to share our knowledge! Yes, yes, come! Show us what you know and we will begin." Trak didn''t leave with him just yet. Instead, he turned to Lee and bowed. "By your leave, my lord. We will begin work immediately! I apologize, but we must first grow our ingredients or find suitable replacements on your world before we can produce any potions..." "First off, enough bowing and calling me lord. Second, while I look forward to seeing what you can make... maybe take some time to settle in? You just came to a whole new world... I can''t imagine..." "Yes, my lord!" Trak bowed. Again. Saira was already moving closer when he finished, and Lee let her take over the discussion of growing things. He instead went to Wilson and Alejandro, who were discussing something in hushed tones. "You guys can relax. They''re probably in more danger from us..." They were. He could order them killed and all they could do was fight for their lives after the fact. Anyone here could attack them aside from Lee... which might still break his oath, as he would have failed to protect them... except just thinking about it told Lee that it didn''t work that way. His side of the oath only protected them from him... and his orders. In all other matters, they could defend themselves, and were expected to do so. Lee could still try to help with that. Three, they are with us now. Protect them if you can. He assumed resident status already covered that, but it didn''t hurt to be thorough. Out loud, he said, "We should keep some guards on them, at least while people get used to the new faces." "Yes, my lord," Alejandro said with a grin. Lee scowled at him. "We should be wary," Wilson said, nodding. "There is no telling what strange morals these... beings possess." "I meant guards to keep anyone from trying to attack them," Lee clarified. "They are under my protection now, and Three might kill anyone that attacks them. So..." Wilson actually looked slightly alarmed at that, but Alejandro chuckled. "I know, I know. I''ll find some people that don''t mind the aliens and make sure they''re protected." "Thanks¡­ I need a shower." Lee was almost back to the stairwell when he heard something and stopped in place. "...haven''t heard of or seen any undead. Why¡­" Lee turned back, adrenaline helping to wake up his mind. "What did you say about the undead?" He asked Trak, butting into the conversation. "I¡­ my lord! I was just asking if they were nearby or not¡­ it is always a worry when going to a new dungeon world." "Why¡­" Lee swallowed on a suddenly dry throat. "Why is it always a worry?" "Um¡­ because they always take a large portion of each new world?" It whined nervously behind the English words. "Are they nearby? My lord?" "What do you mean by they always take?" "They¡­ they just do? They always send an assault and claim a large Raid Dungeon for themselves. They usually spread greatly from the initial victory as well¡­ that is why I worried about being nearby." "Don''t they lose sometimes?" Lee demanded. Pleaded. "I''ve never heard of it¡­ but it''s possible, I guess?" Stanley¡­ Lee swayed on his feet. Stanley can beat them! He killed some of them already! But he was still far away¡­ and had come no closer since Lee saw him killing the undead things. "What ails you, my Lord? I may have a potion¡­" "Don''t call me lord¡­ I''m Lee." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Stanley is getting stronger every day¡­ and Caffeine is with him. Worst case¡­ we use the Source again. Lee knew that last option would probably mean their death. But he also knew that neither of them could live if the other died. If it comes to that¡­ We''ll make sure the Undead lose this time! Lee opened his eyes and looked at the anubi. "I''m fine." "Of course, my¡­ Liege." He ignored that one. "We can talk later. If you need anything, ask Alejandro here." Lee tilted his head towards the man. "He is my brother." "It is an honor to meet you!" Trak bowed to Alejandro, and Lee escaped. 69. If It Aint Broke ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine ran around in excited circles while the Not Dearest Humans fought with the Not Friendly Not Dogs in the big house. They got nervous when he tried to help, so he waited outside. That way, he could watch Dearest Human too! Dearest Human was thinking very hard over there and making lots of stupid Not Humans die. None of them wanted to play... they only wanted to eat him. That was not nice! So it was okay when Dearest Human made them into food. He saw a new, very big Not Dog come running down the street. It ran very fast with very many legs! Caffeine ran over to say hello. "You want to play chase!?" he barked. "I don''t have so many legs... but I am very good at chase!" It chased him! Caffeine sprinted away happily. "Chase!" They ran in big circles, and the Not Dog was so long that it almost made a whole circle with its body! Caffeine wasn''t sure who was chasing who anymore... which was the best kind of chase! The Not Dog had so many pumping legs! Caffeine wondered how fast he could run with so many legs... Then the Not Dearest Humans came out of the house, and the Not Dog decided to chase them instead. They screamed when they saw it coming... "No!" Caffeine barked at it. "You are too big. You need to be smaller if you want to play chase with Not Dearest Humans!" The Not Dog didn''t listen... and Caffeine woofed sadly as it opened a very big mouth to eat the Not Dearest Humans. "Oh, I see. You are a Not Friend..." He did what Dearest Human was doing. And made the Not Friend into food. It tasted spicy... ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley felt Caffeine''s alarm and hauled ass across the sky. The feeling was gone an instant later, well before he arrived and looked down at his new... team. They were outside the lair he''d left them at, and there was a giant centipede the size of a city bus in the street before them. It was in pieces. A lot of pieces. Caffeine bounded into his lap with a wagging tail and lolling tongue as he panted happily. "Good boy." Edward was the one on the ground... again. Serenity crouched over him while the others encircled the duo. None of them looked happy. Except Edward. He was laughing. "I take it all back, Stanley! You can totally keep half my cores if that awesome fucking dog keeps following us around!" Stanley dropped closer. "How bad is it?" He wasn''t looking forward to another healing trip... "Not bad. I didn''t know Caffeine could do that..." Serenity looked away from her patient long enough to glance at the pug in his lap. "Didn''t Nate tell you?" "He said to watch out for him but that he was strong enough to come with us... Not that he could kill a monster... like that." Olivia was staring openly. "Remember this when you''re eating," Stanley said. "He makes friends far too easily..." "You''re going to love me, Caff!" Edward exclaimed, bounding to his feet the moment Serenity moved back. "Want to play chase?" He crouched like a sprinter at the starting line, and Caffeine tensed. Edward took off running, and Caffeine launched Stanley backward as he shot past the other man in a trail of dust. Stanley sighed at the ridiculous antics. Again. But he couldn''t help the small smile when Caffeine slid to a stop ahead of Edward, his head down and tail wagging, before shooting away from the charging man in another trail of dust. "Does he ever get tired?" Stanley asked as he picked up the others. At least Caffeine was leading the guy in the right direction... "I... don''t think so," Olivia said, along with a few of the others shaking their heads. He left them outside the next lair and went on to his own after dragging one monster outside. Just to check. Everything was getting stronger out here. Most of the cores were shards now... and he suspected it was only a matter of time until E-grades started appearing everywhere. Caffeine sat panting in his lap, though Stanley doubted he was truly tired after that little sprint. He still welcomed the chance to pet the pug while he slaughtered monsters. The new team was... competent. At least against F-grades. They would clear out one of the small lairs and then regenerate mana while gathering cores in the next. Apparently mana regeneration was better inside the lairs... Stanley still had the E-grade cores in his pocket, and he was waiting for when he got closer to the next grade. They''d be more valuable once the diminishing returns kicked in. Plus, with the shards dropping everywhere, he was making good progress. Of course, he could always give them to Nate... but that moment of weakness had passed. Better to just get himself to E-grade faster. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](66%) [Source Nexus] [Psycho] [Source Burned] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 49 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 50 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 32 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 27 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 41(+30%)53 Vitality: 43(+31%)56 Dexterity 42(+30%)54 Wisdom 44(+657%)333 Intelligence 47(+656%)355 Willpower 61(+1562%)1013 Twin-Soul ???(+28%)??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Soul Sight (Rare) - Level 14 (Novice) Buff: Debuff: [Feeble] [Frail] [Hungry] His stupid class wasn''t leveling. Neither was Mind Over Matter. Technically, his willpower already had diminishing returns. But none of the E-grade cores were for willpower alone... Otherwise, everything else was doing good. Premonition was the slowest, simply from him not being willing to risk injury while he was weakened. Though that prospect was becoming less and less of an issue. Soul Sight''s text didn''t change when it hit basic rank. Other than to increase the soul bonus. But it gained a leap in how well he could see through the lair walls... which was nice. He was still trying to get Mind Over Matter to do something new. Something special. Any fucking thing! It was supposed to be a legendary skill... so why didn''t it do shit!? Sure, he had the domain now. That was real enough. But having to let the monsters get in his face just felt... stupid. The fact that it hadn''t leveled after hundreds of dead monsters only reaffirmed his belief that he was missing something. Die. Burn. Break a leg! None of his attempts yielded anything. Fart! Trip! Explode! Zilch. His new... friends... allies? Minions? His new minions got to keep half the cores. From the ones they hunted. Not Stanley''s. It was the price for his overwatch, or Caffeine''s overwatch most of the time. Along with him flying them around. The flying had mattered little in the beginning, when they hunted closer to the base. Now they were on the fringes of downtown again. Where the lairs were everywhere and the monsters were stronger. It was more dangerous, but no risk, no reward. Even with half the cores, they were all climbing fast in power. How could they not be? Each core gave them plus one to every attribute. The only reason they hadn''t capped out yet was the diminishing returns, and they still might hit the cap today. Stanley was already feeding cores to Caffeine again. He did so until the pug tired of eating them and ran off to find his new friends. Stanley didn''t like that. A small, selfish, and ugly part of him hated to see Caffeine run away for someone else. He quashed that part of himself ruthlessly. Caffeine loved everyone. If someone fed him, or even just gave him some pets, he would love them forever. Stanley saw more than one time where Caffeine was clearly trying to play with some terrifying monster... right until it attacked him or someone else. Then a switch flipped, and he destroyed whatever threatened him or one of his friends. Watching him run around Nate''s base... seeing him speed up slightly when he smelled someone... his tail wagging when he found the source of the smell... Stanley couldn''t be mad about that. Caffeine did the same thing to him every time they were apart for more than a few seconds. Then he felt¡­ something from Caffeine. He found the pug standing outside and staring into the distance at a¡­ cloud spilling from a skyscraper. A dark cloud that flowed like a swirling¡­ flock of birds. You''ve got to be kidding me. Stanley watched the cloud while Caffeine growled softly beside him, and wouldn''t you know, it was flying his way¡­ Of course. He eyed the surrounding buildings while trying to gauge the flock''s speed. The idea of fighting them in the sky was¡­ unappealing. Better to bunker down with numbers like that. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Only, it wasn''t birds. It was bugs. A swarm of them... Not even a swarm. It was a tidal wave of people-sized wasps that was surging down the street. The birds were on the fringes, and they were eating the wasps¡­ Stanley grabbed Caffeine and took him into the lair with the minions. He wasn''t confident about dragging them all out before the tide washed over them... and besides, why run when there was a giant pile of cores coming his way? The sound of what had to be thousands of wings grew into a deafening roar as they spilled over and around the building while he dragged all the minions into the room with the least openings. Surprisingly, nothing came in after him¡­ like they weren''t out to get him¡­ Very strange. So he sent his spear outside to play. He barely had to try. The bugs were so thick, they just ran into the spear over and over in a spray of gore that rained across their fellows. Unfortunately, each core that appeared got immediately snatched up by the ensuing swarm. So he started dragging the monsters inside and bashing their brains out against the walls or with his spear. Wasps had brains, right? That was when he noticed that all the gore wasn''t just bug guts. Every time one of them died, it would spray a torrent of... something from its stinger. Stanley assumed it was poison or venom¡ªsomething terrible for sure. He really didn''t expect the bugs to swarm inside en masse after the first one died. He kept killing them. Spinning the spear was enough to turn the front room into a wasp blender, and they just kept coming. At first, they only swarmed in the front, nearest to the mess. But as the pile grew and more of their poison sprayed everywhere, the bugs swarmed from every direction. They were all F-grades, and not very strong ones. They''d flown in from the direction of downtown... Was it because they were weak? Did the birds push them out of a lair? Regardless, they were easy enough to handle. He simply blocked the door and window of the room they were in and kept slaughtering. Stanley moved the spear to a different room when the first became a literal blender. Then the next. And the next. Until the roar subsided and silence reigned. He hadn''t killed all of them. Not even a fraction had flown into the building. The rest just flew on by... "What?" he asked the terrified faces in the room with him. "Is... is that normal?" Olivia asked softly. She was crouched against the wall in between the window and door. The others were with her. "Never seen them before," Stanley said. "But there are a lot of cores to collect. Get moving and watch out for the... venom." Stanley flew out ahead of them and stuck a finger in the first pool of the... stuff. Debuff: [Touch of Agony](00:59) Experience extreme pain in any area touched by Agony Wasp Venom. "Ow..." Stanley grunted. "That sucks..." It was also weird. Why didn''t he resist the debuff? Was it not magical? The pain sure felt magically enhanced... or was that it? He didn''t resist physical damage or elemental effects like superheated steam... so was the venom a physical attack? Maybe magic made it more powerful, but wasn''t directly inflicting the pain... "What is it?" Edward said and touched the venom himself... He immediately howled in pain and then screamed, "Cut it off! Cut it..." Stanley cut off his finger; he was a giver like that, and Edward sagged in apparent relief. "I can''t heal that!" Serenity exclaimed. "He asked for it... and maybe don''t gather these cores," Stanley said as his own debuff finally expired. Sure it hurt. A lot. But it was just pain... Debuff: [Hungry] He shoved a chunk of meat into his mouth and tossed one to Caffeine. "I''ll get them." Serenity kept making small sounds of protest until Edward said, "It''s fine. Zeke can heal it!" Once again, Soul Sight made the entire process easier, if not less messy. Stanley didn''t absorb the cores. Or even touch them. His finger still throbbed... So he stuck them in the empty food pack. It was only when he carried them all into the sky, after carefully extracting them through the window, that he noticed the direction of the swarm. "Shit." Stanley flew after it. Fast. The one trick he had improved on with his new skill was blocking the wind. Not that he couldn''t have done it before... he just hadn''t needed to. It took more effort and made him tired faster, but it let him fly... really... Fast. He slowed when the swarm came into view. First as a glowing mass of shifting yellow souls, then a not glowing mass of swarming yellow jackets. Technically, they were Agony Wasps... but they looked like yellow jackets. "Fire at will?" Olivia was the first to act, and her laser reached easily down into the swarm. She didn''t even need to aim. The other casters responded in kind, except James. "I can''t do anything against that... Stanley, get us ahead of them! And higher! Olivia, save your mana. We need a beam they can''t miss from the base! Edward, send the signal! Hopefully that will get them looking in the right direction." Stanley obliged. Sure, they could fly all the way ahead and warn the base, but it was probably better to thin the swarm while they could. Before it got any closer. That way, he could take all the cores. He let Olivia drain her mana completely in three blinding beams, one after the other, then dropped lower to get his spear in range... the real shame was all the cores he was going to lose... Wait... Fuck this. Instead of fighting them with a little stick, Stanley flew well off to the side and hauled up another road while thinking unhappy thoughts. Caffeine will be so sad if all his new friends die... how heartbroken he was when Samantha died... all that pain with the undead would be for nothing... His Rage came easily with those thoughts. Maybe too easily, but he didn''t care right now. Stanley just wanted to kill something. A lot of things! He threw the road at the wasps. The dirt, rocks, asphalt, and even a few old cars. All of it rained down over the swarm in a beautiful, crushing tide of death and destruction. It was a scattershot rain, throwing from so high up, but it didn''t matter with the numbers below. Stanley didn''t even wait for everything to go crashing down before he pulled up another road and did it again. Then again. And again! It was... good. Pleasant even. To watch those yellow souls wink out one by one. Then dozens at a time. Hundreds. To watch the monsters die even as they fled from him. Exactly the way it should be. Die! All of you fucks, die! The light dimmed as he threw more and more debris into the sky in an artillery barrage of ruin. Enough to blot out the sun. Enough to carpet bomb a city. More roads and rocks. More cars. Even buildings. Beautiful, raging destruction! Again! Again... "Stop!" Orange light covered Stanley... Debuff Resisted: [Sapping Drain] He whirled on the monster, and... Caffeine''s face filled his vision. Then the giant pug toppled out of his lap and, with scrambling paws, fell toward the ground far below. "Caff!" Stanley caught the shrinking pug and pulled him back to his lap while someone cried nearby. Down on the ground, he could see more souls. Not the yellow ones, though a few of those remained, but a bunch of different colors... James was talking behind him in a very patronizing tone. "...got them, Stanley. We''re okay. Nate can handle the rest. It''s okay. We''re all okay. Everyone''s fine." "Just shut up." Stanley hugged Caffeine and let his rage drain away along with the last pile of asphalt and dirt. Which he dropped well away from the people below instead of lobbing it at the few remaining wasps... The crying stopped, and Stanley took them all toward their home. That was enough hunting for today. They could visit Zeke; in fact, Stanley wanted to visit Zeke. His memory of that soothing light was a distant and fading thing, and he could see the golden soul not so far away... First, though, cores... You know what? Fuck that! Stanley put his spear through the final wasp as he descended on Nate, a twinge of pain in his head accompanying the attack and signaling that he''d overdone it again. Damn it. "I want the cores. Get them for me." Sure, he could dig them out, but his head already hurt from pushing too hard and earning another debuff. On that note, he dropped off his passengers. It was not that far of a walk... and it made his head feel much better. Nate looked away, out over the new plain of dirt and crumbled asphalt. "They would have rolled over..." "Sure, Stanley," Nate interrupted a bit tersely. "I''ve got some non-combats who can dig this up." Stanley frowned, then saw Nate''s clenched fists covered in gore and twitching. He saw the sweat beading on his forehead. "So... I guess you know to watch out for the venom, then?" Nate let out a short bark of laughter. "I do." Then his face cracked into a grimace of a smile. "Thanks, Stanley. This could have been very... horrible." He was the only one who''d gotten up close and personal with the bugs. All the others who''d come out were casters... Had he known to do that? Or just gotten lucky? Stanley''s head throbbed, and Caffeine really wanted to jump down... He wouldn''t let the pug touch the venom. No way. "Not happening, Caff. Stay." But while on the subject of mind-scrambling pain... "You can have one percent. For collecting them." There had to be at least a thousand cores buried out there, and Stanley wanted nothing more than to snatch them all up this instant... Well, he wanted one thing more than that. Class: Psionic has reached the Threshold of Level 50 No Class Evolutions Available. Ranking Psionic up to Level 50 (Advanced) For reaching (Advanced) rank in your class, you may choose a new Class Skill. Stanley stopped at the first skill on the list. An older one... though slightly different this time. Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) In the symphony of the mind and body, balance reigns supreme. Users of this skill gain the ability to refresh and calm their body and mind through meditation, while also minimizing their body''s physical needs, including sleep and nourishment. Allows the user to enter profound states of concentration, attuning their mind and body to the flow of psionic energy within, balancing the flows of each for a greater control of both. Active meditation increases all regeneration at the cost of severe sensory restrictions. Higher skill level will increase the positive effects and reduce the sensory restrictions. Skill Level Effects - (Novice) +20% to all regeneration while active -1% to sensory restrictions It had a new name, but a similar text if he was remembering correctly¡ªthough maybe slightly better? Stanley wanted this skill. He needed something¡ªanything that could help his mind. The anger made him strong... and he desperately needed that strength, but... it was wearing on him. Wearing him down. Anger alone wasn''t the problem. He could deal with a short temper. It was everything else that followed behind... like the regret. So many of his choices weighed on him. Ate away at him. Punished him. More torments followed behind those. Despair. Fear. Paranoia. While some of that was only healthy... Stanley knew he was too far from the norm, but he couldn''t help it. He couldn''t risk taking a chance and being wrong. Too much was at stake... He couldn''t fail Lee again... couldn''t fail Caffeine again... only, he felt like he was doing exactly that every day. Stanley forced himself to keep checking the list of skills. Just in case. There might be something that insta-kills the undead, no matter how strong they are. Yea right. There was only one new skill... the rest were all upgraded versions of what he''d seen before. Same as meditation. Shield was now Bulwark. Healing was now Infusion and let him boost all regeneration in the target instead of just health... Too little, too late. Elemental Tempest (Epic) Even the elements must yield to the mind. Allows the user to touch upon and manipulate the elemental forces of the world around them using only their psionic energy. Specific elemental affinities may be higher or lower dependent on the user. Some elemental affinities may increase with repeated use and higher skill levels. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Mind Attributes +0.1 All Elemental Affinities It wasn''t bad... per se... but it felt like a waste. His stupid legendary skill should let him do the same thing, shouldn''t it? Manipulating reality had to be better than playing with fire... Besides, he really only wanted meditation. It didn''t boost his attributes, and was only rare instead of epic. But he wanted it. Needed it. He was unraveling at the seams... and he needed anything that might help. Stanley didn''t select it just yet, though. His mind''s eye settling on the only other skill that he craved. Mental Intrusion (Epic) Your mind is mine to infringe. Users of this skill gain the ability to touch upon the surface layer of another''s mind. There, you may attempt to glean the surface thoughts of the target or to implant new thoughts in the target''s mind. Users may also dig deeper into another''s mind at the risk of being detected. Allows searching through memories and rooting out hidden thoughts protected behind mental barriers, provided the user wields the stronger will. Can be used as communication between willing parties. Higher skill levels will increase the range and strength, eventually allowing the user to implant thoughts that the target will take as their own if the intrusion goes undetected. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Mind Attributes +1% Additional Willpower That one might help too... 70. Tearing At The Seams ~~~Stanley~~~ Get into other people''s heads, or try to save myself¡­ Stanley debated the issue with himself as he hovered above the world, an impassable dungeon wall at his back and Nate''s base a speck in the distance. He could finally get into Nate''s head with the intrusion skill, assuming Nate didn''t have something to block him. Stanley could demand Nate let him in anyway... He''d claimed to be on his side; refusing to let Stanley read his thoughts would be a huge red flag on that front. It was tempting. To know who he could trust. Absolutely. Except he already knew without a doubt who to trust. Caffeine. The pug in his lap wasn''t quite napping, but his eyes were closed as he breathed deeply through his nose. Scenting the wind. Stanley stroked the gray fur that felt as soft as ever and thought about his options. Caffeine had shown no hostility toward Nate, or any of the people Nate sent to be on Stanley''s team. In fact, he seemed delighted with them... That meant they were all trustworthy. So he didn''t need to read their minds. Then why did it feel so hard to choose? New Class Skill Gained: Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) Knowledge entered his mind after the impulsive decision, and Stanley only cursed a little while flying towards Nate''s base. He could trust them. He had to. Because using meditation would leave him vulnerable. The building was full of people, including every room that he might have used for this. So Stanley followed the golden soul to Zeke''s location and settled in there. Nate had put his strongest around the boy, so why not let them protect him too? Caffeine was thrilled with the development, and Stanley let him go with a bittersweet smile. Then he sat cross-legged on the floor, his hands resting on his knees in the proper position, and activated his new skill. Darkness enveloped him. Only it wasn''t truly darkness. It was something more. Or less. Nothingness... He could feel his body, but it was distant. Almost like he was watching it from far away... His thoughts felt similar. The skill required that he control the energy flowing through his mind and body in a specific pattern, and it wasn''t difficult. Almost like breathing... very... meditative. There was just one little problem. The nothingness of the void. Stanley tried to immerse himself deeper into the trance... tried to ignore the hungry dark surrounding him in here... tried so hard not to feel the maw of oblivion breathing down his neck... None of it was real. It was just his mind playing tricks. He wasn''t dying this time. Lee wasn''t dying. He could feel him and Caffeine both more clearly than ever... Light and sound crashed into him as the skill unraveled, leaving Stanley breathing heavily and staring warily at all the people in the room with him. Skill Level Up: Harmonic Meditation Skill Level Up: Harmonic Meditation Skill Level Up: Harmonic Meditation Stanley dove right back in. He''d chosen this skill, and he would damn well use it! The anger drained away along with most of the fear... but not all of it. He stayed longer this time. Ignored the whispering shadows for longer. Skill Level Up: Harmonic Meditation He went back in, and this time Stanley stared back into the abyss. I won''t let you take this from me! I won''t fear you! That was a terrible idea, and he crashed back to reality almost instantly... cold sweat breaking out over his entire body the moment his skill ended. Stanley reactivated the skill and tried to use his mental touch to feel the surroundings, to ground himself in the real world... The skill canceled itself the instant he stopped focusing on controlling the energy flow. It required too much concentration... like trying to think two things at once. But... that was good. Stanley did it again, slower this time. He failed, of course. But only after a second. So he did it again, and again, and again. Over and over. This was something he understood. Something he''d done a lot of lately. Training. Stanley had learned how to push his truck, how to fly, how to fight against the monsters, how to control his weapons, how to feel the world with his thoughts, and how to do all of that at the same time. He could learn this too. The notifications didn''t appear while he was in there... which was nice. Stanley ignored them until... Harmonic Meditation has reached the Level 10 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Harmonic Meditation Upgraded to Level 10 (Basic) He stayed where he was and kept working, with no knowledge of how much time passed. It was a cycle of concentration and peace, followed by fear and anger. But the peace eventually balanced out the fear once he kept it going long enough. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine was having the best time! So many Friends to play with! He ran around very fast and played chase with his new Best Dog Friend. Then they played carrying with the Little Humans. Best Dog Friend had his own Dearest Human and Caffeine agreed that she was the very best of Little Humans. Exactly as wonderful as his own Dearest Humans. Dearest Humans were all the best! There were a lot of happiness noises and fun screaming from the Little Humans. It was the best! Caffeine ran back to his Dearest Human a lot. To check on him and comfort him when he smelled like upset and afraid. He wanted Dearest Human to come play. That would make him not sad and very happy, but Dearest Human was busy thinking. So Caffeine only gave him comfort licks when he got extra upset. Dearest Human would play once he finished thinking, and his thinking did make him less sad... The Food Humans made lots of wonderful snacks for the Little Humans, and they were the best at sharing! Caffeine ate a lot! He wanted to run around more in the outside, but the Little Humans weren''t supposed to go there, so he had to play inside with them. Caffeine even got to play a little with Warm Light Human. He made very nice light! It was like the sun on his belly! Caffeine wanted Warm Light to shine on Dearest Human, but he smelled too much like nervous... Some of the Not Dearest Humans also smelled like worried if Warm Light got close to Dearest Human... especially Warm Light''s best friend. She always smelled like frightened... but also like loving and protecting. She was a Good Human. She wanted Warm Light to be happy and safe. Dearest Human had frightened her... that wasn''t nice. Caffeine tried to reassure her that Dearest Human was a good human too, but she was still frightened. So Caffeine played only a little with her and the other Not Dearest Humans that watched Warm Light. They didn''t want to chase... they only wanted to watch Warm Light. They wanted to keep Warm Light safe. Caffeine understood. He wanted to keep Dearest Human safe too! They were Good Not Dearest Humans. ~~~Stanley~~~ One of the things that helped most was that he could always feel Caffeine, even while in the void. He knew where the pug was at all times, and could even sense his mood far better with his own emotions suppressed by the skill. It gave him something pleasant to focus on, because Caffeine was having the time of his life roaming through the building. He didn''t notice the other feature until someone approached with Caffeine and then both of them stood beside him. Stanley knew they were there, even though he still hadn''t gotten his mental touch to work. It had to be his domain... he just hadn''t noticed when Caffeine went running in and out alone. The newcomer was Jerry. With food. "Stanley, brought you the good stuff. I''ll serve my slop to the peasants." Stanley blinked at the much larger crowd of people filling the dining hall. It was dark outside... How long had he sat here? Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 20 (Basic) He''d made some progress, at least, and he felt... okay. Stanley activated his Soul Sight. "Thanks Jerry." Jerry flinched and shook his head. "Can''t believe you doubled down on the scary eyes thing." He handed off a plate and set down a huge bowl piled high, which Caffeine licked clean in two seconds. "Well... at least he got the extra stats?" Stanley checked. Status Name: Caff Caffeine Race: [Canine(Pug)](F-grade) Traits: [Good Boy] Class: Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 20 (Basic) Class Skills: Howl of the Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 5 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 10 Vitality: 10 Dexterity: 10 Perception: 10 Intelligence: 10 Willpower: 10 Soul: ??? [Twin-Soul Bonded(Stanley Cascade)(Lee Cascade)] Non Class Skills(0/3): [Big Enough] [Strong Enough] [Fast Enough] [Tough Enough] Buffs: [Bill''s Special] Debuffs: "He got the stats... or at least the buff," Stanley confirmed. As for his scary eyes... "And I need to level my sight skill." He swept his gaze over the assembled masses. None of them stood out as rotten... though one was a familiar fire engine red that reminded Stanley of flames... Tony. It was a bittersweet reminder. The moron he''d had to punish... and Samantha talking to him later. Stanley could almost hear her voice... "Is Tony behaving?" Jerry paused mid turn. "Would you believe he got a girlfriend?" "That seems... unlikely. Though I guess there are plenty of morons still alive?" "I should rephrase that," Jerry said. "He didn''t get shit. I heard she picked him, and that she''s stronger than he is... He follows her around like a puppy." "That''s... good?" "Yeah. At least if he flips out, she can protect herself. Plus, Nate would spank the shit out of him if he tried another stunt like last time." Stanley smiled at the image those words put in his head. Would Tony prefer that over a hand roasting? It would have to be embarrassing as hell to get a spanking as a grown ass man... but it would be a perfect response for someone throwing a tantrum. Jerry moved on, and Stanley ate his food until the buff maxed out, then he gave the rest to Caffeine and got back to meditating... which lasted all of ten seconds before someone else entered his personal space. It was Edward. "Stanley! Hi, Caff! Look what I brought you!" He sat down right next to Stanley and started feeding Caffeine more meat. "Who''s a good boy!? You''re a good boy!" Stanley resisted the urge to slide the man away from him and went back into his meditation instead. It was odd. He knew the guy was sitting next to him... could feel it every time he moved... but there was nothing telling him that. He wasn''t touching him, but just knew he was there. Comforting, if nothing else. He couldn''t get snuck up on while meditating... though the range on it wasn''t very good. Stanley also couldn''t actually tell what the guy was doing. He only knew he was there and moving occasionally. So he asked Edward to give him a little stab, just to check if premonition would also still work. It did. Snapped him right out of meditation and fast enough to punt Edward a few feet away before his stab even landed. "Thanks," Stanley told the laughing man. Caffeine was staring back and forth worriedly, but the laughter must have helped because he quickly bounded over to jump on Edward. Stanley stayed where he was and kept meditating. The crowds bothered him, but they vanished along with everything else when he went to the void. It helped that he knew Premonition would warn him if anyone tried anything... and feeling Caffeine''s happiness as he roamed the area helped even more. People left as the night progressed, until finally, the room was dark and quiet when Stanley next fell out of meditation. Debuff Removed: [Cerebral Fatigue] It was a very pleasant surprise that meditation not only didn''t increase the debuff, but actually removed it faster. Stanley had some theories about the debuff itself... and how he kept gaining it. Primary among them was that his attributes were too unbalanced. Even without the negative physical attributes¡ªthanks to his new source title¡ªthere was still a massive gap between physical and mental. He''d thought boosting mind attributes would include things like his actual physical brain, but now suspected it might require more. Like vitality. There wasn''t anything he could do about it now. Other than keep getting stronger. He might even find a solution at E-grade. Hopefully. If not, well, he wouldn''t complain about having more power, and his regeneration, plus now meditation, would be enough to deal with the issue. What he could do was increase his attributes. Two backpacks full of glowing cores sat beside him, light leaking through the seams. Stanley took the cores... and absorbed most of them. He saved the rest for Caffeine, but didn''t wake the pug yet. Caffeine was sleeping in his lap... and someone had given him a little blanket to snuggle beneath. Was it Nate? Edward? It was such a little gesture... a blanket for Caffeine, but Stanley felt emotion rising at the sight before he dropped quickly back into the void. He''d need to find out who was so thoughtful... since he was the one keeping Caffeine from a warm bed¡ªnot that he had a bed here, did he? He was tempted to go looking for one, for Caffeine''s sake, but he didn''t want to sleep, didn''t want the nightmares... Caffeine still got to sleep on his legs, and now he even had a blanket. Plus, he might sleep better without having to worry about Stanley''s nightmares as well. Sometime later, Stanley opened his eyes slowly, easing out of the trance rather than crashing back to reality as he usually did. Part of that was to improve his control, but the rest was to spite whoever was currently poking him repeatedly... He''d gotten better, if only slightly, at touching the world while meditating. Now he could feel himself, and maybe an inch above his skin... Harmonic Meditation has reached the Level 25 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Harmonic Meditation Upgraded to Level 25 (Intermediate) It was light out, and wouldn''t you know it, Edward was the one poking him. "He''s awake!" Stanley slid the man away across the floor and grabbed the bin of meat that Caffeine was staring at very intently. He ate, somewhat disappointed to find that he was starving despite the meditation. It was supposed to reduce his need for food... On the plus side, Stanley wasn''t feeling tired. So that part seemed to have worked. He switched back and forth between feeding himself and Caffeine, even though he knew the pug had likely eaten already. Nate promised unlimited food, so Caffeine could eat as much as he wanted. Could eat until he threw up... if that was... Stanley turned his focus to the only people within an otherwise clear half-circle of open space around him. His group. All of them. Huh. He hadn''t been sure they would come back after the day before... "Not traumatized enough yesterday?" "What are you talking about!?" Edward exclaimed. "Yesterday was totally awesome!" His reaction wasn''t unexpected; it was the others Stanley had expected to bail. "Is Nate forcing you to do this?" They exchanged glances before Serenity spoke. "He isn''t forcing anyone. We..." "We want to do this," Olivia said when the other woman hesitated. "Sure, it''s terrifying, but it''s not you..." "It is sometimes," James mumbled. "It''s not you," Olivia stated with a glare at the other man. "It''s everything. Monsters that can kill us in a heartbeat... that swarm of wasps... all of us are hanging on by a thread here. The knowledge that at any moment we could face something like that again... that is terrifying." Serenity jumped back into the conversation. "I think what she''s trying to say is that we actually feel safer with you... and Caffeine." Silas finally chimed in, "We''re losing people out there. Even from the big hunting teams. All it takes is one slip up, or an extra monster wandering through that you weren''t expecting... Despite all our powers, it isn''t always enough." "Besides, being on your team gets us out of food gathering! We get to hunt all day! Not to mention the flying! And the..." "Edward''s enthusiasm aside," Serenity interrupted. "You''re helping us far more than anything we could do for you. We aren''t about to abandon such a sweet gig. Hell... I don''t know if we''ve ever been in any real danger since joining you two. It''s definitely not helping me level my healing..." "Something we need to rectify," James said. "All of us, myself included, need to step it up today. Leveling skills is the only way to grow without E-grades to kill, and we''ll need that extra power for when we do find them." Stanley had suspected they''d hit the cap already... and he entertained a brief worry that they would reach E-grade ahead of him. Though the thought wasn''t nearly as worrying as the idea of Nate at E-grade... Sure, his group wasn''t that pathetic... not anymore. But... were their weaker abilities part of the reason Nate had picked them? To make them less threatening? Edward was the most concerning potential threat. Stanley could get a feel for each when he carried them, and Edward was the heaviest. He just wasn''t sure what factored into it... So he asked them about their skills and percentage boosts. Though he waited until they were outside and flying closer to the city before doing so. They told him everything. Which was surprising. It also confirmed his suspicions about Edward. The man not only had the highest boost of all of them¡ªto his strength¡ªbut his total boosts to all the attributes were also higher than everyone else. Stanley''s theory of their weight in his mind correlated with the total percentage boost once he ran the numbers. He dropped them off with Caffeine and flew next door. The monsters, something with too many legs and long hair, never rallied outside as he slaughtered them. Though a few zombies shambled closer while he hovered in place. Stanley would have ignored them, but Caffeine would rip them apart as soon as he popped out to check on him, and he didn''t want the pug biting any of those disgusting things. So he killed the coreless zombies. Plus, they might eat some of his cores... Then he flew to the next lair and slaughtered it as well. The wasp cores Nate gave him added up to around two thousand dead monsters. More if Nate had held back his one percent. Unfortunately, they were all weak and only boosted a single attribute each. Of course, with those numbers, it still added up to almost thirty attributes across the board¡ªa decent haul. Almost thirty, because he was back into the diminishing returns after getting above fifty. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](66%) [Source Nexus] [Psycho] [Source Burned] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 50 (Advanced) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 50 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 35 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 30 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 26 (Intermediate) Attributes: Strength: 70(+30%)91 Vitality: 71(+31%)93 Dexterity 70(+30%)91 Wisdom 72(+725%)594 Intelligence 74(+725%)610 Willpower 89(+1625%)1535 Twin-Soul ???(+28%)??? Non-Class Skills 1/3: Soul Sight (Rare) - Level 14 (Basic) Buff: Debuff: [Feeble] [Frail] [Hungry] Yeah... his effective attributes were way off. Assuming it mattered... Nate had said nothing about balancing attributes, but then, the highest range Stanley had heard of was in the area of two or three hundred percent apart. He just needed to reach E-grade. That was all that mattered now. Him and Caffeine. Which meant it was time to feed the pug. 71. Snake Action ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley''s smooth hunting trip ended when a dozen souls abruptly appeared inside the lair he was attacking. Human souls. He had a moment to wonder how he knew they were human before the reality of their abrupt arrival caught up. Teleportation! It was better than them appearing next to him... but he still almost hit one with his spear while his heart rate spiked. Not intentionally. They appeared almost on top of the monsters he was attacking! Then the monster souls started blinking away one after the other¡ªnot dead, just further away. What the... The human souls vanished. Stanley spun in place, pulling his spear back and waiting for the ambush even as he felt Caffeine coming his way at speed. There! They were in the next lair over. The one he''d already cleared. Stanley hovered in place, mind tense as he waited... and kept waiting... They weren''t doing anything. Just sitting there... though a few looked to be moving slightly... Caffeine slid to a stop outside the occupied building, then charged inside. "No!" He flew inside, cursing the loss of his charge skill once again even as his mind reached out... and felt... children? They vanished from his soul sight and mental touch a moment before he reached the now empty room. Caffeine whined at him, then sprinted back outside even faster than Stanley had flown in. Barking all the way. Stanley wasn''t sure what was happening anymore, but he spotted the souls in another building once he was back outside. He couldn''t actually see Caffeine''s soul in there with them, but he could feel the pug well enough to know he was. The barking drew the others from their lair. Cautiously. It seemed they''d learned their lesson after the centipede... Stanley stayed outside but pointed them in Caffeine''s direction. The kids hadn''t fled from the pug yet. Assuming they were actually kids... though Caffeine''s friendliness was a good sign on that front. He waited outside until Edward popped back out the door. "Serenity says to turn off your eyes; you''re scaring them!" Stanley sighed and deactivated Soul Sight. Then he went inside the upstairs floor and picked a corner to meditate in. Might as well make the most of the time. He could keep track of them through Caffeine. The pug came upstairs some time later, and Stanley dropped meditation for some pets before Caffeine sprinted back down. He peeked out the window and saw a crowd of children walking down the street with his team. That was a terrible idea... He flew outside and approached behind Caffeine, who stopped at each child for licks and the occasional pet. "Are we going to walk all the way back? Or can I carry them?" "Would that be okay?" Serenity asked the small boy next to her and then touched his shoulder. He said nothing, but vanished and reappeared on the other side of the group. "Ren!" Edward exclaimed. "How hard is it to understand? No touchy!" He did a weird little karate move when he said that, and a few kids giggled. "Now, who wants to fly with the doggy?" There was a small chorus of agreement, and Stanley obliged by lifting Caffeine into the air. "Okay, everyone, say... Fly!" Edward flapped his arms and got a few kids to mirror him while a bunch yelled the magic word. Stanley picked them all up, and the teleporting kid vanished. He reappeared beside Caffeine in midair¡­ and didn''t fall. He sat down beside the pug, and Caffeine was only too happy to climb into his lap with a wagging tail and licking tongue. Then Caffeine rolled over and got a belly rub, too. Stanley smiled to see the pug enjoying himself so much, and he didn''t even mind the delay as he flew relatively slowly with what felt like ungraded children... Caffeine made the rounds to all of them on the trip, and the teleporting boy followed without apparent effort or help from Stanley. He was the only one Stanley suspected to be at least F-grade. The kid had some weight to him, and he obviously had a class. Exactly what class was what occupied Stanley''s mind on the way back to Nate''s. It seemed he could fly... and also teleport. Not just himself, either. He''d been taking all the kids with him on each jaunt... that had to be expensive, mana wise... Of course, the real question was, how were they all alive? The miasma was stronger than ever, but none of the kids looked starving... had they come from another base? Everyone flinched when the notification appeared. Mana Saturation of Dungeon World (Earth) has reached the E-grade Threshold. Dungeon World (Earth) has ranked up to E-grade. As your dungeon grows, you will face new challenges. Gather your allies. Grow stronger. Prepare to defend your dungeon. Fight! Stanley felt a mix of emotions at the sight of that notification. On the one hand, it was good because it would be easier to find E-grades. On the other hand, it would be easier to find E-grades. He kept carrying the kids toward their new home despite the message. Which paid off when Nate came out to greet them and then pulled him aside. "I found another one." Stanley kept offering cores to Caffeine mixed in with the meat. "Where?" "South west, almost next to the wall. It''s small, like the last one. The researchers think it is because those monsters are focusing on power over growth. That, plus they don''t have a lot of competition out here. Not like in the city." It wasn''t dark yet, so Stanley headed out. But not alone. James was waiting right outside the door with his entire team. Should have kept my soul sight on... "Nate told us," James said immediately. "Let us come with you. We''ve all grown since that first lair and we can help, even if only as emergency backup." "Fine..." Stanley didn''t argue. If nothing else, they could help Caffeine... maybe. Or maybe he could handle the fight better... though Stanley fully intended to use his rain of death again. If possible. If it wasn''t feasible, well, then they might be useful after all. Stanley flew by the mantis lair on his way and stopped when he saw a few souls shining through the roof. "How about a little practice run?" They set up outside, and Stanley sent his spear in to pick a fight. None of the monsters charged outside this time, and he also killed none of them. They felt weird, and he couldn''t figure out what was happening until he flew inside and laid eyes on them directly. What the fuck? The mantis fighting his spear didn''t have the twin scythes from before. Now it had one blade and a shield-like appendage on the other arm¡ªa shield it used to great effect, expertly intercepting the spear every time. It was weird... and disturbing. Had the queen changed things up since his last attack? Could they do that? How smart was she... or was this just some instinct type thing? Whatever it was, he didn''t like it. So Stanley forced the monster into immobility and put the spear through its head. The two others still didn''t attack... they stayed beside the queen. The queen has surrendered. Lair Defeated. Stanley killed both of the guards with the same tactic, then killed the queen. She didn''t drop a core, aside from the one that appeared in the doorway. Stanley was fine with that. He was not fine with smart monsters learning better ways to fight him. The queen is dead, but the eggs remain. A new queen will arise if they are not destroyed. He left the eggs alone. Partly because they didn''t drop cores, but also to see if they came out the same. Or if they would still evolve without the queen. "Never mind this one," he said to his team on the way out. He could have let them fight... but fuck the bugs! It turned out slightly harder to find the lair Nate had directed him to without a guide. Sure, he could see the lairs from a distance, but there were plenty of them out here. Not to mention the random wandering monsters outside. Olivia spotted the fragment of a sign on the storefront, one Stanley hadn''t seen before. A quick mental probe confirmed the monsters inside were E-grade, and everyone set up outside. Stanley didn''t mention the pair of identical souls coming closer through the woods at their backs... He wouldn''t let them kill his team, but he wanted to see what happened. See just how good they were after days of hunting... Everyone was focused intently on the dark doorway ahead when Caffeine spoiled the surprise by growling and trying to scramble out of Stanley''s lap. James spun with a shout, hands outstretched... and nailed both charging monsters with twin slowing spells. The others reacted smoothly and piled on, focusing their attacks all on the nearest creature. They looked like snakes. Giant snakes with two huge arms ending in human hands... It was creepy as all hell. Stanley didn''t involve himself in the fight, only drifted further away so he could keep them and the lair in his line of sight. He wanted to see any reinforcements coming. Plus, one soul in the lair looked... weird. Different. The first snake died almost instantly under the barrage they unleashed. Laser-like beams of light carved trenches in the monster''s flesh, and the crystal spikes came in a storm behind the light. Most of them ricocheted off the scales, but there were enough of the things that a number landed in the scorched flesh and punched deep. James didn''t contribute beyond his slowing magic, but it was more than enough, at least for the first few seconds. "Switch! They''re breaking free!" Edward was sprinting in as both snakes shone brighter and brighter with a silvery glow that finally shattered the orange tendrils holding them in place. He splattered the wounded snake''s head across the ground before it could do anything with its newfound freedom. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. The second shot toward the group with all the speed of a striking snake... Silas thrust his hands toward it, and crystals appeared in a cloud around him, then all zipped away at once. Instead of impaling the snake, the crystals abruptly halted before reaching it and formed up instantly into a curved shell in midair. The snake slammed into and rebounded off the shield, which didn''t budge an inch. Olivia''s lasers lashed out, scouring scales and burning the flesh beneath while it recovered. Then Silas snapped his fingers, and the shield exploded into a cloud of crystalline shrapnel that blasted the snake further away. Serenity''s fire whip smacked it in the face, then James caught it again with the slow, and Edward bashed in its head. Like that, it was over. Two dead snakes and no injured humans. Not bad. Stanley took the cores while finally letting Caffeine go inspect the new monsters. He watched him, though. Those human looking arms were creepy, and he didn''t want the pug to eat them... Core Chip[E-grade] +10 Willpower Core Chip[E-grade] +10 Strength Stanley hesitated while looking at the strength core. Technically, they had killed these, which meant they earned half... He could give it to Edward. The guy would probably push that attribute up to the cap by fighting anyway. The world being E-grade now likely meant the lairs would advance quickly to match. At least, that was the theory. He didn''t know if it was all the meditation or seeing them fight just now, but Stanley was feeling surprisingly less paranoid about the concept of them reaching E-grade ahead of him. He''d prefer they didn''t... but it didn''t feel like as much of a death sentence for him anymore. Edward didn''t have any crazy skills like Nate, and Silas was likely the only one whose magic Stanley might not resist. "No can do, my man," Edward said after catching the core. "Big boss Nate said you get all the E''s." Then he threw it back. Stanley shrugged and did his best to hide the relief he felt while adding both cores to his stash. It was tempting to absorb the willpower now, but he could push higher before using it... He wanted to collect enough cores to jump straight to E-grade, and every day he got closer. They waited for everyone to regenerate full mana, and Edward used the time to carve holes into his left arm for Serenity to heal. Not a lot, but enough to let her train her healing skill, since she''d done barely anything in the fight. A downside of them all getting better. Though her one damage spell was leveling decently... His spear went first, and Stanley missed the snake when it dodged. It still chased the spear outside, so that was fine. He let his group kill the lone snake and went in for another while they did so. It didn''t go nearly as well the second time. Stanley killed it by embracing enough anger to make his spear really fly... but the weird soul noticed, and it came charging out with all the rest of them. Caffeine was among the group on the ground, and the sight of all those monsters coming his way was more than enough to feed Stanley''s rage. Everything slowed down as his willpower climbed, feeding not only into Mind Over Matter but also Accelerated Thought. His spear struck like a lightning bolt as he sent it through the mob... and the leader retreated before the last one fell... Stanley killed the still charging snakes but left the weird one alone. It wasn''t the queen, or at least he didn''t think it was. There was another soul in there that felt much more similar to the snakes, though sans arms. Also, the weird one had a human upper body atop a snake''s... tail? The better part was that he''d killed them so easily... he was strong again. He didn''t need to fear E-grades. Not these... "Everything okay?" James asked, looking up at him. "Fine." Stanley let his anger drain away. Mostly. The confusing nature of what he was feeling inside the lair helped, plus Caffeine jumped into his lap for cuddles. Stanley told them what was in there, and Edward immediately wanted to run inside. "I gotta see this! Is she a hot naga lady!?" Stanley said nothing as he followed Edward inside. None of the others shared his enthusiasm for ''hot snake ladies'', but they still came along. "Aww man... It''s a dude naga." Stanley hid his smile while collecting cores and then rejoined the others, where they were staring at one of the strangest things any of them had ever seen. Edward was right. It was a dude. Or half of one. His lower body was a massive snake. Also, he was talking... or rather, screaming. "You monsters! Coming in here! Slaughtering my children! Monsters!" "Dude, we didn''t know!" Edward spoke up, apparently the only one not stunned speechless. "I''m so... Wait... does that mean you banged the snake?" The naga slithered endlessly around another giant, but otherwise normal looking snake that watched them warily. "You wouldn''t understand. You''re just humans..." "Nah, dude. I get it... I just prefer some tits and ass on my..." Serenity slapped the back of his head. "I mean, I could get down with it if she''s got a pretty face... and tits..." Olivia and Serenity both smacked him in the back of the head simultaneously. James sighed and shook his head before asking, "Are you... were you human? What''s your name?" "You should put up a sign outside," Edward suggested. "Hot snake on snake action! Do Not Enter!" "Humans... you''re all murderers... you slaughter with nothing but a greed for power..." Stanley nodded. That sounded mostly on target. Though he also killed a lot for food as well. "Look," James said. "We can tell people to stay away, but..." "No. No one leaves. You will bring more humans here. You want to hunt us... I won''t let you hurt my love!" He shot towards them as light bloomed in his human hands. James hit him with his slowing spell... or tried to. One of the naga''s hands flashed, and streaks of white light shredded the orange magic before it could form. His other hand unleashed a shockwave that threw Edward across the lair. Then his tail whipped around and flew at Serenity. The crystal shield stopped it cold before shattering into dust. Stanley kept Caffeine in his lap, but sent his spear to play instead. He really wasn''t sure about this whole thing... the guy seemed a little off... and his ''children'' were creepy as hell. Was he really a former human? Stanley hadn''t forgotten his own option to evolve into a beast kin... presumably this guy had done something similar? Only then he found or created a snake lair and started making babies with a snake... That seemed like a step too far. Really going full native... Also a good way to get hunted down by other humans. He forced the naga to change course away from Olivia with the spinning spear forming a deadly barrier in front of her. It still threw out another spell that slipped past the spear and wrapped the woman in vines bursting up from the ground. Caffeine scrambled free and appeared beside her before going to town on the vines. Stanley could feel it when the pug really got into the tugging game... he wasn''t upset about the snake man. Not yet. The naga wasn''t so magnanimous when he saw Caffeine chewing on his spell. "Deformed creature," he said, while breaking James'' spell again and throwing up a shield against the flying crystals. "Another sign of humanity''s hubris destroying what nature made pure!" Honestly, it was uncalled for. Caffeine was a pug, sure. Not the healthiest breed, but that no longer mattered. There were no such things as breathing problems when one was the beast lord... It was also hypocritical. The guy was a damn snake monster, and he was still talking about natural order? "Humans are the disease," he said, then swatted Edward into another flight across the lair. "Enslaving innocent creatures to fight for you!" Stanley bristled at that comment, and his spear sped up... "Better death than slave...!" Stanley nailed him to the lair wall with a spear through his chest. You have attacked a lair structure. All lair residents notified. Debuff: [Cerebral Fatigue] The queen has surrendered. Lair Defeated. The snake man wasn''t dead, but he was on his way. Stanley left him dangling from the wall, arms and tail waving feebly, and held Caffeine close. Caffeine licked his nose. Stanley knew Caffeine wasn''t here by force... he hadn''t forced the pug to stick with him... but the guilt of everything Caffeine had suffered from following him... that hurt. Especially when a monster accused him of enslaving the little guy... It echoed too close to the thoughts he''d had himself. Even though he knew it wasn''t true. Caffeine had shown him that. If anything, Stanley was enslaved to Caffeine. Which he was fine with. More than fine. It was the best life he could imagine. A warm lap for his beast lord. Hands with which to rub his beast lord''s belly. A mind to acquire the snacks the beast lord desired. Almost perfect. The only thing that could make it better was if Lee was here as well. Two laps to choose from. Four hands that could protect and care for their lord. That would be perfect. Skill Shard[E-grade] Spell Shield(Rare) Your magic shall not touch me. User generates a shield of mana that will repel incoming magic. Strength of shield dependent on intelligence and skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Intelligence Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A](Adaptable) Adapting to this Skill will require 50% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Stanley stared at the skill taken from a dead snake-man. A shield against magic... Sure, it would change if he learned it, but maybe not too much. Teleport hadn''t turned out so badly, other than when it vanished into Mind Over Matter. Of course, that meant he could learn new non-class skills. His debuff was a couple of hours long... No big deal. Some meditation would drop that down to less than an hour. The team was strong enough by now that carrying them would add to the debuff, but they''d passed a few lairs on the way here, and Stanley directed the team to the nearest one. Some running wouldn''t hurt. Caffeine agreed. He and Edward ran laps around the others on the way. Stanley only waited long enough to ensure the new lair wasn''t another E-grade, then sat in a corner and meditated. He spent the time thinking about skills and the potential value of adaptation percentages. ~~~James~~~ James felt no sympathy for the snakeman. It had already made some bad choices, and attacking them only sealed its fate. Humanity would survive this nightmare dungeon. Nate would lead them through, and James would do what was necessary to support the man. Including killing half-human monsters. Then the snakeman ruined any hope of survival by threatening Stanley¡¯s dog. Bad idea. He knew what was coming but still flinched at the burst of rage coming from Stanley¡­ and like that, the fight was over. James was willing to do anything Nate asked of him, which was how he¡¯d ended up here. With Stanley. Babysitting an unstable monster who, at any moment, might kill all of them. Something none of them would be able to stop if it came down to it. Nate claimed that wouldn¡¯t happen, and James trusted him¡­ but it wasn¡¯t easy. The silver lining to it all was Caffeine. The power hidden inside that little dog¡­ If anyone could match Stanley¡¯s insane power, it was his dog. That would have been even more worrying if Caffeine wasn¡¯t also the most easy going dog James had ever met. The little guy tried to play with every monster he could¡­ It was a miracle. Because if Caffeine was more like Barbie¡­ well, they might all be dead already. He watched Stanley as they walked after him to another lair. The guy¡¯s face was a blank mask with¡­ maybe a hint of pain? Had he pushed too hard? He wasn¡¯t carrying them. That probably meant he had debuffed himself yet again. Not that he would say anything to them about it¡­ Caffeine split his time between running to sniff every interesting thing, chasing Edward around, and sitting in Stanley¡¯s lap. The pug knew he was hurting. He could probably smell it. James would have told his little group to protect the dog at all costs¡­ but that was unrealistic. The dog had already saved all of their lives at least once. It was¡­ upsetting every time Caffeine saved them. Because it reminded him that a damn pug was stronger than he was. Stronger than all of them combined. But he couldn¡¯t stay upset. Because the damn dog would notice and try to comfort him¡­ Never change, Caffeine. James half-suspected Nate had made a mistake in naming Stanley their savior instead of the dog. They reached the first lair. Stanley followed them inside before sitting in a corner and staying there. James was all for it. Whatever the new skill was that had him sitting around and not moving, it was a good thing. The guy always seemed a little more stable afterward. That was something they all needed now that the world was E-grade. Not that he knew exactly what that meant¡­ but it wasn¡¯t hard to make a guess. Stronger monsters. More danger. More dead humans. Nate wanted nothing more than to search the entire dungeon and gather the remaining humanity together. A monumental task given the total size of the place. But it would get easier as they got stronger. While the monsters also got stronger. It was a race. 72. Where Is Your God ~~~Lee~~~ The way the anubi looked at Lee made him feel extremely uneasy. That, and what they''d told him about the undead. How Stanley was doomed to fight a supposedly unbeatable foe¡­ That was why he''d avoided the garage the day before and instead gone to join Martin''s evening training in the field outside. It didn''t give him more bonus attributes; lots of people had tried that, despite Martin telling them it wouldn''t work. But it was still sword training, and Lee hadn''t forgotten how outmatched he''d been against the elves... Training Complete. +1 All Base Attributes His morning training still gave him the attributes, though, and then Lee had to go see what the anubi wanted... after a shower. It wasn''t that he didn''t want to talk to them. Hell, he had a lot of questions to ask. What bothered him the most about them was that they''d practically sold themselves into slavery... to him. So that was his first question when he finally laid eyes on Trak again. "Why? Why did you swear that oath?" "I..." Trak hesitated, still bowing... "Stop bowing already! It isn''t right!" "Forgive me, my lord." Lee gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to yell at the little guy. "I''m Lee. Not a lord. Not my lord. Just Lee." "Our matriarch begs an audience, my l..." he choked on the last word, almost bowed, then hurried into the stone room while pulling his magic necklace off. Bradley had apparently come back at some point and built them a room. He''d built a lot of rooms... none of which had doors yet. Lee followed Trak in, pushing aside the blanket acting as a door for now. He watched Trak place the amulet gently around the neck of the anubi Lee presumed to be the matriarch. It was the older anubi they''d all been looking at so much the day before... "My lord," she said softly, and immediately held up a nearly white paw. "Please have patience with my children, human Lee. I was the one who bade them take this leap. I was the one who bade them to flee and leave so many of our pack behind. Now we grieve for what we lost and what we sacrificed. I beg you for your patience." "I..." Lee swallowed his protest. "Why did... was it... why the oath?" "Allow me a question of my own," she breathed, barely above a whisper. "Why did you accept us into your service?" "I... for potions." No point in lying. They couldn''t do anything about it now... or could they? She smiled, or at least he felt like she did. "Honesty. Thank you." "So, why..." "Trak will answer all your questions, but my time nears its end. Please indulge me. What will you do with my children?" "I will release them from their oath..." "Do not." "But... can''t you swear a better one? Something like a mutual defense pact?" She smiled again, closed her eyes, and sighed out in the faintest whisper. "I made the right... choice." Then she died. It was so sudden that Lee didn''t believe it at first, but Mana Mind didn''t lie, and he saw her core form as the aura that usually kept him out vanished... The keening howls that followed only made it worse. "I..." He retreated. This was... something he didn''t know how to handle. The sorrow was palpable, even without his lordly understanding helping. The howling made him want to cry... So Lee retreated and left them to their grief. It was all he could do. The guards in the garage looked alarmed at the noise, and Lee took a minute to tell them what was happening. He didn''t know what funeral rites they had, so it was best to cover the bases. "Just let them go wherever and do whatever they want." Lee went back upstairs for breakfast, but he could still hear them crying and didn''t feel like eating anymore... even though he needed to. So he summoned a plate and hid himself in the silence of his soul storage while working on his latest idea for new runes. The exploding plates were a solid weapon, but he expected they would prove less useful on the more sturdy monsters. The flies were weak but made up for it with numbers, making them a perfect enemy for his bombs. They''d probably work great on the ticks as well... whereas something like the chickens might take more effort. His runes worked better the more they focused on improving the item itself. Even extending his machete blade came with a drastic loss in cutting power compared to the actual physical edge. Blowing up the plates unleashed power, sure, but it was less bang for his buck than he could achieve with clever runes. He could enchant the plates into circular blades and kill far more flies with the same amount of mana. Assuming he could throw or make the plates fly around... which was exactly what he wanted to do. His first attempt was just to make it hover in place with a mana-repelling rune. A mana magnet. Of sorts. The plate flipped over almost immediately and slammed into the ground. Sorry, Three. The second one worked better, except for hovering thirty feet above the courtyard... A few tweaks later, and he had one that would hover a few feet above the ground. Without flipping. Then he had to figure out how to combine that with a cutting rune... and a way to make it chase monsters... or even just move in a programmed maneuver. Lee stopped before trying to get the cutting rune on there. The last thing any of them needed was a deadly weapon flying around in here. Because it turned out Martin''s magic teaching skills helped teach more than sword fighting, and now they had a school going in the courtyard. On that thought, Lee finally noticed the many turning heads that were watching his magic show with intense interest, and to the detriment of their schooling... Sorry, Martin. Lee took his plate and the burrito before fleeing upstairs. He was supposed to have another hunt later but wasn''t in a big hurry to get back out there after that last trip. It wasn''t as pressing to gather cores anymore, either. Alejandro had sent people back out yesterday to gather the thousands of cores left behind from Lee''s slaughter. That had made a huge dent, but wasn''t all. Lee saw a new pile of cores in front of his door before he got there. Hundreds of cores. Donations from the grateful survivors of his border run, no doubt... a reward for... his death. I died. That instant of blinding light. Flesh searing heat. Darkness... the void... the end. Nothing. No! Lee tried to take a step... and landed on his hands and knees while his vision blurred. No! He clapped a hand over his mouth before the scream could escape. no. He curled into a ball on the cold cement, both hands clasped over his mouth to muffle the screams that he choked down into mere sobs. It hurt so much... he didn''t want to remember. More than all that, Lee didn''t want anyone to hear him. He didn''t want them to see him like this... They didn''t need to know it was all a sham. They didn''t need to know he was weak. He tried to crawl to the door... to get inside, where he would be safe... but he couldn''t move. Lines of power hummed along beneath him, hidden behind a veneer of cement that did nothing to block his senses. It was into that tapestry that Lee sent his mind. His thoughts rode along with the glowing energy as it flowed non-stop through the lines and patterns. He basked in that comforting light until the shaking subsided and the tears dried up. Lee finally crawled to his feet sometime later, but didn''t look toward the anubi, where it was bowing with its face to the floor... He could order it not to say anything. It had to obey him. Right? "Trak?" He wasn¡¯t one hundred percent sure which anubi it was. "Yes, my lord!" "I want... can you take those cores away?" "At once!" Trak sprinted over and started shoveling the cores into a series of small pouches. Lee went past him into his apartment and dropped onto the couch. He sat in a daze for too long, then shook his head and stuck the hover rune back onto the plate. Self pity wouldn''t help anyone. Not him. Not Stanley. He needed to keep moving. It was the only way to survive. The only way to save Stanley. So he went into his soul storage and got back to work. He made no progress because Trak hadn''t left after collecting the cores... Now he was bowing outside the door. Poor guy. He already swore to serve me and only found out afterward how big a mistake it was... Or maybe he wanted to ask for their freedom? Lee sent a thought to Three and was pleased to see his door swing open on its own. He''d been worried the day before... not that he could detect much difference in the runes between now and then. They were all still blindingly bright. But there was less rebar sticking out of the walls... so that was a good sign. Right? "Come in, Trak. What do you need?" He wouldn''t mention his breakdown if the anubi didn''t... Trak didn''t look directly at him as he hurried through the door, but Lee saw his eyes roving around the space. Then he flinched when the door closed behind him, bowed again, then held up the cores... "Where shall I place these, my lord?" "Keep em." Trak stiffened and then lifted his head. "My lord, are you displeased with your subject''s offerings?" Lee sighed. "No, Trak. And they aren''t my subjects." You''re my only subjects. And your mother... or grandmother wanted me to keep you enslaved. "It is common for the weak to serve the strong. Paying a tribute for protection is only natural." If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. I didn''t save them, Lee thought. I saved Alejandro and Saira... I don''t even know any of these people. Matias saved more of them than I did... and he died. I died... Everything felt wrong... He was alive... but he had died. They thanked him for dying... rewarded him for dying. Alejandro must have told people he needed cores. Now they kept coming. It was a good thing. He needed the cores. But every one of those little glowing rocks¡ªeach smiling and grateful face¡ªall of them dragged him back to that void... where he died. Trak had his face back on the floor when Lee wiped a sleeve through his eyes. It was embarrassing, but the poor little guy probably thought he had to stay. "You can leave, Trak. I''m sorry about your... matriarch, but I can set you free. All of..." "Forgive me, my lord! Do not punish my pack for my transgressions! I beg of you!" "I''m not punishing... Wait... what did you do?" "My lord... forgive me. I do not know where I have erred, but I beg you to punish me alone!" "Trak, what are you talking about?" "You... wish to cast us aside?" "I just want to free you. It doesn''t mean you can''t stay here. Everyone will love you if the potions work like Mar said they did." "My lord, may I... speak freely?" Lee sighed. "That''s all I''ve wanted you to do since we met." "You hold a legendary class. I believe it to be the Runic class, but as I have only read stories that most consider myths, I cannot say for certain. What I know without doubt is that I will do whatever is asked of me without hesitation if you will only allow my pack to remain in your service!" "How do you know I have a legendary class?" Was it why they all stared at him? Did he have a glowing L on his forehead? "I... everyone knows... do they not?" "How?" "I can feel it, my lord. It is undeniable. Even the mindless beasts would know you on sight..." "They..." Lee remembered all the times monsters chased him and only him. "What does that mean? Is that why they all attack me? Why?" "Because... you will drop a class shard if you..." Trak groveled again, as if afraid his words would offend. "If you die." "I..." Lee wasn''t sure how to process the news. Class shards were apparently a thing, and... everyone would know he was a legendary class and that they could take his class if they killed him. Forget hiding the Mana Well, this was... "Wait, beasts can use class shards?" He had a hard time picturing a giant frog as a runic¡­ "Some, though I suspect they would take the attributes instead... it is said to be enough for instant advancement to the next grade..." "And everyone will just know that?" "Ah, perhaps your world is young enough that the knowledge has not spread. Do you know how many generations have lived since saturation?" Lee remembered someone saying something about saturation¡ªa flash of... static. "Generations? It was... maybe a few weeks ago? I''m not sure, exactly. It feels so much longer... and we already have E-grades popping up." Trak froze again. "Saturation was only two ten-days ago?" "Something like that. Why?" "My lord," Trak gasped. "That''s..." "What?" "Your world is advancing! Whoever claimed it must wish for a higher grade dungeon!" There was a lot to unpack in that statement, but Trak rushed on before Lee could decide what to ask about first. "If anyone can survive the coming storm, it will be you! It must be you! Please keep us with you! None will serve more faithfully or..." "What are you talking about? What storm? Who claimed what?" Trak collected himself and barked more slowly. "Apologies, my lord. I would not presume to imply ignorance..." "Just tell me! I already told you to speak freely." "Dungeon worlds do not advance this fast without intervention. As this world is only F-grade, the only explanation is that the Great System has granted a god dominion over this world and that one wishes to advance the dungeon to a higher grade. It will make our survival difficult, but with you... a legendary class, we will have a chance! Please, do not cast us out! We will serve..." "I''m not kicking you out!" Lee shouted. He would have felt bad about screaming, except Trak looked ridiculously happy at the outburst. "Thank you, my lord!" "What do you mean by a god?" "It is the title given to those higher grades who... well, I don''t know how they become gods... It is said they hold a power greater than anything else." "Like liquid mana?" Trak perked up. "Is that what you use, my lord!? I knew it was mana... but so much!" Then Trak''s eyes widened, and he threw himself on the floor. "Forgive me, my lord! I ask of things beyond my station!" "What part of speaking freely don''t you understand? So liquid mana isn''t what the gods use?" Lee had a bad feeling about where this was going. "Yes," Trak said, sitting up slowly. "Something beyond even your mana, my lord. I do not know what it is, but I have felt it... once." "You''ve seen the gods?" "No, my lord! I am far beneath any such beings... but I felt something. The entire city¡ªperhaps the entire world¡ªfelt it. The rumors were that the gods did battle above our world..." "What did it feel like?" Trak huddled lower. "It felt like power, my lord. Terrifying power." Trak must have seen something on Lee''s face because he quickly added, "It is not a bad thing to have a god already! Depending on how far they wish to progress, we only have to survive, and our advancement is all but guaranteed! Having your world already claimed means we will not have to fear the gods who would otherwise come here... to... claim... it..." he trailed off with nervous glances at Lee. That was terrible news. "How do they claim worlds?" "I think they just do... but it is too early for a god to have claimed your world without the Great System''s permission. So they must have earned it through a quest." "They can''t just... attack us?" "The Great System protects dungeon worlds, and the dungeon grade limits the strength of those who would come here to do battle." Okay. That was good. But Lee could remember someone saying something about... greater challenges... and... static. "I..." Lee couldn''t seem to catch his breath. Something was wrong... "I need to... where''s Alejandro? I need..." "I will find your brother!" Trak bounded to his feet and sprinted for the door. Then he ran back and dropped his belt of pouches. "Your cores, my lord!" Lee felt like the world was spinning around him as he sat frozen on the couch. A minute ago, the source was just a mysterious power that felt familiar and let him make Three. Now he had a terrible feeling that it was so much more. So much worse. He still couldn''t remember, but he knew they''d taken it that day in the mountains. They''d done... something to claim it. Sacrificed... something. Their trait... Source Nexus. It had protected them just enough to survive... It wasn''t an accident! They''d done that! Now so-called gods would come to earth. To claim it. They were doomed... and it was all their own fault. Lee hyperventilated alone in his apartment until Trak came sprinting back on all fours with Alejandro clanking along behind. "What happened!?" Alejandro burst through the open door, sword in hand and shield ready. His eyes leapt around the room before landing on Lee, and he relaxed slightly. "Lee? You okay?" Lee told Three to shut the door behind them and then looked at Trak. "Tell him what you told me." Trak repeated his explanation while Alejandro''s eyes widened further and further. When it was done, Alejandro turned to Lee. "Is this power... is it what you told us about? Does that mean..." Lee nodded while his stomach churned. "Yes. It means the gods will come for me, and you need to run away!" "Trak," Alejandro said. "What are these gods you spoke of? Are they true gods? You said gods plural, so that means there''s more than one? How powerful are they, and can they attack us here?" "I have heard tales of gods so far above the others that some might consider them true gods, but really, the gods are simply higher grades. I know only what rumors reached me, and subjects involving the gods are always prone to exaggeration... or complete fabrications, because who can check? Honestly, it''s hard to find reliable information when one is only..." "Trak, the gods attacking us?" Alejandro said while nudging the rambling anubi. "Yes, um, the grade of the dungeon determines who may enter this world. The gods are all A-grade or above, as far as I know. The only god we need fear is the one who controls this world... it could enter as it pleases... You must tell no one of your class, my lord! While our god may look favorably on you and raise you up themselves, they may also decide to kill you and take the class shard." "See?" Alejandro smiled at Lee. "Nothing to worry about. Just don''t kill yourself, and it''s all good, right?" He wasn''t taking any of this seriously... Trak wasn''t moving as he stared at Lee. Though it looked like he was shaking slightly... Were the gods that terrifying? They''d have to be if people called them gods, right? He kept not moving... "Trak? I can still let you out of your..." "You are..." Trak gasped, then shook his head. "No. That''s impossible! You are F-grade... even a legendary class can not touch the power of the gods... I would have felt it..." Lee eyed the alien creature as a new thought occurred to him, one he should have considered before opening his damn mouth. "You sure you want to stay here, Trak? I have a question for you, one that you may not even be able to answer, but once you hear it, you can probably never leave." Trak threw himself to the floor. "Ask, my lord!" "What happens to a dungeon world if, say, I held a god''s power? Would we still be protected from higher grades invading?" "I don''t... it is impossible. Forgive me, my lord, but you would die!" Lee sighed and said, "Show yourself, Three." Light bloomed from the floor, walls, ceiling, and even the windows in a blazing tapestry of power that couldn''t be mistaken for anything but what it was. A thought to the building later, and it all faded away. Lee knew that no one else outside his apartment had seen or felt anything. Primarily because he hadn''t wanted them to. Especially the children in the courtyard... Trak was visibly trembling on the floor. Not even trembling, he was shaking violently as he whispered, "A god!" Did I scare him too much? Then he bowed with his face to the floor and howled, "I vow my life, my pack, and my line to the god Lee Cascade! Our lives are his! To our last breath, we will fight and die in his name!" You have gained an Oath of Life from the entire Druller Pack of Anubi(Pending full acceptance). If accepted, this oath binds the Druller Pack of Anubi, including all future members and offspring, into your service in perpetuity. Or until such time as you release them from the oath. Betrayal of the oath by any member of the Druller Pack will result in immediate death. As the sworn party, their lives are yours to do with as you please. Accept? Y/N Lee didn''t scream at the lunatic dog. But he wanted to. "What is wrong with you?" "Forgive me, my lord! I was presumptuous and arrogant! I offer my life in payment! My kin can still serve you, and they will!" He was howling behind the magic translation... Something about what he said, though... "Why is it presumptuous? Why would I want to kill you for trying to enslave your entire family to me? Stand up and look at me!" Trak practically bounced to his feet, then stood there trembling. "I..." His eyes widened. "You do not know..." "Then tell me!" "We... would... by tying ourselves to your majesty, new paths of power would become open to us. To our offspring. Evolutions that we would never see otherwise! To bind ourselves to a legendary was the greatest option ever afforded to the entire Druller line... But... to bind ourselves to a god... I do not even know where that will lead... I only know that it is beyond my wildest dreams." "Oath of life? Was that really necessary? Aren''t you bound to me already?" "I... feared you would cast us out. We are nothing to you, and I bound you to protect us... Forgive me. I did not know..." "You already have to keep my secrets, right?" "We are bound not to betray you, but we would be free if you ever broke the oath... it is a risk you should not allow!" "Does the oath of life give you any more benefits?" "No, my lord." "Then forget it. I already don''t like the first one, but I''ll let it be, for now. There has to be a better way for people to get evolutions... So, what about the other gods attacking us?" Trak straightened and then slumped. "I do not know. My knowledge is all rumor and hearsay. Normally, a graded dungeon only allows that grade or lower to invade. That is well known, but this is unprecedented, or at least not something I''ve ever heard of." "It is actually unprecedented," Lee mused. "I got a title for doing the impossible..." It was obvious Trak wanted to know more with the way he was quivering... "Just some bonus attributes. Nothing special." Alejandro was still grinning, and his smile only widened when Lee looked at him. "I can''t wait to tell Maria that you''re a god." Lee groaned. "What is wrong with you?" "Smile, Lee. Rejoice in our lives!" He stepped closer and sat on the couch. "I know it is hard, and while I do not know the true price you have paid, I know it is not an easy burden. Let me carry some of it. Let all of us carry some. Together, it will not be so heavy." Lee eyed Trak. Had the anubi ratted on him for his breakdown? Alejandro held up his hand, and Lee clasped it, knowing full well what was coming. As expected, the man pulled him into a one-armed hug. "We''re all in this together... so take these cores..." He dropped the belt of pouches on Lee''s lap. "...and absorb them already. Because I''m going to bring more every day. Also, I''m about to head out to investigate a potential E-grade lair..." Mana Saturation of Dungeon World (Earth) has reached the E-grade Threshold. Dungeon World (Earth) has ranked up to E-grade. As your dungeon grows, you will face new challenges. Gather your allies. Grow stronger. Prepare to defend your dungeon. Fight! "...wanna come?" 73. Im The Juggernaut ~~~Lee~~~ "...wanna come?" Alejandro asked. Lee sat still, staring at the cores in his lap and the notification in his brain that said the world was now E-grade. "No." He shook his head and started absorbing. "No, I''m not going. I''ve been an idiot for too long..." "So, what''s the plan now? Whatever you need..." "I need to improve my runes. All this time I''ve been neglecting my greatest power because I was too desperate for cores. No more." "I like it! What will you make this time?" Alejandro beamed while eyeing the hovering plate. "Are we going to start flying?" Lee thought about it. "Not quite... but I have some ideas..." Last core absorbed, he stood. "Don''t go to that lair yet. Let me make sure you can''t lose. Like I should have been doing all this time..." He''d wasted so much time hunting, always trying to be the vanguard of the group. It wasn''t bad logic. He could take the hits and keep it going. He was the most capable of surviving anything. But it was stupid. Instead of standing at the forefront and taking the hits only he could take, he should have been improving his runes and using them to make a hundred more people able to do the same. That would have been the smart play, but his stupid paranoia hadn''t let him see it. Now it was time to fix his mistakes. It also might have been smart to claim his own area in the garage before this... because there wasn''t much space left. He zeroed in on the standalone elevator room. It was tiny, perfect, and also the only completely enclosed space in the garage, with its own door. There was a woman currently trying to drag a large rack through the doorway that was far too small to allow it. Her class had something to do with leather, given the pelt stretched out on the frame... Lee looked forward to seeing what she created, but he still took her spot. "No! This is mine! I can make it... fit..." She was trembling and on the verge of tears as she fought with the narrow gap. "You''re just as safe out here," Lee said, only partly guessing at her reasoning. "I..." Her eyes were wide as they roved around the garage. It wasn''t nearly as open as it used to be. Bradley had put up a lot of walls, but there were still plenty of gaps where one could see outside through the bars encircling the outer edge. Especially in May''s area. She''d wanted the fresh air. "Were you in here for the flies?" Lee asked. She shook her head in a jerky motion. That might explain it. Lee hadn''t even thought about the rest of the fort yesterday when he''d been afraid for Three, and the other buildings hadn''t fared nearly so well, as he''d found out later. It had been a frantic nightmare of leaking roofs and pooling acid... not to mention the fly swarm that followed. The entire fort may well have fallen if the flies hadn''t swarmed Three en masse. "This building will protect you. You''re safe. Bradley can even put up some walls if you''d prefer, and I can enchant them." "I can make it fit..." "I''m going to be making stuff that has a decent chance of exploding," Lee said. "I need a place where it won''t hurt anyone else." She protested further, but obviously knew it was futile. Lee helped her drag the drying rack to a new location and then went toward May. Saira''s garden was back in full bloom around the building, courtesy of a thousand dead flies fertilizing the soil and her own magic to fuel the process. Lee could see the anubi outside, amidst the growth, all of them gathered around the matriarch''s body. Except for Trak, who was still following him... "Trak, you don''t need to follow me around if you need to be at the... funeral?" Trak wouldn''t look at him, and he said nothing. "What are you refusing to say now?" "My..." It looked like he choked slightly while trying to decide what to call him while his eyes darted around the surrounding people within earshot. "Lord. I... was on my way to request your presence... forgive me." "I don''t know what your customs and rituals are, Trak. So you''ll need to tell me." "As her liege... I had... hoped you would see her off. But it is not required, my lord!" Lee wanted to protest, but he really didn''t know what the proper thing to do was... and they''d sworn to serve him... It was the least he could do. "I will be right out. Let me deal with one thing first." May was in a pleasant mood, probably related to the much smaller stack of elf armor and the neat stack of metal ingots beside the smelter. She didn''t even protest when he told her what he wanted. The anubi hadn''t moved when he joined them, but he finally noticed Bradley and Saira watching from across the street. Or what used to be a street. It was all part of Saira''s garden now. Mar was there, too, lurking near her mother. Lee stood awkwardly, towering over the kneeling creatures, until they shifted to open a gap. Trak gestured, and Lee knelt down beside him in the circle. Their matriarch... Lee didn''t even know her name. He didn''t know any of them aside from Trak... She lay on her side, curled up, almost like a sleeping dog... He could imagine Caffeine curled up there instead, and the mere idea brought tears to his eyes. It also lit a fire inside him. That will never happen. No matter what! No one else needs to die... They spoke with soft noises, barks, howls, and chuffing sounds. Trak translated for the others, but Lee barely listened. He tried to pay attention¡­ tried to respect the moment, but his mind was on fire with ugly thoughts. Regrets over the past. Mistakes he''d made then and now. Choices yet to be made which might save or damn everyone he loved. Then Trak picked up the core and held it out to Lee. No... "As her liege, it is yours to do with as you see fit." Skill Shard[F-grade] Know Herbs (Epic) Even the humblest sprout may hold untold power. User will sense all flora within range. User gains a deep insight into the potential properties of all flora within range. This insight will increase drastically upon physical contact. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Wisdom (Hidden) Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A][Adaptable] That was... strange. He''d never heard of a skill with a hidden effect. It also didn''t matter. "One of you can use it. Whoever it will help the most." Lee was curious to see how it might adapt to liquid mana, but not enough to potentially waste what looked like a great skill anyone else could use to a much greater effect. Potentially. Trak shook his head. "Those of us who would benefit have already learned the skill from the matriarch herself." "I... wait, you can teach skills? No, nevermind that right now. What about your... kids?" He wasn''t sure what the right term was for this race... or did the translation magic handle it for him? "We will teach them when it is time, my lord." One of the other anubi growled, and Trak snarled back at them, his necklace only translating his words. "Bite your tongue, Drax! Our g... lord spurns nothing!" He looked at Lee before ducking his head. "Forgiveness, lord! I have not told them the truth of your majesty yet!" "Do you have to tell them?" Lee wasn''t sure if he wanted more fanaticism. What if more of them tried to swear even crazier oaths? "I... if you order it, then I obey." "Then don''t." Trak wilted but nodded. "Yes, my lord. As for the core... I would recommend you give it to your druidess." He looked over at Saira. "Druidess..." Lee found the woman in question watching him when he looked her way. "Yes, my lord. She is mighty, and we will begin production far sooner than I had hoped, thanks to her power. With a skill like this one, she will become even mightier. But of course, it is your decision, my lord!" Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Lee didn''t mind helping Saira... and maybe they knew something he didn''t about her class type? He''d never asked her what her actual class was called¡ªwas it a druid class? "I will do what you suggest, and... I''m sorry for interrupting the service." "It is finished, my lord. While we would normally give her to the flames, especially if the undead are near, your druidess has agreed to allow a burial in her grove... if you do not disagree, my lord. I think the matriarch would approve of nourishing our garden with her flesh." "I have no problem with that, but..." Lee hesitated but couldn''t see any reason not to tell them, even as visions of monstrous creatures rose in his memory. "The undead are on this world. Not near... but they are here." You can kill them all, Stanley. I believe in you! Kill them and come¡­ home. Trak stilled, eyes locked on Lee''s face. "My lord... forgive me, but I know something ails you. How may I help?" Lee looked at him, his attention pulled from memories of Stanley by another thought. The anubi were dogs... or at least they sure looked like dogs. Did that mean they could smell his emotions? Dogs were supposed to be able to do that, right? He didn''t mind telling Trak about Stanley... but not out here. Not while they were grieving the loss of their own family member. Not that Stanley was lost... he would survive! He would win! No matter what! "I''ll tell you later." Saira came over with Bradley, and together they lowered the matriarch into the ground. On Trak''s advice, Lee gave Saira the new skill while two of the anubi planted seeds above the grave. Then she used her magic to grow the seeds into seedlings. It was surprisingly little growth compared to what Lee had seen of her magic before... but she knew better than him. Maybe it was something to do with growing potion ingredients? The new plants were more mana-dense than the food crops... Lee escaped as soon as he could and fled to his new workroom, only stopping long enough to pick up some new armor pieces from May. She''d forged them from the resource lair metal, and Lee could feel the difference immediately. It was perfect for his plan. A plan he worked on until Alejandro came knocking sometime later. The elevator room door opened as easily as his apartment and with only a thought. "Alejandro, I think..." "You know how hard it was to find you?" Alejandro interrupted. He looked and sounded upset... "You even ditched the guys I told to watch over you!" Lee frowned, but at the bag of cores in the other man''s hand. "I thought you were going to wait..." Alejandro stood for a moment before closing his mouth and coming the rest of the way inside. "This wasn''t the E-grades, and I''m sorry for shouting. It''s just... ever since Trak told us about the whole..." He shut the door and whispered, "The legendary thing... I can feel it when I look at you. I mean, I always felt it, but now that I know what the feeling means!" "I''m inside Three. I couldn''t be safer." "I couldn''t find you and thought you''d left..." His eyes were roving over the mess of metal plates and armor pieces as he spoke. Lee jumped into the lull. "I''ve got something for you! Check this out." He pulled out a plate of metal from the pile and held it between his hands. "Here, hit it!" Alejandro gave it a light tap. "No, hit it as hard as you can!" Alejandro shrugged and punched it. The plate didn''t budge, and Lee grinned. "No more getting smacked down the tunnel by those earth golems! Speaking of which... May needs all the metal we can get from that place so she can make the armor." "I''ve got teams clearing it every eight hours, and they are going to love..." "No," Lee interrupted. "The first set is for you! You can decide who gets it after you, but you have to take the first one. I''ll tell Maria if you don''t..." Alejandro smiled. "Thank''s, Lee. I love it. So... how''d you make it do that?" It was Lee''s turn to smile. "This part of the symbol here? Well, it absorbs kinetic energy and converts it to mana, which helps recharge the whole rune. It''s not enough to keep it going forever, but it will make the rune last longer than it would otherwise! I wanted to make something to help with the impacts, but even this metal can only hold so much. So I figured out how to convert the energy to make it last longer!" Alejandro was still smiling when Lee realized he was rambling gibberish the other man wouldn¡¯t understand, and he trailed off. "Um, let''s go see if May finished with the rest. I might have promised her one of the E-grade cores..." "It''s all good, Lee. I was going to give most of them to you any..." "You shouldn''t," Lee cut him off. "Use them for our fighters! Whoever you think deserves it most. It won''t make much difference to what I''m doing here if I get to E-grade. Better to make us all stronger instead." "Isn''t that what you''re doing with the runes?" "That''s the plan, but the materials I have to work with matter more right now. Plus, whatever new runes I can come up with..." May was finished with a bunch of armor made using the new metal, and Lee took it to the leather worker himself to get everything ready. The woman he''d kicked out of his spot. Valerie. Lee realized Bradley must have been through the garage while he was working because she had a nice enclosed area with barely any light. He fixed that with a light rune. Along with more runes to enchant the walls. Alejandro even helped after the fact by hitting them with his sword to show her their toughness. "Thanks," Valerie said, while looking intently at the leather in her hands. "Sorry about earlier... I shouldn''t have been freaking out like that..." "Don''t worry about it," Lee said quickly, with thoughts of his own recent freakout still fresh in his mind. "You''re safe in here, and... well, I''m going to enchant the rest of the buildings in the fort." It was something he should have done sooner. Ideally, before the flies. But he just didn''t have the mana pool for it without the Well. Thank''s to May''s new metal, he could now make enough mana batteries to get the job done. Though he''d need Bradley to fix the holes first. He''d do that later. Now it was time to make Alejandro into a juggernaut. Together, they all worked to enclose the man in his new armor. Valerie added the leather that would hold everything together. Alejandro moved in and out of different positions. Meanwhile, Lee watched. Watched with his eyes and Mana Mind. He occasionally placed or withdrew runes as the armor came together. Watching intently the whole time. Lee removed all the runes when they finished, then closed his eyes and placed both hands on the man. One on his helmet and the other on his breastplate. He pulled on the mana from Three, and let it fill him. Let it fill his mind to overflowing. Then he fed it into his Mana Mind and pushed Alejandro''s aura inward. It was something he should have figured out sooner. His mind consumed mana, and it could consume a lot more if he let it. The process was slow, not that it necessarily had to be, but Lee felt it warranted some caution when doing something involving his brain. Mana Mind saw the armor. Saw beneath it to the man''s clothing. His skin. Then under the skin. Down into the flows of mana that permeated his body. Lee pushed harder, mana roaring through his mind as he finally saw Alejandro''s core nestled just below his heart. Lee took it all in. The way Alejandro''s mana moved. The colors and aspects. How it all worked together. Then he started drawing the rune. Slowly. His mind focused to a razor''s edge as he envisioned what he wanted from the rune. He watched the fluctuations from both the metal and Alejandro''s own mana responding to the rune. He made minute corrections throughout the process. Adjusting either the lines or his own intention on the fly. The rune blossomed into an increasingly complex shape over the breastplate. Then that one stopped growing, and a new one appeared under his hand on the helmet. Lee let that piece grow before he moved his hands, bright lines of mana arcing from fingertip to metal as he touched each piece in turn, adding to the pattern with each step. It ended without any visible fanfare. The glow subsiding from his hands and the armor as one. But Lee smiled. +1 Intelligence Skill Level Up: Mana Mind You have created a Soul-Bound Rune: Alejandro''s Bulwark Skill Level Up: Artistic Rune Shaping Class Level Up: Runic Class: Runic has reached the Threshold of Level 25 No Class Evolutions Available. Ranking Runic up to Level 25 (Intermediate) For reaching (Intermediate) rank in your class, you may choose a new Class Skill. Alejandro and Valerie were both staring with wide eyes when he recovered. Or at least Valerie was. He couldn''t see Alejandro''s eyes through the vision slit in the helmet. Lee thought he understood what had happened, but he asked just in case. "Did you get a notification about a soul bound rune?" "I did," Alejandro said after opening the helmet''s visor. "It says the armor won''t work as well for anyone else." Lee beamed. "It worked! Just don''t let the runes drain too much and you will be untouchable. You could tank that... explosion..." He shivered, but forced himself to smile. "I can do the same for everyone... I just need to... well, get to know them a little?" He was only trying to make the whole thing link up and work together. Similarly to what he''d done on his skeleton... He''d succeeded, and with better results than expected. Which he suspected was from his familiarity with Alejandro. He knew so much about the man. Knew what drove him. Or thought he did. Regardless, he liked the new effect. "I don''t think anyone else can remove your armor... at least not without your permission... I think." When dealing with runes and the soul intent in them, it wasn''t always clear cut exactly what they would do. On that note... "I think I can enchant people''s bones now... if they want it. But I still don''t know if there might be side effects... and you shouldn''t need it with this armor..." "Thank you." Alejandro mercifully didn''t try to hug him in the full armor, only rested a hand on his shoulder. "This is fantastic, and you should make yourself one next." "I don''t need it," Lee said. "Plus, I probably won''t go outside much..." "Then I suggest you start with getting to know your bodyguards. Noel and Amy. Also, try not to ditch them. Especially if you go outside." Lee nodded reluctantly, the two presences plainly visible in his Mana Mind outside the room. He didn''t think there was a point in bodyguards, not inside Three. But if he went outside, having some guards wasn''t unreasonable. "Sure." "I want a set of armor," Valerie said quietly, her eyes on Alejandro. "I can make that happen," Lee said. "But you would need to fight the monsters. Is that something you want to do?" She wilted and shook her head. "I... I can''t." "Combat isn''t for everyone," Alejandro said. "But you play an equally vital role in our defense. Your work helps make all of us safer, just like Lee. Be proud of that!" "Thanks," Valerie said, looking down with a small smile. "I appreciate you saying that." "You are safe in here," Alejandro said to her. "If you''d like, I can set up guard escorts for any time you need to go outside?" Valerie nodded quickly. "I... would like that... thanks." Alejandro''s smile looked as earnest as ever, despite his armored appearance. "I''ll set it up. Now, any other surprises, Lee? Or can I go hunt some E-grades?" "That''s it for now," Lee said. "I have a lot of ideas, but some kinks to work out before I can make any of them viable. Figured the swords are good enough for now, and defense was more important... Oh, and May should be done with your new shield by now, but that will be easy to enchant." It was ready, and it was easy to stick the same rune onto the sheet of metal. The armor was only difficult because he needed the rune to spread to every piece without requiring dozens of separate runes that the smaller pieces couldn''t handle. Then Alejandro left, and Lee went back to his workshop. It was time to get back to work while someone else went to fight E-grades without him. He''ll be fine, Lee told himself. He can''t lose with that armor... Lee didn''t like it. He didn''t like the feeling that he was hiding while someone else faced danger in his place. But he also felt that this was where he belonged. Going out there to fight could make a significant difference, especially for E-grades, which had to be a serious threat. But he needed to think bigger. If he could make dozens or hundreds of people as capable as himself... He could do it. He knew it was possible. It would just take time. In the meantime, he had something to take his mind off Alejandro''s dangerous hunt. It was time to pick a new class skill. 74. Dare To Dream ~~~Lee~~~ Lee held off his new skill selection while creating plates. There was no mana cap stopping him while inside Three, so he went until his channels started tingling. Then he pulled up his new skill options. Show me what you got. Runic Mana (Rare) It''s all about the Mana. Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Intelligence +10% Liquid Mana Pool and Channel Capacity It was the same skill as before, but slightly better. A little more tempting now. If he wanted to enchant all the other buildings... or even the wall... Since he doubted his mana batteries would ever be enough for that. Rune Empower (Epic) More power for less. Allows the runic to inject extra mana into any rune to increase the effect without increasing the soul cost. Level Effects (Novice) +1% All Mind Attributes Another repeat, sort of. It was better now and wouldn''t require extra soul for the boosts. Something like this would definitely help when he was trying to make more people invincible... but his problem wasn''t the soul; it was the materials. Lee couldn''t imagine what crazy good stuff he could make if he had better metal to work with. Technically, he was getting around some of his limitations by spreading the runes over multiple pieces, not to mention whatever he''d done to create Three. Because he¡¯d definitely done something. There was no way he could shove so much power into only concrete and steel¡­ Soul Infusion (Epic) Infuse the world. Allows the runic greater flexibility in materials they can bind with runes. Allows the runic to reduce the material requirements of all runes at the cost of increased soul requirements. Level Effects (Novice) +1% All Mind Attributes So... exactly what he was looking for. Did the system put it there intentionally? Or was this problem a common one for a runic? The answer didn''t really matter. Lee made his choice. New Class Skill: Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 1 (Novice) He regretted that Alejandro had already left as he touched a plate and dropped a rune onto it... then pulled it back an instant before the plate would have exploded. Oops. Skill Level Up: Soul Infusion The skill helped, but not enough. Not yet. He needed to level the skill, and the best way to do that was to use it. A lot. He tweaked the rune and tried again. Another failure. Lee stopped trying to use the plates and switched to May''s armor... plates. Those made from the new metal held way more mana than his own summoned ones. Rather than attempt another juggernaut creation, and since May hadn''t finished the required armor pieces yet, Lee worked on his other idea. One of many that involved the hovering plate. Not only did he want weaponized flying plates, but they could also have uses as mobile shields. Maybe not a priority with the stronger armor he was making... but figuring it out would open up other avenues. Lee summoned more plates when he noticed the tingling had faded. Skill Level Up: Create Plate Then he stuck a rune on one of them. The plate hovered a foot above the floor, and it didn''t budge when he sat on it. Lee kept that one as a chair to see how long the charge would last. The second test didn''t float. Not until he tapped it with Mana Mind. Then it shot into the air and stayed there. Another tap and it fell to the floor. Not perfect... but a start. ~~~Trak~~~ Trak watched his Lord shuffle into a room and vanish behind the door. His god... It was still hard to believe he''d witnessed what he had... The impossible had happened before his eyes. Only the weight of his oath made the entire ordeal real. He only had to think of sharing the truth with his pack, and the oath reminded him he could not. He could not tell them they had sworn to serve a god... Trak entered the pack''s rather dismal quarters and brushed the floor hesitantly with a foot¡ªa type of stone he was unfamiliar with¡ªone that betrayed none of the power he''d felt earlier. Was it all a dream? Was this strange building truly a Runic creation? If not for their Lord''s demonstration, he would have doubts. He still had doubts... The humans talked about it killing a swarm, but all Trak had seen was the occasional door opening and closing. Any minor enchantment could accomplish that feat. The extra mana was a boon, to be sure. An unnecessary one for their purposes, though perhaps more of a boon for other classes. Yet he couldn''t forget that power... How could it be that he did not feel it? How could such power ever be hidden? To look at this place betrayed no whisper of what lurked beneath... Trak watched the pack as they mourned yet moved on nevertheless. They couldn''t afford to grieve. They had sworn to serve, and so they must. Trak couldn''t afford to grieve... He forced his mind away from the bitter thoughts threatening to rise up and consume him. Forgive me... The potions their lord required would have to wait for the proper herbs to grow¡ªsomething that would happen far faster than he''d originally expected. For now, Urax could prepare the potion glass. The lord''s smith had grudgingly agreed to allow them access to her Furnace Touch after the god''s brother requested it. The stone magus forged a new, more appropriately sized furnace, and the smith lent her power to heat it. A magic the Druller pack was lacking. They could burn wood or other fuels, but it would take longer. An unacceptable delay. Urax was the sole member classed to create the specialized glass, while the rest of them either worked to grow the herbs or to turn them into potions. The previous plan had been to apprentice Tark or Dura to Urax. To shore up their weakness... Only now, things were different. Trak didn''t know what classes the humans held... but at least one was legendary... He shivered and shook his head violently. Such thoughts were the epitome of foolishness. Apprentice to a legendary class? For lowly beings such as them!? Bah! Trak would never dare suggest such a thing. Not even in the privacy of his own pack. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. The mere act of swearing fealty to their lord would already elevate his pack to greater heights than ever possible before. There was no need to get greedy. That was how anubi died. Either from a knife slipping between ribs in the dead of night or from a boot crushing your skull at high noon in the street. It was best to keep their heads down. Especially on this new dungeon world... Trak couldn''t miss the way the locals stared at his people. There was some curiosity, but far more distrust and fear... He knew, logically, that it made sense. The humans had only just discovered about the Multiverse. That idea alone was too foreign to comprehend. Only one sapient species on an entire world? What must that have been like? Not to mention... they''d apparently had no magic. It made sense in a theoretical history kind of way... but Trak just couldn''t imagine what life must have been like. "Trak?" The human voices weren''t entirely unpleasant. Not like some species. But the amulet made it a moot point. He turned to the voice. It was the god''s brother''s mate, along with another human he didn''t know. "My Lady!" Trak bowed low. "How may I serve?" "Puppies!" the human pup in her arms said with wide eyes. Trak winced. He''d seen none of the ''dogs'' of this world yet, but he''d seen pictures of... pets. Mindless beasts that looked far too similar to his own species. "This is Isaac," the lady said. "He is an enchanter, and I am hoping he can copy your amulet." "Yes, my lady." Trak removed the amulet quickly and held it out without lifting his gaze. Hands took it from him while voices spoke in unintelligible tongues. Trak stayed where he was and didn''t dare move until he was granted permission. He only hoped they did not destroy his only... The other human pup, peeking around its mother''s legs, waved at him. It said something, but it was only noise without the amulet of tongues to translate. Trak copied the pup''s gesture and saw its mouth widen into a smile before it looked up with more unknown words for its mother. He followed the look and... found the mother''s eyes staring back at him. Trak dropped his face to the ground. He didn''t move until a loud voice brought his eyes creeping back up... where he found the amulet dangling from the human pup''s hand. Trak took the amulet slowly and hesitantly. He could feel the mother''s eyes on him... As soon as it was around his neck, the human female spoke. "What do you say?" Trak opened his mouth, and the human pup said, "Nice to meet you. I''m Gabriel." "Yes, my lord." Trak bowed low before the small human. He was mostly sure it was a male human. "I am Trak." Gabriel bowed back, and Trak winced when his mother barked, "That''s enough of that!" Trak kept his head down until a hand grabbed his shoulder and pulled him upright. The pup''s mother. She smelled... upset. "No more bowing. No more lords and ladies. You may call me Maria, or Mrs Morales, if you insist on formality. This is my son Gabriel and my daughter Anita. Please be patient with them, and tell me if they or anyone else mistreats you." "My..." Trak started bowing and froze partway when she cleared her throat loudly. He looked up slowly until he met her gaze. Then he straightened. "Yes, Mrs Morales. It will be as you command." There was something in her eyes that told him not to argue. Something almost as frightening as when he''d felt the gods doing battle above his old world... This human mother and her pups were not to be trifled with. She had extended trust to him here, and he knew that even were he able to betray the direct family of his lord and god, one look into those eyes would prevent any such thoughts. Within that gaze lurked a deadly predator that would not hesitate to remove any threat without mercy. A mother who would fight against even the gods if that was what it took to protect her pups. Her family. Trak could see a bit of his own matriarch in those eyes. His great ancestor had watched over the tribe for generations. Longer than this human had been alive, no doubt. But the same spark burned inside her all the same. Centuries from now, this human matriarch''s family would still stand. They would do more than stand. They would rule worlds. He shivered. Truly a worthy human to stand beside their god... "Are you busy?" she asked. "I am at your command!" She cleared her throat again, and Trak resisted the urge to bow. "I am not busy, my... Mrs Morales. There is nothing vital for me to see to until we harvest the first crop." "Will you tell me what brought you to my world? To my home? I would like to learn." Trak winced but hid his discomfort. "Of course, my... Mrs Morales!" She led him to the lord''s closed room. "Three, open up!" she said to the ceiling, and the door opened. Trak bowed hastily when he saw the startled look of his lord and god. "My lord!" "Did something happen, Maria?" "No. I want to learn... anubi history... you learn too... because they bow to you." It took a moment for Trak to realize she was now speaking a different language than before. While it wasn''t unusual for countless languages to be spoken on single worlds, it was rare for a sapient to learn more than one... "Sure," the lord said, looking away. "Just keep the door cracked. I almost blew up the last plate..." He cast a worried look toward the human pups. Trak kept his eyes on the floor even after the door blocked him from the lord''s gaze. "I..." Where did he start? What had brought them here... he didn''t want to talk about it. He didn''t even want to think about what he''d done. But he had to obey. "We were slaves." Trak spoke with his gaze fixed on the floor. "My pack served the Philean family for centuries on the B-grade dungeon world of Haltos. Our former master was... a fool. He did not designate an heir... and died. I do not know how he died, only that our oath of servitude had broken. We were free. As free as any other slaves on Haltos..." He trembled at the memory... Standing there with that key in his hand. The potential it offered. The bliss of freedom. The terror of the choices before him... and the price freedom would demand... "I was in possession of a dungeon key when it happened¡ªwhen the oath broke. The matriarch told me to take what members of the pack were in the shop with us..." Trak tried to control himself, but he couldn''t keep the whine from escaping his throat. "It was a mad scramble, and there was no time to gather the entire pack! We had minutes at most... so we... so I opened the way... and fled." "You left family behind?" Maria asked softly. "My brother and all but one of his pups. My own... my... heart mate... and our youngest!" Trak howled then. A bitter, wordless sound of anguish. His pack¡ªwhat little of it remained¡ªappeared around him while he cried. The humans said nothing while he gathered himself. A mercy. Then he could finally speak again. "They may perish for our betrayal. For what I did..." "Why leave?" Maria''s voice sounded... cold and her scent lingered on the edge of rage. He deserved that. "A chance," Trak whispered, his gaze on the floor. "The chance for those who escaped to live as more than slaves. A sacrifice... I only wish... if they knew we survived... knew what we found here... maybe they wouldn''t hate me as they surely do." "How is any of this worth that price!?" their lord shouted as the door slammed wide open. "You enslaved yourselves again! You even tried to make it worse!" Trak groveled until Maria pulled him upright. "No bow." Then he still couldn''t look up for long moments before finally saying, "We had no choice before, my lord. It was death or obedience. My sires before me and my offspring ahead. All would serve or die. There would be no advancement or evolution for us on such a high-grade world, no chance for anything more. Forever." He still didn''t know how many generations of his family had lived and died in that place. "When... when you accepted our oath... when you agreed to protect us... and then threatened to cast us out..." "That wasn''t a threat! I don''t want to enslave anyone!" His lord didn''t understand. He hadn''t spent his life in the system. He had not yet felt a boot on his neck. "I... I think I understand that now, my lord." Maria clicked her tongue each time he called Lee a lord, but Trak ignored her and continued. "Our matriarch claimed to be a seer... but I always doubted her power... until now. She brought us here. To you." He''d hated her the moment he activated the key and sealed their fate. It wasn''t even her fault. She hadn''t forced him. He''d made the choice. To save his eldest offspring. To save some of his family. To save himself... "What was her name?" the lord asked softly. "Your matriarch?" "My lord, I do not know. She was the matriarch before I was born. Before my father and his father. I do not even know how many generations..." "How... how long do... anubi live?" "Most sapient species share similar lifespans, but I believe the matriarch was a higher grade... I believe all of our tribe was once a higher grade... but we lost everything long ago. She... would not speak of it." Trak had learned to stop asking. Then his lord asked, "Can you ever go back for your family?" Trak shrank in on himself. It was a fool''s dream. To think he could grow to the heights of power that would require... to dream that his family would still live... It was a dream he didn''t dare wish for, lest the false hope destroy him. "That is... not realistic." "But not impossible?" "My lord... I dare not hope for such dreams." "I do!" The lord''s voice held a growl of anger that pulled Trak''s eyes up. "I''ll do more than hope and dream. I will make reality conform to my dreams! If you really want to be a part of this... then you better be ready to fight for what you want!" The god, Lee Cascade, climbed to his feet as he spoke until he was towering above Trak. Then he shouted, "Because I will never stop fighting!" Trak stared up at him in shock while a strange feeling filled his chest... Maybe it wasn¡¯t unrealistic anymore. He served a master far above any he had before, and his lord was still F-grade. What heights would they climb to at his side? What wasn''t possible for a god? He climbed to his feet, stood up straight, and howled back, "I will fight, my lord!" 75. Will It Cut ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley didn''t linger in the main room again for his nightly meditations. Not because he had a problem with it. Or the people. He was perfectly nice to... most of them. It was Nate''s idea to give him his own room. He didn''t mind. Caffeine got a soft bed to sleep on, which he promptly ignored in favor of curling up in Stanley''s lap all night while he meditated. Stanley spent much of that time considering his new skill option. The last one turned out okay with Psionic Charge. So there was hope for the shield as well. The question was if it would be any better than what he could already do. Sure, it mentioned magic in the description, which was his biggest weakness. But there was no guarantee it would keep that description after evolving to his class... Plus, it would cost him another percent of adaptability just to see what happened. His F-grade evolution had cost him a chunk, and he had no idea what E-grade might require. Eventually, he would run out, and Stanley didn''t know what would happen then. That was his only real concern with learning a new skill, and not a serious one. That problem wouldn''t matter for a long time. His current survival was a much more clear and present issue. It also might not switch the boost from intelligence... Sure, his willpower was flying high right now, and he suspected, hurting him because of his low physical attributes, but that might not be the actual case or it might not matter later. He''d lean into more willpower until he knew for certain. He was getting better at meditation, which was the only reason he could think about something else at the same time. It was both a blessing and a curse. A blessing since he didn''t have to focus mindlessly, and a curse because he could think about other things... It wasn''t all bad. The meditation made all his thoughts... less. He still felt the emotions, only with a lighter impact. Stanley only lost the flow a few times through the night. Then he finally woke, or rather stopped meditating, in the morning. I feel¡­ I feel¡­ kind of good. Caffeine was raring to go when he opened the door, and the pug shot off down the stairs. He only shook the building a little on his way down. Stanley followed at a more sedate pace, content to drift slowly through the building as he made his way to breakfast. Along the way, he absorbed the skill shard. -1% Adaptable Adapting Skill: Spell Shield (Rare) No Mana Detected. Psionic Energy Detected. Skill Adaptation Successful. New Non-Class Skill Learned: (1/3) Psionic Barrier (Rare) Don''t touch me. User gains a passive resistance to all outside forces at the cost of reserving a portion of psionic energy. Total reserved energy and resistance dependent on skill level and willpower. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Willpower It was... almost perfect. No, scratch that; it wasn''t even close to perfect. He couldn''t use it to protect Caffeine... Stanley could feel the power gathering on... or in... his skin. Not a lot, but it was only level one. That, plus the knowledge the skill put into his head, told him it wouldn''t push any further out... He also couldn''t feel any change from the supposedly reserved power. Likely another result of it being too low level. For now. It would level up, and he could make it happen faster by tanking some hits... Another thing the skill didn''t tell him was if the barrier would strain his mind or not. Obviously not even a possibility now, but once he put some levels into it... Stanley put the worries and concerns out of his mind. None of that would matter for a while, and he had more important things to focus on. Like finding more E-grade lairs... He heard the shouting once he made it to the ground floor, and from the opposite direction of where Caffeine had gone. "Who¡¯s the goddamned electrical engineer here, brat?" a man yelled. A woman''s voice responded with, "Maybe that would matter if we were dealing with fucking electricity, you senile old fart!" Stanley floated into an expansive room that was almost a mirror to the dining hall, with large windows down one wall letting in enough light to see the chaos strewn about. Countless and seemingly random appliances were everywhere. Round tables scattered around what must have been another communal dining hall at one point, and Stanley saw microwaves, toaster ovens, blenders, coffee makers, leaf blowers, another chainsaw, a washing machine, a dishwasher, and even a riding lawnmower. At least half of everything was in pieces or partially disassembled, and in the center of the room, he saw Eve. She was facing away from him and leaning over something on a table in front of her. Behind her, an old man in a wheelchair saw Stanley float in. His eyes widened briefly, then he winked at Stanley while Eve continued her tirade of insults. Stanley flew silently up next to him while Eve ranted. She had quite the vocabulary... similar to the first time he met her. It went on... and on... while she did something to what looked like an electric motor. "Stop staring at my ass, you old pervert!" Stanley wasn''t staring... but the way she was bent over... Eve finally straightened up and turned... Then she screamed and leapt a few feet into the air while scrambling to pull something from her belt. It looked like a gun when she finally pulled the weapon, though she didn''t quite point it at him. That might have been from all the shaking... "I knew you were a perverted old fuck!" "Can you make guns?" Stanley asked, eyeing the weapon curiously. If it even was a weapon? "You''re going to find out if you don''t fuck off!" She pointed it at him. Stanley turned the barrel away. She was too weak to stop him. Too weak to even try to threaten him. "You..." "Eve!" Nate came strolling into the room. "Any closer to getting us some spotlights?" Stanley let go of her gun and flew away. It was stupid to let her bother him... she wasn''t a threat and didn''t matter. He was just wasting his mental energy. Why did I even go in there? He found his team eating, all of them feeding pieces to Caffeine as he made his rounds of the hall. Stanley joined them after he dragged a pile of meat from the cooks, along with something new. It looked like vegetables¡ªones he''d never seen before. He wasn''t a fan of the things before... but new world and all. Maybe they would taste good? They didn''t. Even Caffeine knew better to eat the disgusting green things. The meat was still good. Great, even. Buff: [Bill''s Special] +2 All Base Attributes That was new. Starting at plus two instead of one. Bill must have leveled his skill or class. Stanley welcomed the extra power, especially to his vitality... He was actually feeling relatively confident about his willpower at this point, and he thought things might go differently if he faced that skeleton again. Aside from their cheating immortality... That thought reminded him of... something. A blinding light... and strings? Stanley closed his eyes against even the memory of that light and rubbed his temples at the phantom pain in his head. He''d seen something of the magic that made them immortal, but he couldn''t remember... He''d seen nothing of it before the source. Felt nothing. It was obviously magic... but was it soul magic? Would he be able to see it now? Would he be able to do anything, even if he could see it? Nate had no new intel about E-grade lairs, so Stanley took his team and flew toward the city. He stopped on the outskirts when he saw the familiar rectangular skyscraper looming ahead. The skyscraper where he''d spent the first night with Samantha... where he''d... hurt her. The hole he''d left in the building while running away was gone. A not at all disturbing development. Stolen story; please report. Stanley turned away from the past and scoured the nearby lairs instead. He wanted to scour the city and find the undead, but that could wait. E-grade first. Then he''d slaughter all of them... and today might just be the day it happened. For sure if he found another E-grade lair. Soul Sight helped with that... a little. After days of using the skill on both E and F-grades, he''d spotted the difference between the two. A very slight difference. Their souls glowed brighter. Unfortunately, no two souls were the same brightness. Presumably, brighter souls were stronger, but he didn''t know for certain. He was still the only one with an unlocked soul attribute, and it didn''t even give him a number to go off. Not that numbers would help if he had nothing to compare it to. He picked the brightest looking souls and poked one to test it... Not E-grade. Then he dropped his team off at the next closest lair and got to the killing. It was tempting to keep looking, to hold out for E-grades, but there was no guarantee they would find any. He didn''t want to waste time... Stanley could see the others still inside their lair when he finished, and he could feel Caffeine''s focus. Which meant they were still fighting... So he gathered his own cores before moving to the next lair. He was definitely going through his food faster than before, and the only thing he could think of to blame was his frail and feeble debuffs. Yet another sign that his weak physical body was impacting his mental power. Or... it was from letting the monsters hit him occasionally to level his new barrier skill... Still, it was nothing he couldn''t handle by throwing extra raw meat into his stomach. Gross, but only barely. He didn''t have to taste it, and there had been no negative side effects yet. Stanley found another lair not too far away and resumed the hunt. Caffeine could find him if the others finished and came looking, so he didn''t mind straying further away. The real reason he didn''t want to go far was in case Caffeine needed help... So he kept a close watch on the pug even as he hunted. They were still in the first lair when he finished, and Stanley decided to check on them even though Caffeine still felt calm. Maybe it was a bad matchup for their powers? There was no warning premonition as he flew past a large tree. Stanley only knew he was under attack when something pushed into his domain and shot toward his back. Fast! He tried to move in the single instant he had to react. Tried to fly away. But there was no time. He tried to hold back the attack, and it brushed past even his domain boosted power as if it didn''t notice. Stanley knew why he''d felt no premonition when the lightning fast tendrils didn''t actually hurt him. They touched him and wrapped around him, but it didn''t cause any pain. Not at first. Not until they had a good grip... Then they squeezed. He pitted all of his considerable power against the crushing tendrils even as his mind reached out to find what was attacking... and found... the tree? It wasn''t a tree. Though it sure looked like one as the mess of branches all snaked out after him. It didn''t even have a soul... until it did. He saw the soul appear even as the branches stopped looking like wood and turned pink. Fleshy. It can hide its soul! That was a whole new problem that hadn''t occurred to him before now. Monsters that could hide from Soul Sight. He''d flown right past it... thinking it was just another tree... Stanley didn''t even try stabbing the monster. Instead, he spun the spear like a saw blade and went straight for the tree trunk. He cut less than an inch deep before the entire thing rippled and swelled, going from a two-foot diameter to ten feet... twenty feet... Stanley bailed on the trunk and went for the branches-turned-pink-tendrils that were dragging him closer. They only seemed to multiply, even as he chopped through them. They also kept dragging him closer to the trunk with every passing moment. The worst part was how irresistible the pull felt. He never stopped moving, despite his rising anger. Despite carving apart the fleshy branches one after the other. Then the ground burst apart with a thousand more of the things. All of them shooting up to entangle him in an inescapable web. Hundreds of the things went for the spear, and for each one that splattered into goo, two more latched onto the spinning weapon. No, damn you! Stanley couldn''t breathe beneath the crushing grip, and he could feel it squeezing tighter still. Then sharp points started digging into his flesh... NO! He forced his rage against the monster... and drew in half a breath before the tendrils snapped back around him even tighter than before. More horrible stabbing points dug in with a disgusting squirming sensation. He didn''t feel Caffeine coming; the fight to escape was taking all his attention. Then the inexorable pull abruptly stopped, and he lurched away from the monster. It tightened for a split second, and then he was free... He had a single moment to see the two-story pug, his massive jaws clamped around what looked like a worm as he dragged it from the ground and away from Stanley. Then the tendrils all turned on Caffeine. In an eye blink, hundreds of flailing pink tentacles wrapped around the giant pug and lifted him right off the ground. Caffeine shrank, blurred between the tendrils, and then slammed to the ground when one tendril snagged his foot. Instantly, the remaining tendrils shot after him and wrapped him up, even as he ballooned in size and dug massive feet into the ground. Stanley''s rage bloomed as he watched dozens of those tendrils stab into the pug. His spear moved like a lightning bolt, punching back and forth through the gargantuan worm in a continuous streak. Caffeine yelped as he slid backward, his feet digging massive trenches. He grew even bigger and slid to a halt with his feet buried in the dirt that was now nearly up to his chest. "No!" Stanley screamed, latching onto the worm and adding his own power to the straining pug. Caffeine took a step, dragging the worm from its hole... Then the worm''s body undulated, and Caffeine slid another hundred feet closer to the pit it had emerged from. "NO!" He gave up stabbing it; the worm didn''t even seem to notice. Instead, he started spinning the spear again. Stanley didn''t know how durable the spear was anymore, but at this moment, he didn''t care. He only needed to cut the worm off before it could... The worm rippled and dragged the section he was cutting into the ground. Stanley ripped up the ground, tearing the earth away while reaching deeper to find the rest of the monster hiding underground... It went straight down... further than he could even reach with his mind... He had to cut it off! Caffeine slid closer as dirt flew and the spear sawed through the worm. "No! No! No!" Orange light bloomed around the worm, and bright beams of white light burned small holes in its pink skin. Small shards of crystal flew in, punching dozens of holes. It wasn''t working! He couldn''t cut through the rubbery hide fast enough... Stanley stared in frozen horror as Caffeine looked back up at him with his big brown eyes while sliding enexorably over the edge of a pit into the abyss. He felt no recrimination from the pug... Caffeine was only happy that he''d helped... No! you can''t do this to me... This can''t be happening! Cut, damn you! Caffeine was unstoppable... he''d survived everything this nightmare world had thrown at him... he couldn''t lose to this... this... worm. It was unthinkable. As dirt flew and his spear spun, as all of his power pulled against the immutable strength of a fucking worm, as Stanley watched Caffeine about to be taken from him... Something¡­ shifted. Stanley stared into those big brown eyes that were leaving him behind... and he finally understood the truth. A truth about the world he lived in that sought every day to destroy him. The truth about reality. Mind Over Matter... His gaze moved to the worm as he felt the ripple traveling up its ridiculously long body. The final pull that would take Caffeine down. That would take Caffeine away from him. No. It was never about cutting the worm. It was never about imposing his will on reality... not like he''d tried to do so many times... I don''t need to cut you, Stanley thought as his power gathered in a newfound calm. I don''t need to cut you... because the reality is... you... are... CUT Reality corrected itself. The worm split in half. Stanley felt a stabbing pain in his head, but it didn''t matter because Caffeine was free. He felt and dimly saw the pug flying toward him... then Caffeine was in his arms and whimpering, even as he slobbered all over Stanley''s face. "Good..." The encroaching darkness fled, along with his relief, when he felt hot liquid splash against his chest. "Caff..." Stanley''s eyes opened wide as he stared at the massive blood gushing holes in Caffeine''s body where the tendrils had stabbed him. So deep! He''d be okay... Caffeine had been hurt so many times before and healed from it all... he''d be fine... Zeke! Zeke can heal him! Stanley shot into the air with the bleeding Caffeine clutched tightly to his chest. Where''s Zeke!? He spun franticly in the air, trying to orient himself toward Nate''s base... But it all looked the same right now! Where is his soul!? Soul Sight was on, but he couldn''t spot the golden soul anywhere. Where the fuck are you!? Without thought, Stanley forced more of the skill''s energy into his eyes... and the souls brightened... more appearing in the distance. More! His eyes burned as glowing souls lit up the world in a riot of color, and... There! Stanley hauled himself through the air toward the spot of gold in the distance. Move faster... faster... MOVE! The air threatened to shred him and Caffeine as the golden soul loomed rapidly larger... and Stanley made it stop touching them. He no longer felt the hot blood on his chest... now it felt cold. Caff! Stanley ripped a hole through the sky in a straight line toward that golden light. Its glow was his only remaining hope and the only thing he cared about anymore. Trees loomed into his path as he got closer... and Stanley went through them. A wall appeared while he was slowing down... and he went through that, too. Then he was there. He''d made it! Zeke was right across the room, and Stanley flew directly toward him. People got in his way... magic lashed out... Stop Everything stopped with another spike through his brain. People froze in mid motion, and magic hung unmoving in the air. Nothing would interfere with saving Caffeine. Nothing! Stanley halted before the blindingly bright golden light, Caffeine held out in his arms and pressed to the boy''s chest. "Heal him!" he gasped. "Please!" Golden light flared while Stanley''s vision narrowed into a dark tunnel... He fought back, clinging to consciousness with every scrap of willpower he possessed... and heard a child''s laughing voice saying, "Caff, stop!" Stanley fell to his knees as he blinked blurry eyes at a small wiggling tail... Caff? Then the gray shape turned, and he felt a tongue lashing his face. He''s okay? He''s okay! 76. A Window To The Soul ~~~Stanley~~~ He''s okay! The terror left him like a physical weight lifting from his chest, and Stanley felt exhaustion dragging him down into the darkness. He couldn''t fight it anymore... he didn''t need to... Caffeine was... okay... Buff: [Purifying Light] The warm, soothing glow pushed back the darkness, and Stanley used the reprieve to hug Caffeine close. He buried his face in the gray fur and just breathed in the smell of the pug, even as the burning pain faded from his head and the weight crushing his heart subsided further. Debuff Removed: [Cerebral Fatigue] Debuff Removed: [Rage Overload] Stanley blinked in surprise as the last lingering pain in his head vanished along with much of the emotional turmoil. He looked up. I didn''t know he could heal... Zeke was swaying in front of him, his golden soul appearing... dimmer? Eve''s blinding silver glare outshone her brother where she stood behind him. Nate was even brighter on the other side; he was yelling something while pulling Zeke away and pointing at Stanley''s face. "Turn it off!" Stanley blinked again and felt his eyes burn as they reopened. Oh... right. He canceled Soul Sight, and everything suddenly felt much calmer. Quieter. All the blinding colors vanished, and the world looked almost... drab in comparison. Then he heard the other voices yelling and crying. Stanley looked around the room as Caffeine whined in his arms. He saw Nate pulling Zeke over to someone else. "You got any more healing left in you, Zeke?" "Leave him the fuck alone!" Eve was on the other side of her brother and trying to pull him away from Nate. "I... can still... help." Zeke swayed on his feet but still laid hands on a prone figure. Stanley saw the massive gap in the wall and remembered his entrance. A rather violent entrance... Then he looked at Caffeine in his arms, meeting his brown eyes, and didn''t care what damage he''d done. "You''re really okay?" Stanley whispered, while Caffeine whined and licked his cheek. "That''s¡­ that''s¡­ I''m so glad!" Stanley crushed Caffeine in another hug, his eyes burning, and not from Soul Sight. Good boy. Best boy! He was pretty sure he hadn''t killed anyone on the way in... which was why he didn''t understand when he finished hugging Caffeine some more and looked up to find Eve glaring at him beside her brother. It wasn''t just her... Stanley furiously blinked the remaining moisture from his eyes and looked at Zeke. "Thank you for healing him, Zeke! I owe you. Whatever you want..." "I... Caffeine was fine... I only had to heal... you." Zeke didn''t want to meet his eyes while he spoke. "You... you were okay, Caff?" He''d known Caffeine would heal... but in that moment... "Thanks anyway." Stanley choked back a sob. "I was so scared..." Zeke nodded mutely but didn''t look at him. Meanwhile, Eve wouldn''t stop glaring... and she had tears in her eyes... "I didn''t touch you or your brother, so..." He didn''t say what he wanted to. Her brother didn''t deserve it. "So, what happened to you, then?" Stanley asked instead. Nate spoke up in Eve''s place. "You did." Stanley frowned. "I didn''t touch her..." "When you were... approaching," Nate said. "We all felt it¡­ we thought something was attacking. We knew something was coming for Zeke." Zeke was trembling slightly. "I felt it," he whispered, still not meeting Stanley''s gaze. "I was... pretty sure it was you," Nate said. "But it was... um, rather intense." Zeke nodded jerkily. "Then you came bursting through the wall, and I didn''t have time to stop anyone from attacking you... so, thanks for holding back there." "Your eyes were burning with black light," Zeke whispered. "Awful light." Soul Sight, Stanley thought. "It wasn''t that bad, was it?" "The light in your eyes..." Nate swallowed. "I could see something in that light. It was... I don''t even know how to describe it." "It felt like reliving the worst moment of my life," Zeke whispered. "But the best moment, too..." Nate nodded. "It was beautiful, horrifying, and... wrong." "It was a baby''s laughter," Eve croaked hoarsely. "And the deafening silence when it stops forever." "What the fuck!?" Stanley exclaimed, not liking where this was going at all. Nate nodded again. "Yes. It was the most beautiful thing I''ve ever seen." His eyes glazed over with an awestruck look for a moment before focusing back on Stanley. "But it was wrong. Mutilated. Ruined." Stanley sat in silence, not sure how to respond to what he was increasingly worried were descriptions of his soul. No, they were wrong. They had to be wrong. My Soul isn''t ruined. "And there was a crack¡­ a blinding white crack running through it all," Nate finished. Fuck. Stanley slumped, while Caffeine whined and licked his face. They don''t know what they''re talking about! He lifted his head to deny their claims and saw Zeke''s tired face turn away, flinching from him. Stanley didn''t yell. They didn''t know, and Zeke had just helped him. "I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to upset anyone with my fucked up soul!" So he was still a little salty... He looked at Caffeine. "I was so scared for Caff... I was trying to find Zeke and I did something to my skill to help me¡­" Stanley looked back up and paused at the expressions on their faces. "What?" "That''s... your soul?" Eve whispered as she stared at him, her expression horrified. Then she turned away and vomited. What the fuck! Stanley lifted himself back into the air and drifted away from her, while Caffeine whined again. Zeke went to his sister with a faint golden light on his hands, and Nate only frowned as he stared at Stanley. "I¡­" Stanley struggled for words and found none. Nate lost the intense scrutiny of his gaze and smiled instead. "Don''t sweat it, Stanley. I''m sure your soul is perfectly fine. It was probably just the skill messing with us... In fact, we should probably thank you since you unlocked my hidden soul attribute with whatever that was." It was Stanley''s turn to stare. "I... what?" "Eve? Zeke?" Nate asked. "You get it too?" Zeke nodded with a weak smile, while Eve just flipped him off without turning or standing up from where she was bent over and spitting on the floor. "See?" Nate said, "It''s a good thing." He hesitated, then asked, "If you don''t mind... what was the skill?" "Soul Sight," Stanley said distractedly, before realizing what he''d done and glaring at Nate. Nate chuckled and shook his head. "Relax. Everyone knows you have that weird eye thing going on, and..." He looked around. "Um, where''s your team? Did whatever hurt Caffeine..." "No. I left them... out there." Stanley winced. It was Arthur all over again. Or maybe not. His new team didn''t need him to survive out there. They were probably fine... He''d seen their spells at the end there... when Caffeine almost... No, Caff is fine. He was always fine! It was my fault... again... A hand touched him, and Stanley didn''t flinch. He''d known Nate was moving in his domain, even if he hadn''t paid attention. "I''m sure they''re fine. If you don''t want to go back out, could you point me..." "I''ll get them," Stanley said, drifting away from the man. "They were fine when I left. It was only me being too weak." The self recrimination felt dulled this time because, despite his failure, Stanley had gained a new understanding of his power from the ordeal. Power he wanted to test immediately, and thanks to Zeke, he could do exactly that. He flew out the new entrance before anyone else could complain about his soul¡ªflew away from the crybabies that couldn''t handle reality. Not Zeke, though. Zeke had done more than Stanley expected from the kid, and he deserved a reward for it. Stanley wanted to give him an E-grade core for his efforts, but the damn worm had shredded his pants in the struggle, and the cores were nowhere to be found... Nothing better eat my fucking cores! This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. His flight to reach Zeke had been the fastest he''d ever moved, or at least on par with his old Psionic Charge skill, but over a longer distance. A skill that had supposedly merged with Psychokinesis... so Stanley looked more closely at his very recent and very bleak memories. Move It wasn''t so much a thought... as it was a command. Only, it wasn''t even that. It was a statement. Not, ''I want to move faster.'' Not, ''I will move.'' But, ''I am moving faster!'' Stanley shot across the sky... and immediately stopped when the wind threatened to scour his skin from his flesh. Okay, that needs some work. "Sorry, Caff." He flew at a more sedate pace and tried the other new aspect of his power on a passing tree. Cut The tree fell with a very minor drain on his mind, and Stanley had mixed feelings while watching it topple down... On the one hand, that fucking worm had disguised itself as a tree! On the other hand, Samantha and her damn trees... So he found a monster and tested it again. Cut The monster died. Bisected cleanly and abruptly. The drain in his mind was also more noticeable¡­ but not nearly what it had been on the worm. Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter +1 Willpower Debuff: [Hungry] On that note, Stanley went back to the notifications he''d missed in the moment''s panic earlier. Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier ... Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter +1 Willpower Class Level Up: Psionic Skill Level Up: Soul Sight Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter ... +1 Willpower Willpower has reached the E-grade threshold. +1 Willpower Fortification It had been a long time since he''d seen the mention of fortification... and that was only one of his gains. Stanley checked his status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Psychomancer](F-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](65%) [Source Nexus] [Psycho] [Source Burned] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 55 (Advanced) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 55 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 37 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 32 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 30 (Intermediate) Attributes: Strength: 100(+30%)130 Vitality: 100(+31%)131 Dexterity 100(+30%)130 Wisdom 100(+737%)737 Intelligence 100(+737%)737 Willpower 100(+1687%)1687 Twin-Soul ???(+40%)??? Non-Class Skills 2/3: Soul Sight (Rare) - Level 20 (Basic) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 10 (Basic) Buff: [Bill''s Special] Debuff: [Feeble] [Frail] [Hungry] It was slightly misleading thanks to his food buff... but it let him see what the buff added. So that was nice. It also highlighted more than ever how far off his physical and mind stats were... namely, willpower. Once again, he didn''t know if that was normal. Or was he fucking himself up somehow? Regardless, he was powerful. Even if only for a short time before the debuffs appeared. That was enough... so long as he didn''t get stuck fighting another monster skeleton that refused to die... His cores were gone when he got back. Stanley sat in the air and glared at the giant pit beside a huge pile of pink meat. The rest of the worm was missing... and he couldn''t see a core from the piece he''d cut off. Don''t tell me it survived! He sat down on the ground, near another tree. One he was mostly sure was a real tree... though he wasn''t afraid of that monster showing up again. Hell, he wanted it to show up. Then he meditated. Caffeine jumped off his lap, and Stanley dropped the meditation long enough to see the pug eating the worm meat. Sorry, Caff. I should have brought more food. With another glance at the souls inside the nearby lair, Stanley went back to meditating. His team was fine. They hadn''t even stopped hunting while he was gone. So he sat where he was until Caffeine ran to join them in the lair. Then visions of the pug getting hurt roused him from the void, and he sent his mind into the lair after Caffeine. There were only a handful of monsters remaining inside, and Stanley cut them in half, one by one, until there were none left. He could see the human souls group up around Caffeine briefly before splitting up, one heading Stanley''s way. It was only when she emerged from the lair that Stanley saw the glow of Samantha''s spear in Serenity''s hands. He''d left it behind... She let go of the spear when he pulled on it, then followed behind it as she approached him. "Stanley! We... worried." She dug her hand into a pocket and pulled out cores. "We also grabbed these for you." Stanley took the E-grade cores while she eyed the pit nervously. "Thanks... I thought Caffeine was... hurt. Didn''t mean to abandon..." "It''s fine!" Serenity said quickly. "You aren''t our babysitter." She kneeled beside him, her hands reaching for his face, before hesitating. "Is it okay if I heal you?" "I''m not hurt." "You''ve got some... blood on your face." She touched his cheek, and Stanley felt her magic trickling through him. It wasn''t anything like Zeke''s healing... "At least you''re looking younger every day. It probably means your transformation isn''t permanent." "I am?" Stanley looked at his hands, surprised to see she was right. They weren''t back to what he remembered before the source, but definitely less decrepit... That''s good. "What happened... before?" she finally asked with another glance toward the pit. Stanley sighed. "That... worm? Caffeine saved me and almost got dragged underground." He could see the trenches the giant pug had left in the dirt... "I''m sorry we weren''t enough," she said, sitting back and looking away. "We barely scratched it... All the times you and Caffeine protected us... we should have done more." "You tried... That means something." He didn''t know what it meant... but it was a good feeling. It was disappointing that they hadn''t been more help, sure, but even Nate would have struggled with that monster. It was bullshit, and Stanley had a feeling it must have been another ''king'' monster. Underground king? The opposite of a ''sky king?'' How did he keep attracting these kinds of monsters? Were they that common in the world? How was anyone supposed to survive in this hell if there were monsters like that everywhere? "Anyway, thanks for trying. It wasn''t all bad. I finally learned something from my failure." Stanley concentrated not only on himself but also on the surrounding air, a bubble with him at the center. Move He was abruptly beneath the next tree over, a crack of displaced air echoing from where he''d been. It worked much better when he included the air, unlike the first time he tried... Serenity toppled forward in the gusting wind, but she didn''t look upset when her gaze landed on him. "Is that the skill you used before you got... old? I was wondering why you never used it anymore." It was technically... almost the same. Different in that he had to do it more manually than before? Which should mean it is more flexible... Theoretically, he could expand the ''bubble'' to include as much as he wanted. The cost would skyrocket, but it was possible. He could also speed up something smaller... Rather than risk the spear, Stanley picked up a rock and moved it toward the empty lair. The rock never hit the building. It exploded the moment his power stopped protecting it from the wind. So he tried again and blasted a hole through the lair wall... That one hurt his head, but it was likely because he''d forced the rock through the wall. What if he let go at just the right spot... or used something stronger than a rock? He ripped apart one of the rusting cars and threw a few different metal scraps with great results before trying the engine block. It was harder to move the heavier chunk of metal, but doable. The engine block blasted through the entire lair and went out the other side... Stanley stared after it as something finally occurred to him. The skill is powerful. Really powerful... He cut another engine block into pieces. Tiny pieces. Slivers of steel. Orbit The experiment took more energy, probably because he was keeping it going instead of a one and done attack. Also, he was fighting the centrifugal force the whole time. Keeping the projectiles nearby let his domain help with the load, but it was still draining. Stanley let it drop when he felt Caffeine approaching. Feeling a cold sweat when he did so. That was not a good idea for a defense if Caffeine was going to be jumping around like he always did... Besides, it was a waste of energy. He had a better attack, one he needed to practice. "Let''s keep hunting." Stanley carried everyone to the next lair, absorbing his share of F-grade cores on the way. He was still reluctant to use the E-grades. Not before he knew he had enough to rank up. Just in case E-grades didn''t pop up everywhere. It was unlikely, but not impossible. "Stay here." He left them all outside and flew into the building alone. Two furry things pounced... and he focused for only an instant... Cut Two furry things became four pieces of meat, and Stanley flew deeper. They died in ones, twos, and even threes. So long as he focused his will on the groups and included each monster in his new reality, they all cut. He also tested throwing the metal slivers along the way. Or rather, he moved them. It took less energy to kill that way, same as before, but it required a different focus... All in all, he wiped out the lair in less than a minute. Then he ate while collecting the cores. His hunger grew much faster doing things this way, but it felt worthwhile. It felt like power. A level of power he''d been missing lately... Now he just needed to find more E-grades. Like that damn worm! ~~~Eve~~~ Fuck you, monster! Eve cursed silently at the demon as it flew away. Fuck off and die already! Eve watched her little brother heal people. Idiots that didn''t have the fucking guts to stand up to the monsters! She couldn''t stop the trembling but hid it well enough until the rest of the onlookers split off to go do their own stupid shit. Then she went to her latest project and stared at it for a long time... the latest notification still fresh in her mind. Hidden Attribute Unlocked: Soul +1 Soul Soul. A new attribute. One that was unlocked when that monster attacked them. Eve didn''t know what it meant or did, but she could feel... something. It was important. More important than any of the surrounding morons seemed to understand. She touched the machine before her and smiled grimly. It was exactly what she''d been looking for... so maybe that freak could still do something useful? 77. Did I Make A Mistake ~~~Caffeine~~~ Dearest Human was doing his sleep thinking again. It wasn''t as snuggly as the warm bed, but Dearest Human put a little blanket over him while Caffeine slept in his lap. Naps in Dearest Human''s lap were the best! Then Dearest Human laid in the bed and Caffeine got a good snuggle nap under the covers! It was so warm and nice! Until Dearest Human started to smell like afraid and hurting... Caffeine crawled out of the snuggles and gave Dearest Human some face licks. "I am here, Dearest Human. I will protect you! You don''t need to be afraid or hurting!" It didn''t work. Dearest Human was afraid in the sleep place, not here. He couldn''t hear Caffeine... not even when he used the magic words. "Good boy! Cookie! Snacks! Chicken!" Tough Strong Human came into the room slowly, and Caffeine wagged his tail. "Help Dearest Human! He needs hugs and cuddles!" "Stanley!" Tough Strong yelled something a few times. Then he looked at Caffeine while making a happy worried face. "Don''t worry, Caff. He''s just having a bad dream. I''m going to wake him up now..." Caffeine wagged his tail when Tough Strong said his name, then stopped. I am not bad... "Good... boy, Caff," Tough Strong said as he leaned forward and crawled across the floor. Caffeine wagged his tail. He was a good boy! But now Tough Strong smelled like hurting... and blood. Dearest Human was thinking too angry at everything. "Please don''t kill me for this," Tough Strong said something, and then he glowed very bright. He didn''t smell like bad or mean when he pretended to hit Dearest Human... so Caffeine didn''t bite him... but he was worried... Then Dearest Human woke up! ~~~Stanley~~~ He got drowsy in the middle of the night. It sucked to find out that meditation wasn''t enough to avoid sleeping entirely. It also sucked when Premonition started screaming at him... right before Nate shook him awake while sporting bloody cuts all over his flesh... "What happened!?" Stanley saw the blood and forced himself into wakefulness, his mind reaching out and searching for the monsters in the dark. He found empty rooms around him. Empty floors below. A crowd of humans gathered on a lower floor... and nothing else. "Oh." He understood. "It was me, wasn''t it?" Nate chuckled, but it sounded strained. "I heard the stories... but that was something else. Don''t worry, everyone''s fine. Just some superficial injuries and grumpy people." Stanley frowned at the cuts covering Nate. He remembered something about... cutting... but wasn''t sure if it was from his day of hunting or a nightmare. Then he brushed a trembling hand over Caffeine... and found no injuries or even a trace of blood. Thank god. He popped Soul Sight and saw Zeke''s golden soul among the gathered crowd below. So they''d be fine. It was still dark out, but he could see the eastern sky glowing with the coming dawn. Hopefully, it was enough sleep... "I heard you were kicking way more ass than usual yesterday." Stanley wanted to glare at the man, but he only sighed. "Edward?" Nate nodded. "He might be your biggest fan. Everyone knows about the worm and the subsequent lair hunting now. Congrats on the... new skill?" "Old skill," Stanley said, and chuckled at the unintentional pun. "I got it for burning myself into old age... but only recently figured out how to use it, and all it took was seeing Caffeine about to die." "I''m not sure if anything could ever kill him," Nate said slowly. "But I can imagine how much it sucks to see him hurting." "It''s worse every time," Stanley said, eyes on the pug in his lap. "And it''s always my fault." "You realize that Caffeine does nothing he doesn''t want to do, right? I may not know him as well as you, but I saw enough to know that nothing can force him to do anything." "If I was strong enough, he wouldn''t have to help me... he wouldn''t have to get hurt." Stanley finally looked away from the sprawled-out Caffeine''s belly. "What did you actually see?" Nate shook his head. "I don''t even know, but he is not a dog. At least, not only a dog. Not anymore." Stanley frowned. Caffeine obviously changed with the system, but who hadn''t? He was still a dog. The best dog, obviously! "What do you mean?" "He was big. Like blocking out the sky big, and I saw you in his eyes¡ªyou and one other. I knew he could and would do anything to protect the two of you. It wasn''t only you either... there were others, and I knew I would die if I tried to hurt any of them. It wouldn''t even be a fight... in that moment, I knew any hostility would mean my end." "He''s a good boy," Stanley said while rubbing Caffeine''s belly. Nate smiled. "Yes. Yes, he is. A total teddy bear." "Well, I''m gonna keep looking for E-grades," Stanley said as he lifted into the air. He felt rested enough and doubted he would get back to sleep now. Might as well get back to work. They flew and walked, respectively, downstairs, and Stanley kept his eyes on Caffeine after the first frightened face retreated through a doorway on seeing him. It wasn''t like he wanted to have nightmares. Besides, they had a healer that could fix any damage. His team was in the dining room, waiting for him. Or maybe they''d woken up early... "Were you the one shaking the building?" Edward asked immediately upon seeing him. "We were going to run up there, but something started cutting us up! It was wild!" Serenity hissed something at him, and Edward frowned. "What? It wasn''t him?" "Just a nightmare... I think." Stanley wasn''t happy about cutting people in his sleep. It was... not ideal. "Maybe I should start sleeping in the lairs again..." "I can''t believe you did that," Olivia said. "What? The building is indestructible. Or mostly. Why not sleep there?" "Because monsters could come inside at any time!" "I mean, I guess if you had a fancy lair like Bob did..." "We did," James said. "It was a nightmare before that, and I can''t wait for this place to become a lair already." "I could sleep in a lair, no problem," Edward said. "Especially with Caffeine there to guard me." "That... definitely helped," Jerry said while trudging into the room and yawning. "Still having nightmares? Couldn''t you have waited a little longer? It''s not even light out!" Silas laughed, and it turned into a yawn of his own. "Yeah. But I bet people stop bitching about Stanley getting his own room." "Assuming Nate doesn''t make us take the room next door," Serenity said, then blushed when she met Stanley''s gaze. "Sorry! We shouldn''t joke about this." "Why not?" Jerry said. "Worried Stanley will snap and kill you? Well, don''t be. Caff would probably save you, and Zeke can patch up the damage after that. Nothing to worry about." It got quiet after that, and Stanley resisted the urge to do something mean to Jerry. The guy was right, after all. About Stanley hurting people and about Zeke. The healer who could have saved Samantha. If he''d only killed Zeke''s mom when they first met... They didn''t actually have to wait for the cook. Nate had kept his word about always having a food stockpile ready. But sometimes it was nice to eat something hot and fresh. Plus, it was still dark out. Stanley didn''t think the darkness would really hold him back if he wanted to hunt, especially with Soul Sight. Though finding out the skill wasn''t absolute gave him some pause. His newfound, or at least newly improved, power helped make up for that upsetting realization. Mostly. "So, was Stanley just as grouchy when you hunted with him, Jerry?" Edward asked. "Did he shake the building and..." James whacked him in the back of the head. "Nah," Jerry said, snapping his fingers over the grill, which burst into flames. "He was way worse before..." He opened an industrial-looking metal refrigerator, and a light came on inside, illuminating stacked shelves of raw meat. Stanley assumed the machine was Eve''s work. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "How did you survive without a healer? Or was the girl with you a healer? Arthur doesn''t like to talk about..." James kicked Edward in the shin while Serenity whacked him in the back of his head. "What!? Stop hitting me! What is wrong with..." "Shut up!" Serenity hissed with a glance toward Stanley. It was the look on her face that made Stanley aware of his own clenched fists and jaw. So he settled onto the floor and went into meditation. He was getting better at it. Stanley stayed in the calm void until his mood settled back down. It didn''t take long. He wasn''t that upset... "I spit in Stanley''s food a lot," Jerry was saying when sound returned. "He didn''t care, which took most of the fun out of it. The savage." "Yeah, he eats raw meat all the time," Edward agreed. "I could see him not caring about some spit." Stanley got more amusement out of watching the uncomfortable looks between his team than he did annoyance at Jerry. The guy had protected him and Caff when they needed it. He''d earned the right to say whatever he wanted. Not that Stanley wouldn''t react if he went too far... Edward had a... bluntness to the way he spoke. A naivete that Stanley was getting used to. It made his occasional random comments less... biting. Bill showed up and got to work without comment. He was busy these days, and almost no one went anywhere or did anything without his food buff. Stanley would have given the man some cores, but Nate handled that side of things. Buff Gained: [Bill''s Special] There was a small crowd gathered outside when they left the building. "Whichever direction you''re going is fine," one of them said. Stanley didn''t remember his name or face, but Caffeine didn''t growl at him, so it was fine. Stanley took the handful of cores the man offered and fed them to Caffeine while he carried everyone into the sunrise. He did small experiments on the way, mostly testing his ability to move with the larger number of people present. Nothing too fast or far. Small pushes that sped up their trip but didn''t risk any cerebral fatigue. The debuff was less limiting now that he had meditation, but there was no need to waste time if it wasn''t an emergency. Someone had suggested this new arrangement of Stanley playing taxi service, probably James... That guy was always trying to optimise things. It was fine so long as they paid for the ride and didn''t want to go too far out of his... Move Stanley dragged everyone instantly a dozen feet to the side as magic zapped up at them from the ground. Cut The soul responsible wasn''t hidden from his sight, and it died for that mistake. Also, for attacking him... and it wasn''t alone. Cut Cut Cut Stanley would have killed them all at once, but the first one felt... thick. He thought he knew why and wanted to make sure they died with no more surprises. The cores confirmed his suspicions. Core Chip [E-grade] +10 Vitality All E-grades... Stanley found a cluster of souls not far away and flew that way while counting his cores. He reached into the building with his mind and poked at the first monster. It was E-grade as well. Stanley dropped his passengers and went on a killing spree that none of them could see. He felt... drained when it was over, but the feeling faded fast. Debuff: [Hungry] A snack solved that while he collected the cores. Then he started absorbing them. This was it. He had enough cores! +1 Vitality Fortification Stanley stopped at that message. Partly because the people he''d come out here with were all staring, but also because something else had occurred to him yesterday. He addressed the human issue first. "They were all E-grades." "Told you," Edward said. "You didn''t, um, have any trouble killing them?" James said with only the hint of a question in his voice. Stanley smiled. "No. I didn''t." He held onto the dexterity core, not absorbing it as he picked everyone back up. "Let''s check the next lair." It was also E-grade... as was the next, and the next. "So it''s happened," James said after the last one. "This changes things. Stanley, do you have... enough? We can head back now... or set up in this lair, if you prefer." Stanley stared at the cores in his hands and slowly shook his head. "No, not yet." "Everyone wait here," James said, and then approached Stanley. "Can I talk to you about something?" "Sure..." James followed as Stanley continued through the building, collecting the cores from bisected monsters. "Nate has confided in me," James said softly once they were a few rooms deeper. "He... suspects you are afraid of him getting to E-grade first." Stanley said nothing. "If E-grades are this prolific, you need to advance as soon as possible if you want to stay ahead. There are other teams out there that will probably reach E-grade before the day is over. If Nate doesn''t know about this yet, he will soon. At the very least, he will bump Zeke''s entire protection detail to E-grade. Assuming he doesn''t rank up himself..." James looked away and added, "I may have advised him to ignore your... dramatics and hit E-grade as soon as possible. Just a heads up, I guess. I don''t know if he will take my advice." Stanley eyed him. "You''re pushing awfully hard for me to rank up¡ªalmost like you want me unconscious and helpless." "Oh, please." James rolled his eyes. "You? Helpless? Who here is dumb enough to get on Caffeine''s bad side? I may have been skeptical of Nate''s warnings in the beginning, but we''ve all seen him fight by now." He smiled at the pug on Stanley''s lap. "So why the rush?" Another thought occurred to Stanley. "Does Nate know something? What is it!? What did he say!?" James backed up a step. "No! Nothing like that! At least... not that I''ve heard..." He didn''t look certain. "Just looking out for you like Nate wanted." "What do you know about fortification?" Stanley asked, and James frowned. "We know it goes higher than the ten it did at F-grade... but we don''t know what it means after the rank up... not yet. Are you..." His frown shifted into a more thoughtful expression. "I suppose it would be easy to push some attributes up with E-grade cores... assuming fortification doesn''t suffer the same diminishing returns?" "Which one of the team would you rank up first?" Stanley asked on the way back to the others. "Silas," James answered immediately. "He has a decent offence and defense. Him or Edward. Though Silas is a bit more... level-headed of the two. Second would be Serenity, without a doubt." Stanley thought about what he wanted to do while flying both groups further. He brought the others after James asked to let them all try their skills in the next lair. They even agreed to pass on the E-grade cores in exchange for Stanley watching over their fights. He continued to consider his options while they fought against something with tentacles... It looked disgusting, and Stanley was once again glad he didn''t have to fight up close, like some of them. The combined groups did well enough fighting their way through the lair, if slowly. They took injuries, and without Zeke, recovery was slow. Stanley waited until it was obvious they wouldn''t die, then he flew to another lair with Caffeine. It was time for some experiments of his own. Cut It was easy to kill the monsters. Too easy. He could cut them completely in half with a focused thought or take off limbs with even less effort. Something about lethal attacks took far more energy... Stanley assumed it had something to do with all living things having an instinctive will to survive. Even if only passively. They all pushed back against his will when he decided they were dead. It was a weak pushback. A futile effort. They all died, and Stanley collected more cores before flying back to check on his team. Just in time... because Edward was about to get himself killed when Stanley flew into the queen''s room. He was expecting it when Caffeine launched himself after the monster, and Stanley didn''t go flying in the opposite direction. So he saw it when the mess of tentacles spun toward Caffeine, revealing a horrible maw of teeth at the center... It wasn''t the teeth that bothered him. It was the tentacles that reminded Stanley of a certain tree turned worm... CUT His focus wasn''t very precise, but the anger made up for it. The monster collapsed in a spray of gore and chunks of meat. Most of it landed on Edward. "Ah! Get it off! Oh... ugh! It''s in my mouth!" Stanley ignored the theatrics and took the queen''s core. Skill Shard [E-grade] Entangling Grasp (Rare) Never let go of what you want. User''s chosen appendages become flexible and sticky. ... It sounded horrible, and Stanley was for once very glad that he couldn''t learn a skill like this without adapting it first. Not that he had any intention of taking the skill. The shard would give him three of each attribute if he destroyed it... which was enough to hit E-grade... "I want vitality and willpower cores," Stanley said to the gathered humans while holding up the skill shard. "Whoever wants to trade can evolve right here, right now. If you don''t pay up after... I''ll kill you and take your..." "Deal," James said, snatching the core and tossing it to Silas. "You first." Silas took one look around, then sat with a slightly worried expression on his face. A second later, the core vanished from his hand, and he slumped over against the wall. Serenity caught him and laid him down gently, with her own look at Stanley. "You''re sure about this?" "Um," one of the other group said, holding up a single core. "I only need one intelligence and one wisdom... I can pay you back double after I evolve! Whatever stats you want!" "Me too!" someone else chimed in, and that opened a floodgate. Stanley hesitated. Raising up a few E-grades was one thing, but all of them? The E-grades in the lairs were weak, but what if one of them unlocked something really special... "What do you all need?" He started with his own team, and only James wanted to wait. Just in case, as he said. Then Stanley took Caffeine close to each of them and let the pug smell them one after the other. None of them garnered any hostility, and Stanley suspected they didn''t even know how strong Caffeine truly was. Hearing about a pug being the beast lord was apparently entirely different from seeing him rip apart giant monsters in the blink of an eye. Luckily for them, Caffeine had no problems with the eager humans. "If any of you try to betray me after..." Stanley warned, and James interrupted. "They won''t." One by one, the others all went unconscious. Until it was only Stanley and James as the last men standing. Also Caffeine. "You''re planning to fortify willpower and vitality, then?" James asked in the silent room full of unconscious people. "Yes. I need..." Well, willpower was obvious, but he wasn''t sure if he should even mention his suspected physical weakness. "What about Caff? If you get him up first..." "I intend to," Stanley said as he rubbed the relaxing pug''s belly. He didn''t want to put that burden on Caffeine, didn''t want Caffeine to fight for him, and didn''t intend for him to do any such thing. But... just in case. He could make Caffeine stronger even if he delayed his own advancement. Which meant it was time to start feeding E-grade cores into the pug... "Um, how long does this usually take?" 78. What Lurks Beneath ~~~Lee~~~ Lee stepped off the railing of the third-floor balcony and plummeted toward the courtyard below. Then he tapped the runes in his shoes with Mana Mind, more specifically, the runes on the small metal plates inside his shoes. His feet stopped, as if landing on solid ground. Lee stood in midair... for all of a single second. Then he tried to take a step and flipped upside down. Again. "Damn it!" "I don''t get what the big deal is," Mar said invisibly from beside him. She hopped closer and pulled him back upright, before jogging across the open air... "How are you so good at this?" Lee yelled while flailing his arms to stay upright. "It''s literally walking! How are you so bad at walking?" It wasn''t just walking. Lee triggered the rune under his right foot, and it abruptly stopped sticking to thin air. He stepped forward and triggered it again to hold his weight, then unstuck his left foot and repeated the process. It was a slow and clumsy process, and he flipped over more than once. The worst part was when his shoe fell off and he landed in the courtyard while the shoe continued to hover overhead. That got a lot of laughs from their audience... Kids could be so mean. Mar''s invisibility broke every time she took a step, which only made her look cooler as she ran through the air in strobing flickers. Totally unfair. At least Lee wasn''t the only one having trouble... "I''m going to stick with my armored boots," Alejandro said while swapping his shoes back out. It was a valid excuse. Since Lee couldn''t make these runes work with the armor he''d made for Alejandro. Not without some serious modification that he didn''t think he could pull off... not yet. Besides, Alejandro already had a movement ability... So did Maria. Which didn''t stop her from also making Lee look bad as she strolled through the air. "I like." "I want to try again!" Gabriel squealed, along with a chorus of other young voices. Lee had let the kids try, but to a one, they''d failed to use their mana. The suspected reason being that none of them had any skills, so they had no idea what it should even feel like. It had taken some trial and error for the adults to channel their mana without an actual skill, and then to target it directly into the runes. Lee couldn''t help either, since he didn''t dare try the same tactic. He''d done that before, and it was called Liquid Mana Blast... His Mana Mind worked as an alternative method, and now he just had to get the timing down. The rune he''d created was probably not the ideal way to do this, but it was the best he could do for now. Rather than his original magnet idea, which only worked inside Three with its extremely mana-dense structure, this one worked by grabbing a large swath of... stuff. Technically, that made the rune extremely heavy, but in all directions. It resisted motion and allowed them to step off the air. You just had to get the timing right... and you got a double jump ability. More than double. Especially inside Three. The runes drained fast, like all of them did if he pushed an effect outside the physical material, and Lee could only cram so much power into the small plates. Fortunately, Three had figured out how to recharge runes. Or Lee had figured out how to make Three do it. He wasn''t sure how that worked... but it worked, and that was what mattered. The best part was that Lee didn''t have to worry about recharging any of his runes anymore, everyone could just walk through the building after every hunt. It also meant he could experiment freely with new runes like he was currently doing. As long as Mar didn''t jump too high, her runes would recharge even in the open air of the courtyard. Though the recharge rate was slower the further she got from the actual physical building. Lee jumped straight up into the air, after tying his shoe extra tight, and activated both runes. There was the slightest of give, noticeable only if he stood still, and he ever so slowly sank toward the ground. It was very cool to stand in midair... Then play time was over, and Lee went back to work. He let Mar and Maria keep the runes. They could show it off around the fort and see if anyone else wanted to try it. Lee had spread word about skeletal enchanting and gotten a few interested parties. The interest died once they realized it would involve someone slicing them open repeatedly... It turned out the armor was good enough. Lee was still trying to tweak the kinetic absorption rune. It worked great when something hit the armor, but it also absorbed energy when the person inside was moving... The effect was far less on weaker impacts, like walking, but E-grade humans could really jump. Alejandro was the only one who could use the full armor enchant, and only because of his movement ability, which let him move quickly without generating kinetic energy. Aside from that, the armor made him a literal juggernaut. Just a slow one. Other people were making do with only the kinetic absorbing shields rather than full armor. The elf invasion should have been a massive boon of new skills, and it was... just nothing very good. They all dropped skill shards when they died, but it was a lot of common sword and shield skills. Most of the other magic skills ended up being more utility, including a few Lee had only heard about well after the fact. Myriad Tongues (Common) Translates all outgoing or incoming forms of verbal communication for the user. It turned out it wasn''t a popular choice. No one wanted to waste their limited non-class skills on something like that. Lee could relate, and his own capped skills were the main driving force for reaching E-grade sooner rather than later. He just didn''t like the idea of taking so many cores for himself... dozens of people could get to E-grade with the cores he alone would require. Bradley entered his Mana Mind, coming Lee''s way. Maybe he''d finished with the... Lee saw one of his runes twitch. Then flex. Shi... ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley flinched right along with everyone else when the explosion shook the building. Then he continued to the elevator room, where Lee had holed up. It was not a pretty sight inside the small room... but one of the anubi sprinted past him with a healing potion a moment later. Bradley had to turn away before he got sick. Behind him, he heard Lee''s slurred voice coming through what was left of his face... "Shun''t wasst thoss. I ''ould ''eal." "Please drink, my lord!" Bradley glanced back in and gagged at the sight of Lee''s cheek growing back over his teeth. "Son of a bitch!" Lee yelled, followed by the anubi fleeing. "That should have fucking worked!" "I..." Bradley swallowed back his nausea. "I finished all the buildings. They''re ready for you. I''m going out with... Saira and Alejandro. They found another E-grade lair." If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. "That''s... thanks. Maybe I''ll go do that now..." "Why don''t you come with us?" Alejandro said, stepping past Bradley into the doorway, seemingly unbothered by the pieces of Lee now sprinkled over the walls. "Tina can swing through here with her cleaning spell while we''re gone... again." So maybe not that unbothered. Lee shook his head. "I told you it''s a waste..." "You''ve been in here for days," Alejandro said, pulling Lee to his feet. "A change of scenery might help clear your head." "I need to enchant the rest of the buildings." "Then let''s do that on the way out." "What if we get an invasion here while we''re gone?" "It will be weaker if we are not here..." Alejandro was obviously going to win the argument, so Bradley left him to it and went back outside. It would be a bit until they left now, and he wasn''t sure if he was happy or not about the delay. Getting to E-grade was something he wanted more than ever after seeing the way Alejandro could move now. But it meant fighting E-grades... He could probably beg off the fighting and ask for the cores instead. Alejandro or Wilson would give them to him... but that just felt... wrong. He wasn''t a coward anymore. He was strong. He wouldn''t let other people fight his battles. He couldn''t let them. Outside, he found the others on his team for today waiting. Bradley told them what Alejandro was doing and about the expected delay, but only with half his attention. The rest of his mind was focused on the ground beneath his bare feet. He felt out the ground beneath everyone else''s feet. Counting. There were two extra feet touching the ground that didn''t match up with any visible person. She''s here! "Bradley," Lee said, coming out of the building behind him. "What happened to your boots?" "I..." Bradley ducked his head. "I can sense the earth a lot better without them..." He didn''t look toward Mar. She''d started hanging out invisibly nearby him after they''d both almost died, and he''d been too scared about what to say. But then she had said nothing, either. It only got more awkward when they both continued to say nothing... until he realized she didn''t know he knew she was there¡ªa fact he discovered after finally working up the courage to say something. "H... how did you know I was here?" she''d stammered. "I felt your footsteps on... the... ground." Her face had been an alarming shade of red when she appeared to scream, "Why didn''t you say anything!?" Then she''d vanished and sprinted away. She never came back after that day, and he''d realized she''d been spying on him. He was upset¡ªnot about the spying, but that he had said nothing for so long. He''d enjoyed having her company, even if she was invisible and silent. Now she hated him. Or did she? She''d joined this trip. She must have known he''d be here... Saira was smiling when Bradley met her gaze, and he felt his face warm. It was a knowing smile... What does she know? Bradley followed the group with barely a glance or thought spared for the wide, open sky above. Ever since the acid, he''d been equal parts terrified and hopeful about the future. Only this time, his fear had nothing to do with monsters trying to eat him. Mar hated him. Saira didn''t seem mad at him... if anything, she was way too friendly now, and it made him uncomfortable. Hell, it was terrifying. That, plus the thought of working up enough courage to talk to Mar, left him feeling sick to his stomach... but he still wanted to... Bradley tried to maneuver himself closer to Mar as they walked back and forth across the fort. Lee would enchant a building, then walk back to Three to recharge, then do it all again for the next one. Mar moved away every time Bradley got close... She definitely hates me. Greenfield Fort has gained effect: [Enchanted Defense] "Hell yeah. I''m awesome!" Lee shouted, thrusting both hands into the air. Bradley barely noticed as he pulled up the effect, his thoughts busy on... other issues. [Enchanted Defense] +25% Effective Attributes +1% Resistance to all damage He didn''t even know the anubi were along for the hunt until they were jumping off the walls, and he stared at them for too long. Why were they here? "They wished to hunt for herbs and... other ingredients." Bradley flinched at Saira''s voice suddenly beside him. "They..." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "Can they fight?" They were so small... She shrugged. "We will not slow you down, my lord," one anubi barked. Only at Lee. "We have prepared for this day and will guard you with our lives!" Lee winced. "Don''t you dare! I''m practically immortal, and I''ll be pissed as fuck if you die for no reason! I only brought you along for gathering..." "Yes, my lord!" the anubi exclaimed and bowed again. Bradley was glad to see Lee as uncomfortable as he felt. The whole lord thing was just weird... and it scared the shit out of him. He''d heard the anubi''s story and come to the only obvious conclusion available. It was only a matter of time until that same thing played out here on earth? If someone powerful showed up and demanded an oath from them... If they said swear or die... Lee could already do that if he wanted to... he probably wouldn''t. But he could, and he didn''t even need to threaten people. He could just demand an oath to use his magic building... but he probably wouldn''t. Would he? It was terrifying. If someone tried to enslave Mar... I won''t let it happen. I will be strong enough to protect her! To that end, Bradley practiced his magic constantly while they walked. Not enough to leave him low on mana, but he also couldn''t afford to sit on a full mana pool. This was life and death. He wouldn''t let anything happen to Mar or Saira. Always protect the healer! Alejandro''s mantra was all well and good, but Bradley would protect them even without it. He was strong. He would be strong enough for whatever came his way! The lair wasn''t what he expected. Instead of a building or hole in the ground, it was a gap in a hedge¡ªa big hedge. You have entered a Lair: [Stakshiak Meadow] Through the hedge, or trees¡ªit was hard to tell what the plants were other than thick¡ªit was a meadow. A serene and quite beautiful one, with a pretty little grove of colorful plants smack in the center. A herd of deer or antelope was roaming on the far side. Presumably, those were the stakshiaks? They didn''t look very threatening... but this place was supposed to be E-grade. Bradley pushed his mana into the ground and pulled up some dirt to enclose his legs and arms. Once he had enough, he compacted it into little more than bracelets around each limb. Combined with his stone staff... it should be enough. Alejandro got everyone into formation around Saira, taking the vanguard position for himself. "We don''t know what all they can do yet, so do nothing until I say so." "How do we know they''re E-grade?" Bradley asked. The deer had clearly noticed them, but they looked... afraid? "Angelo came through with his team earlier," Alejandro said, tilting his head toward the man carrying a huge axe. "They caught one of them alone right past the entrance." The man nodded. "Took it down in one hit, but didn''t want to chance the rest once we saw the core." Bradley nodded, topping off his mana from the staff and eyeing the little grove suspiciously. The anubi stared that way as well; only they looked excited at whatever they saw. "Good herbs! Mistress Druid, do you sense them?" Saira had her hand stretched out as they moved slowly across the grassy field, and she nodded. "There is something strong..." None of the deer were coming their way yet. They were instead crowding against the tree line, as far away as they could get... "Something''s not right," Bradley said, despite the way it made him sound. It wasn''t always cowardice to be worried. Sometimes fear is the appropriate response. Alejandro stopped advancing. "They look almost... scared." Bradley felt something then. Something... familiar. It took him a long moment to realize what it felt like... It felt like his magic... coming from... "Underground!" Lee yelled. Bradley dumped mana into the earth beneath their feet, solidifying and pulling them away... and he felt it coming. Fast. Mar! 79. Look But Dont Touch ~~~Lee~~~ Lee felt a little better about things when he saw the massive forms shooting upward through the ground beneath them. It made things make sense again. This whole lair was weird and far too peaceful. Now he knew why, and everything made sense. "Underground!" He screamed his warning even as Bradley dumped mana into the ground under their feet. Lee was ready for it when the dirt beneath the grass turned to stone, and he slammed his hand into it the instant it solidified. A charged rune left his storage and turned the slab into something unbreakable. Unfortunately, unbreakable didn''t mean immovable. Lee was on the edge of the formation, and the first attack came straight for him. As usual. The monster slammed into the underside of an indestructible stone slab and very nearly flipped the entire thing on end. It had the result of launching Lee straight up into the air, along with Mar and the two anubi who''d insisted on standing next to him. Saira and Angelo, at the center, moved the least, while Alejandro, Bradley, and Jason plummeted down toward the next incoming monster. Mana surged from Bradley, and the slab twisted back under their feet an instant before the next monster reached them. It tilted wildly, but Bradley kept them upright, and they only slid sideways. Lee tumbled through the air, Mana Mind showing him everything, and waited for his feet to line up beneath him. Then he activated the runes in his shoes and stood up in thin air. He caught an anubi in each hand and could feel the runes draining at a breakneck pace as he threw them toward Bradley. "Catch!" Then he tried to jump after them. He was pumping mana into the runes as fast as he could channel it from his feet, but it wasn''t enough, and they crumbled away right as he jumped. Lee tumbled towards the ground even while more monsters burst from the dirt like it was the ocean, and they were hungry sharks seeking to snatch him from the air. Shit... Mar became visible when she crashed into him; her hands latched onto his arms. They spun once in the air, and then her feet planted against his chest, and she kicked out. Hard. Lee fell towards the group, and Mar fell in the opposite direction, down towards the horde of monsters, flickering out of sight. "Mar!" Bradley screamed. She flipped over in the air, and Lee saw Mana burst from her feet as she activated her own shoes. Then he watched the runes fade as the charge ran out. No... "Mar!" more voices screamed as someone caught Lee and put him on his feet. Grunts, yells, snarls, and the clang of metal echoed around him, but Lee remained focused on Mar. She was still within his range, and he saw her somehow twist in the air and land blades first on the back of one of the smaller scaly creatures. Mana Mind abruptly saw inside the monster and saw the core forming in the creature. She killed it! Then she jumped from its back and landed on another one closer to Lee and the rest of the group. This time she landed feet first, and the thing twisted, throwing her off and onto the ground. Mar tucked into a roll, but as soon as she touched the ground, every single monster nearby turned to her and charged, even though she was still invisible. She only rolled once before getting her feet under her and bounding into the air again. The monsters immediately turned back towards the rest of the group. They can''t see her, so long as she doesn''t touch the ground. "Mar!" Multiple voices screamed her name, but Saira''s voice stood out as the loudest. "She''s okay!" Lee yelled, watching as she landed on another monster. She had learned from the previous mistake and landed blades first again. This one didn''t die instantly, but she stayed atop it as it squirmed and then died. Lee''s hands clenched tight around the plate that formed in his hands, desperately trying to think of a way to help the girl. Meanwhile, the monsters swarmed Bradley''s little platform from all sides. The good news was that they couldn''t break through from below, but that didn''t stop them from trying. It turned what should have been a slaughter into a stumbling mess of chaos as everyone tried to fight on top of the bouncing platform. Bradley''s mana surged past Lee, and a wall of earth rose in front of the charging monsters. They went through it like it wasn''t there. "I can''t block them with earth!" Bradley yelled. Mar was forced to jump away when another of the creatures tried to crawl over the corpse she was perched on. "Back in formation!" Alejandro yelled. "Let them climb on, Bradley. They''re not very strong!" "Where is Mar!?" Saira yelled. "She is still out there," Lee said. "They can''t see her!" He watched Mar kill another one closer to the group, and, almost immediately, she had to jump away. The closer she came to them, the more thick and frenzied the horde became. Lee pointed towards her. "That way!" Swords and a giant axe flashed all around him as the group fought in a circle, with Saira in the middle. The anubi stubbornly stood at Lee''s side. Meanwhile, Bradley outfought everyone, spending mana in huge bursts as he forced the platform through the monsters and toward Mar''s position. His staff moved almost too fast to follow, while his body seemed to lurch around in sudden bursts of movement. Whatever he was doing, it worked. Brown scales shattered under his blows, and his staff blasted through the flesh beneath. He was cutting them to pieces, and he didn''t even have a sharp weapon. The monsters died even easier to the swords, many with only one blow, but more filled the gaps a heartbeat later. Lee''s Mana Mind saw only more in every direction. "Let''s move towards the exit!" Alejandro called. He bashed a monster and then decapitated it before pushing it aside. Another monster took its place, and Alejandro killed that one too, but he couldn''t push it out of the way before another crawled over it and leapt at him. "There are too many of them!" someone else yelled. "Just hold the..." "Below us!" Lee yelled as more of the creatures came surging up through the ground. "I see it!" Bradley dumped Mana into the ground, and the slab only rocked under the blow. Lee split a monster''s head in half while blocking a second with his shield. Trak met the third with his runed knife stabbing into the thing''s head. "My lord, you are bleeding!" "Save the potions for the others!" Lee ordered. He didn''t know how much Saira could do since the formerly green field was nothing but churned and bloody dirt now. "Where''s Mar?" Bradley called, his weapon never slowing as he single-handedly carved a swath through the horde. "She''s okay." Lee dropped a bomb rune onto the plate and threw it in the opposite direction of the aforementioned girl. Unfortunately, these monsters weren''t like the flies. They weren''t after the mana. They were also a lot tougher. The explosion only killed one and wounded a few around it. Better than nothing. "This is fine!" Alejandro said. "We can hold for now. Just conserve your mana." They did. People panted for breath and grunted with exertion but kept killing the endless horde. Saira used her mana sparingly, alternately growing the vines wrapped around her, then draining them to heal. Mostly, she was anxiously staring out at the horde and looking for Mar. Monsters kept trying to come through underneath them, but the ''floor'' prevented them from doing so. Unfortunately, their attempts had another effect. "Bradley!" Lee called. "The¡­" "I see it!" Bradley called back. "Everyone brace! I''m moving the ground again!" The floor shifted and slid under their feet as Bradley moved them away from the increasingly hollow underground space that they were about to sink into. "Where is Mar?" Saira sounded frantic. Lee was still watching her jump around, avoiding the ground, as she killed one after another of the monsters. "She is still..." Something new entered his perception. It arrived before he could even call out a warning. A monster at least three times bigger than the rest burst from the ground and launched through the air straight for them. Alejandro saw it coming. A glowing yellow light surged through his shield as he met the charge and stopped it cold. The floor shook underneath them and tilted slightly as the monster crashed into Alejandro''s immovable shield. Then he swung his blade down and parted the thing''s skull before it could recover from the charge. Then another of the giant monsters charged into Lee''s perception, repeating the previous tactic of jumping into the air to get above Bradley''s slab. "I can''t stop that one yet!" Alejandro yelled. Bradley screamed as the ground they stood on slid aside, mostly out of the monster''s path. The man with the huge, two-handed axe met the monster as it passed. His blade bit deep, carving a bloody trench through its side as it went by. The creature screeched as blood and viscera sprayed over the man and everyone near him. Lee ignored the gore as he watched the runes in the large axe dim noticeably after the blow. It didn''t do that before¡­ Are these monsters too strong? The dying monster rolled over and smashed a few of its smaller allies. Which was nice. Especially when Mar took advantage of the huge corpse and finally leapt back into the group. Her invisibility vanished on the way down, and Lee could see blood all over her, then Saira grasped onto her and wrapped her in a hug. Mar held the hug briefly before pulling away and joining the fighters defending their small patch of runed earth. "I''m fine, Mom!" Lee pumped more mana into the slab after another impact dimmed them. He watched the runes dim as more monsters died around him. Finally, he had to act. "Alejandro! I need to recharge your sword!" He waited until Alejandro killed one and before the next could take its place. Alejandro swung his sword hand back, and Lee touched it, channeling mana into the sword. The runes flared back to full brightness, and Lee repeated the process with each of the fighters. More of the big ones appeared, and Alejandro stopped one while the others fought against another. Bradley moved the ground to avoid the third, and they killed the giants one by one. Each blow or block against the larger monsters steadily drained the runes in their gear. The smaller ones took some energy as well, but it was negligible in comparison. Bradley kept sliding the platform towards the entrance, but it felt like the monsters were actively trying to block the path and keep them from escaping. Everyone around him was breathing hard as they fought, except Alejandro, with his E-grade strength. Lee could see the mana in the air, now thicker than inside Three, what with all the dying monsters dumping mana into the environment. He used the excess to supplement his own dwindling supply. There was a lot more earth mana in here than anything else, and Lee could see Bradley drawing in even more mana than he was, all of it flowing through his feet. "Can you get us out of here?" Lee yelled over the noise. "I''m trying!" Bradley said. "Something is fighting me!" Lee pulled in more of the ambient mana as Bradley moved them towards the exit again, and he saw it. Mana surged ahead of them, and the ground flowed like water to drag the whole platform off to the side and back towards the center. Shit. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. "Can you put up walls?" Alejandro asked. Bradley was still moving the platform as the ground kept trying to erode beneath them. "More weight, and I might not be able to move it fast enough!" Then we get dragged under, Lee thought. What can I do about monsters hiding underground? Mana Blast might do some damage, but they were swimming deep, deeper than his Mana Mind could reach. He created another plate and wasted a few attempts on tweaking a rune he hadn''t used before. Then Lee tossed it out and into a hole that they had just moved off of. Then he did it again and again, over and over. Until his mana ran too low. Lee kept pulling in all the mana he could, but even with all of it in the air, it just wasn''t much when it condensed into liquid mana in his core. It was barely enough to keep their platform rune from failing... The screaming noises of the monsters shifted tone while he was hacking at them. Lee smiled. Ominous red glows were shining up wherever he had dropped the discs. "What did you do?" Bradley said. "Liquid hot magma!" Lee shouted gleefully. A deafening screech drowned out his shout as a truly massive monster surged out of the ground between them and the exit. Oh, shit. The monster, which looked like all the rest only bigger, was a cross between an armadillo and a naked mole rat, with none of the cuteness of either, and towered over twenty feet into the air above them. It charged with blinding speed across the ground. Lee thought he could see a few burnt patches on the queen''s hide. It had to be a queen at that size, or maybe a queen''s guard? The behemoth struck like a meteor, and Alejandro stopped its charge cold. The runes of his shield and armor blinked out instantly at the impact, but he stopped it. Then it attacked again, and Alejandro used his own shield skill to block its teeth and claws while Bradley kept the platform sliding away to avoid it trampling over them. Lee watched the fight and considered if this was the moment to test his Mana Blast on an E-grade. Mar appeared with her long knives already sunk into the boss''s eye, then kicked off its face and vanished before it could do more than scream at her. Alejandro took advantage of the monster''s distraction and took off most of one clawed foot. Lee felt heat behind them, and then they were sliding over the glowing red earth. The enraged monster didn''t realize the danger until it charged into it. Before it could retreat, the others attacked. The burning ground had driven away the smaller enemies, and now everyone could focus on the boss, who had chased them a bit too far. Bradley circled them around the boss, keeping it from backing up while blades carved bloody lines and pieces out of it. It was gruesome and slow as the weapon runes steadily lost power from cutting through the beast''s thick armored hide. Alejandro''s shielding skill finally failed under the assault, and the metal crumpled in the jaws of the monster. That kinetic rune on his armor might have cost more than it was worth... Then it started dragging Alejandro away by the shield crumpled around his arm. Bradley had to stop the retreat and push forward to save him. Lee rushed forward, hand outstretched, ready to unleash what little mana he had. He just needed to get past Alejandro... Trak got there first. The idiot literally dove into the monster''s eye, a small, runed knife held out before him. The anubi vanished in a burst of eye juice, and then the monster thrashed wildly, dragging Alejandro into the air. Bradley fell to his hands and knees as the ground lurched after the monster, desperately trying to keep up with Alejandro and keep him from falling into the now cooling but still hot ground. He made it underneath right as the monster finally stopped moving, hung poised in the air, then toppled down to land with a crash. The queen has surrendered. Lair defeated. Just like that, it was over. The few remaining monsters all retreated underground, at least where the ground wasn''t melting, and a small form crawled out of the boss''s ruined eye. Trak raised a bloody knife high and howled. The other anubi howled along with him. Lee sighed along with the other humans. They had lost a few blades, along with Alejandro''s shield, when the runes depleted. Bradley still had his staff, still covered in runes, though the battery was mostly empty. It was recharging slowly, but Bradley drained it all immediately while moving their patch of ground towards the exit. Everyone clambered off of the now alarmingly warm patch of runed and bloody earth when they reached the trees, but Alejandro stopped them before they left the Lair. "Let''s take a rest before we go out there. Just in case." "Are all E-grades like this?" Angelo asked while collapsing into the grass. "The deer didn''t even attack us!" "I think they weren''t the real lair monsters," Bradley said. "I should have detected them!" He stood barefoot in the grass with his eyes closed and breathed heavily while leaning on his staff. "I should have seen it sooner!" "It''s not your fault," Alejandro said tiredly. The gore drenched Trak stepped in front of Lee and held up a glowing core. "Your spoils, my lord!" Lee took it. Skill Shard [E-grade] Dirty Movement (Rare) The earth is mine to tread. User may expend mana to increase movement speed while in direct contact with earth or soil. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Intelligence +1% Movement Speed Requires: Mana Core/Channels[N/A][Adaptable] Earth Affinity [N/A][Adaptable] Race(Stakshiak) [N/A][Adaptable] "I think you''re right about the monsters," Lee said, and then tossed the core to Bradley. "Cool," Bradley muttered. Trak barked at the other anubi, and it immediately dropped to all fours and sprinted back deeper into the Lair. "What are..." Alejandro asked. "We will harvest the spoils, my lord," Trak said to Lee, then bowed to Alejandro. "By your leave." "Is it safe?" Alejandro asked. "We know there are still some in there." "Do not worry," Trak said. "We have all spent time in lairs before for this very task. I will assist to hasten the process." He, too, dropped to all fours and ran after the other one. "They might steal some cores," Angelo said softly once they''d moved off. "Hah." Alejandro chuckled. "I think Trak might have earned it for that ridiculous stunt he pulled." Lee didn''t bother to tell the man it was impossible for them to steal from him, mostly because he saw Alejandro pull a burrito from his pack. The smell confirmed it. "You got breakfast burritos too?" "Of course," Alejandro grinned. "You were coming with me." Then he handed it to Lee. It was only a little smashed, and Lee didn''t care as he practically inhaled it. Status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Conduit](F-Grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] Traits: [Adaptable](69%) [Source Nexus] [Conduit] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Runic Augmentation] [Source Burned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 34 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 23 Attributes: Strength: 87(+161%)227 Vitality: 91(+162%)238 Dexterity: 88(+160%)228 Wisdom: 90(+856%)860 Intelligence: 95(+856%)908 Willpower: 89(+856%)850 Twin-Soul ???(+???%)??? Non-Class Skills(3/3): Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) - Level 9 (Novice) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 23 (Basic) Buffs: Debuffs: [Frail] [Feeble] [Hungry] It took him a minute of looking at his status before he noticed what was bugging him. No Three. "So who gets this?" Bradley held up the core that was once again in his hands. "I figured you would... if you wanted it." Lee glanced around. No one objected. "Think it will be useful?" "Yes... but I think it could be useful for anyone." "You''re the one most likely to be ''on or in'' dirt." Alejandro said. "What about the stats?" Bradley asked. "It gives a lot." "We''re going to find lots of E-grade cores," Alejandro said. "That skill looks useful, so I say take it." Lee nodded his agreement with his mouth full, and the core dissolved into Bradley''s hand. They all watched as he walked around following the skill absorption, but the effect wasn''t readily apparent. Bradley''s smile was a good sign, though. Debuff Removed: [Hungry] Lee ate the last bite of his burrito with regret that it was over. The others finished eating, and Alejandro woke up Jason, who was sleeping in the grass... The Anubi came back, giant packs towering over their small forms and a pouch full of glittering cores. "So who wants to hit E-grade?" Lee asked when the pouch landed in his hand. "Bradley, I''d say you and Saira are the priority right now." Bradley froze, eyes wide. "Are... are you sure? Don''t you want... to..." Lee shook his head. "I was practically useless in here. I should have just stayed in my..." "Woah, woah!" Alejandro held up his hands. "Are you kidding!?" Bradley nodded enthusiastically. "They would have eaten us right off if you hadn''t enchanted my platform!" He had a point, but... "I bet I could make something for you to stick in the ground and do the same thing. I should really have made that already... Remind me when we get back." "I assume no one will object to our wonderful healer and gardener being on the short list?" Alejandro asked, and no one objected. "Good. Take what cores you need, Saira, and we can discuss the rest on our way home." A few monsters attacked them on the way, but nothing could stand against them for more than a second, even with fewer weapons. Soon enough, they walked back through the walls. Buff Gained: [Greenfield Fort] Lee looked up at Three fondly. It was good to be back. "Good luck on your evolutions," Alejandro said. "I need to make my rounds, but I look forward to seeing what you get." "Whatever," Mar said, leaving. "I need a shower." She''d turned out to be rather lacking in attributes... Not only was she not hunting much, but she still wasn''t going to Martin''s training. Bradley looked nervous, his eyes darting Mar''s way repeatedly, but he still smiled. "I hope it''s good." He headed away, and Lee saw Mar change direction to intercept him right as they left his Mana Mind... They''d been hanging out a lot lately. Heh. Sneaky romance is always better. Or maybe it wasn''t so sneaky.... A pulse of mana flashed from Saira, and Lee saw her smile slightly after the departing duo before she sighed. "I will be in the garden after the evolution, if you need me." "Thank you, Saira." Alejandro looked like he wanted to throw an arm around her, but he stopped himself and held out his hand instead. "You are a lifesaver. As always." Lee started for Three and his own workshop. "Good luck." Maybe a nap wouldn''t hurt before he got back to work? "You two take the rest of the day off," Alejandro said to Angelo and Jason, then fell in beside Lee a few moments later. "So how was it? Feel more refreshed?" Lee muttered some disparaging remarks under his breath and then sighed. "I''m glad I went, but we really need more E-grades. That was a mess." Alejandro patted him on the shoulder. "We will, Lee. We will." "I can wait until we have a glut of cores," Lee said. "I just have to..." He stopped. Why was Mar back and following him? That is not Mar! "Inside!" Lee took off running for the door, Alejandro only a heartbeat behind. They wouldn''t make it before the two invisible monsters caught up... Ten foot tall monsters with too many limbs and a shell around them very much like Mar''s. Lee considered summoning a plate to dump mana, but there wasn''t time. Because two turned into four, then ten. All of them were charging straight for him in giant ground eating strides. It sure was great to have a legendary class... The door inside loomed before him, and he knew he couldn¡¯t pull it open fast enough... So he lashed out at the nearest ones, using Mana Mind to break their invisibility. Simultaneously, he slid to a stop as he spun to face the threat, meeting Alejandro''s gaze briefly and seeing the man''s eyes go wide as he also saw what was attacking them. You have discovered a Hidden Invasion! Contributions Earned. Defeat the Invaders to Receive your Rewards. The notification appeared the moment he laid eyes on the monsters... and Lee unleashed a Mana Blast directly into one of too many arms reaching for him. Mana blasted out of his hand in a wave of searing pain and illuminated a nightmarish looking thing for an instant. Then blinding blue light swallowed it up. Debuff Gained: [Mana Burn] Lee was already turning, despite the burn, dragging his hand sideways, hoping to remove more of the monsters before his blast ended. He was off balance from the running sprint and reached his free hand out to catch himself on the side of Three. It was a mistake to touch the building. A big mistake. Debuff¡­ Three had refilled his mana many times before, and Lee had never realized how much the building was holding back when it moved mana from the Well. Three didn''t hold back this time. Mana raged out of his hand with all the unleashed power of his Liquid Mana Blast, and Three refilled it just as fast from the other hand. Lee didn''t get to see what happened next. Not with his eyes. Even his Mana Mind went blind. There was nothing but a mind-searing, eye-searing beam of power burning through his body and extending out the other side. Debuff¡­ Debuff¡­ Lee couldn''t think, couldn''t scream, couldn''t do anything. He barely noticed when, a split second later, Three cut his mana supply. He came back to himself just enough to wish he would black out or die. He didn''t. Lee was aware of nothing but pain until his ears suddenly popped and he could hear unintelligible noises all around. He thought he should be screaming, but then realized he wasn''t breathing. His body wouldn''t obey him enough to draw in a breath. He couldn''t see. Everything was too bright! Something foul trickled between his clenched teeth, and Lee couldn''t even struggle. Then something grabbed onto his mind and dragged him down into blessed darkness and silence. 80. Emergency Issue ~~~Alejandro~~~ "I just have to..." Lee said, then trailed off as his eyes glazed over. It was a look that Alejandro was growing accustomed to, as it happened whenever his new brother started focusing on mana instead of using his eyes. Alejandro was still watching a moment later when Lee''s face tensed up and his eyes widened. "Inside!" Lee took off running, and Alejandro followed close behind, pulling his sword and regretting that he hadn''t taken one of the other shields since his own was a twisted lump of metal. He didn''t see whatever had spooked Lee, but he trusted that something serious was happening. Then Lee slid to a stop while spinning around. Alejandro spun and saw a horrifying... his head shot through with a dull pain, and... there was nothing. My allies are overreacting. They must be tired. A thunderclap of noise and light slammed into him, and Alejandro blinked at the sudden change in his surroundings. -1 All Base Attributes Debuff Removed: [Dream Drain] You have discovered a Hidden Invasion. Contributions Earned. Defeat the Invaders to Receive your Rewards. "Ahhh!" Something fell away from his face, and Alejandro looked up at the towering nightmare looming above him. A four fingered¡­ hand, or claw, with what looked like a mouth in the palm, reached for his face again. Hundreds of tiny, squirming tentacles surrounded the maw, tentacles that ended in barbed hooks, hooks that glistened with small drops of blood. His blood! Shield Slam Alejandro activated one of his skills with a thought, and his crumpled mess of a shield lit up even as he drove it against the reaching horror coming at his face. His sword swung out, reaching for another nightmare hand that came behind the first. "Lee!" Before he could intercept the attack or risk a glance at Lee, something slammed into the side of his head. Alejandro stumbled and looked around. He was sitting up in his bed. What a strange nightmare. He must be exhausted to have such a strange dream... but it was already fading. I am safe here. I should sleep while I can. But that dream¡­ It was only a nightmare. Everything is fine here. He looked around the room again. The only window was small, and it was dark outside. Nothing can get in. The door was secure. Everything was as it should be. No... Something was missing... I am just tired. I should sleep now; I''ll feel better in the morning. Something was missing! Something important! I am just... No! Two small faces flashed into his mind. Who are... I am tired. WHO!? His head was pounding. A deep throbbing pain. Where are they? The room was getting darker. He was so tired. "NO!" -1 All Base Attributes Debuff Partially Resisted: [Dream Drain] Light burst around him, and Alejandro looked up once again at the looming monster. Small dog-like creatures were climbing over it, stabbing and biting at anything they could reach. "Trak!" He saw the anubi drive a dagger into the monster''s... Pain throbbed through his head, and Alejandro looked down at the soft and inviting bed. He should sleep; his head would... No! I will not forget! The two small faces burned brighter than ever inside his mind, a woman''s face hovering behind them. I Will Not! Instincts that he couldn''t remember activated... Unyielding Guardian Debuff Removed: [Dream Drain] Alejandro screamed as something ripped away from his face, and the sounds of howling crashed into his ears. He tried to swing his blade at the monster, but couldn''t move. A glance revealed another of the ''hands'', holding his arm at the wrist in an iron grip. His hand holding the sword looked and felt terrible. Shriveled and almost mummified. Last Stand Energy burst through him, spreading out from his core and revitalizing his hand. On a timer now. Another of the monster''s hands held onto his shield in a similarly unshakeable grip, while another was still trying to get past his skill and grab onto his head. How many hands does it have? Shield Slam Power surged through his arm and into the shield, breaking the hold and driving it forward into the creature. The monster''s body barely moved under his blow, and instead, it forced Alejandro back a step. Unfortunately, it wasn''t enough to break his sword arm free, and he staggered as the grip on his arm dragged him to a stop. But as he fell back and away, Alejandro finally got a look at what was happening and what exactly he was fighting. The monster stood over ten feet tall. Two thin legs and six equally thin and much longer arms that ended in the same tentacle mouth hands. It was almost humanoid in its shape, and atop the torso was an oblong head that had no facial features other than two large black eyes on the gray skin. "Dios mio!" As it turned slightly with the force of his shield slam, Alejandro saw Trak was still attacking it, now clinging to its back and driving a small knife repeatedly into it while howling. "Die! Die! Die!" Alejandro could barely hear the translation over the screaming noise, which sounded like it was going directly into his brain. Another of the anubi was stabbing its way up the creature''s legs. Shield Slam This time, he attacked the limb holding his sword-hand. He thought he heard a crack, and then his sword was free. Alejandro swung, and the monster lurched back a step to avoid the blade. He took the small moment of breathing room to risk a look around and saw two more of the Anubi dragging Lee towards the ramp leading down into the garage on his right. What happened to him? A huge, gaping hole ran through the perimeter wall behind the monster. A wide swath where it was just... gone. That noise! The torn edges of the gap were glowing, and molten stone ran in rivulets down towards the ground. Another anubi was on the ground to his left side; this one shriveled up like his hand had been. It wasn''t moving. The monster took advantage of his momentary distraction to bend two long arms behind its back in a disturbingly unnatural way and finally caught Trak in one hand, then snared the one on its leg with another. The second anubi snarled while biting and stabbing at the hand holding him, then shuddered and went limp. Trak sank his small knife deep into the hand holding him, and the limb snapped out, launching him away and into the wall behind Alejandro with a crunch and a yelp. "No!" Alejandro shouted and lunged with his blade, reaching out for its flesh. One alien arm swung down and batted his sword aside, but not without damage. It screamed again as blue blood sprayed from the stump. He wondered for a second how it could scream with no mouth, and then remembered the hands. The stump of an arm stopped bleeding far too quickly, right as Trak charged back in, now limping. Meanwhile, the anubi still clutched in the monster''s hand shriveled further. The drain... Alejandro realized too late that it was healing itself by sucking the life out of them. Trak howled and threw himself at the hand holding his pack mate, or maybe family member¡­ Alejandro charged in himself and was smacked back once again by two of its arms that landed on his shield and armor with punishing force. Two other hands latched onto Trak, one catching the small body and pinning the arms while the other closed over his head. Trak went limp, and Alejandro remembered that strange dream-like attack it had used on him. "No!" He took one step, and then something plummeted out of the sky above the monster. It must have seen or sensed something, because it lurched to one side as a flash of red light streaked past. One of the thin arms dropped free in a spray of blue blood from the stump, and his beautiful wife landed on her feet under the spray. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. The glowing red blade in her hand lashed out in a lightning quick slash, forcing the monster back another step. It screamed even as Maria ducked under another flailing arm and stood up with a limp anubi body in her free hand. Alejandro saw the light of her healing flash repeatedly over the small form in her hand, even as she spun around another blow and threw the anubi into the air, towards the garage. Alejandro was running towards her, trying to activate his skill as three more arms closed around his wife. Then she vanished in a blur, and Alejandro saw her appear next to the anubi that she had just thrown towards the building. She caught the dog-like body and set him down on top of Lee, who was being dragged down the ramp now. "Mi Amor!" She truly was amazing. Alejandro had a moment to see her touch Lee and her healing light pulse, and then his attention was forced back onto the monster in front of him. He blocked one hand with his shield and forced a second back with the threat of his runed blade separating the limb. The third caught him in the gut and lifted him from his feet, while the fourth just missed his head. The fifth arm was holding Trak by his head, and Alejandro saw the stump of its severed arm had stopped bleeding and even looked as if it were regrowing. I need to get Trak free! He had an idea and gave it a shot. Get Behind Me More power drained from his core, and Alejandro''s body moved in a blur into the space between the monster and Trak. His sword, held out in preparation for the move, sank deep into the monster''s torso, and Alejandro hauled it sideways with all his strength, dragging the weapon through its flesh before it could retreat. Blows rained down on his back and head as the screaming intensified, but if there was one thing Alejandro had only gotten better at, it was taking a hit. He endured and kept cutting even as the alien limbs wrapped tighter around him. Trak and his small family of Anubi had charged in to fight this monstrosity, to save him and Lee. One of them might have already died to save them... Alejandro would not let the monster have anymore. He roared his defiance and ripped the sword sideways in a spray of blue blood. Shield Slam Alejandro once again used the scraps of his shield to strike the monster in the arm that was holding Trak. Something crunched, and Trak fell to the ground, free of its hand and life drain. The monster didn''t like that, and giant hands grabbed and struck at him from all sides, trying to latch on and drain his life instead. Buff Gained. [Improved Regeneration]x3 The monster screamed as Maria returned and dropped a few of her heals on him. A red light flashed, and Alejandro felt the encircling arms spasm and let up slightly. Shield Slam The blow forced him and the monster apart, and he saw it was missing another arm, and Trak was gone. Alejandro started backing towards the garage. His Last Stand was fading, and he was feeling each hit drain more of his energy. His hand on the sword was also going numb as the monster took one large step, and four arms came at him from all sides. Then Maria was back, appearing next to him in a flash of red light as her knife removed a hand that was grasping for his face. Another scream echoed in his head, and Alejandro was forced to step back again, hiding behind his lump of a shield while his sword threatened to slip from his steadily weakening right arm. "?Entra en el edificio!" Maria yelled and hauled him back. Alejandro blocked two attacks, and Maria spun around him to remove the third incoming hand at the wrist. She visibly slowed after the flash of red light, and Alejandro yelled back over the screaming. "You get inside!" His wife could fight better than most, but he knew she was pushing hard and couldn''t keep up this pace. Maria glared at him as she jumped away from the monster, but continued backing away. Together they retreated, and Alejandro watched in sick horror as the monster plucked up one of its severed hands and stuck it back onto the stump. It held the hand in place for a second, then let go and lifted the apparently healed limb and the other two remaining hands towards them. "Not good!" It could still heal without an active drain! Even the hole he''d left in its guts was almost gone. A banana sailed over Alejandro''s head and smacked the thing in the face¡­ It splattered and splashed against the thing''s face as if it were rotten, and then it sizzled as smoke started drifting up from where it had landed. The screaming intensified, and one of the monster''s hands reached out to wipe away the banana that was melting its face, while the other two reached for Alejandro and Maria. It started running at them in huge ground eating strides. "Run!" Alejandro planted his feet and braced himself to meet the charge. It would not get... Something yanked on his armor and dragged him backwards in a dizzying whirl until he crashed to a stop on his back inside the garage. He scrambled to his feet as his mana refilled and saw the monster sprint into the building, slightly stooped to avoid hitting its head on the low ceiling at the entrance. It took a few more steps towards them before the building shuddered around them and an old fire sprinkler pipe on the ceiling suddenly sprang to life. The pipe lashed out and wrapped around the monster''s neck, dragging it to a halt. The monster reached for the pipe, and loud cracking sounds shook the air as rebar burst from the cement above and below it. The metal bars stabbed into and through the creature, pinning its feet to the floor and snaring all but one arm before sinking into the thing''s head. Somehow, the monster still didn''t die and kept grasping at the metal. Then the building ripped it into pieces... and it finally died. Right as three more of the nightmare creatures appeared from nowhere, sprinting toward Lee... More pipes and rebar lashed out before they got anywhere near him, stabbing, tearing, and trapping the monsters in place. Alejandro didn''t waste the opportunity and charged back in. He caught the one remaining free arm that reached for his head with his shield and, with a yell, cut it clean off. The runes on his sword dimmed as he chopped the monsters apart with the building''s help. One after another died until, with a final blow against another arm, the runes winked out and the blade sank only halfway through before catching on the bone. Assuming they had bones... May stepped up beside him with a shining steel blade and brought it down like an axe against one of the creature''s legs. The leg parted under the blow, and blue blood sprayed on the cement as the blacksmith methodically went to work. The sword rose and fell in hammer-like blows against the monster, and when she stopped, the thing was in a dozen pieces and no longer moving. A few heartbeats later, a glowing core fell into the pool of gore beneath the monster that was still dangling in fragments from the pipes and rebar. Alejandro grinned at May and turned to check on the others. He saw Maria leaning over Lee. Trak was awake and also there, holding up a small bottle to Lee''s lips. "This will make him sleep!" he barked. "I can''t heal the mana burn, but he must rest!" Maria nodded and stood up while the anubi poured the potion into Lee''s clenched teeth. Alejandro saw the old man''s wide eyes flutter and then close as his whole body visibly relaxed. "Is Ratch..." Trak was looking up at Maria when he started to ask something, but she shook her head. Trak nodded and looked down, a keening whine coming from him and the other anubi. They lost one of their family members. How long did they fight while I just stood there? He had been leery of the anubi, wondering about their loyalties and whether they were trustworthy. But now... Maria walked back up to him, and Alejandro noticed that one of her arms looked off. She was holding it tight to her body with the other hand. She dragged me inside with her skill. It¡¯s probably dislocated. Maria drove her shoulder into his chest and grimaced as her arm popped back into the socket. Alejandro put his arms around her and held her close. "Mi Amor..." Something flickered in his peripheral vision, and two more of the monsters appeared, charging down the ramp while a blood-curdling scream echoed from somewhere outside. Alejandro let Maria go and hefted his sword with a weary arm. It was unnecessary. The building once again snared the monsters, this time starting with the feet and toppling the charging creatures. As soon as it mostly pinned them down, May was there, chopping pieces of them off. Anubi descended on the other one a heartbeat later. A howling storm of knives, teeth, and claws. "There are more out there." Alejandro looked into his wife''s eyes and saw that she understood what he needed to do. "I have to go." "Eat this first." Dennis held out a banana for him. Alejandro was slightly dubious after seeing the face-melting banana from before, but he trusted the man and quickly chowed down. Buff Gained: [Second Wind Banana] Energy rushed into him with each bite, his fatigue fading noticeably. "Thank you!" The man was visibly glowing with lines of light beneath his skin as another banana formed in his hands. He looked a lot like Lee in that moment... May stepped up next to her husband and held out the shiny sword that she had been using. "Upgrade." Alejandro took it and gave the blade a few practice swings. It was a simple straight sword with no embellishments, and after seeing it in action, it was definitely an upgrade over the old ones. "Thanks, I..." He cocked his head and looked outside through the metal bars that lined the garage. "It''s too quiet out there... Is no one fighting?" "We didn''t see the message until we actually saw the monsters," May said, and Alejandro saw Maria nodding in agreement as she accepted the new banana from Dennis. Alejandro remembered something from when Lee promoted him to general; he''d had no need of it until now. Emergency Quest Issued by Alejandro Morales(General): [Defend the Fort] We are under attack! Invisible monsters are inside the walls! Barricade inside, if possible. Building 3 is a safe place to go if you are outside! Everyone flinched slightly when he issued the quest. You have successfully alerted the entire fort to a Hidden Invasion. Contributions Earned. "We go," Maria said, quickly finishing the banana as she headed for the ramp outside. "But..." Alejandro started, and she glanced back at him with a look that dared him to say something. "The children," he whispered. "Others guard upstairs," Maria said. "Martin with them." Alejandro struggled to think of a way to keep his wife safely inside, but with Martin standing guard... "I''m coming too." May had grabbed another of the new swords from somewhere, and she stopped to give Dennis a quick hug. The man was sweating and shaking, with faint lines of light still under his skin. "We need to spread out and watch each other," May said after the hug. "That thing had you helpless while it fought the others." Alejandro remembered the dream-like state. "Yes..." That was a good point. [Emergency Quest Update] Move in groups! Monsters can get in your head and kill you if you are alone! Alejandro glanced at Lee, lying on the floor. "We''ll take care of him," Dennis said. "I''m mostly useless without the mana in here, but I can look after him while you fight." "We will protect him with our lives if necessary!" Trak barked, and the other anubi brandished small knives in some kind of salute, all of them encircling the unconscious man. "Let''s get him upstairs and avoid that," Dennis said, and he started moving with a few others to carry the old man to the stairwell. Alejandro and the two women with him all moved up the ramp at a jog, weapons ready. 81. The Moment To Fight ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley felt beyond drained after another terrifying lair run... Maybe going with Lee was bad luck? He''d done other lairs, but every run with Lee had turned into a fresh nightmare. This one wasn''t that bad... No one had died or almost died. They''d won, and he even got a new skill out of it... so he shouldn''t complain. This was what he wanted. To get stronger. To not be afraid anymore. But it was so hard. Then he felt the footsteps coming his way across the ground and knew it was Mar following him again. Or at least, he was pretty sure those were her footsteps. He forgot about his fatigue as his heart rate sped up. Was she still mad? Or would she hang out with him again? He''d missed her presence... silent as it had been. This time, maybe she would talk? Only... Oh shit! What the hell am I supposed to say!? Bradley stopped next to Lee''s building and touched his staff to the wall. He could feel the mana battery filling up while his mind raced in the sudden panic of having to actually talk to Mar... He was just so tired... Plus, his head was killing him. After that day, he''d earned some rest. Bradley looked at his bed. It looked so soft¡­ He had fought many battles today and had been victorious; it was time to rest. He heard a distant thunderclap and burrowed deeper into his bed. That isn''t helping my head. Someone was shouting now. Screaming. Who is screaming? The voice was familiar. It doesn''t matter. I just need to go to sleep. Stinging pain shot through his head. Ow! He opened his eyes and saw a multi armed monstrosity flailing at a flickering Mar. -1 All Base Attributes Debuff Removed: [Dream Drain] You have discovered a Hidden Invasion! Contributions Earned. Defeat the Invaders to Receive your Rewards. What the¡­ A severed arm was on the ground in front of him, lying in a pool of blue goop. Mar cut it off... He could see one of the monster''s limbs ending in a stump as it struck at the girl with five more arms. Bradley felt so weak; his arms and legs trembled with fatigue, and it was all he could do to remain standing as he leaned on his stone staff. His hands on the staff looked shriveled and old, like Lee''s... Mar dodged back a hair too slowly, and the monster''s sweeping arms clipped her. She stumbled, and the monster capitalized on her mistake. In a flash, it grabbed one of her arms, and a heartbeat later, it had immobilized every one of her limbs. Mar screamed and struggled, then the fifth and final hand grabbed her head. She went limp. It all happened so fast... Bradley took a staggering step toward her, his mind remembering how he had been in bed moments ago. It got in my head! Now it was in Mar''s head... The monster''s bleeding stump stopped bleeding as Bradley''s stagger shifted into a sprint. Mar! Its face turned to him. Two huge black eyes pointed at him from the otherwise featureless face, and it let go of Mar''s legs to reach two long arms towards his head. Bradley saw horrible maws in the palm of each hand, barbed and bloody tentacles reaching for his flesh. Hell no! Mana burst out of him in a rush, and the earth under his feet slid backwards, away from the threat, as he activated his new skill. Dirty Movement The skill was better than he had originally thought. Yes, it let him move faster in dirt, but it synergized with all of his skills and his class in a way he hadn''t expected. Bradley used his mana to pull at the ground, and dirt rapidly climbed up his legs and crawled up his torso until it covered his whole body. Then he compacted it into stone. It made him a lot heavier, but instead of slowing down, Bradley only moved faster. His class was Earth Mover. If he covered himself in earth and combined it with Dirty Movement... Bradley moved himself sideways past a grasping hand, Dirty Movement deciding that being covered in dirt counted for a lot and making the entire process easier. The staff in his hands leapt up into a sweeping strike. It was also made of stone, or earth, and despite the runes that covered it and changed it into something less akin to earth, it was still close enough. He moved that stone staff and himself with a blast of mana. His course reversed, and he shot towards the monster. Bradley felt the impacts of those grasping limbs, but they didn''t hurt beneath his armor. He wanted to free Mar, but the monster held her up out of his reach, so Bradley swung low. His staff blasted into and through what he hoped was a knee joint on one of the monster''s legs. The blow, driven by his meager physical strength, now boosted and enhanced by his mana and skills, didn''t even slow as he went through the leg. Blue blood splashed from the shattered stump, and the monster screamed as it toppled, but then one of its long arms abandoned the chase and dropped to the ground to act as a new leg. Another arm grabbed the amputated leg off the ground and held it up against the stump as it abandoned the pursuit and started backing away with Mar still in hand. He could see her exposed flesh shriveling up the way his hands had as the monster''s leg healed back into place. NO! Bradley moved. The only downside to his new skill and overpowered method of fighting was the high mana cost, and Bradley pulled the last of the reserves from his staff as he charged. Luckily, there was another way. Bradley called to the mana beneath his feet. To the mana filling the earth. It responded and flowed up from his feet. Your Earth Aspect Saturation has reached your Affinity Limit of 67%. Continuing past this threshold may cause side effects. He''d gotten greedy for a better class on that first day, and he''d gone down the list until he found one. He''d ignored the options with a higher affinity because he wanted to cast magic... and now he was paying the price. It wasn''t all bad. He''d seen that message before and always stopped until the saturation lowered. Which it would, given enough time. Today, though, after that marathon in the lair, he didn''t have the luxury to wait. Mar had saved him from this monster, and he wouldn''t let her die for it. Never! This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. He pulled more power from the earth. 68% Earth Aspect Saturation Bradley moved after the monster and Mar, still pulling in power but now with enough to spend along the way. His priority was to free Mar. So he ignored the blows that cracked his stone armor. He ignored the g-forces that tugged at his body with each empowered step. His staff whirled and blasted through both of the monster''s legs. Then it kept going, and he drove it through the limb holding onto Mar''s head. 69% The monster''s arm shattered into blue paste under the blow, and Bradley blocked two more grasping arms that struck at him with stone cracking force. He pulled more mana in, shoved more earth into his armor, and threw himself forward at the monster. A Bradley-shaped stone missile. Mar was free now, but limp on the ground. He wouldn''t let it have another shot at her! 70% His feet felt numb where the earth mana raged through them, but Bradley ignored it and kept attacking. He kept bashing through arms and legs as he tried to get at its face, but the thing only sacrificed its limbs instead of letting him pulp its head. 71% Eventually, it ran out of options and limbs. Bradley raised his staff high to end its life... Something latched onto his arms, around his torso, and onto his legs. Another one! It tried to lift him and drag him back, but Bradley refused to allow himself to leave the ground as he fought against its monstrous strength. As they struggled in place, Bradley saw Mar wasn''t where she had fallen. His heart sank. He really hoped that she had escaped and hadn''t just been killed by the second monster that he had failed to see coming. He really hoped for that. Desperately hoped. Please be okay, Mar! Her knives were missing too... 72% Bradley had an idea and moved himself and the monster holding him down into the ground. The earth welcomed them both beneath its surface like pebbles dropped into a pond. He forced the earth tight around the monster and wrenched himself out of its grasp as he did so. Then he moved himself easily back above ground and found the first monster busy reattaching its limbs. "Oh no, you don''t!" Bradley pulled more power and moved. 73% The monster''s head shattered in an explosion of gore under his desperate blow, and Bradley stood over the limp body, chest heaving for breath, as he watched for signs of regeneration from the thing. He saw the glowing core appear when the ground rumbled, and he spun around to see the other monster tearing its way free of the ground in an explosion of dirt and rock. They are too strong! Bradley drew in great gasping breaths and reached for more earth mana. Mar was still missing, and he wouldn''t let these things find her if he could help it. I will fight for what I want! I am not afraid! His hands shook with fear and exhaustion as he lifted the staff and stepped forward to face the monster. 74% Mar flickered into view behind the still half buried monster, her twin knives buried in its neck. She screamed, and blue gore sprayed across the ground as she sawed the creature''s screaming head from its shoulders. Bradley continued his charge and brought the end of his staff down on the skull. Just to be sure. "Gah!" Mar leapt back from the splatter and glared at him. The glare faded as Bradley dropped to all fours and barely held himself up with trembling arms while looking up at her now blue face with a wide smile. "You''re okay!" Stone crumbled off him as he ran out of mana once again. Mar rubbed at the goo on her face, and Bradley could see her hands looked much like his own now. "You..." she started to say, then Bradley saw her eyes widen and dart past him. "Mom!" She took off running and vanished mid stride. Right, invasion¡­ How many more are there? Bradley forced himself back up and saw that the stone hadn''t fallen away from around his feet. In fact, he still couldn''t feel his feet... Side effects. Bradley didn''t hesitate and poured what little mana had regenerated into Dirty Movement as he sprinted after Mar, following her pounding footsteps through the earth. He could still feel the ground under his rock-covered feet and didn''t have any trouble running, but it felt odd. He pulled more earth mana up when his own ran out. I will fight for what I want! 75% He rounded the building and saw Saira in her garden. Unfortunately, another of the monsters was already on her, and Bradley could hear Mar screaming as she charged ahead of him. He wanted to scream too, but didn''t have the breath for it. Instead, mana raged in him, and the earth moved with his feet, propelling him in great strides across the distance. Saira looked like a mummified corpse as she dangled from the creature''s hands. The field of green that used to cover the area was gone, and nothing but dust remained. Her healing had likely consumed everything. Blood ran from her in steady lines of... No, it wasn''t blood. It was a mass of vines! As he approached, Bradley could finally see the blood-red vine that was sprouting from beneath Saira. It wove and threaded around her and... into her! He could see where the vines had gone through her flesh, with many continuing on to wrap around the monster and dig into its flesh as well. Mar kicked off the ground in a puff of dust and then appeared on the monster with both blades stabbed to the hilt into the thing''s head. Bradley wished he had better ranged attacks as he ran with all he had and lifted his staff high. Saira suddenly screamed out in a deafening roar of pain and anger. The glowing red vines all around her pulsed and flashed brighter for a split second. Then the monster exploded in a shower of blue gore and flying body parts amidst a whirling storm of lashing red vines. Saira''s flesh regained color and life as Mar threw herself into her mother''s arms with a sobbing cry. Then healing warmth washed over Bradley as he slid to a stop next to the two women. He let the earth mana go and collapsed to the ground, closing his eyes and focusing on feeling footsteps just in case more were around. He''d been doing a terrible job of that lately... Bradley detected no motion on the ground within his range other than the two women next to him. Mar was crying and saying something in another language, while Saira responded in kind. I did it! They''re okay! He rolled onto his back and closed his eyes in relief, trying to let his racing thoughts and rapid breathing calm. "Bradley!" Mar¡¯s voice was anxious, and Bradley opened his eyes to see her leaning over him. "Are you okay? Do you need healing?" I will fight for what I want! Bradley sat up in a spur-of-the-moment decision and kissed Mar. Her eyes went wide, and she vanished. Bradley''s heart sank. Idiot! Why did I do that? He scrambled to his feet. "Sorry Mar! I..." He cut off when Mar flickered into sight for an instant, blushing furiously as her hand slipped into his own. Oh. She isn''t mad? Bradley then noticed Saira standing wearily but watching him with a smile of her own. His face felt like it was on fire, and he thought his heart might explode with how hard it was pounding in his chest. I kissed her! He was glad for the distraction when something appeared in his head. Emergency Quest Issued by (General Alejandro Morales): [Defend the Fort] We are under attack! Invisible Monsters are inside the walls! Barricade inside if possible. Building 3 is a safe place to go if you are outside! "A quest..." Bradley murmured in surprise as he looked at the message. "We should get to Three," Mar said. "Yes," Saira agreed. "Go!" She was looking around at her destroyed garden with angry eyes. "I will make these things pay!" Bradley felt Mar''s hand tighten around his own. "We''re coming with you." Mar appeared as she spoke, and her voice held a hint of a challenge. "Good." Saira smiled widely at her daughter, and the bloody vines uprooted from the ground and retreated into her flesh. Bradley shuddered at the sight and felt Mar squeeze his hand again. But who was he to judge? His feet might be made of rocks now... [Emergency Quest Update] Move in groups! Monsters can get in your head and kill you if you are alone! "Not again, they won''t!" Saira growled. "Let''s find and kill them all!" Vines sprouted anew from her flesh, stretching out from her hands and lashing at the air like angry whips. "Who are you?" Mar whispered, still invisible next to Bradley. "And what have you done with my mother?" "Incoming!" Bradley felt three pairs of thumping feet approaching from around the building and pointed with his staff for the others. Mar let go of his hand and drew her knives in a flickering stop motion. Bradley missed her touch already... I will fight for what I want and to keep what I care about! Bradley wrapped both of his hands around the staff and prepared to fight, drawing more mana to bolster his reserves. A heartbeat later, the footsteps came around the corner, and Bradley breathed out in relief when Alejandro called out to them. He approached at a jog with his wife and the blacksmith flanking him. His relief was short-lived when he felt more footsteps. Heavy ones. From invisible feet. We will survive this. Whatever it takes! 76% Earth Aspect Saturation 82. Mana Beam ~~~Lee~~~ Lee remembered what had happened when he drifted back to wakefulness. He remembered the mana... and the burning. He knew what mana burn felt like. He knew very well. This wasn''t that. It was so much worse. Luckily, he had a bunch of notifications to explain to him exactly how much he''d messed up. Debuff Gained: [Mana Burn] Debuff Upgraded: [Mana Scorched] Debuff Upgraded: [Mana Incineration] Debuff Gained: [Channel Rupture] That sounded... bad? Like, really bad. It also explained the blinding pain. There were other notifications. A lot of them. Lee ignored them and focused on the only thing that might save him now. Cores. Someone had helpfully piled a lot of E-grade cores all over his body, and Lee started accepting the notifications each one offered. He felt each core as it dissolved into his flesh, the energy flowing like acid through to his own core. Luckily, he was already in so much pain that a little more barely registered. Evolution to E-grade Begun. Lee abruptly found himself in the void. It wasn''t as bad as when he''d died. This void had glowing orbs to liven it up. A bunch of them in a variety of colors. The absolute best part was that he could no longer feel his body. He did nothing for a while. Content to just bask in the absence of pain. Then he checked the first option, his fear warring with the hope that he may or may not find something to save him. F-grade had worked out okay, so odds were good. [Mana Conduit](E-grade Human) Stay the course and stick with the choices that defined you as you ascend to the next stage. You have stepped onto the path of the Conduit. Continue on this path and revel in the tumultuous flow of your mana as it burns away your enemies. This will not change your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable(69%)] [Source Nexus] [Conduit] Lee stared at it. No option to go back to pure human? Was it because he would die without the source nexus trait? Did the system know that now and not before? Was it because the trait name had changed? He checked the trait to see if anything had changed. [Conduit] Liquid Mana flows through you like the blood in your veins. -50% Mana Burn +100% Liquid Mana Capacity +100% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity Nothing different... Of course, the real question was would it fix his debuff? The evolution to F-grade had felt like his entire body had changed... So maybe? He went to the next option. [Rune Bound](E-grade Human) You have embraced the Rune magic of your class. You are Runic. You have created a legendary Rune structure. You are Legend. You have bound a Rune to your own flesh. You are the Rune. You have used that Rune to survive where otherwise you would not. You refuse to die. You have bound hundreds of Runes. Bind them All. You have created a Soul-Bound Rune for another. You will Protect. You have nearly destroyed your Mana Channels with over channeling. You refuse to stop. Step onto the path of the Rune Bound and spread your Runes across the world. Evolve your flesh-bound rune to replace the damaged mana channels and evolve your body to accept runes more readily in the future. Then use that power to thrive as you ascend to a higher grade. Altered Traits: [Adaptable](64%) [Conduit] = [Rune Bound] From what he saw here, it looked like this option might actually help with the new debuff... He checked the trait. [Rune Bound] You ruptured your Liquid Mana Channels by channeling more mana than they could withstand. Then you channeled more. You have adapted to survive by converting your flesh-bound rune into a permanent conduit for your mana. You are now immune from Mana Burn, but your mana channeling capacity is limited to what can flow through the rune. Effects: -100% Mana Burn -10% Effectiveness of All Physical Attributes +100% Liquid Mana Capacity -90% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity He wasn''t sure what to make of it. Obviously, it was good. It was also a solution for his debuff¡ªby using his skeleton rune to channel mana? That''s what it sounded like... He would become immune to mana burn but also lose a lot of channeling capacity. Did it really matter if he channeled slower? Maybe. There were more options waiting, so he kept looking. [Mana Born](E-grade Human) You have embraced Liquid Mana in all of its volatile fury. You are born of Mana. You have the skill of Mana Mind. Your mind is Mana. You have killed thousands with Liquid Mana. They will all Burn. You have repeatedly burned yourself with Liquid Mana. You will Burn. You have evolved a Liquid Mana skill. You control Mana. You have ruptured your Mana Channels with over-channeling. You do what you must. Step onto the path of the Mana Born and do more than survive. Evolve your flesh to wield ever more Liquid Mana. Then use that power to thrive as you ascend to a higher grade. This will reduce your future evolution options. Altered Traits: [Adaptable](59%) [Conduit] = [Mana Born] Another solution to the problem... taken in a slightly different direction. [Mana Born] You ruptured your Liquid Mana Channels by channeling more mana than they could withstand. Then you channeled more. You have adapted to survive by converting your flesh into a conduit for your mana. You are now much less susceptible to Mana Burn, but over-channeling will now also directly damage your physical form. Effects: -90% Mana Burn -90% Effectiveness of All Physical Attributes +500% Liquid Mana Capacity +500% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity Did it mean he wouldn''t have mana channels? His whole body would be a channel? It reduced the mana burn while also increasing his total capacity by a factor of five. At least compared to the old trait. How that would work at a higher grade, Lee didn''t know, but it had to be even better. He checked the next one. [Mana Soul](E-grade Human) You have delved deeply into the magic of Liquid Mana and the Soul. I will bind the world in my Soul. You have the skill of Runic Soul Storage. I hold Liquid Mana in my Soul. You have the unique attribute of Twin-Soul. I am more than One. You have used your Twin-Soul to empower the flesh. I am more than Flesh. You have used your Twin-Soul to empower others. I will protect them All. You have used your Twin-Soul to create a legendary structure. I will Create. You have used your Twin-Soul to wield Source and survived when you should not. I will not Die. Step onto the path of the Mana Soul and lean into your greatest power. Evolve your flesh to wield ever more Liquid Mana, supplemented with your Twin-Soul. Then use that power to thrive as you ascend to a higher grade. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. New and Altered Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Conduit] = [Soulforged Mana] This one was... different. It used his soul. Or rather, their Twin-Soul. [Soulforged Mana] You ruptured your Liquid Mana Channels by channeling more mana than they could withstand. Then you channeled more. You have adapted to survive by converting your flesh and soul into a conduit for your mana. You are now almost immune to Mana Burn. Your limits only defined by the strength of your Twin-Soul. Effects: -90% ¡ª -???% Mana Burn -90% Effectiveness of All Physical Attributes +1000% ¡ª +????% Liquid Mana Capacity +1000% ¡ª +????% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity It was better. Worryingly so. Was it bad to use his soul like this? Or just how things worked? No one else he knew had unlocked the soul attribute. Did that mean having it unlocked was special? It had to be better than not, right? He mulled over that question while moving to check the next orb. [Legendary Architect](E-grade Architect) You have created a Soul-Bound Rune structure capable of holding and sustaining your mind without the need for flesh. I will Survive. You have repeatedly damaged your flesh nearly to the point of death. I will last Forever. Give up on the flesh and humanity. Join with your creation and become an Architect. Evolve your mind and soul to dwell within a Rune Structure of your own design; Three. New and Altered Traits: [Adaptable](25%) [Conduit] = [Mana Architect] It wanted him to become... a building!? [Mana Architect] You ruptured your Liquid Mana Channels by channeling more mana than they could withstand. Then you channeled more. You have adapted to survive by forsaking your flesh and merging your mind and soul into a much more suitable conduit for your mana. As an Architect, you are immune to Mana Burn. The claimed Liquid Mana Well is the only limit on your Mana Capacity. Effects: -100% Mana Burn Liquid Mana Capacity = Liquid Mana Well +100000% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity That was just insane. Not what it would do for him, which was substantial, but that it was even an actual option. Would he be able to do what Three did now? Could he kill enemies with rebar and exploding cement? What would that feel like? Theories aside, it was not something he would choose. Sure, it might let him protect everyone better... Hell, it might be just the thing to make himself unkillable. Maybe even the best way for him to help Stanley... But... to become a building? That was... It was just too much. It was too far from everything he knew. He couldn''t do it. I''m sorry, Stan. Stanley probably wouldn''t want him to do it either. Would Lee even care about the same things as a building? There''d be no more breakfast burritos... Would he even want to protect anyone? It was a fun idea to think about. An abstract one that he''d never test, like the one before that offered to turn him into a beast. Maybe someday he''d find someone else who turned into a building. He could ask them what it was like. Aside from that, there was one remaining orb for his evolution options. A blindingly bright one that Lee had a bad feeling about. [Source of Power](E-grade Human) You have claimed a Source and wielded it while still in F-grade. I have the Power. Burn Bright. Obliterate All who stand in your way. Burn All to Nothing. I am the Power. Take up the Power trapped inside you and become a god as you Burn. Do as you Wish. Unstoppable to the End. New Trait: [Source] It was a trap. It had to be. The system was trying to kill him... It didn''t come out and say it, but all those mentions of Burning were a pretty bad sign. Unstoppable to the end... yeah, right! Lee shook his head at the option. He may not remember much about using the source, but he remembered enough to know that E-grade couldn''t possibly be strong enough to wield it safely. That left him with only one real option. Well, maybe two? The rune one would let him keep his physical attributes mostly intact at the cost of mana channeling, but it didn''t mention if the change would take away his unbreakable skeleton or not... If so, that would suck. Though it might still be possible to reapply it... maybe? The mana and soul options were almost identical. Just a question of whether he needed his physical attributes or more mana? That last run with Alejandro might very well be his actual last if he cut his physical attributes down. But he didn''t even want to hunt monsters, right? He was more useful as an enchanter now. Only... did an enchanter need higher mana channeling? What would his mana blast turn into if channeling was bound by the rune? The blasting skill had saved him twice now. Though that last time was a bit rough... Would it be weaker? Slower? Would that make it less useful and powerful, or more? Could he still kill giant snakes if so? Did he even need to kill anything himself if he could enchant everyone to be stronger instead? Lee liked his mana blast, despite the unfortunate aftereffects it sometimes earned him. It was a trump card that, so far, had destroyed all that it went up against. He didn''t want to lose it if he didn''t have to. It was his own mistake that hurt him this time... not the skill itself. That reasoning pushed him toward the other option. That, plus some other theories. His power stemmed from his class, which used liquid mana and soul. So it stood to reason that going the route of both was better than picking one over the other. Not only that, but from what the choices offered, it looked like adding his soul to the mix improved his returns by more than double. He wasn''t even sure what those question marks meant. His soul stat looked the same, but he was clearly using his soul despite not having the actual numbers. So, theoretically, his total mana might be significantly higher than the low end it showed... Plus, his physical attributes wouldn''t be that bad with the bonus from his source title... Lee didn''t have much more time to debate the issue with himself. There was a kind of pressure growing... and he knew he couldn''t stay in this place. So he made a choice. You do not hold full dominion over your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. All parties agreed. Evolution to [Mana Soul](E-grade Human) has begun. Stanley didn''t even hesitate... Unfortunately, Lee came back to his body for the evolution. Only this time, his Mana Mind worked through the entire process. It let him see his ruptured mana channels. Then let him see the channels dissolve away¡ªwhat was left of them. The dense mana that had already been leaking out now spilled forth to run rampant through his body. It flooded him, turning his flesh into a soup of mana, with only the core at his center standing out. Luckily, it didn''t stay that way. The mana filling his flesh slowly vanished into that same flesh, changing it. More energy flowed from his core while that happened. Not mana this time, but something... more. Something very much like the energy inside each monster core he''d absorbed. More energy burst out of his cells. Burst from every part of him... and added to what he already was... made him... More. It hurt too much at first to focus on anything, but as the pain diminished, Lee started in on his notifications. Invaders Defeated. Hidden Dungeon: [Greenfield''s Dreaming End] Successfully Defended. Contributions Earned. Dungeon Area Protected from Targeted Invasion. Rebuild. Rearm. Prepare to Defend the Dungeon. Area Buff Earned: [Victory](6:20:45:16) That one was the most important, but not a major worry for Lee. Because he was very aware of the fact that everyone he cared about was fine. Thanks to one of his skills. Mana Mind had... changed. Somewhere in the process of his evolution, while he was distracted watching his own body, it had grown. The skill hadn''t leveled, but it now reached over the entire building; a good fifth of the entire complex was visible to him. Lee could see Maria outside his front door, watching over the children in the courtyard. Children who were taking turns riding around on a runed and hovering plate¡ªone they shouldn''t have. He left that alone for now and focused on the fact that he could see Maria''s mana. All of it. Including her core. There was no more aura keeping him out. On anyone. Not even Mar, whom he could see pacing outside an apartment on the far side of Three. Or Bradley, who looked to be passed out inside the apartment. His feet looked weird. Like too much earth mana, all packed in and around his flesh. It would have been more concerning if Lee couldn''t see it trickling away at a steady rate. Seeing all of them and their mana was giving him ideas of new things to try... The Mana Mind upgrade would definitely help, and in more ways than one. The next notification was also interesting. Liquid Mana Blast has reached the Level 10 Threshold. Evolution Available. Upgrade Available. Lee checked the evolution option. Because why not? Liquid Mana Beam (Epic) Point at your problems and make them go away with extreme prejudice. User fires all available liquid mana in a narrow beam of destruction. Skill Level Effects (Basic) +2% All Mind Attributes +2% Channeling Speed He wasn''t sure what the difference really was... but a smaller blast radius might make it safer to use around other people. That was probably a good enough reason to go with it. Plus, it was epic instead of rare. That meant it was better. Right? Liquid Mana Blast (Rare) Evolved into Liquid Mana Beam (Epic) Lee moved on. Distributing Contribution Rewards. Title Upgraded: [First Time?] [First Time?] You have successfully defended against an invading force more than once. Effects: +20% Effect of All Base Attributes while within an active dungeon. One Random Skill Shard. Epic or lower rarity. Claim? Y/N Your contributions have exceeded Wilson Chambers. Lee Cascade promoted to Fort Commander. Wilson Chambers demoted to Vice Commander. Hah! I win! Lee enjoyed the feeling while simultaneously regretting it. He was in charge again. Hooray? Hopefully Wilson wouldn''t be too upset to keep helping. But how the hell did he get so much contribution? He was pretty sure he''d killed only a handful of monsters at most before taking himself out of the fight. Or did he get credit for Three''s kills, too? Mana Mind let him see a plethora of damaged spots around the building where rebar and cement jutted all over the place. Most of it was on the outside, including a few spots on the roof... The garage looked messed up, too. Thanks, Three. I owe you. Though... hadn''t Three been the one to give him too much mana? Or was he giving it too much agency? Lee still didn''t know exactly how the building worked... It had killed monsters while he was unconscious and while he was away dealing with the flies. So it had some autonomy. At the very least, it was akin to a computer. Though he should really do some experimenting... He also wanted to summon his random skill immediately, but that might require moving... so Lee tried twitching a finger. It moved. He opened his eyes and sat up. He wasn''t as weak as he''d feared because of that trait. It definitely wasn''t as bad as negative attributes. Not even close. Even though, technically... he would be at negative percentages now if not for the source title. Of course, negative percentages were a far cry from actual negatives. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Soul](E-grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] [Swarm Chaser] Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Source Nexus] [Soulforged Mana] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Runic Augmentation] [Source Burned] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 37 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 23 | Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 9 Attributes: Strength: 120(+270%)444 Vitality: 120(+270%)444 Dexterity: 120(+270%)444 Wisdom: 120(+1070%)1404 Intelligence: 120(+1070%)1404 Willpower: 120(+1070%)1404 Twin-Soul ???(+???%)??? Non-Class Skills(3/6): Liquid Mana Beam (Epic) - Level 10 (Basic) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 47 (Intermediate) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) Buffs: [Three] Debuffs: The system couldn''t take titles away, could it? Not that it would matter inside Three, with its two-hundred percent boost to all attributes. Or would the buff not work? Would it be like when he had negative attributes? Oh, look, new skill slots! Then he noticed another wonderful detail. My debuffs are gone! 83. My Lord ~~~Lee~~~ Give me the skill, and make it good this time! Lee thought and triggered his victory reward. A shard appeared out of nothing once again, and Lee caught it out of the air. Silencing Touch (Rare) Be silent. Users may block all sounds emitting from touched objects¡­ Damn. Sure, the skill might have value¡­ but Lee couldn¡¯t see how it would help him. Maybe it would help someone like Mar? It wasn¡¯t even a liquid mana skill... which confirmed that the system wasn¡¯t giving him skills intentionally. Which meant that plate skill was nothing but a fluke... It had turned out okay in the end, but this skill could go to someone else. He didn¡¯t even care about getting the attributes from it. So many people had helped him already, it was only right to give back. Lee walked out to join Maria. He wasn''t hungry, but felt like he should be. Saira had obviously dropped by at some point and healed his hunger; he''d seen the notification. But it just wasn''t the same as eating... especially not when the alternative was a breakfast burrito. He could see Jamaal downstairs and would head that way shortly, but first. "Maria, thanks for looking out." "De nada." She searched his face with an inscrutable expression before smiling. "Tu bien? You look more young." Lee smiled. He wasn''t quite back to his youthful self yet, but he was no longer ancient. Maybe something to do with the new loss of those debuffs... or just from ranking up. "I''m doing very well! How is..." His smile faded. "How did it go?" "Not so bad. Few dead." She slapped a hand on the metal railing. "Three kill many. Very good thing you make. Keep them all safe." Her eyes moved to the courtyard as she spoke, and Lee followed her gaze to the playing children. They were riding around the courtyard on one of his creations, and the hovering rune plate suffered almost no friction as it slid around the large space. Because of the way the rune worked, it would ricochet away from the walls without touching them. The children loved it. Despite many of them tumbling off whenever it changed direction too fast. "Was it your idea to let them play with it?" Lee asked, not wanting to come right out and say what he was thinking. Maria''s rapidly darkening expression told him it was worse than he''d thought. "Who?" "Gabriel," Maria growled. "Told me you said was okay." Lee looked down to see the boy in question staring back up at them worriedly. Then Maria appeared next to him, and they both vanished in a streak of mana that deposited them back beside Lee. "Uncle Lee!" Gabriel said. "Thanks for letting me..." "I didn''t," Lee said, interrupting and destroying the desperate attempt to head off his mother''s wrath. "How did you get that plate? What if you''d grabbed one of the exploding ones!?" The very idea left him feeling sick. He never should have left any of his experiments down there... "I didn''t touch the others!" Gabriel pleaded with rapid looks between Lee and his mother, who looked terrified but well on her way to being enraged. "I only took the flying plate!" "You... wait, how do you know which is which?" Lee summoned a plate... and it snapped into existence almost instantly. That was new... and likely a benefit of his new mana-channeling capabilities. He stuck one of his bomb runes on the plate. "What''s this one?" "That''s... it''s dangerous..." Lee tried again with the battery and overheating rune he''d used on the flies. One Gabriel hadn''t ever seen. He kept it small and at a distance so the boy wouldn''t feel the heat. "This?" "Hot... bad. It will break..." Maria hadn''t let go of his arm, but she seemed content to let the testing continue. Lee summoned another plate, this time pushing to make it as strong as possible. Skill Level Up: Create Plate It came out stronger than anything he''d made before, and Lee drew a brand new rune onto the plate. "What does this one do?" Gabriel stared, his face twisting in concentration. "It flies... and it''s hot... and will explode!" Lee pulled the rune back before it did any of those things, then stared at the boy. "How do you know that?" "I..." Gabriel''s eyes jumped back and forth between them as he wilted. "I just do? I feel it..." "That one safe?" Maria nodded toward the courtyard below, still not letting go of Gabriel''s arm. "Yeah," Lee waved. "It''s fine. That one only hovers." "I knew that," Gabriel said, pleading. "I was careful!" Maria went off on him then. In Spanish. Lee got the gist. Taking without permission. Messing with dangerous things that could have killed him. Lying. It was the last one she looked the most pissed about. Maybe because he''d successfully lied to her? Lee didn''t think he could pull that one off. Maria was scary. So props to the kid... for having guts. Not for messing with stuff he shouldn''t be touching. "I''m sorry, Uncle Lee," Gabriel said miserably when it was over. "I won''t touch your stuff again." He trudged a few steps away, and Lee cleared his throat. "Your shoes?" Gabriel had tears glistening in his eyes when he turned back around. "You let us try them! I want to learn to use the mana!" Maria had her eyes closed, and the mutters escaping from her sounded like a prayer. Maybe one for the dead, if Gabriel''s expression was anything to go by. "I can learn!" Gabriel exclaimed. "I will learn, and I will help! You can teach me, Uncle Lee! Please, can you... teach me?" Gabriel Morales has requested to become your Apprentice. You do not have the required Class Rank of Expert to take an Apprentice. Lee and Gabriel both froze, wide-eyed. Gabriel spoke first. "Yes! I want to be apren... prentis... I want to learn!" "Maria," Lee said. "Has anyone mentioned apprentices?" She was eyeing Gabriel''s excited expression as she shook her head. "No..." "We should talk to the anubi." Lee frowned at what Mana Mind was showing him, but started for the garage. It was probably nothing... He put in his breakfast order with Jamaal while Maria instructed the other supervising adults that Gabriel was not allowed to ride the flying disc for the foreseeable future. Gabriel didn''t protest his punishment, but he protested getting left behind while they went to talk to the anubi. In the garage, Lee stopped when he passed Valerie''s work space. She''d likely been in here for the latest attack... "How are you doing, Valerie?" She jumped, but smiled when she looked at him. "Lee! I... I''m good. You were right about the building." Her smile wilted. "I never want to go back to my place now." "Then don''t? You can sleep in here, can''t you?" It wasn''t spacious, but she could squeeze in a cot at least. Her expression brightened. "I... I might do that." Lee left her to it and thought about ways to protect the other crafters. They had more than they could fit in here... Only the ones who needed a lot of mana got to use Three. Maybe they could squeeze more into the apartments? They looked mostly empty right now... though there were a lot of children in the courtyard. "Trak, do you know about apprentices?" "My lord!" Trak leapt from his table to bow. A table covered in all manner of glassware, most of it holding glowing liquids of various colors. "I am pleased to see you well, and yes, we can take any apprentices that you wish!" "I..." Lee hadn''t been thinking of that, but it was a good idea. "What are the requirements? Can anyone do it? Does it matter if someone has a class already? Can children become apprentices?" "The only requirement, if you would call it that, my lord, is the affinity one has for the class. If it is too low, then it is advisable to try another class. Children can apprentice. It is the best way to prepare them, but they will require permission from a parent or guardian..." Trak glanced toward the two pups in the room with him. "Ours can wait if you wish to apprentice more alchemists. With the loss of Ratch... we can only train two." Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! "Loss? Was it..." Hadn''t they all been inside Three for the attack? Lee felt a sinking sensation as a flash of memory resurfaced. A memory of searing agony and small figures dragging him across the ground. "Was... it was my fault, wasn''t it?" If he hadn''t taken himself out of the fight... had they even had a choice? Or were they compelled to fight and die for him? "He died a noble death, my lord. A warrior''s death in service to..." Lee felt a flash of rage. "He wasn''t a fucking warrior! He was a crafter and a slave. He didn''t have to die! Not for me..." Maria put a hand on Lee, drawing his attention and silencing him with the intense expression on her face. "Ratch is warrior. He fight for you! For Alejandro! He fight for home. Family. He is brave warrior!" Trak howled softly and wordlessly to the sky at her words, and the other anubi joined the song in a sorrowful but triumphant sound while Lee clamped his own mouth shut. "Thank you," Trak barked afterward. "Ratch would appreciate your words, War Healer. You saved our lives, and we are forever in your debt." Maria glared at him. "No debt for family! We fight to protect! Is the way!" Trak smiled. "You have chosen your subjects well, my lord. We are proud to be counted among such mighty warriors!" Lee sighed as his abrupt anger cooled. "They aren''t subjects... they are family." "All the more reason to lift them up!" Trak barked, then ducked his head. "If I may be so bold, my lord... you deprive them of the benefits by not bringing them under your banner." "What benefit?" Maria asked. "Mana!" Trak barked. "Even more now that the lord is E-grade!" Lee wasn''t sure how they knew he was E-grade, and Maria distracted him by staring with a calculating expression that made him nervous. The feeling only increased when she said something rapidly in Spanish... You have gained an Oath of Fealty from Maria Morales. If accepted, this oath binds her and two children into your service until such time as she or her children renounce the oath. Or until such time as you release them. As the sworn party, you may release them at any time. The swearing party must provide a warning no shorter than (59:59) before the oath is unbound. Betrayal of the oath by either party will incur penalties on par with the betrayal, up to and including death, and will remove restrictions from the other party. Accept? Y/N "Maria..." Lee closed his eyes and pinched at the bridge of his nose. When he opened them, she made a ''get on with it'' gesture. "Your kids..." She repeated the gesture. "It says you could die! They could die!" Her expression turned furious. "You think they betray you!? Think I betray!?" "I accept! I accept!" Lee exclaimed, just trying to head off the anger on her face. "You know I don''t think that..." She smiled brightly, like a flipping switch... and Lee realized she''d been messing with him. "That''s not very nice..." "Callate." She was clearly looking at her status. Then she looked at Trak and said something in Spanish. "Yes, mistress..." She cleared her throat. "Yes, Mrs Morales, though mine is two hundred percent mana pool and regeneration. I told you it was good!" Maria pointed. "It work outside?" "Yes, M... Mrs Morales." "Seriously?" Lee asked, looking back and forth between them. "That''s insane!" "It is the exchange, my lord! We give you a fraction of our power through the oath, and you share yours in return." Lee shook his head. "I get like point one percent attributes from each of you. How does that add up to two hundred percent mana!? Not that I''m complaining... and why don''t I see a debuff for that?" "I do not know, my lord. But it doubled when you advanced to E-grade..." He frowned, which Lee knew despite the lack of any human expression on the dog-like face. "Our last lord granted us even less than we give you... I suspect it is because you are..." He glanced around and then whispered, "Legend." "Is good," Maria said. "Will help save more. I will tell others to swear." "Wait! I..." Lee didn''t actually have a good argument against her plan. "I might have a lot of mana... but I don''t want it to get too low!" "That is not how it works, my lord. Else, kings would be powerless rather than the strongest!" "But..." "My lord, you said your mana is liquid. I do not know the meaning of that, but I know you use more than this entire room every time you create one of your masterpieces! That plus... the other... thing." "They aren''t all masterpieces," Lee grumbled, and then smiled as he realized something. "Trak, now you can swear the same oath as Maria! You don''t have to be..." "I won''t!" "Do you think your people are lesser than Maria? Less than..." "Yes, my lord!" Lee groaned. "God damn it, Trak!" He suddenly grinned. "What if I... beg!" Lee dropped to one knee. Then the other. He leaned forward, both hands on the cement, his head below Trak''s as he bowed lower. He could feel the alarm growing inside the anubi at his actions, so he kept going lower. "Please, my lord!" Lee sat up but stayed on his knees, putting him at eye level with Trak. "You claim Ratch died a good warrior''s death. Maria says he died to protect his family. Well, I''m part of that family, aren''t I? He died because of me... Because I made a mistake. I should have killed all the monsters myself... but I fucked up!" He rubbed moisture from his eyes, and not because of Ratch. Not really. Lee didn''t know him¡ªnot enough for this. He wasn''t even sure if he''d ever spoken a word to the anubi... But to have Ratch die saving him. A person whom he was bound to serve forever. "It''s all my..." Trak''s voice was soft when he said, "I will swear the new oath, my lord." Lee blinked at him. "Don''t call me..." "So long as you allow me to call you my lord, my lord." He smiled. "I know what you are, what you truly are, and it would please me greatly to have you as my lord." "Deal." Lee smiled and, with a thought, released them from their oath. You have released the entire Druller Pack of Anubi from their Oath of Fealty. All restrictions removed from both parties. Trak kneeled along with all of his kin, not with his face to the floor but on one knee. Well, more of a crouch... Then he spoke the oath while looking up at Lee. You have gained an Oath of Fealty from The Druller Pack of Anubi. If accepted, this oath binds them into your service until such time as they renounce their oath. Or until such time as you release them. As the sworn party, you may release them at any time. The swearing party must provide a warning no shorter than (59:59) before the oath is unbound. Betrayal of the oath by either party will incur penalties on par with the betrayal, up to and including death, and will remove restrictions from the other party. Accept? Y/N "I accept," Lee said with a bittersweet smile. "Welcome to my family. It is an honor to have you by my side." All it took to fix things was the loss of a life they would never get back. "Thank you, my lord." Lee floundered a little as the emotional moment wound down, then he remembered why he''d originally come down here. "So, what level is expert?" Trak gaped. "You... are not... at least... master rank in your class?" "I''m..." Lee checked again. "Level thirty seven. I know level fifty is advanced rank, but what''s expert?" "One hundred, my lord. But... how? Your fortress, my lord! It... it..." "I guess you finally got to see it in action earlier?" "My lord! It fought on while you slept! In all the stories and legends of... only one ever mentioned a living fortress! It is... beyond..." He stared at Lee for a moment, then shook his head. "I suppose it is not beyond you, my lord." "I told you it would protect you... if you''d only stay inside." Lee looked at the gathered pack, all staring back at him, and bowed his head. "Can I use the amulet, Trak?" Trak handed it over without hesitation, and Lee watched the magic settle around him. He stayed on his knees. "I just want to say... thank you. To Ratch. To all of you. He was a brave warrior... and he saved my life. You all fought for me, and I will never forget what the Druller pack has done for me this day. You will forever have a place beside me." Lee waited for the quiet and somewhat shy responses, then nodded at two of what he assumed were female members of the species. Taria and Rital. With the newly improved Mana Mind, he could see inside everyone. At least he could see the mana inside everyone, which, as far as he could tell, was practically the same thing. "If it is not impolite, then congratulations on the upcoming children." It must not have bothered them to have it pointed out, because they smiled while Trak bounded to his feet. "Thank you, my lord! We are all excited!" Maria was looking at him strangely, so Lee told her. "They are pregnant." "How do you know that?" she asked in Spanish. "I... can see their mana." He must have hesitated too long there, with the look in her eyes, but he didn''t elaborate. There was no way Lee was going to tell people he was effectively spying on them with an all-seeing gaze that now even saw inside their bodies. He''d already seen more than a few people going at it in the privacy of their apartments, and that was with the old version. It was immeasurably worse now... People knew he had something. It was how he''d ended up at the border... But they didn''t need specifics. Speaking of which... "Trak, I don''t want any of you guys fighting. Definitely not against E-grades. At least, not until you all get to E-grade as well. Even then... if you want to fight, we should apprentice you to some combat classes. Though, I guess we need people to get expert ranks first..." "We will watch for compatible classes, my lord." The anubi leader was sitting very still when he asked, "Will you be taking an apprentice, my lord?" "Of course." "Congratulations, my lord! But... apologies! I did not know you had any offspring." "Eh... what?" "Who else... would you apprentice?" Lee thought of Gabriel. The kid had some kind of knack for sensing the runes. It might mean he would make a good runic, or it could be unrelated. There was also liquid mana... "How does it work? Like, my mana differs from everyone else. Will it still work?" "I... do not know. I only know of the affinity." "So I guess I''ll teach whoever has a higher affinity?" Though giving someone else a legendary class would put a target on their back... Trak was studiously not looking at Lee while staying silent. "Whoever has the highest affinity, Trak. Even if it''s you or one of your pack. Assuming they want..." Trak tried to press his face into the floor again, and Lee caught him while he howled, "We are not worthy!" "Hey," Lee said, dragging him upright; it was ridiculously easy with his E-grade strength... "I said you could call me Lord. But bowing is no longer allowed!" Trak stood up and smiled. Then he bowed along with the rest of his pack. "Yes, my lord!" They all winced, and Lee abruptly knew that they''d all just betrayed him to do that... He sighed and, for the first time, wondered if he needed a more restrictive oath. 84. Oath Breaker ~~~Lee~~~ Enemies surrounded Lee on all sides, and they attacked viciously in a coordinated assault. Mana burst from him as he leaned aside from a sword. A plate formed in mid-air as he took a step to dodge the next sword, and his finger dropped a rune onto the plate right before another heavy blade landed on it. The plate didn''t budge. Lee jumped into the air above two more sweeping attacks, then jumped again off thin air to avoid another sword. He stumbled on the next step, twisted to avoid a plate, and took the next one to the back of his head. It didn''t hurt much, especially with his rune skeleton, but it was distracting. Combined with his stumble, it was enough to bring about the end of the fight. The little monsters cheered as they pelted him with even more plates from the balcony, and Lee retreated behind his shield to avoid the rain of death. "Enough," Martin said softly, and the violence ended in an instant. "It is a good effort. Now think on it." Lee trudged back to the far side of the long courtyard while far too many kids jumped from the second and third-story balconies to retrieve the thrown plates. They were loving Martin''s new training regime. It turned out he needed to step things up as people got stronger. An hour of sword training with light sparring was no longer enough to gain the free attributes, and he was currently working out a dedicated gauntlet... er, training plan for the E-grades. Plenty of children were happy to help if it meant they got to throw stuff at the adults, and they were all F-grade, which made the thrown projectiles hurt. Lee enchanting the plates didn''t help on that front. Lots of people were going to hate him after this. Luckily, he wasn''t the only one running the gauntlet. Martin needed different people to help with working it out. So Lee got to sit out on the next run and watch Alejandro get pelted instead. As if. Alejandro never took a hit. His sword and shield came between everything that flew his way. Even the other E-grades that attacked him amid the chaos still failed to reach his flesh with their weapons. It was completely unfair. He didn''t even have Mana Mind... Lee saw Amy down there, taking swings at Alejandro, and felt a pang in his chest. Noel, his other bodyguard, hadn''t survived the hidden invasion. He had only recently started getting to know them in preparation for creating better armor for the duo. Now one of them was dead. If he hadn''t gone hunting that day... they would have both been inside the building with him. Noel would be alive. Of course, then everyone who''d gone to that lair might have died instead. It sucked. He was just starting to like Noel... and now he wasn''t sure if he wanted to get to know anyone else. How many of the people in here would still be alive in a week? In a month? Would any of them be here in a year? Humanity was dwindling every day. Alejandro had escorted a few dozen people to the fort the day before. A few dozen who were the only survivors from a base of hundreds. It wasn''t even an invasion that destroyed them. Just some random monster attack... Lee was making a difference with his runes, and it wasn''t only Alejandro that told him so. People still brought him cores almost every day, but they weren''t all people from Mexico anymore. Now newcomers that he''d never met before would seek him out and thank him profusely for saving their lives... Luckily, it only took one more run through the pain gauntlet before he got the notification. Training Complete. +2 All Base Attributes Martin claimed it would get faster and give more stats once he perfected the training, and Lee felt it was a worthwhile investment of his time to help. Not only would it help the children continue to grow without cores, but it would also help the hundreds of people throughout the fort. A shower later and a breakfast burrito to go, Lee headed outside with Amy and Miller beside him. Miller was his new bodyguard and Alejandro''s apprentice¡ªa former non-combat class that had a decent affinity for the guardian class. There weren''t many people with high enough class levels, but Alejandro was one of them. So was May. Which made sense with how much the woman worked... Saira was also at the right level, but she was having trouble finding anyone with a good affinity for her new class. She''d changed a lot in the last invasion, and more than just her class. Lee saw it better than anyone. She was beneath her tree when he arrived, a towering willow-like tree that rivaled Three in height. Its drooping branches created a sanctuary within, where many other plants grew beneath the blood-red ceiling of the willow. A rune shone from the trunk, and it was there that Lee went first. "Any issues?" he asked while studying the rune. "None," Saira said. "It is working wonderfully." Lee watched the mana flowing into the rune, where it slowly shifted into the same red color as the tree''s leaves. The same color as the vines inside Saira''s body... A bloody type of mana. Something associated with life or life-force. He wasn''t sure. But she was a better healer than ever now, even if it was weird... The vines ran through her body very much like Lee''s mana channels used to run through him, and it looked like they performed a similar function for her. Except for one area. There they looped and wrapped densely, protectively, around a small form. Lee¡¯s Mana Mind could see through all of it. All of her. So he could see the life growing inside her. "How does she look?" Saira asked, then smiled when Lee''s gaze jumped to her face. "You had that look again." "Sorry," Lee ducked his head. "She is growing fast. I swear she looks bigger every day..." Saira rubbed her protruding stomach with a smile, and Lee couldn''t believe he''d never noticed until the Mana Mind upgrade... Granted, she was much less conservative in her dress after the whole fly swarm disaster. Here inside the fort, she ran around barefoot, in short shorts and a tank top. At least she still wore armor for hunting. "The timer never ticks at normal speed," she said. "I think it will be less than a month until she is ready to come out." "I..." Lee didn''t apologize. Not again. Saira was happy that her pregnancy would happen even faster than the three months it was supposed to take, thanks to the sapient lair buff. That was before the ''ambient mana level'' deal kicked in. "I can''t wait to meet her." Ever since he''d created Three and given Saira the extra mana, her pregnancy had sped up. She said it had been a little faster before, but not like it was now. She didn''t even need to be inside the building anymore. Those same vines that ran through her flesh also burrowed through the ground from her feet and emerged to wrap around the garage window bars of Three. Mana pulsed through them in an almost nonstop flow. The worst part, and the question he dared not ask, was about the father. The timing looked bad when he remembered her abduction, and Lee was sure Alejandro had noticed the same thing. The man had eased up a lot since that day, but more recently, Lee had caught him watching her with that same worried look. But she seemed happy. If she was happy, Lee would be happy for her. Lee gave one last look at the rune he''d put on her tree. An experiment. Not just enchanting wood, but living wood. Saira had insisted he use the tree once she knew it wouldn''t hurt it, and now they were trying to see how much extra mana he could feed the plant while also empowering it to be tougher and stronger. He was still on the extra mana stage. The rest would come in time. She never came right out and explained the tree... but Lee knew she was connected to it in some way. Likely involving her new class or racial evolution. He trusted her to know what was best for herself. As well as her baby. All he could do was support her. So he left while pushing aside thoughts of life-draining monsters and what she must have felt when they were trying to kill her and her baby... Saira had survived. Barely, from what Bradley had said. But she survived¡ªher and the baby. That was all that mattered anymore. His next scheduled stop for the day would be less emotionally fraught but unpleasant in its own way. "W... Vice Commander," Lee corrected himself just in time. Wilson didn''t like people skipping his title. "How are we doing?" Wilson had noticed the slip; Lee saw the twitch as clear as day with Mana Mind. The man didn''t complain. This time. "We have exceeded a thousand residents. With less than half of those being combat capable..." Lee listened to the extremely detailed report with as much attention as he could muster. He''d been right about not wanting to be in charge... Luckily, Wilson was a natural for organizing people, and he hadn''t held a grudge. Not a big one. Sure, the guy had his quirks, but he got results. That made up for him sulking when no one wanted to swear fealty to him... Or maybe it was because he didn''t give people a good buff. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. It was a stupid thing to be upset about. Lee had hundreds of sworn... followers? Subjects? He still wasn''t sure what to call them. Still, it only earned him a meager thirty percent boost for now. Sure, he could see where it would shine in the future. If he got ten thousand followers, say? Then it would be something worth being upset about. Those sounded like ridiculous numbers, but the fort was growing every day. If they survived long enough... Lee shook off the pointless thoughts of the future. The here and now was what he needed to focus on. But Wilson was sooo boring. "...guard shifts changing from eight hours to four. This will create a better environment and increase morale, as well as..." So boring. Still, he was getting results. Wilson had set up a full on guard force to man the walls. Complete with rotations and schedules, so there was always a decent force ready to react to the random monsters that didn''t hide in the lairs. Those monsters could be random, ranging from singular overpowered creatures to swarms of weaker monsters and everything in between. Nothing like the flies, thank god, but enough that it really helped to have people ready to respond instantly. Alejandro''s role as general primarily went to handling the Hunters. Those willing to brave the dangers beyond the walls and delve into the lairs. A mixed bag of people, but often the most powerful. Alejandro was a good fit there. His ever friendly demeanor, combined with his mastery in combat, had earned him universal respect among the hunters and guards. Lee held some sway with them as well. Mostly because of his rune weapons and armor, but a good number of them had also sworn fealty to gain the mana boost. Including Bradley... whom Lee could see working on the walls. Mar beside him. The walls towered above even Three now. High enough that not even E-grade humans could scale them. It didn''t block all the monsters, especially the flying ones, but it gave most of the ranged defenders a solid edge. That, plus the more enclosed bunkers Bradley had added atop the wall. Wilson never finished his rambling reports¡ªa bunch of stuff that Lee still couldn''t understand why he needed to be involved with. Luckily, something more important came up mid-meeting. Their former commander had set up shop in the old complex leasing office, a separate little building between a few of the larger apartment structures. It meant Lee had partial sight into the surrounding buildings with Mana Mind. So he witnessed what may or may not have been an assault. It was hard to say for sure. A man walked up behind a woman and casually placed his hand on the back of her head. He then started fondling her while she stood still and unresponsive. That wasn''t too far out. Lee saw far too much these days and tried his best not to judge what people did in the privacy of their homes. Aside from them not being inside an apartment, the problem here was the trickle of mana flowing from the man''s hand into her head. Combined with her lack of response... it looked like he''d found another person who might have claimed a skill shard from the hidden invasion. It was completely possible that they were a couple, and this was just something they were into. Before saying anything, Lee used Mana Mind to disrupt the flowing mana and break the skill. Assuming it was one. His suspicion felt justified when the woman freaked out. Though her reaction ended almost immediately when the man sent more mana into her head... His followup reaction of dragging her away while not letting up the skill was even more damning. "Gotta go," Lee said, interrupting Wilson mid-drone. "Good talk!" He sprinted from Wilson''s place and easily jumped through a second-story window into the stairwell. Most of the other apartment buildings in the complex were missing their glass, and the gaps had been filled in with stone by Bradley. But he''d left some key openings. It helped people move out faster in an emergency. His target was dragging the woman through a door when Lee sprinted around the corner, and he broke the guy''s spell again to delay him. Her freakout prevented him from closing the door, and Lee slid to a stop in the gap. "Hi! What''s going on here?" Lee saw fear in his eyes as he stared wide-eyed and frozen in shock. Then it turned into calculation, as he probably noticed Lee''s lack of armor compared to his own rune covered getup. His plan of killing Lee probably vanished when Lee''s two bodyguards caught up, both of them decked out in obviously powerful equipment. He let go of the woman and backed away. "I wasn''t..." The woman was scrambling while staring in confusion at the small gathering. Then her gaze fell on the guy, and rage filled her expression. "What did you do to me!?" He ran. Unfortunately, the only way out was through the doorway Lee was standing in. So his run turned into a charge, and Miller appeared in front of Lee using the same skill Alejandro always did. The shield slammed into the charging man''s face, and he violently reversed course. He never made it back to his feet before Miller caught up and held a blade to his throat. Lee hated to do it, but he used a power granted to him as the leader of this fort and everyone inside it. "I order you to tell me what skill you were using on her." The guy was a resident. That much was obvious to Lee, since any non-residents would stand out like a beacon in the night, and he stiffened at Lee''s words. His mouth opened whether he wanted it to or not, and he gasped out, "Dream... Touch." It wasn''t the same skill the monsters had used, but it was suspected to be one of the base skills. The dream part was the same, but it lacked the drain effect. Which was another skill that had dropped separately from some of the nightmare creatures. "What were you going to do to her?" "I..." He stopped talking, and Lee knew he was resisting the order. They''d done some testing, and only the first order really stuck. It was a good thing. Because it wasn''t only Lee who could give orders like that. Anyone with a higher rank could order those beneath them. At least this way, the chance for abuse of the system remained limited. "I wasn''t gonna do shit. I was just testing it." An obvious lie. He should have asked that question first... "You fucking assaulted me, you bastard!" the woman yelled and kicked him in the nuts. That was a deliberate delay on Amy''s part... and not unwarranted. It also ended the man''s attempt to speak further, presumably in his own defense. Lee was glad they stopped him and that they''d found out he had the skill... but that left a new issue of what to do with the culprit. They didn''t have a prison. Many of the hunters were already reluctant to support the useless people in the fort. They were completely against the idea of feeding and protecting criminals. This offence wasn''t quite to the level of instant execution, at least not when they''d stopped him so fast, though his dragging her into the apartment looked terrible. Luckily, there might be another solution. But first... "What''s your name?" "A... Alfred." "Harmony," the woman said when Lee looked her way. "Any thoughts on what we should do with him?" "Just kill him!" She spit toward Alfred. "I thought you were a good guy... I shared food with you when this all started, you bastard!" "What about this?" Lee said, turning to the man. "You will swear an oath of fealty to me, and I will order you to never use that skill on another human." It felt like a loophole to get around the limited order system of the fort, but what else could he do? Alfred didn''t look all that thrilled with the choice... which was surprising considering the alternative would likely be his death. "What kind of bullshit deal is that?" Harmony didn''t like it either. "I''ll know if he betrays me by going against orders. He can still help defend this place." "I..." She looked away and sighed. "Fine. So long as he never comes near me again." "That can be part of the deal," Lee said, looking at the man. "So, ready to swear the oath?" "You... you can''t do this!" It looked like the reality of his situation was finally sinking in. "I''m on the guard... You can''t do this!" "Then what are we supposed to do with you?" The only other option might be banishment, but Lee was reluctant to take that route. His recent visit with Saira and seeing her growing baby... Lee wasn¡¯t about to unleash another monster into the wider world. "I''ll leave the fort!" Alfred''s suspiciously on-point suggestion was met with only silence. "Sure," Lee said, and he saw hope rising in the man''s eyes. "After you swear." He wasn''t about to let this potential predator loose without some serious precautions. At the very least, not without him answering some questions... like if he''d used his new skill on anyone else. "You can''t make me do that!" "You said you were just testing the skill. If that''s true, then you have nothing to worry about. I might even..." "I can''t swear! I can''t!" "Why not?" Lee wasn''t buying whatever sob story he was spinning. "I..." he choked and coughed violently. "I can''t say!" "Then you die." Lee pulled his knife and took a step forward. He could order Miller or Amy to do it... but they didn''t need... Amy stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Stay back." Miller looked at both of them and swallowed heavily. "Right... right here?" "Just do it," Amy snapped. "Or I will." "Okay..." Miller lifted his sword, a completely unnecessary windup for his runed blade. "I¡¯ll tell..." Alfred shouted, but his words cut off abruptly when he choked. Then he kept choking. Then he screamed while the mana inside his body went wild. Lee was already stepping back when Amy dragged him away and through the doorway, putting walls between him and Alfred. He could still see what was happening in the room and saw Miller also back off. It might have been smarter to kill the guy instead of retreating, but to his credit, Miller moved to shield Harmony rather than running away. Alfred''s mana ran rampant through his body for only a few seconds before it settled back down. The screaming went with it, and he just lay where he was, staring blankly at the ceiling. Harmony fled in the lull, and Lee pushed Amy back into the room, primarily through her refusal to let him out from behind her. Miller looked a little shaken. "I... I didn''t touch him." Alfred blinked and looked over at Miller. "Hi." "What did you do?" Lee asked. The guy''s whole demeanor had changed... The man sat up to look at him. "Oh, hi there." Then he looked around the apartment. "Who are you guys? Where am I? What are you wearing?" "He''s lying." Amy still refused to let Lee get past her. Lee wasn''t so sure. His expression looked so... confused. "What do your notifications say?" "Notifications? What''s..." His eyes glazed over, and he flinched back. "Ah! What is that!? What''s going on?" Seriously? "What did it say?" "It said I''m an... oath breaker. What does that mean? What is going on!?" Lee couldn''t completely rule out that the guy was just a good actor, but he had a bad feeling that things were worse than that. "Let''s take him to the healers... and find Alejandro when he gets back." He followed behind Miller as they escorted the confused man through the complex. He''d already drained the runes on his equipment. Just in case. Alfred was surprisingly cooperative given the circumstances, and he also didn''t hesitate to share what he remembered. He remembered moving into the complex before the system, but nothing of the events since. He also had no problem reading out his entire status to them, including his newest trait. [Oathbreaker] You swore an oath of fealty and broke it. You have paid the price and your betrayal will forever taint any oath you offer in the future. Effects: Any oath sworn will notify the other party of this trait. The worst part was that he didn''t know who he''d sworn to or what the terms had been. Which meant they had someone getting people to swear an oath of fealty in secret... and wiping their memory if they tried to break it. 85. The Tower ~~~Walter Wingate~~~ Walter suppressed a sigh as he watched the drunken revelry of the youths. "I can''t get drunk," Adrian insisted for what had to be the dozenth time. Master Daryl could most definitely get drunk, as he''d spent the last two hours demonstrating with extreme enthusiasm. This did nothing for his mental faculties, hence the repeated insistence that Adrian should join him in his inebriation. "Just tell that bastard Donny to make it stronger already!" Daryl shouted. "Walter, tell that bastard to make it stronger!" Walter suppressed another sigh and bowed slightly from the waist. "Of course, sir." He strode through the door, and with no more effort than a single footstep, he appeared a few floors down from the penthouse. There, he strolled down the quiet halls while simultaneously watching the room he''d only just departed. "Dude, your butler has a massive stick up his ass!" someone shouted. Walter did not react to the comment. He expected the drunken mewling of children to be vulgar and crass. "Don''t talk shit about Walter!" Daryl said, standing and trying to loom over the other man as he swayed on his feet. "I''ll fuck you up!" Walter allowed himself a small smile, despite the vulgarities. It was the thought that counted. Now if only Daryl would listen to advice... speaking of which... "We got some extra skills today," Adrian said into the lull. "None of us need them, so what if we look for more people in the tower that might¡­" You brought it up now? Walter resisted the urge to groan aloud. Might as well reason with a wall. "No one held my fucking hand!" Daryl exclaimed. "We all went out there and fought for our shit! I¡¯m not wasting a single core on any one of those lazy, fucking..." What did you expect? "What!?" Donald Alegony shouted when Walter knocked politely. Walter knocked again. He would not shout through the door like an animal. Nor would he enter uninvited. Not unless he needed to... "Come in already!" Donald Alegony stood over his homemade still, mana flowing from his fingers as he worked his magic to brew a liquor potent enough to inebriate E-grade humans. "Oh, hi Walter. Did they run out already?" "Master Daryl has sent me to request that you..." He cleared his throat. "Make it stronger." "Still trying to get Adrian drunk?" he asked with a wry chuckle. Walter did not share his amusement. "Indeed." "Don''t worry, Walter. I''m done with that pipe dream. I think I might have made it too strong already." "Indeed." "Aw, come on! Don''t look at me like that, Walter. I need the booze to fight... and they helped me out. I had to share!" Walter saw the creature swim into his domain below. "If you will excuse me." He left the room, then stepped into the basement thirty floors below. The harpoon was in his hand when he appeared, and it flew true, spearing the gargantuan eel through the head. Walter pulled the creature from the water in time to collect its core, then carried it and himself upstairs. He left the corpse in the back room; the body of the creature was far too large for the coolers. "Miss Rivera," he said upon entering the kitchen. "There..." "It''s Grace, you old codger! How many times do I have to tell you!?" "Of course, Miss Rivera. There is..." "More fish?" Walter nodded. "Yes, Miss..." "Thanks. I''ll get started when I finish with dinner prep. And tell your brats and the rest of the stuck-up fucks to stop coming down here if they''re going to complain about the food!" "I shall carry your benevolent words to their ungrateful ears." She smiled at him. "For all the good that will do... Now tell me how you got in here without going past me!" It was Walter''s turn to smile. A very small smile. "I would never presume to question your exquisite powers of observation..." She rolled her eyes. "I''ll figure you out eventually. Now get out of my kitchen!" Walter left, with her voice echoing through the open doorway behind him. "And thanks for the fish!" The grand ballroom turned mess hall was already drawing a crowd, and Walter looked over the gathered people with a critical eye. For all that could be levied against his charges, at least they fought for their survival. Most of those here were content to wait for a rescue that would never come. Primarily, the original residents of this tower. They thought their wealth and privilege carried weight in this changed world. They thought they could buy their way out of death... Fools. They would either wake up to reality or they would die. Walter left the room quickly. He did not wish to listen to them complain about... well, everything. They would only stop the incessant nattering long enough to make impossible demands if he let them get started. Upstairs, the party was still ongoing. Walter did not return. He would be there when he was needed. As was the way. He would know if that eventuality came to pass because he saw all and heard all. This entire tower was his domain, and all who dwelled within did so with his permission. Many assumed his charge to be the one controlling the tower, and Walter was content to let them think so. Master Daryl was still young, barely an adult, and unfortunately, not prepared for the rigors of leadership. Walter had been there since the beginning, when his parents brought him home from the hospital, and every day since. He''d watched a sweet boy grow into a spoiled brat and then a party animal. Watched him buy his way out of every trouble that threatened his lifestyle. Walter didn''t have to stay here and watch over the boy any longer. The world had changed. The old rules no longer applied. Yet Walter had not left. He had chosen his class that first night to shelter and protect his charge from the danger that was sure to follow. He may have only been the help, but Walter would never abandon the boy he''d spent so many years cleaning up after. A playboy party animal. An occasionally irresponsible young man. Immature. Now potentially... a leader. Of sorts. Together with Adrian, he had rallied against the monsters. Not only did they embrace the new reality, but they ventured outside these walls repeatedly to rescue others. It was... upsetting. Walter had expected him to hole up within the walls, demanding protection and to be cared for, not this. He''d chosen his class with that exact eventuality in mind. Now he was bound here while his charge roamed into danger outside. Walter stepped upstairs and knocked on a bedroom door. Inside, an inebriated young woman lay on a bed and pushed ineffectually against the man trying to remove her clothing. "No... stop..." The equally inebriated man did not listen as he pulled up her shirt. "You know you want it. You''re gonna like this." Walter knocked again, more forcefully this time. "Go away!" Walter opened the door and walked inside. "I believe your advances are unwelcome, sir. I would insist that you retire and leave the girl in peace." "Walter!" the drunk man shouted, enraged, as he scrambled from atop her. "Get the fuck out of my room!" "Of course, sir. I am only here to escort Miss Lopeli to her own quarters." "The fuck you are!" The drunken man stumbled as he raised a hand that crackled with arcing lightning between his fingers. "I''ll fuck you up, old man!" "A pity," Walter said, sidestepping the reaching lunge and chopping the man''s throat with a knife-edge hand. An elbow to the temple finished the job, and Walter left the drooling man on the floor. He strode into the party a moment later, stepping behind Adrian and leaning down to be heard over the deafening music and drunken shouts. "Master Adrian, might I have your assistance?" "Of course, Walter." Adrian stood, looking rather pleased to have an excuse to depart the party. The glowing bird that landed on his shoulder appeared equally aligned in purpose. Adrian followed him to the room containing an unconscious man and a woman not far behind on her own journey of self destruction. "If you would be so kind," Walter said, looking down at the disheveled woman. "I believe Miss Lopeli has had too much to drink." Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Red-gold light flickered off the walls, and the woman stopped moaning. She sat up abruptly with a yell that trailed off as she stared up at the two men standing over her. "Howie! He..." "Might I suggest moderation in the future, miss? While it does not excuse his behavior, it would behoove you to protect yourself with more efficacy." "I... okay." She looked away as she got up and tidied her disheveled clothes. Then she fled the room with a soft, "Thanks, Adrian." "Want me to fix him up, too?" Adrian asked, scowling at the unconscious man. "If you wouldn''t mind, Master Adrian. He and I need to have a chat, and I detest trying to reason with idiot drunkards." Adrian chuckled. "Man, I get that." More light flickered over the walls, and Howie sat up with a yell. "You son of a... Adrian! What are you..." "You''re lucky I don''t set you on..." Adrian growled at the man. Walter placed a hand on his arm. "I will handle this, Master Adrian. Please return to your... party." "Do I have to?" Adrian spared another glare before leaving with reluctant steps. The bird on his shoulder eyed Walter with a malevolent gaze that promised pain for the injustice of his suggestion. "You got a lot of fu..." Howie stopped speaking when Walter''s hand closed around his throat. Walter lifted the man to his feet, then off his feet as he carried him toward one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. There were some choking sounds and muffled protests, along with a few flickers of lightning that went no further than flickering. The window swung wide on their approach, opening into a dark night sky, and Walter halted with Howie at the edge as wind whipped around both of them. He let go of the man''s throat with a small shove... and caught his shirt before he toppled out on a long journey to the ground far below. "Might we have a reasonable discussion, sir? With no unnecessary vulgarity and threats?" Howie nodded frantically. All traces of defiance had vanished from his face and his eyes were wide. "Y... yes... sir! Let''s talk, my guy! I''m totally cool!" "Excellent. Now, I wish to discuss your recent behavior regarding Miss Lopeli." "Um... I... I was just drunk! It won''t happen again! I swear!" "Indeed, it will not." Walter said nothing else as he gazed at the man dangling over the edge of the abyss. Howie''s eyes moved more frantically as the silence stretched, and his hands clutched at Walter''s arm desperately. "Walter... I... I won''t drink again! Never! I swear it was the booze! I''m not a bad guy!" Walter waited patiently with an impassive gaze as he weighed the life in his hands. Then he pulled the man back from the edge, slightly. "Your terms are acceptable. Allow me to add my own. You will apologize to Miss Lopeli." Howie nodded rapidly. Frantically. "If you fail to uphold your end of this deal, I will evict you from this place. Permanently." "You got it, Walter!" "If you attempt another assault... on anyone, I will evict you..." Walter pulled him closer, holding his gaze. "In pieces." Walter held him there for another long moment. "Are we in agreement?" "Y¡­ yes," Howie wheezed. "I agree! Please don''t kill me!" "Very good, sir." Walter released the man and stood straight, his hands clasped behind his back. "It is late. Might I suggest turning in early? Tomorrow is bound to be a busy day." "Th... thanks. I''ll do that... I am tired!" Behind Howie, the window swung shut. Walter nodded and strode from the room. The party had only devolved further in his absence, and Walter surreptitiously removed two of the three remaining bottles of liquor from the bar. He also retrieved dinner from downstairs but didn''t attempt to feed any of the guests. Walter placed one dish on the floor in the bedroom, where a brilliant fox lounged on the bed. Or rather, she sulked. She perked up as the scent filled the room, but played at nonchalance until he departed. Walter smiled to himself as he watched her daintily yet voraciously devour her food. So much like her companion, in so many ways. Two plates made it to the table where Adrian lurked away from the chaos filling the penthouse. The bird hopped eagerly from his shoulder at the first whiff and showed none of the fox''s restraint in gobbling down his dinner. Adrian smiled at the bird and pulled his own plate closer. "Thanks, Walter." "Of course, sir." "You''re the only reason this place is still standing, Walter." "As you say, sir." Walter watched him, and Adrian wouldn''t meet his gaze. The silence stretched until Adrian finally said, "I talked to him, Walter. But you know how he is... I can''t make him do anything. You''d probably have better results talking to him yourself. Or just straight up tell him to do what he needs to!" "You..." Walter chose his words carefully. "You hold a connection which I cannot match. I fear he may disregard my advice where he might otherwise listen if it came from another." "Walter, you''re selling yourself short. I sometimes think you''re the only one he truly cares about... Don''t tell him I said that." "Said what, sir?" "He does care, Walter. I know he''s not the best at expressing himself, especially emotionally... but he loves you. He''d never say it, but I see the way he looks at you. I hear what he says when you''re not around. He will listen." "As you say, sir," Walter said stiffly. Adrian chuckled. "Sorry, Walter. I know you don''t like to talk about stuff like this. Just like a certain someone we both know..." "If you will excuse me, sir." Walter bowed slightly before turning for the door. "I love you too, Walter!" Adrian shouted as the door closed, and then Walter was on the ground floor. A make-shift spear appeared in his hand and blasted a straight line through four bestial skulls. The weapon vanished, and Walter stepped next to another of the surprised beasts as he swung the cleaver abruptly in his hand. He vanished ahead of the spraying blood, reappearing further away with a now clean spear in his hands, and threw it again. Only three of the beasts lined up this time, but their deaths were enough to send the remainder fleeing for the entrance. Walter blocked their retreat. He''d let them stray deeply into his domain for a reason. Now it was harvest time. No tooth or claw reached him as he moved among the monsters. No spray or drop of blood marred his pristine clothing. Even his white gloves emerged clean and unblemished by the fighting. It ended quickly, and Walter left some pieces of the creatures behind as bait for future intruders. He deposited a handful more of the creatures for Miss Rivera and tossed the rest into the water beneath his home. They would serve to feed and draw more in the long run. Then he stood at the threshold of his domain and looked out into the dark streets of Boston as he thought over Master Adrian''s words. Everyone here had felt that terrifying power to the north. None knew what it meant beyond the notification of an invader''s defeat. Was it the invader using that power? Was it the Beast Lord? Was it a human? Adrian and Daryl were strong. They fought and flourished in the new world. But something else was out there. Be it an ally or a monster that would come for them, it was trouble. If it came to his door, Walter would fight. But if it came upon them while they were beyond his reach... what then? ~~~Daryl~~~ "Come on, Adrian. Please..." Daryl groaned as he tromped down the stairs with his eyes closed. But the beautiful bastard just laughed at him. He was pure evil. A demon! The single shot he''d downed wasn''t working... and he thought he might throw up if he drank another. Maybe he should just go back to bed. "Hangovers are nature''s way of telling you to drink less." Adrian was acting petty. Probably because he''d gotten left out of the party... It wasn''t Daryl''s fault that the guy couldn''t figure out how to not heal himself! "We have magic. Nature can go to hell! Right, guys?" The only reply was a chorus of groans to match his own sentiments. Adrian laughed again. He was Satan. Lucifer himself. Daryl was ready to scream at the man when they reached the ground floor, even if the exertion unleashed the threatening vomit. Until finally, Adrian relented, and fire bloomed out to encompass the group. Debuff Removed: [Extreme Dehydration] Debuff Removed: [Liver Damage] Debuff Removed: [Hangover] There was a fresh chorus of noise from his team, but this time it was only sounds of relief. All except Howie. That bastard had vanished from the party last night and never came back. The fucking quitter. He had a lot of nerve to come sauntering back this morning, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Daryl wasn''t exempt from the wonderful rush of relief. "Oh, that''s better. I think I love you, Adrian. You dick!" Adrian looked off into space while scratching his chin thoughtfully. "I could have sworn there was someone last night telling me to keep my stupid sobering fire away from them... If only I could remember who that was." "After all the work Donny put into it... I couldn''t waste... I mean, disrespect his effort like that." "Do not drag me into this," Donny, the traitor, said. "I maintain I was bullied and coerced into everything." He spouted his treason while chugging from a ridiculously oversized ceramic jug. At least the smell wafting from it no longer made him want to hurl. Speaking of which... Daryl pulled out his flask and took a hearty swig. It burned like acid down his throat and settled into his belly like a hot coal. Warmth spread quickly throughout his body, and Daryl sighed in pleasure. "I love magic healing." He ignored Adrian''s exasperated sigh. Walter was waiting for them at the exit. How had that old bastard beaten them down here? He also had a gaggle of hanger-ons lurking beside him. "Master Daryl..." "I''m not babysitting any more newbies. Especially not F-grades. They can pick up a stick like everyone else." He stomped out the door before anyone else could start whining and took a smaller sip from the flask on the way. Outside, with downtown Boston arrayed ahead of them, mana spilled from Daryl¡¯s free hand and into the shape of a massive broadsword. The weapon shimmered slightly before solidifying, and he gave it a few practice swings; the weapon moved far easier than its size would suggest. Then he set it on fire. Adrian caught up. "We could help..." "Help what? Help them die? Because that''s all they''re going to do." "It wasn''t your fault..." "Come on, Princess." Daryl ignored him and stalked further down the street. "Let''s hunt." She didn''t reply but followed as fire burst to life around her neck and tails. Behind him, he heard the others coming along as well. The zombies were rather sparse on his street, but only a block over, they thickened up. Daryl waited for the rest of his team to catch up before wading into the mess. Not because he had to. It was just better that way. Adrian started it off with a wave of fire across the ground, and Daryl wadded into the horde with Princess beside him. Together, they hacked and burned their way through the zombies. It was a slaughter. Daryl led the charge into the new lair. A lair they''d only scouted the day before. It wasn''t far from the tower¡ªonly a couple blocks¡ªbut it was the nearest lair they hadn''t defeated already. Donny came in behind him this time, deep into his bottle already and staggering his way drunkenly toward the monsters. It would have been worrying if Daryl hadn''t seen him in action before. The first monster to reach him, something akin to a giant rat but scaley, leapt right for his throat. Donny staggered sideways, his movement taking his neck just out of reach. He flailed his arms as if trying to catch his balance... and slammed an elbow into the monster''s face, dropping it to the ground. Then he kicked its head in with his next staggering step... Howie waded in as well, lighting-wreathed fists lashing out like hammers as he blasted a path through. Kira followed behind him, her spear snaking out to finish any electrocuted monsters that weren''t yet dead. Their final member entered the lair draped limply over Adrian''s shoulder. Or his body did. The ghostly version of himself was much more active as it ripped its way through the rats using the foot-long claws that adorned the spirit. His class was pretty terrible... but with Adrian already acting as support, it worked well enough. Daryl didn''t limit himself, unleashing a variety of different magic against their enemies. Primarily, he copied every one of his teammates'' powers. Lightning and fire alternately wreathed his blade, while a ghostly copy of himself fought alongside him, albeit rather clumsily. It was all an illusion. He only pretended to have real power, like his teammates. Something only Adrian knew. Because if they all knew just how weak he was... how useless... then they would know that it was his fault. They would know he''d gotten a dozen people killed... Daryl took another drink, letting Princess intercept his attacker so he could do so. She was the only one who understood. She didn''t judge him. She didn''t ask him to take more weaklings outside the tower. At least with this group, it didn''t matter so much what he did. They could handle themselves if everything went wrong. He was feeling better by the time they finally emerged from the lair. Ready to take on another one. Like, say, the lair where a bunch of undead were outside attacking it. 86. Move ~~~Cunning Fang~~~ Cunning Fang lay still in the brush, nothing moving but her eyes as they scanned the humans scurrying about in the distance. Night Shadow lay beside her, his power deepening the shadows and helping hide both of them from seeking eyes. She heard the humans coming long before they arrived. They were loud and clumsy. Stumbling through the forest and howling like puppies. But she supposed they could afford to be so bold. Here, at the center of their den, where they had the numbers to quell any attacker. No, not any attack. She had not forgotten the rotting swarm of death. It had sent her fleeing and would do the same to the humans here. Unless... The golden human emerged, and she watched his light heal the wounds of his fellows. He did that often. Many others emerged with him, their eyes turned away and seeking threats to the healer. It was smart of them to protect him. It saved her the trouble. "We should not have come," Night Shadow huffed softly when another human appeared. "He is on the move." She didn''t reply to her mate as they watched the alleged Beast Lord emerge from the humans'' dwelling while riding on the flying human. More humans gathered around him, and then they all flew away together. None of them noticed her, not that she could tell... "Are you sure that is him?" Night Shadow shivered. "He hides his power. A lazy beast, content to be carried around like a pup... but I am sure. I suspect the golden human cleans the air here, so we do not smell him." Cunning Fang relaxed her tense muscles as her fear abated. She knew the Beast Lord was somewhere in this rotting cage... she''d heard his howl... But that little pup? That pet? Could it be that Night Shadow was confused? "Must we flee, then? Will he hunt us?" "I do not know," Night Shadow growled. "Perhaps he is content with his humans..." The humans. Cunning Fang watched one of them in particular. Dark-skinned, and with sharp eyes that saw too much. Even now, he looked their way, and she stilled. This one was dangerous... Night Shadow pulled her into the dark and away from the humans. She trotted after him through that darkness until they finally emerged back into the light. Cunning Fang greeted the pups happily when they threw themselves at her. They were growing fast, and thanks to that golden human, they had plenty to eat. The wind shifted, carrying with it a foul odor from beyond the clean lands. Her pack stood as one to face the coming threat. These clean lands were a boon and a way for them to survive... but they had to fight for them. Because everyone wanted a piece of her territory. ~~~Stanley~~~ "Seriously, Caff? You still won''t evolve?" Sure, he hadn''t started counting from the beginning... but he''d been feeding him for days now, and Caffeine had definitely eaten enough cores to reach E-grade already. Caffeine stared intently at the piece of meat in Stanley''s fingers and didn''t react to the question except for the non-stop, slow wag of his tail. "Fine..." He handed over the meat. "Eat up." The building shook slightly under him, and Stanley gave a quick scan with Soul Sight. It was just more new E-grades flexing their power. Intentionally or not. It definitely helped that Nate''s base was an actual lair now. Otherwise, the entire thing might have come down with the new uptick in stronger people. It wasn''t only E-grades, either. Going abruptly from ten to seventy in all their attributes was apparently quite a rush. Stanley''s scan also saw the humans sprinting closer outside, and he was unsurprised when someone shouted for Zeke. The resident healer was already E-grade... along with Nate. All the bigshots were. Stanley was the odd man out. Plus Caffeine. Even Lee had reached E-grade, and he''d done something to their soul since Stanley had to agree to it. Whatever it was. He wasn''t sure what the point of asking permission was if it didn''t tell him what he was agreeing to... Stanley still couldn''t figure out why Caffeine wouldn''t evolve, and his best guess was that it involved him not being E-grade yet himself... That put some pressure on Stanley to hurry it up, and he had. Today should be the last day at F-grade... His team did a lot better at hunting now, but not as much as he''d hoped. Sure, they''d all gotten stronger and faster. By a lot. But humans weren''t the only things getting stronger... It was depressing when you stopped to think about it. This was their life now¡ªeveryone''s life. A never-ending fight. A literal arms race to stay ahead of the monsters, or else you''d get eaten by them. Some people liked it... probably because they were idiots and hadn''t actually thought about what was happening. Or they just loved fighting... But that was fine. They might as well enjoy themselves, since they had no choice but to fight or die. Stanley wasn''t complaining. Not very much, at least. He was powerful now; even the E-grades couldn''t touch him. Nate was the only E-grade he wasn''t confident about fighting... and luckily, the man not only kept his distance but went out of his way to help Stanley with his plan. Speaking of which... "Here are the cores," James said, walking into Stanley''s room with a small bag full of the things. It only took a glance to know this amount wasn''t enough. James must have seen the look because he asked, "We going back out?" "Yeah," Stanley grumbled. "Damn lazy hunters..." "You''re the one who insists on fortifying." James shook his head. "I still don''t get why you''re bothering. You''re literally more powerful as an F-grade than anyone else is at E-grade. Why not just evolve?" Stanley glared at him. "I told you why." He also assumed the man had told Nate. "Yeah, and I still think you''re overreacting, but..." He held up both hands before Stanley could say anything. "It''s your choice! Besides, you''ve got Nate curious now, and he''s gotten some volunteers to follow your example." "He better not be hoarding the cores..." "Relax," James said, rolling his eyes. "They are pushing strength and intelligence right now. He wants to push all the attributes, but he''ll wait for you to finish before he does that." Stanley wanted to be angry at the man. Nate too. But the bastards were being too cooperative. "Good..." "I''ll get the team ready. Say in... half an hour?" Stanley nodded and dropped into his meditation. His anger was irrational. Just like the paranoia. Some of it. Maybe. He stayed like that for a few minutes, until the frustration faded. Then he absorbed the cores. +0.1 Willpower Fortification +0.1 Willpower Fortification +0.1 Willpower Fortification ... Willpower has reached maximum fortification for F-grade. Evolve to E-grade to increase this attribute further. The diminishing returns were still a thing, and it was a tragedy to see such low numbers from E-grade cores... He was also pushing willpower, despite it being the very reason he was even fortifying at all. It was too good not to. Willpower was his whole thing, and if his plan for vitality didn''t pay off, then more power wouldn''t hurt. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. But that wasn''t the worst part. The real problem was that it hurt. +0.5 Vitality Fortification +0.5 Vitality Fortification +0.4 Vitality Fortification +0.4 Vitality Fortification ... +0.3 Vitality Fortification Each core he absorbed made it hurt more. A constant low-level ache that just... hurt. It was nothing like the pains he''d endured before, but it also wouldn''t go away. It definitely wasn''t helping with his mood... Stanley took his time flying downstairs, using the leisurely flight to administer a thorough belly rub to Caffeine on the way. He had no idea if the pug was also fortifying attributes, but unless his math was way off... Caffeine showed no signs of discomfort. He didn''t even balk at the cores Stanley offered. So maybe it was still at low numbers. The pain hadn''t started until he was over a hundred points deep... He spotted Zeke through the walls; Eve not far away, and he avoided them. The way they looked at him ever since the Soul Sight incident... Stupid kids! They could think whatever they wanted! They didn''t know what he''d been through! They didn''t... Of course, he didn''t know what they''d been through, either. That fucking cult... It was easier to just avoid them. He didn''t want to snap at Zeke, and Eve was really good at pissing him off... So he used Soul Sight to avoid them and flew outside. Nate was out there teaching martial arts to a bunch of people. Apparently, someone had figured out classes could evolve depending on what you did while leveling them up. The news had revitalized tons of people with less useful classes. Like, why would anyone choose to be a magic accountant? Idiots. Stanley told his team that he only needed vitality cores from here on and then flew them all into the city. As they approached the towering monoliths of downtown, Stanley forced more of what he tentatively assumed was his soul into his eyes. His team had heard about what happened when he went looking for Zeke, and Edward immediately insisted Stanley hit him with the boosted Soul Sight. Surprisingly, it hadn''t unlocked their soul attributes¡ªnone of them. They all hated the experience but gained no hidden soul attributes. The leading theory, according to James, was that Stanley''s emotional state had played a role in what happened at the base. Stanley was reluctant to feel anything like that again... and no one pushed him to. Luckily, the skill was very directional, and so long as they stayed behind him, Stanley could scan the city as much as he wanted while bothering no one. The monsters didn''t count. That was how he spotted a few human souls in one of the skyscrapers. It wasn''t obvious at a glance, but they had far more color than most monsters or undead. Far more variety, at least. It was a spot to avoid. None of Nate''s people were hitting the downtown area, and Stanley was fine waiting until E-grade before meeting the new group. He pushed until his eyes burned, but found nothing else that stood out. Monsters filled every tower, and undead filled the streets. All the undead were now E-grade red eyes, but that was it. They were stupid, mindless things. They didn''t group up or hunt together, but at least they all dropped cores now... Stanley was good at spotting their corrupted souls, a sickly gray. All the same color. All the same brightness. Nothing that stood out as a potential invader. No giant skeletons, and no talking zombies. He still killed every one that got close, but it was less efficient to hunt zombies versus the lairs. So he picked a tower that didn''t have humans in it and went to war against the occupants. Every skyscraper was now a kingdom of monsters. Strong ones that got smarter every day. Stanley didn''t leave his team alone for these fights. Caffeine could probably handle anything this place could throw at them, but Stanley didn''t want him to fight. So he fought alongside them and kept Caffeine in his lap. Stanley knew he could wipe out the whole tower in less than a minute if he went all out. He''d done it once. When they hurt Caffeine... The four-hour debuff that followed made it a suboptimal choice. Even with meditation helping him drop the timer faster. Working with the others, it should only take about an hour to clear one building. That was fast enough. Cut He de-limbed one creature that made it past Silas'' shield and almost reached Serenity. If he spaced out his attacks enough and killed only slightly faster than the others, with some food breaks for him and mana regen for them, he could go almost non-stop. With no debuff. Despite the original cost of being on his team, this group were now the highest contributors to the base. Mainly because Stanley had been trading half the cores for willpower and vitality. The rest went to Caffeine. His hunger also went up too fast these days, and Stanley didn''t eat from their stash other than first thing in the morning for the food buff. The rest of the day, he just ate raw monster meat. He''d experimented with trying to cook it with his skill. Meat was matter, and there was no reason it shouldn''t work. It just didn''t. Something about the way he used his power. Moving stuff came easily, likely since he''d been doing that for as long as he had this power. The cutting part was slightly harder, but also something he''d been doing for a while, only with weapons instead of willpower. Burning or cooking¡ªthat was something else. He''d figure it out eventually, but it wasn''t a priority when he could just eat the raw meat. Stanley still kept Samantha''s spear around, but he used it less. His power to throw things had gotten a lot more destructive, and he worried about breaking the weapon. He ended up letting Serenity use it most of the time. A last-ditch backup weapon. The groups'' mana consumption had drastically improved following E-grade, and they no longer had to stop after one or two fights. Especially in this lair. Because the monsters seemed content to let them fight their way up, floor by floor. It was only as they neared the top floor that the monsters realized they weren''t stopping and threw everything they had left at the group. A futile effort that was further hampered by the narrow stairwells funneling them into manageable numbers. Like most lairs did these days, the queen surrendered. She did so before they even reached the top floor. All the remaining monsters fled from the fight at the notification, and Stanley watched them gather around the queen above. The stairway doors also slammed shut behind them, blocking any pursuit. "I don''t see any eggs," he said. "Verdict?" "It was easy," James said. "It will be worse next time... but I say leave them. We can swing by in a few days to see if they become a problem." Stanley shrugged and flew everyone back out. He could destroy the lair doors or even just reach past them to wipe out the monsters. He''d done it for lairs which seemed a little too clever. They would get no cores from the monsters if they did that, but sometimes it was worth the trouble. Doors closed behind them as they went until they reached the ground floor, and a core appeared. It was always a skill, though not always a useful one. Tail Whip (Uncommon) It was good for twelve vitality cores if they traded it to Nate, so better than nothing. Though worth less lately. Stanley had offered more favorable trades when the influx slowed. A lot of fresh E-grades didn''t want to give up vitality, especially if they''d almost died once or twice... but offering two-for-one deals still swayed enough people. Stanley absorbed all the vitality cores they''d claimed from the lair, and each one ramped up the ache filling his body. There was still no debuff or notifications, so he assumed it was intentional suffering from the system. Which should mean he was doing the right thing. The system liked to make people suffer. The next skyscraper lair went... less smoothly. They cleared the first floor, and halfway across the second floor, the entire lair charged down at them. It wasn''t the first time this had happened, and Stanley knew the best strategy as well as what the monsters were hoping to pull off. Cut Cut Cut He gave himself a short debuff by wiping out the entire second floor in a couple seconds, then dragged his team to the next stairwell on the other side of the building. The lairs tended to adopt a common layout as the buildings shifted and changed. Floor to ceiling windows were rare these days, most of them closing up into narrow gaps that let only a little light inside or just vanishing entirely. Most stairwells no longer ran straight through a building. They would go up one floor, then you had to cross to the far side to go up again, then rinse and repeat all the way up. Stairs weren''t always stairs, either. Sometimes it was just a hole in the ceiling or floor. Others were tunnels or ramps, ranging from gentle slopes to sheer drop-offs. Almost all of them forced the invading force to travel further before reaching the queen. This lair still had stairs with narrow doorways. It made a nice choke point for the swarming monsters, and Stanley let the others handle the rush while he meditated his debuff away. He''d done this before, and they knew to attack him if shit hit the fan. Nothing serious, just enough to trigger his premonition, assuming Caffeine''s reactions didn''t break the meditation before that. Between James'' slowing magic and Silas'' shield, they held the doorway easily. Stanley never had to help, though he popped out occasionally to check his debuff timer. He helped speed things up after that, and the lair surrendered before they got even halfway up the building. Probably because they killed all but a handful of the monsters by then. Aside from a bit more stress, this was a faster way to clear the lairs than going floor by floor like some of them. Stanley pushed his vitality higher while everyone took a break, then carried them outside. He thought nothing of the undead souls in the street. That was normal now. But he knew something was very wrong the moment he floated outside and laid eyes on them. The red-eyed zombies filled the street. Not charging or shambling aimlessly. All of them stood unmoving. All of them were staring at him. Caffeine looked up and growled. Adrenaline was already pumping through Stanley''s veins when he followed the pug''s gaze. Accelerated Thought was blazing as far as he could push it. Premonition hovered in his mind like a dangling blade waiting to strike, and Stanley attacked. CUT He only noticed the lack of a glowing soul after his attack landed. After he saw the skull grinning from within the cloak. After he saw the four hands weaving magic faster than his eyes could follow. After his attack utterly failed to do anything to it... Stanley met its gaze in that instant and saw no red glows, only glowing black pits that burned hotter than the sun as they bore into his own eyes. Stanley stared up in frozen horror... because he knew without a doubt that this monster wasn''t an E-grade. It was something stronger. Then premonition flared, and at the same time, something entered his domain. MOVE 87. Why Didnt I See It ~~~Stanley~~~ MOVE Stanley flew backward into the lair he''d just left. He flew right ahead of the expanding shockwave that disintegrated the street and then the front half of the lair he was in. It was too fast for his eyes to follow, even with his faster thoughts. He only knew what was happening because it happened to reach inside his domain. His domain had grown minutely since acquiring the skill, but it was just large enough to fit his team within the effect. That was the only way he carried them out with him. Cut He carved through the far wall of the lair, then he was outside again and hauling ass up the street. All the while cursing himself for not ranking up when he had the chance. Now he was screwed. This new monster didn''t even need to come back to life like the others had. It just straight up resisted his attack... The only chance left was to get back to Nate. It was time to find out if Zeke was really their savior. Of course, that would never happen. Stanley felt the magic coming. It had a familiar flavor that he remembered all too well... soul magic. This time, it didn''t rip and tear at his soul. A circle of glowing power, lined with weird symbols, appeared on the ground beneath them. Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] All forward progress ground to a halt, and voices screamed around him as Stanley pushed back against the magic. He could feel it wrapped around him, clawing at him. He could feel it trying to dig into... something. Only it couldn''t touch him; it couldn''t hold him. But it had caught the others. It had locked them all down inside the circle. Trapped them with chains of magic latched onto their souls... His mind burned while time crawled slowly forward, and Stanley looked at the screaming people with a terrible realization. He had to leave them behind. He had to abandon them if he wanted to escape. They were too weak to help him... All this time, all the talk of having help, and none of it mattered. Because they were all too fucking weak! "Stanley!" James met his gaze, his expression bleak and pained. Then he closed his eyes, turned to face the oncoming undead, and shouted, "Run!" Stanley saw the others hearing what he''d said and saw them realize what it meant... Serenity closed her eyes. Olivia turned away, blinding light blooming in her hands. Silas screamed while a cloud of his crystals appeared, and Edward only grinned while hefting his wrench. MOVE Stanley screamed in rage as he demanded they keep moving. As he demanded that their reality conform to his own. Demanded that they were free of the magic and still moving! Debuff: [Cerebral Fatigue] They moved. "Leave us!" James screamed as the buildings blurred past. "Get to Nate!" Stanley felt another spell coming... and he threw them down a side street while flying the other way. The magic followed him. Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] Caffeine squirmed and whined, but Stanley held onto him as they shot away down the street. You can''t save everyone, Caff. Besides, this might be the only chance they had to survive... because Stanley had a feeling that this monster didn''t care about them. It wanted him. He''d been warned about greater... static... Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] Stanley changed direction ninety degrees and shot down another street. Then again and again, as he weaved around the skyscrapers. Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] He wouldn''t make it anywhere close to Nate. Undead still littered the streets, but here they still roamed randomly, not like the presumably controlled ones before. Which did nothing to explain the battle going on ahead. A mob of the things were charging toward a particular building. One with a lot of explosions out front... Premonition warned him, and Stanley dodged aside from... Debuff Resisted: [Decay] Debuff Resisted: [Corruption] Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier What looked like a black laser clipped his elbow... and hit him like a sledgehammer. It blew off his lower arm, swatted him out of the air, and into the ground... Debuff Gained: [Heavy Bleeding] Debuff Gained: [Concussed] Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Stanley saw a horde of red eyes charging toward him... He blinked, and they were gone. A giant pug was in their place. Debuff Removed: [Concussed] Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] He felt the spell digging magic claws into his soul, scratching and pricking him, but not gaining a hold. Not yet. Stanley ripped away the car that had wrapped around him after he plowed into it and Moved it at the skeleton looming closer. Then he snatched Caffeine away from the zombies and dragged both of them into the lair the zombies had been attacking. You have entered a Lair: [Hungering Mana] It was full of bats, and they ranged from pug-sized to car-sized. Only the smaller bats actually flew around, while the larger ones stood on the ground like a defensive bulwark against the zombies. All of them had glowing blue mouths. They were also already at war with the undead. The little flyers zipped around, harassing the zombies, while the big ones waited in their group around the double doors of the skyscraper. They would pounce quickly and abruptly any time a zombie got too close. Stanley couldn''t see what they did to the zombies, but it definitely involved that blue light in their mouths. Inside the skyscraper, it was chaos. Stanley would have plowed through hundreds of the bats without his domain, which gave just enough extra notice to push them aside. He didn''t stop at that, though. Stanley threw every bat he could reach right back the way he''d come. Let the skeleton deal with them. This was the first monster he''d seen actively fighting with the undead. Not inside, either. They were actually going out into the miasma to fight... So he helped more of them along to do exactly that. By moving them. Gently. It took a similar focus to how he moved himself around quickly. Stanley wasn''t throwing them like he would a spear... He instead moved them from here to there and then let go. The tactic cleared out most of the surrounding bats and put them right in the skeleton''s path. Which he fully expected to be right behind him. In the couple of seconds it took to relocate a few hundred bats, Stanley saw the blocked off stairwell and the wide open elevator shaft, from which more bats were still emerging. Then he felt it coming and turned. Stanley saw the magic pass through the lair wall. That alone told him it was likely soul magic, but his Soul Sight confirmed it. Seeing it clip a bat''s flapping wing and send the creature spiraling gave him a new idea. Move Rather than move himself, Stanley moved the bats. He stuck a whole mass of them between himself and the magic; he literally threw them at the oncoming spell. It worked! The magic did something likely unpleasant to the bats, based on how their souls looked and how they screamed... but it fizzled out after going through a dozen of them. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. He headed for the elevator shaft right before the high pitched squeaking kicked off from not just the wounded bats but every bat in earshot of the first. That deafening noise heralded a flood of fresh bats pouring down from the higher floors, and Stanley changed course away from the elevator. There was one other option he hoped would work. The air ducts. Like all lairs, this one was shifting away from what it had started life as. The metal grate over the duct entrance was no longer a separate piece, but that was no obstacle. Cut You have attacked a lair structure. All lair residents notified. He thought the fighting so far had riled up the bats, but they really went nuts after he attacked their lair. A glance upward showed him what had to be thousands of souls, all funneling into the elevator shaft like water swirling down a drain. Perfect. Stanley held the duct cover in place after he flew inside, then threw every bat that came his way toward the door and the absolute shitshow that was happening there. Something with lots of explosions... He had an actual view of the front entrance from his narrow cubby, and he still couldn''t figure out what was happening. Zombies were charging inside through the open door now, where they got instantly swarmed by little bats. It didn''t look like they accomplished anything while chewing on the zombies with their little glowing maws. At least, not until a zombie crumbled into dust beneath the swarming bats. Also, the bats were exploding... Stanley saw a red eye rip a bat from its shoulder, crushing it into a pulp with one hand... before an explosion of blue light swallowed them both. When the light cleared, the zombie was missing a hand and part of its head. Then more bats immediately swarmed it and its fellow zombies. The ensuing explosions blotted out any sight of the doors. Meanwhile, bats that weren''t actively flying in to attack covered every surface of the large room. Floor, ceiling, and walls. Just a carpet of dark fur and glowing blue mouths. Because each of them was either sitting on the floor, clinging to the walls, or hanging from the ceiling, and all of them had their mouths wide open with a brilliant blue light swirling within. Whether because of the explosions or because of the zombies invading, the bats ignored Stanley rather quickly despite his attack on the lair. Maybe they blamed the zombies? Whatever it was, he welcomed the respite and used the breathing room to take stock. He was lying on his back in a narrow metal tube, surrounded by enemies on all sides, and he still couldn''t see the skeleton with Soul Sight. It was still out there. Because he could see its spells trying to snake through the mass of bats to reach him. Which meant the skeleton could probably see him... Of course. Another monster using soul magic probably had soul sight, too. Probably at a higher level as well. Stanley ran his remaining hand through Caffeine''s fur while the pug lay on his chest. Caffeine was taking things well... with only the smallest huffs for the loud explosions echoing into the duct. Outside, the chaos only increased when the skeleton finally made its entrance. The bats went absolutely... batshit and swarmed the skeleton so much that Stanley couldn''t see anything other than nearly endless explosions. It was while looking away from the epicenter of noise and light that he finally saw some bats going the other way, against the nonstop flow of fresh combatants. The big bats. They still scrambled along rather than fly, but each of the retreating creatures glowed from within and brightly enough to rival the explosions at the entrance. More bats took their place, doing nothing more than opening their mouths at the chaotic fighting, that same blue glow lighting up inside when they did so. Premonition flared. Stanley moved. He shot through the duct just ahead of the magic that ripped through the entire room in a storm of lightning, and he passed to the second floor right before every bat on the first floor exploded at once. Debuff Gained: [Deafened] Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Even actively blocking the narrow tunnel wasn''t enough to escape unscathed, and Stanley tumbled out into the open air of the second floor when the explosion blasted the duct apart. Debuff Removed: [Deafened] There were a lot fewer bats up here, most of them having already gone down to join the fight. Stanley threw the few left behind into the elevator shaft to join the flood as he dove back into the air duct and flew higher into the lair. The bats seemed undeterred by the deaths of their kin. If anything, they swarmed even thicker on their way to join the fight. He flew over halfway up before the numbers thickened enough that he thought they should block any incoming soul spells. Then he settled in and tried to decide what the fuck to do now. His team was likely dead. But Edward should have had enough time to send the signal for Nate to know something was happening... If they weren''t dead, then they could probably follow the sounds of explosions to find him here. Not that they would know he was in here... Not that they could do anything to help... Stanley ramped up his Soul Sight, while remembering the warning in the skill about it opening his soul up to attack. He''d forgotten earlier but still resisted the spells. Maybe it had to hit him in the eyes? He''d resisted fewer spells this time before it turned into a partial resist, but that might be because the monster was too strong. It had to be D-grade... assuming things followed the same progression they had so far. His eyes were burning worse than ever before when he finally saw it. Just a flash. A blindingly bright soul that looked only vaguely similar to the zombies. It didn''t smell like rot... it smelled like death. It tasted like death¡ªlike an ancient tomb¡ªan ancient cursed tomb. It was also right outside the building, only a couple dozen feet away from him. He gagged, snapped his eyes closed, then blasted himself through the ceiling and hauled a shit ton of bats between him and the skeleton when his premonition flared. You have attacked a lair structure. All lair residents notified. Bats died from the spell and then exploded. Which drew in more bats. Stanley dove into a central office just ahead of their arrival, waiting tensely for the next attack while gently steering any curious bats away from his hiding spot. It never came, and his reaching mind felt nothing lurking outside the building. Not up here, at least. Assuming it couldn''t hide from his mental touch, too... The whole building still rattled from explosions downstairs. Of course, the skeleton not being nearby meant nothing. The monster was faster than him. Faster than anything in this entire dungeon. He''d probably be dead already if it wasn''t another caster. A fucking D-grade caster! His strongest attack to date had done jack shit. It was total bullshit! Except... he remembered... something... Something about... unforeseen consequences, and... static. Stanley growled and checked his notifications. Primarily the one he''d just gotten. Skill Level Up: Soul Sight Soul Sight has reached the Level 25 Threshold. Evolution Available. Upgrade Available. Upgrade: Soul Sight (Rare) The eye is the window to the soul. Allows the user to detect and gaze upon the souls of others, but lets others gaze upon the user''s soul through their eyes while skill is active. User may overcharge the skill with extra soul energy to gain increased range and sensitivity but leaves the user more vulnerable to soul attack while active. Skill Level Effects (Intermediate) +2% Effective Soul If the skeleton is using Soul Sight, can I retaliate against him? Stanley gave up on the idea when he realized he was clueless about how to even try. The upgrade only gives me what I can already do... next. Evolution: The eye is the window to the soul. You have used yours to inflict damage and intimidate your enemies. Now turn your gaze into a true weapon. Soul Gaze (Epic) Allows the user to gaze upon and into the souls of others, but lets others gaze upon the user''s soul through their eyes while skill is active. If they dare. Allows user to damage or intimidate another''s soul. Eye contact will greatly increase this effect. User gains some protection against soul attacks but will still be more vulnerable against stronger souls while active. Skill Level Effects (Intermediate) +3% Effective Soul That would probably work, Stanley thought. He hesitated, since he still didn''t know how strong his own soul was. It was a viable option, but surprisingly, there was another evolution option to check. Evolution: You have the unique attribute: Twin-Soul. Learn more. You have resisted multiple attacks against your soul. Keep doing that. You are sensitive to soul energy. Delve deeper. Soul Awareness (Epic) Knowledge is power. Know yourself and know your enemies. Still your own soul and focus inward to detect the incoming emanations of nearby souls. Increases the difficulty for others to detect or gain information from the user''s soul while allowing the user to passively detect and glean information from other nearby souls. Allows users to strengthen and solidify their soul, increasing protection against soul attacks. Skill Level Effects (Intermediate) +3% Effective Soul Stanley looked back and forth over his two evolution options. Both were better than the upgrade. An attacking ability or a defensive ability... He liked the idea of fucking up that skeleton with Soul Gaze, but still didn''t know what his actual soul stat really was. Would it even hurt the skeleton? Or just make him more vulnerable? Then there was the other option. A way to strengthen his soul. Allegedly. He was only slightly nervous about that ''know yourself'' bit. What if I''m super fucked up? What if I broke... Caffeine sat up to lick his face, and Stanley hugged the dog until he lay back down. I know, Caff. You love me, and you''re the best, so I must be awesome! Caffeine rolled over and sprawled on his back for belly rubs. But even as he rubbed the pug¡¯s belly, Stanley had a bad feeling about his soul. Between what happened at Nate''s, where everyone said his soul was fucked up... and the source. He still didn''t remember what had happened that day in the mountains, but he knew they had paid a price. Something terrible... The skill also said he''d be harder to detect. Would that help him hide from the skeleton? Would it let him get back to Nate? On the other hand, soul magic was by far the worst magic he''d run into. If he could use it himself... Stanley also knew that he was only barely scratching the surface of his Mind Over Matter skill. Could he attack souls with it? Were souls matter? Energy? Wasn''t that the same thing? His soul should be strong, right? He''d kind of used it to attack Nate and the others... Did that mean his soul was stronger than theirs? He was also almost certain that the source was inside his soul... which complicated things. He would like nothing more than to let it out and burn that shitstain to ashes. There was just the small matter of the glowing crack inside his soul... As he struggled with the choice, a feeling grew steadily inside him. A feeling that told him in no uncertain terms that he only had one choice. A feeling of dread, which only grew stronger the longer he waited. You do not hold Full Dominion over your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. All parties agreed. Non-Class Skill Evolved: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 25 (Intermediate) Error! Anomaly Detected! Analyzing. Oh, come on! Now what? 88. Worth It ~~~Stanley~~~ Non-Class Skill Evolved: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 25 (Intermediate) Error! Anomaly Detected! Analyzing. Oh, come on! Now what? Soul Awareness cannot be applied to a singular individual within the Twin-Soul. Solution applied. All involved parties gain Soul Awareness. Skill progression speed will be reduced and balanced. That''s¡­ actually, that''s great! Stanley wished he could see Lee''s reaction. He would be... Soul Awareness rebalance has begun... The world changed. Stanley found himself surrounded by an infinite sea of darkness. Directly in front of him was a horrifying, beautiful, misshapen orb. It wasn''t a perfect sphere. Not even a good one. Looking at it reminded him of a yin-yang symbol, but three-dimensional and not black and white. And not a yin-yang symbol. It was beautiful, and... it was ruined. Nate was right. He wanted to cry, but he couldn''t seem to find the thoughts to describe why or even what he was seeing. It was a beautiful, fragile dish that was shattered and then glued back together so badly that it was no longer functional. It was his favorite, warmest blanket, torn to rags and then stitched into a useless lump. It was laughter. But rather than a happy, joyous sound, it was the laugh of someone who had just lost everything they loved and only laughed now because tears would be a pale mockery of their pain. He could see places where something was missing, where pieces had been cut out. He saw other places where some of the missing pieces had been stitched back on where they shouldn''t be, patching even more horrible mutilations. I did this. Stanley knew the truth in that moment, and he sobbed as he looked at what he had done. "We did this," said another voice. "We chose life over death." Was it even worth it? Stanley thought in a bitter response and turned away from his ruined soul to stare into the infinite void around him. Even the void was soothing compared to that horror... "You tell me," the other voice said gently. Wait, that voice... Stanley looked back hesitantly, disbelieving. Lee? He could see his brother before him, sort of. There was something looking out from his soul. "Come in and see what we did," the thing said. Stanley knew ''it'' was his brother, but it was an indescribable thing at the same time. A piece of his soul... or a reflection from somewhere far away... a thought given form in a place beyond the physical world. He moved his attention¡ªor consciousness¡ªinside the wreckage of his soul and stopped. Everything here was without defining form or discerning features. Except for one thing. It was worth it. He smiled at the vague form of his brother and at the clearly discernible little black pug sitting next to him in a tiny yet perfectly preserved little shelter at the center of their soul. He looked around the space and nodded. It was definitely worth it. "Yes," Lee said, his voice dimmer. "I''m building a home over here for when you get back, Stan." I''m trying, Stanley thought. I''m trying so hard... "No big rush," Lee replied casually, a smile carrying through his words despite the lack of a face. "I can see you''re in a bit of a rough spot." He looked behind Stanley. "It''ll just give me more time to spruce up the place." Stanley looked behind himself and out into the void. It wasn''t dark now. It was a field of stars glittering in the night sky. Only... not stars. It was a field of souls. He saw Zeke in the distance, that golden soul standing out as a unique light amongst the rest. It was also the only one that stood out plainly past the much brighter souls surrounding him. The souls of bats and a sea of undead below... I won''t let them stop me, Lee. I''ll come home. "Naturally," Lee replied, his voice even more distant now as Stanley finally looked past his twin. He saw more souls there. Humans. A lot of humans. They surrounded Lee... but they didn''t feel hostile. They were protective... loving. Soul Awareness rebalance is complete. "Be seeing you." Lee started fading back into the images behind him, but crouched as Caffeine whined at him. "I missed you too, Caff." Lee rubbed Caffeine¡¯s head as Stanley thought vehemently toward his brother, I Will come home! "I know." Then Lee was gone. Stanley was alone with Caffeine. Mostly. It felt like the sensation of his brother had gotten stronger. Now there was a window, and he could hear his brother talking on the other side. Not loud enough to understand what he said, but enough to know he was there and okay. He looked down at the pug. You''re a good boy, Caff. The pug¡¯s tail wagged rapidly, but he didn''t get up or move around. He sat still, directly on top of the blinding crack that ran through their soul in here. Bits of light sparked and jumped from the crack, but what looked like Caffeine¡¯s shadow moved after each one. It pounced on them and pushed the light back into the crack or ate the sizzling sparks before they could land on their soul. Stanley smiled as he faded out of the tiny shelter that Caffeine was guarding inside his ruined... inside their almost ruined soul. Then he was back in the real world, with a wiggling pug on his lap and a tongue in his face. He knew only moments had passed in there, but it felt like so much more. Talking to Lee and seeing that he was okay... despite everything that had happened. Seeing all those people looking out for him... The skill was totally fucking worth it! Stanley could feel tears running down his face. We''ll be okay, Lee. I''ll make it back! Somehow... He stroked Caffeine as he calmed down and took in his new skill. It was already quite dark in the office, but he closed his eyes anyway and focused on the new sensation inside him. It wasn''t like before. He wasn''t in that soul place, but he could still see and feel the surrounding stars. The souls. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. He didn''t see them all this time, only those directly nearby, but it changed as he focused. More souls flickered into view below and further above. Above, they mostly felt lazy and asleep. But below were a lot of... Danger? Hungry! Feed! Most likely, the bats. Stanley kept focusing, and more lights flickered in at the edges of his awareness. Danger? Hungry. Sound? Angry. Kill! Kill! Kill! Sleep. Feed? The bubble of his awareness kept expanding as more and more sensations came to him, until the cacophony of information became overwhelming. He pulled back... looked away... looked outward again. That was it. He pulled his focus away from his soul, where the bombarding information was coming from, and opened his eyes to the slightly different darkness of the office. He was gasping for breath in the foul air as he touched the pug lying in his lap, his hand digging into the fur and grounding himself after that cacophony. The skill was drastically different from Soul Sight. Not only that, but it felt like he was getting far more actionable information from the surrounding souls. He couldn''t see the glows anymore, not without focusing on his own soul, but he could... feel them. There was an active component to the skill, but a passive one as well. Even without focusing, he still got something. A sensation that grew... louder the closer the soul was. Speaking of which, he felt a sense of interest... and growing alertness. Sound! Hungry! Sound! Danger? Sound! Hungry! It wasn''t really in words. It was just feelings, or not even that. It was a faint impression of a feeling. Of intent. And it was coming from the bat right outside the office. It was making chirping and clicking noises as it nosed at the crack beneath the door. So Stanley reached out and rattled something on the far side of the former office space. The curious bat charged away with the rest of them. The clicking faded somewhat, but not completely, as Stanley floated up from the floor. He was smiling as he went. So much better than before. The random colors and smells of his Soul Sight had been practically useless for anything more than knowing a soul was there, but this... this had potential. He swept his mind through the open air around the outside of the building, on his floor, plus a few above and below. Nothing. The floor he was on now was still thick with bats after the skeleton had killed a bunch earlier, so he wasn''t worried about having a shield if another attack came. A small mercy. Stanley doubted it had given up. It honestly surprised him that the skeleton hadn''t simply wiped out the lair already. It couldn''t be that hard for a D-grade. Not when it could ignore his power like it had... Stanley could wipe this place out, given enough time. Like, say, five minutes if he didn''t mind a debuff... Never mind the fact that it could probably destroy the entire building if it wanted to... But if it wasn''t coming in after him, could he just rank up in here? E-grade might give him enough of an edge to at least escape. Or was it waiting for him to try that? He''d be helpless... and it would be all up to Caffeine. That thought hurt. The thought of Caffeine fighting alone against that monster while Stanley just lay there unconscious... It was a terrible idea. But what else could he do? Watch Caffeine fight and die, anyway? There was only one problem with his plan. He still needed cores, and he''d lost the ones he was carrying in the fighting. Probably when he bounced off the street... Well, two problems. Because he was going from hungry to starving, and his bag of food was probably in the street too. His arm was regenerating quickly, and that was going to make his hunger an issue sooner rather than later. Of course, there was plenty of meat in here. Stanley grabbed one bat on the far side of the open cubicle area. They were about the same size as Caffeine, and he felt a little bad about what he had to do. Sorry, Sky Doggo. He snapped its neck. The bat exploded. Stanley felt it disintegrate into bloody bits within his mental grip. What the... Would he have to eat bat soup? He heard screeching, and a quick focus on his Soul Awareness showed more than a few bats coming from above and below to join the already riled up ones on this floor. Danger! Attack! Feed! Danger! Attack! Feed! Is it the sound of the explosion or any sound? It was while watching for any bats trying to get into his room that Stanley realized he''d seen no bat cores¡ªnot up here and not downstairs. The explosions? No... can they do that? Clever, if on purpose. Who would hunt a monster that doesn''t drop a core? Much less one that blows up when you kill it... It was also extremely annoying if you needed those damn cores! Things were getting a little too hectic on his floor, so Stanley reached out to the one below for his follow up experiments. He started by cutting off a bat''s head and throwing it away to see which half exploded. The head exploded... and he realized his new Soul Awareness actually came with a downside. He couldn''t see if a core appeared through the floor. He could feel the souls down there and could feel one fade when the bat died, but picking out something like a core was a little beyond the skill''s capabilities. So he ripped up the unexploded body for meat and dragged it upstairs through the air duct. He created a distraction to get the meat into his room by killing another bat on his floor while peeking out the door to see what happened with his own eyes. Stanley had to hold back the swarming bats from his kill, but confirmed the head exploding also deleted the core. They''re fucking cheating! Then he had to kill a handful of bats lower down to draw attention away from the floor he was hiding on. He shoved raw bat meat down his throat while doing so, and he really hoped his insane digestion would hold up. Weren''t bats resistant to disease by being full of diseases? He read or heard something about that somewhere, and it fit with them hunting the undead when nothing else did. They looked okay. No patchy fur or nasty skin... Hell, the little ones were actually cute¡ªtoo bad they needed to die. He repeated the hunting tactic while interspersing eating with meditation to lower his debuff. The heads always exploded, even when he Cut them into tiny pieces. Some kind of failsafe trigger... Debuff Removed: [Cerebral Fatigue] His next test involved something he''d only briefly considered before, but something that should be possible. Because he was pretty sure he''d done something similar to the attacking humans when charging into Nate''s base... Stop It was very similar to the way he moved himself around. Before with Psionic Charge, and now with Mind Over Matter, he could ignore g-forces while accelerating and decelerating. He had to be, or his brain would probably be mush already. Beyond that, he didn''t know how it worked and didn''t care. Now he did the opposite thing to a bat by forcing it to move nowhere at all. It obliged his demand, and he made it keep obliging. The drain on his mind was heavy, so he quickly twisted off the bat''s head... which felt very weird when he was simultaneously telling it that it could not move. It got a lot easier to hold afterward. Then he waited a little... bit... longer... Luckily, it worked how he''d hoped, and a core fell from the frozen head. The living bats swarmed after it, as enthusiastically as they''d attacked the undead downstairs. Stanley dropped the head, which immediately exploded, though at a lesser intensity than the others had. Presumably because of the missing core. Half the bats kept after the core, but the others all opened their mouths and practically inhaled the explosion... Stanley felt something when they did that. Is it the mana? Are they eating it? He never noticed mana before, not when it wasn''t already in a spell, but now it felt like his Soul Awareness was pinging off whatever was happening nearby. He could feel something... moving. Flowing. It wasn''t soul energy; he knew that much, but there was definitely some kind of energy moving out there. It wasn''t a brand new phenomenon. Ever since Lee''s evolution, he could have sworn his soul sight was seeing something new, but that feeling was amplified after it became soul awareness... What did you do, Lee? Stanley assumed they were eating the mana. It fit with what he''d seen downstairs, and he also assumed that his own lack of mana was the reason they didn''t swarm him like they did the undead. Not that he let them see him. His theory gained strength when they chased the core around the room, even after he flew it behind walls and other furniture. They were relentless... so he repeated the exercise and killed them like he had the last. Stop Cut Debuff: [Cerebral Fatigue](14:59) The effort to stop and kill so many at once earned him a debuff. But a short one. Then he took the cores and fled through the air ducts to the next floor above, ahead of the incoming swarm drawn to the explosions. There, he snuck into another center office and then killed a few more bats outside the room. Just enough to draw more attention to his floor. Enough to put as many bats as he could between himself and the outside. In his hands, he had what he needed to evolve. Assuming he could get away with it and wouldn''t wake up to find a skeleton eating him. Or he could keep hunting in here and try to finish fortifying his vitality... Yeah right! He was a total idiot for even trying to fortify! He should have ranked up immediately. Who knew what his attributes would be by now if he hadn''t gotten greedy?! He might not even be in this mess... I''m sorry, Caff. Please don''t die on me... Better yet, just let me die and go find your friends... Except he knew Caffeine would never run away. Caffeine would fight to the death before he let Stanley die. I''ll be quick! +1 Dexterity +1 Dexterity All Base Attributes have reached the E-grade Threshold. Evolution to E-grade has begun. 89. I Cant Help This Awful Energy ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley dove right in, not wasting time before checking the first evolution option. [Psychomancer](E-grade Human) You have gone beyond the limits of your class. You have survived despite taking fatal wounds that should have ended you. Survive further. You embraced your rage as a tool of violence and used it to kill those who sought to end you. Rage against your enemies. You ignored the damage to your own flesh in order to see them dead. Victory at any cost. Continue on the path that has carried you this far as you ascend to a higher grade. This will not reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](65%) [Energetic Resilience] [Psycho] It was the same thing he already had. Next! [Rageweaver](E-grade Human) Let your rage reign supreme. Thousands have died to your rage. Rip and Tear! Hundreds of lairs have fallen to ruin beneath your rage. Crumble and Break! Souls tremble before your rage. Buckle and Bend! Source has fueled your rage to new heights. Ash and Dust! Your rage gives you power and has carried you far. Tread deeper onto this path and use the power of your rage as you ascend to a higher grade. This will reduce your future evolution options. New and Altered Traits: [Adaptable](60%) [Psycho] = [Rage] More anger. It had indeed carried him this far; why not keep it going? He checked the trait. [Rage] Rage is Power. Unleash it! Take no thought for anything but that which you must destroy. Fear nothing in your rage, for nothing can kill the rage. Effects: +500% - 2000% Effective Willpower +100% - 1000% All Regeneration -50% Effective Physical Attributes Not bad. It would strengthen him, no doubt about that. Maybe the regeneration would help with the debuffs? He''d been trying to move away from being angry all the time, but if that was what it took to survive... He still looked at the next orb. [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Find calm in the eye of the storm. Thousands have died to the tempest of your wrath. Yet some found safety in the Storm. Hundreds of lairs have fallen to ruin in the wake of your wrath. Yet some found shelter in the Storm. Souls tremble at the presence of your wrath. Yet some found power in the Storm. Source has empowered your wrath to new heights of destruction. Yet some found a light in the Storm. Your life has wavered repeatedly in your wrath. Yet you have found life in the Storm. Your mind has wavered repeatedly in your wrath. Yet you have found peace in the Storm. You are the storm that sweeps all away, including yourself. Yet now you seek calm in the eye of the storm, even as it ravages the world around you. Step onto this path and wield the fury of your wrath from the calm within as you ascend to a higher grade. New and Altered Traits: [Adaptable](58%) [Eye of the Storm] [Psycho] = [Wrath] Even more anger... though worded differently. He checked the trait, since that was really what mattered. [Wrath] Wrath is rage with purpose. Unleash the storm, but take care what its fury rains down upon. Never lose yourself to the wrath, lest the storm strike that which you never intended to destroy. Effects: +100% - 4000% Effective Willpower -0% - 50% Effective Physical Attributes That was better... and worse at the baseline. It also included nothing about regeneration. Though there was a second trait... [Eye of the Storm] Wrath directed is a great power. Terrible, but great. Wrath without purpose will unleash ruin upon all that you cherish. Control your mind and control the Storm. Stand apart from your wrath and wield it with ever greater power. Control your emotions and control the Storm. +100% - 1000% All Self-Control Skills +100% - 1000% All Regeneration Gained from Skills Stanley knew it was a better option. But it would require more... effort? Or focus? He''d still be using his rage to fight, but he had to control it better? It looked like the second trait would help his meditation... but he wasn''t sure what the ranges meant. Did they depend on his anger level or how well he controlled it? Did he have to learn to meditate while fighting? It was a hard choice. Take the easier and guaranteed power of rage. A rage that looked a lot like a berserker rage. A blind rage. Stanley liked blind rage. At least while he was in it. He liked not caring too much about anything. It was better than being afraid¡ªbetter than feeling the pain. The aftermath could be unpleasant, though. Or he could take the harder route, but one that could potentially make him more powerful. Albeit, with what looked like a lot more work and the potential that he might fail to pull it off. He didn''t want to be angry all the time. It sucked. Plus, it made Caffeine upset, and the good boy didn''t deserve that. There wasn''t a lot of time to decide. Not only was he feeling pressure to hurry for Caffeine''s sake, but his own life might be on the line if the undead came calling. That thought made Stanley realize something... He could still feel Caffeine. It was very different in here. There was no direction for the sensations, but they were undeniably there. Caffeine felt... tired, but not worried. Which didn''t tell him much, other than the fact he probably wasn''t fighting. Not yet. Though it was hard to say with Caffeine. He could very well be fighting for their lives and just wasn''t worried about it. Stanley kept focusing on the pug and listening for any sign of pain that might hint at fighting. He did that while he went over the remaining options and considered what path he would take. He had a feeling about the remaining orbs in here. There were no more good choices. [Eternal Bones](Eternal Bones) The Civilized Dead. You have touched an Eternal race shard. Even if you destroyed it. You are Adaptable. You don''t need permission. Change your fate. Change your alignment. Racial Traits: [Immortal] [Genesis] [Mind Above] That was... interesting¡ªthat he still had the option, not as an actual choice. Caffeine made it very clear that this wasn''t their path. Of course, there was still an option for the Beast Lord race... Stanley skipped it and went right to the blindingly bright orb. [Source of Power] Burn Bright. Obliterate All who Stand in your way. Burn All to Nothing. You have Bound to a Source. Take up the Power trapped inside you and become a God as you Burn. Do as you Wish. Unstoppable to the End. New Trait: [Source] It couldn''t be that easy. Stanley checked the trait. [Source] Unchain the Source. Burn Bright. Unleash the Power. Burn Everything. Effects: +1 Source The system was trying to kill him, wasn''t it? There were way too many mentions of burning in the descriptions... Did it not want him to hide the source? Or was this just here because it knew he had it? There had been no mention of it at his F-grade evolution, but then the system hadn''t known he had the source... presumably. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. It was tempting, despite knowing it would kill him. If it wouldn''t kill Lee along with him, and if he knew Caffeine wouldn''t die trying to save them... Stanley might just say fuck it and burn the undead right out of reality... That would mean his death, but at this point, it wasn''t such a terrible option. He''d die a hero. He''d save the world from these monsters. But he couldn''t do that to Lee and Caff. He would fight to the bitter end for them. No matter how much it hurt. No matter how much he wanted to quit. He would fight until he couldn''t anymore. Then he would keep fighting! I will never give up, you shit-stain fucks! Time was running out, and he still had to finish the actual evolution of whichever option he chose. Evolution to [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) has begun. F-grade Attribute Fortification: Strength: 0 +0% Effective Strength Vitality: 92 +92% Effective Vitality Dexterity 0 +0% Effective Dexterity Wisdom 0 +0% Effective Wisdom Intelligence 0 +0% Effective Intelligence Willpower 100 +100% Effective Willpower It was better than nothing. He''d almost made it to a hundred extra vitality... Pain burned through his body following the notification... and that was when he felt Caffeine get angry. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine looked back at Dearest Human and whined sadly. Dearest Human had very suddenly laid down and seemed to be having a nap. But Dearest Human was not having a good nap. He smelled like pain and hurting¡­ but not dying. And he was glowing. The hurting glow seemed to be making him stronger... That was good. Dearest Human hurt himself a lot. It would be better if he was tougher. The big wall, far away from the not interesting hole, burst open in a rain of rocks. Caffeine stood in the way so they wouldn''t hit Dearest Human, and then he Barked at the Very Bad Stinky Not Humans that climbed through the hole. Most of them jumped back into the outside, but a big one stood on nothing right outside the new door. It was the Very Bad One that hurt Dearest Human. The one that hurt Caffeine''s Friends. It was just like the one that tried to take Dearest Human away before... "NO!" Caffeine Growled at it, and it stopped making the bad light with its not for belly-rubbing hands. "YOU CAN¡¯T TAKE HIM!" Caffeine Barked, and the Very BAD Not Human smashed itself into another tall house farther away. It tried to come flying back. So Caffeine Barked again. "NO!" It made more bad light. "NO!" It told the Stinky Not Humans to come into the inside. "NO!" It kept trying to make bad light, and Caffeine told it, "NO! NO! NO! NO!" It tried to be sneaky and make bad light away from the new door. "YOU ARE BAD!" Caffeine Growled at it. "NOT HUMAN! NOT FOOD! NOT FRIEND! You are only BAD." More Stinky Not Humans crawled into the inside while Caffeine growled at the Very Bad, but his new Friend Flapping Dogs went to eat them. They were very good at eating Stinky Not Humans! They made a very big cloud with lots of flapping and some loud bangs when they exploded. Caffeine thought it didn''t look very fun to explode... but they kept doing it, so he didn''t say anything. He was very tired after so much angry growling, and the Flapping Dogs were very good at blocking the bad light. Caffeine wanted to go into the outside and make the BAD Not Human stop being alive, but he couldn''t leave Dearest Human alone while he was napping. So he stayed with Dearest Human and ate any Bad Light that made it past the Flapping Dogs. The Bad Light tasted bad. It wasn''t spicy or interesting. It was Only Bad. Just like the BAD in the outside. Lots and lots of Flapping Dogs went into the outside and chased the BAD. They didn''t chase for fun or play. They chased to eat. Caffeine liked that and Howled the magic words for them, "Good Boys!" They chased so much that the BAD flew away before they could eat it. Caffeine didn''t like that, but he was so tired... So much growling, and barking, and guarding, and protecting. He needed a nap. Caffeine was hungry and tired. But now some of the Flapping Dogs were crawling closer to Dearest Human. Not like good dogs either. They crawled closer with hungry faces. They were being Not Friends... "No!" Caffeine Barked, and the tiny Flapping Dogs jumped away and fell down. Then they started getting back up and coming closer again. "Danger! Attack! Hungry!" was all they would say, even when Caffeine did his best sad whine. "I''m hungry too!" he whined, but they didn''t listen, only charged. "No! Bad Dogs!" Caffeine growled at the tiny Flapping Dogs. They all sat very still, and very obedient. "Good¡­" They charged again. "No!" he barked. They jumped back again. "Dearest Human needs to rest," he huffed. "I can''t play right now." One of the Flapping Dogs jumping over Caffeine on his way to the outside suddenly turned toward Dearest Human and tried to hurt him. Caffeine had enough. He ate the tiny thing in one bite. He swallowed it, and it made his belly feel weird and not in a ''eating Dogs is bad'' way. They were not Dogs. They were stupid and mean. Dogs didn''t try to eat Friends or Dearest Humans. Caffeine growled again, and while they sat still, he warned them. "I will eat all of you if you don''t let Dearest Human rest." "Danger! Attack! Danger! Hungry!" They wouldn''t say anything else... Caffeine decided then. If you will not stop, you are food. And Caffeine was hungry. They attacked, and Caffeine ate them all before they reached Dearest Human. His stomach felt very weird, but also like he just had dinner. Good snack, but would rather have chicken! More Flapping Dogs came in and most of them flew past through the big door into the outside, but not all of them. "Dearest Human needs to sleep," he woofed at the tiny Flapping Dogs crawling closer. "Please let him rest or he might anger shout at you when he wakes up." They didn''t listen, and Caffeine ate them when they tried to jump on Dearest Human. The ones who jumped onto Caffeine were okay. They only wanted to snuggle and play a friendly chewing game. "Don''t fall on Dearest Human," he reminded them with a huff as he walked closer to the big Hole. "We can play over here." Caffeine lay down and rolled over. Some of the Flapping Dogs ran away and jumped into the big Hole. The others got tired of playing with him and tried to play with Dearest Human. Caffeine ate them. His belly was feeling not good. Like too many snacks, he thought, before giving himself a good shake. I am very tired! Caffeine realized, and he sighed. I must be starving¡­ too many snacks¡­ that''s not a real thing. He couldn¡¯t believe he''d had such a strange thought. Interesting noises and bangs came from the Hole. But Caffeine decided to stay and comfort Dearest Human. I''m a good boy. The Hole is not that interesting. More tiny and some less tiny Flapping Dogs came from the Not Very Interesting Hole. They moved towards Dearest Human and Caffeine warned them again. "I will eat you," he Growled, and they all stopped again. "Even though you taste bad..." He Barked and a lot of the tiny Flapping Dogs jumped into the very, Very Not Interesting Hole. Some of them missed and crashed into the wall. More Flapping Dogs climbed from the Hole, and one of them was bigger than the others. They started walking forward on their Flapping legs, and Caffeine stepped forward to meet them. "Dearest Human is very tired," he huffed, and they didn''t stop. It was very not nice. "If you make him anger shout, I will eat you." He Barked, only a little, only to explain that he was serious. They all jumped backwards very suddenly and fell over. Caffeine sat down again after making sure he hadn''t woken Dearest Human. "If you let Dearest Human rest, I will not eat you." Caffeine woofed very kindly. "Also, I''ll tell Dearest Human you were a good boy." His tail wagged as he thought of Dearest Human saying the happy words that ended with cookies! "He might give cookies!" He woofed excitedly. "Or belly rubs!" The Flapping Dogs were sniffing at Caffeine and at the Big Not Interesting Hole. Bad smells came from the Hole, Stinky Not Human smells. Caffeine growled at the Stinky Hole. He did not like the Stinky Not Humans. They smelled bad. And tasted bad. Though they did have tasty crunchy bits¡­ Loud bangs came from the Stinky Hole, and the smell got louder and louder until Caffeine thought he might have to angry bark at the Stinky Not Humans and make them run away. Before he could, a Stinky Not Human jumped out of the Hole and looked at Dearest Human. Bad! The Fast Stinky Not Humans were very bad! They always tried to hurt Dearest Human! Caffeine bit the Stinky Not Humans head off, and it fell down. Bad! No play! Only Die! He dropped it. Yuck! It tasted very bad. The tiny Flapping Dogs all jumped onto the Stinky Not Human. They were very happy while they ate it and that made Caffeine remember that he was starving. He found the crunchy snack in the Stinky head. Yummy! He looked at Dearest Human guiltily. I am a good boy for letting Dearest Human sleep¡­ he would want me to eat some snacks; after all, we haven''t had dinner in a very, very long time. He looked away, now very sure that Dearest Human would want him to eat the crunchy snacks, and saw that the Flapping Dogs had eaten the Stinky Not Human! They are strange Dogs. He pushed the Stinky Not Humans head over to them. "You can eat this." They did. Very strange Dogs. Some of the Flapping Dogs crawled slowly back into the Hole with glowing bellies. That''s why you Shouldn''t eat Stinky Not Humans. The rest started looking at Caffeine and Dearest Human again. "I will eat..." More Fast Stinky Not Humans jumped out of the hole, and Caffeine took away their heads before they could try to Kill Dearest Human. The Flapping Dogs got very excited and ignored Dearest Human to eat the Stinky things instead. Caffeine ate the crunchy bits and let them have the rest, though he did have to growl at one of them who tried to take his snack. When they finished eating, they started walking towards Caffeine again. Stupid Dogs. But the biggest of the tiny Flapping Dogs screamed very loudly at the smaller ones to stop and they did. Very loud, stupid Dogs. But the big one was less stupid. "No Attack? No Danger?" It screamed at him. Caffeine sighed and sat down. "No attack." He huffed in agreement. He was very tired. He must not have eaten enough¡­ Slow Stinky Not Humans climbed out of the hole and the Flapping Dogs jumped on them and ate them before Caffeine could help. Then the small ones all turned and jumped into the Very Boring, Not Interesting Hole. Good dogs. Some more Flapping Dogs came in and sat with the one who screamed, but they all stayed by the Hole. Caffeine laid down. He was tired. A nap would be nice. But Dearest Human''s cuddle naps are the best naps! Caffeine decided he would wait for the best naps. He sat up again. Loud bangs were coming from the Not Very Interesting Stinky Hole. Too loud. They made his ears twitch. Caffeine stood up and woofed politely at the tiny Flapping Dogs. "I will tell them to be quiet." He stepped forward, and they moved out of the way. Caffeine looked into the Stinky Hole. Lots of tiny Flapping Dogs were crawling through the hole. They were glowing and smelled Interesting¡­ but Stinky Not Humans were crawling in the hole too. Caffeine woofed at them to go away. They did not listen. I hope Dearest Human won''t anger shout if he wakes up. He took a deep breath. Dearest Human doesn''t like the Stinky Not Humans, so he will be happy if I chase them away! The glowing Dogs all crawled past, only Stinky Not Humans were crawling up in front of him. Caffeine Barked. "Go away!" All the Stinky Not Humans jumped away from him and went down the hole. Good. Caffeine looked at Dearest Human. Still asleep. He walked back and sat down next to Dearest Human. I am a good boy! The Flapping Dogs smelled like afraid and Caffeine friendly woofed at them. "Dearest Human might give you a belly rub if you are good! Belly rubs are the best!" Dearest Human suddenly screamed and made the air go wiggly. Caffeine quickly comforted him with a good face cleaning. "You''re a good boy!" He said the happy words to Dearest Human, but he still smelled like hurting. But it was less now! "You''re a good boy!" He woofed again, but it didn¡¯t seem to help the second time. Caffeine sighed and gave him a reassuring face lick. The Flapping Dogs were all trembling now. "It''s okay." He huffed at them. "Dearest Human is only sleeping." Caffeine curled up next to Dearest Human''s head. He rested his head on Dearest Human and listened to his sleep sounds. I am a good boy too. Dearest Human slowly calmed down, stopped smelling like hurting, and smelled only like tired. Caffeine decided maybe a small cuddle nap would be okay... He really hoped Dearest Human would wake up soon. 90. Its Do Or Die ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley could feel the surrounding souls all too clearly as his body evolved. He could feel them, but it was extremely hard to focus while his head exploded... All he knew was that it felt like the bats were swarming all around him. The changes in his body ended before his head stopped pounding, so he managed to sit up using only his muscles. Caffeine''s anger had faded by now. He was fine and quite happy given how enthusiastically he licked Stanley''s face, then he curled up and passed out in his lap. Stanley held him close and ducked his head beneath the flocks of bats flying outside through a massive hole in one side of the skyscraper lair. Something had obliterated his own little enclosed office, where he''d holed up for the evolution. There was no sign of injuries on Caffeine, nor was there any blood among the rubble of his shelter. That alone was enough for Stanley to leave the bats alone as they flew past overhead. Plus, going by the hole in the building, the skeleton must have attacked. Stanley was all for the bats going after it. That was the primary reason he''d stuck inside this lair in the first place. The lingering ache of his evolution finally faded as he sat huddled there, and immediately following the cessation of pain, Caffeine started twitching in his lap. Stanley thought it was just an exciting dream at first, but he could feel something surging inside the pug and realized what it was a moment later. Caffeine was ranking up. Good boy, Caff! Sorry I took so long... Stanley wanted to test his new strength, but not against the bats. Not just yet. Especially not if, as he suspected, Caffeine had made friends with them. Plus, he''d rather not remind them he was here if they were content to ignore him. So he tested meditation first, which was supposed to get better after the evolution. It felt... He couldn''t tell a difference. Shit. Did I fuck up and make the wrong choice? His anger at the potential mistake was muted inside the meditation, but it ramped up something else... His meditation grew with the anger. That was the only way he could think of to describe it. It didn''t take away the anger, but it made using the skill feel... easier. Angry meditation? That sounds stupid. It didn''t explain how this was supposed to help him fight, since he still couldn''t do anything else while meditating. Maybe it would make recovery faster after a fight? If he could remove any debuffs faster, that would help... Of course, he''d have to survive the fucking fight first! His rising anger still failed to destabilize the meditation, and Stanley used the extra power to split his attention away from himself and out into the world around him. That was too much. The skill failed, and Stanley stewed in his suddenly very present anger. He wanted to lash out at something, but there was a strong feeling of being watched... A quick look at the surrounding souls revealed the culprits, and Stanley looked at the large bats that were not flying in or out of the building. These all sat or hung around. All staring at him. Stanley stared right back. Try something! See what happens! Caffeine twitched and whimpered in his lap. The bats blinked, and Stanley realized it wasn''t him they were watching. It was Caffeine. Did you make more friends, Caff? He focused on what their souls were telling him... Wary! Danger! Waiting. Maybe not exactly friends then. Caffeine must have scared them... Good boy. There was something else in the surrounding field of souls. Something he''d glossed over earlier in favor of more pressing concerns. Human souls. They weren''t any he recognized¡ªwhich wasn''t saying much¡ªbut they also weren''t outside the lair. They were upstairs, on what felt like the top floor. The strangest part was that they still hadn''t moved, despite everything happening. It was hard to tell exactly what they were feeling from this far away and in between the thousands of bats, but there was a distinct note of fear coming from somewhere up there. Stanley finally moved from his ruined hiding spot. He was curious about the humans, and it wouldn''t hurt to at least get away from the massive hole in the building. Any extra walls that might slow down the skeleton were better than nothing. He wasn''t about to go anywhere outside until Caffeine finished evolving. Not if he didn''t have to. The bats responded very little to his flight toward and then into the elevator shaft, but they didn''t like it when he flew up. Not quite to the point of attacking, but he could feel their wariness shifting into a slowly growing alarm. Stanley both spread his mental touch and listened to his soul as he drifted upward. He found no obvious sign of the skeleton and used the relative calm to check his status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](58%) [Source Nexus] [Wrath] [Eye of the Storm] [Source Burned] Class: Psionic (Rare) - Level 80 (Advanced) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 58 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 41 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 40 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 45 (Intermediate) Attributes: Strength: 100(+60%)160 Vitality: 100(+152%)252 Dexterity 100(+60%)160 Wisdom 100(+923%)1023 Intelligence 100(+923%)1023 Willpower 100(+1603%)1703 Twin-Soul ???(+75%)??? Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 25 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) Buff: Debuff: His stats were... fine. His physical attributes were better than they had been, but he wouldn''t know if his choices paid off until it was time to fight. Or until the bats stopped watching and attacked him, which seemed not far off from their reactions to his ascent. Stanley wasn''t worried about the bats. He tried grabbing a few further away from his position and found them easy enough to handle. He even stopped one in mid-flight. That test alone made it very clear that his power had grown by magnitudes. Just like when he''d reached F-grade, the changes weren''t all reflected in his status. Unless you counted where it said E-grade, because that was what mattered. His one hundred willpower¡ªnever mind the effective¡ªwas now worth more than it had been. He held the bat immobilized without strain as he flew higher and higher. It was effortless. Almost. Near enough that it was practically the same thing. The bats had missed their chance to kill him. Now they had no chance. Even if the entire lair came after him, Stanley was confident in slaughtering them. Which was good because they got tired of him approaching their queen when he was a few floors from the top. Stanley felt the shift coming a mile away thanks to their souls, and he simply shoved all the bats further down the shaft as he flew higher. They all did that glowing mouth thing as they went by, but it had no effect that Stanley could tell. Probably since he didn''t have mana for them to drain. Luckily, it looked like the whole exploding shtick wasn''t something they did on demand. Or at least that''s what he assumed, given the lack of explosions and how desperate they were to stop him. On the top floor, he blocked off the shaft with a psionic wall and finally realized how much of a racket all those bats were making when silence descended. It was nice. Peaceful. If a bit dark. He also found the humans... in a cage. The sight was enough to bring him to a halt as he tried to figure out what the hell he was looking at. It was a crude thing, made of scrap metal and rebar, all twisted into a makeshift enclosure with half a dozen people inside the bars. One of whom was waving frantically at Stanley and whispering, "Help... shit, watch out! It''s come..." Stanley didn''t need the warning. He''d already spread his mind over the top floor, and he felt the monsters coming well before they attacked. Stop Two bats, both much bigger than any he''d seen before, stopped in midair as they pounced. Stanley eyed the surroundings while he waited for what he guessed was the... king? Its soul felt much more complex than any other, rivaled only by the obvious queen deeper in. As for his surroundings, whatever changes the lair had wrought in this building, it looked like they''d started up here. Nothing of the original structure could be seen, and now it looked like a literal cave. The walls looked like rough stone. All the windows were gone, and the only light was from glowing blue rocks that scattered across the floor. The giant bat shot around a corner, rebounded off the wall, and shot directly at him, its mouth glowing bright as it breathed out blue flames... Stanley turned the head away from himself, closed it tight, then used it as a fulcrum to flip the entire thing over and slam the bat against the floor hard enough to rattle the stone. Hard enough that it finally got the queen moving. That, or the queen finally finished birthing a fresh batch of little baby bats... It was weird to feel those brand new souls as they floundered at their first glimpse of the world... but they recovered quickly. Their instincts took over, and they were right behind the queen as she scrambled toward him. She came on even faster than her mate, but stopped before reaching him. Stanley felt her chest expanding as she breathed in, and he literally saw the mana flowing into her glowing maw. It flowed from the air, from the little blue rocks all over the floor, and from the humans in the cage. Most of it was blue, but the humans gave off a bunch of different colors when she sucked out their mana... It was actually rather cool to see their mana like that. He shut the queen''s mouth before it could breathe any more of that blue fire, then squeezed her entire body even tighter until she stopped moving. Her soul shifted rapidly through a variety of emotions as she stood unmoving and stared at him with giant black eyes. "Hi," Stanley said with a small wave. He ignored the little bats as they crashed into him, only shielding Caffeine so they didn''t step on him. They were so small¡ªbarely the size of his hand¡ªand they didn''t even try to bite him. Each one merely perched where it landed and stuck their glowing mouths against his flesh. They were honestly kind of cute... Obviously, nothing happened, and they got no mana. Stanley felt the queen''s soul change when she realized what was happening. He felt her anger warring with despair as she struggled against his power. She was clearly smart. Taking humans prisoner for their mana regeneration was proof enough, but her soul was the real give away. Then Caffeine whimpered with an extra strong kick, and the queen''s gaze leapt to the pug right as he howled softly in his sleep. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. You have heard the Howl of the Beast Lord. +1% All Effective Attributes to Friends -1% All Effective Attributes to Not Friends She was smart enough to give up a lost cause, and he felt the capitulation from her soul an instant before... The queen has surrendered. Lair defeated. Stanley let go of her while the little bats still scrambled over him, trying to get his mana. Then the queen screeched a high-pitched noise, and all hostilities ceased. The little bats flew off into the elevator shaft, and Stanley released the others, who crawled slowly backward to get in front of the queen. "Holy shit..." a man whispered from the cage. "Kill them!" another screamed as the queen backed away. "Shut up!" someone else hissed as the queen departed with a glowing belly and her guards took up station to block the path behind her. The king stood before them and trembled at Stanley in fear. "Jeez, relax. I''m not going to kill you... but I am taking your humans." The king bristled at his words, but obviously, it couldn''t understand what he said. It finally seemed to get what he was after when he peeled open the cage, but it only glowered and still made no move to attack. A cloud of smaller bats flew from the elevator shaft while he did that, and Stanley got to see them all vomit up a fresh pile of the glowing rocks... which the king sucked up this time, then retreated past its guards to join the queen in the back room. "How..." The man who''d tried to warn him was the first to stand after they were free. "Nevermind that. Thank you!" Even though he was dirty and battered, the guy was clearly good-looking. One of those adonis-looking bastards that won the genetic lottery. He also had brilliant red-gold hair that perfectly matched the bird on his shoulder. Which was why Stanley didn''t even notice the little avian until it made a small screeching sound. It was not a bird species he recognized¡ªnot that he knew jackshit about birds. But it didn''t look at all natural, and Stanley moved backward a few feet. Just in case... Maybe he should have talked to them first? Their souls were all over the place, and they might be a bunch of psychos... Wannabe pirate guy pulled another man to his feet with very obvious affection in his soul, and a damn fox stood up beside the second man... What was this, a fucking zoo? The second man wasn''t as color coordinated with the fox... but his dark skin and black hair did technically match the fox''s darker patches amidst a bright orange coat. The fox was cute. Adorable even. If not for the hostility he felt from its soul... None of that stood out more than one absolutely ridiculous absurdity. All of them were wearing suits... Straight-up business suits. Including fucking ties! They looked like total idiots. Stanley watched them warily but wasn''t too concerned. If they lost to the bats, then they couldn''t be that dangerous. Could they? Besides, it looked like they''d gotten trapped in here for a while, and none of them were in any shape to fight. Or was that just from getting their mana drained over and over? He watched them but spent most of his attention listening to their souls. The new skill was way better, and it was giving him so much information... Sure, it didn''t tell him how strong any of them were, but he also wouldn''t get attacked out of nowhere. A flare of anger from the black man preceded the growled, "Why didn''t you kill them!?" Stanley didn''t realize the question was directed at him for a second, then he frowned. "The bats? Why should I? They are actively hunting the undead." "You..." Birdman put a hand on the fox guy''s arm, and he shut up. "I''m Adrian. This is Daryl, and that''s Donny, and..." Stanley mostly tuned them out as he drifted back toward the elevator shaft. He''d only come up here because he had time to kill. Also, maybe he felt a little guilty about abandoning his team before... but a bunch of weaklings would be no help against what he faced. It would be better for everyone if they fucked right off. He''d seen the stairwell door open when the queen surrendered. It was likely the way they were supposed to leave. But the lair hadn''t closed off the shaft¡ªprobably because the queen still needed the bats to bring their mana rocks up here. It wasn''t that he minded the stairs, but Stanley wasn''t sure if he wanted to trap himself in the narrow corridor right at the edge of the building. He preferred to keep as many bats as possible around in case more soul magic came after him. Also, it might be better to fly away through the hole in the building rather than at ground level. He highly doubted the skeleton had abandoned the chase... and there were no notifications about dead invaders from when he''d been evolving. That thing had very likely come after him while he was unconscious, and it would not quit so easily... Stanley was stronger, sure, but probably not enough to scare that monster away. Three of the humans he''d rescued didn''t have a problem with taking the stairs, and they were running their little hearts out while he stared down the dark shaft of the elevators. Flickering shapes filled the darkness, some crawling or flying up with glowing blue bellies, while the majority flew down to go join the fight. The queen was really churning them out in there¡ªfar faster than any lair Stanley had seen before¡ªand another fresh batch flew past while he sat there. Maybe there was something to collecting all that extra mana? He felt the fatigue in the fleeing humans when they stopped less than halfway down. It was pathetic. How did they even end up in here if they were that weak? The remaining trio hadn''t fled yet, and they were behind him whispering furiously... "You saw that notification. It said it was the damn Beast Lord!" "It''s impossible!" Fox Guy said far too loudly. That was Daryl. Stanley grinned to himself. Believe it or not. He would have enjoyed their disbelief more, except the fox was terrified. That took the fun out of it. He knew what was coming, or near enough, and so he just grabbed all of them rather than wait for the question. There were a few protests as they floated down the shaft while the bats ignored all of them. They were too weak to resist him. Mostly. Adrian had some weight to him... until he got closer and entered Stanley''s domain. It was nothing after that. Their protests ended, and their fear increased when they reached the floor where Stanley had done his evolution. It might have been because he finally let go of them, or it might have had something to do with the massive hole in the side of the building... "What did this?" Adrian whispered. He said it with a furtive glance at Stanley and the pug in his lap. A pug Stanley was fairly certain hadn''t destroyed the lair; it just didn''t seem like his style. "Have you guys seen any four-armed skeletons?" Stanley asked instead of answering. "Like, say, around ten feet tall?" "No..." Adrian said. "Are they the invaders?" "Unfortunately. This latest one is D-grade." "That''s impossible!" Daryl snapped. He really enjoyed saying things were impossible... as if his stupid beliefs mattered. The stairwell the others had taken just so happened to run down the side of the building with a huge hole in it, and Stanley watched the people jumping down in the gap. They looked sweaty... and pissed. Also scared. "Thanks for the fucking lift!" one of them said, breathing heavily when they finished slinking through the swarming bats and over to Stanley''s group at the elevators. "You''re the one that ran off," Donny said with a laugh. "Fuck you!" "Guys, let''s not fight in the middle of the damn lair!" one of the two girls in the group said pleadingly. Stanley watched them and their souls while they bickered. Was it worth dragging them along? Maybe they weren''t completely useless? He doubted it... but they could be meat shields if nothing else. Especially if more soul magic was involved. Was it unethical to make them take the soul attacks? Maybe it would unlock their soul attribute... Donny kept reaching furtively into his jacket pocket, where Stanley knew he had a flask. He''d felt it as soon as his domain touched the man. What he didn''t know was what was in the flask. Other than a liquid. So he took it from the man. "What''s in here?" "No! I..." Donny snatched at it too slowly, then slumped when Daryl''s eyes went wide. "I knew you were holding out! You bastard!" "That''s my backup! I was waiting for a chance for us to escape..." Stanley opened the flask and didn''t even have to get close to smell the overpowering scent of alcohol. That single whiff was enough to know this shit would definitely work, even for E-grades... It was tempting. A shot of liquid courage for the coming fight. "Please... um, mister," Donny said. "I need that to fight. But if we get out of here, I''ll gladly hook you up!" Stanley closed it back up without drinking. It wasn''t worth the risk. He''d never been an angry drunk, and anger was likely going to be exactly what he needed. Now, a drink after the fight¡ªa victory drink. That might be nice, but how come he hadn''t heard of anyone getting drunk? Nate definitely wouldn''t have allowed it... or would he? "Where the hell did you guys come from?" Daryl glared at Stanley, and his fox mirrored the emotion almost exactly. Adrian started to reach for the other man, then stopped and said, "We''re in a residential tower on the waterfront. If you need a place to relax... or shelter, you''re more than welcome. We also wouldn''t mind a lift back there, considering you flew us down here..." "There''s a monster waiting out there," Stanley said, deciding to lay it out plainly. "It wants me. You guys should bail and hope it doesn''t go after you." He could hopefully use their departure as a distraction. "Yea, right!" Daryl yelled. "You want us to be bait while you run the other way!" Stanley chuckled. "I thought it was worth a shot. But I''m not lying about it wanting me. So stay here or fuck off wherever. I don''t care." "We can help," Adrian said, and that set off a bunch of arguing. Stanley flew away. They wouldn''t be able to help him in the fight, but they also couldn''t stay here for long. The bats would probably turn hostile, if not now, then maybe when Stanley left the building. Either way, they would have to make a move. He flew lower in the building, toward the thinning numbers near the ground. The fighting had taken a toll, and the building was far less crowded now. So much less so that the undead had taken the first floor... I can help with that. Stanley liked the undead getting hunted by the bats, so he went low enough to reach the first floor with his mind and started dragging the zombies upstairs. The bats didn''t take long to notice the flying zombies coming up the elevator shaft. Meanwhile, the humans were continuing down the stairs on the other side of the building. Stanley killed the zombies and kept the bats away until he got the cores. They definitely wanted the cores, but they still ate the bodies without cores if he let them. Which he did. No reason not to help out a little. Plus, it was fun to see the zombies crumble into dust. He kept that up until the number of undead dwindled and the bats retook the ground floor. The entire time, there was no sign of the skeleton. The recently freed humans also lingered down there. Stanley was watching¡ªwell, technically touching¡ªthem. The staircase turned lair exit actually opened directly into the outside, a small hidden door that had opened when they reached the ground floor and only after the way back upstairs had closed behind them. Of course, then they waited. He wasn''t sure if it was because of what he''d said or if they were just resting. Surprisingly, none of the passing zombies ever wandered inside the open door. It was good they waited, since Stanley was waiting on Caffeine to finish evolving. Hopefully, they would wait long enough... There was one nice surprise amidst the shitshow. Obviously, the cores were all giving him shit gains again, but it had changed. +0.2 Willpower(-0.8 from Source Nexus) Repeated core absorptions all showed the same thing; he only lost eighty percent instead of ninety. He had added a few points to all his attributes by the time Caffeine big-stretched while laying on his side. Then, with a long, slightly whining yawn, he stood up in Stanley''s lap and wagged his tail. Stanley pulled him close and rested his forehead against Caffeine''s. "You''re a good boy, Caff. The very best. Thank you for watching over me." Caffeine squirmed around to lick his face, and Stanley smiled. "I love you, good boy." Then he sat up straight and listened to his soul. There was still no sign of the skeleton, but he knew it was out there waiting for him. He just wasn''t lucky enough to escape without a fight. It was already a miracle that the monster left him alone for as long as it had. Now it was time to do or die. Unless he wanted to wait for the humans downstairs to make their own break for it. His new skill was supposed to make his soul harder to detect, but Stanley doubted it was enough to escape from that monster. Who knew what level its own Soul Sight was? They were getting ready to leave. He could feel that much. The rising tension and fear. The uncertainty. The excitement. Idiots. Then they sprinted out the door, and Stanley felt his own heart rate spike at the coming battle. Because there would be a battle. There always was. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine huffed tiredly and lay down in the nice, dark place. It would only be better if Dearest Human was in here to cuddle with him... That would make it perfect! The only other bad thing was that all the balls were very bright and made napping harder. Caffeine climbed back to his feet and looked at all the glowing balls. He¡¯d seen balls like this before... and some of them had been sneaky Bad balls that tried to steal Dearest Human. He growled a very serious warning at all the balls. ¡°If any of you are bad balls, then you should go away or I will anger shout like Dearest Human at you!¡± A lot of the balls shivered. They must have known they were bad... so Caffeine howled his best Dearest Human anger shout at them, just like Dearest Human did with the Bad Not Humans, ¡°Go away, Bad Balls!¡± Some of the balls ran away. ¡°Good boy,¡± Caffeine huffed. But it was still too bright... so he tasted the first one with a very friendly lick. [Anima Catenae Ruptor] You have bound your very soul with unbreakable chains. Take up a new mantle and become the one who breaks all chains, whether your own or any others... Caffeine growled at the ball. It was trying to be even sneakier than the last time! It must have seen when Dearest Human had all those Bad lights hurting him... now it wanted to trick him by pretending to help! ¡°Bad Ball!¡± He grabbed it, dug a hole in the very dark, very tough dirt here, and buried the sneaky ball. ¡°I warned you, Bad Ball. Now you won¡¯t get to play anymore. No chewing. No chasing.¡± Caffeine felt a little sad for the ball, but it shouldn¡¯t have been so sneaky bad if it didn¡¯t want to get in trouble. Then he turned to the rest of the balls. ¡°I will hide all of you so no one ever plays with you again. It is very not nice, but you are being very bad by trying to steal Dearest Human again.¡± Almost all of them ran away. Caffeine sniffed carefully at one that didn¡¯t run. [Omnes Perussi Deus] You have shared of yourself repeatedly and to your own detriment while never receiving anything back. Take up a new mantle and become the all consuming... Caffeine sighed very sadly and dug another hole. ¡°I am very sorry, bad ball, but I told you not to be sneaky.¡± When he finished burying the bad ball, he looked up, and there was only one more ball left. It didn¡¯t even shiver when he looked at it, so maybe it wasn¡¯t bad like the others? [Canine(Pug)] Remain on your path of chained potential. Change nothing as you ascend to the next stage... ¡°Good boy,¡± Caffeine told the ball, and because it was so good, he chewed on it with his best chewing bites and even let it roll around a lot to get chased! He chased it until he got tired, then he laid down and held the ball with his paws for another very good, long chewing. He felt his tail wagging very happily as he finally drifted off to sleep with the ball in his mouth... 91. How Much Faith Do You Have Left ~~~Zeke~~~ "Eve, can I talk to you?" Zeke asked quietly. She was bent over some kind of metal contraption on the table in front of her. "Umm," she murmured, not taking her eyes off the device before her. She touched a finger to a metal rod, and a brief glow flashed over it. "Sure, what''s up?" "Well..." Zeke started hesitantly. "You know how..." "Eve!" A new voice interrupted, and Zeke shut his mouth. How I''m a monster... Zeke turned toward the voice and saw Kyle saunter in, followed by two other men, both carrying aluminum baseball bats. His ''tanks'', as Kyle called them, looked a bit banged up while Kyle was almost sparklingly clean. "Hi guys." Zeke pushed away his dark thoughts and hurried over to them. "Need any healing?" "Hello Zeke!" Kyle smiled at him and then passed by to head for his sister. "Hi Eve! I brought you some cores." "Great." Eve said flatly as Zeke put a hand on one of Kyle''s tanks. "Give ''em to Zeke." Purifying Light "Thanks, Z," the man said quietly as he relaxed under the golden glow. Zeke knew his passive aura was already healing them, but it would be faster with both skills. Behind him, Zeke heard Kyle muttering something and the clattering of cores on the table. "So Eve..." Kyle drawled. "Why don''t you take a break and come have lunch with me? I brought back some giant chickens, and I bet Bill will cook some for us if I ask..." "Not interested," Eve said quickly, cutting him off. "Lots of work to do." Hitting on my sister... Gross, Zeke thought, as he felt the first of the men''s health stop regenerating. He switched to the other. "Oh Eve!" Kyle laughed loudly, but it sounded forced. "You''ll come around one of these days, but don''t worry, I''ll keep looking out for you... and your brother." The last bit sounded like an afterthought. Zeke rolled his eyes and saw the man he was healing grin at him as his health topped off. The man gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder. "Thanks, kid." "What are the lairs like?" Zeke asked. "It''s pretty rough," the man replied after a moment. "Some are worse than others." "I could go with..." Zeke started. "No," Byron''s deep voice rumbled through the room. "It is not safe, Zeke." "But..." "He''s right," Nate said, walking through the door. "It''s far better for everyone if you''re here. Especially since..." He trailed off, gaze unfocused, then whispered, "What is it?" "What''s what?" Eve demanded. "You''re psychic, right? What did you see!?" Nate winced. "Not a psychic. But... something is wrong." He stood there, unmoving, for a little longer. "Everyone, get to battle stations. I don''t know what''s wrong, but I think something''s coming." People started moving in a rush of noise, and Nate shouted, "Find Olie! I want a message sent to..." Olie sprinted in, shouting all the way. "Edward sent the signal! They''re under attack and need help!" Nate took a single step toward the door and stopped. "So are we." Zeke felt his heart sink at those words. He knew what this was about. It was him. The undead wanted him because of his power. Now everyone would have to fight to protect him... "I want to help, Nate!" "...casters in every window," Nate said, then turned to Zeke. "We will need your help before this is over. Which means we need you to stick with your team no matter what. Keep them alive, and they will do more than you ever could alone. You got that?" Zeke swallowed. "Yes, sir." Then Nate was off again, giving orders as people rushed frantically in every direction. Zeke watched anxiously, hands clasped tight, as he prayed, Jesus, please... Eve pulled him into a hug. "We got this, Zeke." She let him go and kept strapping weapons onto her body. "I won''t let them touch you!" Zeke nodded mutely. He''d seen that expression on her face before; it was always there when she lied to him. Like when she told him everything would be okay. Or when their mom told the crusaders to hurt Eve... when Eve smiled and told him it was fine. When she took the torch out of his hands... When she was bleeding and told him it didn''t hurt... Please save her, Jesus... Zeke prayed for his sister; he prayed she wasn''t lying. But it was all useless. He didn''t even know if he believed in anything anymore... He looked at the devil''s words again. Status Name: Ezekiel Mitchell Race: [Broken Faith](E-grade Human) Titles: [Light of the World] Traits: [Adaptable](100%) [Faithless] Class: Faith Purifier (Divine) - Level 40 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Purifying Light (Broken) (Divine) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Purifying Aura (Broken) (Divine) - Level 40 (Intermediate) Attributes: Strength: 150(+200%)450 Vitality: 150(+200%)450 Dexterity: 150(+200%)450 Wisdom: 150(+200%)450 Intelligence: 150(+200%)450 Willpower: 150(+200%)450 Faith: 8(-50%)4 Soul: 9(+0%)9 Non-Class Skills(0/6): Buffs: Debuffs: Even the devil knew his heart. Even the devil knew he was broken and useless. Ever since he''d seen his mom burning... since he''d burned her... She was supposed to be the light. The shining beacon on the hill. But she wasn''t... She was a monster, too. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. But then, what did that make him? The waiting dragged on... and on. Zeke hoped Nate was wrong about the attack, and he even started to think he must have been... until something exploded outside while shouts came from upstairs. Zeke froze as his guards burst into motion. Pru sprinted to the window, appearing there in a burst of speed that even Zeke couldn''t follow. "Seeing dozens of incoming. I think it''s already safe room time!" Byron scooped Zeke into his massive arms without a word and sprinted deeper into the building, the others following. Zeke protested, but no one listened to him. It was just as well. What did he know? But he wanted to help. He wanted to heal people. That wasn''t evil! Was it? Unless he healed evil people... They didn''t let him go until they''d trapped him inside an enclosed room with only one way in or out. A doorway that Byron could fill completely with his body. All the children were already here... "Stay near," Lila said, ice covering her arms and spreading further. "We can help with the fighting, but Zeke is the priority. You don''t move out of range of him, no matter what." Zeke stood near the door, Byron''s hand on his shoulder keeping him from leaving but still letting him peek outside. He pushed his mind and faith against his broken aura, even if it was weak. He pushed it as far as it would go, feeling the little twinges against his faith that told him he was helping someone, even if he couldn''t see them. Everyone tensed up when they heard the voice shouting outside. "None of you have to die! There is still time to choose the right side! To choose immortality! Just give us the purifi..." A loud boom interrupted the words. "Fuck them up, Nate!" Eve hissed behind him, and Zeke turned to see her kneeling over some strange, spiky, metal... thing. Glowing silver light covered her fingers as she twisted and bent the metal. The same voice from before came back. Laughing. "So you have chosen..." Another boom shut it up, and more explosions followed, along with stranger noises Zeke recognized as different skills of people here at the base. He felt the building shake around them and saw a trio of figures emerge from a side door... They looked human, but he knew what they were. His aura was already burning them, which might explain why they all turned immediately to look at him. "Get back!" Byron thrust Zeke back right before something exploded in the huge man''s face. Lila shot past on a sheet of ice as Byron moved from the doorway, Pru on her heels. Asher followed with the gleaming twin blades Eve had made for him. Zeke didn''t get to see what happened, but he''d seen his guards fight before and knew they were really strong. It should have ended in seconds. It didn''t. Curses echoed into the room along with the sounds of combat. More curses also echoed inside the room. From Eve. She hadn''t used to talk like that. Not until after she went away to college. Their mom had been so mad when Eve left... Zeke had missed her so much. He''d been so happy when Mom took him to visit her at school... Of course, the visit hadn''t gone well. They fought. Mom and Eve screamed at each other so much... but Eve had hugged him and called him Zeke instead of Ezekiel... just like she used to. He thought they would be a family again. Then the world ended, and everything went to... poop. He had ruined everything by not having enough faith. Now Eve would die too... ~~~Nate~~~ Nate watched the monsters sauntering from the treeline with a sinking feeling in his gut. There were so many of them, and his intuition was alarmingly silent for such an occasion. It told him one thing, though. One of the monsters was not like the others. It looked as human as the rest, but Nate knew it wasn''t. None of them were human anymore. "None of you have to die!" the fake human shouted. "There is still time to choose the right side! To choose immortality! Just give us the purifi..." Full Throttle Lightning Blows Iron Skin Power Step Nate punched a hole through its head, ripped off both its arms, and kicked its body back into the trees before using its arms to slap two more heads from the undead traitors'' shoulders. His allies attacked only a heartbeat behind him, and it was a good thing because the ones he''d killed were not dying. Stanley had told him about the fight with the zombie and how it regenerated¡ªa zombie Nate was fairly certain was the one charging back toward him with a new head and two new arms... "So you have chosen..." Nate took off its head again, followed by punching a hole through its chest, followed by taking its head again... Then he had to dodge a clawed swipe from the headless creature while ripping the other arm free and throwing it through another traitor''s back. The creature stopped toying with him, and Nate had no more time to help with the others. He knew this one was the most dangerous, and it was up to him to take it down. His allies would have to deal with the rest. Zeke should be safe, at least, with that team around him, but Nate dearly wished Stanley was here for this. The signal from Edward dashed any hope he had for that eventuality. This was clearly a coordinated assault. The undead wouldn''t let them work together. He should have convinced Stanley to stay here and let others hunt for him. He also really shouldn''t have indulged Stanley with his fortification idea... I should have acted more threateningly. That probably would have kept him from waiting. It was too late now. Nate could feel his intuition twitching back and forth as he fought. He knew everything was up in the air right now. It could go either way... So he fought with everything he had against an immortal monster, after said monster had finally shown its true colors. Now its eyes glowed with red light, and it sported six inch claws on each hand as it tried its damnedest to kill him. Nate leaned aside, those claws a hair''s breadth from his face, and punched through the knee rising toward him. He blocked the second clawing attack by obliterating the entire hand... then watched it regenerate almost instantly. Stanley said it was likely some kind of soul magic that kept them from dying. Something that linked them with their minions and fed off their lives. Or unlives. Whatever. Hundreds of those likely minions were swarming his home at this very moment, and Nate didn''t dare go after any of them. This monster before him was too strong and too fast. It would cut through most of his people without effort. He was the only one who could keep up with it. It was up to everyone else to deal with the zombies. Not to mention the other immortal human traitors. None of them held the strength of this one, but they also didn''t die from fatal wounds. He caught glimpses of the surrounding fighting, where some geniuses had figured out that they should use slowing and disabling magic against the traitors. It was working wonderfully at keeping them out of the fight while the weaker fighters killed the mindless horde. Of course, it wasn''t enough. Nate had already seen a few traitors make it inside the building. He had to hope Zeke''s protection detail could handle them. They knew everything Nate knew about these monsters, so they should know to conserve power. This was more of an endurance fight than anything. They just had to kill the monsters enough times, while their own numbers dwindled. A dozen humans were already down. Mostly the close range fighters. The ranged casters were blasting from small windows all up and down the building, from windows prepared for this very scenario. The problem there was that they would eventually run out of mana. He heard someone shouting for retreat inside as their numbers dwindled, and he caught glimpses of the remaining fighters following the order. Good timing. They did the right thing and didn''t wait for him before locking down the lair. Hopefully, it would give them enough time to deal with the ones already inside before the remaining zombies breached the door again. "Your friends have abandoned you," the zombie said, laughing. Nate smiled and punched a hole through its face. "I''m not trapped out here with you." "Foolish mortal! You..." Nate blasted its head, arms, and one leg away with a flurry of lightning blows. "You''re trapped out here with me!" The zombie actually retreated for a moment after reforming its body. "You''re almost as annoying as that other human was." "Thanks," Nate said, charging after it. "Fool! That human is already dead!" "I doubt that," Nate said. "He would not go down so easily. I haven''t even heard his dog roar yet. Or did you forget about him?" The zombie apparently didn''t like the reminder, and it leapt back with a growl. "I wanted to take that beast''s flesh! It would have made a fine form. Instead, I think I will take yours!" Nate''s intuition finally reacted to something as the zombie pounced. He aborted his block and counterattack to dodge aside just ahead of the black lightning that exploded from the zombie''s claws. It ripped into the dirt and carved deep trenches a dozen feet long. Nate swayed aside from the follow-up attack, the lightning arcing a few little stray bolts into his flesh as it passed. Debuff Resisted: [Corruption] The zombie roared, and Nate didn''t need his eyes to know what was coming. He leaned aside from a glowing black blade that tried to remove his head from behind, then deflected a pair of bloody claws aiming for his guts. He killed both attackers before they could follow up, then killed the two behind them. All four failed to stay dead. They also couldn''t compete with their leader. Unfortunately, they didn''t need to. A horde of weak but undying former humans swarmed onto him while the real threat abandoned the fight in search of different prey. Like Zeke. Nate cursed these cowards for ever joining the wrong side, even as he fought recklessly to escape their encirclement and chase the worst monster of them all. Even as he pitied them for their mistake. None of them spoke while they fought. None of them screamed or did anything other than continue the attack. Yet he could see them still in there. He could see the fools peering out from behind terrified eyes. Somewhere in the distance, Nate heard a crash. A glance told him what it was, and he caught a flash of the invader disappearing inside the building. Shit. 92. Youre Coming With Me ~~~Stanley~~~ The freed humans sprinted into the street, and Stanley made his own break for freedom... MOVE He didn''t even make it across the street. Stanley felt it coming, his premonition screaming a far too short warning. Because it all happened in the same instant. Hundreds, or thousands, of hooks stabbed into his soul... Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] ... Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] ... Debuff: [Soul Cage] There was no time in between the attacks, no time to react or respond. One moment he was flying free, and the next, he''d already been attacked more times than he could count. He slammed to a stop in midair, held in place by a web of soul magic, hopelessly and helplessly tangled in the center. No! I AM FREE Stanley raged and threw every bit of his power against the magic holding him. Debuff Removed: [Soul Cage] It worked! The entangling threads loosened and slipped away from his soul. Yes! Go... Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Resisted: [Soul Cage] ... Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Cage] ... Debuff: [Soul Cage] Like a tsunami of death, the web crashed back around him. This time, it took fewer attempts to break through his resistance. Not that it mattered when it all happened so fast... Caffeine was growling and standing up in his lap, and Stanley used the sight of him to fuel his rage. The thought of anything hurting the little pug was plenty enraging. After everything they''d been through to get here... After all the pain and suffering Caffeine had endured for him in this hell... It was more than enough for a healthy rage. I. AM. FREE! It almost worked. Debuff Removed: [Soul Cage] He got free, but the skeleton appeared at the same time. Out of nowhere, it was suddenly in front of him and swinging for his face with a glowing skeletal hand. Caffeine grew to fill Stanley''s vision in an instant. Because... of course he did. Because of course he took the hit. Because of course he paid the price for Stanley''s weakness. CUT His will shattered against and through a glowing force field surrounding the skeleton. CUT He carved a smooth line through half of its skull. CUT He removed its head from the spine. BREAK He shattered the skull into dust. SHATTER He shattered the upper body. D... His world went white with pain. ... When Stanley opened his eyes again, he was hanging in the air between skyscrapers with his arms and legs stretched out and restrained. It wasn''t only his soul this time; now he had even more magic wrapping his body into immobility. Caffeine was nearby, fighting against the skeleton while trying to free Stanley from his chains. Because they were chains. Dozens of glowing magic chains stretched from each of his limbs and around his neck, tethering him to a massive circle of light in the sky above and its mirror on the ground below. A circle that spanned an entire city block... Caffeine used the chains as springboards while he bounded away from pursuing magic. At least when he wasn''t tearing them apart with his teeth. Just like before, the pug was eating the magic, and Stanley joined in. FREE Lightning burned through his body and mind, frying synapses and rattling his body to the breaking point, even as less than half the chains fell away. FREE More lightning burned. More chains fell. It didn''t matter. For every chain he broke free of, two more materialized... and they all tightened further around his flesh. Stanley didn''t let that stop him, even when the chains felt like live wires against his flesh. His brain was frying and his vision was narrowing as he resorted to cutting the chains one by one. More lightning raged through him... and he cut them faster. In twos and threes. Even as his vision started graying out from the strangling, electrocuting chains... Stanley saw without a doubt that he was losing, and he clawed at that glowing crack in his soul desperately. Give me the power! He only needed a few seconds. One second. Just enough to wipe this fucking monster from existence! Please! The power refused to come to him, no matter how hard he strained. No matter how much he raged and begged. It hovered just out of his reach. Then it no longer mattered when Caffeine got caught. A bubble snapped closed around the pug, a spinning, size-shifting bubble that held Caffeine trapped and helpless in the air. Stanley immediately redirected his power against the bubble, only to get a skeletal hand glowing with green light across his face. There were some crunching sounds to accompany the sparkling lights in his head... and everything went away for a bit. "At last," a raspy voice breathed in the ensuing silence. "You are quite the spirited duo, and I must thank you for obliging me by sitting still for so long. Though I had not expected you did so to rank up... A bold strategy. But ultimately futile." Stanley opened his eyes as the skeleton walked slowly around him, striding through the air to stand on nothing in front of him. Behind it, Caffeine was alternately sprinting in random directions while ballooning through a variety of different sizes, ranging from multi-story building height to fitting in the palm of your hand. All of it in silence, and all of it failing to break the bubble. The skeleton followed his gaze and smiled. Well, technically, it was a skull and so already smiling, but something in its voice gave away the amusement. "Yes, the beast lord is a fantastic specimen. How you ever managed to bind it to yourself is a mystery... unless you would care to shed light on the matter?" CUT His power carved a line through one side of its skull and straight through that psycho black pit that was its eye! It only sighed as the damage vanished. "I suppose that was on me. I shouldn''t have expected more from one of the savage races." Three of its hands moved then. The fourth remained still, pointing toward Caffeine with a glowing string of magic connecting to the sphere around the pug. So that was what Stanley hit next. CUT Rather than regrowing a new limb, this time the severed arm stayed unmoving in the air while it regrew and reconnected. The magic didn''t even waver... "This will hurt," the skeleton said, and then slammed one hand into Stanley''s chest. Deep into his chest. It did hurt. Quite a lot. Debuff: [Soul Intrusion] Along with the pain and notification, Stanley''s vision tunneled into darkness until he abruptly found himself back in the void and looking upon the fucked-up mess that was his soul. The skeleton was in here with him... which couldn''t be a good sign. It looked just like it did outside as it stood still and stared at his soul in shock. It actually sounded horrified when it whispered, "What have you done to your soul?" Fuck you! Stanley screamed at it but found himself even more limited in here than he was outside. Even the chains had followed, and his voice was nothing more than an angry, useless thought. The skeleton ignored him and floated inside the misshapen orb that was his soul. That was definitely not ideal. It was only after it vanished inside that Stanley saw Lee peeking around the orb. Lee, run! Only... this was their soul. There was nowhere else to run. Lee, help! "I''m working on it," Lee whispered, and ducked back out of sight. The sight of his brother¡ªalbeit only a blob of consciousness that he knew was his twin¡ªplus the sound of his voice gave Stanley renewed hope. Fragile hope, but hope nonetheless. He found that he could still move somewhat in this place despite the chains and followed the monster into his soul, where he found it staring around the less horrible shelter at the center of their being. "I see," it finally said, while looking down at the little pug standing on the glowing crack and growling at the intruding monster. "So that is why you didn''t attempt to use the source against me... Perhaps you''re not a total fool." Good boy! Stanley thought at Caffeine. And fuck you, you fucking piece of shit! he thought at the monster. As for what it was talking about... he didn''t know. He had totally tried to use the source against this fuckface! It was right there, just out of reach behind that glowing crack. "Such a crude thing you have done here. Yet... this should have been impossible. It remains impossible. So I suppose some credit is due... Well done, human." It sounded proud of him. Fuck you and fuck your fucking face! Get the fuck out of my soul! "As I said, crude." Now it sounded disappointed in him. As if Stanley gave a flying fuck what it thought! "But thanks to your efforts, I believe I will be able to improve upon your creation. I will simply need to remove the beast from your control..." It said that while staring down at the growling Caffeine, who still hadn''t moved from where he stood atop the crack in their soul. The words sent a chill through Stanley and cooled his rage. Slightly. Why are you doing this? Why even come after me? It started weaving a new spell. Slowly. "You will likely not survive the extraction, but I am not above educating the lesser races when the opportunity presents. Of course, you must know why I am here? The system has surely informed you that your acquisition of a source was a mistake. Such power is not meant to reside in the clutches of monsters." "Now, had you joined us, as was offered, this would have been a very different conversation. Alas, it is too late for that now. The high lords themselves dispatched me to come here and claim this source for the eternal march." What makes you any different from me? Stanley railed at it. You guys have killed more people than any of us. How are we the monsters here!? "We do not feed directly upon the souls of other monsters. We do not corrupt ourselves in such a way." That was some absolute bullshit coming from these corruption dealers... It also sounded like a belief. The kind of crazy you can''t argue with. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. So Stanley changed the subject, hoping for a clue. What did you mean about me not using the source against you? You''re strong, but not strong enough to survive that. Why would you even attack me if you knew about it? It eyed him, and Stanley finally realized that he was sensing its soul. Maybe because it was literally inside him, or for some other reason. Either way, it was no longer hidden. It was also looking down on him¡ªthe condescending prick! "There is much you do not know. An F-grade wielding a source is a threat, yes. But your limits were deduced and defined well before I was ever dispatched to retrieve it. The risk you posed to myself was deemed minimal. Even as an E-grade." "What are you doing to me?" Stanley demanded in frustration. He couldn''t do anything in here; he couldn''t even attack the bastard. All he could feel of himself or the outside world was from his domain. He couldn''t feel his body, but his domain could. It was weird. Like it was no longer his own flesh... "My orders were to retrieve the source, or at least to contain it, until we establish the eternal march upon this world." It didn''t look at him as it spoke, and it kept weaving a nasty-looking spell with three of its hands the entire time. "I suspect yourself and the beast will make the process of containment a difficult proposal." God damn right, we will! The bastard was still hovering right in front of his body in the real world, well within his domain. It had to be... since it had one hand buried inside his chest. "So I have decided to expedite the process by removing your connection to the beast." No, no, no! Stanley struggled futilely against his restraints, both in his soul and in the real world. If he... The skeleton raised one hand, now wreathed in raging streams of awful green light. "Right... here..." It swung down with that terrible blade of light. Caffeine entered his domain back in the real world. His massive form loomed into view at the same time that the little version of him inside their soul grew to match and took a step. The glowing crack fluctuated, splitting wider the instant his paws moved, flaring brighter than the sun as Caffeine clamped his jaws shut over the top half of the skeleton. Both inside their soul and in the real world. Its spell lashed out sideways from the original target as the monster screamed, and Stanley only got to enjoy the sound for the briefest of instants. Because the source roaring out of the crack filled his mind with the power he needed. It illuminated the world, casting everything into stark relief. It shone a light over and through the fabric of reality. In the light of that power, Stanley saw the skeleton and the countless threads that ran from it, stretching across the city in an unbreakable web of power that would keep this monster alive no matter what he did. He saw the chains stretching up from the massive magic circle and trapping him here... He also saw its spell lashing out inside his soul. There was a choice over what to do with the source. A single instant to aim the power as it swelled inside him. Stop the spell, or kill the origin of it. The spell was bad news; he knew that much. But he also doubted it would kill him... at least, not immediately. There were also the chains. He could destroy the circle and free himself... only would that really matter? The monster was faster than him. A whole grade higher. Running wasn''t an option anymore. He had to fight. Stanley was pissed off. He was angry that this monster hunted him down. That it ran him to ground and then waited for him to pop back out. That it talked down to him. Looked down on him. That it thought itself better... So he went for the throat. Stanley hit the skeleton, ready to burn it to ash, ready to burn down all those little threads that were poised to bring the monster back. His attack never reached its target. Instead, it slammed into a barrier. A shield that only appeared the moment he attacked. One powered by source... It wasn¡¯t quite the same as what Stanley threw at it. It was weak. A source shield that couldn''t stand against his own source. But it slowed his attack as he burned through the shield. It stopped him from killing the monster in that instant. An instant too long... The skeleton''s unleashed spell struck his soul. Caffeine screamed along with Stanley from where he stood once more atop the fluctuating crack in their soul. A crack that flickered and danced like a squirming snake as sparks zipped out like lightning bolts... Caffeine''s shadow caught all of them even as he howled in outraged agony through clenched teeth that refused to release the monster caught between them. Stanley barely saw any of that. All of it was happening far away. Far, far away from the pain that was his new reality. He''d thought he knew what real pain was. He had thought he could deal with any new form of agony, but he''d never felt anything like this. The burns and dismemberments. The knife in his heart. All those soul attacks he''d endured... all the unpleasant aches and clawing spells... none of them held a candle to this white-hot blade of magic as it carved a bloody hole through his soul. As it ripped a jagged wound through his very being. Tore right through every bit of what made him... him. Outside, Caffeine howled along with Stanley. The pug howled with screaming outrage while the skeleton''s bones reformed and healed as if nothing had happened. While it flicked more magic at Caffeine and trapped his body within another bubble. While it stood undaunted with a single hand still buried in Stanley''s chest. Then the noise of Caffeine''s howl shifted. The tone dropped. The anger sounded through. The balance of power shifted. Out in the real world, the bubble shattered from around Caffeine, and he turned into a streak of gray as he started biting the skeleton''s head off. Just like he had with the zombie... Stanley saw that happening while simultaneously watching the pug inside his soul wrestle with the skeleton that had invaded the sanctum of their being. It wasn''t enjoying the experience, going by the screams and insults it hurled at the pug from within Caffeine''s jaws. But it also didn''t relent as gleaming white teeth dug deeper and deeper holes in its form, and its one free hand was already starting to glow with the light of that same terrible magic. Lee appeared out of nowhere while Caffeine fought, and he ignored the battle to approach the horrifying new hole in their soul that was even now spewing out a continuous stream of... something. Glowing symbols flew from his brother as he stood before the wound. Some symbols landed beside the hole and gleamed brighter, while others fizzled out on contact. Stanley didn''t know what his brother was doing, but he knew they had to do something. There were no notifications in here, and he could only imagine what they were saying. Whatever it was, he knew it wasn''t anything good. He could feel something leaking out... could feel something being lost... something terribly important. He moved closer, desperately trying to think of a way to help, and his still chained and bound form passed into the path of his draining soul... blood? There wasn''t any specific color in the spraying light. Only an iridescence that defied description... but whatever it was, it didn''t like the magic chains wrapped around his form. Sparks flew from the chains as, one by one, they shattered into motes of dull light that couldn''t compare to what spilled from their soul. Stanley hovered in that light for a long second as every one of his binding chains broke. He felt the energy as it flowed around and through him. He felt the power of their soul as it leaked uselessly away into nothing. It was akin to what his Soul Sight skill had used... but... completely different. It was... pure. It was him. No, it was... them. But more than that, it was power. Power unlike anything he''d used... but so very familiar. A power he knew. A power that was more a part of him than anything else he''d ever felt... It was a power he could wield. At a price. A terrible price. He felt Lee watching him as he weighed the horror of what he was about to do. He felt Lee''s understanding align with his own. He felt the grim acceptance and resolve as Lee growled, "Do it." Feeling the determination of his twin gave Stanley strength. Feeling the absolute conviction Lee held. Feeling the faith his brother had in him. It gave Stanley the strength to reach into the hole in themselves and gather up that leaking soul energy. To reach inside the wound for more. He wrapped his power around it and it around his power. An intertwined combination that was greater than the sum of its parts. Caffeine was losing the fight when Stanley turned back to the invader. More chains had sprung up in here. Countless chains. They wrapped around and bound the pug even as he relentlessly devoured them, one after the other. But slower than they appeared. The skeleton wasn''t uninjured. It was missing a chunk of itself... leaking a light similar to what shone from their own soul. A much uglier light. Stanley didn''t know what was happening outside his body other than what was directly within his domain. Which just so happened to include the skeleton that also existed in here... with one of its hands still embedded in his chest. Caffeine was still out there, and he blurred repeatedly through Stanley¡¯s domain as he ripped the skeleton¡¯s head away on each pass. So Stanley cast his unchained mind at the undead, inside and out. At both of them. At what were technically two sides of the same creature. Its body and soul. He drove his will against the monster. A will wrapped in his soul. CUT The skeleton''s bones splintered and shattered into broken shards... before reforming once again. Instantly. Perfectly. But the ghostly undead inside his soul fared much worse when it split in half. Partially. Two of its soul arms boiled away into that similar but fouler iridescence. Only, they didn''t heal. There was no instant restoration for its soul... And it screamed. It screamed with such a wonderful and horrible sound of pure agony. A beautiful sound! You never should have come in here! Stanley screamed, too. He screamed along with Lee and Caffeine as the wound in their soul split wider. As more of themselves gushed and bled from the open wound. He screamed inside his soul and in the real world. The magic trapping his mind inside his soul had broken in the attack, and now he saw both locations simultaneously. His real body was still bound in magic chains, but they were cracking and shattering under the iridescent glow shining from both his and Caffeine''s flesh. He saw Caffeine. The pug was little more than a glowing blur as he took the skeleton apart, one life at a time. One head at a time. The slow way. The not nearly fast enough way... It didn''t care that its head was missing almost non-stop. It didn''t even hesitate while it screamed with that delightful sound. It drew up more magic instantly. A massive storm of roiling magic that Stanley didn''t need premonition to tell him was a threat. Magic that caught Caffeine and stopped his blurring attack cold. Magic that dug and lashed into the pug... CUT Stanley didn''t hesitate to pull more energy from his soul. Though he stopped screaming when the wound ripped even wider. Not that he wanted to stop... he just didn''t have the breath for it. He couldn''t breathe. Couldn''t think. Couldn''t... anything... "Fools." The skeleton''s voice brought him back. Just barely. Just enough that he saw the strange sight happening in the real world around him. They were on the ground, and Caffeine had stopped his mad dash. Now he stood... or crouched in a massive crater. His legs were bent as if holding up an immense weight, and each of his laborious footsteps landed with the power of a meteor as he struggled closer. Only now, he no longer fought alone. Other humans lurked around them. Strangers and friends alike were fighting against not only the skeleton but also the army of dead surrounding it. Fire lit up the world, flames licking over humans and zombies alike but barely scorching the skeleton with a hand still in his chest. Other skills and magic flew, with even less effect... Stanley watched zombies die by the hundreds. Watched the magic growing stronger in the skeleton''s hands. Magic that would wipe them from the face of the earth. Magic that they couldn''t stop. Stanley knew that. He could hear their souls. Not only them, he could hear so many souls¡ªthousands of them. Souls from across the entire city, and some nearby that he hadn''t expected. Stanley could hear them all in a deafening cacophony of fear, hope, terror, pain, love... and despair. He heard and watched all of it in a haze of pain. Not even pain. Not even agony. He was dying. They were dying. He hadn''t done enough. He wasn''t strong enough. Inside their soul, Lee still moved. Glowing symbols flowed around him in a raging whirlwind of power. He fought. For survival. For Stanley. For all of them. Stanley could feel the souls behind Lee. He could feel their attention on his twin. They feared for him. Cared for him. Loved him. Lee loved them back, and it was that feeling that drove him through the pain. It still wasn''t enough. Stanley tried. He tried so hard to pull himself together... to gather what power he could... to fight back. It wasn''t enough. The skeleton''s spell reached a crescendo... A flaming bird flew into the skeleton''s face and exploded. It came on so fast that Stanley only knew the red streak was a bird because it was inside his domain. So he also saw it explode into nothing more than a raging red-gold fireball. A fire beyond any fire he knew. He wasn''t sure it could even be called fire... The explosion disintegrated the skeleton into ashes. Or maybe it was the violent failure of its building spell. It still regenerated, because of course it did, but either way, it bought Stanley a second. It also did more than that, because it finally blasted him free of the skeleton and did so without burning him to ashes... somehow. The skeleton''s hand left no hole in his chest when it was gone... but it was gone! From his chest and soul. Stanley stood. In the real world and in his soul. Incoherent screams and sounds of violence surrounded him in the streets of Boston, but it was silent again within their soul. Lee still worked furiously, his magic taking shape over the terrible wound. A web. Or stitching. Was he going to seal the wound? Could he do that? Caffeine stood still atop the glowing source crack, his gaze locked on the new, and now much larger, wound. His tail was drooping lower... Outside, the skeleton conjured a dome of green light, and silence descended like a bomb going off. It didn''t fly and instead stalked towards Stanley over the unrecognizable remains of a city street. "You have spirit, human. Or whatever the two of you are... But it is over. Destroying your own soul only makes my task here easier." It was lying. Not with its words. Those were all true. But its confidence was a lie. It saw its death looming. It felt fear... Stanley saw Caffeine unleash a silent bark at the dome. Cracks spread over it, but the magic held. Caffeine shrank following the action... and Stanley knew they were reaching the end. Their own end, or the skeletons. Or both. He carved pieces from it as it stalked closer, with his mind rather than his soul, but every injury healed as fast as it appeared. Caffeine barked and spread more cracks through the magic dome while shrinking even smaller. Stanley drew on his rage as he watched Lee work and their killer approach. It was all he had left. No one else was coming to save him. He could feel Nate''s soul in the distance... beside Zeke''s, and surrounded by undead. They were overrun. Game over. Zeke would die. Nate would die. Everyone would die. Everyone. Every... thing. Stanley smiled then. A bitter, hateful smile. A bloodthirsty smile. An enraged smile. "If I''m going down," he whispered, and the skeleton hesitated. "You''re coming with me." Lee was waiting when Stanley reached into the bleeding hole that was their soul. He understood the plan and shared Stanley''s rage, but not his fatalism. He still had hope. "End this, Stan. I will hold our soul together." Stanley let him have the hope. He had no room for it in his heart. Only rage. Enough rage to see this through. Enough rage to see the undead''s end. All the rage I''ll ever need. "I won''t let us die," Lee said, and Stanley barely heard him. Instead, he reached out to the monster as it charged him. As it gathered more magic. As it promised to end him. As it ran to its death. I can''t kill your body... So I will kill your soul. It was the only solution. He couldn''t kill this monster enough times to end it. Not fast enough. But he could destroy its soul. So that was what he did. With all the rage of his lost hope. With all the rage of his lost family. With all the rage of his failures, the weight of them. The crushing, excruciating knowledge that he''d damned his brother by being too weak. Stanley poured all that rage against the monster before him¡ªagainst its soul. He pitted his own soul against the thing hunting him. You are... undone Stanley saw the light in its eyes dim. He felt its disbelief, fear, and sweet, sweet despair. He heard its soul screaming in delicious agony... and then the disgusting light went out of its eyes. Invader Defeated. Contributions earned. Defeat the remaining invaders to claim your rewards. He heard the notification telling him the monster was dead, but it was unnecessary. He knew it was dead. He had made it DEAD! Debuff Upgraded: [Critical Soul Wound] = [Deadly Soul Wound] But victory had come at a price. Now Stanley would die. Lee would die. They''d won... and lost. Only... it wasn''t over just yet... and there were still more monsters to kill. Even as his own life¡ªhis own soul¡ªbled away. Through the lens of his rage, Stanley saw that golden soul in the distance... Zeke had helped him. Not a lot. Not enough. But he had helped. He had soothed some of the hurts. Maybe he could soothe Caffeine when Stanley was gone? That was enough of a reason to help. Enough reason to kill one more monster before he died. Not that any of that truly mattered. Stanley only wanted more death. He didn''t need an excuse. Every monster in this place should die. Would die. He reached out for the zombie miles away... it felt familiar... and afraid. Stanley liked that, as his power stretched further and further. Closer and closer. Eat shit and... It vanished with a burst of magic. What? No... Stanley floundered at the loss of his target. His rage flickered amid the pain and confusion... Then, before he could search for it, before he could find and kill it, before he could kill anything else, there was a flash of blinding light from his soul. The light flashed along with a pulse of fresh pain. A pain that pushed away the light. Pain that dragged him down... down into the darkness. Peaceful, soothing darkness. It was over. I''m sorry... Lee, Caff, I... A notification chimed through his head, but Stanley didn''t see it before the darkness took everything away. 93. No Time To Die ~~~Lee~~~ "Keep fighting!" Lee yelled at the duo with half his attention on his own notifications. "And don''t use any mana skills." The notifications about resisting something called a soul cage had stopped. It had to be from Stanley, and the entire thing felt far too reminiscent of the time they''d ended up using the source. But it had stopped. Had Stanley won? "Tiring us out," Miller protested, breathing heavily. "Won''t help us protect you." "You''re just upset that you can''t touch me without mana," Amy taunted him from behind her shield as she circled. Lee ignored the banter and tried to watch the mana moving inside their bodies as they clashed. It was the only way for him to distract himself from the sick feeling in his stomach. He couldn¡¯t even think about worrying over secret oaths right now. Who cared if people were swearing to someone else? Stanley might be dying! Alejandro could deal with that. He forced himself to keep watching the duo again. They weren''t using skills, but mana still moved from their cores to travel throughout their bodies. He watched until the flowing mana turned into a trickle, and both contestants were moving sluggishly. It wasn''t the same mana as their skills used. Similar, and still the same personal flavor everyone had, but not the same. It had to be stamina... or perhaps some kind of regeneration. Whatever it was, they fought a lot faster and stronger the more of it they had. "Take another break." The mana he watched was one that Three didn''t refill. It meant they had to rest. Which only strengthened Lee''s guess about it being their stamina. "My lord," Trak said in the lull. "May I speak with you?" Lee had been trying to ignore the anxious anubi lurking at the edge of the courtyard. The guy was an emotional creature... and Lee already had plenty to worry about. "Of course, Trak. What is it?" "I would... perhaps in private, my lord?" Lee sighed and took a closer look at the feelings he was getting through the oath. Trak was really worried... "Fine, let''s go to my place." Of course, Miller and Amy trudged after him. Lee tried to watch their stamina use and regeneration as they went, but Trak''s worry was catching. Or maybe it was Stanley''s? Hopefully, it was nothing. Maybe Trak had had a negative thought about Lee and was feeling bad about it? The door closed behind Trak, and Lee turned on him. "What''s up?" "My lord, I... I took an apprentice from among your people, and..." "What about your kids? I thought you needed to train them. I told you to put them first." "Forgive me, my lord. It is not that way. Hax has taken an apprenticeship with the Mistress Druid!" His pride at the statement was obvious. "That''s great, Trak!" Lee had seen one of the young anubi out with Saira a lot, but he just thought it was them helping her with their potion herbs. Now they would get another of the strongest healers in the fort. It was beyond great! "My lord, I took a promising human as my apprentice... and I saw the human racial trait." He was back to that sickening worry... "Is it a problem? I thought it was a good thing?" "It is a good thing, my lord! It is... too good! It is beyond belief! It is impossible!" "How can it be too good? I''d probably be dead without that trait." "It is too good, my lord. It will draw attention! It is only a matter of time until the greater multiverse discovers this, and then... they will come. They will enslave your people. It is too... good." He wilted with each word, ending up as close to bowing as he could get without violating his orders. "My lord, had I not found you here... I would be seeking to flee this world ahead of the coming storm." Lee stared at him. Too good? Coming storm? "I can still let you leave if you..." "No!" Trak straightened instantly. "I will never leave you, my lord! I... I just wished to warn you... They will come..." "Aren''t they already attacking us? Will things really be any..." You do not hold full dominion of your Twin-Soul. All involved parties must agree. Stanley? He agreed, and... Soul Awareness cannot be applied to a singular individual within the Twin-Soul. Solution applied. All involved parties gain Soul Awareness. Skill progression speed will be reduced and balanced. What? Soul rebalance has begun... Lee abruptly found himself in a very strange... place? It was... his soul. A dark place, but with some light shining up from a ragged crack across the floor. Just enough light to illuminate the little pug sitting atop the crack and staring up at him with a wiggling, happy butt. It couldn''t be... "I did this," a bitter voice said from somewhere outside, and Lee recognized that voice! He moved without moving to look past the slightly mangled walls of this place... and saw his brother. Or a thing that he knew was his brother. Stanley! He was upset about their soul. Lee looked it over himself... and found it... okay. Sure, it was a little messed up, and it didn''t fill him with joy to look at, but... We did this, Lee said to his brother. We chose life over death. "Was it even worth it?" Stanley asked, sorrow heavy in his words. You tell me. "That voice," Stanley said hesitantly. Disbelieving. "Lee?" Lee smiled at him. Come in and see what we did. Stanley followed him inside... and stopped, staring at Caffeine. "It was worth it." Yes, Lee said, feeling his presence in this place dimming. Their time together was limited... I''m building a home over here for when you get back, Stan. "I''m trying," Stanley said. "I''m trying so hard..." There was so much pain and fear in his voice. No big rush, Lee replied, forcing himself to smile despite the horror of what he was seeing behind his brother. I can see you''re in a bit of a rough spot. It''ll just give me more time to spruce up the place. Stanley turned to look behind himself and out into the void. Into what Lee now knew was a field of glittering souls that surrounded his brother. So many of them¡ªso many monsters. So many undead... all hunting his brother. "I won''t let them stop me, Lee," Stanley said, conviction filling his voice. "I''ll come home..." Naturally, Lee replied while fighting to hold on to his own conviction in the face of what he was seeing. Soul Awareness rebalance complete. Be seeing you. Lee could feel himself fading from this place. He knew their time was up, but crouched as Caffeine whined at him. I missed you too, Caff. Lee rubbed Caffeine¡¯s head gently, hiding the tears that threatened to spill over. "I will be back!" Stanley stated it vehemently, and their soul trembled with the strength of his words. Lee stood straight, forcing himself to believe what his brother said. I know. Then he was back in his apartment, falling to his knees. The entire experience had taken only a moment. He felt... concern and worry, but it wasn''t his own. Lee looked at Trak, who was watching him with obvious worry. Outside his apartment, Lee could feel... something more. Was it his new skill? Lee closed his eyes and tried to focus on what the skill was supposed to do. There was definitely something happening, and he was sensing emotions that weren''t his own, but it was hard to pick any of it out through the louder noise of his Mana Mind. Stanley was definitely more present in his mind, and Lee felt his worry and fear clearly as he scrambled to his feet. He also couldn''t forget the sight he''d seen in that place. The sight of what hunted his twin. The skeleton¡ªanother fucking skeleton! "Where''s Alejandro?" Trak jumped as Lee sprinted to the door and burst outside. "Find Alejandro! I need... cores!" He knew what was happening now. Stanley was in trouble. He was being hunted and didn''t think he could win. "What happened, my lord? How may I assist you?" "I need cores! I need all the fucking cores, now!" If he could get his attributes high enough that Caffeine wouldn''t have to dump points on him... so Caffeine could help Stanley... then they could use the source again. They could do anything with that power¡ªkill anything. Miller and Amy shared a look at his outburst and then chased after him on his way to the garage. Lee didn''t care. It didn''t matter what people thought of him... All that mattered was what he could do for Stanley! He had to help him! I need to be immortal... There has got to be a way! Saira! Maybe if she never stopped healing him... maybe it would carry over to Stanley? They''d almost done that before, right? She was more powerful now... it might work! "Get Saira!" Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Lee forced himself to stop when he reached the garage, and he looked at his new skill. It was supposed to make their soul stronger... it was level twenty-five... which meant it wasn''t a new skill; Stanley had chosen the evolution. Which, given that their soul had been under attack not long ago, made perfect fucking sense! He dove into his rune storage. He needed to make something... anything. A rune like he''d put on his bones, maybe. But for his soul... Our twin soul. If I can do something... make it stronger somehow? So he sat right there and created rune after rune in his storage. He didn''t know if any of them would work or not, so he saved every iteration, just in case. It was getting crowded inside his rune storage when Alejandro finally came back into range. Unfortunately, Lee never got the chance to talk to him. He was sprinting toward the man and his bag of cores, halfway across the garage, fear and anger boiling through from Stanley, debuffs flickering through his mind, when something slammed into him and dragged him down into the dark. Debuff: [Soul Intrusion] Lee blinked at the sudden darkness as he stared at the strange sight he''d seen only a short while before. Their soul. He didn''t need the unpleasant feeling gnawing inside him to know something was very wrong. The giant, four-armed skeleton striding into his soul was proof enough. Stanley was there as well, but covered in what looked like glowing chains as he called out, "Lee, help!" I''m working on it, Lee whispered, then followed Stanley inside the center while reaching tentatively for his rune storage. Technically, it should be in here somewhere, but he''d seen no sign of it last time... The runes responded, fading into view as if they''d always been there. Though they seemed to reside in a separate corner of their soul, not in the very center where he found Stanley and Caffeine both snarling at the undead. It didn''t matter; he could feel the runes and knew they were available. Lee hadn''t exactly planned for a monster inside his soul, but if he could stick runes on his own soul... could he put them on an enemy''s soul? Something non-beneficial. Something violent, and hopefully extremely painful! He could. He just needed to... That plan flew out the window when something unleashed a burning pulse of source into Lee''s body and mind. He reacted instinctively and impulsively. Recklessly. Lee funneled that storm of god-like power. That drop of godlike power. He poured it into a rune. Even as it scoured his body and mind. He stuffed it all into a single blazing rune inside his rune soul storage. Where... somehow... it held. Then the monster''s spell carved a bleeding gash into their soul. Mana Mind hadn''t gone out when he got dragged into their soul. Lee couldn''t feel his body from here, but he could see it. So he knew his body was thrashing and screaming back in the real world. Stanley and Caffeine''s own screams echoed alongside, and the sound galvanized him back into action despite the pain. That sound, plus the sight of his friends and family crowding around his spasming body. Saira''s magic was flowing into him like a firehose, but it failed to touch the new wound. She couldn''t save him from this... Maria was coming his way too. Lee could see her sprinting through the building on her way to the garage. He could see everyone in the building scrambling. They were herding the children out of the courtyard and into their apartments. They thought they were under attack. They were... scared. He could feel their souls. Could feel the worry. The concern for him. The fear of the unknown... They were right to be afraid. If he died to this monster... everyone would lose the protection of his runes. Three would die. Maria and Alejandro. Gabriel and Anita. Bradley, Mar, and Saira. Just a handful of the hundreds that would suffer for his weakness if he failed here. He couldn''t let that happen. He had to act. This wasn''t what he''d feared. It wasn''t Stanley dying while he only watched helplessly. It was a problem he could do something about. He just had to act! So Lee forced himself to move even as he screamed in agony. What was a little more pain? He''d already died once. This was nothing! Who cared if his soul was bleeding? Who cared if it hurt worse than dying? None of that would compare to the pain of losing his brother if he didn''t act. None of that would come close to the pain of leaving his newfound family to suffer and die without his protection. So Lee screamed and started forcing his runes onto their wounded soul. Some of them stuck, while others broke upon contact. Some worked as he''d envisioned, while others didn''t. He tried them all one after the other, noting the successes and failures, noting which ones could help him here and which ones he could ignore. Liquid mana flowed in a torrent through him as he empowered rune after rune, and he was already working on a new combination, a viable solution, when Stanley appeared beside him. In front of the wound... Lee felt sick just looking at the iridescence bleeding from their soul. It was not supposed to leak out like this. Not at all. The sight of it was akin to seeing his guts on the outside... something instinctively wrong. Only, this was so much worse. There was one benefit, though. The chains around Stanley dissolved beneath that glowing... soul blood. That energy. Lee didn''t need words to feel Stanley''s attention on him. To feel his intention. To understand what the desperate plan would cost them. To know how much it would hurt. None of that mattered. Lee would endure it. He would survive. He would make them survive. Both of them. All of them! His family would live. No matter what it took! Do it. The skeleton''s own scream of agony was a small consolation prize amidst the pain that ravaged his body, mind, and soul. Lee fought his way back from the pain. He had to. The wound had torn wider after Stanley''s attack. Their soul was no longer trickling away in a steady stream; now it gushed in a rushing torrent of everything they were. Flowing away. Draining away. It was death. Dragging them down with the speed of a raging river sweeping off a cliff. Lee ignored the looming specter of death. He''d already looked into the void, and it had looked back into him. It was an old enemy. One he''d defeated before. One he would defeat again. He had no choice. The runes were ready. The ones he needed, and he slapped them into place while Stanley raged behind him. Then Stanley pulled at the wound again in a burst of outrage. Lee knew what would follow. He had the barest moment to see the glowing wound tear wider as Stanley pulled energy from it... then the pain arrived. Fresh pain piled atop what already clawed at his mind and soul. He didn''t let it stop him. There wasn''t time to suffer. There wasn''t time to die. So he screamed and kept crafting his rune. He was almost finished when Stanley came back, full of rage and ready to die fighting. Lee understood the anger, but he wasn''t willing to die here and now. He couldn''t afford to die. Too many people needed them to live. But that will to live wasn''t enough. The monster still haunted them. It still sought their destruction. End this, Stan. I will hold our soul together. Lee watched the tear in their soul fluctuate as Stanley gathered the energy. As his rage smothered everything. As he prepared to die... I won''t let us die! Lee didn''t watch as Stanley turned away to face the monster that was still trying its damnedest to destroy them. It wasn''t Lee''s fight. Stanley would deal with that... Lee''s fight was here. A fight against death. Against the end of everything. He bolstered himself for what he knew was coming. Taking the one last moment to focus on what he was fighting for. To focus on what he loved. Stanley had changed since this started. He had an edge that hadn''t been there before. A quickness to wrath... But beneath that, he was still the same brother Lee loved. The twin brother, who loved him back just as fiercely. It was that love which fueled the anger. The fear of losing it. The fear of losing everything. It drove Stanley. Drove his rage. Caffeine loved them both. As he always had. Unchanging. Unwavering. Everlasting. He would love and believe in them forever. Absolutely. Lee glanced at the pug and drew more strength from the big brown eyes staring back at him. From the conviction he saw within them. I will save us, Caff. All of us. Maria and Saira were both pumping mana into his body back home. Trak was frantically pouring potion after potion into Lee''s slack mouth, trying different ones while he barked at the other anubi. They were equally frenetic as they brewed... something. Alejandro stood by, and Lee could feel the helpless frustration radiating from the man as he looked for something to fight against. For some way to help. Anything. Lee saw the energy of their soul stop gushing out in its mindless flood. It swirled and gathered. It became... death. Lee saw his friends and family. He saw them all flinch when his world threatened to go dark with pain. He clung to that vision. He clung to the sight of everyone who needed him. Everyone who was counting on him to keep them safe. Even as he felt himself coming undone... even as he realized it was over... even as he struggled futilely against their inevitable end. Their soul ripped open... and his runes failed. All of his grand promises and big dreams were for nothing. He wasn''t strong enough... He grappled with the runes while he screamed. He bound more to their soul while their life bled away. But it wasn''t enough... he needed more. So he pulled on the rune he''d stashed earlier... the one full of source. It fought him. It was too much power... It would destroy them if he tried to wield it... but he had no choice. Lee screamed outside and inside as their soul split to the breaking point, but he couldn''t hear himself. He was glowing in the raging fires of his mana as he fought against the rune and against the dying of the light. I will not let it go out! He could taste blood on his tongue. Everything hurt. It hurt so much... I will never break! He kept screaming even as he choked on the blood filling his lungs. Never! Then something changed. The looming power of Three was a constant presence in his Mana Mind. Only now... it moved without moving. Lee felt it reaching out to him... reaching out to everyone... touching... seeking... asking. A link of... something connected to Lee. A link from Alejandro. Then another... Maria. Then more... and more! Lee could feel them all. It was their souls. Every soul surrounding him. Every soul inside Three. They all reached out to him. All of them offered their strength. He could feel the fear and pain they were all feeling. Feeling for him and from him. But they all wanted to help. They wanted him to survive. Lee latched onto those links like a drowning man onto a lifeline... and they pulled his head above the water. Caffeine was there, waiting for him. He stood, towering and defiant, atop the crack, glaring at the wound as it stretched wider and refusing to let it split further apart. Even as their soul bled away through the gap. Somehow, it still held. They weren''t dead yet. Lee gathered up all the borrowed power. All the power of so many souls offering their strength, and he forced that power against the wound. Against the final rune. The source rune. You. Will. Obey. He couldn''t pull the power from the rune. It had scorched him just getting it in there in the first place, and he knew pulling it out now would end them. But he didn''t need to take it out. He only needed the rune to change... and he had done that before. When it mattered most. When his life had teetered on the edge. This time, it wasn''t all up to him. He had help. Over a hundred souls, all of them reaching out to help. All of them lending him their strength. Their will to survive. Their souls. It was enough. The rune writhed and squirmed under their combined will. It wanted to explode in a maelstrom of destruction, but a crowd of souls stood amid a towering structure at Lee''s back as he forced all that power to reshape into a binding, strengthening, stitching web of power. Lee could feel the mana roaring through him, through his mind, as he used all the power that was offered to him... and he used it to bind their soul back together. As much as he could. As well as he could. It hurt, and it wasn''t perfect. But it was a chance. It was hope. Then it was done, and only an iridescent line remained inside their soul when it was over. A glowing memento of sacrifice and pain. Of victory. Thank... you! Lee thought distantly and faintly toward all the helping hands, and then he finally relaxed. He finally stopped fighting. He''d done enough... for now. They had survived. They would live. He could... rest... 94. You Got It All Wrong Holy Man ~~~Zeke~~~ Curses echoed into the room along with the sounds of combat. Further away, someone was shouting for a retreat inside. That was a bad sign. Zeke huddled in the corner with all the kids behind Byron, peeking past the man''s legs to see Eve fire a beam of silver light through the open doorway. She cursed at something, then spun back to her table and started pulling her gun apart. Lair Lockdown in effect. (7:59:59) More impacts shook the building, and Pru blurred to a stop in front of him. "Heal!" she gasped, with one hand clutched over the bleeding stump of her other arm. Zeke''s mind felt thick with horror, but his hands moved automatically to touch her with his golden light. Purifying Light It took a lot of power to regenerate a limb¡ªnot that Zeke had mana¡ªbut it took a lot of faith. She bailed before he finished when Lila shouted from the hallway. At least he''d stopped the bleeding... Alan had stopped bleeding too. Now he lay glassy-eyed and unmoving on the floor. They''d come out of nowhere behind him. Alan had thrown himself between the monsters and Zeke. Him and Byron. Alan had trusted Zeke to heal him... but it hadn''t been enough. His blood covered the floor in a massive pool that showed just how far from enough it was... Zeke was trapped in a nightmare. This couldn''t be happening! He didn''t want to die... He didn''t want anyone to die... He just wanted to wake up from this terrible dream and find out that none of it was real. It couldn''t be real... The building shook, and light shone through a new hole in the wall... illuminating the monster standing in the gap in horrible relief. "Foooound you!" It crooned, red eyes blazing. It moved, and Byron was abruptly in its path. He caught the swiping claws with a massive palm and closed his hand over the monster''s. It didn''t matter when the zombie ripped its own arm off to get away. Byron kept moving and always appeared in the zombie''s path, no matter which way it tried to go. Each of its attacks always landed on the man, and each of them did nothing to Byron. Then more zombies poured through the hole in the wall and swarmed after Zeke. He heard and saw Barbie take one down when it strayed too close to the children... but there were too many. Zeke ran away. It was all he could do. They were going to kill him, but maybe he could lead them away from the kids. Away from Eve... she was the only good thing he had left. He couldn''t let her die... So he ran out the door while a horde of zombies sprinted after him. It was chaos. He saw Jerry and Bill fighting back-to-back in the dining hall against a tide of undead. Others fought in the room, but the undead outnumbered the humans ten to one. It was hopeless. -1 Faith God, I''m sorry. Please... The wall behind him exploded, and a laughing zombie emerged from the dust. "There you are! Show me what you got, Purifier!" Purifying Light The mocking tone finally snapped Zeke from his horror, and he gave it what it wanted. Screaming defiantly and shining his golden light on the zombie directly, he lit it up with flickering golden flames... as it laughed. It laughed in the light of his power. A streak of blinding silver slammed into its head, and Zeke saw Eve running through the doorway, a gauntlet around her wrist lancing out with silver beams of fire as she charged fearlessly. Eve... "Pathetic." The zombie ignored the searing beams burning holes into its face. It ignored Zeke''s feeble light. Meanwhile, a black light grew between its own hands. "Let me show you real power!" It only took a second, then the zombie threw the ball of death at Zeke. I failed... Eve''s sprinting charge turned into a dive ahead of the magic, twin metal spikes in her hands, each topped with small globes. She slammed them both into the floor in front of Zeke, right before the magic spell reached her and the black ball of death exploded. "No!" Zeke screamed as he watched Eve vanish underneath the expanding cloud of darkness, even as he desperately pulled at the golden light inside him. Eve! Then the darkness stopped expanding. It swirled and rolled back. Underneath, he saw Eve, each hand clenched on the spikes as the magic raged around the globes at the top of each. He watched the darkness get sucked into those spheres and run down and around the shaft until it slammed into Eve''s hands. She screamed in agony, and Zeke could see black lines crawling up her arms even as her hands withered and rotted in front of his eyes. Oh, God! No! Eve pulled a hand free, and the skin ripped from her palm as she did. She never stopped screaming as she raised her crumbling hand with a gauntlet around her forearm and opened fire. Four blinding beams of energy snapped out, silver and now swirling with blackness. The beams slammed into the zombie, and it staggered back with four holes burned deep into its chest. "Stop interfering!" the zombie roared. It stepped forward and swung a foot towards Eve as she screamed, and her gauntlet fired repeated beams of glowing silver and black fire. Zeke dove towards his sister, golden light leading the way as it fought against the black corruption consuming her. The monster''s foot blurred towards Eve''s head... and missed. "Run!" a deep voice called out as the zombie snarled. Zeke saw him then, Byron, the wonderful giant! He was holding onto the zombie by its arms and dragging it back, away from them. Zeke slapped his hands on his sister as gently as possible and poured golden healing into her. "Oh, God! Oh God, Eve!" His eyes were blurring as he looked at her. "Your hands!" Her hand on the spike was almost skeletal, with rotten flesh drooping and falling from it. The other was almost as bad, but her arm... The gauntlet had melted into glowing, hot slag, and he could hear her flesh sizzling. "Run, Zeke," she whispered. "No! Eve!" Zeke was pulling desperately at his core for more of the healing light. "God! Please save her!" he screamed helplessly. "I have faith!" He glanced up to see Byron, his hands turning black as well, where they gripped the monster. It wrenched an arm free and turned on the big man, its fist taking on a dark glow. The zombie punched Byron, its blows causing yellow light to flash as the man used a skill to defend himself. It wasn''t enough. Blackness still spread into Byron from each impact, but the big man didn''t release the other arm. Instead, he pulled the creature closer until he wrapped it up in both of his arms and hugged it tight. "I won''t let you have them," he roared. "I won''t fail again!" The zombie bit into Byron as it screamed and thrashed. Black lines were spreading rapidly across Byron''s body, and his flesh was sloughing off. But he didn''t let go. "Never again," Byron rumbled as his eyes closed and he continued dragging it back. "Never..." Then he vanished. The undead stumbled briefly as he spun back to face them. Then he smiled. "Humans are such annoying creatures." Zeke followed its gaze and saw Byron lying on the floor behind him, a small child leaning over his dying body and glaring at the zombie with tears in his eyes. You! Zeke recognized the boy who kept popping in and out all the time. He never talked to anyone; he never even looked at anyone. Now he was here, helping. The monster took a step while Zeke put a hand on Byron and tried frantically to heal him, too. Please, God, they don''t deserve to suffer for my sins! The zombie stepped the wrong way; it turned around and frowned at them before trying again. It took a step away. Zeke glanced at the boy and saw him trembling as sweat ran down his face. "Clever!" the undead exclaimed. "But you''re too weak." It took another step, and the boy collapsed as it moved closer. "I..." The zombie loudly proclaimed. It burst into flickering red flames, and Zeke felt a surge of hope. Kyle! "I''ll save you, Eve!" Kyle yelled from the doorway, then the flames subsided, and the monster was frowning towards the man, apparently undamaged. "Ahh!" Kyle squeaked and vanished from the doorway. You coward, Zeke cursed after the man as he felt his brief hope dying. "Now where were we..." A figure blurred into view, and a brilliantly glowing fist slammed into the zombie''s head, blasting it clean off while sending its body across the room and through the wall. Nate was breathing heavily as he looked at Zeke and took in the wounded people around him. "If you have any miracles ready..." A black blur slammed into Nate and sent him sliding across the floor. When he stopped, Zeke saw the zombie, a glowing black fist pushing against Nate¡¯s own glowing and crossed arms. The black energy didn''t appear to be hurting Nate, and Zeke felt a resurgence of his hope. "Thank you, God!" "Don''t thank God!" Nate yelled as he started exchanging blows with the zombie. "Run!" The glow on his hands faded with each hit; beneath it was a dark corruption already spreading black lines over his flesh. Zeke looked down at his sister, at Byron, and at the boy whose name he still didn''t know. Run? Eve was in bad shape, but Byron was so much worse. Run and leave them behind? Leave Eve? he thought. Why would I bother? I can''t escape. If I can''t save her... It would be better to just die with her. -1 Faith The room was shaking as Nate fought against the zombie. Glass rained from every window as shock waves reverberated back and forth. Zeke only looked on in numb despair as the duo battled. I don''t have enough faith to save anyone, not even myself. Then Nate pulled off some kind of throw and violently slammed the zombie into a window, almost getting it outside. "Enough!" It roared, outraged, then blurred back in a burst of speed and sent Nate tumbling across the room. More zombies surged into the room and piled onto Nate as he tried to charge back into the fight. "Play with those until I''m ready for you," the undead spat towards the struggling pile. It stepped towards Zeke. "As for you..." It stopped, looming above him. "You''re weak. Too weak," it hissed at him. "A Faith Purifier!" It laughed aloud. "My favorite." Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. The zombie paused to watch Nate for a moment when Zeke saw one zombie in the blurring swarm suddenly fly across the room, slam into a wall, and collapse to the floor, headless. Unmoving. The monstrous zombie looming above Zeke roared, and more zombies climbed into the room and joined the melee. "That one has potential," it murmured. "It will definitely make a better body than this one did." Zeke was silent as he watched Nate struggle uselessly, and he looked up to meet its gaze when the undead turned its attention back to him. "I love watching those like you as your faith in imaginary gods fails." It grinned. "You''ve seen the truth already, haven''t you? Yes, you''ve already realized it. Delicious!" "So before I devour you, let me make you an offer," it growled, holding up a glowing black shard that seemed to suck in the light. "Convert now, or fall forever." -1 Faith Zeke had tears running down his face as he felt the light coming from his hands dim almost to nothing. His faith couldn¡¯t be a lie. That was all he had. It''s not true... "There it is!" it crowed. "There''s the beautiful despair!" A rotting hand rose to touch his cheek. Eve... "Don''t worry... little brother." She smiled at him. "I... love..." The zombie¡¯s foot kicked her hand away and stepped onto her arm. The metal melting into her ruined flesh sizzled louder, and Eve groaned as the undead leaned forward, its face looming closer. "You will serve us no matter what you do. All will convert or be converted," it growled as it loomed over him. "So make your..." A rippling storm of power rolled over the world. Sensations and emotions hammered at them from within that storm. Feelings of... Fear! Agony! Anger! The undead flinched under that wave and glanced out the window. "What was that?" Eve started laughing¡ªa painful, bitter, and bloody laugh. She only stopped laughing to spit out blood and gasp, "You''re so fucked!" The zombie looked back and forth between her and the window. It looked confused... almost worried. "What is..." "That..." Eve croaked. "That is the end!" Then she kept laughing. Zeke felt as confused as the zombie looked. What is it? It was familiar¡ªa feeling he''d felt somewhere before. Stanley! With a jolt, Zeke made the connection and suddenly realized what he was feeling. The old man who he''d met at the truck stop, with the cute little dog. The man who''d scared the... heck out of everyone by looking at them with those black eyes... This feeling now was the same one he''d felt from Stanley''s eyes before. Is he coming back? He struggled with flickering hope and glanced at the patched wall where the old man had come crashing through days ago. Stanley had knocked out a bunch of them and then unlocked the soul attributes of everyone in the room just by looking at them. Stanley was powerful¡ªthe most powerful, according to Nate. He''d killed one of these monsters before... +1 Faith Another pulse of that terrible feeling washed over them. Louder this time. Agony! Anger! Rage! "Was it the one with the beast lord?" the undead asked, cocking his head. Eve laughed. "Yes!" Caffeine! Zeke liked that friendly little giant dog. He wasn''t sure why some people were afraid of it... The zombie laughed then. "You think that one will save you!? Hah! That fool spurned our offer. Him and his annoying beast! Now he has drawn the attention of the high lords and doomed himself. You are only feeling his death throes!" It sounded satisfied and smug. "Even if he has an unusually loud soul..." Eve only laughed louder. Zeke didn''t know why she was so happy, but her laughter wasn''t a lie this time... she believed! Seeing her like this gave him a feeling of... something. The golden light shone brighter from his hands and into Eve as Zeke felt it surging up inside him. Something he''d had in such short supply lately. Faith. Even if it wasn¡¯t faith in God. He could have faith in Eve. +1 Faith "You don''t understand," Eve croaked with a bloody smile. "He won''t ever die! That fucking monster can''t die! He is the fucking end! The end of everything! Even fucking you!" She was screaming at the end, defiant and fierce, when another smothering, rippling pulse of power crashed over them, only much, much stronger this time. Rage! Rage! RAGE! [Dungeon Alert] An Invader has been Defeated. Contributions Earned by participating Defenders. Defeat or Drive Out the remaining Invaders to claim your Rewards. Eve grinned and spat more blood at the zombie towering above her. "You''re fucked!" "Impossible!" The zombie stood frozen in shock, staring to the southeast. Toward the direction that feeling had come from. Zeke felt the rippling power. The rage. It was not stopping this time. So much anger... He felt Stanley''s attention settling on them¡ªStanley''s rage. He felt it narrowing down and focusing. "Feel that?" Eve whispered, leaning forward as much as she could while flat on her back, her eyes boring into the now uncertain zombie. "He is coming to kill you, fucker..." Then she sagged into unconsciousness. Stanley... Zeke sat frozen in time as he continued pouring out his feeble healing light. Stanley wouldn''t give up. Zeke could feel the defiance in that screaming, raging power. He would fight against anything just to save Caff. Zeke would never forget that desperate, unstoppable drive when Stanley thought Caffeine needed healing. The weight of Stanley''s soul as it bore down on them. He would never stop. He would never give up... no matter what. Zeke had seen that same refusal to ever say die in Eve''s eyes. He looked at her faintly grinning, unconscious face. She believes in me... I can''t give up either... I will never give up. I will believe! +5 Faith Faith Threshold Restriction Removed. Trait Evolved: [Faithless] = [Unshattered Faith] Race Evolved: [Broken Faith] = [Unbroken Belief] (Broken) Effect Removed for Skill: Purifying Light (Broken) Effect Removed for Skill: Purifying Aura A blindingly beautiful golden light exploded from Zeke. The zombie, who had been so sure of itself only moments ago, screamed and leapt away as golden fire engulfed it from head to toe. It was still backing up when the expanding dome of light reached Nate. The zombies around him burst into raging gold bonfires, and Nate appeared from the flames, flying straight for the only zombie left standing. That zombie screamed. In pain and fear as the looming rage arrived. It settled around them and reached for the zombie. Rage! RAGE! DEATH! In a flash of black light, the zombie vanished just ahead of the murderous rage. Just ahead of Nate. Stanley''s overwhelming rage faltered and flickered around them. There was a burst of pain that clawed at Zeke''s soul, and Stanley was gone. The golden light of Zeke''s aura kept spreading in the now too quiet world. It spilled outside, and Zeke could faintly hear zombies screaming and burning. He could feel them burning while the light simultaneously healed others. Until the screams fell silent. Until the only sounds were human cries of victory and despair. "Good work, Zeke," Nate said, smiling at him through the golden light filling the world. Zeke tried to smile back, but he could feel something wrong¡ªsomething next to him. He looked down at Byron as fresh tears blurred his vision. "I''m sorry," he whispered. "Forgive me!" He choked back a sob. "Thank... thank you for saving Eve." A hand fell on his shoulder, and he looked up into Nate¡¯s eyes. "Look at his face." Nate said it with a sad smile. "Don¡¯t feel bad for him. He believed in you. All he ever wanted was to protect you." Zeke looked at the frozen smile on the dead man''s face and let the sob escape. I''m sorry that my faith was weak. His light had obliterated the corruption from Byron, but the wounds remained. Only his face was free of blemishes. I''ll protect them for you from now on, he swore silently to the man. All of them! "Don''t lose hope, Zeke; we''re still in this." Nate squeezed his shoulder softly and stood up. "I''m going to check on the others." Nate stopped next to the unconscious boy, the one who had tried to save Byron. He smiled at the child and gently moved him away from Byron to lay him next to Eve. Poor kid, Zeke thought. It''s not your fault. You tried your best. Zeke reached over and touched him with his Purifying Light. It''s my fault. Even though he knew his aura had already healed any damage. But just in case... Nate walked out, and Zeke sat somberly in the Golden Light of his aura and held his sister''s healed hand as he rejoiced in the victory while simultaneously mourning the costs of that victory. He could feel the once again empowered light from his aura now flowing out of his core, healing and revitalizing the wounded all around him. All around the entire base. But he could also feel the little pockets where it was now too late for his power to heal anything. I''m so sorry. ~~~Steven~~~ [Dungeon Alert] An Invader has been Defeated. Contributions Earned by participating Defenders. Defeat or Subjugate the remaining Defenders to claim your Rewards. Steven hated that human so much. Even when he wasn''t here, the bastard still ruined everything! Fuck that guy! Fuck the rest of those damn humans! And fuck these gods damned wolves! He had been so close. So close to reaching that bratty little boy and earning himself a true reward. Then the floor fell out from under him, and that pitch black demon wolf had dragged him away through a nightmare place of shadows. When he finally escaped, it was into this new hell. A hell full of wolves that refused to fuck off and die! They came from every direction. Constantly. Randomly. Always from the direction he wasn''t looking! Teeth ripped the tendons from his heel, and he stumbled in the instant it took to recover. A body check turned his stumble into a fall. Larger jaws slammed closed around his knee and ripped it clean out, along with his whole lower leg. "Fuck you!" His leg regrew almost instantly, and he pivoted, glowing claws sprouting from his hand as he intercepted the charging wolf. "Die!" It danced aside from his attack, a damned hair''s breadth from him ripping its head off... and teeth tore through his ankle again. Steven roared his outrage at the sky as these pathetic weaklings dared to continue their useless assault. He activated all of his skills, even the long cooldown ones, and set his gaze on the one wolf that wasn''t attacking him. It just stood on its little hill and stared at him. It stared at him with those eyes¡ªthose condescending eyes. How dare it look down on him? "I am Eternal!" Steven roared and charged across the field. They wanted to play games? Then he would kill their leader while they watched helplessly. He would kill it slowly! Make it howl and scream! Make it suffer! The arrogant bitch just stared at him. It didn''t even move as he charged. The bitch was probably terrified. Then he leapt into the air, away from the wolves and their irritating teeth. Soaring through the air on an intercept trajectory with the queen bitch. He raised his claws as he descended, and she took a single hopping step to the side. Her shadow didn''t follow; instead, it grew larger, spreading across the ground. No... Steven landed in the shadow... and everything twisted around. He fell... up, sideways, then tumbled across the churned up field while teeth ripped chunks out of him again and again. When he fought his way back upright, Steven saw the bitch still standing on her hill. Still staring at him with those eyes... That was when he finally realized what was happening and felt a chill climbing up his spine. It was impossible! He was Eternal! He couldn''t die to a pack of damn wolves... Steven turned and fled. He didn''t care in which direction he went. So long as it took him away from that bitch and her fucking eyes. He fought through the swarming nightmare of ripping teeth and escaped into the trees. He sprinted. Faster than any damn wolf could run. And he tripped when the ground fell out from under his feet... The chill started digging into his heart when he opened his eyes to a familiar field with a small hill at the far end and the gray wolf standing atop it. Was the bitch smiling at him? ~~~Cunning Fang~~~ Cunning Fang watched the rotten thing try to flee again. It ran fast. Faster than even Quick Bite. It would not be enough. Her mate had chosen well. He was no longer the strongest or fastest among the pack. Physically, he was the weakest now. But when he moved through the shadowy place underneath this world, he was faster than any wolf. She watched the shadow appear in the midst of the field, watched it spread and grow, until the rotten thing fell out of the darkness and tumbled to a stop in the dirt. The pack was waiting when it emerged, and they took it apart. Piece after piece, they ripped and tore away. The monster replaced the pieces as fast as they went, snarling and screaming at them the whole while. Cunning Fang ignored its mewling while Night Shadow retook his place inside her shadow. It was the safest place for him in a fight like this, and he was not too proud to leave the killing to his packmates. He had done his part. She had sent Night Shadow to watch over the human from his dark place, and his power had allowed him to take this foul creature away before it could touch her human. Before it could harm the one human whose presence allowed her own children to eat and live in freedom! The pack had killed many of the rotten creatures already, but this one was different. It refused to die. It kept restoring its rotten flesh and standing back up. Yet it had threatened her family with its actions, and so it would be destroyed. As many times as it took to make it stay dead. They had time for it now. The humans had won the fight. Her human lived. He was safe. Her pack could deal with this last rotten thing. A former human that had turned against its own kind. She wouldn''t have blamed it for fighting other humans; sometimes a pack had to fight for territory against other packs. When food was scarce, it was understandable to fight for your own first. But this thing didn''t fight for the survival of its pack. It was akin to a sick wolf that only hunted to kill. It poisoned the land, and for no better reason than to leave nothing for anyone else. It pissed in the ponds, shit in the headwaters of every stream, and left the hunted prey rotting in the fields. It should never have come here to threaten what was hers. Now it would pay with its life. A sick animal that had to be removed for the good of the pack. Her pack was strong. Her family was strong. Together, they destroyed the disgusting abomination. Over and over. Until it finally stopped moving. 95. Too Weak ~~~Adrian~~~ "I can''t believe you were holding out on me," Daryl bitched again. "Would you let it go already?!" Adrian hissed while looking out the open doorway at the scattered undead wandering the street. While it was nice that Daryl seemed to take their near death in stride, the nonchalance was bordering on suicidal. "He lied right to my face!" At least he kept his magic going while bitching about the lack of alcohol in a mana-eating bat prison... "You think he was right?" Hallie asked. "About the invader?" She''d lost her blade. Everyone had lost their weapons... It would be all up to the magic users until they got more. Daryl stopped bickering with Donny as everyone looked at the girl. "Probably just fucking with us. Guy was a total nut bag." "I don''t think he was lying," Adrian said. "Why would he? Remember the building shaking earlier? The hole!?" He couldn''t forget the sight of that little dog sleeping in the man''s lap. And its little howl... That pug couldn''t really be the beast lord, could it? "What does that mean for us?" Howie asked. "Is he actually using us as bait?" "Fuck that guy," Travis said, spitting on the floor. "I say we make a break for it. Cross the street to the next lair, at least... and get the fuck away from these damn bats." Everyone had a reaction to the reminder. This entire run had been a disaster. Bats that absorbed mana... and exploded if you killed them. They hadn''t made it past the first floor before everything went to shit. Adrian had barely managed to heal everyone before they got to him¡ªonly thanks to Daryl feeding them his own magic. Then the giant bats dragged them away, one by one. Getting captured by monsters was a new and terrible experience. But they were still alive because of it, so better than the alternative, he supposed. He listened to the others bicker and realized he wouldn''t be able to convince them to wait. A night spent in a bat cage while having their mana drained repeatedly was apparently an upsetting event, and now they all just wanted to go home. Never mind that there might be an even worse monster waiting for them outside. It was immensely reassuring to have full mana again. Perhaps that was the feeling driving the others'' confidence. Mana was still a recent phenomenon, but going without was already an unconscionable option. "What''s the skill shard?" Daryl asked, sidling up beside him with eager eyes. Adrian looked at the shard in his hand. The one that had appeared in the doorway once the lair closed the way back upstairs. "This isn''t ours." "Aw, come on! That lunatic''s long gone." "What if that lunatic comes back and asks for his core?" He tucked it into a pocket because it was indeed tempting. "I''ll give him a day. If he doesn''t come for it by then, we can decide who gets it." Daryl lingered, leaning on him and tilting his head to rest against Adrian''s. "Are you okay?" Adrian whispered while taking the other man''s hand into his own. He let some of the fire inside him spill out of his fingers and crawl up Daryl''s arm. "I just want to go home," Daryl murmured. "Walter''s going to be so pissed..." "He won''t be. I''m sure he''s worried, though, and I wouldn''t say no to his cooking right now." Daryl chuckled and stood up straight again. "Let''s go then. We''ll only get more tired if we wait. Unless you want to hole up in here?" Adrian wasn''t completely against the idea, but the bats were too dangerous. There was no telling how long they''d leave them alone without that other guy here. "Let''s run for it." "Bet you a drink that I beat you to the tower," Daryl said. "No bet. Because I know you''ll lose and then try to force me to drink." Daryl grinned. They all sprinted through the door... and they all flinched when light suddenly shone around them at the same time as something boomed overhead. Only the light did nothing... "Up there!" Adrian''s gaze was already going that way, following the countless glowing lines that stretched into the sky, where they all arrived at a single point. There, they wrapped around a human hanging in the air between skyscrapers. He wasn''t lying. The man who''d saved them from the bats stuttered further across the sky, but the magic followed until he stopped again. Then the skeleton appeared... "Run!" Daryl''s shout was unnecessary. Everyone but Adrian had already taken off, sprinting for the tower and home. Wait... Adrian followed. Reluctantly. While violence erupted in the sky over their heads. We should help him... he saved us! "You can''t do anything with them way up there," Cheesesteak''s voice echoed in his mind as the evolved bird flew beside him. A parrot before all this, only now he¡¯d become... something else... something more. As if in response to the bird, the sky exploded with light and noise. Also, with power. A terrible power. One he immediately recognized as what he''d felt when they got a notification about the invader dying... The only question remaining¡ªthe only question that mattered¡ªwas if it came from the human or the skeleton. That flash of power only lasted an instant. It was immediately followed by a screaming sensation of unimaginable agony that blanked out his mind and sent Adrian tumbling across the street. It took him a moment to realize that it wasn''t him feeling that pain. It came from the man who¡¯d saved them¡ªthe man who was falling closer with every second, his body glowing with a horrible light... The skeleton followed him down, one of its hands buried in the man''s chest. Adrian didn''t stop to think about it, and he unleashed every scrap of fire that burned inside him at the monster. Cheesesteak was of the same mind, and he swooped in like a tiny fire-breathing dragon. He was just in time to delay the wave of swarming zombies that were pouring in from every direction. Daryl copied him, and his fox partner unleashed her own fiery breath into the onrushing horde. Adrian could feel his magic devouring the zombies. They were extra weak to his power. Which made it even more disheartening to feel how ineffectual the flames were against the skeleton. The giant skeleton, as he now saw it up close. He also saw the pug... There was no longer any doubt in his mind about the beast lord pug. Not when he saw it fighting. What he could see. It moved constantly. Faster than his eyes could follow. It changed size constantly and shattered the street wherever its feet touched down... All that, plus the notification that came with its howling scream. You have heard the Wrathful Howl of the Beast Lord. +100% Effectiveness of All Attributes to Friends -100% Effectiveness of All Attributes to Not Friends Power flooded into Adrian along with that sound, and he had time to realize it had considered him a friend... Then magic shot from the skeleton and stopped the dog mid attack... magic that lashed and ripped it open in bloody... The skeleton shattered into pieces with another burst of pain that drove Adrian to his hands and knees in the street, and he only glimpsed the skeleton reforming from little more than broken fragments of bone dust. It had died; it was dust! How... The sight drained his resolve, and his eyes sought Daryl in the sea of flames. They would not win this¡ªnone of them. They would all die... More humans appeared out of nowhere. People that Adrian hadn''t met before, and they attacked with fury to match the now raging pug. Attacked with the same futility as everyone else... Adrian saw an orange light flicker around the monster and fade away instantly. He saw blinding lasers that barely scorched the pale bones. Gleaming spears of crystal flew in... and ricocheted right back out. A man jumped at it... the wrench in his hand driving down on the thing''s skull like a sledgehammer... until the skeleton slapped him away with an almost casual backhand. We''re going to die here. He felt sick at the thought of watching Daryl die... which he wouldn''t ever let happen! Adrian reached deeper inside himself, down into the core of his being, where everything precious to him lived. Into his heart... "No!" Cheesesteak screamed in his mind. "You''ll die!" I won''t let them take him away! I won''t let any of you... The sensations he felt from Cheesesteak shifted, and Adrian realized, a moment too late, what was happening. Nooo! Don''t... "Wait for me," Cheesesteak whispered, his flight turning into little more than a red streak across the sky. "I''ll always come back to..." Cheesesteak hit the skeleton in the face... and erupted in a blast to rival every other attack combined. The firestorm finally blasted the skeleton away from the human. It blasted the skeleton into pieces. It blasted apart the street beneath. An explosion that blasted Cheesesteak into nothing. Nothing but flaming embers evaporating into the air... Soul Bond: (Cheesesteak) has died. Adrian hit the ground as a hole ripped open inside his chest. No... It can¡¯t be... He looked up through blurring vision and saw the skeleton once again unharmed and stalking back to its target. It was all for nothing... He watched everyone else fight while his own mind drowned in a haze of horror. Daryl''s expression was grim and equally haunted as he threw out never-ending streams of fire. He had to know they were losing. Why didn''t he run away? Could they run away? Would this monster even let them leave? Did it matter if they escaped? Or would it simply hunt them down at its leisure... Magic bloomed from the skeleton as it advanced, and a glowing dome sprang up, cutting them off from the monster. The pug was massive but unmoving as he unleashed a deafening bark, cracking the dome. The skeleton ignored the dog. It was ignoring all of them as it stalked toward the only other thing inside the dome. The human who''d saved them. They could run away. The man was right; it wasn''t after them. But if this man died... what was stopping it from coming for the rest of them? It had to die. Here and now. It was the only way to keep Daryl alive. To keep him safe. He could break through the dome... he could end it. He had to end it! I''m sorry, Daryl. Adrian took off, sprinting toward the monster, ignoring Daryl''s shout and refusing to risk a glance. He reached for his heart again, reaching for the power nestled within. I''m the only one who can do this. Please, forgive... He never even made it to the dome. He never got the chance to save Daryl. Adrian felt the rage emanating from within the dome. A deadly, hateful rage. Reality trembled... and Adrian blacked out from the pain. Invader Defeated. Contributions Earned. Defeat the remaining invaders to claim your rewards. Debuff: [Soul Shaken] Hidden Attribute Unlocked: Soul -1 Soul He came back quickly. Fast enough that he heard the pug barking and saw the shockwaves blasting the undead away. His own fires hadn''t quite faded, and he unleashed a fresh wave. Enough to surround the humans who were in various states of consciousness. Enough that it drained his mana down to near empty. "Adrian!" Daryl was next on his feet, and he helped supplement the flames while staggering closer. Princess limped beside him, the fox hugging his knees, as she breathed out cones of fire toward any undead that got close. "Are you... is Cheesesteak..." Daryl caught him when Adrian''s legs gave out, and they ended up clutched in each other''s arms as Adrian sobbed with bittersweet relief. Daryl was alive! They were both alive! But Cheesesteak was gone... he''d sacrificed himself for... Adrian sat up abruptly when he saw something in his status that he hadn''t expected. Something he couldn''t believe... Soul Bond: (Cheesesteak) Phoenix Rebirth(199:59:59) Was it true? He''d always thought the whole phoenix moniker on Cheesesteak''s race was just a fancy name... but if it wasn''t... Adrian felt the sensation then. It was weaker than before, almost lost in the surrounding chaos... but it was there! He scrambled to his feet, with Daryl right behind him calling, "What is it!?" "Cheesesteak isn''t dead!" Adrian screamed as he sprinted through the burning zombie hordes... and slid to a stop beside a small, flaming egg resting on the ground amidst a pile of ashes. His hands shook as he scooped it up, desperately gentle and terrified that he might damage it... even as tears blurred his vision. The loud whine eventually pulled his attention from the egg, and Adrian looked at the little pug laying half atop his human''s unconscious body. Adrian knew the man was unconscious and not dead. He knew because he could feel it... could feel Him. He wasn''t glowing anymore with that creepy light from before, but there was... something. A buzzing, grating, screaming sensation which radiated from him. It didn''t seem to bother the woman, who crouched beside the man as she used magic on him while the pug watched. "It''s okay, Stanley. You''ll be okay. Caffeine is okay! He''s fine, you hear me? You just rest; we''ll take care of everything... Please be okay... I don''t know what''s wrong... I can''t heal it... I don''t know..." Adrian stared for a long moment, then let Daryl pull him to his feet while he clutched Cheesesteak''s egg close. He approached the woman and her patient. "I''m a healer," he said. "Let me try." She blinked at him in daze before nodding. "It might look weird," Adrian said with a glance at the pug. At the beast lord... "But it will heal him." Then he let fire spill from his hand and over the unconscious man. The pug didn''t react, even when the fire crawled over him as well. Unfortunately, the fire didn''t seem to help... though it softened the grating noise emanating from the man and scratching at Adrian''s brain. Or his soul... That''s what it was. It was scratching at his soul... "I''m sorry," he said to the woman and the dog, the latter of whom was staring at him with big brown eyes while it whined. It sat up briefly to growl at something behind him, then lay back down with another whine. "We need to get him out of here," the woman said, still looking shaken but better than before. "We have a safe place," Adrian said immediately. Though... if another of those skeletons showed up, was anywhere truly safe? It was so powerful... How were any of them supposed to survive this dungeon? Or were they never meant to survive? Were they just fodder? Earth was a dungeon. Were they the monsters put here only to be killed by things like that skeleton? Only... the skeleton was dead. It had lost in the end. So maybe there was still hope. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. The woman, Serenity, carried the man she called Stanley. With the pug she called Caffeine lying atop him. Together, they traveled through the endlessly swarming undead. But only the weak undead. The undead Adrian could burn. And burn them, he did. He rained down such a fire that the humans had to wade through it. It was while wading through a sea of fire that he saw the timer on Cheesesteak''s rebirth ticking faster. A few experiments proved that he could speed it up by funneling his own fire to the egg. Not a lot, but some. Enough that he left the remaining zombies to the others and channeled all his flames to Cheesesteak. Until that awful feeling from Stanley grated on everyone''s nerves... a clawing, digging, scratching ache. Adrian spared a little fire for the unconscious man. To everyone''s relief. The trip wasn''t long, only a few blocks, though it took longer with the endless hordes of undead to fight off¡ªhordes that seemed far more aggressive than usual. Then they reached the open doors into the atrium, Walter standing in the gap, his expression almost, but not quite, blank. He tried so hard to be stoic, but Daryl was his weak point... and Adrian couldn''t blame him for that. "Welcome home, Master Whitehall. I trust your excursion went well. May I prepare some refresh..." "Can it, Walter," Daryl said, cutting him off. "We all almost fucking died... I''m going to eat and take a nap. I''ll shower later." Walter showed no displeasure at the brusk treatment. "Very good, sir. Shall I find room for our... guests?" Daryl waved as he strode deeper into the building. "Yea, sure. Whatever." Adrian saw the wince flash over Walter''s face when Stanley entered the building, but the butler hid it well. "He saved our lives, Walter. Take good care of him." Walter bowed slightly, inclining his upper body a few inches. "It shall be as you say, sir." He held out his hands to Serenity. "If the miss would allow it, I would relieve you of your burden. I assure you, he will come to no harm while under my care." Serenity tightened her grip. "I... I''ll carry him... Walter?" "Of course, miss. Right this way, and please do not hesitate to ask for anything you should desire. I am at your disposal." The residents of the tower were used to Walter popping in and acting the way he did, but these newcomers all stared at him with confusion. They were the normal ones. "Can you pop us all upstairs?" Adrian asked, still pouring every drop of his mana into the egg in his hands. Walter didn''t advertise his abilities, but Adrian knew. He''d never witnessed it directly, but Walter got around too fast... Just like that, they were all in the penthouse. I knew it. The victory felt hollow after all that had happened. Especially with Stanley''s unconscious body radiating that sickening pain. Adrian reluctantly diverted some flames to cover Stanley again. It helped. Muffling the sensation but not stopping it. ~~~Daryl~~~ Daryl watched the surroundings abruptly change into his penthouse, and he resisted the urge to look at Walter. Even the old man was holding out on him, and after all the times they''d climbed the stairs... The bastard! Adrian''s smile was beautiful... so much better than that brief and terrible moment when they thought Cheesesteak was gone... As for the newcomers, one of them, James, kept asking about their power and how strong they were. Did they have a lot of fighters? Did they have enough lookouts to watch for incoming? Could they defend if another undead attacked? Honestly! Who the fuck could fight against impossibly powerful monsters like that thing? It had talked to them! The fucking skeleton had talked! It didn''t help his mood at all to have the unconscious man in here with them... Daryl''s hands shook as he scrounged through the cupboards. Where is it? They hadn''t drunk everything, had they? No, he was sure they had more. Cupboards slammed and rattled, and Daryl was about to go kick Donny awake when he spotted a bottle sitting on the counter. That hadn''t been there before. Walter. Are you policing me now, too? He snatched it up and hesitated. Rather than chug straight from the bottle, he grabbed some glasses and took it all to the coffee table. He could play host. "Anyone want a drink?" The discussion halted as gazes swiveled to him and the cargo in his hands. "You know this is your job, Walter. Offering refreshments to our guests?" "Pardon me, sir. You are quite correct." Walter didn''t even bat an eye. "Welcome, honored guests. Please sit down and make yourselves at home. Miss, if you would lay your burden down, we have a guest bed through here that he is most welcome to use. I will have something to eat brought up..." Daryl tuned them out and poured himself a shot of the homebrewed and ridiculously powerful spirits. It burned going down, but it spread a welcome warmth to the cold inside him. He blamed the debuff... [Soul Shaken](23:10:42) Your soul was bombarded by stray soul energies of a powerful soul attack. Effects: -50% Effective Soul That bastard! Dragging them into his fight... using them as bait! Not that it had worked... His hand shook, and he slugged back another shot. Those fucking bats! That fucking guy waltzing in like he didn''t even give a shit! He''d just glared at them, and the entire fucking army of bats surrendered! Who the fuck was he to be so powerful!? And still too weak... Now Walter was fawning over the old fart. Over all the new faces. There was another base out there. A stronghold of humanity that was carving out a place in the wilderness. A stronghold full of powerful people... though they claimed Stanley was the strongest. Apparently, he wasn''t their leader. That was some guy named Nate, the second strongest. "Olie keeps pinging me. I think Nate wants us back." "Just send it back. Let them know we''re alive, at least." Daryl poured another glass of liquid fire down his throat while they jabbered and bickered. His soul ached... Was it just him? Did none of them feel this? How could they talk so... normally? Didn''t they know how doomed they were? Didn¡¯t they understand just how fucked all of them were? Edward took a glass and then exclaimed after downing the liquor. "Wow! That''s wicked strong!" "Seriously, Edward?" James was clearly a buzzkill kind of guy. The stuck-up prick. "We need to reconnect with Nate as soon as possible, and getting drunk will help no one." "All of your party are welcome here for as long as you wish," Walter said. He was being way too nice to these people... "I''ll stay here with Stanley," Edward said while eyeing the bottle on the coffee table. "A drunk bodyguard won''t..." "Aw, come on, man. I wouldn''t do that to Stanley. You''re talking some mad shit right now!" James pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled loudly. "You''re right, Edward. I''m sorry. Adrian, you said you''re a healer?" "You''re goddamned right, he ish," Daryl said, surging to his feet and only swaying slightly. "Better than anyone!" "I can heal most injuries," Adrian said, with a glare at Daryl for some reason. "But I can''t tell what''s wrong with him... and I can''t heal it." "We have a healer who might be able to help," James said. Then he muttered, "If he''s still alive..." Daryl snatched the bottle off the table and stalked away. If they weren''t going to drink, he''d find someone else to party with. He did. ... Murmuring voices dragged him into consciousness, and Daryl wished they hadn''t. God damn you, Donny! Magic super liquor came with a magically supercharged hangover... but he had a cure. If he could only reach it... Daryl didn''t try to speak past the vile flavor coating his mouth and only gagged as he crawled from his bed. Walter must have put him in here... and the sadistic bastard had probably left the curtains open on purpose. So he kept his eyes shut and felt his way to the door. The main room was even more brilliantly lit, but even squinting, Daryl could see a differently colored light flickering beneath the guest room door. A fiery light. He barely noticed the scratching ache from his soul over the other... sensations, but he noticed when it became immeasurably worse after he pushed the door open. Luckily, something else came with it. Buff: [Cleansing Phoenix Fire] Buff: [Purifying Light] Daryl didn''t question the new buff or the sea of fire covering everything, and he only collapsed gratefully into it. Debuff Removed: [Extreme Dehydration] Debuff Removed: [Poisoned] Debuff Removed: [Blood Toxicity] Donny made some fantastic stuff... "Feeling better?" Daryl picked himself up from the floor and glowered at Adrian. "You could have healed me while I slept." Adrian didn''t look away from the egg in his hands. "You could have had one or two drinks after a traumatic experience instead of downing the entire bottle and getting blackout drunk." "You..." Daryl bit back his retort when he saw Princess glaring at him from beside Adrian. He looked away. "I... I just..." The room was full of strange people. Including the group he''d seen... yesterday? Hard eyes watched him from every direction while tense bodies shifted to stand between him and a glowing boy who was laying hands on Stanley. Presumably, their healer... Daryl stared down at his hands when they started trembling. "I''m sorry." Princess sauntered into his line of sight and brushed against his leg. He didn''t need to see her angrily lashing tails to know her mood. "You are mean! Mean to me! Mean to Adrian!" "I''m really sorry," Daryl said, reaching down to scratch her ears in the way she liked. Then he recoiled when her snapping teeth drew a line of red across the back of his hand. "Ow!" "You deserve!" Daryl sat down in the fire covering the floor, and the flames licked at his hand, healing the scratch instantly. He held his arms out to the fox. I''m sorry, Princess. Let me make it up to you. She sat just out of reach of his hands and glared at him. She was really mad. What had he done the day before? "Any progress?" Daryl asked Adrian instead of trying to reason further with his bonded pet. She''d only gotten more spoiled since the system, and he knew it might take her a while to calm down. Not that he was complaining. Princess was wonderful before, and she was even more perfect now. He loved her and would do anything to protect her... but she really lived up to her name. "The timer is still over a week..." Daryl felt an ache in his chest at seeing the expression on Adrian''s face as the other man stared at the egg. He stood back up and approached, going wide around the glaring fox. "He''ll be fine, Adrian. It will be no time at all, and he''ll be back to begging for snacks at every opportunity." Adrian said nothing and only nodded silently while Daryl squeezed his shoulder. Then Daryl turned away and looked at the elephant in the room. The human elephant, whose soul wouldn''t stop screaming. It was a stark contrast to the motionless and unmoving form that lay in bed amidst the sea of flames. "Are you still healing him?" "No. Just muffling him." "Muffling?" The fire pulled back from the man, and the screaming rose to a deafening and terrifying cacophony before the flames spread back over his body. "Yeah. Muffling." "Jesus... why is he still here?" Adrian glared at him. "I didn¡¯t... Nevermind." Daryl turned his attention back to the strangers in his home. Aside from the glowing boy, who was crying now, one other stood out. As if the man could feel his gaze, he turned, and knowing eyes bore into Daryl. But only for a moment. Then they moved on, sweeping across the room and its occupants, looking for threats... before settling back on the boy. It had to be Nate. He was the only one who hadn''t flinched when Adrian pulled the fire away. The second most powerful human. Allegedly. "It''s not working," the boy said through his tears. "Eve, it''s not working! I can''t heal him!" The girl, an older sister going by their looks, pulled him into a hug. She said nothing as he cried in her arms, only staring blankly with a haunted expression. It turned into a glare when her eyes landed on the trio sitting apart. Daryl sighed and moved toward them. It was probably time to introduce himself, and... maybe he could convince them to take their friend away. Every face but the boy snapped to him after the first step, their eyes hard and bodies poised for sudden violence. Twitchy... but who wasn''t these days? "Nate, I presume?" Daryl offered his hand, more out of habit than anything else. "Will you be taking your friend away?" "No." Nate shook his hand and his head. "I don''t think we will." Daryl hid his irritation. "Why not?" Another thought struck him. "Are you moving in?" He wasn''t against the idea, in principle. They were supposed to be strong, and it wouldn''t hurt to have another healer around, but Stanley was... giving him a headache. Just standing next to him, even with Adrian''s muffling, was like being in front of the speakers at a concert... a fucking shitty concert. "Walter assured me you wished to keep him here." "He did what? Why?" "I assume it''s related to the fact that Stanley''s drawing more monsters here..." Daryl blinked. "He''s... what!?" Nate cocked his head at him. "Have you not been downstairs lately?" "Walter, where are you!?" "Sir?" Walter stepped through the door. He hadn''t been out there a minute ago... and the thought triggered a memory that Daryl couldn''t quite remember... Something from yesterday... before he''d started drinking. "What''s going on, Walter? You want to keep..." Walter vanished. Daryl remembered. Walter had been holding out on his powers... Walter reappeared. "Pardon me, sir. I..." He vanished again. Nate was watching him... Adrian was smirking. Princess, what''s so funny? "I won''t tell," Princess said, looking away, clearly enjoying his annoyance. Traitors! Daryl stalked out of the room. He''d go find out himself. "Walter!" he yelled. "I know you can move people..." Between one step and the next, he was abruptly in the wide open atrium, looking at a dozen ongoing fights between humans and monsters. Monsters that looked like giant beetles the size of cars... His whole team was down here... along with a bunch of people he didn''t recognize. Donny staggered sideways away from the snapping mandibles and punched through the stick-like leg of the bug as he went. Howie came in from behind and placed both hands on the beetle''s rear. Lightning crackled, and the bug stiffened. It remained unmoving just long enough for a girl to drive a red spear straight through its head and deep into its body, killing it instantly. None of the other fights went as well. At least not for the human combatants. Walter was the sole reason many of them weren''t dying or dead already. He would appear beside a beetle and kick it back a step before it could rip someone in half, or he would pull the people back instead, if not outright vanishing with them. Daryl flinched when he saw a younger man get completely impaled on a mandible through his belly. He was summoning his magic, too late once again, when the man jumped back with a cry of... joy? "Holy shit, it worked!" The young man, or maybe a teenager, tried to stab the beetle with a much cruder-looking spear. His strike glanced off the carapace, and the spear fell from his hands while the massive mandibles closed around his waist... about to cut him in half. The girl threw her red spear across the room, and unlike the previous attack, her weapon blasted into and through the bug, driving it away from the idiot teenager. She had some promise... More beetles were already charging through the doors, so Daryl unleashed his magic on them. Balls of fire flew from his hands, with the first crashing down well ahead of the bugs and exploding in a spectacular spectacle of light and sound. He''d missed on purpose. Because his magic was all a lie. There was no fire. No heat. No concussive force. Only light and sound. An illusion. But it was an illusion with one special property. If anyone or anything believed it was real... it would become real. At least for them. So he gave the bugs a show. An example of what they should expect from the followup fireballs. They bought it. They almost always did... Guts and carapace flew. The flesh beneath burned to char. The beetles died. "Hey! No kill stealing!" The shout startled him, and Daryl stared in disbelief at the culprit¡ªa tiny girl with what looked like icicles in her hands. "Walter said this is for newbies only." As if summoned, Walter appeared beside her. "Please rejoin your group, miss. Once again, your entire team has scattered while you stand here disparaging the one who protects you." She wilted further with each word and then sprinted away with a squeaking, "Sorry, Walter!" Daryl watched her join up with a few others, including the idiot who got impaled and the girl with the red spear, all of them far too young and clearly too stupid to be doing this. "Walter, what is going on here?" "Sir," Walter didn''t look at him as he spoke. "We are weak." The words hit like a slap in the face. "I''m not..." "You are weak," Nate said as he strolled into view from the stairwell. "That''s why I''m leaving Edward with you. He can signal us if everything goes to shit." His entire squad followed behind him. "This is a good setup you''ve got here, Walter. But don''t waste time. These monsters are just the dregs." He continued walking toward the door as he spoke. "It''s only a matter of time until the real threats come knocking..." He turned back to look at Walter, then glanced at Daryl. All while a fresh horde of beetles charged through the door toward his back. "But I think you know that." He turned away casually, as if completely unconcerned with the giant bug about to bisect him, and backhanded it in the face. Daryl didn''t even see what happened. One moment the beetle was there, and the next it splattered against the wall after plowing through a half dozen of its fellows. Orange light surrounded the surviving bugs, and they moved in slow-motion while Nate''s party jogged past. It was much quieter following their departure, mostly because everyone in the atrium was staring in wide-eyed disbelief at Nate''s casual show of power. They hadn''t even seen Stanley fight. Daryl hadn¡¯t even really seen Stanley fight anything. He¡¯d only felt it... "I fear he is right," Walter said softly beside him. "We have fallen behind. Even were I able to assist you beyond these walls... I cannot say we would have emerged victorious." Daryl didn''t want to think about that monster. The human or the skeleton. He knew what Walter wanted. "I guess you have it under control. I''ll leave you to..." "Sir." Daryl froze and watched his former team all pull back while the kids faced the next beetle. They were obviously acting as the reserve force. As the most experienced fighters in the building. He swallowed. "They died, Walter. All of them... because I screwed up." "This is a war, sir. More will die before it is over." As if to punctuate his statement, Walter vanished and reappeared across the room. Just in time to disable a beetle before it killed someone. Daryl was eyeing the diverse and scattered groups when Walter reappeared at his side. The kids with the spear and icicles were unfortunately the best group here... both in skills used and in their eagerness to fight. They would probably die first. Of course, with them fighting in here... and Walter ready to carry them to Adrian... perhaps they wouldn''t die just yet. Daryl gritted his teeth. "Fine. I''ll help." Walter smiled. The old bastard hid it well, but Daryl had been with him a long time. He saw the smile. "I''ll help you here. I''m not taking them outside!" "Of course, sir." Smug bastard... "How are they doing on useful skills?" As far as he''d heard, way too many people had fuck-all fighting potential. There were the cores they''d gotten from the bat lair... and the skeleton outside... but that was a terrible idea. Stanley might still wake up. If he wanted those cores and found them missing... Daryl shivered. It might be a better idea to kill that monster in his sleep if he wanted to steal from him... Or it would be, if not for the dog. 96. I Need Him Alive ~~~Bradley~~~ -1 Soul Bradley screamed and clutched at his chest as he fell to one knee. He wasn''t the only one. Then, as suddenly as it had started, it was over. Silence fell. Almost. Like a lingering echo of his screams, Lee''s soul continued to cry out, even as his body went mercifully quiet and limp on the floor. Bradley knew it was Lee''s soul... He had known nothing about souls before this moment. He hadn''t even known they existed. Now he knew far too much. Like the fact they could get attacked... or destroyed, and how much it would hurt if that happened. Voices spoke. Discussing what should be done and what could be done. Bradley didn''t understand the words. All he could hear was his own pounding heartbeat thundering in his ears. All he could see was the monstrous skeleton coming closer. All he could feel was that fading echo of pure, deadly rage. All he could remember was the towering building that loomed over the world and asked him to help... He leaned on his staff to drag himself back to his feet while voices murmured nonsense around him. Then he turned and ran. He didn''t just run; he fled for his life across the cement floor, up the ramp, and outside beneath the wide open sky. There, he vomited into a bed of Saira''s crops. He gagged, heaved, and spit until nothing more would emerge from his stomach. "Bradley?" A hand touched him along with the words, and Bradley didn''t flinch away. He knew that voice. She was the best thing that had ever happened to him. She was why he fought. The reason he would never give up. I will fight for what I want and for what I care about. He straightened up with some difficulty. But he did it. "I... I''m okay." Mar stood beside him, fully visible, her haunted expression likely a twin to his own. She was holding it together better than he was, but her arms squeezed him back with a desperate grip when he pulled her into a hug. He stayed there, both of them holding on for dear life, until the trembling in their bodies eased. His frantic thoughts followed suit, calming in the warmth and strength of Mar''s embrace. "Are you okay?" She nodded silently into his chest before lifting her head to look at him. Moisture glistened in the corners of her eyes, but no tears fell. Instead, she leaned up and kissed him. Then she stiffened and pulled violently free of his hug as she spun away from him. Bradley felt a riot of tumultuous emotions, from the sting of rejection to a panicked fear that she was dying. What if it had hurt her more than him? What if she didn''t have enough soul!? "Oh god," she gasped, bent over, and spit on the ground. "Your breath!" Bradley froze. Oh, no. "I... I''m sorry!" His face felt like it might burst into flames¡ªuntil Mar started laughing. She laughed and straightened up before turning back to face him. She was smiling... and crying while she laughed. "I almost threw up!" "Sorry..." He stopped talking when she crashed back into him and buried her face in his chest. Her body shook with silent laughter in his arms, but it didn''t last. A single sob broke free... and the dam came undone. The shaking continued, and Bradley held her tight while she cried. Mar pulled back some time later. She met his gaze with furtive glances, as if embarrassed, though he didn''t know what she had to be embarrassed about... Her eyes flicked toward the garage, where voices still echoed. Bradley turned with her and stared at the entrance. He had a brief flash where the opening looked alarmingly like a great maw waiting to devour them... It wasn''t. He knew it wasn''t. But it was definitely not what he''d thought until now. He would never forget seeing Lee laying there, screaming within a vortex of power. So much power had swirled around him, flowed towards him, sank into him, raged back out, and poured into a towering structure looming behind him, stretching to the heavens. A tower that blotted out the sun and the sky. Everything and everyone... cast into its shadow. Visions of horrifying monsters had danced through his mind. The old man fought against them, trapped in a dark place with another man that looked just like him and a pug... Together, they fought against the horrors. Together, they fought, and won. Only somehow, they still lost. Bradley saw and felt it all. The pain. The fear. The rage. The triumph. The... dying. But then that looming tower reached out, touched him, and asked for his help. Bradley didn''t know why he had agreed, whether it was the fear that felt so much like his own or just the peer pressure when he felt others instantly accepting. In the end, he had done it, and now he was bound to the tower¡ªto Three. To Lee. With unspoken agreement, he and Mar walked hand in hand back into the garage. Back into the maw. Into the tower. Bradley felt it the moment they crossed the threshold. That looming presence was still there. Waiting. He felt it stir at their entrance. Attention turning. Seeing. It found him. Knew him. And nothing happened. The deadly attention that he felt... just passed over and moved on. Together, they took another step. Then another. Lee''s screaming soul grew in volume with each step. Though it wasn''t technically the volume that increased... Maybe intensity? He wasn''t even sure if the sensation came from Lee or if it came from the link that bound their souls together. All of their souls. It was faint, but he could feel it. Every person in the garage carried the mark. The same mark he did. They had all accepted. They all helped Lee. "I cannot heal this," Saira said from where she crouched over Lee. She looked up at their approach, her eyes hard and her expression murderous. Something in her eased when her gaze landed on Mar, then her eyes shifted to Bradley. Vines ran from her in red streamers that stretched through windows and all the way to her tree outside. Mana pulsed non-stop through the plants, enough that he could feel it even though it wasn''t earth mana. Enough that it was frightening. He refused to wilt or look away. Not like he always had before when confronted by the mother of his girlfriend. Instead, he squeezed Mar''s hand tighter and met her gaze. I will fight for her. Against anyone or anything. Saira nodded at him in a gesture Bradley wasn''t entirely sure he hadn''t imagined. Then Maria was speaking... in Spanish. She stopped mid-sentence while staring at the ceiling and sprinted from the garage a heartbeat later. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Alejandro watched her go with a strange look on his face before turning back to the small crowd surrounding Lee. "He is losing soul points. I... I don''t know what to do. Trak, do you know anything about... soul magic?" The anubi looked even more dazed than Bradley felt, and he shook his head. "Not enough, my lord." He sprang to his feet. "But we will not rest until we discover a solution!" "Okay," Alejandro said to the anubi''s back as he vanished into the potion workshop. "Everyone put out the word for anyone with soul skills... until then... I guess we gather more cores? I don''t know if it will help, but... maybe we can trade..." Bradley stretched out his free hand and called to the stone staff he''d dropped earlier. The staff Lee had enchanted for him. It flew into his hand with a burst of mana. "I''ll go." "I''m going with you," Mar said, her hand tightening on his. "Of course." He wouldn¡¯t have it any other way. ... ~~~Saira~~~ Saira watched Mar vanish through the wall alongside Bradley and the other hunters, the stone parting around them and flowing back into place as they went. It was the second day of nonstop hunting, and she wanted nothing more than to go with them. To keep Mar safe. But her place was here. Her power was here. She could keep Lee safe. Not that she was sure he needed protection. Not with that... building. Still, she could heal him... from most injuries. Bradley would keep Mar safe, as he had before. He was a powerful young man, and he only grew stronger every day. Both in power and spirit. Saira had only wished to help Mar emerge from her shell when she jokingly pointed the children at each other, both of them similarly shy and timid. She no longer felt that way. About either of them. Not only did she and her daughter live thanks to that young man, but she could see the true strength of their bond as it grew. She''d never seen Mar as happy as she was lately¡ªnot since... It had been far too long. It both pained her and filled her with pride that Mar had made the same choice to help Lee. Mar had become a better person despite her mother''s mistakes. No, she''d remained a good person despite her mother. She''d always been a sweet child. Before I drove her into her shell. Now her life was in peril again. If they couldn''t find a solution... Saira touched her stomach, feeling the new life stirring within. We will find a way. We will live, and I won''t make the same mistakes again. Mar''s little sister would be happy. She would grow up safe and strong. "And you will have a wonderful big sister to teach you." The baby inside her squirmed and kicked at Saira''s words, as if she couldn''t wait to come out and meet her sister. Soon. Saira pulled more mana, even though she was nearly at her limit already. It flowed in a stream of pure life energy from the tree at her back, circling throughout her body and around the small life sheltered within the blood vines, nourishing her. Then she sent the mana out to all the surrounding plant life, fueling its growth. More of it continued past the garden, traveling through the climbing red ivy that scaled the exterior of Lee''s building. It traveled up to the roof, over the top, and down into the courtyard, where vines snaked under a closed door and touched the unconscious man within, pumping a never-ending trickle of life into his body. Lee had shared his mana freely. It was that gift that had given her the means to survive and thrive despite everything. Giving back now was the least she could do. She just wished it was enough... There was one more way in which she could help. Rax scrambled to a stop in front of her and bowed, his face in the dirt. "Master!" "How many times do I have to tell you? Stop calling me that!" "Yes, Mistress!" She sighed. No wonder Lee was so grouchy dealing with them. Saira looked at Trak instead. "Just tell me what worked and what didn''t, and we can get started." "The nectar of verminete was too strong. We need to soften it while enhancing the shivering flowers'' bloom essence..." Saira listened dutifully, her vines threading delicate fibers into the seed in her hand and adjusting the very nature of what it would become once grown. It was a marvellous feat of agriculture that would have taken a lab years of experimentation to replicate, and something she could now do in seconds. Unfortunately, she was dealing with completely unknown, not to mention magical, herbs. Trak''s extensive knowledge of his own craft was the only thing that made this possible. With his help, she was learning fast. She only hoped it would be fast enough. ~~~Wilson~~~ Wilson took one step into the building and stopped. [Three] is offering you permanent residence and mana access in exchange for acceptance of [Soul-Link] Accept: Y/N? This must be what all the fuss was about. Lee had somehow gotten himself hurt without even going outside. Going by the sparse description of this soul link thing, the supposed fort commander had injured his soul. Assuming that was a real thing? Though he supposed it must be if the system recognized it. Which meant he wasn''t about to accept the offer. Sharing soul damage sounded like a terrible idea. Much less doing it for Lee. The man who was directly responsible for all of Wilson¡¯s problems. Especially since it was Lee¡¯s fault that the monster had tricked him into making a deal. That it had trapped him. Lee just had to be so special! With his magic building and fancy runes. All because he got lucky with a good class! Now everyone loved him. It was the same old story of his life. Always getting passed up for promotion in favor of somebody born with a silver spoon. The only problem with this was that he was very sure what would happen if Lee actually died. More specifically, what that creature would do to him if it came back to find Lee dead. He needed Lee alive. Though perhaps not to the point of risking his own soul directly. He had no idea what else that link might do. Perhaps he should order some of his men to accept the link? Yes. That would work. Not only would it serve the purpose of helping Lee survive, but it might also help to have people on the inside... He just had to decide who. Obviously, it needed to be one of the oath-sworn and a new one who knew nothing too important. Just in case. Being new might also help with ingratiating themselves into Lee''s little clique, especially if he sent them in alone to hide their connection to him. Wilson said nothing of his thoughts to the men beside him. Specific orders could wait until they were not within this building. He didn''t trust it. The damn thing could offer soul bindings. Who knew what else it was capable of? Was it listening to them right now? Would it report back to Lee? Better safe than sorry. There was a lot on the line, after all. He found her in the courtyard, watching over Martin''s classroom. It was a useless endeavor and a waste of time. Soldiers didn''t need to know math. They only needed to know how to fight and how to follow orders. "Mrs Morales, is the General in?" "No. He hunt." It was the same story for too many. A mad rush for cores. "And the Fort Commander? Any improvements?" "He sleep." Definitely a clique. These people knew more than they were saying. No one wanted to explain what had really happened. It was all silent glances and knowing looks. He seriously needed someone on the inside. Wilson left Maria to her pointless schooling efforts and went back outside. The building was giving him the creeps. He avoided Saira''s garden, especially that weird red tree. The thing was almost as disturbing as Lee''s building. Saira. If only she wasn''t such a stuck-up bitch. Who was she to think she was too good for him? Her!? Everyone knew what had happened to her. She was damaged goods, yet she still thought she was something special. She should be grateful for any interest, but she only spurned him while running around dressed like... like that! It was no wonder someone had gone after her. He didn''t let it get to him. All of this would be worth it in the end. Once he had the power promised to him. Then all these people would stop living in their little dream worlds and learn who the real authority here was. Wilson couldn¡¯t wait. Once he got a hold of real power, everything would change. Everyone would finally see that Lee wasn¡¯t special just because he got a lucky class. Once the playing field had been leveled, they would be forced to see the truth. But until then, he could bide his time. Back in his office, he took a seat, leaning back and steepling his fingers in thought. Eventually, he spoke. "Emerson." The man snapped to attention. "Yes, sir?" "You have new orders," he said, writing a few lines on a piece of paper. "You are going on a hunting trip with someone. Once you''re alone and far away from the fort..." He slid the paper across the table. "Tell him this." "Who, sir?" "Take J..." 97. One Soul ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley woke up screaming. "Nooo! You can''t..." He sat up abruptly and looked around in a panic when he realized what was missing. "Caff!" He was on a soft bed in a spacious and furnished bedroom. White sheets were smooth on his bare legs, and cream-colored walls adorned with random abstract art surrounded him. A large window let in gray daylight and looked out over a city far below. A man was staring wide-eyed at him from a recliner on the other side of the room. Oh, and everything was on fire. Stanley lashed out, attempting to push the fire away. Where are you, Caff!? What is... "Wait!" the man in the chair yelped. "You''re safe! Don''t¡­" Stanley floated above the bed as it crumpled beneath him. The fire swirled around the room and towards the other man, who yelled, "It''s just..." A loud boom shook the building. The man looked towards the door at the same time as Stanley. That''s... It was the only thought he had time for before another boom shook the bedroom and the door exploded inward in a cloud of splinters. "Caff!" Stanley gasped as the little furry missile collided with him. "You''re okay! I was so worried." He squeezed the squirming pug tight against his chest as Caffeine licked frantically at his face. "I''m so glad. I thought..." He wasn''t sure what he''d thought. Something bad. A voice was saying something, and Stanley pulled his gaze up to find the other man holding a roiling ball of fire between his cupped hands. "...healing fire! I have to put it back!" As he spoke, it poured out from his hands and spread across the floor, then up the walls until the fire crawled across the ceiling and encircled the room once again. Stanley noticed something happening as it went. A quieting of a cacophonous noise, a softening of incoming... "You''re safe here!" the man said in a strained voice. "Please try to relax." He was still holding some swirling fire between his hands, but Stanley finally noticed his soul. It wasn''t threatening; it was under threat, in pain, and afraid... of him. Stanley buried his face in Caffeine¡¯s fur. We''re okay, he thought. Caff is here. We''re safe. He took deep breaths and tried to slow his racing heartbeat. Caffeine whined and sighed as he gave up on the face licking and settled down in the desperate hug. Stanley also slowly calmed as the nightmare lurking at the edges of his mind faded and the feeling of Caffeine in his arms grounded him. Caff is okay! Then another soul appeared in the room. His gaze leapt to the doorway, now sans door, and the curtain of fire that covered the opening. A fox was peeking through. Stanley blinked as a memory popped into his head. A three tailed fox in a cage... then later, that same fox attacking the... Stanley buried his face back in Caffeine. I''m... alive? It felt unreal. He had been dying... but he wasn''t dead. Caff is safe. Lee is alive! He could feel his brother in the distance, very much alive and waking up himself, likely in response to Stanley''s own panicked awakening. Slowly, with deep breaths and a face full of Caffeine¡¯s fur, Stanley calmed down. When he felt stable enough, he finally looked back up at the souls he could feel inside the room. He could feel other souls further away and below, but they were muted like voices from behind a wall, diffused and unintelligible. Inside the room, the fox was staring at him, and when he met its eyes, it bristled, fire sprouting around its head like a lion''s mane and on all three tails that waved agitatedly behind it. Stanley looked away and met the gaze of the man crouched next to the fox. He must have come in behind it. His soul was wary and nervous. He had one hand on the fox and was stroking its back. "Easy, girl," he murmured with a faint British accent. "He''s a good guy, remember?" His eyes dropped to Caffeine. "You like Caffeine, right? Well, Caffeine likes him." The fox''s tails slowed as it glanced between him and Caffeine while the flames dimmed and died until the fox was no longer on fire. "That''s right," the man crooned with a big smile for the fox, his white teeth contrasting brightly against his dark skin. Stanley settled slowly down himself. Literally and mentally, until he was sitting on the broken bed beneath him. He gingerly reached a hand out to the fire covering the floor. It was warm, but it never grew hot, even as his fingers dipped into the flames. It felt... nice. He looked up again and met the eyes of the two men watching him. Both of whom he was pretty sure had been in the bat lair... "Hi..." Stanley said weakly into the quiet room, the fire making no sound as it flickered. Both men smiled at him, and Stanley tried to smile back, but his face twitched, and he quickly quelled his rioting emotions, his fingers brushing through the fur under his hands. "Hi," said the man beside the fox. "Daryl. In case you forgot." He nodded to the other man, who was still holding a ball of fire. "That''s Adrian. Don''t mind the fire in his hands; that''s just Cheesesteak''s egg." Stanley blinked. Cheesesteak? Daryl''s face and soul both softened while he looked at the other man, then hardened again when his gaze moved back to Stanley. "He''s a phoenix. The bird you saw before?" Stanley started to respond, remembering a bird sitting on the guy''s shoulder, then later exploding... His throat tightened, so he just nodded slightly and glanced at the fox. "This is Princess! Our illustrious leader." Daryl grinned, on his face and in his soul. "She won''t ever let you forget that, either." He glanced at the pug on Stanley''s lap. "That is Caffeine, right?" Stanley nodded slowly. "How... How did you know?" he finally asked. Daryl''s smile dimmed. "Edward told us. Also, you, um, yelled it a few times." He smiled brightly at the pug. "He''s a good pup. Wouldn''t leave your side at all for that first day." Stanley smiled and hugged Caffeine tighter as he blinked away something in his eye. "Yes," he managed. "He is the best... Wait, first day?" Daryl cleared his throat. "You''ve been here for about a week." A week... Stanley stared blankly and refused to let his attention wander near the memory of... "We finally convinced him you were okay. Between the food and Princess here, he eventually calmed down," Daryl said while petting the fox fondly. "She can communicate with him much better than any of us." "You can talk to Caff?" Stanley asked, excited. "Is he okay? Is he... happy?" Daryl frowned slightly. "You can''t communicate?" He waved his hands at something he saw on Stanley¡¯s face. "Sorry, I just assumed you were a beast bond... like us..." He glanced at Adrian and back. Stanley shook his head slowly. "I''m a... psionic." That wasn''t privileged information, and these people had helped in the... He flinched away from the memory. "I''m Stanley," he said belatedly, since he''d never introduced himself when they first met. Though, obviously, Edward would have already told them that. Daryl smiled wider. "Nice to meet you, Stanley. Guess we can stop calling you Dearest Human now." Stanley froze. "Is... is that..." Daryl nodded gently. "Princess told me that all he would say was ''Help Dearest Human'' and ''Save Dearest Human'' for the first day." Stanley lost his composure and curled up around the pug in his lap. Caff! He shook as tears ran freely, and Caffeine whined sadly at him. "He started saying ''breakfast'' and ''dinner'' once we got him to eat," Daryl continued after Stanley calmed down again. "He calls Princess ''Fire Dog''. She hates it and tries to bite him every time he calls her that." Daryl laughed while the fox glowered at him. "Caffeine loves that! Starts barking and sprinting around while she chases him." Stanley laughed through his tears. "That sounds like him." He dried his face with the sheet and looked up. "Thank you," he said. "Thank you for taking care of him." "You''re welcome. It''s the least we could do after you... saved us." His soul didn''t quite match his words. It was bitter, afraid... and angry. Though not ungrateful. Stanley had left them in there... and tried to use them as bait... but it hadn''t mattered in the end. He flinched at the memory, but it reminded him of something else. Something he''d sensed toward the end there... the almost end... he just wasn''t sure if he''d imagined it. "You said you talked to Edward?" Daryl opened his mouth, and Edward popped his head through the curtain of fire in the doorway. "Hi, Stanley!" Stanley frowned at the man, whose soul became abruptly obvious the moment his head appeared in the room. Was the fire hiding souls? It was definitely muting them, at the very least. "You guys came back..." "Of course! We''re a team." Edward beamed as he walked through the ankle deep flames covering the floor. "I''m supposed to signal Nate now that you''re awake... but thought I''d ask you first." "Are the others here?" Wherever here was. Edward lost some of his cheerfulness. "Just me. Nate didn''t like this place and went back. Some people died in the attack... our team was the strongest one left, so he put them on Zeke guard duty... I''m just here to send the signal if anything happens." Figures, Stanley thought. Protecting his precious healer... "Sorry we didn''t kick more ass, Stanley. That thing was crazy strong... I''m just glad you survived whatever it was doing to you... because that shit hurt. We all felt it... and the bastard wasn''t even attacking us!" Stanley met his eyes for a moment before looking away. He could feel all of them flinching, just slightly, away from him. "It wasn''t the skeleton. Not at... the end," Stanley whispered. "I did that... I had to... it was the... only way..." He curled up around Caffeine as his throat closed off. The pug licked his face gently and softly as his body spasmed from the memory of that literally soul-rending pain. "I didn''t know that..." Daryl spoke into the lingering silence. "I don''t know if it helps, but you saved a lot of lives. Not just ours, but everyone that thing would have killed later." He was silent for a moment. "We still don''t know how many people are still out there." "I didn''t do it for you," Stanley whispered. "I only wanted to survive... to escape... to protect Caff. I don''t need..." He trailed off. Maybe I do need other people. A week... They took care of Caffeine for a week. They deserve whatever they want. "There''s..." Stanley cleared his throat and swallowed before continuing. "There are thousands. Survivors, I mean. I... I saw them all over the... city? Countryside? Dungeon?" He waved a hand vaguely around. "That''s great!" Edward exclaimed. "Nate will be glad to hear it." Stanley was paying attention this time and felt someone approaching the room. He looked to the doorway in time to see a man step through. An older man wearing a... tuxedo... and carrying a large ornate silver tray covered by a domed lid. "I have brought lunch for the lord and lady, sir," he said in a much stronger British accent. Daryl sighed. "We have a guest, Walter. Is this show really necessary?" "Astute as ever, sir," ''Walter replied in a dry monotone. He stepped up to Stanley and set the tray on the floor, removing the lid with a flourish. A massive fish was steaming on the tray, cut in half but otherwise intact¡ªhead, eyes, fins, everything. "Your lunch, my lord." Walter bowed low as he looked at the pug, and Caffeine leapt to the tray, tail wagging as he stared at the fish that had to be four times bigger than him. Caffeine suddenly ballooned in size and swallowed the fish in one bite before shrinking back down. "Very good, my lord," the man said to the pug, seeming completely unfazed by the display. He scooped up the tray, and it vanished as he turned. Then he strode over to Princess and set another tray before her, complete with a much fancier spread of fileted fish. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "My lady." He bowed as the fox stepped daintily up and started nibbling on her meal. Caffeine immediately sprinted towards her, and she growled, fire blooming over her body. The pug slid to a halt and lay flat on the floor while staring at her meal with a terribly sad whine. Walter walked around the animals to approach Stanley. He reached behind his back and brought out a stack of folded fabric from nowhere. "I''m afraid your previous attire was tragically destroyed, sir," he said in the same monotone. "I have acquired replacements. I sincerely hope you find them to your satisfaction." Stanley blinked at him. "How did you..." "He is insufferable; that''s how," Daryl said, rolling his eyes. "Don''t encourage him." "Quite right, sir," Walter said, with no change of expression or tone. "How were my clothes destroyed?" Stanley asked. He couldn¡¯t remember that much damage from the fighting. Not physical damage... "Terribly sorry, sir," Walter said. "It seems someone mistook them for garbage and threw them into a fire." He bowed deeply, his face the perfect picture of regret. Stanley looked at him, confused. His soul was telling a different story than his face. There was no regret, only disgust, when he mentioned Stanley¡¯s clothes. They weren''t that dirty. On second thought, he had spent hours inside the ventilation ducts and had likely been splattered with little bits of exploded bats more than once. It''s fine. He really didn''t care about clothes. There were much worse things to worry about. Though... Stanley held up one of the clothing items. It looked like a formal suit and tie. "Um, what is this?" "You made him a suit, Walter?" Daryl sounded surprised. "Of course, sir," Walter replied, his soul resounding with certainty. Stanley watched and felt the emotions playing across Daryl''s face as he stared at the older man. Surprise, confusion, curiosity, and finally happiness. There was also affection running deep that spoke to a history between them. "Aren''t we past the suit and tie era here?" Stanley asked as he pulled the various pieces from the stack. "The end of the world is no excuse for improper attire," Walter said stiffly. "Don''t knock it yet," Daryl said with a chuckle. "Walter creates some special stuff. Try it first." Stanley was doubtful, but he noticed that both Daryl and Adrian were wearing their own suits, minus the jackets and ties. So he played along. Caffeine was sliding on his belly, inch by inch, towards the fish as Stanley floated up to his feet, and he finally noticed something. "Am I wearing a diaper?" Edward laughed. "Hey, it was necessary after the first mess... the only mess. Luckily." Stanley felt his face heating, and Daryl rushed to explain. "You were dangerous to approach for a while there." He gestured around the room with a nervous chuckle. Stanley didn¡¯t understand at first, but on closer examination, he realized that what he had thought was abstract art was actually random holes and damage to the walls, and here and there some pieces of furniture were still embedded... "Oh..." Stanley grimaced. "Sorry about..." "We all have nightmares." Daryl cut him off. "Don''t worry about it." He grinned at Stanley, but it was a forced expression. "New problems for a new age. Instead of tossing and turning ''in'' your bed, now people can toss the whole bed." His smile faded, and Stanley felt his soul bouncing around a multitude of different emotions, most of them unpleasant. "If you would like to change, sir," Walter spoke up into the silence as he reached through the flames on the wall. "The facilities are just here." He opened a door that Stanley hadn''t noticed under the flickering fire. "I took the liberty of drawing up a bath for you." Princess was growling softly as she ate, while Caffeine, stretched out on his belly, tail wagging, inched his way closer and closer. Before Stanley could go through the doorway, Daryl suddenly leapt to his feet. "Hold up," he called. "Gotta put the fire in there." "If it''s to block the miasma, don''t bother," Stanley said. "It doesn''t affect me." Daryl stuck a hand into the flames and pulled it back out. The fire seemed to flow into his hand until a swirling ball surrounded his fist, and he stepped up to the door. "Actually," he said hesitantly. "It''s to block your... um..." He gestured vaguely at Stanley. "...aura?" Stanley blinked, suddenly seeing the pained looks and grimacing in a new light. "My soul..." he murmured. "That''s what we assumed." Daryl nodded apologetically. "Everyone in the fight down there unlocked the soul attribute when you... killed that thing." Stanley shuddered, his fists clenched tight. "I... I did. I killed it. I fucking killed it!" "Damn right, you did!" Edward cheered, both hands up in a victory pose. "We didn''t know monsters like that were out there," Daryl said quietly while glancing back and forth between them. "That was a new one," Edward said as his posture and mood deflated. "But Stanley still fucked it up! I never doubted him for a second." "You should have," Stanley murmured. "I thought... no, I was dying." "But you didn''t die!" Edward cheered again, bouncing right back into cheerfulness. He really was straightforward, and his soul didn''t conflict with what his face showed. Not even a little. "Plus, everyone made it back," Daryl said, smiling briefly before glancing at Adrian, who was still sitting and concentrating intently on the fire between his hands. "Almost everyone." Daryl''s soul was tinged with worry and sorrow as he looked at the other man, but the strongest underlying feeling was a steady, loving affection. Stanley redirected his focus to the fire in Adrian''s hands. "It''s there," he said quietly to both men. "I can feel the soul inside the egg." He clarified when Daryl looked confused. "It''s aware of us and... eager." Daryl smiled wider and stood a little straighter. "That is good news." He looked fondly, yet sadly, at the other man. "We never had to test the phoenix rebirth before," he said. Then he whispered, "We don''t know if it will be the same... Cheesesteak." Stanley listened closer to his Soul Awareness, tuning out the fear and worry spilling from Adrian to focus on the egg. "I didn''t get a good look... the other day. But it is feeling... affection? Love?" He shook his head. "Still learning this skill." "We''ll know soon. It''s almost finished," Daryl said, pushing the fire in his hands through the doorway. The curtain of flames rolled back and expanded until it outlined a rather fancy looking bathroom. "Go ahead." Princess burst into raging flames and charged Caffeine. The pug bounced away and started sprinting excitedly around the room while the fox spun in place, trying to protect her meal. "Caff!" Stanley said loudly. Caffeine slid to a halt, his tail slowly drooping. "Get the fish!" Stanley said with a grin and went into the bathroom as the sprinting resumed. He heard Walter clear his throat. "If the Lord would like another snack..." There was a whoosh and a boom. "Ahem. I see the Lord is still feeling peckish." "He is never not hungry!" Stanley called, then looked into the mirror and froze. Oh, no... "What did you bastards do to my beard!?" he yelled. My glorious beard... "You''re welcome!" Daryl shouted through the doorway. "You looked like a hobo! A rabid hobo that just stabbed someone and took a few bites!" Stanley sighed. It wasn''t that bad. His carefully and meticulously cultivated, wild man living in the woods beard... was now mutilated and ruined. All short and squared off. It looked disgustingly professional. All that time... wasted. His body was old and wrinkled. Not death''s door old like it had been... but not the improvement he''d been hoping for after reaching E-grade. Maybe it was that little burst of source... Otherwise, his body wasn¡¯t bad. He had muscles¡ªsmall ones, but still clearly defined. He was ripped. It must be the attributes or the fighting for survival¡ªmaybe both. Especially considering how much I eat... He removed his thankfully clean diaper and floated himself into the steaming bath. How did Walter get... nope, not going to even worry about it. He was stalling. He really didn¡¯t want to think about what had happened earlier... well, a week ago. But he wasn''t likely to get a more comfortable and luxurious opportunity than this. So he took a deep breath of the steamy air, sank low into the wonderfully hot water, and looked at his notifications. Here we go. He glossed over the messages until he got to the one he was most curious about. Source is burning your body and mind: -800 All Base Attributes per second.(+700 from Source Nexus) -80% Health per second from Source +80% Health per second from Source Regeneration. Soul-Bonded Beast(Caff Caffeine) has sacrificed -100 All Base Attributes You gain +50 All Base Attributes Caffeine had stepped off the crack to attack the skeleton in their soul... That one second cost them almost everything. Is that why the skeleton thought he wouldn''t use the source? Did it know how much it would hurt them? How did it know? Why did it hurt them so much more? The cost hadn''t been that high the first time... Had the crack gotten bigger? It wasn''t a wound. They had no debuff from the crack. There was not even a mention of it in the notifications or their status. What did that mean? There was also the way Caffeine moving had let it out... Was Caffeine the reason they couldn''t use the source? Was he preventing them from using it? Or... was he protecting them from it? He thought of the fox in the next room. Could she ask Caffeine about it? Maybe later. For now, Stanley continued with his notifications. Debuff: [Soul Wound] -5 Twin-Soul Attribute per second He flinched slightly at the memory of that magic cutting his soul open. Keep going. -5 Twin-Soul Attribute +1 Willpower Debuff Upgraded: [Major Soul Wound] -10 Twin-Soul Attribute per second -10 Twin-Soul Attribute +1 Willpower Debuff Upgraded: [Critical Soul Wound] -20 Twin-Soul Attribute per second Stanley clenched his fists under the water and took slow, deep breaths as he listened to Caffeine in the other room. He was still trying to get Princess''s fish by the sounds of it. It was worth every bloody, screaming second of agony, Stanley thought. I would do it again in a heartbeat! He was almost surprised by how easily that realization settled on him. Hearing Caffeine play and feeling the happiness through the bond, plus Lee in the distance, made the memories easier to bear. Those feelings reminded him why he''d done it. Of why it was worth it. He continued through the notifications. -20 Twin-Soul Attribute +1 Willpower Debuff Upgraded. [Deadly Soul Wound] -100 Twin-Soul Attribute per second Invader Defeated. Contributions earned. Defeat the remaining invaders to claim your rewards. Class Evolution forcibly enacted. Psionic (Rare) = Soul Psionic (Epic) -100 Twin-Soul Attribute -100 Twin-Soul Attribute Soul Collapse Imminent. Soul Collapsing... Buff: [Soul Link] Debuff Downgraded: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)] -1 Twin-Soul Attribute per 48 hours -1 Twin-Soul -1 Twin-Soul -1 Twin-Soul I''m leaking, Stanley thought with a grimace. Actually, we''re leaking. He really hoped Lee had someone helping him this past week. Fuck. Though that soul link... plus, he''d felt the souls around his brother before it was over. They must have taken care of him. [Soul Link] A single helping soul can make a difference. A hundred can turn the tide. Effects: All soul damage is shared equally between linked souls. Thank you. Whoever you are, he thought. I owe you. There was another message repeating over and over. Buff: [Cleansing Phoenix Fire] One message stood out among those. Buff: [Purifying Light] Nate had brought his precious healer all the way out here... Too little. Too late! But he had come. It was... something? Then, amidst all that shit, was a message he hadn''t expected to see. Analysis Completed. Values Assigned to Unique Attribute: Twin-Soul I guess that''s good? He looked at his status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](58%) [Source Nexus] [Wrath] [Eye of the Storm] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 85 (Advanced) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 62 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 42 (Intermediate) | Accelerated Thought (Rare) - Level 42 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Meditation (Rare) - Level 45 (Intermediate) Attributes: Strength: 51(+80%)91 Vitality: 53(+172%)144 Dexterity 52(+80%)93 Wisdom 144(+1032%)1876 Intelligence 145(+1032%)1887 Willpower 153(+1882%)3278 Twin-Soul 93(+430%)492 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 30 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) Buff: [Soul Link] Debuff: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)] His attributes were... wrong. In a good way? Stanley didn¡¯t know if that mattered or how much. First, he focused on his new class. One forced on him... by his actions. Soul Psionic (Epic) I am; therefore, it is. An epic class that focuses on the power of the mind and soul. Practitioners eschew the use of mana, instead converting all external and internal energy directly into their mental energy. Strong minds can use this energy to force the world around them to bend to their will. Masters of this class can alter reality on a whim and a thought. Psionic Variant (Soul) users infuse their soul energy into their will. Increases the strength of all abilities at the cost of increased risk of damaging the user''s soul. Class Level Effects (Advanced) +8% Effective Mind Attributes +8%(-4%) Effective Soul Attribute(Halved due to Twin-Soul) +100%(-50%) Effective Soul Added to Effective Mind(Halved due to Twin-Soul) Okay. Stanley didn''t mind the change. Not after fighting that thing. Using their soul was the only reason they''d won. Soul magic was literally the most dangerous magic he''d seen yet. The only thing that worried him now was the risk of damaging his soul. Well, damaging it more... He had gained no new knowledge from the evolution about how to ''infuse'' soul energy. Or was he already doing it? Was it passive? What if getting the cerebral fatigue debuff now would hurt his soul? Hopefully, it wasn''t anything like his last time... with the ripping and tearing... He shuddered at the memory of his soul doing exactly that... then settled back down. He''d attacked the bed a few minutes ago and had felt nothing from his soul. Nothing more than that constant dull ache... Though maybe he hadn''t infused his soul to do it? I''ll need to test it. He decided. Test it carefully. 98. Ruthless ~~~Lee~~~ "Stanley!" Lee jerked awake with a scream as fear burned through him. He gasped, and the feeling vanished as suddenly as it appeared. Something happened! Lee was frantically trying to sense his brother as he fought off his drowsiness, and then he felt it. Stanley was okay, just afraid, tired, and hurting. Lee realized he was hurting, too. Ow... The memory of the fight rose, and Lee stared at the ceiling of his apartment in a trembling daze. We did it. We survived! He clenched his fists as a smile grew on his lips. It''s not over! He still felt terrible, and he looked at his notifications to distract himself. Debuff Gained: [Soul Wound] Nope, Lee thought, skipping through the list. Don''t need that... Where''s the good news? Your Soul Bound Connection with [Three] has increased. Okay, that''s good... whatever that means. There were skill and class level ups as well, but he skipped them. Until... [Three] Emergency Protocol. Creator Death Unavoidable. Insufficient Resources. Requesting Assistance. [Three] Emergency Protocol. Assistance Acquired. Granting Full Permanent Residence and Mana Access to all Assisting Participants. [Three] Emergency Protocol. [Soul-Link] Crafted and Bound to Creator. Lee wasn''t that surprised. He remembered what had happened. Mostly. What still surprised him, even though it shouldn''t, was Three. Did it know how to create that? Did I teach it? Did I know? He doubted that last idea since he still didn''t know how to make a soul link. [Soul-Link] A single helping soul can make a difference. A hundred can turn the tide. Effects: All soul damage is shared between linked souls. He''d seen the messages... they''d already lost a few points of soul. As he thought about it, Lee felt the link. A connection between himself and Three, between Three and... I can feel them. It wasn''t only Mana Mind telling him who was around anymore. Now there was something else. A rune. Not a rune on their gear... but a rune on their souls. What did I do? A large number of people were in the courtyard, training by the feel of it, and everyone of them had a ghostly line or streamer running from them. Running from the rune that sat in... or beside... them. Those same lines came to and were wrapping around Lee. Strands and filaments, branching and twisting into the rune that floated around him, but also deep down inside him, sheltering his soul... and through him, his brother. They all helped me. Lee forced himself to his feet. Even though he ached and wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep, Lee made it to the door. It opened before he reached it, and he lurched through. All sound in the courtyard ceased. Lee could feel the energy surging, and he realized Three had been blocking most of it from traveling through the walls and doors. He staggered to a stop against the metal railing and looked down at the gathered people. Every single one of them was looking back up at him. They could feel him, much the same way he could feel them. Lee felt fear from them, worry, anger, relief, and joy. The whole gamut of human emotions radiated back at him. "Thank you," he gasped out weakly, coughing at his dry throat. "Thank you! You saved me," he almost whispered, but his voice carried in the silence. "You saved Stan..." His vision went blurry as tears welled up, but he didn''t need his eyes to see them. "Thank you so much!" Lee collapsed as his legs gave out, and he slumped down, leaning his head against the bars of the railing. He had lived through that nightmare. Stanley had survived. They had both been at the edge, and everyone here had helped pull them back from the brink. "Thank... you..." Someone leapt from below, and he watched them approach with Mana Mind. Hands gripped his arms, and Alejandro¡¯s voice said, "You''re welcome." Lee cried. He couldn''t help it. They''d almost died again... it had hurt so much... it still ached. "I''m glad you''re alive," Alejandro said. Lee tried to shout, but it came out as another whisper. "I won''t let you down! I will keep you safe... all of you. I promise!" "I know, Lee," Alejandro said softly. "We all know. Now come on, let''s get you back inside so Martin can finish the training." He gently lifted Lee back onto his feet and turned him towards his apartment. Lee sagged and allowed Alejandro to drag him away. "I will protect all of you..." Then they were back inside his apartment, and the rush of... whatever that energy was... faded. A cup of water appeared in his face, and Lee drank it, followed by another. Then Alejandro dropped onto the couch next to him. "I think I know what happened, Lee. But... what happened? I saw it... that thing. Hell, we all saw it. Is that the undead the anubi were afraid of?" Lee nodded, but something he''d glossed over earlier drew his attention from the conversation. It involved Maria, whom he could see coming his way with two children in hand. Two children with the same rune on their soul as their mother... What have I done? There had been a lot of children in the building before... and Lee didn''t need Mana Mind to recognize that he''d bound every single one of their souls to his own. Oh god... what have I done!? Maria walked through the door, and Lee couldn''t bring himself to look at her, keeping his gaze locked on the floor. "Alejandro, Maria... I''m sorry. I don''t... I didn''t..." Lee finally looked up into Maria''s eyes when she came to a stop standing over him. Her gaze was full of fear. "My children... you... bound them... bound their souls! Why, Lee?" "It was Three. I didn''t... I wouldn''t have..." "Mama," Gabriel said. "Me and sister wanted to help. Daddy said we should help people." Maria closed her eyes, her expression heartbroken and afraid. "Uncle Lee was hurt and scared, so we wanted to help. Please don''t be mad." Gabriel threw his arms around his mother''s waist in a hug, and his little sister joined in on the other side. "You did the right thing, Gabriel. Your mama knows that," Alejandro said, then looked at Lee. "Can you remove it from them?" Lee started to shake his head and hesitated. It was a rune. A very complex and fancy-looking one, but a rune all the same. He should be able to take it back... right? Only... would he die if he removed it? Could he pull it from only one person, or would it remove the rune from all of them? It had a lot of intersecting lines... and he honestly wasn''t sure if it was all a single rune or hundreds of the same one. It was also crafted from more souls than his own... "Maybe?" The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Alejandro stood up and joined the kids in hugging Maria while Lee was contemplating. Then he broke away to smile down at him. "We know you meant well, Lee. Even now, it''s as if I can feel what you''re feeling... It is just hard to see the children in danger." "I would never..." Lee froze when a new thought occurred to him. "Can you guys see your soul attributes?" [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)] -1 Twin-Soul per 48 hours Even with the soul link, if they were losing one soul every two days... "Yes!" Gabriel smiled. "It is four." He held up four fingers. "Sister is two." He pulled two fingers down with his other hand. Lee started shaking as horror filled him. No. No. No! He looked at Alejandro and Maria, who were both watching the exchange. They didn''t look nearly worried enough... "Minus... zero... dot... zero... one... per four eight hours," Gabriel said with a distant look, as if he were reading something only he could see. Lee sank back into the couch and closed his eyes. Not an equal drain... but maybe... a percentage? He checked his status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Soulforge](E-grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] [Swarm Chaser] [Minor Lord](321) Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Source Nexus] [Soulforged Mana] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Rune Harmonics] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 55 (Advanced) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) - Level 55 (Advanced) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 35 (Intermediate) | Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 24 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 73(+320%)306 Vitality: 72(+320%)302 Dexterity: 71(+320%)298 Wisdom: 164(+1495%)2616 Intelligence: 173(+1495%)2759 Willpower: 168(+1495%)2679 Twin-Soul: 93(+430%)492 Non-Class Skills(3/6): Liquid Mana Beam (Rare) - Level 10 (Novice) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 55 (Intermediate) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) | Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 30 (Basic) Buffs: [Three] [Soul-Link] Debuffs: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)] Seeing his soul attribute with actual numbers was new... but if he was losing one point and Gabriel was losing point zero one... Lee wasn''t sure about the math but didn''t question it further. There would be no point in linking his soul to a bunch of people if he just killed all of them and ended up right back where he''d started. Had Three accounted for the difference? He felt tears of relief leaking from his closed eyes. That scared me so bad. At this rate, he had four hundred... no, eight hundred days? No, he was still wrong. If Anita was losing soul at the same rate, it was only four hundred days. That was plenty of time! He could figure something out before... A small hand patted his leg. "It''s okay, Uncle Lee. It doesn''t hurt." Lee blinked. He felt it. He could feel something from everyone in the room. Just like before, on the balcony. A whirlwind tour of emotions from the group. It''s not too late. Lee closed his eyes again. There is time. We can still fix this. He forced his mind away from that. Concentrate on what you need now. First thing. Lee stood up to face the family who had adopted him. "I don''t know what will happen going forward. I don''t know if my soul will get better or not. I''m not even sure where to start. But I will take my chances with removing the link before I drag anyone down with me." Alejandro smiled. "I know, Lee." Maria didn''t smile, but Lee felt her fear diminish. It didn''t go away, but it lessened. She somehow didn''t hate him for what he''d done; Lee could feel that much from her. She only feared for her children, a sentiment he shared and one that she could probably sense. "Is Anita really at two?" he asked while glancing down at the girl. She half hid behind her mother while smiling shyly up at him. "No," Alejandro said. "She is the same as Gabriel. He only says that because he''s twice as old as she is." That was a relief. More time to work with before things got dangerous... more dangerous. "Speaking of which, what are your soul attributes?" "I am at eleven," Alejandro said. "I lost one point when I accepted the link. Everyone did. The predicted loss was higher at the start, but it''s gone down as more people have joined in. So far, it looks like all of us that accepted are the same, regardless of our totals." "Eleven?" Lee stared. "Only eleven? What about everyone else?" "The highest, I think, was Martin? He was at fifteen." That made no sense. "I''m at ninety-three." After we lost over two hundred points... "I always knew you had a big soul, Lee." Alejandro was grinning at him. "Now, how about we continue this over lunch? You must be starving after not eating for a week." "A week!?" Lee''s mind raced. "We''re due for another invasion!" He got halfway off the couch before Alejandro caught him. "Relax. We''re ready this time. There won''t be any monsters sneaking in like before. You can take a minute; after all, your building kept recharging your runes while you slept, so we''re still in good shape. Nothing needs your attention right this minute. Take a breath. You''re alive. We''re alive. Enjoy it." "Okay. Okay. But... I should do... something..." "You should..." Alejandro started, but Maria cut him off. "You rest now. We bring food. We talk more." "Yes... I can check the rest of my notifications. Maybe I''ll find something to help..." His status had signs that more than a few things had changed during their ordeal. Lee started with his traits while watching Maria take the kids down to their class with Martin. The earlier training must have just finished... You have reforged and bound a rune onto your wounded soul while using the souls of others to fill in the gaps of your own. Traits: [Runic Augmentation] has become [Rune Harmonics] [Rune Harmonics] Your rune has achieved a harmonic balance between the hundreds of souls used in its forging. Effects: All runes may be reforged at will. That was a nice change. Not just a boost anymore. Now it was at will. Lee remembered all too well that perilous moment where they''d balanced on the edge... and he finally focused his attention on the other rune inside his soul. The seal holding the wound closed. It gleamed with the power of the source. A blinding light that almost hurt to look at. A complex rune that interwove with the soul link in a way he''d never have been able to do himself. Three had done that... Just like the notification had said, he could see where the link had filled in the gaps. It wouldn''t have worked otherwise. It was a flaw he hadn''t seen until it was too late. He wouldn''t have been able to save them by using their wounded soul to fix their wounded soul... The patch would have had holes in it. Thank you... Three. Everyone. I almost failed. I did fail... but you all saved me. Trait: [Ruthless Soul] Your mind and soul are ruthless, and you will do whatever it takes to destroy your enemies, including destroying your own soul. Effects: +100% Soul Attribute added to All Mind Attributes +100% Soul Damage Taken Lee didn''t like that trait, but it explained why his attributes looked so off. He also didn''t feel like he''d earned it. Stanley did that. To be fair, he had been in agreement with the decision... Though if it made them take a hundred percent more soul damage... did that mean he should be losing no soul points with the link? Was it hurting everyone who''d helped him? He left it alone for now and kept going through the notifications. Skill: Artistic Rune Shaping (Epic) has reached the Level 50 Threshold. Evolution Available. Upgrade Available. Evolution Forcibly Enacted by User''s Actions. Class Skill Evolved: Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) - Level 50 (Advanced) Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) Intent creates art. Art creates power. Power begets creation. Allows the runic to place runes without a single touch, removing the need to physically interact or draw the requisite symbols, provided the user maintains the necessary focus and mana control. Level Effects (Advanced) +4% All Effective Mind Attributes +4% All Effective Mind Attributes during rune creation. He hadn''t really thought about it... but all the runes he''d used inside their soul hadn''t required him to touch anything. Could he even touch his soul? Was that a thing? Or was he already touching it by dint of it being his soul? It had felt a lot more like working in his soul storage... A few more of his skills had leveled, but nothing as dramatic as the other stuff. Also, his class had gained a lot of levels... Class: Runic (Legendary) has reached the Level 50 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Upgrade Available. New Class Skills Available. Lee looked over his choices, including all the options he''d never taken before. The extra mana pool skill seemed even more pointless after his E-grade evolution... but some new skills stood out. Language of the Rune (Unique) Know the runes. Know yourself. You are a newcomer to this ancient language, and despite your rudimentary understanding, you have accomplished great things. Your dedication has earned you this unique opportunity to deepen that understanding. Skill Level Effects (N/A) Understanding comes to those who seek it. That was the strangest skill he''d seen to date. It didn''t even look like a skill... The other option was more standard and full of potential. Elemental Mana (Epic) Hold the elements of creation in the palm of your hand. Allows the runic to partition their mana pool to more easily hold and use any elemental mana they can collect. Branch out from pure mana and delve into the world of elemental runes. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Mind Attributes +0.1 Available Partitions Was stamina an element? 99. Gratitude ~~~Stanley~~~ Relaxing in the tub, Stanley could feel Caffeine and the others in the next room. The pug was still after the fish, but at least the fox seemed to be enjoying the game now. Stanley lifted himself and the water out of the tub. Another application of his will set the water spinning around him, and a dash of soap turned his flying tub into a bubble bath. He did it all slowly, waiting to see if he felt anything from his soul or if any notifications would appear. He felt and saw nothing. Eventually, he settled back down in the cooling water and turned on the tap to rinse off the soap. Of course, nothing happened. How did Walter get this bath set up and steaming? Obviously, he has some skills or a class helping him, but what is it? Stanley hadn''t talked to that many people about their classes since this started. Eve was probably the most out-of-place one he''d seen, with some kind of tech class in a now magic world. At least, he assumed that was her class. All he''d seen so far was a chainsaw and a flashlight. Unless that gun she''d pointed at him did anything... Zeke was a healer, or maybe a purifier? Not that Stanley knew the difference when the purifying skill healed people. The boy had mentioned something about his skill or class, but Stanley couldn''t remember what. There was that teleporting kid as well; he had an interesting skill. Adaptable... The Human trait could be incredible, or it could be nothing special. Stanley didn¡¯t know what the rest of the... aliens? He didn''t know what traits or other things existed out there. But there had been a wide variety of classes and skills so far, and he''d barely interacted with any of them. There were bound to be some interesting possibilities. Like a magic butler. By now, the water was getting cold, but Stanley didn''t want this to end; he didn''t want to go back out there again... not yet. I can create heat. He''d done it before, badly. But this was simpler than cooking. Stanley focused on the water, pushing his will against it. Then he stopped and pulled a globe of water out of the tub, holding it above the rest. Just in case, he thought. It would be a shame to boil himself by accident. He focused on the idea of heat as he pushed his will into the floating ball of water, gently and slowly. You are hot... boiling hot. Almost immediately, the water started churning and boiling in midair. "Ha!" He smiled at the victory. That wasn''t so hard. In fact, it was far too easy. Still with no reaction from his soul, either. He''d have to try burning some monsters instead of cutting them, though he expected that trying to burn an actual enemy would be more difficult than heating water. He carefully let the boiling water rejoin the rest and sighed in satisfaction as the warmth swirled around him. Given the lack of trouble with his soul, he heated another floating blob before adding it back. Awww... Stanley smiled as fresh warmth arrived, then kept at it until his tub was steaming heavily again. Then he went back to his notifications. A glance at the ruthless soul trait told him why his attributes looked off, and he expected that was what made it so easy to heat the water. He was technically far more powerful than he''d ever been before, if it wasn''t for that soul wound ticking away like a time bomb. Not to mention that he''d take double damage to his soul now... Next, Stanley did what he didn''t want to do but needed to. He looked at his soul. Or tried to. It was there; he could feel it. Hell, he couldn''t not feel it with that aching wound... It was meditation combined with Soul Awareness that proved the key. He went into the void... and there it was. In all its terrible glory. His misshapen and mutilated soul. Now it sported a new brand, one that marred its already fucked appearance. An ugly scar radiating with that same iridescent light... and a pair of blinding symbols sitting on... in... around? Whatever it was, the symbols looked to be holding the wound shut. Mostly. Lee saved us. Stanley stared at the wound in a daze, his mind unwillingly revisiting the events that had created it. He didn''t realize how bad it felt until he crashed back into the real world while gasping for air that he couldn''t seem to get enough of. All he could see was that magic flashing... his soul ripping open... bleeding. "Ahem." Stanley almost screamed as he violently flinched. Water sloshed out of the tub until he finally sagged and settled back down, his heart pounding. "If sir is finished bathing," Walter spoke calmly. "I would be happy to assist you with your wardrobe." His soul felt concerned. Stanley saw Caffeine halfway between the door and the tub, his eyes jumping from him to the sloshing water and back repeatedly. Caffeine, you''re an absolute beast, and yet you''re still afraid of baths? Stanley laughed weakly. "It''s all good, Caff," he reassured the pug. "Go play." Caffeine whined faintly, glanced at the water, and sprinted for the door. Stanley''s smile faded. "Walter, do you have some more water for me to rinse off with?" "Of course, sir." Walter lifted a bucket of steaming water that hadn''t been in his hand before, his soul radiating confidence. Stanley chuckled. "You''ve got some nice tricks, Walter." "As you say, sir." Walter spoke with no inflection, but his soul betrayed a faint yet happy pride. Stanley levitated the water from the bucket and himself from the bath. He was naked in front of a stranger again, but after the last few... weeks? Well, it really wasn''t worth worrying about. Plus, considering the fact that Daryl and Adrian had a butler, Walter was probably the one who had cleaned and cared for him. And diapered him... Stanley dropped that train of thought while dumping the water over his head. It literally does not matter. After a moment of concentration and another experiment with his domain, he was dry, as the water previously covering him fell away into the tub below. That''s useful, he thought, somewhat surprised that it had worked. He dressed himself until he got to the tie, then glanced at Walter. It was stupid. The whole outfit was fucking stupid, but Walter had helped. He''d fed Caffeine. The guy had supposedly made this outfit; it wouldn''t hurt him to go along. "I don''t..." "If I may, sir." Walter stepped up and started quickly manipulating the tie into place. "Just call me Stanley," he said awkwardly as the man finished and cinched the tie tight. "As you say, sir," Walter replied. He finished adjusting Stanley¡¯s collar and produced a weird little vest. He held it until Stanley turned and slid his arms through. Stanley felt very awkward as the man buttoned it up for him, but there was something else. Something was coming from Walter''s soul¡ªa hesitant and unsure awkwardness to match Stanley''s. Very at odds with the butler''s demeanor. Stanley sighed. "Spit it out, Walter." The man met his eyes for a moment, surprise flashing in his soul but not on his face. "I can feel your soul," Stanley said as the other man finished with the buttons and turned to pick up the jacket. Walter hesitated, his soul fluctuating, until it settled mostly on resolve. "I must thank you, sir," he said as he helped Stanley into the jacket. "There was a young man," he continued quietly. "I cared for him, protected him, as if he were my own son." Stanley was quiet as Walter moved around him, adjusting the jacket on his shoulders. "I found myself helpless," he said, despair echoing from his soul. "When he needed me most, I found myself powerless to render aid. First, when he did not return from his hunt. Then, when he miraculously emerged, alive and unharmed, I saw him facing a monster I did not think was possible." He buttoned Stanley¡¯s coat. "I could only watch as that young man and his..." Walter hesitated. "Boyfriend?" Stanley supplied. "Husband?" Walter blinked, surprise once again coming from his soul, even as his face remained stoic. "Souls," Stanley reminded him. "Ah. As you say, sir." Walter recovered quickly. "Thank you, sir." He bowed slightly, and before Stanley started feeling more awkward, he gently pulled him to stand before the mirror. "Thank you very much for saving those whom I could not," Walter said with only the tiniest catch in his throat. His soul radiated gratitude and pride as he looked into the mirror. Stanley couldn''t blame him. I actually look a bit like a distinguished old man now. The trimmed beard looked better, he begrudgingly admitted. He still felt it was all a bit out of place. He looked like a businessman. Not bad, but definitely not apocalypse themed. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. "Thanks, Walter." Stanley smiled. "It''s great." "Yes, sir," Walter replied and turned to the door. "Shall we?" Stanley walked into the other room, and Daryl whistled. "Looking good!" he cheered as Caffeine rushed over to sniff at his new clothes. Adrian smiled briefly at him, but his attention was on the egg in his hands. "Yeah, yeah. I''m all fancy now." "One more piece." Daryl pointed behind him. Stanley turned and found Walter holding up a long, heavy coat. He put his arms through, and Walter settled it onto his shoulders, the bottom resting almost to his knees. As it wrapped around him, Stanley noticed something happening. The souls in the room quieted, and the new calm felt like someone had turned down a stereo that he had been ignoring and talking over. Meanwhile, the souls further away dimmed almost completely. "How did..." "Fantastic work," Daryl praised, clapping Walter on the shoulder. "Look at your buffs," he said to Stanley, still grinning. Buffs: [Soul-Link] [Walter''s Gratitude] Stanley focused on the new one. [Walter''s Gratitude] Set Bonus Effects: -50% to all physical and magical damage received while the armor maintains at least 50% integrity. Passively reflects 50% of soul energy from all directions. Stanley noticed something else when he looked at his status. Debuffs: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Curious about the Shielded bit, he pulled up the debuff. -1 Twin-Soul Attribute per 4 days It didn''t say what it was exactly, but it slowed down the leak, and Stanley assumed the reflection was responsible. As much as he didn¡¯t want to wear this, he couldn''t ignore the benefit. Which meant he was a suit guy now, or did he just need the overcoat? It did mention a set bonus. Either way... "Thank you, Walter. This is... it will make a big difference." Caffeine was pawing at his leg when Walter reached over and pulled one side of Stanley''s new coat open. "If the lord would like to take his throne?" The pug immediately jumped up and into the pocket, and Stanley gaped. "Did he just..." Caffeine squirmed around until his head popped out of the pocket and he panted happily up at Stanley. He shrank! Stanley was speechless. Caffeine was just... too cute! He floated off the ground as he curled up around the tiny, puppy sized Caffeine, and he was making incoherent baby noises when he felt something happening nearby. He looked away from the adorable pug in time to see all the fires spread around the room, suddenly flowing between Adrian''s hands and into the egg. The soul within flared... There was a moment of quivering anticipation. Then a cracking sound broke the silence, and a tiny little voice went, "Cheep!" Stanley felt the relief and joy that burst from Adrian like a physical wave, even with his new coat. So, of course, Caffeine immediately jumped out of his pocket and ran to investigate. Princess flared into a brilliant, flaming fox in front of Caffeine. Fire engulfed her entire body, and she grew bigger as she growled at the pug. Fear, warring with determination and resolve, screamed from her soul. Caffeine stopped abruptly at her reaction and lay down in front of her. His tail wagged as he whined mournfully up at the burning fox. Stanley watched Daryl and Adrian as they clasped hands and looked joyfully at the tiny baby bird sitting in Adrian''s lap. It was chirping wildly and continuously as Adrian tearfully nodded and whispered in response to whatever it was saying. He felt Princess struggling between keeping Caffeine back and her longing to greet the bird herself. They''d earned his gratitude. For all that Walter had said, Cheesesteak had blown himself up and given Stanley a chance. The chance he''d needed to win... "Caff," he called. "Come." Stanley held his arms out, and Caffeine bounded into his chest. He settled into a cross-legged sitting position in midair and petted Caffeine in his lap while the small family reunited. One day that will be us with Lee, Caff, he thought as he rubbed something out of his eye. One day... A thought intruded into the happy moment. An ugly, suspicious thought that might explain why they were being so nice to him... "Who took the invader''s core?" Walter held out a single gloved hand, two cores glowing in his palm. "Master Daryl entrusted them to my care until such time as you awoke, sir." Stanley felt... relief. There wasn''t anything nefarious happening here. He was just being paranoid. Though he wasn''t sure why there were two cores... touching the smaller one gave him his answer. Mana Drain (Epic) Your mana is my mana. User may drain mana from whatever they touch, be it a creature, a stone, or the air itself. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Effective Mind Attributes +1% Mana Drain per second ... It must have come from the bat lair. Which was extremely surprising. It looked like a great skill... though maybe the whole touching part might be a problem. Still, he was having trouble believing they''d saved it for him, and he stared blankly at the fire as it once again coated the walls. What was wrong with these people? Was it just because he rescued them from the bats? Walter didn''t move or make a sound, still holding out the remaining core. Stanley lifted it into the air without touching it, staring nervously and wondering what he would see. Then he wrapped his hand around it. Skill Shard[D-grade] There it was. He''d been right¡ªit was a D-grade monster. It was pure bullshit. Why was there a D-grade when the earth was barely into E-grade? Why did the damn invaders get to play by different... rules? Rules.. where did I... Stanley flinched as he abruptly remembered, and this time there was no static to drive the memory from his mind. That fucking static! He remembered a man in a suit... but not a man. They''d watched Stanley''s past self burn. They watched Caffeine struggle... The not-human thing had said something to him¡ªsomething to him and Lee¡ªabout how they''d changed the rules. How did I fucking forget about that!? The whole memory felt like a dream... It had been a dream. He''d been asleep in the truck stop at the time, and yet he knew it was no dream. That... thing was very real, and it told him this was all their fault. It was Stanley''s fault. He''d unleashed the source... Sure, he would have died without it, but it was his own damn fault for being up there... where he''d found Zeke... where he''d saved Zeke. Did that mean something? Nate thought it did... but what had Zeke even done since they found him? He healed people better than anyone else could, but he''d done nothing more. Zeke hadn''t stopped the monsters... Zeke hadn''t gotten his soul carved apart! Stanley spasmed when the memory crashed into him, but the ache intensified when he imagined Zeke in his place. He... he''s just a kid. He shouldn''t have to suffer like I did... should he? Caffeine sat up and licked Stanley''s face with a steady but slow repetition, silently licking away tears Stanley hadn''t realized were falling. Walter stood beside him, unmoving and stoic in expression, while his soul betrayed worry and sorrow, along with a pain that felt far too close to his own. That, on top of what he''d seen already, had Stanley assuming the soul wound was broadcasting his emotions. He''d replaced Soul Sight, and it had changed nothing. Stanley didn''t look his way. He wanted to meditate... but didn''t want to see his soul again. Not right now. Later. Besides, he had something else to help take his mind off that... Skill Shard[D-grade] Still Mind of the Dead (Epic) The dead do not know fear. Allows the user to remove all emotion from their mental processes while increasing cognition speed. Skill Level Effects (Novice) +1% Intelligence +1% Cognition Speed Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A][Adaptable] Any Undead Racial Variant [Requirement Not Met] Adapting to this Skill will require All Adaptation and will alter your Class and Race. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +300 All Base Attributes: Y/N? Well, shit, Stanley thought. An undead exclusive skill... He was a bit intrigued, though. Suppress emotions... He had a lot of emotions that he didn''t want to feel. But who knew what it would turn into if he used it? On the other hand... three hundred attributes. It was a lot. How powerful would he be after stacking that on top of what he already had? Or... did it even matter? Given the attributes up for grabs, he was pretty certain that the next grade must be much higher. How long would it take him to grind out enough cores for that? Of course, that was the same thinking that had led to him getting trapped inside the bat lair... Only it hadn''t mattered what grade he was in the end. "Walter, did any of the invaders try to get at me in here?" "No, sir." So either Walter was an absolute powerhouse, or Stanley had actually hurt the undead by killing that fucker. Hurt them badly enough that they weren''t coming back. Not yet... The best thing he could do now was to hold on to this shard until he reached close enough to the next grade... which he had no idea what it was... Five hundred? A thousand? He''d be able to jump right to D-grade without worrying about finding D-grade monsters. If it was at a thousand attributes, how many monsters would he need to kill? Including what he knew from absorbing a few bat cores... the base count would be thirty thousand monsters. Depending on when the diminishing returns kicked in... or how many plus to all cores he found, it might be over sixty thousand. Way over. That was a lot of monsters and a lot of lairs... "You didn''t take my cores," Stanley said when Daryl looked his way. It was almost a question. "A few more days, and I might have," Daryl said, looking away to watch Adrian and the baby phoenix named Cheesesteak as one chirped and the other whispered. Stanley could feel the happy emotions from both of them, and it felt voyeuristic to eavesdrop on their souls like this. Though at least it was a nice, happy feeling for once... Stanley considered the information as he drifted over to hover at the window. They were high above the city, on the edge of the water. Stanley could see out across the ocean if he turned his head right or into downtown to his left. Expensive. Which explained the luxuriousness of this penthouse. Had they lived here before? Or claimed this place after the system? The fact they had a butler spoke to the former... Is that... Something was moving across a bridge in the distance. Damn, is my vision that good? He narrowed his eyes, and out of instinct, he moved soul energy into them. Something about his new class or the whole ordeal with his soul made the process feel easier. Almost natural. A glowing soul lit up, bounding across the bridge in the distance. I still have Soul Sight? Stanley wasn''t that surprised, since he hadn''t forgotten how to use the old skill when it evolved. Though experimenting with his soul was probably not the best idea in his current state... Stanley wondered all that while he watched the soul get closer. It looked familiar... Then more souls appeared, undead souls, intersecting with the first. The new souls vanished quickly, with one even ricocheting off the first. It''s Nate. Edward had said he would signal Nate... and now the guy was running this way. Too little, too late. Though it wasn''t so much Nate''s fault, Stanley had seen the undead attacking the base... when he''d finally needed their help... and when they failed him. Stanley canceled his Soul Sight and looked at the shard in his hand. Whatever it takes. I need power. The question was if he could justify claiming the skill versus hoarding it for later. Hoarding and trying to fortify before had nearly killed him, so he should just take the attributes now. But... how much better could he fight if he wasn''t afraid? There were more invaders out there. He''d felt at least one. The one that got away. What if there were more D-grades? He wouldn''t survive that ordeal again. Lee worked a miracle, but Stanley doubted he could repeat it. I don''t want to die. The core dissolved into his hand. 100. Time To Go ~~~Stanley~~~ -1% Adaptable Adapting Skill: Still Mind of the Dead (Epic) No Mana Detected. No Undead Race. Psionic Energy Detected. Similar Class Skill Detected. Skill Adaptation Successful. Skill Combination and Evolution Successful. Evolved Class Skill: Accelerated Thoughts (Rare) = Still Mind of the Psionic (Epic) Still Mind of the Psionic (Epic) In the stillness, calm. In calm, power. User may remove all emotional effects and increase cognition speed while focusing completely on a task. Skill Level Effects (Intermediate) +3% Effective Mind Attributes +6% Cognition Speed Knowledge flowed into his mind. It was surprisingly simple once he saw it. Stanley suddenly felt very calm as he looked back outside. Energy moved into his eyes, and he focused on the approaching soul. Nate was a useful ally. One of the strongest. He looked closer at the glow, trying to discern the strength of the human beneath it. He has improved a little... but he''s wasting too much time caring for useless baggage. Protecting Zeke wasn''t a terrible idea, but letting that become a detriment to his own power was a mistake. Personal strength was the only reliable power. "What did you do?" It was Daryl''s voice. Stanley glanced at him. He is potentially useful, but still too weak. I should focus on what I need... which is power. Daryl said something else, but Stanley ignored it. The best path for power growth is through cores. I could kill the humans in this building and take their cores. They would all drop skills... He looked down, scanning the occupants of the tower. Most were too weak for meaningful gains. F-grades mostly, with a bare handful of E-grades... Pathetic. Killing the trash would anger the handful of stronger humans for no practical gain. They''re more useful as shields for now. If even that. At the very least, I should wait for them to rank up. Stanley looked outside again. Hunting for cores out there was a risk. It wasn''t the lairs that were the problem, but if another invader showed up while he was hunting... I need an army to use as a backup. Or, if nothing else, a meat shield. The bats proved useful in that regard. Something he could do without venturing into danger was work on skill and class levels. His newest trait had sent his attributes soaring, and each skill or class level would now be worth more. He was relatively safe in here, and so floated up into a cross-legged sitting position in midair. The humans in the room were all watching him warily. But it was irrelevant. They fear me and are not a threat. The dog stepped closer, staring and whining. Caffeine is unhappy... It didn''t matter. The Beast Lord was powerful. His greatest ally. He was also absolutely loyal. His unhappiness is irrelevant if he cannot betray me. "Guard me," he ordered and closed his eyes. Stanley looked at his soul. It was so much clearer now... Sure, it was still a mutilated mess, but that wasn''t important anymore. Without that useless emotional response, he could see much more clearly where every facet of his power linked to and rested inside his soul. He could also see the extent of the damage. Repairing my soul is a priority, but it will take time. There was an area of his power he''d neglected. A very basic area that he''d only dabbled in. Stanley picked a spot in the air and focused his will on increasing heat and, next to it, on decreasing the temperature. It was very simple; he used his power to brute force the change and then observed the process. Each switch became easier as he gained a better understanding of how it worked and required less energy to do it the next time. He felt the souls growing agitated nearby. They tried to touch him, and Stanley blocked them. Caffeine did not defend me. Is his loyalty not absolute? No. He is bound to my soul and is only confused and emotional. The humans gave up on touching him. Very upset... but irrelevant. They are too weak to threaten me. Caffeine then started trying to chew through the barrier. He shouldn''t be doing that... but it was fine. The emotional pug wasn''t truly attacking him, and it provided Stanley with training on keeping a barrier malleable yet impenetrable. Very useful. He kept his eyes closed, using his power to monitor the others. Soul and body. Meanwhile, he maintained his focus on his own soul. Stanley could see the energy coming from the source now. Leaking out along with his soul. It was faint, very faint, but coming from such a strong power, even that faint radiation was impactful. His own body absorbed most of it and converted it into regeneration, both physical and psionic. It had always done so... that was why his regeneration had always been so extreme. Caffeine constantly absorbed some as well, likely explaining his own regeneration. Stanley realized that he was wasting the regeneration and started flexing his muscles hard. Over and over. It was awkward and painful, but he could feel his muscles pull in energy from both the surroundings and his core as they took damage repeatedly. Luckily, his increased mental speed made it easier to manipulate the muscles, which felt so much slower in their reactions. My regeneration is still greater than the damage. He had another solution. He would start damaging himself. Not enough to endanger his life, just enough to get the most from his regeneration while increasing his vitality. +1 Strength Very good. The heat and cold that he¡¯d manifested in the air, he moved into his flesh, condensing the power to avoid excessive damage while keeping the training potential. The surrounding souls grew more agitated. Class Level Up: Soul Psionic Stanley carefully watched the wound in his soul. It was flexing beneath the patch but still holding. Perfect. Right to the limit. He only needed one thing. "Bring me food." +1 Vitality Debuff: [Hungry] +1 Willpower Stanley moved to a wall and jabbed his fingers into it, aiming for precise points to increase his dexterity. Caffeine was growing increasingly agitated, while the two humans had given up trying to get him to stop. Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter His legendary skill... Stanley knew there was more to discover about the ability, especially regarding magic. He sent some of his focus to the fire encircling the room. This will work. He started playing with the fire. Touching it. Manipulating it. The energy was harder to affect, and he assumed that was because he never used mana and so had no instinctive grasp the way he did with his psionic or soul energy. Nothing practice can''t fix. +1 Willpower +1 Vitality He moved it around. Opening holes in the fiery curtain and bunching up other areas. He started pulling it from the wall and letting his flesh absorb it while the humans put up more. Its healing properties helped with the fact that none of them had done as ordered and brought him food. Magic holds its own will, or the will of the caster. Makes it more resistant. It was obvious once he thought about it, and he continued his experiments until they gave up on replenishing the fire and retreated out the door and downstairs. As they went, he noticed the souls flinching throughout the building. They used the fire to protect the weak from my soul. Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter Class Level Up: Soul Psionic His soul was holding up too well anyway, so Stanley removed the coat that was blocking it. Soul information bombarded him. That''s better. It would also make it harder for anything to sneak up on him. The men below stopped running and put up more fire. Excellent. As predicted. He didn''t pursue them. There was no need. Walls were not an impediment to his power. He continued training. Including pulling more of their fire from below to keep himself topped off. Stanley calculated that while he was pushing them towards hostility with his actions, they wouldn''t turn if he didn''t push too far. Not that they were a threat, but there was no need to waste potentially strong future allies for an insignificant gain now. +1 Strength +1 Dexterity Stanley could feel everyone in the building, despite the fire that once again muted them slightly. His soul was shaking under the barrage but still holding. Caffeine was very upset now, but Stanley didn''t need to bother. The Beast Lord wouldn''t turn on him. It was loyal and too simple to betray him. Stanley also felt Nate approaching and entering the building below. I might provoke him into assisting with my training. Though the man had a solid and analytical soul. Asking would likely work better than provocation. He settled into the training. With Nate and the others nearby, he was relatively safe. Sure, he was leaving himself somewhat vulnerable, but if anything too strong for him attacked, he could retreat behind the others. Even if they didn''t want to help, they would have to in order to save the other weaklings. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Stanley split off another bit of focus to analyze his Soul Awareness skill. It should be able to strengthen his soul from the description, and he intended to figure it out. Solidify. He latched onto that word and tried to enact it. There was pain as he pushed his will into the effort, and he sat inside his inner soul while a trembling dog sat on the glowing white crack and watched him. Stanley pulled against his soul, condensing the energy tighter. It hurt. Distantly. The soul copy of Caffeine howled at him, and Stanley ignored it. It''s a small pain. Endure it and grow stronger. Energy swirled, and Stanley directed the minor excess of source radiation towards his soul, trying to increase the condensing effect. It was almost impossible to affect, but not completely. +1 Twin-Soul I knew it. His Soul was trembling rather violently, but the patch was still holding. More. +1 Intelligence I must be doing something right. He kept at it. There was excruciating pain everywhere, but Stanley didn''t care. I need power to survive. Pain is a small price. +1 Strength +1 Vitality +1 Dexterity +1 Willpower +1 Intelligence Nate was in the room with him now. He didn''t attack or attempt to interfere; he only observed intently. Stanley sensed no hostility, so he allowed the man to watch. +1 Twin-Soul This time, he noticed something. The blinding white crack shrank. Not much, just an infinitesimal amount, but he noticed. My soul is keeping the source contained? He had assumed as much, but this was proof. It also meant that if he lost too much soul, the crack could widen or break open completely. I would die. Unacceptable. Training is more necessary than ever. His soul trembled again... and a spark of iridescent light slipped past Lee''s patch. -1 Twin-Soul The patch was not holding. A serious problem. Increasing my soul will not help if the patch fails... I can''t guarantee Lee will fix it again. Stanley could feel the strain on his soul. Something was causing unforeseen stress. Perhaps the wound... or a flaw in the patch. I will need to slow or delay the advancement of my soul for an indeterminate amount of time until the wound heals. He considered hunting again. Harvesting this dungeon for every core it held. He wouldn''t have to go himself. He could order the other humans to go. They couldn''t fight him. Some would resist, but most would comply after seeing his power. Caffeine stood up from where he sat on the brilliant crack in Stanley''s soul. Stay. The pug grew bigger. Is he trying to defy me? Stanley thought. Impossible. The crack shivered and spasmed beneath him. What''s he doing? Stanley strained to direct the massive increase in source radiation back towards his soul, but it was too strong. It would burn him if... Caffeine grew until he loomed impossibly large in the small soul space. Until the pug towered above him. Then Caffeine stepped on Stanley with one massive paw, pinning him down without ever stepping off the crack. You can''t! Stanley insisted. The jaws descended as Stanley pulled all of his power away from the training and tried to stop his mad beast. It was useless. Teeth sank into him, and Stanley screamed. Skill Level Up: Still Mind of the Psionic Still Mind of the Psionic (Epic) has been forcefully Evolved by the Soul-Bonded Beast(Caff Caffeine). His scream trailed off, and he sobbed instead. Still Mind of the Psionic (Epic) = Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) In the stillness, calm. In calm, power. User may remove all emotional effects and increase cognition speed while focusing wholly and completely on a task. The Psionic or his Soul-Bonded Beast may both activate or deactivate this skill at will. Skill Level Effects (Intermediate) +3% Effective Mind Attributes +6% Cognition Speed Stanley felt a lot of things at that moment. Pain, fear, and, mostly, horror. He had been so cold, so uncaring about anything or anyone else. Planning to... but the worst part... that absolutely worst part... "Caff?" Stanley whispered, and then a tongue attacked his face, and dancing feet stepped onto his lap and on his crotch. Stanley didn¡¯t mind. He squeezed his arms around the happy pug and held on. Caffeine didn''t care about what Stanley had thought or said. He was nothing but pure happiness. Stanley could feel it. It poured from the pug in a tsunami of unwavering affection. Caffeine was happy that his human was himself again, and nothing else mattered. His Dearest Human... Stanley wasn''t so easily able to move on, and he couldn''t stop the tears that Caffeine kept licking away. He felt his new jacket settle over his shoulders, and Nate sat down next to him with his back leaning against the wall Stanley had been hitting. He also felt Daryl and Adrian approaching, and then fire spread underneath him and up the wall. Nate yelped and started to get up, but settled down and started running his hands through the red-gold flames instead. "Forgot about that," he said cheerfully. "Good to see you''re okay, Stanley. Get some new skills?" Stanley laughed bitterly. "I did." He sighed and turned to lean on the wall as well, Caffeine sitting in his lap. He felt Walter suddenly appear just outside the room. Caffeine must have been more worried than he was showing, because he stayed in Stanley''s lap even when Walter walked in with steaming platters of fish... Stanley took a platter and rewarded the pug for being the best boy ever. He avoided the gazes of everyone in the room while doing so. It wasn''t like he''d done anything to them... barely anything. Nate accepted the food happily. "This is fantastic! Forgot how much I''ve missed fish." No one else tried to talk to him, but Stanley could feel their gazes on him. He ate slowly while feeding most of the fish to Caffeine, and then told them what had happened as his lingering aches regenerated. He thought about not mentioning his worst ideas, but decided it would be better to just go with full-disclosure. He didn''t want to hurt people who had helped him... nevermind people who''d cared for Caffeine. They needed to know, if only to stay out of his way in the future. Because he knew he would have killed them if they overstepped... though perhaps Caffeine could stop him now. They listened quietly. When he finished, Nate jumped in. "That was amazing! Were you training every attribute at once?" "What?" Stanley stared at him. "That''s your takeaway?" "Amazing skill!" Nate laughed. "Besides, you said that Caffeine can turn it off now, right?" Stanley opened and closed his mouth a few times. "I didn''t care about anyone, not even Caffeine! Everybody was just a tool to be used or discarded!" "Man, you were focused! A bit too much, sure, but could you have fought against the invaders any better with that ability?" Nate asked seriously. Stanley thought about it. "Probably. I also think I would have used someone or everyone as a human shield and run away." "Yeah... that''s not ideal," Nate mused, "Maybe if you pick a task first? That was in the skill description, right?" Stanley blinked at Nate. He had been thinking about how he needed power... could he really use it like that? Could he use it to sleep? "It wasn''t working, anyway. Something was hurting my soul..." The moment stretched as he stared at Nate, his thoughts churning, and not just about the events of the day. Nate''s smile faded as he met Stanley''s gaze. "I''m sorry I wasn''t there." "They attacked you," Stanley said. Even though he wanted to scream at the man. "You had to protect Zeke..." "I''m sorry, Stanley. I''m sorry that you took the hit for us. I''m sorry that I wasn''t there when you needed..." "Shut up," Stanley whispered, and then his voice grew in volume. "Shut up. Shut up! Shut the fuck up!" His vision blurred, and he clutched at his chest in real and remembered pain. "All of you... shut up." Nate shut up, and no one else was talking. Stanley fled from the emotional turmoil into his meditation. It didn''t help. Their souls felt even louder in there... Then the fire crawled up from the floor to enclose Stanley away from the others. That helped. A little. Stanley thought about his new skill... and he wanted to use it again. Except he didn''t want to use it. He didn''t want to not care... but it hurt so much to care. Why? Why did life have to be so fucked up? Why did he have to be afraid? Why did it have to hurt for him to be happy? Stanley huddled in his fiery cage and screamed in impotent rage at the injustice of it all. He screamed silently inside his head. Caffeine was in his lap and licking at his face while Stanley screamed for the pain of being alive. For the fear of death. For fear of things worse than death. For fear of losing what he had left. It lasted an unknown amount of time, but Stanley felt better when his rage petered out and he could gaze upon the clear image of Caffeine''s brown eyes staring up at him. "Good boy." Caffeine''s tail wagged, and Stanley couldn''t help the smile that crawled onto his face. He didn''t even question how the pug had altered his skill. He was just happy he had. "You really are such a good boy." He floated the both of them out of the dome of fire and rejoined the other humans in the room. None of them mentioned his breakdown... or his new skill, or the experiments it generated. Instead, they were already sitting around a table while Walter placed food out. The tuxedo clad butler drew out an empty chair and looked at Stanley. "Will you join us, sir?" Stanley did, settling into the chair with Caffeine still in his lap. Walter said nothing about a dog at the table. Not even when Stanley pulled the plate closer so the pug could grab some bites from it. "How bad was the attack?" Stanley asked Nate. "Worse than I''d hoped," Nate said. "But better than it could have been. People died. Good people." Stanley thought about the few people he knew at the base. Or at least the people he occasionally interacted with. He wasn''t sure if he wanted to know if they were dead or not... "Zeke has asked about you." What? "Why?" Nate smiled. "I think you inspired him. Hell, you inspired a lot of us... when we felt you fighting." "You... all felt that?" "Yep." Nate nodded. "You scared that thing away, you and Zeke, and we all felt it." He shivered. "It was a bit unsettling, but very welcome. Then you went quiet and never came back." He looked around the room. "Didn''t know you found another group of survivors until your team came back to report." Stanley nodded. "We were just talking about how we can work together going forward," Nate said. "Daryl here was suggesting we move into the tower. Unfortunately, or I should say fortunately, Zeke put on quite the light show, and we''ve had other survivors trickling into our camp in a steady stream. Too many to squeeze in here." "I was also thanking them for taking care of you." He winked at Stanley. Both Adrian, Daryl, and their animal companions were staring at Stanley nervously. He could feel their unease like a physical pressure. "Sorry for..." He hadn''t actually attacked them. Other than messing with the fire. "How bad was I? With the skill, I mean." "You were eerily calm," Adrian said. "I don''t know if it was the difference between earlier and now, but... I don''t know, it was like being judged by a machine." Daryl nodded. "It was actually better at first. But then the pain started coming through from your soul..." Stanley winced. Adrian looked down at the bird when it suddenly chirped. "It''s fine," he said. "Go ahead." To the others, he said, "Don''t worry, he''s just growing up." The baby bird hopped away from the table before bursting into flames, and everyone jumped. There was a loud screech, and the flames danced higher before settling back down and revealing a full grown... hawk. Or hawk-like, at least, and covered in red and gold feathers that shimmered and undulated like the air above a hot road. Its head twitched and moved as it examined each of them with piercing golden eyes. "That''s a neat trick," Nate said with a smile. Caffeine jumped out of Stanley''s lap and tried to approach the phoenix, but once again, Princess blocked him. Before anyone could do anything, the bird hopped over her and onto Caffeine''s back. The pug spun around a few times as he tried to sniff the bird, but eventually gave up and laid down with a whine. The bird screeched at Caffeine and walked over to hop down near his head. Then Caffeine sniffed at Cheesesteak while the bird examined him in turn. Princess made a small, sad yip, and the phoenix moved away from the Caffeine to go nuzzle up against her. "So," Nate said to the duo. "Want me to take him away?" He jerked a thumb at Stanley. Stanley knew they did. They were afraid and wanted him gone. All except Walter. The butler held some fear... but his gratitude was still stronger from where he was hiding away from the others in the next room. It was fine. He could go back to Nate''s base again. Stanley floated upright, shrugging into his coat as he went. "You guys helped me... saved me. I won''t forget it." He smiled as much as he could. "And thank you, Walter," Stanley said toward the door while he mentally patted the old man on his shoulder and saw him flinch. Sorry, he thought. Couldn''t resist. "I can fly pretty fast, so I''ll be able to check in. Maybe bring Caffeine for some playtime." He smiled at the fox, who was studiously ignoring the pug sniffing at her swishing tails. "Let''s get flying!" Nate cheered. Stanley looked at Nate. "Did you want me to go back just so you didn''t have to run?" Nate put on a shocked expression that didn''t match his soul. "I would never... It was really far." He laughed, and it was only a little forced. Stanley shook his head. "I''m wounded. It might be better not to carry you..." 101. A Hug ~~~Lee~~~ He had two skills to choose from. One that held all kinds of potential Elemental Mana (Epic) Hold the elements of creation in the palm of your hand. Allows the runic to partition their mana pool to more easily hold and use any elemental mana they can collect. Branch out from pure mana and delve into the world of elemental runes. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Mind Attributes +0.1 Available Partitions And one that hinted at something... more. Language of the Rune (Unique) Know the runes. Know yourself. You are a newcomer to this ancient language, and despite your rudimentary understanding, you have accomplished great things. Your dedication has earned you this unique opportunity to deepen your understanding. Skill Level Effects (N/A) Understanding comes to those who seek it. Partitioning his mana would let him do... he wasn''t even sure what, but he knew it would be good. Using elemental mana to create runes... That would open up a whole new avenue of rune combinations. Then there was the language of the rune. What did that even mean? It was unique and looked like it didn''t even give level bonuses. Or didn''t level. He wasn''t sure. It didn''t really tell him what he would get for taking it, but it hinted at... something? If he''d done everything so far without full knowledge... Except he already knew the rune language. It was how he crafted and combined runes. What was he missing that it would offer something like this? What understanding? The question made him anxious, and he wanted to move. To go downstairs for his breakfast. But the kids were out there, and he knew his soul would not only distract them; he was pretty sure it was as unpleasant for them as it was for him. He didn''t want to impose that aching feeling in his chest on anyone else. So he only watched with Mana Mind as Alejandro collected a burrito from Jamaal''s and headed back upstairs. It was a breakfast burrito and was even more delicious today... somehow. Maybe Jamaal had leveled up or evolved his class. Or it was because he''d almost died. Again. Lee hoped it was the former. Anything that helped his allies was a good thing. He asked Alejandro''s opinion when the man returned, but he was no help with his useless, "I trust your judgment." There was an obviously good choice, but he couldn''t stop looking at the other one. It might be the key to understanding how he''d created Three... or how to improve the rune seal on his soul... That seemed more pressing than getting elemental mana, which he could sort of use Mana Mind for now... if with much more difficulty. Plus, he could always grab that skill at the next rank up. New Class Skill: Language of the Rune (Unique) Nothing happened. Not that he could tell. No new knowledge. No new understanding. Damn it. Despite that, he still felt good about the choice. Then he had to stop stalling and find out if his wounded soul would fuck up his runes. Lee started by creating a plate. There was no issue with it, but then he hadn''t expected that skill to suffer. Next, he created his weakest rune. A light. Only this time, he created it without touching the plate, instead keeping his hand hovering above it while the rune appeared. Then he tried it from across the room. Both attempts worked without issue. So that was good. Though it felt like he was using Mana Mind to transfer the mana to its destination... Was that how he''d done it inside their soul? Then he tried what he really wanted to test. Turning the light into something else. Namely, a strengthening rune. It worked! Even though he had to add some mana and soul, it honestly didn''t feel any different from the creation process. He''d need to test it with stronger runes... because his hope for the skill was that it would let him improve the soul wound. A wound that was really hurting... +1 Twin-Soul Okay... that was odd. It went up? Had that happened before and they never saw it since the system was supposedly analyzing their soul? +1 Twin-Soul That seemed too fast. Also... it really hurt! -1 Twin-Soul What the hell is going on? Lee clutched at his chest and saw Alejandro flinching as well. "Did you lose any soul points just now?" "Just a fraction... but this is off schedule." He looked worried, but he must have seen Lee''s confusion. "Maria saw your debuff, and so far it has stuck to the forty-eight hour mark for each subsequent tick." Lee checked it again. Debuffs: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] -1 Twin-Soul Attribute per 4 days That was new. "It''s actually supposed to be every four days now... Stanley must be doing something! But where did he get a shield?" "You lost me. Shields? Should I get Maria or Saira!?" "No," Lee said quickly, trying to calm the suddenly alarmed man. "It''s a good thing... I think. Stanley must have found a way to slow down the leak. At least, I''m assuming it''s him." "You''re right," Alejandro said. "Mine changed too." He wasn''t the only one who noticed the discrepancy. Trak took off sprinting upstairs a moment after Lee lost a soul point, and he was carrying a very mana-dense bottle in his hand. Lee realized that he not only knew for certain it was Trak coming his way, but he could also pick up the anubi''s emotional state even from the other side of the building. Worried. The worry abated slightly when Trak met up with Miller, who was standing guard in front of Lee''s apartment door. Ignoring the pointlessness of sticking a guard on him while he was inside Three, not to mention while Alejandro was in here, Lee was curious about Trak''s potion. So he told Three to open the door. He felt the reaction from both of them the moment the door opened. Three was definitely blocking his soul from bombarding others; Alejandro had already confirmed it, but it didn''t work without a wall or door in between. Trak winced but didn''t hesitate to rush inside, squeezing past Miller before the other man could even turn around. "My lord! My lord!" The anubi nearly fell over as he alternated between aborted attempts to bow while also sprinting closer. Then he reached Lee''s side and dropped into a not-quite bow... skirting the very edge of the no bowing rule. "Thank you, Trak. You can bow if you really want to, but I would prefer you to hold your head high..." "My lord!" Trak bowed all the way to the floor and then sprang upright, beaming with... pride. "Please tell me the oath didn''t force you to accept the soul link?" "I was not forced, my lord! It was my highest honor to assist you!" He wasn''t lying, either. The little guy''s soul was literally bubbling with prideful glee. As if this were the most wonderful thing he''d ever done... "Then thank you, Trak. You helped save my life. Again. Anything you want, just ask. Also, what is your soul attribute?" "Six, my lord!" He wasn''t calming down. If anything, he was getting more excited... "So... what''s the potion?" "My greatest creation, my lord! Crafted using the skill evolved with the soul attribute your benevolence has unlocked!" More and more excited. "It... It is a soul bolstering elixir, my lord." The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. "That''s great!" Trak''s growing excitement finally peaked and started tapering off. "Though I do not know if it will be strong enough for your magnificence... my lord." Lee waited, but Trak made no move to hand over the potion. "We have some time, Trak. It''s fine if it''s not ready. I only just found out that my soul is... abnormal." "Magnificent!" Trak barked in direct opposition to Lee''s self-deprecating tone. "You are a bulwark that we lesser beings cannot compare to, my lord! A mighty soul that towers above this world and all its peoples!" It might take some time to get used to the fact that everyone knew what he was feeling... but Lee still chuckled at the anubi''s exuberance. "Thanks, Trak. I enjoy praise as much as the next guy; just don''t get carried away or I might start to believe it." He gestured to the potion. "Want me to try it? No side effects to worry about, right?" Lee trusted the anubi. Now more than ever, since he could feel their literal souls... but it wasn''t only his life on the line here. Trak nodded solemnly. "It is safe, my lord. We have tested it on ourselves as well as several humans. Your brother was one of the volunteers." "It gave me a buff," Alejandro said. "Didn''t affect the soul drain, though. We figured it might work better if you used it." "Damn." Lee shook his head. "I was just thinking if we could give it to the kids to protect them..." "We are working on another version for that, my lord! It is... still in early trials." He held the potion in his hand up toward Lee, his enthusiasm waning. Lee finally took the potion. It was heavy, with very thick, solid glass around a smaller liquid area within. The entire thing fit in the palm of his hand. It was probably the potion glass they''d talked about before. "Just chug it all?" Trak nodded while Lee pulled the wooden stopper from the top. He took a sniff, and it smelled... earthy. Before the smell could get to him, Lee dumped the entire bottle down his throat. Buff Gained: [Soul Elixir](7:59:59) "Oh! Wow!" Lee gagged slightly. "Any chance you can make the kid''s version taste better?" He didn''t like the idea of having to force it down their throats... but he would do it if he had to. Maybe he could bribe them with runes to play with? "These are prototypes, my lord. Once the recipe is ready, we can improve other aspects like flavor... Um, did it work, my lord?" Oh, right. Lee checked the buff. [Soul Elixir] An elixir crafted by Trak Druller to enhance and bolster the soul of whoever imbibes it. Effects: -1% All Soul Damage Taken "Well, it works," Lee said, then continued before Trak''s rising excitement could get out of hand, "It reduces soul damage by one percent." Trak deflated and groveled on the floor. Lee shouldn''t have let him bow again... "I have failed you, my lord!" "I''m going to take away your bowing privileges if you don''t stand up right now. Besides, I don''t think you failed..." Trak didn''t quite stand, but he picked his face up off the floor. "Do you know how high my soul attribute is?" "No... my lord." "Ninety-three... or no, it''s ninety-four now." Stanley had bumped it up. That was probably Stanley. Trak didn''t move for a long time. He just sat staring up at Lee while his soul bounced through a variety of emotions. Finally, he drew in a breath and inclined his head. "I underestimated your magnificence, my lord. This will be a challenge... but I relish the opportunity to prove myself!" Lee was glad he hadn''t mentioned that his soul used to be over two hundred points when Trak sprinted from the apartment. Before Lee could hand over the empty potion bottle... "Maybe you could check in on him and make sure he''s not overworking himself?" Lee could spy on Trak much easier, but he had his own issues with zoning out. "We''re all keeping an eye on him. Maria has been very attentive since they started working on the child version." "I''m sorry..." "This isn''t your fault, Lee. It was that monster." "But it wasn''t. We did this! We could have just... died?" Could he have actually done that? Would he have? If he knew living would drag down Gabriel or Anita, would he choose to die in their place? The question was an easy yes right now... but what about at the moment of truth? "You said yourself that dying would destroy Three and all your runes, right? How would that help any of us?" "You''d be alive." There was a lump in his throat. "If Anita or Gabriel..." "It won''t come to that! We will find a solution. It isn''t over until it''s over, brother." He squeezed Lee''s shoulder. "So let''s get to work. I''ve got a standing order out for any soul related skills to pass through me. Plus, Trak isn''t the only one to get a class or skill evolution from unlocking their soul attributes. We got this. Okay?" Lee nodded. He didn''t share the other man''s optimism, but Alejandro was right about having time. Assuming nothing got worse¡ªfor him or Stanley. Since he wasn''t experimenting with bombs now, and given how disruptive his soul was, Lee stayed in his apartment. He created plates and put runes on them rather than using his soul storage. It still worked, but as it involved his soul, it was better to be safe than sorry. Of course, his runes also involved his soul... but that was all he had to work with. A rune was literally the only thing keeping him alive. In between those efforts, Lee studied the two runes interlocked within his soul. He looked for any way they might be improved. A hole that he might have missed when creating it. Anything. Later on, after Martin''s class ended, Lee sent Miller to check with the parents currently on childcare duty. With their approval, he turned his excess plates into flying discs for the kids to ride on. He even created some new versions that they could use to glide higher above the ground, at least while they were inside Three''s courtyard. Those kids had risked their lives to help, and most didn''t even know him. It was likely they didn''t even understand what they''d done or the risks involved. The least he could do was let them have some fun with his magic. So he made enough that every single child had their own plate. It would have been irresponsibly reckless of him, but F-grade children were far more durable than before. With E-grades watching over them, it should be fine... Especially when one of them was Maria. The racket they created was something else, though. So much screaming... Lee only smiled and created another plate, this one with a silencing rune that sheltered him from the noise. He actually made a few extra of those, too, then sent Miller to let people know, particularly the crafters in the garage. A few people claimed those plates, but more people came by just to say hello. Everyone knew he was awake by now, and even Wilson stopped in at one point. The Vice Commander visibly flinched when the door opened and he got a dose of Lee''s new soul wound... "Commander, I heard something happened..." "Yeah, my soul got fucked up." "I see... um..." "It''s a lot, isn''t it?" "Well, I wouldn''t say that..." "Maybe we can have your meetings through a window? Or did we ever get radios?" "I understand that project is something still in the works. Our resident enchanter wasted far too much time on translation items." Lee thought about it for a second, then summoned two palm-sized plates. He dropped a rune onto one of them... and then changed it... by splitting it into two identical halves of the same rune, one on each plate. Both plates immediately started screaming. "Okay," Lee said to the wincing Wilson after he''d pulled the runes off. "I''ll keep working on that, but I think I can create something like a radio. Or a walkie talkie. I can... have someone deliver it when it''s done." "I... look forward to it. That will be useful, Commander." "Lee!" Saira exclaimed, bursting through the door while Wilson was on his way out. "Oh, hello, Mr Chambers." Her tone was pleasant enough, but her soul wasn''t exactly pleased to see the man. Lee waited until Wilson excused himself, the man''s non linked soul providing far less feedback but enough to know something was going on between them. "What happened with Wilson? Or... nevermind if it''s personal." "It''s no big deal," Saira said. "He made a pass at me a while back, and I turned him down. He''ll get over it." Her soul brightened along with her expression. "Forget that! How are you? I''m sorry for not getting up here sooner, but Trak''s been relentless..." Lee chuckled. He''d noticed the anubi making multiple trips back and forth from her garden to the garage. "It''s fine, Saira. There''s nothing to apologize for. You helped save my life... I saw you trying to heal me. You accepted the soul link when..." She was abruptly in front of Lee, wrapping her arms around him as his vision blurred. "It''s okay." "I''m sorry," Lee said. "I''ve been too emotional lately..." "Hush now! We all felt what happened to you, but only secondhand. I can''t imagine what you endured." Lee was deeply gratified to see that he hadn''t linked his soul to her unborn baby, but he had a horrible realization on the heels of that thought. "Your baby! Did she feel the..." "Heavens no!" Saira exclaimed, her voice laughing but tinged with imagined horror. "My soul sheltered her. It still does. In fact, helping you has made me more powerful. I should thank you! My daughter''s future will be safer, thanks to you." "Seriously?" Only he knew she was sincere. He also realized that he couldn''t sense her baby''s soul. He could see the baby; it was actually squirming around, but the web of her enclosing blood vines must be shielding the child. That was good. Very good! "I''m really glad to hear... that..." Lee didn''t realize how bad he was feeling until Saira squeezed him tighter, then he broke down in her arms. "I''m so scared, Saira! I don''t... I don''t want to hurt anyone else!" "I know, Lee. You''re not wrong to be afraid. I am frightened every day for Mar, for my baby, even for myself." Saira held him close as she talked and as he cried into her shoulder. She rubbed his back while he sniffled. She held him tighter when the extra violent sobs sent spasms through his body, and she didn''t let go until he finally pulled away. Lee felt... better. Embarrassed, but better. "Thanks... for the hug." It helped that he could feel her soul and knew her smile was genuine when she said, "Anytime. We''re going to make reality conform to our dreams. And we will never stop fighting. Isn''t that right?" Lee had to smile at having his words thrown back at him. "Where did you hear... never mind, you''re right. I will never stop fighting!" "Agreed. Now I should get back to the garden and my apprentice before Trak starts messing with it. You are always welcome beneath my tree, Lee. If you want to talk or just spend some time in nature. Anytime." "Thanks. If you ever want to get away from... nature?" Saira laughed merrily as she practically danced out the door. "Don''t be a stranger!" She was still running around barefoot and barely dressed, and after being on the receiving end of that brilliant smile, Lee couldn''t blame Wilson one bit for taking a shot. He''d found some really great people here, or they''d found him. Now he just had to make sure they didn''t suffer for helping him. 102. A Fighting Chance ~~~Stanley~~~ "Master... Stanley," Walter called right as Stanley floated onto the penthouse balcony. His soul was... remorseful? "Yeah?" "I have prepared a small traveling snack for you and your companion." Caffeine kicked Stanley off the balcony on his way back to Walter when the man produced a huge paper-wrapped package that had to be food. Stanley was smiling when he drifted to a stop high above the ground... His smile faded when something below caught his eye. What!? He shot downward, ignoring Nate''s call as he approached the people hunting zombies outside the tower. One person in particular had caught his attention. "Where the fuck did you get that!?" Stanley roared at the woman who''d just impaled a zombie through the head with a blood-red wooden spear. A spear with a soul that burned the zombie where it touched it¡ªSamantha''s fucking spear! She didn''t answer; she only screamed and tried to stab him with the stolen spear. It approached his face, and time slowed. Stanley watched dispassionately as he drifted aside from the stabbing spear. She tried to kill me... but was it a true attempt by someone so weak? With my spear, no less. Samantha''s spear. He didn''t mind that part so much, not like he had a moment ago, but trying to kill him was indeed unacceptable. Her pathetic attempt at murder had him leaning towards sending a message rather than killing the woman outright. She was more useful alive. He could break a few bones as a... Very abruptly, Stanley found himself filled with rage and fear as a spear brushed past his face and then snapped back out at him. He caught it with his mind... and stopped it dead in the air. Had he just activated his Still Mind skill without meaning to? Had Caffeine canceled it? He watched the woman''s eyes go wide an instant later, and she tried to pull back away from him. She tried to take the spear with her... Stanley didn''t let it go. Neither did she... "Where did you get my fucking spear!?" Stanley ripped her hands from the weapon with surprising difficulty and held her in the air by her throat. "Tell me!" "S... Serenity... she... gave..." Stanley let go of her at the same time that Nate landed a dozen feet away with a booming crash. Did he actually jump from the top floor? That''s at least... "Wait!" Daryl appeared out of thin air an instant later, and Stanley flinched before frowning at the man. He had no soul... It wasn''t Daryl! In fact, it wasn''t anything. The image of the man gave no resistance to his mental touch. Then Edward came bounding over from another group of fighters. "Stanley, Kira didn''t steal it! Serenity let her use it!" "I... got that. But why did she give it to you?" The question answered itself when he took a closer look at the spear alongside the woman. "You... soul bound it?" She was rubbing her throat and glaring at him. All while eyeing the spear with a look that was totally her trying to figure out if she could snatch it from him and run away. Or maybe kill him? Her expression changed at his words, her eyes going wide. "I... how did you... I started the process... but it''s not done." Nate had strolled closer, but not too close, and he said nothing. Then the fake Daryl vanished. Right as real Daryl came sprinting out of the ground floor entrance... "Stanley, please! Serenity gave..." "God damn, I got it!" His previous burst of rage felt... overblown. He didn''t even use the spear anymore, but seeing it here had brought so many memories to the surface. Unpleasant ones. Caffeine trotted out behind Daryl and ran right up to Kira with a wagging tail. She smiled briefly at him but didn''t succumb to his pawing request for attention. Clearly, they''d met before. Which wasn''t surprising, given Stanley had been here for a week. He stared at the angry girl while her gaze remained locked on the spear. "Do you know who created this?" Her defiance eased, and her eyes flickered from the spear to him as she shook her head. "Serenity said... she said I could use it... until Stanley... came... back." Her voice trailed off, and her eyes finally met his, widening in recognition. It looked like she was making the connection. Stanley studied her soul with both of his skills. Looking and listening. "Her name was Samantha. She used this spear to save my life against the first invader I met..." He was almost positive that the zombie had been an invader. "She died for it." The girl wilted at his words, then froze when the spear drifted to a stop in front of her. "She wanted to save people," Stanley said, staring at the spear. "She wanted to save everyone..." Kira snatched it from the air possessively, and he saw her soul intertwine once again with the spear''s own soul glow. "What will you do with it?" The spear glowed brighter with a flare of red light. "I''m going to kill every one of those fucking undead bastards!" "That''s... good." Stanley looked away. It was better this way. Samantha wanted to help people. She wanted to make a difference, and she did. So many people lived because of her, and Stanley had forgotten about her. He forgot about the price she paid for him and wallowed in his own pain instead. I''m sorry, Samantha. Someone should use her spear... since he wasn''t. It was too weak, just like Samantha had been, but maybe a weak weapon could still make a large impact. Like Samantha did. "Her name is..." "Samantha. I''ll remember. I''ll help people... too, while I kill every fucking undead I find!" the girl stated. She meant every word. "Good." Stanley turned to look at the tide of zombies scrambling his way. Beside him, Caffeine sat and watched his human. "Come, Caff. It''s time to go. Edward, you coming?" "Naw, I''m gonna stay and help teach all these newbies. That way, I get to be the badass. If only I could fly above them all cool like..." Edward was the only one not staring at Stanley in horror. All of his newbies were terrified. Except for the girl, who was only pleased to have her spear back in hand. Stanley left the zombies for them. These weaklings needed practice. He picked up Nate, who had Walter''s going away snack under one arm, and Caffeine immediately switched his attention to the package once they were airborne. Nate was light. Practically effortless to carry. Kira had been an ant under his finger. Stanley felt powerful. More powerful than he''d ever been... and it didn''t feel like enough. Especially not with a leaking soul. Still, he moved himself and Nate straight into the sky. Or rather, it felt like they didn''t move and the ground simply fell away below. Disorienting, but not debilitating. "Woah!" Nate shook his head. "I thought the others were being dramatic, but that definitely feels weird." Stanley mostly tuned him out. Instead, he basked in the new found silence of the sky. He hadn''t realized how many souls had been bombarding him down there, and with only the three of them in the sky, it was... peaceful. He didn''t head out yet, though; his gaze was pointed down, and he stared at a specific building full of monsters. Full of bats. The hole in one side of the building was still there, but smaller. Nearly gone. The street outside that hole hadn''t recovered at all. It looked like a war zone of shattered, scorched, and broken cement. We survived. We won. Nate stayed silent while Stanley looked over the aftermath of his near death. His latest, near death... Then Stanley turned toward home and started a more leisurely flight in that direction as he asked, "Why not squeeze everyone into the tower? Consolidate. Even if it''s crowded, that would be more protection for Zeke." "It might come to that, but the tower''s already crowded." He shook his head. "Most of the lairs out here are no longer free of corruption. Even Zeke can''t clean their meat; we tested it. He just burns them up, and we end up with a tiny amount of usable meat. The tower is subsisting on the few fish they pull out of an underwater lair that''s not corrupted. Not nearly enough for everyone." Nate was eyeing him on that last bit, and Stanley protested, "I don''t eat that much... though that does seem like a problem." "They''re also weak," Nate said. "Those people fighting outside are almost the full extent of their combat potential." "Adrian is a good healer... I think." Stanley frowned. He didn''t actually know if that was true. Though he could heal hunger like Zeke, that was solid. "You know," Nate said, changing the subject. "We found a guy that can make magic-boosting staffs and wands. No idea how it works, but you should check in with him to see if he can make you something." "Sure..." Stanley carried them toward and over the large circular swath of green below. It spread out for miles, and it was the only green he could see anywhere. Zeke''s doing. They went deeper into the zone, and he could see the human souls flickering into sight at the base as they got closer, and he felt... anxious. "Who... is Jerry alive?" "Him and Bill. Arthur as well." Stanley was... glad. Mostly about Jerry. Arthur had his uses, but he''d been more separate... always pining after Samantha. When he felt the human souls flinch at his approach, Stanley stopped and looked around before backing up a bit and descending in front of a small house. "I''ll settle in here," he said after he checked inside. There was obviously no one there, and the house was clean enough. "I can be nearby without being too close." Caffeine ran inside and started sniffing everything, probably looking for snacks. Nate looked like he wanted to object, but Stanley could feel the faint relief in his soul. He probably hadn''t thought through what having him come back would do to everyone. "Okay." He slumped a bit. "I''ll bring you some food and water later. Maybe some..." "It''s fine." Stanley held up a hand. "Caff will be here to watch over me. He¡¯ll be close enough to run over there and see his friends. Meanwhile, I need to work on some things." Nate nodded, turned, and sprinted into the trees without another word. Meanwhile, Stanley settled onto the front porch of his new house. Am I a landowner now? he thought wryly as Caffeine finished checking the house and started running around the yard, including sniffing a few trees. Stanley watched the trees warily, not forgetting his last encounter with one. Though he was sure he could kill that worm easily now. Beyond easily. He did poke and shake the trees around his new home, just in case. Caffeine finally relaxed when Stanley doled out Walter''s fish, then curled up in his lap. He gently stroked the soft fur as he closed his eyes and focused on his soul. The wound was there, ugly and leaking, and Stanley felt gingerly at the energy of his soul. It wasn''t wholly unfamiliar. He''d manipulated the same energy to activate his Soul Sight, after all. Not to mention using it to kill... He reached out with that same feeling and tried to divert the trickle coming from the wound. It worked! Until he tried to send it back in, and the energy didn''t want to go against the slow outward flow. Stanley looked at his coat again. There was a barrier of sorts on it, but it wasn''t as simple as just blocking the energy where it covered him. Stanley couldn''t actually tell where his soul was in the physical world. Even when he looked at it from that meditation void space, there was nothing to gauge where the edges were. He messed around with the jacket and its effects until he finally realized something. The jacket was using soul energy... Did Walter use some of his soul to make this? It was so faint that he couldn''t tell for sure whose soul it was, just that it was indeed a soul. Or the energy of one. It was surprising, and it left him a little ashamed of how he''d acted toward the butler. He was really grateful. Is that why Daryl was surprised? It also meant Walter could use soul energy. On top of everything else he had done... What exactly was his class? Stanley shook off the thoughts and focused on what he now knew. This time, he manipulated his soul energy, along with the leaking stuff, into a barrier as close to what the jacket did as he could manage. He slowly spread it around himself in a blind attempt to block the leak. Debuff: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] -1 Twin-Soul Attributes per 6 days. It slowed the leak! Stanley thought excitedly while Caffeine stirred on his lap. "That''s a lot better," Nate said, and Stanley jumped. "Oh, I''m back." Nate chuckled. "I can''t believe I snuck up on you." "I was concentrating," Stanley grumbled, and let his soul energy construct dissolve. Nate leaned slightly away. Reflexively. "Ah, there you are." He held up a duffel. "Brought you some stuff." He set the bag on the porch, and Caffeine was already sniffing towards it from his spot in Stanley''s lap. "There''s chicken in there, so..." Caffeine bounded to his feet and started sniffing deeply at the closed bag. Stanley smiled at the sight. "Where did you get chicken?" "Chicken lair, where else?" "Of course. What was I thinking?" Caffeine ignored the departure of Nate, his attention fully on the bag and the chicken that Stanley pulled out. It was a lot. They must be some big chickens... Caffeine rocked back and forth nonstop and licked his lips until Stanley handed over the first piece. It vanished instantly. ... Later, stuffed and with Caffeine full of chicken sleeping in his lap, Stanley was back in his soul space and looking at the patched wound. Shielding isn''t enough. I need to fix it. He focused as narrowly as he could on one end of the iridescent wound. There were tiny particles... or waves... of stuff slipping away from the spot. Particles and waves¡ªis my soul like light? Do I need to learn quantum physics? He really hoped not. Or can I just will it to get better? It was worth a shot. That was kind of his whole deal these days. There was something of an edge to his soul in here, but the closer he looked, the harder it was to find the actual line. Seeing as how he seemed to be inside his soul, he wasn¡¯t even sure if the wound was actually on the inside or outside. It was diaphanous and fluffy, but he got as close to the start of the wound as possible and bent his will against that tiny, infinitesimal speck. Seal back together. Stanley felt his psionic energy drain and saw the tiny speck shift slightly closer to the one next to it. Is that good? His class was soul psionic, and he was using at least his will, if not also his soul, to manipulate his soul... Seal Another speck shifted. Seal Again and again. Bit by infinitesimal bit, it was working. Presumably. Stanley kept it going until a tongue slapped into his face. It kept slapping until he opened his eyes to a dark world with gleaming stars overhead. "I..." Stanley tried to speak, but his throat was too dry. How long did I work on that? He found a jug of water in Nate¡¯s bag and drank it almost dry, then poured the rest into a mental bowl for Caffeine. "Sorry, Caff." He rubbed Caffeine¡¯s head. "It was working!" Caffeine ignored the water and only wagged his tail while jumping up to lick Stanley¡¯s face again. "Okay, okay, let''s get some sleep." His head felt thick... which, considering he''d been meditating the whole time, was a bad sign. Was he doing something wrong? Or did working on his soul make for shit meditation? Of course, he had a notification waiting for him, which might explain something. Skill: Harmonic Meditation has reached the Level 50 Threshold. Upgrade Available. Evolution Available. He went for the evolution. Harmonic Soul Meditation (Epic) - Level 50 (Advanced) In the symphony of the body, mind, and soul, balance reigns supreme. Users of this skill gain the ability to refresh and calm their body, mind, and soul through meditation while also minimizing their body''s physical needs, including sleep and nourishment. Allows the user to enter profound states of concentration, attuning their mind and body to the flow of psionic and soul energy within, balancing the flows of each for greater control of both. Active meditation increases all regeneration at the cost of severe sensory restrictions. Skill Level Effects - (Advanced) +20% to all regeneration while active -1% to sensory restrictions His E-grade evolution was supposed to help with meditation, and this might help his soul, so he accepted. Begrudgingly, because he noted that he should have already cut his sensory restrictions by half... or did it not work that way? Then he meditated again, hoping to feel a difference. It was hard to say. It might have been more clear... As for seeing the results of his efforts, he couldn¡¯t see them until he focused way down deep. There, at the very edge of the ugly wound, was a small patch of slightly less agitated soul. A tiny spot. But one that felt... better. More durable. It''s going to take a while. Stanley grimaced. Too slow, damn it! He clenched his fists. I can''t keep fucking wasting... If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. A tongue licked his cheek, and Caffeine whined. Stanley sighed out a deep breath and slumped onto his back tiredly. It was something. More than he''d had that morning. It would have to be enough... and maybe he would get better at it with practice? He went inside, found some clean-smelling sheets in a closet, and remade a bed. He hesitated when he went to remove the jacket. The shield effect was slowing the damage, and he''d be an idiot to remove it. So he got under the covers, fully dressed. He didn''t even need blankets anymore. They felt more comforting than warming, even with the cold weather. Cold that couldn''t touch his body. Mostly, the blankets were for Caffeine, and he held them up invitingly. "You wanna get under?" Caffeine looked at his normally favorite place but didn''t enter. Instead, he settled atop the covers between Stanley''s legs. Okay, Caff, Stanley thought. You have the watch. I''ll make sure you get all the cuddle naps you want during the day. It was only as he drifted off that Stanley realized he''d done all of that in nearly total darkness. How good were his eyes now? Or was it his domain? ~~~Walter~~~ Walter felt Stanley''s burst of anger even though the man was outside, and he reached the ground floor in the same instant that Stanley appeared before Kira. There was a moment of that same coldness from before... and he saw Nate leap from the penthouse balcony. The coldness switched instantly to rage and fear before tapering back down. He hadn''t forgotten the discussion earlier, and so he brought Caffeine along with Master Daryl on his jaunt down here. Or he had tried to bring the pug. It had resisted his power and instead sprinted down the stairs nearly as fast as Walter could have managed. Though with a building shaking racket... Daryl was already sprinting out to interrupt the violent confrontation unfolding before them when the pug caught up. Walter stood in the doorway of his domain and watched Kira face off against that young old man. Walter knew Stanley was not the old man he seemed. He could see it in his eyes. In his body and his soul. That one was a young man, one who had seen too much and had not been prepared for the direction his life had gone. But then, who had been ready for this? Yet there was still hope for that one. Especially with that damnable shedding beast at his side. Walter picked another gray hair from his sleeve with a small smile. He could do nothing about the situation beyond his reach, but he knew he didn''t need to. He could also see and feel all the curious residents of his domain peering through the windows around and above him, all watching the stranger who had killed the monster. The one who hurt them simply by getting too close. Most were glad to see him depart, but the smart ones wished he would stay. Outside, Stanley left the weapon with Kira, as Walter had expected. The man could likely see that it was bonding with her. Then they flew away, and Daryl started back to the building, Princess at his side. Walter watched Master Daryl approach, his heart heavy from the worry on that young face. Yet his heart also swelled with pride as he looked upon a young man who had finally and truly stepped into his role. He''d worried about him after the incident. The Master had withdrawn back into his old ways. Neither seeing nor caring about anyone but himself and his friends, and then only the ones who were useful to him. "Walter, I want to make an announcement," Daryl said. "If you don''t mind?" "My pleasure, sir." Walter gently touched Daryl''s throat with a finger. Princess sat calmly at Daryl''s feet, her tails waving lazily. "Everyone, this is Daryl again," Daryl said, and his voice came from everywhere in the building. "I''m sure you all saw and felt that monster of a human leave." He took a breath and glanced at Walter before looking away, somewhat guiltily. "Myself and Adrian will be leading excursions for anyone who wishes to go into the lairs and get stronger. Coordinate with Walter if you are interested. That is all." Daryl nodded at Walter, and he removed his hand. "Walter... we need people to..." Daryl wouldn''t meet his eyes. "We have to go to the lairs again. There aren''t enough monsters coming in here." "As you say, sir," Walter said calmly. "You are quite correct." Daryl glanced at him and smiled. "Thank you, Walter." Walter smiled to himself as he watched him walk away. Daryl didn''t understand. He wasn''t upset. He was worried, of course, but not upset. No, he was proud. Walter looked out the door at the dangerous world Daryl would head into, a place Walter could not follow. He turned, and a step took him away. He reappeared an instant later as he stepped through the doorway to the basement. A basement that hadn¡¯t been there before this started. "Walter!" Tommy called out in greeting. "We got another one for you!" "Very good, sir," Walter replied as he picked up the half-ton fish. It vanished. "Will you be joining Master Daryl on his excursions?" Walter asked, peeved at calling him by his first name, but the Master had insisted. "I will!" Tommy exclaimed. "I don''t mind catching fish... but I want to get stronger, too." "As you say, sir." Walter nodded. He looked at the dark water that took up most of the floor down here. No one had dared to explore it yet, mostly because it was underwater, but fish and other things did occasionally swim to the surface or even leap out. "I will notify the Master and shall fetch you at the appropriate time." Tommy smiled. "Thanks Walter." "Carry on, sir." Walter turned to the other person in the basement. "Do you wish to join the..." "No! Uh, no thanks!" Henry stammered and then mumbled, "I enjoy catching fish." "Very good, sir. If you require anything, please do not hesitate to ask," Walter replied as he walked through the door. One more step took him just outside the kitchen, and he stepped inside. "Miss Rivera. I have another..." She cut him off. "Walter. Put it there." She waved at a stainless steel counter without turning around. "I still need more stuff, Walter, especially spices." Walter set the fish on the counter, and it creaked under the weight. "If Miss prepares a list, I will see that the next excursion has..." She spun around. "Oh, no Walter." She leveled a cleaver at him. "I''m going with them!" "Very good, ma''am," Walter said. "I shall inform the Master." "Hah!" She spun back to the counter and slammed her cleaver into something bloody. "Now get out of here, Walter. You bother me!" "As you say, ma''am." Walter stepped to another floor and walked through a doorway into a room full of screaming children. They cheered and charged him when he came in. Walter stepped past them, and the swarm screamed louder as they turned in pursuit once again. "Good afternoon, sir," he said to Mr Steele. "You requested my assistance?" Walter tossed a handful of small candies over the approaching horde, and they changed course to chase the candy. "I want to join the excursions!" the man yelled over the noise. "Also, can you get the children to the gym?" he asked pleadingly as the last piece of candy vanished and the monsters turned on the only prey available. "Of course, sir." Walter nodded as the bloodthirsty mob rolled over them and spilled out into a gymnasium full of distractions that diverted the little animals and allowed Walter to escape. He stepped to a higher floor and knocked on the door in front of him. The vulgar screaming inside the room stopped, and a voice yelled. "Fuck off!" Walter knocked again. "I said..." The door burst open, and a red faced, sweating man yelled in Walter''s face, "Fuck off!" "I''m afraid I cannot allow your reprehensible behavior within these premises," Walter said flatly. "Go cry at Daryl!" the man yelled. "I don''t give a fuck!" He slammed the door and stomped back toward the woman crying on the floor. His wife. "Look what you made me do!" he spat at the woman. "Now that old fart is going to whine to the fairy!" He was breathing heavily as he leaned over and reached for her. "Don''t make me..." His words cut off abruptly when a hand gripped his hair, dragged his head back, and then a cold blade settled heavily on his neck. "I am afraid I must insist," Walter said calmly into the man''s ear. "But Daryl..." the man sputtered as blood trickled from his neck. "The Master gave you one chance for old times'' sake," Walter said. "One more than you deserved. I am not the Master." The man struggled, but Walter didn''t budge. "You will depart this domicile, or you will be made to depart." "You''re a fucking butler!" he screamed. "You can''t make me do shit!" Walter spared a second of deliberation for the man¡¯s life. A volatile and spoiled man of old-world wealth who had yet to do anything to ensure his own survival in the new world. He did not hunt. Did not grow stronger. A small mercy for his wife, who was so often the target of his petty anger. They could insist the man earn his keep. That he joined the hunts. But while his wife may very well enjoy the peace of his absence, Walter had no desire for Master Daryl¡¯s life to ever rest in this man¡¯s hands. Perhaps it would behoove him to remove the problem at its root. An extreme measure, yes, but the rules had changed. "Very well," Walter said. "Then I shall do exactly as the butler does... and tidy up." Tommy and Henry both flinched as something splashed into the dark water and sank under the surface. A red stain spread out from the impact site. "I believe there will be a fish available shortly, sirs," Walter said, and both men jumped at the sound of his voice. They looked at him wide-eyed before grabbing their harpoons and approaching the water. Almost immediately, the water churned, and something huge broke the surface. Both men stabbed out and sank hooks into a serpent like creature. It writhed, and its heaving body threw water all around the chamber. Henry lost his grip on his harpoon, and then Tommy slipped while trying to hold up the full weight alone. He started sliding towards the dark waters. "Ah!" Tommy stopped screaming when Walter was suddenly there, gently pulling him back with one hand on the man and the other on the harpoon. "Please be careful, sir." He led the man to the wall and eased him into a seated position. His other hand pulled the harpoon and the sea serpent along with it. "A most excellent strike, sir," he said while nodding to the hooked weapon sunk into the creature''s head. Before either noticed the extra stab wound on the serpent''s neck, Walter pulled both harpoons free and picked up the monster, whose mouth could have swallowed any of the men in the room. He put it away, and in the sudden silence, broken only by water dripping from the ceiling, he held out a glowing core. "I believe this is yours, sirs." He nodded to both men. "If you need help deciding who will retain it or if you would like to trade, please allow me to be of service." He bowed slightly to them and walked through the door. Both men remained frozen until Tommy suddenly exclaimed. "It''s a skill!" He frowned. "Water breathing... Should we trade it?" Walter allowed himself a small smile as he strode down an empty hall and observed the fishing duo debating what they would do with the core. It was a fortunate circumstance that a skill appeared. They were now too excited to remember what had just happened. Not that Walter wished to deceive. But some things would cause disruption and disorder, and Walter preferred it when everything ran as it should, smoothly. He knocked on a door. "Pardon me, ma''am." Walter explained enough of the situation to Miss Lennon, and she graciously allowed him to escort her on the fast route. A step through her doorway, and they were three floors down. Right outside the apartment where the recently widowed Miss Copeland still cried, huddling on the floor. "You run along now, Walter," Miss Lennon said quietly. "I''ll call if I need anything." "Very good, ma''am." He closed the door and stepped outside Daryl''s door, far above. He would need to report the eviction. He knocked once before stepping through. "One sec, Walter!" Daryl called from another room. Walter could see and hear Daryl as he quietly talked with Adrian, even though two walls and a closed door separated them from him. He had told everyone that calling his name would alert him, and he had not been lying. But Walter had told no one the true extent of his power, not even the Master. Such knowledge would only burden the others, and Walter was doing as he had always done, knowing when and where he was needed. He was simply much better at it now. Walter strode to the large window while he waited and looked outside his domain at the city below. He could see the site of the battle against the invader from here. It shouldn''t have been visible to his eyes, not clearly. But now, after the change that swept the world, he could see far too well. He could see the spot where, two days ago, Adrian and Daryl had finally reappeared after not coming home the day before. It was the very worst night of his life, as he sought anyone in the tower who might go after them. Only to see them emerge once again and run into a monster beyond anything they''d faced before. Walter, left behind, had watched from this very spot, helpless, as they fought for their lives against that thing. He had seen far too clearly when their faces betrayed the understanding of just how strong the enemy was. He had watched the fear grow, seen it turn to desperation, and finally into despair when Cheesesteak died. He had seen the magic building up; he knew what it would do to them, and then... Stanley had ended it. Violently and painfully. I wish you the very best, sir. Walter dearly hoped that his gift would aid the man and would aid them all in return. Daryl had been too frightened by Stanley and had been relieved when Nate offered to take him away. Adrian had been less afraid and would have kept Stanley close despite it, but he deferred to Daryl. It wasn''t his fault. He was tired. The worry for Cheesesteak had taken a toll on the normally generous man. Both Daryl and Adrian had been carrying a heavy burden by sheltering Stanley here and by sheltering everyone else from him. That little show after he awoke and learned a new skill... A reminder of how far above them he was in power. A reminder of weakness in the face of inevitable death. Walter did not blame them. He himself had felt nearly invincible inside his domain before that. Before Stanley. The nightmares had been bad enough, but now he knew far too well how much his own strength was lacking. He too feared what he''d felt from the young old man and his incessantly shedding dog. The beast lord... Walter allowed himself another small smile. He would likely never fully rid this place of dog hair... but that was a price gladly paid for the safe return of his charge. Now Daryl would depart again. Walking into danger, and not for himself. He would depart to help others. To lead others in this new land of violent strife. To help others grow stronger. Walter could leave the building and follow after them if he wished, and he almost had on that day. But there was a price. A price that would break his domain and leave him no stronger than an ordinary man until he claimed another home and rebuilt his domain from the beginning. Unfortunately, ordinary men no longer had any place in this new world. He''d made a terrible mistake that first day when the classes had been offered. He had believed Master Daryl would hide away. Believed he would only demand his luxuries and only desire to keep the party lifestyle going. He had been wrong. "What''s up, Walter?" Daryl said as he walked into the room. Walter turned to face the young man. "I am afraid I was forced to evict a resident, sir." He had never been so pleased to be proven wrong before. ~~~Kira~~~ Kira dumped mana into the spear. Her spear! Blood Strike It launched from her hand and picked up more speed on its way to the zombie about to crash into Amanda. The zombie was blasted into pieces, one of which went into Amanda''s mouth and cut off her shrieking in the most disgusting way possible. Kira ran to collect her spear and then helped the gagging girl stagger back toward the fire burning at the entrance to the tower while she screamed, "Oh god! I''m corrupted! I''m going to die!" "Shut up. Adrian can heal you just fine." The idiot Sven just laughed as he ran alongside. "I can''t believe you swallowed it!" Amanda started crying. It turned into a shriek when Kira rolled her eyes and shoved the girl right into the bonfire. The fire dwindled, flowing into Amanda, including down her throat. She doubled over and vomited up something that never made it to the ground before burning to ash. "Time to pack it in, guys. It''s getting too dark," Daryl said when he appeared beside them. Or rather, when one of his clones appeared. "Not yet," Kira said. "I''m almost there!" "Pack it in! That is an order." Daryl was one to talk, with his bullshit overpowered class. He didn''t understand how hard it was for the rest of them. She could fight and train as hard as she wanted, and then he could just come in at the end and copy her best skill. What did he know about fighting for anything? "I will drag you inside by your ears if you..." "Relax, Daryl. We''re coming," Sven said while rubbing the crying Amanda''s back. "Like hell! I..." "Kira," Sven said. "Here." She hesitated at the sight of cores in his outstretched hand. "You can have mine. Is it enough?" "Why would you give me your cores?" Kira narrowed her eyes at the kid. "Come on, Kira. You know how many times you''ve saved us out here? You''ll help too, right, Amanda?" "Yeah," Amanda said between sniffles. "You''re... our... friend." "I... thanks." Kira pushed Sven''s hand away. "Let''s get inside first." Together, they helped the recovering Amanda through the door and started up the stairs. It was a long climb to their apartments, though they should probably stop for dinner first. Along the way, Kira checked her notifications. Class: Javelin Thrower has reached the Level 25 Threshold. Evolution Available. Upgrade Available. Her heart soared at seeing the evolution finally triggered, but she ignored it. She wanted to reach E-grade first. Not that she knew if it would be better that way, but she had a feeling. Adrian and Daryl were no help there. They''d been born with silver spoons, and apparently it carried right on over into the system classes they received. Still, she had a feeling. Dinner was fish. Again. Kira barely tasted it as she counted and absorbed the cores her new teammates handed over. "I''ll tell you if it works like I think it will." "So go on!" Sven said. "Do it." "Here? I''ll wait until I get to my room." "Come on!" Sven pleaded. "I''ll carry you upstairs! I just want to know what you get." "No way. I''d probably die after you dropped me down the stairs! Or are you just trying to get a chance to feel me up?" Amanda gasped, but Sven only grinned and winked at her. "Only if you ask me to." He blinked and lost his cocky expression. "Feel you up, I mean. I can always use a shield in case I drop you." "I''ll walk." The kid was shameless... and grinning again. In spite of her words, Kira all but sprinted to her room. She was so tired of being weak. Of being bullied. Both by monsters and people. Including that creepy old guy... She barely sat down in time as the last core faded into her skin. Evolution to E-grade has begun. It was time, and she stared greedily at the three orbs that greeted her in the darkness¡ªthree chances to change her fate. [Olympian Thrower](E-grade Human) You have gone beyond the limits of your class and humanity. Keep striving for greatness. You have killed hundreds of enemies with thrown weapons. Throw further. You have the class, Javelin Thrower. Keep throwing. You have evolved the class skill Javelin Strike into Blood Strike. Strike harder in your quest for blood. You have surpassed the old limits of human potential and now have the chance to stand among the higher echelons of humanity as you ascend to a higher grade. This will not reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](100%) [Olympian] It was disappointing. Barely better than her F-grade evolution. It also mentioned her class... Had she made a mistake by not evolving the class first? It sucked so much that she didn''t even want to look at the trait. [Death-Touched Olympian](E-grade Human) You have survived despite repeated corruption that sought to change you into something else. Adapt to survive. You have killed hundreds of enemies with thrown weapons. Send death with each throw. You have the class, Javelin Thrower. Make your javelin a death-touched instrument. You have hunted and been hunted by undead forces. No longer will you fear the corruption of their touch. You have sworn to end all undead. Move more easily among your chosen enemy. You have chosen to strike back against the monsters that haunt your dreams, and in doing so, you have taken a portion of their corruption to empower yourself as you ascend to a higher grade. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](85%) [Death Olympian] What the fuck!? She checked the trait this time. [Death Olympian] Death isn''t always the end. Especially if you only have one foot in the grave. You have adapted to feed on the corruption of undeath rather than be destroyed by it. All but the greatest corruption will now empower your flesh rather than destroy it. Effects: +100% - 400% Effective Physical Attributes (dependent on ambient corruption) +100% - 400% All Regeneration (dependent on ambient corruption) She didn''t like it. Sure, it would help her kill the rotten bastards that took everything from her... but to become one of them in the process? Even if only partially... Luckily, there was one more option here. Please be good. [Bloodthirsty Retribution](E-grade Human) Only through blood can retribution come. Drown the world in blood. You have been named Friend by the Beast Lord of Earth. He mourns for the lost souls and desires the end of all those who have stolen Friends from him. You have formed a connection with the lingering echoes of a fallen soul imbued within a spear of their own creation. It approves of your purpose. You have shed blood¡ªyour own and others''¡ªon a spear already soaked in the blood of thousands. It wants more. You have bound your soul to a soulspear filled with the wrathful regret of a chained god. It demands BLOOD! You have faced a chained god and shown no fear in the face of his wrath. There is nothing more to fear. Your weapon is a part of you and can never be taken away. You are the spear. Step onto the path of bloodthirsty retribution and wield the fury of blood against your enemies as you ascend to a higher grade. This will reduce your future evolution options. Traits: [Adaptable](80%) [Bloodthirsty] [Retribution] Wow, and what the fuck!? Kira felt a terrible chill as she recalled those eyes of pure darkness burning into her own. It couldn''t be, could it? But she had felt the rage... Stanley, what the fuck are you? [Bloodthirsty] Blood is life. Blood is death. Blood is power. Your weapon hungers for blood. Feed it. Effects: +200% - 1000% All Effective Base Attributes (dependent on blood saturation of your weapon) It was good. Better than good. And that was only one of the two traits... [Retribution] You have permanently Soul-Bonded to a bloodthirsty spear that holds deep resentment against all undead creatures. It hungers for their end, and so do you. Your Soul-Bonded spear will forgo its hunger for blood in exchange for a taste of undead flesh. Feed it. Your Soul-Bonded spear will devour corruption, within or without. Hunt without fear of death''s touch. +200% - 1000% All Effective Base Attributes (dependent on corruption recently consumed by your bloodthirsty spear) Despite her questions and concerns, this was exactly what she needed. She would be the retribution. She would kill all the undead, like she''d promised. I''m sorry you died, Samantha. But thank you for giving me the chance to pay those bastards back. I¡¯ll make sure you get what you wanted! She accepted the evolution without hesitation. 103. New Greatest Moment Of My Life ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley woke up gasping for a breath that he just couldn''t seem to catch. Which might have had something to do with the giant tongue smacking into and over his entire face... "Caff!" Caffeine backed off with a whine while also shrinking to a more manageable size and laying his head on Stanley''s chest. "Good... boy." He didn''t think Caffeine''s excessive affection was the cause of his pounding heart and tight chest... there was something else tugging at his memory. Something with burning claws lashing out from the darkness. Stanley didn''t even try to remember; he only sat up and continued meditating immediately. That helped, and he looked over his soul while calming down. The work he''d done the day before to repair the wound was still there. Still the same miniscule progress, but progress all the same. It might have even looked slightly better today... like fragile scabs turning into scar tissue. His next experiment was to remove his jacket and see what his soul would pick up. The souls were out there even with the jacket, but he wanted to check something... It got loud immediately¡ªall the souls around Zeke, all the souls further out, including the undead beyond Zeke''s purification area. He saw the monsters roaming in the wild. More monsters filled the lairs. More. More. All... the... souls... Stanley dropped his jacket back over his shoulders and caught his breath over the next few minutes. Then he tried creating his own shield and removing the jacket again. The cacophony wasn''t as bad, but it was less protection than the jacket and much harder to maintain while getting bombarded. Maybe it would get better if he practiced more... He waited until he felt calm... well, calmer. Then he removed the jacket again, just to test... Shit. He''d thought it felt like a lot of those non-human souls were reacting to him, and he was right. There was an obvious inward flow of souls now. Not all of them. But enough. All coming for him. Strangely, it seemed like all the souls coming his way were inbound from beyond the purified zone. None of the wildlife inside the zone was coming his way. In fact, he saw one group of souls heading outward on what looked like an intercept course with the newcomers. It seemed obvious once he thought about it. They were defending the clean area as their territory. At least, that was the gist he got from their souls. Though he wasn''t sure why they weren''t living in lairs like most of the monsters... Stanley took himself outside and looked toward the base. He could go get some breakfast. If he used his shield along with the coat, it shouldn''t be too bad, and even if it was, what did he care? It wouldn''t actively hurt anyone, even if it was unpleasant. Not that he especially wanted to go, but Caffeine would probably enjoy the visit... That was a good enough excuse. If it would make Caffeine happy, then damn what anyone else thought. The shield helped. It didn''t block everything, but it blocked enough. More than a few people''s souls still twitched as he approached, but they could just deal with it. They would have to, because there were definitely more people than he remembered. A lot more. Other things had also changed while he was gone¡ªwalls had gone up around the building, or rather, buildings plural. The second one looked like it was still under construction, almost an extension of the original structure. Meanwhile, wall was a generous term. It was mostly dirt piled up against stacked shipping containers. There wasn''t an actual gate through the new wall, but one section had a ramp of sorts for the more land-based people. Caffeine jumped straight to the top, sniffed a startled man, then pounced through a window into the building. Stanley followed at a more sedate and less alarming pace. As expected, Caffeine led him to the kitchen, which was still in the same place but with a new expansion. The cooks had their own room outside the original now, all four of them. A bit more ventilation let them have a sprawling fire festooned with a number of spits in varying sizes. The central spit held what looked like a whole chicken¡ªone the size of a small car. Stanley wasn''t able to slip through the crowds in the room undetected. Every head immediately turned his way, with plenty of them pre-emptively opening a path to the front and the food. How thoughtful of them... "You look alright," Jerry said upon seeing him. "Only a bit... louder, and way, way overdressed. You know this isn''t a black-tie restaurant, right?" "I... I''m glad you survived," Stanley said, ignoring the comment about his attire while taking every scrap of cooked meat from every serving table in the room... They even had some variety now. Caffeine zeroed in on the chicken. Of course. "You know what? I''m pretty jazzed about surviving myself," Jerry said, while looking behind Stanley with a widening grin. "Well, would you look at that? No one is bitching about you taking all the food." Stanley turned to look and saw a collective turning away of eyes and heads. It was... nothing. He wanted to yell at them for being a bunch of weak cowards, but for all he knew, they weren''t cowards and had fought against the undead. Or they were all crafters, like Jerry. And yelling at Jerry for being weak just seemed... pointless. Caffeine ate everything offered in one massive bite... and then watched Stanley eat a much smaller portion with eager anticipation. Stanley shared while he checked to confirm Caffeine had gotten the food buff... and because he''d forgotten to look at Caffeine''s status the day before. Or the week before? Status Name: Caff Caffeine Race: [Canine(Pug)](E-grade) Traits: [Good Boy] Class: Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 20 (Basic) Class Skills: Howl of the Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 10 (Basic) Attributes: Strength: 100 Vitality: 100 Dexterity: 100 Wisdom: 100 Intelligence: 100 Willpower: 100 Soul: 94 [Twin-Soul Bonded(Stanley Cascade)(Lee Cascade)] Non Class Skills(0/6): [Big Enough] [Strong Enough] [Fast Enough] [Tough Enough] Buffs: [Bill''s Special] Debuffs: He had, but his stats were still weird. The buff didn''t add to the pug''s numbers like it did his, and technically, there was no way Caffeine still had a hundred in all his attributes... Speaking of which, Nate probably owed them some cores. Stanley noted that Caffeine''s race still hadn''t changed at E-grade. He really should have asked Daryl or Adrian more about their pets... though that probably wasn''t the right word for them. Caffeine still acted like a pet, but Princess''s and Cheesesteak''s souls had felt more intelligent... Princess had talked to Caffeine... He''d go back. He would definitely talk to them again, if only to try and communicate with Caffeine... to apologize for everything... to thank him... to beg forgiveness for everything he¡¯d put the pug through... Buff: [Purifying Aura] Buff: [Purifying Light] Zeke''s light hit him well before the boy touched him, and it felt... stronger. If that was even the right word for something that felt so soothing. Stanley drew in a shuddering breath. "I''m fine, Caff." He gently pushed the pug away from his face. "I know you missed your friends... so go say hi. Please." Caffeine stared into his eyes for a long moment, and then his sad whine turned deafening as he pounced on Zeke with frantic excitement. Zeke laughed under the assault before Caffeine took off in wide, sprinting circles. Each time he looped back, he would enlarge enough to catch the boy''s face with his tongue before dashing off again, and it wasn''t just him. All of Stanley''s old team had come in with Zeke, and Caffeine stopped at each of his friends with equal enthusiasm. Even Jerry got assaulted when the pug jumped through the window into the new kitchen area. Stanley smiled with his eyes closed and tried to increase his soul shielding efforts. "Thanks, Zeke. I keep forgetting how good that feels." Zeke was smiling, but there was something else in his soul. Something beneath the surface that he wasn''t saying. Stanley really wasn''t feeling up to any more emotional drama... or whatever it was, so he pulled a core from his pocket. "I brought you a present." Mana Drain (Epic) He''d offered it to Caffeine already, but the pug didn''t eat it. His best guess was that Caffeine didn''t use mana, which seemed reasonable considering how the bats had behaved. It was a shame. That and the fact that Caffeine didn''t have adaptable... He''d have loved for him to evolve it into some kind of mana-devouring ability... especially if it worked the same way he devoured his food. Using it himself seemed pointless. What would it turn into? A psionic drain? Would that only work on another psionic? Sure, there was a slim chance it would turn into something useful, but between him being a psionic that never really ran out of energy and the touch part of the skill... he wasn''t hopeful. He also owed Zeke a reward for... something? Even if it was just the soothing light of his, that was a good enough reason. "Um... thanks." Zeke took it hesitantly. "I don''t actually have mana. I use..." "Do whatever you want with it," Stanley said quickly, and then flew out the far door away from where he could feel Eve charging closer. Her soul was screaming with a lot of weird sensations, including terror. He didn''t need that kind of negativity right now... Stanley posted up atop the wall outside. With his breakfast. He wanted to meditate and calm himself as much as he could so Caffeine wouldn''t come running. Especially considering the whole reason he''d come here was to let Caff have some fun... Unfortunately, he couldn''t shield and meditate at the same time. It was tempting to try his new Still Mind ability, but maybe it would be better to test that while not too close to other people. And he definitely wanted to test it. Nate had noticed a key detail while Stanley had been freaking out over the skill. He had indeed been training all his attributes before it went too far. If he could do that regularly... and without the soul damage, it could be massive. Especially if he could increase his soul attribute along the way. After all, he''d come out ahead even after losing one point. If he went slower... Well, increasing his soul attribute was the next best thing to fixing the leak. As if summoned by his thoughts, Nate found him. Which wasn''t hard to do, considering he was a literal beacon now. Stanley wondered briefly when the man took time to go hunting¡ªor did he let others do it for him? The bag of cores he brought with him was... well, not wholly unexpected, but welcome nonetheless when he plopped down onto the wall. "I don''t think your soul can actually compete with the racket Caffeine is making." The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Stanley laughed. Just once, but it was genuine. Caffeine''s happy whines were echoing all the way out here. "He makes friends so easily... and misses them so much." As if on cue, loud barking preceded the thumping impacts that shook the building behind them. Nate chuckled. "Aw, I see he found Barbie." Stanley smiled at that. "I''m glad he made it out alright." "That beast is too stubborn to die," Nate said, handing over the bag. "This doesn''t make up for anything, but I''m guessing you have other things on your mind than hunting right now?" "It... thanks. Caffeine needs cores for sure." Stanley hesitated, then asked, "Where did you get these? Are they yours? Is that why you''re still so weak?" "Ouch... and no. I took a collection, mostly from the people who know you already, but some also came from the new additions." "They don''t feel very upset." On some level, it made sense. They were paying for Nate''s protection. As weak as it was, he was still stronger than any of them. Not to mention Zeke''s protection from the miasma. "I think you might have misunderstood the collection part," Nate said. "I didn''t order or demand cores from them. I told everyone that the only guy to kill any invaders had just killed another, and that he took a beating doing it. They wanted to help you." "They... did?" Stanley looked away with a strange feeling in his chest and blinked when his vision blurred slightly. "It''s not the help I promised and not what you needed most... but you aren''t alone in this fight. Even if all we can do is gather a few cores after the fact." Nate stood up and dusted off his pants. "Do what you need to. We''ll keep the cores coming. It''s the least we can do." He left Stanley sitting on the wall, thinking not entirely unpleasant thoughts about the weakling cowards all around him. They were weak... but maybe they weren''t all cowards. Those weren''t his only thoughts. It wasn''t any of their fault''s that he''d almost died. The skeleton that attacked him wasn''t after any of them. It only wanted him. It only wanted the source. Greater challenges. The only question now was whether the D-grade was a one-off or if more of those monsters might come after him. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine laid his chin on the ground and sighed as he looked up at Dearest Human. He was just sitting there with his eyes closed. Ever since Dearest Human had tried to sneak away to the lonely house, he had only been sitting and thinking. It was good thinking, and Dearest Human smelled like okay with some happy. But it had been sooo long. Plus, Dearest Human had forgotten Lunch! It must be a very good thing to think about if it was more important than Lunch! Caffeine sighed. "It''s plenty safe here, Caff. You don''t have to stay right next to me if you want to go play." Dearest Human said something about stay and play. That was a good idea. He should play... but Dearest Human was busy thinking... The sun was warm on his back, and Caffeine decided that he could take a nap while he waited for play time. Sunny naps were the best! His back got too warm, so Caffeine rolled over. Warm sun on his belly was almost as good as a belly rub. He opened his eyes when his belly got cold. Caffeine saw the sun had hidden behind the trees, so he rolled over and got up. After a good stretch, Caffeine walked over to Dearest Human. His tail wagged as he looked at him. Dearest Human was the best! Caffeine sniffed at Dearest Human, who still smelled like thinking, so he sighed and crawled gently onto Dearest Human''s lap. Another nap will be good. Dearest Human''s hands pet him as he lay down, and Caffeine rolled over for the belly rubs. Belly rub naps are the best! Caffeine woke up, and Dearest Human had stopped petting. He still smelled like busy, so Caffeine sighed and climbed into his new bed inside Dearest Human''s coat. It was always the perfect size for cozy naps. Though he did poke his nose out, in case something needed barking at. Then he was back home, with both Dearest Humans! They were chasing him back and forth from room to room, while Caffeine carried his favorite squeaky toy! He ran and ran so good! It was so good that he couldn''t help the happy cries that came from him. He had missed other Dearest Human so much! They both made the happy sounds while they chased him until Caffeine had to rest, and then he got two belly rubs at the same time! Before he could fall asleep, they suddenly had chicken! So much chicken! Both Dearest Humans gave him bite after bite. It was the best! Then Caffeine got more excited, and the chicken vanished! Both Dearest Humans faded away into the dark! Caffeine cried out for them... and opened his eyes. Oh... it was only the sleeping fun. Sleeping fun was nice, but now other Dearest Human was far away again. Caffeine missed other Dearest Human... but it was still good to play with him, even in sleeping time. If only the chicken... Caffeine sighed and then sniffed again. Chicken! I smell chicken! He climbed out of his cozy bed and sniffed deeper. I smell grass, sticks, the sneaky dog, water, something interesting over there and over there, Tough Strong coming closer, and... Chicken! He turned and watched Tough Strong walk out of the trees. "Hi, Tough Strong!" He yipped. "Chicken? Chicken!" His feet were dancing with excitement, and he checked if Dearest Human was excited, but he was still sitting and thinking very hard. "Hi Caff." Tough Strong said as he stopped in front of Caffeine. "You being a good boy?" "I am a good boy!" Caffeine barked. "Chicken!" Tough Strong smiled at Caffeine, but then frowned at Dearest Human. "He is still working on it, huh?" Caffeine wasn''t listening. He was too busy staring at the paper bag that smelled very, very much like Chicken! Tough Strong made a happy sound and lifted the bag. "You want some chicken, don''t you?" Caffeine couldn''t stand still. It smelled so good! "I brought this for Stanley." Tough Strong said and set the bag next to Dearest Human. Dearest Human¡¯s Chicken!? Caffeine felt very sad. He licked the bag. Sooo good! But Dearest Human needed to have dinner too, so he lay down and stared at the bag in front of his nose. It wasn''t too sad... Dearest Human would share his dinner. He always shared. Dearest Human was the best! But... he wasn''t eating yet! He was only thinking very hard, not eating the chicken! "And I brought this for you, Caff." Tough Strong said his name, and Caffeine managed to glance away from the chicken to look at him. Only for an instant, in case the chicken tried to escape! Then Caffeine froze before jumping to his feet. Chicken! Tough Strong pulled a giant piece of chicken from behind him and held it out to Caffeine! It was almost as big as Dearest Human and had a crunchy stick inside it! Tough Strong was the Best Human! Caffeine danced anxiously as he waited for Best Human to set it down. He did, and Caffeine hesitated. Dearest Human should eat with me. We always eat together... Caffeine cried a little as he looked at Dearest Human and then at the Chicken, and back at Dearest Human and back... Maybe just a small bite... Dearest Human might think for a long, long time after all. Caffeine decided. Just one small bite. He took a small bite of the tiny piece of chicken. It was sooo good! Best Human smelled like surprised and then laughing. Caffeine opened his eyes, and the chicken was all gone! Best Human made a happy noise and gave Caffeine a friendly head scratch. "I''ll bring you two drumsticks tomorrow, Caff." Caffeine whined sadly. The chicken was all gone! It had been such a tiny piece, after all. "That''s what happens when you swallow the whole thing in one bite." Best Human patted Caffeine as he said mostly not words. "You even swallowed the bone!" Caffeine looked at Best Human when he said the magic bone word, but there were no bones. He sighed and laid down to stare at Dearest Human''s chicken. "I have to get back." Best Human stood up after another head scratch. "We aren''t that far away, Caff. If you want to come by and see your friends, maybe play with the kids some more..." Caffeine looked at him. Come, Play? He looked at Dearest Human and whined before laying his head down again. He couldn''t leave Dearest Human alone. There were lots of scary and dangerous things out here. Like rocks and stumps and jumping leaves! "I understand," Best Human said something. "You''re a good boy, Caff. Take care of him, okay?" Caffeine watched Best Human run away and disappear behind the trees, and he sighed. I am a good boy. Caffeine guarded Dearest Human''s dinner diligently for a very long time. But he kept getting thirstier and thirstier until he had to go find the water he could smell somewhere. Dearest Human had forgotten to bring his nice water bowl when they left the rumbly place, but Caffeine understood; after all, he had forgotten it too until just now! First, though, he did a sniffing check around the area for danger or scary things. Everything was the same, so he followed his nose to a giant lake. It was a dangerous and deadly place. The water looked almost too wide to jump over, and Caffeine was sure that if he fell in, it would be deep enough to kill him instantly. He crept carefully to the edge and leaned down. The water smelled strange... He took a taste. Debuff Resisted: [Ten Tongue Toxin] It was spicy and made his tongue tingle. Caffeine thought about it as he licked his lips. He decided it was a good spicy. Very interesting. He drank until a small thing sitting on top of the water started croaking at him. "Hi there!" Caffeine woofed. "Are you..." The croaking thing tried to lick him, and Caffeine had to jump aside. "Your tongue is very long!" It tried again. Caffeine circled around the big lake, jumping forward to grab a few slurps in between tongue strikes. "You''re very good at playing catch," Caffeine complimented the croaker. Caffeine had fun playing with Croaker until he realized he''d had too much to drink and went back to guard Dearest Human. Also, he remembered he was supposed to be guarding the Chicken! There was a loud noise, and Caffeine arrived to find the Chicken safe and unharmed. "I can''t believe I forgot the Chicken!" Caffeine huffed. He looked over at the sneaky dog that was still hiding under a tree. "Thank you for not eating Dearest Human''s dinner." Sneaky Dog didn''t respond, but that was okay. He must be shy, Caffeine thought. He did smell like fear and worried suddenly... "Do you want to play chase?" Caffeine woofed at him. Playing always made him happy, after all. "I can play if we stay close to Dearest Human." The shy dog said nothing and only ran away. Caffeine sighed and walked over to smell his hiding spot. It smelled interesting, and he hoped he would come back to play later so Caffeine could smell him better. And it would be fun to play while he took care of Dearest Human. Much later, after a very long time, Caffeine decided that Dearest Human wouldn''t stop his hard thinking by himself. The light was almost gone, and it was getting colder, so Caffeine climbed onto Dearest Human''s lap and started licking his face. That was the best way to wake him up because, while sometimes he was grouchy when he woke up, a good face licking would usually bring some happy sounds, and that was good! "Ah! Caff!" Dearest Human finally opened his eyes! "Ahh, stop!" He wiped his face with his hand. "Why is my face so wet?! Oh..." Dearest Human picked up the bag of chicken! Caffeine sat down in front of him. He was a good boy! "Did Nate come by?" Caffeine scooted closer, though he was already as close as he could get. "Have you been keeping watch, Caff?" Caffeine wagged his tail as Dearest Human opened the bag and stuck his hand inside. Yes! Yes! Chicken! Dearest Human pulled out a piece of chicken, and Caffeine froze as it hovered in the air, its destination unknown. Then it moved towards him, and Caffeine grabbed it! Sooo Good! Another piece came out of the bag, and Caffeine held his breath. Dearest Human''s stomach made a hungry sound as the Chicken moved to Caffeine, and he froze with indecision. Dearest Human is hungry too! Caffeine had eaten one small piece earlier... but that was sooo long ago. Ages and ages. He looked at Dearest Human''s belly and whined. "Okay, Caff." Dearest Human chuckled and ate the Chicken. Then another piece came from the bag... and came to him! Caffeine gobbled it up. Dearest Human made the happy sounds and patted his lap. "Come on, Caff. Let''s go inside while we eat. I''m so fucking tired." Caffeine jumped into his lap and sniffed at the bag while Dearest Human made them move into the air. "I think I''m making progress, Caff." He handed a piece of chicken to Caffeine. "My soul is getting better." He ate a piece of chicken. "It''s just so slow." He made frustrated noises and gave Caffeine another piece. "At least it seems to level my skill and class... so not a total waste." He ate another piece. Dearest Human made lots of noises like that while they ate chicken, and when it was gone, they had somehow gotten inside and on the bed. Dearest Human got under the cozy blankets and held them up for Caffeine. Caffeine wanted to stand guard, but Dearest Human seemed sad, so he crawled under and cuddled with his legs. Dearest Human always liked it when he did that. Caffeine waited until Dearest Human was asleep and carefully crawled out of the warm, snuggly place. He curled up on top instead. Bad things had hurt Dearest Human before, and Caffeine wouldn''t let them do it again. When Dearest Human started making sad noises and smelling like frightened and hurting, Caffeine crawled closer and licked his face. "It is okay now, Dearest Human. I will make the scary things run away." He huffed quietly and laid his head on Dearest Human''s chest. The frightened and hurting faded, and Dearest Human rested until it happened again. Caffeine reassured him again, and the long dark passed slowly. Only one something tried to approach in the dark. Caffeine heard it coming and growled softly at it. "No!" It froze, and Dearest Human stirred and mumbled something. Caffeine rested his head back on Dearest Human''s chest and huffed quietly. I will be quiet. The something outside ran away very fast, and Caffeine closed his eyes. Good. The light eventually came back outside, and Dearest Human woke up with a smile and some happy sounds, followed by a wonderful belly rub that turned into the best nap ever! 104. Dark Harvest ~~~Lee~~~ Lee lifted his foot to step outside and froze when a memory rose abruptly into his mind. A memory he''d forgotten until this very moment... of a dream. He''d been hovering disembodied in the sky above a strangely familiar forest... Stanley lay below and glowing with the very familiar light of the source while Caffeine tried to drag him through the snow. A man that was not a man had been in the sky with him. It had spoken of... rules. Of greater challenges... cryptic warnings that Lee still didn''t understand. Not fully. It had definitely felt like a dream, only he knew with certainty that it was not. Strangest of all, was when the dream that wasn''t a dream ended in a burst of static that swallowed the world. Lee heard that same static now. A roaring static that filled his mind and drowned out all thought. Deep within that noise, a droning voice whispered, "A bleeding soul... will hide nothing." He took a staggering step backwards while his mind whirled and hands latched onto his arms, steadying him. How had he forgotten that? More importantly, what was that bit at the end? It had happened right after he made Three... after he used the source. The source that was hidden inside their soul right up until that moment. Their soul that was now bleeding... Lee thought about asking his bodyguards the question currently burning a hole in his mind, but he needed someone else. Someone who knew more. Alejandro or Maria. Or Trak. Rather than head outside as he''d planned, Lee waited for Trak to return from Saira''s garden. He''d been watching, and the little guy rarely stayed out there for long. Only long enough to help Saira with the latest herb adaptations before he would dash back to keep brewing the next batch. As expected, Lee didn''t have to wait long. Trak''s eyes went wide when he saw him, and the anubi almost fell over as he tried to stop and bow at the same time. "My lord!" "Trak," Lee said without preamble. "What can you feel from my soul?" "Nothing, my lord!" "What? Nothing!?" Trak nodded sharply. "Nothing, my lord. Your magnificent creation shields you even now!" He tilted his head. "Was that not your intention?" Lee looked at the anubi''s feet, just outside the garage. "What if you are inside?" He stepped onto the ramp and into the building, his face and soul lighting up with a disturbing expression. "I feel your magnificence, my lord! It is glorious!" "Oh, please." Lee rolled his eyes. "I mean, do you feel the..." He glanced at his bodyguards and then whispered, "you know?" Trak also glanced around anxiously, then closed his eyes while his head tilted back and forth. His eyes snapped open. "I do, my lord! It is faint, nearly lost beneath your mag..." He eyed Lee''s face and ducked his head. "It is there, my lord. I doubt any here would recognize it, yet if the eldest of my pack were to meet you now, they would know your secret." Lee wasn''t worried about the other anubi finding out, he was worried about something like that skeleton showing up here looking for a source... "What ails you, my lord? Allow me to assist!" "Are you sure you can''t feel me out there? Nothing of the... you know?" "My lord, your... creation is absolute. Not a whisper or hint of your... presence passes these walls." "Trak, did you see the skeleton?" "Yes! I watched you and my lord''s brother slay the foul thing!" "It knew about the... it knew what we hold and came to collect it from our corpses... from my brother''s corpse. I don''t think it knew there were two of us until it saw me." Trak went very still. "I did not know that, my lord. Will they come for us here?" "Us?" Lee asked, though he was smiling when he said it. He already knew what Trak would say. "Of course, my lord! Should another of those foul abominations dare set foot in this place, they will surely come to regret it before we destroy them!" Lee smiled at the belief he could feel from Trak''s soul, but he wasn''t so sure. A greater challenge. The dream figure had said they would face those. But why had it made them forget until now? Why give the warning in the first place? Did Stanley know before? It hadn''t seemed like it... If something like that attacked the fort. A bleeding soul will hide nothing. Which meant a not bleeding soul would hide something. Like, say, the source? The system hadn''t mentioned the source until they''d used it. Which begged the question; could a soul hide something from even the system? Lee had the Mana Well, and he''d been afraid people might kill him for it. Now he had the source. It wasn''t a hard stretch to imagine people would kill for that kind of power, since it must actually be possible to take it from someone... assuming the skeleton wasn''t lying. Three was hiding him and his source now. Did that mean Three had hidden the original source used to create it? The undead had gone after Stanley''s source, but no one had come after him here. Not yet. Did they not know about him? Twin-Soul was supposedly unique... did that mean literally one of a kind? Or was it just another rank, like rare or epic? The skeleton definitely hadn''t seemed to know there were two of them... not until the end, but it was dead now. If he was still undetected over here... there was no reason to risk changing it. He didn''t need to go outside, anyway, at least not until he fixed his soul. He could put himself under house arrest for the greater good. Hell, for his own damn good. Besides, he had a nice, big house... That set off another alarm bell in his head. Was the courtyard safe? Or was he already exposed? Which was how he ended up commandeering the courtyard in between attribute training and the kid''s schooling. He sat Trak on a rune disc and sent it hovering high above the courtyard. Above the entire building. His relief was immense when Trak came back to earth and told him that Three was still blocking the even larger opening over their heads. "I wanna go that high!" "Me too!" Unfortunately, too many kids had watched the test through their windows. Lee hedged rather than commit or deny. "No one''s going anywhere until after school!" He escaped back to the garage amid a chorus of disappointed groans. There, his little elevator room served a new purpose. Instead of protecting people from potentially exploding runes, it now shielded them from his soul. It wasn''t really an improvement from his apartment... but it was a change. Some variety was good. Lee lost his focus more than a few times just from watching people work in the surrounding garage. The anubi''s crafting was fascinating enough, but other people were catching up on their own abilities. Valerie was working with leather that held a type of mana he''d never seen before. It didn''t match hers, but she still used her mana to manipulate and nudge the mana inside the pelt as she cut, stitched, and finally created a pair of boots. The finished project blazed up even brighter after she dumped what looked like her entire mana pool into the shoes. May no longer worked alone. She''d found someone to apprentice, and Lee felt a little sorry for the young man hammering away beside her. They''d expanded her area to make room for the second anvil and forge, but it looked like a good thing. The apprentice was making generic spears, while May was crafting something far more special. She was using the metal from the lair, but the sword forming under her hammer held far more mana than any weapon she''d made before, and it increased with every blow. Another man was spinning a pile of mana-infused hair or fur into thread while his partner wove the thread into cloth with magic. It was nice that they didn''t need a loom... and Lee was looking forward to getting some magic clothes one day. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. He turned his wandering attention back to the two men outside his room. The latest additions to his guard detail; Jeremy and Jackson. "You''re regenerated. Get back to it." Mana surged through Lee into his head, where it mostly infused into his brain, ramping up his mental power. It was something he''d done to a lesser degree before, and out of instinct rather than intentionally. Now he did it on purpose. Not only did it give him more time to process and think, but he swore it helped increase his attention to detail. Between his various evolutions and traits, Lee could channel a lot of mana these days. He would have done it constantly and at higher mana levels, but he was trying to be extra careful. The best part¡ªwell, not the best, but perhaps the most fun part¡ªwas that he could pull a Stanley with ease now. With the mana filling his brain, it was child''s play to use Mana Mind to lift both practice weapons from the floor and hold them out for the grumbling fighters before him. These guys didn''t have nearly as much fun sparring as Amy did... but they reluctantly went back to pounding on each other. With a lot less skill than Amy as well... It didn''t matter. Martin would whip them into shape eventually. In the meantime, Lee kept watching in his search for the elusive stamina. He was taking a break from soul rune study. Most of yesterday and half of today had yielded no results, and he needed the break. But he might as well accomplish something in his downtime. Not that he was making progress here either... Hopefully, the mana-doping might help. The garage wasn''t the best place for a melee brawl, but the kids were getting lessons in the courtyard, and Lee couldn''t go outside. It was this or his apartment. "Take a break," Lee said later to the dueling figures while he altered the runes on their armor chest plates. The rune was supposed to funnel energy into the fighters as they got tired, but it was only giving them mana. He drained the runes and refilled them, using what he was hoping was his own stamina. Sure, he could do the fighting himself while using his own stamina in the test, but he never ran out. He only got hungry. Plus, all the extra energy swirling around inside him made the entire process fruitless. More energy than before. Energy that he now knew was coming from the leaking source. It was difficult to trace the origin, seeing as how his soul was even more ephemeral than his core and mana channels, of which he only had the core remaining. That was one more thing that made it much harder to trace, since his mana and stamina intermingled freely throughout his entire body. At least other people had channels he could follow. The next step, and a more drastic move, would be if he used Mana Mind to pull what he assumed was stamina directly from another''s body. He could probably stuff the energy into the rune that way, but he didn''t know if it would work, and he doubted it would be pleasant, even if it did. Trak showed up later and right on time. He brought an even more foul concoction with him than the last one, and Lee downed it without hesitation. Buff: [Soul Defense Elixer](11:59:59) -3% All Soul Damage He''d gotten the duration and effect up. Not much. Probably not enough to make a difference. But it still might matter in the end, so Lee chugged each new version as it came. At least it was only one every twelve hours now. Lee let his minions go when Miller and Amy came back from their lair run. Alejandro''s idea of rotating them so no one got burned out. Then Amy got to beat up Miller for a while. Though they sparred in the courtyard instead, and while they were surrounded by screaming, flying children. Lee sat inside Jamaal''s restaurant to keep his soul from being too loud, but found a new way to practice his own skills while spicing up the kids'' playtime slash training. He would pull the rune from a plate while they were high above the ground, then stick it back on as they plummeted out of the air. Some of them loved the new thrill, but not all. He only got scolded once for making a child cry... He made a trip to the garage once more to slap basic runes onto new weapons and armor. Mostly spears. Someone had figured out that it was much easier to teach basic spear combat instead of trying to give everyone swords. Plenty of people complained about it because swords were just cooler, but a demonstration from Martin usually shut them up. The teacher claimed he was an amateur with the spear, but he still handily defeated any other person in the entire fort while wielding one. Even groups ganging up on him were no match. Which made it slightly concerning when Alejandro told him Martin wanted to talk with him privately after dinner. Martin was sweeping the courtyard when Lee went out there, one small, measured brush stroke at a time. He kept sweeping when Lee jumped down, and then nodded toward a second broom leaning against a pillar. "Will you join me?" Lee had a feeling that he could use Mana Mind to sweep the entire courtyard clean in a second if he wanted to, but he took the broom instead. "Um, sure." He tried to match the other man''s pace¡ªnot rushed, but not lazy either. Steady and thorough. They worked in silence for a time, only the soft sound of the brooms breaking the peace. Martin''s soul was the most peaceful of anyone Lee had met since getting the soul skill, and he tried to think peaceful thoughts since he knew the other man had to be feeling his much louder soul. It mostly worked, and he felt himself mellowing out through the methodical work. He stopped worrying about what Martin wanted from him and let his mind focus on the simple task before him. Brush. Brush. Step. Brush. Brush. Step. "I have been watching you, young man." Martin spoke softly, his voice somehow seeming not to disturb the quiet mood. Lee wanted to laugh at the characterization of him as a young man, but the guy''s soul was far too serious. Plus, Martin had actually seen him when he was younger, before the source made him what he was now. "You fight recklessly, but with passion. You are hungry for power, yet not opposed to sharing your power once it is obtained." Lee wasn''t sure what to say. It sounded like a compliment, but maybe not? "You have within you the power to be a beacon to this world. A shelter in the storm for so many." "Thanks?" Was this going to be a ''great power'' speech? "Yet that same power could see you become a tyrant that would bring ruin and death to our entire world." So maybe it wasn¡¯t quite as complimentary as he''d thought. "I..." Lee couldn''t deny Martin''s words. He was powerful. Likely the most powerful of anyone in the fort. Undoubtedly so, if he was inside Three. If he didn''t die and kept advancing... If... no, when Stanley returned and they stood side by side... Though there had to be tons of people with similar potential, if only not with a source of their own. Jake, for one. "Why help me then? Power corrupts, right? Is it worth the risk?" Martin stopped sweeping and studied Lee with an inscrutable look. "When your life hung in the balance, you did not seek survival for mere survival''s sake. You did not dream of power. You thought of those whom you already sheltered within your power. You thought of the weak, whom you could protect. You thought of the children." "They..." He had thought of them and wanted to protect them. That was true. But... "Then I risked all their lives... to save myself." "Indeed. Yet you are still dying, are you not?" "I won''t die!" Lee growled. "I won''t let us die." "I do not doubt your conviction. I wish to know the lengths you will go to see those convictions through." Lee looked closer at Martin. Something in the other man''s soul felt sharp. Deadly. "I didn''t want this. The building created the link... I didn''t know what it would actually do." "Your soul speaks the truth. So I shall do the same." Martin stared at him in silence for a long moment before adding, "I had thought my time to be nearing its end. I was at peace with this... and yet... I have found a new purpose. First in the joy of teaching. In passing my knowledge to the next generation." Martin looked upward, his gaze sliding over the dark apartments full of sleeping children. "Now I would see these young lives protected. From any threat." His gaze moved back down, and Lee understood. Martin was threatening him. Sort of... "I... hell, I''m good with that. Just... if I turn evil... well, I don''t know what would happen to all the linked people if I died." It was possible that the link would dissolve along with all of his runes, but if it didn''t fade fast enough... Martin touched the sword on his waist, a weapon he''d had since the beginning and not one crafted by May. A plain wooden sheath that looked like little more than a curved stick, one hiding a blade within. "There is nothing one cannot sever with the proper strike." Mana surged through his sheathed blade, along with something else¡ªan energy stronger than mana. Stronger even than Lee''s liquid mana. Martin''s soul. Lee smiled at the older man. "Thank you, Martin. I feel a lot better knowing you''re watching out for them." Martin smiled back as the energy in his blade dwindled away. He looked back at the swept area and set his broom against a pillar. "This will do. Shall we begin?" "Begin?" Lee felt a momentary pang of worry. Had he misread the situation? Was Martin going to finish him off preemptively? "Of course. You have missed many lessons, and now you have no excuse for further delay." "Ahh, yes. Though I''m not really planning to go hunting anymore..." "Nonsense. Understanding comes only to those who seek it." He produced two practice swords and tossed one to Lee. "Let us see how much you''ve remembered after such a long nap." Lee barely caught the sword in time, his mind stuttering at what Martin had said to him. Understanding. That was the same thing his new class skill said... He wasn''t picking up any actual hostility from the other man, but he still felt hesitant. Or maybe it was just the memory of all the beatings he''d taken in earlier lessons. Things had been rather peaceful these last two days, if he didn''t count the ache in his soul. "You know, I really didn''t want to link any of the kids'' souls, and I''m a little worried that I might have scared them into helping..." Just in case Martin might be holding a grudge. "Do not discredit another''s choice. Even a child''s. I believe they saw the same thing I did. They placed their trust in you. They believed... in you." Lee frowned. "I... don''t know what to do with that, or if I deserve it." "It is simple," Martin said, hefting his sword. "You must live up to their belief in you." "I..." Lee swallowed. "Yeah, so simple... I''ll try?" He half expected the man to respond with ''there is no try'', but he only nodded. "That is all one can do." Then he stepped forward with a raised wooden blade, and... You have been conscripted into Raid Dungeon: [Dark Harvest] 105. Let There Be Light ~~~Lee~~~ Martin lowered his practice blade. "We will have to continue the lesson at a later time." Lee, for his part, flinched at the notification, his heart rate spiking. He couldn''t help but think back to the message about greater challenges... thinking about what Stanley had faced... about what they''d both barely survived. He was already pumping mana into his mind to speed it up while simultaneously dumping more into Three. Alejandro burst from his apartment. Maria followed him out, her hands moving in a blur as she helped him strap into his armor. Meanwhile, Alejandro was talking into a small plate with a glowing rune on it. "I want to know the instant anyone spots..." "Alejandro!" Lee shouted up at him, and the man paused. "I''m going to send up a beacon. I want to lure everything here." Neither of the parents protested as much as he''d expected. Either they trusted him or they trusted Three. The first option was dubious, but he couldn''t blame them for the latter. It was the same thing he was counting on. Luring monsters to the building all the children lived in seemed reckless, but Three had promised them protection beyond even Lee''s assurances. A reward for risking their lives on his behalf. He trusted Three to protect them... but still added his own instructions. I want you to prioritize them over me, Three. I can take a hit or ten. You keep the kids safe. That is your only priority tonight! It was probably unnecessary, but better safe than sorry... and Martin was looking at him with a strange sensation in his soul. "I am an anomaly," Lee said while summoning plate after plate. "The last invasion was too strong. Stronger than it should have been. That was my fault. My presence draws increased danger to everyone around me, and I will not hide from that." "So you should not. What of the children?" Lee smiled, showing his teeth. "Three will protect them. It has to. Plus..." He looked up at the wide, open sky above the courtyard. "There''s something about me that monsters find irresistible." Then he used Mana Mind to spread the plates out into an even spread and dropped a rune onto each one. They shot into the sky, going all the way past the roof and then higher still. As they ascended, each plate bloomed into blazing lights to rival the sun. Amy and Jackson both reached his side at that moment, with the first grinning widely in the sudden daylight-level brightness and the latter looking decidedly ill as they formed up around him. Despite the heavy mana expenditure, it still didn''t make a dent in his total. He pushed his remaining mana into Three, channeling it far faster than he could by creating plates and runes, then faster and faster as he tested the limits of his new mana channeling abilities. It reminded him of something he really should have considered before, and he pulled up his trait from the E-grade evolution. The one that had been mostly question marks when he got it. Before he got to see actual numbers on his soul attribute. [Soulforged Mana] You ruptured your Liquid Mana Channels by channeling more mana than they could withstand. Then you channeled more. You have adapted to survive by converting your flesh and soul into a conduit for your mana. You are now almost immune to Mana Burn. Your limits are only defined by the strength of your Twin-Soul. Effects: -94% Mana Burn -90% Effectiveness of All Physical Attributes +9400% Liquid Mana Capacity +9400% Liquid Mana Channel Capacity Excellent. If a bit on the extreme end... Though it explained why his mana wasn''t running out faster and why he could make up for it by dumping a shit ton of mana into the building at speeds akin to unleashing his very first Mana Blast... On that note, and as his mana finally neared empty, Lee pointed at the night sky. The lights hovering above the building were a good start, but he could add one more thing. Let there be... more light. He unleashed a Mana Beam. A blue-white beam as thick as his wrist shot into the sky, traveling so fast that it seemed to appear already in place. High above, he watched a cloud boil away from the pillar of light impaling it. An instant later, somewhere far above even that, the light struck something and diffused outward, illuminating a slightly domed ceiling. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until all invaders or defenders are defeated. Warning! Attempts to breach the [Dungeon Perimeter] may incur heavy penalties. Chill system, I''m not going anywhere, Lee thought, smiling grimly as the light vanished. He blinked away the spots in his vision while flexing his arm and fingers. A slight tingle, but nothing concerning. He''d just fired off more mana than ever before. If any monster out there was looking for a juicy target, well, Here I am. Come and get me! Then he waited... while nothing happened. He pumped more of the inflowing mana back to his brain, using it to push the range of Mana Mind further out while again speeding up his thoughts. The range didn''t increase by much, but any gain might matter now. Especially if they were dealing with something sneaky like last time... It was something sneaky. Too sneaky. Three saw it before he registered what was abruptly inside his Mana Mind. There was a pulse of power, and not just from rebar erupting out of the floor. Lee felt the source inside Three move... and something died screaming. Inside an apartment currently housing a dozen children. Let them see me! Lee thought frantically as more and more spikes of power flashed everywhere inside the apartment building. He was worried that Three might be hiding not only the source but also preventing the monsters from finding and hunting him the way they usually did. He didn''t know if his command worked or if the monsters only just then found him, but a monster appeared directly behind him on the heels of that thought. It emerged from nowhere. One moment there was nothing, and the next a monster stood up out of... nothing. It stood up over twelve feet tall and was already in mid-swing with claws over two feet long aimed at his head. In his faster state of mind, Lee finally realized that he''d not only forgotten to grab a real sword instead of the wooden practice blade, but he didn''t even have armor on. Not that it mattered. He pulled more mana into his brain in a torrent and set his Mana Mind against the strange mana inside the monster. Stop! That might have been a mistake, because his entire perception wobbled... and the monster only slowed down long enough for him to plant his feet while lifting an arm to shield his head. The claws went through his flesh like it wasn''t there... and slammed to a stop against the bones of his arm. Hah! Of course, the impact still sent him sliding sideways across the tiled floor of the courtyard. His bodyguards finally got the chance to do their jobs, and they proved up to the challenge. Amy''s rune sword cleaved through both of the monster''s legs even as it hit Lee, while Jackson''s slightly slower swing bisected it through the torso. Both attacks accomplished nothing. The rune weapons slid unimpeded through the monster as its very flesh seemed to part around the blades before coming back together behind them. More monsters followed on the heels of the first, all of them standing up from the ground as if they''d been inside it, all of them standing up nearly on top of him. Oddly, no two of them were alike. The first had been bipedal and vaguely humanoid, but now they appeared in all shapes and sizes. Beast-like quadrupeds, bipedal creatures but with arms longer than their legs, insect-like octopods, and more. None of them were small. The variations in size started at large and went up from there. That just made it easier. He had successfully dumped enough mana, so Lee thrust both hands up at an angle... and spun in place while unleashing twin Mana Beams. Unearthly howls sounded from all directions, except right overhead. Those monsters fell in burning halves. Literally, burning with white flames licking at their black flesh where the beams had carved them apart. So they weren''t invincible. Lee saw the next wave coming as mana flooded back into him, and it explained why they kept appearing nearly on top of him. The almost non-existent shadows below Amy''s feet darkened and widened... and the monster emerged from within that darkness, practically wrapping around the woman as it clawed its way upwards. It came up inside her reach, inside her guard, and it was fast. Amy cursed once as she tried to angle her sword onto an intercept, and then its jaws reached her neck. Almost. Lee was just close enough to stick his hand in the way, and his unbreakable bones deflected the strike. He wasn''t close enough to reach Jackson in time... He tried again with Mana Mind. This time, with all the mana he could force into his brain. Enough that his head started tingling. The monster slowed as he dragged against its mana, and Jackson stabbed a rune blade through it, leaving a far too small gash that bled what looked like liquid shadows... right as its claws ripped his throat out. "No!" Not again... not another one. He couldn¡¯t have another person die for him! Blood fountained out and down, brilliant red in the bright light, and Jackson followed it on the way to the ground, even as he took a swing at the next monster. Only... he didn''t stay down. Jackson hit the ground, but Lee never saw the burst of mana that always accompanied and preceded the formation of a core from a dead creature. There was still a burst of mana... but far stronger, and it emerged from Jackson''s core, spreading in a pulse that filled his entire body so densely that he went opaque to Lee''s Mana Mind. It dwindled back to normal an instant later, and Jackson was uninjured as he scrambled back to his feet. Blood soaked him and the floor below, but he was completely unharmed. How... Lee put aside his questions. Later. The fight was still on and only getting worse as the monsters absolutely swarmed them from every direction. Well, not quite from every direction. Lee understood now. After seeing how the first wave appeared, he saw their weakness. They only appeared out of shadows, however large or small. Which meant they kept appearing beneath everyone''s feet, but also in the shadowed areas where the overhead lights didn''t shine. All but the one Jackson wounded seemed impervious to damage¡ªor at least to weapon damage. Maybe they had to become solid to attack? His Mana Beam had hurt them, but he didn''t think it was the actual beam that did the damage. It was the light. Lee tucked his chin and took the incoming claws across the face rather than get his throat ripped out, and noted with some annoyance that Martin was just standing still right where he''d been when this all started. Though he was the only one not getting attacked... That wasn''t important now, because Lee also remembered how Jackson''s sword had cut one monster, even if barely. It had been when he was dragging on its mana... He had touched them with Mana Mind. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. So he did it again, with one small difference. Lee''s new skill let him put runes somewhere with no physical contact, and now he used that ability to put runes on the monsters themselves. He didn''t try getting fancy with it; he didn''t try killing them with some supercharged rune. He just turned on the lights. The normally weakest of his runes didn''t go on easily this time. It fought violently against the dark mana of the monsters, mana that felt anathema to everything bright. Lee simply poured more mana into the runes¡ªenough mana that his entire body was glowing with it. Skill Level Up: Artistic Rune Creation Mana raged through him, and light bloomed. First one monster lit up screaming, then two. Four. Ten. Each one aborted their attacks to howl and claw at the blazing symbol shining from their no longer shadowy flesh. Amy and Jackson were both bloody now, but they hadn''t stopped fighting, and their weapons carved apart the screaming monsters without mercy. Black blood sprayed across the ground and then boiled away into dark smoke beneath the overhead lights. Even the corpses and pieces of corpses did the same, though more slowly. Their victory brought a reprieve, but it didn''t end the fight. More monsters sprouted from the ground, with plenty climbing from the shadows beneath their dying fellows'' corpses. Lee forced light runes onto them as fast as they appeared, while ignoring the growing tingling in his head. It wasn''t just the monsters in front of him, either. Mana Mind reached well past Three''s walls, and Lee saw the monsters springing up in massive numbers out there. Most swarmed the building, but too many headed away, toward the defenders on the walls... That was a problem. The armor still blocked those claws, but people would die if they couldn''t cut the intangible things. They were relying on his runes. They trusted his rune weapons to carry them through this fight. A fight that was likely harder than it should have been thanks to his presence here... He especially didn''t like how they clambered up the side of Three to get back inside. Crawling over and past windows, which were the only barrier between them and the numerous children hiding in the apartments. Lee lit them all up. Monsters screamed and thrashed as they burned, with some even trying to bash their way through windows and walls to get inside faster. Three handled them. Easily. Without the shadows to protect them, none of the monsters could stand up to even a simple piece of rebar or glass through their heads. Which meant Three took them apart in droves. Lee wanted to thank the building for once again living up to and beyond his expectations, but his mind felt like it was boiling with all the mana raging through him. So he put aside all other thoughts and kept forcing light runes onto every monster that entered his Mana Mind. He could only hope it would be enough. How many of them were attacking here? How many were running rampant through the rest of the fort? How many people would die to the monsters because Lee was hiding in this fort? He didn''t know and couldn''t spare the time to even consider it. Lee could feel his soul straining under the load as more and more runes came into existence. He could feel the much smaller influx as the dead monsters eventually burned away and sent the pieces of his soul back from each broken rune. But the return wasn''t keeping up with the output... For the first time, Lee felt something new when creating runes. A limit. Every time he created a rune, it split off a little piece of his soul and set it apart. Sort of. It wasn''t really splitting or apart, but rather reserving. The more of his soul that he reserved into a rune, the less was available for the next, and he was running out... Then, without fanfare or warning, the onslaught ended. The light-branded monsters died smoking and screaming, and silence fell. "Is it over?" Jackson said, gasping. Lee was already shaking his head when Amy replied with what he was thinking, "Where''s the notification?" There was a muttered "shit" from Jackson. Then only the sound of heavy breathing disturbed the silence. Until... "How very interesting." The gravelly voice came along with the materialization of a new form inside the courtyard, and Lee was already forcing another light rune onto it before the first word finished. It was only after the whip of burning darkness lashed out, carving a hole through his Mana Mind and destroying the attempt, that he realized it was the origin of the voice. Lee grunted at the pain in his mind, and this time Three reacted to the attack. To no avail. It looked like nothing more than a hooded cloak full of shadows hanging in the air, but it flickered through multiple locations following Three''s attack. As if it wasn''t in any one location. Three escalated in almost the same moment, the source rising through it and lashing out inside the spearing rebar. Three''s attacks were faster with the source, but still too slow. The shadowy figure flickered around those, too. All while speaking in a quiet voice that still carried above the explosions of Three''s assault. "You must be the reason I ended up in an E-grade dungeon." Three, wait! Lee mentally commanded the building. Save your strength. This was bad. Nothing should be able to dodge Three like that... unless it was a monster more powerful than anything he''d faced. At least on this side of the continent. A monster that talked... just like the one who''d attacked Stanley. Not just a monster. A real invader. He couldn''t even get a good read on its mana... the thing wasn''t actually physically here. Not yet. Plus, the way it spoke about being in an E-grade dungeon... was it also a higher grade? This is so bad! "Human..." the voice echoed again, almost thoughtfully. "A new race... mmm, a valuable one, and thanks to you, here I am. Excellent." It flickered back into view a few feet away and then solidified when the building didn''t attack. It was still nothing more than a hooded cloak full of darkness. Amy didn''t show any such restraint, and Jackson was a heartbeat behind her as she attacked. It was over before Lee could tell them to stop. A line of pure darkness flicked out from within the cloak like a striking snake... and it cut them to pieces in an instant. Sparks flew, and Lee tore his gaze away from Jackson''s wide eyes¡ªeyes that met his own from Jackson''s tumbling, decapitated head. Oh, god... That was the same moment he realized Martin had finally moved. Now the man stood before the cloaked invader with his sword drawn and holding back the dark blade. Amy fell at his feet, herself down two legs and one arm, but still with her head, unlike Jackson. Then there was a burst of mana, and Jackson hit the ground. His whole body hit the ground, head and limbs all once again intact. Lee didn''t need to look back to feel the shock and horror coming from the man''s soul. He wasn''t feeling much better himself, but he couldn¡¯t deny the relief of seeing Jackson still alive, no matter how unbelievable it was. "A sword master," the invader murmured, its hood angled to point at Martin. "I would make you a general in my army should you join." "My place is here," Martin said, as he took a single step away, his stance ready and sword poised, following Amy as she dragged herself away with her remaining arm. Martin''s soul felt calm and poised¡ªa coiled spring waiting to be unleashed. Unlike Amy. The mostly dismembered woman wasn''t screaming or crying... but Lee knew she wanted to. "Pity." The midnight blade vanished back inside the cloak, and the hood turned once again on Lee. "You, I will have." Lee wasn''t sure what to do. The way it had dodged Three left him doubtful about nailing it with a Mana Beam, and he''d already failed to stick a light rune on it. Maybe if he surrounded it with enough lights... "I watched you," the shadow said. "I saw how you protected your offspring with such vigor." A chill climbed up Lee''s spine at those words, and he only distantly noticed the humans making their way back toward the building from further out. "I will offer you a deal," it continued. "Surrender to me. Become one of my shadows. Do this, and I will leave the rest of your people here in peace. Do not, and I will begin the harvest with your offspring until you surrender." Blood roared in Lee''s ears, and he grappled for something he could do¡ªsome solution¡ªanything! The shadow flickered back into multiple non-substantial copies. "Perhaps a demonstration would help..." "No," Martin said, taking a step forward amidst an explosion of mana flying from his body. Martin¡¯s mana shifted into the same shadowy stuff as it collided with the invader and stuck fast. The monster didn''t vanish or twitch away under Martin''s magic; instead, it only solidified in place as the mana threads snapped into taut lines between the two. Martin spoke as it did so. "I will be your opponent." Whatever skill he used, it seemed to force the monster back into a singular entity as it turned to face the combat instructor, its midnight blade reappearing. "You are skilled. It would be a waste to destroy such talent." Martin took a small step forward, his eyes lidded and his expression vacant. Almost peaceful. His whispering voice sounded out faintly amid the clamor of approaching armored footsteps. "Darkness and light. Flesh and shadow. All may be severed." His blade flickered at the same time the black sword lashed out, and Martin was suddenly standing behind it, sliding his sword back into its sheath with his left arm. His one remaining arm... He¡¯d struck impossibly fast... Lee only knew he hadn¡¯t teleported because of Mana Mind. Then Martin''s blade clicked home, and the monster became abruptly, horrifically, visible. He''d done it. Martin had severed it from the protective shadows... but at a cost. The swordsman stumbled and fell to one knee as a nightmare lashed out at his exposed back. No longer was it a cloak that might hide a human-like form within. Now a creature of nightmares and shattered minds stood in its place. It lashed out not with a midnight sword but with something like a claw. Only one that would carve hope into horror. Alejandro appeared between Martin''s back and the weapon, which defied description. His shield twisted, light clashed with darkness, and he turned madness aside. Another tentacle struck on the heels of the first, slamming into the shield straight on. Then another, and another. The attacks rained against the shield, and the already dimming runes on the metal winked out. The yellow glow on the shield followed, and Alejandro flew across the courtyard. The guardian angel that was Alejandro had not yet struck the far wall when a storm of bloody vines descended on the monster. It fought back, and hundreds of those life-filled tendrils withered and fell dead. Hundreds more reached past the monster''s defense and stabbed into the nightmare made flesh. Combined with the stabbing, restraining, and source-tinged pieces of Three impaling through the monster, they held it in place. They held it down for a heartbeat. Lee was burning with the amount of mana flowing through him, and he only demanded more. Because he could see what Martin had done. Lee could see the army of nightmares that hovered around them, cut off for the moment. More than they could stop. An army that was coming back... He could see the army, or the shadow of it, but couldn''t touch them yet. Not until they arrived. When it would be too late. They had to kill the monster before that happened. Or block the darkness with light... Light... Lee looked into the abyss. He looked into that terrible darkness... and he spun out a new rune in opposition to everything he saw down there. A rune that didn''t create light. A rune that was Light. Then he forced it into the nightmare''s flesh. One mote of mana at a time. It felt what he was doing and abandoned the pursuit of Martin, turning and pouncing with the speed of a lightning bolt. It left pieces of itself behind, pieces tangled in vines, and Three. A screaming Bradley leaped from the roof and met the charge like a meteor from the heavens, his glowing staff descending with enough power to shatter mountains and create canyons. The monster met his attack with a storm of whipping limbs, stopping him cold in a shockwave of deafening proportions. The runes on Bradley''s staff dimmed and went dark. Without the runes, it crumbled under the attack, which continued on, promising to carve the stone-covered man in half... Bradley''s armor exploded away from his flesh. A scattershot cannon blast that not only reversed his forward momentum but sent stone shrapnel into the monster while pushing Bradley just out of its reach. The entire exchange bought Lee an extra second. Which was all he needed... He had finished lifting his hand to meet the charge and unleashed a Mana Beam point blank into the nightmare made flesh. His beam slammed into the monster like a wrecking ball and drove it backward while burning a steadily deeper hole through its flesh. Lee was full of mana. He had far too much mana to be doing what he was doing. But he had no choice. He knew it was burning him, and likely worse than it was the monster, but he could take it. He had to. That beam of pure liquid mana lit up the night in a display far brighter than his flying plates overhead could ever hope to match as it drove the monster back across the courtyard. It slammed into the wall, pinned there by the crackling beam of unleashed power that was slowly burning a hole through its body. Only one other light in the courtyard matched that beam''s intensity¡ªa glowing symbol growing ever brighter on the monster¡¯s flesh. Three responded as well. The building didn''t hesitate to impale and grapple the monster where it hung pinned by a beam of light, but Three also didn''t feed anymore mana to Lee. Not only did it cut him off unprompted, but Three also started actively taking his mana away. It wasn''t taking the mana fast enough. Lee saw the flesh of his entire arm boiling away, starting at the fingertip, and leaving only his runed bones behind. His skeletal limb glowed like the sun with the amount of mana raging through it, but his bones held up under the assault. The runes holding them together were absolute, and he simply ignored the damage while using Mana Mind to hold his crumbling arm on target. Then Lee finished the rune. The monster screamed even louder somehow, and its entire body glowed with pure light, enough light that no shadows could exist within or without. Enough that its army could never manifest again. Enough that the light shone even into the darkness, where its army hid, and burned them forever out of its reach. It still didn''t die. Even with a hole burned through its chest and its body glowing to rival the sun. Even when Lee''s mana finally drained to nothing... Lee followed the last dregs of mana down as they drained out his feet, landing on his knees and catching himself with his left arm while his right hand fell limply against the floor with the click of bones on tile. Mana Mind shrank to nothing. His vision darkened... and then fresh mana trickled back into him. Lee swayed in place and watched his found family finish the fight that he could not. Maria appeared and lopped off pieces of the monster with streaks of red light. Alejandro reached her side at the same time as more bloody vines burrowed into their common enemy. Amy dragged herself out of the way while a trembling Jackson moved between Lee and the fighting, blocking his view. It didn''t matter. Mana Mind expanded with the searing mana flowing back into his body, and it allowed Lee to see the nightmare finally end. In pieces and screaming. Invaders Defeated. Raid Dungeon: [Dark Harvest] Successfully Defended. Contributions Earned. Dungeon Area Protected from Targeted Invasion. Rebuild. Rearm. Prepare to Defend the Dungeon. Area Buff Earned: [Victory](6:23:59) Lee took a deep, shaky breath and thrust his one good hand into the air. "Fuck yeah!" 106. Its An Animal Thing ~~~Caffeine~~~ When he woke up, Dearest Human was sitting outside and thinking very hard again. The warm sun was shining on his belly, and after a quick round of sniffing, he dozed off again. Caffeine woke up when he smelled the sneaky dog again. He was still hiding under the faraway trees and not wanting to play, so Caffeine ignored him until he left. He had lots of good, warm, snuggly naps. Then another trip to the spicy water and his new friend, Croaker, where they had lots of fun playing lick chasing, and then he had another nap. Much later, after a very long time, he smelled it! Chicken! Caffeine was sitting very excited and obedient when Best Human walked out of the trees. Chicken! "Hi Caff!" Best Human smiled and lifted two huge chicken sticks! "As promised." He tossed one, and Caffeine gobbled up the tiny snack and stared at the other. Best Human laughed and sat down next to Dearest Human. He pulled small pieces of chicken off the big one and handed them to Caffeine, who ate them happily. "Hi Stanley." He handed a piece to Caffeine. "Still going at it?" Another piece. "We''re doing pretty good over there." Bite, good! "Just checking in." Yummy! "I haven''t seen any movement on the undead front. At least, no more than usual. I''m not sure what to expect from them. Did you hurt them enough that they are afraid... or are they just waiting for the right moment?" Chicken! "You aren''t listening to me, are you?" Chicken! "You know, I didn''t think dealing with people could be so tiring. After all my talk of preserving humanity and saving as many as we can... Well, I would almost prefer fighting undead at this point instead of dealing with people." Happiness sounds and Chicken! "But no... I don''t really mean that." Bite! "As tiring as it is, it''s rewarding." Chicken! "Zeke still wants to talk to you, but Eve goes on a tirade and won''t let him leave." Yummy! "I think she is still shaken up from the way they keep going after her brother." Chicken! "Not that I blame her... That girl took a beating trying to protect him." Sad... and Chicken! Best Human kept making sounds, but Caffeine ignored him and stared at each piece of Chicken as it leapt into his mouth. Until it was all gone, even the very delicious, crunchy stick... Caffeine helped Best Human clean his hands and then lay down to stare at the paper bag with Dearest Human''s Dinner. "It feels like too many people just immediately forgot about the danger and the need to cooperate..." Best Human smelled like sad and tired. "Out of sight, out of mind, I guess." Caffeine gave Best Human a comforting lick. It will be okay, Best Human. Chicken makes everything good! Best Human stood up. "Good talk, Stanley." He smelled tired and a little hurting. "You too, Caff." Dearest Human was being too loud and hurting him... Caffeine gave him another lick. Dearest Human doesn''t mean to hurt you! Sometimes he might step on you or sit on you, but he is always sorry and isn''t mean. "You''re a good boy, Caff." Best Human walked away, and Caffeine settled in for the long, hard, and dangerous job of guarding Dearest Human''s dinner. A very long time later, Caffeine had to remind Dearest Human to eat dinner. Of course, Dearest Human was the best and shared his dinner! Then Caffeine kept away the scary, dark things until the light came back. "I think I need to let my soul rest today," Dearest Human said words while he gave Caffeine a sunny belly rub. Then Dearest Human was suddenly quieter. "I''ll practice shielding today, so I won''t be completely out of it if you want to go run around." Caffeine yawned and closed his eyes while Dearest Human made his rumbly noises. His warm, upside down, and sunny nap ended when a new dog came to say hi. "Fight! Attack! Challenge!" The dog howled. Caffeine jumped up and looked at the dog. "New friend?" "A wolf? It seems hostile... but weak. Kinda surprising it would approach... Maybe my shield is working better than I thought?" Dearest Human smelled worried and afraid while he said things, but he calmed down as he pet Caffeine. "Do you want to go play with him, Caff?" Dearest Human was smiling at him when he said the magic play word. Caffeine took a few steps and looked back at Dearest Human, who only smiled and waved. "Go play. You''re a good boy, and you earned some time off. I''ll be fine." Go Play! Caffeine took off and ran to meet the new friend. "Hi there! Let''s be best friends!" "Challenge! Fight!" The dog growled and charged. "Chase! Fun!" Caffeine yipped and started running away. "Chase! Chase!" The dog just missed Caffeine and snapped at his heels with teeth as he went by. Caffeine leaned into a turn and raced past again. "Chase! Fun!" His new friend growled and charged after him. They sprinted around and around until Caffeine got thirsty and ran to get some water. He ran up to the spicy water and got a quick drink before Croaker could react and start trying to lick him. "This is Croaker," Caffeine explained to his new friend as he sprinted past. "He likes to play chase with his tongue." He dodged the tongue and chased after the other dog. "What''s your name? I''m Caff Caffeine!" He accidentally bumped into his new friend as he ran past, and the dog tumbled into the grass. Oops. "I have two names, just like Dearest Human!" He swerved, and the dog raced past him with snapping teeth. "Is your name Chase Friend?" "I will be the Beast Lord!" the dog snarled as it chased him. "That sounds like a good name!" Caffeine replied. "Isn''t chasing the best, Beast Lord?" He panted happily as he sprinted away. Chasing really was the best! ~~~Cunning Fang~~~ Cunning Fang lay prone in the scrub bushes, her form still and nearly invisible as she watched the humans in and around their dwelling. The wind brought to her the scents and sounds of the bipeds, and her keen eyes tracked their movements. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Cunning Fang was not impressed. Many of the humans were weak and scared, their senses dull as they scurried around, oblivious to her presence. There were a few, however, that... A distant wolf howled, and her ear twitched as she listened. That sounds like... A human had stopped and was looking towards the sound of the howling. His head turned as he scanned the area, and his gaze slowed as it neared her hiding spot. That one is dangerous, Cunning Fang observed. It had a much better sense of its surroundings, and she was pretty sure that it had felt her eyes on it. The pack leader of the humans. Smart and strong. A good leader. A shadow next to her darkened and spread wider until a pitch-black wolf rose from it to lie crouched beside her. "Quick Bite is challenging the Beast Lord." He didn''t waste time after delivering the disturbing news and immediately sank back into the shadows. Cunning Fang took one last look at the darker-skinned human that was still carefully scanning the area, and then she slunk away to follow her mate. She didn''t move quickly as the humans were thick in the area, and she did not wish to be discovered. Only once she was further from the humans did her mate rise from the shadows ahead and fall in alongside her as she traveled. "What of the Beast Lord?" she asked when she had caught up. "You have watched him more. Will he kill Quick Bite?" "I do not know," he growled, frustrated. "He is as mad as the human he follows around like a tamed pet! I do not know what his intentions are or even what his true strength is. He runs around begging for scraps from the humans like a weak cub, and the next moment he moves faster than my eyes can see." "He even taunts me by calling out to me when I am hidden beyond the light," he snarled angrily. It didn''t take long until the sounds of Quick Bite snarling and another beast barking filtered through the trees ahead. Cunning Fang slowed and ducked into the underbrush, while Night Shadow fell into the darkness and vanished from sight. Eventually she was crouched next to her mate, where he hid in the shadows under a tree. "Foolish pup!" she growled as they watched one of their cubs chasing the Beast Lord around the woods. "Quick Bite is still too impulsive." Her mate agreed. "The Beast Lord only taunts him for now, but what will we do when he tires of the game?" "No..." Cunning Fang told him quietly as she observed the scene before her in disbelief. "He does not taunt Quick Bite... he is playing." "What?" Night Shadow was doubtful. "But he is running away and does not bite back." The duo sprinted near their hiding place, and the Beast Lord looked right at both of them. "Hi, new friends! You can chase too!" His small form blurred suddenly sideways to dodge Quick Bite. "More chasing is more fun!" The Beast Lord howled happily as he ran further away, Quick Bite still hot on his heels. Cunning Fang watched them go, stunned and confused. Was the Beast Lord sick, as Night Shadow claimed? He didn''t smell of madness, only happiness and excitement. Though Night Shadow was right about him pretending to be weak. Aside from that dodge... "He indeed behaves like a young pup," she murmured. "But why hide his..." The Beast Lord slid to a stop when Quick Bite finally grew tired and fell behind. As the small beast lifted his head to howl, a great striped cat leapt from the brush behind him and shot towards his exposed back in a blur. Cunning Fang had an instant to realize that the cat was a powerful threat that exceeded her own strength. Then it roared, "Die! Worthless..." Many things happened in the next instant. A pulse of fear crashed against her senses, and before she could do more than recognize the feeling, it was gone. Death followed on its heels. A human appeared in the air above them, the debris of shattered trees floating lazily in the silent stillness between heartbeats as the human immediately started killing them. The human was not angry with them. It was not afraid. It was only here to remove something that might be a potential threat. Something that had startled it. She felt the human''s fangs sinking into her throat, and there was no chance to fight back. There was no time to run. Only death. Then, as abruptly as it started, it ended. Sound rushed back in with a roaring crash of wind and breaking trees, along with the sound of the Beast Lord howling at the human, "Don''t hurt Friends! We are Playing!" Cunning Fang blinked against the rushing wind and struggled to focus past the stinging pain in her throat as she took in the sight of the Beast Lord. He now towered over her, one paw resting on the cat''s head as it thrashed angrily but helplessly beneath him. He is definitely hiding his power. I didn''t even see him move... The human above them was no longer trying to kill them but no longer calm, either. She could now understand why her mate had called him mad. He radiated a cacophony of emotions, the strongest of which were fear and anger, with the anger slowly winning out over the fear as he looked down at the cat and then around at the rest of them. His glowing gaze of power struck her like a physical blow full of frantic madness. Then his gaze shifted to her side, and the fear shifted further into an angry promise of violence and death. "Show yourself, now!" Cunning Fang snapped at Night Shadow and dropped to her belly as her mate appeared out of the darkness and lay beside her. She winced at the smell of her own blood and the sting of pain from her neck as she did so. The human''s anger faltered and shifted into surprise, then back into fear and uncertainty. He is like a wounded wolf caught in a trap. Confused and in pain, he snaps at anything that gets close. "You should not scare Dearest Human." The Beast Lord''s growl pulled her attention and the human''s gaze back to the cat, who was growling and hissing at the giant beast standing on its head. "Kill you, dumb..." the cat roared. Anger surged high, and the Beast Lord suddenly leapt up into the human''s arms and started licking his face while whining sadly. The human¡¯s anger faltered under his attention, until the cat stood, the bloody wound on its own neck likely a mirror to her own. It roared up at the Beast Lord... and immediately slammed face first into the ground with an earth-shaking noise. The human floated slowly to the ground, anger replacing his fear and sharpening into a killing intent. He put his feet on the ground and walked towards the striped beast as it struggled back to its feet, snarling and hissing at him the whole time. "You think I fear you?" The human said something. "Caff is too nice. He wants to be friends with everyone." He stepped right in front of the roaring cat that was now looming over him and looked up into its face. "Try me." He took another step forward, and the cat stepped back. It looked surprised and tensed up as it opened its mouth to... Another human sprinted into the small clearing. It was the darker-skinned one¡ªthe dangerous one. Even now, his hands and feet glowed with deadly power as his gaze swept the area and settled on the giant cat. The cat roared at the new human and took a step. Then the Beast Lord was abruptly in front of the cat, with no sign of his movement to get there. "If you attack Best Human..." the Beast Lord growled as he grew in size. "...then we can''t be Friends." He grew bigger and bigger until he loomed over the cat. "Are you a Not Friend?" His growl faded away, and even the wind rustling in the trees seemed to pause as the weight of his question settled on the striped cat. The Beast Lord finally shows his authority, Cunning Fang thought. It gave up. The cat sat down and then sprawled onto its side in the sunlight, yawning as if it were simply out here enjoying a warm nap in the light. "So..." The other human slowly relaxed as he glanced around at everyone. The Beast Lord trotted over to Quick Bite, who lay sprawled in the clearing, either unconscious or pretending to be, and licked him with a whine. Quick Bite bounced to his feet and yelped as he sprinted to his mother. Pretending. Cunning Fang huffed at him as he cowered behind her. "Have you come to your senses now, Quick Bite?" The Beast Lord dashed to his human, who had gone suddenly silent. He had his eyes closed and was no longer radiating any feelings. Though she caught a whiff of his scent. It still carried the bite of anger and fear. The scent changed and shifted as he took the Beast Lord in his arms and stroked his fur while getting a thorough face cleaning. "I do not think the Beast Lord is a pet," she remarked softly to her mate, who huffed in agreement. "But he seems to have a pet human..." Cunning Fang had understood enough when the world changed and had known on an instinctual level that she and her pack would have to fight much harder to survive. But along with the new dangers came options and opportunities to become stronger, or faster, as Quick Bite had chosen. Or to gain new incredible abilities like her mate now had. Or to increase her intelligence... The Beast Lord hadn''t chosen knowledge, but power. Pure power that was far beyond her understanding. He had claimed a human, and now he only cared about protecting that human. And his... friends. The Beast Lord leapt from his human''s arms and ran to the other one. He started pawing at the man''s legs and whining while trying to sniff his pockets. The Beast Lord could rule us all. He could force the pack to follow and obey, but he only wants friends. She still wasn''t sure what to make of him. He acted like a simple puppy, and yet when it mattered, he faced any threat without fear. Though it wasn¡¯t like he had anything to fear... his power was overwhelming. It was an easy decision. We will be your friends. Some of the pack would balk at showing their bellies to this dog, but she didn''t care. If any objected too strongly, she would send them to the Beast Lord to play... chasing. They would understand in time. 107. Progress ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley glared at the wolves. He hadn''t even seen the black wolf''s soul until it appeared from the suspiciously dark shadows. Yet another monster that could hide its soul... He glared more at the fucking tiger, who had also hidden its soul. Of course, Caffeine wanted to be friends with the thing... or he would have killed it this instant. Its blatantly false relaxation didn''t fool him in the slightest. It had wanted to kill Caffeine... The wolf had wanted the same thing, but it felt simpler. Innocent. Like a puppy. It didn''t know what it was doing; it wasn''t truly bloodthirsty, whereas the tiger was a stone-cold killer. He caught its eyes as it lounged about, pretending to be cowed. I will fucking kill you if you come near him again. It stiffened, its eyes rolling in opposition to its posture as it tensed to flee. Caffeine bounded into his lap, and Stanley had to crane his neck to maintain eye contact with the cat past the licking tongue. You make him mad, sad, or anything unpleasant, and I''ll skin you alive. Alive and screaming! The tiger fled. A nice perk of his leaking soul was that he didn''t need much effort to get his intentions across. "Stanley?" Nate asked nervously. "Where the fuck does a damn tiger come from in Boston?" "A zoo?" Nate said. "At least, that was my first guess." "I..." Stanley sighed. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense. Just another reason zoos are bad... Does that mean we''re going to see a whole zoo''s worth of weird... animals?" He was tripping. The world was already full of worse things than tigers. Besides, the tiger probably ate everything else at the zoo... "Why didn''t you just kill it?" "I''ll give you one guess," Stanley said while looking at the pug, who''d ricocheted off his lap and was currently sniffing Nate''s hands and pockets, probably in search of some chicken. "Right." Nate stared down at the pug, then burst out laughing. "A tiger cowed by a pug. I love it!" Stanley chuckled, but his heart wasn''t in it. "I know. It''s crazy. I''m just tired of stuff trying to hurt Caff." "As if it could. Seriously, Stanley. I get it bothers you, but he''s the beast lord. That cat never had a chance." Nate turned to the wolves. "Did they start shit, too? I thought they were on our side." "You knew... of course you did. No, just one of their puppies playing with Caff. Well, Caff was playing with the puppy..." "Good. They helped us protect Zeke. I assumed they..." He paused, studying them. "No, she. I think she understands Zeke is the one purifying the area." Stanley studied them himself. The gray one felt smart... or at least it had more complex emotions in its soul. As for being a she... "How do you know it''s a female?" Nate shrugged. "A feeling?" Then he nodded slightly to the wolves. "Thanks for the help. Not sure you can understand me... but... do you want some chicken?" That was a mistake, because Caffeine got really excited. "He knows that word. Now you have to feed him." "I know," Nate said while smiling at the dancing pug. "Come on, Caff. I''ll get you more chicken. Maybe your human will come with?" Stanley sighed. "I guess I can..." He had been planning to spend the day improving his soul shield, and it might be easier to see what worked or didn''t with other people around. People. Ugh. The wolves declined the offer of chicken and ran off into the woods while Stanley flew away. Plenty of people were not only outside the building but also outside the walls when he arrived. Zeke was among them, and it looked like they were fighting. Mock fighting. Zeke wasn''t taking part, just lingering at the edge of the crowd... among his own little host of bodyguards and familiar faces. They turned almost as one at Stanley''s approach, and one face stood out. Emotionally. Eve was lurking behind her brother, and her head snapped toward Stanley. Their eyes met, and a spike of terror erupted in her soul... Something popped up on her shoulder and shot a silver beam straight for Stanley''s face. Time slowed as Stanley flinched away. It slowed enough that he had a moment to decide how to respond to her blatant attempt on his life. Blatant, but weak. The only impressive part was how fast the magic traveled. Not quite a laser moving at light speed, but close. Fast enough that he didn''t have time to dodge. Of course, that didn''t matter when it was so weak. The light entered his domain, and Stanley bent it aside. Into his arm. He wanted to test its damage before deciding on an appropriate level of response. It struck his arm with bruising force and... nothing more. Stanley moved straight towards her. He could break her arm as an... Time sped up abruptly as Caffeine canceled Still Mind, and Stanley blinked angrily at the girl, now only a few feet away. He didn''t attack her. He was angry, yes, but he wasn''t sure why... Because she attacked him? No, that wasn''t it. Her attack was so fucking weak that it barely counted as an attack... or was that it? He was mad at her for being weak? Caffeine appeared among the sparring people in a rush of wind while barking happily and sprinting around the combatants. Those happy noises turned Stanley away from the terrified girl before he did anything mean. She already knew very well how weak she was. It would explain the terror in her soul every time she looked at him... "Sorry," Eve said before he could leave. "It''s supposed to detect threats, and you..." She ground her teeth. "Startled me." Stanley looked back at her, finding an expression on her face that was anything but sorry. Frightened, sure. But beneath that was a lot of hostility... He smiled. "It''s okay, Eve. You got a little too excited and popped off early. Happens to lots of people. Nothing to be embarrassed..." Confusion filtered through her as he spoke, before fresh anger rose to replace it. "Fuck you!" This close, he could see what had shot him. A smaller version of the gun-like device she''d pointed at him¡ªwhat felt like so long ago. A little laser auto turret on her shoulder. Impressive, if too weak. "Stanley!" Zeke interrupted the moment by leaping into the air straight for him, arms outstretched for a hug. Stanley drifted aside from the grasping arms and watched the boy fall back to earth. He almost regretted the dodge when he felt Eve''s horror at her brother''s actions. "I''m so glad you came back!" Zeke exclaimed, not at all put out by his failure to land the hug. Then his exuberance waned. "You didn''t let me apologize before... I¡¯m sorry I couldn''t heal you while you were sleeping." He really meant it, too. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "It''s fine." "But they attacked you because of me! You saved me, and..." "No!" Stanley snapped, then moderated his tone and said, "It wasn''t... because of you." Not directly. That monster had wanted the source. His source. Sure, the accidental rescue of Zeke had been the event that revealed the source and most likely prompted the next attack... but the undead hadn''t been after the boy. They wanted Zeke, but not like they wanted the source... otherwise that D-grade would have come here and done whatever it wanted to them while Stanley was away. There had been plenty of time to think during his long soul repair efforts, and he understood a few things he hadn''t before. Or at least, he thought he did. Nate''s so-called intuition felt far too close to seeing the future when it sent him up there... Then Stanley used the source and got a dream visit from an alien afterward. That conversation he''d had... while watching Caffeine in the past... seeing Caffeine growl at the alien. Had they gone back in time to see that? It hadn''t changed the present if so... or would he even know if it had? Would Caffeine remember growling at the thing? The alien thing had talked about predicting the future... their future¡ªand how hard it was. Then it had whispered something to him. Something hidden in static inside a memory he''d been unable to recall until... until his soul got ripped open. "A bleeding soul will hide nothing." It was an odd thing to tell him. Especially when combined with not being able to remember¡ªnot until his soul was literally bleeding. Had it known this would happen? Why warn them now? It claimed it didn''t want to give them advice, but that sure sounded like advice. Useless advice. He knew his bleeding soul was a damn beacon! Which meant Lee''s soul was a damn beacon... Shit. Hopefully Lee heard the message as well? Stanley''s shield lowered the debuff, but did it lower Lee''s as well? Did it make Lee less of a beacon? Their soul was also abnormally strong compared to anyone else. He''d asked, and Nate was literally the next highest at eighteen. That was after Stanley lost hundreds of soul attributes to destroy an immortal skeleton that came after him with a source shield of its own... Somewhere, somehow, he and his twin had made their soul stronger than it had any right to be... He recalled Caffeine''s status and the matching soul attribute. All three of their souls, then? It had to involve the source and that day in the mountains, and whatever they''d done there was the only reason they still lived now. He didn''t understand what a soul really was... only that it was a kind of energy. A kind of energy that also contained all the hopes and dreams of a person. And the emotions. And probably everything else. It was a lot. Not to mention that it seemed they were containing the source using their soul. Was the source empowering their soul in return? He''d used the radiation from the leak, along with Soul Awareness, to increase his soul attribute while in Still Mind... he just wasn''t sure if it was the skill or the source that actually did the deed. In his mind, that meant working on his soul was the best thing he could do to get stronger. It seemed obvious... so fucking obvious that he didn¡¯t need some damn alien¡¯s creepy whispering! He felt no remorse for the restored memory of himself cursing the shit out of that freak. It dragged him through that dream, memory, or whatever it was, just to spy on them and offer useless advice. Snooping fuck! Stanley put the annoying thoughts he could do nothing about out of his mind. "I''m hungry. Let''s eat, Caff." "You..." Zeke tried to protest, but Stanley''s comment made Caffeine perk up and start dancing in circles. Zeke sighed. "Okay. Have a good meal. I have to stay here in case anyone needs healing." That was just as well. Stanley didn''t need Zeke''s hyper emotions right now. Nevermind his sister... who was still glaring at him. Nate caught up on the way to the kitchens. "Think that tiger will come back?" "I think it was only after Caffeine... but I also think it knows I''ll kill it if it tries anything again." "That''s... I guess that works." Lots of people approached Nate on the short trip, all of them asking for something or complaining about something else. Or both. Enough of them that Stanley considered doing the man a favor and breaking some of their limbs. He settled for glaring at the most obnoxious people while dropping his soul shield. It helped keep their bitching short. Jerry was waiting with large portions of hot food when they arrived, including more already pre-wrapped for later. How very thoughtful. Maybe there was something to being a big beacon everyone could feel coming. Stanley sat on the roof and ate while Caffeine made the rounds. Then he went looking for the wand guy Nate had mentioned before. Sure, he was already powerful, but that was no reason not to reach for more. He found his target in the large room Eve had used as her workshop before. There was still a mess of random appliances, but now they were confined to a corner rather than filling the room. They weren''t all machines he recognized; Eve had been busy. Since she was still outside, Stanley took the chance to poke around. Despite the weakness of her laser gun earlier, he was curious about what else she might have created, and one of her machines drew his attention. It looked like a ridiculously over-engineered antenna with doodads and pointy bits. It also felt like Eve, or rather, like her... soul? He could even feel something happening around it. Only after he got closer did he realize it was sucking up mana. The mana drain skill I gave to Zeke... The kid must have given it to his sister. Which... Well, he had told him to do whatever he wanted with it. Stanley had thought Zeke could use it to drain mana from people he was healing... but hadn¡¯t the kid mentioned something about not using mana? Just as well. Considering Eve wasn''t actually here and her machine seemed to be draining mana anyway, maybe she''d make good use of the skill? That didn''t explain why she was so hostile. Not only had he saved her life, but she had to know this skill came from him. Or had Zeke not told her? Or did she not care? She''d been acting that way since they met... though Stanley wasn''t sure why. He didn''t really care, either. She was no threat, and the only thing she could do was annoy him with her grating soul. He left her stuff alone when he heard voices at the other end of the room talking about channeling mana through a staff. There, he found a man surrounded by hundreds of sticks of varying sizes, ranging from staffs taller than Stanley to twigs shorter than his forearm. Stanley watched and waited while a girl finished receiving instructions on how to use her new staff. Something about channeling mana in a certain way. She barely listened, her soul bubbling over with excitement and impatience, plus some nervous looks Stanley''s way, before she bolted from the room. The man talking to her seemed to have come to the same conclusion about her listening skills, because he sighed and shook his head while watching her go. "She''s going to break it," he muttered, then turned to Stanley. "Alright, let me get a look at you." Stanley wasn''t sure what that meant, but he had time to kill and so spent it looking over the man''s creations. Most of the sticks were just that, sticks, but a few held fancy carvings in finely polished wood. "What are you?" the man asked, frowning. "Your mana is strange..." "I''m a psionic. I don''t use mana." "Bah!" he spat while waving a hand dismissively. "Everyone uses mana! Though... not everyone sends that mana outside their body... hmm." In an attempt to speed things up, Stanley levitated a stick off the table in front of the man. "That help?" The man frowned at the stick, then at Stanley, then back at the stick. "Hmm." He rubbed his chin. "Psionic... wood won''t work." "Wood won''t... what?" "Metal. Not in your hand either... a headband, perhaps? A circlet... yes, that might work." "I also use my soul," Stanley added belatedly. "Hmm." Stanley waited, but the guy just kept staring at him. "So..." "Bring me metal." Stanley pulled an oven door from Eve''s side of the room and put it in front of the guy. "No, no! Not any metal! I need something you''ve used before... ideally something you''ve used a lot. It''ll have soaked up some of your essence." "My..." Stanley sighed. He hadn''t used a weapon in a while, but there might be a knife lying around... somewhere. "What will it do for me?" "Don''t know. Won''t know until it''s done." "That is..." Stanley shook his head. "Maybe some other time." He was curious, but currently had higher priorities than looking for a knife he might have dropped somewhere in the city. Maybe he¡¯d look around once his soul was doing better. On that note, he left to keep working on his soul. That extra ache he''d felt this morning was already fading. He left Caffeine at the base to squeeze in a little more play time. The pug would find him when he''d had enough, and it was plenty easy to monitor things while working, since he had to drop the shield to meditate. As expected, Caffeine returned to their house sometime later, coming in like a rocket and bringing a cloud of dust with him. Stanley stopped his efforts long enough to drive away the dust and give a thorough belly rub to the panting pug, then got back to work. He was making progress. 108. A Gap In The Wall ~~~Lee~~~ Lee looked away from the core hovering in midair before him and out of his window instead. He saw a stone wall, and if he craned his neck, he could just make out some sky peeking past the top far above. Bradley had outdone himself by building the massive monolith, but it really ruined the view... not that Lee really minded. Though it would be nice if the wall did more to stop invaders. An issue that wasn''t Bradley''s fault. It was the insane invaders that they kept having to deal with. Lee pulled the core to his hand and looked at it again. [Skill Shard](D-grade) Shadowstride (Epic) Walk through shadow. Allows the user to step into and traverse through the shadow dimension. While within the shadow dimension, the user is immune to most forms of detection and attack from outside, but beware what dwells in the dark. Mana cost to enter, remain, and depart the shadows is dependent on skill level and the user''s shadow affinity. Fully depleting mana while within the shadow may cause serious side-effects. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Intelligence -1% Mana Cost Requirements: Shadow Aspect Mana [Requirement Not Met][N/A][Adaptable] Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A][Adaptable] Adapting to this Skill will require 60% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +300 All Base Attributes: Y/N? D-grade. Lee didn''t know why it had died so much easier than the one Stanley fought, but he wasn''t complaining. It hadn''t had the same insane regeneration, but he''d directly seen it take what should have been fatal wounds and keep fighting. Though he was guessing a bit, considering the weird biology of the monster. Still, he''d been able to see inside it with Mana Mind, and he was pretty sure about his guess. It had taken a Mana Beam through the heart and the equivalent of a stab through the head more than once before dying. But since he didn''t have any other D-grade examples to look at besides the skeleton... He also hadn''t spread the news to anyone who wasn''t directly involved in the fight, and not by choice. He wanted to tell everyone. It was his fault, after all, but Maria told him to wait. She thought telling everyone might trigger a mad exodus to get away from Lee and end up killing more of them because they got scared of the wrong thing. Lee suspected she might be right, but he also suspected she had selfish motives. If they lost too many fighters, it might get harder to defend the fort. Then there were all the people linked to his soul who might have no choice but to stay and keep him alive... He was okay with being selfish here if it helped him protect everyone who had helped save his life. The only good news was that the monster''s minions had all been E-grade. Otherwise, the fort would likely have fallen last night, and they''d all be dead. They''d still lost a few... Lee''s current guess was that the system was counting him as a D-grade because of the source. At least he hoped that''s all it was. So it let one D-grade invade. He''d just gotten lucky that it had a weakness he could exploit with the light rune... That thought sent his mind back to the fight. To when he''d crafted that rune. He''d done something different with it, something he wasn''t sure he fully understood. He''d made it... more, and he suspected his newest class skill had helped him do that. There was nothing obvious he could point to for confirmation¡ªjust a feeling. A strong feeling. In that precarious moment after Martin''s attack, he''d felt something. A resonance or dissonance between light and dark. He''d tapped into that feeling and created... light. True light. Not something that emitted light, but the very concept of light itself. Lee lifted the core back into the air and set it spinning, little blue sparkles dancing within. The skill looked amazingly powerful and useful, but no one who''d seen the D-grade up close wanted to learn it. Also, no one had shadow aspect mana. But that wasn''t the problem. Not the main one. The issue was the nightmare that had lurked beneath that shadowy cloak. No one wanted to get anywhere near the so-called shadow dimension if something like that might lurk in the dark there. It didn''t help that there was that line about running out of mana and side effects... Alejandro was supposed to be asking around discreetly about people who might be willing to learn it, people they could trust. They''d find someone to learn the skill. Potentially, even someone willing to adapt to it... Lee half-hoped for someone to take that option since he was curious what would happen. Either way, it was too good to waste on attributes, and way too good for him to gamble it on himself. Especially since he was under house arrest. Lee kept playing with the core while he watched Martin teach the kids in the courtyard. The man had paid a price for his attack the night before, and not just his dis... arming. Saira had fixed that. Martin had used his soul for that attack, and Lee knew from terrible experience how that could go. Luckily, the sword master hadn¡¯t done himself any permanent damage and was only slightly more subdued today. Of course, that hadn''t stopped him from preemptively scheduling another personal class for Lee tonight to make up for the one they missed... Lee flexed the fingers of his right hand, rubbing flesh against flesh as he remembered his skeletal limb the night before. It was all good now. Saira had healed his flesh up easily enough, and Lee felt it was a small price to pay for their lives. That and the meager one hour of mana burn the attack had cost him... His E-grade evolution had paid off big time. It gave him a good idea of his new limits and meant he should be able to enchant the wall using Mana Mind, all without going outside. The only question was whether he should even bother. Nothing had actually breached the wall by breaking it down. Why bother when they could climb over or through it with no one the wiser? Making it tougher was unlikely to help and would probably push him back to or over his rune limit. Of course, that wasn''t the only option. What they really needed was something that would block entry by any means, or at the very least, detect anything that tried to sneak past. Which was why he was sitting here and racking his brain for ideas on how to do just that. While also thinking about ways to use his new super light rune... His first idea for that, and an obvious one, was to make some backup weapons for if or when they ever ran into more shadow monsters that could avoid his normal cutting runes. It had to be a backup because the thing was just too goddamn bright for everyday use. Maybe some daggers spread out among the wall guards? With sheaths to contain them until needed? Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The wall problem was harder. He thought he could make it detect invisible monsters like the hidden invasion or Mar, but he didn''t know if he could detect shadow monsters in another dimension. That would be the only reason for him to attempt learning the skill¡ªto see if it would let him block more of them. Then he could set up an alarm of sorts when anything tried to sneak in. But it would also do the same for anyone in the fort. The way around that would be to give everyone a key the wall would recognize, but that was going to mean even more runes. Now he knew there was a limit on his runes, so any non-essential runes would limit how many weapons and armors he could enchant. Though it shouldn''t require much more, since he could make it look for his soul as a check, and so long as everyone carried at least one rune on their gear when crossing the wall, it would work. Perfect. Lee dropped the skill shard and dove into his rune storage to craft what would become the new wall rune. It would detect passing mana, and if he angled the effect just right, the detection should cover the airspace above the entire fort as well. Maybe even a short distance outside. Then it only had to check that passing mana for any sign of his soul. Not too hard. He also needed an alarm so the wall could tell people when and where something approached or came through. A noise, and... a light. Like, say, a really bright light that was beyond any normal light? Lee grinned and tweaked the rune coming together in his storage. This is going to be good. The only thing he wasn''t sure about was how it would work to enchant something so big. He might have to split it into multiple runes... or could he use just one spread over the entire wall? A single rune wouldn''t be a problem, soul and material wise, and might actually work if he kept it just about detection. That should require far less power than if he wanted to make the entire thing as unbreakable as a sword or shield. So he started with that and stuck the rune onto the wall right outside. Mana flowed from him and through his Mana Mind to the wall, but not that much. Which made sense when he felt the rune stop spreading at the first of many towers spread along the wall. Hmm. It was still inside his Mana Mind range, so the problem was easily visible. Not only was the rune not going to spread on its own, but he needed to make adjustments for the towers, or else they would leave gaps in the detection coverage. Not only that, but he needed the wall to be a little more... symmetrical. He pulled it back and returned to his storage for some tweaks. He could resolve the problem of it not spreading with a tweak to make it copy itself around the wall... like the repeating runes around May''s workshop. Bradley would still have to do some reworking, though. Lee froze in bewilderment when something walked into his Mana Mind. What the... I have to see this. He only hesitated for a heartbeat before sprinting for his door. It sprang open at his approach, startling Jeremy, who was standing guard outside. "Going to the garage!" Lee called as he hopped over the third-floor balcony, catching the railing as he did and redirecting his forward momentum downward. He plummeted toward the courtyard floor below and felt a little thrill in his heart as he did so. Physical feats like this were becoming commonplace in the new world, but he couldn''t help but be in at least a little awe when he stopped to notice what he was doing. No wonder the kids loved to fly around on the plates. Speaking of kids... "Sorry! Don''t mind me!" he said to the many little faces who''d turned his way the moment his door opened. "Keep studying!" The kids were getting more and more used to his broadcasting soul, and they seemed to have accepted him as he was... especially when he came bringing magical flying toys. It might be different if he was in pain or in a bad mood, but right now he was just curious. Jeremy followed him over the rail with the same worried feeling in his soul that he always had. It was unjustified. Lee wasn''t that hard to protect... He made it to the garage and slid to a stop on the ramp just in time. "Holy shit!" The target of his gaze turned to look at him with an abruptly annoyed soul as he passed. "Yeah, yeah, you can''t believe it. Yes, I''m still human. No, you can''t ride me. Yes, I live..." He blinked and stopped walking. "Fort Commander... sorry. I''ve been getting a lot of flak... I''m sure you can understand." "No," Lee said to the real life centaur standing outside his home. "I get it... Um, have we met?" The man, centaur, scratched his cheek. "Yes, but... well, I looked a little different at the time. I''m Lawrence Thomas." Lee laughed. "Yeah, I think I would have remembered this. Was it your E-grade evolution?" "It was!" Lawrence exclaimed. "How hard is that for people to understand!? The world is magic now!" "No judgment here," Lee said. "I got an option to turn into a building myself." Lawrence stared down at him for a long moment, then shook his head. "Guessing you passed on it. Even I wouldn''t have gone that far... at least I''m still half human like this." "It was a bit much for me," Lee said, nodding. "So, did you just really like horses? Or used to work with them?" "Both... and it was totally worth it!" He lifted his human arms in a grand gesture, then reared up with his horse-half, front legs kicking at the air, before slamming back to earth with a thud. Even on all fours, he towered above Lee, with his back already higher off the ground than Lee''s head. "What does that feel like? Any new powers?" Lee asked. He had other questions... other than about how it felt to have extra limbs. But they were mostly silly or immature. Like if the guy was now hung like a horse... Lawrence straightened up even taller. "I''m the fastest scouter we have. Been doing scouting, and recruitment runs almost non-stop while we try to gather up all the smaller nearby settlements." "It doesn''t cause problems with them when you look... like this?" "Some people get spooked, but more people are evolving every day. You seen Davy?" He jerked a thumb back deeper into the fort. "He went full on werewolf." Lee hadn''t seen Davy... "I probably would have been more concerned if I couldn''t tell you were a resident," he admitted. Then he frowned. "Where do you sleep?" The guy was too big to walk through a doorway... "Bradley hooked me up. I''m good." He glanced away toward the wall. "Well, I''m heading back out, Commander. Made it all the way to the Strand on my last run. Doing another sweep past the beach if it isn''t too crazy today. There might still be some people holding out over there..." Lee abruptly realized he knew very little of what was happening in the wider world, and now he was stuck in here. Hadn''t Wilson mentioned something during his boring meetings? "What''s happening at the beaches?" "Sea monsters that like to crawl onto the land. Crabs. Lobsters. Shrimp. Pretty much anything in the ocean with legs. They''ve all gotten bigger... and hungrier. That''s not even counting all the new alien stuff..." Lawrence had armor on his human upper half, rune armor, but nothing else. Lee eyed the long, thin legs while thinking of giant crab pincers. If he was going to enchant anyone¡¯s bones, this guy might make use of it more than most. Until then... "You know, if you get some custom armor, just come see me, and I''ll enchant it." "I''ll keep that in mind." Lawrence grinned widely. "Right now, I''m kicking the shit out of them." He stomped a divot into the dirt with his foreleg as punctuation. Lee stood up as straight as he could and nodded at the man turned centaur. "Thank you for your service, Lawrence. We wouldn''t be here if not for people like you." He considered saluting... but wasn''t sure if that would be too much. Lawrence had no such qualms, and he saluted proudly down at Lee. "Thank you, Commander. I''ve heard you can kick some ass yourself." Lee returned the salute with a smile. "When I need to. Go on, then. Run fast and kick ass." He wondered how the guy would get over the wall as he galloped away... Had Bradley put in a gate somewhere? That might complicate his plan for the wall rune... He''d need to find out. "Jeremy?" His bodyguard jumped. "I... Commander?" "Relax, man. You can''t get much safer than inside Three, and since I''m not going outside, think of guarding me as taking a break." He didn''t relax. "Yes, Commander." Lee sighed. "Could you get a message to Bradley to come see me when he has a chance?" "I... I''m not supposed to leave you..." "I''ll lock myself in the elevator room." "I really shouldn''t..." "Just go," Lee said, already walking to his little room. "I''ll be right here until you get back." "I... I guess I could... Commander." Lee did as promised and spent the waiting time working on tweaking his wall rune. While he did that, Mana Mind let him notice the guards gathering on the nearby wall. Was there a monster coming? He didn''t know what all the hubbub was about until the wall split wide open. That had to be Bradley... or else they were under serious assault, though none of the people he could see looked very upset. Then a car drove through the gap... a car! Lee sprang up to go see it for himself before remembering that he couldn''t go outside. Also, he''d promised to stay in this room. But they could drive the car inside! Or... was it better to keep any strangers from detecting his leaking soul? Because it was definitely a stranger and not a resident. Instead of going anywhere, he used Mana Mind to study the car from his room. If they could replicate it... The first thing he understood was that it wasn''t really a car anymore. It had the shape, but inside was nothing like what the outside suggested. Magic was at work. Not just in the car, either. It stopped right inside the wall, and he watched the man emerge from within, absolutely festooned with magic items. Nothing that quite matched up with Lee''s rune gear in terms of sheer power, but some that came close. It was the total number of the things that stood out, far surpassing anyone else in the fort. Jeremy will understand. Lee ducked out into the garage. 109. A Deal With The Devil ~~~Lee~~~ Lee wasn''t an idiot. He didn''t put himself in the line of fire. Also, he saw Jeremy coming back with Bradley. "You left the room. You said you wouldn''t leave." Lee rolled his eyes. "Chill, I saw you coming. So, Bradley, who''s the guy with the car?" "Says he''s a merchant." "Really... what does he sell? Wait, what does he use for money? Cores?" "He said he has skills and enchanted items to trade. Guessing it''s a barter system?" Lee could see the cores tucked away in a lockbox under a seat¡ªa lot of them¡ªand knowing those were likely all skill cores had him very interested. What if he had soul skills? "Can you be my go between? I can''t step outside, and I''m not sure if I want him coming in..." The guy looked completely human, and it was unlikely he''d even know what the source was if he felt it... but maybe it was a good idea to be cautious? A little paranoia never hurts anyone. "Also, I need to talk with you about the wall." Bradley shrugged. "I don''t mind. Kind of curious myself to see what he''s got." He glanced at Lee with a furtive look. "You said you wanted to improve my staff after I broke the last one?" Lee winced. "I have an idea about that, but it might be unpleasant. I''ll explain later." "I don''t need anything fancy. The last one was already great!" A little crowd was already gathering around the merchant, who was definitely loving the attention. "Don''t worry about it now. Go see if he has any soul skills." "Okay..." Lee didn''t stay idle while he waited. The garage was full of crafters, many of them with newly created products they might want to trade. So he made the rounds to let everyone know what was happening. He also prepared some items of his own. Specifically, a few sets of his air jumping rune plates and some bombs. Given his newly realized limits on the total rune capacity of his soul, he preferred to send out something that would run out of charges quickly. That way, he wouldn''t have runes scattered across... Holy shit. Lee turned his head toward a familiar yet very faint sensation. Jake? It was the knife he''d given the man at their last meeting. Still enchanted after all this time, and very far away. Strangely, and also comfortingly, Lee knew he could still take the rune back if he wanted. Even from this distance. He didn''t want to. Jake had earned one rune in perpetuity for his help here. Lee had even gone out of his way to ensure that the rune would last forever. At least, it would if Jake used it sparingly enough. From what he knew of the man and his desire for challenging fights, the rune just might last. The strangest part of feeling his rune so far away was that he thought he might be picking up Jake''s emotions from Stanley''s soul awareness skill and the bit of his soul in the rune... but he couldn''t be sure. There''d been a flash of something, but with all the other surrounding souls and their links to his own, it was simply too hard to tell. Bradley came back with the merchant, a man wearing a rather colorful suit and a ridiculous top hat. The car was driving itself behind them, and they stopped at the top of the ramp into Three. A small crowd came with them, and questions flew fast and thick. Lee stayed inside and listened. He didn''t really need to go out, and he simply levitated his plates out to Bradley. The merchant glanced at the flying plates, and a small burst of mana shot from his eyes to the plates and back. He looked away immediately, but Lee felt his soul perk up as the man did a double take with another burst of mana from his eyes. His gaze then roved across the gathered people before landing on Lee inside the garage. More mana shot out... and dispersed at Three''s threshold. For a single instant, the merchant''s constant smile slipped, then he turned from the gathered crowd to approach Lee, his smile beaming once more. Lee wasn''t too worried; the man''s soul seemed more curious than anything, but he was ready to stop him from entering the garage. His preparations were unnecessary because Jeremy got in his way before he could actually enter the building. "That''s close enough." "Of course!" the man exclaimed without taking his eyes from Lee. Behind him, the chatter died down as the gathered people saw who he was looking at. It was gratifying and heartwarming when Lee felt the protectiveness rising among the crowd, with a few even moving to get between him and the merchant. Bradley was among them as extra dirt swirled up and condensed into his now trademark stone armor. The merchant man only smiled wider as he took in the scene, though he did back up a step. "I am Nicholas Alberton, the greatest merchant you will ever find on this side of the Mississippi, and it is wonderful to meet you, mister..." "Lee. What was the mana coming from your eyes?" Lee had suspicions, but he wanted to confirm. He also wondered if the man might sense the legendary class... though with the way Three was blocking things, it should be fine. Probably. Trak hadn''t said specifically that Three was blocking the class aura... "My apologies. It was merely an appraisal skill. A necessity for a merchant, as I''m sure you can understand." His eyes roamed over Lee and the building he was being prevented from entering, but he didn''t try the skill again. "Am I right in assuming you are the creator responsible for those... runes?" Lee frowned. If the guy knew they were runes... did he know about the runic class? Was that what he was after? A legendary class shard had to be rather valuable... It was hard to tell; the man''s soul just felt... not hostile, only greedy? But then he''d felt that way since Lee first saw him. He had to be at least somewhat powerful if he was willing to wander into a base where anyone might murder and rob him... Lee suspected the car. It had plenty of mana-dense... devices in there. He couldn''t tell what they did, but whatever it was, the car had a lot more mana than the man. Despite the unknown threat from the car, Lee was more than willing to bet on Three over that car if Nicholas started shit. "I''m Lee... and yes, I am the creator." "Excellent!" He glanced around at the silent crowd. "Would I be right in assuming these fine, upstanding folks are merely acting in your defense and not in any way seeking to keep you... confined?" Bradley burst out laughing for a moment, then choked, coughed, and flushed with embarrassment. "I''m not a prisoner," Lee said, smiling while patting Bradley on the back. "Did you like the runes? I can make more... if you have something worth trading. Like, say, another copy of that appraisal skill?" Nicholas spread his hands in a helpless gesture. "Afraid not." Then he plucked a folded piece of paper from his breast pocket and held it out. "A list of all the skills I have available, as well as some enchanted equipment." Bradley took the paper and handed it back across the threshold. Malefic Touch, Fire Hand, Crushing Grip... Lee read down the list of skills, each one with a small description on the side. Minor Acid Ball, Digitalis, Near Sight... The description for that one was that it would grant an increased field of view nearby but make it harder to see far away. Niche. It was a long list, with mostly combat related skills, though there were a few crafting looking ones at the end. After that came the equipment descriptions. Boots that made your feet move ten percent faster. Gloves that strengthened your fingers by the same percentage. An amulet that increased mana capacity by fifteen percent... among other actually useful-sounding things. While perusing the menu, Lee also watched and listened to the others, asking questions or making deals for things they wanted. He found no skills or gear on the list that mentioned souls. "Nicholas, you have anything not on this list? You know, the special stuff?" Nicholas smiled wider as he met Lee''s gaze. "Perhaps. What are you looking for?" Lee frowned at the man but couldn''t see the harm in mentioning what he really wanted. "Soul magic. Or anything related to souls." Nicholas''s eyes flicked to the rune plates and back so fast that Lee only knew it had happened because of Mana Mind. "I may have a few... choice items that might interest you. Assuming you have something worth trading, of course." "Like?" "Your ears only," Nicholas said while glancing furtively at the crowd. His nervousness was all an act that didn''t match what his soul was saying... It was suspicious. The guy was definitely hiding something... but was it nefarious or just some kind of sales tactic? Lee didn''t invite him inside, but he dropped the same repeating rune that surrounded May onto the cement ramp, including himself and Nicholas within the perimeter. Also, Bradley and Jeremy, since they were standing almost directly in front of him. Silence fell over them as the noise of the crowd vanished. "How''s that?" "Very interesting." Now the merchant''s soul was really excited... Was it because he saw the rune get made? Did he sense anything from it? He pulled another piece of paper from a different pocket and passed the folded sheet through Bradley again. So he didn''t actually need to say anything aloud, did he? Lee completely failed to hide his reaction when he saw what was on the page. (Legendary Skill) Temporal Shift: Creates a localized bubble of either slowed or sped up time. (Legendary Skill) Arcane Veil: Defensive skill that protects against physical and magical attacks. Also obscures the user from visual and magical sight. (Legendary Skill) Beastmaster Bond: Attempt to form a magical bond with any beast. If a bond is successful, the beast will become a loyal companion and will link telepathically with the user. Power may be shared between user and beast. The guy had three legendary skills... or claimed he did. It was understandable that he wouldn''t let people touch them to see for themselves, at least not until they had a deal struck. Lee wasn''t sure how the actual trade was supposed to work. "I want them all." Lee knew he''d betrayed his interest already; he might as well go big. "What do you want?" It wasn''t even that he wanted them for himself. Any of these skills could be game changers for the entire fort, and they needed every edge they could get with the increased threat from Lee''s presence. He even briefly considered blasting the guy with Mana Beam... What was one life versus all the ones he needed to protect? "Well," Nicholas said with a wicked grin, likely guessing Lee''s thoughts, because who wouldn''t consider murder in this situation? Oddly, his soul wasn''t at all worried... The guy had to have some serious defenses if he went around telling people he was carrying legendary skills. "I want runes. A lot of them, and considering how much power you''re dumping into each one, I''m betting you can make something special." Then he rattled off a list of effects he wanted, including fire, ice, lighting, attribute boosts, shields, mana sight, elemental shields, and ethereal shift... Whatever that meant? "Oh, and I want a different version of those air stepping runes." Lee took a moment to process what he''d heard and seen so far. "I can do some of those... but you should know that my runes are not enchants. They won''t last forever. Some, like the air stepping, won''t last beyond a handful of uses." It was a gamble to mention the one downside of his runes, but the guy had a skill that told him god knows what about things he looked at. He might already know... "I am aware, though I''d hoped you might have a way to remedy that for the more minor effects?" Lee shrugged. "The material I have to work with is the largest limit on what''s possible. If you have a specific item you want... runed, I''ll need to see it before I can promise anything." Nicholas glanced around at the crowd beyond the bubble of silence. "Let me finish with the riff raff first. We can sit down for a more in-depth discussion at that point. Yes?" Lee nodded and waved him off, then waited until he''d left the bubble before turning to Bradley. "Don''t let him inside. If he tries to force the issue, then he dies." Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Bradley flinched but nodded. "O... okay." "I doubt it will come to that," Lee added. "I also doubt we can actually kill him if it does... There is no way he runs around like this without a solid backup plan." Especially since he was selling legendary skills rather than using them himself. The guy was E-grade, so if he was selling rather than using the skills... he might already have six legendary skills ready to go. Nevermind whatever class skills he had... While he waited, Lee got to work on what he could from Nicholas'' wishlist. He summoned plates repeatedly, not necessarily to use them, but because his own mention of material requirements had reminded him that leveling the skill might very well solve that issue. As for the runes, he did it all inside his soul storage. Deals went down outside, only observed passively through Mana Mind. Alejandro came back from his lair hunt, and he spent a while with the merchant before heading inside. Lee wasn''t sure what he''d bought... but it looked like some paper had changed hands. Trak talked briefly with the merchant, then traded a pile of potions for a handful of herbs, which he immediately took to Saira''s garden. Other crafters made deals for their creations, but not only with Nicholas. A lot of stuff changed hands among the gathered crowd... Lee finally met with Nicholas again, and this time he did it in a doorway rather than the garage ramp. Not only was it a smaller and more private gap, but Three could slam the door if necessary. He also traded Jeremy for Alejandro and Amy, while Bradley stayed outside with Mar lurking nearby. "First off," Nicholas said, waving a rune plate. "I believe you could increase efficiency on the air step by turning it into a small blast rather than whatever you were trying to do here." Lee didn''t take offense. Well, just a little. "It would blast a hole in someone''s shoe..." "Don''t worry about the shoe. I just want the plates, and..." He pulled a small piece of metal from his pocket. "How many charges can you fit into this material?" Lee went into his soul storage for a bit and redesigned the rune. It was a little tricky... since he wanted the ability to increase or decrease charges depending on the material... Then he opened his eyes and took the metal Bradley handed inside to Alejandro. He didn''t know what kind of metal it was, but going from mana-density alone, it was stronger than the stuff they were getting from the iron lair. "Where did you get this?" "Everything is for sale," Nicholas said, smiling. "Unfortunately, my current stock in that regard remains limited. However, I have already traded a few to a delightful woman by the name of May. She is likely testing the properties as we speak. I expect she will request many more for when I return." Lee started small. Then he increased the charges on his new rune when the metal proved up to each subsequent challenge. He pushed it right to the limit, at Nicholas'' insistence. "Twenty-six charges," he said finally. "Any higher, and I think it might explode..." Nicholas took two of them with a pulse of mana from his eyes, then pulled a pair of shoes from a pouch... a too small pouch that definitely had held nothing a moment earlier. Bigger on the inside? "Any more of those bags for sale?" "Class skill, I''m afraid." "That''s so cool!" Bradley exclaimed. "What''s your class?" "That, my dear boy, is very expensive information indeed." Bradley frowned. "Why would knowing your class be expensive? Why would any knowledge be expensive?" "Because knowledge is power!" Nicholas finished messing with the shoes and tying them on. Then he jumped into the air with a burst of mana from his feet... and jumped again and again. He stopped ascending near the limits of Lee''s Mana Mind and fell toward the earth. A final blast of mana from his feet halted his descent a foot above the ground, and he landed lightly. "Perfect! I''ll take thirty pairs." Lee obliged as he examined the shoes. They had holes in the bottom to accommodate the rune... Why hadn''t he thought of that? He didn''t need to get each plate physically in his hand to place the runes, but he did so anyway. Information was power, right? Then came the weapons, each one made from different materials, and Lee wasn''t even sure if most of them were metal or not. Whatever it was, they were good. He stuck a stronger version of what he''d given Jake on each one, along with a warning about how slow the recharge would actually be. There was only so much he could do with turning ambient mana into liquid mana. Arrows came after the blades. Those got single use runes of various elemental effects. Lee didn''t make them with elemental mana, which would have made the effects much stronger, but Nicholas didn''t complain. His new rune creation skill really helped with getting the tiny runes on there... Next was the armor, and Lee found himself challenged by the various requests from Nicholas as to what effects he wanted on each piece. It was a good challenge and even gave him new ideas about what he could make for his own people. He enchanted a pair of metal boots to increase the wearer''s movement speed by messing with inertia. It would recharge like the others and could be triggered on and off with a bit of normal mana. Lee wasn''t sure how useful it would be, since it would be hard as hell to walk or run with them, but Nicholas was happy. So whatever. Gauntlets that could store kinetic energy and release it with a punch. Though the charging process would take a while to build any serious power. Shields that would flash with blinding light every time something struck them. Not a request from Nicholas, but something Lee suggested. They wouldn''t be ideal for group battles, but they should work well for solo fighters. A few other shields that, on activation, would attract mana with violent force. They''d be good for catching spells, but they also pulled at anything with mana in front of the shield. People and weapons included. Nicholas brought out rings next, all in various sizes, and Lee absolutely failed at making any attribute boosting runes. Which sucked because Three gave attributes... though he wasn''t sure if that was from the building or just the fort buff alone. He also couldn''t figure out a healing rune... but suspected that one might come to him once he got the stamina rune, or vice versa. Nicholas settled for turning all the rings into little mana batteries. That was after his second idea proved to be a bust. Or at least not ideal. A ring of invisibility. The rune wasn''t the problem. Lee absolutely made a rune of invisibility. It only happened thanks to his new Light rune and the fact that he had studied Mar''s skill extensively. Especially after his Mana Mind improved and he could see through her shell. The rune came out as a mix of the light rune and what he was calling an anti-light rune. It wasn''t as good as Mar''s ability, since it didn''t hug the person''s body and only projected a field out from the rune. It worked well enough, but left a weird distortion under the person''s feet... As a projected bubble, it meant the rune needed to be on something more stable than a potentially flailing limb. Like a chest plate or belt. So no rings of invisibility. Lee made a dozen of them, each one going on either a different piece of metal or the pieces of armor that Nicholas pulled from his car''s trunk. Another magical container that turned out to be much larger on the inside once opened. It reminded Lee of that creepy mouth lair... I should really find out if anyone has destroyed that place yet. The invisibility runes would recharge, and the drain during use wasn''t actually that intense. The main issue he saw with it was that he couldn''t combine it with any protection runes, so if the wearer took a hit in the wrong spot, that would be the end of the rune. All in all, he wasn''t sure if he made anywhere near enough or powerful enough items to be worth a legendary skill in trade. He was just waiting to hear the bad news when it was over... As for handing over the runes first, well, he could take them back at any time. Part of the limit on what he could trade was the materials Nicholas had to work with, but the rest was on the rune limit of his soul. Which he was now pushing up against... Nicholas put everything away, and it was a real trip for Lee when he stuck rune plates into the magic pouch. He could still feel the bits of his soul and knew they were somewhere nearby to Nicholas, but he couldn''t actually pinpoint them. It didn''t feel like it would affect his ability to take them back, and that was all that mattered. Not that it stopped him from trying to figure out what the mana in that bag was doing¡ªeven going so far as using Mana Mind to copy down everything he could see onto a piece of paper upstairs. Then the merchant pulled out another sheet of paper and handed it over. "Here is the deal I am willing to make. Look it over." Bradley flinched and frowned when he took the paper. Lee understood once he''d touched it himself. [System Soul Contract] The party; Lee Cascade, hereto referred to as Party One, will provide the stipulated demands per Section 1:a; Obligations of Party One. The party; Nicholas Alberton, hereto referred to as Party Two, will provide the stipulated demands per Section 2; Obligations of Party Two. ... Lee eyed Nicholas. "What''s this?" "A simple contract to keep us both honest. Basically, I need assurances you will not rescind your runes the moment you have what you want, as well as a few other things." He hadn''t been planning to screw the guy over, but it was a fair point. It also left him even more curious about the so-called appraisal skill... "Okay. And what are a few other things?" "In plain terms, you can''t give me enough here to trade even one of those skills you wanted." Lee opened his mouth. "But," Nicholas continued before he could say anything. "You can pay for it, eventually." "A layaway skill?" "Not as such, no. You would receive the skill today, but would be obligated to provide more runes at a later date." "I told you I''m maxed out. I can''t promise..." "Ah, but you will not be once the current runes fail. I already have customers in mind for every one of the items I received from you today, and I am certain they will be satisfied with the product. I am also certain at least half of them will ignore my warnings and drain your runes to destruction." Nicholas smiled so widely that Lee was surprised his hands weren''t rubbing together like a cartoon villain. "By then, it will be too late. They will have tasted the power and will most definitely return for more. I do so enjoy a repeat customer!" Lee nodded slowly. He remembered the early days when Alejandro raved about his simple sword runes... "I get it, but I don''t like your contract. I''ll need to find a lawyer before agreeing to this thing." "I can work with simpler language," Nicholas said, taking back the contract and vanishing it. Then he did rub his hands together, and it wasn''t at all disturbing alongside his smile... A new paper manifested between his hands, and Lee wondered briefly what rarity that skill was... until Bradley passed it over. [System Soul Contract] Lee Cascade will provide 400 runes to and chosen by Nicholas Alberton. Runes will be due upon request by Nicholas Alberton... "It can''t just be due on request. What if I''m at my cap still?" He had another thought about recent events and added, "Or unconscious? I''ll deal in good faith, but I need some wiggle room." Lee thought of another potential issue. "Also, I need to be able to take those runes back in an emergency. Like if my life is on the line. Otherwise, it''s not worth the risk." "Fair enough." Nicholas snapped his fingers, and a jolt of mana shot toward the contract... It never crossed the threshold into the building. Lee passed the contract to Alejandro, who passed it to Bradley, who held it outside for another finger snap, and then took back the presumably altered document. [System Soul Contract] (Section 1.a: Lee Cascade will provide 400 runes to Nicholas Alberton per Section 1.b,c,d. 1.b: Specific runes will be chosen by Nicholas Alberton and placed upon an item of his choosing and in his possession. 1.c: Runes will be due within 15 local days upon verbal request by Nicholas Alberton, barring incapacitation or other effects that would reasonably prevent Lee Cascade from completing the request. 1.d: Requests will be limited to a total of 100 per local month. 1.e: Any runes currently within Nicholas Alberton''s personal possession or any runes granted to him upon request will be added to the total owed if they are intentionally removed by Lee Cascade. Runes added to the total in this way will not be subject to the stipulation in Section 1.d) (Section 2.a: In exchange for the stipulations in Section 1. Nicholas Alberton will provide one legendary skill shard to Lee Cascade. 2.b: Specific skill shard will be chosen by Lee Cascade. 2.c: Stipulations in Section 1. will only take effect once the chosen skill shard is in the possession of Lee Cascade.) Violation of this contract by either Lee Cascade or Nicholas Alberton will apply the Trait: [Contract Violation] to the offending party and notify the other party of the violation. [Contract Violation] Halves All Base Attributes (Including Effective Bonuses) Accept? Y/N Lee read and reread the contract. It looked fine to him. Except for one thing. He handed it to Bradley. "What do you think?" Bradley looked terrified, and his soul said he wanted nothing to do with this responsibility, but he started reading. Meanwhile, Lee spoke to Nicholas and said, "There''s no end date on this. You could come back in ten years if you wanted, or never. I don''t want to be bound by this thing forever. Also, it needs a definition for what counts as one of these owed runes." Nicholas beamed, but his soul frowned. It was almost enough to make Lee call the entire deal off. What if the guy came back and asked for the Three rune? Technically, it was a rune. At least Lee thought it was... "I assure you, my intentions were in no way malicious." "You''re lying." The smile finally vanished as Nicholas leaned forward. "Greedy? Opportunistic? Perhaps. But not malicious." He leaned back in his chair. Another thing he''d pulled from the car''s trunk. "You are suspicious... which is only wise." He watched Lee for a long moment before sighing. "Very well. Let me speak plainly. The truth of the matter is that I am not making this deal for the pittance you can give me now. It is an investment into what you will become in the future." His soul agreed with his words. It agreed with a disturbing, almost religious fervor... "I will agree to limits on the runes I may request, but not on the timeline. If my gamble here pays off¡ªif you reach the heights I hope you do¡ªthen this contract will be worth... far more. That is what I am betting on. Not a mere handful of sharp swords and a few trinkets! I''m trading real power now for the prospect of greater power in the future." Lee felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he listened to the man''s words and, more so, his soul. Nicholas believed Lee would do great things... he believed it with everything he was. Nicholas really, really wanted this deal... Three hummed along quietly in Lee''s Mana Mind as he stared back at the merchant... Just what did you see with that skill? But... if the guy was talking like this... "I want all three skill shards." Nicholas'' smile returned and grew slowly as he studied Lee in silence. Finally, he spoke. "Was I too convincing? Fine, I am willing to gamble two of them on you... for another hundred runes. All three is too much. I''d like to have something in reserve... just in case." It was Lee''s turn to study the man, and he detected nothing nefarious... in his soul, at least. He had no delusions about his ability to read people''s expressions... Thanks for getting us that soul skill, Stanley. I just hope I''m not using it wrong. He looked around at the others, all of whom had gotten a look at the contract. "Thoughts?" Amy nodded, Bradley stared nervously back and forth, and only Alejandro spoke, but he was useless. "It''s your call, Lee. I trust your judgment." Looking at Nicholas, Lee knew his decision here would follow him for a long time, probably the rest of his life if the guy''s soul was anything to go by. The deal looked fine. He''d gain two legendary skills that could drastically help in keeping this place standing, and he''d have to provide runes somewhat on demand for the foreseeable future. Of course, if it went on that long, then he wouldn''t be making runes for Nicholas very often... "Deal." The revised contract came back, and Lee went over it again, checking to make sure the agreed changes were in place. He''d owe five-hundred runes now... get two legendary skills... and there was a new stipulation. The runes requested from Lee Cascade by Nicholas Alberton must be provided commensurate in scope of power, difficulty, and ability of the runes provided by Lee Cascade at the time of contract signing. It looked good. If only it didn''t feel like he was signing a deal with the devil... "I agree." 110. Saw That Coming ~~~Lee~~~ "Sure you wouldn''t rather do this inside?" Nicholas said, pulling off his ridiculous top hat and withdrawing a golden shard that hadn''t been inside the hat a moment before. "Will you tell me what you saw here to prompt this deal?" Lee countered. Nicholas smiled. "A... hunch." "Haven''t we established that I know when you''re lying?" "Have we?" Lee sighed. "Let me see the skills." "One at a time," Nicholas said, while holding the shard back from Bradley''s outstretched hand. "No one else touches these." "I can work with that," Lee said, and then used Mana Mind to pluck the core from Nicholas'' fingers. The man showed not one iota of surprise... Beastmaster Bond (Legendary) Never again will you walk alone. User may attempt to form a soul bond with a beast. The beast must choose whether or not to accept the bond. User''s soul attribute and skill level will determine the power of beasts that may be bonded. If accepted, user and beast will be linked at the soul, body, and mind. A binding that only true death may sunder. While any member of the bond lives, the others will resist true death. Duration of resistance dependent on the totality of the soul, body, and mind of bonded others. If any bonded beast reaches true death, the user will suffer penalties. If the user reaches true death, all bonded beasts will suffer severe penalties, up to and including true death. Class and Non-class skills of either party may be used by the other if compatibility is sufficient. User and bonded beast may temporarily transfer up to 90% of any base attributes to the other party.(including effective attribute bonuses) Duration of transfer and the following recovery period dependent on skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% All Effective Attributes for user and bonded beasts +1% Effective Soul Attribute Requirements: Soul [Requirement Met] Lee read the entire description aloud. Then let the others discuss it while he looked at the notification that popped up the moment he''d touched the core with Mana Mind. Contract with Nicholas Alberton in progress: (1/2) Legendary skill shards in your possession. Both parties have (29:34) to complete the contract, or the reluctant party will be seen as in violation. Returning the shard in your possession to Nicholas Alberton will remove and reset the timer. So he couldn''t just hold on to the single core to avoid binding himself to the deal... it made sense. As for the skill... It looked great. He couldn''t see a downside to it other than that they would need to find a willing beast, or beasts, plural. Did giant snakes count as beasts? But then they would have to befriend it? Or tame it somehow? Or could you just cast the skill on any random beast and see if it wanted the bond? That, of course, still left a major question of who would learn the skill. Lee already had a soul-bonded beast... the beast lord. Could he still bond more if he learned it? Would it even make sense for him to try? The attribute sharing could be huge, but his attributes were all focused on the mind. That probably wouldn''t help a beast, and going the other way might not matter either if he wasn''t getting into physical fights. Which he had no intention of doing. Mana Beam alone was far more powerful of a weapon than any sword in his hand. He could share skills... and while having a beast running around firing mana beams sounded fun, he had a feeling that few beasts used liquid mana... which meant compatibility might be a problem. A physical fighter made more sense, ideally someone with a strong soul. The gathered voices echoed along similar lines to his own thoughts, and Lee passed the core back to Nicholas. "Alejandro, you should bring in more people for this. Maria and Trak, at least, and anyone else you think might have insight." "I do have other places to be," Nicholas said dryly. "But sure, take your time." "We''re going to be working together for years, right? What''s a few more minutes now?" "Years, hah!" Nicholas laughed. "Try centuries." Lee felt the chill again at the confidence with which the man said something like that. "What... what do you know?" Nicholas bared his teeth in a wide smile and held up another golden shard. "A lot." Temporal Shift (Legendary) Time is always on my side. User may create a bubble of altered time at a chosen location. User may slow or accelerate time inside the bubble relative to real time. The degree of alteration from real time, the size of the altered bubble, and the duration of the effect are dependent on skill level and the mana supplied. The boundary of altered time will prevent all physical or magical effects from entering or exiting. Attempts to breach the boundary will increase the cost of sustaining the effect. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +4% Effective Mind Attributes Requirements: Mana [Requirement Met] Another great looking skill, if a little more sparse on the description. Like the previous one, he read it aloud to the growing crowd of his friends and family. Alejandro was actually writing the descriptions down. Then Lee passed it back and replaced it with the final option. Arcane Veil (Legendary) The veil is absolute. User gains the ability to convert their mana into arcane energy. User may store this energy within their core, replacing and reducing available mana. User may expend this arcane energy to envelope themselves within a veil that shifts them partially outside of reality. While within the veil, they are highly resistant to all physical and magical effects. User''s outgoing physical and magical effects will be likewise reduced. User may expend extreme amounts of arcane energy, temporarily shifting themselves completely outside of reality, rendering them immune to all physical or magical effects, as well as hiding them from all visual or magical detection. While doing so, the user may freely pass through all physical or magical obstructions that would otherwise impede them. Unless such obstructions are crafted with arcane energy. Depleting arcane energy while within physical or magical obstructions may have serious consequences for the user. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +4% Effective Mind Attributes Requirements: Mana [Requirement Met] Like the others, this one had minimal, almost non-existent requirements. There would be no adaptation required for any of the skills, so what they saw was what they would get. Lee let the conversations pick up behind him, but he faced Nicholas after passing the shard back. There was something else he wanted to know. "Does your appraisal skill tell you if someone has an oath of fealty?" "We have already established that information about my abilities is expensive." "You''re really into this whole mysterious vibe, aren''t you?" "Am I?" Lee rolled his eyes. "If your skill can see that, then I can throw in more runes to have you look over my people." Nicholas just tilted his head and said nothing. "We can add it to the contract..." "Why would you wish to pay for something you don''t need?" Nicholas asked. "You need only make them swear to you, and the issue is solved. From that display earlier, it would appear you already hold some measure of respect here." "I can''t just force everyone to enslave themselves to me!" Lee wanted to know who was using extreme oaths that wiped people''s memories, but not enough to go that far. "But is it not a wonderful way to remove something as fickle as trust?" "Trust is something you earn, not something you can demand..." Lee said, trailing off as he observed the surrounding people. He was very aware of Trak standing behind him. He hadn''t liked the first oath Trak swore to him, an oath of eternal servitude. But it had seemed necessary. For safety. For trust... The second oath had been even worse, the oath of life... At least now they could quit if they wanted to. Which they didn''t. That was fine. They had a choice. He''d offered them freedom. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. What Lee really hated was how willing Trak was to sell out himself and his family. They didn''t become that way overnight. Never mind any evolution options they hoped to receive in exchange. No one should have to grovel like that... No one should do it so... reflexively. Instinctively. Lee knew he could order Trak to do almost anything, and the anubi would have to obey. He couldn''t order him to kill his own family or anything that crazy, but he could tell them all to go clear lairs for him non-stop. Even if they quit, he''d have an hour to do with them as he pleased... a lot could happen in an hour. They could defy his orders and had done so once before when they all bowed to him after he told them not to... It had hurt them to do that. Lee knew it would hurt more and more the longer they defied him. It would break them. Just thinking about the subject left him far too aware of how much trust so many people had placed in him. Did they even realize it? Did Alejandro and Maria really trust him so much? Their lives were in his hands. Their children''s lives were in his hands. Though if he tried anything too awful, Maria would probably kill him. She shouldn''t be able to. The oath would probably kill her before she could kill him, but if there was anyone Lee thought might pull it off anyway, it was her. How could he force anyone to make a choice like that? Lee knew how he would feel if someone demanded that from him. If someone came into his home and demanded that his family swear themselves into slavery. He would go to war. He couldn''t do that to people. He wouldn''t. He could tell them the benefits and prove that he deserved their trust with his actions. If they wanted to swear after that... "I get you might have a different perspective, Nicholas, given the need to protect yourself while doing business, but I am not you." "You are a fool," Nicholas spat, finally losing his cool. Just a little. "Such a simple, elegant way to handle leadership. Yet you balk. You offer them your power and protection. Is a guarantee of loyalty too much to ask for in return?" "I ask for loyalty," Lee said. "Not servitude." Nicholas sighed, all the venom of his previous exclamation vanishing as if it had never existed. "It is a luxury of the powerful to act so. For my sake, I hope your power is enough to carry your ideals." Lee frowned at the other man as he spoke. Not at what Nicholas had said, but the way he''d said it... Something to talk about, but later. After he had his new skills. As for finding out who was getting people to swear oaths they couldn''t talk about... did those people even have a choice? Had someone told them to swear or die? Really fucked up, if so. But was it fucked up enough for him to do the same to everyone else? No. It wasn''t. Lee wanted... no, he would make damn sure this fort stood no matter what. He would protect the people who''d trusted him with their lives, and he would do what he could for the rest. As the fort commander, he could go around ordering people to tell him if they had an oath... or was that too fucked up? Less than making them swear to him for sure. Maybe they could get everyone to wander past outside Three and he could listen to their souls? But what would he listen for? All of that was an issue for later. Right now, they had another very important decision to make. "So," Lee said, focusing back on the here and now. "What''s the verdict on the skills?" Everyone had gone silent to listen to his... debate. "You should take and learn the last one, my lord!" Trak exclaimed immediately. "What''s your reasoning?" Lee asked, though he already guessed what Trak would say. "It will protect you, my lord!" Yep, that... tracked. "I would have to agree with that choice," Alejandro joined in. "With the mana at your disposal, you might become untouchable!" "I get the reasoning," Lee said. "I really do. But do I need to be untouchable? Will it make a difference in the next invasion? Or the one after? I''m already pretty hard to kill, and the skill will prevent me from doing anything offensive while I¡¯m using it." Now, if it said he would be immortal... that might make a difference for him and Stanley the next time they almost died. Again. Because they probably would... Really, for this line of reasoning, he''d be better off with the beast master skill. That one would at least let him have higher attributes, as well as that bit about resisting death... Which could be huge with how their lives had been going. Alejandro echoed his thoughts again. "Then the beast skill. You have a strong soul. Perhaps you could bind multiple beasts..." "Guys," Lee interrupted. "This isn''t all about me. I''m not making this deal to empower myself alone. I want this fort and all of you, my family, to have the best chance to survive. Together. Whoever can best use these abilities to improve all our chances is the one who should learn them." "The time skill," Mar said, appearing and flinching when everyone looked at her. She soldiered on. "It uses mana... so you should be able to make it really... big or strong. You could... maybe... trap tons of monsters in a slow bubble..." She vanished, but her voice continued. "Or if you put half of the attackers... inside with us... but sped up. Then we could kill them before the rest even reached the walls..." "Thank you, Mar!" Lee exclaimed. "That''s the thinking we need. We don''t actually know how big a bubble can be..." He looked at Nicholas, who only smiled and shrugged. "But it''s still a great idea for how it might help us all survive. So, thoughts?" "I agree," Maria said. "Time and beast. You learn. Shield good, but we have shields." "What if we gave Alejandro the shield?" Lee suggested. "He could take any hit with that thing. Especially..." He glanced at Nicholas and whispered to the others, "If we get another D-grade." "I don''t know," Alejandro said. "It sounds like it would help me take a hit, but I wouldn''t get the full use from it. Making myself intangible would only protect me... it definitely won''t help anyone behind me." He said that last bit with a glance toward Maria. "Better for you, Lee," Alejandro continued. "The way so many monsters want to kill you... Plus," he said, tapping his chest. "I''m already tougher." Lee analyzed the rune covering Alejandro''s skeleton for what had to be the thousandth time since he''d stuck it on the man. After the D-grade showed up, Lee could no longer deny the man''s request for improvement. It really helped that with his new rune scribing skill, there was no cutting necessary. He''d seen no issues with the rune, and Alejandro claimed he was fine. He even gained a buff for it... instead of a trait. Meaning it wasn''t permanent like Lee''s own... augmentation. Lee had begged off doing the same to Maria just yet, but if nothing bad happened to Alejandro between now and the end of the victory buff... Well, he''d stick it on her and whoever else wanted one. The only problem would be his rune cap... though if Stanley kept bumping their soul up... This was still a gamble. Legendary skills in exchange for runes. Even his plans for the wall might have to be put on hold unless he took back some armor or weapon runes... Was this really worth it? Bradley still needed a new staff as well. Was he being greedy for wanting the skills? Or was this a viable option? Nicholas wanted more powerful runes than he could get now. That, combined with his remark about working together for centuries... He couldn''t ask for many runes if he wanted to drag things out that far, could he? Lee posed the question to his found-family. Again. "Take the skills, my lord! Our pack does not require rune weapons!" "You do if you''re going to be throwing yourselves at the monsters!" "But you ordered us not to fight, my lord..." That was true¡ªa damn good thing, too. Or, no doubt, Trak would have been trying to fight the D-grade with them. He felt dirty using orders on them, even to save their lives, but they were fanatics! "I... fair enough." "It is your call, Lee. You don''t owe runes to any of us... though I''m sure everyone appreciates them," Alejandro said, and Maria gave her own sharp nod of agreement. "Legendary skills!" Amy hissed with a glance around the gathered people. "They all sound amazing, and runes are basically free for you, right!? How could you not take this deal?" "Seriously!" Bradley nodded along, and Lee could see Mar echoing his movement where she lurked invisibly beside him. "Okay, okay, just checking. I won''t back out. Now, what about giving the shield to Saira?" The woman in question had finally strolled over from her garden. "She''s our strongest healer. Keeping her safe might mean the difference..." "Let me see it," she said as a vine reached through the door to pluck the paper full of skill descriptions from Alejandro''s hand. Saira barely glanced at it before sending the page back inside, then she continued to stalk slowly around Nicholas, her gaze trained on him suspiciously. "Won''t work." "Why not?" Lee asked. It seemed like a great backup card for her... or was it the vines? Did she need them to always stay connected? Even now, he could see them running through the ground beneath her feet, repeatedly connecting and retreating from the vines inside her with each step. An even larger buildup of vines was also gathering beneath Nicholas... "Take the beast and time skills, Lee," Saira said, without taking her eyes from Nicholas. "Learn both yourself. I do not truly know how you survived in Mexico or what happened before when your brother''s injuries threatened your life, but having powerful beasts to help you cling to life for even moments longer sounds like a very good thing in my mind." Lee could feel the serious focus of her soul¡ªdeadly serious. He wasn''t sure if she was planning on attacking Nicholas... Before that could happen, Lee spoke. "I''ll take those two." Nicholas produced two cores with a flourish, and Lee quickly clarified when he realized he had no way of knowing which core was which at a glance, "Beast master and temporal shift." He took the proffered cores when Nicholas only held them higher. They were indeed the correct skills. As soon as he recognized that fact... Contract Accepted. I''m in it now, Lee thought, and looked at his status for what he suspected would be there. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Soulforge](E-grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] [Swarm Chaser] [Minor Lord](321) Contracts: [Nicholas Alberton] Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Source Nexus] [Soulforged Mana] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Rune Harmonics] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 68 (Advanced) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) - Level 65 (Advanced) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 24 (Basic) | Language of the Rune (Unique) - Level [N/A] Attributes: Strength: 103(+292%)306 Vitality: 104(+292%)302 Dexterity: 105(+292%)298 Wisdom: 206(+1577%)3454 Intelligence: 205(+1577%)3438 Willpower: 202(+1577%)3387 Twin-Soul: 96(+380%)460 Non-Class Skills(3/6): Liquid Mana Beam (Rare) - Level 11 (Novice) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 65 (Intermediate) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) | Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 40 (Basic) Buffs: [Three] [Soul Link] Debuffs: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)] Focusing on the single item on his new contracts line, it showed him the same contract he''d made with Nicholas. So at least that all seemed straight up. As he looked back at the smiling Nicholas, it felt like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop... Had he forgotten or missed something? Was he screwed? Nicholas sure seemed pleased with himself... "What are you?" Saira demanded, finally stopping her circling to stare down at the seated merchant. "Why, whatever do you mean?" Nicholas asked, all wide-eyed and radiating false innocence. "Pretty sure he''s not human," Lee said. "Other than that, I''m not sure..." Everyone reacted rather explosively to Lee''s statement, with Maria and Amy dragging him away from the door while Alejandro and Trak joined Bradley in the doorway. "Now you''re just picking on me," Nicholas said while fake pouting. "What did I ever do to give you the impression I''m not human?" "Relax, guys," Lee said as he shrugged out of their grip. "He won''t kill me after going to all the trouble of making his contract. I doubt we can kill him either..." Lee hadn''t missed the fact that there was nothing in the contract to prevent him from killing Nicholas to end the deal now that he had the skills. Which was why he suspected the guy wasn''t the least bit worried about that eventuality. Nicholas stood from his chair while everyone watched him warily. He straightened his already immaculate suit, bowed slightly toward the doorway, and then toward Saira. "Gentlemen, gentlewomen, it has been a pleasure. Lee Cascade, I''ll be seeing you." He tipped his hat and vanished. His chair, his car¡ªit all went with him. As if he''d never been there... "Well..." Lee wasn''t sure what to say as he looked at the two glowing cores in his hands. There was nothing to do about it now, so... New Non-class Skill Gained: Temporal Shift (Legendary) New Non-class Skill Gained: Beastmaster... Error! Soul-Bonded Beast (Caff Caffeine) has rejected the Non-class Skill: Beastmaster Bond (Legendary) "Shit." Lee stared down at the remaining skill shard. He couldn''t say he hadn¡¯t seen this coming, but he¡¯d hoped he was wrong. Perhaps he could have tested it before agreeing? Regardless, it was too late now. The only remaining question was what to do with the skill? 111. Every Day Is The Same ~~~Caffeine~~~ Dearest Human did only thinking all day for lots of days, but Caffeine didn''t mind. He got lots of good cuddle naps. Sometimes with belly rubs! When he got thirsty, he would go play with Croaker at the dangerous water. When he got hungry, he would run very fast back to the food place, where Food Human would give him lots of chicken! Food Human was the best! Caffeine even got to play chase with Beast Lord again! Not just Beast Lord either. Lots of dogs played chase with him. It was the best! They chased so much! But then Beast Lord accidentally ran into a giant death stream! Caffeine was very frightened, but he had to save his friend! So he risked his life to save Beast Lord from the deadly water. It almost killed him, but he dragged Beast Lord to safety. Then he had to shake the wetness off before he died! Very scary! He couldn''t believe it when he saw a new big dog just standing in the deadly wetness! "Run!" Caffeine barked a frantic warning. "Before the wetness gets you!" The new dog stood up almost like a human and lifted his front legs even higher. He was very big! Then he roared in terrible pain! "Have you come for my head, Beast Lord? I will not submit without a fight!" Beast Lord ran away. Caffeine woofed sadly at the Big Dog and eyed all the dangerous wet stuff between them. "He is too scared to help, but if you can get closer, I will be your friend and save you from the wetness!" Big Dog stopped standing up and fell down with a big splash. He must be so tired... The wetness was killing him! Then he grabbed a fish out of the water! Caffeine understood. Big Dog was only alive because he had food to save him from the wetness! Caffeine knew what the best food was. The only food that could save his new friend, Big Dog. Chicken! "I will bring you Chicken, and you will be okay!" he barked and then ran back to the food place as fast as he could. "Holy shit! What was that!?" There was a lot of noise, human shouting, and flying stuff when he got there, but all the Best Food Humans had chicken! "Please give Chicken for my new friend!" Caffeine begged with his best hungry whine. Two of the Best Food Humans made pain noises and smelled like upset, but Very Best Food Human only made a happiness noise. "Hi, Caff. I''m guessing you''re hungry?" "Yes!" Caffeine barked. He was hungry! "Chicken!" Then he remembered why he was here. "Not for me! I need to save Big Dog!" "Here you go," Best Food Human said something and put down a big piece of Chicken! Caffeine gobbled up the tiny piece in one bite... then gagged and dropped it back on the floor. Oops. I almost ate Big Dog''s Chicken! Instead, he grabbed it and, very carefully, didn''t swallow the snack while he ran back to save Big Dog. He found Beast Lord with his whole family waiting beside the wetness. They were all good dogs that liked to play chase! Now they had come back to help save a new friend. They were very good dogs! "Beast Lord, we have no quarrel with Crushing Blow," Beast Lord''s mom said. "The bear defends this region of the clean lands and does not stray into our territory." She was a good dog. She took very good care of her family. Like how she was teaching Beast Lord something even when they were so close to the deadly wetness! He wanted to tell her she was a good dog, but his mouth was full of Chicken... Chicken! He dropped it and howled to Big Dog, "I brought you Chicken!" Big Dog stood up very tall again. "Is this your challenge, Beast Lord? You seek to poison me with the Human''s tainted meat? Very well, I will meet your challenge with another." He fell back down with a very dangerous splash and kicked a wiggling rope out of the wetness. It landed right beside Caffeine. "Retreat!" Beast Lord''s mom barked something, and all the dogs jumped away. "Eat that if you dare!" Big Dog roared. Caffeine looked at the wiggling rope. Eat a rope? He did like to chew on ropes sometimes... especially when Dearest Human played tug! The wiggling rope jumped closer and hit him with tiny little teeth. He never knew ropes had teeth... Debuff Resisted: [Drowning Venom] It tried to hit him again, and Caffeine ate the rope in one bite. Debuff Resisted: [Two-Step Toxin] The rope was very spicy. It made his mouth tingly. He never knew you could eat ropes... or that they could taste so interesting! "You are a Good Boy!" he thanked Big Dog. "But Chicken is still the very best snack!" Big Dog looked like he didn''t believe it, but he started walking through the wetness with big steps. "Very well, Beast Lord. You have met my challenge, so I will eat this thing you call Chicken." "Hi," Caffeine said, wagging his tail happily when his new friend had finally escaped the wetness. "I''m Caff Caffeine. We should be best friends!" Big Dog took a big bite of the Chicken and then stood there. "Chicken is the best!" Caffeine barked while spinning in excited circles. "Isn''t it!?" "Yes," Big Dog huffed. Then he grabbed the Chicken with his feet, just like Caffeine liked to do when something was very good. Caffeine watched his new friend eat and licked his lips. Then he felt Dearest Human get very loud! Dearest Human was excited and not frightened, but then worried, and Caffeine realized he hadn''t checked on Dearest Human in a long time! "Bye, new friend! I will play later!" He ran. Running was the best! ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley wasn''t sure if his Eye of the Storm trait was helping or not. It should be. Since he was meditating almost non-stop. The only question was if it helped with soul repair or just meditation. Unfortunately, he had nothing to compare it to since he hadn''t needed to fix his soul before getting the skill. Or rather, fortunately. It was fortunate that he had nothing to compare with... Still, he felt like it was helping. It should also help with Still Mind... though he wasn''t sure what boosting that skill did. Maybe increasing the cognition speed? Or did it also boost the mind attribute gains? If it did, he never saw it on his status. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. He''d used the skill a few more times, intentionally. The first test had been to work on the soul wound. It worked. With the skill active, he''d gone hyper-focused and made great progress. The problem was that, without emotions, he always pushed too hard. It turned out that a little fear might be better for self preservation... Of course, Caffeine always snapped him out of it when things got to that point. He''d then have to recover for the rest of the day... so he wasn''t sure if the gains were worth the cost. Mostly, he saved the skill for days when the nightmares were extra bad. When he really didn''t want to feel anything for a little while. It was good for that. It was good enough that he felt no remorse about choosing the skill instead of the attributes. His stats were fine. Beyond fine. They were great. His soul wound was the weak link. It was the only thing slowing him down. If the repair wasn''t such a fragile endeavor, he''d have finished it already using brute force. At least he had Caffeine for entertainment. The past however many days of this had been him watching the pug befriend literally every living thing he came across inside the purified zone. It got stressful occasionally, but Caffeine was living up to his class. He never took even the slightest scratch. That alone was enough for Stanley to be happy. Though it made him feel worse about all the times Caffeine had gotten hurt on his behalf. Speaking of friends... Caffeine had just met another animal. Stanley couldn''t tell what it was, but its soul was wary. Not directly hostile. Not like the tiger. It felt like it was weighing a decision... The wolves were with Caffeine, so worst case, they would help if a fight broke out. Not that Caffeine needed help. Seal Stanley sealed another bit of his soul together while he watched Caffeine''s soul zip back to Nate''s base, then back to the wolves and the new soul. He was very excited about something... Had he grabbed a snack? It felt like Jerry''s soul had reacted to the visit. Seal Have fun, Caff. You deserve... Something changed. Stanley didn''t see notifications while in his meditation, but he had a hopeful feeling about what he would find upon leaving. Debuff: [Critical Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] -1 Twin-Soul Attribute per 12 days It''s working. I can fix it! He''d known that it would work... on some level. But finally seeing a change to the debuff after days of work really helped to confirm it. "Fucking yes!" Stanley screamed his success to the sky, then clenched his fists. I''m going to fix it, Lee. Hang in there... I''ll fix our soul and get out of this fucking prison... I will make it home! Caffeine appeared in a burst of wind and dust, already in Stanley''s face, his tongue smacking in between the happy barks that rattled the trees. "Good boy, Caff. Best boy ever!" Stanley followed up his words with vigorous, full body scratching that only amplified Caffeine''s excitement until he took off sprinting in circles. Stanley chased after him, adding to the excitement. He didn''t stop chasing until the panting pug finally bounded into his lap and rolled over for belly rubs. Then he checked his status while administering the well-deserved belly scratch. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](57%) [Source Nexus] [Wrath] [Eye of the Storm] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 90 (Advanced) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 68 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 42 (Intermediate) | Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Soul Meditation (Rare) - Level 55 (Advanced) Attributes: Strength: 130(+60%)208 Vitality: 128(+152%)322 Dexterity 132(+60%)211 Wisdom 227(+1181%)3199 Intelligence 228(+1181%)3212 Willpower 243(+2091%)5615 Twin-Soul 98(+495%)583 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) Buff: [Soul-Link] Debuff: [Critical Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Nate had kept his word. Regarding keeping the cores coming, at least. As for the other stuff, well, Stanley was working on letting it go. It probably wasn''t Nate''s fault. Sure, he''d sent Stanley to find Zeke, where he''d almost died, where he''d unleashed the source and gotten another even worse monster hunting him down. Stanley felt his anger rising... and let it go with a long exhale. He wouldn''t be angry today. His soul wound was getting better, he was more powerful than ever, and so long as he didn''t think about certain unpleasant memories... "Caff, you want to go see your other friends? Like Princess?" He''d put off visiting them for too long already, and with his new confirmed progress, this was a day to celebrate. He also kind of wanted to test his massively increased power against a lair¡ªthe lairs full of monsters that were also constantly getting stronger. Hopefully, he hadn''t fallen behind. That would be just perfect, wouldn¡¯t it? Of course, Caffeine scrambled upright the moment he heard the word go. He didn''t know where they were going, but he was absolutely down for it. Classic Caffeine. Stanley took to the sky but hesitated before heading out. The tower was supposedly short on food. What if he brought them one of Nate''s giant chickens? Birds eat other birds, right? Cheesesteak wouldn''t mind eating a chicken, would he? He and Adrian were the ones he wanted to thank most, the first for saving his life and the second for... probably the same thing. At the very least, Adrian had suffered a lot when Cheesesteak temporarily died. Princess should be fine with chicken. Didn''t wild foxes regularly hunt chickens? Stanley wanted to get on her good side too; he was both anticipating and dreading the chance to communicate with Caffeine. What if Caffeine hated him? Stanley shook his head and flew toward where he suspected the chicken lair to be. He was being stupid. He''d seen Caffeine hate someone or something only a few times. All of them had been undead. The pug, panting happily in his lap, loved almost everyone he met, sometimes even when they tried to eat him first. The chicken lair wasn''t a standard lair. A variety of different colored and sized chickens roamed around a long row of identical buildings. A chicken farm turned lair. There was even a group of humans already there, picking off birds from the edges of the flock. It was only when he got there that Stanley realized Caffeine might be a problem. If he wanted to be friends with the chickens... He sighed and grabbed one, dragging it up to eye level. Might as well find out. The giant bird twitched its head and stared at him. "Bawk!" It kept staring. "Bawk!" Caffeine woofed at it. "Bawk!" "I think they''re really stupid, Caff." Its soul was one of the simplest he''d ever felt... just hungry. It didn''t even seem to notice it was in the sky... or it didn''t care. "Let''s go, bird. I''ll give you a nice last flight before you become someone¡¯s dinner." He had no problem carrying the bird while it was alive. It was completely effortless and nothing like any previous living creature he''d ever carried. It was either a very weak monster or a good sign for his new power level. Stanley kept Soul Sight running as he headed out of the green zone. He felt stronger than ever, but you never know. It also let him see just how much things had changed outside of Zeke''s purification¡ªa stark contrast that really brought home the fact that the undead were not gone. In fact, the miasma was winning. So maybe saving Zeke had mattered more than he''d initially thought. If only for access to food... Stanley had glossed over that little tidbit in his bitterness. Maybe the undead also wanted him more than I thought? Or did they not really care? Zeke''s purified area was only a small patch of resistance in an otherwise massive zone of corruption. Even some of the lairs he passed weren''t immune. The monsters inside weren''t undead, not yet, but their souls had a familiar tinge of rot to them. They were losing the battle. How long until the entire city and surroundings were all undead? What would happen then? Could the invaders command them if that happened? Would everything in the dungeon march on Zeke? Stanley didn''t fear that eventuality too much, but it was a big dungeon... he hadn''t even explored half of it. Just how many undead monsters would there be if it all fell to the miasma? When a never-ending tide of undead crashed against Nate''s little shipping container walls or assaulted the tower, how long would they last? He dropped closer to the ground before reaching the city proper and zeroed in on a corrupted lair. It wasn''t big. Nothing close to the scale of the skyscraper lairs. So he sent his mind inside to touch all the corrupted souls he could see from the sky. Cut There was barely a dip in his energy by the time everything died. Sure, it was only around a hundred monsters, but it was cores. Gathering them up felt almost nostalgic as he dragged the glittering rocks to his hand. Then he flew to the next lair and tried something different. Burn There was some screaming... but only from the souls of the queen and her stronger guards. The rest burned too fast to scream. It was good, but it felt unnecessarily sadistic when he could just cut them down without resorting to burning them alive. Though, if he met another invader... Ideally, he should scour the dungeon with Soul Sight until he found the invader''s hiding spot, then burn them to the ground! He should be strong enough to deal with even the immortal skeletons... at least the E-grade ones. The lack of another D-grade coming after him or Zeke this whole time had him leaning toward the suspicion that there wasn''t another one in here. Unless they were too scared? That couldn''t be it. Another D-grade with soul magic would probably kill him easily... Since they hadn''t yet, he was safe. For now. It was the only reason he''d flown out here alone with Caffeine. As for scouring the dungeon, fixing his soul was a higher priority. The E-grade skeleton had also used soul magic, and while he didn''t fear taking on an E-grade right now, it was better not to risk it. Unless they came after him, then he would kill... Something appeared inside his domain without warning. Directly next to his head... 112. Hiding In The Depths ~~~Stanley~~~ "Caw!" The crow squawked in his ear the moment it appeared, already standing on his shoulder, and without any warning from Premonition. Stanley didn''t need to see it. He knew what it was the instant it entered his domain. The problem was that he couldn''t feel a soul and didn¡¯t know if it was attacking or not. So he struck first. Cu... The crow vanished a mere instant ahead of his power, then reappeared on his other shoulder, little feet latching onto and digging into his suit. "Caw!" C... Again, it escaped, and Stanley reached the ground, letting the squirming Caffeine touch down an instant before the bird came back. "Ca..." It didn''t even finish squawking in his ear again before Caffeine was abruptly standing beside him, just large enough that his nose reached and touched the bird. It fled. Stanley didn''t know why this time his Still Mind hadn''t activated when he got surprised. So he activated it on purpose. Time slowed. He felt the crow pop into existence on his other shoulder and saw the ground caving in beneath Caffeine''s feet as the pug took a step. Cu... The abrupt cancellation of Still Mind was jarring enough that he missed killing the crow. Caffeine was there instead, back in the bird''s face, sniffing it... with a wagging tail. Stanley waited when he saw the tail. Tensely and with his finger on the proverbial button. The bird hadn''t technically attacked him... unless you counted appearing out of nowhere while already touching him. Stanley counted that! It was a fucking threat! Apparently, Caffeine didn''t agree. So he let Caffeine chase the bird as it blinked faster and faster around the area, no longer confining itself to Stanley''s shoulders. Every time it appeared, Caffeine was there before it could make a single sound. Eventually, the bird abandoned the ground to appear in the sky. "Caw!" Caffeine howled at it and then sat dejectedly while the bird spiraled slowly back down. The pug continued to wait when it touched down and bounced closer with a few little hops. Until it was right in front of him, whereupon he gave it a good long sniff, then dropped into a play bow. "Caw!" the crow squawked and teleported further away. "Caw!" The chase was on. Stanley relaxed slowly, reluctant to meditate at the moment. Instead, he just focused on the happy feelings from Caffeine''s soul and the complete lack of anything from the crow. He even tried turning on Soul Sight and ramping up the power like he''d used to spot the skeleton. Nothing. Was it not real? Daryl had made a copy of himself that looked real but wasn''t. He was about to scan the surroundings for the source of this magic when the crow suddenly had a soul. Only for an instant. Then it blinked off. And on. Off. On. What the... Was it mocking him? There was definitely amusement coming from it in the brief flashes he picked up. His eyes picked up something else. Something that looked very similar to his own soul shield¡ªonly faster and way stronger. Is that how the invaders hide? Stanley followed the playing pug and the maybe playing bird as they sprinted and teleported after each other. He studied what he could see of its blinking soul along the way, even activating Still Mind again to give himself more time to figure out what it was doing. It had to be an actual skill. It was too smooth, too easy. He watched anyway. He watched the bird''s soul energy as it sat still for one moment, then twisted, strands flowing into an intricate web of... It was too fast. He couldn''t follow the pattern, even with time crawling. He''d need to see it much slower... If he could lock down its teleportation to keep it from escaping, then he''d have plenty of time to figure out what it was doing... Maybe he could stop the bird? Or slow it? S... Caffeine canceled his Still Mind. God d... Stanley sighed and let it go. That was a mean idea. Sure, it was a bird, but maybe not just a bird. There was some higher level intelligence in its soul. At least he thought there was; it was hard to tell with all the flickering. Plus, Caffeine was probably best friends with the damn thing already... He redirected his anger toward the corrupted squirrel creature that sprang from a lair toward Caffeine''s back. It wasn''t an actual zombie. Not yet. But its soul looked... rotten. Its body wasn''t much better. The crow didn''t seem at all bothered by the sick-looking flesh when it appeared atop the bisected body and started picking at it. Is it eating... Hey, that''s my core! It vanished with the glowing crystal in its beak... and reappeared on Stanley''s shoulder. Stanley flinched, but the crow vanished immediately after dropping the core into his lap. So, not a thief... It went back to the corpse, ripped a piece of flesh free, and tilted its head up to swallow the rotten meat. But gross, and maybe not very intelligent if it¡¯s eating that... Caffeine sniffed the body but had the good sense not to eat it. Instead, he turned to stare at Stanley. "I got it," Stanley said. "You''re starving." He looked down the street at the chicken he''d dropped earlier and saw it marching confidently into another lair full of monsters. Seriously? He killed the cat-lizards with ugly looking sores all over their hairless bodies and dragged the chicken back outside. It acted like literally the dumbest monster he''d seen to date. Had the chicken queen gotten domesticated? Stanley was pretty sure that at least some lair queens could direct the evolution of their offspring. If that was the case, was the queen an idiot too? Or was she smart and making her minions extra stupid to feed the humans? He really should have checked her out while he was there. Also, it probably would have been smarter to take some prepared chicken instead of a live one. Come on, chicken. Let me show you the world. The crow was probably tired of the chasing. Now it stood on Caffeine''s back and kept cawing at him. Caffeine was panting when Stanley picked him up, and the crow came along for the ride. He didn''t pull the pug into his lap because he didn''t want the damn bird in his face, so, of course, it just teleported to his shoulder again. Stanley took all of them toward the tower, only slowing when he saw something from the corner of his eye. He stopped and stared at the river. Large concentric waves rippled away from where a flock of birds was only a moment before and crashed against the shore. The sea king... Souls shone from within the dark waters, but nothing was close enough to the splash zone. There was definitely nothing that looked large enough to be the source of that tentacle, which nearly flattened his first friends during their bath time. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. He hadn''t wanted to get near whatever that was then, and he''d completely forgotten about it until now. Only now he wasn''t afraid of meeting it again. The question was if the lack of a soul meant it could hide, or if it was just that fast... So he dangled a big piece of live bait above the water while pushing his mental touch below the surface. Feeling through water wasn''t that different from air; it was just thicker. He also found nothing down there. At least nothing big enough. There were plenty of fish, though, a few of which tried to eat his chicken by leaping clear out of the water. They all missed, but he didn''t expect the jet of water that punched a hole right through the bird. Stanley sighed as he watched his chicken die. We were going to eat that. He waited until it was zombified, then dropped it in the river. I hope it makes you sick. To his surprise, fish swarmed the zombie chicken immediately, tearing it apart in a feeding frenzy that lasted all of two seconds. Until nothing remained but feathers floating slowly down the river. So... maybe you''re right to avoid the water, Caff. He grabbed a fish before the swarm fully dispersed and dragged it into the sky. He wasn''t an expert on what fish should look like, but he could recognize a catfish... even if it was twenty feet long. Though he didn''t think the feelers on their faces were supposed to be that long... or move around like octopus tentacles. With teeth... "Anyone hungry?" "Caw!" The crow teleported onto the fish''s back and immediately started pecking at it. Not just pecking... its beak punched holes far easier than Stanley thought it should. Easily enough that he felt a little sick remembering that beak next to his head... next to Caffeine''s head. Also... had it understood him? The bird obviously had some kind of soul skill; did that mean it could sense his soul? Did it pick up emotions? Did it understand them? It only took a few bites from the squirming fish before reappearing on Stanley''s shoulder. He barely resisted the urge to attack it... and the crow dropped a piece of catfish to the eagerly waiting pug in his lap. Blatant bribery. Caffeine ate the bribe, which Stanley really hoped wasn''t corrupted yet. Though he remembered the pug throwing up the last time he''d eaten zombies... after which he''d healed from the corruption. He''d be fine. The memory soured his mood, and Stanley carried all of them toward the tower again while the crow continued to rip chunks out of the still living catfish. It ate every other bite and gave the rest to Caffeine. Blatantly corrupt bribery. Right out in the open, too! Stanley ignored the fish''s suffering and eyed the approaching tower. He also eyed the wide expanse of ocean visible behind it. There was a lot of ocean out there¡ªa whole lot of space where a whole lot of shit could be hiding in the depths. Nate had originally suspected the undead were hiding in the city. What if they weren''t? What if they were instead right outside the city, hiding in the ocean''s depths? They were undead... they probably didn''t need to breathe. Even now, Soul Sight picked up a field of souls fading off into the distance. Normal, uncorrupted souls. He saw what had to be schools of fish moving in massive groups. Singular souls darted into that mass to snatch away meals, while the school itself either chased other souls or turned on the aggressors. Countless souls lurked out there, in groups or alone, and that was just in the small area he could see in the harbor. The shallow water. The lack of corruption in the souls was odd. Did the miasma not travel well through water? It would explain how the tower had fish to eat... Stanley passed the bat lair on the way, also still uncorrupted, and he only slowed slightly when he spotted a single bat outside in the street. It crawled slowly in a circle as the undead charged, then bounded inside, the zombies on its heels. So they were still hunting the undead. That was good. Stanley purposefully didn''t pass on the side of the building where the fight had taken place, and he directed his attention ahead once again. Many of the skyscraper lairs here were resisting the corruption better than the smaller ones further out. He just wasn''t sure if it was because they were more powerful, or perhaps the miasma was now weaker in the city, or maybe they just had some trick like the bats did. Approaching the tower, Stanley wasn''t seeing Adrian... He looked harder, inside and out, and spotted a few groups of humans inside on the ground floor, hunting zombies and other monsters, but no one that looked like Adrian or Daryl among the masses filling the building. That was disappointing, since he''d really wanted to use them to talk to Caffeine... Maybe Walter would know where they went? He seemed pretty invested in their lives. He also might have felt Stanley coming... because the butler stood just inside the doorway of the penthouse balcony, his soul radiating worry that bordered on terror. His voice betrayed none of that, however, instead staying in his usual monotone. "Pardon me, sir, but I must beg..." "Just spit it out!" "Master Adrian did not return, and Master Daryl departed this morning in search of him. Neither has returned. I am already in your debt, but..." That wasn''t good. "Which way?" Walter pointed toward the south. "They heard reports of a..." Stanley dropped his fish and flew away without another word. As he went, he pushed soul energy into his eyes until they burned. He flew over the city, following the coastline south. Zombies and monsters were everywhere... but no humans. He saw the old freeway, still there but cracked and broken in places where stunted and rotten plants had grown through the concrete. It didn''t take all that long to spot human souls, but he almost missed them among the throngs of surrounding monsters. A handful of more colorful souls amidst a flood of monotone attackers. Ants. It wasn''t the souls that gave away their identity first. It was the towering ant hill that he''d mistaken for another skyscraper, with a small group of humans at its base. All fighting for their lives. He came in low, and Caffeine kicked off before he even reached them. The pug turned into a gray streak as he blasted a line through the throngs of swarming ants and went straight to the humans in the middle. Stanley let Caffeine wipe out the closest bugs and then just blocked the rest from getting closer as he dropped in on Daryl. It was a strange sight he found waiting for him. Kira was there with his... her spear, and she''d definitely finished soul bonding with it. Now her spear looked like it was dripping blood... and she looked a few pints short herself as she swayed on her feet. All of them looked bad. He didn''t need Caffeine''s keening or the pain in their souls to know that. Princess didn''t even growl at Caffeine... but maybe that was because she was down a leg and barely on fire. She was so tired... and so afraid for her human. Adrian wasn''t present. That probably explained why they were all wounded. Though even as he arrived, Daryl was pouring fire onto a man Stanley didn''t know, regrowing his hand... Daryl''s soul was frantic. Chaotic. An insane soup of terror, despair, and desperate longing. The man broke off his healing, and this time there was no resentment when he laid eyes on Stanley, only a surge of hope that almost drowned out the deeper fear. And not fear for himself. "Stanley! Adrian is in there! You have to get him out! Please save him..." Daryl stumbled a few steps toward him as he begged, then fell to his knees in exhaustion. Princess was at his side instantly, crying out with heartbreaking noises as she licked at his face. Stanley barely heard the words as he felt the emotions radiating from them. Especially from Princess. All he could think of was every time Caffeine had cried just like that. All he could feel was the sadness and worry also radiating from Caffeine as he looked on. All he could remember was the noise Caffeine had made when Samantha died... Never again. Caffeine finally turned away from his friends, with a new emotion rising. An emotion Stanley knew all too well. Anger. The pug growled at the swarm of ants surrounding them, and his anger drowned out all other sounds. Every ant stopped moving, the air shook with subaudible vibrations, and the ground beneath their feet, a churned up and muddy soup of dirt and blood, danced in the shockwaves of Caffeine''s rage. Stanley didn''t care that much about the people here. He barely knew any of them. But Adrian and Daryl had helped him when he needed it. They''d helped Caffeine. Cheesesteak had died to help defeat the invader, even if only temporarily. Of course, none of that was what really mattered now. Seeing and feeling the anger from the normally happy-go-lucky pug was all Stanley needed to drive his own dark mood down the same murderous path. The ants would have to die. Their souls were not intelligent. They weren''t even hungry. There was nothing in them but a matching universal drive to hunt. To eliminate. To gather. Stanley didn''t care. Burn They didn''t scream in pain like he wanted them to. But they did burn. They did hurt. BURN It started with a great sizzling sound, rising on the heels of Caffeine''s growl, then the flames roared up from a field of rapidly charring flesh and carapace. The smell followed. The humans'' souls all rapidly filled with an odd mix of elation, fear... and hunger. Ew. That was when Stanley realized he''d dropped his soul shield. That, and the rising cry of uncountable souls echoing up from below ground. Thousands of them, and way down deep... a flash of something else. Something human. "Protect them, Caff," Stanley whispered. "I''ll get the rest of your friends." "They adapt to..." Daryl called out behind him as Stanley flew toward the nearest entrance, but his mind was already reaching deeper through the tunnels, finding the pathways down. 113. Way Down We Go ~~~Stanley~~~ You have entered a lair: [The Colony] The crow on his shoulder squawked and vanished. He¡¯d almost forgotten it was there... Coward. Light turned to darkness as the tunnels swallowed him up, and Stanley closed his eyes. He didn''t need to see for what was coming. He wished he could do the same for his nose... It stank in here. Pungent and acidic. You have attacked a lair structure. All residents notified. He didn''t bother with the winding tunnels for long and instead started smashing his way through. This lair went deeper than he could reach, and he didn''t want to waste time if any tunnels were dead ends. The labyrinthine mess of tunnels ran in every direction, including some going straight down. It saved him effort when he reached those. Ants filled every single tunnel. Most were beyond weak, but here and there he ran into one that put up a fight. Well, not that much of a fight. They attacked him¡ªwith either magic or their jaws¡ªand he killed them. The strangest part was the variety of magic he ran into. The vast majority of the ants were basic and identical, but the standouts were very different. Some were tiny, and some were too big to crawl through the entrance up top. All of them died, and none of their magic attacks that landed made it past Walter''s suit... Stanley was already wondering how and why the hell Adrian would go so deep into this shitshow when he noticed the walls getting tougher... It was gradual, and he probably wouldn''t have noticed if he wasn''t going through them one after the other, but it was there. The ants got stronger too... He stopped in a large cavern lit up by glowing growth on the walls and filled almost to the brim with eggs. None of that was what stopped him, though. It was the ant laying eggs at one end of the room. A queen? It only had a handful of guards and wasn''t even close to the deepest chamber in the nest... The guards weren''t even the stronger magic-using ants. Just more workers. It was odd, but Stanley let it go and killed them all. He squished them rather than burning them, since he was pretty sure he still needed oxygen and wasn''t sure about starting fires in an underground cave system. Then he focused on his soul and listened. The faint souls he could hear in every direction turned into a sea of glittering stars... a writhing sea full of streams that funneled toward... There! Souls that were not only human, but a few that felt very familiar. He changed course slightly and ripped a hole through the cavern wall. Edward was down there... and it felt like Cheesesteak was with him. Stanley had never seen the bird heal anyone, but if it was a phoenix and Adrian used phoenix fire to heal... it could probably heal, too? Of course, Adrian shouldn''t be far from the bird... if he was still alive. His path of destruction eventually led him directly above where he''d felt the humans, and Stanley got a good idea of why they would go so deep when he found the consecutive pits between tunnels. Pits that went straight up and down. Had the ants dug the ground out from under them? It was a terrifying prospect... and irrelevant if you could fly. It also sped up his travel time immensely. Until he found the worker ants resealing the holes... Digging out their own lair made sense since they were ants, and that was kind of their whole deal, but getting another notification for ripping open the partially filled hole was disturbing. He''d never considered that monsters might reshape their lairs so freely... could they just seal up the entrance after someone came inside? Humans could close off their lairs... What if the ants could close one door and just open another far from where you went in? Speculation about ant tactics was one thing, but a far more disturbing realization was the level of intelligence on display. Intelligence that wasn''t coming from any of the ants he''d met so far. What had Daryl said? They adapt? Stanley stopped abruptly and looked up. Back toward where he could feel Caffeine in the distance. If the ants were digging the ground out from under people... He couldn''t tell from this distance. Were they still on the surface? It was tempting to retreat and carry the others to safety before delving deeper, but Caffeine was up there. He''d keep them safe. He''d be fine... right? The obvious solution to a threat like this was simple. You''re all going to die down here. Stanley refreshed his anger and kept digging. He also shoved a handful of ant guts into his stomach... The tunnels were getting a lot tougher. His stomach didn''t react negatively to the meal, but his head felt... achy. There was no brain debuff yet, but smashing through increasingly stronger lair walls was adding up. So he ate more ant flesh and started mapping the tunnels between himself and his target. Stanley didn''t find a direct path through but found one that should only require going through a few more walls. He was really missing Accelerated Thought and was tempted to turn on Still Mind in its place. Anything to help him move faster. There was just the minor worry that he might go a little rogue... and from how far away Caffeine could stop him if that happened. Damn it. It wasn''t worth the risk. The souls below were getting clearer as he approached, and Edward was definitely there with Cheesesteak. So was Adrian. Stanley didn''t know the rest of the souls, but there were a half-dozen more humans down there. They all felt afraid, but muted behind the exhaustion... along with a fresh cacophony of pain. They were under siege. Right now. Luckily for them, Stanley was close enough to reach through the earth still between them, and he smashed the swarming ants into piles of gore. Including the ones digging a fresh pit below the humans. Stanley felt the shift in their souls after his attack, particularly Edward. Not surprising, as he was the one who''d spent the most time with him. He might have even felt Stanley''s leaking soul from this distance... Now that he knew for sure that the healer was still alive and that he could keep him that way, Stanley slowed his reckless pace. He hadn''t forgotten the warning about hurting his soul by pushing too hard... and he wasn''t about to waste all the progress he''d made in the last week. At least, not without cause. To make things easier on his brain, he let the ants attacking his person reach his domain before killing them. The extra boost to willpower within the zone made it take far less effort. He even stopped fighting the magic attacks since Walter''s suit was surprisingly durable against them, and he could regenerate any physical injuries by eating more ants. Not that he took any. Or, at least, nothing beyond some bruising. The few magic attacks that threatened his face were easy enough to divert into the suit-covered areas while inside his domain. Fire, acid, and even a few electric attacks, none of which made it past his armor. Walter was a damn genius. He finally drifted around a corner and saw the light before he''d even opened his eyes. A dead end tunnel full of red-gold fire and littered with dead ants. Past the wall of fire, he found more dead ants and his targets. Still alive. Mostly. "Stanley." Edward smiled up at him from where he lay prone on the floor, one hand gripping his giant wrench and the other a nub that was slowly regrowing. His legs ended at the knees, with the lower halves lying a few feet away in a pool of blood. In fact, the entire floor was a pool of blood... "Wicked glad to... see... you," Edward said in a weak whisper, then passed out. He wasn''t the only one sleeping. In fact, Cheesesteak looked to be the only one left awake. The only one not in multiple pieces... Adrian sat slumped against the wall, his skin pale and his soul wavering in a way Stanley had never seen before. One of his arms ended at the shoulder, right where a bloody gash went halfway through his chest... Cheesesteak stood on his shoulder, wings spread wide, with flames flowing from them and feeding the encircling fire around the huddled group of partially dismembered but still living humans. The phoenix cracked open its eyes. "Ree..." The sound came out so weak, but Cheesesteak''s soul didn''t waver. He was full of grim determination. Exhaustion as well, and a burst of worry when he glanced down at Adrian, but determination above all. The same determination that would let someone blow themselves up to save their friends... "You did good, Cheesesteak," Stanley whispered around the lump in his throat. "You did really, really good. I''ll take it from..." The cave rumbled around them, and Stanley felt a twinge of pain echoing from... Caff! In that same moment, something the size of a baseball, with no soul, punched through the wall of fire at his back and entered his domain at speed. Stanley slapped the very pointy ant right back the way it had come and then followed it outside the soul-muffling flames. Another pulse of attention on Soul Awareness told him that Caffeine and company were definitely too close to still be outside the lair. The only question was if they''d come in willingly or gotten dragged in against their will. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The pulse also revealed the swarm incoming on his location. It was time to go. He picked up everyone and started the retreat, but was only back at the first turn when pieces of the wall abruptly stood up and threw themselves at him. Again, with no whisper from their souls. Not until they died in two pieces. They were further up the tunnel when Premonition flared out of nowhere, and a blade of light burst out of the wall beside him. Still Mind activated, and Stanley moved himself aside rather than waste energy on the extremely heavy magic. The glowing white blade went into the far wall without resistance, leaving a hair thin slice all the way through to the next tunnel, thirty feet away. Then it kept going. That explained all the dismembered people, but... where did it come from? Stanley reached in the direction the attack had come and felt the followup blades cutting razor thin slices through his mental touch. It hurt, but they weren''t aiming at him. He moved his cargo out of the way and struck back against their attackers. Cut Ants died with screaming souls, and even more flooded in behind them as Stanley continued. They poured in from every direction... an army. All coming to stop him from escaping. It was simple enough to smash his way through the swarms, but they weren''t targeting him alone. He constantly had to waste energy moving his cargo away from attacks that came through the walls with almost no warning. There was always the option of leaving them behind, but Adrian was definitely a valuable healer. He was worth a little extra effort to keep around. Edward was the only other strong person increasing the energy costs, but he''d proven himself loyal even if he wasn''t that strong. Loyalty was worth some extra effort as well. All of it was enough that he''d save their allies along with them. So he fought his way through the swarm and toward the approaching sensation of Caffeine. As he went, little flashes of pain kept coming from the pug''s soul, and it was doing weird things to Stanley''s mind... He knew Caffeine was the second strongest creature in this lair, perhaps even the actual strongest, and he should be fine. But those feelings of him hurting... Stanley didn''t like it. That annoying feeling helped him come to a new revelation while slaughtering hundreds of ants. He was doing this wrong. Stanley knew he was powerful, but he couldn''t do this forever. The ants showing up to attack him were only getting stronger with each new wave. The latest wave had an odd but strangely familiar energy around their bodies... In fact, it felt a lot like his own energy. Psionic energy. Cut His mind still carved through their flesh, but the resistance was on another level entirely. Like when he''d been attacking the invader a grade above his own... They weren''t D-grades; he tested it by throwing pieces of their fellows at them. Particularly by throwing the ones with blade-like appendages... That did the trick just fine, which confirmed his theory that they were using some kind of psionic resistance. It wasn''t a deal breaker when he could kill them by throwing shit, but it required more concentration, and he was already at the limit trying to keep the unconscious humans alive amidst the storm of magic coming their way. He retraced his route back to where he''d come down and found the shortcuts all sealed up... Then he hovered in place for a couple of seconds as he considered his remaining options and killed every ant his mind touched. The cave walls were tough, but he could go through them if he had to. The problem was that the bugs were coming at him not only from deeper below but also from the sides and above. If he blasted his way out, it was likely to result in a debuff... which may very well damage his soul. A necessary risk if it came down to it, but he had another option. Rage. More specifically, wrath. It was a large part of his E-grade evolution and should boost his strength far higher than it currently was. Only he couldn''t feel anger. He couldn''t feel any emotion while using Still Mind... The solution was obvious; he turned it off. Stanley blinked in shock because not only was that the first time he had willingly turned off the skill, but also because emotion once again became a thing. As if on cue, Caffeine''s soul flinched in pain, and that was all he needed. Rage bloomed on the heels of Caffeine''s hurt, and Stanley pushed his mind out to its limits in every direction. die Die DIE He reached further up, stretching his mental touch to its limits and then pushed it further. He kept reaching until he found a little pug zipping through tunnels around a group of humans under siege by swarming ants. Stanley felt a microscopically narrow blade of magic slice deep into the pug''s side... He pushed harder, enraged, and his mind brushed over hundreds of ants surrounding Caffeine. DIE They did as commanded. Then a Premonition and his domain brought him back to himself... STOP Everything stopped. His friends. Cheesesteak''s fire. And more of those fucking magic blades. A cloud of them hung frozen in the air... some already inside his own and the others'' flesh. Even cutting through his suit... One even touched Adrian''s temple after having passed through Cheesesteak''s leg... Fucking bastards! Stanley forced the magic back, dragged it out of frozen flesh and then let go of Cheesesteak. Healing fire swirled into open but unbleeding wounds, and the phoenix flapped his wings to stay upright as he pumped out a fresh wave of his magic flames. The sight of how close they''d just come to death chilled Stanley''s rage. It didn''t smother his anger... only turned it cold. Turned it icy. Stanley felt something shift as his rage peaked and went cold. Time seemed to slow as he reached out into the surrounding tunnels, which were already rapidly filling with ants, and he felt... calm. This whole situation felt far too much like the old days, when he''d been weak and on the edge of death every time he stepped into a lair. He wasn''t that weakling anymore. He wasn''t the one who got hunted. He was no longer the one who got caught up in a swarm of murderous monsters and their magic. No. The icy calm grew colder inside him, but outside, he felt a rising... heat. He felt... wrath. He felt... the storm. The wrath storm. It was his race now. He was only technically human. Otherwise, he was a Wrathstorm. Stanley hadn''t understood what that all meant, but he had an inkling now. Besides, he didn''t actually need to know what it was; he only had to unleash it. Stanley hovered there, everything else falling away from his attention as he became the storm and went looking for something to destroy. He found what he was looking for. The storm of his wrath did nothing fancy to the ants he touched. He didn''t cut them. He didn''t stab them. He didn''t even try to crush them. He simply... destroyed them. His white-hot rage didn''t hesitate. It didn''t consider. It didn''t fear. It only destroyed everything that threatened what he cared about. Everything that threatened what was his. It was peaceful in the center... an icy contrast to the heat of his anger. Peaceful, silent, and calm at the eye of the storm. Stanley felt like he should smile when each one of his enemies fell. He wanted to smile as their souls screamed and went silent. He almost smiled as they died. At some point, nothing more dared to venture into the storm. So he sent the storm to them. He sent it toward all those twinkling lights in the depths. His enemies died screaming, and Stanley finally smiled. Then he laughed, even when it started to hurt. He laughed along with the storm until a sudden, sharp pain in his hand brought him crashing back to his body. He found Caffeine at his side, and the pug was licking the bleeding puncture in his hand while whining sorrowfully. Deafeningly. Stanley pulled the crying pug into his lap while looking around to make sure Caffeine wasn''t crying about something else. Everyone was alive and accounted for. "Good boy, Caff." Next came his notifications that he''d only barely noticed when they were coming in... while he was the storm. Class Level Up: Soul Psionic ... Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter ... +1 Willpower ... Debuff: [Cerebral Fatigue] There it was. [Cerebral Fatigue](1:28:16) You have pushed your mind beyond its limits and will require time to recover. -50% to All Mind Attributes Duration and severity may increase with continued mental exertion. It was short and didn''t mention his soul... which was good. Though he had another notification for that. -1 Twin-Soul -1 Twin-Soul At least it wasn''t another debuff, and it probably only happened because of the soul wound, which luckily didn''t seem to have gotten any worse. From going off other people''s soul attributes, Stanley knew his own soul was far stronger. It should technically be even stronger than his mind... Thinking back, Stanley was pretty sure the debuff hadn''t hit him until he got greedy and reached too far. His effective willpower should have been potentially three times higher than usual. Nothing could resist that power. All in all, it wasn''t the worst outcome. He''d slaughtered so many of the ants that he wasn''t even sure if the distant souls far below were more ants or some other subterranean life entirely. That thought reminded him of the giant worm, and he spent a pleasant moment imagining it here, fighting with the ants. Both sides would suffer in that exchange... which would be oh so perfect. Daryl finally stopped crying over Adrian and moved on to Adrian''s teammates. "I need you to wake up, Ryan," he said to a dismembered man. It seemed unnecessarily cruel to wake the poor bastard up... as evidenced by the weeping that kicked off the moment he did. "Don''t worry, I''m going to heal you." Daryl did just that, scooping up a handful of the much diminished fire from Cheesesteak and funneling it into regrowing the man''s missing leg. Stanley frowned as he looked on. Something seemed off... but he couldn''t figure out what. "I can take everyone to Zeke. He''ll fix you all..." "I can handle it!" Daryl spat with far too much venom, his soul bitter again. An odd reaction, considering everyone was fine. Relatively fine. Adrian still had that weird, fluttery soul, and he was still unconscious. But at least someone had healed his chest wound already. That shit had looked bad before. Princess didn''t share Daryl''s mood. Her soul only felt tired as she leaned against her human. And a little sad. Stanley checked Soul Awareness and had to keep it going longer to get a good read on the deeper souls. They felt like ants. With one soul standing out with intense... anger? Maybe some bitterness as well? Friends of Daryl? Either way, it felt intelligent. Perhaps the actual queen of this shitshow? He enjoyed feeling its misery. Fuck that bitch! Besides, it wouldn''t have to suffer very long. Don''t worry, I''ll put you out of your misery in about... Well, he''d probably wait for the debuff to end, and since Daryl didn''t want to leave just yet, Stanley meditated. 114. Keep The Queens ~~~Daryl~~~ Why won''t he wake up!? Daryl demanded. Tell him to answer me! "Cheesesteak says he''s okay," Princess replied. "He says he''s just tired." Bullshit! Daryl cursed, then shivered and tried not to look at Stanley as he turned away to force people awake. He couldn''t heal them otherwise. They needed to see what he was doing. They needed to believe he could heal them. Cheesesteak wasn''t talking. He wouldn''t say why Adrian looked like death. Daryl had a terrible feeling why, and it became all too clear when he woke up Herman. The man immediately started screaming and clutching his neck. "Oh god! My head! They cut off my head! Oh, god, I..." Daryl slapped him across the face. "Snap out of it! You''re alive!" He wanted to tell the man it hadn''t happened. To tell him that it was all a dream or illusion, but he feared it wasn''t. Damn you, Adrian! Why!? Why would you do that for him? Why would you risk your life for some worthless nobody!? I need you more... I need you to live... Herman stared wide-eyed up at him in shock, but it was good enough for his purposes. The man saw him pull fake fire from the curtain that looked like it came from Cheesesteak. Herman saw him press those same flames against the stump of his missing arm... and the limb started regrowing. The sight sent his gaze back to Adrian, and the missing arm there. Then to Princess and her stump of a foreleg. He couldn''t heal either of them. They knew his secret. Then his gaze tracked over to Stanley, hovering in the tunnel with his eyes closed. He hadn''t ever tried to heal him, and he didn''t need to. Stanley was fine. Aside from that screaming soul grating against all of their nerves... though it actually felt a little quieter today. He really didn''t want to think about those last few tunnels he''d followed Caffeine through to get here. But he doubted he''d ever be able to forget that... that... wind. There had been no actual wind, but it had felt like he was pushing through hurricane-force winds with each step¡ªwinds of death. Even now, he felt the hairs standing up on the back of his neck. What the fuck are you!? "He saved Adrian." Princess lacked her usual venom toward Caffeine and his... whatever the fuck Stanley was. I know that! "Caffeine helped me protect you. Even if he is an idiot..." He¡¯d seen it. Those damn blades coming through the walls without warning and Caffeine eating them... I fucking know that! "Grrr," Princess growled directly into his mind without making an actual sound. He still didn''t understand how she did that... "You are being a big baby!" I am not being a... "Baby!" You... Princess bumped into his hip and almost knocked him over before he could send any more mean thoughts to her. "Adrian is okay. We will take him home and keep him inside until he recovers. Okay? Please don''t be sad. We are okay now... and I''m scared too..." Daryl freed one hand from the real fake magic healing and placed it on Princess''s head. I''m sorry. I love you. "Of course you do! I''m a perfect princess." Yes, you are. Daryl didn''t roll his eyes. He still wasn''t sure if her personality resulted from their time together pre-system when he''d said those same words to her repeatedly or if she''d always been like this. He didn''t care. She was perfect. Herman''s arm finished growing out into a hand and five fingers. Even the hair on his arm came back. So Daryl turned to the next person... ~~~Stanley~~~ Everything was nice and peaceful while meditating. The energy flowing through his body and brain brought a soothing feeling that noticeably diminished the ache inside his skull. Even the new ant souls popping up far below didn''t bother him. It was just more cores for him once he got around to killing them. While he was in there, Stanley looked over the soul wound for any damage beyond what the notification had said. It looked the same. Then he put more effort into the meditation, trying to ramp it up... assuming that was a thing. Ideally, he wanted to knock the debuff out faster than before, and given that he hadn''t meditated his way out of a debuff since before the E-grade evolution, he was hopeful. He kept at it while watching Daryl make the rounds through his domain. Caffeine joined in occasionally, bounding over to lick faces or hands as people woke up to Daryl''s prodding. Stanley waited until Daryl finished with Edward; one person he knew was level-headed¡ªat least as level-headed as Edward ever was. Edward was exactly as cheerful about everything as Stanley expected, which was to say extremely. "...why you always want to have someone on backup," he was saying to the others when Stanley stopped meditating. "Caffeine and Stanley here are the best ones for that. The number of times they saved our asses..." He saw Stanley watching him and winked. "So how ''bout a round of applause for the heroes?" "No," Stanley said when he saw a few heads swivel and hands come up. "Thought you were going to be the badass, Edward?" "Hey, I was!" Edward said, hefting his wrench for emphasis. "Smashed ''em real good! Even when the bastards started digging the floor out from under us..." "They adapted to stop you, didn''t they?" Daryl said. "Is that what that was?" Edward asked, turning to the other man. "All I saw was that they got harder to smash. That, and they started sendin'' in all kinds of weird critters. Little sneaky buggers, prickly buggers, all kinds of magic, until Adrian''s fire was the only thing keepin'' em'' away. At least until those blades came through the walls..." Adrian was the only one still unconscious, and he didn''t look like he was getting better. Cheesesteak wasn''t much different, and only just this side of awake as he lay limply in Adrian''s lap. Daryl was now the one keeping a fire going, with the small flame in his hand the only light in the dark tunnel. Stanley checked his debuff timer and was pleasantly surprised to see only a few minutes remaining. His new meditation was definitely better, even if he didn''t understand what the numbers meant. He glanced toward the remaining ants again... then sighed. "You know we can jabber about monsters anytime, right? Like, say, outside? Maybe while we fly toward a healer?" "Hey, I was lettin'' you rest, man!" Edward said while scrambling to his feet. "If you''re good, I''m good." Daryl glanced away when Stanley looked his way. "Sorry... for earlier, and I''d appreciate your help." "Sure..." Then it was Stanley''s turn to hesitate. "Actually, I need a couple more minutes..." Edward laughed and hefted his wrench onto his shoulder. "Man, Stanley, you really wrecked em'' this time. Figured you got that debuff thing again after the show, but that wasn''t long at all!" He was the only one enjoying himself among the huddled masses, and Stanley wrapped his soul shield back up against the mix of feelings bombarding him. It wasn''t all bad. Most of them were just exhausted, with a mix of fear and awe... Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Kira was in the latter group, and the strangest one of them as she stared unblinkingly at him. At least until he met her gaze, and she looked away. "...glowing eyes lighting up the tunnel! Hair billowing in an invisible breeze!" Edward paced while gesticulating excitedly. "It was like a movie, man! Hella, wicked, cool!" He stopped in front of Stanley and held up a hand. "High five!" Stanley ignored the proffered hand, but Caffeine didn''t. The man''s exuberance had the pug excited, and he stood up to paw at Edward''s hand, then sniffed it and dropped to all fours, disappointed. Probably because there was no food. Caffeine abandoned Edward and instead sniffed at the ant carcasses littering the floor, then looked at Stanley with a pleading gaze. Stanley helped by sticking a chunk of ant meat into his own stomach. That was enough for the pug, and he went to town on the corpses. Disgust radiated from almost everyone when Stanley kept eating, too. "What''s it taste like?" Edward asked. "I''m hungry!" "No idea," Stanley said, offering a piece to the man. It wasn''t a good flavor, if Edward''s reaction was anything to go by, but Stanley''s stomach didn''t complain, so he kept shoving more in. He did that while staring at the floor, or rather, through it, as he stretched his mind deeper and deeper. If he could reach the queen from here... He couldn''t. The damn lair was deeper than any of the skyscrapers outside were tall. Way deeper. Wider, too. "You''re still going to die, bitch," he murmured. "I''ll come back for you." "You didn''t kill them all!?" Daryl¡¯s blurted exclamation sounded incredulous... and accusing. "It''s a huge fucking lair!" Stanley shouted, the burst of anger surprising himself and everyone still awake, all of whom flinched back from him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Sorry." "I''m sorry," Daryl said after a moment. "I wasn''t criticizing you... I just couldn''t believe anything survived... whatever you were doing before." "It''s big," Stanley grumbled. "I was... hurting myself trying to reach too far." Caffeine had stopped him. Saved him from himself. Again. "We can wait if you want to go kill the bitch queen." Daryl''s soul was bloodthirsty now... "Assuming you killed all the nearby ants?" Stanley liked the idea, but he shook his head. "They''ve got some sneaky ants that hide their souls. Can''t be sure they aren''t still around." They also liked to hug the walls in such a way that his mind wouldn''t notice anything upon a casual mental touch, and he couldn''t scour every inch of the endless tunnels to root them out. Though his domain would find them if he got close enough... "Take us with you," Daryl said, to a round of protests from the weaker people that hadn''t passed back out, with a few notable exceptions, Kira among them. She was staring again... "I want this place burned to the ground," Daryl continued, pulling Stanley''s attention back to him. "They were way too smart... and they adapted to whatever we tried at a frightening pace. I don''t know how they did it, and I don''t want to give them a chance to do it again. What if they''re already cooking up a counter for you?" "Bitch can try." He and Caffeine would destroy them. Though maybe it wouldn''t hurt to bring backup? Not that the exhausted people would be of much use... "I''m down if you are." Another round of protest went silent after Daryl shouted, "You can stay here if you don''t want to come!" It was amusing. For once, Stanley wasn''t the angry lunatic. Poor Princess. Unsurprisingly, no one volunteered to remain behind. Stanley picked them all up and crowded them around him on all sides. It was almost like he was using them as human shields, which he wasn''t. He just wanted them all inside his domain in case more of those ninja ants showed up. The flight was a much more leisurely affair this time, as Stanley felt his way deeper through the tunnels. He collected cores along the way¡ªfar from the total number that were up for grabs, but some. He split them all with Caffeine. The final stretch only helped to confirm that the ants were far too intelligent, because there was only a single tunnel leading to the queen''s chamber, and it was a long, winding tunnel that doubled back on itself repeatedly. A perfect funnel for monsters that could cut through the walls at will. Daryl cast some magic he claimed would hide them. "Or it might not," he said. "Who knows with these things?" Thanks to the winding tunnel, Stanley got plenty of time to feel out their destination before they got there. It was a massive chamber, mostly filled with a honeycomb-like structure at the center. Over a thousand eggs were inside it, something Stanley only realized once they got close. The eggs were hatching at an alarming rate. He could feel the queen crawling around inside the structure. She would stop at a group of eggs, do... something, and the eggs would hatch. Whatever she was doing, it changed each batch of souls drastically before they hatched. Including one group whose souls vanished the moment she worked her magic... His mind still felt them crawl from the splitting eggs, but the souls remained hidden. More ninjas. The oddest part was that she wasn''t the one laying any eggs. There were a handful of other ants running around doing that. Probably the ones responsible for the dozens of worker ants he''d encountered dragging corpses this way... None of the ants reacted when Stanley flew them into the cavern. Did that mean Daryl''s magic was working? A line of worker ants only recently born filed past, and Stanley lifted everyone higher away from them. The line paused as the lead ant lifted antennae in a flailing gesticulation where they''d just been... Could the ants smell them? They were supposed to use pheromones to communicate... right? At least that was how it used to work. Stanley cut them down and immediately felt the queen bitch react to the deaths. Far too fast for mere pheromones. Psychic pheromones? Did she also know how they''d died? That, combined with her creating ant variants at will, would explain the rapid adaptation Daryl complained about. He felt her anger rising inside the honeycomb, felt fear rising with it, and she sped up. The queen dashed between clusters of eggs, pausing at each only long enough to hatch them before dashing for the next. Each clutch burst from their eggs with only one overriding desire in their souls. To kill. Each hatching clutch died to Stanley''s will before they took their first steps, all of them carrying the increased psionic resistance he''d felt before... Each slaughter pushed the queen''s outrage higher and increased her speed to the next group of eggs. It was all useless. She couldn''t win. She knew that. Stanley could tell she knew that... Her bitter despair felt surprisingly human as she finally abandoned the effort and charged out toward them. Stanley half expected to see another human turned monster when he directed his will higher in the cavern and thought... Light The queen slid to a stop in the abrupt daylight level brightness, her head and antennae twitching as if she couldn''t see them... She stood on four legs, almost upright, with the two front legs looking more like arms, but she didn''t have a human face. She also didn''t take long to sense something, just like the worker ants had, her head zeroing in on the humans despite whatever Daryl''s magic was doing. "Is that the queen?" Daryl''s voice sounded loud as it echoed throughout the cavern. Angry, too. "Kill it!" The King has surrendered. Lair defeated. King. That was new. Stanley very much doubted it was a king monster like that owl thing had been, but it might explain why there were multiple queens down here. "Kill it!" Daryl growled. "I don''t care if it surrendered!" He struggled, flailing at the air where Stanley still held him suspended. "Let me down! I''ll kill it myself if I have to!" Stanley flew ahead of the others to hover before the king. "Can you communicate?" It glared at him from behind bug eyes, with bitterness and a drive to survive vying with the urge to attack him. There was no sign that it understood him... Seeing what it could do with the eggs had given Stanley an idea. A vision. If they could work with these ants against the undead... Who better to combat a horde of undead than an equally massive swarm of ants? Perhaps it could make ants that weren''t affected by the miasma? "Just fucking kill it!" Daryl yelled from behind him. "Chill, man. Let Stanley talk to the ants if he wants to." "Shut the fuck up, Edward! They almost fucking killed you! They almost killed... everyone." Stanley sighed. There was a lot of hatred on both sides already, and the king, while clearly intelligent considering the tactics it employed, wasn''t on the level of a human. Well, some humans. Hell, it was probably above average. Caffeine growled at the ant king. Whelp, guess that seals the deal, buddy. DIE The newly appointed queens have unanimously surrendered. Lair defeated. "Kill them all! I don''t want..." "No," a new voice whispered. Daryl choked off his shouting with a strangled cry as he looked down at the man in his arms. "Adrian! Are you..." "Keep the queens," Adrian whispered. "If we can lure the ants to the tower..." He stopped talking when Daryl crushed him into a sobbing hug. Stanley let them have their moment while he watched the queens inside the honeycomb nest. They felt like normal monsters running on instinct, and they just kept laying eggs. Only now, the older eggs began hatching immediately instead of waiting for the king. Nothing fancy emerged. Just worker ants that wandered out of the nest and immediately started dragging the dead back inside. Their souls were about what he''d expect from an ant. "Food. Food. Food." The first one to make it back inside with a corpse met an ant coming the other way, and the second ant joined the chant. Adrian''s plan made a kind of sense, assuming these ants followed normal ant behavior. What was it? Get one ant to run back here from the tower with food, and it will leave a trail that more will follow. It could work... but it seemed like a very convoluted way to hunt a few ants. It''d be easier to farm cores for the weaklings than to go to that much trouble to let them hunt their own. "I don''t want..." Stanley stopped talking. He still wanted them to help him talk with Caffeine... But didn''t they owe him their lives? Again? "Fuck it. Let''s get out of this shithole." He grabbed a worker ant, took it along with everyone else, and headed for the surface far above. Walter was probably getting worried by now¡ªwell, more worried. 115. A Warrior ~~~Stanley~~~ Empathic Link (Rare) You feel. I feel. User may create a link with one or more targets and, through it, share feelings and sensations. Link may be created omni-directional or one way. Number of links dependent on intelligence and skill level. ... That explained the ant king... and it sounded like a nightmare of a skill. Maybe if he wanted to torture people? Though it could be useful for a healer... maybe? It still sounded like a miserable skill either way. But... maybe he''d ask around anyway. Daryl didn''t complain about the ant along for the trip. He was too busy crying and fussing over Adrian. It was annoying. Stanley said nothing. He couldn''t. Not when he''d made a similar fuss over Caffeine so many times. Not that it was the same... Obviously, Caffeine was way better than any human. Also, it wasn''t the same because Daryl was kissing Adrian when they flew out of the lair into daylight. Sure, Caffeine wasn''t afraid to dole out kisses. In fact, the pug was rather free spirited when it came to kissing people. Pretty much anyone who would feed him was fair game. Stanley checked the core, which had been lying at the lair entrance. Spitfire (Rare) I spit. You burn. User may launch a ball of acidic fire from their mouth... He guessed the core must have come from the queens, since he''d gained another from the ant king, and none of the previous queens he''d killed after surrender ever dropped a core. A nice little loophole to get extra cores. Though it was possible that he got shorted if each of the multiple queens would have dropped a core... It was also gross. So he probably wouldn''t be learning that one even if he used mana. Maybe Caffeine? Though he had seen Cheesesteak and Princess both breathing fire. Maybe it would... "Could you not do that right in everyone''s face?" said a voice, and Stanley looked over at the man whose soul radiated disgust while he glared at Daryl and Adrian. Seriously? Stanley thought, eyeing the speaker. Someone who had likely been healed by at least one of the two men he was now criticizing. "Look," Stanley said. "I get that Adrian''s good looking, but you can''t flip out just because someone else got there first." "What, no?! I''m not gay!" Everyone was staring at him now. Instead of letting it go, he doubled down. "It''s not natural." "You know it''s the twenty-first century, right?" Stanley asked. After the first reaction, there was no way he could resist messing with him further. "You know whites are allowed to marry blacks now, right?" "What? I never said... Don''t put words in my mouth!" That got a few chuckles, and Stanley smiled. See? He was definitely a delight to be around. A pure ray of sunshine. He definitely didn''t want to murder the ungrateful fuck... Mr Mood Killer really couldn''t take the hint, though, and he muttered, "So you just shove it down our throats until we agree with you. Is that it?" "You know what''s natural?" Stanley growled, his good mood finally evaporating. "Gravity." He dropped the guy, who screamed hilariously on his way... "Stanley!" Adrian wheezed out. "Ugh, fine." Stanley caught the guy right before he reached the ground and set him gently on his feet, whereupon he fell down. Right next to the ant, which Stanley was dragging gently through the dirt. It was probably getting lonely down there, anyway. The ant was the only reason they weren''t back yet. He didn''t want the poor little guy to get lost on the way home with his snack. Adrian had twisted to look down, so he saw the man scramble to his feet and take off ahead of the zombies that were already chasing the ant... The poor thing was never going to make it back to the nest. "Please pick him up, Stanley. I don''t care what he says about us." "I don''t mind if you make him run," Daryl said, also watching the man, only with a grin on his face. "Can''t believe he would talk shit after you saved his life, Adrian! That fucker deserves to..." "Daryl," Adrian said, cutting the other man off mid tirade, his hand coming up to cradle Daryl''s face. "I don''t care what anyone says. All I need is you." "Aw, damn it!" Daryl folded like a bitch. "Fine, you can save him, Stanley. I mean... if you want to?" Stanley watched the man trip and go down right in front of the zombies. He picked him up... and set him back on his feet further ahead. "Adrian, I don''t think your plan''s going to work with all these undead out here... but I could bring a nice horde back to the tower with us." Adrian sighed and closed his eyes, his head back in Daryl''s lap. "I see that now... not sure what I was thinking." "Me neither," Daryl said with a noticeable edge to his voice. "Using your heart fire..." "I had the chance to save someone who would otherwise have died," Adrian whispered. "How could I not do what I did?" "Because if you died..." "I didn''t die." "You almost fucking..." "What''s heart fire?" Stanley asked. Daryl''s shouting tirade sputtered to a halt. "It''s..." "It''s a much more concentrated form of my phoenix fire," Adrian said. "Lets me heal more serious..." "I think you mean to say you burned up a chunk of your fucking soul to stick Herman''s head back on!" Stanley discovered who Herman was when the man in question''s soul went into a panic as he blurted out, "That was real!? Oh, god... Oh, my god! I thought it was a dream!" "It''s not burning up my soul," Adrian protested. "Just some of my life force... and it''ll recover. A little down time is worth it to save a life." "Damn right, you''re going to have down time! I''m not letting you set foot outside the tower again!" Daryl exclaimed, and Adrian didn''t protest aloud, but his soul said otherwise. Stanley helped the runner along below and resisted the urge to demand Princess or Cheesesteak talk to Caffeine for him. The fox dozed lightly with her head nuzzled in and vying for space in Daryl''s lap, and Cheesesteak was still completely knocked out. Plus, there was another thing bothering him... "Stop fucking staring at me!" Stanley had tried his best to ignore Kira. She always looked away if he glanced over, but he could feel her eyes boring into him almost constantly. The feeling in her soul when she did so was... disturbing. She looked away quickly. "Yes, sir." "I''m not going to take away the spear... so fucking chill out." "Yes, sir." She was hopeless. Walter was waiting when they arrived, standing in the doorway behind a small group of humans who were hunting zombies outside the tower. The humans fled past Walter when they saw the zombie horde coming¡ªthe idiots. He was bringing them a nice pile of cores, and they just ran away. Stanley cut down the zombies right before they caught up to the wheezing, panting runner, and the man, to his credit, made it inside the tower before collapsing. Weakling. Though he might have earned some attributes for the run... "Found your kids, Walter. Safe and mostly sound," Stanley said as he came in. "You have my eternal gratitude, sir!" Walter''s soul soared with relief, but his voice wavered as he gazed upon the rather beleaguered state of the returning group. His magic suits were good, but even their armored properties had limits. As evidenced by the holes and missing pieces. "Also, if you want to give this guy some food?" Stanley held up the only slightly bruised ant. It was worth a shot, despite the zombies... Maybe it would make it through? He had somewhat cleared a path on the way here. Walter pulled a fish from nowhere, and the ant was happy to latch onto the offered food. Stanley set it down, and the ant took off back the way they''d come. Slightly faster than he''d expected... "Welcome home to all of you," Walter said. "If you''ll allow me?" Stanley felt something pulling at him but pushed back against the sensation as the wounded people vanished along with Walter. The butler came right back. Alone. "I have prepared a room for you, sir. If you would like to refresh yourself or sit down for a..." "Maybe later," Stanley said, watching the ant run away with its fish. "I think I''ll hunt some more today." He could make sure the ant made it home, and it wasn''t an issue since he''d left a lot of cores back in the ant lair that he needed to collect. "Of course, sir. I am at your service. You have but to ask, and I shall do all in my power to provide." "See if Princess wants this," Stanley said, tossing the spitfire skill shard over. Then he left before Walter tried to hug him. He didn''t think the butler would actually go that far, but from the emotions in his soul, it wasn''t impossible. The ant got home safely, and Stanley followed it down into the dark, firing up soul sight as he did so. From the number of souls down there, it looked like they finished hatching the eggs he hadn''t smashed. All the roaming ants shared the same dull souls as the worker he''d taken on a journey, so that was good. They were also still down near the bottom, probably dragging corpses back to feed the queens. They were probably stealing his cores, too. He started from the top and worked his way down, mindful of the fact that there might still be some of the ninja ants in here. Stanley expected the queens would want that single batch to remain close for protection, so it shouldn''t be an issue. It wasn''t. Unfortunately, the time spent wandering through the maze of tunnels didn''t feel worth the number of cores he collected. Perhaps he should find another team to collect cores for him? There were plenty of weaklings in the tower... He could go from lair to lair and leave the gathering to them. If he could trust them. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. One good outcome was when he spotted a group of ants heading for the tower after he finished collecting. Stanley wanted to follow them and talk to Caffeine... but he could wait. Maybe tomorrow. Once they''d recovered from the events of the day. Assuming they didn''t turn into cowards, which he didn''t think would happen. Adrian had still shown the same drive to keep going, despite everything. Daryl might have issues, but Stanley suspected he''d keep hunting if only to protect his... boyfriend? He''d never actually asked what they were to each other... Whatever. He put those thoughts out of his mind and focused back on what he needed now. To murder the shit out of as many lairs as he could. It turned out he could murder a lot. Once again, the only thing slowing him down was collecting the cores. Stanley found a solution for that. Sort of. He would fly into the lair, pick a fight with whatever weird creatures lived inside, then wait until a decent mob gathered to drive him out. He killed the monsters right in front of him, took their cores, and flew to another lair. It paid out fewer cores per lair, but he made up for it by not having to waste time flying around each lair. Unlike the countryside where Nate lived, the city was thick with lairs. Enough that he hadn''t made a dent when the sun crept below the horizon. Stanley didn''t stop with the dying of the light. It was just a luxury at this point. It was not something he needed for hunting. Not having light did make finding his house more difficult later on... He could pick out the souls inside lairs and in Nate''s base, but it didn''t help him find an empty house with only starlight. So he headed to the tower. Sure, he could have just picked any random house, but he still wanted to talk to Caffeine... This could be a good excuse to check in. Walter had said he had a room for him. Walter must have felt him coming, because the butler was waiting with the balcony doors open when Stanley arrived. Which reminded Stanley that his soul would bombard everyone in the tower if he slept here... "A pleasure to see you, sir. Please, come in," Walter said, stepping aside and ushering him through the double doors with a small bow. "Your quarters are prepared, but might you or your companion wish for a repast before retiring?" By the feel of things, Adrian and Daryl were both already asleep. "It''s late, Walter. You don''t need..." "I assure you, it is no trouble. It would be my pleasure to prepare for you whatever you might desire." He hesitated. "Though I must admit, the menu is primarily seafood based these days." "Sure." Stanley had eaten in the lairs that weren''t yet corrupted, but Walter really wanted to feed him... Plus, Caffeine was always hungry. "Whatever is easiest. But I can''t stay after that, my soul..." "I believe I have a solution, sir." Walter smiled and walked to the room Stanley had woken up in over a week ago. "Please tell me if this will be satisfactory. If not, I will make adjustments." Stanley walked into the room and felt something odd... all the souls he could hear in their constant echoing against his soul... they all now echoed only through the doorway... and then went silent when Walter shut the door. "How?" "Please consider this humble suite as your home away from home, sir. You shall be welcome here day or night. Any time. In perpetuity. It is an effort of no consequence for myself, and the very least I could do to repay all that you have done for me." You have gained resident status in the Sapient Lair [The Tower] Buff Gained: [The Tower] "Thanks, Walter," Stanley said while looking at his new buff. "I like it." [The Tower] Effects: +200% All Effective Attributes +200% All Regeneration 100% Conception Rate Reduced Offspring Incubation Duration(Dependent on Mana Density) Accelerated Offspring Growth Rate(Dependent on Mana Density) It was better than Nate''s sapient lair buff, and Stanley tried not to think about the rest of it. Women really got screwed by the system if they ever wanted to get... well, screwed. It was good to be a man... Maybe Daryl and Adrian were the lucky ones who''d found a loophole? "If sir would like to freshen up," Walter said, interrupting Stanley''s thoughts as he strode to the bathroom. "I have made some additional upgrades." Walter snapped his fingers, and the shower turned on. A ridiculously fancy thing with multiple shower heads shooting water from every direction and even a waterfall at the back... Of course, Caffeine bounded from his lap and shot back out into the bedroom the moment Stanley flew toward the shower. "I assure you, there is no shortage of hot water," Walter said after turning it off with another snap. "So please take your time, sir. Dinner shall be ready at your convenience." He bowed and strode from the bedroom, shutting the door behind him. Stanley chuckled at Caffeine peeking around the door frame. But mostly, he just luxuriated in the absolute silence that came from his soul. It was so quiet. Even when he flew high above the city, it couldn''t compare to this... peace. He''d forgotten what it felt like to not hear every soul, and it was wonderful. The shower was even better. Or close to it. He couldn''t decide. Scalding water pounded him from every direction while steam filled the room with thick fog. He wasn''t even sure how long he stayed there... When he finally emerged, his clothes were gone from the bathroom floor... and folded on the bed in the other room. Walter had not only snuck his clothes out without Stanley noticing, but he''d also repaired the damage in the suit, mainly the cut from those blades... Probably cleaned it too. Which was good since Stanley had been wearing it for at least a week straight. Walter knocked on the door the moment Stanley finished dressing, and he entered with two silver trays, both heaped with something steaming... Whatever it was, Caffeine got really excited and did his best to trip Walter on the way to the table as he pawed at the man''s legs. The... seafood, whatever it was, was delicious. Stanley didn''t question it. He didn''t need to know what weird creature the food came from. The real problem ruining his meal turned out to be Walter, when the guy just hovered behind him while he ate. His soul was full of eagerness to satisfy¡ªtoo much eagerness as he brought more dishes, poured wine, and just... hovered. Stanley tried to put up with it but finally snapped. "Would you sit the fuck down already!?" The man didn''t jump in surprise at the sudden outburst, but his soul did. "You''re making me twitchy by just standing there." "Of course, s..." "Stop calling me sir!" Stanley demanded. "Of course..." Walter seemed to struggle but managed not to say it as he hesitantly and stiffly sat across the table from him. "Sorry, Walter." Stanley immediately felt shitty for the outburst and dropped his eyes to his plate of fish. "I''m sure you''re just doing what makes you comfortable, but can you just relax?" Stanley handed a small piece of fish to Caffeine in the chair next to him, the pug having once again swallowed his own dinner in one massive bite. "Of... Yes." Walter pulled another plate from out of nowhere, complete with another steaming fish. Caffeine immediately vanished from the chair, and Stanley felt him stop on the floor next to Walter. "You can feed him," Stanley reassured the other man. "Just give him small bites, or he''ll eat it all and beg for more regardless." "Yes..." Walter cut off what he''d been about to say. "I have noticed that," he said instead, a small smile on his lips. Stanley waited for the butler to take his first bite, then asked, "So, Walter, how are things here?" Walter''s face didn''t show it, but Stanley felt the flash of irritation in his soul. So he wasn''t above a little teasing, and the guy was just too... prim. He was practically asking for it. Of course, Walter didn''t rise to the provocation. He took his time chewing, swallowed, then took a sip of something bubbly that appeared in his hand before he finally sighed. "Things are... less than ideal." He stared thoughtfully at his plate. "I fear I may have made this place too comfortable, and now far too many do not wish to venture outside, an attitude that I am sure will not allow for their or our long-term survival." "Have you tried just shoving them out the front door?" Stanley gestured with his fork. "Maybe give them a stick or something? Plenty of zombies to fight." Walter smiled¡ªjust a little one. "I aspire to achieve results without resorting to such... tactics. For the moment at least." His smile widened. "Many amenities are in such short supply, after all." Stanley took a bite and said, with his mouth full, "You''ve got fish at least." Walter once again hid his disapproval at the bad table manners from showing on his face. "Indeed, and the catch has improved ever since someone discovered that a bit of bloody meat in the water makes a most excellent bait." Stanley suppressed a shiver at the flash of... something in the other man''s soul. "I bet it does..." He didn''t worry about what meat was being used. Maybe the cowards could still be useful? Plus, Adrian could regrow limbs... I wonder if that would be mana efficient? He didn''t think they were doing that¡ªat least Adrian wasn''t. Walter though... "I know you can teleport." He pointed his fork at Walter. "But you can''t leave the building?" "I paid a price by choosing as I have." Walter nodded stiffly. "I''d say it''s worth it," Stanley said. "As long as you''re not planning to travel, at least. Yeah, you can''t go out and fight alongside the others, but don''t underestimate the value of having a safe place to rest. Especially now..." Plus, he really liked his new room. Walter nodded but said nothing else. "I suspect you can see and likely hear everything in the building... or at least a lot of it?" Walter took a bite of fish and didn''t confirm or deny the question. Stanley chuckled but said nothing when Walter''s soul betrayed him. The rest of the meal was pleasant as they talked, and Stanley tried to guess the limits of Walter''s power. In the end, Stanley accepted the offer to stay and sleep in a safe place. Unfortunately, despite the quiet and despite having Walter on guard duty, Stanley did not sleep well. Formless and faceless things haunted his dreams. All gleaming teeth and flashing claws. He woke up screaming and sweating more than once. At one point, after waking up plastered to the ceiling with his bed thrown against one wall, someone knocked on the door. Stanley moved the bed back into place and settled into a chair. The sky outside was faintly lit by the coming dawn, and Stanley stared into it as he struggled to stop the trembling in his hands long enough to pet the pug, who was resting a sad face on his knee. "Come in," he finally called when he felt up to speaking. Walter stepped inside. He didn''t open the door to do it; he simply appeared. "Sir... Mister..." Stanley felt the flash of irritation and almost smiled at the butler. Almost smiled. "Stanley. I heard... Would you like some refreshments?" "Sure." Stanley ran his trembling hand over Caffeine''s head while the pug tried to lick his fingers. Walter set a silver tray on the small table next to him and started pouring tea into porcelain cups. Stanley sat quietly and listened to the clinking of the dishes while Walter worked. When he finished, the man set a cup and saucer down for Stanley and sat in the other chair with his own cup. Stanley added a handful of sugar cubes to his cup from the bowl on the tray, and they both sipped quietly for a while. "Would you like to talk about it?" Walter asked after Stanley pushed a sugar cube over the edge of the table for Caffeine. "No." "Of course... Stanley." They sat in silence and drank tea. When Stanley drained his cup, Walter poured another. He then added one sugar cube and poured in some milk. He slid it back to Stanley. "Try this." Milk in tea? Stanley shrugged and then had another thought. "How do you have milk?" Was it something weird? Like fish milk? Did fish make milk? Maybe magic fish? "While I can preserve some fresh supplies, I am afraid milk is a dwindling resource." Stanley nodded and took a sip. It tasted like tea. With milk in it. He offered it to Caffeine, and the pug slurped it up happily. Stanley felt only the barest hint of disapproval from Walter. "I understand," Stanley whispered. Walter remained quiet as Stanley ran his hands over Caffeine''s head and looked into his big brown eyes. Finally, Stanley spoke again, in a bare whisper, "I understand why people don''t want to go out there." He switched to scratching the pug''s ears. "It sneaks up on me sometimes... It shouldn''t. I fucking killed them!" His voice rose into a shout. "I fucking won!" Then it trailed off into a whisper. "I killed so many of them... So why?" Walter didn''t speak for a while. "I have not faced these creatures as you have. Only watched from afar. I have only felt the pain secondhand." Stanley wanted to scream at Walter that it wasn''t even close to the same... because it wasn''t. It was worse. He could feel the man''s soul; he could feel the pain and fear that rose from his memories. A different pain. It was a pain that Stanley knew all too well. It was the pain of seeing someone you love suffering, dying... and knowing there''s nothing you can do to save them. It didn''t get much worse than that. "There is a woman within the tower," Walter said hesitantly. "I do not know exactly what she did before this, but now she helps many here. She listens to them, talks to them, and they depart her company, feeling better, I believe." "A shrink?" Stanley laughed bitterly. "What is she going to tell me? I''m overreacting? They aren''t out to get me?" He pulled Caffeine into his lap and wrapped his arms around him. "I do not know," Walter responded quietly. "I do not know the way through this. All any of us can do is our best." They sat in silence and drank their tea as the sun rose outside. Until Walter finally stood. "Thank you, Stanley, for keeping this old man company. If you will excuse me, I must attend to my duties." He bowed. "I have said this before, but allow me to repeat myself. You are welcome anytime, day or night, for so long as you desire, in perpetuity. Not merely this room, either. You need not hide away for fear of disturbing a few souls." "Thanks..." "You are a warrior, Stanley. Wounded, yes, but a warrior all the same. I would count you among the finest men and women I have had the honor of serving beside. Know that I stand ready, so should you ever find yourself burdened with another of those creatures and are able, please invite it into my tower, and I shall do my utmost to relieve you of that burden." Stanley smiled, despite himself. There was just something comforting about Walter''s soul. A kind of strength. "I''ll definitely keep that in mind, Walter. Thanks." "Very good. Now, should you desire anything during your stay, simply ask, and I shall do my utmost to provide." "I... think I''m going to meditate." 116. Slow Down ~~~Lee~~~ "I still think..." Bradley stopped moving mid-sentence as a shimmering bubble appeared around him. Everyone else turned to look at Lee, where he stood just inside the doorway. "What? I''m leveling it," Lee protested, not quite able to hide his grin at the unmoving earth mage. He couldn''t help but be in a good mood after seeing that notification this morning. Debuff Downgraded: [Critical Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] -1 Twin-Soul Attribute per 12 days Stanley was definitely doing something, and whatever it was, it was working! Lee just wished he could figure out what Stanley was doing so he could help. He assumed it had to do with the soul awareness skill, not only because it kept leveling but also because the skill mentioned strengthening the soul... but how the hell was he supposed to actually do it? The bubble vanished, and Bradley continued speaking as if nothing had happened. "...that Mar is a better choice than..." he trailed off, likely noticing that everyone had abruptly turned their heads between one instant and the next. "Are you even listening, Lee?" "I am, and I agree with you. Mar with an army of invisible beasts sounds like a great idea," Lee said, then dropped a bigger bubble around the whole group standing outside. They didn''t stop moving this time. So far, the skill could only get close to stopping time inside the bubble if he kept it small. Like the size of a single human. The best part of the skill was that it didn''t seem to matter how many or how strong the people inside the effect were. Only the size of the bubble seemed to matter. Inside the bubble, Lee watched his friends move in slow motion as they noticed the slight shimmer surrounding them. Or maybe they noticed the wall guards moving faster. Either way, Alejandro drew his sword and lashed out at the shimmering wall of the bubble. Though lashed was a bit of a misnomer when he moved so slowly. Probably about half as slow as normal... Lee let the sword land on the bubble rather than remove it first. The hit sent a backlash into his brain, and Lee did everything he could to keep the bubble standing despite it. He failed. Using a rune weapon was cheating. Then he dropped a speed bubble instead of... It barely went up, and Alejandro turned into a blur as he attacked again. Another spike of pain stabbed through his head, and Lee wobbled on his feet. Skill Level Up: Temporal Shift Temporal Shift has reached the Level 10 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Temporal Shift Upgraded to Level 10 (Basic) Worth it. Working on it late into the night and more this morning had earned him some progress. His friends weren''t being dicks just because he was messing with their time. He''d asked them to do that because he really needed to level his new legendary skill, and pushing the limits had always been the best way to advance a skill. Temporal Shift was amazing but limited. Mar''s suggestion of trapping an army in slow time was still a distant dream for now. But if he kept leveling the skill... Lee carefully dropped a bubble around himself, going for precision this time because the bottom of his bubble had to squeeze through the almost non-existent gap between his shoes and the floor. This time he nailed it, bringing the world outside to a halt. The mana beyond his little bubble got far blurrier and harder to see, but it gave him time to think and to move. Slightly. He could move his arms, but trying to take a step would only speed up the destruction of the circular bubble when he stepped on it. Any attempt to pass through, from inside or out, placed pressure on the skill, and while Lee could actually step briefly on the inside slope, a rune weapon would just break it instantly. There was also a bit of a time limit, whichever way he shifted... time. From inside a bubble, it seemed to last ages, but to those outside, it would vary depending on if he sped or slowed himself. The other limit came from his mana. First, the total amount he could dump at once when casting the spell. Then there was the option to channel extra mana into the skill, but that came with an exponential increase in cost to keep it going the longer it stayed up. Lee could keep it going longer if he stuck it on someone else, but if he was inside the bubble, then he couldn''t get any extra mana from Three. Three was another issue entirely. That humming web surrounding him wasn''t static. The massively complex rune that was Three had a constant flow of energy moving through it, like electricity through a computer. That flowing energy was as deadly to his time bubbles as a rune weapon. It meant that he had to be very selective with the bubbles inside the building, whereas outside it didn''t matter if he slowed or sped a chunk of dirt along with whoever he stuck in a bubble. Unfortunately, he couldn''t place a bubble large enough to include the entire building. Never mind the fort... Lee canceled the speed bubble around himself and tested his max range again. It covered just over half of Three, which of course meant that it broke instantly. Still, it was slightly better than before. Not that maximum size mattered right now, since the effect would be negligible, but it was an easy indicator of progress he could compare to. It wasn''t all bad, even at this low level. If he met another D-grade like the last one, he could stick a slow bubble on it and buy them time. As long as the monster wasn''t too big, or it didn''t have pieces of Three inside it, or if he could nail it just right while inside the building. All good reasons to not only level the skill but also to practice catching moving targets. Especially inside Three. "But I only have ten soul!" Mar protested. Strangely, she was the loudest voice in opposition to her taking the legendary skill. Bradley was the most in favor of her taking it. "You''re on par with pretty much everyone else, so that doesn''t matter." Sure, he had a bias, but pretty much everyone else was on board with the idea. Especially when Saira rejected it outright. It was just too hard to pass up the chance of her getting invisible beasts, thanks to the skill sharing in the description. No one knew how the compatibility worked, but still. Invisible monsters on their side! Lee sped up his own time again and dipped into his soul storage. It was harder to focus when he had to remain standing, and while mana rushed out of him, but it was worth practicing. Not only would it work as a nearly instant mana dump if he needed to use a mana beam, at least from an outside perspective, but it would also give him time to craft runes on the fly mid battle. Not that he wanted to be doing that... but just in case. Thanks to having liquid mana, and a lot of it at that, Lee suspected he was pushing the skill further than it would otherwise be possible. Especially when the rising mana cost reached levels akin to unleashing an actual mana beam¡ªonly from his entire body at once. He kept it going until he was just shy of mana-burning himself. To test if the upgraded rank made a difference. Going all out put him at about ten seconds inside the bubble and less than one outside. It would be about the same if he slowed someone else. But in reverse. The size of the bubble still didn''t seem to change the cost or duration, just the maximum rate at which he could slow or speed them up. For now. Sure, he wouldn''t be able to push it right to the limit if he wanted to unleash a mana beam afterward, but if he had at least some time to spare, he could just keep recasting it. That would take more concentration and micromanagement, but he should be able to lock down a small enough target almost indefinitely. Assuming he didn''t miss... It was a tradeoff for his other plans of leveling the plate skill. But come on, this was a legendary skill. Plates were good, but this skill had more promise for when shit really mattered. Plus, he could still create plates inside the static bubbles... Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. "Mar," Lee said, interrupting the pointless arguing and holding up the golden shard. "I want you to learn the skill." "O... okay," Mar stammered. "Um... do you want me to swear an oath first? I was already going to..." She flickered in and out of sight, embarrassed. "It just felt so... awkward..." Alejandro laughed. "It is a little weird, but the extra mana makes up for it." "I... never really needed more mana..." Mar said meekly. "None of you have to swear an oath. I wouldn''t even accept them if it wasn''t for the mana... so it''s up to you, Mar. I trust you, with or without it." He tossed the shard to her. Mar panicked slightly as she caught the skill, then looked around at everyone while she flickered. "I want to... but... does it have to be in front of everyone?" Lee smiled, suddenly glad he''d never had to do this from her end. "No. We can do it privately." They broke up finally, and Bradley followed Mar inside, taking her hand as they followed Lee to his elevator room. Then Mar stammered her way through the oath with a few prompts from Bradley. You have accepted an Oath of Fealty from Mary Singh. "Huh..." Mar said. "That''s kind of weird." "What is?" "If I think about punching you, then I get a feeling about how much it goes against my oath..." That was only slightly alarming. "Um, do you think about punching me a lot?" She said nothing and only reached over to Lee and pinched his arm. It was immediately followed by a yelp from her. "Ow!" "Umm..." "Sorry!" Mar exclaimed, blushing furiously before she vanished. "I just wanted to see..." Bradley pinched Lee, too, then grunted. "Huh." "Seriously, guys?" "I think it just gives back the pain," Bradley said while rubbing his arm in the same spot he''d pinched Lee. "Though I think it would be worse if we were in danger... or if I really wanted to hurt you... there''s this feeling..." "It''s weird," Mar said. "I don''t like it. It feels like something''s watching me... inside my head." "I can release you from the..." "No, it''s fine! I''ll get used to it!" "Either way," Lee said. "Let''s see what the skill does!" She didn''t look ready, and her soul was nervous as she stared at the shard in her hand. "Are you sure you want me to learn it?" "Jackson was Alejandro''s other choice, but he said it was a long shot, and we don''t know if he''s coming back after that last invasion... You''re it." Mar stared at it for a long moment. Then her gaze became unfocused, and the shard dissolved into her skin. She finally blinked and looked up. "Um, I think it worked? Now I just need to find a beast." "Alejandro has lists of lairs and monsters," Bradley said. "We can check it and see if anything sounds more compatible with invisibility. But... please, no snakes?" "Aww, but I wanted a snake, and I heard there was another giant one out by..." Mar was just teasing him, but Bradley''s abrupt spike of panic was very real when he gasped, "There is!?" She noticed and abandoned the joke, squeezing his arm. "I was kidding!" "Oh... okay. I..." "It''s okay," Mar said, rubbing his arm gently. "No snakes. Got it." She hid the smile from her face, but Lee could feel it in her soul when she said, "What about one of those mouth creatures from..." Bradley groaned. "You hated those just as much as I did." "Does it say how many beasts you can tame?" Lee asked, trying to diffuse the escalating teenage hormones. Her eyes unfocused. "No... but I think I''ll know more once I get one. I think it will depend on how strong I am versus how strong each bonded beast is..." Lee left them there, making awkward, lovey eyes at each other, and practiced catching himself in time bubbles as he walked through the garage. The walls Bradley had put up weren''t a problem if they got inside, but the pillars were all Three, so he had to avoid those. He didn''t like how his normally overpowered Mana Mind vision went so blurry while in a bubble. It felt like he was blinding himself. Like something might sneak up on him. The idea was ridiculous. Not only could he still see enough to recognize people, but time practically stopped out there... So yeah, a stupid worry. Still bothered him. So he went upstairs and used it on the kids during their playtime. It was good practice for hitting moving targets, and most of them thought it was hilarious to see everyone outside the bubble go zipping around when he slowed them down for a second. Speeding them up didn''t really work if they were flying, since they''d just crash into the side of the bubble instantly. He practiced larger bubbles as well. Big enough to fill the width of the courtyard, if not the length. The time alteration was much less, but the kids still made a game of not crashing into the shimmering walls. Luckily, the discs still functioned like normal, even inside the bubbles. Unluckily, Lee''s soul didn''t stop broadcasting while he was inside one. It actually got louder. Probably because he was putting out ten seconds of... himself in only one second. Lee spent most of the time inside his apartment and used Mana Mind to spot the children. There were only a few crashes because of his meddling... primarily when the frozen rider became abruptly unfrozen and resumed the same speed they''d had before he trapped them. It was fine. The kids were tough. Gabriel came knocking before they had to go back to class, and he came with the same question he had every day. "Can you teach me yet!?" "Not yet," Lee said, as usual. "I''m getting closer." It was good motivation to not focus too exclusively on his fun new toy and keep working on the runes. Aside from the ever present threat of invasion and death, of course. Alejandro had put out a call for people to bring in any of the older runes they were still carrying around. There were a lot of runes in the fort, and Lee didn''t want to take them back at random. Some of his older, less efficient designs had survived longer than they probably should have, thanks to Three recharging any rune that entered the building. Now it was time to upgrade and consolidate. Some of the old armor had used a rune for each piece of metal, whereas now he could do the same with a single rune. Stuff like that. Plus, some of May''s original creations had required extra soul from his Soul Infusion skill to make up for the weaker material... if they upgraded, Lee could use less soul to do the same or more. He went back downstairs when Wilson finally showed up. The experience with Nicholas the day before had solved the issue of how to have meetings without bombarding others with his soul. Plus, they still needed to talk about how to deal with the mystery oaths... so they met in a doorway. "As the first issue on the agenda," Wilson said. "I have been working to resolve the situation since you first informed me, and I am pleased to report that I have obtained oaths of fealty from the entire Guard. So we don''t have to worry about..." "Really? What''s your buff give them?" Wilson frowned at the interruption, and his soul felt... prickly. "They are aware of your more... substantial offer. However, I did not wish to press the issue." "Relax; I was just curious. I''m not complaining... as long as we''re not forcing people to swear." "I agree..." Wilson hesitated, his soul turning nervous. "Unfortunately, while I was bringing things under control, there have been some... departures from the Guard''s ranks." "Departures? Because they didn''t want to swear? Or because they couldn''t?" "The more concerning issue," Wilson said. "Is that the departures included two of my bodyguards, both of whom I trusted with my life." Lee eyed the two bodyguards with Wilson. He was slightly ashamed to realize he didn''t remember if they were the same people from before. All he knew was that they were residents. "You think someone got to them? Did they say anything?" "They left in the night. Last night, I believe, and including them, we have lost eight total from the wall." "You think all of them had the secret oath?" "I think it is likely," Wilson said with a nod. "Why else would they flee in the night?" "But they left. That''s good, right?" "Perhaps." "You think one of them was the person getting the oaths? Or could they still be in the fort?" "I would discount nothing. Who knows what magic is out there that we''ve never heard of?" "How are the rest of our people? Have you brought up the oaths? Make sure you tell them..." "I have spread word of the... buff they will receive, and that it is entirely voluntary. I suspect some will come to you, but many more are reluctant. It will be difficult to... claim everyone." Lee rubbed his face blearily at the thought of trying to convince the masses to do... well, anything. He wouldn''t force anyone to swear, but he would accept the oaths if they wanted to. Knowing he could trust the sworn people was a nice perk, but he felt that doubling their mana was the real gain to be had. If they didn''t care about the mana, though... "It''s fine. You got the guards covered, and I think most of the hunters have already signed on with me for the extra mana. That leaves us in a great position overall. We just keep an eye out for anything sketchy, and we should be good. Hopefully whoever was doing that left with the others..." "Yes, Commander. I do believe the future is looking brighter by the day," Wilson said with a smile. "Um..." Lee shut his mouth. He hadn''t told Wilson about the D-grade yet, and he wasn''t sure if he should. The guy seemed happy right now, and it wasn''t like Wilson was going to be facing off with the next one... so did he need to worry? Probably not. "Yeah. It''s good." "Moving on to the next item on the agenda. Our current tax rate may be insufficient for..." Lee sighed and settled in for the long haul, trying not to let his mind wander to potential rune combinations while Wilson droned. He resisted the temptation to drop slowing bubbles on Wilson because it would need to include the two guards standing beside his chair. That would make it just weak enough that Wilson would notice... plus it would only make this whole process take longer. Perhaps a slowing bubble on himself? If he sat on a hover plate and curled up slightly, then he could make the bubble even smaller. And potentially slower. He did need to keep leveling the skill... 117. Touch Of Darkness ~~~Lee~~~ Lee''s relief at escaping from Wilson was short-lived because Martin was waiting for him upstairs. A perfect ambush that Lee walked right into. Willingly. "Ah, yes. You''re right on time, Lee. Come along." "Okay..." Lee trudged after him, but did so while sticking the sword master in a slowing bubble. It was tricky to catch him while he was walking, but practice makes perfect. Lee stayed behind him, waiting to see if the man would notice... Martin continued without missing a step when time resumed for him. But he smiled. "Thank you, Lee. Feeling it for myself was most enlightening." What followed was a grueling torture session where Martin chased Lee around the entire courtyard and forced him to use every single skill at his disposal. That included a Mana Beam, which Lee fired into the sky to take down some kind of sword ghost that kept sending magic blades after him. He was drenched in sweat and gasping for breath when Martin finally stopped. It was worth it. Training Complete. +10 All Base Attributes Lee ignored the boos from the children, who had to stop throwing things at him, and bowed to Martin, still panting heavily. "Th... thank... you... for... the... instruction." Martin bowed back, and the bastard wasn''t even sweating. "Thank you for allowing this one to share his knowledge." Lee grabbed a shower while going over the other gains he''d made, aside from the attributes. Two class levels, four rune creation levels, five levels in Temporal Shift, one in soul storage, and one in soul infusion. That sadistic monster was a goddamn genius. Soul Infusion has reached the Level 25 Threshold. Upgrade Available. No Evolution Available. Soul Infusion upgrading to Level 25 (Intermediate) Lee felt the shift from the skill reaching the new rank. Nothing massive, but it had definitely just increased what he''d be able to do with weaker materials. Of course, that would require more soul and, thereby, more of his total rune capacity, but it was still good. It might even be enough to make an invisibility rune on one of his own plates... Maria helped ease the aches after that. Not with healing, but with a home-cooked family dinner. The family had hosted regular sleepovers and the like, a way to help those children and families who''d lost more than most. Tonight was the rare night where it was just them. Lee sat quietly while Maria said grace. Following which, he ate quietly and just enjoyed the rambunctious retellings of both children''s days, including tales of how they''d nailed him more than once during his training session. The glee and joy on their faces fed a warm glow in Lee''s chest as he watched their little faces light up with each new exclamation and story. It fed him better than the food. It restored him in a way no healing or regeneration ever could. After dinner, they both insisted he join them for the bedtime story when Alejandro left to make his rounds. Lee wouldn''t have missed it for the world. He gave them and the story every bit of his attention. No rune theory. No time bubbles. Nothing. Maria was a masterful storyteller. Even if it was in Spanish, and even though Lee only caught a few words here and there. The children remained enthralled throughout all of it, eventually drifting slowly to sleep as the tale wound down. When it was over, he stood quietly beside Maria as she gazed down at the sleeping children. The love he felt in her soul as she watched them sleep was something Lee had never felt before meeting her. Or something he''d forgotten... It was the warmest blanket on a cold night. A strong hug from the person you trust most in the entire world. A light that dispelled even the darkest of shadows. "Thank you, Maria," he whispered. "Thank you for taking me into your family." He wasn''t sure who he would be without them. Who he might have turned into without their presence here. Their support. Their love. He wasn''t sure he would have survived. "I no take you in, Lee," Maria whispered back. "You only find your way home." Lee laughed once through his nose and swallowed back the lump in his throat. "I will keep them safe, Maria. No matter what. I''ll burn this entire world to the ground if I have..." Maria patted his arm and then pulled, leading him out of the room. "Burn world is last resort, yes? We try other things first." "Yes," Lee said. "A last resort." He went back to his apartment feeling energized and more alive than ever, but with a dark shadow looming in the back of his mind. All of their lives here teetered on the narrowest knife-edge. One slip, and it would all end. That was a horrifying vision. Lee dove into his soul storage and got back to work. He reorganized, dumping rune ideas that hadn''t panned out, shelving those that still showed promise, and filling as much of his storage as he could with charged runes. He would be ready. He saved ones he knew would work and work the way he needed them to. Lee made sure he was as ready as he could be. For anything. Then he got to work making new runes. The threats to his family only grew more deadly every day. He needed to ensure that his own power never lagged. Because that would cost him more than he was ever willing to pay. His Create Plate skill needed more levels, but Lee tested an idea he''d gotten while Martin tortured him earlier. He held the skill back as much as he could from actually creating the plate while forcing every drop of mana he could to condense into it. He hadn''t truly pushed the limits of the skill since his evolution, and he could work with far more mana now. During the process, Lee focused not on making the strongest plate he could but on his runes. He thought of how it felt when his soul and liquid mana fused into something. How the energies would bind with an item. How they would flow once there. The skill finally finished and left him with a palm-sized disc made of... something. It was white... The surface was silky smooth, and the entire thing felt far heavier than it looked like it should be. He tested it with some trepidation. Lee''s smile grew alongside the rune on his new plate. It worked! It was good enough for an invisibility rune. Good enough for more than that. He made a dozen more identical plates, then stuck modified runes of invisibility on a couple of them. They would use slightly less power since he needed them to cover a smaller area. On two more, he crafted a rune that would replicate the first, but instead of creating an area of invisibility, these would create a shield. A force field. They would burn out fast if anything tried to cross the boundary... too fast. But even a second might matter. Most of the kids couldn''t trigger runes, so he designed them to trigger automatically if they detected a surge of mana nearby. It would definitely trigger if they were too close to Lee when he fired off a Mana Beam, but it was the best he could do. They would have a shield that would pop up around them, while another would also hide them from sight. Hopefully, when they needed it most. He made two sets. Two small plates that could go on a belt... Lee froze when he saw a small form sit up abruptly in an apartment on the far side of Three. He could feel the fear radiating from the child through the soul-link and knew she was screaming... More eyes opened in the room she shared with half a dozen other kids. The terror rose fast and thick into the night. Including from the adult, who scrambled out of bed and sprinted into the room. Lee watched the silent drama play out in his Mana Mind as the parent... or guardian comforted the child, holding her in his arms and rocking gently. Lee felt the harsh fear dim and fade under the affection. But not completely. Not even when sleep took them once again... He watched over them the whole time. Then he looked at the plates he''d been making. It wasn''t enough. He couldn''t make enough of them. Even if he could make enough, it wouldn''t matter. These trinkets wouldn''t protect them from any real threat... He was overreacting. Three would protect the kids better than any rune. He had to count on the building. He could count on it. His runes would do more good if he made them for the adults. For the parents. For the people fighting back against the monsters that came creeping in the dark. Lee shifted time around himself and stared out at the frozen world as his fingers trembled and his eyes burned. He didn''t see his apartment; instead, he saw a nightmare of shadows and horror as it threatened everything Lee cared about. They''d beaten it. Martin had saved them. Saved everyone. It had been so close. Too close. Lee had been too weak. Three might not have been able to stop that thing fast enough... If Martin hadn''t been there... Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Time resumed its normal flow, and Lee sank to his butt on the floor, pulling a core from the table as he did so. Shadowstride (Epic) Alejandro had yet to find anyone with the shadow aspect. Lee wasn''t sure if it would matter if he had. What could one person do if another attack came from that darkness? I could do something. Lee stared at the core as he turned it over and over in his fingers. He didn''t know what it would turn into if he adapted it. The skill might change completely. Or it might still let him go into the shadows... He wasn''t sure which option terrified him more. His hand shook, and the core slipped free, tumbling to the floor. Lee looked at and through the core, his gaze seeing only the glowing crystal while his mind saw the shining tapestry of power that filled the floor. I wish you could learn this skill, Three. You would be able to... The core dissolved into the floor. What... He barely had time to comprehend what he''d just seen when Three... changed. For a single instant, Three became... darkness. A flash where every color became its opposite. Like a negative of a photo... ...the hell! As fast as it happened. It was over. No sound or vibration. Just that single instant of... something. Three? No one had even noticed, except maybe the man now frozen in the stairwell... It was Jackson. He''d come back after all. Terrible timing, man. Despite the fear he could feel coming from Jackson, the man eventually continued up the stairs, coming to a stop in front of Lee''s door and taking up his post. Lee just sat in silence as he digested what had happened. Three had learned a skill... that had to be what happened, right? What other explanation was there? Especially with that flash... He was equal parts relieved and terrified. Now he couldn''t learn the skill even if he wanted to. But the building had learned it... could Three drag everyone inside it into the dark now? Would it? Please don''t. More important than any of that, could Three always learn skills? What if he''d given Three the time skill? Or the arcane veil? Or even the beastmaster. Would the building have been able to use those? It was a long shot, but he had to try. Three, status? Nothing happened. Three still opened his front door on request... so that was working. Jackson flinched, but only slightly, as he turned. His eyes glowed in the dark like a cat''s as he said, "Lee? Thought you would be asleep..." "Jackson, I''m glad you came back. Do you have any skill shards on you?" Lee asked, ignoring the glowing eyes. The man stepped inside, frowning. "Any... skill? Um, no?" He hesitated. "Should I go ask..." Lee waved him off, forgetting about the darkness as he did so. "Don''t bother. It can wait." Jackson seemed to have no trouble seeing despite the darkness, and he nodded before turning away. "Okay. Well, I''ll be..." "Thank you," Lee said before the man could leave. "For showing up. And I don''t just mean tonight." "I..." Jackson sighed. "Hiding away won''t help anyone... not even me. Might as well die doing something useful." He was afraid, but almost... resigned to his fate. Lee pushed a floating disc toward the man. "Have a seat." Jackson glanced back at the open door. "I should really..." "You can guard me just as well in here, right? Or... hey, if you want to be alone, feel free to take that seat with you. No reason you have to stand there all night." "I mean, we''re not supposed to sit down on the job..." "You know you''re only here because Alejandro is overly paranoid, right? Not only are we inside Three, but I can probably see anything coming before you do... and probably kill it easier than you... Um, no offense?" Jackson laughed, a spark of humor lighting up in his rather gloomy soul as he plopped onto the floating disc. "We''ve all mostly figured that part out. The killing part, that is. As for paranoia... you do seem to attract just a bit more attention from the monsters than the rest of us." "Fair. But I''m still standing, and all those monsters aren''t." Though he hadn''t survived without help... a rather large amount of help at times. Then he had to ask the question burning a hole in his mind. "Are you immortal?" Jackson laughed again, but this time there was no mirth in the sound or his soul. It trailed off into a frown. "Alejandro didn''t tell you?" "He said you were a good man. Trustworthy. And hard to kill, but that the details were yours to keep or share." "I''m a good..." Jackson trailed off, a jumble of emotions swirling through him. "He saved my life, you know? During the hidden invasion." His voice took on an almost wistful tone as he murmured, "It would have been a peaceful ending..." "Wait, are you really an immortal!? Like you''ve been alive for thousands of years, and now you''re just hoping to finally die?" "Seriously?" Jackson stared at him like he was an idiot. Lee looked at the floor, feeling oddly... disappointed. "What? It would have been really cool... and a little sad, I guess." "I don''t want to die," Jackson said, and Lee''s head popped up. "I''m only twenty-five years old! Dude, you actually thought..." "Come on! The world is magic! Who''s to say what''s possible anymore?" Jackson rolled his eyes. "You really are special... and no, I have a class called undying child with a single class skill. If I''m going to die, then I am instead restored to perfect health." "I''m not that special... Hey!" He glared at Jackson, but his heart wasn''t in it. "That sounds kind of immortal to..." "It has limited charges," Jackson said, cutting him off. "I''m not immortal." "Well... that''s still pretty fucking awesome!" Jackson slumped in his seat. "Yeah. Awesome." Lee felt the sensations in Jackson''s soul. A lot of the same feelings he''d had himself more than once. Then he remembered Jackson''s head tumbling through the air... "Oh. How many times... have you... not died?" "I don''t even know anymore," Jackson whispered. "But I remember them all." "Shit," Lee said. "I doubt it helps... but I''ve been... I think I might have died once. I still see that darkness sometimes... dragging me down into the void... It was so cold." Lee''s voice was a whisper when he trailed off, and Jackson shivered. Lee shook himself and stood up, trying to banish the memory as he started pacing. "Sorry, I keep forgetting my soul is broadcasting like that. You don''t have to stay in here. The door will block..." "I''m fine," Jackson said, still sitting, but his head following Lee''s figure back and forth. "Was that from... Mexico?" "Were you around back then?" Lee asked. "No, but I heard the stories," Jackson said. "About Mexico... and... your soul... attack?" "You accepted the soul-link. Thanks for that, by the way." Jackson''s soul felt... bleak as he stared off into space. "I was curious if my skill would still... or if it would kill me... once and for all." "Oh. I don''t recommend actually dying," Lee said. "Whatever happened to me... It sucked so much ass." "I noticed," Jackson whispered. "I''ve never felt that before. My skill... I guess it restores me before that point... but it still hurts." Jackson placed a hand on his armor-covered stomach. "That first night... I got eaten alive by coyotes." "Oof," Lee said. "I got eaten and slightly digested by a giant frog." "Coyotes ripped out my guts and ate them." "Bradley got eaten by a snake." "Four times." "I got blown up." "Eaten. Alive. Four times." "I had a skeleton inside my soul." Jackson stared at him. "What? I thought we were competing for who has the most traumatic experiences?" "A skeleton in your soul? I''ve heard some whispers about a skeleton, but no one will tell me anything. They all get this haunted look..." "Oh, it was trying to catch my brother. Cut a hole in our soul. It got worse when my brother then used our soul to kill the thing. Then a bunch of people here helped me patch the hole. With the soul-link." Jackson tilted his head and just stared for a bit. "Have I... met your brother?" "Nah," Lee said, somewhat enjoying the absolute confusion coming from Jackson''s soul. It was better than the depression. He pointed. "Stanley is way off that way somewhere." There were a few more seconds of confusion as Jackson stared at him. "Your brother''s name is Stanley?" "Yep." "Your name is Lee." "Yep." "Your parents named one kid Lee and another Stanley." "We''re twins!" Jackson dragged both hands slowly over his face. "Didn''t someone mention brain damage after you got blown up?" "Yeah, but I''m all better now." "Are you sure?" "Ummm..." Lee tilted his head. "Probably? I even got a built in helmet out of the deal!" Jackson finally smiled. Then he chuckled and shook his head. "What the hell happened to us? How is this reality now?" "Hey! I almost forgot! I also got turned into an old man when I created Three!" Jackson scoffed. "Yeah, but you got a magic building out of it, so that doesn''t count." Lee had to agree. "Yeah, Three is pretty awesome." "I''m guessing you have the same naming sense as your parents?" "You''re just jealous that I have a magic building and you don''t," Lee said with a grin. The smile faded as a terrible thought occurred to him. "You said your immortality is a skill? Not your class?" "It''s my only class skill. I just get more charges at rank up... so far." "You only have one skill!?" "One class skill. I also have a night vision skill... why are you looking at me like that?" Lee looked away. "Oh, nothing! I mean... sorry. I just briefly contemplated the value of murdering you for the skill shard... That''s all." Jackson laughed, drawing Lee''s gaze back. "It won''t work. You would need the class, too." "Hey, I only... considered it. But... what''s the skill? If you don''t mind me asking?" "Like I said, if I''m going to die, then it restores me. I''m up to eight charges every twenty-four hours now, but the best part was the last rank up. Now I can choose to trigger the skill instead of waiting to die." He got that haunted look again. "Really wish I''d had that option from the beginning..." Lee didn''t press for details. He could imagine... "So every day you have eight instant full heals? That''s still awesome!" "Awesome enough to kill me for it?" "I mean... it''s tempting, sure... really tempting. But without a guarantee of getting it... I''d say it''s better to give you more skills! You could be an absolute powerhouse! So... why don''t you have more skills?" Jackson grimaced. "Because I don''t have mana." "I can see it..." "Any skill I adapt burns my life instead of mana." "But you said you had night vision?" "Yeah, and it burns my eyes. Just so happens that the regeneration buff from your building makes up for the damage." "Oh... that is fantastic!" Jackson finally stood up, his soul suddenly nervous for some reason. "It... it is?" "Yes! You might be the key to figuring out healing runes!" 118. That Escalated Quickly ~~~Stanley~~~ Walter''s soul-proof room was fantastic. Not only did it silence everyone outside, but it didn''t block Stanley from feeling Caffeine when the pug went exploring. Stanley only knew a handful of the people living in this tower, but he also knew that Walter was likely the most powerful person inside. That knowledge helped when he felt Caffeine wandering further down through the structure. Not that anyone here could threaten the beast lord... He suspected Walter of having a domain similar to his own, if on a much larger scale. The guy could teleport at will inside the building, and could likely see everything happening inside as well. The biggest clue to that theory was when a tray of food appeared in the room with no sign of Walter entering, then vanished after he''d eaten. Plus, he could feel Walter''s soul in the room with him. Not when the food arrived, but constantly. It was extremely faint and not really enough to notice with Soul Awareness. Stanley only spotted it when meditating. Even then, only from his domain. There was a slight pressure pushing back against his own, most noticeable when he got near the walls and his domain could compare inside and outside at the same time. Walter was keeping out the miasma, something else Stanley learned to sense during the day he spent locked in the room. Well, not locked. Confined. Blissfully confined away from all the people. He got small doses whenever Caffeine left or came back, and the door would swing open to allow him passage. Walter was looking out. Or he didn''t want Caffeine to demolish the door like he had when Stanley woke up here the first time. His second night in the luxury suite went much smoother. There was no waking up on the ceiling, and it didn''t look like he''d smashed anything in his sleep. There had been some bad dreams, but nothing he remembered beyond vague unpleasantness. Caffeine came back a couple of hours after breakfast. It was good timing, since Stanley''s soul was getting extra achy again... Which meant it was time for a break. Maybe some more core hunting. Or he could check in with Nate. Who might be wondering where he''d gone... Fuck it. Nate could see the future. He could use his bullshit intuition if he was worried. Though... would he even be worried? Maybe only worried that his strongest weapon was missing? Yeah, probably that. Stanley was halfway to the balcony when he remembered the plan to use Princess to talk with Caffeine... Adrian wasn''t in his room anymore. It felt like the duo was down on the ground floor. With all the other people... Next time, then. It was easier to postpone for now. Plus, he was feeling a strange dread at the thought of the... chat. Later. Debuff Resisted: [Miasma] Instead, he flew away. Caffeine would enjoy some more chicken. Something they didn''t have at the tower. He could also try bringing one back later. Again. He headed that way, but stopped off at the skyscraper lairs in his path, repeating his tactic from a couple of days ago, where he would kill a handful and move on. One such lair had the opposite reaction to his assault. Rather than attacking en masse, the monsters all ran away after he killed the first one. They were about the same size as Caffeine, and all looked like beetles covered with white porcelain... Sounded like it too, as they clinked up the stairs. Cowards. So he followed them up to the next floor, and... The queen has surrendered. Lair defeated. Stanley frowned as the stairwell door slammed in his face, and he watched every monster on the second floor continue draining upward to the third. Even with the closed door, they still ran. Had he been here before? He drifted back down and found the core just inside the main entrance. Shattering Touch (Rare) Bad vibrations. User creates a powerful vibration in a chosen limb. User may pass the vibration on with a touch. Intensity of vibration is dependent on skill level and durability of the user''s limb to withstand the initial activation. ... It was an interesting skill. Though more so in how it might change if he adapted it. Not that he would. It wasn''t worth wasting a percentage point of adaptability. Taking the skill back to Nate''s, though... or maybe the tower. He could probably trade it for more attributes than he''d get from destroying the skill. Sure, Nate would probably give him cores regardless, but if Stanley wanted any of these weaklings to actually amount to anything... Before doing either option, Stanley flew up the outside of the skyscraper-turned-lair until he reached the top. There, he sent his mental touch through the walls while he listened to the queen''s soul. She didn''t feel that smart, but she also knew he was there and was already scrambling toward the far side of the building when he touched her. Had she felt his soul? That was the most likely explanation. Stanley didn''t kill her. He definitely had a grudge against lair queens that got too smart, but this was different. Unlike the queens that tried to get fancy and do their best to kill him, this one was simply smart enough to give up at the get go. He liked that. It reminded him of the bat queen. Sure, this weird beetle thing wasn''t hunting the undead, but it also didn''t even try to fight him. It feared him. As it should. "Good job, bug. Though I''d have preferred if you gave me at least a few floors'' worth of cores before bailing..." He continued killing his way toward the green zone in the distance. His route didn''t take him past many more skyscrapers; it was all warehouses and suburbia. Then that gave way to the countryside, and the lairs thinned out more, with most going underground. Stanley dropped low at the edge of the green zone, and from up close, he could see that the line was not as stark as it looked from the sky. In fact, it looked like the green was expanding into and pushing back the corruption. Or it was going the other way... It was hard to tell. Zeke was supposed to be getting stronger, so it should theoretically be expanding... They weren''t quite at the base yet when Caffeine suddenly perked up. Stanley followed his gaze and saw the wolf pack lounging in a field. Well, he saw the souls. But they looked familiar. "Go ahead, Caff. You wanna play?" Caffeine wagged his tail, licked Stanley''s nose, then kicked him sideways across the sky when he launched toward the wolves. Stanley waited until the chasing started before continuing toward the base. He flew into a rather disappointing scene when he arrived. They were mock fighting again, and Stanley really hoped they were just afraid to kill each other. That was the only excuse for the pathetic sight before him. No one was even getting hurt as wooden spears and swords clacked uselessly against each other. It wasn''t like any injury would last. Not with Zeke''s aura bathing the entire battleground. Most everyone in attendance turned on Stanley''s approach, probably feeling his soul. Including Nate. His soul felt... relieved? Was it because he''d spent a day away? Didn''t Nate have his intuition to tell him everything was fine? "Good to see you... where''s the little guy?" Stanley could feel Caffeine in the back of his mind. The pug was having a blast... It felt good. "He''s playing with the wolves. I''m sure he''ll remember the chicken soon enough and come rampaging back." "Rampaging..." Nate chuckled. "That''s a good description." Zeke was making his way over, and Stanley could feel the soothing aura increase with each of his steps. Was it too soothing? Is that why everyone fought so lazily? The sensation also gave him an idea he wanted to test. Cut Nate felt it coming. Stanley heard his soul flinch at the same instant... but the man didn''t move until after a line split open in the flesh of his arm. Then he only looked at the wound and frowned. "That was... different. Any particular reason for it?" "It''s healing," Stanley said while watching the flesh knit back together in real time. "Healing fast." "Zeke is pretty great like that. I assumed you were aware." "Exactly. So why the fuck don''t you just send all these people into a lair with Zeke''s..." He had another thought and frowned. "Wait... does his aura heal the monsters?" Nate opened his mouth, but Stanley shook his head, cutting him off. "It doesn''t even matter if he does. The fighting would be way better training than... whatever you''re doing here. This is just sad. They aren''t even hurting each other!" "I can do it!" Zeke exclaimed. "I can heal people in the lairs!" He wasn''t the only one who''d overheard the exchange, and muttering broke out among the wannabe combatants. "That might be a bit overkill for beginners," Nate whined. "These people are just getting started. They don''t have the skills..." Stanley wasn''t sure he believed it. How could anyone not have fought until now? How were they even still alive? Or had they cowered behind someone strong all this time? It was pathetic! If they were so fucking lazy, then they didn''t even deserve a... Nate was staring at him with almost the same pathetic emotions as Zeke, though he did have a much healthier amount of fear than the purifier kid. Nate knew what was out there. He had saved Zeke... by sacrificing Stanley. Stanley closed his eyes. It wasn''t like that. Nate was on his side... Besides, without Zeke, what would this place look like? Would they all be turning into zombies? Would there be chickens? Would the wolves still play with Caffeine? Or would they be just more rotten monsters that wanted to eat him? "Fine," Stanley said, exasperated and only a little angry. "I''ll help you out." He pulled out the skill shard he''d just collected. "Whoever fights the hardest will get first dibs on this skill." He pulled some small rocks from the ground and set them hovering above his hand. After a thought, he focused on the pebbles. Light They started glowing with white light. "There, that''ll make them easier to see coming." He had another thought. "You can heal yourself, right, Zeke?" "I... yes." "Good." Stanley threw a pebble, grazing Zeke''s arm with what looked like a streak of light. Zeke clapped a hand over the bloody gash. "Ouch!" "Either avoid the rocks or heal yourself after..." "Hey, Stanley," Nate cut in. "How about we show people what a real fight looks like first? Give ''em a glimpse of what they can look forward to if they put in the effort." "That''s what I''m doing." Stanley said. Nate frowned. "I was thinking of a little match between me and you? A friendly, nonlethal one." Stanley stared at the man. "Seriously? You and what army?" "Hey, I get that I''ve lagged behind, but I''m not powerless." Stolen novel; please report. "Fine." Stanley shrugged. "Show me." Maybe it would motivate the others to fight harder if they knew how pathetic they were? He waited for Nate to start glowing as the man activated numerous skills in a row. Then Nate launched toward him with an explosion of dirt beneath his feet. Stop Nate slowed down considerably but didn''t actually stop. Stanley glared at him. This man had manipulated him. Used him. Not that he was holding a grudge... but he wanted to add a touch more anger to increase his power. STOP He looked away from the man, who was now frozen in midair. "Anyone else want to try?" Most of them looked confused as they glanced back and forth between him and Nate. So he drifted aside from Nate''s previous trajectory and let go of the man. Nate shot past him, his eyes locking on and tracking Stanley''s new position. He jumped again, and Stanley slapped him into the ground. Nate bounced violently up from the crater his body had left in the dirt, his gaze already tracking as he kicked off awkwardly... Stanley slapped him back into the ground, and this time Nate caught himself by punching the ground. Which also launched him in Stanley''s direction. Another slap sent him right back down, and this time, Nate got a leg beneath himself. He used it to kick himself off to the side, then kicked again, reversing direction to charge toward Stanley. He had some skill, and it was almost impressive how he kept coming on... but it was all pointless when he was too weak to win. Stanley smacked Nate headfirst back into the dirt, and this time, he didn''t let him punch the ground. Cut Nate landed on his face when his arm went flying, and Stanley didn''t let up, swatting the fighter repeatedly into the dirt until it turned into a muddy red puddle. Stop Nate hung in the air, frozen, his body coated in dirt and blood, and one of his arms ending near the shoulder. Even the blood stopped dripping. "Anyone else?" James actually took his shot. Pointlessly. Debuff Resisted: [Sapping Drain] Stanley didn''t attack him. He didn''t want to accidentally kill the guy... or his friends. He bent away the lasers from Olivia, deflected Silas'' crystal spears, and refused to budge when Serenity''s fire whip latched onto his arm. Instead, he attacked the only other person who wasn''t a total coward. A glowing rock clipped Zeke in the ankle as he sprinted toward Nate, and the healer went down with a yelp of pain. Stanley gave Zeke a moment to scramble up while he yelled at all the frozen fighters. "Your strongest fighter is in trouble! Are you going to save him or let the healer face the threat alone!? If he dies, then all of you will go down with him! Fucking fight or die!" Two out of a dozen people ran to support Zeke... No wonder Nate didn''t want to let Zeke go out there. These fucking cowards would leave him to die at the first sign of trouble! Stanley threw rocks at all of them but aimed for the shields of the two who weren''t totally useless. They staggered under the impact but kept running toward Zeke. The others just screamed and cried uselessly as he pelted their flesh. "Fucking fight, or I''ll fucking kill you!" None of them even tried to move. Zeke had reached Nate now, and his hands glowed like the sun as they stretched up to touch the bloodied, frozen man. Stanley''s next rock came in slow enough for the weaklings to see, and one of them lifted a shield to protect Zeke''s head. That let the second rock strike the healer''s knee with a crunching impact. Zeke went down with a shriek of pain as the leg that had been holding him up bent the wrong way... It folded beneath him, and Zeke pulled off a neat trick by kicking himself in the stomach while landing facedown in the mud. It looked bad. Bad enough that it probably would have triggered some nausea in Stanley. At least, it would have before he saw and felt so many worse things in the new nightmare that was their reality. It was barely a flesh wound, and Zeke had already regrown half of Nate''s arm in a few seconds. This was nothing. Stanley gave him a couple of seconds, throwing more rocks at low enough speed to let the two men guarding him have a chance to defend. Which they did. Mostly. Zeke wasted the opportunity. He just laid there and cried... and after he''d been so eager to go into the lairs... pathetic. He was no better than the cowards letting him die. "Heal yourself, Zeke!" Stanley shouted as he smashed aside a crystalline dome that appeared over the huddled group. Then he punted Serenity back when she tried to sprint into reach of the downed healer. "Stop fucking crying and heal yourself, or you''re going to die!" Another rock smashed into his hand, which was only clutching uselessly at the mud. "Get the fuck up! I thought you were ready! I thought you wanted to fight!" Nate was vibrating in his psionic prison, trying to break free. Stanley fed more rage into his mind and forced the vibration to a grinding halt. Eve chose that moment to appear from inside the base, glowing silver beams leading the charge as she launched from atop the makeshift wall and threw herself bodily at him. "Get the fuck away from him, you fucking psycho!" Stanley took the hits with a grin. A surprising number of which burned holes into his face, while the rest only bruised him beneath the suit. She, at least, wasn''t a coward. If only she wasn''t so pathetically weak! Even with a cannon firing from each shoulder and more beams zipping out from gauntlets around her wrists, it was all too weak. He slapped her out of the air and down into the mud with her precious brother. "Eve is down, Zeke! Are you going to let her die because it hurts!?" Zeke only sobbed uselessly while his sister scrambled closer through the mud, her shoulder cannons firing non-stop. She didn''t let the terror stop her as she screamed and lifted a gauntlet... Cut Stanley cut it off along with her lower arm, and she lifted the other gauntlet without hesitation, silver beams lancing out for his face. He liked it. She had the fire and drive to survive. She might even have had what it takes to stand up to him if she hadn''t wasted all her time coddling her brother... coddling to the point of complete uselessness. He snapped her other arm at the elbow to point the gauntlet down at Zeke, and it stopped firing instantly. Zeke was looking her way. He had to see what was happening to his sister. "She''s dying, Zeke! The monsters are ripping her apart and eating her alive because you let a little pain stop you!" Stanley reached for Zeke''s leg. Maybe he needed a fresh jolt to snap out of... Nate blazed with power and abruptly broke free of Stanley''s hold. He kicked off the ground, shooting closer as he screamed useless words. It was always more useless words instead of action. Maybe if he had no limbs, he would finally understand how... Caffeine appeared before Stanley with a boom of roaring wind. Their noses touched, and his big brown eyes filled Stanley''s vision while a deafening whine drowned out all other sounds. Silence fell as the whine trailed off, and Stanley stared in frozen shock at what he was feeling from the pug. Caffeine was afraid... No... I... Stanley''s comfortable rage drained away into horror as he drifted back from that gaze and as souls bombarded him from every direction. So much fear... But... they were right to be afraid... right? They needed the fear! Nate was already rolling Zeke over and straightening his broken leg with gentle hands. Eve was beside him, her soul full of terror and hatred as she alternated between looking on helplessly and glaring at Stanley. All while one of her arms was missing at the elbow and the other was dangling uselessly. Hundreds of souls echoed similar sentiments... but Stanley couldn''t see them past the pug. He couldn''t see anything past Caffeine. Past the fear and worry in those big brown eyes... those judgmental eyes... those stabbing, burning eyes. They needed the fear... didn''t they? Zeke cried with great sobs from behind Caffeine, and Stanley realized he wasn''t a brave warrior. He wasn''t even a man. He was just a boy... scared and alone. A child who was terrified of the monster in the dark. Terrified of me... Stanley''s whole body shook as he opened his mouth to say... something. Anything. Nothing. He fled from those eyes and from the monster he saw reflected in them. Stanley didn''t try to block the wind as it tore at his flesh. He wanted it to hurt him. He wanted the pain. Anything would feel better than the crushing feeling in his chest... It wasn''t enough. He crashed down onto a shambling zombie, and his fist punched through its head with a wonderful sting of breaking bones¡ªthe zombie''s and his own. The surrounding zombies turned as one, and Stanley threw himself at them as they charged. Fists flew. Claws clawed. And teeth bit. Stanley caved in skull after skull, ignoring the notifications and only relishing the pain in his hands. Until the last zombie reached him... a small zombie. Barely corrupted, with far too much of its former innocent life showing through to the surface. Showing through the blank, mindless, and hungry face. Stanley stood frozen as it clawed its way up his body, the tiny mouth full of human teeth gnawing and failing to bite through his suit... The small zombie clawed and hauled itself up his unmoving form until it reached unprotected flesh. There, it took a bite out of his throat, ripping away a mouthful in a spray of blood. Debuff Resisted: [Corruption] Debuff Gained: [Bleeding] It swallowed with horrible little sounds of satisfaction... and Stanley''s vision blurred with tears as he put it out of his misery. Cut He flew away from the horror. Again. Not caring where he went so long as it was away. But fleeing wasn''t enough. He needed to fight something. Needed to hurt something. Something that deserved it. Like a tree that looked very familiar. The flashes of soul he''d barely glimpsed from the sky bloomed into full luminescence when Stanley landed beneath the branches, which immediately reached for him. Cut He took the tree turned worm apart where the trunk met the earth... and instead of bursting forth to attack him with relentless fury, the worm retreated. "No!" Stanley shouted at it, his power reaching into the ground. "Don''t run!" He latched onto the undulating mass and hauled it bodily from the earth''s embrace. It fought him, as it had before, pulling and digging as it tried to burrow deeper with tenacious strength. Stanley wasn''t the same person he''d been the last time they met, and he refused to let it go. He ripped into the ground around the worm and dug it out in massive scoops of flying dirt. He kept digging until he''d dragged the entire train-sized behemoth, flopping and squirming, from the ground. "Remember me!" he screamed at it. "You do, don''t you? Aren''t you going to eat me!? Aren''t you going to eat my dog!?" Cut Cut Cut The reminder of that event enraged him further, and Stanley cut pieces from the worm even as it repeatedly tried to burrow back into the ground. It didn''t help. All he could see were those big brown eyes staring at him full of fear... Then it got worse. Caffeine sprinted to a stop behind him, coming in with his trademark explosion of dirt and the remains of trees he hadn''t quite dodged. He whined then, the sound sorrowful and heartbreaking. CUT You have defeated a Subterranean King. Title upgraded... Stanley didn''t look toward Caffeine as chunks of meat settled into wet piles around him. "Go away, Caffeine. Go find a better human." He fled from the whining cry, and it chased him across the sky. Caffeine had put up with him through so much. He didn''t have to keep suffering. He could find a new Dearest Human... Zeke was a good one. Zeke would keep him happy. Or he could go back to the tower and live with Princess. Caffeine liked her. He''d be happy there. A giant rat scuttled across the street below, and Stanley dove on it, his fist punching through its back in an explosion of gore. More rats fled when he stood up from the mess and looked at them. Stanley didn''t let them go. He chased after and pounced on each of them, one after the other, his fists feeling a pleasant sting after each impact. He chased the last one into a building. You have entered a Lair: [Corrupted Warren] Perfect! Stanley stared back at all the beady eyes glaring his way and grinned maliciously. "Come at me!" They did, and he threw himself right back at them. ... Sometime later, Stanley punched repeatedly until his fist broke through a rat''s skull and into the soft flesh beneath. Then he pried the jaws open, dragging the teeth from his leg before hoisting the body up to block a ball of acid coming for his face. Burning drops speckled his hands and face, but most of them landed on the dead rat, dissolving through the corpse fast enough that he threw both halves toward the only remaining enemy. The elephant-sized rat ignored the projectiles and spun in place, its tail coming around like a snapping ship''s tether. Stanley caught the tail against his chest as the breath left his lungs and his ribs broke with a loud crunch. It drove him against the cavern wall, and Stanley still refused to let go as more things inside him broke. Instead, he swung down with a knife-edged hand and chopped off the tail. He spun with it as the rat squealed and whipped it across the face with its own tail, leaving a bloody furrow and destroying one of its eyes. The rat came on anyway, giant incisors plunging toward Stanley''s flesh like twin hammers coming to flatten him between them. Stanley kicked the rat in the nose, turning its head aside to crash into the wall behind him. Its clawed foot still landed, sinking foot-long talons into and through his thigh in a vice grip that threatened to remove the entire limb. Another knife-edged hand wrapped in his power removed the rat''s claw at the leg, and Stanley leapt aside from the crushing bulk as the creature finished crashing into the wall. He pulled the claw from his flesh as he hobbled away, and the rat opened its mouth at him. Stanley threw himself sideways and felt the acid ball tug at his shoulder. Burning pain erupted, but he didn''t let it stop his charging sprint. He dove under the snapping jaws and drove the rat''s own claws deep into its throat... before dragging them sideways and out in a deluge of hot blood. The rat fell but kept dragging itself toward him as Stanley staggered backwards. It never quite caught up as he limped away, only giving one last squeak. A weak, fading sound as it bled out. Then it went still. The queen is dead. Lair Destroyed. Stanley collapsed onto the floor, ignoring the rest of his notifications. He''d won. Again. He''d survived. Again. He wasn''t sure if he was happy or sad about that... He was bleeding from his shredded leg. Badly. The acid had taken off his left arm and eaten into his chest. One of his eyes was just a pit where drops of acid had splashed it... None of it mattered. He would heal. He always healed. The hunger clawed at his insides even now, and it wouldn''t be long until his body stopped obeying him and went for the meat scattered across this cavern. Or would it? The miasma had corrupted the rats. What if he couldn''t eat them? What if they couldn''t sustain him? Would he die here? Did he care? Then a new sound echoed through the darkness. A sound that filled him with more dread than any specter of death ever could. 119. Intolerable Weakness ~~~Stanley~~~ The terrifying sound was that of nails clicking against stone. The sound of breathing. The sad sound of a crying pug. Caffeine entered Stanley''s domain and dropped a giant chicken leg from his mouth. Then he shrank down, ripped a bite from the massive hunk of meat, and dropped it on Stanley''s upturned face. After which, he howled a very sad, very soft little howl. You have heard the Worried Howl of the Beast Lord. +100% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes to Friends +200% All Regeneration Stanley had heard that before, while he fought his way down here and lost himself in the violence... "Why, Caff?" Stanley whispered hoarsely. "Why do you still care? Why won''t you give up on me?" Caffeine picked up the chicken and dropped it on his face again. Stanley knew why, of course. He''d seen into Caffeine that one time. Way back when he''d foolishly thought Samantha would steal Caffeine from him. When he''d seen without a doubt that Caffeine would never let him go... Caffeine would never leave him. The poor little guy couldn''t even understand the concept. It wasn''t something that could exist in his reality. Stanley knew that. He''d known that when Caffeine looked at him with fear in his eyes. Caffeine couldn''t fear Stanley. It was another impossible bit of reality that could not exist in Caffeine''s mind. Caffeine hadn''t feared him. He had feared for him. He had feared for what Stanley might do... Chicken once again fell on his face, and Stanley caught it this time. He chewed even as it stung his mouth, where a cheek was still regenerating. He swallowed and cried when he felt the little curly tail start wiggling back and forth. Stanley sat himself upright before Caffeine could drop more chicken on him and used his hand to tear the next piece from the massive leg. It was cooked, even if it wasn''t hot. Had Jerry given it to him? Or had Caffeine stolen it? Did it matter? He ate a bite and offered the next piece to Caffeine. With heartbreaking results. Caffeine refused to eat it. He refused to eat chicken... and only whined until Stanley ate it himself. Then his tail wagged again. "Damn it, Caff. Are you secretly an angel?" Only he knew that wasn''t true. Caffeine was better than any stupid fucking angel could ever hope to measure up to. Stanley ate the entire chicken leg, interspersed with meditation breaks. Which came out to eating more than his entire body weight in meat. He tried to share more than once, but Caffeine wasn''t having it. Probably because of all the regeneration Stanley needed. He did get Caffeine to take the bone, and Stanley leaned against the enlarged pug''s side while looking through his notifications. It was a distraction from what he needed to do, but a welcome one. There were lots of debuff messages, followed by regeneration and the removal of the debuffs. Some attribute gains, including strength and dexterity, those probably because he''d gone in swinging rather than crushing the monsters with his mind. There were also a surprising amount of class and skill levels... He supposed this whole lair had involved him using his power in a way he hadn''t before. Which might also explain one of his new class skills on offer. Class Level Up: Soul Psionic Soul Psionic has reached the Expert Threshold. No Evolutions Available. Ranking up to Level 100 (Expert) New Class Skills Available. It was the first new skill on the list that drew his attention. Psionic Armaments (Rare) My mind is the weapon. My mind is the armor. User wraps their body in a hardened layer of Psionic energy. This may serve as both armor and weapon at the Psionic''s will. Armaments may also increase physical attributes dependent on how much energy user invests. Total power investiture dependent on skill level and willpower. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Willpower +1% Available Investiture It seemed like a waste. What was the point of making his body stronger rather than just killing his enemies? Maybe if he ran into something that was very resistant to psionic energy... and had an actual weapon to use with the skill? Even then, wouldn''t it be better to wield it the way he had before? Soul Burn (Epic) A burn for a burn. User may burn a target soul using a portion of their own soul as the ignition point. Damage dealt to both souls dependent on the skill level, willpower, and soul attribute of the user. As well as the soul attribute of the target. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Soul A soul skill... It made sense, seeing as his class now involved soul. But soul burn? He had to damage his soul to hurt someone else? It didn''t even say how much it would hurt him. Was that how all soul attacks worked? It couldn''t be. Stanley left it and eagerly checked out the final skill option. Mental Fortress (Epic) A mind is a terrible thing to leave undefended. So don''t. User creates a mental fortress. Anything attempting to touch the psionic''s mind must first breach the fortress. Mental Fortress defense dependent on mind attributes and skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Mind Attributes That skill didn''t seem like something he needed. As far as he knew, nothing had ever tried to touch his mind... so long as he didn''t include a rather substantial amount of unpleasant memories and emotions that filled his brain. Despite that, Stanley was adamantly against anything doing so in the future. He already hated the idea of messing with other people''s minds, never mind someone messing with his. Given the other options, it seemed like the obvious choice. Though he wasn''t sure how to go about leveling it... Hopefully, learning the skill might also teach him how to level it without having to be under attack? Or would he need to find someone else with mental powers who could help? Either way, he ignored the skills for now. None of the options would change anything for him immediately. Caffeine seemed extra content to take his time crunching up the chicken bone. Stanley tried not to think about why the pug might need a break... and instead, he meditated. He could wait down here... where it was peaceful. He wasn''t eager to go back out there. Stanley really didn''t want to face any of them after what he''d done... They must have felt his rage... felt his instability. He could remember Eve''s soul when she attacked him. She had been sure that he would kill her for it. But she did it anyway. Because she had no choice. She had to protect Zeke. Her brother. Stanley couldn''t blame her for that. She threw herself into the fight without hesitation. Without fear for herself. He had... cut off her arm, and she never even flinched. He had lost his temper. He had... tortured Zeke because the boy wasn''t used to pain and froze up. He had beaten Nate bloody because he could. He had hurt Eve because she dared to interfere. Because he was angry. Sitting here, in the meditation, apart from his emotions, Stanley could see what the problem was. The same problem he''d had for a while now. It wasn''t anger. Not wholly. He was still afraid. So very afraid. All the times when he nearly died... He had survived, prevailed against all of it, and yet... no one else was stepping up; no one else was strong enough to step up. There was a growing sense of being alone in this fight, with everyone else standing back to let him face the monsters by himself. Of everyone letting him take the hits. Him and Caffeine. Stanley knew that wasn''t true, not completely. A calmer perspective showed him that much. He wasn''t alone. People were trying to help in the fight. They were just too fucking weak! As he stewed and ruminated on his memories with emotion now at a distance, Stanley came to another realization. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. It was the smiles¡ªthe seemingly carefree and happy weaklings. Why do they get to smile when they aren''t the ones paying the price? How fucking dare they! The way Zeke thought he could go out and fight! As if it would be easy! As if he wouldn''t have to scream in agony and still keep fighting! How fucking dare... Stanley lost the meditation and literally shook with anger. Which drew Caffeine away from his bone to administer some face licks and whines. That turned his thoughts away from the rage. "Sorry, Caff." He was being stupid. Zeke wasn''t mocking him or making light of his pain. He truly wanted to help. He was even willing to get hurt to prove it. I just went too hard. Zeke was only a kid. He probably hadn''t known true physical pain in his life. Hopefully. Only emotional pain... Stanley knew the pain was there. He had seen it in the boy''s soul but had ignored it because it hit too close to home. Because he didn''t want to take on any more pain by caring. Looking back now, he could see the signs. They hadn''t been subtle. Fear and despair that Zeke buried soul-deep. Body-shaking tears, drained silently into a pillow in the dark. All of it was hidden behind a smile that shone strongly from his very soul. Because he still believed in smiling, even after everything. I''m the one who got it wrong. It was the anger, after all. Stanley had used anger to override his fear and keep himself moving, and it had worked extremely well. Until it didn''t. Until it turned on him. Hell, his E-grade evolution had literally warned him about it... Stanley knew he needed to go back and apologize to the boy who had saved his life one dark night. He''d have to apologize to Eve and everyone else... or maybe just some of them... or maybe just Zeke. Or maybe he could just get close and let Caffeine go visit? That way, Caffeine could get more chicken, and Stanley wouldn¡¯t have to interact with all the people he''d terrorized. He could go stay at the tower. They didn''t hate him yet, and he could keep it that way if he avoided getting too close to anyone. Walter''s fancy room would shield them from him. It would be fine. Also, hadn''t the butler mentioned something about a shrink? Would that help? Maybe it was worth a shot if it kept him from torturing children? Edward was over there. He could get a message if something happened back at Nate''s base. Just in case. The least Stanley could do was help if the undead came back for the boy. Otherwise, he could keep his distance. Dirt started drifting from the ceiling at some point, and Stanley realized with a single nudge into the wall that the destroyed lair was losing its indestructible nature... He reluctantly headed toward the exit. Along the way, as he collected the cores, Stanley finally realized the extent of the damage done to his suit. Especially when he tried to stuff cores into his pockets and they fell to the ground. Luckily, his now patchy jacket was still providing the soul shield... He really hoped Walter could fix it and that he wouldn''t be too upset. The collapsing ceilings weren''t universal, and he stopped near the surface to continue meditating. That was after he used the remains of his shirt to fashion a makeshift bag for all the cores. Sure, he could have absorbed them all... but he could also give them to Zeke. An apology. For what little it was worth. Zeke already had so much shit to deal with... His mom. The cult. Eve. Somehow, despite all that shit, Zeke had remained so optimistic and cheerful. Hopefully, he could bounce back from this, too? Stanley didn''t miss the human souls running around above as they chased a corrupted... something, and he would have waited for them to move on if the lair didn''t keep crumbling. Plus, after suddenly sniffing at the air, Caffeine tried to run outside. Stanley grabbed him and stuck the pug in his lap. Not that he feared for Caffeine... but he did. It was obviously irrational, but he couldn''t help it. He stopped in surprise at the exit... because it was snowing outside. It felt like so long ago since he''d last seen snowfall... especially thick snow like this. It was so quiet. So peaceful. Aside from the two men ruining the moment as they... butchered a rat? Caffeine finally squirmed free and ran to greet them. Stanley followed with a warning. "He''s friendly!" It would be a shame if he had to kill them over a misunderstanding... Both of their heads snapped in his direction at the sound of his voice. "This is our kill! Get your own food!" They''re going to eat that? It was one of the corrupted rats. That much was obvious at first glance. Why would they... Then Caffeine got closer, and one of the two men suddenly exclaimed, "That''s clean meat!" Before lunging at the pug with a small knife. Cut Stanley attacked the ground in a burst of rage, opening a long gap through the snow, a dark crack into the ground beneath it, and running in a line that ended at the man''s feet. He did that instead of murdering two more humans. Then he dropped into meditation before he could try again. They asked for death. Attacking Caffeine was a death sentence. But he didn''t want to kill anyone... not when he wasn¡¯t sure if he could trust himself. Plus, the attack was so weak¡ªdid it even count? Caffeine hadn''t needed to dodge... They were sick. Starving. He could feel that clearly in their terrified souls as they snatched up the corrupted rat and fled. So instead of putting them out of his misery, Stanley only watched their souls from his meditation. They didn''t go very far before their souls abruptly dimmed, and that was how he noticed the other human souls he''d missed before. Something was hiding them. Probably a lair. Caffeine was happy to run after them at first. He probably thought they were playing chase. Then he was sad... It was probably because all the souls in the group were sick. The morons were eating corrupted meat. What did they expect? Stanley took his time following the pug through the only slightly ruined peacefulness. With no need to trudge through the snow, it was quiet enough to hear the snowflakes touch down. He watched them accumulate on his clothes. He watched snowflakes land on his skin and then melt away. They didn''t feel cold. The air didn''t even feel cold. Despite each breath leaving him in a little cloud. He felt a little better when he found Caffeine sniffing outside an old-timey looking church... One of those quaint, small-town style churches. A rectangular box with a sloped roof and a steeple. Boarded-up windows ran down the sides, and he couldn''t see into the interior. That design, plus the fading white paint crumbling on the walls, made the building look far older than it probably was. He stopped approaching when he felt something... familiar surrounding the building. Familiar energy. Weak energy. He stuck a hand through it with no reaction, then flew to the doors... Buff Gained: [Weak Sanctuary] A weak sanctuary of faith. Effects: Reduces the chances of detection from all sources outside the sanctuary. +50% All Regeneration It might explain how such weaklings were still alive out here. Because he was pretty sure there were F-grades inside... How was that even possible? Stanley found the door locked when he tried the handle. How... quaint. It felt like a lair structure, which made sense if they''d been living here all this time. Surprisingly, and something he hadn''t checked while at any other human lair, it was just locked. Rather than smash his way through, Stanley just flipped the deadbolt open. He''d really thought there would be something magical keeping it shut... "It''s the monster!" a voice shouted immediately at his entrance. Other voices screamed, and figures scrambled further away in the single large room. Stanley glared into the dim area with annoyance as he walked down the aisle between the pews and towards the group of people near the pulpit. It stank in here. Stank of death. He opened his mouth to yell at them for being pathetic, and Caffeine grew larger next to him until Stanley''s hand rested on the pug''s large back. That mostly shut them and Stanley up. He calmed as they cowered in place, and the only sound was that of Caffeine''s feet thumping heavily against the floor. There were maybe twenty souls in the church, including a man dressed like a priest. All of them were like the two he''d seen outside¡ªemaciated and dying. But the worst ones¡ªthe ones who grabbed Stanley''s attention and refused to let go¡ªwere the children. Six of them. They lay unmoving on the floor behind the pulpit, on top of and under old clothes and blankets. None of them so much as stirred at the commotion, and Caffeine whined as he approached, his tail drooping. "Please spare the children!" the priest rasped as he stepped into Stanley''s path. "Take me instead, demon!" Stanley didn''t even look at him. His eyes locked on the unmoving forms. Why are they so weak? Did no one here fight? He was so angry. So very angry. Did they just hide in here this whole time? And so very sad. Everyone in the church was sick and dying, but the children looked dead already. They weren''t, but they were close. They looked far too much like mummified corpses... or zombies... Stanley could feel their souls flickering like candles in the wind, flickering under the assault of his own bleeding soul, and he abruptly realized that his shield was down. He rectified that by building a stronger soul shield than he ever had before and wrapping it tight around his damaged soul. Then he built it stronger and stronger still, layer after layer. You demonstrated sufficient mastery to acquire the Non-Class Skill: Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) Stanley ignored the message and kept layering his shield until their souls stopped guttering. It was a strain on his soul, and Stanley felt like he was pulling on the stitches of Lee''s seal. I can do this quickly. He lifted the unconscious children as gently as he could and started floating them slowly towards the door. The priest looked back and forth between him and the flying children, his soul crying out uselessly. Stanley spoke before the priest could do anything stupid. "I am going to save all of your lives," he said as calmly as he could to the room. "Go outside. Do not speak to me, do not threaten me, do not threaten my dog... or I will kill you." He was growling at the end. They moved. Most of them did. Stanley picked up a couple that didn''t or couldn''t move, and one cut off a squeak of terror by clapping her hands over her mouth. Once outside, he lifted all of them into the air. "It will help if you close your eyes." That was the only warning he gave before the ground fell away and blurred past below. A few people who hadn''t closed their eyes gagged and fought his power, but it was a pathetic resistance. It didn''t matter what any of them did. Only the two he''d met outside were actually E-grade... Stanley took them all toward the only green area left. Not that they could see anything while flying through the swirling snowstorm or beneath the blanket of snow covering the ground. But he didn''t need to see. The golden soul coming closer was all he needed to know he was going the right way. Zeke was outside, beside Nate. Then above him... right as Stanley came into view and saw Nate throw the purifier over his shoulder into the ground hard enough to blast the snow away. Definitely hard enough to hurt... They didn''t feel him coming. Not until he was right on top of them. Stanley winced at the fear rising from Zeke as the boy''s eyes widened upon seeing him. Then Zeke saw the unconscious children float to a stop before him, and his fear turned to horror as the golden light bloomed brighter. Even through the new and stronger soul shield, Stanley could feel all the refugees reviving under Zeke''s power. He could feel their fear turn to relief and then joy as more than a few of them broke down crying. Stanley also felt the golden light of Zeke''s aura himself. It helped him resist the urge to scream at these monsters. These worthless humans who''d cowered in their hole until it was almost too late. Instead of doing that, he carried them all inside, out of the snow, including Zeke. Eve hadn''t been outside with her brother, but she must have felt Stanley''s arrival somehow because she was charging closer. Everyone was settled onto tables in the dining room when she came around the corner with weapons already glowing. But she was too late. Stanley was already half a mile away and getting further by the second. He stopped at his house, dropped his soul shield, and went into meditation on the porch. Caffeine had stayed behind, and Stanley let him. The pug had been so sad and worried for the children... He deserved to see Zeke make them better. Stanley could wait here for him. 120. Its Not Enough ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley stopped meditating once he felt calm enough and looked at his newest skill. The free one. Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) A shield of the mind. To protect the soul. Allows user to protect their soul from attack and detection by creating a shield around their soul. This will reduce the chance of detection and also act as a barrier against soul attacks. Soul Shields can be created with various energies, including the user''s own soul. Using more types of energy in the shield''s creation will increase the potential effectiveness. Psionic Variant increases effects based on willpower and skill level. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Willpower It looked solid, and it reduced the soul wound debuff slightly more while he was using it. The only problem was that it felt like he was straining his soul to do so. Luckily, he could still half ass it enough to shield his soul like before, just to a weaker degree. He would finish fixing their soul, and then it would be great to have as an option for when he went hunting for the rest of the invaders. Of course, he still had the class skills waiting for his decision... The first one was out. He didn''t need more weapons. His knives hadn''t been enough, and even the spear had let him down. His mind was the weapon now. That left the mental fortress and soul burn as his only good options, with the soul skill obviously standing out. Stanley didn''t like it. He knew the soul burn was probably a good skill. His soul was stronger than anyone''s, and he even knew how to increase it without too much trouble... He should definitely take the skill. Soul magic was the strongest magic. But he couldn''t do it. Just looking at the skill left him feeling sick. His heart pounded, his hands shook, his skin felt clammy, and all he could think about was the sensation of his soul getting ripped apart. All he could remember was ripping out pieces of himself to kill that monster! It was the better skill. He knew it was. It would make him more powerful. More power would make it less likely that he''d ever have to suffer that pain again. It would make it less likely that anything would ever push him that close to death again. But he couldn''t fucking do it! Hadn''t he suffered enough already? He''d won. He''d done what he had to do to win. He''d endured the pain to make sure that monster died. Wasn''t that enough? His evolved class already let him use his soul as a weapon. That was good enough, right? He could increase his soul and his willpower. It would be enough. It had to be enough! New Class Skill Gained: Mental Fortress (Epic) - Level 1 (Novice) Stanley relaxed, feeling as if a great weight had just been lifted from his chest. He might have made a mistake, but he didn''t care. He''d made the choice. It was too late to go back now. His suddenly buoyant mood dimmed when he felt Caffeine coming closer, and it wasn''t the approaching pug that bothered him. It was the golden soul coming with him... He wasn''t sure if he should run away... or shield his soul... or... Stanley fled into his meditation. It was dark, if not exactly peaceful. He wouldn''t have to look at them in here. But he couldn''t escape from their souls... Eve was with her brother. Both of them were afraid, but Eve was much worse. He had cut off her arm. That was bound to make anyone upset... or was it? Zeke could fix that right up. Stanley had lost limbs and worse before. What did she have to cry about? Despite his rationalization, Stanley was a coward. He hid in his meditation and tried desperately to make the soul shield work at the same time. It didn''t, and then even that didn''t matter when Zeke walked into his domain. The boy''s mouth moved, and air vibrated. He was talking. Stanley actually felt like he could almost understand the words from only the vibrating air... Zeke stepped closer, reached for him, and Stanley did nothing. He wouldn''t stop Zeke if the boy wanted to hit him. Zeke could do whatever he wanted. It was doubtful he could do any serious damage, and maybe a little revenge would make him feel... better? Only Zeke wasn''t angry. He didn''t even have a weapon on his person as his arms wrapped around Stanley... and stayed there. He wasn''t strong enough to hurt Stanley by squeezing him. So what was the point? He was even sending his golden light into the meditation, and that was anything but unpleasant. Stanley saw the tears run down the boy''s cheeks and realized Zeke was crying... and not in fear or anger. He was... happy? His meditation broke, and he abruptly found himself in a hug. Zeke was hugging him. "Zeke..." He didn''t know what to say. "I''m..." "Thank you, Stanley." "...sorry. Wait, what?" "You saved them!" Stanley felt thoroughly confused as he hesitantly patted Zeke''s back and looked up at the other two people in front of him. They made more sense. Nate was nervous, but no more than he ever was, as he looked on. Eve was terrified and absolutely enraged... So, the usual. "I''m sorry," Stanley said to her, his gaze dropping away from the murderous glare. "Fuck y..." "It''s a miracle!" Zeke exclaimed, interrupting Eve as he finally let go and pulled back. He beamed at Stanley with a smile brighter than the sun. Did I hit him in the head before? Maybe he can''t heal head injuries? Stanley didn''t remember hitting Zeke''s head... but maybe he''d missed? "Are you okay, Zeke?" Zeke laughed and hugged Stanley again. Something was definitely wrong with him. "Don''t you see, Stanley!?" he exclaimed. "If you hadn''t done what you did... if you hadn''t run off like that, then those kids, all those people, they would have died! You think I care about a little pain when it means we got to save their lives!?" That was some serious look on the bright side energy... while jumping through some serious mental gymnastics. Or was it? Stanley eyed Nate. Had this all been one of his machinations? But that made no sense. He could have just sent Stanley that way with a lot less trouble... Nate lifted an eyebrow in question. "I''m sorry about cutting off your arm," Stanley said, only somewhat sheepishly. "You didn''t kill me," Nate said, shrugging. "So technically, you only gave me what I asked for... though I didn''t expect you to drag the others into it like you did." He acted nonchalant, but Stanley felt a little anger in that last line. "I''m still sorry about torturing you," Stanley said to Zeke, finally pushing the boy back off him and holding him at bay in the air. "I forgive you," Zeke said, and Stanley dropped him into the snow. There was definitely some brain damage. "Just like that? Just because I brought those people back?" "Yep!" Zeke beamed, though it slipped slightly when he added, "I don''t always know what to believe anymore, but Jesus says to forgive, and I still believe in that. Plus, it all worked together for good... and even if it hadn''t, I''d still forgive you." "That doesn''t sound very Christian of you," Stanley said. "I think you''re supposed to get angry and accuse me of persecuting you..." Zeke smiled somewhat sadly. "I know." Then he laughed. "Father Michael was very upset that I was consorting with demons. He told me I should smite you before you turned on us!" "Ungrateful f..." Stanley swallowed back what he''d been about to say. "So they''re all okay, then?" "You saved them, Stanley. They were getting their first good meal in a long time when we left. You should come back..." He looked up and down at Stanley. "After a bath, maybe? You know you''re covered in blood, right? That''s probably why he thought you were a demon. That and your... um, angry soul." Stanley looked down at himself. "It''s not all my blood, I think?" "Nate said you have good regeneration. Is that how you''re okay?" "Yeah... and one other thing," Stanley said, looking at Caffeine, who seemed to have decided everything was fine and was now pawing at Nate''s leg. Nate smiled slightly and moved around to sit in a chair on the porch. "I brought food. Let''s eat." Stanley wasn''t sure if Nate was just sticking to the original deal of providing food or if he''d brought it to bribe Caffeine... The pug was too easy. Eve made no move toward the food or a chair. She was still glaring at him, full of rage. Zeke sat in the other chair. "Eve, I forgave him. It''s okay." She finally exploded. "Like hell, it''s okay! I don''t forgive you and I never will!" she yelled at Stanley while taking steps toward him. Small steps. "You''re a fucking lunatic psycho that will snap and kill us all! Hell, you already fucking snapped, and now we''re just supposed to pretend it didn''t happen!?" "Eve!" Zeke exclaimed. "I am a lunatic." Stanley agreed with her. "Would you feel better if you shot me?" "No!" Zeke yelled. Eve shot him. Right in the face. Right in his eyes... which turned out to be... unpleasant when they popped and boiled... Though the beam did little beyond that. Stanley blinked away the spots in his vision once his eyes regenerated. A process helped along immensely by Zeke''s aura. "Really? In the eyes? Who''s the lunatic now?" Eve shot him again, this time in the chest, and actually burned small holes into his flesh. Very small holes. It was probably his psionic barrier skill. It had leveled a lot during his little melee brawl with the rats... or was it just his passive defense? "You barely got through my skin!" Stanley said, incredulous. "Can''t you do better?" It felt like a bad sunburn, nothing more. "You fucking blocked it!" Eve shot him in the face again, and this time, he turned the silver beams away from his eyes. She really was psycho. "Maybe? It''s very instinctual. How about this?" Stanley held out his arm. The one without even a scrap of his suit remaining. Cut Zeke gasped, and Eve recoiled from his amputated arm as it hit the deck with a wet thump. Stanley grimaced and squeezed until the blood stopped gushing. It hurt a little more than he''d expected... probably since he wasn''t in the middle of a life and death battle. Still, it wasn''t that bad. Zeke jumped up and tried to heal him, but Stanley stopped him while looking at Eve. "Happy?" She just glared, so he picked up the arm and stuck it back on the stump. Mostly as an experiment. Usually, when he lost a limb, it was to something more destructive than this... or something hungrier. To his surprise, it actually healed back together, though Zeke''s aura might have been helping it along faster than normal. He felt eyes on him and looked over to see Caffeine watching from next to Nate and the chicken in the man''s frozen hands. "I didn''t know we could stick limbs back on." Nate said thoughtfully. "Glad we didn''t try that with my arm in the mud..." Caffeine whined, and Nate stopped talking to hand over the piece of chicken. Watching Caffeine eat, Stanley finally remembered what he''d brought from the lair. "Here." He slid over the cores wrapped in his shirt. "I brought a little present as an apology. For the both of you." "I don''t need your damn charity!" Eve spat. "Don''t you?" Stanley said, and Eve glared at him. She was really into that. "If you don''t need my damn charity, then why can''t you fucking touch me?" She glared harder, and her guns started glowing again. "Your little flashlights won''t do shit against the monsters out there," Stanley growled. "So you need me, whether you like it or not." "You''re a fucking psycho!" "A fucking psycho is all you''ve got," Stanley said, spreading his arms. "So unless you''re going to somehow miraculously kill that zombie when it comes back, and it will, then give me a fucking break!" He was screaming by the end of his rant, and both siblings recoiled from him while Nate calmly fed another piece of chicken to Caffeine. "This hasn''t..." Stanley choked back a sob. Then he screamed, "This hasn''t been a fucking picnic for me either!" He was breathing heavily as he traded glares with her, but his heart wasn''t in it and he slumped after a few seconds, deflating. "Why are you so mad at me? Is it just because I didn''t..." He couldn''t say it in front of Zeke. Because I didn''t kill your mom? Stanley wanted to meditate as Eve glared down at him, but he didn''t, and Eve went quiet as the glow faded from her guns. He could feel her anger and pride warring against her own very real fear. And not only her fear of him. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. He was sure that she would storm off more than once, but she didn''t. She stood her ground and trembled with either rage or fear. Or both. Then she drew in a deep breath and Stanley braced for another explosion. She didn''t explode. "I saw you that night," Eve growled with only a slight waver in her voice. "I saw you killing the skeleton." Her soul screamed with fear at whatever memory she was reliving, and her hands twitched as she whispered, "You were going to kill me. You wanted to kill me... you..." Stanley didn''t know if it was his higher stats or something else, but when he thought back to the first time he''d used the source, he remembered more than just the blinding light. There were flashes of monsters dying. A skeleton was screaming as he turned it into dust over and over. Zombies flying away in pieces... and a face peeking through the broken truck stop window. Eve''s face. How had he forgotten seeing her, and why hadn''t she said anything? Other than flipping out on him after he woke up... More importantly, what did she see? Did she see the abomination? Stanley remembered seeing it before the source, and it was gone the next day, but he didn''t remember killing it. Did she see just how fucked we were? They had been absolutely fucked. An enemy beyond anything Stanley could survive. Far beyond anything she or her brother could have survived. Then Stanley cracked open his soul. Then he burned. She saw me burning. One thing Stanley knew from the bits and pieces he could remember was the rage. An all-consuming rage that was born from his helplessness. From seeing Caffeine hurt and from knowing that he had screwed up too much. She met my gaze while I was literally on fire with the source. Did she feel the rage? But why had she only feared him after meeting his eyes in the truck stop the next morning? Or... had she not known who he was until then? Had she saved him while not knowing he was her savior? Of course, then she absolutely lost her shit, and only after knowing he''d saved her life. Petty. He hadn''t actually killed her. Or even attacked her. Not that time, at least... had he? No, she''d be dead if he had. Stanley let it go with a sigh. "You don''t even know what that was, do you?" He checked the area for souls and found none nearby. He wasn''t even sure if secrecy mattered anymore. Not for this. The undead already knew his secret. Hell, they probably knew more about it than he did. Just to be safe, he put a barrier around them, lifting all of them up to encircle the group. Eve protested, but not very much. Stanley even added an air gap to his shield for whatever good that would do. Hopefully, between Zeke''s aura, Caffeine''s nose, and the barrier, they would be safe. Then he took a moment to think about what he was planning to tell them. Did he really want to trust them? Did he need to? Zeke was important. Eve was important because she was Zeke''s sister... and she''d already seen some of the truth. Nate... despite the rocky start to the relationship, was honestly the most stable person Stanley had met since this all started. He was also the strongest, for whatever that was worth, and there was no telling what he already knew with his bullshit intuition. Stanley told them his story. Some of it, anyway. That day in the mountains and the source¡ªat least what little he could recall. His twin and Caffeine. How the three of them did... something to survive. He told them how it started that first night at the truck stop. How he''d just barely missed getting out in time... The fights that followed... Stanley hadn''t meant to tell them about Samantha and how he''d failed her, but it just came out. He wanted them to know about her. Even if it made him look bad, they should know what she did, how she saved him and, by extension, how she saved them. They needed to know. He told them how Nate tricked him into going that way. How it ended up with him running for his life... and how he failed to escape. The pain of those soul spikes stabbing into him until they finally took him down. The pain of seeing Caffeine bleeding while he refused to run away. The source. The rage. "That night, I was only thirty years old," Stanley said to the siblings. "Assuming Nate hasn''t already told you this." He must have told them, because Stanley received only a minor reaction from the siblings. "Killing that thing burned years of my life and, presumably, my brother''s." Stanley looked down at Caffeine, who had abandoned the chicken to sit in his lap and was staring up at him¡ªthe formerly black pug, now gray because of him. "Caff saved me... saved both of us... but he got old too." He took a few moments to hug Caffeine while the pug tried to lick his face, then looked at Eve. "I''m sorry I scared you, Eve. I wasn''t myself and honestly, I can barely remember most of it. That power... it felt like I was a god... and I just wanted to destroy everything that hurt me. I thought Caffeine was dying... and I was so angry." "You guys saw the rest. You found me. I was actually dying then, but you saved my life, Zeke." A life for a life. Hell, two for two. He''d saved Eve''s life despite what she said, and they''d saved Caffeine. It was fair. He told them about the strange dream figure and the message it had given him after he killed the skeleton. Along with what he thought it meant. "I don''t think the system knew we had the source until I used it... I don''t think we were supposed to have it." Stanley pointed toward the city. "That one, the second one. It got inside my soul!" He took a second to breathe. "It knew about the source. It was here to take it from me, and it cut my soul open trying to do just that." He took a few more deep breaths while hugging Caffeine. "It was a D-grade. Sent by someone else to claim the source... or contain it." He stared at nothing. "I couldn''t use the source for more than a second; even that much almost killed us, and it blocked it. It fucking blocked it!" Stanley''s breath came in ragged gasps as he whispered, "So I... I ripped out pieces of my soul... our soul... to kill it." He looked down at his hands. They wouldn''t stop shaking. "I had to do it. There was no other way! Do you know what it feels like... to... to... I was so angry. I had to be angry... I couldn''t kill it any other... I was dying... I killed it... but we still lost..." Stanley closed his eyes and tried to enter his meditation. He had to get out of here! He had to escape! But... he couldn''t get the damn energy to move properly. "Fucking work!" he screamed and instantly regretted it when he opened his eyes to see Caffeine''s face in front of his own. Before he could apologize, Caffeine licked his nose, and a small hand touched his own blood-stained and wrinkled one. Golden warmth washed through him and Stanley looked up at Zeke. "It hurt so..." "I know," Zeke said. Stanley realized he was broadcasting too much again. He buried his face in Caffeine''s gray fur and took some time to breathe until he could rebuild his soul shield. No one moved or spoke while Stanley basked in the warm glow of Zeke''s power. It really was something special. When he felt ready, Stanley continued. "I... we would have died after that, but my brother sealed up the wound in our soul somehow. I don''t know how, but he saved us. He bought us time." "Then I don''t remember anything until I woke up in the tower." Nate had leaned back in thought. Zeke had tears in his eyes, and Eve was still glaring angrily, but her glistening eyes and horrified soul betrayed her. She''d just gotten a front-row seat to the whole experience. High definition soul-pain included! They all had. "I am sorry about whatever I did to you, Eve. I''m sorry I didn''t... save you when we first met." She was still glaring, but not directly at him anymore. "I have been fighting to survive this hell hole since the first day, and I... Well, now I''m an angry old man, my soul is bleeding, and I think I''m losing my mind." "I didn''t..." Eve whispered, her expression horrified and on the verge of tears. Then her anger reappeared, clawing its way over the horror and fear. "But that''s no excuse for acting like a fucking psycho! Oh, no, I got a boo-boo, so now I''m going to go all edgy and psycho! Don''t think I won''t still shoot you!" Nate was wide-eyed when her screaming rant ended, and Zeke''s aura actually flickered as he stared in shock. Stanley looked up at her and was surprised to find himself smiling. Eve''s staying true to her character somehow made him feel better. The absurdity of her anger and her refusal to admit defeat were actually inspiring. In fact, it reminded him of himself. Especially when he could feel all that fear and pain swirling around inside her. "You''ll shoot me? With what? Your flashlights?" He taunted her with a grin. Eve glared harder, and the gun on her shoulder popped up, spun around, and shot a beam into the tree in front of the house. Stanley had a moment to realize that the tree had definitely grown a lot since he''d first seen it... Then the tree trunk exploded in a cloud of splinters, and the entire thing toppled to the ground in a cloud of swirling snow. "My weapons are powerful!" Eve yelled over the ringing in their ears. "You two are the fucking freaks!" She leveled a glare at both Stanley and Nate. Nate, for his part, was gazing thoughtfully at where the remains of the tree were raining down across the overgrown lawn. Stanley met her angry but mostly still frightened eyes. "Why, Eve? Why?" He covered his face with his hands, and her anger faltered under rising confusion touched with guilt. "I..." Stanley choked back a sob. "I loved that tree!" Eve shot him. But in the leg this time... so progress? "Have you considered that you might have anger issues?" he asked. Nate leaned forward in his chair abruptly, just as Eve opened her mouth. "Thank you for telling us all that, Stanley," he said, in a blatant attempt to change the subject. "I knew it was bad, but I didn''t know how narrowly you scraped by." He sighed and slumped back. "As for going crazy... who isn''t? This shit is crazy!" He nodded at the lawn. "Nice shot, by the way." Zeke was staring at Eve with a knowing look, but she wouldn''t meet his gaze. Stanley spoke into the silence. "I''m stronger than I was, but I''m not at full power. I''m not ready to face down another one of those bastards. I need to finish fixing my soul before they stop hiding and come after us again." "I''m not at my full power!" Eve whispered in a mocking, singsong voice. "It would be nice," Stanley said, ignoring her. "If I could have some real backup when the time comes. Not the best weaklings. Not people who are marginally better than a liability." He looked around at the three of them, particularly at Nate. "James and the others were decent... and I''m pretty sure it''s my fault a D-grade showed up, so I can''t really blame them for not being more helpful. But if I had an army of people at your level, Nate... or higher. With a healer who can not only keep us alive but also actively hurt the undead..." "I want to fight," Zeke whispered, downcast. He glanced up at them. "I don''t care if it hurts. I still want to do it." Stanley took a slow breath and a measure of their souls. "This is what I was trying, rather badly, to teach you. Before I... lost my temper." Eve bristled, as expected, but Zeke was curious. "What, is there a way to block pain?" "What? No! Well, not that I know of." Stanley shook his head. "Zeke, can you heal yourself constantly? Or do you run out of mana?" Zeke thought about it. "I think I can, but healing uses faith. I don''t even have mana. It is something I have to focus on and it does get more difficult over time." "Faith?" Stanley asked him. "How does that work?" "Faith. It''s an attribute and part of my class, but I don''t really know how it works or how to make it go up." "That''s..." Stanley didn''t know what to make of it. "Do you still believe in... no, nevermind, don''t listen to me." Stanley quickly aborted his comment. The boy had helped him and Stanley was about to attack his faith. Not cool. Also, he really didn''t want to break their best healer... Zeke didn''t seem bothered, only shrugging. "I have had those same thoughts," he said quietly. "But that doesn''t make it go down... It only went down twice. Once when my mom..." His soul shook with pain from whatever he''d been thinking about, but he rallied. "It also went down when I thought I was too weak to protect Eve from the zombie." More pain shone from his eyes and soul. Eve moved angrily past Stanley, kneeled in front of her brother, and threw her arms around him. "You weren''t too weak! You fucking saved me!" Zeke hugged her back and Stanley saw a tear slip down one cheek. "I could have saved more... Byron!" Eve squeezed tighter and Stanley felt the grief in both of them. Everyone had suffered and lost. Stanley knew that intellectually but hadn''t been able to grasp it when he was hurting. He hadn''t wanted to grasp it. He just wanted to be angry... I really am fucked up, aren''t I? Caffeine ballooned in size and attacked the hugging siblings right in their faces. With his tongue. Eve leapt away while Zeke laughingly cried and tried to fend off the tongue. "Caff, stop!" "Disgusting!" Eve swiped angrily at her cheek, but Stanley watched her watch the laughing healer get mauled by a giant pug, and he felt the pain in her soul easing and dimming as happiness and a touch of nostalgia rose to replace it. Nate lured Caffeine away with more chicken, and Zeke was smiling when he continued. "My faith went up when you killed the invader. I knew it was you... I could feel your anger, and I remembered how strong you were. I knew you would never give up... so I couldn''t give up either." Stanley felt... conflicted about Zeke''s estimation of him, but said nothing and only watched Caffeine beg for the chicken. Zeke looked at his sister. "Eve was screaming at the zombie." His soul stumbled over something painful in his memory, but he soldiered through. "She believed in you even..." Embarrassment burst from Eve, and she snapped, "Shut up, Zeke!" Zeke grinned wider at her reaction and laughter bubbled up in him. "She screamed about how you were the end of..." That was all he got out before a bright red Eve clamped a hand over his mouth and hissed, "I''m going to kill you!" "She said nice things about you!" Zeke yelled through her hand as he laughed. "Yeah right. This crazy old fart?" Eve sighed and let Zeke go. "I just knew what a monster he... was." She sounded less embarrassed now, more resigned, and sat down on the porch. She glanced into Stanley''s eyes once before quickly looking away, not in embarrassment but in fear. Stanley didn''t smile or tease her. Not again. While it was fun to see her embarrassed, there was too much pain tied to it. So he went back to the topic at hand. "Your healing is really strong, Zeke. It''s faster than my regeneration. If you can keep it going non-stop... well, you''d be pretty much unkillable, like Wolverine. Though we should definitely get you a helmet and some armor, just in case." Eve looked and felt thoughtful as she gazed at her brother. "What''s Wolverine?" Zeke asked. It was Stanley''s turn to be upset. He looked at Eve for confirmation of what he was hearing. "He led a sheltered life," she said, still looking at him thoughtfully. "Very sheltered." "The problem with fighting this way," Stanley said. "Is that it fucking hurts." Zeke paled. "Yeah, and if you can''t handle it, then you die. If you can''t fight through the pain and keep fighting, or in your case, keep healing, then you die." Stanley glanced at the somber faces around him. "Or someone you care about dies." They all sat in silence as they digested his words. Then Nate leaned forward. "I screwed up, Stanley." "Oh?" Stanley was sure he had. Somehow. "Ever since you rescued Zeke, I''ve been more and more sure of his importance to all of our survival. But I''ve been too careful. I didn''t want to risk him and, thereby, everyone else. I was wrong." "You want to risk Zeke''s life!?" Eve growled. "Yes." "You..." Eve spluttered. "He''s right," Stanley cut her off. "I didn''t get powerful from using cores. I got powerful by almost dying repeatedly. I got stronger by fighting for my life day after day." Though he supposed using the source to get Mind Over Matter might have been a slight cheat... "Exactly," Nate said. "Traits, titles, skills, and class evolutions. Those are what Zeke needs and what we all need. I''m sure you can understand that, Eve?" Her soul flinched as she glared at Nate. Did he know something about her skills? "What aren''t you talking about?" Stanley asked. "I pretty much just told you everything..." "Nothing!" Eve snapped. "I''ll..." Her gaze flicked to Zeke and away. "It''s nothing." "Zeke," Nate said, standing up. "If you still want to get out there, then you''ll need to prove you can handle it." "I can." Zeke stood, his resolve strong, and with just a little fear peeking through. "I will!" Nate glanced towards the base. "I can delegate some things and focus more on our strengths. Zeke, you''re with me. Eve... I don''t actually know how to help you level your class, but I can still train..." "I can handle myself," she growled, with worried looks between Zeke and Nate. "I''ll be watching you." Then Zeke whispered something to Eve, and she glared at Stanley with murder in her eyes as she took a deep breath. "I... forgive... you." She ground it out through clenched teeth while Zeke beamed at her and Stanley gaped in surprise. "Shut up!" Eve snapped at her brother, but he just kept smiling. "Don''t think I won''t call you on your shit!" she told Stanley, just shy of yelling in his face. "Sure," Stanley responded, mustering up a small smile. Eve glared at him, fuming, then turned to stomp away. She went two steps and spun around. "You want to help me?" She stomped back. "Then tell me how you got your soul so strong!" She was using her soul? Stanley blinked in surprise, but then remembered how he¡¯d felt her soul in that machine. "I... cheated," he said after a moment, then shivered, his mind recalling a day in the woods so long ago. "I think?" He was almost positive that whatever had happened to their soul had happened that day in the mountains. "But... I have raised it a few points more recently." She stared expectantly, and Stanley sighed. "Let''s go get some more food. This might take a while. I assume you have used soul energy?" Eve nodded as she walked alongside him towards the base. "Yes, but I need more. A lot more..." "I might be able to teach you a skill," Stanley said. He was more and more certain that, aside from the initial knowledge that came from a skill shard, all the levels were only a mark of your own proficiency. Hell, he''d learned the soul shield by mostly copying Walter''s coat effect. Could I teach her Soul Awareness? Or maybe Soul Sight first, since it was far simpler to use. Very straight forward in fact. The only question then would be if she would get the same evolution options. "Actually, everyone should try to learn these skills." "Nate," Zeke said as he walked and poked around in Stanley''s makeshift pouch of cores. "Are cores usually this good?" Stanley pulled one to himself. Core Shard [E-grade] +5 All Base Attributes He checked another one. Core Shard [E-grade] +8 All Base Attributes That was a lot higher than before, but it made sense. Because, of course, everything was still getting stronger at a breakneck pace. 121. Ive Been Caught Up In The Riptide ~~~Stanley~~~ The mood at Nate''s wasn''t the best after... some stuff happened. That, combined with Walter''s soul-silencing room made it an easy choice of where to spend the night. It was just as well, because Stanley woke up to the sound of something breaking in the night and fell out of the air into his bed. Other than that, he slept great... ish. Walter served up breakfast, and Stanley spent his meal trying to figure out ways to communicate how he strengthened his soul to Eve. Day one of her training hadn''t gone well... That all vanished from his mind when Daryl and Adrian joined him for breakfast. Adrian looked healthier, though his soul was definitely still recovering from his time in the ant nest. But Stanley found himself far more concerned with a completely different issue. "So, guys," Stanley said, his mouth suddenly too dry. "I... remember you saying... you mentioned that... Princess could talk to... Caffeine." "She can," Daryl said, nodding hesitantly. "But he''s not very..." "Of course she can," Adrian said as a smile bloomed across his face. "I can''t believe we didn''t sit you two down for a chat already!" Daryl sighed and glared at Adrian for some reason. Then he looked at Princess. Stanley could have sworn she rolled her eyes before yipping toward Caffeine. Stanley didn''t care; he only watched the pug anxiously, his heart pounding. Whether it pounded from terror or excitement, he didn''t know. Caffeine stared intently at Stanley''s food. He then continued to stare, completely ignoring Princess'' increasingly loud noises. Stanley laughed nervously and tipped the food off his plate. Caffeine gobbled it all up before even a speck touched the tablecloth. Then he looked around the table once and scrambled over to beg Daryl for his food. Princess barked at him, and Caffeine whined while standing up to put his front paws on the table. Then he stared at Daryl''s plate. Adrian laughed. "Maybe we should finish eating first?" "Sure. Yeah," Stanley said, fiddling with a napkin. "We can do that." Walter whisked away Stanley''s empty plate. Simultaneously, a fresh and identical meal to the one Stanley had just given Caffeine appeared in its place. Caffeine noticed. The pug practically teleported back into the seat he''d vacated moments before. His gaze only strayed from the plate briefly, and then only to stare at Stanley pleadingly. "All Princess got from him was basically him shouting breakfast over and over," Daryl said as they all kept eating. "Ree!" Cheesesteak screeched. "That''s pretty much what Cheesesteak heard, too," Adrian said with a glance at the phoenix. Then he exchanged a silent look with Daryl... Stanley ate a few more bites that he barely tasted, in between tossing more food at Caffeine. His heart wouldn''t stop pounding. "Stanley, I think you should know...?" Adrian''s voice trailed off and the hesitation in his soul drew Stanley''s gaze. "What?" "Well..." Adrian looked away and shared another glance with Daryl. "Caffeine is... not very..." "He''s not what!? Tell me!" Everyone flinched, and Caffeine even stopped staring at the plate to lick Stanley''s cheek. "Articulate," Adrian said. "He''s not very articulate." Stanley frowned as he looked back and forth between the now nervous men. "You''re saying he''s stupid?" "Not stupid!" Adrian rushed to exclaim. "Just..." "I don''t fucking care if he''s stupid!" Stanley shouted, then clenched his jaw when Caffeine licked his cheek with another whine. He continued in a much quieter voice, "I only care if... I just want to know if..." Stanley swallowed the lump in his throat and stared into the pug''s big brown eyes, even as his own vision blurred. "Is he... happy?" Daryl burst out with a laugh that turned into choking. "Sorry, Stanley! It wasn''t..." He coughed again, and Adrian took over. "He''s definitely happy, Stanley. The only time I''ve seen him not happy is when he was fighting the... skeleton." Daryl finally finished choking. "He''s probably the happiest one inside this entire dungeon! Every day is a new adventure for him, and he loves every second!" Stanley couldn''t see them through his tears or past the pug licking said tears away. "He doesn''t... hate me? All the times he''s gotten hurt... all the times I fucked up..." Caffeine was whining again. Stanley was hurting him. Again. "I''ll tell you what he''s saying," Daryl said. "Dearest human is a... good boy? Dearest human should... treat? Dearest... yeah, he says that a lot. He''s using a lot of words like... sit, stay, play, go, good, and chicken..." Princess made some squeaking noises at Caffeine, and the pug huffed softly. Daryl laughed. "He says they are the... magic words?" "Magic words," Stanley murmured while staring at the pug in his face. "Good boy," Stanley said, watching Caffeine''s curly tail wag back and forth. "Good boy," he said again, and the tail wagged faster. "Good boy!" Caffeine sprang away and started spinning in circles before sprinting around the room excitedly. He brushed against Princess repeatedly until she finally snapped at him and took up the chase. Stanley watched them play while the knot in his guts unraveled. He''d worried for nothing. Even though he''d known deep down that Caffeine didn''t hate him. Couldn''t hate him. He''d still worried. All for nothing. Just some ugly paranoia lurking in the recesses of his mind... Speaking of paranoia, Eve would be waiting for her soul training... Whatever, she could wait. Caffeine was playing. He stayed right where he was until Daryl and Adrian headed downstairs to help their own newbies learn to fight. Even then, he didn''t rush to return, and it wasn''t because he looked ridiculous. Walter had taken the destruction of Stanley''s suit with remarkable calm. Nothing in his expression or soul betrayed any upset when he took the destroyed suit and promised to repair it. Stanley wasn''t buying it. Obviously, Walter had figured out how to hide his emotions. That was the only explanation for the all-white monstrosity of a suit he''d foisted on Stanley this morning. The first suit was bad enough, but this was just mean. Unfortunately, it still provided the soul shield and armor buffs, so Stanley couldn''t bring himself to reject it. His flight started with a stopoff above the tower, where he amped up his soul sight for a good look around. The unplanned rescue from the church the day before had gotten Nate and Zeke all hot and bothered to find more survivors who might be struggling. Not that Stanley was against the idea, in theory, but... He sighed and took a new route toward Nate''s base. It wasn''t completely unreasonable that some people might struggle. After all, the monsters kept getting stronger every day, and the miasma was supposedly getting stronger too. Of course, that was just an excuse. All anyone needed to do was never stop fighting. If they did that, then no one would fall behind. Stanley ducked into every lair along the way and either wiped them out or got the queen to surrender. Either way, he left each lair with a new skill shard. Some crap, some decent, and the occasional one that looked promising. It seemed that if he wanted the promised army to help with the war, he might actually need to put in some effort toward making it happen. One small effort toward that goal was bringing in more skills. The idea was that Nate could use his intuition to determine who got which skills. Assuming it would work that way. Stanley had been an idiot for a long time. Too worried about other people getting stronger than him. Sure, he still didn''t like the idea. As a general principle. But it also felt more and more unlikely that anyone would match his power. Unlikely enough, in fact, that he was half hoping it would happen... just to have some real backup. Obviously, he was on the lookout for any skills that might help him as well. It was just hard for anything to compete with the legendary skill he already had. He''d turned down that soul skill from his class rank up... and he wasn''t upset about it. He had a better idea, anyway. An idea he was... well, fairly confident about. Just not something he wanted to test until he finished fixing their soul. Eve was waiting on his porch when he arrived, and she was already glowering at him. Stanley flew past with a wave and a smile that only intensified the glowering. He stopped at the base and traded a handful of skill shards for double his bodyweight in chicken while Caffeine made the rounds. He didn''t join Nate''s training this time, but was pleased to see more of them actually putting in some effort to hurt each other. It helped when they saw the new skill shards flying into Nate''s hands. Stanley took a minute to watch them fight. Particularly, he wanted to see how the lucky winners from the day before were enjoying their new skills. The only two who had run to Zeke''s defense. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Ethan had taken the Shattering Touch skill, and it worked... well enough. He could shatter weapons and armor easily enough, and while it was less effective against flesh, it could shatter bones if he built the charge high enough. It would definitely come in handy if they ran into armored creatures. Neal was the other one who''d stepped up, and he took the rat queen''s skill shard. Which, predictably, was an acid spitting ability. Stanley had offered to get him something better if he waited, but the guy wanted it. The weirdo. It was gross, but no one could say it wasn''t effective. Horribly effective. Stanley had a feeling everyone on the receiving end of that skill longed for the good old days when they only got pelted with rocks. Inside, there might have been a few more wary and hostile souls when he passed through, but no one opened their mouth at him. Either because Zeke had gotten to them or, more likely, they knew better. Stanley stared back at any of them who looked his way, daring them to say something. They all looked away. Word must have spread after yesterday. Turned out that cutting off someone¡¯s hand during dinner and then freezing them mid-scream while you finished eating really sent a message... even if it bothered Caffeine a little. Jerry, of course, was the least bothered by the display. But then he knew what Stanley was about. He was allowed to talk shit. He¡¯d been out there in the slog. He was just more useful as a cook than a hunter. Really, anyone who contributed to this place in a meaningful way could open their mouth. It was the freeloaders and cowards. Some of whom were still learning that their lives weren¡¯t precious. Chicken restocked and Caffeine let loose with Barbie, Stanley went back to his house. And his waiting pupil. Here we go again. ~~~Eve~~~ Eve glared at Stanley''s back as she set up her antenna, now complete with a dish, after another useless soul lesson. The whole dish part didn''t actually matter, since she wasn''t trying to catch radio waves. Rather, it was just the extra surface area for the mana drain to work with. Stanley, with his stupid, useless explanations! Oh, just move your soul energy into your eyes! Oh, just swirl it around! Oh, it''s really simple! A bunch of useless nonsense! Soul energy didn''t swirl or flow! It zipped and jumped like electricity! How could he be so dense as to not see that!? She touched the antenna and let the spark of her soul jump inside it. -1 Soul(Reserved) Eve could abruptly feel the device. Like a separate limb detached from her body. It was definitely weird, but she was getting used to the sensation. Plus, it came with some perks. She activated the Mana Drain skill in the new phantom limb and felt the trickle start flowing into her. It didn''t matter that she was physically separate from the device; the mana still became hers. Sure, there was a limited range where it would work that way, but it was enough for her purposes. Stanley didn''t respond to anything she was doing. He just sat there like a lump. A loud one. A fucking grating one! His dog had run in and off again somewhere. That was fine. She didn''t need more hair getting into her equipment. Not when she was working with things that liked to go boom if she screwed up. The fucking Beast Lord¡ªthat little pug. It was so hard to believe... for more than one reason. Eve went back inside, leaving her mana drain going next to the old fart. At least he was still good for something, since he was a shit teacher. He might claim not to use mana, but that didn''t change the fact that he was generating it. Whatever was going on with his leaking soul, or his source, or whatever other bullshit he hadn''t mentioned, he was like a little fountain of mana. An annoyingly loud fountain! She tried to ignore the sensation pulsing regularly against her soul and got back to work. It was useless, of course. You couldn''t ignore the waves on a beach if you sat in the fucking surf! So all she could do was endure. Those cores Stanley had tried to bribe Zeke with were the best ones she''d seen¡ªif only that idiot hadn''t wasted the D-grade core! The power she could have gained from it... With nothing better to work with, she''d have to make do. E-grade cores were fine. She only muttered a few depreciating remarks his way while she wired the cores together. Unfortunately, this wasn''t difficult work. She could make power packs with her eyes closed by now. Which left her mind with far too much free time... and with the big, blaring loud speaker that was Stanley making it very hard to think about anything else. She hadn''t told him the truth. Why should she? What difference did it make? He had apologized. She would just sound like a bitch if she brought it up again. Plus... it looked like he really didn''t remember. Asshole! How do you fucking forget that!? Oh, I tried to kill you? So sorry. Yeah, I was grouchy that day. Don''t even really remember it. I''m sure you don''t mind. Eve''s trembling finger slipped... and the wire she was wrapping around the cores snapped off. "Fuck you!" She glared uselessly toward Stanley before starting over. He''d asked her about her traits. All because Nate had to run his fucking mouth! How did that muscle head even know about her trait? She''d never told a soul. Or... was he just bluffing? Nate might just be guessing. Maybe she should ask what he''d meant... but no, that would just tip him off if he was fishing. Eve clenched her jaw and looked again at the trait. A trait she''d received that night. The second time she''d met Stanley... and the first time she... didn''t die. [Cheat Death] Your death was absolute and irrevocable. Yet the Beast Lord decreed you live. Continue not dying. Effects(Recharging): When you would die. Instead, evolve and keep fighting. It was a good trait. There was no denying that fact. If only she didn''t see that glowing monster every time she closed her eyes. If only she didn''t see those... eyes. That murderous, killing gaze. Now the trait was recharging. Because she had died. There was no almost about it this time... She could never tell Zeke. He could never know the truth. Not after what he''d told her about his faith. Broken and unbroken alike. For all his talk about forgiving that lunatic psychopath... he still hadn''t forgiven himself for those deaths. Especially for Byron. Zeke had gotten too attached to that guy¡ªto all of them. Her baby brother had so little to smile about... after everything. But he still smiled. Despite everything. Despite the absolute shitshow that was his life. Both before and after the system fucked everyone else''s lives up. He could still smile. But he wasn''t okay. Eve was doing her best to watch over him, so she saw him when he thought no one was watching. She saw the silent tears when he pretended to be asleep. She saw the white-knuckled fists when he woke, curled into a ball and shaking. How... how could she ever tell him he''d failed to save her as well? It was a secret he could never know. One he would never fucking know! The memory of it was something she was still coming to grips with herself... She''d been out of her mind in pain. Babbling. Zeke just had to fucking tell him about that! Then time stopped, and she fell away from the light. You have died. That notification... why was that even a thing? What sadistic fucking bastard thought anyone needed that notification? [Cheat Death] Activated. She''d stopped falling when that one appeared. Stopped plunging down into the abyss. Above her, she saw Zeke. She saw her body beneath his hands. She saw the zombie looming over both of them. All of it frozen in a timeless moment. Below her and behind her, she felt it. She couldn''t see it, but she knew what lurked back there. Waiting for her. It was Nothing. The Void. The End. Evolution Traits Available: The system had offered her two traits to choose from. The first one would protect her from corruption. Not only that, but it would let her channel the corruption herself... She chose the second trait. Zeke could heal the corruption, and she didn''t want that rotten shit touching her! Never mind channeling it! [Blood Bound Alloy] You channeled enough mana to turn metal molten. Then you dumped that metal into your veins, which ravaged your body and contributed to your death. You have evolved to turn a weakness into power. Effects: The metal in your blood is yours to command. That trait had proved much more useful than the other would have been. Well, useful, at least. She couldn''t compare it since she hadn''t taken the other. She didn''t want to compare them. Fuck the undead and fuck their disgusting magic! Besides, Eve couldn''t imagine the other trait would ever have lived up to what this one had given her. A wire extended out from the flesh of her leg. The same wire she was using to wrap the cores into their lattice. Commanding metal in her blood was so much more than she''d expected. She didn''t just command it; she could reshape, remake, and change it. Eve didn''t know what alloy she was using now, but it was the best mix she''d found for handling heavy mana use, and she''d created it inside her blood... The worst part of all this. The absolute worst thing about it was that Stanley had not only saved her life by trying to kill her but he had also given her more power. Or had he? That bastard! She should thank him... She was still alive. She could still protect Zeke. But that was all because Stanley had tried to kill her and failed! It wasn''t fucking okay to murder people because you were in a bad fucking mood! Fuck you, you... +1 Soul You demonstrated sufficient mastery to acquire the Non-Class Skill: Soul Leech (Rare) What the hell? Eve felt knowledge enter her mind as the skill appeared on her status, and she understood. His leaking soul... Soul Leech (Rare) Take what you can. Give nothing back. User may attempt to leech soul attributes from any target they touch which has a soul. Amount and rate of leeching dependent on the difference between the user''s soul and the targeted soul. Target may detect leeching attempts, especially if used on a target with a higher soul attribute than the user''s. User has a chance of acquiring random effects from leeched souls. Chance increases from repeated use on the same target. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% Effective Soul I''m not a fucking leech! But... It was an opportunity. A way to improve her soul. Stanley hadn''t reacted to the point she''d already gained... and that was probably because of the leak. He said he couldn''t use the shield while meditating and supposedly fixing his soul. She was likely just taking the soul he''d already lost. What did it matter if she did that? The skill was working with and alongside her mana drain. She didn''t even need to change anything. Stanley could sit out there doing... whatever bullshit he was doing, and she would just clean up after him. That was fine. If he detected it and complained... well, that could be his apology for wanting to kill her. She hadn''t forgiven him for that. Only for attacking Zeke... Because Stanley had done so much worse before. When they first met. When he left her and Zeke in the clutches of that cunt... He was a fucking psycho! Why couldn''t he have just finished the fucking job?! All those people... all the death and abuse. Stanley didn''t deserve any credit for saving them from the skeleton. They never would have ended up there if not for his failed assassination of the cunt! The bitch had been a lunatic before that, but she really went off the rails after someone resisted her fucking voice and tried to kill her... and after Eve resisted it. Eve felt the ghost of a torch in her hand, felt the heat against her face... heard the screams... and her fingers spasmed, nails digging into her palm. Fuck you, cunt! And fuck you, Stanley! She would leech every drop of his worthless fucking soul, and he could just go to hell if he didn''t like it! The old fart had already rubbed it in her face about how much more soul he had than anyone else. He could stand to lose plenty! He was also certifiable. For all his claims of being the only thing between them and the undead, he couldn¡¯t be trusted to protect Zeke. He¡¯d already proven shit at that too. Eve was the only one who could do it. She had to be strong enough. Whatever it fucking took. There was one teeny tiny little little issue with her plan. It came in the shape of a too-friendly, incessantly shedding, and god-damned beast lord pug! A fucking pug! Worse, it was a pug who had decreed she live. How the fuck could he do that!? All of that really meant that Caffeine was the one who saved her. Not Stanley. So fuck the old bastard and fuck his soul! She didn''t owe him shit. Though there was that mention of random effects... so maybe she wouldn''t leech too much? With his fucked up soul, who knew what twisted effect she''d end up with? He better not turn me into an old fart! 122. Stand Up ~~~Lee~~~ "Great," Lee said, taking the stone staff from Bradley... whereupon it immediately dragged him to the floor. "Oof! Holy... how is it so heavy!? Never mind that. How do you carry this thing!?" "You said to make it as dense as I could... and it''s made from earth, so it''s not that hard for me to carry." "Damn!" Lee left one end on the ground and hoisted the other end until it was standing upright. "I almost feel bad for the monsters... Even lead wouldn''t be this heavy!" Bradley shrugged. "Technically, it''s a type of stone now. I think. It''s magic. I don''t know how it works; I just use it." "Well..." Lee frowned. "Huh, I don''t know, either. But I think it will work for what I need. Now I just need you to give me all of your mana." "Um, how do I do that?" "That''s the hard part, but I have a few ideas." Lee handed over a plate. "First, try dumping mana into this." "Like this?" Bradley asked, and Lee could see mana funneling from his core, down his arm, and into the plate. "Perfect. Now you only have to..." Lee frowned. "No, that''s not working." The rune mana battery was collecting the mana as designed, but it was tainting it. Something about the liquid mana in the rune itself... Despite the setback, Lee was happy. It confirmed his theory. Partially. He wouldn''t know for sure until he finished creating the item in question. "Okay, next option. Just dump your mana into the air." Bradley frowned and stood unmoving for a second before his mana started flowing from a hand, spilling out uselessly. "How''s that?" Lee said nothing as he focused Mana Mind on collecting every speck of the earth mage''s mana. The trick was to catch Bradley''s mana and hold it while also not collecting any other mana. "Keep... going..." Lee breathed, desperately focused on his task, and Bradley blessedly did as instructed. They both kept at it as Bradley dumped his entire core''s worth of mana. Of course, Three only pumped more mana into him to replace what he spent. Perfect. Three didn''t send any mana to Lee. As intended. Lee definitely had the harder task here because he not only had to catch the expelled mana but then had to funnel it into his own core. A core he was purposefully keeping at half capacity. His last skill selection had shown him the option to partition his own core to hold elemental mana... So who was to say he couldn''t do the same thing manually? No one. Because he was doing it. Unfortunately, having an actual skill for it was probably the correct way to do things because it was ridiculously difficult to keep it partitioned... but Lee had a solution for that, too. His liquid mana core didn''t and probably couldn''t hold non-liquid mana. Three only sent him liquid mana, but any mana he pulled in from the surroundings would automatically get compressed upon entering his core. Usually resulting in an absolutely pathetic gain, mana-wise... But even a minute amount of liquid mana could do something. Like, for example, go into a rune. Not a powerful rune. Probably not even a viable rune. Once again, Lee had a solution. He created a charged rune in his rune soul storage. Those didn''t need to be viable. They didn''t even have to be a real rune. One thing they did very well, though, was hold liquid mana. Any kind of liquid mana. So he did just that. Collecting Bradley''s mana into his core until it became too difficult to control, then dumping it into a fake rune in his storage. It felt like a loophole, and one he was happy to exploit. At least until Bradley quit... "I can''t!" Bradley fell to his knees and clutched the hand he''d been expelling mana from. "Mana burn!" Lee stowed away what he had, then looked at it while analyzing the staff. "Hmm." It was far from enough, so he pushed a hovering seat toward the man. "Rest. We can keep going once you recover." "Is this really necessary?" Bradley asked while rubbing his arm. "The last staff you made for me was more than enough." "It''s a bit of an experiment," Lee admitted. "I don''t know if it will work the way I''m hoping, but if it does... Well, trust me, it''ll be worth it." Mar was the only other person in the elevator room, and she was waiting for Bradley. She appeared, frowning, when he started dropping speed bubbles on her boyfriend. They weren''t having any luck finding a beast to bond with her, and Lee had only realized after the fact how hard it might have been for him to bond with something even if he''d learned the skill. Mar was being quiet about the failure but couldn''t hide her disappointment from Lee. He didn''t mention any of that; he only smiled and created another seat before sending it sliding over. "Stick close and keep your feet up." It made sticking bubbles on them far easier inside the building, and there was no reason not to. He could speed up Bradley''s recovery while also leveling Temporal Shift. "What did Alejandro want?" Lee asked after touching the rune plate next to the door. His communication runes worked so long as they were far enough apart, or at least couldn''t hear each other and create a feedback loop. Jeremy answered from outside, his current bodyguard, and the one who''d dealt with Alejandro while Lee focused on his experiment. "Um, he wanted you to talk to the anubi about ranking up. He said they were being stubborn and refusing to keep any cores. Even the ones they earned from selling potions." That explained why Jeremy had a bag full of cores... and it wasn''t all that surprising. This was something he should have expected from the anubi... since he''d never explicitly told them to rank up. Rax was the only one not in the potion workshop, since he spent most of his time with Saira these days. Lee didn''t want to disrupt their work, which looked very delicate, so he sent Jeremy to fetch Trak. "My lord!" Trak bowed as soon as he entered the small room. "How may I serve?" Lee resisted the urge to take away Trak''s bowing privileges. He also tried to choose his words carefully. "Trak, why aren''t you using the cores? Did I accidentally give any orders to the contrary?" "No, my lord." Trak looked at the floor. "I didn''t dare to presume..." "We had this talk already, Trak. You are family now, right?" "Yes, my lord." Trak still refused to look at him. Lee sighed at what he could feel from the anubi in front of him. There was still too much fear and hesitance. "Trak, I''m going to give you an order now, and I want you to obey it as well as you can. This order supersedes all other orders that came before and all that will come in the future, okay?" Trak tensed, but nodded with his gaze on the floor. "Yes, my lord." "I order you," Lee said. "All of you, to do as you please. You can do nothing if that''s what you want, or you can do anything." There were a lot of jumbled feelings from Trak, and Lee worried for a moment that he''d broken the anubi somehow. Did the oath not work this way? Could he not order people to do as they pleased? Finally, Trak looked up and met his gaze. "Yes, my... my lord?" "Whatever you want to do, Trak. Your whole pack. You never need permission. You don''t have to wonder if I''ll approve or agree. This is my permission and agreement with whatever you desire." "I... obey?" Lee smiled. "If you want to, right?" "I... do not know, my lord." Well, it seemed better... and there was another reason Lee wanted to get this thing sorted. "Your pack''s offspring are going to be here soon, Trak. Even if you insist the oath is a good thing, I won''t have them born into servitude." If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. It turned out that the anubi gestation period was dramatically faster than that of humans. They could be born any day now. "So, Trak, do you want to evolve to E-grade?" "I..." Trak blinked at him. "I would like that, my lord." "So, what will you do?" Lee glanced at the bag full of cores but made no other move. He really hoped this would work... Trak reached out, his movements hesitant as he wrapped a paw around the bag''s strap. He lifted the bag onto his shoulder and looked up into Lee''s eyes. "I will... take these cores, my lord?" Lee shrugged. "Don''t look at me." "I... we will ascend." Trak turned halfway to the door. "By your leave, my lord?" Lee said nothing, trying to keep his face as neutral as possible. Obviously, Trak could still feel his soul, so he couldn''t really hide his feelings, but the anubi did eventually open the door and slip outside. He didn''t even look that nervous. Jeremy watched Trak leave, then glanced through the door at Lee and the blurry forms of Bradley and Mar inside the bubble. He seemed somehow more nervous than Trak... so Lee waved him inside. "Don''t worry about them," Lee said with a glance at the teenagers before shutting the door behind Jeremy. "How are you doing?" "I... I''m good?" The guy was almost as bad as Trak. "You''ve been helping out for a while now, and I barely know you. I''d like to change that." Lee''s little heart to heart with Jackson the night before had been a bit of a wake up call. Even if he thought Alejandro was overreacting, these people were potentially putting their lives on the line to keep him safe. He should, at the very least, know what they could do in case they did ever end up in a fight. Besides, Jeremy had also accepted the soul-link... "Wha... what do you want to know?" "First off, what can you do in a fight?" "Oh." Jeremy relaxed marginally. "I can swap space." Lee waited, then kept waiting. Finally, he asked, "What does that mean?" "Oh! Like... I can swap two areas of space... Make them trade places?" "You can teleport?" That sounded awesome! "Or is it an attack? Can you swap someone''s head with a rock!?" "No." Jeremy wilted. "It''s not that useful... I can only move whole things. Or it doesn''t work." "Can you show me?" Lee couldn''t wait to see this, but it was a little cramped in here already. Especially with the bubble around Bradley and Mar. "Can you swap people?" "I can... do you want me to swap you?" "Yes! Oh, but not outside the building!" Mana surged inside Jeremy but didn''t seem to go anywhere. "O..." his voice cut off abruptly, and Lee felt a lurch from his Mana Mind as he suddenly found himself right outside the door of the elevator room. A few people flinched away from his soul when he appeared, so Lee quickly hurried back inside the room, taking his seat with him. "That was amazing! I didn''t even feel it... and my plate went with me!" Jeremy finally smiled. Just a little. "Thanks..." Lee cast another bubble on the confused-looking teenagers. "So, how far can you teleport?" "It''s not a teleport. Teleporting is disappearing in one place and appearing somewhere else. It''s more like trading places..." "Who cares about the semantics!? That skill is badass! I can see why Alejandro wanted you as a bodyguard... but why not be a hunter? You''d be unstoppable. Just pop in, kill something, and pop out." Jeremy''s small smile fled as his mood dipped sharply. "I can''t swap myself." "I... shit. That sucks. Still..." "It also takes around a minute for space to stop... wobbling after I use it anywhere nearby." The guy was really bummed out now, and Lee felt a little bad about bringing it up. Not that bad, though. "Have you leveled it very high yet?" Jeremy shook his head. "It uses a lot of mana, so... I haven''t been... using it." Lee dropped another bubble on Bradley, as he had been doing repeatedly since each one only lasted a second. The downside of speeding up time inside it. "You should have mana access..." Jeremy nodded. "So use the skill every chance you get. What if it lets you teleport yourself at higher levels!?" "It''s not..." "Yeah, yeah. Not a teleport. But it is powerful! You know how much magic I''ve resisted that wasn''t a direct damage effect? Did you struggle at all with swapping me?" "No?" Lee looked at Bradley, who was once again in real time and watching the exchange. "Can you swap them like you did me? Only try it while they''re in the bubble." Jeremy shrugged, waited for the slow bubble to appear around Bradley and Mar, then surged with mana, and they vanished. With the bubble. Lee could feel the bubble active outside the room. Both people still inside it. Space and time. "Your skill is legendary, isn''t it?" "No!" Jeremy denied it a little too vehemently. Plus, his soul told Lee he was right. "Relax. I won''t tell anyone! But... you have got to level it up!" Lee was already pacing when Bradley walked back in with Mar. He definitely wasn''t considering murder, like last time. Mostly. I''m a good person, damn it! "Lee," Bradley said. "How much longer do you think this will take? Maybe we could do it in the evening? Or evenings, if it''s going to take a bit?" It was indeed going to take a bit. Liquid mana was just too far from normal mana, and he would need a lot for what he wanted. "You''re right, Bradley. But... I really want to get this done before the next invasion, so don''t be a stranger tonight." He said that right before dropping a speed bubble on himself and diving into his rune storage. After a bit of work and a few tweaks later, he popped into real time and dumped the weaker rune from before into Bradley''s new staff. "Take this for now." The new version was far better than the original, simply because the stone could hold more power without breaking, and it only made him want to finish the experiment all the more. But later. He had something else new and exciting to play with, er, learn about. "Okay, Jer. Can I call you Jer? See if you can pull me out of a bubble without taking it along. Or more importantly, see if you can stick me into a bubble." ~~~Trak~~~ He''d heard the stories, so he knew what to expect from this process. Despite that, it wasn''t something he''d ever expected to see for himself. Sure, there was always the slim chance that their masters would someday desire a stronger workforce... but it had never happened in his lifetime. Trak stood in that evolution void for an unknown length of time as he simply reveled in the feeling of a dream come true. This was the promised reward of his sacrifice¡ªhis family''s sacrifice. A chance for the future... and this was but the first step. A giant step. He touched the orb. [Servant Alchemist](E-grade Anubi) It took a long time, but you have pushed to the next grade. Ascend at your master''s bidding. You have served multiple masters throughout F-grade. Keep serving. You found freedom and rejected it. Remain a servant. You have used your class in service to multiple masters. Serve better. You have survived by keeping your head down and obeying orders. Stay down as you ascend to a higher grade. Traits: [Servant Alchemist] Trak stared at it in surprise. He''d expected worse¡ªa servant was better than a slave. It would even make him a better alchemist. This was good. Great even! His gamble had paid off. Not only was he about to reach E-grade, the first in his pack''s living memory, but he wouldn''t be a slave! He turned away from the orb and looked at the second one. Something he hadn''t thought possible... two choices. Perhaps this second evolution would be the one he''d expected? An option to evolve as a slave. Trak reached a hand out... and stopped. He wasn''t sure if he wanted to see it. He didn''t want to live his life as a slave. He wanted to be free. He wanted his children to be free. He wanted them to hold their heads high. At this moment, he wanted nothing more than for his children to never know the feeling of lowering their heads... This place he had sacrificed everything to find would give them that chance. All he had to do was ask. His lord, Lee, would allow it. His lord practically demanded it... There was a chance that his children, all future children, could live their lives without ever knowing what it was to grovel before another. What would their evolutions look like if he took that route? Drivia, would you forgive me? Would such a life for our children and their children be worth the terrible price I forced you to pay? He knew what his heartmate would say. She would do anything for their children... and he wept for the knowledge that she would never know the truth. Trak howled into the void until the bitter feeling faded back into the bearable ache he was learning to live with. Then he reached out to the second orb. He wanted a reminder of what he was fighting for. What all the sacrifices had proven... [Anubian Archon](E-grade Anubian) You have spent a lifetime on your knees. Until you finally stood up. You have served multiple masters throughout F-grade. But only to survive. You swore your life and pack in perpetuity to a chained god. He rejected the oath and instead named you free. You swore your pack in servitude to a chained god. He accepted your oath but ordered you and your pack to obey no masters. You willingly linked your own soul to the soul of a chained god. A soul that desires nothing more than for you to stand tall at his side. Stand up as the Anubian Archon and never kneel again. Become a ruler in your own right as you ascend to a higher grade. Traits: [Archon] I... Trak couldn''t understand. This was... it had to be a mistake. He looked at the trait. [Archon]Anubian Archons once stood at the summit of their world. Before the fall. There has not been an Archon for millennia. Until now. As an Archon, all lower Anubian races will know you on sight, and they will rejoice. A new era has begun. As an Archon, you no longer lead a Pack. You lead a Clan. As an Archon, you are the pillar that elevates your Clan. In turn, your Clan empowers you to ever greater heights. Effects: +1000% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes +1% All Base Attributes for every Clan member per pack in your Clan Trak didn''t know how to react. He recalled his lord''s... Lee''s words. About dreams. About daring to dream those impossible dreams. For the first time, he realized that perhaps those dreams were not as impossible as he''d thought. Drivia... Indrax... wait for me. Because I will come for you! No matter what! Evolution to [Anubian Archon](E-grade Anubian) has begun. 123. That Might Have Been A Mistake ~~~Mar~~~ "They all hate me," Mar whispered, crossing her arms and looking away from the judgmental eyes. Even if they couldn''t see her. Bradley was a traitor. He just laughed and then caught her in his arms before she could slip away. Stupid cheating earth magic! "They don''t hate you," he whispered in her ear so the rest of the group wouldn''t hear. "We just haven''t found the right one yet." "I really liked that one," Mar grumbled while looking at the now dead creature who''d refused the bond and then fought them to the bitter end. It had been a gorgeous emerald green cat-like thing. Beautiful. Majestic. Graceful. And it had hated her. "Come on," Bradley said. "Let''s head to the next lair." Mar followed, her fingers idly fidgeting with the knives on her belt as she looked at Bradley''s huge staff... his stone staff! God damn it... Sometimes it was good to be invisible. She could feel the heat in her face as she remembered the night before, hiding in Bradley''s underground room, far from both her mother and Lee''s prickly mana... The embarrassment wasn''t so much over what she''d done with Bradley, but that she''d been the one to push him into it. Despite all of her mother''s talks over the years about boys and how dangerous they were, how they would manipulate and pressure her into ruining herself... Gah! Mar rubbed her face briskly and made sure her invisibility never wavered. This is all your fault, mom! She eyed Bradley as he strolled beside her. So strong and confident. So powerful, and yet... so gentle. Ahh! It didn''t bother her what they''d done. The problem was that she wanted to do more! Only... I''ll have to ask Trak. Maybe I can get him away from the building... The last thing she wanted was for Lee to overhear, or worse, her mother. Trak was an alchemist... he knew lots of stuff about the system. He might know how to make a contraceptive... "You ready for it, Mar?" Bradley asked. "What!?" "We''re coming up on the next lair," Bradley said, frowning towards her. "And I can feel some serious activity down there. Are you ready for a fight?" "Y... yes!" Mar said and cursed silently when her voice came out all squeaky. She sighed and did her best to push the distracting thoughts away. This was not the time. Maybe later she could... Damn it! Stop thinking about it! The cave entrance loomed ahead, and Mar took up her usual position behind Lily, their healer. Lily was nothing like Mar''s mom when it came to healing¡ªcloser to Maria, but without that crazy dashing skill. Still, she could seal wounds, set bones, drain poisons, and do all kinds of useful stuff. Mar''s job was pretty much just to watch her back, since running around invisible in a fight with Lee''s enchanted swords waving about was a good way to get dead. This way, she could intercept anything trying to ambush the healer while also staying out of the way. Bradley took the lead. He wasn''t technically a tank class, and he didn''t use a shield, but he was better than any of them, despite that. Stone covered him from head to toe as he strode into the dark with a small plate embedded in the front that shone a bright white light into the depths. Everyone else, including Mar, uncovered their own lights. Hers would shine through the invisibility, just a little, but she had a better solution than carrying it herself. It wasn''t ideal to watch for ambushes in the dark, which was why she draped her light onto Lily''s back. Not only did it light up the tunnel behind them, it also shone straight through Mar, hopefully blinding anything that attacked while illuminating it for her blades. She wanted to watch ahead for the animals they''d come here to find, but she stuck to her role. Bradley would call her when he got one of what everyone called the Ghost Wolves. Primarily because of their silver-white fur, but also because of how silky soft that fur was. Mar had a pair of boots made from their fur¡ªboots she''d left behind today for obvious reasons. Those boots muffled her footsteps dramatically, and the wolves were supposed to be even quieter. It seemed like an effect that might lead to higher compatibility with her own class. "I don''t like this," Bradley said, stopping in the tunnel with his head pointed deeper. "It feels like they''re fighting... was someone else hitting this lair today?" "Ultron team hit it last," Victor said, and Mar thought she could feel faint vibrations beneath her feet. "They brought back a lot that time, so I doubt anyone else would come back so soon... but it does explain why we haven''t found any wolves yet." "Maybe..." Bradley murmured. "But something is definitely... Look out!" Mar felt the mana surge as the earth trembled and was already pulling Lily backward when a nightmare burst through the side of the tunnel ahead. Rows of gleaming teeth reflected in the lights for an instant. Then Bradley was there, slamming a glowing stick into the monster''s face and driving it back... into an unbroken tunnel wall. "Get outside, now!" Mar hadn''t stopped moving after seeing that monster, but she had to drag Lily along. To her credit, the healer girl wasn''t balking so much as not wanting to abandon her teammates. Of course, everyone here knew Bradley. Particularly how powerful he was. So when he yelled at them to flee, they listened. As much as she wanted to stay back and help, Mar kept running, now in the lead, as they sprinted for the surface. The ground shook repeatedly beneath her feet, and heavy impacts sent shockwaves up the tunnel at regular intervals. Luckily, they hadn''t gone that deep, and E-grade humans could really sprint when they had to. She burst out into the light just in time to see Bradley launch from the earth ten yards away. A reptilian monster emerged on his heels, and it never quite left the earth. Instead of shooting into the air like Bradley, the creature appeared to be riding a hill that grew rapidly beneath it as it chased the earth mage into the sky. Out here in the daylight, Mar finally got a good look, and she recognized the creature. It was one of those Stak... whatever they were called. It looked like a crocodile. If crocodiles were ten feet wide, forty feet long, and had six legs. Oh, and if it could swim through the ground like it was water... This time, Lee wasn''t here to enchant a platform. Bradley stopped ascending into the air, and the earth croc caught up... only to get smacked across the face by an enchanted stick that weighed as much as a car. That slowed its upward progress, pushing the creature briefly back into the hill it had created and sending Bradley off to one side. It didn''t delay the monster for long, and those massive jaws whipped out to snap at the airborne Bradley. No! Mar was already sprinting closer when Bradley''s stone armor exploded away from him and into the monster''s face. The sharp fragments of stone hit and slid harmlessly off the monster, but they also had the added effect of pushing Bradley out of reach from the snapping jaws. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. He reached the ground... and vanished beneath the surface like a pebble into a lake. The crocodile followed, diving into the ground after him. Mar slid to a stop as they vanished into suddenly calm earth, both of her hands clenched tight on her weapons. She forced her racing thoughts to focus... straining to feel the mana around her. She had to figure out where it was coming back up. She had to help! Bradley was so strong, but this thing was a direct counter to him. All of his best tricks wouldn''t work against the crocodile. He didn''t even have a rune blade... but she did. There! Mar took off, sprinting as the ground trembled and right before the combatants resurfaced. The sight that greeted her when they emerged was almost the worst possible outcome she''d feared. Bradley was in the monster''s mouth. Luckily, he''d wedged the staff upright between the gaping jaws, and now he was hanging on for dear life as the creature thrashed wildly. Mar was twenty feet away when a particularly violent shake sent Bradley flying. The staff stayed behind, still lodged in its mouth. At least until the giant head whipped the other way and shook the staff loose. The monster''s jaws snapped close with a deafening thud, and a terrible rumbling sound emanated from the creature as it turned toward Bradley. Her boyfriend bounced off the ground once, twice, then slammed to a stop against a wall of earth that burst up into his path. Instead of chasing after Bradley, the monster hesitated, and then its head spun toward Mar. She was expecting it. If this creature''s powers were anything like Bradley''s, then she knew it would feel her footsteps. It charged, and Mar stepped off the ground into the air. Feel this, you... lizard! She continued sprinting toward the monster, only now she was climbing higher into the air with each step. The crocodile pounced on the location she''d just left, taking a large bite out of the ground, and Mar came down on its back with twin blades plunging deep. At times like this, Mar regretted not being able to carry a better weapon, but the short swords she had now were the longest she could wield and still have her invisibility fully conceal them. She jumped back into the air an instant before the monster dove beneath the surface, and something slammed into her back... Mar lost some time and came back to herself while still sailing through the air... and shot mana from her feet, flipping over before sending out another blast to halt her momentum in midair. She fell toward the ground while taking in the fight still ongoing back where she''d come from... mostly. The monster was coming after her, and Bradley was chasing it. "Run!" Mar shouted at the rest of their team, all of them charging her way. "Get back to the fort!" Then she went invisible again. A few more people wouldn''t help against this creature. Not when it could drop the ground out from under them on a whim. Mar worried that she too was practically helpless... and if not for the air-jumping runes, she would be. The team heard what she''d said and, thankfully, they listened. All of them immediately turned and ran. Unfortunately, the monster turned to pursue them the moment Mar vanished. Fortunately, it didn''t disappear beneath the ground while it did so. Very much like the crocodile Mar compared it to, the beast swam through the earth with only small areas of its body above the surface and its tail weaving behind it, propelling it. It was fast. Bradley wouldn''t catch up in time... Mar stepped twice off the air to get into its path and aimed her blades between its eyes as they raced closer on an intercept course. She was only a few feet away when something shifted in the beast. Mar wasn''t sure what it was. A tilt of its head. A glint from one of those reptilian eyes... Whatever it was, her instincts screamed at her, and Mar blasted mana out from her left shoe. The burst sent her tumbling sideways right as the crocodile dove beneath the surface... and right as its tail whipped through the airspace she''d only just vacated. That''s what hit me before... Earth burst from the ground ahead before she had time to congratulate herself on dodging the strike. It shot up at her in a swarm of reaching spears. Mar triggered her shoes in rapid succession, once to stop spinning, then again to climb above the attack. Then again and again, when the earth kept rising in pursuit. Like a new mountain growing beneath her, the earth chased her into the sky faster than she could jump away. So she blasted herself sideways... It came on. Relentless. She must have hurt it more than she thought if it was this angry with her... but her shoes were running out of charge. She couldn''t keep this up... and it would only get worse once she was landlocked. She should have used the dreaming skill instead of stabbing it... but she''d hesitated rather than reveal she had it. Everyone already looked at her weird... They really wouldn''t like it if they knew she could get in their heads now... especially since people were calling it the roofie skill. Besides, it wouldn''t have helped very much since it would just leave her standing atop the monster until her mana ran out or she canceled the skill. Mar watched what should have been a very earth-centric creature descend out of the sky towards her own plummeting form, its jaws expanding wide enough to swallow her whole. Sure, it wasn''t over yet. She probably had a few more charges left in the shoes... Despite the threat, she still felt a surprising lack of fear at the sight. Because she knew he was coming. Bradley hit like a cannonball against the monster''s side. Slamming into it hard enough that the forty-foot creature folded nearly in half from the impact. Then it launched away from her. Rather than waste another charge of her shoes, Mar tucked into a roll on impact with the ground and came up running... then slid to a stop at the fight unfolding before her. Only it wasn''t a fight. It was a beatdown. She could feel massive amounts of mana surging from both combatants, but Bradley was the one laying on the hurt. He''d lost his staff earlier, and that didn''t seem to slow him down in the slightest as he laid into the monster with fists of stone. The ground itself leapt and danced around him as he drove relentless blows into the monster''s face, side, legs, and any part of it that came within range. It tried to dive into the earth, and he dragged the ground itself up to force it back into reach. It spun to reach him with both tail and jaws, and he forced the earth beneath its feet to obey him instead. Back and forth, they fought for supremacy over the earth, all while trading blows that sent shockwaves through the ground. Bradley''s expression was a picture of murderous rage as he fought, which, on anyone else, would have sent her fleeing for a dark corner to hide in. But she felt no urge to run. Instead, she only felt... safe. Protected. They were in the midst of a life and death fight with a monster that wanted nothing more than to kill and eat them, but she felt safe. It was a relatively new sensation that had never really been a part of her life before. A feeling so comforting that she couldn''t remember or imagine life without it. It was something she would fight to keep. Mar knew Bradley was powerful. She knew he would protect her to the ends of the earth. But she also knew that he was fighting a mirror of himself, one far bigger and with much more powerful natural gifts. He wouldn''t win this with his fists. He needed a weapon. Ideally, one he was good with. She ran back the way they''d come, over churned-up dirt and broken stones. It was going to be a nightmare to find in this mess... so she stepped into the air and ran higher. Mar took a final leap, closed her eyes, and listened to that sense she''d honed throughout so many trials and dangers. Behind her, mana raged in massive quantities. Off to the side, she felt the smaller flares of her teammates fleeing toward the fort. Below her, she felt the earth... and a faint buzzing. Lee''s runes were full of enough mana that she should feel them for miles. Only it was all bound up into almost perfect silence... Almost. There! Mar kicked off the sky as her eyes snapped open, and she plummeted toward a tiny glimmer of light peeking from the dirt. She landed in a crouch, her feet blasting pits into the dirt as her body strained against going from near terminal velocity to a sudden stop. The impact didn''t stop her from latching onto the ridiculously heavy staff, and she ignored the minor pains to take off, sprinting. At least as fast as she could while carrying the damn thing. Sprinting toward a battle that only seemed to be ramping up with each passing moment. "Bradley," Mar shouted and threw the staff like a spear. "Catch!" He spun at her voice and took a whipping tail in the back for his momentary distraction. The blow sent him airborne, but also in the direction of Mar''s sadly insufficient throw. Bradley hit the ground in a tumble of limbs. A tumble that ended with him launching back into the air, only now he was wrapped again in his stone armor as he reached out for the staff that flew to meet him. Unfortunately, the monster wasn''t willing to wait, and it sprinted after him even faster than he''d flown through the air. Its six legs ate up the distance, and the ground itself flowed like a moving sidewalk to propel the beast at an insane speed. It was going to catch him... Mar had one last Hail Mary up her sleeve. An ability that always made any creature freeze up for a moment, and even a small delay now would make all the difference... So she cast her new legendary skill on the monster. Beastmaster Bond. It worked. The monster''s legs stiffened. The earth stuttered to a stop beneath it. Bradley caught his staff as the earth itself rose up to halt his momentum, and then he launched back toward the monster, his weapon descending like the hammer of God to shatter the world... Beast Bond Accepted. You have Soul-Bonded with Greater Stakshiak. Wait... WHAT!? 124. In His Eyes ~~~Lee~~~ Jeremy declined Lee''s offer of a nickname, but he definitely had a legendary ability, even if he refused to admit it. That was the only explanation for how ridiculously powerful the skill was. Not only could he move Lee''s time bubbles, but he could move people into or out of the bubbles without issue. Aside from being powerful, it was extremely fascinating to watch. Or feel. Mana Mind was particularly odd when pieces of it got displaced... It didn''t hurt, and the strange distortion vanished almost instantly, but it also tugged at something in his mind. Something to do with runes... and with a similar feeling to what his own Temporal Shift skill was giving him. It was a feeling that grew with each repetition of the skill¡ªrather, both of the skills. Lee knew some runes related to time, but nothing like his skill could do. Of course, he knew there was more to the runes than he really understood, and that wasn''t all from his new Language of the Rune skill. That skill felt like it was poised next to his ear, whispering something, but never quite loud enough... Mostly, it was making him regret not giving the time skill to Three. He would have tested more skill shards to see if Three could learn them, but wasn''t sure if the building had a non-class skill limit like he did. He didn''t want to waste those slots on something shitty; of course, on the flip side, he didn''t want to waste skills that were too good in the hands of a human defender. It all meant he hadn''t tested any more skills... but he had told Alejandro what happened and to keep a lookout for good potential matches. In lieu of that, the next best bet was to figure out a rune to replicate the effects. If he could make time shifting runes... especially if Three could make them. Or space swapping runes... The possibilities were endless. Lee''s studying efforts ended when Trak started glowing like a supernova in his Mana Mind. He''d watched the anubi. Mostly to ensure Trak didn''t balk at using the cores. So he knew Trak was in the midst of his E-grade evolution... and going by the light show, it looked like a good one. Also, was he getting bigger? Then the rest of the anubi started glowing brighter as well. He hadn''t gotten to observe many evolutions before, especially ones like this, so Lee took the opportunity to watch the anubi as they finally left F-grade. He was still new to the system by their standards and didn''t think he could fully appreciate what this moment meant for them. Trak''s soul alone was... transcendent? That was the only word Lee could think of to describe the emotion radiating from the guy. Hopefully, he wouldn''t become a worse fanatic after this... That felt like a very far fetched dream when Trak finally stirred and rose from the evolution. But then Trak remained where he was. He sat still and watched over his family as they all finished evolving as well. All of them echoed Trak''s emotions as they woke... It felt like the happiest day of their lives, and Lee would have been more eager to share in their happiness if that feeling wasn''t aimed at him. Then Trak came Lee''s way. Oh shit. He knocked on the door, and Jeremy flinched. "Relax," Lee said while telling Three to open up. "It''s just Trak checking in after his evolution." Trak was bigger, but not a lot. Maybe an extra six inches taller as he strode into the small room, his eyes locked on and never straying from Lee. "My... lord." "I''m guessing you got a good evolution option?" Lee could feel the struggle going on within the anubi, a sharp contrast to the outward calm he displayed. He hadn''t thought to ask about the process until now, and it might be different for someone without the adaptable trait. "Yes... my lord." Trak still hadn''t bowed to him, a change Lee was more than pleased to see. Though he still lowered his head before continuing. "I wish to serve..." Trak shook his head. "No. I wish to... help you, my lord." Lee couldn''t help but smile at Trak''s word choice. "I told you to do as you please. So you don''t need my permission." "Then..." Trak straightened. "Then I will tell your brother to place me into the guard rotations." That was not what Lee had been expecting... but what could he say now? He''d told Trak to do whatever he wanted... sneaky little bastard. "It''s... your choice." A tension Lee hadn''t noticed left Trak as the anubi''s shoulders relaxed ever so slightly. "Rest assured, I will not allow my... choices to delay our work on the soul potion." "I appreciate that, Trak... You know, Alejandro wasn''t always my brother. We were strangers when our world changed, but he adopted me into his family. I would call you brother as well... if you would allow it." Trak stiffened, and Lee knew he''d pushed too far when a non-translated whine was all that emanated from his mouth. Finally, he wheezed out, "I... cannot, my lord." "It''s okay, Trak. Do as you please. Remember? Though... what if you just call me Lee?" Another wheezing whine. "Cascade?" "I... cannot." Trak abruptly dropped to one knee. "My lord! You do not know what you have done! You... I..." Lee smiled despite the kneeling. "The evolution was that good? Will you tell me about... but you don''t have too if..." "I have ascended!" Trak howled and leapt to his feet as his soul soared. Then he told Lee about his evolution¡ªevery detail about both options and the one he obviously chose. Trak hesitated a few times with distrusting glances at Jeremy, and Lee used time bubbles to give them privacy. He was glad he had when Trak mentioned a chained god. Which was just... Well, it fit with what Trak had said about gods and the source. The odd, and slightly worrying bit, was, what the hell did chained mean? Aside from that, it sounded like a great evolution for Trak, especially since he wasn''t forced to take a damn servant race... Lee really hoped the humans swearing to him weren''t getting options like that. The bad one, not the good one. Apparently, Trak''s choice hadn''t affected him alone. Every member of his pack¡ªnow a clan¡ªall had their race changed by his... ascension. Now they were something called Anubian Paragons... A kind of royal guard or royal family to Trak''s new status as an Archon. All in all, it was fantastic. "That''s great, Trak. Turns out I was right." "My lord?" "About standing up. Not groveling? You got that option because you finally stood up, right?" "I... yes, my lord." "So I can remove the oath?" "Please do not, my lord!" "I don''t want your children born into..." "My lord, they will come into this world as Paragons! Not because they are free of oaths, but because they are sworn to you! You who have ordered them to obey no masters!" It sounded better like that... and Lee was really proud of coming up with that order. "Okay. But can you finally stop calling me a lord?" Trak lowered his head again. "What you have done for me, for my pack... I cannot ignore the debt I owe to..." "Family, Trak. No debts, remember? Don''t make me get Maria down here." Trak winced and shook his head. "Forgive me, my lord, but I must beg for your patience. I desire nothing more than to stand proudly at your side... but I am not worthy." Lee took in a breath, ready to let the anubi have it for going down this line of thinking again, but he hesitated when Trak held up a paw. "Allow me time, my lord. To prove it." He dropped to one knee again. "You have nothing to prove to..." "Prove it to myself." Trak looked up at him with a pleading soul. "Forgive me, but I believe you cannot understand just what you have done. You say I am family. You call me equal..." He ducked his head and whispered, "It is madness, my lord. Yet... you say it is so, and who am I to deny your word?" "All I ask¡ªall my pack asks¡ªis the chance to live up to your expectations of us." Lee stifled his sigh. Trak was heading in the right direction, and a little patience wouldn''t hurt. "Like I said before, do as you please. I have no more orders and never will." Trak left with a spring in his soul, and Lee turned to the only other person still in the room. "Sorry about that. They came from a really fucked up place... what with all the groveling and such." Jeremy said nothing and only looked back and forth from Lee to the door. "I''m hoping to break them of it, but it''s been... a process. You ready to keep working?" Jeremy''s soul still had a lot of confusion in it, but the man nodded. Together, they kept testing and practicing with their respective legendary skills. Jeremy was reluctant about the details of his ability, but Lee dragged it out of him by sharing how his own skill worked. The guy loosened up slowly as they worked, and Lee got a glimpse of the intellect hiding behind the nervous exterior. Jeremy had been a physicist before the system, a fact he credited with the class he''d gained. He wouldn''t go into any detail of his early days in the system, and Lee didn''t press since he could clearly feel some unpleasant emotions lurking around the topic. What he did manage to tease out was that Jeremy had a sense of his surroundings akin to Lee''s own Mana Mind. Only instead of mana, the guy sensed space... Later, Lee convinced Jeremy to send him upstairs to Jamaal''s, where he grabbed lunch. It took long enough that the skill could come off cooldown, or, as Jeremy put it, for space to stop wobbling. Food in hand, Lee turned off the light rune downstairs in a prearranged signal and found himself abruptly back in the garage. It was a fucking awesome skill! More than that, Lee could still feel that nugget of understanding growing with his rune knowledge every time space got swapped... If he could figure out a rune to replicate the skill... plus his own time skill... Forget shields and invisibility. He wanted control over time and space! "Okay, Jeremy," Lee said, hefting the two plates. "There''s just one more test to determine if you are a good man. To see if you are the man I hope you are. The most important test there is." He hid his smile at the sudden alarm in Jeremy''s soul. "What is your opinion on breakfast burr..." There was a sudden collective twitching sensation that resonated throughout everyone in the entire building... everyone linked to his soul... and then something entered his Mana Mind at speed, coming right toward Three. What the hell? It felt like Mar... but it most definitely wasn''t. At least, he really hoped it wasn''t. ~~~Mar~~~ If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Bradley''s strike landed, and it blasted the croc... the Stakshiak''s head into the ground. Below the ground. Mar felt a sting in her own head as Bradley dragged the beast back above the surface, his staff rising for another blow... "Wait," she whispered, her voice weak. Then she screamed as the staff descended, "Stop!" Bradley halted the strike a hairs-breadth above the beast''s head, and then they both just stood there... man and beast, staring at each other. "I like your mate," a voice said into Mar''s head. "He sings the earthsong with great ferocity!" I... who... what? Mar was still trying to understand all the strange new feelings assaulting her senses when Bradley looked back at her, a touch of disbelief in his expression. "You bonded it?" Mar nodded on the edge of tears. "I... I did!" Bradley was at her side in an instant. "What''s wrong!? Are you okay?" His face was bruised and bloodied... and more blood covered his split and torn knuckles as his fingers wrapped gently around hers. He showed no concern for the injuries and only peered worriedly at her with his beautiful brown eyes. Mar looked past him at the massive crocodilian-looking beast as it settled down into the dirt with a sigh she heard only in her head. She knew it was hurting... but that it wasn''t very bad. It seemed to be far more concerned with the warm sun on its back... "I was just trying to distract it," Mar whispered. Bradley chuckled. "Well, it worked. You distracted it enough to switch sides!" Mar burst into tears. "What is it!?" Bradley blurted, his voice panicking and his hands tensing on hers. "Are you hurt? Is the beast hurting you? Let''s get back to your mom!" "It... it..." Mar barely managed to get the words out through her sobs. "But it''s so ugly!" He laughed... The insensitive brute laughed! "Who is ugly?" the voice echoed into her mind again. "Is it your mate? Does he upset you? Should I thrash him some more?" "I wanted to bond with something pretty, you jerk!" Mar snapped at Bradley while trying to ignore the voice. "Then you couldn''t have chosen better, Bonded. I am resplendent! My scales glisten with all the colors of earth and stone. I doubt you would find another to compare!" Bradley pulled her into a hug. "I''m sorry... and don''t worry! You aren''t stuck with just one beast, right? We can pick the next one more carefully." "Okay," Mar mumbled into his chest. "Besides," Bradley said. "That thing is ridiculously tough. I think you got a good one, and it probably doesn''t matter if it can go invisible since it can hide underground!" Mar turned her head to look at the presence now sharing space in her brain. It... no, he. He was enjoying the sun. So much so that he was falling asleep... Hey, wake up! "Hmm?" the sleepy response came back. "Do we hunt? I would enjoy a snack..." Can you use my invisibility? She sent the thought his way. And what''s your name? The reptile sank into the ground until only a small portion of his body was visible. "There, I am invisible... though I do not have a name." I can still see you! "Nonsense. I am completely invisible." "Bradley," Mar said, looking up at him. "Will you go smack that idiot lizard on the head so he knows he''s not invisible?" "O... okay?" Bradley let go of her and pulled his staff up from where he''d dropped it as he walked back toward the lizard. He''s going to hit you. "Your mate is formidable, but he will not see me." "Stop calling him my mate!" Mar yelled, then blushed furiously after realizing what she''d said. Bradley''s steps stuttered, but he kept walking closer to the beast. "Is he not your mate? I smell your desire. Does he not submit? Shall I assist you in taming him? Usually it is the females who resist, but I do not know how human mating is done." "Oh my god," Mar groaned, covering her face with her hands even though she knew she was invisible. Just shut up about it! Bradley didn''t hit it in the face like she''d asked, but he did poke it. See? You''re not invisible! "Impossible! Your mate only remembers where I rested." He swam away through the dirt, his massive tail propelling him like it was water instead of solid ground. The entire relocation was not only visible but extremely obvious from the way the ground rippled around him. "Now no one shall spot me." "Hit him again! Harder this time!" Bradley walked over with a big, stupid grin on his face and only jabbed the lizard in the face slightly harder. "Should we go check on the others? Make sure they didn''t run into anything else on the way back?" "I will admit it," the lizard said in her mind. "Your mate is formidable indeed to so easily track me." Mar groaned and gave up. "I''m going to name you dirt for brains at this rate..." Rename Bonded Greater Stakshiak to: Dirt For Brains? Y/N "No," Mar said, trudging after Bradley and her new... pet? Bonded? You heard him. Let''s go. "Your mate? I know he communicates using those sounds, but I cannot understand his chattering." You understand me, though? "We are bonded." Yeah, because that explained everything. Or did it? Mar focused on the bond and suddenly realized she had a lot of new information in her head that she hadn''t known before. She could feel where the beast was located. An undeniable feeling. Like it was a piece of her body. Or something more. There was pain in that feeling, but similar to when Bradley had struck it, the pain was... distant. Very distant. She knew it was there. She... felt it. But it didn''t actually hurt. It was weird, but it did tell her how her bonded beast was doing. Which, aside from some bruises, seemed to be doing just fine. The blockhead was extremely durable, if nothing else. The entire beast was powerful. She could feel it. A... potential just waiting for her to... Mar triggered a part of her new skill. Something that had only appeared after she bonded the creature to her soul. Power flooded her body. Buff Gained: [Power Transfer](04:59) 90% of Attributes transferred from Bonded Greater Stakshiak. She checked her status and gaped in shock. Over four hundred points had just been added to each of her attributes. That was more than she''d had herself... and it was only ninety percent. How was this idiotic beast stronger than her? How was it an idiot if it had more intelligence than she did... Not that she felt particularly smarter at the moment. The skill had mentioned that the transfer included effective bonuses... and she had gained no increases to her effective intelligence. So maybe that was it? Everything else, especially her physical attributes, had skyrocketed. Mar sprinted faster than she ever had before and caught Bradley in her arms. "Try to escape!" "Why would I want to escape?" Bradley said. "I''m right where I want to be." "Idiot," Mar whispered while feeling heat rush to her face. At least he couldn''t see her... "I''m testing my new skill. Just try to escape!" She couldn''t tell how hard he was trying, but however much it was, it didn''t matter. He was helpless in her arms... she could do whatever she wanted to him... Bradley leaned his head on her shoulder. "Aw, I could get used to this." Mar scooped him up and Bradley didn''t protest the princess-carry as she hauled him away at a dead sprint. It was a fun and heady feeling of power. Not the manhandling him per se, but just the rush of her attributes soaring. Until it ended... Buff Removed: [Power Transfer] Debuff Gained: [Transfer Penalty](59:59) -90% All Base Attributes Skill Level Up: Beastmaster Bond That one sucked. It sucked even more when her lazy beast didn''t want to carry her home. She wasn''t being mean or insulting. The damn thing had a literal trait... [Lazy] What''s the rush? There is nothing better than doing nothing. Especially if you can lay in the sun while doing it. Effects: You are extremely inclined to relax when not under threat or hungry. It even had a hunger debuff and was still refusing to move... Aren''t you hungry? "Hm?" It opened its bleary eyes briefly, then abruptly lifted its head from the dirt. "I am hungry! Do you have something to eat!?" "You were trying to eat us," Mar said in sudden realization. Not that it was so strange for a monster to do that, but... normally you don''t get a casual chat with said monster after the fact. "Go find your own food!" Mar yelled at him. She thought about it for a second. "And no eating people! Well, no people unless I tell you. Or if they are trying to hurt me." That should cover... "Too tired." "Argh!" Mar stomped her foot into the top of the beast''s head. "Get up, meathead!" Rename Bonded Greater Stakshiak to: Meathead? Y/N "Yes!" She stomped on his head again, knowing for a fact that not only was she not hurting him, he could barely feel the impact. "You''re a meathead!" Name Assigned. "Hmm. Meat...." Bradley wrapped his arms around her from behind and pulled her close. Worse, now the tables had turned, and she was the powerless one. "Come on. I''ll take you home." He did more than that. Instead of carrying her, he just brought Meathead along while they stayed atop his head... his stupid, ugly, giant head. It was a slow trip for her, especially with that long ass debuff... plenty of time to consider her new circumstances. Mar knew she could order the idiot beast to obey her, and it would have to comply. But she also knew instinctively that it wouldn''t be easy. Meathead was more powerful than she was. He should never have accepted the bond. She could feel the weight of it pressing against her soul... She knew it wouldn''t hurt her, but she also knew that it meant she wouldn''t be able to bond with another creature until her soul got stronger. A lot stronger. Who knew when that would ever... +1 Soul New Trait Acquired: [Soul Enkindling] What the... She felt the strain of her bonded beast ease slightly, and Bradley tensed up behind her at the same time. "Um," she whispered. "Did you just gain a point to soul and a new trait?" "I did," Bradley murmured in her ear. "Oh, that''s nice..." [Soul Enkindling] All it takes is a spark. You have willingly linked your soul with a much more powerful soul. The link is not only one way. You have willingly shared of your soul with the other. They have shared in return. You have willingly shared the burden of a wounded soul. That burden has kindled a spark in your own soul. Effects: Your soul will grow at an accelerated rate. Doubly so for so long as the link remains. +100% Effective Soul "So many humans!" Meathead suddenly exclaimed and then dove straight through the wall around the fort. "Wait!" Bradley only stumbled slightly before carrying them through after him. "Oh, you have caves here too." Then she watched Meathead charge down the ramp into the garage. "That human looks so delicious!" Into Three... "Don''t you dare, Meathead!" Mar screamed helplessly while sprinting after him. "Three, don''t kill..." Her voice cut off when she came around the corner and found Meathead standing stock still, face to face with Lee. It wasn''t the sight of Lee pointing a finger at her idiot beast that brought her up short. It was the sudden terror radiating from Meathead''s mind into her own. Had Lee already blasted him? Except there was no pain. "Lee, don''t..." "It''s okay, Mar," Lee said while lowering his hand. "I''m guessing you found a beast to tame?" "I... did." Meathead, are you okay? Meathead didn''t reply; he only started walking slowly backward. What happened!? He still said nothing as he crept his way backward up the ramp, all without taking his eyes off Lee. Once outside, he dove into the ground and swam back under the wall, fleeing. "Wait! Get back here!" She looked at Bradley for help, and he pulled both of them through the wall in pursuit. Mar put more effort into her next communication, turning it into a command. Stop! Her new soul bound companion finally stopped fleeing. Instead, he just hid in the ground and shivered. Mar caught up with him¡ªwell, Bradley did. Then he dragged them all above ground into daylight. Did he hurt you? Mar pressed a hand against the frightened creature and felt oddly possessive for the first time since bonding with the beast by accident. I''ll kick his ass if he bullied you! "I saw it," Meathead said, finally responding. "Haven''t you seen it?" "It''s okay, Meathead. He''s a friend." Mar wasn''t sure what he was talking about, but it might be the source or just Lee''s loud soul. "You probably just felt his... power, but don''t tell anyone about that. It''s supposed to be a secret." "No. Not the human," Meathead said. "It was hiding inside him... in his eyes. It saw me." Mar felt a chill at the sensations coming from Meathead. "What?" she whispered. "What saw you?" "The Beast Lord." The... wait, Lee was serious!? 125. He Would Love To Play With You ~~~Lee~~~ Don''t do anything, Three, Lee thought and dropped a time bubble over himself as a truck-sized crocodile charged straight for him down the ramp. He nailed it. Yes! The world outside his bubble stopped¡ªor nearly stopped¡ªand he used the extra time to examine the creature more closely. He could see Mar and Bradley in his Mana Mind, both chasing after the monster. Mar was upset, but Bradley seemed rather calm about the whole thing. That, combined with the fact that he could definitely feel Mar''s soul in the... Stakshiak! He''d thought it looked familiar. Which meant Mar had probably soul-bonded with one of those beasts. There was just one minor problem coming from the sensation of its soul. It really felt like the Stakshiak wanted to eat him... It wasn''t a serious problem. In fact, it was a great opportunity to test his new skill. Lee lifted a hand while he channeled extra mana into Temporal Shift. Not only did it keep the bubble going longer, but it helped drain his mana down to a more manageable level. Then he pointed at the creature''s churning legs and prepared to unleash a Mana Beam. He didn''t want to kill it. Especially if it was bound to Mar. But a warning shot might be in order. The bubble broke, the Stakshiak resumed charging, and Lee held off another second before... He locked gazes with the yellow reptilian eyes, and its hunger vanished. Terror rose in its place as the creature skidded to a stop only a couple of feet away. ¡­ Lee actually felt a little bad about how scared it was as he watched the creature flee with Mar in pursuit. He hadn''t been planning to kill it, and the pointing finger was just a precaution. "Why am I even here?" Jeremy said from behind him, drawn sword shaking in his hand. "First you tell me not to use my power¡ªthe one power I have and the only reason I''m here¡ªthen you run right out to play with the giant lizard!" "Relax," Lee said. "We''re not only inside Three, but I was pretty sure it was Mar''s beast. Besides, the worst case was that it would eat me and I''d kill it from the inside..." Lee trailed off, thinking about his Liquid Mana Inferno skill and, more specifically, what would happen if he used it inside a monster''s stomach. "Wait, could you swap me out of its stomach if that happened?" "That''s the worst..." Jeremy put away his sword with a defeated air. "No, I can''t see the space inside living things." "Could you have swapped that monster back outside?" "I... No, it was too big." "Bah! Just means you need to level the skill more. Speaking of which..." Lee had a bunch of new ideas to test with the man, as well as some new tactics to discuss. "Tell you what, Jeremy. If we''re ever in a similar situation to this and I put my bubble on you, then that means... Well, it means I want you to take the extra time to evaluate everything." "You''ve seen my Mana Beams, but you should know that I can''t turn those off until my mana drains to empty. Which means it''s too dangerous to have you swapping me when I''m about to fire one of those." "Is there even a point for me to be here?" Jeremy reiterated, sounding... not upset, but like he was truly questioning his role. "Absolutely," Lee said, then waved him back toward the elevator room. "I know Alejandro says that you guys are my bodyguards, but you should think of yourself as support instead. I''m no delicate flower that needs to be protected... though I may have a tendency to get myself... almost killed. A lot." "Yeah... That was the main gist of Alejandro''s concerns." "I''m tough, Jeremy. I can take hits that other people can''t. You need to let me do that." Lee shut the door and met the other man''s eyes. "If you are ever in trouble with a monster in your face, I absolutely want you to prioritize sending it away. Hell, stick it in my face! I''d rather get wrecked and even swallowed by a giant creature than to watch any of you die for me. Especially since I probably won''t die." "Probably?" "Is your range high enough to see Saira? Can you see her tree?" Jeremy shook his head. "I can feel a bit of the tree, but I can''t actually tell people apart..." "She''s sitting under her tree right now," Lee said, easily spotting her in his Mana Mind. "Saira is a miracle worker, and she''s saved my life before..." Lee clenched a fist and pushed away the memories. "Let me take the hits and then send me to her or bring her to me." Lee thought about her vines and about how she hadn''t wanted the Arcane Veil. He knew she didn''t have to remain connected at all times, but he didn''t know the parameters. "In fact, we should probably include her in the skill testing, and since I can''t go out there..." Jeremy stood up, only a little irritated. "Will you still be here when I get back?" "I know I use you as an errand boy a lot, but just think how much worse it would be if I were running around outside?" "Oh, god," Jeremy said, his eyes widening, then sighed. "I''ll go get her." "Appreciate it!" Lee shouted after the man. Saira didn''t show up right away, but that was fine because Bradley came back and resumed dumping his mana into the charged runes. He also shared the story of how Mar ended up bonding with the Stakshiak... which she''d named Meathead. He also told Lee about his new trait, one that apparently everyone in the soul-link had received. Well, at least all those who''d accepted it on the first day. Since Jeremy hadn''t gotten it... The current guess was that it was a duration thing. Which, if they were right, meant Jeremy would also get the trait in a few days. Best of all. Every child got the trait. Including the additional point of soul. It was the absolute best news Lee could have hoped for, and he actually teared up slightly as a massive weight lifted from his shoulders. Yeah, he knew Stanley was doing something to fix the wound... but this... this was... perfect! Not only was it helping to repay the sacrifice they''d all made for him, but it would make every one of them stronger going forward! Now he just had to do whatever it took to ensure they would all survive and get the chance to enjoy their reward. Later on, Lee saw Saira finally leave her tree. She stopped at the edge of its drooping branches, though, and then waved her arms. Jeremy perked up, his head turning that way, and an instant later, Saira was inside the elevator room. She blinked in surprise, then lit up the small room with her smile. "Lee. Bradley. And thank you, Jeremy; that was... fascinating." Bradley didn''t last much longer after that. He left, as he said, to go work on the wall. Lee knew he was actually fleeing from Saira but said nothing. He didn''t blame the guy. Saira had a... commanding presence. It had been there since the first day they met but had changed since then. Whereas before she''d been... imperious, perhaps a bit stuffy, now she was something more. Something raw. Primal. She was the howl of a wolf in a dark night, but also the laughter that drowned out the fear. She was the hungry eyes gleaming from beyond the firelight, but also the flame that pushed back the lurking darkness. She was the unforgiving frost of winter, but also the warmth of the summer sun against your skin. A force of nature personified. Life and death. Rebirth and decay. The gentle rain and the untamed storm that lay waste to... Lee blinked at the two pairs of eyes staring back into his own and abruptly remembered his broadcasting soul. "Um..." His face felt hot. "Sorry... I got distracted by... something. Where were we?" Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Saira laughed, and the sound tickled his ears like a playful breeze through his hair. Or the hot breath of a predator on his neck... Good luck, Bradley, Lee thought. If that girl grows up to be anything like her mother... He dropped a speed bubble on himself. Just for practice. It wasn''t to give him time to escape. Not at all. Then they figured out a new strategy for random surprise attacks that involved Jeremy and his overpowered ability to move stuff around. Saira was as vehemently onboard with making herself a target as Lee was. More so if it involved protecting others. She even created a new patch of garden outside¡ªa murder garden¡ªand a place for Jeremy to drop monsters that needed to die. For the actual invasions, Saira was actively covering the entire outside of Three with a thick carpet of her red vines. It was a slower process, but one that would put her in a better position to respond to something like that shadow creature... Lee was all for it, and given his new search for healing runes, he also got her to volunteer for the same process as Bradley. But later. He was already tying up a small portion of his rune capacity on Bradley, even if it was inside his soul storage. Plus, her... mana? There was definitely mana in there, but also something else. Something much harder for Lee to manipulate. Life. A few experiments confirmed that he could collect it, albeit with more trouble, but he still couldn''t use it. Even if he wounded himself first, the life energy wouldn''t heal him when he dumped it into the wound. Saira could use the same energy to heal him in a heartbeat, but in his hands, it did nothing... For now. Martin showed up later, having presumably finished the group training outside. Now he came to teach Lee alone. Well, not entirely alone. It turned out that by getting the kids involved, he could pump a few extra attributes into them as well. Which was fantastic. Sure, they were all a long way off from E-grade still, but every bit helped. Some of the older kids would probably age out of their child trait before getting to E-grade, but the younger ones wouldn''t. And while some kids had gotten apprenticeships, it still didn''t let them use cores. Plus, there weren''t a lot of apprenticeships up for grabs... Combat classes like Alejandro''s were being prioritized for adults who wanted a change from something useless. Or close to it. The more dedicated crafters were getting up there, but once again, someone like May wouldn''t get much use from a little kid helping at the forge. Older kids, maybe, but the little ones weren''t in demand and needed every advantage they could get. If pelting him with plates was what it took, then so be it. Dinner that night turned into something akin to a party. Dozens of families gathered in the courtyard, along with all the children. Bradley made tables and benches enough for everyone, and Lee, plus a handful of other crafters, contributed their magic to make it as happy an occasion as they could. Unfortunately, no amount of flashy or fun magic could solve everything. Some children had lost more than others. Too many of them. Hell, even one was too many. Those few often ended up apart and alone. Hiding away from reality and even some of the other children at times. Because kids could be really cruel... Yeah, yeah, they were just kids, but some of them were little brats. Lee didn''t hesitate to call out the worst offenders, including taking away their toys. So what if they threw a tantrum? Slipping a silence rune plate into their pockets was a great and hilarious solution for that... Fortunately, there were some truly good kids among the throngs, Anita being one of them. She especially liked to seek out the quieter kids around her age and drag them into whatever game she was currently inventing. Usually something boisterous that involved a lot of high pitched screaming... The screaming really kicked off when a giant crocodile-looking lizard scrambled onto the roof and looked down at the gathered humans with a mouth full of teeth. "Don''t you dare jump down here!" Mar leapt up, hollering at it, and Meathead slumped dejectedly. Lee was immensely relieved to see it stop at her command. Not that he worried it was aggressive; rather, he knew it only wanted to join the party... Of course, as massive as it was, it would fill nearly half of the courtyard and for a moment there, he thought it would jump down atop everyone... So maybe Mar had picked a good name? More than a few people hadn''t heard about her new pet, though. So that was exciting... Then Saira appeared beside the creature on the roof. "Meathead, are you scaring the children?" The reptile ducked its head and looked away like a dog caught in the trash. "Why don''t you show them how friendly you are instead?" Meathead lifted his head and let loose a deafening, trumpeting roar. It echoed and rumbled through the air in a disturbingly familiar way, and for the first time, Lee truly understood what it would be like if dinosaurs were real... Only now did he realize that they were indeed very real. He was looking at one. Saira swatted the dinosaur. "Don''t make me drag you off this roof!" "Do what she says, Meathead!" Mar shouted. "Or I''ll sic Lee on you!" What? Lee thought in confusion. Why am I the bad guy? "I don''t care if you can''t understand her! Sit!" The building shook as the rear of the monster dropped a few feet onto the roof. It didn''t change much, seeing as how long and low to the ground it already stood... "Roll over!" The building shook even more when the reptile, which was far wider than it was tall, struggled and ultimately failed to roll over. For all that it looked like a croc, this thing wouldn''t be doing any death rolls... at least not atop Three. It might be a different story if it was on the ground. Surprisingly, Lee felt amusement rising among the children as they watched the giant reptile flail at the air repeatedly. Unlike their parents, some kids were adapting to their new reality a little faster, and the sight of a giant lizard wasn''t quite as bizarre as it should have been. Anita was among the most fearless when she said, "Go rawr again!" Then followed it up with a much quieter but much more adorable roar of her own. Lee smiled to see her so bold. But it hurt a little when he remembered how shy she still was with him. He must have terrified her more than he''d thought... probably from when he used the source to create Three. Though she had been getting better, and if she was this bold here, then maybe she''d be okay? Mar didn''t speak, but Meathead roared again. Then he trailed off into a horrifying hiss. Only this time to cheering instead of screaming. Mostly. Though some of those screaming children seemed to be... enjoying the fear? Kids. Then Mar did speak. "Now get off the roof before you break something!" So, of course, Meathead started crawling into the courtyard. "Not in here, you meathead! Outside!" To his credit, Meathead tried to obey, but he was in too deep. He scrambled at the edge of the roof with multiple legs, trying to crawl backwards, even as Saira''s vines latched onto him and tried to help. Unfortunately, he only succeeded in rolling head over heels into the courtyard. Lee saw Three take action as sections of the floor rippled and carried people out from beneath the behemoth. Then Maria zipped in and out with a couple more, and Jeremy swapped the last person away. Right before a giant crocodile-looking dinosaur landed flat on his back in the courtyard. It would have looked hilarious, were it not so big¡ªand terrifyingly so. So, of course, Alejandro started laughing. Loudly. "Hah, he looks so silly!" He wasn''t as amused as he sounded. In fact, Lee was pretty sure the man was furious with Mar... but his fake laughter got a few more chuckles started, mostly among the kids, and that snowballed into more until the mood shifted away from that brief moment of terror. It helped that Meathead flailed and ultimately gave up on trying to roll off his back with a defeated whine. Lee was still trying to figure out how the hell they would get the thing out of here when Mar abruptly surged with mana, while Meathead''s own faded... She pushed her way under one side of the beast and practically threw him into the air while flipping him back over with a building-shaking crash. The sight of it was so incongruous that Lee wasn''t the only one stunned into silence. Though he figured out what must have happened a moment later. The skill! She took his attributes for herself! Her feat of overwhelming strength was so impressive that he actually felt a little jealous about not getting to learn that skill himself... "That was awesome, Mar!" She beamed, flexing her arms, then blushed and vanished in a state of panic. Saira descended from the roof with a flying leap and landed beside the much subdued Meathead. "My apologies. He was far heavier than I expected, and I failed to restrain him." Alejandro still had a weak spot regarding Saira, and her words took most of the wind out of his tirade before it could even start. He still growled in a low voice, "That was... If you can''t control him, Mar..." "It''s okay," Lee said. "No one was in any danger. Three was watching." He knew those little ground shifts were the least of what Three could do, if it came down to it. That was the entire point of having the kids in here. To keep them safe. Which was probably the only thing bothering Alejandro. Then Maria approached with their kids before Alejandro could say anything else, and Anita wanted nothing more than to put her hands on the giant lizard. "Don''t move, Meathead, or I''ll get Lee to... oh look, here he comes." "Why do you keep using me as a threat?" Lee asked while not quite touching the creature himself. It really was a magnificent specimen... "He''s afraid of... Caffeine?" Mar wouldn''t meet his gaze. "I thought you just made that up to get one of us to take the skill..." Lee chuckled. "I made up a story about a pug being the beast lord? Who would believe that!?" "I''ll admit I was skeptical," Saira said. "But I have also learned not to underestimate anything about you." "I..." Lee wasn''t sure what to make of her statement, so he moved on. "Caffeine doesn''t let me borrow his attributes..." He just gives them away. "No offense, Meathead," Lee said. "But Caffeine is the best dog in the world. Even the system agrees with me." Lee touched the reptile for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by how smooth the hard scales felt under his hand. "Don''t worry, though. He''s a teddy bear that loves everyone." He smiled wistfully. "I bet he''d love to play with you." 126. Undead ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley tried to ignore the knot of surly emotions lurking behind him, but Eve was too close for that, especially without his soul shield. Fortunately, he didn''t have to ignore her tantrums to keep making progress on his soul repair. Though, for once, he was glad meditation blocked his senses. That way, he didn''t have to listen to the occasional screaming tirades... Not for the first time, Stanley considered if Nate might have orchestrated that entire event to get Eve out of his base. Or was he giving the man too much credit? There had been times not long ago when he wouldn''t have put it past Nate to have some grand and complex scheme designed to maneuver everything into place... but not anymore. He''d seen Nate worried and afraid... in his soul. Stanley didn''t think there was a way to fake that¡ªor, at least, he was pretty sure Nate didn''t know how. Plus, it just made no sense for Nate to go to all that trouble and still end up so weak. It was truly disappointing how weak he still was. Which only made everyone else seem like a joke in comparison. Of course, that was changing. Slowly. Hopefully. All the skill shards he kept dumping into this place had to be making some kind of difference... right? Stanley was never sure how much time passed while he worked; he just went until his soul told him to stop. He''d gotten far better at repairing his soul¡ªfaster too¡ªbut he could only seal a certain amount of the wound back together before the strain got too high and threatened to undo his efforts. Violently. That was a lesson he''d learned the hard way a couple days ago. Luckily, Lee''s patch held, and he''d only lost a couple of days'' progress, but it had still hurt like a motherfucker... Now he always stopped before reaching that point. Like now. He didn''t tell Eve he was leaving. She''d figure it out. He did, however, collect Caffeine before leaving the purified zone. They could find each other easily enough, but he didn''t want Caffeine roaming alone out there. It was one thing to let him wander inside the zone, and another thing entirely to have him running across the wastelands. Stanley picked a new direction, north and slightly further east than the last trip, then headed out in as straight a line as he could manage. Not exactly a grid search, but his best attempt at one, and he''d started by clearing the north first. The smaller area, at least when starting from Nate''s. He would attack each lair on his path, both to collect cores and also to check how strong the nearest ones were. He kept notes on that last part. The weaklings needed somewhere to start out their hunting careers, especially if they weren''t hunting with Zeke. Not that anyone was... Nate was somehow the more paranoid one now. Two days of only training for Zeke and his new team, with not one actual monster or lair. Stanley didn''t want to get involved with training or dishing out pain again, and he didn''t have to. Not yet. Nate wasn''t coddling them anymore. Their souls crying out in anguish all morning were evidence enough of that. That meant Stanley was more than willing to leave it to Nate. For now. A positive sign waited for him at the first lair beyond the clean zone, where he found a three-man team already hunting the monsters within. Of course, Caffeine immediately dashed inside to say hello. Stanley followed, with much less enthusiasm, and found them fighting... worms. Earthworms. Ones that looked far too similar to a certain giant specimen. A dead specimen. They weren''t identical. The worms burrowed from the tunnel sides and had small tentacles around tiny mouths full of teeth, but that was where the similarities ended. Obviously, these were way smaller. Plus, they weren''t hiding their souls or pretending to be trees. The humans fought with clubs, but mostly they relied on one man who was burning the worms with fire. He wasn''t very precise in his targeting, liberally spraying fire throughout the tunnels, including over his companions. Stanley pushed the fire away from Caffeine and, by extension, everyone else. He also killed every worm in reach while halting his flight in front of the pyromaniac. "Stop it. Now." Pyro stopped, pulling all the fire back to drape his body while still lighting up the tunnel. "Hi, Caff!" one of the previously flame-covered men exclaimed and bent to pet the pug. Caffeine returned his enthusiasm a thousandfold, then went to greet the other, neither of whom looked at all burned. "You guys have fire resistance or something?" The first man stood with a smile for the happy pug and nodded. "Hiya, Stanley. I don''t think we''ve been introduced all formal yet, but we''ve seen you around, and the little guy, of course. I''m Axle, and you guessed it. Me and Diesel served together at the same fire station and came out of it with some extra resistance." "Not so much fighting fire anymore as fighting alongside it now," Diesel said. "Good thing, too, since Kyle here can''t aim for shit!" "Hey!" Pyro, and presumably Kyle, protested. "I can totally aim the..." "Jeez, Kyle. We''re just joshing! You gotta thicken up that skin if you want to get anywhere with the ladies." Axle winked at Stanley from where Kyle couldn''t see. Kyle did not try to pet Caffeine, and the pug paid him noticeably less attention than the other two in return. That, along with the weaselly soul, made Stanley automatically distrust the man. It didn¡¯t help that he reminded Stanley of a certain fire slinger from back with Samantha... Though he started smiling after hearing what he said next. "Eve keeps ghosting me, and all the advice you gave me never worked. Now she just threatens to shoot me if I try to talk to her!" Both men grinned, and Diesel said, "You''re just saying it wrong! You need more confidence! Chicks dig confidence." Stanley had a fun moment imagining this guy trying to hit on Eve with likely terrible pickup lines, courtesy of these two, whose souls felt very amused at the mention of Eve threatening Kyle. So he was more than willing to help when Axle asked for it. "So... since you''re already here, Stan the man... Maybe you wanna speed things up..." He ran a thumb over his throat. "Sure." The underground lair wasn''t deep, and it was easy enough to drag out the remaining worms from their hiding spots. He even went so far as to bring the mass of writhing flesh back up the tunnels before turning them into a gooey mess of dead things. Lair Destroyed: [Grub Pit] "Don''t take too long. I... saw another underground lair collapse shortly after the queen..." Stanley stopped talking. Instead, he just dragged them and the dead worms back to the surface. "Never mind. You can dig the cores out up here. Coming, Caff?" Caffeine was the best, because he didn''t hesitate to jump into Stanley''s lap. It was a nice reaffirmation after an unpleasant memory. "Thanks for the..." Axle''s voice vanished into the distance as Stanley flew away toward the next lair. A lair full of spiders the size of basketballs... He only killed a handful after confirming that their webs were flammable, then left the rest for the fire brigade. They would probably have no trouble, and he expected they would head this way next. He tried a newer tactic in the following lairs. Namely, he went after skill shards. Most lair queens wanted to survive. Well, presumably all of them did, but some monsters were just too stupid to live. The slightly more intelligent ones would usually surrender if given enough motivation. So rather than dig his way down to the queen and confront her in person, Stanley preferred to gather as large a mob as he could near the surface, then kill them all at once. Any queen that wasn''t a total idiot would notice what had happened, and most of those would surrender then and there. That way, he got a pile of cores and one guaranteed skill shard. It was a good system. What he did with the stupid ones depended on how annoying they were. If she kept feeding her army into the grinder that was Stanley, he would let her live. If she got stingy but also refused to surrender, he would put in the extra effort to kill her. Maybe, in time, he could get the lairs trained? Like that beetle one where the queen just offered up a skill the moment he entered. It would make collecting skills much faster... His lair spree sadly ended when he spotted the one thing worse than stingy queens. Humans. A lot of them, too. Stanley put up his shield before approaching, since his soul tended not to work as a very good icebreaker. He even tamped down his soul sight after a cursory inspection of the souls ahead. There were no obvious invaders, and given that he hadn''t found any since they attacked him, he was guessing they could all hide their souls anyway. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Caffeine was the backup for that. Not one he''d proved yet, but Stanley expected Caffeine wouldn''t take kindly to any lurking undead... They had a nice setup. Similar to Nate''s base. Though with far fewer people. And no Zeke. That last one was a very glaring lack. "Hi. I''m here to rescue you, so... take me to your leader?" He kept Caffeine in his lap while the nervous wall sentry ran away, shouting for someone named Felix. This wasn''t like some of the other groups he''d found. They didn''t seem quite as in need of a rescue... Something Felix seemed in agreement with when he stormed outside while looking like he''d just woken up. "Who the fuck are you?" "I''m Luke Skywalker. I''m here to rescue you!" "We don''t need some dandy-man coming in..." Stanley sighed and looked down at his still all-white suit. Walter was definitely holding a grudge. "So fuck off before I kill you and take your..." Stop The guy was pathetic. Weaker than Nate. Which meant he had a lot of nerve to be threatening people. Still... Stanley resisted the urge to do something violent to the unmoving man. He hadn''t forgotten about his potentially over-reactive temper just yet, and Caffeine hadn''t even growled at the guy. He was probably just a blowhard who liked to talk big. "...core!" the man finished yelling when Stanley let go of him. He hadn''t even noticed the stop... but the surrounding people were all looking on in confusion. Hilarious. "Got it," Stanley said. "You''re perfectly fine. You don''t need a dandy man to save you because you''re a big, strong, manly man, and I can just fuck off. All clear and understood. Bye!" Stanley flew a few feet away before stopping and looking back over his shoulder. "Did I mention we have someone who can purify and remove the miasma? It makes the food taste a lot..." "I said fuck off!" "Um, sir?" said one guard who''d witnessed the man''s sudden yet brief onset of unmoving silence. He looked nervous. "Are you..." "Shut up, Mark." "You''re right!" Stanley exclaimed with false exuberance. "I should ask everyone else, too!" Felix went a little red in the face, and green light appeared over his clenched fists. "You really want to do this?" Stanley eyed his fists. "Um, sure? Show me what you got." Mark scrambled back, afraid, as Felix thrust a hand palm out toward Stanley, and a stream of green bubbles flew from Felix¡¯s palm... like actual little soap bubbles. Only green. Stanley caught the first one with his hand... and it popped with a surprisingly painful sensation that blew a small hole through his palm. Not bad, though it was obvious why everyone was scrambling away from the man. His magic bubbles behaved very much like normal bubbles in that they seemed to drift on the wind, and only mostly in the direction the man was aiming. There were also a lot of them. Stanley pointed at the man, mostly to clarify that he was responsible and primarily for the other people who were feeling some violent emotions of their own. "Stop." Felix stopped, frozen, with an expression on his face that looked like maybe he was pooping, and Stanley destroyed all the remaining and still drifting bubbles with a mental swat. It hurt... Despite all the hostility, Caffeine still showed no signs of aggression in return. In fact, he wasn''t even watching Felix. Caffeine only sat in Stanley''s lap while staring up into his face with his big brown eyes... "I''m fine, Caff," Stanley said, then added. "Good boy!" The curly tail wiggled back and forth rapidly, and Stanley smiled before kissing the pug''s head. He found a lot of worried and somewhat confused people staring back at him when he looked away from Caffeine. "Hi, Mark," Stanley said while drifting closer to the no longer fleeing man. No response. "I didn''t kill him." Gazes jumped back and forth. Mark¡¯s and everyone else in earshot. "Jesus christ." Stanley let go of Felix, and this time the man noticed something had changed. Probably because Stanley wasn''t in the same place and all his bubbles were gone... His hand, still glowing green, shifted to point back at... Stanley caught his wrist in a mental grip. "Just stop, Bubble Man. I''m not here to fight any of you. And you''re all too weak if I was." Felix glared at him, but, to his credit, he didn''t fire any more bubbles. "You see," Stanley said. "There''s this guy, Nate, who''s very adamant about saving humanity. Personally, I''m still on the fence about the issue, but since I''m already here..." "Fine!" Felix growled. "Mark, go call a meeting. Our savior has arrived!" He smiled then. "Maybe he can take some of the dead-weight off our hands." Stanley shrugged. He didn''t really care who came with him or didn''t. "Just hurry it up? I''m only doing this as a favor." Felix followed him as Stanley did a cursory tour of the place. Mostly, he wanted to see what they had for food, and only for Caffeine. The pickings were slim to abysmal. "Is your food rotting?" "Of course it is! We have to eat in the lairs now." "I told you, we have a cure for..." Stanley found the kids in an inner courtyard and stopped talking. They weren''t dying. Not like the people at the church. But they weren''t healthy. Not having a good time either... Caffeine''s sorrow as he bounded over and tried to cheer them up was... infuriating! "The kids are coming with me." Felix opened his mouth, anger spiking again. Stanley was no longer in the mood to indulge the idiot. "Tell their parents or families. I won''t leave them here too..." Green light blazed up from Felix as he growled, "Like hell, you''re taking my son!" Stop Stanley took a slow, deep breath when he saw Caffeine looking back his way... along with a scared little boy staring at Felix. He unstopped the man but forced Felix''s hands tight to his side while turning him to face the boy. "I''m saving you, you idiot!" Stanley hissed behind him. "Besides, it''s too late now. Caffeine will never let me leave them here..." He felt Felix stop fighting his hold as they watched Caffeine make his way from child to child, with differing reactions from each. Some pet him happily, and some shied away from the little dog. Those were the worst. Seeing them afraid of a pug was bad enough, but Caffeine''s reaction was so much worse when he laid down to make himself as small as possible, even shrinking slightly as he did so. Then he would stare up at them with little whines and tail wags. One of them still ran away from Caffeine... and into Felix''s arms with a cry of, "Daddy!" Stanley closed his eyes to avoid glaring at the bastard. Why couldn''t people just be straightforward? If you''re an asshole, then you''re an asshole. Don''t complicate it by having dimensionality. That just made everything more annoying. "I want Mommy." "I know, Junior. She''ll be home soon." Stanley opened his eyes to see Felix watching him with a mix of hostility and... other emotions. "I''m not here to split up families. I can wait until everyone gets back... or I can just go gather them up." "I... I''m not leaving until she gets back." "What did I just fu... What did I say?" Stanley sighed. "Which way did she... You know what? You can just come with me, and I''ll go grab..." Felix didn''t move. "I don''t know." "You don''t... what? No, it doesn''t matter. She can''t have gone far." Stanley fired up Soul Sight and swept it over the building again before taking to the air. He fixed Felix in his gaze, and the man flinched at whatever he was seeing or feeling. "Don''t fuck with my dog, or I''ll..." He glanced at the boy in the man''s arms. "Just don''t." It wasn''t that he worried about Caffeine''s safety, but he''d rather not have to murder anyone when he got back... Stanley stopped in the sky and listened to his Soul Awareness. Going so far as to push it to the limit until the souls bombarded him loud enough that he could pinpoint every nearby lair. Including picking out the ones with humans inside them. Then he made the rounds. Most people didn''t give him a hard time about heading home. Those that did usually shut up when he killed all the monsters in the lair and threw the cores at them. The really stubborn ones, he just took along with him to the next lair. Sure, they screamed bloody murder, but that was how he found a new and fun way to deal with annoying people. Silence Seeing them scream and yell as the realization that they couldn''t make a sound settled in... that was totally priceless. Plenty of that crowd tried to attack him, and Stanley only broke one woman''s arm... She just wouldn''t stop trying to kill him. It was probably Felix''s wife... He stopped a few times to repeat the soul scans, making sure he''d missed no one before heading back. Stanley felt much better about his decision when he found Caffeine playing with the children. Once again, the pug had won them all over, and they weren''t the least bit worried even when he changed sizes. The parents weren''t as blase about it, but Felix was with them and talking them down when Stanley arrived. "Let them play..." His soul felt rather dour, despite what he was saying. "Did I get her?" Stanley asked, landing beside the man. "Forgot to ask you her name..." Felix looked away. "It''s fine. You can take the others. I''ll stay here. I''ll find her if I keep looking. It''s only been a few weeks... She''s probably holed up in a lair somewhere." Oh. "The miasma was probably too strong..." Felix was muttering now. "She had no choice... she had to hide out..." Stanley left the delusional man there with his son and went looking for the rest of the gathered humanity. They weren''t hard to find. "Everyone outside!" They grumbled and some refused to listen, but they all ended up outside, whether or not they wanted to. It helped that enough of them had either seen or heard about him by now. Caffeine followed the kids and kept them entertained through the short flight outside. Then Stanley addressed them. "I''m going to carry all of you to a new home. If you don''t like heights, then shut your fu... your eyes." Damn kids. There was some grumbling, but it cut out after he lifted the entire mass of humanity into the air. Then they only screamed. "Shut the fu..." Stanley cut off his own yell when he saw Caffeine trying to distract a terrified child from looking down. Instead, he only cursed silently in his mind while dragging up some dirt to create a floor. Of sorts. At least enough of one to hide the receding ground. That helped reduce the fear. Individually, the people were weak. Insignificant. Combined, they added up. Not enough to stop him, but enough that he didn''t want to move them. It made the trip take a little longer, but that was fine. Until he saw Nate sprinting his way, well before he reached the green zone... "Stanley!" Nate exclaimed, his soul full of panic. "I need you to..." Nate¡¯s shouting voice faded into static because Stanley was already peering past the man, back toward the base, his Soul Sight as strong as he could make it. Son of a bitch! Fear rose within him, but the rage drowned it all out. Enough rage that he didn''t even bother to drop his passengers. Enough that he snatched Nate up and dragged him along for the ride. Then he moved toward the undead souls in the distance. 127. This Was Going To Be Fun ~~~Stanley~~~ Nate was screaming something, but Stanley ignored him to focus all of his attention on Zeke. More specifically, on the undead souls surrounding the healer. You won''t take him! You won''t even touch him! Stanley not only let the rage fuel him, but he pushed it further. Higher. The snowy ground blurred past faster than even his E-grade eyes could track, with only the barest hints of green appearing through the white when he passed into the purified zone. He didn''t pay it any mind. All he could see were the rotten souls coming closer by the moment. At least a dozen of the rotten fucks. Stanley felt his rage peak as reality thinned out around him. He felt the fragility of everything his mind touched, and it felt as if the barest brush of his power could unmake anything it touched. As if a mere touch could shatter the world. As if a mere thought could force reality to conform to his any desire. It wasn''t enough. He wanted more. Demanded more. He needed the storm. So he pushed the fires of his rage outside himself. Until the heat vanished and only the ice remained. Yes. Everything felt simultaneously louder and quieter. A frenzied calm. A screaming silence. No one he''d brought along for this trip was enjoying the new storm experience, and while he felt a little bad for the kids getting bombarded by his angry soul, he didn¡¯t feel bad enough to stop. Sure, it wasn''t pleasant, but they would survive this. In the grand scheme, it was a small price to pay for protecting Zeke. And no price at all for the extermination of the undead. The fury of his mind reached his targets. He touched them. Felt them. Fragile things that didn''t belong in his reality. He no longer cared about their regeneration. Or about their fake immortality. The storm would unmake everything that they... Caffeine jumped into his lap, his head rising to fill Stanley''s vision, his big brown eyes pleading as strongly as his soul. That expression... Stanley hesitated. Why? Why would Caffeine want to stop him? Caffeine hated the undead... didn''t he? But then... why? STOP It was a compromise. For Caffeine, and for the slim chance that his rage was wrong. As it had been before. Caffeine had more than earned the right to make this call. So Stanley let him call the shot this time. Zeke was okay when Stanley arrived overhead. He was afraid... but not enough, and not of the undead. He stood with arms outstretched as he looked up and away from the undead at his back. As he looked up toward Stanley. Eve stood beside him and faced the opposite direction, her attention very much on the undead. As she should be... Only the undead weren''t skeletons; in fact, they looked human. Stanley wasn''t buying it. He''d seen their kind before. That fuck who''d helped the first skeleton chase him down. The fuck who''d hounded him and refused to die... Then he looked closer and noticed they truly weren''t the same as the undead... more akin to the corrupted monsters in some lairs... Nate, you absolute fuck! There was also no sign of any soul strings he remembered from the skeletons... they weren''t actually undead! They probably weren''t even hostile, given Zeke''s reaction... Rather, the opposite. Their souls felt terrified. Albeit a bit frozen by his power. Stanley managed not to drop anyone too hard as the rage drained out of him in an odd mix of relief and regret. Relief because it wasn''t the invaders coming to wipe them out. It wasn''t more skeletons that might flay his soul open again. It wasn''t more of those monsters that still haunted his nightmares. It wasn''t the creatures that, despite all his eagerness, he still didn''t know if he could actually beat them. But there was also regret because it wasn''t the invaders. Because if it had been, and he''d been strong enough to take them, he might be free of this place. Because he wanted to destroy those fucks! Buff Gained: [Purifying Light] Zeke''s aura was active, and Stanley eyed the corrupted humans as that final oddity occurred to him... They weren''t burning. "They aren''t our enemies," Zeke said. "You can let them go. Please?" Stanley let go. It was getting harder to hold them all frozen the longer it went on. "How do you..." The screaming interrupted him as the whole group of rotten souls lit up with dozens of spells and abilities. "Fucking stop it!" Another short blast of his power sent a stutter through them and disrupted the panic for a second. Then one of them reacted badly, and their panic turned to hostility. He shouldn''t have... Caffeine finally moved from Stanley''s lap, and he appeared for a single second, looming thirty feet over everyone as he growled. Everything went real quiet after that. "Fuck you, Nate!" Stanley exploded into the silence, directing his completely justified anger at Nate. "You absolute fucking moron!" "I tried to warn you not to freak..." "You fucking made me freak out! I thought it was an attack!" "Yeah, that was my bad," Nate said, holding up his hands and shrugging. "Thanks for not killing anyone?" He smiled. "And look, you found more survivors!" Caffeine''s giant impersonation must have worked, or maybe it was the growl. Either way, the corrupted humans were all standing very still while the pug greeted Zeke as if they''d been apart for a year... Stanley turned away from Nate before he did something mean and went to the not quite humans instead. He knew Caffeine had only warned them off from fighting with that growl. It hadn''t been actual hostility. So they still lived. "What the fuck are you people?" "Wha... what am I?" The not quite human looked a little dazed. "What the hell are you!? What the hell is that dog!?" Yeah, he seemed pretty normal. "Bernard," Nate said, striding over. "Meet Stanley. Stanley, Bernard." Stanley eyed Bernard silently while the man did the same in return. At least he wasn''t shouting anymore. "They''re not undead," Nate said with a glance toward Zeke and the obvious golden aura. "Only adapted in that direction. They can help us. Not only here but also with searching for more survivors... since they can roam through the miasma without issue." "I don''t trust them," Stanley said. "But... it''s your life on the line." Nate nodded, happy. Too happy. "You better be damn fucking sure about this!" Stanley growled at him. "I don''t want to waste my time helping this place if we''re just going to hand it over to the invaders." "I''m sure," Nate said, then dropped his voice. "Almost positive." Stanley took a deep breath as he prepared to explain gently how sure and almost were not actually the same thing. Not even close. He hesitated when Caffeine finally left Zeke to approach the... newcomers. The pug stopped a foot away and leaned forward warily for a sniff, as if worried they would move suddenly... Basically, the same way he treated drifting plastic bags. Or tree stumps in the dark. Or rocks. Or moving water. Luckily for them, none of them so much as twitched as the pug finally reached their feet and started checking each of them out with a more thorough sniffing. It was only when Caffeine pawed at one of their legs with a whine that Stanley let out his breath. The man looked entirely unhappy to have the pug pawing at him, but he didn''t protest. Smart. "Do you have some food on you?" Stanley asked, though he wasn''t sure if he wanted to know what they considered food. "Just some stuff..." The man looked at Bernard, who nodded, before he pulled off a backpack. "I''m assuming we will still be able to resupply here?" Bernard asked while looking between Nate and Stanley. "Of course," Nate said. "We have plenty of food, so don''t worry about feeding the pug." "The beast lord, you mean?" Nate smiled. "He''s a teddy bear. Stay on his good side and he will be your best friend." "And if we don''t?" "If you can''t get along with a friendly dog that only wants snacks..." Nate''s voice lost its pleasant tone. "Look, just be nice to Caffeine or I won''t be able to protect you from Stanley. I won''t want to either! If you actually manage to piss off Caffeine... Well, then no one can save you." Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. The supposed food coming out of the backpack looked... fine. Stanley took a piece and sniffed it before popping it in his mouth. It tasted like meat. Some kind of meat. It wasn''t rotten, either. Bernard moved closer, and Stanley twitched away at the feel of his soul approaching. None of their souls were particularly hostile... at least, nothing beyond a normal amount of wariness. Most importantly, they didn''t have that blind hunger, which so many of their kind usually did. Stanley tried to ignore them as he watched Caffeine abandon the search for snacks and run back to the newly rescued humans. Primarily, to a child who had only just started crying. Zeke went with him, and Eve followed. The kids all seemed far more frightened than they should have been... They were safe now. So what if the trip was more exciting than they''d expected? He''d saved their fucking lives! Fuck! Stanley flew away rather than deal with their fear. None of the so-called adapted were all that powerful. Nothing Nate and his old team couldn''t handle if they needed to. Plus, Caffeine had basically signed off on them. Still, he didn''t go far, only enough so they couldn''t feel his soul. Then he sat in the sky and watched. Or listened more accurately. Since he used Soul Awareness to keep tabs on what happened. Which was... a lot of nothing. The kids calmed down quickly under Caffeine''s attention, and it felt like the adults rapidly realized the massive improvement in their situation from only this morning. It likely didn''t take much¡ªa touch of Zeke''s light and a hearty meal eaten in peace. What more could they ask for? It was a different story for the adapted humans. They didn''t enjoy Zeke''s power. Not that it looked to be actively hurting them; it was only unpleasant. A kind of empty feeling... not hunger per se, but... a lack. That feeling lingered in them until they finally withdrew beyond the green zone, heading south. Then they all perked up. It was fucking creepy! They liked the miasma... Stanley watched them head further south until even the light of their souls shrank out of sight. Was there a chance they worked for the invaders? What if Caffeine couldn''t tell? He''d never expected to find half undead... What if Caffeine couldn''t actually tell whose side they were on? He wasn''t too worried, despite the uncertainty. It wasn''t like they were going to report back that they''d found Zeke or the other survivors. The invaders already knew where Zeke was. Or were they trying to get eyes on Stanley? Should he have hidden his soul better? Did they not know what happened in the battle? Did they not know about his wounded soul? What if they were scouting for another attack? Damn it! Stanley flew down to grab Caffeine and then flew after the departing spies. Maybe spies. He didn''t know yet. But he would find out... He stayed high, kept his Soul Shield on, and avoided using Soul Sight in case they might feel it. He wanted them to think they''d gotten away with whatever they were planning. Besides, it wasn''t hard to follow them with only his passive sense. Despite blending fairly well with the wandering undead, their emotions betrayed them as something else. Of course, the invaders had emotions too... They traveled further than he''d expected, and each additional mile only made him more certain they were traitors running home to their masters. Until they arrived at an old supercenter turned human encampment... where a lot of uncorrupted humans lurked within. Sure, there were a handful of corrupted people on the roof and patrolling the area, but hundreds more pure humans filled the interior. Pure human weaklings... Stanley listened to their souls as people reunited with loved ones, and as the sight of fresh food filled stupid hearts with hope and joy. So... maybe they were sleeper agents? Or were they hiding the undead inside? Because who would think to look there? What if they''d struck a deal? He wrapped his soul shield thick to hide any trace of his presence as he descended upon them, fully aware that this could all be an elaborate trap just for him... That possibility was enough to stoke his rage, but Stanley went with a different tactic this time. Instead of using anger, he went in the opposite direction and removed all emotion from the equation by engaging Still Mind. Part of his reasoning was that it would be easier to conceal himself while not generating a wrath-storm... and he wanted the extra cognitive speed that came from the ability. If it was a trap, he''d see it coming faster, ideally before they knew he was there. Rather than risk entering what he knew was another lair structure, Stanley moved to just above the flat roof and then sent his accelerated mind down into the building. He could feel each soul''s location and used the first crawling second to spread his touch over the entire interior. He used the next second to confirm he was touching every one of those souls with his mind. Some corrupted, but no undead. Not that he could tell. Then he shoved literally everything in the building that wasn''t one of those people. Well, not really a shove. A nudge. Enough to see if anything pushed back. Enough to see if anything resisted his power. Anything without a soul. Or anything hiding its soul... Nothing stood out. Though one of the roof lookouts had spotted him and was opening her mouth... Stop Stanley shoved harder while also reaching beneath the floor below, searching for tunnels or hidden cubbies. Still nothing. He stopped another guard, only this time he felt Bernard notice. Did they have some kind of linking magic? It appeared so, as more and more of the corrupted humans reacted despite not having a line of sight on him or the stopped people... A vortex of wind spun to life around Bernard, and it carried him to the roof through a skylight that Stanley had not expected to open... Stop It wasn''t enough. They were all coming now. He would need to disable the entire force if he wanted more time to search. Perhaps by dismembering? That should work, and it might even betray them if they were hiding that immortality magic from his detection somehow. He could cauterize the stumps to avoid killing them, and Zeke could fix them up later if he was wrong. C... So, of course, Caffeine canceled his Still Mind. Damn it, Caff! Stanley let go of Bernard first, waiting to see what he would do but also wanting to see how he''d react to the visit. Maybe his guilt would point towards... "You!" Bernard didn''t act guilty in the slightest. Only angry. "Everyone, stand down! False alarm." He called off the others after a glance at Caffeine. So... he was smart? A bunch of his people still gathered on the roof as Bernard glared at Stanley. "Why are you here?" "I wanted to see if you were working for the invaders." Still no guilt... only more anger. Maybe he was masking it with... "Nate said you were a paranoid bastard," Bernard muttered, then threw up his hands. "You know what? Just come inside and see for yourself!" It was probably a trap. They wanted him stuck inside the lair... so he flew inside anyway. They would never expect that. The inside looked different from what he''d expected after his mental touch-scan. It was a kind of tent city slash sprawling apartment complex. In some places, they''d built all the way to the high ceiling, while other areas looked more like cubicles from above. Some common areas stood out. Including the kitchen and adjoining dining tables. They even had showers with running water in the back¡­ All in all, it looked very much like Nate''s base... only with some corrupted guards instead of Zeke. "How are you feeding them?" Bernard hovered beside him, held up by a swirling wind beneath his feet. "We didn''t trade away some of our humanity for nothing. We did it for the greater good. Something you might not understand." Stanley bristled and glared at the man, opening his mouth to... Caffeine bounded from his lap to land among the children in the dining area with one smooth leap. Unlike last time, they weren''t afraid, and there were more than a few cries of "Puppy!" It also just so happened that the cook had received the chicken they¡¯d brought back and started cooking it. They hadn''t brought it in alive, which meant they must have a way to keep it from rotting outside... Which explained why they weren''t starving. "Why don''t you guys join up with Nate?" Sure, they''d need to construct more housing for this many extra people, but it wouldn''t be that hard... Or maybe Nate would move his own base? "We are joining him," Bernard said, interrupting Stanley¡¯s musings. "You''d know that if you hadn''t stormed off to sulk before. Or was that all an act so you could slink after us down here?" He met Stanley''s glare without flinching. "Yes. I saw you up there. You aren''t as subtle as you think." The guy had some kind of wind magic¡ªat least, that was Stanley''s best guess. Did it mean he could feel the air that far away? Or did he just have really good eyes? "I didn''t trust you then and I still don''t." Bernard folded his arms while eyeing Stanley up and down. "None of mine are traitors to humanity. If anyone is suspect, it''s you." "Seriously?" Stanley growled. "Me? I killed two of them!" "I''ve felt the power you''re throwing around," Bernard said, glaring right back. "So why haven''t you wiped the rest out already? Why are we still dealing with this miasma?" "You..." Stanley resisted the urge to push the guy through one of his own lair walls. Barely. "They''re fucking hiding!" "Well, isn''t that convenient?" Rage shifted toward bafflement. "Are you... what are you doing? Do you want me to kill you?" "Hmph!" Bernard unfolded his arms and took a step closer. "Nate has his little theories... but I think he''s going about this all wrong." "I''m sure you''ve got it all figured out?" "He''s too young. Too inexperienced. He thinks we can''t survive without the glow stick. But would you look at that?" He spread his arms out wide. "Here we are... surviving!" "Yeah. You''re doing soo great!" Stanley said. "Tell me again, how many invaders have you killed? Oh, right, none! Because you''re just surviving! While I''m out there fighting them!" "I think you mean you''re running around like a chicken with its head cut off. Like a petulant child. But don''t worry; I have plenty of ideas for how to get everyone back on track. You included." Stanley wasn''t sure what was happening anymore. Was Bernard going to help whip the idiots into fighting shape? That sounded great, but did he have some special ability to help a psionic? "How are you going to help me?" "By cutting off your free ride," Bernard said, then smiled at whatever he saw on Stanley''s face. "Like I said, Nate is wrong. He thinks he needs you more than you need him. A misconception I don''t share." "I... don''t know what to say?" He really didn''t. Was this guy crazy? Like... what was his name? Felix? "You don''t need to say anything. Yet. But it wouldn''t hurt to start thinking about what role you want to have in the future. Either just another grunt following orders or the officer handing out those orders." What!? Stanley tilted his head in confusion. "You know I can kill you, right? With a thought. But you somehow think I''ll just... what, obey you?" "I think you''ll find that I don''t respond to threats. Especially empty ones." Stanley''s eye twitched, and he seriously considered removing one of the guy''s legs. Or both of them. Would he still try to give orders while crawling around on stumps? "You can''t kill me." Bernard continued talking like an idiot, oblivious to the amusing thoughts dancing through Stanley''s head. "Because you can''t survive alone... I know how much food you need." He seemed rather confused about a lot of things. Like basic reality. "You do, do you?" "I understand that you''ve been through some things and that you''ve been allowed to do as you please for a while now. That''s going to change, but it doesn''t have to be unpleasant or confrontational. In fact, I suspect you will find comfort in some structure." "Oookay." Stanley decided not to kill the guy. Or to take off his legs. "Just let me know when you''re ready with my orders." On the one hand, Bernard might actually help Nate whip the slackers into shape. On the other hand, Stanley was curious to see what the plan actually was. Plus, it would be more fun to crush him later, once he thought he''d won. "Oh, do you want my help with the move?" "Yes, Nate mentioned your assistance. Report back here at dawn tomorrow, and we should be ready to go." "Sure..." This was going to be fun. Or at least interesting. Or maybe just annoying. 128. Say Sorry ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley let Caffeine play as long as he wanted, which lasted right until lunch time. Then the kids he''d been playing with repaid his kindness with chicken snacks. It was the beautiful circle of pug life. Then he took the pug away. "You can play with them tomorrow, Caff. Especially once they''re all at the same base with the rest of your friends. Well, most of your friends." Play time was all well and good, and Caffeine had definitely earned it. But there were still things to do. Like getting stronger. More power was and would always be the key to more happiness. Caffeine might not understand that directly, but Stanley did. Bernard also seemed to be lacking that understanding as well... Stanley would educate him. In time. For now, he went back to searching the dungeon for more survivors. While collecting cores, of course. Which was how he ended up looking down at a familiar truck stop... He hadn''t realized where his grid search was taking him until it loomed below. Then the glossy surface of a former parking lot was sparkling up at him in the evening light. It was inevitable that his search pattern would lead him here. Eventually. Stanley wasn''t sure how long he sat there looking down at it, but at some point, he stopped merely looking and descended closer. There was the crater where he''d killed the skeleton. Its skull forever preserved in... whatever glassy substance he''d turned the asphalt into. It was this very spot where he''d unleashed the source and laid waste. Where he''d gained his first soul skill. Where he''d met Zeke and Eve. No cores glittered this time, and even the bodies of those core thieves were missing... animals must have eaten them. Or they stood up and walked away as zombies. Could they do that? He''d hit them in the head... and did he even care either way? Did it matter? Not really. Stanley turned away from the memories and toward what had really lured him back down here. Another memory¡ªand an even older one. His truck. Strangely enough, it was still there. Not only that, but it looked pristine. Unblemished by the surrounding destruction. None of that was what really drew him. Rather, it was the strange feeling the truck gave off. A feeling Stanley recognized. A feeling of... himself. It was faint, and he suspected no one else would even notice, but to him, it resonated loudly with lingering traces of power. His own power. Weird. But he supposed it made sense in a way. What was it that crafter told him? Something about items soaking up essence the more someone used them? He''d spent months pushing his truck down the road... though those early days hadn''t been pushing so much as giving himself a headache. Was that what happened to Samantha''s spear? Though they''d both used it. Had it soaked up both of their... essences? Was that why it had a glow in Soul Sight? His truck didn''t. So maybe that was from her core? He didn''t want to think about that right now... but if he wanted that guy to make him something, perhaps a piece of the truck would work? Thinking about that reminded him he''d probably left his old knife somewhere around here... hadn''t he? He¡¯d lost it when the skeleton chased him across the city. Right to this spot... Stanley dealt with the surge of memories by slipping into meditation. It blocked out the world, but not all of it. His truck resonated even more strongly in here... and so did something else. It was the knife. He knew it was. Somehow. There was an... edge to it. The truck was louder. Along with being bigger and closer. But it was also different in another way. There was a feeling of... motion. Ponderous yet unrelenting motion. That was what the truck felt like, but he felt something far different from the knife. There was motion in the blade, sure, but it wasn''t ponderous. It was a violent motion. One full of deadly intent. Stabbing. Cutting. Pain. Death. Stanley saw through his domain as Caffeine sat up in his lap and licked his face. He couldn''t feel it, but he saw it. Thanks, Caff. "You''re a good boy," he said after dropping the skill, and the wagging tail he got in reply was enough to drive his dark thoughts mostly away. Then he stood, walked to his truck and opened the still unlocked door. Caffeine sprang up the steps like he had so many times before and curled up in his bed on the passenger seat... like he had so many times before. He rested his head on the edge of the bed and watched Stanley. Like he had so many times... "Did you miss this, Caff?" Stanley said while climbing in himself. He sank into the seat with a rush of nostalgia and muscle memory. "It was a simpler time, wasn''t it?" Caffeine sighed, his eyes drifting shut as he relaxed. Stanley let the sleepy and relaxed feelings from Caffeine fill him as his gaze roved over familiar yet somehow alien gauges and controls. His hands moved without thought, one resting on the wheel while the other naturally found its spot atop the gearshift. He could almost feel the truck rumbling beneath him. Could almost see the road scrolling past through the windshield and ahead of the long, square hood stretching out in front of him. "We had some good times, didn''t we?" Caffeine''s eyes opened at the sound of his voice, then drooped slowly shut. A key still rested in the ignition. His drive key. Likely the only one remaining. The rest were probably... somewhere out there. He didn''t touch it. Better to leave the memory of his truck as it was. No need to tarnish it by hearing the dead click of the engine that he knew was waiting for him. "Come on, Caff," Stanley said, opening the door. "You wanna go outside?" He couldn''t help but smile when Caffeine''s head popped up exactly as it had so many times while they were on the road together. He¡¯d always been so excited to go out... Stanley left everything where it was. Even the key. Even the dog bed. He was tempted to take that last one, but it wasn''t right. It belonged where it was... The only compromise he made was to lock the door on the way out. Then he rested a hand gently on the fender. "I won''t forget you, but I''m afraid your journey ends here. Thanks for everything." It was silly, talking to his truck, but he couldn''t help it. They''d been through a lot together... They''d been together when this all started in those mountains months ago, along with the night he''d gotten trapped here. The least he could do was leave it with a proper goodbye. Also, he could take a piece with him. He could see the truck''s frame inside his domain, which meant he could also feel the faint indents from where he''d latched on with his power so many times to push it down the road. Nothing serious yet, but he probably would have done some real damage over time if circumstances hadn''t... changed. cut Stanley shaved off a sliver of the twin steel beams that made up the frame, taking a little from each to reduce the damage to either. Then he left that blue truck behind and went to find another piece of metal touched by his power. A knife. It was an ugly piece of metal that he found abandoned in the dirt. A piece of metal warped and twisted by forces it had been wholly unprepared for. It wasn''t sharp anymore. Wasn''t shiny either. But it didn''t need to be any of those things. It was death. Stanley tucked it into a breast pocket with the pieces of his truck and flew away to continue his search for survivors. Or lairs. Or both. He didn''t go much further. Not because he reached the wall of the dungeon, but because he reached the ocean. The wall wasn''t that far away, close enough that he didn''t feel the need to venture out over those dark waters... not just yet. He''d have to go out there eventually, if only to search for the invaders... but it could wait. He''d fix his soul first. Not that he was afraid of the ocean. Not very. Sure, there was probably a giant octopus out there somewhere... but more importantly, Caffeine absolutely didn''t want to get anywhere near the water. Not even to fly over it. Never mind going down into it... Unfortunately, it was just too damn good of a spot for the undead to hide. Which meant he''d have to check it, eventually. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Stanley left that problem for future him and headed back along a slightly more southern route. He found no more humans, but gathered plenty of cores from the lairs. All of which he split with Caffeine. Not that he could see any progress in Caffeine''s status... Status Name: Caff Caffeine Race: [Canine(Pug)](E-grade) Traits: [Good Boy] Class: Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 35 (Intermediate) Class Skills: Howl of the Beast Lord (Legendary) - Level 20 (Basic) | Let''s Be Friends (Legendary) - Level 2 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 100 Vitality: 100 Dexterity: 100 Wisdom: 100 Intelligence: 100 Willpower: 100 Soul: 101 [Twin-Soul Bonded(Stanley Cascade)(Lee Cascade)] Non Class Skills(0/6): [Big Enough] [Strong Enough] [Fast Enough] [Tough Enough] Buffs: Debuffs: Well, he couldn''t see Caffeine''s base attributes changing, but his class and skills had definitely changed. Slightly. Of course, the new skill gave him no more information than the original... though the name seemed rather telling. Stanley''s own status was looking better every day. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](57%) [Source Nexus] [Wrath] [Eye of the Storm] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 105 (Expert) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 75 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 49(Intermediate) | Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Soul Meditation (Rare) - Level 65 (Advanced) | Mental Fortress (Epic) - Level 1 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 230(+70%)391 Vitality: 228(+162%)597 Dexterity 232(+70%)394 Wisdom 330(+1663%)6154 Intelligence 331(+1663%)6172 Willpower 351(+2727%)10259 Twin-Soul 101(+567%)583 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 30 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) | Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) - Level 9 (Novice) Buff: [Soul-Link] Debuff: [Critical Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Bernard, would you still think the way you do if you could see my status? Stanley felt only anticipation for whenever that moron decided it was time to enforce his imaginary authority... It was going to be hilarious. The more important question was, just what had Nate told the man? Maybe not much if he thought he could bring Stanley in line by withholding food? Was Nate setting Bernard up by pitting him against impossible odds? That seemed like the only explanation, but... why? Stanley didn''t waste time trying to figure out Nate''s motives. Not when he could ask the man directly. Which he did after snatching him from the training field on the way inside. "Why?" Nate played coy as he got dragged along into the building. "Why what?" "Bernard." There was a flickering of rapid emotions through his soul as the man probably did something with his intuition... "You talked to him?" "Apparently, he''s got ideas to bring me in line," Stanley said while watching for a reaction. He got one, but it was only confusion. "He seems to think I need food badly enough that I''ll have to obey?" Nate winced. "Well, I knew he was aiming to take over my position, but I didn''t think he was that delusional..." "So you invited him to move in, anyway?" Stanley stopped flying through the building in front of... Shit. He''d never learned the guy''s name. "Hi. I brought metal." "Oh?" The older man with no name took the metal and peered at it, then at Stanley. "I see. Yes. Give me a minute." Stanley dropped Nate and looked at him questioningly while he waited. "Perhaps we could talk about this later?" Nate said with a look at no name. "What are you even worried about? Is he an actual danger, or is this just some politics? You should know that I won''t play games. If he tries something, I will..." Stanley saw Caffeine''s ears perk up and his head tilt. So he was ready when the pug kicked off with enough force to break lair walls. Loud, happy pug noises echoed back along with Barbie''s barking, and Stanley amended what he''d been saying. "I won''t kill him if it''s just something stupid, but I will gladly remove his limbs as many times as it takes for him to understand." Nate smiled. "He''s obviously a military man and probably has a certain way of thinking. Let''s leave dismembering him as a last resort. I''m hoping he''ll come to understand a few important things before it comes to that extreme." "Fine." Stanley really wasn''t worried. "How''s the training with Zeke going? Ready to hit an actual lair yet?" "I think so, but I''d like you on overwatch for the first one. Not to help him, but... just in case." "Why? I assumed you would be with him." "I will be watching. But not as a fighter on his team. Believe it or not, but I''m actually too powerful for him. It''s good to have at least one heavy hitter on every team, but if they''re too good, then everyone else stagnates." Stanley could believe it. Not because Nate was strong, but because Zeke was just too weak. Which wasn''t really his fault. He could heal like no one else, but when he started punching and kicking things... well, it was sad. "Tomorrow? Maybe after Bernard moves in?" Stanley glanced around. "Speaking of which, where are you going to put all of them? Or are you planning to move into a bigger lair?" "We have some actual classed builders now, and it turns out it only takes about a day to have the new structural additions become part of the lair. Much faster than trying to claim a bigger space and waiting for it to..." Stanley regretted asking as the other man droned on about lairs and logistics. Luckily, rescue came for him, albeit from a source he hadn''t expected. "Might I have a moment of your time?" Michaels asked, still dressed in his ridiculous priest''s outfit. Though whether it was actually worse than Stanley''s all-white suit... "You finally came to smite the demon, eh?" Stanley said, eyeing the weakling and daring him to try. "I won''t call you father, Priest. I don''t care if other people do. It''s creepy." "On the contrary, sir. I have come to apologize." It was weird to hear the obviously older man calling him sir, but Stanley still looked... old. Not as bad as he''d been. All those cores were having an impact, just not as much as he''d have liked. "Whatever. You never actually attacked me, so forget about it." "Nevertheless, I judged you harshly and with none of the Lord''s mercy or understanding. Worse yet, I spoke ill of you to others. For all of my mistakes, I am sorry and beg your forgiveness." Stanley glanced back and forth, but Nate looked as confused as he felt. "Zeke got to you, didn''t he?" Michaels smiled. "That young man... Out of the mouths of babes indeed. And yes, Ezekiel has spoken extensively of you and of the good you have done for those here. Though he is not the only one. Many here share his sentiments; myself now among them." "Hate to break it to you," Stanley said. "But I am actually a demon. I just have Zeke and the rest completely fooled." "Our Lord does work in mysterious ways." Stanley rolled his eyes. "Are you at least making yourself useful?" "I am doing what I can to spread hope and light, as our Father asks of us." "I said useful. Save your useless sermons for the gullible. We need power, not platitudes." "Have no fear, demon," he said with another smile. "I come not to convert but to apologize. Now, if you will excuse me, I must get back to practicing this magic and pray to the Almighty that I am not damning my soul by doing so." "I guess that¡¯s better than nothing." Michaels touched his shoulder. "Go with God, my child." Stanley started to roll his eyes, but stopped when a notification appeared. Buff Gained: [Bless](59:59) [Bless] +5% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes So... yeah. Better than nothing. But not much better. "Finished." The voice brought Stanley''s attention back to no name, and the completed... circlet? A steely-gray and jagged-looking thing. "What the hell is that?" Stanley demanded. It wasn''t a headband. Or a circlet. "You want me to wear a damn crown!?" "Everyone''s a critic," no name muttered under his breath. "How many people do I need to tell before you idiots understand? I am not a designer! I make it to work and work well! If you don''t like it, then you can..." "I meant..." Stanley tried to get a word in. "The metal you brought me had to be sharp! Would you rather I pointed it in a different direction, like into your thick skull!?" The poor bastard must be new to customer service. "Thanks!" Stanley snatched the crown from the guy''s hands and stuck it on his head. It fit surprisingly well and comfortably, despite being made of metal. Though he hadn''t been lying about the points being sharp... Buff Gained: [Onrushing Thorns] [Onrushing Thorns] All cutting and piercing efforts initiated by the Psionic will strike with double the effect they normally would when encountering an outside force. Anything set in motion by the Psionic will carry double the momentum it would normally hold when encountering an outside force. Holy shit. That couldn''t be right, could it? Would it only work for weapons or for his new preferred method of attack? Well, there was only one way to tell. Cut You have attacked a sapient lair structure. All residents notified. Sapient Lair is under attack. Defend it! Seriously? It warned him even though he was the one attacking... Unfortunately; the message spread a rather large amount of fear through the base. Oops. "Thanks, um..." "You forgot my name, didn''t you?" no name said. "I didn''t forget," Stanley said with a smile. "In fact, I never actually knew your name!" Unfortunately, his cheeky smile wasn''t working... Stanley sighed. "Tell you what, next time someone gives you shit, just let me know and I''ll cut off whatever of their limbs you want me to. Deal?" No name smiled and held out his hand. "Hugo. And I might take you up on that offer." Stanley shook his hand. "You rock, Hugo." He did, too. Because, while Stanley couldn''t say for certain that it was doubling his power, his attack against the lair wall had definitely cut through far easier than before. "If you want cores, I''ll bring ''em. Otherwise, I don''t have much to offer, but feel free to drop my name, either as a threat or a promise, and I''ll back you up." Then he looked after the departed Nate. "Now I need to go reassure some people that we''re not under attack..." Caffeine might have had a reproachful expression on his face when Stanley snuck into the room with his Soul Shield at full strength. "Everything is okay... kids. That was just me testing a skill." Barbie growled at him. "Sorry, Barbie." "Say sorry to Caff!" a small voice demanded. "Sorry, Caff." 129. Cheese ~~~Lee~~~ Lee bit into the soft wrapping, and an explosion of all the right flavors burst onto his tongue. Oh, god yes! He tried so hard to savor every bite, but he couldn''t stop himself from devouring the breakfast burrito. Though he did manage not to actually weep with joy as he ate. Someone had finally produced cheese! Whoever it was, Lee already had plans to get them moved into Three. They were a national treasure and had to be protected at all costs! Alejandro was coming his way, and Lee would dispatch him on this, the most holiest of quests... after he dealt with whatever was bothering the man. "You been watching the timer?" Alejandro asked immediately after walking inside Jamaal''s. "Tonight¡¯s the night." "I have been," Lee said. "And I think we''re ready." At least, he really hoped they were. He''d done everything he could think of to prepare. He''d updated all the runes, including pushing his capacity right to the limit. Sure, he hadn''t gotten the wall done yet, but it would cost too much and felt less important for an invasion. That was more the kind of thing he wanted for everyday use. Or hidden invasions. Plus, Bradley still needed to straighten up the walls for it to work. "Before then," Lee said while hoisting the much diminished burrito. "You need to find out who makes the cheese and get them moved into Three." Alejandro smiled and didn''t roll his eyes. "I already know him. Pablo. Good man. His kids are here. You''ve probably met him..." "Does he have a room?" "We''re getting a little crowded in here..." "I have an extra room," Lee said. "If you can''t find him a spot, then he can use my apartment!" "Is the cheese that good?" Alejandro asked with a chuckle. "It''s cheese!" Lee exclaimed with complete sincerity. "Cheese!" Only silence met his enthusiasm. The godless heathens. Jackson stood up from the table. "Well, my shift''s up. I''ll see you tonight, Lee." "My lord." Trak bowed and went with him. The anubi... or rather, anubian, had joined the night shift with Jackson. He''d even provided an alchemist''s perspective on Lee''s attempt to create healing runes. Not that it helped; it turned out that healing was exactly as bullshit as stamina. Perhaps more. Amy plopped down in the vacated seat with a call toward Jamaal. "I''ll take one of Lee''s magic burritos, and with extra hot sauce." Jeremy was his same nervous self, but he also sat down for his own burrito. Sans spice. Which was a shame, since Jamaal''s hot sauce was fantastic! Even if it set your mouth on fire... Totally worth it! Lee ordered another for himself. Only to keep the others'' company. Not for any other reason. "Any more progress, Jeremy?" "No," Jeremy said, without looking up from the table. "I told you my class wouldn''t level." "Did you try swapping everything around yourself? "I tried... it still doesn''t work." "Did you..." "You really think you''ll be better at leveling my skills!?" Jeremy snapped, his grumpiness finally winning out. "You clearly don''t know the first thing about physics!" Lee didn''t respond to the hostility; he only dabbed a drop of fire onto his burrito and took a bite. Buff Gained: [Devil Sauce](00:30) Amy jumped into the silent lull. "Hasn''t physics changed? Like, a lot?" She waved her burrito, sending a few bits of the filling flying. The monster! "Mana has got to be throwing all kinds of knowledge out the window!" Jeremy deflated. "It has... nothing makes sense anymore." "Last I heard, you physics guys were all stuck anyway," Amy said. "Now you get to figure out a whole new system! Shouldn''t you be loving this?" "Yes," Jeremy said dryly. "Who wouldn''t wish to uncover the mysteries of the universe while fighting off monsters and aliens, all of them equally vehement in their attempts to kill and or eat me!?" "Isn''t it great? I mean, who wants to sit in a boring classroom all day thinking about math!?" "Me! I want that!" Amy only laughed. "I told you to treat this job as a vacation," Lee chimed in. "You can''t get a much safer place than in here... at least when we aren''t getting invaded." "Yeah, and you''re only here for your skill, so you probably don''t have to worry about getting dismembered." Amy said it casually, but Jeremy paled. "You know," Lee said, changing the subject back. "I bet I could make you some kind of magic marker if you want to cover the walls in mathematical equations..." Amy cackled. "I want to see that! Maybe someone here will be a secret genius that will solve the equation you get stuck on!" "Maybe..." Lee murmured, another thought occurring to him. He should actually make something like that, only for Gabriel. "I... I think I would like that." "Just keep using your skill," Lee said. "It should level eventually, and even if it doesn''t, I still want to see it in action for my own learning efforts. Hell, you should try to teach us while you''re at it. Isn''t teaching someone else supposed to help the teacher learn, too?" "Hell no!" Amy exclaimed. "I''d rather get chewed on by the monsters and aliens." Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Why am I not surprised?" But he did glance thoughtfully at Lee. "I might try that, if you''re serious..." "I am," Lee said. "Though no promises that I''ll be a good student..." He looked at Amy. "You seem extra cheerful despite our potential upcoming invasion. Not that I''m complaining! But... I thought Miller was scheduled for today? Did Alejandro..." "Miller is out!" Amy exclaimed with a gleam in her eye, then continued in what Lee could have sworn was a sultry tone. "I''ve got you all to myself from now on." That, combined with an unsettling look on her face, had Lee nervous. "You... you do?" Amy burst out laughing again. "You know, for being such a powerful and mysterious figure, you are way too easy to tease." "Now you''re just being mean to the poor old man," Lee grumbled, his face feeling slightly warm. She laughed and winked at him. "Let''s just say that the Anubians aren''t the only ones to get a special evolution involving a certain someone." "Seriously? What''d you get? And how do you know what the anubi got?" "Not telling." Amy stuck out her tongue. "But with my new class, I can protect you way better than that pansy Miller ever could." "Whatever. I mean, that''s good?" "The anubi have been rather vocal with anyone who will listen," Jamaal said, joining the conversation while leaning over his counter. "They go on about how great you are, Lee, but they won''t give me any details..." "Me neither," Amy said in a conspiratorial whisper. Then she glanced at Lee while leaning toward Jamaal and whispered, "But I think I know what they''re talking about!" A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "Spill!" "Not happening!" Amy sat up, grinning. "Your burritos are good, Jamaal, but I''m not the fanatic that Lee is. You''ll need something better to get this secret out of me!" Lee rolled his eyes. He had a feeling her mysterious evolution probably mentioned something about a chained god... and while he was glad she hadn''t gone fanatic, she was looking at him differently. Not reverentially like the anubi, but still different. "Just a thought," Amy said with feigned nonchalance. "But I really miss tiramisu..." "Hmm," Jamaal said. "That will be a challenge. I may have to enlist our resident gardener on this... though I imagine she wouldn''t mind a taste herself..." "I could tell..." Lee started. "Hush, Lee!" Jamaal exclaimed. "We will divine all your secrets without your assistance." Lee rolled his eyes again but still smiled. It was nice to see a deeper side of Jamaal now that he didn''t have to resort to English to make himself understood. Jamaal had been one of those who took the Myriad Tongues skill shard, since he claimed no desire to switch careers and wasn''t worried about using up his limited skill slots. It definitely made him seem smarter... which Lee knew was simply his own bias. The guy had always been smart. Lee just hadn''t been able to understand. "While you guys work on that... Amy, do you want me to enchant your bones?" She rubbed her hands together eagerly. "Oh yeah. I definitely want me some of them shiny bones!" Lee felt at his soul. More specifically, at his rune limit. Luckily, Stanley had added another soul point just this morning, and one point would go a long way. "I can do it right now? But it will hurt." Amy only smirked at him. "Try me." He did, and... she showed no sign of discomfort throughout the entire process. "How... just what is your... you said class evolution?" "Still not telling." "Fine, but can you spread word for anyone else who wants the enchant? I can do Maria and a few others, but the hunters will need to trade in any extra weapons if they want it today." "Can do, boss. Have fun in school." Oh, right. "I... will?" Lee still made Jeremy use his ability constantly while he explained a rather rudimentary breakdown of physics to him. There were a few times when the man trailed off as he realized that certain bits of his knowledge no longer applied to reality, but Lee thought it was good regardless. Not that he was learning anything new yet, but Jeremy was much less nervous when teaching, and it was fun to see how his mind worked when he started rambling about new physics. People came by for bone enchanting, including Maria but only a few left with new runes. There wasn''t a lot of fat to trim in regards to his runes; there was enough for an extra weapon here and there, but most of it had already gotten adjusted earlier. Despite the limits, Lee wasn''t feeling bad about his choices. Most people didn''t really need to enchant their bones. Armor was commonplace now, and going beyond that was just a luxury. Powerful weapons were far more useful to kill the threats than any armor to take more hits. That fact was evidently more clear once Bradley made his next and last mana-dumping visit. Lee made him stay a little longer to ensure extra mana, just in case, and then he started the weapon. It was a delicate affair, wherein he had to use only Bradley''s mana, but more so because he needed to use a very specific part of his soul to tie it all together. Specifically, the piece of his soul that was Bradley''s. The piece Bradley had loaned him in the soul-link. He''d already had an inkling of how his soul worked regarding being a part of himself while also getting spread out through thousands of runes. Lee knew physical reality and space had little constraint on a soul. So little, in fact, that he could have pieces of it strewn around the world and it wouldn''t matter to him here and now. A big clue was that he and Stanley shared a soul... yet they were thousands of miles apart. There was the minor fact that Bradley''s bit of soul was currently bound up in the rune holding the wound closed... but between Stanley reducing the wound and the others who''d joined the link later, it wasn''t all getting used anymore. Lee didn''t need all that much soul to craft a rune. Each point went a long way, and Bradley had given him a whole point. More than enough. He finished it, and for once, he agreed with Trak wholeheartedly as he gazed upon Bradley''s new weapon. It was a god-damned masterpiece! His thoughts weren''t all cheerful, though. What he''d just created with a tiny speck of someone''s soul only highlighted how ridiculous it was that they''d lost hundreds of points to kill the skeleton... Had Stanley fucked up real bad? Or was attacking another soul directly just a terrible idea? Lee didn''t blame his twin; he''d been right there urging him on in that fight. They''d done what they had to do. The only thing they''d known to do. Now he only wished he could talk to Stanley about this... He might have stared at his creation for too long because Bradley finally asked, "Did it... work? I can feel... something? It''s weird." "Oh, yes!" Lee exclaimed, pushing away his dark thoughts and handing over his creation. "Tell me what you think." Bradley took the staff eagerly, then frowned. "It''s... what is happening?" "How''s your mana?" Lee asked. "Try using some." Bradley waved a hand and pulled up a cube of earth from outside the ramp. He closed his hand into a fist and condensed the dirt into stone. The entire time he did so, no mana flowed from his core. It all came from the staff. Wherein a rune that bore a striking resemblance to his core rested. "What is happening!?" It obviously wasn''t exactly the same as his core. It was only similar and crafted of the same mana that filled Bradley''s core and channels. The best part was that it worked exactly as Lee had hoped it would. "It won''t hold nearly as much mana as your core," he supplied. "But it also doesn''t require you to channel any of it directly, so..." "Less mana burn and aspect saturation!" "That was the idea," Lee said, smiling at the man''s excitement. "And since it worked, I''ll try to create something similar for anyone with high mana cost skills... so long as they have accepted the soul-link." "I... thought you had enough links already?" Jeremy asked, and he sounded... judgmental. "Jeez!" Lee said. "I''m not being greedy! It''s because I made the rune using Bradley''s soul. That''s the only reason it works the way it does." "It feels like a piece of me," Bradley murmured while levitating the staff away from himself. "Like, I have an extra limb... and it''s over there?" It felt weird on Lee''s end, too. Similar to how he could normally feel his runes, he could feel this one. Only, it felt like Bradley... Lee shook his head. "There might be another way to use someone else''s soul in a rune, but I can''t imagine how to make it happen without some seriously terrible implications." He shuddered. "I didn''t say anything since I wasn''t sure it would work, but now that we know... Well, it''s your call, Bradley. Hell, it''s your soul, so if you don''t want..." "What? No! I love this thing!" Bradley said, clutching the staff close. "Three is recharging it! You realize that with this, I can channel nonstop while inside here?" "I do. You should test it outside to see how well it recharges without your or Three''s input, but I''m planning to offer this to anyone willing to fight in or on Three during invasions." If he was going to draw everything down on himself, including potential D-grades, then he wanted to make damn sure the monsters regretted it. "Obviously, it takes a bit to make it happen, but if you see Alejandro before me, then let him know. He might know better who should get the option. Also, the material used for the weapon is going to matter... Your earth aspect made it way easier." They would need to experiment, but he had an obvious next choice. One that he''d already experimented with somewhat. "Could you mention to Saira that I''m ready to continue whenever she has a chance? See if she wants to try for her own staff?" Sure, neither she nor Bradley were at their best inside Three, but both of them were powerhouses. Everyone would benefit from increasing their power. "Amy, how about you?" She was juggling knives one-handed. Seemingly unconcerned with Lee''s marvelous breakthrough. "Hm?" "Does your class need a lot of burst mana use?" Amy never paused the juggling while she eyed Lee. "Still not telling... but nice try." "I''m not trying to..." She laughed. "I''m just messing with you! No, my class isn''t going to mana-burn me, and since I''m liable to mostly be in here with you... Well, you get it." He got it... and dropped a slow bubble on Amy. "Back to the lessons, Jeremy? And I bet your skill is off cooldown..." Jeremy sighed, but got back to it. ... He didn''t get anywhere close to enough mana from Saira before nightfall. Not that the darkness would stop them... but the protection timer ticking down was a good reason to stop and prepare the defenses. Dinner was early, and the kids were hustled to their rooms well before time ran out. Lee stood in the center of the courtyard. Amy and Jackson were beside him, while Jeremy waited inside an apartment with Trak. The former didn''t need to actually put himself in danger to help, and Trak was planning to fight with weaponized potions rather than blades. He had a table covered with the things in a wide variety to pick from once he saw what threat appeared. The timer hit zero. And nothing happened. "Not again," Lee groaned. "Don''t jinx us!" Amy hissed. "That''s not a real thing. Besides, I want them to attack." "Exactly! And now they won''t. Because you jinxed us!" She put away her sword and sat on the floor. "Guess we can take a break." "Now who''s asking for it?" Jackson whispered. "Damn it! I was trying to un-jinx us!" Amy exclaimed and flopped onto her back. "You guys are idiots." Lee met Jackson''s gaze, and they both rolled their eyes. Unfortunately, she might have had a point. Not about jinxes¡ªthose weren''t a real thing¡ªbut about waiting all night. Of course, Lee made it worse by dropping speed bubbles on himself repeatedly. He didn''t want to waste the time, but he did want to keep leveling the skill and couldn''t risk slowing himself down if something did show up. It never mattered, and the sky was getting lighter with the coming dawn when he finally stretched out across a few hovering plates for a quick nap. 130. Escorts ~~~Lee~~~ Lee''s eyes snapped open to a much brighter sky... and a mass of movement streaming through his Mana Mind. He immediately dropped a speed bubble on himself. Primarily to give himself time to wake up. Of course, pumping liquid mana through his brain helped more than any coffee ever could have in the old world. He couldn''t see through Mana Mind nearly as well while in the bubble, but he could see enough to know that nothing alien was in range yet. What he could see, even if blurry, was hundreds of non-resident humans entering his fort through a hole in the wall. He''d woken up in the middle of breakfast. Which meant the kids were all out under the open sky. Not that they weren''t safe... Three was watching, after all. Of course, there were more children outside... coming into the fort with the non-residents. Lee let the bubble lapse. "Amy, what''d I miss?" She wasn''t quite her previously cheerful and cheeky self from the day before, as she responded, "Another fort got hit yesterday. They won... but only barely." "So, the survivors came here?" "One of the hunter teams stumbled into the aftermath and pointed them down here..." She stopped staring off into space and looked at Lee. "You might need to do some damage control. Maybe back up that team... because they''re getting a lot of flack for this already." "Let me guess, we are getting a ton of non-combat people?" "Yep." "Right before a potential invasion that will presumably be that much more dangerous." "Yep." "Well, shit." Lee was ashamed to admit a few of those same thoughts snuck through his head at that moment. These newcomers were endangering his family. Then he felt guilty because he was doing the same thing by being here. In much the same way he couldn''t solve the problem by leaving, he obviously couldn''t turn them away. Wherever they went, it would only be a matter of time until they got attacked again, and a bunch of crafters would die to the first assault. Never mind the children among them. Damn it. Lee sent out the fort invites and watched the resident number almost immediately start ticking upward. "I won''t turn them away, Amy." She smiled. "Obviously. That''s why they''re already moving in. It''s just some of the losers complaining." "If you can, get that hunter team in to see me. Maybe people will shut up if I give them a bonus for doing the right thing." "Will do, boss." She gave a mocking salute, but didn''t rise from her slumped position on the bench. Instead, she let out a deafening whistle toward the sky. A head popped out over the edge of the roof above. "Yes, Ma''am?" "Go get Harold''s team in here!" Amy said, then waved him off. Lee eyed her and glanced up to where the man had sprinted away at her order. "What?" Amy asked with a grin. "I''m a royal guard. That comes with some clout." "Royal?" She sat up and gave an obviously mocking half bow. "My lord." "I''m going to cancel your oath if you start doing that." Amy laughed, then abruptly blurred to a standing position in front of him with her hand up in a salute. "Sir, yes sir!" That was a new skill he hadn''t seen before... a lot like Alejandro''s or even Maria''s. "Sir, permission to rest since this maggot has been up all night guarding you, sir!" Now she was just teasing him. Lee sighed and looked helplessly back at all the concerned parents and children watching the exchange. "At ease?" Amy blurred past him to end up sprawled on the plates he''d taken his nap on... which drew even more attention from the kids. Probably because those just so happened to be the only remaining hover plates... It was a necessary sacrifice for the pending invasion, and one he would rectify afterward. In fact, he''d probably need those runes before the invasion even kicked off. Especially if he wanted to make something for the team that had sent the refugees here. Actually, he had a few more options, seeing as how it was daytime now... The lights he''d scattered around wouldn''t be necessary if the attack came before dark. Of course, if it didn''t happen in time, then he''d need to replace the lights again... Lee felt the people enter the garage below and assumed, from all the runed and enchanted gear, that they must be the hunter team. He headed that way, and Amy appeared at his side before he''d reached the stairs. The hunters were arguing beside May''s workstation when Lee left the stairwell. "Let them try it!" a young man said with clear venom in his voice. "We don''t bow to bullies. Never have. Never will! No matter what!" They were all young, fort-residents, but not oath-sworn, which was odd considering they were hunters. More interestingly, Lee thought he recognized them. "Hi, guys." Heads were already turning his way, probably from them feeling his soul, and the speaker addressed Lee without hesitation. "I don''t care what anyone says. We did the right thing, and we''ll do it again!" "I..." "Elitist pricks think they''re special just ''cause they started with a combat class, but that doesn''t mean shit!" "You..." "We all started as crafters and now we kick just as much or more ass than any of those cowards!" "I''m..." "What kind of selfish, gutless, heartless bastards would leave all those people to die!?" "Dude!" Lee finally shouted when the guy stopped to take a breath. "You did the right thing! What are you yelling at me for?" "Oh... Jason said the fort commander wanted to see us, and I assumed... Well, after what the others were saying..." Lee smiled. "On the contrary, I wanted to reward you. Didn''t realize you guys were the team responsible... Real glad to see you all still kicking, Harold." They stared at him blankly. "Building seven? Apes together strong? I promised you armor and bone enchanting? That was you guys, wasn''t it?" Finally some recognition appeared, along with confusion. "That was you?" "I could have sworn you weren''t so..." another young man said before trailing off. "Old?" Lee supplied. "Didn''t you call me a boomer last time?" "Loud! I meant you weren''t so... loud." There were some nervous chuckles, and Harold said, "I heard something happened to the fort commander... and we were kinda busy with our own stuff... but you really weren''t... like this, were you?" "No." Lee sighed. "Things happened. But aside from that, how''s it going?" He pointed at one of them. "You never made me radios." The kid jumped. "I..." He looked around at his friends, then said more softly, "I tried, but most of us have evolved away from crafting..." "That''s awesome! I mean... if you wanted to?" He nodded, a smile growing. "I did!" He held up a tree branch turned staff that had a glowing crystal tied to the top. "I''m still sort of an enchanter; only now I put enchants on the ground or walls to help us fight in the lairs." It definitely sounded good. Especially since they were all still alive. "What about you, Harold?" "Ah, well, I was a risk assessor, but now I..." "He can see the future!" another of them blurted excitedly. Harold''s soul felt slightly exacerbated as he shook his head. "I don''t see the future. It''s... I only calculate the probability of what might happen next in a..." You have been conscripted into the Dungeon: [Escort Mission] Lee flinched and, in the same motion, dropped a speed bubble on himself. Luckily, the daylight probably meant no shadow monsters... Or could they even choose if they were attacking into daytime? Three, you have that skill... I''m hoping that means nothing like those monsters can sneak up on us again... right? The bubble inevitably expired, but Lee felt a lot more in control by then. He met the still surprised and slightly worried gazes of the team before him. "Get those people out of the street. Now!" They sprinted away and Lee put himself back into a bubble. Despite the lack of definition, he kept up the time distortion as people crawled toward their destinations outside. He adjusted slightly when Alejandro finally reached his side, though even then he only made the bubble big enough to include the man. "Have we seen what''s coming?" Alejandro watched the people moving in slow-motion outside and shook his head. "Not yet." He smiled. "I do like this extra time, though..." "We can have Jeremy pop you to the wall, and I can stick another bubble on you up there. You already know how to escape if you want to leave early." Lee dropped the time shift and gave the order. "I can''t reach that..." "Never mind!" Alejandro took off running, and Jeremy sent him to the foot of the wall. So better than nothing. They didn''t have a lot of stairs going up the wall, but then most people didn''t need them. Alejandro practically jumped straight to the top using a few jutting handholds, and Lee hit him with Temporal Shift as soon as he reached the summit. Alejandro emerged from the speed bubble already holding his rune radio, and his voice echoed from the one on Lee''s waist while his free hand pointed. "We''ve got an army incoming. At least three hundred, and less than a minute..." All sounds seemed to fade into the background, and Lee didn''t hear what else Alejandro was saying as he saw the alien figure zip into his Mana Mind. It flew past Alejandro, far too fast and far too close, then shot toward the garage. It was a D-grade. Lee knew that without a doubt. It was faster than any of them and stronger than anyone, but there was one thing it couldn''t outrun. Time. "I got it!" Lee yelled, almost in disbelief, as his slowing bubble now held an invisible alien frozen in suspended time. Then he touched his own radio rune while sprinting downstairs. "D-grade caught! Outside the... Shit!" If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Lee felt a chill and changed course abruptly when his worst nightmare appeared. Another D-grade. Ideally, he would have warned the people on the wall above, or at least made sure Bradley knew what was coming, but there wasn''t time. Everyone up there would have a better chance of surviving falling off a wall than facing a D-grade in combat. Lee slid to a stop on the ramp, one arm extended, finger pointing, and his other arm bracing the first. Despite technically being on the first floor, he wasn''t quite at ground level because the garage was sunk halfway below ground. But it was close enough for what he needed. Close enough to send a Mana Beam out through the stone wall and into the charging alien army beyond. More specifically, at the D-grade leading the charge. So he did. The white-hot beam of light didn''t destroy the wall. Not like he''d feared it would¡ªexplosively. It didn''t even seem to lose power. Instead, it simply burned right through, as if the stone wasn''t even there. Unfortunately, he missed... firing instead at the alien beside the D-grade. Oddly, the D-grade moved into the beam''s path in that single instant as if it wanted to get hit... It was only after a couple seconds of a jittering and sweeping beam flailing when he realized the monster was protecting its fellow E-grade... Escort mission? Was it really that straightforward? None of that mattered, though, because he''d forgotten a critical detail about using Mana Beam. Not that it would fire until his mana drained to nothing; he''d remembered that, but that his Mana Mind would shrink along with his mana pool. Which meant he quickly lost sight of his target and was still blind-firing through the wall... Lee swept the beam back through the areas he hoped the army was traveling, and then, at the last second, cast a fresh time bubble on the trapped D-grade. Right before Mana Mind shrank to nothing. There was always the option of having Three pump mana into him as his own drained, but Lee had definitely not forgotten the first and last time he did that. He was stronger now, and it might not destroy him... but it wasn''t worth the risk. He''d hit the D-grade head on and barely melted through parts of its shield. Never mind even scratching the armor beneath, because the bastard was quick as fuck about moving the shield to catch the beam with a fresh, unmelted section. If he went all out and failed to destroy the thing while mana-burning himself out of commission... then he wouldn''t be able to keep the other trapped. Better to keep one out of the fight and rely on his friends and family to deal with the other... He hoped desperately that none of them would pay with their lives for his choice here and now. Then his mana drained, the beam ended, and Three flooded more mana back in. Mana Mind expanded along with the surge up his legs, and Lee saw his time bubble still holding, then the wall with sweeping melted holes through it, and finally, the other D-grade now under attack on all sides... The only positive he could see out there was that the army no longer charged the walls. Unfortunately, they were rallying around the D-grade instead. Bradley was in the thick of it, with each swing of his staff either driving the D-grade back a step or sending an E-grade flying. Alejandro blurred to his side an instant before Maria followed... Even worse, that was the last glimpse he got of the fighting before the D-grade fled beyond his range. "Come back!" Lee shouted into his communication plate while cursing his own trapped status and seriously considering leaving the building rather than letting his family face a monster that was only here because of him. "Kill the D-grade outside the garage first!" Lee had one hand on Three¡¯s wall and a single foot raised for a step when Bradley came flying back beside Maria and Alejandro. Oh, thank god! Bradley''s mana surged out ahead of him, and the towering wall split open to let them through. Then they stopped... and Lee realized a new problem. They couldn''t see the invader. It had been using some sort of stealth effect when it went over the walls and he trapped it. The stealth was still active. He could see it in Mana Mind and feel the bubble as plain as day, but visually, it was nothing more than a faint distortion hovering in the air. So he fired another Mana Beam out of the garage and point-blank into his own time bubble. The bubble broke with that same painful backlash in his head, and the invader resumed charging forward with its original blurring speed. Unfortunately for the invader, Lee''s beam traveled faster still. And from this range, he couldn''t miss. His beam caught the monster in its armored face and blasted it head over heels backward. It also removed whatever effect had hidden it from sight, revealing a bipedal creature that looked almost human. At least from what they could see. Though the dimensions looked off... Plus, full plate armor hid its features completely behind gray metal. Lee could see beneath the armor well enough to know that it was most definitely not human as it tumbled, helpless and in pain, at the mercy of his magic. But it didn''t hurt for long. Not nearly long enough. Like its fellow, it quickly got its shield up to intercept the beam. Unlike its fellow, this one wasn''t trying to protect an E-grade while defending against Lee... Instead, it had a bigger problem to deal with. Lee''s friends. Namely, it had to deal with Bradley, Alejandro, and Maria. Even worse, it was now within Saira''s domain, and her vines joined the attack with frenzied aggression as they lashed out from both the ground and from where they nearly covered the side of Three. Unfortunately, Lee''s opening shot of a Mana Beam still had to finish draining his mana again, and he couldn''t risk it anywhere near the chaotic fight. Fortunately, Bradley had opened up the wall and now he could see the retreating army in the distance. A target ripe for destruction. And he didn''t hesitate to dish it out despite the retreat. They''d attacked his home. His family and friends. There would be no mercy for those who threatened what was his! Lee''s aim wasn''t the best, but he was just glad his arm wasn''t melting like last time as he did what he could. All while chaos unfolded right outside. Bradley blocked a sword blow once with his staff, dimming the runes considerably in the process. He must have noticed that, because he avoided doing it again. Instead, he dodged what he could by sliding on the ever-shifting ground beneath his feet. Alejandro handled the hits no one could dodge, blurring around the monster almost non-stop as he appeared ahead of every striking sword with his shield in place to absorb the hits. And absorb them, he did. The new shield was living up to the purpose Lee had envisioned when perfecting the rune empowering it. Blows that should have depleted the protective runes on anything else landed with what looked like no force against that shield. Lee''s kinetic absorbing rune could now be turned on and off, and Alejandro''s practice over the last few days had clearly paid off, as he never missed a beat. Every instant the shield was active would drain the rune as it froze the shield in place while fighting against all outside forces, but Lee never even noticed a pause. He only knew Alejandro was activating it thanks to feeling the rune lose power in tiny pulses. It wouldn''t last forever while absorbing hits like that, but the man was doing his damnedest to eke every shred of power he could out of the rune. Of course, with them fighting in Mana Mind range while Lee was inside Three, their runes would last forever because he could keep pumping mana into them. Much like Three could recharge any rune inside the building and Lee could create runes anywhere within his Mana Mind, there was no more need to touch the runes to recharge them. Despite the advantages, they weren''t making much headway in bringing down the bastard. The D-grade was too well armored and too fast. It had taken one blow from a rune sword on its shield, which carved a deep notch through the metal, and now it either dodged or slapped the blades aside rather than confronting them head on. It was also trying to retreat... Saira and Bradley worked to prevent its escape between dragging vines and shifting earth, but they were only delaying the inevitable. Especially when the other D-grade came charging back to help. Lee caught it in a time bubble and then joined the fighting in the only way he could think of. First, by killing his last flying plate runes, and then forcing new runes onto the invader. Or rather, onto its sword and armor. The gear was heavily enchanted, more so than any he''d seen before, but it was still easier to force a rune into the metal than to stick it directly onto the D-grade''s flesh, like he had with the shadow. He''d only barely started when the invader¡¯s body lit up with mana and turned into a damn whirlwind of motion that even Mana Mind could barely follow... Bradley''s staff flew one way, and the man went the other in an explosion of stone fragments that used to be his armor. He flew away in two pieces. The sword had cut him in half at the waist... No! Alejandro''s shield turned aside another blow, and the enemy''s flickering sword nearly took off his sword-arm at the elbow through a gap in the armor. It didn''t quite dismember him, only ringing off his bones. But the wound still disabled his arm... Maria shoved her husband back from the next strike as it opened his throat and caught another on her runed bracer with a crack that destroyed the rune instantly. It also threw her tumbling away. She somehow kept a hold of Alejandro and took him with her when she blurred away into the garage. Alejandro landed beside Trak, who immediately held a potion up while pouring another into the bleeding guardian... Maria took the potion as she shot back to the monster and smashed the bottle over its head in a shower of green liquid and broken glass. She flickered away just as fast... and still nearly lost her hand to that striking blade. Once again, her runed skeleton was proving itself. "Jeremy!" Lee screamed as he finished jamming a heating rune into the invader''s sword. "Bring it inside!" His rune wouldn''t be enough. Not in time to make a difference. Not before it was too late. If they brought it in here where Three could help... The only good news was that he could see Saira''s vines already latched onto the two pieces of Bradley... could see her healing life-force pumping into the man in a torrent. A torrent to match the blood and... guts spilling from the man. Jackson had charged out the instant Bradley went down and only now reached the battle that had lasted mere seconds. He didn''t have a movement skill, and he wasn''t very skilled when he finally took a swing... but he had something none of the others did. He didn''t die. Not only was his skeleton enchanted, but Lee kept pumping more mana into the rune as each hit landed and failed to bring the man down. All the while, Jackson chopped nonstop at the monster and screamed. When he still had a throat to scream with. The invader''s sword was also glowing now. Glowing red-hot as it dealt out repeated and deadly injuries to Jackson. Its helmet was also giving off green smoke from the potion Maria had splashed on it... It abruptly changed tactics and lashed out, not at Jackson but at his sword. There was a ringing noise of metal on metal, and Jackson''s sword flew from his hand as the monster kicked him away. Then the invader dropped its own nearly molten sword and pulled off its helmet, which was now billowing out a cloud of green smoke from the metal... The action revealed an alien visage of bright purple skin, huge black eyes, and a hairless, bulbous head... right as it plucked Jackson''s sword from the air... Lee saw Mar coming. No one else should have known she was there. But the invader leaned aside at the last moment, just as Mar¡¯s blade should have taken off its head. She still hit deep, if not true, and blood was spraying from its throat, but not enough. She hadn''t killed it instantly¡ªperhaps not even eventually, if it was as tough as the shadow D-grade had been. Either way, it didn''t matter as the monster not only lurched free of her blades before she could do more damage, but its sword swept around lightning quick to decapitate the girl... "Jeremy!" Lee was already screaming at Jeremy, even as he drove every scrap of his will against the mana in that sweeping blade that would end Mar''s life. Even as he pulled the runes from it. Mar didn''t have runes on her skeleton, either! His head felt like it should explode as the sword slowed fractionally. But it wasn''t enough! He couldn''t stop it! They were too close together for a bubble... Maria blurred toward them... too slowly. She couldn''t get there in time, and she never did. Lee broke Maria''s skill when he dropped a slowing bubble around both the girl and the monster an instant before it was too late. They both stopped. Almost. The monster with purple blood frozen in a waterfall down its breastplate, and Mar with a sword sinking very slowly through her neck... Fucking hell! "Do something!" Lee yelled at the useless Jeremy even as he blasted mana into a cluster of runes on the now freed and charging D-grade. He put everything he had into the runes. Mana Beam wouldn''t work. This was all he had left. Red vines were already writhing over the bubble when Jeremy said, "I... can''t! They''re too close to..." "Fucking do it!" Lee tried his hardest not to watch that sword cut deeper into her neck. But he couldn¡¯t not see it. Cutting. Cutting. Cutting! It was all up to Jeremy now. He couldn¡¯t do anything to save her. All he could do was slow down her inevitable death. "Nooow!" He poured all that helplessness into channeling all the mana he had into the other D-grade. The one he could still do something about. He didn''t go after its armor with his runes. There was no more time for that. But if he could stick a rune inside the monster... inside its brain? It had to work! He had to make it work or he would lose every... Jeremy screamed wordlessly, and Mar was abruptly alone in the bubble! He... did it! Lee abandoned his rune effort and dropped his time bubble around the oncoming D-grade a heartbeat after it passed through the open wall. Mar stumbled, blood spraying from her neck... her still attached neck! Even as the surrounding red vines all struck inward full of life-giving energy. Oh my god! He did it! He fucking did... it? The building shook violently beneath his feet, and Lee froze in shock as he realized what Jeremy had done. When he saw exactly what that genius fucking bastard had done! He''d not only pulled the fucker from the bubble and inside Three, but he''d stuck the monster inside Lee''s workspace. Inside the elevator room. The cramped and completely closed off elevator room. He''d trapped it! Kill it, Three! He sent the order, but it wasn''t necessary. Three was already going to town with stabbing rebar and concrete... but with the same weak results as it had against that damn shadow. There was a stretched out moment as Lee watched it dance around Three''s attacks while striking back at the door in its attempts to escape. Attempts that were doing serious damage... At that moment, Lee realized something he should have considered long before this. His mana blast and now mana beam were not fancy skills. In fact, they were about as basic as it got. They worked by simply throwing as much liquid mana as possible at a target and hoping it went away. Three was great at channeling liquid mana... way better than Lee was. He''d even hit the building with Mana Beam more than once, and Three had absorbed the liquid mana without issue... Three. Burn! He had the vision of what he wanted to see clearly in his mind''s eye, and Three acted... almost as he envisioned. Instead of filling the entire room with a mana inferno and turning everything inside to ashes as he''d wanted, only a single beam appeared between the ceiling and floor. Even then, it only clipped the... Then one beam became two. Two became four. Four, eight. Until the entire space was an inescapable web of death. Lee smiled in triumph as holes finally started melting through the armor and into the flesh of that fucking monster! He smiled, even though he was an idiot. An absolute fucking moron for never thinking to tell Three to Mana Beam something! How had he never thought to... Zynthar has requested Parley to discuss the terms of the Invaders'' Surrender. 131. To Parley Or Not To Parley ~~~Lee~~~ Zynthar has requested Parley to discuss the terms of the Invaders'' Surrender. If accepted, all hostilities must cease until terms are agreed upon or if the Defenders cancel the Parley. Violation of the Parley by the surrendering party will result in immediate death for the surrendering party. Violation by the other party will remove the Parley restrictions. Lee hesitated as the entire notification flooded into his mind instantly. Even knowing what it said, he still hesitated. This fucking bastard was trying to save itself! It didn''t care before! Only now, when it faced its own death, did it give a fucking damn! "I accept!" Lee screamed it out while mentally telling Three to stand down. Parley accepted. Despite his absolute desire to see these monsters die for what they almost did... Lee took the high road. He had to. He couldn''t risk that the D-grade in his bubble might get off a lucky strike. It was moving in there. Slowly, but it was moving. What if it had other tricks he didn''t know about? Was satisfying his bloodlust worth the risk that someone he cared about might die? Everything went silent, and he realized everyone must have gotten the notification when he saw the abrupt end to the violence. Lee swept the quiet battlefield with his Mana Mind and was rather shocked to find no human corpses. But then, the fighters on the walls had barely thrown a few spells before everything went to shit. He wasn''t complaining. No one had died for him. That was as good as it gets. But it had been way too close... "What the fuck was that!?" The sudden shout made Lee flinch, and he only then noticed Harold''s group standing behind him on the ramp. They''d been there for the entire fight... hadn''t they? It all felt so... Lee swayed as the adrenaline finally drained away. Not just adrenaline. There''d been so much fear at the end there... as he watched his family getting carved apart in front of his eyes. Amy wrapped an arm around his shoulders. Stabilizing and grounding him with the physical touch. "It''s all good, Lee. We won... didn''t we?" "Amy..." Lee leaned into her support. "Why didn''t you go help them?" His gaze went distant as his mind looked over the wounded and almost dead... plus all the other surrounding people staring back his way. Many of the crafters were there... including Trak. The anubi had handed that potion to Maria during the fight... but at least he''d had the sense not to rush out there and get killed. "Can''t, boss," Amy said, and Lee looked up... Blood ran down her face from her eyes, nose, and grinning mouth. "Told you I picked a class to protect you, but it''s only to protect you." She turned slightly, and Lee felt a sudden, terrible understanding upon seeing her right arm melted almost to the bone. His own right arm hadn''t melted from the mana beam when he''d thought it should have. His using Mana Mind to slow the sword... "You... was that why..." She smiled. "Still not telling you my class!" Saira chose that moment to stride down the ramp into the garage, one arm supporting Mar while the other dragged a carpet of red vines behind her with an unconscious but whole Bradley lying atop them. "I could use... a potion... Trak." Lee felt a wave of fresh guilt upon seeing them, but more so after seeing her. She looked... bad. Shriveled and drained. But she was alive, and deep inside her was a bright bundle of life still untouched despite her own state. Bradley was alive. They were all alive! Seeing Bradley like that... or Mar. I should have insisted on enchanting their bones! The man was unconscious now. Lee could stick the rune on before he woke up... Mar, too! But... no, as much as he wanted to, he wouldn''t force it on anyone. But he damn well wanted to! Hopefully, they would both be more open to the idea after this... Jackson staggered down the ramp behind her with a haunted look on his face. How many times had he... almost died? Lee had lost count amid the madness. His gaze moved away from the wounded and his blood boiled as he laid eyes on the armored alien kneeling outside his building. This is all your fault! These fucking monsters think they can come in here and hunt us! Lee knew he could kill the monster. Both of them! He still had the other trapped in his room, and it was not in good shape. He could bubble the one outside and have Three finish the first. Rinse and repeat. Dead and done! Instead, he looked at the notification to see just what he''d agreed to. From the little he''d picked up already, he knew the power was almost entirely in his hands. The invaders would die instantly if they tried anything, and all that would happen if he attacked them first was that they could fight back. Bradley had mentioned nothing about parley when the anubi invaded... Was it because anubi were a monster race? Were these fucks an actual civilized race!? Did they get better options? He understood it a moment later. They did get better options. But it wasn''t free... Lee could demand a price for sparing their lives. Quite a lot. Hell, he could demand almost everything... Of course, they had to agree to the deal... Of course, if they didn''t, he could kill them. So, was it actually any better than surrendering outright? Lee stopped himself from doing anything too rash and only took a deep breath as he placed a hand gently on Jeremy''s shoulder. The man was on his knees and still trembling... "Thank you, Jeremy. You came through in a big way, so... thank you." The man didn''t respond, and Lee didn''t blame him. That entire fight happened so fast... but it felt like an eternity. He wanted to take a minute himself, but that wouldn''t happen just yet. Not when he saw the small army approaching outside. It wasn''t too worrying. They were all E-grade and would die if they attacked... but one of them stood out. Particularly, its soul stood out as the only one not nervous or terrified. It was angry. The aliens marched through the open wall and directly to the D-grade, which was still sitting on its heels out there. Then the angry soul''d individual walked out from within the army and said something to the D-grade. Presumably. It all sounded like gibberish. Lee watched on, though most of his attention was on the nervous humans outside, who were not at all pleased to see these things walking freely inside the walls. They must have understood the notification well enough, because no one attacked the invaders. Even when the angry one grew tired of yelling at the D-grade and stalked over toward Three. It removed its helmet. But not by taking it off. It placed a hand against its head and the helmet simply... vanished. Something happened in the mana when it did, a twisting that reminded Lee of Jeremy''s space swapping ability... A twisting that centered on a ring beneath the creature''s gauntlet. The next oddity was that it looked completely different from the D-grade trapped inside Three. Like a completely different species. They were both bipedal, with two arms and legs, but this one was... less ugly. It had yellow skin over a relatively smooth face. There was a mouth, what looked like a nose above it, and all white eyes above that. Except it had three eyes... with one on its forehead. It was hard to tell where it was looking with those eyes, but Lee felt the gaze land on him as he took a step closer. Then he almost attacked when the invader cast a spell. Something he only knew from seeing the mana moving inside the creature. He resisted the impulse to attack or disrupt the spell when he saw how the mana moved. Partially because he was curious about what would happen if it attacked, but also because he had a feeling of what the spell was for... the pattern looked familiar. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. "You will release us this instant!" the invader said. As expected, it was the translation spell. The words weren''t quite what he''d expected to hear, but it was nice to know he could recognize a spell by its mana. "Did you hear me, monster?" it said, taking a step forward. "I am Prince Cotex and you will cease this charade at once, or..." Lee held up a hand even as Amy moved halfway in front of him. "Stop. If you come in here, I will have to kill you." It stopped. But not for long. Its soul burst with anger, and its face twisted, presumably with the same emotion as it took another step forward. "You dare speak to..." The D-grade moved from where it sat, moving in a blur so fast that Lee couldn''t help himself. He dropped a slow bubble around it right as it reached the other alien. Including both of them within. He finished flinching as Amy dragged him deeper inside, and only then did he see that it hadn''t come for him. Rather, it was standing with one hand up to hold back the so-called prince... and neither of them was moving inside the bubble. Lee canceled the skill, surprised but glad to see his action somehow hadn''t counted as hostile... maybe because he wasn''t actually attacking? Technically, he wasn''t doing anything to them directly... only slowing down time right where they just happened to be standing. Either way, he got his first closeup look at the D-grade when it pulled its own helmet off. The normal way. Under the helmet, it looked identical to the other D-grade. The lumpy purple skin was even more unpleasant up close, but the large black eyes were worse. It was also a lot bigger, perhaps seven feet tall, and talking. Talking gibberish. Whatever it was saying didn''t go over well with the smaller invader. "My father will have your head for this failure!" Mana flashed through the D-grade in a familiar pattern, though way faster this time. "Perhaps," it said. "Perhaps not. You live. Haven''t failed orders yet." "You surrendered to these damn monsters! How is that not a failure!? And how in the hell did your useless other half even have the authority to do that!? I am in charge here!" "Yes. Until life threatened. Then authority is ours. Only following orders. Best way to protect was surrender." It talked fast and with very clipped sentences. Then it looked inside the garage at Lee. Or he thought it did. Those black eyes were just as bad as the white ones. "Leader?" Lee looked around the garage as Alejandro stepped up to his side. The man had blood drying down his chest, but his neck was fine when he nodded silently at Lee. Saira came behind him, looking better than she had, but not nearly back to one hundred percent. Vines trailed from her back, and mana ran outward along some of them to her tree. A few of them flowed the other way, bringing in that life-rich red mana from the tree to her. She immediately put her hands on Amy and started channeling life into the woman, all without once taking her gaze from the invaders outside. Maria had left upstairs, and Lee could see her checking on the kids in his Mana Mind. Bradley was still unconscious, and Mar sat tucked in a corner with his head in her lap. Trak waited nearby, watching Lee as his hands brushed repeatedly over the potions strapped to his body. "It''s fine," Lee said to Amy as he pulled away from her and approached closer to the entrance. Alien eyes watched him, three of them hostile, and the other two... reserved? Lee stopped at the threshold, only a couple of meters away from the monsters. Aliens? Whatever they were, it didn''t feel right to be standing so close to a D-grade that might actually be fast enough to kill him before he could react. He didn''t think it could kill him outright, since a headshot wouldn''t get through and Saira could heal anything else. Plus, the system would kill it if it tried... though he wondered how that part worked. Would it kill the monster the moment it tried, or only after it hit him? "I am the leader," Lee said. "Why are you here?" "The absolute gall of..." the yellow invader exclaimed, only to be cut off by the D-grade. "Bodyguards. Protection for Lord Cotex. Escort to ensure his survival." That explained the dungeon''s name. Probably. But not why there were two damn D-grades attacking the fort. "Why here? Why''d you attack us?" "Random. Expected greater raid. Direct keys are too expensive. Lord Cotex not favored enough." Lee watched him, assuming it was a him, and didn''t detect any deceit in its soul. A very focused soul. He wasn''t sure what would happen to these creatures yet, and he didn''t want to give anything away. Just in case. "Why are two D-grades allowed to attack us?" Surprise appeared in its soul, followed by confusion. "Bodyguards. Different rules. Great System will punish if we fight, but worth it to protect charge in emergency. You attacked. Lifted some restrictions." Fuck. Lee cursed silently, then remembered the bastard jumping in front of his attack... "You jumped in front of my attack! How does that count!?" Sure, he''d been aiming at the D-grade; he''d just missed... "Some restrictions. Still punished. No rewards. Will lose levels on departure. If you don''t kill us. Had to be done. Our orders. Our purpose." "Are you..." Lee felt some of his seething hatred dissipate. "Are you slaves?" He also felt slightly guilty about the other D-grade still trapped in his elevator room. It was alive, but still hurting from the dozens of holes burned into its flesh and armor. He knew it wouldn''t die; he could see its wounds regenerating. Albeit slowly. "Not slaves. Contracted." Lee stopped feeling guilty. Let the bastard suffer. "That sounds like some bullshit. It also doesn''t sound like a very good contract." "Rewards worth it. Earn more if successful." "So you only attacked us by coincidence?" "Yes. Random key." "And you gave up once you started losing?" "Yes. Had to. Couldn''t risk death of charge. Would mean contract failure." Lee frowned and looked at the lord they were supposed to protect. "You surrendered. What''s to stop me from killing him now?" Cotex¡ªwhat a ridiculous name¡ªglared and opened his mouth angrily. The D-grade spoke first. "Not surrendered. Parley. Bargain." There it was. "So, what will you give me for your lives?" "Not our lives. Lord Cotex must go free. Rest is negotiable." Lee looked at the lord. "And if I don''t want him to?" "We fight." "You''ll lose." It nodded. "Failure likely. Death likely. Bargain preferable." Lee eyed the D-grade, the lord it was willing to die protecting, and the little army waiting back at the walls. Then he turned to Alejandro. "Can you go check on our people? I can see some of them getting restless up there, and I''d like to avoid breaking the parley by accident." "Yeah, that''s probably a good idea." Alejandro hesitated with a look at Amy. "Don''t worry, General. I''ll keep him alive." Both invaders watched Alejandro go by. One warily, and the other openly sneering. Lee drew their attention back to himself. "I think we can agree to spare your lord. The question is, What is his life worth to you?" "Everything." Lee smiled. "You''re not much of a negotiator, are you?" "Primary directive. All else secondary." "Okay, but what does everything mean?" "Equipment. Skill Shards." "You have skills?" Lee asked, suddenly more interested. "Our skills. We sacrifice ranks. Great system creates shard." "So, pretty much just the same thing I''d get for killing you?" Though that reminded him, he could get two D-grade cores from them... That might be huge. "Choose skill this way. Not random. Better." Oh, really? That was a very interesting tidbit, and it made him feel much better about potentially accepting their surrender. He summoned a plate and stuck a hovering rune on it for a seat. "Can someone get me some paper? I think we''ll need a list for this." Trak dashed away, and Lee looked up at the two aliens. "Also, I''m taking all your equipment. Strip." It felt reminiscent of his deal with Nicholas, only this time Lee had a feeling the deal would go much more in his favor. Unfortunately, Cotex had other ideas. "I refuse. I will not take orders from a... a damned animal!" "I also want that ring," Lee said, pointing at the guy''s hand. "Take it off. All of it." The prince''s yellow face went dark, turning brown, as his anger boiled over. "Maybe you don''t understand, you filthy mongrel! Your primitive mind is too feeble to even conceive of the true power of an actual king. You won''t so much as touch me! My father could burn your pathetic excuse for a world to ashes with a mere flick of his finger!" Lee froze. He was an idiot! There was no way he could let this moron go home. "I''ve put up with this farce long enough. You should grovel before me and beg for forgiveness! If you''re convincing enough, then maybe I won''t tell my father. Maybe I won''t come back to..." The D-grade moved faster than his eyes could track, but Lee only needed to think faster. He dropped a bubble back over the pair of aliens. Lee was about to tell Three to keep killing the other one when he saw what was happening inside the bubble. The D-grade hadn''t attacked him... It had struck the prince in the head and now held up its other hand in a warding gesture toward Lee. It was a slightly bigger bubble since he hadn''t wanted to miss the speedy bastard, so Lee could see the prince falling sideways in slow motion, and his soul did some funny things as the alien very slowly lost consciousness on his way to the ground. Lee waited and didn''t give the order to Three. He waited the entire time while the prince made his slow journey down to the dirt. All the while, the much faster and more powerful D-grade made no hostile movement. In fact, it didn''t move at all. He listened to both its soul and the soul of its trapped fellow. Neither of them felt hostile. Despite that, he still hesitated. That threat¡ªthe prince didn''t know about the source. At least Lee was fairly certain he couldn''t know. But if he could come back later for revenge... It might be better to just kill them all now. They''d still get the skill shards, just maybe not the ones they''d wanted. 132. The Price Of Loss ~~~Lee~~~ Lee stared at those big black eyes he knew were looking back into his own from behind the hazy edge of a Temporal Shift. "Are we killing them, then?" Amy asked. "Maybe..." Lee tried to weigh the pros and cons before him as he replaced the bubble with a fresh one. A smaller one that only enclosed the D-grade within. There was a single instant between shifts where it might have tried something, but it didn''t move. It was possible he was overreacting with the bubbles. The invader shouldn''t be able to attack him without dying instantly. But what if it could run away? What if it went and hid somewhere out there until the timer ran out? Everyone would be as trapped as Lee. A monster like that could wage guerilla war on them, and they''d be screwed. He didn''t think it would. At least, not while the prince lived. There was no telling what it would do if he actually killed the prince. Would it die from failing its contract? What if it ran away with the prince? They could take the prince hostage, but Lee definitely didn''t want him inside Three and... Wait. "Trak, you can''t sense my... stuff unless you''re in the same room, right?" "Yes, my..." Trak barely finished nodding before Lee turned to Jeremy. "Can you stick the prince in my apartment?" He didn''t have anywhere else to put him that wasn''t already occupied. This way, at least, they''d have another point of leverage against the D-grade. Even though the prince was already a hostage. Technically. The unconscious alien prince vanished and reappeared in Lee''s apartment upstairs. Then Lee waited to see if that would count as breaking the parley, a thought he hadn''t mentioned to Jeremy because the poor guy didn''t need the extra stress right now. Nothing happened. No warnings or notifications, no canceling of the parley. So Lee finally let the shifted time end. Then he watched and waited to see what would happen when the alien noticed his missing prince. It reacted immediately with alarm and a twitch of its head, then calmed back down almost as fast. Maybe its contract told it the prince was alive? "Unnecessary. But good choice. Bargain better than violence." "Don''t be too happy about it," Lee said. "Your prince just made a solid case for making sure he never leaves. I can''t risk him or his father..." The alien held up a hand. "Prince speaks truths and lies. Father is king. Powerful. A-grade. Could burn entire world. Truth." It looked down at where the unconscious prince had been moments before. "Lies about coming back. Too expensive. Doubtful would even find world if tried. He won''t reach heights necessary. Too weak. Too stupid. No threat to you." Those black eyes came back up to rest on Lee. "King, father, is a threat. But this prince only one of many. Below many others. King won''t care if weak prince complains, but..." It hesitated for the first time. "King might care if son dies. Truth. Also might not, but better not to kill." "How do I know you''re not just saying that to save yourself?" Except he was pretty sure the alien wasn''t lying. Unless its soul didn''t work like everyone else''s... "Prince is stupid. But connected. Caution always better when uncertain. I did not wish to attack this place." "But you did." "Told him to leave without fighting. Refused. No authority until intervention required. Then ordered withdrawal." "Your partner sure seemed to do his damnedest to kill my friends!" "Had to fight. Feared you would pursue. Can''t withdraw unless combat ceases. Zynthar used booster to end fight faster. Should have worked, but didn''t. I came to help. Wasn''t fast enough. Surrender good choice. Only way to protect the prince if we fall." Lee braced himself for one last revelation, preparing to place a bubble as he did. "Zyn... whatever his... her name is. They can''t leave with you." It didn¡¯t react other than to say, "Zynthar. I am Zylar." Lee wasn''t sure what had happened with the other one, since the alien shouldn''t have felt his soul from inside the elevator room, but it had seen something. Maybe it noticed the source inside Three when the building attacked it? Whatever it was, its soul had a telling mix of awe and fear. Almost as if it knew it had seen too much... On that note, Lee sent a thought telling Three to exercise more restraint when the prince woke up. Assuming he did indeed want to keep the weakling alive... which it seemed he did. Luckily, it shouldn''t take much effort to kill or, more likely, contain the E-grade. "Zynthar will accept. As will I. Provided our charge goes free." "How bad is your contract that you''re willing to abandon your partner so easily?" Amy asked, butting into the conversation. "Contract is not what you think," it replied. "More than life and death. We are a zhint pair. It is honor. Pride. The multiverse knows us as the greatest dungeon bodyguards for hire. Everyone knows we do not fail. Whatever the cost." Lee didn''t know that... but then he didn''t know a lot of things. "Pair? So, there''s like always two of you?" Amy asked. "Indeed." Lee''s mind got stuck on something else. Something that sounded a lot like his own situation, and not in a good way considering current circumstances. "What does it mean to be a pair?" "Bonded at mind and soul. Work together better. React faster." Lee tensed. "Bonded? Are you communicating right now?" "Can''t. Building is blank. Know pair is within, but not more." Its soul felt sincere... "What do you mean it''s blank?" "Can''t sense past walls. Can''t identify anything past threshold. Blank. Powerful shielding magic would be my guess. Perhaps even soul magic." Identify... Lee hadn''t noticed any magic coming at him this entire time¡ªnot like Nicholas'' skill, but the actual fighting had been chaotic. Perhaps he''d missed it? "Do you have an appraisal skill? What does it tell you!?" "Not appraisal. Identify. Tells much, but never enough." It looked away toward the wall, and Lee caught the zip of moving mana that time as it shot to the wall and back. "Greenfield fort walls." It looked toward one of the slowly gathering humans outside Three. "Human. E-grade. No titles. Two traits. Adaptable and... mmh, that one is interesting. Changes things. You are a new species. Monsters, no less. Very good. Will attract attention." "I''ve heard that before," Lee said with a glance at Trak. "Supposedly, it will get us all enslaved." "Anubi," it said, nodding at Trak. "Fallen monster race. Lost their world eons ago. Now slave race, generally crafters." It looked back at Lee. "Yes, your slave is correct. You will be hunted by slavers." "He''s not a slave!" Lee growled, feeling Trak''s gaze on him. "Honest mistake. Have never met free Anubi. Still correct. You will be hunted." It glanced around curiously. "Surprised you have not seen them yet. Perhaps world is protected? Or just lucky?" "What about you? Your people? Are you..." "Zhints not slaves or slavers. Contracts much better. Both parties get what they want." "What about your prince?" The invader hesitated briefly before nodding. "Yes and no. Serith race not slavers, but will use slaves." "How is that different?" Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. "Some hunt the dungeons only for slaves. They are slavers. Others only use them. They are not slavers. Only lazy. Honorless." "What about your army?" Lee asked, eyeing the docile group lounging beneath the open walls. "Slaves not good soldiers. Only fodder. Risky, too. Fighting gives them chance to evolve. Chance to escape or turn. Even prince not that foolish. He use father''s soldiers. They obey me now. Ordered to protect prince and wait for withdrawal. No threat now, but you may wish to know their skills to decide the price?" Lee shook his head but turned to ask for someone to... everyone here had been through it. Even though the fight had only lasted minutes at most, he wouldn''t know it by listening to their souls. Luckily, he had one group that had come through unscathed. Physically, at least. Because they hadn''t done anything when his friends were dying! Or... "Could you have helped, Harold?" The man shook his head without taking his eyes off the D-grade. "No," he whispered, his soul horrified. "We would have all died. How... how are we supposed to survive against monsters like that? How is anyone..." Lee poked him in the ribs before the hysteria could escalate further. "Hey! Can you guys go find Alejandro and help him find out what skills that army has?" "I... what?" "Find Alejandro. Tell him to find out what skills the army has and to decide which ones we want." Harold obviously hadn''t been following the conversation very well, but he still nodded and left with his team. All of them went very wide around the D-grade. Lee turned to Trak next. "Do you know about these zhint pairs?" "I have heard of them, my lord. But only in passing. I did not know who they were or what they did. Only the name." "What about this parley thing?" "I am fully unaware on that subject, my lord. Forgive me." Trak only bowed halfway before his nose twitched and he rose to growl at the zhint while stalking closer. "Do not think to judge my lord, merc! You speak of honor as if you alone hold it, but my lord has crushed you beneath his paw without ever..." Lee winced when Trak left Three''s threshold, because Zylar immediately cast his identifying spell on him. He had an instant to decide as the mana rebounded off the anubian... and made his choice. He shredded the spell before it could return. Nothing happened to the parley. Which left Lee questioning just how strong it was if nothing he''d done so far would break it. How was disrupting a spell not considered hostile? Or was it because the spell had been cast on them? "Trak?" Lee said. "I don''t care what he thinks so long as he gives me what I want... and so long as he doesn''t cast anymore magic at my allies without permission." He glared at the zhint who had sense enough to nod in acknowledgement. "Apologies!" Trak''s soul flared with shame as he backed up and dropped to his knees. "I speak above my..." "Should I remind you of your orders, Trak?" Lee asked, interrupting him. He would let the anubian do as he pleased, but to a limit. There would be no groveling. Though technically, he couldn¡¯t order him not to grovel without going against the order to do as he pleased... Trak''s shame turned to embarrassment as he hesitantly stood up. Then pride filled him as he straightened. "No, my lord." The alien outside said nothing as it watched the exchange, but its soul was curious. Lee had already tentatively made the decision to let the prince live, even if it meant he would be releasing a slave trader. He was okay with that. He''d do whatever he had to if it kept his people safe. It sucked, sure, but his family mattered more to him than people he didn''t know. So he left that topic alone. He currently had more important things to worry about. More urgent, at least. "What are you expecting me to do with Zynthar? Kill him? What about oaths of fealty? Will your contract prevent your other half from swearing? Or will they refuse? If so, I''ll have to kill them." The disgust and revulsion coming from the invader seemed to seal the fate of the other one. "No oaths! The Zhint swear no oaths! Death is better! Contracts only." Or maybe not? "I don''t have anyone with a contract skill for that." "Zynthar can make it. All Zhint are adept with contracts." That left another issue. "I''m not going to pay him for losing." "Surrender contract. No cost to you, but will serve well." Looking at the pair, one with his eyes and the other through Mana Mind, Lee had another thought. "Aren''t you a pair? What can Zynthar do on his own?" Actually, he knew exactly what the invader could do solo, unless there was something he''d missed. More importantly, "Will he still be a D-grade?" Obvious reluctance radiated from Zylar''s soul. "Grade depends on penalty. Truth, we are far more as a pair. Alone, Zynthar will provide less value, but... I would request that you allow my pair to live and myself to depart." Lee only had to think back to a few minutes ago, when the lives of his friends and family had teetered on the precipice. Fresh anger rose in response. "Why the fuck would I do that!?" Zylar ducked his head. "No requirement. Only request. Obvious you have secrets. Afraid of discovery. Keeping us both reduces risk. Would provide you best bodyguards in multiverse. Ask for favor. Trust. Allow myself to return with prince. Collect reward from contract fulfilment. Will benefit Zynthar here. In return, will increase duration of surrender contract. Double. One year." That was a lot to take in. Lee didn''t think it was threatening him with the mention of secrets; its soul was clear on that front. Also, Lee couldn''t help but notice Amy''s soul bristling when it mentioned the best bodyguards in the multiverse. It seemed she took offence to the claim. "Penalty worse if we stay," Zylar added. "Both likely lose D-grade. Still might if Zynthar remains. But might not." Well, that was some bullshit. These aliens thought they were badass bodyguards, but Lee knew they''d both have gotten slaughtered if they weren''t a grade above everyone else. So what good were two E-grade bodyguards? It was better to kill both now and get two D-grade cores. Which he didn''t want to do if he wanted to avoid killing the prince and potentially drawing the attention of what Trak would most likely consider a god. Except he would also get a core for letting them go... but he couldn''t let Zynthar go. He couldn''t kill him, either. At least not until after the parley, when he might no longer be D-grade. Well, perhaps it didn''t matter too much. Maybe they¡¯d get lucky. He refocused on the skills up for grabs. While D-grade cores could be very useful for pushing someone into the next grade, in this case, it might be better to take the skill. "Tell me all of your skills, especially about that boosting ability." It didn''t like that; probably hoping he''d go for the identify, but the invader told him anyway. The skill wasn''t as good as Mar''s, but it also came with smaller drawbacks... Though, thinking about it now, Mar should have been faster than she was. Had she not used the boost? If not, then where was her beast during the fight? He hadn''t seen it at all... Later. Alejandro was coming back, and he was smiling. Behind him, the enemy army was stripping themselves of their equipment under the watchful gaze of the fort defenders. Once inside, he handed over a sheet of paper containing a list of skills. "I think this will be good, Lee. It was close, but we''re coming out ahead. You okay?" Lee realized he was frowning and staring at the blood stains down Alejandro''s front. He forced a smile and met the man''s eyes. "Yes. Thanks. Oh, could you get someone to go strip the prince upstairs? I especially want his ring." "It won''t work," Zylar cut in before Alejandro could reply. "A soulbound storage. Only he may access." "Can he use it to track me if I take it?" "Doubtful. Weak connection. Only enough to lock. Can''t risk damage to soul." "Then it''s mine. He can go home naked..." Lee shuddered as his attention finally noted another very different anatomical feature between humans and whatever that three-eyed bastard was. "Never mind, let him keep his underwear." Oh god! Why did I ever learn Mana Mind!? And why does it have pincers!? The ring wasn''t as exciting as he''d hoped. Sure, it held the single most complex enchantment he''d seen to date, but otherwise, it was a paperweight. A magical ring linked to its own pocket dimension and a paperweight. Zylar had confirmed the ring''s properties while restating how Lee would get no use out of it. Despite that, Lee had some ideas on how he might go about messing with it, but first, he''d make sure every crafter got their chance to study it. Even Trak had some ideas he wanted to try... Lee would like to get whatever was hidden inside, but he would settle for potentially learning to make their own. Hell, the magic was beyond any of them. He''d settle for learning even pieces of it. Before any of that could happen, there was one last thing to finish. Lee looked over his parley notification, one that looked passingly similar to the contract he''d made with Nicholas. There were no terms, really. Only a list of names with skills beside the names. All the... people who would go free. As well as what he was getting for each of their lives. All except the prince; Vary Cotex. Lee would get nothing from him. At least skill-wise. Zylar had been adamant about that. Part of his contract, presumably. Lee had looted the guy''s armor and storage ring, so at least it wasn''t a total wash. Then it was the moment of truth. He could kill them all, he could force both zhint to stay, or he could take the deal that was in front of him. He knew a D-grade shard could be a game-changer pretty soon. No one was close enough yet, but they would be soon. He was sure there¡¯d be a discussion about what to do with one... let alone two. But there was one other factor that had him leaning toward accepting the deal. While he wasn¡¯t sure how much a favor from Zylar was worth, having a much more knowledgeable D-grade on his team¡ªa civilized D-grade no less¡ªhad to be valuable. "I accept the terms of surrender." Over a hundred aliens'' mana dimmed, then they vanished into thin air, and the expected notification followed. Victory... Lee watched them go, very curious about how the system would transport them, but he got nothing. There was no surge of mana, no twisting space, not even a portal like the invaders arrived in. They just vanished. Along with their departure, cores manifested directly in front of him, falling down into a pile at his feet. That only took part of his attention. The rest was on a certain alien currently sitting inside his elevator room, and on how much its mana dimmed. More specifically, he watched to see if it would drop below D-grade. He''d taken a gamble that the creature would be more useful alive than killed for a skill shard. Regardless of his other ideas, it would definitely be far more useful as a D-grade... Its power drained right along with the others, but it didn''t vanish. It also felt like it was still a D-grade. Surrender Contract with Zynthar is in Effect.(09:11:29:23:59:59) What the hell? 133. Everything You Know ~~~Lee~~~ "Ten years!?" Lee blurted, unable to help himself after seeing the notification. Hadn''t Zylar said the contract duration would be doubled if he let one of them leave? Had Zylar bailed on his buddy? Had he skipped town and left the other guy on the hook for ten fucking years!? "What''s ten years?" Amy asked. "I''m about to find out. Let''s go ask our newest... recruit?" Lee checked his status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Soulforge](E-grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] [Swarm Chaser] [Minor Lord](351) Contracts: [Nicholas Alberton] [Zynthar] Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Source Nexus] [Soulforged Mana] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Rune Harmonics] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 81 (Advanced) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) - Level 83 (Advanced) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 30 (Intermediate) | Language of the Rune (Unique) - Level [N/A] Attributes: Strength: 180(+292%)306 Vitality: 190(+292%)302 Dexterity: 175(+292%)298 Wisdom: 281(+1577%)3454 Intelligence: 300(+1577%)3438 Willpower: 292(+1577%)3387 Twin-Soul: 102(+380%)460 Non-Class Skills(4/6): Liquid Mana Beam (Rare) - Level 15 (Novice) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 75 (Intermediate) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 35 (Intermediate) | Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Temporal Shift (Legendary) - Level 20 (Basic) Buffs: [Three] [Soul Link] Debuffs: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Sure enough, he had a new contract. With Zynthar, just Zynthar. Did they not have last names? Regardless, the details were all there. The guy worked for him. For ten years. Or until Lee ended the contract. Only it wasn¡¯t so much ending as... finishing? There were a few restrictions on Lee. He couldn¡¯t kill the guy. That was pretty much it. Three opened the door for him, and Lee got his first visual on the monster who''d nearly killed his friends and family. His first thought was that it was a good thing they''d taken Zylar''s gear, because this guy''s was wrecked. Three had not gone easy on him, and what remained of his armor had holes melted through it. Not to mention his sword was now a lump of metal in the dirt outside. Directly on the heels of that observation came his all too recent memories of the battle. Then the rage. This monster had come so close... "Legendary. Source. But only E-grade. Fascinating. Understand why you wouldn''t release me. Appreciate allowing me to live. Will be worth it. Will protect you. Though unsure how much you need protection..." Lee swallowed down his desire to hurt this creature as he listened to its voice and soul. It was curious and excited, but not upset. Despite fighting for its life against him and nearly dying in here, the creature seemed to hold no grudge. It wasn''t so easy for Lee to move on. So he shut the door without replying and left it in there. There were plenty of other issues he could handle in the meantime. Bradley and Mar, for instance. Saira sat with her daughter, holding the girl close, while Bradley lay, still asleep, in her lap. "Mar, where''s Meathead? Why didn''t you use the boost during the fight?" She blinked up at him in surprise, then looked at the floor and said in a whisper, "He... refused to fight and resisted the power swap." "He what!?" Lee growled. He hadn''t thought it would have any choice in the matter, and going by Saira''s reaction, she hadn''t known either. "He''s too strong. Too much stronger than me. Even his soul is stronger... I can''t always make him obey." "Call him," Lee said as calmly as he could. "Bring him here. Now." Mar''s eyes went distant as she presumably communicated with her beast, and Lee met Saira''s gaze while that happened. From her expression, never mind her soul, Lee knew she was on the same page as him. Meathead was going to learn a very important lesson today. Or Meathead was going to die. Mar''s gaze refocused, and Lee quickly controlled his expression; he didn''t want to accidentally warn Meathead. "I think he''s coming." "Good. Thanks." Lee turned away before his anger showed through again... He had help in that something new had just wandered into his domain. Harold was back with his team, but now they had a new addition. A wolfman. That was the only description that really fit the... person? Or werewolf. Obviously, this had to be the guy Lawrence had mentioned. Unless there were more werewolves in the fort? Because that was what it looked like. He walked upright, knees backwards like a dog, and hunched over with long arms tipped with wicked claws that nearly reached the ground. His head looked entirely like a wolf''s... Could he still talk? "Harold, who''s this?" Harold opened his mouth, and the werewolf growled. "Lucian." "That''s not your name, Steve." "It is now," the werewolf, aka Lucian, growled, and this time Lee spotted the telltale signs of the Tongues spell around his mouth and ears. He growled again, and words sounded through the spell, "Steve is a terrible name for a werewolf!" "And Lucian is better!?" Harold exclaimed in what sounded like an ongoing argument. "Dunno if Lucian is good or not," Lee said. "But I agree it''s better than Steve." "See!?" Lucian said, straightening and throwing his arms up in triumph. The action of standing up like that sent him towering over the others, and his arms slammed into the ceiling of the garage. He immediately crouched back down, sheepish. "Oops..." Lee smiled and hid his chuckle at the incongruous sight of a sheepish werewolf. "You look pretty badass. Though I don''t think I saw you during the battle..." It wasn''t an argument, but more of a question. Since it was entirely possible the guy had been somewhere else in the fort. It was a big place after all, and Lee could only see the area around Three. Lucian ducked his head again. "Yeah, that was my bad. We didn''t get attacked last night, so I thought..." "I told you the odds were almost one hundred percent we''d get hit today!" "Lay off him," a girl said, reaching up to pat Lucian on the shoulder. "You''ve been wrong before." Harold sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I''m not wrong. I give you odds. There is no right or wrong in odds!" "So you got trapped outside?" Lee asked, attempting to get the conversation back on track. "Yeah. I was on my way back. Honest. Just thought I could get in a quick hunt..." "It''s probably good you weren''t here," Harold said. "Odds are you would have tried to fight, and you would have died for sure." "Dude..." "Get over yourself. It''s not an insult. We all would have died fighting those monsters." He shook his head. "It''s the one thing I can''t figure out..." Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. "What is?" Lee asked. "The math on what we have to fight in the invasions. It just doesn''t add up. Something went wrong somewhere, and now we keep getting hit by monsters way stronger than they should be." "Assuming the system actually works that way," said the enchanter. Lee really needed to learn all their names... "Everything points to there being order. It can''t just be..." "Holyshitwhatisthat!?" the girl screamed out a whole sentence in what sounded like one long word. It was just Meathead surfacing outside the garage. "Stay over here, guys," Lee said. "This won''t take long." Then he moved closer to the massive beast. "Come inside, Meathead. We need to talk." Of course, the beast immediately tried to retreat, either because of the beast lord in Lee''s eyes or because it knew something was up. Either way, it didn''t get far. Saira was waiting for him as well, and she came prepared. Vines erupted from every direction, ensaring and tangling up the beast before he could vanish into the earth. Lee even saw a root stretching from her tree, one thicker around than his thigh, and it looped over the beast''s throat in a vise-grip. "Get him inside, Saira," Lee said, and she obliged, dragging the resisting creature headfirst down the ramp. Lee turned away and walked deeper into the garage, ignoring the rising cries of alarm going up around them. Three, bring him to me. I don''t care if it hurts. Rebar erupted from the floor, ceiling, and even the pillars. The steel beams stabbed into the leathery hide by the dozens, drawing blood and dragging the lizard inexorably deeper into Lee''s domain. Well, Three''s domain, but then, it was pretty much the same thing. "What are you doing!?" Mar cried out behind him as her beast roared in pain and shock. Despite the outburst, Lee could feel only a little pain in the lizard and even less coming from Mar, so he let Saira deal with her and didn''t let up. While he would have dragged the entire thing inside, it was just too damn big. So he settled for half. The front half. Lee stopped walking and waited until the vine-wrapped and rebar-impaled nose of the beast was at his heels. Then he turned to meet the equal parts hostile and fearful reptilian eyes. "You!" His hands shook, and he clenched them into fists to stop the trembling. "You..." He couldn¡¯t help but scream in its face, "You fucking traitor!" "Mar brought you into this family. She made you more than just another beast to be hunted and killed... all she asked for in return was to borrow your strength. And you... you abandoned her when she needed you most!" Lee stalked around its long snout to get closer to a single reptilian eye. "You left your family... MY FAMILY! To fucking die! Because you didn''t feel like it!" He glared into an eye bigger than his head from a couple feet away, finger pointing. "You... I..." Lee couldn''t seem to find the words. He was so angry! "I know you fear the beast lord in my eyes. But you''re wrong. You should fear me more! I''m not so merciful as he is! I''m not as forgiving as he is! I will burn you down, alive and screaming!" Lee almost went so far as to force a rune of heat onto the beast''s skull, but he held himself back. Instead, he thought back to when he''d been inside his soul with Stanley and the skeleton, and with Caffeine... He assumed that little pug was what Meathead had seen before, but couldn''t be sure. He also wasn''t sure how to get back there... Caff, I don''t know if you can hear me. Or if you can see this beast through my eyes. But if you can, then tell him to fucking... Lee took a calming breath as he thought about the Caffeine he knew. Seeing the little pug fighting beside Stanley against zombies and skeletons... seeing that little shadow inside his soul as it mauled the skeleton intruder. None of those visions were the Caffeine he knew. Caffeine was a teddy bear. He loved and wanted to be friends with everyone he met. Human or animal. But despite all that violence. Despite the anger he''d seen in Caffeine. Lee knew he was still the sweet, loving little teddy bear he''d always been. He''d seen it in Caffeine on that day. Felt it. Caffeine didn''t want to fight. He didn''t want enemies. He only wanted friends. A single glance at Caffeine''s status was all the proof he needed of that. So he knew where that anger had come from. It came from someone trying to take away what he cared about. What he loved. His family. Show him, Caff. Show him what it means to be the beast lord. Show him what it means to be a family. Lee stood there, staring unblinkingly into the vertical pupil before him. The lizard was already afraid. But he wanted more than that. He didn''t want soldiers or slaves. He wanted people¡ªor not people in this case¡ªto fucking care! They had something here. Something worth fighting for. "I want you to be a part of this family, Meathead. I don''t want to be angry at you. I want to be angry at whoever or whatever tries to hurt you. I want to be on your side." He blew out a breath and the rage went with it. Meathead wasn''t getting any of this. He was just a dumb beast. A terrified, dumb lizard. "Get out of here, Meathead. Get out before I decide you''re worth more as a core." The lizard didn''t move for long seconds, then took one hesitant step backward. Then another. Step by step, he crept slowly up the ramp, never taking his eyes from Lee. "He didn''t understand a word I said, did he?" Lee asked, not looking at the girl behind him. "No," Mar said. "He didn''t." Lee closed his eyes, partly out of embarrassment but also in resignation. "But I told him what you said," Mar whispered. "He just kept begging for mercy... Was scaring him like that really necessary?" "Yes. It was." Lee turned to look at her. "You were this..." The words caught in his throat as he stared her face. Her too-young face. "It was so close, Mar. You were... if Jeremy hadn''t..." Saira came up behind her and pulled Mar into her arms. Tightly. Crushing. With tears in her eyes. "I almost lost you!" Mar touched her throat, confusion rising beside horror in her soul. "It wasn''t that bad... was it?" She... she really didn''t know? She''d been frozen in time when her life hung in the balance... it probably happened in an eyeblink from her perspective. Lee nodded silently, and Saira only hugged tighter. Mar looked over her mother''s shoulder toward where Bradley was shambling closer. He too nodded in answer to the unspoken question while taking her hand in his. "I''m sorry... I tried..." "It''s not your fault," Lee said. "None of you. That bastard was a D-grade." He wasn''t sure how much the couple had missed following their defeats... but they were going to find out one way or another. Might as well break the news. "He''s also on our side now. For the next ten years." There was indeed some confusion following that statement, so Lee brought them up to speed and over to meet the one who almost killed them. He did so only at their insistence that they get to meet the creature. He wasn''t a sadist... The alien was sitting cross-legged in some kind of meditation when they opened the door. At least that was Lee''s guess based on how its mana was moving through its body. In fact, he was pretty sure it was speeding up its regeneration. It wasn''t fully healed yet¡ªnot even close¡ªbut its remaining wounds were all superficial, as if it had prioritized the more life-threatening injuries first. Lee supposed that made sense, though his own regeneration was always too fast to test something like that. "Greetings," it said, immediately after the door opened. Then it opened those huge black eyes. "Stone Magus, you were strong, bold. Impressive earth control. But rely too much on rock armor. Should have used weapon to block." "Assassin," it said, head shifting almost imperceptibly to look at Mar. "Excellent strike. Nearly had me. Though you should have been prepared for counter. All offense can work. But risky." The bastard was giving them pointers. "They don''t need your..." Mar suddenly blurted, "How did you detect me?" "No sight. No sound. Saw earth compress. Felt air move. Also felt killing intent. Too much anger. Must control that to be a good assassin." "I''m not an assassin," Mar said, then muttered, "Why do they always look at the damn ground?" She was taking the meeting well, better than Lee had expected. Bradley also didn''t seem very bothered. "It just doesn''t look like the thing that... I fought," Bradley said after Lee asked. "I was winning," Mar said. "Then it cheated." "Very impressive. Fought D-grade at E-grade. Nearly won. Impossible for many. Should be proud. Also didn''t win. Should be more cautious. Reckless to attack higher grades. Though understandable in this case." It looked at Lee. "Good family. Strong. Will go far if they survive." Lee tensed up. How did it know? "What do you mean, family?" It pointed. "Gap under door. Better hearing at D-grade. Heard everything." "You''ve been listening this whole time?" "Yes. Heard deal with Zylar. Agreed with it. Heard instruction to large... reptile? Zhint don''t have family. Have pair. Better than family. But understand the concept." Lee rolled his eyes. You think your pair is good; wait until you find out about twin-souls. Out loud, he said, "Saira, do you want to heal him?" "No. No, I do not." She said, eyes on Mar. "Fair enough. Come on, Z. It''s time to get your marching orders. I''m going to call you Z, by the way." Yeah, it was rude, but he was still a little salty with the alien. Not that it seemed to matter to it. Zynthar stood up, not at all upset, and followed Lee out of the elevator room. "Choice of personal address is yours. Though appreciate being informed ahead of time. Will avoid miscommunication at critical moments. How shall I address you?" "Lee is fine." "Understood, Lee. Instructions? Bodyguard? Less effective alone, but still best option here." Amy stuck out her tongue at the alien. That was refreshingly simple, Lee thought, with only a mildly irritated glance toward Trak in his workshop. As for the rest of it... "I have a bodyguard." Amy stuck out her tongue again, smirking this time. "First off, you know your contract is for ten years, right? Zylar said it was for one year." Lee felt some reactions as the surrounding people heard that. Mostly disbelief. "One zhint year. Earth is young. Not yet D-grade. Smaller world. Contract is correct." "That''s... we''ll come back to that." Smaller world. Which implied there were bigger ones. How much bigger? Ten times? And what did D-grade have to do with it? "Your job," Lee said, refocusing. "Is to guard every single resident of this fort. Especially during invasions." "Challenging. Like it. Will force me to improve. Best way. But what of inner conflict? You are monsters. Fight among yourselves. Who will I protect?" "Disable them if it comes to that," Lee said. Only detecting a smidge of... racism? Specisim? Monsterism? Whatever it was called. It was nothing like the attitude the prince had given off, but there was just a touch of I''m better than you lurking inside Z. Which brought them right to the next topic he wanted to discuss. "You''re a civilized race, right?" "Correct." "Good. Then your next job is going to be telling us literally everything you know about everything." 134. Stanley Air ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley woke up on the ceiling again, while a giant pug filled the room below and an equally giant tongue soaked him from head to toe. Waking up covered in disturbingly warm dog drool was enough to send his nightmares scurrying away into half-remembered shadows at the back of his mind, and Stanley was happy enough to leave them there. Though he did feel bad for Caffeine when he went to the shower and left the pug cowering at the doorway. Walter knocked on the bedroom door moments after he finished dressing, but Stanley already knew the butler was spying on him. Also, he probably showed up because Stanley had figured out that the tie didn''t matter for his buffs and had just thrown it on the bed... "Might you care for some tea," Walter asked as he set down the tray. Then he was beside the bed, picking up the tie. "Allow me, sir." Stanley allowed. It was a little thing, and the least he could do. "Figured I''d get an early start since..." "I''m sure you can spare a few minutes for this old man before we both must be about the day?" He lifted a silver cover from a smaller tray, beneath which was a bowl surrounded by bite-sized fish things. "I have prepared a light breakfast for us and, of course, for our resident lord." Stanley folded. Walter was a cheater. "Of course I can." "So," he said after taking his first obligatory sip. "How goes it here? Still killing ants in the lobby?" "Indeed, and I am pleased to say that we have three full-time lair teams as of yesterday. Not counting Master Daryl and Master Adrian, of course." "That''s good," Stanley said, and he meant it. Though how good it actually was would depend on the teams. Still, anyone who went hunting every day was bound to become more powerful. Maybe not to his own level, but raising your attributes would have an impact. Doing so while hunting and killing to get the cores¡ªwell, the path to power really was that simple. If only so many people weren''t lazy cowards... "Miss Langley has proven herself remarkably adept and now leads her own team." "Who''s Langley?" "Miss Kira Langley. I believe her newfound prowess owes much to a certain spear she received from..." "Sorry." Stanley put up his soul shield when he felt the flinch from Walter''s soul. He kept forgetting to keep it up while in here. Walter was spoiling him. "My apologies, sir. I did not wish to bring up unpleasant..." "It''s fine," Stanley snapped. Then he felt bad and said in a softer tone, "It''s fine, Walter. Really. It just sneaks up on me sometimes." Walter took a sip and ate one of the fish things without speaking again, but Stanley could feel the question coming. So he used the lull to telekinetically throw a handful of fish things across the room. He even remembered to lift up the table so the tea wouldn''t spill when Caffeine shook the entire building to catch them. "Miss Leimon has assured me she is available at your convenience. Any time you wish to..." "I said I''d think about it," Stanley said, interrupting before Walter could go on with his speech again. He just couldn''t see how a shrink was going to help him; he''d probably be better off using the time to meditate. "Of course, sir." Walter took a sip. Stanley didn''t linger after that, finishing his tea and feeding all but one of the fish things to Caffeine. He ate the last one himself... and regretted it. They weren''t bad. In fact, they tasted fine. Just... fishy. Of course, he only regretted eating it because Caffeine would have enjoyed it way more. The way he enjoyed every snack. When it was over, he went for the door. "Stuff to do. I''ll see you..." "Will you be taking this, sir?" Walter stopped him before he made it out, a jagged piece of metal in his hand. Stanley eyed the crown with distaste but stuck it on his head anyway. The buff was too damn good to ignore. Buff Gained: [Onrushing Thorns] Then he flew away toward Bernard and his merry band of new recruits. Mr. Whip everyone into shape was exactly as arrogant when Stanley returned to pick him and his people up. He''d thought maybe someone would have mentioned to him how he''d stood around frozen like an idiot when Stanley stopped him... but maybe not? Or was he still betting everything on controlling his food supply? Despite the attitude, Stanley couldn''t deny the guy was doing something right. Showing up and finding everyone ready to go the moment he arrived was... nice. They even had two huge wooden platforms already built for him to carry the people on. He was tempted to swing by a lair and chow down in front of Bernard, just to see what reaction he''d get... but decided to save that surprise for later. Though someone was bound to tell him back at the base... Meh, knowing what he already did about the man, it was likely he''d dismiss the information and continue with his plan. Whatever that plan was. The trip was uneventful, other than having Bernard flying beside him the whole way, and Stanley dropped them off at their new home only minutes later. Then he left before anyone had any bright ideas about enlisting him for construction work. Speaking of work... he''d have to make sure Bernard paid up for the privilege of flying Stanley Air. Maybe cores? Since Nate already had the food covered? Though he probably should have brought that up beforehand... he could drag them all back if Bernard refused, but... was it even worth the effort? It also looked like Nate would be busy getting them settled in, which meant Zeke''s hunt would probably not head out just yet. Plenty of time for another search flight. His next flight path on the search pattern took him over mostly traveled ground, near enough to downtown that he could easily pick out Walter''s tower in the distance. Stanley flew on by, spotting a handful of human souls outside that were likely one of the lair teams Walter had mentioned. They were in combat with something, but didn''t seem particularly worried, so he left them alone and crossed the river. He''d seen the airport plenty of times already; the sprawling complex was visible from the tower, after all. So he knew there weren''t any humans hiding out. Just a big lair in the terminal full of monsters. Because, of course, there would be. Still, Stanley couldn''t help going in for a closer look. There was something he wanted to try. Something non-hunting related. There were more than a few planes still sitting at the gates, even a few on the tarmac with their doors hanging open; they''d probably just landed or been about to take off when shit hit the fan. Though thinking about it now, Stanley realized he hadn''t seen any wreckage from plane crashes around the city... On that note, how many planes had crashed into the dome trapping everyone in here? How many had fallen into the vast expanse of ocean inside the dome? Pointless speculation. Besides, he was here to have fun. "Check this out, Caff." Stanley stretched out his hand as if to pick something up and lifted a jetliner into the air. The thing was mostly intact, and he waved his arm while making airplane noises as he sent the plane flying through the air like a toy. Caffeine was unimpressed. "Okay, how bout this?" Stanley threw it much like he would a paper airplane. Only this one was massive and made of metal. He also threw it too hard. Not only did a few pieces go flying off when he launched it across the sky, but it also spiraled almost instantly toward the ground. He caught it, straightened out the flaps and one of the wings, then carried it higher before trying again. With a slower ramp up in speed, it actually glided for a while before plowing into the ocean. "Sweet!" Then he went inside one of the bigger ones and sat in the pilot''s seat. Yeah, the seats were a little grungy-looking, and the lack of plastic anywhere in the cockpit made the whole thing feel a bit... abandoned. But he didn''t let that stop him from taxing to the runway. "Stanley Air, requesting clearance." Sure, the tires were all shot, but it was nothing a little mind over matter couldn''t handle. "Ready, Caff?" The pug gingerly sniffed the copilot''s crumbling seat and then looked at Stanley with clear disappointment. "Ladies and gentlemen, our copilot appears to be on strike because his seat is falling apart. Nevertheless, we are taking off immediately! Destination; San Diego!" With the announcements out of the way, and despite the judging looks from Caffeine, Stanley flew them down the runway and up into the sky. His view out the windshield was crap, but he still managed to steer them more or less on an upward trajectory. "Ladies and gentlemen, we are now traveling at..." He tapped one of the instruments and the stuff inside crumbled out of sight behind the dash. "At an unknown altitude, but feel free to move about the cabin. I do regret to inform you that there may be some light turbulence when we crash into the magic blue wall, but until then, please enjoy our inflight entertainment." Caffeine huffed and jumped into his lap before curling up for a nap. "Ladies and gentlemen, my copilot has curled up in my lap to sleep. This is, of course, highly inappropriate workplace behavior... but I''m going to allow it." There was a certain speed where he stopped having to hold up the plane and could just push it forward, but it was a surprisingly rough flight. Especially when all the flap things started jumping around. Stanley flew on anyway, amusing himself with what people might think if they looked outside and saw a plane flying overhead. It would probably be a good way to search for human survivors if he didn''t already have soul... Three human souls appeared out of nowhere far below him, just close enough that he noticed. He twisted the controls, which did nothing, then used his power to move the flaps into the proper orientation to tilt the plane on its side. It tilted the wrong way. Stanley sighed and forced the plane over on its left so he could look out the window. Soul Sight confirmed it. Humans. Three of them. Three very surprised, confused, and worried humans. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Then they vanished one by one. Or, at least their souls did. He couldn''t actually make out individual people from this high up. "Ladies and gentlemen," Stanley said, letting go of the plane. "I''ve got good news and bad news. The good news is, we''ll be landing immediately. The bad news is, we''re crash landing!" He was nice enough to hold Caffeine in his lap while the plane went into a spiraling nose dive toward the ground. Or rather, right toward the river that cut through the city. So of course, Caffeine slept through it all. Even when the plane started shaking violently around them. "I know you had no choice whatsoever, but thank you for choosing Air Stanley." The river loomed larger through the windshield, and Stanley made a few course corrections to make sure they stayed on target. Ideally, he wouldn''t crash into the people he''d just spotted, but if he just so happened to land on something hiding in the river... say, something with giant octopus tentacles? Right before impact, Stanley stopped himself. Not stop stopped, but rather he grabbed a bubble around himself, the air, Caffeine, and his chair included, then stopped all of their motion through space. This resulted in what felt like a very cinematic moment as he watched the plane continue on past and around him. He went through the bulkhead behind the cockpit, then through the main cabin while destroying quite a few seats, until finally tearing free out the tail end of the plane. Of course, the plane had hit the river by then, and Stanley found himself surrounded by the resulting splash. Caffeine did not sleep through that. In fact, he was extremely alarmed when he leapt to his feet in Stanley''s lap. It felt like he was mustering the courage to face certain death, and his muscles tensed in preparation to... Stanley moved them to the shore, well away from the still violently churning water. "Sorry, Caff. That wasn''t nice, was it?" Looking around, he was fairly certain this was the area where he''d spotted the human souls. Unfortunately, there was still no sign of them. Of course, Stanley had a secret weapon. "Caff, who''s that!?" Caffeine''s head jerked up away from the river and his eyes went wide as he looked for someone to bark at. So very much like he had so many times in the truck. Only, out here, he wasn''t trapped inside and his nose started twitching a heartbeat before he jumped from Stanley''s lap. He trotted away, nose in the air, and Stanley followed close behind. It was tempting to ramp up Soul Sight to full power in an attempt to overpower whatever shielding they were using, but that would mean bombarding whoever was hiding with his soul. Probably not the best first impression, even if he was in a good mood. That proved unnecessary in the end, because Caffeine found the hiding trio a block away. Whereupon he immediately charged them with a loud chorus of his friendly, let me smell you, barks. Stanley caught the pug before he got close, settling into a seated position and plopping Caffeine into his lap while flying slowly closer. "Greetings, fellow humans. I too enjoy playing the golf and eating the tacos!" They obviously had no sense of humor, because all three of them immediately started casting spells at him. At least, he assumed as much when they started chanting gibberish and waving their hands about like actual wizards from a fantasy world. It actually looked a little cool when their waving fingers left light trails through the air. It was less cool when those lights quickly brightened in a distinctly hostile manner. Stop Stop Stop Stanley watched their building magic fizzle into some very flashy sparks when they all stopped moving. Then he drifted off to the side before letting them go. Just in case. It was a good call, because a few different effects erupted from their suddenly unfrozen hands. One man was engulfed in a burst of flame. Another did a backflip when his spell sent out a shockwave in his face. The last went flying backwards while a streak of yellow light shot through the space Stanley had been hovering in before. "What the hell, guys?" he said, once they''d finished screaming and/or climbing to their feet. Two of them, at least; the last guy had disappeared behind a stand of trees. "I figured you would have a sense of humor since you''re wearing those hilarious outfits." "Y... you!" one man sputtered. He was wearing a brilliant and elaborately decorated fire-red robe. Presumably a wizard''s robe, and thematic given he''d been casting fire magic. The man who''d done the sweet backflip had an almost identical robe, only gray, with different symbols on the fabric. Unlike his red-robed partner, his robe had caught fire from the failed spell. He finally finished getting back to his feet after tripping over the hem a few times while putting out the fires and yelled, "You''re one to talk!" Stanley looked down at his all-white and still pristine suit; Walter''s magic definitely did something to keep dirt from sticking to it. At least when it wasn''t too destroyed. "That''s fair. It''s still not a good reason to attack me out of..." Yellow-robe came soaring through the air over the trees, screaming more gibberish as he did. Stanley assumed it was another spell, but this time he didn''t interfere; he wanted to see how powerful it was. The... wizards didn''t feel all that strong when he stopped them, but he still couldn''t see their souls. Plus, their outfits looked deliberate, like they were handcrafted, and perhaps even magical. The red one seemed to at least have some fire resistance. He did move Caffeine out of his lap and off to the side before the spell hit his arm. There was no need to be too reckless... The streak of yellow light slammed into his arm, and Stanley held himself in place when it tried to send him spinning away. It hurt. Bruising for sure, perhaps even cracking bones... but it still failed to damage Walter''s suit. Which was a shame. It might have been a good excuse to get rid of the white one... Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Though it was possible that skill played a role as well. He''d need to see them in action against a monster to really test their power. "Hold!" Red-robe yelled. A bit late, all things considered. "Hold fire!" "So what are you guys?" Stanley asked into the sudden silence. He looked up at the still hovering yellow-robe. "You''re like only the second person I''ve met who can fly." "We are wizards of the conclave," red-robe said, but pompously, as if it should mean something to Stanley. "I am Octavion of the evocation school, and these are my colleagues, Trevor and Gregory, of the abjuration and graviturgy schools, respectively." Stanley waited to see if he was joking, since he still couldn''t feel any of their souls. When no one laughed, he said, "I''m Stanley, king of the world." He nodded toward the pug, who was gingerly sniffing at them from a few feet away. "That''s Caffeine. Lord of the Beasts." Three pairs of eyes went wide, and Stanley realized he couldn''t tell what emotion was on their faces. Blocking his soul sense was really cheating... "Whatever. I''m just out here looking for survivors. Got a growing population that way, and another in downtown if you''re looking for..." "We are aware," red-robe said. "Oh... so you don''t need to be rescued?" "We do not need rescuing, but the council will wish to speak with you about..." "Oh, look at that," Stanley said while looking at a non-existent watch. "I''ve got a hot date that I''m running late for. Bye!" "Wait, you..." Their voices faded into the distance as he flew away. They didn''t need his help, so there was no reason to bother. Plus, he probably was late for Zeke''s hunt, especially after playing with the airplanes... Stanley wasn''t that late and besides, he didn''t need to carry the new team to their lair. He didn''t even drop in to say hello, much to Caffeine''s disappointment. Instead, he kept his distance while Nate pushed them at a running pace out beyond the purified zone. Nate wanted Stanley to watch over them, but also to hide from them¡ªsomething easier said than done. It all seemed a bit unnecessary from Stanley''s point of view, but he could waste a few minutes for Zeke''s sake. Especially since he understood the reasoning for it and really didn''t want the kid to be relying on him when it mattered most. Nate planned to wait outside, something he wouldn''t have done if Stanley wasn''t watching. Or so he said. While it was easy enough to follow from a distance, even without Soul Sight, Zeke''s short but intensive training had done more to improve his skills than all that had come before. Now he glowed a bright gold even without looking at his soul. They went to a lair Stanley had scouted before. One full of cockroaches in a wide variety of sizes. He''d barely engaged with them so he didn''t know what abilities they all used. But he did know they looked disgusting, and it only got worse once you popped them open... Stanley doubted they would have any real trouble. That was assuming Zeke could keep the healing going. As long as they had him, Stanley wasn''t sure even a head shot would be enough to finish one of them. He still flew down closer once they were inside and sent his mind in to watch over them. Obviously, he couldn''t really see what was happening, but between listening to their souls and having his proverbial finger on the throats of every enemy nearby, it should be fine. The lair was an old, eleven-story hotel. A big one. Definitely too big for this group to clear in one shot. But the main reason Nate picked this place as a starter was that the bugs didn''t rally past their own floors. In fact, it was an oddity in that the roaches would fight each other quite a lot. Just not to the death. Instead, the loser of each fight retreated further down and created a perfectly escalating difficulty curve as you climbed. It ended up being rather boring. Which was good. They fought through the bugs with a variety of weapons and magic abilities. Nothing flashy, but enough solid stuff. Though it felt like that Shattering Touch ability carried extra weight versus the tougher carapace of the roaches. They were good. Stanley never had to interfere. Then Eve went off ahead on her own... ~~~Nefraxis~~~ Nefraxis wove the delicate strands of soul into an undetectable mesh for their eyes, such as they were. It was a masterful show of skill and proficiency that would allow for the detection of even the smallest and weakest of souls from great distances. It was also completely unnecessary. The target of the spell was not hiding. Even the feeble attempts it made to shield its soul accomplished little. That monstrous human was an undeniable beacon as it flew past in the distance. It was impossible to miss, even when it wasn''t using that stolen skill to bombard the dungeon with its soul energies. Of course, there was always a risk when using the soul this way, both in terms of detection and potential counterattack. But that brute would never notice such a delicate... Nefraxis saw the beast in the human¡¯s lap turn to look his way and he canceled the skill immediately. That damned creature! It shouldn''t be able to sense anything. Not while beside the ruined beacon of that human''s soul. So, of course, it did anyway. An impossible beast for the impossible human. A human who carried a Source while still in E-grade. A human who had wielded that Source to destroy Calderon while still in F-grade! It was pure madness! Its very existence a defiance of what was known to be possible. This was not something they could blame on the human trait. No one and nothing could adapt to carry a Source in F-grade. Even a fraction of that power should still destroy the human. Utter and complete madness. Watching that impossibility fly away, Nefraxis resisted the urge to curse the High Lords yet again. They could have ended this. They could have sent in more than that one arrogant fool! It was obvious why they''d chosen as they did. They did not wish to lower the reward the Great System would bestow upon victory. Arrogance. Greed. The High Lords had gambled on a lone D-grade against an impossible existence. Perhaps not so outrageous a gamble for existences so far above E-grade, and Nefraxis had not doubted the decision. Not until it failed. If that fool had only accepted their help, this would already be over. They would be standing at the forefront of a new world conquest. Not just any world, either. But one that would send empires into war on a scale not seen for eons. Only the arrogant fool failed. The human lived. Not only that, but that coward Morgrath had failed to deal with the Purifier as well! Nefraxis didn''t believe either Morgrath or Ruish when they claimed retreat had been the only option. They had balked. An unforgiveable act of cowardice, which in any other time or place would see them harvested for parts and their souls fed into a ritual. Unfortunately, Nefraxis had not witnessed the interaction firsthand. They''d been maintaining the rituals and feeding Gravus... Otherwise, this entire endeavor would have gone much differently. Nefraxis let the useless emotions drain away as they observed the real target of this scouting expedition. The Purifier. It was a young human from the reports, a male human, if that mattered, and more powerful than ever before. Morgrath claimed to have attempted the recruitment, which would be the ideal outcome. Killing the purifier would have been less optimal... but better than allowing it to grow stronger instead! Nefraxis turned away from the current source of their ire. It was tempting to strike at the human now, but that would be a mistake. The impossible human lurked in the sky, watching, and the second strongest human in this place followed behind. It was a trap. A pathetic one that even a novice would see through, but a trap all the same. It also didn''t matter. Let the humans play their little games. Let them think they are winning. It would be easier to destroy them that way. There were many names for the Eternal March. Endless. Inevitable. Unstoppable. Enduring. All of those titles had been earned and were well deserved. Because this war wasn''t over, and the humans would come to understand exactly how hopeless their resistance was. Ritual magic could do many things, including amplifying the growth rate of a lair. Normally, the effect would be minimal, and only effective over the very long term. But in this rapidly advancing dungeon... That impossible human might have defeated a single D-grade, but it should struggle against three. More importantly, the purifier would stand no chance. If they could strike at the right time, when that impossible human was not there to disrupt the plan... Well, without the purifier, even an impossible human would eventually fall to corruption. To the march. As would everything. As it should be. 135. Leech ~~~Eve~~~ "You''ve got to be more careful, Leroy," Zeke said to the prone man he was kneeling over while golden light rebuilt a large chunk of the man''s innards. "I know Nate''s outside, but he won''t get in here fast enough to save us if we screw up too badly." Eve stared at him in disbelief. Seriously? Then a few other voices agreed with her brother and Eve shook her head. They really didn''t notice. Stanley was obviously here, watching them! How the fuck could they not only ignore that creepy sensation but not even notice it in the first place? Her own brother among them? A god-damned shame. Or was it because none of them had spent as much time around the old fuck as she had? How long had it been now? A week? Two? "Let''s take a minute," Mathew said. "That last fight went poorly, and I think we need another talk about tactics and positioning." "You guys do that," Eve said, heading toward the stairs. "I''ll get a head start." Zeke jumped up. "Eve, wait!" "Work with your team, Zeke. I only came here to look out for you." Which had turned out to be completely unnecessary with Stanley lurking around. Or had it? Stanley might get distracted or wander off. Who knew with that wacko. She left the others behind and stopped on the landing halfway up to the next floor. A cannon on her shoulder popped up, and light shone from it, illuminating the stairwell. She set down the case she''d been carrying and an effort of will parted the formerly seamless metal, allowing her to lift the top clear. Inside were a dozen thumb-sized metal spiders. Play time! The spiders didn''t move as Eve held a hand over them, and nothing else seemed to happen... Until a shiny liquid metal started running from underneath her gauntlet and slowly down her fingers. She moved a finger to each spider and, with every touch, transferred a drop of the silver liquid onto them, where it seemed to writhe over the tiny machines as it sank into them. Along with each drop of the liquid metal, Eve also sent a small piece of her soul along and into the spiders. It didn''t take long to sink in, metal or soul, leaving the constructs once again a dull black. Now, what did that cost me? Eve checked her soul attribute. Soul 40(-35 Reserved) An entire soul point for each spider... Fuck it. I can spare that. Now, find me something to kill. The spiders abruptly burst into motion and skittered up the stairs toward the next floor of the lair. She could feel them as they went, like a piece of her, so it wasn''t like she could lose them. Unfortunately, knowing where they were did fuck-all to help her in combat. There was another solution for that. Eve pulled another device from the same case and placed it over one eye. Her helmet shifted to hold it in place as a screen lit up on the inside. It showed a camera view from a spider crawling up the stairwell wall. Another device went into the helmet above her ear, and a speaker started broadcasting the faint little clicking sounds of her spider''s feet as it left the wall and climbed onto the ceiling. She was proud of that. It wasn''t easy to make them crawl up walls, never mind on the ceiling. With a thought, she started cycling through the multiple camera feeds, building a mental map of the next floor and where the largest concentrations of bugs were. While she did that, she pulled another case from her back and opened it up. Inside, she removed what looked like a rifle, except the barrel that she screwed onto the other half was a very bulky and boxy piece of metal. I''d like to see you try to block my rail gun so casually! She stroked her latest creation fondly and briefly enjoyed the idea of using it to put a hole through that stupid old man. Caffeine would be upset if I shot him... She pulled what looked like an extra-thick magazine from the box and looked carefully at the delicate tracings of metal that coiled around and through the brightly glowing cores that filled the interior of the thing. Eh, some chicken would probably make up for it. Eve slid her battery pack back into the gun, hiding the glow inside and plunging the stairwell back into darkness. She then went over the two batteries remaining in the case with equal attention. As long as I don''t actually kill him, it should be fine. Her belt sprang open with prepared slots down the middle, and she slotted the spare magazines into place. Well, spare batteries. Basically the same thing in her case. It was risky to keep the not always fully stable batteries on her person, but with her ability to shape metal, she could ensure that the armor over them was always sound. Plus, from there, they could power everything on her person, and a touch of her liquid metal would let her easily monitor their condition. Another drop for the rail gun and she was ready to go, and almost out of soul to bond more metal. Bonded metal. A class evolution. Probably from the metal in her blood. Definitely not because of Stanley. Fuck him! Still, it let her do far more than drain mana from a distance. She suspected, in time, she wouldn''t even need a camera feed in her helmet to see through their eyes. Well, their camera eyes. The only downside of her new class was just how much soul she needed to bond with all the metal she could shove into her blood... Eve gritted her teeth at the memory of metal melting into her flesh. At the memory of her death. It was fucking worth it! That nightmare had pushed her forward by leaps and bounds. First, a trait. Now a new class. Bonded metal had been just the thing she was missing to really progress. And the last missing piece was... soul. Well, Stanley had come through a lot on that end... all without having to do anything. The lazy bastard! Ready, she headed up the stairs and took up position in the doorway to the next floor. It wasn''t as dark outside the stairwell, but it wasn''t that much of an improvement. The long hotel hallway stretching out ahead of her had the occasional open door along its length, which let in a few rays of light. Of course, having enough light hardly mattered anymore. Her eyes could see far better in the dark these days. Well enough that she could see all the way to the stairs at the far end of the building. She waited in the doorway, her gun tracking, as the first unsuspecting roach wandered into the long hallway from a side room. The snapping crack of her railgun firing sounded deafening in the narrow confines, but the results were worth it when she saw the cockroach explode into goo and carapace shrapnel. Of course, that set off the rest of the floor, and she instantly had hundreds of cockroaches charging in her direction. She was expecting that and didn''t even flinch when the nearest doorway disgorged a swarm of basketball-sized bugs. She didn''t even have to move, keeping her gun trained down the hall while her two shoulder cannons went to town on the roaches. She still didn''t move when the hallway ahead started to fill with even more charging insects. Only when it was so clogged that they started crawling towards her on the ceiling did Eve pull the trigger of her railgun. The projectile went through and obliterated over a dozen bugs before it lost momentum, and she squeezed the trigger again. And again. And again. Eve rained death and destruction down that hallway, while her shoulder cannons blasted and burned anything that made it too close. When she stopped firing, the barrel was glowing red-hot and her battery was drained. A thought sent the spent cores falling free, their glow a mere shadow of their former brilliance. If this was a more serious engagement, she''d already have some mana drain towers going and could plug those cores in to start recharging. This wasn''t serious, so she left them where they fell and plugged in a fresh pack. The barrel followed, falling free in a way that would probably have alarmed anyone with firearm experience, but making way for the pristine replacement that took its place. Plenty of bugs had taken advantage of the lull to once again fill the hall as they charged towards her, but not enough. Eve unleashed death again, this time while taking steady steps forward. She passed the first hotel room doors, and her shoulder cannons fired instantly on the attempted ambushers. It seemed that not all the bugs were suicidally stupid enough to charge a sniper down a long hall, but it didn''t matter. She had eyes on them before taking her first step. The metal spiders keeping watch in those rooms quickly advanced past the drones in the following rooms, taking up surveillance ahead. She wiped out more of the cleverer bugs that never had a chance and kept advancing, her little spies leapfrogging their way through the building. Eve stopped halfway down the hall and took a mana break. She really should have stuck a damn mana-tower on Stanley. Maybe just bolt one to his back if he was going to insist on hiding? He wasn''t fooling her. Wherever he was. She couldn''t miss that freak''s power lingering over this building like a smothering blanket. What was the point of trying to spy on them if he was going to be so obvious about it? Why not just sit behind them and brood like he normally did? Dick. But perhaps if he was nearby... She set up a drain tower. It might help. If she could feel his power, then maybe she could leech... drain some extra mana. Another soul point wouldn''t hurt either... While she waited, Eve sent most of her spider drones back to collect the now cooler gun barrels she''d left behind. They''d probably be a little warped from her callously dropping the glowing metal on the ground, but nothing she couldn''t fix while regenerating mana. A few bugs took her delay as weakness and tried to attack, but they all died to her shoulder cannons. They really were auto-cannons with the bonded metal upgrade; all it really took was for her to notice a target and they would fire. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. After them, it was only a handful of the ambushers that refused to advance. She could wipe them out now and finish the floor, but there was no rush. Instead, she regenerated and did maintenance on her gear. The armor seemed a little pointless after the slaughter, but it was better to have it and all that. She also used the downtime to send a spy spider, a spyder, up the stairs at the end of the hall to check out the next floor. She''d seen fliers on the lower floors Zeke cleared, but none on this one, and she highly doubted she''d seen the last of those. Of course, the whole time she was fighting and regenerating, Eve kept an eye on the lone spyder she''d left downstairs and the one currently watching over Zeke and company. They never noticed the tiny thing tucked into a ceiling corner, and Eve hadn''t mentioned it either. No one needed to know what she could do. It was better to keep them guessing. Especially when it came to her spies. People tended to show their real selves when no one was watching, and she didn''t trust a single one of them. Well, maybe Nate. But that guy had such a worship boner for Zeke that she couldn''t imagine him doing anything to hurt her brother. Hell, he literally hadn''t hurt Zeke until Stanley showed his true psycho colors. Eve was mostly convinced that Nate had only started the more violent and painful training as an excuse to keep Stanley from trying to help again. Not that she was against the training. In principle. As much as she hated to admit it, Zeke was soft. Too soft. But she also hated to see him in pain... Fuck you, Stanley! And fuck you too, Nate! Unfortunately, she saw Zeke''s little band of merry men and women get up and head for the stairs. Which meant it was time for her to keep moving. She left the drain tower behind. It should have enough range for a few more floors, and if she had too, she could pull her soul out of it from further away. Doing that would cost her the bonded metal inside it but would protect her from potentially losing that bit of her soul. It was another downside of her bonded metal. Metal that held pieces of her soul. Usually she could pull the soul bits back if something was about to go boom. Or if a monster was about to eat her spyders. But once she hadn''t been fast enough... and that had really sucked. The experience left her feeling a bit more sympathy for Stanley and his tale of ripping out his soul to kill the invader... but fuck him! Except she''d felt his soul screaming... right before she died. Right before she came back. Fuck him! He was the idiot who chose to do that! Why should she feel sorry for his stupidity? Except he saved us. Saved Zeke. Eve shook her head and stomped up the stairs to the next floor. Fuck him! Fuck everyone! She hadn''t scouted as much as she''d have liked, but time was up. Besides, she''d seen the giant roaches shambling through the hall in a neat row that was just begging for her railgun. She oblidged. These ones didn''t explode nearly as well as the ones downstairs. Only slumped over slightly in a puff of... wings? Oh shit! Eve dropped her railgun and fumbled a half-charged battery pack from her belt as every dead roach erupted into a swarm of miniscule flying bugs that emerged from the tiny holes that covered the backs of the big roaches, holes she''d mistaken for shadows or spots. Now, out of every one of those holes flew a massive swarm which filled the hallway ahead with a roaring drone of wings. She tweaked the battery, threw it down the hall, and pulled her soul free an instant before the entire thing erupted into a ball of expanding blue fire. It was a massive waste of resources, but she didn''t have any weapons to deal with mass swarms. Give her giant death roaches and she could slaughter them all day, but this was a problem. Her auto cannons were firing nonstop already, and each beam burned down dozens of the insects before vanishing into the swarm. It didn''t matter and wouldn''t make a dent in what had to be thousands of bugs coming after her. She could retreat downstairs. Zeke and his team were en route. Together, they could handle the swarm. Eve didn''t back down. This was a challenge, and one she would damn well beat! She hadn''t done a lot of on-the-fly construction, but she gave it a shot anyway. In light of the limited amount of time she had to work, Eve canabalized her railgun for parts. She hated to do it. But as needs must. It had a battery, casing, and assembly. Her bonded metal throughout the weapon made it a snap to disassemble, and then she used that same metal to create something new. More parts came from her metal backpack as she backed slowly into the stairwell. She threw out one more battery turned explosive with a curse, which bought her a few more seconds, then slapped the last piece into place as the swarm descended on her. Fire bloomed brightly in the darkness of the lair. Shining even through the dense cloud of flying cockroaches as they swarmed from absolutly every direction. Eve''s flamethrower cut a swath through the swarm like a car through a parade; the smell of roasting cockroaches filled her nostrils, and she abruptly realized that her armor''s coverage was far from adequate. She hadn''t realized how many gaps there were in her defense until hundreds of pinching, stabbing, and tearing little bug-mouths were digging into her flesh. A scream escaped her, and she immediately choked it off when the bugs swarmed into her open mouth, still biting. Eve bit back, and a torrent of foul juice gushed down her throat as bugs burst between her teeth. I''m going to fucking murder every last one of you... Her backpedaling foot fell through the space where the floor should have been... and Eve toppled down the stairs with a screaming curse. "Fuck!" The first landing stopped her tumble, but Eve was done with this bullshit. She tore open the guts of her flamethrower... and filled the stairwell with roaring flames in a single, building-shaking, ear-bursting boom. Unfortunately, when her head cleared, she could still feel the bugs scrambling all over her. Biting! Including under her armor! Jesus, fucking Christ! She ripped off her chest plate, hands scrambling to brush away the biting fucks, and found... no bugs. Only smooth, unbroken, and unburned skin. Smooth skin... with something wriggling beneath the surface. Eve shrieked. It was a sound she''d never made before and never would again. A wholly justified noise when one is getting eaten alive by insects burrowing beneath their skin. While she was shrieking, her useless mind brought up a notification. One of many she''d been ignoring throughout the fighting. Debuff Gained: [Infested] She was still screaming when she started cutting open her skin and digging the still-wriggling larvae out of her flesh. Buff Gained: [Purifying Aura] Buff Gained: [Purifying Light] "Eve!" In that moment, Zeke''s power was the best thing she''d ever felt. Then it started pushing the bugs forcibly through her skin... and she went right back to screaming. Debuff Removed: [Infested] "Eve! Eve! Eve!" "Would you shut the fu..." Eve choked off when she realized who was screaming her name over and over. "I''m fine, Zeke." "Oh, thank god!" "Don''t thank God; thank... you." Zeke just beamed down at her and then tackled her into a hug. While holding onto her a little too tight, he whispered, "Please don''t scare me like that, Eve." Eve bit back the words on her tongue and instead patted his back gently. "Nice save. Love you too." It was only after he let go and she sat up that Eve realized her shirt was blood-soaked and shredded. Her attempts to remove the burrowing insects might have been a little... over-zealous. "Why the fuck is Stanley here if he''s not going to help out with shit like that!?" "Stanley''s not here," Zeke said, far too convincingly. "Seriously?" Eve stared at him. "You still can''t feel that?" "Feel what?" She glared around at the rest of the team, all of them with the same stupid expression of pure ignorance. Except one. Mandy was looking up the stairs and pointing. "Maybe he is here?" Eve followed her pointing finger with a cannon-turned flashlight and blanched at the sight it revealed. A squirming, writhing wall of roaches. Floor to ceiling. Wall to wall. And too thick for any light to shine through. All of that skittering, scratching, fluttering, all of it silent behind an invisible barrier holding back the swarm. "Woah! Wait, Stanley is here? Why didn''t he say anything?" Eve ground her teeth and swallowed all the venomous things she wanted to say as she looked at the tide of horror looming above them. That would have really sucked. For her and the others. No! Fuck... She convulsed with the strain of turning her thoughts away down another path. It was time to kill all those bugs. "All of you get back to my tower downstairs. I''ll be right behind you." She gathered up the few salvageable scraps of her flamethrower and followed. On the way, she rebuilt it. Not only that, she built it better. More powerful. Then she posted up outside the stairwell downstairs. "You can stop interfering now!" Stanley must have heard her, because the swarm came roaring down the stairs with a vengeance. Eve burned them all to ashes in a torrent of blue fire that filled the entire stairwell. Not one bug made it past the door. Upstairs, her spyders confirmed the lack of more swarms; only the big, slow roaches remained. The only downside was that none of the little bugs dropped cores. Well, the burrowing into your flesh was probably slightly worse than the lack of cores... but talk about some bullshit! Eve sighed and got to work crafting a new railgun. She''d keep the flamethrower in her arsenal after this. "You guys can go ahead." They left, but Eve saw who was coming up the stairs below. Great. "Not bad, Eve," Nate said, sauntering into the room. Worse, behind him floated Stanley. Then Caffeine was in her face and crying like he hadn''t seen her in days. Which... well, she hadn''t seen him since yesterday. "Hi, Caff. You''re a good boy." She didn''t look up. "Thanks... Stanley." "No problem. I like your new gun. That one actually packs a punch. Bet it would go right through the lair walls." Eve frowned as she realized that her shots should have at least hit the walls hard enough to count as an attack on the lair... unless someone was blocking them. God damn cheater! Caffeine licked her face, and Eve finally looked up to find Stanley staring at her drain tower. Then the metal structure lifted into the air. "It''s alright if I move this, right?" "I... yes." Should she tell him? Caffeine''s big brown eyes felt accusing as he looked up at her with a wagging tail. "Come on," Stanley said, floating past her with that ridiculous crown on his head. "Everyone knows I''m here now so there''s no point in hiding." "Where did you say these wizards were at?" Nate asked while following Stanley into the stairwell. He stopped and looked back. "Everything okay, Eve? You need a minute?" Eve shook her head and stood up. "No... I''m fine." She was fine. Zeke had healed her right up. More than that, though, she felt powerful. Not to the level of Stanley, but maybe catching up with Nate. She felt like she could see the future potential of her new class going forward. Plus, this small bit of fighting had filled her mind with new ideas that should only improve her power. No longer did protecting Zeke feel like such a wild dream. No longer did it feel like just a lie that she told herself to feel better. Worse, she couldn''t deny Stanley''s part in all of it. Caffeine definitely played a role, but Stanley did as well. A big part of that was all the soul she''d leeched off of him... Hell, it was almost the entirety of her power now. Maybe she didn''t have to tell him? What if she just stopped using the leech skill and put a little more effort into learning one of the skills Stanley had been trying to teach her? Eve caught up in time to see the last giant roach crumble beneath Matthew''s blow. The thing was almost entirely hollow without all its little bugs inside it. She watched Zeke and company head up toward the next level, Nate following and leaving her temporarily alone with Stanley. And Caffeine. "Stanley." He stopped and turned to look at her. "Yeah?" "I need to tell you..." +1 Soul The skill was still going; she kept it on by habit these days... Soul Leech has granted you a Temporary Trait: [Angry Soul] [Angry Soul] You have leeched repeatedly from a wrathful soul. Some of that anger has carried over into you. Continued leeching from the origin of this temporary trait may make the trait permanent. Effects: You are more prone to anger and emotional instability. "You son of a bitch!" 136. A Fight Well Fought ~~~Stanley~~~ "You son of a bitch!" Stanley wasn''t sure what he''d done this time to prompt an outburst from Eve. She''d actually seemed rather calm right before screaming at him... Whatever it was, it wasn''t out of character. So he ignored her and followed the others. Eve didn''t shoot him this time, though he half expected it. In fact, he was looking forward to seeing how well Walter''s suit stood up to her new gun... So, of course, the one time he wanted her to, she didn''t attack him. Instead, she took out her anger on the cockroaches. Shooting, blasting, blowing up, and finally even using her armored fists to beat the bugs to death. It was great. Plus, it pushed Zeke and the others to fight harder in an attempt to keep up with her rampage. "Guys, slow..." Nate tried to be a buzzkill, so Stanley silenced him. "Let them fight." They''d all been taking it too easy. There was no struggle. Stanley already regretted stopping that swarm before. Not that being easy was all bad. They were a solid team. More than solid with Zeke along. It was good to be too strong for a lair. It meant they were doing something right. But now Stanley wanted to see them struggle. Not for any sadistic reason, but to see how they held up when shit went wrong, when something happened that they weren''t prepared for, because that was when it mattered most. He even stayed back a floor to hopefully add to the illusion that they were on their own. Eve led the band of fighters with reckless savagery, something Stanley could get behind, and Zeke pushed his team relentlessly to keep up with her as they climbed floor after floor. Mana reserves ran low, and people resorted to using weapons over abilities more and more, until even Zeke started flagging. Stanley let them keep going. Eve was busy with her emotional meltdown, and Zeke would never leave without her. The question now was whether his team would stick with him, and by extension, her. Obviously, it was stupid to keep going when they didn''t need to, and he ignored a few calls for help coming his way to rein Eve in. She even surprised Stanley with her reckless abandon. He kept expecting her to notice how much danger she was putting Zeke in, but she never did. Or did she assume Stanley would look out for him? Either way, it might have been the most angry he''d ever seen her... Zeke still kept healing everyone, but it got steadily less effective. His aura shrank, and the healing went from nearly instant restoration to something that usually required his main skill on top of the aura. Injuries started stacking up faster than Zeke could fix them, but he still pushed forward after his sister. Even when his team started talking about leaving her to her fate. Stanley must have done a good job convincing them they were on their own, because one of them finally bailed. He fled back down the stairs, then froze when he came to a stop between Nate and Stanley. He was afraid... "Nate! You have to help us!" It was hard to judge the man too harshly; Eve and, by extension, Zeke were being idiots. It was suicidal to keep going. To stick with them. Only an idiot would keep pushing toward certain death... but then again, those were exactly the people they needed on Zeke''s team. People who wouldn''t give up. No matter what. Even in the face of death. Fanatics. They needed fanatics. Like Nate. Obviously, Stanley wasn''t going to let any of them die, but he definitely wasn''t above letting them get hurt. Even seriously. Worst case, if Zeke couldn¡¯t handle it, he''d take them to Adrian. If he went all out, maybe with Still Mind, it should only take a few seconds to reach the tower from the lair. It never quite came to that. Eve reached the top floor, a single massive hollowed out chamber that would have collapsed in on itself without the extra durable lair walls. Only one last giant roach waited up there. The queen. A cockroach that was very nearly the size of a city bus. Maybe she liked how beat up Eve was, or maybe the queen was just salty about Stanley''s last visit; either way, she didn''t surrender this time. Instead, she launched the swarms from inside her body toward the relatively tiny girl in plate armor. Unlike the previous roaches, the queen didn''t only release a swarm; she also charged in for a bite herself. Eve dropped one of her devices on the floor but otherwise didn''t move as the bugs approached. Stanley thought he could feel her armor shifting, then the swarm arrived and engulfed her in a writhing mass. Not for long though. Because fire erupted from the ground in a conflagration that surrounded her, plus a good twenty feet in every direction. The smaller insects burned to ash almost instantly, and even the queen balked rather than enter the flames. Eve took the fight to her instead. Her armored gauntlets now sported three foot-long blades each, and Eve used them to go to town on the goliath cockroach in front of her. Despite her enthusiastic assault, the queen was just too big. Her little blades did damage, but unless she could decapitate the queen, it wouldn''t matter. So, of course, she went for the legs. It was a solid strategy, and Eve took off more than half of them before the queen just sat on her. Or fell on her. It was hard to say which. Either way, Eve wasn''t strong enough to shove that bulk off, and the queen couldn''t bite Eve while holding her down. An impasse. Zeke and company broke the impasse. Exhausted and in pain, they still charged straight into battle with a monster that might kill them simply by rolling over on top of them. A single shattering touch opened a hole in the queen''s side, and spitting acid into that hole widened it. Then two of them jumped into the hole to carve the queen apart from the inside, while Zeke dragged his sister out from under the flailing behemoth. Stanley smiled at Nate as they floated and walked, respectively, into the queen''s chamber. "Not bad for their first time, was it?" Nate nodded. "Not what I''d had in mind for today, but yes, not bad. Not bad at all." Lair defeated. The queen is dead, but the eggs remain. A new queen will arise if they are not destroyed. Stanley didn''t care either way about the lair, but he had wasted more time than he planned to on this little hunt. Though it had turned out better than expected. In fact, he was starting to like some of these people... He had an idea of how to reward their efforts while also making up for his lack of soul repair progress this morning. To that end, he punched a hole in the ceiling, grabbed everyone, and took them into the sky. Eve was the only one who had a problem. For some reason. "Put me down, you god-damned psycho, motherfucker, son of a..." No one seemed to really care as her tirade went on... and on, Neal even tossed a core to Nate in the middle of her rant. "Check this out." Nate passed it over a second later with a... confusing feeling in his soul. Host the Swarm (Epic) You are with the swarm, and the swarm is within you. Allows the user to gestate and carry the devouring swarm within their flesh, always ready to be unleashed upon... "That is fucked up." Worse, it had a race requirement, which meant someone could theoretically evolve into a bug... Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. He still passed it around so everyone could see and speculate on what it would become if they adapted the skill instead. Even the thought of that option had some disturbing... implications. What if it didn''t evolve very far? Who wanted to have insects living in their flesh? "I want to try it," Neal said, the freak. First the acid spitting, now this. Unsurprisingly, no one contested his desire for the skill. Stanley instinctively slowed down as the core dissolved, and he wasn''t the only one waiting with anticipation for the results. Neal was a dick and only frowned without saying anything. Eve''s tirade, now only muttering under her breath, also paused as they flew silently onward. Neal held out a hand, palm up, and four normal-sized cockroaches materialized. They didn''t crawl out of his skin or anything; they just appeared. Then they crawled up his arm to perch on his shoulder. A collective shiver went through most of the onlookers, while one of them blurted, "A summoning skill?" "Yeah," Neal said, a smile growing on his face. "And even better than I expected." That possibility honestly hadn''t occurred to Stanley, and he let the others pester the man with questions while he flew them faster toward the tower. The skill wasn''t much now; Neal could summon a total of four roaches at a time. But apparently, it hinted at bigger and better things in the future. "I''m hoping they get my acid spit as it levels!" Stanley tuned him out after that. Acid-spitting cockroaches sounded about as horrible as acid-spitting rats, and he already hated those. Plus, they had arrived, and Stanley set his passengers onto the penthouse balcony. He probably should have asked Walter before bringing a bunch of people over, or at least given him a heads up, but it was fine. Walter''s soul felt friendly enough when the double doors swung open and he stood in the gap. "Welcome..." Caffeine kicked Stanley backward across the sky when Princess peeked out around Walter''s legs, and he missed whatever Walter said after that. Most likely, so did everybody else when the barking, screeching, and yowling kicked off between the three animals inside. Stanley drifted back slowly, smiling at what he felt from Caffeine. Then he felt Walter''s soul get upset, and he sped up. Hopefully the guy didn''t mind all the extra... He wasn''t mad at Stanley. Walter was talking to Eve and outwardly looked as dispassionate as ever, but his soul was admonishing. Eve''s soul was even weirder... and she was dismantling her mana drain tower. She was embarrassed and... guilty? Elsewhere, it was chaos. Cheesesteak was chasing Neil around while leaving streaks of fire in the air and trying to eat his summoned roaches by the look of it. Caffeine was chasing Princess with building-shaking dashes. At least, he was chasing all twenty identical copies of her that ran every which way. Each time he caught one, it vanished, and two more took its place. Stanley could clearly tell which fox was the real one, considering it was the only one with a soul, and he suspected Caffeine probably knew it as well. The pug just didn''t care. He was having a blast. A true win win. He got to play chase, and Princess didn''t actually have to get chased. Zeke lay flat on the floor, rubbing his face on the lush carpet in a mix of pleasure and exhaustion, while the rest of his team, those not under attack by a phoenix, all lay around him in equal states of fatigued relief. Nate was in the next room with Daryl and Adrian, probably talking about the wizards. He''d been quite upset by the revelation that they might not only have known about his base, but that they might have also done nothing to help when he was attacked by the invaders. Typical cowards. Nothing new there, but Nate probably wanted to meet them anyway. A meeting that could come later. First, Stanley needed to make more progress on fixing his soul. But before that... "Eve." She flinched and looked away from where Walter was now scolding Cheesesteak. "What!? I didn''t..." More guilt, but with the usual spark of anger she always got when looking at him. Stanley ignored her weird behavior, as usual. "This way." Eve followed him, albeit reluctantly, especially when he went into his bedroom. She stopped in the doorway, her eyes darting around the room suspiciously. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Eve." She flushed and sputtered incoherently at him, but Stanley only grinned and opened the bathroom door. "I brought you all here for this. A reward for a fight well fought." She bristled even more. "I don''t need a fucking cookie like I''m a..." Her rant ended abruptly when he turned on the shower. A shower with a dozen plus nozzles that sprayed from every conceivable direction, and the water was already steaming hot the instant it came out. Stanley grinned at the stunned expression on her face and turned the taps off again. "But I guess if you don''t want it, I could go ask someone..." "I''m first!" Eve said, her eyes gleaming and her armor already falling free as she rushed into the bathroom, only stopping to slam the door in his face. It wasn''t like they didn''t have showers back at Nate''s, but they were... rough, and you had to find one of the fire mages if you wanted hot water. Nothing at all like the luxury here. Stanley had never thought much about showering before; it was simply a way to get clean, until he used Walter''s shower. That was the first time he truly understood that a shower could be a wonderful experience. He checked in with Walter after that. Partly to make sure there was enough hot water, but also to ask if there were more of those fancy showers. Eve''s soul gave him the feeling she would be in there a while... Wait, I can feel her soul? Usually the room blocked him from sensing souls. Or was that only from inside? Or was it not a constant, built-in effect? Did that mean Walter was maintaining it when Stanley spent the night? No, he''d felt Walter''s soul inside the room a few times... and there had been no sign of struggle. So he was probably just being paranoid. Aside from that potential discovery, which he didn''t bring up, Walter did have more fancy showers. Well, one more. On the happy couple''s side of the penthouse. Stanley left the logistics to everyone else and went back to his room to meditate. More specifically, to work on his soul wound. As so often before, the souls outside went silent. Eve too, just inside his bathroom, went dark. It was as pleasant as every time before. A silent void to work in, with the notable exception of Caffeine bouncing around in the next room. A good exception. Not only was the pug enjoying himself and sharing that feeling with Stanley, but there was just something calming about knowing where Caffeine was. It was also the only real indication he had of time passing while inside his meditation. Eve''s soul appeared in his perfect void an unknown amount of time later; even watching Caffeine play, he tended to lose track of time. She froze in shock upon seeing him¡ªshock and terror, with just a touch of guilt... Then she went back to her old self, angrily stalked closer, and started loudly and enthusiastically berating him. At least, he assumed that was what she was doing. She was obviously angry, and going by the vibrations in his domain, she was definitely yelling. He considered ignoring her; it would be easy since he already couldn''t hear her. She was like a grouchy puppy, angry at a leaf for blowing the wrong way, but she would get bored or tired eventually. Or did she need to be corrected? There was an ugly, dark corner of his mind that wanted to smack the yapping dog. To make it shut up. To make it know its place. Stanley ignored that feeling and ignored Eve. Instead, he went back to watching Caffeine play. Eve had a big day today. Lots of excitement. She was probably just grouchy. Maybe a nap would help? Could he put someone to sleep? He could try on... Walter appeared in the room, startling Eve and sending her back a step, as well as shutting her up. He was almost as upset as she was. "...aster Stanley did not intrude upon you, Miss," Walter was saying when Stanley left meditation. "I took the liberty of laundering and repairing your garments while you bathed. My apologies if that was unwelcome." Eve wilted further with each word, then opened her mouth... "In the future," Walter continued without giving her a chance to speak. "I would appreciate it if you brought any complaints to myself before throwing out unwarranted accusations at those within my domain." Eve flinched at the end of his statement, which felt quite a lot like a rebuke. "I..." "Would that be acceptable, Miss?" "Yes, sir," Eve said, very meekly and politely. Stanley didn''t realize his mouth had fallen open until Walter vanished and Eve rounded on him. "What are you looking at!?" He closed his mouth tight, primarily to avoid smiling. "Nothing." The attempt to hide his amusement must have been less successful than he''d hoped, because Eve stormed out of the room with a sputtered, "Go to hell!" Walter reappeared after she''d left. "An early dinner has been prepared and will be served shortly. Will you be joining us, sir? Or shall I have it brought to you in here?" Stanley looked at his soul wound, particularly at how much of it he''d repaired today. It was tender, raw, and close to the limit. "Give me a few minutes, and I''ll come out." "Very good, sir." "Walter," Stanley said before the man could vanish on him. "Thanks again for this room. I really appreciate everything you''ve done for me, and I''m sorry for dumping all these people on you without warning..." "Think nothing of it, sir. This is your home. It would be entirely remiss of me to turn away your guests." He smiled his very small smile, a barest quirk of his lips that Stanley was only just able to spot. "Master Daryl was quite the hellraiser in his youth. I can assure you that dealing with a few more children now cannot compare." With that, he vanished, and Stanley only then wondered about what he''d said. Who exactly was he calling children? Ignoring the potential insult because it was probably deserved, Stanley went back inside his soul and forced a few more bits of the wound to seal back together. He''d had that nice jump early on where the debuff downgraded from deadly to critical, but now it was a slog. Presumably he''d been right at the debuff threshold before... Piece by piece, he put it back together. Until it started to hurt¡ªthe sign that he was finished for now. He knew dinner had started before leaving the room. Partly because he could feel everyone gathered around the large table, but mostly because Caffeine was frantic in the way he always was around food. As expected, the pug was making the rounds and getting snacks from almost everyone. Eve was sulking about something, while Nate was busy talking shop with Adrian and Daryl. Something about the skills of different people and which ones would go best with others. Nate abandoned the topic when he saw Stanley. "Can you take us to see the wizards?" 137. Were Off To See The Wizards ~~~Stanley~~~ "We''re off to see the wizard, the wonderful..." "Would you please, for the love of god, stop singing that fucking song!" Eve yelled. Again. Stanley grinned and started over. A chorus of other voices joined in, including Zeke. Her brother''s participation made her threats of murder less... threatening. Besides, it was her own fault. They would have stopped singing ages ago if she hadn''t made such a stink about it at the start. When Nate said he wanted to see the wizards, Stanley hadn''t expected everyone else to come along. Of course, Nate hadn''t wanted to leave Zeke alone. Not in the tower or back at camp. Which made some sense. Might as well keep him near the two strongest people. Technically, back at the tower with Walter and everyone else, it was probably the safest place Zeke had ever been in his life. But this was a close second, since Adrian and Daryl had come along as well. Stanley still wasn''t sure what Daryl''s actual powers were, but he seemed on par with or better than Adrian. Him and Princess. There were obviously some kinds of illusions at play among man and fox, but he could also heal with fire, just like his partner. Weird, but powerful, and all the better to bring them along. Hell, he was half hoping the wizards would start shit so he could see what the duo were capable of, because apparently, Adrian could actually burn people with his fire as easily as he healed them. An ability Stanley had yet to witness, but one that might make him even more powerful than Zeke. As before, he saw no souls in the area. Only this time he was on the lookout and spotted more than a few people ducking out of sight or slipping through doors at their approach. "Harvard!?" Nate exclaimed out of nowhere. "I knew I should have checked this place." Eve had a different, screaming reaction. A verbally silent one where only her soul screamed... Following her gaze, it took Stanley a few moments to recognize the field in the distance. It was where he''d first met the siblings. Where he''d tried and failed to kill their mom... and where other bad things probably happened after he left. Zeke hadn''t noticed yet, or hadn''t looked in the right direction, given his complete lack of reaction. Either way, Stanley took them down, out of sight from the field, and into what was apparently... Harvard? The building looked fancy enough, with big pillars out front and kind of old-fashioned... "It looks fancy, but shouldn''t Harvard be bigger?" Daryl burst out laughing, like Stanley had just cracked the greatest joke ever. "Oh, I wish those stuck up..." Magical light bloomed right before they reached the ground, shining out from a number of arcane-looking symbols glowing from each pillar at the front of the building. At the same time, a voice shouted, "Halt! Who goes there?" "Seriously?" Eve muttered. "Who fucking talks like that?" Stanley laughed. "Right?" He wasn''t as amused by the magic snaking out from the symbols and trying to latch onto him. Debuff Resisted: [Gravity Restraint] While it slid off him, no one else escaped from the magic. Eve, of course, immediately started cursing as she strained against the numerous gray bands of light dragging her to the ground and wrapping her up into immobility. Lots of magic sprang up on their side in response, and Stanley was about to cut down the pillars when Nate strode ahead of the group despite the same magic attempting but apparently failing to restrain him. It wasn''t as effortless as he made it look, at least going by his soul, though Stanley had a feeling Nate was still holding back. "Is this really necessary?" Nate said it casually. "We obviously didn''t come to fight." Stanley held off attacking the people or their building, but also stayed back with Zeke. Just in case. A solid reason for this group not to have helped before would be if they were all traitors working with the invaders. This could all be a trap. One they would regret... Whatever magic prevented him from sensing their souls did nothing to stop him from touching them with his mind, and touch them he did. Stanley repeated his trick from the day before and lightly shoved everything in range. Including inside the building. Spots of higher resistance betrayed every single... human? He couldn''t know that for certain. Person? Living and/or potentially unliving? Whatever they were, he found them. A lot of them... mostly inside. Though none of what he''d pushed against felt particularly resistant, so that was promising if it turned into a fight. Adrain was now on fire, and Daryl stood calmly beside him, untouched by the restraining magic... except he wasn''t calm. He was straining against... Oh, it was an illusion. Both he and Princess were only pretending to be free. Stanley had already reached into the ground below them, his first instinct when the magic dragged everyone down, but he found nothing there¡ªonly dirt and rocks. Nate stopped advancing at the foot of the steps. "I''m Nate. We came to see the council? I was under the impression you knew about me?" Nate glanced back questioningly, and Stanley shrugged. It was a lot harder to tell who''s who when they hid their souls. Plus, they were all hiding behind the pillars. "I don''t care if any of you know who we are," Stanley said in a not quite shout. "But if you don''t cancel that spell, then I''m going to start breaking things." Someone laughed. "I''d like to see..." "I''m turning it off!" another voice yelled, then hissed, presumably at the first man. "Shut up, you idiot! That''s the guy with the beast lord! He''s not bluffing!" Moments later, the gray, glowing symbols faded from the pillars, and the restraints vanished from Stanley''s party. "We already alerted the council!" the first speaker yelled, his voice a much higher pitch this time. "Y... you''d better not try anything!" "No one came here for a fight," Nate said reassuringly. "We just want to talk." "Speak for yourself," Eve muttered darkly while fondling her rifle. It was all bluster. Stanley could feel her fear and see her gaze darting around nervously. A gaze that kept returning to her brother beside her. That glimpse of her past was definitely still haunting her but... she was worrying for nothing. Probably. Even if someone tried something, she and Zeke were inside his domain, along with Adrian and Daryl. For all that she seemed to hate being near him, she and her brother were as safe as can be. Stanley nudged at the second speaker, pushing him a stumbling step out from behind the pillar. "It''s you. You were the guy who did the backflip yesterday, right?" His gray robe no longer had scorch marks on it, but Stanley was pretty sure it was the same guy. If slightly more terrified looking. "Where are your friends?" The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. "Th... this is the graviturgy house. Th... they have their own..." His friend hissed something, and Gray-robe said, "School! They have their own schools!" "Is this like a dungeons and dragons thing?" Adrian asked, now no longer on fire. "You guys went all in on the wizard thing?" "We... you should direct all questions toward the council. We don''t know anything important!" "Understood," Nate said. "We don''t mind waiting. What''s your name?" "Gregory!" Stanley blurted. "Your name''s... Gregory." Everyone was looking at him. "What? I remembered his name..." He was usually so bad at that. Maybe all those intelligence attributes were finally kicking in? Nate chuckled. "Nice to meet you, Gregory. I hope Stanley didn''t give you too much trouble yesterday. I know he can be... a lot." "He... made a spell blow up in my face. I just don''t know how he did it..." "If you need healing, we''ve got two of the best right here." "N... no. It wasn''t that bad. I still have half of a po..." "Dude, shut up!" his friend hissed, still hiding behind his own pillar. "You''re going to get us in trouble!" Stanley didn''t like it. He could see the guy. Could see his face. But it felt like looking at a blank wall without the feeling of a soul to go with the face. How the hell was he supposed to know what was going on in there? The voices sounded... worried? Which fit with the hiding, but what was that about getting in trouble? In trouble with who? Another man in a gray robe chose that moment to drop out of the sky, and also with no whisper from his soul¡ªthe damn cheater. He shot downward and only slowed abruptly a few feet above the ground... before touching down gently. "What is this?" "The... they..." Gregory started stammering, but it felt like the clearly older newcomer ignored him as his gaze locked onto Stanley''s. "It''s you." "What the hell!" Stanley exclaimed. First, these... people? First they cheated by hiding their souls; now they were flying left and right... That was his thing! They were stealing his gimmick! Plus, "How the hell do all of you know me?" "You''ve been watching us," Adrian said when no one else answered. "Divination wizards?" That sounded familiar. Wasn''t it something like spying on people? Or was it a prophecy thing? "God," Daryl whispered, poking a finger in Adrian''s ribs. "You are such a nerd!" Stanley thought he saw another reaction from all three wizards at the mention of divination, but once again, he couldn''t tell a damn thing when they kept hiding their fucking souls! It was getting more and more tempting to tell the lot of them to stop doing whatever that was or die! "Are you part of the council we were told to expect?" Nate asked before Stanley could start handing out ultimatums. "I am," the man said. "Theodore Echeart. Master of the School of Graviturgy." He nodded toward the two younger men. "You''ve met my apprentices... and scared the piss out of them, I see." "Entirely unintentional, I assure you. I would have been happy to go about this meeting with whatever protocols you''d prefer. Unfortunately, I only learned of your existence here this morning." Oh, Nate was pissed, but he was trying to hide it. Theodore''s eyelid twitched. Did he know Nate was upset? Was he upset? Was he plotting something? God damned... Caffeine stopped straining to escape and turned to lick Stanley''s nose instead. "Good boy," Stanley whispered. "Good boy." Nate had his intuition. Maybe it would still work here? He could deal with this bullshit and Stanley could just take everyone else off to... "I am to bring you to the rest of the council," Theodore said. "If you would like to go now?" Stanley looked at Nate questioningly. "Think its a trap?" Nate eyed the rest of the group, particularly Zeke, and asked, "Still nothing?" Obviously, he''d told Nate about their bullshit soul blocking magic, but maybe if he cut them in half, he''d be able to get a peek inside? Theo kept his mouth shut and just watched them. Suspiciously. Stanley shrugged. "I could take everyone else back now if you want to deal with this? If you don''t come back, then I start breaking stuff?" "How romantic," Eve said. "Looking out for your boyfriend?" She was the only one amused by her attempt at a joke, and the following silence grew deafening as it stretched. As much as Stanley enjoyed her embarrassment and wanted to let her stew in it, he couldn''t stay quiet. "Fuck no! I don''t want to get stuck babysitting all of you morons if Nate kicks off!" "I too would like to avoid that," Neal said, and unlike Eve, he earned a round of chuckles for his comment. Plenty of wholehearted agreement as well. "Let''s stay together," Nate said, earning surprised reactions from some of them. "We''re a team. Hell, I''d like to think we''re more than that." "Hear, hear!" Matthew shouted while throwing his arms around Zeke and Eve''s shoulders. Or trying to anyway. He got Zeke, but Eve planted an elbow in his ribs for the effort. "Let''s hear it for team... Oof!" "Touch me again, and you''re going to be giving Zeke a lot more practice with his healing!" That comment earned her a laugh, though Stanley wasn''t really sure why. Neither was she. Probably nerves. Especially after the cockroach lair. Stanley picked everyone up while they were distracted and flew closer to Theo, almost looming over him. "If you lead us into a trap, I''ll kill you first." The gray-robed man rolled his eyes as he floated off the ground under his own power. "Noted." He was acting nonchalant, but Stanley was now close enough for his domain to notice the sweat beading beneath those robes and to feel the pulse in his neck step up a beat. It was telling, and another way to gauge reactions without Soul Sight... except he had no clue what that shit meant! Was he actually planning a trap? Or just nervous because he apparently knew something about Stanley? Maybe he knew the threat wasn''t an idle one... and wasn''t confident in his own power with... graviturgy? "What is graviturgy?" "Follow me," Theo said, ignoring the question and flying higher. "The council operates out of memorial hall, deeper into the main campus." It sounded like gravity magic, which explained the flying. Also the trap that dragged everyone down. But what else could he do? Make black holes? Gravity strong enough to crush people? Stanley followed behind the other man while trying to stay ready for an attack he might not feel coming. Of course, he still had the Premonition skill, a skill that wasn''t getting much use these days. He''d simply become so powerful that the skill never triggered anymore. What a shame... Neglecting the skill was definitely a mistake. He should be practicing with it every day... Maybe sparring with Nate some more? But no, his domain made any close-range fights too trivial. Of course, Eve had that fancy new gun... he could let her take shots at him with his eyes closed. Assuming she wouldn''t go for a headshot... She wouldn''t go that far, would she? Though maybe he''d wait for a day when she was less angry, just in case. There was another great reason to work on leveling the skill. It might upgrade or evolve into something better than it currently was. Right now, it only warned him through pain that he was about to suffer damage. But what if he could see the future around him instead of only inside? If he could see what someone else was about to do... especially if the foresight was longer into the future. Not that he''d need much. His mind could definitely process information faster at E-grade, most notably with Still Mind active. There was no telling how much faster D-grade would make his thoughts. A fraction of a second might be an eternity. Eventually. To that end, Stanley focused some of his attention on his premonition skill. More specifically, on trying to use the skill actively rather than however he''d done it before. That was only some of his attention, though, because Theo was landing in front of a very cathedral-looking building. Lots of red brickwork, with stained-glass towering above wide wooden doors. It even had something written in Latin above that. All in all, it was very pretentious looking. Nate only glanced at him once before following Theo through the doors, still with no indications of danger or a trap. It was frustrating as hell to be relying on only his intuition... and the feeling was magnified when they were led into a small theater that was absolutely jam-packed with people. All of them were wearing robes. In every color of the rainbow. Though some were clearly fancier than others... especially when it came to the group on the stage. They sat in a half-circle facing what would have been the audience and while sitting in ridiculously over the top chairs. Almost thrones. Of course, Theo led them to the foot of the stage, where those above could look down at them... Not really an issue when you could fly. Stanley already hated their silent souls, their stupid chairs, and the way they wanted to sit above him like that, but he really, truly hated the invisible wall that prevented his mental touch from reaching past the edge of the stage to where they sat. From any direction. To hell with this! He reached out into the surrounding walls instead, ready to... Daryl''s soul lit up with recognition, disbelief, and then venom that spoke of not only a history but one that ended very badly as he spat out one word, "Dale." 138. I Want Them Alive ~~~Stanley~~~ No one visibly reacted to Daryl''s... hateful statement? But it had the added effect of delaying the damage Stanley had been considering. Apparently, the guy already knew someone here... and really didn''t like them. Stanley could feel Daryl''s soul, so he felt the loathing clearly enough. But he had to follow the man''s gaze to find out which of the fancy robes was the one he hated. It was the guy in the center. In the slightly bigger and fancier chair. Wearing a white robe that definitely belonged in a hippie drum circle rather than in this room. Though the glowing symbols helped a bit... also the fact that everyone else was wearing similar attire, if slightly more colorful. There was also the small matter of Stanley''s own ridiculous white suit... Aside from that, the so-called Dale had a really punchable face. Stanley could see the smug superiority radiating off the man. He could only imagine how much worse it would be if he could feel the guy''s actual soul. A few of the enthroned glanced at Theodore when he took the one empty seat above, but no one spoke. They had an... usher? Or was this supposed to be a courtroom, which would make him a bailiff? Whatever they were called, that guy said loudly, "The council is in session. Be seated." There was a collective noise of people sitting down, but Nate didn''t sit. He didn''t even move. The rest of the team followed his lead after some shuffling glances of their own. "Take your seats," the bailiff said again. Stanley already felt a bit left out, since he was technically already sitting down. Albeit in the air. Of course, he had a solution to the stupid request. He picked everyone back up and brought the chairs with them. High enough that they could look down on the council. Then he sat in a chair. Nate smiled and waved the others toward the flying chairs, but he still didn''t sit himself. He just stood on Stanley''s invisible platform and studied the wizards. Daryl also remained standing. "Seriously, Dale? What wild story did you spin to get these poor bastards to put you in charge?" An expression flashed over Dale''s face. Stanley was guessing... anger? He really hated not feeling their souls. It felt like he was flying blind... He hadn''t even had the skill for that long, but now he couldn''t imagine not having it. "Unlike certain individuals present," Dale said, speaking finally. "Some of us have actual power and don¡¯t need to hide behind someone who does." "You..." Daryl took a step forward, furious... and Adrian put a hand on his arm. He stopped with a glance at his partner, then looked down at Princess, who had stopped growling toward the council. It looked like they were having a silent discussion, presumably through Princess and Cheesesteak. An interesting tactic... Nate didn''t join in or even look at the duo. He was still silently studying both the council and now the gathered crowd in the theatre stands. His soul was... intense. As if he were seeing far more than Stanley could comprehend... It was the first time Stanley had seen him like this, at least when they weren''t in the middle of a life and death battle. Nate was taking his time to do... something. It was enough to make Stanley nervous. So he closed his eyes and focused everything on his mental touch. Well, almost everything. He was still trying to get his premonition to trigger without damage. "Can we get on with this?" a voice said from the stage. "I know some of you enjoy the pomp and circumstance, but I have better things to do with my time." It sounded like Theo, which meant Theo might actually be a better person than Stanley had originally given him credit for. "Very well," Dale''s voice said from behind the impenetrable wall surrounding the stage. A wall Stanley was trying to find a way through. "Let us begin." There was a shuffling sound, and someone cleared their throat. "In the interest of avoiding future conflict, we should discuss your underlings incursion into our..." "No!" Nate growled, speaking for the first time. "Before anything, I want to know... where were you!?" "Please hold your questions until..." the bailiff started. "It''s fine," Dale interrupted. "As for your question, Nathaniel Washington, we''ve been here since..." "Your last name is Washington?" Stanley asked, opening his eyes to look at Nate. "How does he know that and I don''t?" "Because you probably never asked, idiot," Eve muttered under her breath. "Where were you?" Nate ignored Stanley to question Dale again, and his soul was... annoyed at the interruption? Angry too. "Where were you when we were fighting for our lives!?" "I told you..." "Where were you when we were dying!?" Nate yelled... passionately? It was really weird. His soul didn''t match his voice. Sure, he was upset, but his anger was a cold, calculating thing that didn''t match the passion and grief in his voice. Stanley helped anyway by giving their barrier a good mental thump as punctuation to Nate''s yell. Besides, he''d already really wanted to do that... Dale felt it and glared at Stanley briefly before returning his gaze to Nate. "I understand your grief and deeply regret the loss of life... but we did what was necessary to preserve humanity. A lofty goal, and one I believe you share, do you not?" "I..." Nate clenched his trembling hands into fists. "It''s not a goal. I will keep my people alive!" He believed what he was saying, but was still... overacting? Was that what it was called? "You have power here. You could have saved so many more..." "I''m sure you''re familiar with the saying of putting on your own oxygen mask first. While I deeply regret the loss of every human life, we were simply in no position to help you." His voice sounded sincere... but Stanley wasn''t buying it. Not without feeling his soul to confirm. Stanley made his feelings known by giving their barrier another solid whack. The damn thing felt solid as fuck, but he really wanted to tear it down. Nate panted, his chest heaving and fists clenching and unclenching, as if he were having trouble controlling his emotions... which he wasn''t. "You could have done... something." "The heroes who paid the ultimate price did not do so in vain," Dale said after another annoyed-looking glance Stanley''s way. "Their sacrifices have given us a chance. They''ve given us the power to fight back. Together, we will win this war... though I would appreciate it if you could keep your underlings under better control." Nate pretended to slowly calm down as his gaze followed Dale''s glare back to Stanley. "I... well, Stanley isn''t an underling. He pretty much does whatever he wants... no matter what I say." Nate sighed. "Him and his dog." Dale looked at Stanley... sourly? "We need teamwork to survive, not wildcards. No matter how strong they might be. Or think they are... Stanley Cascade." What was with using people''s full names? Was that a power play? Or a knowledge thing? He knew Nate''s full name, but who fucking cared? Stanley hit the barrier again. Nate only shrugged, but his soul felt pleased. "Talk to him, but be nice to the dog... I recommend chicken." "Yes... the beast lord," Dale said while staring at Stanley. Or at Caffeine. It was hard to tell. "A volatile weapon. One that might turn in your hand." It felt... rude. He was talking about Stanley, but not really to him. Or was he talking about Caffeine? That made no sense. Even Stanley knew he was the volatile one, not Caffeine. "Can we work together, Stanley Cascade?" Daryl''s soul reacted strongly to the question. He was vehemently against it, but said nothing. It looked like the duo had picked up on something about what Nate was doing and now they were content to wait. Stanley glared at the blank face of a man who was hiding both himself and his soul behind a barrier. He wasn''t sure what Nate wanted or if he cared either way. "I don''t see why not... assuming Caffeine likes you." Nate smiled, but his soul wasn''t happy. He was... upset. He was upset with Stanley... with his answer? He didn''t want Stanley to work with them? That was fine. In fact, Stanley didn''t like the idea either. Not just yet. "There''s just one important detail we need to deal with before that''s going to happen," Stanley said, and drifted out of his seat to hover higher above Dale and company. "You are going to drop that shield and show me your souls. All of you. Right now." There was always a chance they didn''t know about his soul abilities, but considering the name dropping and mention of divination wizards before... they probably already knew. Besides, he really wanted a look at their souls, regardless. Stanley had to question his assumption about what they knew when he got reactions from nearly the entire council at the statement. From widening eyes to shifting in their seats. Not just them, either. The entire audience did the same. Though only Dale spoke up. Quickly too. "Absolutely not." Dale definitely knew about the soul stuff. Some of the others might know as well, but he definitely knew. And he really wanted to keep his own soul hidden. "You have soul shields?" Nate asked innocently. "I didn''t realize... but you know it''s not that bad, right? Sure, he''s a little loud, but it won''t hurt you." "Our shields, as you put it, are my greatest creation," Dale said, just a bit smugly. "I didn''t create such a thing to avoid mere unpleasantness, but to protect the most vital parts of myself and our people. You would not be so cavalier about walking around unshielded if you knew how exposed you were." "Oh, what do you know?" Nate asked, now with fake earnest curiosity. Dale looked sideways at Stanley. "I know it is possible for someone to manipulate another person''s soul." He paused, probably for exactly the reaction he got from everyone. A lot of gasps and whispers, along with some suddenly worried souls among Stanley''s group. "Doing so could change a person. Fundamentally. So you can understand why I wouldn''t risk such a thing. Of course, I''m sure Stanley has done nothing of the sort..." While most of Stanley''s... friends had some reaction to the not-so-subtle idea he might have manipulated their souls, Eve was the worst. She went right to an almost full-blown panic... the crazy bitch. She literally hated him. Constantly threatened and insulted him, and now she thought he was manipulating her soul... What did she think he was doing? Making her hate him? That just sounded weird... though Stanley had to admit he enjoyed pissing her off sometimes. Was he subconsciously influencing... no, her crazy was all her own. Though there was probably a skill for that¡ªa soul skill. "That''s... a lot to think about," Nate said. Meanwhile, his soul held not even a hint of suspicion. "I don''t care," Stanley said. "You can go one at a time and watch carefully if you''re worried, but I will see all of your souls or I will consider you my enemies." Nate liked that a lot, even though he frowned and said, "Stanley, that''s a little extreme, isn''t..." If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. "I''m with Stanley on this one," Daryl chimed in. "It''s not like he can lie to anyone with that soul of his... so I say let him see what they are hiding." There was definitely some malicious intent in there... gleefully malicious, but he had the main point right. Eve was staring intently and suspiciously at him, but Stanley ignored her. Zeke just looked worried as he watched the exchange, and the rest of the team felt like they weren''t sure what to think. "You may have built a reputation out there, Stanley Cascade, but throwing a tantrum will not help you in here. This is our sanctum. A place we have built with our blood, sweat, and tears. It will stand, even against you, so save your threats for someone else." "It''s not a threat," Stanley said. "It''s a promise." He''d always wanted to say that... and he meant it, too. "This is an odd way to go about gathering alliances, Nathaniel," Dale said. "We might have a problem if you can''t control your mad dog." That was just uncalled for; Caffeine wasn''t a mad... Hey! I''m not a... dog. Nate''s soul was smiling and in no way matched his voice when he looked pleadingly at Stanley and said, "Let it go, Stanley. Look, Zeke''s aura isn''t burning anyone. They''re obviously not undead." "No..." Stanley said hesitantly while listening to Nate''s soul and trying to figure out what the man actually wanted from him. Nate liked the refusal, even as he frowned... Did he want a fight? Why? More importantly, why go about it like this? Why not just tell him to kick their asses and get it over with? "I''m going to see your souls," Stanley growled, and gave the building a shake to punctuate his words. "One way or another." It was sturdy. It was obviously a sapient lair already, but it also might have been reinforced beyond that. He''d need to put a hole in it to really tell. Stanley wasn''t against the idea of using violence. He was all for anything that involved slapping around the smug bastard wearing a white bathrobe. Plus, he really hated not being able to feel their souls... He wasn''t faking anything on that front. "It''s okay," Zeke said as he rushed to close the gap with golden light already shining from his hands. He was a good kid, but Nate pulled him back. "Don''t, Zeke. It''s not safe when he''s like this." That one hurt. Stanley wouldn''t do anything to the boy. Not again... Though he felt a little better when Zeke agreed with him. "He won''t hurt..." "I can''t let you risk yourself," Nate said while holding onto him. "Just go, Stanley! You don''t have to do this!" It felt comically obvious he was acting... but maybe it was because he could feel his soul? "No," Stanley said. "I don''t think I will..." Nate wanted a fight with the wizards... and he was going to get one. The only thing Stanley worried about now was that he might make Caffeine nervous, but for now the pug only sat calmly in his lap. A dead giveaway for anyone that knew him... so maybe their divination magic wasn''t all that? Stanley looked at the mostly relaxed Caffeine and thought about what it would mean if these wizards were traitors to humanity. It was the only explanation why they would so adamantly hide their souls. What if they were working with the skeletons? That might be the reason they were thriving here. What if they were working with the monsters who had hurt Caffeine before? The monsters who cut him. Who bled him. Who made him CRY! Caffeine sat up in his lap. Break The invisible barrier around the council shattered into very visible shards of light. Like breaking glass that evaporated a moment later. Still, no souls registered. "No!" Nate yelled. "Stop!" He was lying. Dale smiled and drew a god-damned golden scepter from his bathrobe''s sleeve. "You shouldn''t have done that. Attacking the council is a death sentence." His scepter flashed with white light, mirrored by an arcane-looking magic circle covering the stage, and a new barrier replaced the broken one. "Surrender now, dog, and I will commute your sentence. Killing you would be a waste when you can still be useful to the fight." Death sentence, but he would commute it? If he surrendered? Surrendered!? Break Dale smiled even wider as another barrier appeared before the first had even finished evaporating. "We shouldn''t do this," Theo shouted over the growing commotion. A few other voices among the council joined in the protest. Green, yellow, and orange robes, respectively. "Silence," Dale said, and his voice boomed through the theatre. Quiet followed, and he continued, "I''ll handle this personally." He said it so confidently... then raised his little scepter. The loser didn''t even have a crown. How sad was that? More symbols lit up around the entire room. Magic circles, some square things, and plenty of pentagram-looking stuff with sharp angles. All of them sent streaks of light toward Stanley. All of them failed to trigger his premonition in the slightest, and none of it reached him before he''d moved Caffeine away. Debuff Gained: [Gravitational Singularity] Debuff Gained: [Air Compression] Debuff Gained: [Blinding Light] Debuff Gained: [Constricting Chains] More followed, but the chains grabbed Stanley''s attention the most. Some very unpleasant memories rose at the sight of that debuff, but unlike last time, these chains were nothing. BREAK Debuff Removed: [Constricting Chains] The chains evaporated, along with a small explosion where the presumably linked symbol collapsed and vanished. He went after the rest of them; the task made slightly harder with the blinding light filling his eyes. Harder, but not impossible. It also hurt. Not a lot, but enough that it was getting annoying. Though he was glad about moving Caffeine out of the way... a single spell shot toward the pug. You fucking... Caffeine ate the spell almost casually. Okay... I guess I don''t need to... No. Fuck this guy. Stanley ignored the spells hitting him and set his gaze on Dale. Time to... "Stop this!" Nate yelled while his soul said the opposite. "We shouldn''t be killing each other!" Only... he actually meant that last part. He didn''t want Stanley to kill them? Then what was the fucking point of starting a fight!? "Relax," Dale said in a sudden lull between his never-ending spells. "I will release him when he surrenders." Stanley wanted to take a deep breath; maybe do some meditating to calm down, but he literally couldn''t move enough to take a single breath. So many spells wrapped around him... digging into his suit... into his flesh. Instead, he looked at Dale. More specifically, at the scepter in his hand... one it looked like he was using to trigger the magic. Nate wanted them alive, but it wouldn''t kill Dale to lose a hand. Or two. Besides, Zeke''s aura was still going. Cut This time, a symbol flared and died, only it was on the bastard''s robe. Cut Cut Cut More of the shiny white patterns on that stupid robe flared and burned out with each attack, and Stanley could see Dale''s eyes widening with the loss of each one. Had he really thought defending was all Stanley could do? It was slightly surprising that no one else had attacked him yet; the rest of the council only watched the fight. Sure, a few of them were casting spells, but most of those looked like personal protection effects... so Stanley left them alone in return. The audience was a slightly different story. Most of them remained in their seats, with no whisper from their souls. Cut Cut Cut Finally, after an unknown number of attempts, a hand fell to the stage with a golden scepter still clutched in the dismembered limb. Best of all, Stanley finally felt Dale''s soul. It was full of gleeful anticipation... at least for a moment. Then the idiot realized he was down by one hand and shrieked in pain. Then he got stupid. "He''ll kill us all!" Dale screamed. "Destroy him!" Half of them protested, while the other half attacked. The magic pelting Stanley increased by magnitudes, and far less of it was restraining this time around. Now they wanted him dead. He activated Still Mind, and in the slow-time of the skill, he struck back. Or at least he tried to. He blocked some spells, redirected others, and shattered even more. Yet the magic came on even faster than he could handle it. He had more time to take it all in, but not enough to stop everything. One of the spells dragged him down to the floor, and he didn''t even think about Nate and the others until he saw the ring of light appear around him... and them. He didn''t see it with his eyes; it was little more than a white thread hanging in the air. But in his mental touch and in his domain, it had substance and weight. A wide, flat blade that hovered in a circle around them... It appeared along with an array of symbols surrounding the area where the wizards had wanted them to sit... where all of his friends and Caffeine were now standing. You fucking... Stanley didn''t see the blade move. Only his domain told him it had... that, and the flash of pain when it cut through his head... through all of them... then he was falling while everything went dark... Skill Level Up: Premonition Caffeine appeared a step away, standing tall enough to hold a blinding white ring of magic between his teeth. Cutting magic that even now strained and sizzled as it tried to close the circle. He''d stopped it... and was holding it back. Stanley felt a moment of excitement and glee at realizing what his premonition had just done... but only a moment. Because an instant later, he saw the blood dripping from Caffeine''s jaws as the pug slid backwards, his claws leaving trenches in the wooden floor. Caffeine growled as he slid back, and everything stuttered to a vibrating stop beneath the sound of his angry growl. The people. The deadly magic. The air itself. Everything stopped. It was plenty of time to take it all in. Plenty of time to stare at the falling drops of Caffeine''s blood as each crimson orb vibrated in midair, glistening with the reflected light of so much magic. Magic that really was some bullshit. Some deadly bullshit. Stanley stared at that frozen blood as a new and terrible realization settled over him. He''d lost... he''d picked a fight and lost. Caffeine had saved everyone. Again. A new feeling followed on the heels of that thought... wrath. They will all die now. It didn''t matter what Nate wanted anymore. It was too late for all of them. They were the enemy, and they had to die. Still Mind ended under the weight of his wrath, and Stanley unleashed the storm. That was when everything went... strange. Caffeine''s jaws slammed shut, shattering the ring of light into shards. Then his jaws opened back up, and the ring put itself back together as reality twisted in a horrifying and terrible sensation. A rewinding... The storm crawled back into Stanley, his murderous anger withdrew, and Still Mind reactivated... right as a voice shouted, "Stop!" Stanley lost Still Mind and blinked in absolute confusion as he abruptly found himself back in the air where he''d been before, hovering above the stage with everyone else amid the fight with... the wizards? Only... no one was attacking... Not only were they not attacking, but he could feel their souls. All of them. They felt as terrible as he was feeling... as terrible as every single soul was feeling... He caught his friends right as they started falling, more out of instinct than anything else, and then just struggled to understand what had happened. He was so angry a moment ago... but now he wasn''t? He was about to kill the wizards a moment ago... only now the storm was absent. He was in the... past? It was the only explanation that seemed to make sense. They all just traveled backwards in time. Only... Caffeine still stood on the floor below. Right where he had been before... Or had his premonition seen farther than he''d thought? "What..." Dale gasped, drawing Stanley''s gaze and pulling him away from his speculation. Then the bastard dry-heaved and growled, "What did you do!?" The council members were all back in their seats. As if they''d never joined the fight. Which they hadn''t... had they? Dale was looking to his right and directing the venom in his soul toward the wizard sitting beside him. An older man in a purple robe. Purple-robe was doing much better than everyone else, but he wasn''t unaffected. There was no nausea coming from his soul, only an all-consuming weariness as he slumped in his chair. "Stand down," Purple gasped out. "All of you, stand down." It seemed unnecessary. None of the souls still in the room felt like they wanted to fight. Well, there was one. "I had him!" Dale growled while clutching what should have been his stump of a wrist... Cheating time travel. "No," Purple wheezed. "You killed us all. Your future led only to our end." "No!" Dale yelled, struggling to stand before falling to the floor, gagging. Caffeine hopped into Stanley''s lap and licked his nose with a small whine. "Good boy," Stanley whispered as his hands came up without conscious thought to pet the pug. "Very... good boy." His thoughts remained as tumultuous as everyone''s souls felt. They''d time-traveled. Literally went back in time. All of them. With maybe the exception of Caffeine... Just how damn powerful were these fucking wizards!? Too powerful. They had to die. That time travel had fucked him up, but he still had some fight in him... enough that he could finish this. Enough to end the threat for good. "Don''t kill them!" So, of course, Nate protested. 139. Win Win? ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley stared at Nate while dragging in ragged breaths. His chest felt tight... and his hands wouldn''t stop shaking as he ran them over Caffeine''s soft fur. He could feel Nate''s soul. He could feel the... happiness? The triumph? Nate had wanted him to fight, hadn''t he? This was all part of some plan? But they''d died... Buff Gained: [Purifying Aura] A tongue touched Stanley''s nose, and he pulled his gaze away from Nate to look into the big brown eyes of the worried pug in his lap. Caffeine was fine. He wasn''t hurt... anymore. He''d saved... Stanley looked at his friends then. Rather, he looked at their souls, because none of them felt upset enough about what had just happened. About how they''d all died... Because it hadn''t happened. Because it was a premonition that never came true. Caffeine had saved them. They didn''t even know how close it had been... Stanley was the only one who saw them all die. He was the only one who had felt himself dying... They didn''t know. Nate didn''t know that his little plan had come so close to disaster. Or did he? "Nate," Stanley said, and his voice came out as a growl. "You almost..." "I know," Nate said, interrupting as he approached. "I know it got dicey at the end there..." His gaze went to Caffeine and then back up to Stanley. "But we''re okay." "If Caffeine hadn''t..." Stanley''s head snapped toward the stage, where a soul had just vanished. Dale''s soul. "Don''t hide!" Dale''s shield might have blocked his soul, but he hadn''t put it up early enough to hide what he intended. Which meant Stanley was expecting it when the bastard reached for his scepter... Stanley didn''t have to do anything about it. Because the other wizards reacted even faster, and their still visible souls told Stanley exactly what they were after. Or rather, who they were after when a dozen spells knocked out, knocked down, and then restrained the unconscious Dale. Someone gasped, and Stanley rounded on the bleachers, where a bunch of wizards were still sitting and hiding their souls. A bunch of bastards who''d just sat there and watched... "Show me your fucking souls! Now!" Less than half of them complied, and Stanley reached for the defiant... "Do as he says," a voice said from the stage. Theo''s voice. "Release your shields." They complied. Slowly. But all of them showed their souls. Eventually. Some were frightened, but most only felt confused... and all of them were humans. Nate reached out but stopped short of touching Stanley. Instead, he leaned in close and whispered, "I can handle this from here. If you want to take everyone back to the tower?" Stanley studied the man''s face and soul. Nate was slightly worried but mostly confident, and his soul still had that sense of triumph... "What are you after?" There was no hesitation in his reply. "Allies." His eyes flicked toward the stage, but his head didn''t move. "You did what you... needed to do. Can you trust me to take it from here?" "I... fine." He trusted Nate. Maybe it was a mistake. Maybe he shouldn''t trust anyone. But even Caffeine liked the man, and that was the best endorsement there was. Plus, he really wanted to get out of here. His premonition skill had finally advanced in almost exactly the way he''d wanted it too, and it hadn''t been enough. Magic was still too dangerous. If he couldn''t deal with a handful of weakling human wizards, then how was he supposed to fight the skeletons? Stanley grabbed everyone, cut a hole in the ceiling, and flew outside. Daryl laughed about something, and Adrian admonished him. Then they bickered back and forth about historical buildings and which ones actually mattered. All of that happened while Stanley hovered above the defaced building and scanned their surroundings. For whatever it was worth. He already knew the undead could hide their souls, and now a bunch of humans could do the same. So trying to scout the area was probably pointless. Instead, he moved them all to the tower. It took a few seconds to make the trip. Far too long. Anything could happen in that amount of time. Everyone could die in a single instant. Stanley looked at the others as they tromped into the penthouse from the balcony. He felt the eyes avoiding him... as well as the ones that never strayed from him. Daryl and Adrian kept bickering about nonsense, but it was a shield. Against him or simply against reality, he didn''t know. Zeke tried not to stare, but his concern was blatantly obvious. Eve didn''t even try to hide anything. "What the fuck happened back there!?" "Nate wanted... he wanted a fight." "Obviously!" Eve yelled. "I mean, what the fuck happened to you!? Aside from that rewinding bullshit, didn''t you kick their butts? Why are you acting like we fucking lost!?" "I..." Stanley looked away. He couldn''t stop seeing that blade go through their heads. He could still remember the feeling of them dying... Stanley said nothing else as he retreated to his room and the silence it offered... but it didn''t help. He paced back and forth, only while sitting in the air instead of walking. Maybe that was why it wasn''t helping. He needed to fight something. To kill something. But he was supposed to be protecting Zeke... "Caff, stay." Stanley dropped the pug back in the main room and flew outside. He then ensured Caffeine wouldn''t try to follow by flying in a new direction. Over the ocean. It might be dangerous to leave Zeke there, but between everyone else and Caffeine, he should be fine. Besides, he didn''t fly very far. Only far enough to find some monsters to kill, and the ocean was plenty full of those. The sun was getting low, which meant the water got dark fast when he dropped beneath the surface. Stanley didn''t stop. He had premonition and his domain. Both of which he desperately needed to improve. His domain was too small... and it was probably the only possible way he could have saved the others from that spell. Or if his premonition had given more warning. Stanley knew what was wrong. He had gotten too powerful... and without a threat breathing down his neck all this time, it made him lazy. It made him soft. Sleeping in Walter''s nice, safe, and peaceful room had cost him. He''d lost his edge... and he''d made the worst mistake of all. He got civilized. So he plunged into the depths full of unknown monsters, leaving Caffeine behind. The pug was worried and a little nervous, but he was safe. That was all that mattered. Stanley didn''t need him down here, and he guessed being under the water would only make the little guy more upset than leaving him behind. The first thing he found under the surface was a fish. Well, a lot of fish. Presumably. They had the right shape, but Stanley didn''t think many fish swam around Boston with teeth quite like that. It was closer to something only seen when they dragged those alien-looking fish from the lowest depths... There was a whole school of them rushing through the water faster than anything pre-system would have been capable of moving. They came right for him, though he wasn''t sure how they knew he was there. Particularly when he wasn''t even physically touching the water. They blasted into the side of his air bubble... and ricocheted off. Even the massive numbers trying to get through didn''t make a difference compared to holding back the ocean. The pressure grew exponentially as he descended, and Stanley kept going down until he reached the ocean floor. It was good. He actually had to strain slightly against the water... the only downside was that he couldn''t get any deeper. The fish chased him all the way down. Obviously, they were tracking him somehow. Maybe they could see better than him down here? Then he killed one, and things really went crazy. More... fish swarmed in from every direction. Not only did the others in the first group turn on and devour their dead companion, but more of every swimming creature joined the party. The one dead fish quickly turned the surrounding ocean into a bloodbath as the feeding frenzy began in earnest. At least until something bigger showed up. Stanley would have assumed it was a whale based on how big it was, if not for the rows of teeth. That made it feel more like a shark¡ªonly it was one that could swallow him whole. Which it did, air bubble and all. Along with at least a hundred of the small fish. It was so big that he barely even got jostled on the way into its belly. He didn''t do anything right away, waiting to see if perhaps something bigger might come out to play. Like, say, a giant octopus. Unfortunately, other than the shark carrying him further away from Caffeine, nothing really happened. Well, all the fish that came into the shark''s stomach with him died in terrible pain. Then the cores vanished when the formerly spacious stomach collapsed violently inward. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Light Stanley lit up his fleshy prison and immediately regretted it. Disgusting meat pressed in on him from all sides, along with a sizzling liquid that was rapidly melting everything outside his bubble into a soup. It burned at his mind strongly enough that he knew he would get hungry before long if he kept holding it back like this. Of course, he wouldn''t sit there and let that happen. Cut More fish swarmed the dead shark, and not only the toothy ones. Stanley''s hovering light showed him the varieties all too well. Including some that looked like perfectly normal fish. At least until they opened their toothless mouths near the corpse and little bite-sized pieces of shark meat ripped away from the carcass. As if being pulled by an immense force. Hundreds of those fish took those tiny bites multiple times a second, eating far more than their size would suggest possible and destroying the shark at a terrifying rate. Stanley assumed their bites must be weaker on a living creature; otherwise, there wouldn''t be anything else alive down here. Not with how fast they went through a megalodon-sized shark. Plus, they weren''t going after the other fish, only the corpse. He barely managed to snatch the core before they got to it... Which led to an interesting use of his power that he''d never needed before. Pulling a core through his mental wall that was holding back the ocean. It worked better than he thought it should. Because... mind over matter? His mental barrier wasn''t a literal wall; for all that it behaved like one. It might not even be a wall... unless he thought of it that way. It was more akin to his mind simply telling the ocean it couldn''t come any closer... So, of course, that kind of wall did not impede the core in the slightest. Then he killed the hundreds of magic-biting fish and took their cores too. As expected, their bloody corpses brought about another feeding-frenzy, and this time, Stanley kept killing as each new group or individual showed up. Even the shrimp, crabs, and lobsters that swarmed across the ocean floor. Watching them skitter into the light was... disconcerting. Cores rained down into his air pocket, and he absorbed them all as fast as they came. He wasn''t sure how long his air would remain good in here and was a little tempted to see if he could forcibly convert whatever gases were in the bubble with him into oxygen. Tempted, but he didn''t try it. Not only did he barely understand what oxygen actually was, but this didn''t seem like a good time for experimentation. It would be much smarter to test that kind of idea on someone else. Ideally, against an enemy not underwater. Maybe by turning all of their oxygen into something else... or by turning all the air into oxygen and creating a spark? What if he compressed it first? Or created hydrogen with the oxygen? Could he brute force a hydrogen bomb? Something to test once he was not on the ocean floor and out of range of Caffeine and all the healers. Though, if shit went bad down here, he had a feeling Caffeine wouldn''t let the ocean stop him... Caffeine versus the ocean was not something Stanley wanted to test. For Caffeine''s sake. Poor little guy didn''t deserve that stress. Besides, he was already stressing out the pug enough by hunting down here... Stanley could feel that Caffeine wasn''t playing back in the tower. It didn''t even feel like he was moving. Hell, he was probably staring out a window at the ocean and trembling. Sorry, Caff. Stanley didn''t linger very long after that. Sure, he was raking in the cores pretty well, but a few more attributes weren''t what he needed. Premonition wouldn''t make any progress down here, and holding back the ocean, while slightly tiring, wasn''t going to improve his domain control. Trying to edit atmospheric gases might help, but he could do that out of the water and closer to Caffeine. The next best training might be to go pick another fight with the wizards. As long as he left everyone else home... and assuming he could get Caffeine to sit out the fight. Getting that to happen might depend on whatever Nate''s plan had been, as well as whatever he was doing now. Speaking of Nate... Stanley thought he felt his soul up near Caffeine. A good enough reason to head back. He headed that way along the ocean floor. Both to keep the frenzied fish cores coming and because he wanted to see if he could enter the tower through the fishing hole at the base. Walter had told him about it, but he''d never actually gone to check it out. There was a large gathering of souls below the tower, but they were behind walls¡ªlair walls. Well, perhaps cave was a more accurate description. It was an interesting tactic to create a sapient lair literally on top of a monster lair, and it should have meant easy cores for the hunters... though Stanley supposed the whole underwater part might have put a damper on that idea. The more interesting implication was that it meant there were underwater lairs¡ªpotentially as many as there were in the city above¡ªlairs he hadn''t tapped yet. Of course, there was one major downside of exploring said lairs. They were underwater. As for Walter''s fish lair... Stanley could reach through and kill them if he wanted, but he''d need to look for an entrance to get the cores, and Caffeine''s worry was getting to be too much. Plus, Nate had indeed returned, and the bastard felt far too pleased with himself... "Stanley," Nate said, only slightly wary when Stanley flew into the penthouse. "First off, thanks for going along with me back there. I know it got... sketchy." For his part, Stanley resisted the urge to throw the man out a window and instead gave Caffeine a very thorough greeting involving belly rubs and some raw shark meat he''d brought back specifically for him. He would have preferred to bring back some giant squid, but that particular bastard hadn''t shown itself. Finally, he looked at Nate. "Sketchy? Everyone almost died." Nate winced. "I... noticed that." He glanced down at Caffeine. "I had faith." Then back up. "In both of you." Stanley wanted to yell at him for being an idiot... but he''d gone along with the plan. "So why? I''m assuming you had a damn good reason for that?" "Definitely," Nate said, before turning to Daryl. "First off, you were about to tell us what you know about Dale?" "Yeah, yeah," Daryl said. "He''s just some stuck-up prick that thinks he''s all that, even though everything in his life was literally handed to him on a silver platter." "Says the guy living in a penthouse with a butler," Eve muttered. Daryl shrugged. "I''m a trust-fund brat too... Well, I was... It''s just that I don''t go around telling everyone how fucking great I am. The little shit only got into Harvard because of his parents. Hell, he only graduated because they donated a damn building to the school, but he''s just so... smug. About nothing!" "His school life aside," Nate said, heading off what sounded like the beginning of a well-rehearsed rant. "I knew something was off with the guy when we first got in there." Stanley tensed, but Nate held up a hand. "I don''t know that he''s a traitor... I only knew he had no intention of helping us. Can''t say why, but I knew he wanted to hustle us out with a few threats and perhaps a show of power. On top of that, he seemed to have some hold over the rest of them." "I could have just killed him and been done with..." "No. I don''t think that would have worked,¡± Nate said. ¡°Not that you couldn¡¯t beat him,¡± he added quickly. ¡°But it would have turned them all against us. Plus, I wasn''t lying when I said he could help us. It turns out he''s the singular person responsible for their shields. Among other things. Dale wasn''t lying; enchanters are actually powerful. Especially on his home turf, where he had all that shit ready to go." "And I care about any of that, why?" Stanley asked, glaring. "We almost died for a fucking soul shield? Caffeine is the only reason any of you are alive!" He was pretty sure he could have escaped death himself... the rest of them, not so much. "It was a calculated risk," Nate said, smiling at Caffeine. "I told you, I had faith..." "That''s a lot of fucking faith," Eve growled, and both Adrian and Daryl echoed her sentiment, if not in so many words. Stanley had a much bigger problem than Nate''s fucking faith. Obviously, Caffeine would step up. Obviously, he would do whatever he fucking had to do to save his friends! "You used him," Stanley growled at the man through gritted teeth. "You... hurt him!" His hands shook, and he wanted nothing more than to punch the cocky bastard in front of him. "You hurt him to make some asshole look bad!" "I had..." Nate tried to speak, but Stanley grabbed him, then squeezed his throat until no more words could escape. "Are we all pawns in your game, Nate? How much are you willing to sacrifice? How many of us will you kill to get what you fucking want!?" Nate activated his buffs, his strength increasing enough that he started squirming in Stanley''s grip. Enough that he could wheeze out, "What... ever... it... takes." Stanley considered getting really angry... and dropped him instead, exacerbated. "How does that make you a better option than anyone else? Like that asshole, Dale. Wasn''t he doing the same damn thing!?" "Because I give a damn." Nate said while rubbing his throat. "I give a damn about every one of you. About every human out there who¡¯s still fighting on our side." He stepped right up into Stanley''s face. "Look at my soul, Stanley. Look and understand that I will risk all our lives for what I believe in." "And what exactly do you believe in?" Daryl asked with a healthy amount of skepticism. "Humanity," Nate said without hesitation and without breaking eye contact with Stanley. "I will do whatever it takes to preserve humanity. You know this. Even if I have to die to make it happen." He wasn''t lying. At least his soul wasn''t lying... but who knew what that meant anymore? "So yes, I risked our lives today. But it wasn''t a reckless or thoughtless choice. I''m talking about less than one percent odds of a bad outcome. It worked, too. That crazy gamble will pay off for all of us. Even that asshole, Dale, will be better off thanks to what I did! Thanks to the fact that I risked our lives! Yes, even Caffeine''s life! Which, honestly..." Nate ran a hand over his head while taking a step back and looking down at the now slightly nervous pug in Stanley''s lap. "Yeah, he got hurt, and I''m sorry about that, but I don''t think they could have ever killed Caff." He met Stanley''s gaze again. "Or you... hell, you were about to kill them all at the end there, weren''t you?" Stanley felt a little embarrassed at the reminder, but he only held onto his anger and glared back at Nate. "Because you fucking wanted me to!" "Not exactly. I don''t see the future, Stanley. Remember? It''s all gut feelings. Intuition." "Are you fucking kidding me!?" Daryl exclaimed. "Everyone said you could see the future... but... Oh, fuck this!" He threw up his hands and stormed away. "I need a drink." Nate smiled. "Hey, I never said that." Stanley watched Daryl pull a bottle from a cupboard and almost asked for a drink... but didn''t. Even if it would work on his insane regeneration, he didn''t have time to waste like that. He''d seen today just how much power he still lacked. Never mind if the skeletons showed up again... There was one other thing, though. "What about the wizard with the time travel spell? He said he saw the future..." "Time travel?" Nate shook his head. "That little reversal spell? I mean, yeah, it was powerful. But I wouldn''t call that time travel¡ªnot really. The range was crap, and Caffeine straight up resisted it, from what I saw. I''m kind of surprised you didn''t..." Stanley glared at him. "I was... distracted. Next time, I''ll kick his ass too." "Actually..." Nate winced and held up his hands. "I may have promised them your transporting abilities tomorrow, but if you don''t want to..." "No, it''s fine," Stanley growled, a smile creeping onto his face. "I was just thinking about going back for another... Wait, where am I taking them?" Nate grinned. "We''re getting our own wizards. Here and back home. Part of the deal we reached after you scared the shit out of their divination master. Apparently they considered that reversal spell of his a big deal, and when he said they were all dead without it... Well, look at it this way, Stanley. They know you could have killed all of them, and you didn''t actually have to kill anyone... so, win win?" Stanley sighed, watched Daryl throw back a shot, and then looked out into the darkening city. The choice was obvious. "You want a ride home? I have shit to do." 140. Changed ~~~Lee~~~ "Contractual. Zhint racial trait," Z said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Wait, every race has a racial trait?" Lee asked with a glance toward Trak while realizing that he''d never thought to ask about the anubian trait... "And yours is literally about contracts?" "Correct," Z said. "Successfully completed contracts most rapid way to advance for our race. More efficient than hunting alone." "I guess that explains why you are so obsessed..." Lee trailed off with a shake of his head. "How much has that trait shaped your culture? Were you like this before the system, or only after you got the trait?" "Unknown. But highly probable that trait led to current culture." "That doesn''t bother you?" "No. Very efficient. Nothing to complain about." "Never mind that," Wilson said. "What we need to discuss is this D-grade event and how to prepare for it." "I mean, yeah?" Lee said. "But what is there to do that we aren''t already doing?" Alejandro finally stopped pacing and rounded on Z. "Explain it again. In plain English this time." "I do not speak English," Z said. "I..." "It''s an expression," Saira snapped. "It means keep it simple." She hadn''t warmed to the alien. At all. Lee completely understood and sympathised. She''d almost lost her daughter to the creature. Lee understood, but he didn''t share her distrust. Probably because of the contract, or because he could feel its soul, or both. "Dungeon warfare," Z said. Again. "At D-grade, world will compete with others. Winning world absorbs the losers. Grows bigger." Aside from the insanity of a planet growing bigger... it explained his comment from before when he said earth was small. "But how does a world fight another world?" Wilson asked. "Same way. Fighting. Invasions. Have fought in a few. Likely you will face another fort of similar strength and numbers." It was hard to tell which way Z was looking with those black eyes, especially behind the helmet, but Lee felt the gaze land on him, regardless. Because it wouldn''t be similar. Because of him. Most of the people gathered here knew that, and Lee was seriously considering bringing Wilson into the club. Not just him, either. Harold had already noticed the discrepancies... He and everyone else fighting for this place should know what they were getting into. It was possible they''d lose some fighters if Lee told everyone the truth, but it wasn''t like they were getting nothing out of the deal now. Lee knew personally how powerful his runes were when it came to hunting in the lairs. If he kept handling the more serious threats himself... or let Z help. He wasn''t sure how much help Z would actually be. The alien''s D-grade presence would only increase the threat of D-grade invaders, but at the very least, he should balance out. "Which is the problem," Wilson said in a soft voice and then glanced around, as if afraid someone would overhear. Which was unlikely since they were in Lee''s apartment. Wilson''s idea. Probably because he kept bringing up the same thing and discussions like this weren''t something he wanted to have out in the open. "We have too many useless people here." Z had already explained the invasion process, including how they got to choose a difficulty and how the total number of humans here had a very real impact on what could come through. That wasn''t even counting Lee''s impact... "What happens to the losers?" Alejandro asked, ignoring Wilson''s statement. To be fair, it wasn''t the first time the other man had brought up the subject, and no one liked where that discussion always led. "For example, if we win, but our world loses?" "Will be absorbed into victorious world. Earth will be no more." "But it won''t kill us... or split us up, right?" "Entire fort domain will go together. If fort is still standing. All beyond that may go anywhere on other world. No way to know where." "Okay," Alejandro said. "Okay. That''s good." His gaze landed on Lee before wandering past the other people in the room to look at the door. Lee knew he was thinking of his wife and kids in the courtyard and probably imagining a scenario very much like the one Lee and his twin were facing. Only how much worse would it be if he couldn''t feel the other''s soul... and if the world was ten times bigger? Definitely a good reason to avoid getting separated. The real problem was that almost all the lairs were beyond the fort domain. Z actually seemed to guess where the conversation was going. "Will have warning. Not long, but enough to return. Also, not an issue yet. Will take a while to reach a win or lose. Even after world is D-grade." "Do you know when we will reach D-grade?" Wilson asked. Z didn''t glance at Lee, but he felt its soul do the equivalent. "Your world advances quickly. Will reach D-grade soon. Exact estimate... difficult. Knowledge focused on fighting. Not research." Again, Lee''s fault. As Trak had already assumed. Unfortunately, there was definitely a lot of stuff the zhint didn''t know, and he wasn''t much better than Trak when it came to knowledge about the source. The majority of what he did know was more interesting than useful. Like the fact that civilized races didn''t absorb cores... they got experience. Or that was what the system called it, at least. Z claimed it was them absorbing a fraction of their defeated foe''s essence... the part that didn''t go into the core. Lee planned to have the alien kill something where he could watch... though it apparently had to be at least the same grade for them to get anything. So it wouldn''t happen soon. Hopefully. Lee had a bad feeling about just how soon that might happen. He really needed to get his attributes higher... and, as luck would have it, he''d just come into possession of a certain contracted fighter that could hunt easily in earth''s E-grade lairs. Lee had sent him out hunting the day before, mostly so everyone could stop looking at him so warily. Z hadn''t complained about the task. In fact, he didn''t complain about anything. The humans who went along behind him complained enough for everyone. Especially the useless ones. There weren''t that many people being totally useless, but there were some. Enough time had passed by now that Lee could no longer let them coast anymore. Yes, the world had changed drastically. Yes, it was traumatic. But now it was time to pull it together. Never mind that their very presence increased the risk for everyone. The free ride was over. Everyone had to do something. Anything really. If they couldn''t hunt and couldn''t make anything useful, then they were pretty much only good as gophers for other people. Including going behind the hunters and carrying back the loot. Which most often involved lugging piles of bloody animal parts back to the fort for food and crafting both. It wasn''t a popular job, but all the cooks charged cores or raw product now, so if you didn''t do something, you wouldn''t eat. On that note, Lee dispatched his D-grade back to hunting. Not only hunting, either. Z was likely the most powerful single creature in the area. Which made him a great scout who could even keep up with Lawrence. Together, they were building a map of all the surrounding human settlements. As well as the lairs. Some people weren''t great hunters, but against specific creatures, they could still dominate. Alejandro coordinated that stuff with the hunters. Both keeping track of which lairs were easier and also culling the ones that were too difficult before the monsters started spilling out into the wider world. Especially the nearby lairs. Lee was itching to get back out there himself. Hell, he''d settle for some wall duty at this point... Many of the guards got rotated in and out of wall duty, so they could still get some lair hunting in, or conversely, when they wanted a break from the hunts. That covered most of their everyday defense needs, especially with Wilson handling the scheduling. Instead of hunting or exploring. Lee headed downstairs to get back to work on his runes. There wasn''t a lot to do at the moment. Most already had the gear they needed, and Lee couldn''t make much more, regardless. What he could do was experiment repeatedly to find new runes. He had some ideas for space runes, especially after getting a good look at the prince''s magic ring. Obviously, he hadn''t figured out how to teleport anything... but he had accidentally made a gravity rune. At least that was what he was calling it, since it made whatever he put it on heavier. Marginally. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. It was limited in practical applications for now, but he had hopes of getting the effect to spread out from the rune instead of inward. If he could make gravity traps for invaders... even if it only slowed them down and didn''t crush them into a paste like his imagination wanted to see. There was also a good chance that Martin could use it in his training... On that note, Gabriel intercepted him before Lee got to his room. "I finished, Uncle Lee." In his hands, he held a plate covered in runic symbols. Sort of. They weren''t actual empowered runes; they were just drawings of them, and they were all incomplete. Gabriel had filled in the missing sections with a makeshift pen. A task that would definitely help him learn to manually draw runes in the future. Along the way, he identified what he thought each rune was supposed to do. He hadn''t gotten all the answers right, but interestingly enough, some of his mistakes looked like they might work as he''d drawn them... and with the new effect matching his description. The kid had a serious knack for this¡ªso much so that Lee had no more reservations about making him an apprentice once his class leveled enough. It felt like a given at this point that his affinity would be good. The only remaining question was what would happen with the liquid mana... Would he have to evolve to become an apprentice? But that was a concern for the future. "I like it, but let me talk to Bradley before we go over your answers." "Hi, Uncle Bradley," Gabriel said when he saw the other man inside the elevator room. "Oh, hi, Gabe," Bradley said, wincing. "You really don''t have to call me that. It makes me feel..." He trailed off with another wince while looking anywhere but at Lee. "Old?" Lee supplied. The back of Bradley''s neck turned red. "I didn''t mean..." "But you are old, Uncle Bradley." Bradley choked and dropped the stone block in his hand. It hit the floor... hard, and there was a dent in the cement when he scooped it back up. "Sorry, Three!" "Wow!" Gabriel exclaimed. "Is that super heavy?" "It is," Bradley said while glancing at the boy and then looking toward Lee. "I think this is about as dense as I can force it. What do you think?" Lee thought it looked amazing and said so. "Put it in the hole, and let''s see what happens." The elevator room was still half destroyed from when he''d trapped Z in here. While Three had repaired some of the damage, Lee had told it to stop to prepare for this very moment. Something he''d noticed in the aftermath of the invasion was that Bradley''s staff was far more durable than Three... Obviously, once you added source and liquid mana into the mix, it changed things. But he couldn''t deny the damage Three had taken from the D-grade. Even with all that power lurking in the runes, Three was fundamentally built of only cement and rebar. That hadn''t changed when Lee added the runes. Not yet. Bradley set the block into one of the ragged holes left behind and lined up the protruding metal sticking out from the block with the jagged ends of the broken rebar inside Three¡¯s floor. Nothing happened. Not until Lee sent a thought to the building about what he wanted it to do. Then the rebar ends straightened out, stretching toward the new addition... and merging with it. Lee grinned as he watched the hole seal up around a new, tougher spot. More importantly, he could see where the tapestry of source and soul that was Three also moved into the new material. "It worked." He''d had a gnawing feeling ever since seeing how much damage a D-grade could do to his building. A worry that Three wouldn''t be able to keep up as everything else got stronger. Now he had a plan. Albeit, one with a few bugs to work out... "That took me a while to do," Bradley said. "It''s going to take forever to do the whole building." Yeah, that was a major flaw with the plan. "What if you dump some dirt and rocks in here... I''ll see if Three can learn to absorb and condense it by itself." "Wow!" Gabriel whispered, and Lee realized he''d gotten another glimpse of the source peeking through. Luckily, the kid didn''t seem at all upset. Instead, he looked up at Lee with a huge grin. "Can¡¯t you make a rune for that, Uncle Lee? For squishing the dirt?" "I... maybe?" That was a thought. Something like a plate that anyone could dump dirt on, with a rune to condense it, even if it was slow. It could work... if he had the rune. Lee created a blank plate and held out a hand to Gabriel. "Let me borrow your pen." The little piece of metal wasn''t one of Lee''s creations. Rather, an enchanter had come up with it. It left behind glowing lines on whatever surface you drew on, and the lines would last for a few days before fading. Not great for writing books, but fantastic for teaching kids to write. Or in this case, to draw runes. "What do you think?" Lee asked after drawing his gravity rune on the plate. He didn''t think he''d shown Gabriel this particular rune yet. Gabriel stared intently, and Lee could feel a fascinating process going on in the boy''s soul as he studied the symbol. He was ready when Gabriel reached for the pen and eagerly handed it over. Both he and Bradley said nothing as the kid started drawing new symbols around the first. They waited every time he stopped to think, and every time, he resumed drawing. Lee actually felt a chill when Gabriel erased parts of the gravity rune and started adding in new pieces. The chill came because Gabriel''s additions not only looked sound... but they felt right as well. What the hell? "Did you already apprentice him?" Bradley finally whispered as the increasingly complex-looking rune came to life. The damn thing looked fancier than anything he''d ever created... sans Three. Of course. "I didn''t," Lee murmured, then tried to smile reassuringly at the boy when Gabriel sat back and looked up from his work. He failed to hide his disbelief. "How... what did you do?" "Is it bad?" Gabriel asked nervously, looking back at his rune. "Some of it looked... wrong. So I tried to fix... it." "Let''s find out!" Lee created another plate, then recreated Gabriel''s design as an actual rune. "I think you really made some..." It failed instantly. Lee pulled it back and then pointed at the drawing. "This curving line forced too much mana into the corner over here." He had a pretty good idea of how to fix it himself, thanks to Gabriel, but wanted to give the crestfallen kid a shot first. "How would you fix that?" Gabriel''s expression lit up as he quickly erased the line and redrew it at a slightly different angle. "Like this?" "Let''s see." Lee tried again, but the rune still failed. Only, not at the spot Gabriel had fixed. "Now it''s this linkage between..." They went back and forth. Lee only pointed out problems and let Gabriel offer solutions, some of which he hadn''t even thought of until hearing them. Bradley left before they finished, but he did dump a pile of dirt in the room at Lee''s request. They kept working until Maria came into the garage some time later. Lee only then realized that she might not have known her son was down here all this time and quickly opened the door to wave her over. The relief in her soul at seeing him didn''t last long, shifting into anger instead, and Lee knew they were in trouble. Both of them. He held a finger to his lips pleadingly as she stormed over... and Maria hesitated in the doorway, exhaling softly instead of unleashing the angry tirade he''d felt coming. Her expression softened further as she stood there and silently watched Gabriel fuss over his lines. His every thought played over his face as clearly as the sun across the sky, and she drank in the sight like... well, like only a mother could. The boy didn''t even notice her until he finally looked up. "There! I think... Mama!" Maria had long ago lost the anger in her soul, but it came back quick and she still glared at him before demanding to know where he''d been and what he''d been up to. At least, Lee was pretty sure that was what she said, since it was all in Spanish. Gabriel wilted beneath her words, and Lee felt the warring feelings in Maria''s soul as she struggled with a very reasonable fear versus the all-encompassing love she held for her child. Lee gave them an out by putting Gabriel''s completed rune onto a plate. They both looked over when he pushed it under the dirt pile and the soil immediately compacted to less than half its original size. Then it kept getting smaller. Though slowly. Class Skill Level Up: Artistic Rune Creation Class Level Up: Runic "It works?" Gabriel asked meekly, almost whispering and afraid to look at his mom. "Yes!" Lee exclaimed, not overplaying his exuberance at all. "You did it!" He didn''t even mind Maria''s glare now being redirected at him. The proud, beaming smile on Gabriel''s face made it all worth it. Maria finally relented and told her son to go upstairs in a much softer tone than before. He went, reluctantly but beaming all the way. Then she studied the rune as the dirt atop it kept crunching very slowly into a smaller area. "Lee..." Her gaze moved to his and back again. "He make this? Truly?" "Almost all of it." "But... is so... much." Her soul hovered on the edge of pride... and worry. Lee guessed what she was thinking. Because he was thinking the same thing. "Maria... I''m so sorry. I think I must have done something to him... when I made Three." Gabriel had been right there, literally in the room with him. He''d had a front-row seat to the event. He''d watched Lee create a legendary structure out of the source and his soul¡ªa structure Lee still didn''t fully understand. "He''s amazing... maybe even better than me." A lot of different emotions went through the woman hovering over him, and Lee waited patiently for her judgment. Perhaps Gabriel was just a complete natural that was always meant to become a runic, but given the circumstances, he wasn''t buying it. That wasn''t to say this was a bad thing. Runic was a powerful class, legendary even. It was great news if Gabriel could kick ass with it. But he''d almost certainly done something to make that happen. Changed him somehow. He''d changed a child who''d never had a chance to resist or make his own choice. Her child. Maria put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. Gently. Surprisingly gently. "Teach him, Lee. Help him survive. All I ask." Lee looked silently at his new rune. Now that he could see it in action, he could see a few places to tweak it. Both to make the effect stronger and how it could work as a training tool in the courtyard upstairs. He was pretty sure that a little more work might even turn it into a viable weapon. Then he looked at his newest class level. One he''d gained thanks to a classless child who wanted to become his apprentice. "I will do my absolute best," Lee said, then thought silently to himself, Though I might need Gabriel''s help with that. He groaned at the sudden realization that he was about to give Martin a new way to torture him. Well, shit. He would still do it. Because he would do whatever he had to do. Whatever it took to survive. To make sure they all survived. 141. Something About A Wall ~~~Wilson~~~ Wilson frowned at the man waiting in his office. "What are you doing here? You are supposed to report only to Emerson... or has something happened?" The man glanced around nervously before blurting out, "I don''t think Lee is a traitor!" I think you''re an idiot, Wilson thought but didn''t say aloud. Instead, he calmly asked, "Why do you think that?" "He''s just... he''s a good man." Wilson sighed. "Look, it''s not like we''re plotting against him here. This is just a precaution. You have to admit that he is abnormal. I''m sure you''ve seen enough to know just how powerful he is? I''m also sure you''ve heard the stories from before your time here." "He is..." the man trailed off, shivering. "You''ve felt it, haven''t you? That power he is hiding? Or I should say his building is hiding." Wilson sat back in his chair. "I was here when he created his building. When he used that power. And I know for a fact that he shouldn''t have access to something like that." He leaned forward. "You might not have noticed, but the invasions have gotten much more difficult since he made that building." "But he always tries to get the monsters to attack him instead of..." "Yes, the monsters that he keeps recruiting into his own little army. Monsters living inside our walls that answer only to him. How is that not suspicious?" "I mean... I don''t know..." "Look at it this way," Wilson said. "If we''re wrong, then we invaded his privacy a little. But if we''re right, then we are saving our entire world from conquest." "That seems..." "Extreme? Isn''t it? This is our planet. Our home. Yet every day we get more aliens moving in, and most of them do so violently. We are in a war, and we can''t afford to take any chances. Not when the stakes are so high." "I suppose, but..." "I''m not asking you to do anything that will hurt him if I''m wrong. Hell, I don''t want you to do anything else for that very reason. You''re doing great so far. Stick close, listen, and report what you learn to Emerson. This is all simply a precaution." Wilson could feel the oath pushing at the man, but he still had to be careful here. There were limits to the oaths, as he''d learned through... extensive testing, and it wouldn''t do him any good if this bastard started acting all twitchy around Lee. "I... will, but I think you''re wrong about him." "Honestly, I hope and pray every day that I am," Wilson lied. Then he waited until the idiot left before calling in Henrich. "Where''s Bradley? I had a few questions about how the wall outreach project was going." "I believe he left earlier, sir. Alejandro should know his schedule if you want to send a runner?" Wilson waved him off. "No. It can wait." The important part was that Bradley was confirmed to be out of the fort. Which meant his little girlfriend was almost certainly with him. It was hard to do anything with that spy slinking around. They needed to put a damn bell on her... He looked at the timer counting down on his status. There was time to check on a few other projects. "Get Emerson; I''m going out." ~~~Alric~~~ "Alric," a voice shouted down the hall. "We have company, and they said you''re expecting them. Something about a wall?" "Finally!" Alric stood from his seat at the conference table, then hesitated. "We can continue this later. You''ve all done amazing work keeping things running, and everyone here knows it. Keep it up." He left with a meaningful look at his wife, and before anyone could drag him back into the discussion. They meant well, but for living in the apocalyptic, monster-filled ruins of San Diego, there sure were an awful lot of meetings... It felt like nearly a week had passed since those... people had stopped by. People being a rather loose definition for what had shown up. An honest-to-god centaur had trotted into his base alongside something human-shaped, wearing full armor, and which he was quite certain had not been human. The armored... creature never removed its helmet and had given him chills every time it got close, but other than that, they''d been friendly. They''d handed over a treasure trove of information, both about the surrounding lairs and also about the system rules. Then they offered a rather odd deal, which included sending someone around who could help with building walls... Only that had been days ago, and no one ever showed up. Until now. They''re just kids. That was his first thought upon seeing the pair waiting for him outside. A sight that was all too common these days. He also knew at a glance that they were definitely outsiders. Not only did he take pride in knowing every name and face of his own people, but these two were carrying similar equipment to the previous visitors. Their armor was a bit more patchwork than that inhuman creature''s had been, but it held those glowing symbols all the same. Never mind the weapons... Simply looking at those blades sheathed on the girl''s hip told him they were deadly. The young man was already discussing where to build the walls with Peter, but his head turned instantly the moment Alric stepped outside. Wary brown eyes snapped to meet his own; only these eyes held a ready edge that spoke of constant wary vigilance. Worse, the expression on that face was one hardened by violence¡ªmore violence than anyone so young should ever have known. I''m so sorry. Yet another tragedy of this war they''d all found thrust upon them, and one that never failed to break his heart every time he saw it. "Nice to meet you," Alric said, smiling despite his personal feelings and holding out a hand. "I''m Alric. You''re here about the wall?" "Bradley," the young man said while accepting the handshake hesitantly, as if unsure of what it meant. Still wary too. "This is Mar." "A pleasure." Alric offered his hand to the girl as well, despite her flickering in and out of view. Disappearing people were rather low down on the list of strange things these days. Though shaking an invisible hand was a new experience. "Sorry it took so long to get here," Bradley said. "And I hate to rush you, but I''d like to get this done and get home before our invasion protection runs out." "Ah, of course." That was some commendable loyalty to their people. "How much time do we have?" Bradley looked at Mar, who whispered. "I think... six hours? Five to be safe?" "I... see." Alric knew very well that magic was a part of the world now, but he still tempered his expectations upon hearing the timeline. It had been a strange deal, after all... Information and a wall, in exchange for taking on apprentices from the larger group. He wasn''t even sure how large they were, but they were definitely more established with equipment like that. Though, hadn''t they mentioned trade as well? His train of thought cut off abruptly when the ground rose beneath his feet, and he could only stare in shock as his entire base fell further away with each second until it finally stopped, what felt like hundreds of feet below them. "I like to get a bit of a bird''s-eye view before starting," Bradley was saying when Alric pulled himself together. "It helps to figure out where you want everything... though, if I''m being honest, a wall doesn''t make that much difference." "It... doesn''t?" Bradley shook his head. "Most monsters can climb the wall no matter how smooth I make it, or they just jump over. For a smaller place like this, I think you''ll get more use out of a medium wall and some solid towers. Great for spotting the monsters further away, and even better if you have enough casters to throw magic down on their heads." "I..." Alric looked down at his base, then out at the sprawling city, all the way to where he could see a sliver of ocean in the distance. "Yes, I could see the benefits of a tower. This one isn''t bad at all..." "This is too tall," Bradley said. "I''m holding it up right now, and while I could make it stable, it''s just not worth the effort. There''s a sweet spot between strength and stability. Even after the wall turns into part of your lair, it can still get damaged. You really don''t want giant chunks of stone raining down on your heads in a fight..." Alric didn''t argue with the much younger man as he set about designing and building their new walls. It was always better to let an expert work unhindered, and it became quickly apparent that if there was one thing this young man knew, it was stone. The walls went up far faster than expected, and most of the delay came from Bradley condensing the stone after he''d created the wall. He told Alric about another camp that had an enchanter who could make the walls stronger. "But I''ll have to come back with him if you want to go that route, ¡®cause he needs everything split into individual blocks. Took all day to do his fort... and you''d probably have to shell out a pile of cores to get him over here." "Lee could probably enchant a wall this size." Mar''s voice came out of nowhere as she abruptly appeared beside him, and Alric couldn''t help his flinching yelp when she did so. He''d forgotten about her... which was embarrassing. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. "Ah... sorry. Um, how much would this Lee fellow want?" If it wasn''t too much, then he would gladly shell out some extra cores to make his people safer. "He can''t help you," Bradley said. "He''s stuck in... well, he just can''t." Bradley actually looked a little nervous as he talked, as if he''d said something he shouldn''t have. The poor kids were probably in over their heads with whatever was going on back home. A crafter like him probably got ordered around a lot... Was the girl his protector? Maybe she could make other people invisible? Though from the few glimpses he''d gotten of her so far, Alric was fairly certain they were a couple... The glances and occasional touch were anything but subtle, and they had that oblivious young love effect going strong. Good for them! It was wonderful to see love blossom, especially amidst the darkness of these times. "You know, we have some strong fighters here. If you guys ever need help... with anything, let me know. I really appreciate what you''re doing for us, and I know we''re getting the better end of the deal. So don''t hesitate if something comes up... okay?" "Thanks," Bradley said, smiling. "It''s a bit of a run to get here, but I''ll keep that..." You have been conscripted into the Minor Dungeon: [Harvest Run] Alric felt that same sick feeling welling up in his guts. Every time this happened, someone died. How many would they lose today? Who? Who among his friends and family wouldn''t see the next sunset? "I see them," Bradley said, and Alric followed the young man''s gaze to the east, where a blue portal was barely visible. He¡¯d seen one of those up close. Once. So he knew the dark specks appearing from inside the light were the real problem. A nightmare come to earth. They were still far away, further than Alric would have been able to see, if not for the newly constructed tower... and the walls. We have walls now, and we know which way they''re coming... if we move... "Can you watch over the base?" Bradley asked. Don''t worry, Alric thought. I''ll make damn sure both of you kids get home to... "Yeah," Mar said, flickering in a stop-motion effect as she drew twin shining blades. "Meathead is awake, too." Meathead? That thought stuck in his mind. What were they talking... Bradley pulled the girl to him with his free hand, while the staff in his other hand glowed brighter. He kissed her briefly... but Alric only saw the complex symbol, which shone out brighter still from inside that staff. Blindingly bright. The light it emitted made him feel like an ant... watching a mountain fall from the sky. He wanted to tell them to get inside¡ªto drag them to safety while rallying his own fighters¡ªbut that light... "Be careful," Mar said, pulling away. "My mom''s not here." "I have these," Bradley said, tapping at something on his belt. "You be careful too." As he spoke, it looked like the stone floor was crawling up his body... "You..." Alric said, finding his voice right as Bradley crouched... and then the tower-top exploded. An explosion which sent Bradley soaring into the air... directly toward the incoming monsters. "Don''t..." Alric tensed as Bradley plunged from the sky in the distance. The far distance. Right in the middle of the charging horde. He hit the ground hard enough to send out a shockwave and an explosion of dirt. Yet when the dust settled, there was a new crater and no sign of the young man. Alric closed his mouth and started running, only to see Bradley burst from beneath the ground amid another group of charging... monsters. Unfortunately, they were close enough to see details now. All the terrible details. They were bipedal monsters. Wearing armor and carrying weapons... It was the worst possible enemy. The intelligent ones. They weren''t ready for this! He would lose people today. Even with the walls... He had to get... Bradley didn¡¯t fight the monsters. He went through them like a blender through a fruit smoothie. Alric couldn''t help himself. He stopped running along the wall and just stared in shock. First that flying leap, and now this. Wasn''t he a crafter? The crafter turned warrior moved among their enemies almost faster than Alric''s eyes could follow. Zipping back and forth constantly, he left behind a trail of bloody and broken aliens in his wake. Every now and again, that symbol on his staff would shine through the explosions of dirt and blood, and every time, Alric felt that mountain falling down toward him. He could only imagine what the aliens were feeling down there, beneath those strikes that shattered the earth with every blow. "I think he''s got them," a voice said beside him, and Alric turned to find Mar idly fiddling with the hilts of her blades. "But I don''t like that squad trying to sneak around. Deal with them, Meathead." There was that word again. Was she insulting him? Calling him a meathead? Honestly, his head felt very... thick right now. Just trying to take in the impossible sight... "If you don''t deal with them, then I will, and I''m going to use the buff," Mar said. Angrily. Except she was glaring past him, looking at... He followed her gaze and saw over a dozen of the aliens dashing toward the walls. They were so fast! Alric finally acted, summoning a spear of ice into each hand. With the enemy at the gates, he had to do something. Anything. He couldn''t let them past the walls. He couldn''t let these monsters run rampant among his... The ground beneath the aliens rippled in a wide circular undulation that dragged them all together at its center... where a nightmare of teeth and death emerged to devour them in one massive, terrifying bite. As quickly as it appeared, the monolithic creature sank back beneath the earth, taking every single alien with it. The earth rippled once, smoothing out, then went still, and not even a drop of blood remained to tell of their fate. "Oh, my god..." It was all over. Everyone would die to that giant creature. The ease with which it had devoured the invaders... There was no way to fight against... "Good job, Meathead," Mar said beside him, and Alric noted distantly that she seemed far too calm for the circumstances. "Yes, I''ll tell Lee you did good. Ugh! Just go take another nap if you''re going to be like that!" "Mar," Alric said, grateful that his voice came out steady, even as he struggled with an insane idea that nevertheless filled his heart with hope. "Is that... dinosaur your... pet?" She looked away, seeming... embarrassed? "Yeah, he is. Sort of." "I... I''m so glad to hear that." Alric''s vision blurred as tears of relief welled up. Mar sounded a little panicked when she turned back, but he could no longer see her face. "Woah! It''s okay! There were only like a hundred of them out there! You can relax!" Only a hundred... "Bradley should be finished with them any minute." All remaining invaders have surrendered. Minor Dungeon: [Harvest Run] successfully defended. Victory. Alric wasn''t sure what emotions were flowing through him, but relief was a major player. Confusion came after that, and sorrow followed behind. They''re just kids. But that look in their eyes... The casual way they both faced the invasion... Alric felt sick at the thought of what horrors they must have already lived through to see this as nothing to worry about. An attack that almost certainly would have cost lives... and it was just another day for them. "Why didn''t you kill them?" Mar yelled, and Alric looked down to see Bradley strolling casually behind five bipedal, but very obviously alien creatures. "They need more fighters here, right?" Bradley asked, even as the ground beneath his feet rose, carrying him and the aliens to the wall''s summit without ever breaking their stride. "Want to become a lord, Alric?" "W... what?" "You get them to swear an oath of fealty to you," Bradley said with a gesture at the aliens. "Then they have to serve you. Lee said you even get a title from it." "It''s slavery," Mar said quietly. "I don''t like it." "They came here to kill you." Bradley shrugged. "We can kill them if you don''t..." All the aliens dropped to their hands and knees... except their knees bent the wrong way, and they had too many elbows, but it was close enough. The strangest part was that Alric could understand what they were saying... they were swearing to serve him, and... You have received an Oath of Fealty. If accepted... "I guess they really want to live." Bradley shrugged again, but he looked... uncomfortable as he turned away. "I''m going to finish the walls. If you don''t want the oath... then you should probably kill them before the surrender debuff wears off." Alric watched the young couple walk away, their hands intertwining as Mar leaned her head on Bradley''s shoulder. Then he looked at the alien monsters kneeling before him. "W... what can you do for us here?" "Anything you desire, great master of this..." ... His wife found him later, sitting atop his new wall and staring out at nothing in particular. "Sweetheart," she asked softly. "What happened? I can''t get a straight answer out of anyone, and I think I just saw an alien in the garden..." "My dear, I..." He was saved from answering by a voice he''d not soon forget. "All done," Bradley said, landing on the wall beside them. "It should become part of the lair this time tomorrow." Alric stood quickly. "Bradley, my... young man. I cannot thank you enough! What you''ve done for us today..." "It''s fine," Bradley said, turning away. "I was actually going to ask if we might set up a sort of... fighter exchange. Maybe send some of our people here when they need a break from... our battles." Bradley sighed with a weariness beyond his years. "I''ve gotten used to Lee''s invasions... but this, here? It was such an easy fight." Except he was lying. Sure, the fighting had been shockingly easy for the stone mage, but the killing hadn''t been. Alric understood something he hadn''t known before, and with terrible clarity¡ªknowledge that would haunt him forever. This wasn''t only a war against monsters. Those aliens who now served him were not mindless beasts. They spoke to him. They begged him for their lives. They were living, breathing, and thinking creatures. They had families of their own. Hopes and dreams of their own. Truly, the only thing that separated them from humanity was which world they''d been born into... Bradley knew that. He knew it all too well. Even when he''d gone through them like an angel of death. All because a cosmic entity had thrust their world into a pointless and bloody conflict... and for what? Fighting over scraps of power in an endless war that would never truly end? That didn''t mean Alric wouldn''t fight. He would do what had to be done to protect his friends and family. But he would also do whatever he could for the unfortunate children who''d been dragged into this war before they''d ever really lived. "I would like very much for you to return," Alric said, stepping forward to latch onto Bradley''s arm before he could leave. "But not to fight for us." He pulled the man back around to face him. "Please come back. For a rest. Even if only for a day or a few hours. Do not let this war take away your humanity. Whatever beings are behind this nightmare... they may force us to fight, but they cannot force us to become the monsters they wish for us to be." Bradley''s expression softened, and the hardened exterior cracked to let the real man shine through. "Can you at least stay for dinner?" His wife said, understanding the situation as only she could and with no explanation needed. "I... can''t." The softness receded from Bradley''s face, once again slipping behind the armored exterior he showed to the world. "No. Our home needs..." "We can stay a little longer." Mar appeared out of thin air, her arm sliding around and linking with Bradley''s. "We should still have almost two hours." "Oh, aren''t you just the cutest couple!" his wife exclaimed, coming forward to take Mar''s hand with a beaming smile. "And please tell me where you got those pants. All the stores around here are full of monsters... and those look new!" Mar flickered, clearly flustered at the attention, but the smile grew on her face. "Well, there''s this guy back home, and... you should see what he can do with a ghost-wolf pelt." 142. Dirty Hunters ~~~Lee~~~ Trak''s soul potion still tasted vile, but Lee didn''t complain. He also didn''t balk. While the urgency to find an alchemical solution had faded following the soul enkindling trait, that hadn''t stopped Trak from trying to improve. Which he had. Slightly. Buff Gained: [Soul Elixir](23:59:59) -5% All Soul Damage Apparently it wasn''t easy to get the numbers higher, but for an all day buff, it wasn''t bad. Lee swirled water around his mouth while watching his newest alien bodyguard. He had a question he wanted to ask Z. One he''d considered for a week now. A question that might be dangerous, and to more than himself. Of course, he might be over-thinking things because Z was bound to him for a decade... and Lee had a feeling that their circumstances would be vastly different by the time that changed. So he asked the question. "Have you ever heard of a twin-soul?" "No," Z replied. "Heard of soul-bond, soul-pair, and similar soul links. Never twin." That answer was about what he''d expected. Their twin-soul was supposedly unique, after all. "What is a soul? A regular one." "Everything. You asked before. Same answer. Every time." "Yeah, yeah... Okay, then what is a soul if two people share it?" "Unknown. Still everything. But more. Twice as much?" "Wow," Lee said dryly. "How''d you come up with such a well thought out and in-depth theory?" "Not scholar. Should ask teacher. Smart. Analytical. May have insights." "Maybe I will," Lee said, then sighed. There wasn''t any concrete reason to avoid telling people about his brother and their twin-soul... but he was still hesitant. Plus, he doubted Jeremy could actually help, even if he was smart. The guy was all about physics, and souls sure seemed to operate on fundamentally different rules. Maybe. It was harder to say definitively one way or another once Jeremy started ranting about quantum physics... "I have an identical twin brother, Z. Born from the same... embryo? Or is that just a human thing? Do you guys have twins?" He''d forgotten to ask Trak about that... but he saw the anubian nodding along with Z. "No zhint twins. But know the concept. Many races have them." "But no twin-souls?" "No. Soul is always singular. One individual. One soul." "Well, it''s not that way anymore," Lee said, then frowned. "Huh, we really should have gotten a title or something for that... the first twin-soul." "Perhaps not first." "It said it was a unique attribute..." "Perhaps unique. But not first?" "I''m special, damn it!" Amy chose that moment to walk in the door, and she cackled at him. Lee forgave her gross insubordination because he was a benevolent god... and because she had the breakfast burritos. "You finally asked him about your twin?" Lee nodded distractedly, eyes fixed on the prize in her arms. "I brought it up." He hadn''t actually told Amy about Stanley. Her secret class, which she still wouldn''t tell him about, must have told her something because she''d brought up the question of his twin on her own. "You asked about undead before," Z said. "No sign of them here. Assume twin is fighting the eternals?" It was a reasonable deduction and a topic on which Z was sadly lacking. "He''s doing more than fighting them," Lee growled. "He''s killing them." Though it wasn''t without a price... Z knew the undead were a major faction in the universe and confirmed what Trak said about them always going after every new world. Though he hadn''t shared Trak''s opinion that they always won. Which was something... Unfortunately, the so-called Eternals never hired zhint pairs, and his particular contracted zhint had never even fought against them before. "Twin-soul..." Lee felt the growing frown in Z''s soul, though he wasn''t even sure if the zhint had human expressions. Not that he could see its face behind that helmet, either. They had emotions, at least. "If twin dies. You die?" There it was. A rather blunt question, but it was straight to the point. Lee was equally direct in his reply. "Yes." His answer put a damper on the mood, and everyone went silent while Amy passed around the burritos. Finally, Z spoke. "Problematic. Cannot fulfill contract properly. Assume twin is equally powerful? Can he win?" Lee glared through the walls toward his brother. "He damn well better!" "This twin-soul... It''s how you hold source?" Another reasonable deduction. "Yes." He didn''t really need to think about that one, and while he wasn''t absolutely sure, it was likely. Of course, Caffeine was likely playing a part as well... As for what part exactly, he had no clue. "Fascinating. New. Yet shouldn''t work. Soul is powerful. Could hold source if strong enough. But flesh will die. No matter if one or two." Lee considered mentioning that Caffeine''s shadow was sitting in their soul... but he honestly wasn''t sure how to describe it. Let alone all the other madness of their soul. "Can you see or only sense my soul? Our soul?" "Only feel it. Not normal. Most souls hidden. Protected. Suspect the injury is responsible." Lee hadn''t told him about the soul wound, but Three had offered the soul-link to Z the moment the contract was official... so there was no hiding that, even if he wanted to. At least Three had waited until the guy was firmly on their side... "Does my soul feel... fucked up to you?" "Unknown. First time feeling a soul like this. Maybe all souls feel the same if injured?" Lee shivered as he recalled the first good look he''d gotten at their soul. Stanley had thought it was ruined, and Lee could admit it didn''t look... healthy, but he wasn''t as pessimistic. On the bright side, he now had a pretty good idea about why they''d lost so much soul in the fight with the skeleton. Souls were strong¡ªamong the strongest things in the multiverse. Allegedly. Especially the inner soul. The core of a person. What Z called the True-Soul. Supposedly, even the system couldn''t touch that part of someone. Which explained why the system didn''t seem to know they had the source until they''d let it out... and which might also explain why it didn''t know what their soul attribute was for so long. There were spells and abilities that targeted people''s souls¡ªLee knew that from firsthand experience¡ªbut those were supposed to debuff or injure someone, not destroy the soul. Because destroying someone''s soul was apparently the most difficult way to kill them, assuming you even could. Because the true-soul was inviolable. Or at least Z claimed so. He said that to change the true-soul was to change a person in the most fundamental sense. Who they are. What they believe. How they feel. Or, more simply, everything. All of that information left Lee with a singular, burning question. What the hell had happened to their soul!? More specifically, what had they done to it to leave it looking the way it did now? Except, that wasn''t really the right question. The right question was who were they now versus whoever they''d been before, and were they still the same people? A question that may well be impossible to answer, with the only remaining comfort being that they''d done this to themselves. Presumably for a good reason... if only he could remember what it was... Also, their true-soul wasn''t that bad. It wasn''t untouched by whatever they''d done, but the... damage was less substantial in there. The mutilation was less... terrible. Assuming that center was their actual True-Soul? Or maybe it only felt better because Caffeine was in there? Or Caffeine¡¯s shadow? Lee wasn''t actually sure what it was, because he''d seen Caffeine fighting both inside and outside their soul... He pressed Z for more, but the alien had no new information beyond what he''d already given. Mainly that a soul was incredibly powerful and durable. It was capable of almost limitless potential¡ªlike holding a source¡ªbut it needed a body to house it. Z didn''t know the why of it all, only that the easiest way to destroy a soul was simply to destroy the body. Something Lee would be sure to mention if and when he next got a chance to see Stanley in their soul... After a probably unnecessary reminder to keep their discussion to himself, Lee sent Z back out to keep hunting cores for him. But only for a quick run, given the circumstances. A solo run. Lee usually sent him out with a whole mob of people, who then rotated back and forth to carry cores and raw materials home while Z wrecked everything. They had only been at it for a week, but the results were fantastic. Status Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Soulforge](E-grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] [Swarm Chaser] [Minor Lord](400) Contracts: [Nicholas Alberton] [Zynthar] Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Source Nexus] [Soulforged Mana] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Rune Harmonics] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 99 (Advanced) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) - Level 99(Advanced) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 35 (Basic) | Language of the Rune (Unique) - Level [N/A] Attributes: Strength: 450(+290%)1755 Vitality: 444(+290%)1731 Dexterity: 448(+290%)1747 Wisdom: 557(+2589%)14977 Intelligence: 583(+2589%)15676 Willpower: 568(+2589%)15273 Twin-Soul: 108(+567%)720 Non-Class Skills(4/6): Liquid Mana Beam (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 85 (Advanced) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 40 (Intermediate) | Temporal Shift (Legendary) - Level 30 (Intermediate) Buffs: [Three] [Soul-Link] Debuffs: [Deadly Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Lee had never felt stronger, both physically and... magically, as he followed Z onto the balcony. He was pretty sure he could now jump easily out of the courtyard and clear over the roof, which he obviously couldn''t test. Not yet. The soul debuff hadn''t changed, but Lee had a feeling it was getting closer to that eventuality. Stanley had been... extra focused this past week. That was the best description he had for the feeling of his twin. Focused and relentless. Their soul attribute had gone up as well, though he still couldn''t figure out how Stanley was doing it... He''d also given up on trying to help his twin with the process. There was a feeling he''d picked up on over the last few days¡ªa feeling he was fairly confident was Stanley doing¡ªwhatever it was he did in there. It started as a kind of pressure on their soul, then it built into a dull ache, at which point Stanley would stop doing whatever it was and go hunting. Then the ache would fade throughout the day... It was a repeating cycle that left Lee with no way to contribute to the effort. Not without potentially fucking something up by experimenting... Stanley still held that same focused feeling when he went hunting, but there was a... sharper edge to his focus. A killing edge. Enough to tell the difference between soul repair and fighting. Which meant right now Stanley was hunting. Lee found himself in the opposite situation. He wasn''t the hunter. He was the hunted. "Uncle Lee!" Gabriel abandoned the breakfast table, bounding his way up to the third floor with only slightly more effort than it would take for the adults. Probably faster, too, since Martin''s training was pushing all the kids nearly into E-grade¡ªat least the ones who took part. "Did you get it yet!?" "Not yet," Lee said, wincing as he saw the disappointment fall over the boy''s face. "But it should be any day now!" He fled into the garage to get away from Gabriel and also to keep working on leveling. He''d made great progress with both his class and scribe skill. Until they plateaued at level ninety-nine. It was another threshold. One where he was missing something. Again. By now, plenty of people had found out about class and skill thresholds. A sort of limiter that stopped them from progressing further, but not a universal one, as Z shared. It turned out that the lower the rarity, the easier it was to keep leveling, and, of course, the higher it was, the harder. Jeremy had been stuck at a very low level with his ability because, as he put it, physics were all wrong now. But he''d gotten past the first block once he finally started thinking outside the box, and it went pretty much the same for everyone. Though if you got extra creative, you could evolve a skill or class into something... different. Usually something better, and often higher rarity. Dennis was a good example of that. He''d turned his bananas into... a lot of stuff. Honestly, it was totally a stretch to even call them bananas at this point. Still, it just meant Lee needed to get more creative. He would figure it out. He had to. Gabriel had a growing collection of trinkets and doodads that he was already dreaming up runes for. Of course, it was one thing to know what he needed to do and another thing entirely to figure out how the hell to do it. He''d made Saira a weapon in the same way he''d made Bradley''s, except her staff was a living tree branch instead of stone. Also, it only held mana; he''d never found a way to channel her healing energy. Still, the staff itself was alive, so in an emergency, she could destroy it. Obviously, creating it hadn''t pushed him past the threshold. Probably because he''d already done it before. He needed something new. Lee had tried a lot of new and not so new stuff in the name of leveling. Some of it was... unsavory. Like getting Z to drag monsters into his Mana Mind range so he could experiment with sticking runes into their flesh¡ªor rather, their bones. Since actual flesh was surprisingly hard to put a rune on... It was possible that making flesh runes happen would do the trick, but he''d already tortured a lot of monsters to death trying to figure it out... Sure, they were all creatures who would kill and eat him if they could... but none of them would torture him. They were only animals, not real monsters. Not like some of the humans out there... or the invaders. Except... Trak and Z had been invaders... No, he wouldn''t hesitate when it came to the invaders. If they attacked him or his people, then they were asking for whatever horrible things he did to them. Lee reflexively checked the timer again. [Victory](02:00:15) They still had time. Besides, there was no guarantee they would get attacked right away like they had last time. Lee hoped they wouldn''t have to wait while simultaneously dreading the attack. It was better to get it over with... but last time had been so close. He''d almost lost people. Speaking of which, he hadn''t seen Mar or Bradley since they left at the crack of dawn. They were keeping track of the timer... right? Or did they want to avoid the next invasion? Lee shook his head. So far, the young couple seemed far less upset about the entire thing than anyone else. Though it turned out Bradley wasn¡¯t as welcoming to Z once he saw the zhint back in his full armor. At least they both had enchanted skeletons now... Of course, if Lee really wanted to experiment with flesh runes, he could always use his own flesh... but maybe later. For now, he looked over his renovated elevator room with a wide smile. His former elevator room. With some help from Three and Bradley, they''d removed the elevator and turned the space into a bunker. A bunker that doubled as an extra staircase. Albeit a cramped one. The metal from the elevator had also gone into fortifying the walls a bit more, along with more magically compressed stone to replace the cement. Jeremy knew all about it, and Lee felt a lot better about him sticking invader D-grades inside when they showed up. It was a great plan. Lee would bubble the D-grade to slow it down, Jeremy would swap it into the new room, and Three would kill it. Easy. Unless they got two D-grades again... which Z thought was likely, thanks mostly to his added presence here. Z didn''t know all the rules for invasions, but he knew a lot of them. Probably because his job involved constant dungeon diving. He''d shared the knowledge freely, and Lee''d ensured it was all written, copied, and distributed to every human settlement they could find out there. Despite Wilson¡¯s protests. Some of that information didn''t go over very well with everyone. Like when he confirmed that the number of humans in the fort was directly proportional to how many invaders could come through, at least on easy mode... Easy mode. Talk about some bullshit. The system actually kept track of combat versus noncombat people, and the invaders could see those numbers. So could Lee. At least for his own fort. Fort Greenfield Residents: (681) Combat. (1509) Noncombat. It was less clear how each individual got classified. Lee''s class hadn''t been labeled either way when he picked it, and Bradley might technically be considered a crafting class... until you saw him fight. Then there were the crafters that evolved into more combat capable roles. Like Dennis. Even Z wasn''t sure how the system decided, but he knew the invaders could technically send in two-thousand, one-hundred, and ninety attackers if they wanted to. So, an army. On top of that, there were many more invasion types, like Grand Raids, which is what Z thought the undead had used. An invasion area the size of San Diego. Not just the city proper, but the entire greater San Diego metropolis... Learning something like that was possible helped drive the new outreach program. Not only did they need to be united if something on that scale ever happened over here, but there was another positive to keeping as many smaller forts standing as possible. Because every active victory buff acted as a block against a larger invasion which might otherwise include that area. So long as even a single fort in the city had the buff, there would be no grand raids. Of course, there were smaller raids... Z also confirmed that the system liked to send invasions to the forts, as opposed to some random wilderness. Which was another reason to keep more forts standing. If too many fell, then there wouldn''t be any victory buffs... and so on. To that end, along with sending Bradley around to build walls for those who needed them, they also needed to balance the forts. Lee''s home was a standout in sheer numbers, but the combat to noncombat ratio wasn''t that far from standard. Though his and Z''s presence definitely skewed things away from normal... and even Z wasn''t sure how much exactly. The trick now was to make sure each human base had enough solid fighters to repel the maximum number of invaders they could get. Apprenticeships were another way to boost the combat numbers, but there were only so many to go around, even with the increased access to more people helping find better affinity matches. Despite his lofty goals, Lee accomplished nothing over the next couple of hours and only ended up pacing almost nonstop. They all set up the same way as last time, while the clock ticked toward zero. Amy and Jackson stood beside him in the courtyard with Z, and Jeremy hid nearby. Lee could see a lot further as his Mana Mind leveled up, and so could watch Alejandro on the wall with Mar and Bradley. He could even see Meathead lurking far below them. Underground. He felt a little bad about threatening the animal before, but only a little. Meathead had almost cost Mar her life, and on the plus side, Mar said he was being far more cooperative now. Though he was still afraid to get anywhere close to Three again. Buff Removed: [Victory] He saw Amy glance at him and said nothing. He would not jinx them this... You have been conscripted into Major Dungeon: [Dirty Hunters] Lee felt his heart rate pick up speed and his hands clenched into empty fists as he waited for the inevitable. He needed a weapon to hold in moments like this¡ªmaybe a staff of his own. Though that didn''t really make sense for him¡ªnot while he was in here. But maybe a wand? If he could figure out a good way to help Three aim its mana beams... As he''d learned in the last invasion, Three could fire mana beams. What he hadn''t figured out until later was that Three couldn''t actually see¡ªat least nothing outside the walls. Even when Lee directly told the building to attack something. He''d really thought Three could see through his eyes... or at least hear his thoughts, considering all the times it had defended him. But it wasn''t so clear cut. Three didn''t hear thoughts, more like... intentions? It was probably something to do with the runes and his soul in those runes. "What''s out there!?" Lee finally demanded, as the lingering, stretching silence only heightened his anxiety. "There''s... nothing out here," Bradley said through his communication disc. "No sign of a portal, either." Alejandro''s voice followed, the man now on the far side of the fort. "Same on this side, but this dungeon''s bigger than before. They might be down the hills somewhere." Or they were invisible. "We can go look around," Bradley said, and Lee saw Meathead swimming slowly higher through the ground toward them. "No!" There was no way they were going anywhere. Not with almost certainly two D-grades out there. "Z can..." Resource Lair is under attack by the Invaders. Failure to defend your resource lair will result in its permanent destruction, while a successful defense will result in an upgrade of the resource. Defend your territory. Fight. What the hell? The invaders were attacking the iron mine? Why would they do that? 143. Welcome To Earth ~~~Lee~~~ Resource Lair is under attack by the Invaders. Failure to defend your resource lair will result in its permanent destruction, while a successful defense will result in an upgrade of the resource. Defend your territory. Fight. That was some sinister shit right there. The invaders weren''t actually attacking them, so the system added an incentive. Why did it matter if someone else hunted the iron golems? Or... was there something more happening that he didn''t know about? Lee really enjoyed using his time bubbles, but trying to use them effectively inside Three remained an issue. So he''d come up with a simple solution. Flying. Standing on his hover plates was much trickier than using one as a seat, but it turned out that having hundreds of points in your physical attributes changed the game significantly. They were also frictionless enough that he could slide around using only Mana Mind to propel himself. He may or may not have stolen the idea from the more daredevil youths, but it worked. A moment after the notification, he''d slid closer to Z and put them both inside a speed bubble. "What do you know about this?" "Unusual. Most hunt first. Then raid resources. But some don¡¯t." That would explain why he''d never seen this notification before... "There has to be at least two D-grades out there, right? Does it matter if we let them destroy it? Then we could wait for them to attack here, where we''re strongest." "Strategic loss? Will make fort less of a target going forward. But not enough. Recommend defending. Upgrade worth more." He might be right about that... because, thanks in part to his outreach program, the fort was seeing a lot more trade these days. May was still using the lair iron, but between having an apprentice and the recent abundance of enemy armor claimed as loot, she used little. The rest was being traded to other forts with their own different resource lairs. From what Lee had heard, there were no two alike. Greenfield was the only place with iron nearby. He''d heard of a lot, from a gem mine similar to their own to a field of carnivorous flowers that hid medicinal herbs. The former wasn''t really in demand, but Trak was all over the herbs. Then there was a fort with a magical grove of trees as their resource, and they had already built walls when Bradley got there¡ªwooden walls stronger than stone. Another place had a pond that went deeper than anyone had explored yet, and they''d pulled all kinds of random stuff from its depths. In other words, the resource lair was definitely valuable. Lee just didn''t think it was more valuable than his family. "Scout them, Z. I''ll send the others behind you." He stared out at the frozen world beyond the bubble and at the people out there. His people. "I want everyone home alive, Z. I don''t give a damn about that resource if it means we lose even one of them. You got that?" "Understood. Will prioritize family." "Go. Now." Lee dropped the bubble and saw Z vanish from visible sight as the D-grade launched himself from the courtyard. "Alejandro, get a team to follow Z!" ~~~Zynthar~~~ Zynthar dashed across the earth with mixed feelings about the task before him. On the one hand, he couldn''t deny the thrill of facing a potentially worthy opponent after so long slaughtering weak E-grade monsters. On the other hand, he was departing further from the one he''d contracted with. If this was a ruse to draw him away... But no, his contracted human was powerful. Impossible and powerful. With many capable protectors as well. While he would likely send most of them this way, that human female, Amy, would definitely remain by his side. Zynthar had thought that even as a singular member of a zhint pair, he would stand above any amateur monster bodyguards. It was his entire life and purpose. He''d done as much for years now. He never expected that human female to be an actual royal guard. Though he probably should have, given the impossible E-grade human he''d contracted with. Zynthar had seen royal guards before, though always from a distance. While some wouldn''t see the difference between him and her, as they both defended others. Those who believed such were fools. A zhint pair was the best protection one could buy. Because one could not purchase a royal guard. Those remarkable individuals who gave all of themselves over to protect another. Their entire path, their whole future. Everything. It was impossible to manufacture such beings. Impossible to force them into existence. Yet none could deny the power it afforded the kings and gods who attracted such loyalty and devotion from their followers. Should something attack Lee Cascade, then that woman would stand as an unassailable wall in their path. At least until her death. Despite the oddity and unexpected nature of her existence here, she was still E-grade and wouldn''t last forever against a higher grade such as himself. Though Zynthar suspected he would need his booster to bring her down in a timely manner. Combine that with Lee Cascade''s building and his own considerable powers... not to mention the others who would remain by his side. That human would not fall quickly or quietly. More likely, he would not fall, and whoever or whatever tried to end him would die instead. Much as Zynthar had nearly done at their first meeting, when he never even got close enough to fight the royal guard... So yes, if this was a ruse to draw him away, then someone was in for a surprise. A deadly surprise. It wasn''t all about Lee Cascade, either. The impossible human was only one of many. Zynthar had been around his share of the multiverse. He had contracted to protect rising stars and scions of empires countless times¡ªhis most recent contract notwithstanding¡ªand he had seen some of the best the multiverse had to offer. So he knew what he saw here. This place was full of future kings and queens. More than that. They were warriors, taking their first steps on a path to power that would see them one day conquering worlds. These weren''t the types to need zhint contracts. Which meant he faced an unpleasant reality for his future, and a not very distant future at that. These humans were still only E-grade. Based on what he''d been told and seen for himself of this world''s growth, it wouldn''t be long before their world advanced into D-grade, and they along with it. When that happened, Zynthar would become obsolete, and Lee Cascade was under no obligation to keep him under contract. There would be some reward for the time served, but nothing compared to finishing the full contract. Or even better, if he could negotiate a non-surrender contract. A longer one. Ideally, with his pair beside him. Every zhint pair of legend throughout history had risen to those heights alongside people like these humans here. They never achieved glory and power alone, but by dint of who they protected and, equally importantly, from what. Because no legends rise to the heights of power without making enemies, and the greater the legend, the greater those who will stop at nothing to see them cast back down. His other pair, Zylar, hadn''t understood the true scope of what was here when he negotiated the surrender. He couldn''t know. Zynthar hadn''t truly understood either. Otherwise, he would have tried to keep his pair from leaving. The reward they''d received for protecting the weakling prince was not insubstantial, but there was so much more up for grabs right here. A serious mistake in hindsight. Sure, there weren''t many legends who''d risen to glory by protecting monster races... but that would only make them shine all the brighter when they did so. This was their chance¡ªperhaps their only chance¡ªto achieve what every zhint dreamed of; glory. Their names could go down in history as one of the Great Pairs. Every zhint child would know them. Every child would dream of one day rising to their same heights. Every zhint pair would aspire to be them. It was a chance that Zynthar couldn''t waste. Which meant he couldn''t afford to fail this mission. Or any other placed in his hands. He needed to not only impress but also make himself indispensable. He had to do that while alone and long enough for his other half to find his way here... Together, they could do so much more. Together, they would prove their value like only a zhint pair could. Lee Cascade would see their worth, and they would fight at his side all the way to the top. Or beyond. Because while there were legends out there who rose to godhood and carved out a place of their own in history... there were also Legends that reshaped the multiverse forever. Zynthar had a very strong feeling that he was now bearing witness to the origin of one such being. Or more than one. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. To that end, he had already taken drastic measures to secure his and his pair''s place here. Unthinkable measures under any other circumstances. He had altered his Pair-Contract to include the mention of protecting Lee Cascade. Making that decision on his own was a truly egregious betrayal of his pair and it would allow Zylar to cancel their pair-bond if he so desired. But Zynthar believed in his pair and knew his pair trusted him in turn. That the contract had yet to be canceled only renewed his hope that Zylar understood what he was trying to do here. Because while it was extreme, it was the only way he had to communicate to his pair the urgency of returning to this world. A task that would not be easy. Or cheap. Earth was a brand new dungeon world. Any direct key would be prohibitively expensive, never mind even finding one for sale... Zylar needed to get lucky, and soon. Because it would only become more impossible once word spread of the human trait... Once that happened, if it hadn¡¯t already... Well, by then, it might be easier to convince Lee Cascade to flee off-world than for anyone to find a way in past the empires. Zynthar crested a small hill and saw the resource lair ahead. He immediately shoved all his musings to the back of his mind. This was his first real chance to prove his worth. He could not¡ªas the humans put it¡ªfuck this up. Lee Cascade valued his people more than most leaders did. Such care wasn''t that uncommon, or a bad thing exactly, but it could be exploited. Zynthar was not above such exploitation, except he would do so by ensuring that none of the humans needed to risk themselves against the hunters waiting ahead. Some hunters delved into the dungeons to hunt resources rather than monsters. It could be lucrative, and the risk was much lower. The Great System didn''t like it¡ªhence labeling the dungeon dirty hunters¡ªbut it would allow the practice. The hunters would walk away with only the resource core and no experience, but the Great System would allow an exit once they''d claimed it. The lack of an army waiting at the lair wasn''t too surprising either; these resource hunters tended to be smaller specialist squads. Seeing two of them waiting outside the entrance was equally unsurprising; he fully expected them to be confused and worried upon realizing the system had sent them into an E-grade dungeon. Perhaps the Great System had sent them specifically here as punishment? Perhaps they''d escaped without a fight more times than they should have? It was always hard to say how the Great System would react... and such speculation was for scholars, not zhint pairs. Zynthar had no time for any such useless thoughts now... in fact, he had no time for any thought. He recognized the race, Vorlexians, and that was his last full thought as he activated every boosting ability to its maximum potential. During his time with E-grades, both here and before, Zynthar had to endure the slower... well, everything about them. It wasn''t their fault. They simply did everything at a slower pace. Constantly using his boosting ability while protecting them didn''t help. Of course, that was only the lowest power of his boost. Low enough power that he could maintain it indefinitely. It was a different story when he pushed it. Very different indeed if he pushed it to the limit... Time slowed to a crawl, or at least it appeared to beyond the confines of his mind as he sailed through the air. Two figures lurked at his destination, but they were unimportant... uninteresting. He took in the scenery lazily¡ªidly looking for any others that might lurk out here¡ªand found nothing of note. His feet neared the ground between the figures, and he rested a hand on his sword hilt. Not to draw it, but simply to hold it steady when he landed. They were D-grades. More than experienced enough to notice the abrupt wind of his passage and feel his killing intent. But it didn''t matter. Because he had no intention of killing them. Not until it was too late. Then he drew steel... and they died. D-grade defeated: +200 Exp D-grade defeated: +200 Exp One shot: +100 Exp Double Kill: +100 Exp Zynthar ignored the slight rush of power entering his body¡ªa side benefit of his task here¡ªand continued into the tunnels. He wasn''t hunting the others... merely seeking to reach the final chamber as fast as possible. Besides, they knew he was here now that two of their party members were dead. He passed piles of dirt that spoke of dead lair guardians and picked up his pace. The Vorlexians might be surprised and upset to find themselves in an E-grade dungeon, but it also meant they would have an almost effortless time clearing this resource lair. Even when the lair reacted to their presence and threw all it had at stopping them. The two at the entrance had felt like brand new D-grades¡ªand probably about the same level as him after the surrender losses¡ªbut he had something they didn''t. Experience. And not the system-granted kind. Hunters like these weren''t pushing themselves. They were scraping by with the bare minimum and probably with low rarity skills as well. That they''d come into an E-grade dungeon at all meant their key had probably been the literal cheapest one possible. A pure random that didn''t even tell them what waited within. They would die for that. Zynthar found them in the final chamber as they were beating down the wall that separated them from the core. As expected, they knew he was coming and were on guard while a single member destroyed the wall. D-grade defeated: +200 Exp D-grade defeated: +200 Exp D-grade defeated: +200 Exp One shot: +100 Exp One shot: +100 Exp He went through them like a warrior through farmers, and perhaps they were. All except for the final D-grade. One who had to be the leader of this sad little group. The leader let his comrades die while preparing spells instead. Including a spell that stripped Zynthar''s cloaking magic away and dragged at his speed, slowing him noticeably. Definitely not a low rarity... Zynthar deflected the first blade and then barely dodged aside from the follow-up strike he hadn''t seen coming. He completely missed the kick that slammed him into the wall, nearly finishing the job of breaking it down. He bounced off the wall, parried a strike with his sword, and deflected the next with a smaller dagger Lee Cascade had given him. It was another sign of his contracted''s power when each of his enchanted blades left notches in his enemy''s swords. A legendary enchanting class. One he''d heard of, but only in... well, legends. He''d also never believed those tales before. Runic. A class supposedly from the dawn of the Great System. It had obviously been just a story. One warped by each retelling. Until the details grew to ridiculousness. Now... well, now he wasn''t so sure. Lee Cascade''s fortress didn''t live up to the wild tales of the legends, but he was only E-grade... What might he create in the future? If this was what he was capable of now, then there was no telling where it might lead. It was fortunate indeed that his contracted human held such power because Zynthar''s final opponent was not the weakling its companions had been. This one was at least mid D-grade. Far above his own current power, and with a boosting ability of its own. A strong one. Zynthar couldn''t keep up with the sudden burst of speed, and he failed to deflect the next strike aimed at his heart... where it rang harmlessly off his breastplate, along with a pulse of light from Lee Cascade''s rune. Right. He had better equipment. Though he knew the enchantments wouldn''t last long under this level of punishment. That was fine. He wouldn''t last long, either. Not with his boost at full power like this. His opponent was in the same situation. Zynthar could see it in their eyes. They must have felt his killing resolve and reacted with everything they had to survive. Unfortunately, it might be enough for them to do exactly that. He fought back against the end, using every skill, trick, and dirty move he had at his disposal. He fought on even as his body started to break down under the immense strain of his boost. They traded blows back and forth across the underground chamber, shattering fresh craters and pits into the surrounding stone. His dagger''s rune finally failed, and he drew his backup when the blade shattered. Pieces of his armor followed. Then his sword... but only after his opponent''s sword finally broke from the cumulative chips he''d taken out of it. It turned into a knife fight after that, one that he was slowly losing. Zynthar saw the emotions play over his enemy throughout the fight. First, the contemptuous arrogance. Then confusion and frustration arose when he continued to stand against them. Then the triumph as his equipment and body slowly failed him... He didn''t mind. He knew something this invader did not. Backup was coming. The chamber wall burst open without warning, and Lee Cascade''s stone magus came through with his staff already swinging. Such an entrance earlier would likely have cost the human his life. He was strong and skilled beyond most, but still E-grade. Against a boosted D-grade, he moved in slow-motion. Unthreatening. Trivial. But fighting for your life at full power took a lot out of someone. Even a D-grade. Zynthar knew that, and he was counting on it. In fact, his life depended on it now. So did the human''s. Unfortunately, his attempt to wear down the enemy D-grade hadn''t been successful enough... and his opponent easily dodged the staff while plunging his dagger toward the human''s throat. Of course, the human wasn''t the same fighter he''d been when Zynthar bisected him. He had trained repeatedly against the very one who nearly killed him. Even though the act had clearly terrified him... It was a sign of a warrior. A sign of someone who would go far in the multiverse. Bradley Summers had learned a lot about fighting opponents faster than himself. The human used his staff as leverage to very abruptly change the direction of his flight. His staff flew one way, and he went the other, vanishing into the stone wall... right as a monstrous tail whipped out from within the floor and batted their enemy across the chamber. Zynthar pursued... but he was too slow. The other D-grade never hit the far wall. Instead, the stone swallowed up his target and took them away. He felt tremors pass through the ground beneath his feet a few times, but he didn''t wait to see if his opponent would return. They wouldn''t. So he raced back through the tunnels... at least until the stone tunnel shifted and dragged him upward. Daylight fell on him as the earth spit him onto its surface, and he sprinted toward the battle underway ahead. Then he slowed... and stopped. The D-grade was faster and stronger than him. Which meant it was much faster than the E-grade humans. They didn''t seem to care about that. Zynthar let his boost lapse, only keeping it going enough to remain conscious as he watched the humans take apart a being that should have crushed them. Its strikes met either air or a shield that always seemed to get in the way at the last moment and its feet constantly stumbled in a bed of vines that sprouted endlessly from the earth. The very ground itself shifted to drag the invader away from whoever they tried to pursue, while an army of humans pelted it with magic from range. Zynthar expected a surrender as the fight dragged on, the invader slowing with each passing moment, but it never came. He couldn''t recall if the Vorlexians were one of those stupidly proud races... but it looked likely. As he watched the fight wind towards its inevitable conclusion, Zynthar had only one thought. It was from a message he¡¯d seen when he¡¯d first arrived on this world, and one he suspected would haunt many of this world¡¯s future invaders. Welcome to Earth. 144. Marching Orders ~~~Stanley~~~ Debuff Downgraded: [Major Soul Wound] Fuck. Yes. Stanley closed his eyes and let the feeling of triumph fill him for a moment. But only for a moment. Then he opened his eyes to the ruins of a lair and the bloody remains of its queen and her children. She foolishly hadn''t surrendered. Stanley smiled. Not at the surrounding carnage, but at his soul, which felt good. Better every day. Stronger every day. Strong enough that he could work on it at least twice a day instead of only the single morning session he''d done for what felt like ages. At this point, fixing the soul wound felt like an inevitable outcome rather than a distant dream. Move The earth streaked past below him, but it wasn''t all a blur anymore. Increasing his attributes was definitely changing him. For the better. Not that he actually needed to see where he was going. His mental touch was more than enough these days, and it, plus the souls he could feel ahead, led him to the next lair on his list. Someone, probably Nate, had started a list of problem lairs that were growing too fast. Some were like the ant lair, in that the queens were getting clever. Others were like the ant lair, in that they were massive and only growing larger. While still more were like the ant lair, in that they actively sent monsters out to hunt in the wider world. In short, the ant lair had really been a trendsetter. Unfortunately for them, Stanley existed. Extra unfortunate for them, Stanley needed a lot of cores, and they were just asking for it by being such juicy targets. While he ruined yet another queen''s whole life, Stanley kept a dedicated portion of his attention on the small bundle of happy emotions inside his head. Caffeine. Probably playing with Barbie by the feel of things... As long as Stanley didn''t stray too far across the city or get too excited about anything, Caffeine would roam freely and joyfully. Though he tended to linger in or around Nate''s base, either playing with Barbie and the kids or running with the wolves. Stanley hadn''t quite nailed down how far he could range from the pug before Caffeine came running in a trail of destruction, but that was because it seemed to depend on a wide range of factors. Like his own mood, or Caffeine''s mood, or if Caffeine just ate and needed a lap to sleep in... He didn''t actually want to be apart from Caffeine, but Stanley ruthlessly quashed those feelings whenever they resurfaced. Caffeine deserved... everything. Anything he wanted. Anything that made him happy. Stanley could endure whatever it took to make that happen. Plus, it helped him keep watch on Zeke while out hunting. Sure, there was a chance the hiding undead would eventually strike at him out here again, but Stanley wasn''t feeling very threatened by that thought. Not personally, and especially not after improving the soul wound yet again. No, if they resurfaced before he found them, he was almost certain Zeke would be their target. His purification zone was spreading every day, all while the corruption beyond it grew ever more potent. As his own power only grew over the last week, Stanley had noticed a new trend. A worrying one. Well, it wasn''t exactly new, but after having complete shit luck searching for the undead, it was feeling more and more likely. Zeke might be exactly as important as Nate had originally thought. Stanley had seen corrupted fish. Not a lot, but enough that he knew even the ocean would fall to the corruption. Eventually. If he never found the undead, if they could hide well enough, then all they needed to do was eliminate Zeke. Without him, everyone would simply starve to death as every living thing rotted away. Sure, maybe people could evolve and adapt to the corruption, but how many? Stanley didn''t want to be undead... Well, he would if he had to, but he could never let them do that to Caffeine. So it worked out great to have Caffeine hanging out with Zeke... even if Stanley worried every second that... No. I am calm. Caffeine was strong. Even another D-grade skeleton wouldn''t be able to take him down before Stanley could get back. And then they would regret ever trying... Then they would regret ever fucking existing! Stanley winced at the flash of alarm echoing back to him, then sighed as a whirlwind of destruction swirled around and past him. Once the wind settled and the debris finished raining to earth, he could finally see the pug standing in front of him and looking up with big, worried eyes. "Sorry, Caff." Yeah, so his control wasn''t always good. But he was trying. He offered his lap to the dog and flew them both into the mostly dead lair. "Let''s get some cores." The queen was waiting for him when he arrived on the top floor, but she didn''t attack. She didn''t surrender, either. Not even when he drifted closer and spread his arms wide. "Come on. Take your shot." Still nothing. "I''m going to kill you if you don''t..." The queen, who looked like an eldritch mix between a tree and a caterpillar, lunged toward him. Stanley watched the behemoth cross the distance between them at a truly sluggish pace and sighed before punting her back across the room. The queen has surrendered. Lair defeated. It was just as well; she wasn''t powerful enough to trigger a premonition. While her minions had been decent, they, too, were still lacking in that department. Maybe she would learn from his attack and make something better next time? Besides, he still got a core out of it. Root Circulation (Rare) The ground nourishes you. Greatly increase regeneration while your roots remain planted... Another weird skill, and yet the attributes he could gain for destroying it were probably way less than he could make selling it to another human. Someone who would probably evolve the skill and not themselves. Though he wasn''t certain anymore. Not after seeing more and more people adapting themselves... Freaks. The lot of them. It was far from the first such transaction. He''d gotten a lot of weird skills in the past week. Some came from the problem lairs, but others he had pulled from the ocean. It turned out that there were indeed lairs down there. None of them were anything special, but then again, he hadn''t gone very far into the water yet. Which was a shame, because the ocean was a veritable goldmine of cores that practically threw themselves at him. Something about the water, or perhaps the lower corruption, but the creatures down there really loved to swarm at any opportunity to eat each other. The problem for him was that Caffeine hated the ocean. Or maybe feared was a better term. Even on land, Caffeine wouldn''t let him stray very far before coming to find him, and it worked the same in the ocean. The one time Caffeine tried to save him from the water felt... traumatizing for the pug. It was bad enough that Stanley wasn''t willing to put him through it again. That alone was reason enough to stick to the shallows near the city, and besides, there were still enough lairs on land. He didn''t need to torture Caffeine. Though he was hoping the shorter trips into the ocean would help acclimate Caffeine to the water. Despite the minor setback there, he''d made good progress. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](57%) [Source Nexus] [Wrath] [Eye of the Storm] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 115 (Expert) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 89 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 55 (Advanced) | Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Soul Meditation (Rare) - Level 75 (Advanced) | Mental Fortress (Epic) - Level 1 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 515(+70%)875 Vitality: 509(+162%)1333 Dexterity 511(+70%)868 Wisdom 620(+1683%)11443 Intelligence 623(+1683%)11496 If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Willpower 655(+2926%)20209 Twin-Soul 110(+607%)777 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 35 (Intermediate) | Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) Buff: [Soul-Link] Debuff: [Major Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Great progress... not counting a few holdout skills that were refusing to advance, with Still Mind and Soul Awareness being the most concerning. He used Soul Awareness daily, and in every way he''d thought possible... that it still wasn''t leveling meant he was missing something. Probably something damn important if it involved his soul... Still Mind wasn''t as common on his roster, and Stanley was... hesitant to experiment too freely with that skill. Besides, he used it often enough, and there really weren''t that many ways he could think of to change it up. Not without Caffeine interfering... which was probably a good thing. The why of Mental Fortress not leveling was obvious and not too disappointing, seeing as how no one was attacking his mind... but he still didn''t like that big level one staring out at him from his status. He wasn''t buying for a second that the wizards didn''t have someone with mind magic... No matter what Nate said. Not that Nate was being very clear in the intuition department. He sort of trusted some of them, but he still didn''t know if any were traitors. So pretty much useless. Stanley flew high above the lair. The last one on Nate''s list and the most profitable to date. The monsters on the previous level before the queen had dropped the really good cores. The ones that actually gave him whole attributes. Which likely meant they were getting closer to the next grade. Of course, the diminishing returns had also started kicking in the moment he passed five hundred attributes... He¡¯d almost forgotten about that bullshit. The ocean was still his next best option for mass core gathering, and Stanley hesitated while staring at the thin strip of blue in the distance. One thing he hadn''t tried yet was taking a shit-ton of chicken along. Maybe he could distract Caffeine from the water with food? That sent his gaze back toward Nate''s base. He''d need a lot of chicken... and Caffeine liked it cooked. Maybe if he brought the extra chickens to the cooks? It definitely seemed worth the effort. At least if he wanted to keep pushing forward. Which he did. He was still in a great mood when he stopped along the way to check in with some old friends. His mood improved further when their souls failed to react to his approach. Maybe because of the weaker debuff or the improvements to his soul shield¡ªeither way, it was excellent. "How''s the hunting?" Silas glanced back, then did a double take as he flinched slightly. It wasn''t a scared flinch, just... surprised. "S... Stanley! I... didn''t know you were here." Serenity didn''t flinch; she only smiled briefly and waved before turning her attention back to the fighting. She wasn''t in the actual mix, instead hanging back with ten other people while a smaller group fought through the lair ahead. Except she wasn''t watching the fighters. Stanley could feel her attention focused intently on a man in purple robes. Silas'' too. Caffeine successfully distracted both of them from their task while Stanley eyed the man they were obviously here to protect. It wasn''t the council guy who''d rewound time before... just one of his apprentices... presumably. "I thought they weren''t letting the purples outside?" "Nate brought ''em around," Serenity said without taking her gaze from the other man and while scratching Caffeine behind his ears. "Wants them as close to combat as possible to increase the leveling speed of their skills." "Skills? What happened to the sanctity of their magic?" Stanley asked, making air quotes. "Oh, they''re still hung up on that," Silas said, his hovering cloud of crystals suddenly condensing into a shield around the purple-robed man when something exploded ahead. An unnecessary precaution, as the fighters were kicking ass. "Unfortunately," Purple-robe said after emerging from the shield. "The system counts Mana Manipulation as combat adjacent enough that we can''t improve past a certain point without risking our lives. A truly brutish system..." Stanley still wasn''t sure how their wizard classes worked. He only knew that they went hard on Mana Manipulation. Their skill with that, along with reaching some threshold of aspect affinity, determined what school they belonged to... and, thereby, what color robes they wore. It was all very ridiculous, but supposedly the robes helped with controlling mana... though Stanley was certain the colors didn''t matter. Purple wasn''t the only wizard present. A gray robe enshrouding a familiar soul lurked nearby, and he was studiously not looking Stanley''s way. Instead, he waved his hands toward the fighting, presumably casting some magic to help them. Gravity magic, obviously, given the gray color of his robes. Which meant the other guy was from the divination school with his purple robes. How divination related to combat was... well, he could see it having useful defensive applications. At least if he was as strong as the master of his school. Such as predicting the future and rewinding time. Offensively... maybe scouting the monsters? "Did your big-shot master of divination ever find the undead?" Stanley asked. "Yes," Purple said. "He found them. They''re everywhere." Stanley expected the useless response because he could feel Purple''s soul. Their formerly glorious leader had stopped supplying the lowly troops with his soul blocking items, claiming it was unnecessary now that they were no longer hidden. He claimed that, but was probably just upset about the little flesh wound Stanley had given him at their first meeting... even though the other guy had undone it... which was fine. Stanley liked it much better this way, where they couldn''t hide their souls. Of course, he would like it even more if the bastards could actually do something useful, like finding the undead. The only thing they seemed able to find with their divination magic was more humans. Sure, it was probably good to search out and gather up all the smaller groups, but Stanley could have managed that himself. Eventually. Even then, they could only find the humans if enough of them gathered together. So basically, only the already established groups who didn''t actually need help. Of which there were more than Stanley had expected... Thinking about the undead only reminded him that he was wasting time here. So he left. After letting Caffeine check everyone out and kill a few of the paper monsters... It was a new type of lair he¡¯d only seen a couple times. With non-living monsters. Well, non-flesh monsters. They still moved around like they were alive, and they still dropped cores when killed. This warehouse was presumably a paper vendor in the past, and now, instead of flesh and blood monsters, it was full of animated paper... golems? Interesting for sure, and definitely disturbing, but also not a place Caffeine would enjoy. Which was fine. More monsters for the weakling humans to fight. But then again, they were fighting. That was more than many were doing. He should give them credit for that much, even if they were weak. At least they were trying. Caffeine still whined at him as they flew away. "She''ll be fine, Caff," Stanley told him, mostly sure he wasn''t lying about Serenity. The monsters were weak enough, and it wasn''t one of the massive lairs. Plus, she had a lot of backup. "Let''s go see your other friends." Caffeine figured out where they were going before they actually got there, and he went on ahead with... destructive enthusiasm. Nate wasn''t home, but neither was Zeke. Nate never took the purifier very far from home, so it would be easy enough to find them and drop off the skill shards. But first... "Need me to hurt anyone for you, Hugo?" A few of the people in the room looked askance at him, but the old man didn''t even glance up from the wand-like stick he was carving. "You know I''m not helpless, right, Stanley?" "Honestly?" Stanley said, meeting and turning away every gaze that looked his way. "Everyone here seems pretty helpless... except maybe Nate? Though last I saw, he wasn''t anything special." "Hmm." Hugo finished with his stick and handed it to the boy in front of him with a stern look. "Now listen here. When you cast the spell, channel it through the wand... and only your earthquake spell. If you get another skill, then, for god''s sake, come back before you try to use this wand for it. Got it?" "Got it!" the boy exclaimed, then quickly added, "Uh, sir." Hugo watched him go with a scowl, but his soul held something like... pride? Then the feeling changed as he looked at Stanley. It wasn''t negative, but more... introspective. "I actually had a fellow that needed an... attitude adjustment a few days ago, but that new fellow Bernard handled him." "Really?" Stanley frowned and stared through the walls with Soul Sight, trying to remember what the guy''s soul had looked like. He''d almost forgotten about him and his grand plan of... whatever it had been. "Yep. Then he asked about you." "Did he? What is that bastard up to now?" "Dunno. Told him what I knew and not to listen to the haters. You done good by the folks here, even if some don''t agree." "I... thanks?" Stanley could see the half-undead souls scattered around the base, but he wasn''t sure which one was Bernard. "He say anything else?" "Nah. He''s been tryna'' smooth things out round here, making friends and enemies alike ''long the way." "Whatever." Stanley shrugged. He didn''t care what Bernard was after, as long as the guy didn''t overstep... "Let me know if you need anything." Jerry was in his usual good mood. Which meant he was glowering at everyone. Though he perked up when Caffeine followed Stanley into the crowded room. The very crowded room... It looked like Nate had gathered even more people in since last time, and he hadn''t needed Stanley to go get them either. So maybe Bernard and his people were good for something after all? "If I bring you a handful of extra chickens, can you cook them up?" Stanley asked while looking at the massive spread of already cooked meat. He ignored the non-meat stuff. Obviously. "Or, I could just take all of this..." "Go ahead," Jerry said, smiling suspiciously. Stanley did so, pulling piles of meat into a bag while Caffeine stared intently. At least until someone started shouting at him... "You can''t take that much!" It was one of Bernard''s half-dead people. "You also can''t cut the line!" "Seriously?" Stanley said, looking between the grinning Jerry and the line enforcer. "Do you know who I am?" Then he winced. Saying that felt so cringy... "Meet our new jack-booted overlords," Jerry exclaimed. "How does his boot feel on your neck?" "It''s not like that and you know it, Jerry!" The man snapped at the cook, clearly annoyed with him, almost like they''d had this argument before... "Isn''t it?" Jerry shot back, his soul only mildly annoyed, like he just enjoyed flustering the other man. So normal Jerry. "Your commander sure seemed to enjoy throwing his weight around earlier!" "What did he do?" Stanley asked while once again scanning around the base for Bernard''s soul. Ominous and unspecific threats at him were one thing, but if he was going after Jerry... Jerry ramped up his fake outrage. "He''s been going around interrogating people!" "He has not!" the jack-booted thug yelled back. "And threatening anyone who doesn''t kowtow to his demands!" Stanley sighed. "Jerry, are you just messing with this guy, or do I actually need to hurt someone?" Jerry abruptly smiled, his entire demeanor changing. "Nah. Bernard is real nosy about you, but these guys are just too uptight about everything. They make it so easy..." "Have fun with that," Stanley said while shoveling more meat into his bag. "As for you," he addressed the thug. "I get all the food I want. Talk to Nate if you don''t like..." Bernard chose that moment to fly into the room alongside a gust of wind. Foul wind. Like a particularly rotten fart. A half-corrupted, rotten fart. "Come to give me my marching orders now?" Stanley asked the man, then glanced down at his bag. "Or to stop me from taking my food?" Not a chapter I''m sick and not able to write. If I recover quickly enough, I''ll try to get a chapter out later this week. Otherwise, it''s all on hold. word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count word count This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. 145: I Made Another Mistake ~~~Bernard~~~ Bernard knew what waited for him in the dining room; the wind had already told him of Stanley''s arrival, as well as what was being said. So he carefully schooled his expression as he entered and approached the man himself. For whatever the effort was worth. If he believed the rumors around here, then Stanley could sense his soul and, through that, his emotions. That sounded like a lot of hippie nonsense, of course. Or it should have. It was somewhat harder to argue against while the wind swirled gently around him in a cloud of information only he could hear¡ªthe same whispers that alerted him to what was happening in this room moments ago Not to mention how that same wind even now carried him through the air... and while the man ahead likewise hovered in defiance of what had been the natural order a month ago. "Come to give me my marching orders now?" Stanley asked with a sneer while eyeing both him and Private Smith, as if daring them to try something. "Or to stop me from taking my food?" Bernard tried to remain as neutral as possible while facing off with Stanley¡ªthe inevitable outcome of their new world''s system. Someone who had raced ahead of the pack. Someone who had accrued power faster and to a greater degree than anyone else. Perhaps even¡ªif he believed the stories¡ªto the point that it no longer mattered if everyone else banded together against the man to stop him. He shook his head as those thoughts stewed, acerbic and bitter in his mind. "No. I''m not here to do either of those things." The words were equally sour in his mouth, but he''d known this was coming. Hell, ever since that first night, he''d always known it was coming; he''d just never dreamed it would be so soon. He''d thought there was time to build a stable base of power before they needed to deal with monsters like this. Now it was too late. "Leave him be, Smith. Nathaniel struck this deal with him, and we will honor it." It galled him to give up the only leverage they had against the man, but it likely didn''t matter anymore. Definitely not to the degree he''d anticipated on the day of their first meeting, when he''d talked to Stanley so bluntly... which, in retrospect, had been a major tactical blunder. He''d thought he understood the situation better than he actually had. He''d doubted the wind''s whispers. More than doubted them. He''d straight up disbelieved that anyone could be so powerful. Even after he''d gotten a front-row seat to it... That whole experience felt absurd, both at the time and in retrospect. Nathaniel suddenly dashed away. Followed by that wave of death bearing down on them. Then a giant pug... No. It had been absurd. Absolutely. Even taking into account the fact that magic was now real and monsters roamed the land, it was still absurd. Except now, over a week later, he''d had time to learn more. Both from talking directly with the people and from the whispers the wind carried to his ears. The people who didn''t even know he was listening still spoke of the impossible. The people who had felt that same wave of death. The people who had been there to see the wave crash and break. Others who''d felt that pressure... The pressure. Supposedly from Stanley''s soul. That previous pressure was absent now, and Bernard had yet to see anything concrete regarding souls, but enough people spoke of the feeling, including that they''d unlocked the hidden soul attribute. Enough of them that ignoring the matter would be willful ignorance at this point. Especially considering the look in Stanley''s eyes as the man glared at him. There wasn''t any of that pressure coming from his gaze, but it felt like there should be. "I am not your enemy, Stanley, though I may have spoken more harshly than you deserved at our last meeting." Stanley only kept glaring at him while meat flew, seemingly of its own accord, into his bag. Meanwhile, the pug in his lap alternated between watching the food and glancing at the surrounding people, including Bernard. There was nothing hostile in the animal''s gaze, but Bernard didn''t like it, regardless. He still remembered that creature standing over him... the vibration of it growling... and how it froze him helplessly in his tracks. Madness. Yet he resisted the shiver that tried to travel through his body as he met Stanley''s hostile gaze. Yes, it was disturbing and maybe slightly terrifying, but he''d dealt with worse in his long life. Because he had lived a very long time on this earth, had seen a lot, had experienced more than most, and had even thought his long life was coming to an end as his aging body slowly failed. Then, instead of his life ending, the world ended. Or perhaps not ended, but changed. Drastically. An upending of everything he''d thought he knew to be reality. Monsters in the night and magic at his fingertips. It was madness enough to drag an old man from his bed and out into the dark. Not only did he wish to help his friends and neighbors, especially once the screaming started, but he had an even greater duty to attend to that night. His country, the greatest nation on Earth, was under attack by alien invaders, and he hadn''t spent the vast majority of his life defending his country, only to sit idly by now. It didn''t matter if he was retired. It didn''t matter if he was old or if his body was failing him. He took up arms and answered the call. Unfortunately, guns turned out to be a wash, maybe from something the aliens did to the world. Or because of the mana. Whatever it was, it didn''t matter in the end. Because whatever ruined his guns had also changed him. First, the very air itself seemed to speak with him, whispering to him of threats in the darkness and carrying to him the voices and screams of those in need. Then it arose to defend him violently from the wildlife that had run amuck. He used that new power to fight back. To protect his neighbors. To protect as many lives as he could with the little time he had left. It hadn''t all gone as well as he''d have liked, but lives were saved. American lives. Then the unexpected war of that night had run on into days and weeks¡ªlonger than he''d thought anyone would last in a war against the United States of America. Of course, changing the rules of warfare definitely helped, as well as locking them all away inside this inescapable dome... where no backup could reach them. That night had changed other things as well. Fundamental things. Instead of waking up weaker and older each morning, always wondering if this day would be his last, now he only grew stronger. Younger. Every day his power grew, and he saw no signs of that ever stopping. It was a paradigm shift of monumental proportions. Power up for grabs by anyone who reached for it. Life-extending power. Personal power that rivaled even that afforded to all Americans through the Second Amendment. All of it led him to here and now, where he faced the inevitable outcome of such a system. A man with enough personal power that he now thought himself above the law, that he thought himself untouchable. Unfortunately, he wasn''t completely wrong about that. Worse, he was obviously unstable. Bernard had commanded many throughout his life, but in his later years, he''d also served directly below more than one president. All of whom could be considered arguably far more powerful than the man in front of him now, and some, unfortunately, equally unstable. If not more so. He''d been... unnerved after their first meeting. The... storm that heralded Stanley''s arrival on that day was beyond anything he''d felt before. Well, almost anything else. There were those days when the system told everyone that invaders had died. Two different days. Two different sensations. But both times, an invader died. Both times, he''d felt... something unknown. Something terrifying. His first meeting with Stanley had brought those feelings back with a vengeance, and with good reason, too. Stanley being the shared connection between the events. Despite what Nathaniel told him and his own experience, his early interactions left him with the impression of Stanley as a petulant child lashing out in a tantrum. An impression he still held, but one that had tainted their early conversations. Many others had served beneath Bernard over the years. All manner of men and women. All with their own personalities and idiosyncrasies. He''d learned to work with and command them, as well as how to handle differing or opposing views without alienating either party. He should have, at the very least, kept his discussion with Stanley more neutral until he''d had time to understand the situation. Until he''d taken a more thorough assessment and found a better way to communicate with the man. Or perhaps calling him a child was a more apt description. Because if the rumors were true, Stanley had done the opposite of himself. He''d aged rapidly forward instead of the revitalization Bernard had experienced. So basically, he was still a child, even if he looked older now. A child who hadn''t willingly signed up to this war, but one who''d been drafted, like most had these days, and, by all accounts, it hadn''t been a positive experience. As if that didn¡¯t hold true for most... though, he supposed, most others wouldn¡¯t have survived what Stanley had endured. Most of the whispers carried to him on the wind weren''t certain about Stanley''s past. Rampant speculation was all too common, while actual details remained scarce. What little he had confirmed, especially after speaking with Arthur about their time together, all spoke to a rather brutal introduction to the war... or else the man before him didn''t feel pain like a normal man. Which, given the circumstances, wasn''t out of the question. "I have been talking to those here since we last spoke," Bernard finally said, bringing up the topic he knew Stanley had already heard about. "I''ve been asking about you, among other things." Stanley said nothing, but something in his expression or body language shifted. He was nervous. As if afraid of what Bernard might say next... "I have endeavored to learn," Bernard said, suspecting he knew the reason for Stanley''s worry. "Both of how I had misjudged you, as well as how best to serve and protect our stronghold here." "A likely story," Jerry said from behind his grill. "You can still eat rocks because I''m not telling you shit." The cook had already told him to do just that, among other colorful statements. Jerry could babble non-stop while somehow remaining completely tight-lipped about any actual, real subject. Bernard was certain the man had served pre-system. He just wasn''t sure which branch... and, of course, the man refused to tell him anything. Stanley smiled at Jerry''s bombastic statement. Two figures bonding through anti-authority rhetoric. A not uncommon trait among those lower ranks who seemed content to remain in their station while criticizing anyone who reached for more. "I still want to cooperate with you, Stanley." As he spoke, Bernard signaled Smith to leave and called on the wind to pull into a loose circle around them. It would keep his words from traveling too far. It was a useful trick when someone needed a dressing down, but when it didn''t need to be a public spectacle. Especially useful when he himself might have to eat some crow... "I would also like to apologize again for our early... interactions. I may have spoken more... bluntly than necessary." Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. "You mean when you threatened to take away my food if I didn''t obey you?" Stanley glared while drifting slightly higher in the air to loom over him. A childish tactic, which Bernard ignored. "Yes. That was some of it. Also, for my insinuation that you were not trying to defeat the invaders. Since then, I have spoken with others who were present and who have pitted themselves against the... skeletons." He''d underestimated the invaders. He''d assumed they would be on a similar scale to his own power... which somewhat held true. Nate had told him about the undead in his base¡ªstrong, but not unbeatable. The problem was that they refused to die, even when you killed them. Then there was the D-grade Stanley had fought. All the accounts he''d heard of that fight said it was equally unkillable as well as nearly invincible. Until Stanley killed it. With his soul. Allegedly. "Or you just realized that there''s fuck all you can do to me," Stanley spat. "So, of course, now you want fucking peace! Let me guess, you want to make a deal? Oh, maybe you want me to depose Nate for you? Is that it? You want to be in charge?" Bernard also ignored the comment about deposing Nathaniel. This was America. They didn''t have kings to depose... not even if they wore a crown and thought themselves better than everyone else. Besides, he technically already outranked the younger man... in both life and military experience. Sure, Nathaniel had done a great job in a difficult spot, but leadership obviously wasn''t his forte. The man had spent most of his time out hunting with their purifier lately, which left the people here adrift without leadership. It wasn''t a bad thing; in fact, it was a role he excelled at and one he would do well to focus his energies on while Bernard dealt with the bigger picture. Unfortunately, the bigger picture involved dealing with Stanley. An area where Nathaniel''s inexperience was on clear display. He hadn''t known what to do or how to deal with the man, but Bernard did. Stanley wasn''t unique. He was exactly like the countless others Bernard had dealt with throughout the years. People who didn''t fit into the general mold, either as officers or grunts, but people whose value was too great to cast aside. They were troublemakers. Those who thrived on being contrary to authority, but who still had plenty to offer their country. They were specialists, and Stanley wasn''t even the only one here. Which led directly to his plans for the man. Why not have the biggest problem of them all keep the rest of the troublemakers in line? The other people that refused to work together but were too powerful to throw away. Too useful to waste. Especially when they were trapped inside this dome with no hope of reinforcements. "I want you to lead an elite strike force that answers only to my..." "Eat rocks," Stanley snapped with a smug look on his face, one only matched by Jerry beside him. Bernard stifled his sigh and resisted the urge to pull the air from Stanley''s lungs. It wouldn''t take him down fast enough... Sure, it would be extremely unpleasant, but already at E-grade, a human could function for a long time without air. Instead, he remained diplomatic. "You would be an officer, outside the chain of..." Stanley snorted. "I don''t work for you. I only helped you before as a favor to Nate. You''re dreaming if you think I''ll do anything you say just cause you''re pretending to care now." No, a far better strategy would be to turn the air inside his lungs into whirling blades and send them towards his heart. Assuming it would even be enough to bring him down... He didn''t do that. Not only was it incredibly difficult to manipulate air inside another being''s lungs, but this close to Stanley, the air felt... thick. It was like an aura that followed him around, and Bernard had a feeling that trying anything within that space would not work out as planned. "You are an American," Bernard said instead of doing all the violent things his imagination suggested. "Your country needs..." "Like I said before," Stanley interrupted. "Eat rocks." Bernard gritted his teeth and could have sworn he saw a smirk on Stanley''s face when he did. Was the bastard really sensing his soul? "None of us are alone in this war, and make no mistake, it is a war. We won''t win this with a bunch of lone mavericks running around on their own. We need to work to..." "A thousand times zero is still zero." "You!" Bernard took a slow breath and let it out equally slowly before continuing. "You are wrong. You know it matters. Why else would you be bringing all those skill shards back here?" "That''s just simple math," Stanley scoffed. "I get more stats for trading them here, nothing else." He was being obtuse on purpose; Bernard was sure of it. Stubbornness for stubbornness¡¯ sake. "Americans are dying every day because people like you want to feel superior!" Stanley stuffed the last of the cooked meat into his bag, then flew toward the window and said over his shoulder, "That''s their fault for being weak." Bernard called after him, using the last bit of ammunition he had left. "Just like Samantha was too weak?" It was a low blow and not a tactic he preferred, but Stanley was forcing his hand. It was also a gamble, since he only had Arthur''s opinion on the events that led up to her death. Whatever the actual truth of the matter, his words had the desired effect of halting Stanley''s departure. Unfortunately, it also had another effect. Whatever had been hiding that screaming aura from the world very abruptly stopped doing so, and Bernard got a front-row seat to the angry emotions of a madman as he contemplated murdering someone. Murdering him, to be exact. "Don''t you dare..." Stanley growled through clenched teeth as he advanced through the air back toward Bernard. "Don''t you dare fucking talk about her! You don¡¯t have the right!" The dog sat up in his lap as Stanley came on, licking at the lunatic''s face and clenched fists while making pitiful, distressed noises. Jerry remained where he had this whole time, looking equally pissed but only shaking his head. As if in resignation. The obstinate bastard. Bernard held his ground as Stanley slid to a stop only inches away, still growling. "You owe her your life! Every last worthless fuck like you would be dead if she hadn''t..." "Exactly," Bernard said, meeting that psychotic gaze. "She made a difference. A nobody that..." His words cut off when something unseen wrapped around his throat and squeezed. Tight. Bernard couldn''t help himself; he reacted instinctively to the threat, calling on the wind and sending it to cut... That was another mistake. Stanley''s blazing aura of murderous desire turned to murderous certainty as his rage went cold. Bernard tried to pull more air in close around himself to protect him, and he found a terrible problem. The wind refused to obey him. It wasn''t a completely unknown phenomenon. He had fought the occasional monster with their own wind magic, which forced them to fight each other for control over the air. All those times were nothing like this. The wind didn''t just refuse to obey him. It went silent. Still. Dead. Then it abandoned him completely in a single gust of evacuating air, leaving him adrift and gasping for breath in a pure vacuum. Bernard knew well what a vacuum did to living creatures, and while it sucked, the damage was lackluster. Especially on E-grades. The real problem was that it was happening to him. He was meant to be the one controlling the damn air! To add insult to injury, he also couldn''t move a muscle while an unseen and crushing force dragged him off the floor. With no leverage and no wind to command, it was over. Just like that. He tried to fight; he even reached for the air beyond the vacuum he now found himself suspended within, but it didn''t matter. The gap in the air wouldn''t budge, no matter how much he tried to drag fresh air in. There was nothing to do. Nowhere to go. No escape. Worse, he couldn''t even attack Stanley because there was no air in or around him either. The lunatic was inside the vacuum with him! He just hovered there before him, glaring, while his aura of psychotic rage hammered down on Bernard and the crushing force around him grew ever tighter. The bastard really was rabid, and it looked like he''d just poked the mad beast right in the eye. Behind him, Jerry watched dispassionately while a now much larger pug was destroying the floor with each futile step it tried to crawl toward Stanley. He hadn''t even seen the pug move out of the madman''s lap... As spots appeared in his vision, Bernard had a moment to lament. It was never supposed to turn out like this. He''d come in here to mend fences over past mistakes, not pick a fight. How did it go so wrong so fast? Something about Stanley just pushed his buttons. His attitude. His arrogance. His crown... No, he should have stayed away from this place. He should have kept his people far away. He should have understood better. The rumors were all wrong. Stanley was far more powerful than anyone suspected. He could kill everyone here and there was nothing any of them could do about it... Worse, he was completely and utterly insane. Buff Gained: [Purifying Aura] Nathaniel strolled into the room, followed by Ezekiel, the boy who would save them all, and his perpetually angry sister. None of them seemed particularly alarmed by what was happening here. Aside from the boy, who immediately started toward Bernard, only to be stopped by his sister. She held him back while Nathaniel continued his seemingly nonchalant stroll around the dead zone of air, where Bernard was currently in the process of getting murdered by a lunatic. Then he stopped beside the straining, clawing pug and calmly stroked the beast''s head, which now sat at nearly head level with the man. Bernard wanted to lash out at Nathaniel with the last of his strength. For ever inviting him here. For inviting this madman into their home. But he didn''t. It wouldn''t help with his current situation, and at this point, Nathaniel might be the only one who had any sway with Stanley. Also, the boy''s aura was actually feeling rather nice, despite the way it itched at his insides. It actually seemed to push back against the damage Stanley was doing... reversing it. Even the lack of air stopped bothering him. Stanley must have been feeling it too, because his rage cooled and then died as he noticed the newcomers. Air rushed back in, and the man''s dog followed, his distressed noises loud in the sudden return of sound to Bernard''s ears. He also immediately knew that Stanley''s little meltdown hadn''t been an isolated event. The entire base had noticed, and Bernard''s own soldiers were charging closer by the moment to defend their general. "Stand down," Bernard whispered, sending his words out on the wind to the ears of every one of his men. "Do not approach. Return to your posts and standby." While some backup would be nice, he knew it would be completely pointless in the face of Stanley''s power and likely only escalate the situation. Nate, now sans a dog to pet, gave the disappointed-looking Jerry a pat on the shoulder before coming his way. "I told you to leave it alone and let me talk to him." Bernard again resisted the urge to do something violent. He still didn''t know what secrets Nathaniel was hiding, but he knew they existed. Information on the man was somehow even harder to come by than Stanley''s had been, but he knew firsthand that his outwardly relaxed appearance meant nothing. "Your lackadaisical approach is costing us time we can''t afford to waste." "And this was a productive conversation I just interrupted?" "He..." Stanley''s soul aura suddenly vanished, and it felt like someone had just turned off a blaring stereo. "He''s out of control," Bernard said after a small flinch and while glancing at the man in question, who was now petting his dog while Nate''s golden boy stood beside him, talking excitedly with a big smile. "No one here is safe with that madman around." Nathaniel shook his head while watching the exchange. "None of us are safe anywhere, Bernard, and that madman is on our side. Even if you don¡¯t see it.¡± "Stanley," he abruptly called across the room. "I have a new team for you. Actually powerful, but with some... issues. Can you give ''em a shot?" Stanley looked up from the dog in his lap, his gaze jumping between the two men before it settled on Nathaniel. Then he shrugged. "Fine." "Great!" Bernard gaped at the exchange and became acutely aware of all the faces watching them. People with more curiosity than sense were crowding the doorways and windows, all eager for a glimpse of whatever drama had happened here. For a glimpse of Stanley... and whatever had pissed him off. How many of them had seen his crushing defeat at Stanley''s hands? How many saw Nathaniel stroll in and take charge? Was this a setup? Had Nathaniel known this would happen? He''d come back at just the right moment, and he hadn''t seemed at all surprised. As if reading his thoughts, Nathaniel held out his hand. "Thanks for holding things down while I was out. I know everyone here appreciates it¡ªeven Stanley," he added belatedly, to a muttered denial from Stanley that Bernard heard clearly. "Don''t worry, I''ll talk to him for you. We''re all on the same side, after all." He was backed into a corner, and Bernard had no choice but to accept the handshake, especially with all the onlookers. He did so grudgingly. Nathaniel had definitely known this would happen. Well, maybe not this exactly, but he''d known there would be a clash with Stanley. Hell, he''d even warned him off, probably knowing the whole time that Bernard wouldn''t listen. Watching the man as he moved off to easily and casually converse with Stanley, Bernard had a terrible feeling that he''d just missed his chance to take over command here. He was a four-star general. He''d commanded armies. Led wars. He''d advised presidents... and now he''d just been outplayed by a kid from Boston. Politics had never been his strong suit, but he¡¯d learned to wade through those waters. Or thought he had. Had he lost a step somewhere? He had been out of the loop for a while. Was he the one in the wrong? Bernard listened to the wind as he wrestled with his churning emotions and slowly realized something he¡¯d missed earlier. There wasn¡¯t truly an uproar. It was only his own people who were afraid. Nathaniel¡¯s people, the ones who¡¯d lived with Stanley all this time, weren¡¯t actually all that upset by the events here. They were used to it... No, it was more than that. Stanley¡¯s rage gave them comfort. It made them feel safe. They were all insane to feel that way... but then they were also still alive. Everyone here knew Stanley was a monster in their midst. But he was their monster. A monster more fearsome than the creatures that plagued their own nightmares. A monster that would brutally and ruthlessly destroy anything that threatened his home. Their home. Nathaniel had made a deal with the devil, but maybe¡ªjust maybe¡ªit hadn¡¯t been a desperate gamble on his part? Bernard wasn¡¯t sure if he was ready to be that optimistic, but it also felt like he didn¡¯t have much of a choice at this point. Stanley was definitely... off; his screaming soul was proof enough of that, but did it matter if that power became the only thing standing between the people in here and the even worse monsters outside? 146. Hit Me With Your Best Shot ~~~Stanley~~~ Zeke''s aura was definitely getting stronger, and its soothing effect was even enough to let Stanley forget about Bernard''s bullshit. Briefly. "...whole lair in only an hour!" Zeke didn''t seem to care about the situation he''d walked into, and Stanley wondered for the first time if the kid felt the same thing everyone else did from his aura. Was he walking around basically high all the time? Eve must have built up a tolerance to the aura, because she was her usual angry self as she alternated between glowering at Stanley and at all the curious people who''d come to see what the commotion was about. Honestly, it was a little upsetting to feel how calm most of them were. It was almost like they were getting used to him... with only a dozen or so actually worried. Mostly all Bernard''s people, too. Though even they were calming down after their idiotic leader whispered something... Nate was talking to the bastard¡ªthe fucker! How dare he mention Samantha!? First, he threatened to take Stanley¡¯s food. Now he was insulting Samantha. It was like he wanted to die. Every time they talked, the idiot fuck did his damnedest to get killed... At least his soul was afraid. Finally. Maybe he''d realized that his little game of pretending to be a soldier didn''t actually mean shit in real life. It didn''t matter if people called him a general or if he called them officers or whatever. All that mattered in this world was power. Real power. Teamwork was just a meaningless word if your teammates didn''t have actual power to back them up... so, of course, now Nate wanted to make another team. Was it the same team Bernard had been so graciously and generously offering to allow Stanley to lead? His soul had done some weird things when Nate made the offer... Bernard''s soul was still doing weird things as Nate loudly thanked him for being a useless fuck. Why did the guy feel like he''d lost something? He was still alive. What more did the greedy shit want!? Caffeine whined and licked his chin, so Stanley looked away from the annoying moron. "You''re a good boy, Caff," he whispered into the dog''s fur. "Sorry I pushed you away like that, but I didn''t want you in the vacuum." It hadn''t hurt nearly as much as he''d expected, which made sense given that he was E-grade. It had also proven how laughably easy it was to completely disarm someone with wind magic. What was the point of controlling an element if you couldn''t even hold onto it when you needed it most? Psionic was obviously a way better class. He didn''t need anything other than his mind to fight. Zeke finally finished his story about his day of hunting, and Stanley mustered up a smile and a soft, "You''re doing great, Zeke." Then he remembered the boy''s other issue. "You ever find any non-class skills you can learn?" "No," Zeke said, losing some of his irrepressible cheer and earning Stanley a fresh glare from his sister. Then his smile returned in full force. "But I don''t mind! Being able to help so many people here is worth not getting more skills!" Stanley didn''t share that view. He couldn''t imagine a worse situation to be in than where Zeke was. He was practically helpless when it came to his own power, but so ridiculously valuable that he''d never be free to do as he pleased. He was literally trapped here, whether he knew it or not, with the only upside being that he actually enjoyed healing people. Poor kid. People sucked. Well, most people. Zeke was an obvious exception. Even though the kid was probably off his rocker after everything he''d been through... and it was just lucky for everyone that his crazy involved helping others. Very lucky. Or most of these worthless fuckers would already be dead. "Here." Stanley pulled out the skill shards he''d been collecting to trade. "Might as well check these." Even if it was a long shot. Nate finally wandered over, feeling annoyingly pleased with himself. "I noticed your soul felt quieter today. Make some more progress on the repair?" Oh, right, Stanley remembered. Today was a good day. He''d bumped the soul wound down another level... and then let Bernard ruin his good mood. "I did," Stanley said with another glare at Bernard. "Down to a major wound now, which... well, it''s better than deadly or critical." Eve flinched at his statement, almost like she was in pain, and Stanley flicked on Soul Sight to check her soul when he felt her response. It looked fine. Or at least the same as it always did. Though she didn''t seem to appreciate his scan... but then she didn''t appreciate anything, so whatever. "What''s this about a new team?" he asked Nate, rather than worrying about Eve''s drama. "And what did you mean about them having... issues?" Nate waved dismissively. "We don''t need to do that today if you want..." "Just tell me." He''d only come here to grab food for Caffeine, and now he was just wasting time that he could use to get stronger. Though after Bernard''s little stunt... maybe he wouldn''t subject the innocent pug to the terrors of the ocean just yet. He also didn''t feel bad about taking all the food because a parade of gatherers from Zeke''s hunt were hauling in enough meat to keep Jerry busy for days. It was always nice to see the weaklings being useful. It was definitely a good idea to send out gathering teams, especially with Zeke, since they didn''t have to worry about anything rotting. "If you¡¯re up for it, I''ll meet you outside," Nate said. "Just give me a minute to round them up." Stanley nodded at him, even though there was obviously something he wasn''t saying. Something bad. Then he took a deep breath and just focused on the feeling from Zeke''s aura. Today was a good day. He didn''t need to be upset about anything. Especially when it was a problem he could solve by killing. Those were always the easiest. "Wow!" Zeke said, staring at a core. "You think someone will use this to turn into a tree?" Right. That weird root skill. Stanley thought about it, then shook his head. "I really don''t care. Either of you know about this new team Nate''s putting together?" Zeke shook his head. Eve glowered at him before shaking her head, and Jerry said, "I know." Of course, then he just grinned when Stanley looked questioningly at him. It was Stanley''s turn to scowl. "You ready to give up on being a better cook than Bill yet? Maybe do some actual fighting?" He glanced around the room. "Where is Bill, anyway?" "First off," Jerry said. "Fuck you. I will totally wipe that floor with that prick. Also, the idiot blabbed about having a legendary class and someone tried to kill him for it. Now he''s too good to hang out with us common folk." Tried to kill him for... "What?" "You didn''t hear? One of our fighters died in a lair and instead of a normal skill shard, he dropped a class shard. A legendary one." "That''s... good?" Jerry smiled grimly. "Of course, people being the bastards they are, they fought over who got it. In the process, they discovered that legendary classes always drop instead of a skill." "That''s... very interesting," Stanley murmured with a glance at Caffeine. Beast Lord was a legendary class. But it also said it was only for the strongest beast. A human couldn''t take it, could they? Not that anyone even knew it was legendary. At least, not anyone human. Did the animals know? Is that why the tiger went after him? "Wait, what was the legendary class?" Of course, Jerry just grinned at him. "I have a feeling you''re going to find out pretty soon." Zeke and Eve were no help, either. Zeke''s soul felt upset, and knowing him, it was probably because of people killing each other. Eve was far more calculating, but she obviously hadn''t heard about it before either. "Are you the one who tried to kill Bill?" Jerry shook his head with fake sorrow plastered on his face while twirling a knife between his fingers. "No, but man, I really missed my shot, didn''t I?" Zeke gasped in horror, and Eve rolled her eyes while pulling him away. "Don''t listen to him. He''s just fucking with you." "Am I?" Jerry asked, twirling the knife faster while grinning madly. "Speaking of which, your class has gotta be pretty rare..." Eve didn''t even hesitate to move between them and stick a rapidly brightening barrel directly in Jerry''s face. "I will end you in a fucking heart..." "Christ lady!" Jerry yelped, dropping his knife and taking a step back. "I was joking! Gods, you''re even worse than Stanley! Fucking angry people that can''t take a joke..." She bristled and glared. "I''m not... It wasn''t funny!" Then she turned her glare on Stanley, which was completely unjustified. He hadn''t even done anything to her. "You kids have fun," Stanley said, heading for the window and flying outside before he got dragged into any more bullshit. It was past-time to see what new disaster Nate was cooking up. At least Bernard had made himself scarce somewhere along the way... ... "Guys," Nate said to the motley crew before him a short while later. "This is Stanley, assuming you don''t already know that, and he''s going to be your new team leader." This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it His proclamation was met with a mix of reactions from the group. A wide mix ranging from outright denial to calm acceptance, with the most vocal belonging to the former category. "I don''t belong with these people!" Stanley was still thinking about what Jerry had said, particularly about someone here having a legendary class. He wasn''t sure what it was, but something about the protesting man told him he''d just found it. A feeling, but one that he grew more certain about by the second. "You''re the one with a legendary class?" "I didn''t do any..." The man stopped ranting to fix Stanley with a very condescending look. "Duh! Everyone knows..." "Then hit me with your best shot," Stanley said and almost immediately got a premonition. On the one hand, it was impressive how quickly the guy did what he''d asked. On the other hand, he went straight for the head, which, to be fair, was in line with his request to hit him with his best shot. Stanley didn''t get a very good look at what happened in his premonition, despite it happening inside his domain. There was only a single instant to note the baseball-sized hole that appeared in his brain... and everything went dark. Move He got a better look when the actual attack appeared where his head used to be. A black sphere of nothingness appeared in the air and then vanished as quickly as it had arrived. It left absolutely nothing within... and then the air violently refilled the empty space with a pop and a flash of light. Nate was right; that was powerful. Though he''d need to see it in action against something tougher than his own head. Like a lair wall or... Then another premonition warned him an instant before the idiot tried to kill him again. Stop Move Stanley unstopped the man only after his own hand was already tightening around the idiot''s throat and he still heard the pop of another collapsing void behind him. "I said you''re best shot," he growled, his face inches from the other man''s. "You missed." Caffeine helpfully punctuated Stanley''s statement with his own growl, also from only inches away. Sadly, it didn''t have the same intimidation factor when he was actually pug-sized... he was just too cute. Maybe that was why it felt like the void-caster was about to attack him again... "Do you want my best shot?" That did it. Or maybe it was because he added a touch of Mind Over Matter to his grip on the man''s neck. Either way, the guy held up his hands in surrender. "What..." the man wheezed while rubbing his throat. "Too much? You''re supposed to be untouchable." "It wasn''t," Stanley said, then narrowed his eyes. "But that second one was just asking for it." The cheeky bastard grinned at him, his soul not nearly frightened enough... and asked, "What rarity is your class?" Stanley just stared at him. "What? Everyone knows I have a legendary class. You think we don''t speculate about yours? Especially since it''s harder to tell if we''re feeling your class or your soul when you go all angry like that." Stanley re-upped his soul shield, ignoring the smirk on the man''s face as he did so. "I''m assuming your little bubbles can at least destroy lair walls?" He was tempted to have him test it on the sapient lair beside them, but everyone always got so upset whenever the notification appeared... "Black holes," the other man said defensively. "I summon black holes, not bubbles." Stanley shrugged. "I don''t care what you call it. As long as it''s actually powerful... and assuming you can hit moving targets?" "How did you dodge it?" the man probed. "What about the rest of you?" Stanley said, ignoring the question. "Anyone else want to take their shot?" No one volunteered, but listening to their souls, one of them clearly wanted to; the singular woman among the group, and one that was practically draped around another younger man. "You," Stanley said, pointing. "I know you want a shot." She flinched in surprise and moved further behind the man beside her. "M... me!?" Was it possible she''d somehow never heard he could feel their souls? It didn''t feel like she was pretending... "Yes, you. I need to know what all of you can do, and I''m hard to kill. So come on." Sure, he was potentially taking a risk by doing this, but between his improved premonition and how calm Nate felt, it really was the best way he could think of to test their power. Though... "One other thing," Stanley said, dropping his soul shield intentionally this time. "If any of you attack Caffeine..." "I... I wasn''t... I wouldn''t!" she stammered. "Nate already promised to kill anyone who messes with your dog... or Barbie." "Oh, good." Stanley smiled, then levitated Caffeine out of his lap. "So let''s do this." "Actually," she said, stepping out from behind the man, her soul eager and with just a touch of nervousness. "My power is only defensive. You''ll have to attack... me." It was a lie. She was lying about her power. Stanley didn''t know what she was hiding but he let it slide anyway. It was only fair to keep some secrets about one''s own power, but he would also watch her more closely for it. "Okay." He stretched out a hand toward her. "You ready?" Her nervousness spiked, and she held both hands in a warding gesture. "Just something small first!" Cut "Ouch!" Whatever her power was supposed to do, he didn''t see it. Instead, a perfectly straight line of red appeared on her outstretched palm as blood appeared and flowed from the cut Stanley had willed into being. Lucky for her, he''d indeed gone with something small... "Sorry, I wasn''t ready," she said, lying again while feeling pleased with herself. Extremely pleased. "But I''m ready now, if you want to try again." Stanley didn''t like either of her personalities¡ªthe sweet innocent face she was showing to the world or the sneaky coniving side hidden in her soul... He still repeated the attack, with a little slice in her palm beside the first. Cut His premonition didn''t trigger, and her skin didn''t split. Instead, he felt a sting in his own hand. "Well?" she asked with a knowing glance at her own unblemished hand and a small smile. Her soul hid a much bigger grin, and her previous nervous energy vanished entirely. Probably because she knew her power worked against him... Stanley didn''t ask the now smug woman what her power was; he just attacked her again... or tried to. Sort of... It was weird. He aimed to take her whole hand off, and this time a premonition showed him his own hand falling in a spray of blood. He aimed for her neck... and saw his own death... He then tried to lift her off the ground and only floated higher himself. He squeezed her and felt the grip of his own power trying to crush him. What the hell? It was disturbing. And weird. But... it was also very interesting. Especially as he put more effort into crushing her and, by extension, himself. More so when he tried to push back against that crushing pressure¡ªagainst his own power. He''d never actually felt his power like this, and he never really had a chance to defend against someone using psionic powers against him. Because that was what it felt like. Even though technically he already used his powers on himself all the time, this was a whole new experience from flying or the occasional self-dismembering. "So, do I pass the..." she said, only to be cut off. Cut Debuff Gained: [Bleeding] Despite knowing it was coming, both from a premonition and from his own actions, he still failed to keep his hand attached. Blood sprayed, the woman hid a smirk, and Stanley held the severed limbs together until his regeneration took over. So much easier than regrowing the whole thing... "That wasn''t a small..." Cut Then he did it again, with identical results. His premonitions were especially strange... because it was the first time he''d been able to trigger one with his own actions. Normally, cutting himself didn''t trigger it, but with the attack coming back at him from her... Cut Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Skill Level Up: Mind Over Matter He blocked it... partially. But this was great! She could help him get stronger. Cut Cut Cut Debuff Gained: [Hungry] "Are you finished?" she asked while eyeing the blood dripping all over his stark white suit. Luckily, it didn''t stick to Walter''s creation and only flowed right back off to spatter into the dirt. Everyone else seemed content, mostly, to watch him mutilate himself like this, so Stanley kept at it. There were some squeamish feelings, and Caffeine was definitely not enjoying the show. Still, it was important. If he ever ran into another psionic... or something similar. He had to be able to block them. "Not yet," Stanley said, while he pulled Caffeine back to his lap to share in the snack time. Despite Bernard''s attempts, he still had plenty to eat. Cut Cut Cut Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] "You won''t get through..." Cut Cut Cut "It doesn''t matter how much you..." Cut Cut Cut Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] His food consumption wasn''t keeping up with the injuries, and he wasn''t gaining any more levels... "Satisfied?" she asked, folding her arms and looking at him with a smug expression. Or at least, her soul felt smug. It also felt slightly worried. Maybe she was running out of mana? Reflecting all of his attacks like that couldn''t be cheap... could it? "Mostly." Could she have turned the D-grade skeleton''s chains back on it? Did it protect her from the miasma? He pulled a knife from beneath his jacket and sent it flying toward her. "What about physical attacks?" "I can''t!" "Oh." Stanley stopped the knife in midair, an inch away from her leg. "That''s... lame." Sure, her ability was strong¡ªshockingly so, if it could block him like that¡ªbut all of that meant nothing if he could just throw a rock at her. "I can also shield others," she said, a bit surly. "Nevermind," Stanley amended while reclaiming his knife. "That is a good ability." It would be a massive boon to have that power on his side when he finally found the invaders. His new knife looked... fine. An ugly, squarish, and heavy thing Hugo had crafted for him. Nothing fancy or magical, just a heavy-duty blade that should survive a lot of abuse. So perfect for him. While he didn''t really need a physical weapon anymore, after his experience with Hugo and what the man said about metal and Stanley''s essence infusing it... Well, who knew what might happen to his knife in the future if he kept using it? Besides, it was probably a good idea to have it as a backup in case he ever ran into something that could resist his power. Like the woman in front of him... Stanley looked from her to the man she was once again holding onto, holding on with an odd... affection? She cared about him, but it wasn''t the warm affection Stanley felt from most couples. It was... colder. Calculating. He was... treasured? Maybe he had a powerful ability, and she wanted to stick close because of it? Who knew. People were weird, and relationships were weirder. The man in question met his gaze but shook his head and spoke before Stanley could ask the question. "I can''t use my power on you." He glanced toward Nate with no small amount of fear. "I swore to never use it on another human." "What''s the ability?" Stanley asked, actually curious now. Nate answered for him, a twinge of fear echoing from his soul as he did. "He has mind control." 147. Sounds Exhausting ~~~Stanley~~~ "He has mind control," Nate said, and Stanley was the only one who was surprised by the revelation. There was a general revulsion among the others, but that was the totality of their reaction. Stanley''s feelings were far different. Fear nibbled at his mind first, followed rapidly by confidence. There was no way it was powerful enough to control him, not with all of his willpower boosts. Especially not if the guy was afraid of Nate... right? "Yeah," Bubble Man said into the silence before Stanley could reply. "The pervert used it to enslave his own little harem." Stanley closed his mouth when no one contradicted Bubble. It was true? Why was the guy still alive? Why had Nate left him alive? Was his mind already compromised!? His soul still felt the same... "It wasn''t like that!" Harem protested. "I would never..." He looked at the woman holding his arm, his voice trailing off pleadingly. "I swear I didn''t do anything on purpose." "I know, baby," she said, with a consoling pat on his arm and more of that weird affection in her soul. Then she turned a sneer on the other man. "Quinn just wishes he could force a woman to touch him, because that''s the only way it''s ever going to happen." "Fuck you, bitch!" "In your dreams..." "Be quiet," Stanley said, not quite shouting but infusing some of his will into his voice. He didn''t care about or trust any of their opinions on the matter. Nate, on the other hand, had earned a measure of trust. His opinion mattered, and right now it felt... unsure? Nate met his gaze evenly, a question in his soul. As if he didn''t actually know the truth... but wasn''t that his whole thing? Why hadn''t he said anything before this meeting? Harem''s soul wasn''t much help either. The man really seemed to feel bad... Had it actually been an accident? How do you accidentally mind-control someone? On the other hand... what might it do for him? For example, it might help him level up his Mental Fortress skill. Stanley looked down and locked eyes with Caffeine; the pug was already looking up, likely sensing his elevated anxiety. Between Caffeine and Nate, he should be safe... just in case his willpower wasn''t all he thought it was. "Use it on me." Either way, he had to find out. It was that, or he killed the man right now. Nate didn''t react to his request, other than to nod at Harem when the man looked his way. His girlfriend was all for it, but Harem actually had more intelligence than Bubble, because even after getting confirmation from Nate, he still looked worriedly at Caffeine instead of immediately attacking. "I don''t want to upset your dog." Stanley wrapped his arms around Caffeine. "Just do it. He won''t mind." Probably. "Wait!" Nate shouted, sudden alarm flashing through his soul right as the premonition hit. Nate''s abrupt shift in attitude was... strange. That, combined with what his premonition was showing him, triggered Still Mind. The skill ramped up his thought process and gave him time to analyze what was coming. There was enough time to decide if he would take the hit or kill his attacker. Because the attack wasn''t what he''d expected. Not that he knew what it should feel like for someone to take over your mind... but should it feel like dying? Even more strangely, the premonition seemed to change the longer he looked at it. What started as certain death shifted into something else. Something less. Something he could beat. It changed enough that he let it hit... and it slammed into him like a truck. Darkness pressed into his mind from all sides, blotting out the world and everything in it. His senses dimmed. His mind shrank. Stanley pushed back. It didn''t matter if it hit like a truck. He could tank a freight train now. Hell, he''d already thrown more than a few rail cars at the monsters out there. What was one more? He would beat this, too. He would resist... Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress The darkness refused to relent. Suffocating, cloying darkness enveloped his mind in a morass with no way out. Fighting back against it felt impossible. As if he were sinking deeper and deeper into a boiling tar pit. Falling. Drowning. Losing. He ignored all that in the calm stillness of his thoughts. It didn''t matter. Nothing mattered except that he resisted. The only connection he had remaining with the outside world was his domain, and even that seemed to shrink under the onslaught, but it was still large enough for Stanley to know Caffeine was staring up at his face with a worried soul. That sight bothered him, and intellectually, he knew why it bothered him, but the feelings couldn''t reach past the stillness. They couldn''t touch him down here in the dark. The crushing darkness. Too crushing... It was too strong. Why was it too strong now? He''d seen his victory... Emotion flooded violently and abruptly back into his mind as Caffeine canceled Still Mind. Fear came first. Then guilt over the worry he could feel from Caffeine. Then anger overrode everything else. Stanley drove that anger against the smothering darkness with everything he had. Get. Out. Of. My. Head! Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] The darkness shattered, and reality crashed back into place around him with a jolt. Stanley went to work comforting the frantic Caffeine first, then took in the scene before him. It wasn''t at all the way he remembered it. First off, he was no longer hovering above the ground; now he sat in the dirt, in a muddy puddle of his own blood. Not only that, but it looked like the ground had collapsed beneath him into a crater. Harem was on his hands and knees, vomiting and crying into the dirt. His girlfriend kneeled beside him, rubbing his back while her soul radiated fear and... disappointment? Stanley wasn''t sure how long that struggle had lasted, but he suspected it was shorter than it had felt. Despite that, everyone else had backed off. Except Nate. Instead, the man had ended up closer to Harem... and Stanley saw Nate take a step away as relief flooded his soul, replacing another emotion. A very deadly emotion. Had Nate intended to kill the man? His soul sure felt that way, and there was that shout right before... Had he really thought Stanley would fail to resist the skill? Did he have so little faith? As if! Though, for a moment there... "I... I''m sorry!" Harem gasped between spitting bile into the dirt. "I thought you wanted my strongest... but I shouldn''t have used that!" "Do it again," Stanley demanded as he levitated back into the air with Caffeine licking his face. He also re-upped his soul shield again while sticking food directly into his stomach. "No!" Nate and Harem shouted in perfect unison. "Do. It." Stanley shot glares at both of them while forcing his own fear back down. "I will resist it." He would. No matter what. They would sit right here and do it over and over. Until it was effortless. That had been far too close... though only while in Still Mind. Once he got angry, it was practically nothing. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "It isn''t... that," Harem said pleadingly while looking up at Stanley with unadulterated fear. "I can''t go back in there!" "Get over yourself," Stanley snapped. "My head''s not that bad, and with a skill like that, you must have insane willpower. So suck it up and keep going!" "I''m... intelligence-focused," he said in a whisper, then shook his head as the fear climbed higher in his soul. "But it''s not that... It''s..." He shivered and huddled in on himself. "There was something else in there! It saw me... and it was going to kill me if I... went any further... if I got any closer to killing you..." That was... Stanley glanced down at Caffeine in his lap. Had he seen the pug in his soul? Of course Caffeine would have killed him if it came down to it¡ªthat was the whole point¡ªbut of course he wouldn''t succeed either. "That was just Caffeine, and what the fuck do you mean, kill me? I thought it was just mind control?" He''d seen the notification. Mental Domination. That wasn''t lethal, was it? Though there had been that feeling in the premonition... "That... that... wasn''t a pug! It was..." He clutched at his neck and burst into fresh tears. "I felt it... the teeth on my throat... and that... that shadow!" He''d broken. One little warning from Caffeine and it broke the idiot''s brain. Considering that he''d said his ability was intelligence-focused, maybe that made sense. Magic was and always had been bullshit. Willpower was obviously the better way. Instead of listening to more blubbering, Stanley turned his anger on the woman beside the crybaby. She was upset about something, and going by what he''d observed, it was because he''d resisted the mind control. "What''s your problem?" "I don''t know what..." "Don''t fucking lie to me!" Stanley roared. "You wanted him to control me! You were eager for him to attack me and upset when it failed! So fucking tell me!" Color drained from her face. "I didn''t... I would never..." "Lie!" "I..." She took a step back while looking around as if for support. There was none. "I just wanted you brought down a peg," she finally mumbled under her breath while refusing to look at him. "The way you fly around... lording your power over everyone..." "For fucks..." Stanley closed his eyes for a long breath. When he reopened them, his gaze landed on the next man. The man had a cloth band covering both of his eyes. "Blindfold, what''s your..." "Nope." He didn''t even let Stanley finish the question before shaking his head. "Not happening." "Just..." "You''re dreaming if you think I''ll use my power on you." He tilted his head toward the still hysterical Harem. "I especially don''t want to meet whatever shadowy monster he ran into..." "He''s not a monster," Stanley muttered, then sighed. "Just tell me what your ability is." "Oh, sure." He tapped the covering over his eyes. "Whatever or whoever I look at will burn. Everything I see." "That doesn''t sound..." "Oh, and the flames make any and every monster go completely apeshit-berserk. Enough that they will without fail attack the nearest creature they can find." "That sounds... powerful. Though I can see why you wouldn''t want to use it on me." Stanley stared at the blindfold. "Wait, is it a constant effect? As in, you can''t turn it off?" "Yep." "Why would you pick that?" "I adapted to a skill..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "My class changed. My class skills all changed... and here I am." "We''re hoping some levels might help with the control issues," Nate chimed in helpfully. Stanley asked the million-dollar question. "Does it work on the undead?" "It burns them, but the frenzy... not so much. Nate said the debuff messed with his mind, so maybe..." That lowered its usefulness considerably. "I''m still going to have you test it on me." Stanley ignored the man''s shaking head. "Later. After a few more rounds with Harem over here." He had to find out if the ability worked on him or if Mental Fortress would block it. Inducing a violent rage sounded like the kind of thing it should block... but he wasn''t sure since it involved some kind of burning. "I told you that''s not happening." It would happen, but first, there was one more person to meet. A guy who was wearing a full-face medieval-looking helmet, boots, and shorts. Really short shorts... and nothing else. He was also obviously one of Bernard''s people, with their weirdly corrupted souls. Though he didn''t seem to share Bernard''s hostility. "What''s your deal?" "Touch me and find out," the man said, the grin in his voice coming through despite the metal hiding his face. "I''ll gladly show you." There was obviously a risk in letting people use whatever random abilities on him, but Stanley was feeling a lot of trust in his Premonition ability lately. So he touched him, and as expected, a premonition told him what would happen a fraction of a second before it did. Debuff Gained: [Devouring Decay] His first thought was, Acid. That was the closest comparison he had to the sensation that engulfed his hand. Except, it wasn''t quite the same. This pain felt more... draining? A pain that didn''t remain in his hand but spread quickly throughout the rest of his body. Along with the pain, he watched his flesh shrivel, dry out, and turn black. No, not just turning black; his hand was rotting. Even as he watched, a piece of blackened and shriveled flesh crumbled to pieces and fell into the dirt. Also, the pain was getting worse. The whole experience was extra incongruous when he could feel the pure pleasure in his attacker''s soul. The guy was really enjoying himself. Then Caffeine growled from Stanley''s lap. Softly. It wasn''t a threatening sound¡ªnot yet¡ªbut definitely a warning. Debuff Removed: [Devouring Decay] The debuff vanished the moment Stanley pulled his hand away, or what remained of his hand. Even some bones had crumbled away. So he just shoved more food into his stomach while it regenerated. "Hoooly shiiiit!" Helmet groaned, still disturbingly happy about whatever had just happened. "Don''t you want to keep testing?" Disturbing and far too eager... "I would," Stanley said. "But you''re making it weird. Why did you enjoy that so much?" "How do I say this?" The guy slowly calmed down as he paced back and forth a few times with nervous but happy energy. "Your... life-force? Well, everyone''s energy is different, but yours has something extra¡ªa spark of¡ªoh, something fantastic..." His voice trailed off dreamily. "You''re still making it weird," Stanley muttered, drifting further away when the guy took a step closer. "I''m assuming that doing that heals you?" It was an obvious guess, given what the guy was wearing. Or not wearing, as it was. "Yeah. Want to test it and see?" "How about I just find a monster for you to hug?" Stanley said, cringing and moving back another few paces from the advancing weirdo before putting a psionic wall in his way. "Does it work on the undead?" "It does." The answer Stanley expected from one of Bernard''s people. After all, the freaks liked the miasma... "Though it''s not nearly as..." He shivered in pure delight. "Nourishing." Stanley shuddered in disgust and, from his better vantage, looked over the gathered party as they all watched him in return. He munched on some meat while he observed them, taking his time to chew it since Jerry was actually a good cook and it was, in fact, delicious. Nate''s new special team... some of whom were indeed powerful. But it was time to find out what the man wasn''t telling him. "Nate, let''s talk." Stanley stopped flying when the people looked like ants far below and asked the most pressing question. One he wasn''t sure could even be answered. "How do I know you didn''t get mind-controlled?" "I..." Nate stared at him, tension rising. "Did you notice something? Have I changed? I didn''t think he''d gotten to me, but..." "Not that I can tell," Stanley said quickly, a little disturbed by the man''s own uncertainty. "Is it true? Did he really enslave a bunch of women? If it is, then why is he still alive? Is this another person you''re keeping alive because he''s too useful to kill? Because if so, that seems extremely risky on your part, or you''re already compromised." Nate held up his hands at the barrage of questions. "It''s none of that! The truth is... complicated. At least, as far as I can tell. I was actually hoping to get your own take on the matter after this." "I will, but after he ranks up my skill some more..." Stanley looked down at the soul in question. "Though he doesn''t seem the type, does he?" Not that he knew what the type looked like. "He seems too timid to me," Nate said, nodding. "Though it has been harder to trust my gut since I met him..." He eyed Stanley and then Caffeine. "For a second back there..." "You were going to kill him, weren''t you? What did you see? Or feel?" "I was." Nate nodded again. "Everything felt fine until the moment he attacked you. Then it was as if the entire world tilted on its axis, and all our lives hung by a thread, dangling above the abyss..." "He was... stronger than I expected." Stanley looked away from him to stare into Caffeine''s eyes. "I used Still Mind by accident... and it wasn''t enough. Caffeine turned it off just in time." "Yeah," Nate chuckled with forced mirth. "I think we all felt that." Then he smiled at the pug. "He''s the main reason I risked any of this, after all. I guess I should''ve had more faith." "Obviously," Stanley said, smiling himself while rubbing Caffeine''s ears in the way he liked. "So, what''s the complicated truth?" "First, what did you think of June?" Nate asked. "The woman hanging onto his every word?" he added at Stanley''s questioning look. "Did her feelings seem... genuine?" "You think her ability protected her from him? She''s definitely got plenty of... feelings about him," Stanley said, shrugging, then shared his observations of her weirdly possessive affections. Nate didn''t seem surprised. "That fits with what she''s said. As well as what most of the others have said. Believe it or not, but most of the women claim to have joined his harem willingly. Some for protection, and others for power." "Most?" "That''s the rub," Nate said with a sigh. "A few claim there was nothing consensual in their... consent. He denies it, and the problem is that I can''t tell that either side is lying. Another thing I''d like your take on." "Just how many women are we talking about here?" Stanley asked while beginning their slow descent back to the others. "Almost two dozen." Stanley stopped and stared at Nate. "Seriously!?" Then he stared down toward the man in question. "What an idiot." Nate laughed. "What, you don''t want a bunch of beautiful women awaiting your pleasure?" Stanley shook his head. "That just sounds exhausting." 148. A Training Aid ~~~Stanley~~~ Hidden Debuff Resisted: [Mind Sway] "That did absolutely nothing!" Stanley growled, and not for the first time. "Use the other one already!" he demanded instead, and not for the first time either. The coward just shook his head the same as he did every time Stanley asked for more. "Never! I won''t do it!" He was useless, and his shitty little sway ability was even more useless. Apparently, his mental domination ability was supposed to be a permanent effect. At least it always was on the monsters he''d used it on, including the ones he still had under his control. Which probably explained why Nate and Caffeine had reacted the way they had... It was what let him single-handedly protect hundreds of people... as well as attract a bunch of women to throw themselves at him. Allegedly of their own free will. June wasn''t lying, at least. She straight up admitted as much, saying she''d jumped into bed with him purely for his power and protection. Though she claimed that real affection had followed... and she wasn''t technically lying about that part either. Unfortunately, neither party seemed to be lying when Stanley questioned the women who claimed he''d manipulated them into feeling affection for him. They''d felt that affection right up until they''d arrived here, and Zeke''s aura had both removed and revealed the hidden debuff from Harem''s sway ability... Or someone else''s sway ability. Except it seemed highly unlikely there would be someone else with the exact same ability, who then used it to make women like someone else... Because Harem, or Marcos, as he preferred to be called, also wasn''t lying when he insisted that he''d never intentionally done anything to them. The implication being that he''d fucked with people''s heads unintentionally. It was fucked. Absolutely fucked. Stanley would have taken his head off then and there, if not for the fact that he''d also dealt the occasional unintended... injury. Primarily in his sleep. During the nightmares. Of course, it wasn''t the same. Stanley had hurt people in his sleep, sure, but that was all he did. The worst he could do was kill someone, but Harem... Just thinking about it made Stanley''s skin crawl. It also made him glad he hadn''t gone down the route of mental or soul manipulation. There was definitely power down that route, but it was a fucked up kind of power and Stanley could all too easily imagine the monster he might become with such power. So, what if Harem just had horny dreams as opposed to Stanley''s nightmares? Aside from it being totally unfair that he got the good dreams, was it reason enough to execute the man? Well, yes. Yes, it was. Or it would have been in any other circumstance. The only reason Stanley let him live was because of Zeke, which was presumably the same reason Nate hadn''t killed him, either. The kid didn''t even have to do anything; his aura passively removed Harem''s mind sway from anyone in range. Including from Zeke himself. It was still fucked up, and lots of people weren''t happy about it, which was probably why Nate foisted the unpopular man on Stanley. "Do it!" Stanley yelled abruptly, also not for the first time. Hidden Debuff Resisted: [Mind Sway] "Stop doing that!" Harem protested. Again. But it''s not like Stanley was hurting him... it was just an experiment. Despite his best efforts, he couldn''t actually control people like this guy. He could stop them in their tracks, or silence them, or inflict a variety of other effects, but he couldn''t force them to think differently. He''d tried. Sure, it was a little hypocritical considering what he thought about Harem and mind control in general... but there was power there. He''d be a fool not to try, right? Plus, who better to test on than this fucker? Ahead, he saw a scaley quadruped burst from the slaughter-fest of Blindfold''s unleashed gaze and make for the man himself. It dashed unheedingly straight into the black sphere that appeared before its face... and went down with a gaping hole through its head. Stanley liked giving Bubbles a hard time about his class, but those bubbles were beyond powerful. Far beyond anything he''d expected from the first glimpse. Nothing they touched survived the experience. Nothing. The only difference he noticed was in how large the guy could make them and also how fast he could summon one. There was a delay if he tried to stick it inside someone¡ªa delay measured in milliseconds¡ªbut it was still a delay. Same thing if he put one directly into a lair''s structure. None of his bubbles lasted very long¡ªa single second at most¡ªbut they would summon faster and persist longer when he summoned them in the open, as he''d just done to catch that monster. Though it required some skill in predicting a moving target since he couldn''t adjust their positioning once summoned. Hidden Debuff Resisted: [Mind Sway] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Stanley sighed in a mixture of relief and disappointment. The weaker sway skill could actually raise his own resistance, after all. It was just slow as fuck. After almost an hour of repeated attacks, he''d gained one more level... Now if only he could convince the coward to use his stronger ability again. Maybe if he left Caffeine back at the base? Except Harem still didn''t believe that Caffeine was the shadowy monster... The pug in question was skirting the edges of the red haze, which spread out in a cone ahead of Blindfold. He never strayed into the actual flames, but he kept dashing right up to the edge for sniffs as the border constantly shifted. Stanley would have been more worried, but Caffeine had already singed his nose the first time he tried to see what was happening. Now he never quite let it touch him. Not that it was that bad. Stanley stuck his hand past Blindfold''s head. Debuff Partially Resisted: [Enraging Scorch] Debuff Gained: [Scorch] The guy didn''t bother to close his eyes this time; he''d calmed down considerably once he realized Stanley was immune. Well, not completely immune, but he resisted enough that the power only gave him a light burn. There wasn''t even a hint of the enrage effect... Unfortunately, he didn''t think there was a resistance he could train against Bubbles. The prick was enjoying himself out here. Ever since the wizards dropped in to tell Nate about this swarm and then tagged along when Stanley brought the new team out for a test run. Now they were fawning over the man¡ªat least the gray robes were¡ªand he was eating it up. Something about his bubbles really got the gravity wizards excited... even Hugo, their house leader, had come out here to study those bubbles. Stanley just had to make sure none of them killed him for the legendary class shard... At least, that was what Nate wanted him to do. But was it that big of a deal if the arrogant dick got himself killed? They''d still have his class afterward. No problem. Hell, the guy had already killed someone else to get it himself. Nate said he''d investigated Bubbles'' group¡ªor what remained of it¡ªafter they returned. Apparently, everyone of the survivors agreed Bubbles, or Quinn, as he preferred to be called, had acted in self-defense against the actual murderer who kicked things off. Stanley had his doubts, but he was looking forward to seeing that power in action against the invaders. Hopefully, it would... "Caw!" Premonition warned him about the crow appearing on his shoulder, which was nice. It wasn''t an attack, but something about the newly improved skill seemed to trigger much more often, even on things that might just startle him. All in all, it was a fantastic upgrade from the lower-level version. "Hi, Bird," Stanley said, only for it to vanish again, mid-greeting. "Caw!" It reappeared on Bubbles'' shoulder, much to the man''s alarm. Stanley didn''t bother to stop anyone, as more than a few of them attacked the little bird simultaneously. He knew how slippery that cheeky little bastard was. They wouldn''t touch it. As expected, none of the bubbles or wizard''s spells got anywhere close to the creature as it popped in and out on various people''s shoulders. Honestly, the bird was kind of a dick. It flashed enough glimpses of its soul for him to feel the clear amusement as it toyed with them. "Stop." He did stop them when Caffeine came charging into the field of fire to say hello. He didn¡¯t stop them for long with so many, just enough for them to get the message. "It''s not an enemy." He''d need to get angry to deal with all of them, and he would have, but they aborted the attacks before it came to that. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. The crow reappeared on Caffeine''s back, showing Stanley its disappointment briefly before hiding its soul again and cawing at the pug. Caffeine looked awkwardly back and up at the crow while turning in circles and wagging his tail furiously. He definitely remembered the bird, even though they hadn''t seen it in what felt like ages. "Caw!" A chunk of raw meat appeared in front of the bird''s mouth as it squawked, meat that was still burning faintly with small red flames, and Caffeine snatched it from the air without hesitation. "Did you see that?" "The mana usage was so smooth!" "How did it twist the space mana like that?" The gray wizards all abandoned their fawning over Bubbles to gather around Caffeine and his crow passenger, much to the annoyance of Bubbles himself. Another point to the bird for annoying the blowhard. Of course, once they were all gathered and ready with various spells to observe and study the bird, it did nothing but ride around on Caffeine''s back. Together, they resumed Caffeine''s careful investigation of the red fire that was decimating the swarm. Stanley had to give Blindfold some credit, as well. The man hadn''t once blinked or tried to see what the commotion was behind him when the crow appeared, despite his obvious curiosity and slight worry. He really didn''t fuck around with that ability of his. Unfortunately, the monsters under his gaze were running out of fellow monsters to kill and more of them started charging out to attack the people beyond the fiery border. Stanley maimed a few that came out too hot, but otherwise left it for the new team to handle. This was a good practice run before he threw them into the thick of it tomorrow. Because if these people wanted to face off with the invaders, then they needed to step it up. Way up. He wanted them to survive and, ideally, become a real threat to the skeletons, but he also wouldn''t handicap his own growth to see that happen. They were going to fight at his speed or get left behind. He''d make sure they didn''t die, but he wouldn''t protect them from harm. In fact, it was probably better if they got hurt. They needed the strength to keep fighting no matter what, even on the brink of death. No, especially on the brink of death. When it mattered most. Stanley would do them all a favor and make sure that when the time came, they would be ready. Even if they hated him for it. Because some of them very well might before it was over. "Look out!" Blindfold yelled as the leader of the swarm finally emerged from the chaos. It was half again as big as its smaller fellows, nearly ten feet at the shoulder, and twice as fast as it made a beeline toward the one responsible for its current predicament. Despite its bloody condition and the red flames licking at its flesh, the creature dodged Bubbles'' attack and bore down on the defenseless Blindfold. Stanley was about to interfere when the crow vanished from Caffeine''s back. There was a deafening pop, and the monster''s head vanished just ahead of a storm of magic, courtesy of the wizards, that descended on the now headless monster. Then the crow reappeared on Caffeine''s back. That was new... Apparently, it had some serious attack power to go along with all that dodging. Of course, the gray wizards got even more excited after the show. "Where was your help!?" Bubbles yelled, red-faced, at Harem. He was probably just mad that he wasn''t the center of attention anymore. Upstaged by a bird. Twice. If anything, it should motivate him to get better. "I didn''t have the mana!" Harem retorted, equally angry. "Stanley''s had me using every scrap on him!" "You know," Stanley interjected as Bubbles opened his mouth. "I wouldn''t have to do that if you would just use..." "For fuck''s sake already!" Harem yelled, rounding on him. "I''m not doing it! I''m never doing it again! Ever!" "Wow," Stanley said. "Just say something if that''s the case. There¡¯s no need to be so angry about it..." "I... You..." Harem sputtered, furious. "Caw!" Stanley grinned, but the crow screaming in his ear interrupted him before he could say anything. It reappeared further away with another caw, right next to the flying soul Stanley hadn''t missed approaching them. He actually thought it was another crow at first, as they were both about the same size and color, even though its soul felt different and it wasn''t hiding it at all. Then the new flyer opened its mouth toward the crow, and Stanley saw a familiar blue glow shining from within. It was a bat... The crow popped away from the light and reappeared, standing on top of the bat, where it cawed in its ear. A maneuver that sent both of them spiraling toward the ground. Of course, the bird simply teleported away with more amusement. So Stanley caught the flailing bat before it smacked into the dirt¡ªor rather, before it crash-landed on top of Caffeine, who''d obviously gone running to check it out. It didn''t feel strong, and it was a long way from its home. Assuming it came from the same bat lair... Or had the lair fallen to another monster? Would they find a bat swarm flying across the city now? The bat squeaked angrily from where he held it aloft, flapping its wings in confusion. Despite that, its soul wasn''t nearly on the level of the really stupid bats Stanley had seen before, closer to the queen or king bats... Though the real source of its ire might have been the giant pug nose in its face. Caffeine had grown in size until he was tall enough to reach the hovering bat. Nothing crazy, only five feet tall or so, but to the tiny bat... Seeing the pug''s tail start wagging, Stanley set the bat down in front of him, and Caffeine immediately dropped into a playbow as he shrank back to a less intimidating size. There was some more confusion from the tiny soul, along with wariness, as it watched Caffeine dance around trying to play, and then it crawled awkwardly after the pug. Stanley felt it then. The bat was here for Caffeine¡ªnot to challenge him, but... for something else. Caffeine didn''t care about anything but the chase, which he loved. He spun in a circle away from its reaching arms before dropping back into his play bow with an excited bark. The bat squeaked at him and bounded into the air, pursuing Caffeine in the pug''s favorite yet hopelessly outmatched game of chase. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine ran very fast away from the flapping dog, and he was much faster when he ran flapping through the air. Almost like Dearest Human did, but with more flapping. A much better chaser! "Isn''t chasing the best!?" "If it''s what you want..." His new friend squeaked while he flapped past, and then it was Caffeine''s turn to chase. Though it was less fun when he couldn''t catch him way up in the air... So Caffeine jumped. He jumped a little too fast. "Oops," Caffeine woofed as he tumbled back down beside his new friend. "I chased too hard!" "Sorry, Beast Lord! I got in your way!" Squeaker made lots of squeaky noises. Very loud! But he did stop tumbling and started flapping-chasing again when Caffeine ran into the dirt. Though he seemed confused... "Did you see Beast Lord?" Caffeine asked as he dodged aside. "I thought he lived in the green place! Where is he!? We can all play chase together!" "I... don''t know..." Squeaker squeaked and smelled like confused. Caffeine didn''t like confused. It was... not fun. "Caff!" Then Dearest Human called from far away. "We should go back!" Caffeine barked. "Dearest Human has the best treats! Or he might give us belly rubs... Or belly rubs and treats!" There was a lot of noise and blowing stuff when he stopped in front of Dearest Human, but Dearest Human had Chicken! So he didn''t notice any of that other stuff. None of it was snacks! "Good boy," Dearest Human said the magic words! "I am a good boy!" Caffeine barked while his tail wagged and his mouth got all wet. Then Dearest Human tossed the Chicken and Caffeine caught it with his best treat-catching chomp! Only after it was in his mouth and he was about to swallow the snack did Caffeine remember his new friend. He should share... Dearest Human always shared, and Squeaker might have never had Chicken before... That was the worst thing he could imagine! He turned to share... and saw Squeaker stopped very far away. His new friend smelled like worried when Caffeine ran over and dropped the Chicken, but he would feel better after eating. Caffeine always felt better after a good snack! "Here, eat the Chicken. It always makes everything the best!" Squeaker didn''t eat. He was only afraid. Then it got worse when Dearest Human sat in the air beside them. "Don''t worry," Caffeine huffed. "Dearest Human is nice!" "This one scary!" Squeaker squeaked and started backing up slowly. That was the strangest thing Caffeine had ever heard. "Dearest Human isn''t scary." "If you don''t like Chicken," Dearest Human said something about Chicken! "Maybe this is more to your tastes?" Then he made a glowing rock float over to Squeaker. Caffeine didn''t like the rocks. They didn''t taste like anything. But Squeaker stopped backing up when he saw it. Then he jumped forward, and the rock turned into light that flew into his mouth... When it was gone, he squeaked softly with a happiness noise. "I guess you are from the same lair," Dearest Human said more not words while smelling like lots of sad things. Caffeine gave him a lick so he would know everything was okay, and Dearest Human smelled less like sad and more like happy! He also gave Squeaker another rock. It turned into lights, just like the first one. Maybe the rocks tasted better like that? Caffeine thought about trying it, but then Dearest Human had more Chicken! "You too, Caff." "Don''t encourage the rat!" One of the Not Dearest Humans said something. Caffeine looked up, very worried when he felt Dearest Human be angry with the Not Dearest Human. It was the one who made the Nothing Holes. They weren''t tasty or interesting. Only nothing. "Who the fuck are you calling a rat!?" Not Dearest Human backed away while smelling like afraid. "N... no... I meant the bat! I was talking about the bat!" "Relax, Stanley," a different Not Dearest Human said. He was the one who made heavy lights. Also not very tasty. "No one''s criticizing your dog. But those bats are a plague for us. We don''t even venture into downtown anymore." "But he''s so cute!" Dearest Human said something and pulled Squeaker into his lap, which his new friend didn''t like at all! "Don''t tell me you''re scared of this little guy!" Squeaker squirmed and struggled to escape, as if Dearest Human was hurting him, which, obviously, he wasn''t. All the struggles stopped when Dearest Human moved Squeaker onto Heavy Not Dearest Human. Squeaker sniffed at him, very excited, and opened his mouth. Lots of lights sparkled when he did that, and he ate all of them. Caffeine had eaten lights before, and they weren''t tasty. But his new friend liked the lights more than Chicken! He was very strange. "It takes the strongest spells I have to actually kill one of these. They eat anything weaker before it can touch them." Not Dearest Human made unhappy noises as he held Squeaker away from him. Squeaker didn''t mind. He just ate more light from Not Dearest Human''s hands, and with his eyes closed in happiness, like it was the best thing ever! Very strange. "Why don''t you resist the mana drain?" Dearest Human said more not words, but Caffeine didn''t care because he also gave him more Chicken! "You can''t resist..." Not Dearest Human sounded like upset. "Why not?" Dearest Human gave him more Chicken! "Aren''t you guys all about controlling mana?" "I..." Not Dearest Human smelled curious now as he watched Squeaker eat his lights. "I had not considered that. Using the bats as a training aid... If you don''t mind handling our transportation, I will put your theory to the test." "Yeah, yeah. I can carry everyone, but you better not hurt it. Caffeine already made friends." Dearest Human said his name! "I... heard he does that... occasionally." "Yes. Yes, he does." Dearest Human pulled Caffeine into his lap and gave him a belly rub while making Chicken fly into his mouth! It was the best! 149. Fire Is Hot ~~~Lee~~~ Class Level Up: Runic Runic has reached the Expert Threshold. No Evolutions Available. Ranking up to Level 100 (Expert) New Class Choice Available. I don''t believe it, Lee thought as he stared at the flickering rune in front of him. The rune that had finally pushed him up to the next level. A rune he hadn''t thought would work. Hell, it still shouldn''t work... not like this. Gabriel stood smiling beside him. "See? Everyone knows that fire is hot." "That''s..." Lee shook his head. It was a light rune. A damn light rune that gave him his long-awaited level. Not his gravity rune. Not the indestructible armor or weapons he''d created. No, it was the simplest rune in his entire library of runic knowledge. Although it wasn''t only a light rune. It was a firelight rune. Except it was exactly the same as his previous light runes... only, it flickered and gave off heat. Like a fire would. "Was it hard to change the light?" Lee shook his head again. "No..." He''d simply thought about fire while creating it. "Not hard at all." That was not how it should work. That was not how any of this worked! Except it had worked. His time bubble popped, and Lee put up another one before Jeremy could do more than open his mouth. He knew what the man was going to say and delayed the inevitable a little longer. "How did you know it would work?" "I... didn''t," Gabriel said sheepishly. "But it seemed right! I can feel it when you make the runes, and they always work better when you really want them to!" That wasn''t much of an explanation, but Lee understood. Mostly. Ever since making Three, his runes had felt more... living? Or less static? He wasn''t sure what the right term was¡ªmaybe flexible? Even before Three, he''d altered his skeletal rune. That had definitely been a big step, and one he was sure had helped when it came time to create Three. Of course, the source had played a large role as well. More than he could remember... including, most likely, whatever had given Gabriel his uncanny knack for all things rune. Lee watched the boy as he smiled innocently down at the plate, holding his hands out as if warming them before a fire. Which, for all intents, he was. So young. So innocent. Even after everything. "You did good, Gabe. Very good." Lee returned the beaming smile with a little less unbounded optimism and then glanced at the unmoving Jeremy outside the time bubble he kept refreshing. "But I think it''s time for your classes." Gabriel had already seen the other man, and he knew what it meant as well as Lee did. "I don''t want..." "I don''t think either of us really has a say in that, do you? Or are you trying to get me in trouble with your mom?" "Mama''s not that scary..." Lee hid his grin at the blatant lie. "So, are you going to tell her you don''t want to go to school?" Gabriel folded instantly with a muttered, "No." Then he grinned mischievously and whispered, "But if we stay in the bubble, then it won''t ever be school time!" "Sadly," Lee said. "My bubbles aren''t that good. I think Jeremy will swap you upstairs if we wait too..." "That''s okay! I like Uncle Jeremy''s swapping! Can I stay until then!?" It was Lee''s turn to fold. "Sure, and until then, what runes do you think I should put on this?" He pulled the white ceramic stick across the room with Mana Mind, ignoring the pain in his head that accompanied the sudden drain of mana through his brain. Gabriel touched it with a frown of concentration. "It looks like your plates." "It is!" Lee held up the two-foot-tall stick that was on its way to becoming a staff. A proper wizard staff. One fit for a runic. "But it''s not a plate." "You''re right," Lee said. "But it''s made out of plates. Watch." He concentrated and cast his Create Plate skill, focusing carefully on size and placement. It materialized slowly at one end of the nascent staff, like a large coin, with a good few millimeters of its thickness appearing inside the already created material. His plates were the best material Lee had found that started off with purely neutral mana. Much like his own liquid mana. Or presumably, like Gabriel''s would be once he became an apprentice. Lee hadn''t forgotten about the level-up notification¡ªone long-awaited and eagerly anticipated by the child in front of him. But he didn''t mention it. Not yet. He would talk with the boy¡¯s parents first. They''d already given Lee the go-ahead for apprenticeship, but he would still wait. Gabriel was their child, and Lee had a strong feeling that the boy would have to adapt before it was over. Adapt in a very major way. He wouldn''t go there without talking to them once more. One last chance to change their minds. Lee didn''t think the change would be irreversible. But at the very least, it would cost Gabriel some of his adaptability. A finite resource. So far as they''d discovered. Not that he expected the boy to change his mind about being a runic. Not after all he''d seen and heard. But he was still a kid¡ªa little kid¡ªand this felt like far too big of a choice for someone his age to have to make... It also felt inevitable. To that end, Lee had already started preparations for the expected eventuality. Namely, he wanted Gabriel to be, not only safe, but also empowered. Not that the kid would get anywhere near the fighting. Not if Lee had any say in it. Or his parents. Unfortunately, he remembered all too well how the monsters out there always zeroed in on him over other people. A phenomenon that first Trak and now Z confirmed was because of his legendary class. A class that Gabriel would soon share. Which, unfortunately, would make him monster bait as well. Even as an apprentice, according to Z. It wasn''t really the monsters that Lee worried about. Not the ones in the lairs. It was the other humans he feared more. Gabriel would be a runic. Lee had no doubts about that, but his expectations about what he would be capable of weren''t high¡ªnot with Gabriel''s much lower soul attribute. The key bit was that the kid could also move freely beyond Three''s walls. Unlike himself. It shouldn''t be necessary, but there might be an occasion where it mattered enough to send him out there. Which was why he was making a wizard staff. Something that would accept a lot of liquid mana. Something he could hopefully stick a lot of powerful effects onto to protect a child if worst came to worst. Unfortunately, it wasn''t a quick creation process. He had to force the skill to slow down if he wanted each plate to appear partially inside the others without violent results. He''d learned that the hard way. While he worked and while Gabriel watched, Lee checked the notification. It had some strange wording... New Class Choices Available. It was supposed to offer him a new class skill, wasn''t it? But this notification offered something else when he focused on it. Your actions until this moment have provided you with options to alter the trajectory of your Runic class going forward. Choose your path: [Indomitable] [Creation] [Utilitarian] He got a description to go with each option, but it wasn''t a lot. [Indomitable] You have pushed your runes to the limits of their power... and beyond. Keep pushing. [Creation] You have created a legendary item. Create more. [Utilitarian] You have provided runes of function and utility to those around you. Become indispensable. Very sparse, though, with some clue where each would lead. The different options also gave him a certain... feeling of where they''d come from. The first one made him think of his runes on the building from before he¡¯d created Three. Also his countless armor and weapon runes, and his skeletal and soul runes, with those last two far outweighing the rest. All of them were runes that had saved his life in one way or another. Not counting Three. The creation option was obviously all about Three. Well, almost. There were other runes that came to mind, but all of them were far outshadowed by the masterpiece that was Three. Obviously. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. As for the last option, it felt the least meaningful. His light runes, heating and cooling runes, and all the other little things that made life easier or helped someone else''s abilities work better. Not bad, but it couldn''t compare to the first two choices. Not in Lee''s mind. Unfortunately, that was all he had to go on. No more descriptions. There was nothing that really told him what each one would mean. Nothing more than a vague feeling that it would mean leaning into more of the same. He was internally debating between the first two options when Gabriel vanished from beside him and appeared upstairs among the other gathered children. Lee let his bubble lapse and could feel Gabriel''s intense disappointment through the soul link. Far too intense for the circumstances. It was a child''s emotion. An overreaction to mild inconvenience. In the same vein, his disappointment didn''t last. Despite his complaints, the kid actually enjoyed his schooling. Just don''t tell him that when he''s enjoying something else... classic kids. "Jeremy, are you up to expert with your class yet?" The man scoffed. "While I have made some progress, I''m not that good. Why do you..." His frown turned into a smile. "Oh, you finally got the level? Gabriel must be thrilled. What was his affinity?" "I haven''t told him yet. Want to talk to his parents first." "Probably a good idea." "I''m also not sure how to see his affinity..." "Don''t ask me," Jeremy said. "But I expect Alejandro or Maria can explain it for you." "Yeah." Lee frowned. "They aren''t in Three right now, but if you see them before I do..." "I''ll let ''em know." He looked away, almost nervously. "You get any good class skill options?" Lee shook his head. "That''s the strange part. I didn''t even get the option for new skills... It''s... something else." "Something good?" "I think so..." Lee said slowly. "I haven''t chosen yet, but... I think I know which one to pick." "Doubt I can offer anything useful, but I can give you my two cents if you want it?" "Thanks... but I don''t think you''ll be much help for this." Creation was a tempting choice. Even if it didn''t say how it would help him. Three was absolutely fantastic. The building had protected him countless times and even saved him and Stanley from the soul wound. If he could make more stuff on that level... Still, it wasn''t the choice he was leaning toward. Three was great. So great that Lee didn''t think he needed another. It felt far more important to do all he could to ensure Three''s survival and, through it, his own. More than that. He would ensure his new family''s survival. Nothing was more important than that. The experiments with upgrading Three''s base materials were a good start, but he wanted more. Indomitable. Lee wanted Three to be indomitable, and the building was full of his runes. Full of his soul. If he could upgrade those runes... The same feeling that told him what each choice meant also told him it wasn''t all-or-nothing. This choice wouldn''t force him down a narrow path while blocking all others. It would only make one path smoother¡ªone path stronger. Better. He made a choice. New Trait Earned: [Indomitable] ~~~Somewhere Very Far Away~~~ Kaelen Elendern watched his nephew approach in silence. One nephew among thousands. Though perhaps this one stood out a touch more lately... "I have done as instructed, Uncle." Vaelin bowed shallowly¡ªtoo shallowly. He''d grown a bit more spine since their first meeting. He also didn''t need to say anything; Kaelen could clearly sense that his nephew was now D-grade. Sure, his power was naught but a flickering candle compared to his own, but he had risen to the challenge and ascended through the low ranks faster than any of his cousins. "You''re early." Vaelin brightened, though he tried to hide it. "Then you have the key?" "Of course. This old man is not without means." Though he suspected it would have proven far more difficult had Vaelin not done so well at keeping information of the new race from spreading. "Wait, if I''m early... then that means the dungeon is not yet D-grade?" "Indeed." "Then why push me to D-grade?" Vaelin questioned, a bit too much heat in his voice. "You only give the monster time to grow stronger! Or for another to steal our prize!" Kaelen didn''t react to the blatant and, from any other, deadly disrespect. Instead, he only relaxed the shield protecting this insignificant weakling from the weight of his own power. Relaxed it ever so slightly. A small fraction of his power filled the room, and Vaelin fell prone instantly, only barely hanging on to his consciousness as Kaelen reminded him of his place in their partnership. Yes, Vaelin had provided valuable information, but that was all he had to offer. The gall of this weakling... routed from an F-grade dungeon only to come crawling here and begging for help. If he was truly worthy of the Elendern name, then he would have defeated the legendary at their first meeting and returned triumphant. Though it was for the best that he hadn''t done so... Kaelen reined in his power, then waited for the sniveling wretch to finish gasping for air. "Don''t forget yourself, Nephew. While you have done well in bringing me this information, you are not indispensable." "Yes, Uncle," Vaelin gasped, trying and failing once again to hide his seething resentment. It was good. He needed more fire in his belly. So long as he aimed it at the appropriate target. "Now," Kaelen continued while withdrawing an item from his storage. "If you had known to bite your tongue, then I would have explained the reason I insisted on D-grade." He held up the item for Vaelin''s inspection. "It was for this." He watched his nephew inspect the item and then saw his eyes go wide with the expected reaction. "But this..." Vaelin closed his mouth and ducked his head. "Would you explain for this one why you have changed course, Uncle?" Kaelen smiled at him. That was better. Proper respect. "Why yes, my dear nephew. You see, while you were out there enjoying the dungeons I provided for your advancement, I uncovered what class the legendary is." Vaelin opened his mouth to demand an answer, then closed it and waited instead. Excellent. "It is almost certainly a Runic." He watched the thoughts and emotions play across his nephew''s face before, finally, Vaelin spoke, his tone just shy of accusatory. "I vaguely recall hearing of that before, Uncle. From my time in the nursery. As a babe." "I am familiar with the nursery rhymes, and yes, those are the very same I speak of now. The legends. The original class of a primordial race. The lost and forgotten Runic." "That is... fascinating, Uncle," Vaelin said, clearly not understanding the significance of what he''d heard. "Yet, I fail to see why this changes our plan to harvest the core." The ignorance wasn''t his fault. Vaelin was barely a child taking his first steps in the multiverse. "Because the rules, as you know them, don''t always apply when it comes to the primordials. By all known accounts, things were vastly different in those early days. Some even say the Great System was different..." Obvious blasphemy, but more importantly... "In the beginning, Mana was not what it is today. Saturation was low, and those who wanted any real power had to channel it directly from the Ley-Lines." Vaelin frowned, then his eyes narrowed. "I know what I felt. The human wielded a source, not a Ley-Line. Which would be just as impossible..." Kaelen studied his nephew but still saw no sign of deceit. He truly believed that an F-grade had taken a source. An impossibility. But... if that human also happened to have a primordial class? Despite his hunt for knowledge, information on such topics was not easy to come by. Even harder was separating fact from the over-embellished tales those stories had become in the eons since the actual events had taken place. "Doesn''t this only make the core all the more valuable?" Vaelin asked, with blatant dreams of wealth dancing through his hungry gaze. "If you wish to sell it as a relic of a bygone era. There are no primordial races left, remember? What good is a class shard if no one can learn it?" Dreams of wealth faded in his nephew''s eyes but didn''t go out completely. "It still might fetch more than..." "Gods, you are a fool!" Kaelen growled at the idiot child, sending Vaelin back to his knees with the mere strength of his ire. "The humans can learn it! Any of them!" His greed for the shard had already blinded him to the greater value of what he''d found. Vaelin lifted his head but kept his gaze on the floor. "So... it is still valuable?" His brother had always been a weaker specimen; it was no wonder that his offspring would be subpar. This one was no better than the rest. Pure dumb luck had given the idiot a chance to ascend further than he ever would have, and he would waste it all if given the chance. Still, he would get a chance to succeed and prove himself worthy of ascending, but failure would not be allowed. Kaelen held up the item that was worth more than a thousand D-grade dungeon worlds. "You will use this on the human. If it survives, then you will return it to me here." "If it survives?" Kaelen scoffed. "Why do you think I am waiting for D-grade? It is the lowest possible grade that might survive the experience, and only because this human holds a primordial class and wields a source. On any other, I would expect even B-grades to succumb..." Vaelin gaped at him, but Kaelen continued. "Either way, you will also return with enough breeding pairs that we can keep a healthy stock. If the runic dies, retrieve the core, and we will train another. If it survives, we will apprentice the others to it. Do you understand what that means? What it truly means?" "We..." Vaelin licked his lips. "We will have a supply of... primordial classed humans." "The only supply," Kaelen said with a nod. "Why sell a class shard when you can make more? You would only empower your enemies while cutting your own feet off." Vaelin''s greed was once again on full display as he scrambled back to his feet and bowed. "I will contact my agents, and..." "My agents have already established contact with your human," Kaelen interrupted, and saw the quickly hidden disappointment flash across his nephew''s face as he stiffened mid-bow. "They will assist you when the time comes." "Yes... Uncle." More disappointment. "Now, go. Prepare. I will summon you when the time comes... and you will not fail me." "Yes, Uncle," Vaelin said while failing to conceal his anger. Good. The fire was back in his eyes. Though it was amusing how the lower grades always thought they could hide anything from their superiors. Vaelin was almost certainly dreaming of cutting him out of the deal somehow. He didn''t take it personally. It was what he would have done in his place. It was practically a rite of ascension. The only question now was how he would go about it and whether it would cost him his life if he botched it too badly. Kaelen rolled a dungeon key across his nimble fingers as he watched his nephew stroll proudly past the gathered courtiers and other family members here to grovel, beg, and demand whatever trifles they thought mattered. None of them knew what had been discussed beyond their sight and hearing, but all of them looked on hungrily as Vaelin left. "Soon," Kaelen murmured after his nephew. "Soon you will prove if you''re worth anything." A notification flashed in his mind every time the key touched his fingers. [Dungeon Key] Rank: Gold Effects: Targeted or Open World. Useable up to A-grade Dungeons if the user''s grade is sufficient. Current Dungeon Targeted: [Earth](E-grade) Sector: 616(Invasion Blocked) Mana Saturation: Peak E-grade Resources: Blood-Iron Mine Structures: Greenfield Fort Population: (701) Combat. (1892) Noncombat. Minimum Entrance Restrictions(Easy): 1 Mid D-grade; 1 High D-grade; 2591 Peak E-grades Maximum Entrance Restrictions(Legend): 1 High D-grade Very soon, he thought as he dropped the barrier, the signal for the next petitioner to approach. 150. A Childs Choice ~~~Lee~~~ [Indomitable] You have chosen the path of the Indomitable. What the hell? Lee had to admit that he''d expected more than that. "What''s wrong?" Jeremy asked from the doorway. "Is something coming..." Amy also stuck her head into the room at that. "No," Lee said quickly to the both of them. "I just... well, I thought making my choice would give me more information than it did." "I suppose you could ask Z about it?" "True..." Lee got up from his hovering seat. "Speaking of, I think he should be back soon." "Is Z... actually a he?" Jeremy asked. Amy barked a laugh, and Lee paused. "I think so?" He shook his head and walked past Jeremy into the garage proper. "Besides, I don''t think he... or it cares what you call him." "Why..." Jeremy said behind him, then hesitated. Lee stopped and looked back. "What is it?" "Why didn''t you just kill it? Why let that alien join us?" It wasn''t the first time he''d heard that argument, and Lee had an answer ready to go. "Because here he can die to protect the people I care about." Amy nodded her agreement. And sure, that was a rather callous way to see his... minion? But unlike Trak, Z had actually attacked them. He and his pair didn''t come to Earth seeking refuge, freedom, or a better life. They came to kill and pillage, and Lee would spend Z''s life in a heartbeat if it meant someone he cared about survived. "I... see." Jeremy seemed thoughtful but not wholly convinced. That was fine. Lee was actually having some doubts of his own. Except his doubts were not about his choice to keep the alien here, but about sacrificing said life. He suspected he wasn''t the only one. Either Z understood how tenuous his position here was, or he took that whole contract thing far more seriously than Lee had first thought. Because it felt like he was going out of his way to endear himself to everyone he met. Which was obviously a good thing. Stories trickled in daily of the zhint showing up when people needed him most. When a fight in the lair turned overwhelming or a team ran into a roaming pack, Z showed up and saved their lives. Their knight in shining armor... as it were. His efforts were doing a lot to help sway public opinion in his favor, even if, technically, he was only doing as Lee had ordered. The question, and not one that truly mattered at the moment, was if he only did it because he had to, or if he actually cared? Lee could test it. He could change Z''s orders like he had for the Anubians. He could tell him to do as he pleased... but no, he wasn''t ready to go that far. Not yet. Maybe in time, if Z proved himself, or when their situation here felt less... tenuous. Though Lee had a creeping suspicion, it never would. They were in a war¡ªa never-ending war¡ªand these too short victory buffs were the only semblance of peace he could ever expect. It was their life now, and they needed to be strong. He needed to be strong. So many people were counting on him... so many lives... Lee''s brief, dark mood brightened as he came around the corner and laid eyes on the figure waiting for him. "How''s it going, Trak?" "It is well, my lord." Trak bowed his head, but that was all. He didn''t kneel or anything. It was a new and pleasant development, even if he absolutely refused to stop calling Lee a lord... Small victories. "Our healing potion stock is catching up with demand, and we have begun experimenting with enhancement potions..." Trak strolled beside him as Lee walked laps around the garage, explaining his plan to create boosting potions for emergencies. Like invasions. Lee listened, mostly, but he had a lot on his mind. Like the fact that Trak was definitely growing bigger. Ever since their E-grade evolution, all the anubians had gotten bigger, but Trak now stood obviously taller. Not a lot, but it was there, and Lee was sure he was still growing... He waited until Trak finished talking, thanked him for the update, and then asked about classes. Specifically, about reaching expert rank and what should happen upon doing so. "It is an important threshold, my lord. Most notably, because that is when one can take on an apprentice." "What about the class skills?" Trak tilted his head. "What about them, my lord?" "I didn''t get any offered to me at expert. Is that normal?" "That is not... no, every threshold offers new class skills. That is just how it is... though, with your class..." Trak stopped abruptly in place. "My lord, you have... reached... expert... rank?" He faltered halfway and struggled to get through it, but he asked the question. Even if he finished slightly hunched and with his head down. "Yeah, a few minutes ago. But instead of skills, I got a class choice. I''m not even sure what it did... if anything." "Will..." There was a very obvious trembling that started up inside Trak''s body, and it only grew with each passing second as Lee felt a monumental struggle going on within the anubian''s soul. "Will you... be taking... a..." The trembling only got worse, and Trak started sinking closer to the floor with each word he forced out. "Trak," Lee said, choosing his words carefully. "You are an Archon, are you not? Would it help if I started calling you my lord as a reminder?" A lot of strong emotions went through the anubian all at once, and he shook violently before barking out something between a laugh and a sob. "Please do not, my lord!" Regardless, he stood up straight again, with pride making a strong comeback in his soul. "Thank you, my lord. Now, as is the custom..." He dropped to one knee and looked up at Lee. "I humbly request, on behalf of my clan, that you... test them as... potential apprentices... my lord." "Of course," Lee said, then smiled sheepishly. "Um... how do I do that?" Trak bounded back to his feet. "The applicant simply makes the request, and the system will provide you with their information. Or you could make the request of your desired..." Lee grinned. "Trak, would you like to be my..." "Please do not!" Trak howled. "My lord, it is not right! You musn''t have to request..." "Having a legendary class doesn''t make me better than you, Trak. It was pure dumb luck that I got this class..." Probably. His maxed affinity and liquid mana at the start hinted at something more... planned? Still, his point to Trak held. "We are the same, even if you call me a lord." "Your words fill me with terror," he said, ducking his head. Then he looked up. "Yet also with pride, my lord. However, I will... disagree with you. What you have done... What I owe you..." Trak shook his head. "No, my lord. I do not agree, because no matter what comes. No matter the future. You shall always be my lord. Even should you... cast me out, I shall never stop serving. Until my death or multiverse end, I shall stand at your side!" Lee knew it was pointless to argue. "So long as you are standing, I will be happy to have you beside me." Trak smiled, or at least his soul did. It was harder to spot on his face. The wagging tail didn''t count... Of course, then he kneeled again. "Will my lord take... myself as... your apprentice?" Trak Druller has requested to become your Apprentice. Trak Druller''s Runic Class Affinity: 12% Trak Druller does not meet the Runic Class Requirements: [Liquid Mana Core] [Liquid Mana Channels] Lee tried to hide the wince, but maybe his scent, or more likely his broadcasting soul, gave him away before he could say anything. "How... bad is it, my lord?" "It''s not that," Lee said, deciding not to mention the low affinity. "You don''t meet the class requirements for liquid mana..." But then no one would. Did this mean Gabriel wouldn''t be able to apprentice, either? Or would his adaptable trait make the difference? Trak stood, only mildly disappointed. "I suspected as much, my lord. Yet I had to try." "Want me to check the rest of your clan?" He didn''t think it would work, but there was no harm in trying. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Trak looked thoughtfully toward his clan''s quarters. "Perhaps the children, as they are yet unclassed. Doubtful, but I am no expert on such matters." "Not to be mean," Lee added while heading that way. "But I can''t imagine anyone will beat out Gabriel for this." It would also probably break the kid''s heart if he took someone else as an apprentice, especially after all this time waiting for it. "Understandable, my lord. Yet I... humbly request that you test them." It was a marked change in the formerly timid anubian, and Lee couldn''t help but smile down at him. "Of course I will." "Thank you, my lord." Trak pushed himself ever so slightly taller as he walked beside Lee. Proud but also introspective as he mused, "Though it still sometimes feels like a dream. One which, not so long ago, I would never have dared to entertain... let alone to make such a request." "You can''t imagine how glad I am to see it," Lee said, beaming down at the anubian. He meant it, too. This was so much better than before. "Not to contradict my lord again, but I do not have to imagine. I can feel my lord''s soul..." Lee laughed. "Even better! Since you know I mean what I''m saying!" "Indeed." Trak stared at Lee. "Though it feels... softer these last few days, and my debuff has also lowered. Are you faring better?" "I am! Whatever Stanley''s doing is working!" He stopped outside the anubian quarters and stared off toward the feeling of his brother in the distance. Like all too often these days, Stanley was angry about something. It was an upsetting feeling, not because of anything on his end, but because he really wished his brother was happier. "Hang in there, Stanley," he whispered. Please come home soon. Or just come home at all. Whenever you can... or please, just stay alive... Of course, his soul betrayed him again, and Trak''s cheer turned to worry as his hands fluttered uncertainly between reaching for him or the floor. Amy stepped up closer behind him, and Lee thought she might try to physically comfort him. She didn''t. She only met his gaze evenly when he looked back, with the solid strength of her own conviction shining through. Where she drew such conviction, Lee didn''t know, but it gave him strength. He silently nodded his thanks, then took a few deep breaths to recenter himself before entering the anubian quarters. ... As expected, none of the Anubians met the requirements. The children being no exception. "Thank you, my lord." "You honor us beyond measure." The others managed to avoid any outright bowing, but there were a lot of ducking heads and aborted bows along the way. Lee escaped in time to catch the returning Z, and he had no qualms about absorbing the pile of cores his minion handed over while questioning the zhint about what should happen when a class reached expert rank. Z agreed with everyone else Lee talked to. You were supposed to get new class skills. Everyone at expert rank had the same story. Which left him as the odd one out... and more experiments with his runes gave him no insights about what might have changed, either. Nothing more than he''d already felt at the moment of choice. He tried not to worry about it and instead focused on what his likely future apprentice had taught him this morning. The new light rune he''d created was still flickering and giving off heat in his workroom, enough heat that he actually started sweating... something that hadn''t happened in a while. His E-grade body didn''t feel heat or cold the same, and curiosity had him wishing for a thermostat so he could see just how hot his room was. In lieu of that, Lee aired out the space and got back to work. His new creation wasn''t the first time he''d done something like that, but it was the most blatant. Altering a rune from what it should do into what he wanted it to do while using only his intent instead of changing the rune''s shape. They weren''t drastic shifts¡ªnothing too far from where they started¡ªbut it felt... important. Extremely important. Lee could feel his Runic Knowledge skill practically screaming at him that this mattered, so he listened. Of course, it didn''t spell out or explain why this mattered, only that it did. But Lee thought he understood. Somewhat. It definitely had something to do with his intent and, perhaps even more, his belief. Though maybe belief wasn''t quite the right way to look at it? His desire? Or his... will? That was part of it. He felt as much. No, he knew as much. He made the final connection from there. It wasn''t his will exactly. It was his soul. It was obvious once he thought of it. Though not in the way he''d assumed before. Yes, his soul was a part of every rune. But it was almost certainly far more impactful than he''d ever suspected before. Lee summoned a ceramic plate, then dashed it against the floor, where it shattered into pieces. Then he summoned another and placed a very particular strengthening rune on a plate. It didn''t shatter against the floor, nor when he struck that plate with a runed sword as hard as he could. Exactly as expected. So he tried again. And again. He kept trying, even when Amy stuck her head inside to see what all the banging was about. Until, finally, something new happened when he struck the plate. Afterward, he stood for long moments staring down at the plate while his mind whirled with the possibilities. Class Level Up: Runic Skill Level Up: Artistic Rune Creation Artistic Rune Creation has reached the Expert Threshold. No Evolutions Available. Ranking up to Level 100 (Expert) Also that. When he finally picked up the ceramic plate, Lee traced a finger along the large dent that left the entire thing distorted and deformed. The dent in the ceramic plate. He also studied the slightly diminished rune that still adorned the plate. It was a strengthening rune like he''d used so many times before. Only this time, instead of making the plate immutable, as it always had before, it made it... unbreakable? Which was impossible. Ceramic didn''t bend. Except he was currently watching it do just that. Not only was the plate already dented, but he could see the rune ever so slowly forcing the plate back towards its original, unblemished shape. There were obvious combat applications to self-repairing armor, especially since it looked like this took less power from the rune than outright blocking the damage. But the implications it had for his entire rune library were far more staggering. To Lee, it felt like he had just discovered that every word in his language actually had alternate meanings he''d never known before. Perhaps even more than one alternate meaning¡ªno, definitely more than one. Perhaps even an unlimited number of meanings. As many as his soul desired and as many as his will could manifest into reality. He dove headfirst into his runes, examining each one, especially the most powerful and most commonly used. He tested them one after the other, over and over, trying to tease out any and every possible useful iteration he could imagine. He kept at it until Amy started shaking him. "What!?" Amy didn''t mind his abrupt tone. She only smiled and said, "You have been summoned by a higher power than me." Lee blinked up at her in confusion from where he sat on the floor amid the chaos and destruction of his research. "Maria says it''s time for dinner," Amy said, clarifying things greatly. "So get moving!" He got moving. Amy followed him to Maria''s door the same way she followed him literally everywhere. He was getting used to it, and she was really good about being unobtrusive, which helped. "You have the watch until I return," she said when Alejandro met them at the door. The same thing she said every night. "On my life, he will be safe until your return," Alejandro replied. Same as he did every night. It was some kind of ritual thing that neither of them would tell him about, but he appreciated that whatever it was, it let Amy get some time to herself. The only and very brief time she had to herself. Because at all other times, she insisted on remaining by his side. She even sat outside his room all night, every night. Whatever was going on between her and Alejandro had made his adopted brother calm down a lot about the whole bodyguard thing. Amy was now the designated guard, with Jeremy only showing up sometimes. Lee let it go and didn''t dig at either of them for answers. They were both happy with things, and he got to work in peace. What more could he ask for? Unfortunately, his frenzy of study had distracted him from talking to Alejandro and Maria about Gabriel. So he waited until dinner had mostly wound down before dropping a slowing bubble over both children. Maria frowned at his blatant violation of the no magic at dinner rule but waited rather than saying anything. "I reached expert rank today." That was all he needed to say. Both parents shared a look before their gazes landed on the time-slowed Gabriel. They were still staring when the bubble lapsed. It didn''t take long for Gabriel to notice the attention, and he stilled under their combined gazes, a touch of guilt rising in his soul. "Mama? I''m sorry! I didn''t..." Maria narrowed her eyes at him. "What for sorry!?" "I..." Gabriel looked frantically back and forth between his parents, clearly not sure what they knew and unwilling to admit guilt for anything they might not already know about. "Um..." Alejandro saved his son when he burst out laughing, earning him a glare, followed by an affectionate swat from Maria. "Relax, Gabe; it''s not about any of that," he said, then nodded solemnly. "Lee, you can tell him." Lee took a moment as two pairs of too-young and very wide eyes swung to him. He was a little worried about what would happen if it turned out that no one could apprentice to him. "Gabriel," he said, deciding to start on a positive note. "Remember this morning when you were helping me?" Gabriel didn''t react at all as he''d expected. Instead, the boy shrank down in his seat and mumbled, "I''m sorry." It was Lee''s turn to be confused. Had Gabriel swiped another rune plate or done something else? Is that why he felt guilty before? "Why are you sorry?" "I..." Gabriel looked around anxiously, but found no support. Instead, he only found his parents looking suspiciously at him again. "I was telling you how to do stuff." He looked down at the table and said in an even softer voice. "Sometimes adults get mad if I do that." "What!? No! Gabriel, you helped me! A lot! You were right about the rune." The boy sat up a little straighter and lifted his gaze from the table. "I was? Auntie Amy said I wasn''t allowed to see you after school... I thought you were... mad at me." Lee swallowed down the lump in his throat and didn''t look toward the glare he could feel coming his way from Maria. "I''m not mad. Not at all! You really helped me. In fact, you helped me so much that I got to expert rank today." Gabriel blinked, smiled, and then his eyes went wide. "Does that... does that mean I can be your apprentice!?" "Would you like to be?" "Yes!" You have requested Gabriel Morales to become your Apprentice. Gabriel Morales''s Runic Class Affinity: 85% Gabriel Morales does not meet the Runic Class Requirements: [Liquid Mana Core] [Liquid Mana Channels] Lee had a brief moment of panic at seeing that message... until he saw the next line. Gabriel Morales may Adapt to Runic Class Requirements: [Liquid Mana Core] [Liquid Mana Channels] Gabriel Morales has [Child] Trait. Acceptance and Adaptation Pending on Guardian Approval. 151. What Were You Thinking ~~~Lee~~~ Gabriel Morales may Adapt to Runic Class Requirements: [Liquid Mana Core] [Liquid Mana Channels] Gabriel Morales has [Child] Trait. Acceptance and Adaptation Pending on Guardian Approval. Lee watched Gabriel as the boy vibrated nearly out of his seat, then followed his pleading gaze to the two people who had the final say in his life. Maria and Alejandro shared another silent but outwardly neutral look between them. Meanwhile, their souls told an entirely different story, and Lee could only imagine what this moment must be like for them. From the first time he''d met them, at the beginning of the end of the world, he had seen no hesitation from either of them in using or embracing their new abilities. Until now. From what Lee could feel coming from their souls, he thought he understood the hesitation. They had fought for and secured their place in this violent and dangerous world. A terrifying world where death and the destruction of all they held dear lurked around every corner. They didn''t want that life for their innocent little boy. Not any of it. Unfortunately, he was already in it. There was no escaping from this war. No avoiding it. There were no innocent bystanders left. Lee wasn''t drafting their baby into the war; he was only giving him the tools to better survive what was sure to come. Alejandro finally turned to Lee. "His affinity is very high. Did anyone else match that?" "You can''t choose someone else!" Gabriel whispered in wide-eyed horror. "Please pick me!" "Relax," Lee said with what he hoped was a comforting smile. It turned slightly sheepish when he added, "I actually forgot to check anyone else after the anubians..." "Oh?" Alejandro tilted his head. "How did they do?" "Affinity was low, but they couldn''t learn it, regardless. No liquid mana... and no adaptable trait." "Says he adapt," Maria chimed in, nervous energy churning through her. "What mean?" "The class requires liquid mana," Lee said. "He has to become like me... mana-wise, at least." He could feel the concern radiating from Maria and added, "It might hurt." Even just gaining the class knowledge had hurt like a... Lee wasn''t sure how bad it would be to gain a new mana pool and mana channels. "I don''t mind!" Gabriel jumped in quickly, probably worried his parents might call the whole thing off. "Does it say how much it will cost?" Lee asked. "How much of his adaptability?" It was important. If Gabriel ever decided he didn''t like the runic class, he would likely have to spend the same amount to switch back to any other class. "Fifteen percent." "That''s not too..." Lee frowned. Eighty-five percent affinity. "I want to check something. Alejandro, do you want to be my apprentice?" "What!?" Gabriel immediately protested, while Lee got a new notification. Alejandro Morales is not eligible to be an Apprentice. "I can''t," Alejandro said, answering the question before Lee could ask. "Anyone with an apprentice is locked out of becoming one themselves." "Oh." That meant Maria was out as well. Which left... "Anita, do you want to become my apprentice?" You have requested Anita Morales to become your Apprentice. Anita Morales''s Runic Class Affinity: 35% Anita Morales does not meet the Runic Class Requirements: [Liquid Mana Core] [Liquid Mana Channels] Anita Morales may Adapt to Runic Class Requirements: [Liquid Mana Core] [Liquid Mana Channels] Anita Morales has [Child] Trait. Acceptance and Adaptation Pending on Guardian Approval. "Nooo!" Anita wailed immediately, while Gabriel looked like he wanted to do the same. "I don''t wanna!" Anita Morales has rejected your Apprenticeship request. Refusal Pending on Guardian Approval. That was an interesting and somewhat bleak revelation¡ªthat she didn''t technically get a say, though it was her affinity that drew most of Lee''s attention. He sent a questioning look in Alejandro''s direction. "The same, fifteen percent adaptation," Alejandro murmured. Meanwhile, while glaring at Lee and Alejandro, Maria moved to comfort her children, one of whom was now crying and the other who looked like he was about to start. Maria Morales has rejected Anita Morales Apprenticeship request. Lee barely noticed the notification as he stared back at Alejandro, a familiar chill creeping through him as their gazes simultaneously swung to the distraught Gabriel. If they discounted the cost of adapting to liquid mana, then Gabriel very likely had a full one-hundred percent affinity to the runic class. While his thoughts churned with guilt over what was almost certainly his fault, Lee tried to ease the boy''s mind. "You''re already in, Gabriel. I was just checking her affinity." "I... I am?" The poor kid had actually thought Lee was seriously trying to replace him. Then the boy looked at his father. "Is that true? Will you say yes?" It was Alejandro''s turn to look awkward. "I don''t actually have the final say..." The mother got to decide... Which kind of sucked for all the fathers out there, though Lee thought it sounded fair. Women had to do the lion''s share when it came to actually creating a child. All eyes shifted to Maria, who was busy comforting Anita in Spanish. "Mama?" Gabriel''s voice trembled. "Can I be a runic?" She looked at him with glistening eyes and pulled him into her embrace with Anita. There she spoke softly to him, still in Spanish. Lee followed along as best he could, once again reconsidering his choice not to learn the Myriad Tongues skill. Like so many others, he''d opted not to spend one of his limited non-class skill slots on the less than necessary translation magic. Sure, he had a spare slot, and he would probably get more at the next grade, but... what if he needed that one slot? What if a skill showed up that was perfect and he couldn''t learn it? It was tempting, but ultimately not worth the risk. Especially when considering that she was only speaking Spanish, a human language that he could learn with some effort. Not like the anubian¡¯s language... Another issue along that line was that Z had divulged they couldn''t actually count on getting more non-class skill slots. Every race had their own rate of growth, with some getting more every grade while others only got a handful. Ever. There was no way to know if humans were among the lucky ones. Not until someone reached the next grade and found out. Lee resolved, yet again, to put in more effort toward learning her language the old-fashioned way as he listened to Maria talk to her children. He¡¯d been working at it and had learned more since they met, but barely enough to follow along. He got a few words here and there, enough to know that she was warning him about how it would hurt and how much she didn''t want to do that to him. Despite the warnings, Gabriel never wavered in his desire, so after another look and a nod of acceptance from his father, Maria agreed. Maria Morales has accepted Gabriel Morales Apprenticeship request. "Ouch," Gabriel immediately cried out as pain flared high in his soul. Then it got so much worse. "Ouch! Mama! Ow, ow, ow..." What felt like far too much time later, he finally and mercifully slipped into unconsciousness. "I''m so sorry," Lee whispered into the fresh silence, his eyes closed and feeling like a terrible person for what he''d inflicted on the boy. Even if it wasn''t his intention. The system should have just knocked him out. Why would it make him suffer like that? Alejandro was already at his wife''s side the instant Gabriel''s cries started, and he must have recognized the pulsing flash of her healing magic. "Is he okay?" "S¨ª," Maria said, pulling Gabriel''s limp form into her arms while a different and arguably far worse pain screamed from her soul. "I''m sorry," Lee said again, not willing to open his eyes for fear of seeing the expression on Maria''s face. Not that it mattered. Mana Mind showed him everything, anyway. Including what was happening inside Gabriel''s body. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. It was a mix of fascinating and horrifying, as the boy''s core pulsed and deepened. It didn''t get bigger, only deeper... somehow. Meanwhile, every mana channel inside him did the same. From the tiny vein-like threads to the thick lines running directly from his core. Watching it happen gave Lee a strange sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu, as if he''d seen this very thing happen before. Which he probably had. Most likely when he''d first touched the source... or rather, when Stanley had. Since that had to be when he''d gained his own liquid mana... The strangest part was that Gabriel''s body was rapidly increasing in mana density, but it wasn''t coming from outside of him. The mana filling his flesh came from his core¡ªfar more of it than Lee could originally sense within. Which meant it was coming from something else¡ªsomething deeper. Maybe his soul? Or wherever it was that a human''s adaptable trait resided? "It''s not your fault," Alejandro said, breaking Lee from his speculations. "But it is," Lee said, still without opening his eyes. "If he hadn''t been in the room with me when I made Three... this wouldn''t be happening." Alejandro shrugged. "Maybe, but don''t you see that it''s better this way?" Lee opened his eyes. "What?" "He was always going to get a class, but I''d rather he have your class than one that would send him into..." Alejandro did a good job keeping the horror of what he was imagining from his voice, but his soul betrayed him as he said, "Into the fighting." That was a fair point, and one he''d heard before. Though it helped to hear it again. A little. "Your class is powerful," Alejandro continued. "We all know that. But it''s also something that he can do best from right here, inside Three. And I can''t imagine a safer place for him to be." "I felt his pain," Lee said. "It hurt..." He glanced between the three pairs of eyes watching him and couldn''t bring himself to tell them it was likely the worst pain the boy had ever known. Pain akin to Lee''s worst mana burn during the hidden invasion. Then he remembered the events leading to the soul-link and how everyone here had felt his pain¡ªso, second worst. Both of which were still Lee''s fault. Alejandro smiled sadly. "I get hurt every day, Lee. Sometimes more, sometimes less, but usually less, thanks to the armor you gave me. Far better for Gabriel to hurt a little today than to have to go out there." It wasn''t a little hurt, but... "I guess." "How long it take?" Maria asked, still holding the sleeping boy. "I think it''s almost over," Lee murmured while he watched the changes wind down. It looked strange. Gabriel now stood out as far brighter than anyone else, not counting Lee himself. In fact, Lee''s own body and mana still far outshone the boy''s, which was good because Lee had evolved away from even having mana channels... after he accidentally destroyed them. Despite the process appearing complete, Gabriel didn''t wake up, and Maria didn''t try to make him. Instead, she carried him to bed, while Alejandro helped by dealing with Anita, who was feeling very left out by all the attention her brother was getting. Lee followed along while they read a story to the one awake child, then lingered outside the kid''s room after Anita finally drifted off. "I''d like to stay here," Lee said, to the questioning looks from the parents. "I want to be here when he wakes up. If he has questions, or if... well, just in case." Liquid mana was... volatile, to say the least, and Gabriel was still a child, one who had just been given the keys to what could be a very deadly weapon. Especially if used wrong. Or right, depending on how you looked at it. Lee''s memories of his own mistakes and mana burning were a little fresh right now, and he really didn''t want Gabriel to follow him down that route. Alejandro smiled at him, while Maria pulled him straight into a hug. "Gracias, Lee. Eres un buen hombre." "What she said," Alejandro added, clapping him on the back before looking regretfully toward the front door. "Seriously. I have to get back out there, but I''ll feel better knowing you''re here with him. So thanks." He got his own hug from Maria, along with a quick peck, before heading back out into the night. Much of the hustle and bustle of the fort calmed down at night, but not all of it. People slept less these days, with even six hours considered excessive. Despite that, not everyone wanted to hunt at night. Barely anyone, in fact. Nocturnal predators had been a thing before the system, and they were still a thing now. Only ramped up. A lot. E-grade humans could see better in the dark than before, but the monsters who claimed the night were no joke. It was a small comfort to see by moonlight or even starlight when you knew that every patch of deeper shadow may now literally hide a monster from your worst nightmares. So Lee sat outside Gabriel''s room and watched through Mana Mind as the hunting teams trickled home one by one. Many came back with wounded among them, with some even carrying their fellows. Which meant almost every team passed through Saira''s grove upon returning. She was still the best healer anyone had seen, either here or among the various settlements out there. Unfortunately for all the people who tried to lure her into their teams, she almost never left the fort anymore. Between her healing and the fact she single-handedly grew the entire fort''s non-meat food supply, she was far too valuable to risk running around out there. That was Lee''s opinion, at least, and if it hadn''t been for the garage underneath his building, he would have hollowed out the courtyard space for her tree. Not that she would have necessarily agreed with that. Because no one told her what to do. Not if they wanted to live a long and happy life. Lee had asked a few days ago about a man he''d seen strung up from her tree. He''d been alive, but definitely suffering with the half-dozen vines impaling his flesh. It turned out he''d gotten a little handsy during his healing. "I don''t mind them looking," Saira had told him. "I am beautiful, and it is only natural to appreciate beauty." She had punctuated the statement with a languid stretch that did wild things to Lee''s heart rate and left his face feeling hot. Her smile afterward didn''t help either. Then the smile shifted, and Lee saw once again that primal creature from nature''s deepest, darkest corner looking out of her eyes. "But touching me without permission, well..." She blinked, and then she was only herself again. "Don''t worry, I won''t kill him. He''s an idiot that only needs a reminder about proper behavior." She''d sidled up close after that, circling close behind him without ever quite touching him. She carried with her a scent of flowers and herbs, with a deeper undertone of rich, damp soil, and her breath was hot on his neck as she whispered, "But you, Lee, you are welcome anytime." He''d watched her depart back to her tree without turning around and with a feeling that maybe she was into him... Maybe. There was no way to know for sure. She was probably just being friendly. And after watching her use the last man who made unwanted advances as a health battery all day, he''d decided to err on the side of caution. Lee pushed thoughts of the past away as he watched her heal each returning team here in the present. Her and her anubian apprentice. Because even with the potions, there weren''t enough healers to go around. Maria was doing her part on that front. Her own apprentice came back with one of those teams, and they still made a stop at Saira''s tree like all the others. Probably because one of their members was missing a hand. After which, the young woman split off to head for Maria''s apartment. Whereupon Lee got to observe while Maria continued their nightly human anatomy lessons. Lee had volunteered in the early days, but now the woman was getting more hands-on experience in the field. For probably obvious reasons, tonight''s lesson focused on the human forearm, particularly on reattaching all the pieces correctly should someone lose a hand. Maria insisted, and had successfully shown before, that it was completely possible to fix that type of injury. So long as you knew what you were doing. Luckily, her apprentice already spoke Spanish, so neither of them had to waste a skill slot. Also lucky, Lee could butt in occasionally and work on his own Spanish skills in the process. He would have volunteered to lose a hand for his interruptions, but that wasn''t something he could do anymore. Not with his runed bones. The apprentice eventually left, Alejandro finally returned, and the couple went to sleep sometime after midnight. Or so Lee guessed. He didn¡¯t have a clock. Lee stayed awake and worked on his runes. He could get a nap later if he needed to. At least, that was his intention. Somewhere along the way, he must have dozed off while sitting in the hallway. He should have stayed standing. Because he awoke abruptly to a violent surge of mana nearby. Liquid mana. He knew it was a failed rune before he was even fully awake. Mana Mind, probably. A rune very much like so many he had made before. One that was about to explode. Lee didn''t wait for that to happen. It wasn''t his rune. So he couldn''t simply take it back. It was crafted from someone else''s soul. Gabriel''s soul. But it was still mostly mana, and Mana Mind gave him power over mana... so Lee went after that part of it. Which was the actual dangerous bit. He instantly latched on and tried to drag the violently erupting mana away from the two nearby children. It didn''t work like he¡¯d hoped. Liquid mana was not the same. It was magnitudes beyond what he was used to controlling with Mana Mind. He couldn''t stop it all¡ªnot fast enough. Lee begged for help from the only one who might save them in time. Three! They had milliseconds. Not even enough time for a coherent thought. But his intent or desire must have been enough because Three acted in the same instant that the liquid mana exploded with a building-shaking bang. Not in the expanding cloud of shrapnel it normally would have, but in a cloud of tiny streamers that avoided any human obstructions on direct lines into the walls, ceiling, and floor of the children''s bedroom. Lee had barely stood up halfway from the floor when Maria landed on the wall in front of him and rebounded off, directly through the suddenly open door into the kid''s room. "It''s..." Alejandro followed a heartbeat behind her, a runed knife bared in one hand. "...okay," Lee finished, alone in the empty hallway. He went through the door after the anxious parents while sending a thought of thanks Three''s way. Both for how it opened doors for them and for grabbing the mana from the failing rune. He hadn''t known Three could do that, but he should have. If Three could recharge runes that only entered the building, there was no reason it couldn''t do the opposite and take mana away. Well, maybe not from one of Lee''s runes, but a leaking one? Hell, the building could probably shut down any and all external mana usage within its bounds... The rest of Lee''s attention went to the attempted rune from his new apprentice. It hadn''t been a simple one. Lee hadn''t even recognized it... His very first rune, and Gabriel went big. On the one hand, at least he was ready and willing to get started. On the other hand, "What the fuck were you thinking!?" For once, Maria didn''t scold him for his language. She only held Anita in her arms and joined Lee in staring down at the wide-eyed Gabriel, where he stood frozen with a hand hovering over his shattered nightstand. Maria didn''t need to scold him, and Lee regretted his outburst almost immediately. Because Gabriel was already terrified. He knew exactly what had almost happened. He''d felt the pure, raw power that he almost unleashed on himself and his sister. Still, Lee quashed his regret. This was serious. Deadly serious. Of course, it was partially his fault. He should have talked to Gabriel before they agreed to the apprenticeship. He should have told him not to try anything without getting permission first. Gabriel was a little kid and he''d just woken up with an amazing new ability that he''d been dying to try for ages now. Why the hell wouldn¡¯t he try it out immediately!? "Gabriel..." Lee took a calming breath as tears welled and then spilled down the boy''s cheeks but kept his tone firm. "The first rule is that you do not use any of your new abilities without my direct supervision and permission. Understood?" "Y¡ªyes," Gabriel sobbed. "Second rule..." Lee sighed. "Start small. What the hell were you even trying to make?" "I..." Gabriel scrubbed a pajama sleeve across his eyes, then looked at the floor and said in a barely audible whisper, "I wanted to make the table walk." 152. Family Matters ~~~Lee~~~ "I wanted to make the table walk." "Jesus..." Lee earned a sharp look from Maria for that one and quickly aborted what he¡¯d been about to say. Instead, he only asked, "How?" Gabriel reached over and put his finger on Anita''s nightstand. "No!" Lee snatched the boy''s wrist and pulled his hand away. "Let''s not do that again. Where''s your pen?" He''d barely finished the question when Mana Mind told him he already knew where it was. Lee used the same skill to pull Gabriel''s pen from the living room, down the hall, and through the door into his waiting free hand. "Show me with... wait." Lee pulled the pen away from Gabriel''s reaching hand. "First, tell me why you didn''t just pull the rune back when it started failing? You know how, don''t you?" It had always been purely instinctual for him, and he really had no idea how he would go about teaching Gabriel something like that if it didn''t come with the class. Gabriel looked at the floor again. "I think I could, but... it scared me." "What scared you?" "The... mana," Gabriel whispered while staring down at his hand. "It was so... loud. Inside me." He looked up at Lee. "It wasn''t like all the times you make stuff! And..." He wilted in on himself. "It scared me." "That''s good," Lee said, getting a surprised look from the boy. "Some fear is healthy. Why do you think I like to work in that room all by myself?" "But you''re not scared. You''re never scared! Even when it goes boom, you are always brave!" Lee chuckled ruefully while he summoned a plate, then held it out. "Here. Make me a light rune. You remember that one, right?" "I... I do," Gabriel said, but there was a tremor in his hands as he took the plate, and then he only clutched it in a white-knuckled grip while glancing toward his parents and sister. Parents who shared his nervousness, with Alejandro asking, "Are you sure this is a good idea?" "It''s fine," Lee said, then to Gabriel he added, "I know you can do this." Gabriel only grew more nervous as he sat down and touched a trembling finger to the plate, then looked up at Lee again as if asking for permission. To which Lee nodded silently. He was the only one who could see when the liquid mana started moving inside the boy. It shot lightning quick from his core, flowed down his arm, and then finally slowed to a crawl as it trickled out through his slowly sliding finger. But while the others might not see the mana inside Gabriel, they all saw the brilliant light of the rune forming behind his finger. A light that blossomed brighter and brighter until, with a final flash, it was done, and a glowing light rune shone up at all of them from the plate. A rune that was not one of Lee''s. Which, honestly, felt all kinds of weird in Lee''s Mana Mind. Gabriel didn''t move when it was done. He only sat and stared at the light while a tumultuous riot of emotion bubbled up in his soul. Lee remained silent while Maria and Alejandro made small noises of congratulations, but he couldn''t hold back a smile as he eavesdropped on the boy''s soul. It was exactly what Lee wanted to see. He had felt the fear in Gabriel, which was good; the kid needed a healthy fear of what he might do by accident. Now he was seeing the flip side of the coin. That magic was absolutely fucking awesome. All the time he''d spent watching Lee work. All the time he''d spent practicing with the magic pen. None of that could compare to wielding the magic yourself. To creating something amazing. Even a simple light. The awe finally burst out onto Gabriel''s face, and he looked up at Lee with an expression of pure childish glee as he exclaimed, "I did it, Uncle Lee!" "Daddy, look!" Gabriel leapt up from the floor, his small hands still holding onto the plate for dear life, but his face beaming. "Mama, I made a light!" They couldn''t dismiss the earlier fear quite as easily as he did, but their child''s happiness was infectious and dragged honest smiles from both of them despite the lingering worry. "I see it, Gabe." "Si, muy..." "I want magic!" Anita loudly proclaimed from Maria''s arms while squirming madly to escape. Maria let her down, and Anita shared Gabriel''s awe as she traced a finger over his light rune. "Mama, can I have magic, too?" "No," Gabriel said. "You are too little. Uncle Lee, she is too little!" "Mama!" Lee chuckled while Alejandro burst out laughing and scooped the little girl into his arms. "You little munchkin, you didn''t want to be Uncle Lee''s apprentice a minute ago." "But it''s not fair! Brother got magic!" "What if we find you a different magic that you like more?" Her low affinity aside, Lee was all for that option. Despite being siblings, they were definitely each their own unique person. She in no way shared her brother''s patience for learning, and Lee couldn''t imagine the high-energy child ever sitting still long enough to learn the runes. Martin already had enough trouble teaching her letters... So, of course, she actually stopped to think about Alejandro''s question. "Um..." Then her face lit up. "I want to be a dog!" "Ni?a!" Maria let out an exasperated sigh amidst everyone else''s confusion before telling Alejandro a story in Spanish. One name stood out in her retelling, and Lee immediately understood when he heard it. Lucian. "You want to be a werewolf?" "A wolf!" Anita exclaimed, holding her hands up like tiny claws and doing the cutest imitation Lee had ever heard of a wolf''s growl. "Rawr!" Lee and Alejandro both laughed, much to Maria''s dismay, and she snapped something that sounded suspiciously like, "That is not happening! Ever!" "They..." Lee stopped laughing as a slightly terrifying thought occurred to him. "Did they get evolution options at F-grade?" While it would be undeniably cute to see an Anita-sized werewolf, Lee couldn''t imagine waking up one morning to see your toddler had transformed into one. Though maybe if the parents were already werewolves? "No," Alejandro said, his own laughter sputtering out. "Thank God, no." Anita pouted, pounding her tiny fists on Alejandro''s chest. "I want magic too!" "I know, Chica." Alejandro hugged her tight even as she struggled ineffectually to escape the embrace. "We''ll find you... something." He hid the terror that crept into his soul at those words, but Lee felt it. He knew why, too. Anita was not her brother, and Lee couldn''t imagine her taking on a crafting class. Though maybe they''d get lucky and she''d find one she liked? Doubtful as that was, Lee imagined her parents were praying for it, and he also knew it probably wouldn''t happen. She was going to be a fighter. It was almost blatantly obvious... Gabriel ignored all of them, blissfully unaware, as he stared lovingly at his creation. Big brother and little sister. He was a runic now, or well on his way to becoming one. Perhaps he would find a way to protect Anita when she finally joined the fight. The kid had some wild ideas already. He might even succeed where Lee had failed. What if he figured out healing runes? Or something even better? Lee smiled wistfully, then said, "Okay, Gabe. Now it''s time to take the rune back." "What? But I..." Gabriel looked longingly at his rune. "Do I have to?" "I suspect you''re going to need the soul in that rune. If only for practicing. But..." Lee shook his head and created another plate. "Here, make another light. You can save your first rune if you really want to." Gabriel eagerly leapt at the chance to make another rune, almost botching it in his excitement. He barely managed it and then stared back and forth between both plates, his smile rivaling the lights in its brilliance. "Now take that one back." It would be a good test to see if he could pull back only one rune and the correct one at that. So, of course, Gabriel pulled both runes from the plates. "Oh, no!" Lee hid his smile at the overly despondent reaction. "You did good, Gabriel." The praise didn''t help, and Gabriel''s soul felt like it was teetering on the edge of despair as he stared down at the blank plates in the now much darker room. So Lee tried another tactic. "You know what my first rune was?" Gabriel looked up, his eyes glistening with unshed tears as he shook his head miserably. Lee pointed toward the room''s single window. "It was a rune to make my windows stronger. But you know which runes are my favorites?" Gabriel shook his head again. Mutely. Lee sat down beside him, patting the floor. "My favorites are the ones that protect the people I care about. Like Three. Or the one on your daddy''s armor. Those are the runes that matter most. Don''t you think so?" "Y-yes," Gabriel said, rubbing a sleeve over his eyes as a new emotion welled up in his soul to replace the despair. It was exactly the emotion Lee was hoping for and, honestly, what he was expecting. "I''m going to make lots of good runes to protect Daddy, Mama, and Sister!" He was a good kid, and Alejandro looked on with a beaming smile while his soul swelled with pride. Maria smiled, sharing the pride, but with other darker emotions lurking beneath. Probably a mother thing. "Oh, I will make runes to protect you too, Uncle Lee." Definitely a good kid. "Thanks. I''ll be looking forward to that." Lee chuckled and looked at the darkness outside the window. "But for now, I''m guessing you won''t get anymore sleep tonight? So why don''t we head downstairs and get to work?" Gabriel sprang to his feet. "I''m not tired! I slept a lot!" "I''m not tired!" Anita proclaimed. "I want to make magic too!" "I''m sure you do, Chica! But how about we put some breakfast in your belly before you go hunting with the wolf pack?" He only grinned at the look his wife sent his way. "You too, Gabe. You''ll do better on a full stomach." "No thanks. I''m not hungry," Gabriel lied. Right as his stomach growled. He only doubled down. "I''m not!" This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. "Go eat," Lee told him. "It''s going to be a long day." Gabriel left, reluctantly at first, then sprinting away. He was probably planning to scarf down his breakfast as fast as possible. Lee watched the trio depart and then looked up to meet Maria''s intense gaze, where she still lingered in the room with him. "I''ll keep him safe, Maria. On my life." He meant it. While he could never match a mother''s love for her child, the kids had still grown on him, and Lee couldn''t bear the thought of anything bad happening to them. "I know... I worry still." Her gaze trailed down to the destroyed end table. "Yeah, I screwed up," Lee admitted. "I should have talked to him before..." "All screw up." Her expression softened, and she stepped up beside him, her hand landing gently on his shoulder. "Make him strong. Make him safe." It came out halfway between a command and a plea. Lee swallowed back the lump in his throat. "I will." Gabriel finished breakfast even faster than Lee anticipated, and Lee walked down the stairs with him after scarfing down his own plate. Sure, they could have simply jumped off the balcony and skipped the stairs, but Lee wanted the extra time to spell out the rules again. "I will know if you break the first rule, Gabriel. Remember how I can see mana? Well, your mana is brighter than everyone else''s now." "I said I wooon''t!" Gabriel whined, even as he struggled not to sprint ahead down the stairs. "Early start today?" Amy met them at the courtyard landing, already geared up and ready to go despite the early hour. Lee had seen her wake up the instant he left Alejandro''s... though he still didn''t know how she knew and assumed she still wouldn''t tell him. She fell into step with them on the way to the garage. Then her gaze landed on Gabriel and a frown creased her brow. "He feels like..." Understanding bloomed. "Ah, you made it official?" Lee felt a spike of panic at her reaction. "He doesn''t feel like a legendary, does he!?" "Nah, I think it''s just the mana. He has a... weight? Yeah, that''s the right word. He''s got weight that wasn''t there before." "Thank god." Lee frowned as he looked at the confused Gabriel. "That''s another rule, Gabe. Don''t tell anyone that my class is legendary." He hated to put this on a child, but Gabriel needed to know the stakes. "Anyone with a legendary class will always drop a class shard if they die." Gabriel was a bright kid. He got it instantly. "Someone might kill you to take your class!?" "Or you, once you officially have the class." Alejandro had already confirmed that Gabriel didn''t have the same feeling as Lee. Amy just got in his head... "Don''t worry, kid. No one''s gonna hurt you or Lee while I''m here." "I saw you practicing with Teacher," Gabriel said to Amy, eyes wide. "You''re really strong!" She grinned at him. "You''re almost as strong as Mama!" She choked and then laughed. "Almost, huh?" Gabriel nodded seriously. "Mama is super strong and super fast." "Well, maybe I''ll train with her, too." "That''s a good idea. I''m going to train with Uncle Lee so I can help make everyone stronger." "Good on you, kid. Can''t wait to see what you come up with. Just try not to blow yourself up as much as this old guy does, okay?" "Hey..." Gabriel came to his defense, though not in the way Lee expected. "Uncle Lee isn''t old. He only looks old from making Three." "Thanks," Lee said dryly. "And I don''t blow myself up that much." Amy just laughed. Unfortunately, she was right. Mostly. Lee didn''t blow himself up. Instead, Gabriel blew him up only an hour later. He''d finished a new rune, and it stuck, but it wasn''t stable. "Gabe, take..." There wasn''t time, so Lee abandoned his own project and threw himself atop the plate while shoving Gabriel as far away as he could in the small room. Stone erupted from the floor between him and the boy, and Lee had a moment to realize he should have had Three do that to the unstable plate. Then it exploded and blew the breath from his lungs. Along with blowing some small holes in his stomach and chest... Debuff Gained: [Bleeding] It wasn''t a big rune, but it still hurt less than expected. Though he should have expected the reason. Because Amy burst through the door a moment later with blood dripping down to the floor from beneath her breastplate. Of course, that didn''t stop her from rubbing it in. "W... what did I say?" she wheezed. "About blowing yourself up?" Lee rolled over and opened his mouth to defend himself. Then he rolled back over to cough some blood from his lungs. Gabriel ratted himself out, peeking over the new wall with tears welling in his eyes as he wailed, "I''m sorry, Uncle Lee!" Jeremy peeked into the room, not at all upset despite the explosion and bloody aftermath. "Should I go get Saira? Or is this just a potion-level explosion?" "I..." Lee spat out some blood. "I''ll be fine, but send Amy to Saira." "Wait..." Amy vanished and reappeared beneath Saira''s tree. Lee noted with only some trepidation that a plethora of tiny roots swarmed beneath her and sucked up each drop of her blood as it hit the dirt... Then Saira descended from the cradling branches above the injured woman. Lee tried to ignore the sight and pulled himself into a seated position against the wall while he waved away the potion Jeremy offered him. "Save it. Just need a snack and I''ll be good." Jeremy shrugged. "If you want to be a masochist..." Debuff Downgraded: [Minor Bleeding] Debuff Gained: [Hungry] "I''m not a... We already don''t have enough potions. No need to waste them." Lee winced, not from the pain but because he could see pretty much everyone in the building who hadn''t risen early now waking up. It hadn''t been a big explosion, but it was big enough. Gabriel''s tears had turned into blubbering by then, and Lee couldn''t understand any of the words. "It''s fine, Gabe. Really. But this is another lesson for you. When you make a new rune, watch carefully to make sure it''s actually stable. Because it can go boom real quick if not." "I... I..." "You know what I forgot to ask you?" Lee said, trying to distract the boy but also curious. "What skill are you using to create the runes?" He assumed it was... "Ru... rune... sc... scribe," Gabriel got out between sobs. Which meant it was indeed the same one Lee had started with. "You know you can see his status, right?" Jeremy chipped in. "I can? Wait, I thought you weren''t expert rank yet." "I''m not. I just listen when people are talking." Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Have you even looked at your status since making him an apprentice?" Lee pulled up his own status. Status Name: Lee Cascade Race: [Mana Soulforge](E-grade Human) Titles: [F-grade Source] [First Time?] [Swarm Chaser] [Minor Lord](412) Contracts: [Nicholas Alberton] [Zynthar] Traits: [Adaptable](55%) [Source Nexus] [Soulforged Mana] [Ley Line Attuned] [Runic Resonance] [Rune Harmonics] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] [Indomitable] Class: Runic (Legendary) - Level 100 (Expert) Class Skills: Artistic Rune Creation (Epic) - Level 100 (Expert) | Rune Soul Storage (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Soul Infusion (Epic) - Level 40 (Basic) | Language of the Rune (Unique) - Level [N/A] Apprentices(1/1): Gabriel Morales Attributes: Strength: 582(+291%)2276 Vitality: 573(+291%)2241 Dexterity: 579(+291%)2265 Wisdom: 703(+3278%)23747 Intelligence: 710(+3278%)23983 Willpower: 695(+3278%)23477 Twin-Soul: 115(+567%)767 Non-Class Skills(4/6): Liquid Mana Beam (Rare) - Level 15 (Basic) | Liquid Mana Inferno (Rare) - Level 1 (Novice) | Mana Mind (Epic) - Level 88 (Advanced) | Create Plate (Rare) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Temporal Shift (Legendary) - Level 38 (Intermediate) Buffs: [Three] [Soul-Link] Debuffs: [Major Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] [Minor Bleeding] [Hungry] "Oh." There was indeed a new addition. Gabriel was listed as his apprentice. "One of one... can people have more apprentices at higher ranks?" "That I don''t know. I don''t think anyone''s made it past expert yet... though your pet alien probably knows." Lee nodded. That was definitely something to ask his pet alien about later. Maybe the next time he returned with cores... He had been hesitant about Z, but that hesitancy was fading as fast as his attributes were rising. And they were rising higher every day, thanks to the single-handed efforts of that D-grade alien. Sure, he was still getting some cores from Wilson''s taxes, but now he could funnel most of those to people like Jeremy, and especially to Amy, since she never hunted now. Speaking of Amy, she was on her way back. With Saira. Lee quickly focused on Gabriel''s name in his status. Status Name: Gabriel Morales Race: [Human](F-grade Human) Titles: Traits: [Adaptable](85%) [Child] [Soul Enkindling] Class(Apprentice): Runic (Legendary) - Level 1 (Novice) Class Skills: Rune Scribe (Rare) - Level 2 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 88(+200%)264 Vitality: 88(+200%)264 Dexterity: 88(+200%)264 Wisdom: 88(+207%)270 Intelligence: 88(+207%)270 Willpower: 88(+207%)270 Soul: 10(+100%)20 Non-Class Skills(0/3): Buffs: [Three] Debuffs: [Hungry] It was about what he''d expected, though one thing leapt out at him. "I think Jamaal should be cooking soon," Lee said to Jeremy. "Have him make a burrito for Gabriel too. Oh, and keep the hot sauce on the side for him." "I... I''m not... hu... hungry." Jeremy ignored Gabriel''s tearful lie. "Obviously on the side. Jamaal''s hot sauce is fuck..." He choked off with a look at Gabriel, then muttered, "It''s bordering on chemical warfare and definitely in violation of the Geneva Convention..." "But it makes the food so good!" "You are a masochist," Jeremy said, shaking his head as he stepped aside to let Saira and Amy into the elevator room. "See if you can fix his brain while you''re in there." "I''m pretty sure that''s a lost cause," Amy said, but Lee barely noticed. His attention was wholly and completely transfixed by the goddess of jungle and fire that seemed to prowl across the room and into a kneeling position before him. Saira was obviously pregnant, but it didn¡¯t seem to slow her down in the least. There was none of the awkwardness he¡¯d seen in pregnant women before. Perhaps it was the extra attributes? She was also wearing nothing but her signature red-leafed vines, which somehow left her more modestly dressed than usual, and yet Lee couldn''t help but stare. "Nonsense," Saira said, smiling and placing a hand on his chest. "If anything, the sauce isn''t hot enough." Then she winked at Lee as her healing energy flowed into him. Debuff Removed: [Bleeding] Debuff Removed: [Hungry] "Th... thanks," Lee said, trying not to think about the warmth of her hand on his chest. His shirt hadn''t recovered from the explosion nearly as well as his flesh... or at all. "Good as new," Saira said, still smiling and still kneeling in front of him. "I don''t know," Amy chimed in, looming over them with a sinister grin. "Look, his face is all red. I think he might need some more attention." She was an evil woman. Pure evil! "Oh, my," Saira gasped, even as her own smile turned predatory. "You''re right!" "I... I''m fine!" Lee said while trying and failing to scoot away. Maybe he could get Three to open the wall at his back and pull him through? Or... "She''s right, Uncle Lee," Gabriel said, choosing this moment of all moments to get over his mistake and stop crying. "Your face is really red." Now even his own apprentice had turned against him... Lee sighed and closed his eyes in resignation, while Amy cackled traitorously. Saira joined in the laughter but also didn''t keep up the mockery. She only grasped his hand and pulled him to a standing position, though her fingers may have lingered on his... Still, she didn''t cling to him when he pulled his hand free. "Thank you," Lee said, his voice coming out almost normally as she turned to leave. "Any... time," Saira said over her shoulder, and her voice was the purring rumble of a jungle cat as she sauntered from the too small and, for some reason, too warm room. Amy was still smirking after Saira had left. Then she asked, "You know that woman wants to jump your bones, right?" Lee sighed and didn''t look at her. "Yeah, I may have picked up on that." "Just checking." "Why would she want to jump on your bones?" Gabriel asked. "Okay!" Lee said quickly. "Let''s try that rune again, and this time, be ready to take it back if it isn''t stable." Luckily, Gabriel was eager to keep playing with magic and leapt back to it with a vengeance. "I think it was this line here that made it break..." Lee did his duty as the teacher, pointing out the other bit Gabriel had missed, all while he wondered what, if anything, he should do about Saira. 153. Worst Monsters Of All ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley sat in the sky and watched his new team absolutely obliterate the monsters below. A week of steady and relentless hunting had paid off for the lot of them. Not only in attributes but also in skill levels and evolutions, with Blindfold as the current prime example. He still lit everything in his field of view on fire, but now the fiery debuff made the monsters seek out other burning targets as their preferred enemy to maul. It made the man himself far safer. Of course, his new skill helped even more. Stanley watched the last two burning monsters fight to the death until only one remained standing, albeit barely. Without another target, it finally turned on its tormenter and charged him in a limping stagger. That was when the faintly burning vision cone, which was more easily visible from above, collapsed rapidly into a narrow line. A line between Blindfold''s eyes and the last remaining monster. The now blindingly bright red light burned a hole straight through the monster''s head, then its torso, before finally bisecting the monster down the middle. "Caw," the crow squawked in his ear. "Yeah," Stanley said. "I would have taken the damn shard if I knew it would turn into laser eyes." "Except it would have been something completely different if you learned it," Nate said. "Especially since he merged it with his other skill." "Caw." "You''re right. Just because it looks cool doesn''t make it good." Below, he could see Blindfold down on one knee as he re-covered his eyes. The flashy finale was apparently a real mana-hog, but between it and the sonar skill someone else had passed off to him, at least the guy was less reliant on other people to help him get around, much less fight. "He''s just wasting time," Eve grumbled. "I could wipe that out in half the time." "Caw!" "You think she''s all talk?" "I''ll show you..." "Stanley," Nate interrupted Eve before she could start ranting. "Why don''t we head out already?" Buzzkill. Eve had yet to take a shot at him with her rail gun, and sure, he could just ask... but where was the fun in that? She was all talk these days, and not even very threatening talk either. There was lots of cursing and angry tirades, but not much else. Besides, it was more fun to keep poking at her. She was like a dog toy; give her a squeeze and she''d make lots of funny noises. "You don''t want them to come with us?" Stanley asked, watching the group vanish one by one into the underground lair. "You know, for extra protection?" "Could they take you in a fight?" Stanley held back his reflexive denial at Nate''s absurd question and actually stopped to think about it. If they all worked together... He shook his head. "No. Especially since Harem won''t stop being a little bitch about using his power on me." Though if they worked together and Harem slowed him down fighting off the domination, then... No. If it was an actual attempt on his life, then Caffeine probably would kill him, and Premonition would let Stanley handle the others. Namely, Bubbles. Since he was the only one who could actually hurt him fast enough to matter. "Then we should be fine," Nate said. "Your old teammates haven''t been slacking off, and while their abilities aren''t as decisively fight-ending as some down there, I think you''d be surprised at how strong they''ve become." "Really?" Stanley eyed the group arrayed around him while pulling Caffeine up to his lap and carrying them all south. James, in particular, had been rather impotent in the past. "Think your magic can slow me down now? Let''s see it." James shook his head. "I''m not against testing our powers in a friendly match, but let''s maybe hold off on that for now?" "You think I''ll drop..." "No." James made a slashing motion with one hand. "I''m sure you will overpower all of us, but we all know that you use anger to increase your power." "So what if..." Eve''s soul had flinched at the statement, and Stanley trailed off as he looked over at her. What was that about? Is that why she was angry so much of the time? Was she trying to copy him? "Because this is a diplomatic mission," James said, pulling Stanley''s attention back. "And I''d rather we don''t go into it with you pissed off and ready to murder anyone who looks at you sideways." "That''s probably a good idea," Nate said while laughing. The dick. "Caw!" "I''m not that bad," Stanley muttered, along with a glare for Eve when she smirked and some side-eye for the bird on his shoulder. "Besides, who cares about diplomacy? Just be the strongest one there and it doesn''t matter what the other side wants." "That is one method," Nate said. "But not the best foundation for lasting relationships." "Who fucking cares about..." "I care," Nate said. "And while it may feel like this war against the undead is all we will ever know, it''s not. We will win this war, and when that happens, we will be thrust out onto the world stage, where our alliances may be the only thing standing between us and the dictatorships that will inevitably arise." "So what?" Eve said. "You''re going to hold an election? Vote for me because I can punch stuff really hard?" She laughed mockingly. "What''s to stop a monster like Stanley from just killing you?" "Hah!" Silas chimed in. "Instead of debates, it''ll be duels. Vote for me because I''m the strongest candidate!" "Which, if you are that powerful, then do votes even matter?" Serenity asked. "That just sounds like a dictatorship with extra steps..." Nate¡¯s soul pinged off something they''d said, and Stanley saw him shoot a glance toward James. "There is..." He shook his head and didn''t say whatever it was he''d been about to say. "It will matter," he said instead. "Democracy isn''t dead yet." "I just can''t see it working," said the new guy. "I think we''re headed back toward the monarchy." Stanley didn''t know his name, but he was probably the replacement for Edward. Or Byron. He had a similar-feeling soul to the giant. The dead giant... as Stanley had found out after asking Zeke where he''d gone and the boy had burst into tears. "Why bother?" Stanley said, shaking off the gloomy thoughts. "If you''re strong enough to take over, then you don''t actually need anything from the weaklings... Plus, dealing with so many people sounds like a massive pain in the ass." "Says the guy living in a penthouse with a butler waiting on him hand and foot." Eve was obviously jealous. "That''s nothing if you''re powerful. You just pay a few non-combat people to take care of it." Nate smiled knowingly. "Except you''ll need some guards to keep them safe while you''re gone. Plus, some more supports to provide for the guards. Then they might need equipment to really shine, and probably some more hunters to bring in more food for all the extra..." "Yeah, yeah, I get it," Stanley said, waving him off. "It''s always a shitshow. So just put someone else in charge and let them deal with all the... bullshit." "That''s just a second-hand dictator," Serenity said. "And isn''t that what you already did with Nate?" "No," Stanley said, even though he''d just had the exact same thought. She laughed. "Except you did. Everyone knows that Nate''s in charge only because you don''t want to be bothered. Which means anyone who even might want to take over also knows that they''d probably have to deal with you as well." "Stanley, the dictator," Eve muttered. "You would be." "More like a king, since I already have a crown," Stanley said as he lifted the crown from his head to look at it more closely. Buff Removed: [Onrushing Thorns] "King Stanley... it has a nice ring to it, doesn''t it?" "It sounds ridiculous," Eve muttered. "King Cascade?" "That... actually, that does sound better. Like a natural disaster..." Buff Gained: [Onrushing Thorns] Stanley smiled and put his crown back on. "Okay, from now on, you all have to call me Your Majesty..." He frowned. "Your Highness? No, that''s worse. My Lord? Wait... Caffeine is already a lord. You know what? He can be the king. King Caffeine." Caffeine looked up with a wagging tail at his name being mentioned. Then, when nothing else happened, he rolled over for a belly rub. "A truly benevolent dictator, if ever there was one," Nate said. "But what is his stance on taxation?" "That''s obvious. He gets all the food he likes, and the peasants get the rest." "Simple, if a bit limited in scope." "He also requires a lap to sleep in and a dedicated belly scratcher who is available twenty-four hours a day," Stanley said, both hands busy doing just that. "Wow," Serenity said. "You just demoted yourself from king to dog bed." "I... did, didn''t I?" Stanley shrugged. "I think I''m okay with that... but I wonder if Hugo could make him a little crown." Serenity clasped her hands together with a huge smile on her face, while Olivia grinned beside her. "That would be so adorable!" Most of them smiled at the upside-down pug, but Nate turned serious. "While we''re here, Stanley, how''s the new team doing? More specifically, how''s Brett behaving?" "Who?" "Brett Marcos? The guy with mind-control powers?" "Oh, Harem. Yeah, he''s still a coward. I''m seriously thinking I might have to torture him into cooperating." "I was thinking more along the lines of how much he can be trusted... but I guess nothing''s changed for the worse?" "No, still a little bitch. Speaking of... I don''t like his girlfriend." "June? What did she do?" Stanley shrugged. "Nothing specific, but she feels... conniving. Also, Caffeine doesn''t like her." Nate perked up at the last bit. "That sounds... damning." Stanley stared at the dozing and upside-down pug in his lap. "He hasn''t growled at her or anything. He just never goes near her, even when she offers him food." It was a bad look for sure, but perhaps not on the level of earning her a death sentence. Especially when she wasn''t even an actual threat. "Okay, I''ll take another look at her later. What about the others?" Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. "Caffeine likes Blindfold, so he''s good. Bubbles is an arrogant prick who thinks he''s hot shit..." Eve choked on something, and Stanley ignored her. "And the creepy pervert is still a creepy pervert that keeps begging to suck the life out of me." "I guess the real question is, will they help you take down the next invader?" That was indeed the million-dollar question. "Harem''s power doesn''t work on the undead, so... no help there. Though maybe it''ll work better on the actual invaders... His girlfriend, on the other hand, well, she could be a total game changer if we end up dealing with another caster." "They have names, you know?" "And I''ll remember them when they prove worth remembering," Stanley said without missing a beat. "Blindfold will be mostly useless, and I have no idea how the pervert will hold up against an actual invader. They might kill him faster than he can drain the corruption, or he might kick their asses. Won''t know until it happens." "You remember our names," Serenity murmured, completely missing the point of this discussion. So, of course, everyone only stared silently after that while waiting for his answer. Even Nate. Stanley considered ignoring her non-question, but... "You earned that right when you came back." He shivered at the memories but soldiered on. "Obviously, you were idiots who had no chance, but... you still came back to fight. That..." He looked away from them, out across the countryside, and blinked his burning eyes rapidly. It was the true test of a man... of a person. A good person. The ones who fought beside you, even when it was hopeless. No, especially when it was hopeless. "That earned you a lot, all right!? Now shut the fuck up about it already!" Stanley flew faster, trying to ignore the mix of emotions coming from the people behind him. Until, only moments later, he slowed, and then, after peering through the lens of his Soul Sight, he stopped completely. "I think I found what the wizard was talking about." Ahead and far below was a stadium. Still plainly visible despite the massively overgrown, and now rather corrupted, flora. The building, as large as it was, wasn''t really what stood out to him though. It was the dense, glowing mass of souls packed within its walls. Human souls. Thousands of them. At this range, the souls were little more than a multi-colored blob of light, which meant his estimate was more of a feeling than any actual counting, but something told him he was close. A sense of... multitudes. More than he''d ever seen gathered together since gaining the ability to see souls. "Are we going in, or are we just gonna fucking sit here?" "Keep your pants on, Eve," Nate drawled. "Stanley, care to share with the rest of the class?" Stanley told them what he saw, including a feeling he couldn''t quite put into words. "There''s something off about them, but... I don''t know what." "Take us in nice and slow. Everyone, be ready for a fight." Nate met his gaze. "Just in case." It was only as he was dropping his cargo onto their own feet with the stadium looming ahead that Stanley realized what was wrong with the souls he was seeing. "Are you fucking serious?" "What is it?" Nate said, a glowing light appearing on his hands and feet as he scanned their surroundings. "They''re F-grades. They''re almost all fucking F-grade!" Nate relaxed slightly. "That''s... odd, but I guess it makes us safer?" Then he frowned. "Are you sure?" Stanley kept drifting forward as he eyed both the structure and the souls hidden behind its walls. "The vast majority are definitely F-grade, though I''m seeing some E-grades around the fringes..." "Maybe the guards?" James asked. "They''d all be dead otherwise." "Hell, they must be doing something right if they''re keeping thousands of F-grades alive out here," New Guy said. "Impressive, to say the least." Stanley shook his head in disgust. "It''s fucking pathetic." He turned off Soul Sight; it was practically worthless with so many souls piled atop one another. Soul Awareness and Premonition should give him plenty of warning if shit went sideways. "Nate, I got you here. Now go do your diplomacy crap or whatnot." Nate was a freak who loved that shit because his soul lit up at the very mention. "Thanks, Stanley. Everyone, we''ll play it by ear, but let me do the talking unless..." "Why the fuck are you telling us this?" Eve asked with a pointed look toward Stanley. "Tell your little pet psycho to..." "Eve." Nate stopped walking and turned to her. "I know you have some anger issues with Stanley for past grievances." She flinched and opened her mouth, but he talked over her before she could reply. "But who would you rather have watching out for your brother?" "Anyone..." "Lie to yourself all you like, Eve. But don''t lie to me." She glowered at him but shut her mouth. "We don''t all need to be friends," Nate continued. "But we have to work together. It''s the only way any of us will make it out of this alive. So how about we hold off on the sniping for a few minutes?" Eve kept glowering at him. Silently. "Caw!" "Yeah," Stanley said. "She is a..." "That goes for you as well, Stanley." "Caw!" "Right?" Stanley whispered loud enough for everyone to hear. "Not even the king yet and already taking away our rights!" He shook his head dramatically. "Today it''s our speech. Who knows what he''ll outlaw tomorrow!" Nate rolled his eyes and kept walking toward the stadium. "Glad we''re all on the same page." "Caw." "No, I think it''s still too early for a revolution. The people aren''t ready..." "Caw!" "Sure. I don''t mind if you want to lead the resistance." "Can you actually talk to the bird?" Serenity asked as her curiosity finally bubbled over. Stanley put on his best, shocked face. "You can''t!?" She pouted. "Why can''t I tell if you''re lying or not? Nate, is he messing with us?" Nate laughed but didn''t otherwise reply. "He''s lying," Eve said, her eyes narrowing as she looked between him and the bird on his shoulder. "Caw." "You can''t kill her for that!" "Caw!" "No, we serve a benevolent dictator, remember?" "He''s obviously messing with us," Olivia finally chimed in. "You can feel it in his soul." Stanley leaned forward to whisper in Caffeine''s ear. Loudly. "My lord, the peasants speak heresy and blasphemy. Shall we execute the traitors? Or will banishment suffice?" Caffeine remained sprawled on his back and only kept snoring as he dozed. Serenity ruined the game by becoming actually afraid. "Stanley," she said nervously. "I know you''re joking about killing us... but it feels less like a joke when your soul goes all... murder-y." "Caw!" "You too, Crowy? When have I ever tried to kill you?" "That¡¯s a terrible name for..." "Caw." "Okay, but aside from when we first met?" "Caw." "Well, you were asking for it by..." "Stop talking to the fucking bird already!" Eve lost it. Still didn''t shoot him, though. Maybe she thought the others wouldn''t agree with her actions? "What is the deal between you two?" New Guy asked. "Was it like a bad breakup or something?" Eve choked and sputtered out what sounded vaguely like denials, while Nate and a few of the others chuckled at her discomfort. Stanley nodded sagely. "I tried to let her down gently, but she just kept begging and throwing herself at..." "Fuck you!" "For the last time, Eve, I just don¡¯t feel that way about..." "You... fuck... ahhh!" Eve apparently ran out of words because she screamed, lifted her rail gun, and shot Stanley in the face before anyone else could react. Well, anyone other than Stanley. He saw it coming and was ready. Also, Nate might have seen it coming, but he only stopped walking toward the stadium and stood dejectedly without turning around. Skill Level Up: Psionic Barrier Debuff Gained: [Minor Bleeding] For whatever it was worth, she only took one shot. She also felt bad about it after the fact. A little bad. She was still really pissed off... for some strange reason. Stanley grinned and looked at the hole in his sleeve, including the hole through his forearm beneath the fabric. "You got through the jacket that time!" He turned his arm over to look at the other side¡ªthe unblemished side¡ªand Eve''s mangled bullet rolled out of his sleeve. "Well, you got through one side, at least." Nate sighed without turning around, staring toward the growing commotion along the stadium''s walls. "Well, I guess they know we''re here now." Eve''s guilt didn''t last, being rapidly replaced by renewed rage as she stared at Stanley, her chest heaving for air. "You..." She moved as if to throw her gun at him. "Bastard!" Then the rage drained away as quickly as it had come, and she fell to her knees in the dirt. "Why are you doing this to me?" "I''d actually like to know that, too," Nate said, finally turning around to look at Stanley. "Is this really the time for you to be egging her on?" He looked at Eve. "And you, what''s your deal? I really thought you two had hashed out most of your issues way back. Did something change?" "I..." Eve clutched her rifle to her chest while looking back and forth between them. Her bloodshot eyes settled on Stanley. "You... you did this to me!" "You can''t keep blaming me for..." Stanley glanced at Zeke and then away. "For not doing what you wanted. As for the rest... I thought we were good. You''re the one who gave up on learning my soul skills." "It''s not about that!" she screamed. "Then what the fuck is it about!?" Stanley shouted back at her. "You''re a fucking freak who..." Eve''s screaming tirade ended abruptly when Stanley squeezed her throat shut. "I''ve let a lot of your insults slide," Stanley said into the sudden silence, his voice a low growl. "But they do get old." "I didn''t want to," she whispered when he let go of her. "You didn''t want to what?" "I..." Eve cut off whatever she''d been about to say as fear blossomed sky-high in her soul. Then she burst into tears. Zeke was at her side an instant after Caffeine arrived, and Stanley turned away rather than pull his pug back from the crazy bitch. She was certifiable, and crying was just plain cheating. How was he supposed to keep yelling at her if she cried? She never cried. Her whole deal was being a hostile, angry bitch. So what the fuck was this bullshit!? Instead, he watched the stadium''s forces gathering in the distance. A pulse of Soul Sight told him they were all E-grades. Unfortunately, it also showed him all the other souls within the walls. "What''s going on?" Nate asked, sidling up beside him. "I know you guys like to take shots at each other, but right now it feels more... hostile than usual." He was right. Stanley was angry, enraged even, and it wasn¡¯t Eve¡¯s fault. "I can feel them," Stanley said, his gaze trailing over the stadium walls, which did nothing to hide the mass of humanity within from his senses. "I can feel all of them." Nate followed his gaze. "The F-grades?" Stanley''s hands clenched into involuntary fists, and he only relaxed them with conscious effort. It didn''t help. His soul shield wasn''t even enough. Because nothing could hide the sea of fear and despair that crashed against him in never-ending waves from behind those walls. "They aren''t even trying," he growled. "There are thousands of them! Thousands of people who could be fighting... and I don''t know if I want to scream at them or just put them out of their¡ªand my¡ªmisery." Nate put a hand gently on his shoulder. "It''s not over yet. Maybe they just need someone to show them the way... like, say, a flying man with a crown on his head?" Stanley looked sideways at the other man and his stupid grin. "Or," Nate said, and he glanced back. Stanley followed his gaze to where a horse-sized pug was bouncing around a young boy and his sister. Both of them were protesting but laughing as they tried to shield their faces from Caffeine''s tongue. Tried and failed. "Maybe our benevolent king will show them the way?" Stanley shook his head and flew out from under Nate''s hand to keep approaching their destination. "Let''s just get this massive waste of time over with already. You¡¯re not going to find your army here." Eve studiously refused to look at him when they caught up, but at least she''d stopped crying and was ready to continue. Caffeine followed beside the girl¡ªthe still-frightened girl¡ªand Stanley let the pug do his thing. Whatever bullshit drama she had going on now, Caffeine was definitely the best one to help her get over it. "Caw!" "I know, Crowy. I know." "You really take after your parents, don¡¯t you?" Olivia said. "How so? You never even met my..." "You have their same terrible naming sense." "Caw!" "Damn haters." They finally finished their slow approach, and it wasn''t all bad in the stadium; the E-grades who blocked the makeshift gate still had plenty of fire in their souls. Too much, even. "Hi guys," Nate said cheerfully. "How''s it going? You know, other than the obvious..." "Where did you come from?" the boldest of them asked. "And why are you here?" "I''m here to help," Nate said, spreading his arms and smiling. They didn''t buy it and only stared in stony silence. Nate sighed and dropped his arms. "Take me to your leader?" A few glances were exchanged before the first speaker said, "She''s not taking visitors at the moment. Come back later." As much as he didn''t want to, Stanley grimaced and fired up Soul Sight again. For two reasons. Of course, the guards all flinched when he did. He might have forgotten about that little side effect... Still, a quick scan gave him one useful bit of information and answered his first question. "She''s not home." Either that, or their leader was a weakling. Or she could hide her soul, though he knew he was right about her absence when the guard¡¯s souls betrayed them. "Also, one of your... people is under attack in there." His scan hadn¡¯t been able to pick out the soul that had just started screaming, but he could feel it all the same. Like a nail scratching against his soul. An extra-sharp nail amid the bed of nails that was this entire miserable shitshow. The guards didn''t like what he said. Either bit. "She''s busy. You are welcome to wait out here until she has time for you, and I can assure you, there are no monsters inside the walls. We take our job very..." "You idiots," Stanley growled, floating higher into the air as the guards all tensed up. "The damn place is full of the worst monsters of all." Though maybe that wasn''t fair. Sure, humans were terrible, but the undead were actually worse. So... second-worst monster. Whatever it was, that screaming soul was grating on his nerves even worse than the soup of misery that surrounded it. "Caff, stay." Caffeine whined at him as he flew toward the peak of the towering stadium, but the pug remained at Eve''s side. In fact, he hadn''t even run ahead to sniff the guards. Was he that worried about the girl? What the hell was going on with her and... "God damn it, stop screaming already! I¡¯m coming!" Stanley ignored the protesting voices from below¡ªNate¡¯s and the guard¡¯s¡ªand he moved. 154. People Really Are The Worst ~~~Stanley~~~ "Caw!" The crow squawked and flapped its wings as Stanley shot over the wall and inside the stadium. It was just being dramatic since there were no g-forces or actual wind to deal with, not when Stanley flew this fast. They¡¯d both get torn apart otherwise, or at least fucked up. Caffeine would have been fine, though, since his occasional sprints were about as fast as Stanley could move, if not faster. Once over the walls, he got a great view of what they''d done to the place. He assumed this had been a football stadium before, if only going by the shape, and that was pretty much all he had to go on. Because they had turned nearly the entire thing into a massive housing complex, and not a very nice one. Hell, the entire field area looked like a ramshackle shantytown more than anything. It was also his destination. He ignored a few shouts coming from the guards stationed atop the stadium''s walls, which they¡¯d built at the very top of the bleachers. Not that he could actually see any of the seats. They¡¯d built over all of them with what looked like more housing. Though it was nicer and less makeshift-looking than the lower shantytown where the screaming soul was leading him. Which turned out to be a multi-story shantytown... one absolutely jam-packed full of miserable people. The entire place probably would have been a deathtrap of collapsing rubble, except they''d turned it into a sapient lair. Which he found out when he tried to rip his way in. You have attacked a Sapient Lair structure. All residents have been notified. Not that it stopped him. He was angry enough that it didn''t even slow him down. "Stop fucking screaming!" He found the culprit on the ground floor, or rather, culprits. It was a woman and a child, presumably a mother and daughter. Both of them were obviously F-grade, and both were terrified of the E-grade man in the hovel with them. They were both scared, but it was the mother''s soul that had dragged him in here. Her fear far outweighed the child''s. Probably because she had the burden of knowledge and experience. Which only enraged Stanley further. The man was yelling something while holding onto the screaming woman''s wrist, but Stanley didn''t care what they were saying; he only wanted her stupid soul to shut the fuck up! So he interrupted the tender moment by tearing the roof away from above their heads. After which, he peeled the man''s hand from around the woman''s broken wrist and pushed him away through a few walls. Lair walls. Fortunately for him, the flimsy nature of the construction definitely carried over into the magical reinforcement and saved the idiot''s life. Also, he survived because if Stanley had thrown him any harder, he would have killed who knew how many F-grades in the hovels all around them... The woman only stopped screaming when Stanley yelled at her to, "Shut the fuck up!" It took forever for her to blink stupidly up at the sky and then at Stanley. Until, finally, her soul calmed down. A little. "Thank y..." "No!" Stanley screamed in her face. "Fuck you!" "W... what?" She backed away, the fear coming right back as she tried to shield her wailing child with her body while cradling her broken wrist. A child who looked younger than Zeke, though not by much. The sight of the girl clutching desperately to her mother cooled Stanley''s rage. Slightly. This wasn''t the kid''s fault. It was her mother''s fault. "What the fuck did you think was going to happen if you cowered in here!?" "W... what?" Oh, she was an idiot, too. Though that was already pretty apparent by her still being at F-grade. Stanley advanced on her through the air until she''d backed her daughter into the corner behind her. "Don''t pretend you want to protect her now! Not when all you can do is fucking scream and cry while a monster eats you both!" He lifted his hand, and she flinched away with nothing but more tears. Useless! Stanley turned in the air and backhanded her charging E-grade boyfriend through a different wall. "Now I have to come in here and deal with your fucking bullshit because you''re too fucking weak to live! So don''t thank me! Go out there and fucking fight!" "But," she sobbed. "I... I''m just a baker. I can''t fight!" "You can pick up a knife, can''t you!? Or a goddamn stick! Anything besides cowering in here and waiting to fucking die!" It was obviously too late for that now. As an F-grade, she was practically powerless in the E-grade world. Her broken wrist was the almost inevitable outcome of an E-grade holding on a little too tightly. Even Stanley¡¯s pathetic physical attributes didn¡¯t matter against an F-grade. He could kill her with his bare hands, and it wouldn''t even be... "Look out!" she screamed, wide-eyed and staring at something behind him. Stanley rolled his eyes and leaned his body aside from the guy taking a swing at his back. The glowing sword that whiffed just past his face was new, and it barely even registered in his domain. It was magic. A magic sword that looked very much like a black light. Perfect. "Here," Stanley said, twisting the guy''s arm around and watching the blade vanish right before it would have impaled its wielder. "You can have his knife..." "Who the hell are you!?" the man screamed as he struggled ineffectually to escape. "Get away from my wife!" "Your..." Stanley stared back and forth between man and woman in disbelief. "Wife?" "Ex-wife!" the woman shouted. "I saved your life, you ungrateful bitch!" People really were the worst, and Stanley had heard enough. God damn it, he''d already heard more than he ever wanted to about these fucking people! Unfortunately, he¡¯d been mad at the wrong person. This whole mess was no longer her fault, and Stanley turned his considerable anger fully upon the man of the house. "Then why the fuck is she still F-grade, you shit-stain fuck!?" "Caw! Caw!" The crow flapped its wings again and flashed its soul a couple times before vanishing, but Stanley ignored the dramatic bird. Surprisingly, so did the man in his clutches. Instead, he did the dumbest thing possible and condemned himself to death. "She¡¯s my wife! You can''t tell me how to..." Stanley threw the asshole as high as he could out of the stadium. At least, that was his intention. It all went sideways when something blasted through his domain and into his back. Whatever it was, it went through his suit jacket without slowing, severed his spine, split his heart in half, and then burst from his chest. There, he got to see what had killed him before everything started going dark. It looked like a ribbon of light¡ªa razor-thin, foot-wide ribbon of violently pink light. Skill Level Up: Premonition Move He wasn''t there when the real attack came in, but he was watching it come. So he got to see its flat trajectory turn in a series of sharp angles until it was back on target, all without slowing its pursuit in the slightest, and it was fast. Lightning fast. Ribbon probably wasn''t the right word for what was chasing him. It was his first thought, but it didn''t ripple or flow as it moved; it came after him in sharp, jagged motions. A sheet of light, maybe. Or a streak. Yes, that was more accurate, both in shape and speed. A flat streak of sharp and offensively pink light. Stop It also resisted his power. God damned cheating magic! The only positive about being chased by a streak of light was that Stanley could easily follow it all the way back to its origin. Not that he needed to. He could feel the murderous soul in the sky above the stadium¡ªa blindingly pink soul¡ªand one he''d missed approaching while dealing with the useless goddamned humans! He couldn''t tell at a glance if it belonged to a man or woman, but he assumed it was most likely this shithole''s illustrious leader. Which meant that everything here was her fault. She had created this entire mess. She''d built a playground of helpless idiots for any and every predator that wanted a snack. Now she was trying to kill him. It made everything very simple in his mind. She was a problem, one he could solve the easy way. The best way. The violent way. Stanley smiled a grim smile as his rage finally found a target worthy of it. A target worthy of total obliteration. That dark smile only widened as reality thinned out around him. As the storm gathered. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. He tore up the metal and wood construction below like it was paper, then threw all of it into the path of her attack. It barely slowed the magic, but that wasn''t the point. Because he simultaneously sent his power into the sky, toward that tiny speck of light that was his enemy. To tear her apart piece by screaming bloody... Still Mind activated. It was extremely jarring to go from a beautiful, all-consuming rage right into a complete absence of emotion. Of course, the skill made the transition not only tolerable but smooth as well, and Stanley was very suddenly looking at the world in a new light. A much calmer light. Even as he carried himself away from the pursuing streak of light. He knew what had happened. He''d gotten too angry, and Caffeine had used his latest trick. The little pug had finally figured out that he could use Stanley''s ability to calm him down. Forcibly. It was inconvenient, but not a serious issue. Not in this situation, at least. Stanley had already touched the woman in the sky. Her attack was powerful, but her flesh wasn''t. He could kill her like all the others. So he did. Cut Except he missed. Somehow. There was a flash of pink light, and the woman was abruptly not there but off to one side, unharmed and untouched. She could teleport and perhaps even had an ability like his premonition that would allow her to evade... no, that wasn''t it. Her soul hadn''t reacted before his attack. Only afterward. Which meant it was an automatic defensive ability. That could be a problem. A minor one. The upside was that her escape had shattered the streak of pursuing light. Which gave him an entire second to consider his next move while she sent another pink streak his way. It was an eternity in his current state. Not that there was much to consider. His strategy didn''t need to change. He still had to kill her, and it might simply take a few more attacks than usual. It was nothing he couldn''t handle. Cut Her light shattered an instant before touching his flesh, and she teleported away again instead of dying. Cut The light didn''t even make it halfway to him before collapsing that time. Simple and easy. She had to have a limit on how many times she could escape, and Stanley was confident that his own endurance would far outstrip hers. Cut Her death was inevitable. A fact she quickly grasped. Because she followed the next ribbon down, trying to close the gap between them. It was a smart move. Her only move, really. Her attack had a travel time¡ªnot a long one by any stretch, but far too long when faced with Stanley''s power. Cut She was halfway down when Caffeine arrived in a cloud of expanding shrapnel made up of whatever he''d run through to get inside the stadium. Stanley spared a moment to check on his allies and found them still outside, though it looked like they were preparing to follow Caffeine inside. A process expedited by the brand new entrance the pug had created. The E-grade guards had other ideas, but they wouldn''t be able to stop Nate and the others. Of course none of that really mattered. This would all be over in a matter of seconds. Or less, because Caffeine wasn''t content with simply making an entrance. He ballooned in size, his shape growing almost faster than the expanding cloud of debris around him. Until he was the size of a bus. Then he threw his head back and howled up at Stanley''s attacker. You have heard the Howl of the Beast Lord. Effects: +200% Effective Attributes to Friends -200% Effective Attributes to Not Friends His buff was getting stronger, but Stanley barely felt it. To be fair, it was hard to compete with his already considerable willpower boosts, and it was primarily his physical attributes that benefited more than anything. Still, every bit helped, especially considering his enemy was getting the same amount subtracted from their power. It was not enough of a subtraction that he expected the woman to cease her attack and reverse course. Which was strange, because that was exactly what she did... How... odd. Her soul held... recognition? Had she met Caffeine before? Or perhaps she only now knew it was a hopeless fight and was hoping for mercy? Unfortunately, Stanley had no mercy. She was dangerous, powerful enough to kill him, and had, only a moment ago, been trying her best to do just that. She had to die. Cu... Caffeine deactivated Still Mind. Son of a... Stanley couldn''t help but flinch as his emotions came crashing back into existence. The total bombardment of the surrounding souls only made it worse, and he quickly reactivated his Soul Shield. It was still far from enough to block out the cacophony, but magnitudes better than going without. While he caught his bearings and before he could gather his power to strike her down, the woman in the sky shouted, "Stand down!" She had to be a peak E-grade. Hell, she was probably at the cap and only waiting for a D-grade core to push her over the threshold because her voice came out as a booming thunderclap that rattled the entire stadium. It had an even more drastic effect on the swarming E-grade guards that were racing toward Stanley as well as pursuing Nate and company. To a man, they instantly backed off. No hesitation, only instant obedience. They were afraid of her¡ªterrified, even. Stanley didn''t share their weakness, but he also held off attacking and only glared up at the woman, who was sending the same look back at him. His anger wasn''t as sharp as it had been, but it was coming back quickly as he once again felt the tide of misery and fear from the thousands of surrounding souls. Fear, which might have been a bit sharper after their small scuffle... and his slight destruction of some of their hovels. The woman stood motionless in the air, her bare feet resting on tiny flickers of pink light as she stared down at him. Her gaze jumped between him and the now normal-sized Caffeine a few times, still with that recognition in her soul. Then she scanned over the entire stadium before starting a slow descent. Stanley had a lot of things he wanted to say to the woman, or maybe scream to her, but he wasn''t sure where to start. Caffeine delayed the inevitable by bounding into his arms, and Stanley pulled up his legs to give the pug his designated seat with a whispered, "Good boy." He could feel Zeke''s golden soul getting closer but didn''t take his eyes off the approaching threat above. It was hard to pick out any details amid the cacophony of souls, but he thought the purifier felt mostly... "Caw!" "Where the hell were you!?" Stanley snarled at the reappearing bird. "I know you''ve got power. You could have helped!" Though, thinking back, had it tried to warn him before fleeing? "Caw!" The crow''s soul flickered in his senses, and Stanley got a feeling of supreme confidence from the brief flash. "Of course I didn''t need your help! But that''s not the point!" "Caw." A core appeared clenched in its beak, and it dropped the glowing rock onto Caffeine''s head. "Don''t try to bribe me!" Stanley said, picking up the core. "Hey! This isn''t even a skill!" "What the hell are you doing here?" Pink said, her voice loud but no longer earthshaking and her eyes narrow as she studied him. She was closer than before, perhaps even close enough to attack him faster than he could kill her, but her soul didn''t want a fight. Not anymore. "Don''t you mean who the hell are you?" Stanley asked, studying her with his own narrowed gaze. She wore no armor that he could see, had no physical weapons, and no shoes. Nothing but a pair of thin pants and a tank top. "No," she said. "I know who you are, and I want to know why you are coming into my house and tearing up the place!" How did she know him? Also, had she gotten a notification when he attacked the lair structure? Did it work like that even from far away? Because he wouldn¡¯t have missed that soul if she had been anywhere nearby before. "Your house fucking sucks," Stanley growled. "It''s full of dead people. How do you know who I am?" "I met one of your fans." Her gaze flicked to Caffeine and back. "Both of yours. And that''s a shit excuse for attacking my fucking home!" Stanley glanced over and saw Nate walk into view alongside the others. "Coming here was his idea. I was just the transport... until I got tired of listening to the screaming. What do you mean by my fans?" She eyed Nate briefly before turning her gaze back on Stanley. "Oh, you''d remember that one. Ten feet tall, rather thin, and with four arms. What screaming?" "Some asshole was..." Stanley stiffened as his brain caught up with what she''d said. "You''ve seen the invaders?" "Obviously. The stiff came here, and the boney bastard was looking to recruit me and mine. Which asshole was doing what?" Stanley''s heart raced. "You saw them... When? Where did they go!? Wait, how..." He drifted further away, getting in between her and the approaching Zeke. "How are you still alive?" "Which. Asshole." "No! How the fuck are you still alive!?" Her soul was clearly not undead. Not even a little like Bernard''s people. "Everyone to me!" she shouted, her voice booming again. "Now!" Every single E-grade leapt to obey, scrambling closer with terror in their souls. All but one. Caffeine sat up worriedly in his lap as Stanley drifted further away from her and closer to Zeke, but Stanley didn''t attack. Not yet. She was angry, but it still didn''t feel like she wanted to fight. Of course, if she was working with the undead, then her soul might be completely unreliable... Who knew what else they could do beyond hiding their souls? Was this a trap? "You want to know about the undead? Fine. But I want to know which asshole was disobeying my orders!" Wait, was it really that simple? No, it couldn''t be. She was definitely powerful, but not strong enough to fight the invaders. She obviously hadn''t killed any of them, or there''d have been a notification... But if she knew something? He drifted higher, flicking on Soul Sight as he went, and his gaze followed the trail of destruction he''d left through the shantytown. All the way back to where this whole shitshow had started. There, he picked out the three souls he remembered from before. One of them was already sprinting his way, but the other two were screaming again. Though it felt less... substantial this time. Kind of... dazed? Stanley grabbed all three and dragged them over. He was much more gentle with the two F-grades, but may have accidentally dragged the E-grade through a few walls and ceilings along the way. Mostly because he was having a hard time believing what his mental touch was telling him. Unfortunately, it was exactly as bad as he''d thought. The singular E-grade who hadn''t instantly come running when she called was the one who had started all of this. He hadn''t come running because he literally stopped to tie up his ex-wife. And the kid! He''d even gagged both of them, and he hadn¡¯t been gentle about it, going by the fresh bruises and dazed souls. "Help m... Sam!" the psycho yelled as he flew in, his voice only slightly muffled by Stanley demolishing another wall with his face. Then he dropped to the ground at her feet. "This psycho came in and attacked me out of nowhere!" That was rich, and who the fuck was he calling a psycho!? "Did he now?" Her voice came out almost whisper soft as the man scrambled to his knees at her feet, but her soul told another story entirely. It was ice cold, and it promised death. "Yes, ma''am! He..." The idiot finally trailed off when he noticed she wasn''t looking at him. He followed her gaze and went white when he saw his bound and gagged ex-wife hovering behind him. Despite the pure terror flooding his soul¡ªwhich Stanley appreciated¡ªhe still tried to talk his way out of whatever this was. "He attacked my w... my ex! I tried to stop..." "What were my orders, Roman?" The question came out soft, almost gentle, but her tone was icy. "What did I explicitly tell you to never do, and who did I tell you to stay the hell away from?" She was furious with him, but Stanley had the distinct impression that her anger had nothing to do with his battered wife and everything to do with his going against her orders. She didn¡¯t care about the woman or the kid. Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t still be F-grade. She was just pissed that someone had defied her. "You can¡¯t do this to..." The protesting denial ended abruptly. Probably because between one second and the next, there was suddenly a horizontal sheet of pink light extending out from the woman''s hand, into his chest, and out of his back. It couldn¡¯t have happened to a nicer guy. Not a chapter. A break Just a heads up. I got extra stuck and bogged down on the next chapter, and so decided to take a break from the writing. It''s been fun. Been catching up on a few other stories that I can never seem to get around to usually. Started another another campaign in xcom 2 wotc. So that''s fun, if not always very relaxing. The story will go on, probably once I get my ass handed to me by the aliens. again. No eta for the next chapter right now, but it will come. word count... 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Report any occurrences. 155. How Dare You Make Me Care About Them ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley felt Zeke''s soul flinch behind him¡ªthe only one among them¡ªbut the kid didn''t say or do anything more. Pink... or Sam? Whatever her name was, she didn''t move either. She only fumed silently while staring at the man her magic had impaled through the chest. Magic, which was now the only thing holding him upright. Most of her people had already arrived after her yell, and not one of them reacted visibly to the execution. They all stood ramrod straight, even as the dying man gurgled and blood bubbled from between his lips. They continued not moving as his hands flailed weakly and uselessly against the impaling streak of light. Only one person made a sound as he slowly died in front of them. His ex-wife. When she started crying... Stanley resisted the urge to drop the crazy woman and instead set her and her daughter down gently. At least the gag was muffling her sobs... So, of course, Caffeine immediately kicked his way free of Stanley''s lap and bounded over to whimper over the injured mother and daughter. cut Her crying about the dead man pissed Stanley off... but he gave Caffeine what the pug wanted and freed them from their bonds before sending all three over into Zeke''s aura. He probably should have done that earlier... especially for the kid. None of this was her fault. Then he watched the executioner and waited to see what the furious woman would do next. She still had a lot to explain. Like what the hell had happened with the undead? It took a relatively long time for the idiot to die because E-grade humans didn''t die as fast as they used to. Losing your heart was still a death sentence on its own, though someone like Zeke or Adrian could have saved the man. Of course, she could have ended it a lot faster by going for the head... but whatever. She was obviously trying to make a statement. Stanley was fairly confident that he could recover on his own from a heart strike like she''d almost landed on him... but it might leave him helpless for a time. Far too long of a time if he was in an actual fight. Luckily, he had Caffeine to watch his back. Not that he had any intention of letting things get to that point. The man died. Eventually. His soul faded and his core started condensing. Her pink light vanished, and the corpse plopped to the ground. Then she took a deep breath while leveling a fierce look at the surrounding people. "This is my house!" Her voice boomed throughout the stadium. "My rules! If you don''t like it, then get the hell out!" No one protested. Or left. Though maybe Nate could steal some of her soldiers, considering how scared they were. Assuming any of them were worth stealing... Her glare eventually worked its way around to him, as if this were somehow his fault, and Stanley returned it with a glare of his own. "Don''t blame me for your shit. This is your fucking house, isn''t it?" She audibly growled at him, then spun away to look down at the dead man. She rolled the body over with a nudge of her foot and bent to retrieve the glowing core. "Caw!" The crow didn''t even disappear from his shoulder, but somehow it snatched the core ahead of her reaching finger and then dropped it in Stanley''s lap. "Caw!" Stanley smiled when he touched it. Momentum Strike (Rare) Run like the wind. Strike like a storm. Allows the user to transfer all of their momentum into a single strike... "Better than the last one, but you''re going to need something actually useful if you want to bribe me." "That core belongs to me," Sam said in a deceptively calm voice, her gaze flicking rapidly over the others behind him. Meanwhile, her soul felt like she was weighing the odds and preparing for a fight. Would she really fight him for a single core? Fight all of them? Instead of handing over the core, Stanley looked over at the woman and her daughter. She''d finally stopped crying about a waste of life, probably because of Zeke''s aura, and her kid was petting Caffeine with a small smile on her face. "Why is she still F-grade? Why are all of them still F-grade?" Sam eyed him, then the core he was spinning above his hand. "I let them live here if they follow the rules, but me and mine come first." So maybe she would fight over a core. "You," Stanley said toward the F-grade. "Uh, woman!" "It¡¯s Martha," Sam said, frowning and still eyeing the core. "And her daughter, Jean. That is my..." "Martha," Stanley called, ignoring Sam''s glare. She knew their names and still didn¡¯t spare a handful of cores to protect them? What a bitch. "If I give you this core, will you fight?" The woman just stared blankly. Until Zeke pulled free of his sister''s grasp and laid hands on her, giving her the full dose of his golden light. Then she started crying again... Stanley wanted to scream at her but he didn''t. She wasn''t crying over the dead man this time. It was... something else. Zeke''s power had done something to the woman; it had broken open a dam inside her, and now everything was spilling out. His golden light was powerful like that. Besides, this wasn''t her fault. Probably. Her ex-husband might have kept her at F-grade so she couldn''t fight back. People were the worst. Stanley would give her a chance before passing judgment. One chance to prove this wasn''t her fault. Well, after she stopped crying... Sam was still tense as she eyed the shard, but her soul seemed to be leaning toward not fighting. Smart. Especially over a shitty, rare skill. Or... did she think it was something else? Something better? Had the dead man been carrying a skill she wanted? Eventually, she sighed and asked, "What''s the skill?" Stanley tossed it to her, and she confirmed his theory about better skills when she cursed vehemently. "You worthless bastard!" She kicked the corpse in the ribs with a wet crunch. "Worthless, dick-brained fuck!" She kicked him again and sent the body sliding as it split open in a spray of gore. "You absolute waste of a skill, asshole!" "What was the skill you wanted?" Stanley asked, curious now. She sighed, her head back and a blank look on her face as she stared into the sky. "Did you see his sword?" "The black light-looking one?" Sam sighed again. "That black light could cut through anything, and I mean anything. I even saw him split a core in half once." That didn''t sound very special. Caffeine chewed up cores all the time... Was he not supposed to? "What a fucking waste." She threw the core at him. "Keep it. Give it to his ex. I don''t care." She pointed at the dead guy. "And somebody clean that shit up!" A handful of her lackeys leapt into action to do just that. "The rest of you get back to your posts! I''ll deal with..." She eyed Stanley and the others again. "Our guests." Nate must have decided that was his cue, because he strolled forward and offered his hand. "Sam, was it? I''m Nathaniel, but please call me Nate." She looked dubiously at his hand but still accepted the handshake. "Sam, because my parents thought Samantha wasn''t a terrible name." Stanley couldn''t help his flinch at hearing that name, and Nate noticed. "I think it''s a good name. Stanley had a friend named Samantha. She was a hero." Had. Was. As in, not anymore. As in, she''s dead. Besides, Nate shouldn''t be saying that. Stanley hadn''t been her friend. Not really. Not until it was too late... Caffeine whined, and Stanley shook off the memories when he saw the pug watching him while the little girl''s hands sat frozen mid-pet. At least until Caffeine turned and licked her face, then she giggled and kept petting him. Good boy, Stanley thought, and found Saman... Sam, just Sam watching him when he looked back again. "Condolences," she said without really meaning it. Stanley didn''t care about her lack of caring. That was just what people said. Empty platitudes instead of awkward silence. The little white lies that held society together. "So," Nate said. "I couldn''t help overhearing what you said about the invaders. Myself, and I''m sure all of us here would like very much to know the details of your... meeting?" Her gaze trailed over everyone, and Stanley felt the same recognition in her soul when she looked at Zeke. She already knew about him as well. "It wasn''t much," she finally said. "One of them showed up here to pitch me on joining the undead team. It made lots of grand promises about how I''d be more powerful and then offered me a race change shard. Obviously, I declined the offer." Nate was as skeptical as Stanley, if not more so. "I haven''t met anyone who... had a choice in the matter." She didn''t reply to the not-quite question, but she knew something. Stanley could feel it. "What are you hiding?" he growled. "Spit it out!" "You think you won, don''t you?" she asked instead. "You think I gave up because I couldn''t beat you? No, I stopped because I realized who you were and that it was pointless for us to fight. So don''t go thinking you can threaten me with another temper..." "Seriously?" Stanley laughed. "You''re powerful, maybe even the strongest other person I''ve met, but you were dead if you hadn''t backed off." "Who says you saw all of my abilities?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Stanley couldn''t tell if she was bluffing¡ªnot that it mattered. "You are only alive because Caffeine wanted you alive." It really was that simple, even if she didn''t believe him. "You''ve seen Caffeine before, haven''t you?" Except... her soul told him she hadn''t. "So you''ve only heard about him, then?" She narrowed her eyes. But it didn''t matter; he was right. She''d only heard about Caffeine secondhand. Which meant she had no idea how lucky she was that the pug was a benevolent lord. Maybe too benevolent... "Can you really look at people''s souls?" she asked. Stanley hesitated briefly before nodding. He¡¯d kind of given himself away right there. Besides, it was pretty much common knowledge already, with the only question being, How had she heard about it way out here? "They really hate that you got that skill." "Who hates it?" Stanley asked. Though there were probably plenty of people who didn¡¯t like getting blasted by his soul whenever he used the skill. "The invaders. They call you an amateur who''s bastardizing their higher magic with your weak flesh." "How!?" Stanley exclaimed. "How the hell would you know that!? Did you sit down for a heart to fucking heart with those monsters?" She smirked, but the smile faded when she glanced at Nate. Did she have soul skills too? Or was she just better at reading body language? Because while he looked outwardly calm to Stanley''s eyes, Nate''s soul was a heartbeat away from violence. Deadly violence. He didn''t know what was going on anymore than Stanley did, but he was ready to kill her if things went the wrong way. Not that Stanley thought he could win against the woman, though he appreciated the preparedness. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Whatever she saw, it must have had an impact because she sighed and said, "Fine. I have a... source. On the inside." Stanley had to wonder at her use of the word source, but the undead definitely knew he had it. If she was talking to them, there was no reason she wouldn''t know as well. Hell, she might even know more about it than he did. "What does that mean?" Nate asked. "We were friends before... all this, and they... didn''t reject the offer." "I''ve met some of their... recruits," Nate said, still tense but easing up. "None of them were very... talkative. Not to that point." "You''ve met the conscripts," Sam said, a sneer on her lips. "My friend joined willingly." The sneer faded and a touch of sorrow appeared in her soul as she added, "Eagerly even." "Can..." "Where are the invaders hiding?" Stanley demanded, interrupting Nate to ask the only real question that mattered. This was huge! Caffeine was a goddamned hero for keeping her alive. Now he could kill the bastards and finally escape from this dungeon! He could finally get back to Lee! "No idea." She wasn''t lying, but... "Your source knows!" "Probably. I don''t." "You could find out!" She shook her head. "I don''t want to know." This bitch! "I want to know! I need to kill those fucks so I can get out of this damn prison!" "We all have problems. What makes yours more important?" "Because I''ll fucking..." "You''ll what? Kill me?" She smirked. "Even if you could, what then? You think that''ll get you what you want?" Stanley couldn''t believe it. This was their chance. How could she do this? She had the key to his escape, and she... she... His hands throbbed and shook, but he couldn''t unclench them. He didn''t want to! He wanted to kill this fucking... Caffeine whined, and everything became a lot... calmer. Stanley relaxed his aching hands, his pounding heart slowed, and his breathing settled down as he studied the woman before him. Strangely, she seemed far more taken aback by his newfound calm than she had by his anger. "What the hell was that!?" she exclaimed and started taking a step back. Stanley ignored her question. She was a problem, and not one he could solve by killing. She knew something, or knew someone who did, but refused to give him the information. Could he torture it out of her? Mind Over Matter would probably allow him to inflict pain without actual damage. Though keeping her restrained during the process might be difficult. But not insurmountable. Except Caffeine wouldn''t like it... and that would be a serious problem. Or he could bring her to Harem. Or Harem to her. The man could force her to divulge the information. Either with his sway ability or by dominating her mind. She''d be essentially dead after that second option, but Stanley was okay with that, and Caffeine wouldn''t know what was happening in time to stop it. That might get him to her source, but it still left them with the question of how to get the invader''s location out of her source. Presumably it was another undead. Which meant Harem might not be able to control them. Though they had yet to test it on a more... sapient undead. It might work. Sam finally finished stepping back and asked, "Is he schizophrenic?" An issue with that plan was that Harem might not wish to go along with it. But the man was weak. Soft. Torture might not work well on Sam, but it should work on him. A backup option if he balked. Though he might have to distract Caffeine for that... which shouldn''t be too hard. He could leave him with Barbie and the kids; Caffeine would play with them for long enough before he came looking. Another option was to kill Harem and hope he dropped the skill. It would be the best option if he could guarantee the right skill shard... "Not... exactly," Nate said while watching Stanley with a touch of wariness. Pointless wariness. He had nothing to worry about. His skills weren''t useful to Stanley. Besides, he already didn''t trust Harem. It shouldn''t be a big deal to him if Stanley killed the man. Or tortured him. The risk of losing the skill was very real, though, so he would try diplomacy first. Then threats. His pushes to get the man to use the skill on him hadn''t worked, but maybe this plan would if Harem knew the alternative was death. Move Stanley shot into the air and almost fell out of the sky when Caffeine canceled Still Mind. "God damn it!" He glared down at Caffeine but couldn''t stay angry with the pug. So he turned his anger back to where it belonged. "Holy shit, he really is a total schizo..." "He''s not," Nate said, still wary. "What are you thinking, Stanley?" "Seriously," Sam said. "What the hell was that? He straight up turned into a different person for a second there!" Stanley eyed both of them before saying one word to Nate. "Harem." Nate understood immediately, and his soul bounced through a lot of different emotions before settling mostly on thoughtfulness as he turned his gaze back to Sam. "Maybe." She had some good self-preservation instincts, because she also took to the air and backed away from both of them. Not too far, though. Maybe she''d learned something from their fight? "Don''t do anything stupid. I will kill you. All of you." Arrogant bitch. She would die screaming! Though it might be difficult to protect everyone else from her, primarily Zeke, if her little cheating death ability lasted too long... "We don''t want to fight," Nate said with a placating gesture. "Bullshit! I know when someone is scheming right in front of me. You and the schizo are obviously plotting something." Her hands lit up with pink light as she spoke. "What''s harem mean?" Stanley said nothing and only watched Nate. While his emotionless self didn''t care about doing whatever it took, he was disappointed to realize that he found the plan he''d cooked up... unsavory. Harem was an asshole, and Sam was a bitch that would allow the undead to kill everyone rather than help. Why should he give a flying fuck about either of them!? His squeamishness was a weakness. One he couldn''t afford. Lee was counting on him! He had to do whatever was necessary. No matter what. Even if it sucked. Of course, the entire plan would become immeasurably more difficult if Nate wasn''t on board, and while his other self would probably go right to eliminating Nate if it came to that... Stanley really didn''t want to do that. Not because it was wrong or a betrayal. But because he... cared about the man. He cared about more than just Nate. He cared about Zeke. Shit, he cared about all the people surrounding Zeke. Eve included. It wasn''t a completely new realization. He already cared about... some people. No, the terrible revelation digging slowly but inexorably into his mind was far worse. He wasn''t willing to sacrifice any of them. Not even if it meant he could escape the dungeon. Not even to save his own life, or more importantly, Lee''s. The very idea left a sick feeling in his stomach... Fuck. Somewhere along the way, he''d gone soft. He''d made... friends? Is that what they were? Why would he do that? How could he make such a stupid mistake? I''m sorry, Lee. I fucked up real bad this time. Caffeine hit him like a missile, and only Stanley''s domain allowed him to catch the pug in time. Then he just bent his head and held on while Caffeine''s frantic noises of equal worry and joy drowned out the world. They were all Caffeine¡¯s friends too... and Caffeine would never sacrifice a friend. Fuck me. Stanley was screwed. This feeling was a weakness that might cost him everything, but... he didn''t want to be rid of it. He cared. He fucking wanted to care! Why? Why would he want that, and why did caring have to hurt so much? Why did it feel like a knife was being driven into his heart? Why did picturing their stupid smiling faces make him want to throw up? Why? Except he knew why it hurt. Because he also carried the burden of too much terrible knowledge. He knew exactly how weak they all were. Stanley recalled seeing Zeke laughing about something the day before. He''d been so happy at that moment. None of the fears or worries that normally lurked inside him. Completely in the moment and completely happy. Eve had been there as well, watching her brother as he laughed, and Stanley had felt her truckload of anxieties ease at the sight. He''d felt the love she held for her brother and it reminded him of his own. Her and Zeke. Him and Lee. They were two small families, both teetering on the edge of oblivion, and all it would take was one tiny slip. Stanley and Lee would almost certainly die if the other twin fell, and he was okay with that; death was a far brighter prospect than facing this nightmare world alone. He could feel the siblings behind him now, one of whom was far more nervous about the current situation. As she should be. Zeke wasn''t totally oblivious, but he liked to put on a brave face. Him and his ridiculous faith... The boy''s protectors were a mix of emotions, with the new guy being the worst. He wasn''t worried at all. Which meant he was an idiot. Or did he somehow have more faith in Nate than James did? Nate always acted as if he had everything under control. Him and his damn intuition. It gave the man far too much confidence. More than he should ever have with such a questionable power. Meanwhile, James liked to pretend he had Nate''s level of confidence, but it was all an act. He knew the stakes. He might even worry more than Eve did. Of course, he tempered that fear with a fanatical faith in Nate. A dubious faith, and one he might think twice about if he could feel the man''s soul. Or maybe not. Faith was stupid like that. Serenity and Olivia flanked the siblings on either side, despite Serenity''s role as a healer being almost entirely pointless with Zeke here. She knew that fact all too well. There was jealousy deep in her soul, and it peeked its ugly head out occasionally when she watched the boy effortlessly heal terrible injuries. In spite of that, she loved Zeke as if he were her own child, and Stanley knew she would do anything to protect him. Olivia was the only one smiling as she tried to lighten the mood with what sounded like a terrible joke. She''d come out of her shell a lot since those early days, and now she was the most likely to light up a room... with laughter and smiles. Not her lasers. Of course, Silas laughed at her joke, but that was only because he was secretly in love with the laser-shooting woman. Those feelings might become a liability if it ever came down to him having to choose between saving Zeke or her, but Nate probably knew about it, right? Stanley sat there, listening to their voices and souls, as he struggled with the knowledge that he honestly and truly cared about them. He cared about their fragile lives, which could all be torn away from him in one terrible heartbeat. How was he supposed to live like that? He could barely stand the idea of Caffeine fighting for him, and his pug was the goddamned beast lord! How could he ever bear the burden of more lives counting on his strength for their survival? Fuck! At least the pug had stopped whining by the time Stanley opened his eyes and was now contenting himself with some gentle face licks instead, all while his little soul radiated out a constant and unshakable faith in his human. Caffeine was a fool to place his trust in him, but Stanley clutched onto it anyway. Caffeine believed in him. Caffeine believed he could do anything. No, that wasn''t right. Not quite. Caffeine didn''t think he could do anything. He knew Stanley was fallible. He''d seen all the mistakes and fuckups. He didn''t ask for or expect perfection. He only wanted Stanley to try. That was enough. The proof was right there, in his status. Big Enough. Strong Enough. Fast Enough. Tough Enough. Those weren''t system-granted skills because they weren''t adding to his non-class skill limit. Which meant that Caffeine must have created those skills? Or maybe he was reading more into it than was there. Caffeine was a dog¡ªthe best dog, to be sure¡ªbut he didn''t tend toward deep thinking. He liked his pleasures simple, and that was enough. "Good boy," Stanley whispered, then smiled when he saw Caffeine¡¯s tail wag back and forth. "I¡¯ll protect your friends¡ªour family¡ªand I¡¯ll get us all out of this place. Okay?" Stanley''s smile faded as the enormous weight of the task ahead settled on his shoulders. His little moment of introspection still left him with basically the same problem. The best way to protect himself and his brother also happened to be the best way to protect his friends as well. The undead were an existential threat to literally everyone he cared about. Almost anything was on the table, if it meant keeping them safe. Anything. Even if it made him a monster. Even if his newly realized friends hated him for it. The bastards had made him care about them. Now they would have to live with the consequences. "I''m sorry, Caff," he whispered. "Please keep them safe." Then he dropped the pug out of his lap and moved. Sam was still wary but had settled down a little while Stanley... pulled himself together, and she was chatting with Nate about something. She never should have let her guard down. That was her first mistake. The second mistake was not seeing him coming for her until the last instant, far too late for her to escape. Not that he would have let her. Stanley didn''t kill her. He didn''t even try. That was never the plan, and he wasn''t sure if he even could or how long it might take. Instead, he took her away. She was incredibly dangerous, and he couldn''t risk fighting her anywhere near the others. Nate might have a chance, but Stanley still wasn''t sure if the man could block her light, and the others were nothing but liabilities. So he moved her right along with him. Offensive mobility. It wasn''t easy. Nothing like moving himself or his friends. No, Sam fought him ruthlessly for every mile he forced her away, and he fought her right back, staying in her face the entire time. He had to stay close. To keep her in his domain. It was the only way he could ensure she didn''t escape, because he hadn''t forgotten her little dig about him not knowing all her abilities. If she hadn''t been bluffing, then he couldn''t risk letting her out of his reach. She was fast in the air, almost as fast as him, and if she had something else up her sleeve... well, he wouldn''t let her take a shot at anyone else. She didn''t. But she took more than enough shots at him. It turned out that her pink light didn''t have to come from her hands. She could launch it from anywhere on her body. And she did. Luckily, it remained connected to her, and similar to how it broke when she teleported, it also moved if she did. Which meant that if he turned her around, flipped her over, or, especially important, if he broke her concentration, the spell missed its target. The latter of which he accomplished by punching her repeatedly in the head. Not physical punches. That probably would have done nothing more than break his hand. Instead, he used a sort of mental strike. A psionic punch. It was his best option, more so because it didn''t trigger her teleport. He''d suspected she couldn''t trigger it manually and now confirmed it. As long as he didn''t go for a lethal shot, she didn''t get teleported away. It helped keep her within range as he forced her further and further away from his friends. He couldn''t stop her entirely. He''d tried that, and while it slowed her down, it also made it harder to drag her away. So he settled for the punching and took her hits in return. At least the ones he couldn''t avoid entirely¡ªnothing that would incapacitate him, only a few flesh wounds here and there. Minor stuff. It was strange. He wasn''t truly angry as he dragged her across the sky. Not like he had been so many times before. This was something else. He felt... focused, but with a strange sort of... determination? It felt simultaneously familiar and alien. A sort of cold anger, but mixed with something else. It honestly reminded him of those few moments when his and his twin''s lives had hung in the balance. A different type of anger, one borne of the desire to preserve rather than destroy. He liked it. There was a strength to it. Less than when he raged out, but enough to get the job done. It was enough. Stanley forced her northeast across the countryside, over Boston itself, and then out over the ocean. He never relented, not until her back slammed up against the wall of the dungeon itself. [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated. 156. Neutrality ~~~Stanley~~~ [Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated. The notification served as a stark reminder of Stanley''s purpose here. It was the entire reason he''d attacked the enraged woman in front of him. Well, why he''d attacked her again. She took the impact better than he''d expected and instantly sent another streak of light toward his head. She even had enough breath to yell, "You!" Move "Psycho!" Stanley spun her around, and the pink magic shattered harmlessly against the impenetrable blue wall. Warning! Attempts to breach [Dungeon Perimeter] may incur heavy penalties. "Motherfucker!" Mostly harmlessly. And why was it warning him? It was her magic. "Let''s..." Stanley started as she blasted away from the wall in a flash of pink and went for a headshot. Again. He didn''t blame her. Besides, he was doing the same thing. "Talk," he finished while psionically punching her in the head and moving himself alongside as she cartwheeled through the air. She didn''t go far before catching herself, but it was enough to break her concentration and, with it, her attack. It was the only reason he kept going for the head. Meanwhile, she just wanted to kill him. "You''re dead!" The consequences of his actions were all too apparent in the fresh and ugly bruises that marred her face. It also served as a cruel reminder of past mistakes, when he''d lashed out in fear at another woman... one with the exact same name. The universe, it seemed, was not without a sick sense of irony. It could be argued that he was doing the same thing now as he had then; lashing out in panic and fear. But he hardened his heart against that thought. Against that weakness. This had to be done. Not only for himself but for everyone whose lives depended on him. He would become a monster if that was the price of their survival. Sam didn''t know it, and he was skeptical that she would believe it if she did, but she was seeing his nice side. All his other options were far worse. For everyone involved. He''d dragged her, kicking and screaming, all the way out here so that they could have a chat. One free of interruptions and potential liabilities. Unfortunately, she wasn''t feeling very talkative at the moment. Which was fair. Totally understandable. So he fought on until she was ready. She was breathing hard, and Stanley had a starving debuff when the lull finally appeared after her previous attack shattered against the dungeon wall, and she didn''t instantly throw out another. Stanley reciprocated and didn''t hit her again. Sam stood on nothing, her chest heaving, and her eyes twin fires of pure rage as they glared out at him from a bloody face. But there was also something else in there. A new wariness. Almost respect. She absolutely hated him, but she couldn''t deny his power. Not any more. He understood and shared the sentiment. She had fought way longer than he''d thought possible. He''d expected her mana to run out ages ago... which was probably the only reason she''d stopped now. She was waiting for her mana to regenerate. "Can we talk?" She said nothing as twin fires of blazing pink light glared back at him. Yeah, she definitely hated him. Stanley took her silence as a reason to continue. It was probably the best he was going to get. Except, he then found himself unsure of where to start... Perhaps with an explanation? An excuse for his behavior. "I recently..." He smiled a bittersweet smile. "Well, I realized I care about more people than I thought I did." She failed to see the humor in that, as her eyes burned brighter and she opened her mouth. Meanwhile, both her hands lit up with that same pink light. "What I''m trying to say," Stanley continued quickly before she attacked. "Is that your friends, the invaders, represent a substantial threat to everyone I care about. So I need you to tell me everything you know. Or else I will have to do... something worse." He thought that sounded perfectly reasonable. He''d even been polite about it. Well, relatively polite. "Please?" She laughed then, a humorless sound of disbelief. "They aren''t my friends. I don''t give a flying fuck what happens to those stiffs, but you''re delusional if you think I''ll ever help you." "I get it," Stanley said, resisting the anger that would have been his usual response. "Perhaps more than I ever could before. You''re protecting your friend, right?" Her lips thinned, and she only continued glaring at him. "That''s exactly what I''m trying to do as well. So tell me, how far would you go to protect this friend? Or are you not that close?" She flew closer, and Stanley let her come, until they were face to face. Then she spit in his face. "Fuck you! You arrogant son of a bitch!" Stanley let it go, though it helped that her spit never reached him. And really, so what if she had a little temper? Who wouldn''t after getting beaten bloody and dragged across an entire city? He could understand where she was coming from, even if he still had to... Sam exploded into a cloud of pink stars, with cloud being a rather lacking description for the billions of glowing specks left where she''d stood an instant before. Not even billions. Trillions. As if every atom in her body became abruptly separate from all the rest. That was all he had time to notice in the single instant before the pink stars shot toward him at the speed of light. There was no time to dodge. No time to react. He only knew it happened because it was inside his domain. One moment she stood before him, and in the next, she was inside him. Partially. The trillions of stars coalesced back into the woman. Or at least most of a woman. Her right hand reappeared inside his chest¡ªinside his heart¡ªand neither his heart nor her hand survived the attempt to occupy the same space. Her left hand did the same thing to his head. Skill Level Up: Premonition MOVE Stanley shot away from her as fast as he could... and it wasn''t fast enough. She missed his head, but not his chest. Though she did at least miss his heart. So, small victories. The explosion where one of her fingers tried to occupy the same space as his breastbone wasn''t too bad, but the shrapnel got awfully close to doing serious damage. Debuff Gained: [Bleeding] Sam didn''t pursue afterward, though she was slightly less angry now. Instead, she felt... thoughtful? Oh, she was still pissed off, but something had changed. Worse still, he was pretty sure he''d just gotten an up close look at her teleportation skill. Which meant she could teleport at will. Which was even more baffling. Because why the hell hadn''t she done that before now? She didn''t come out of the attack unscathed either, now with one of her fingers missing. Did she have regeneration like his? Or was she just pissed enough that she was willing to sacrifice limbs to kill him? On that note, Stanley reached down into the ocean, where his dripping blood had already created a feeding frenzy and dragged a dozen of whatever was down there up into the sky. cut He diced them up and immediately filled his stomach with chunks of... fish? Mostly fish. Stanley didn''t worry about the fact that some of them had legs along with fins. They were all meat. Sam watched him warily but didn''t interfere with his snack. In fact, her soul was... disgusted? Well, she''d be a lot more upset if he went ravenous and tried to eat her. Then she started drifting closer, and Stanley had to make a choice. He didn''t know if there was a short range on her teleport. It would explain why he hadn''t seen it in their first fight, but not why she''d held back until now. Her finger definitely wasn''t regenerating as fast as he did, so that was something. Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] Debuff Removed: [Bleeding] Stanley held his ground. She was more dangerous than he''d thought, but it was worth the risk. Too many lives were at stake. His premonition skill would be enough if she tried that again, wouldn¡¯t it? Sam halted her approach with only a foot of space between them, and Stanley watched her tensely, ready to move at the slightest warning while also struggling with what he could say that might convince her to tell him what he needed to know. She took the initiative. "I can overlook you trying to kill me before," Sam growled, her burning gaze locked onto his. "Heat of the moment and all that, but this..." She finally looked away at the expanse of ocean and then toward the distant Boston skyline. "You what? Dragged me out here to make an offer I can''t refuse?" Stanley answered honestly. "Pretty much." "Why the trip?" she asked, her gaze returning to him. "You didn''t want your precious friends to watch?" Her question hit a little closer to home than he thought it would. Despite his talk of becoming a monster if he had to, Stanley didn''t actually want his friends to hate him... "Not quite," he hedged. "You''re too powerful, and I couldn''t risk you killing any of them." That statement calmed her slightly, and she pulled back, though he couldn''t figure out why from the jumble of emotions beneath her anger. Then she started pacing, walking on nothing in a circle around him. "Smart, since I don''t give a shit about any of them and wouldn''t hesitate to use them against you. But you know that, don''t you?" Stanley didn''t turn to follow her. She was close enough to be within his domain, and that gave him far more information than his eyes ever could. "Your soul is pink. Like, really pink." She smirked. "I know." The smirk turned into a frown and she muttered, "That ability is so annoying." Why was she complaining? He wasn''t even using Soul Sight now and had only used it briefly in their last fight. Or was she mad he hadn''t done this at the stadium where she could take hostages? "I still need you to..." "You''re not very good at this," Sam interrupted while still pacing around him. "Say I give you what you want. What then?" "I kill the invaders and get out of here. You''ll never see me again." "Really? And what''s to stop me from killing your friends while you''re busy?" Stanley stiffened. "Because I''ll kill you if..." "You can''t kill me. I think we''ve established that." She stopped in front of him and glanced meaningfully at the finger-sized hole through the layers of clothing above his chest, then met his gaze again. "But I can kill you." She was underestimating him, but she wasn''t completely wrong... She was also an idiot. Because, by her own reasoning, it would be better to skip the talking and get straight to mind controlling her. That would remove the risk of retaliation after the fact. The only issue with that plan was that he wasn''t sure if he could subdue her long enough for Harem to mind control her. He would need to knock her out and do so while dodging her self-destructive teleports. Considering the lack of unconsciousness after the beating he''d given her, it might take a while... Then he''d have to get her to Harem before she woke up, which probably wouldn''t take long since her finger had already healed over; it hadn''t regrown though, for whatever that was worth. At the very least, it put a limit on how many times she could teleport her limbs inside him. Well, this was as good a place as any. Or... what if he dragged her down into the ocean? Her teleporting would make it harder, especially if the range was further than she''d shown so far. But the water might slow her down¡ªmore so if he could get her into the depths. Maybe she''d be more pliable if slightly drowned? Or fully drowned? Would her core start forming the moment she stopped breathing, or could he revive her after the fact? Ideally while Harem dominated her mind. It was worth a... Sam teleported. The spike of adrenaline flooded Stanley''s mind far too late, long milliseconds after she''d already reappeared. Luckily, she''d only teleported further away... and he knew why. Damn it. He wrapped his soul back behind the Soul Shield while Sam''s soul prepared for the resumption of violence. Move Stanley took her and himself toward the ocean below... MOVE Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. He lost an ear at the cost of another one of her fingers and retaliated. Cut She wouldn''t be able to sacrifice her limbs if he cut them all off first, and maybe she wouldn''t... Her passive teleport blinked her away, arms intact. Not counting the two missing fingers... Sam came after him again. And again. Debuff Gained: [Bleeding] Debuff Upgraded: [Major Bleeding] Debuff Upgraded: [Starving] Their third round was a far bloodier affair than the previous two, and Stanley went back to punching her in the head when her teleporting proved itself as a hard counter to his attempts to drag her into the ocean. He couldn''t even get a snack in, and every time he tried, she forced him away. Though not without cost to herself. "You can''t keep this up," Sam finally gasped out after another bloody exchange, and she was one to talk, especially with both of her hands sporting little more than jagged stumps for fingers by that point. She''d even started trying to hit him with her feet. Stanley was a little out of breath himself, and he hauled up another fish while she was... MOVE ...not distracted enough. She grinned, her teeth bloody and shining out from a battered and bruised face. "Not gonna happen." "You know, Zeke can heal you right up if you''d just tell me what..." "I know." She kept grinning. "And I''m sure he''ll be more than willing to do just that once you''re dead." Stanley grimaced. This wasn''t working and getting angrier wouldn''t do shit if she could just teleport out from every fucking attack! So he tried a different tactic instead and activated Still Mind. Sam''s grin fell away slowly as his thought processes sped up and his anger vanished. She was a difficult opponent, more powerful than the invaders, and almost as impossible to kill. He''d be in serious trouble if she was D-grade... Luckily, she wasn''t, but he still needed to eat. If he could maintain a food supply, then he would at the very least outlast her. Move Stanley moved in a zigzag pattern across the sky and around her position. While he did that, he also dragged every single fish he could touch up to join them. Except this time, he didn''t pull them to himself. Instead, he filled the sky with their flopping bodies. Cut Then he diced them all into a cloud of raining fish pieces. Sam tried to stop him repeatedly and succeeded, but only most of the time. He took more injuries and missed a lot of potential snacks, but not all of them. His faster thoughts were enough to let him snatch a bite here and there. Enough to keep him going. She realized it was over quickly, and her soul lit up with resolve... right before she teleported. Only this time, she not only reappeared further away, but then she immediately teleported again, and again, in a straight line, back towards the stadium. She was running... or going after his friends. MOVE Stanley chased after her and was... displeased when she outpaced him. Her teleport range didn''t seem to be that far, but there was almost no delay between each jump... She was faster than him. Cut Cut Cut It was hard to hit a target that only sat in place for an instant, but he managed. Of course, his attacks did nothing but speed her along. This wasn''t good... He was surprised when she abruptly reversed course and appeared almost in his face. She appeared with one hand up in a halt gesture¡ªat least, what was left of her hand. Was she surrendering? Her soul felt¡ªwell, not like a surrender, but something akin to it. A... ceasefire? Stanley gave her what she wanted. Then used the opportunity to grab some more fish from the shallower waters while deliberately not even glancing toward the white tower that loomed far too close. He did not want to give her more targets. She didn''t appreciate him having another snack, but also didn''t interfere. Instead, she spoke while he shoved the fish down his throat. "I''m faster than you. I can kill your friends, and you can''t stop me fast enough. So why don''t we call it even and go our separate ways?" Her soul felt... mostly confident about what she was saying. But she was forgetting something important. Caffeine. The beast lord was waiting at her destination, and he wouldn''t appreciate her trying to kill his friends. That teleporting, though... would Caffeine be able to catch her, especially if she stayed in the sky? "Besides," Sam said. "I literally can''t help you find the invaders." "Your friend..." "They can''t tell you anything, and I know you can see my soul, so you know I''m not lying." Stanley studied her. "Explain." She glared at him, then sighed. "They took some kind of oath when they joined. I don''t know the specifics, but it limits what they can say." It appeared that she was being honest. That was... a problem. "You can call your friend and I''ll follow them back to..." "I can''t call them. They show up out of nowhere and disappear without a trace." Stanley opened his mouth, but she cut him off. "Don''t even think about stalking me! You know I''m not lying, and I will go to war if you so much as try to touch them!" She wasn''t lying. "Also," Sam said. "From what I''ve heard, they''d see you coming a mile away. Something about your soul being a beacon..." There was that. But shouldn''t his soul shield hide him? Or was it because of the wound? Stanley ate some more fish as he tried to think of a way around the problem. He couldn''t find one. "Then there is no reason for us to fight." Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] Debuff Downgraded: [Bleeding] "I mean, you''re a schizo asshole and I would really like to kill you," Sam said honestly. "But other than that... no." The only alternative was that she had a way to trick him into thinking she wasn''t lying. But he wouldn''t be able to prove that without another fight. Which would endanger his allies. Which was unacceptable. Though he would definitely try following her. She believed it wouldn''t work, but she may simply be ignorant. Stanley flew away toward the sensation of Caffeine in the distance. Sam followed, flying rather than teleporting, but staying behind him. He found Caffeine and the others not at the stadium but on the journey home. Then a pug-shaped missile crashed into him at the same time that Still Mind deactivated. A lot of emotions swelled up in him, but Stanley forced all but one of them away to focus on what mattered most while he gave the pug what he deserved. "Good boy, Caff." He''d stayed with the others and kept them safe. Though it was possible that Sam wouldn''t have found them all the way out here... was that Nate''s intuition at work? "Very good boy!" His friends all watched him descend from the sky with mixed feelings. Though he wasn''t sure if they were nervous about him or the woman flying in behind him... Stanley stopped and looked back, anger rising. "What the fuck do you want now?" Sam smiled and held up two arms that ended in stumps where her hands should have been. "Well, since we''re all friends now, I figured your healer wouldn''t mind patching me up." Zeke actually took a step closer before Stanley blocked him. "We aren''t friends! You''re useless! Your friend is useless! And why the hell didn''t you just tell me that before!?" "Because instead of talking to me like a sane person, you fucking attacked me out of nowhere! You''re an asshole, a schizo, and a goddamned bully! So fuck you!" That wasn''t... he had asked. She just refused to answer. Hadn''t he? She kept approaching, despite Stanley''s glare, and didn''t stop until she was inside Zeke''s aura. There, she grinned while watching her hands slowly regrow. "That is some good stuff," she said with a sigh of relaxation. "It really is a shame the invaders have it out for you." "Turn it off, Zeke," Stanley said, and the kid looked at Nate instead of complying. Stanley was about to drag Zeke away from her... and stopped. Was he really about to bully the boy? No, he was just trying to avoid helping this bitch. Right? "You could help us protect him," Nate said while standing blatantly between her and Zeke. A useless position when the bitch could teleport. "We''re all stronger together than we..." "Can''t do it," Sam said. "I''m officially neutral in your little war." That was the dumbest thing he''d heard from her yet. "Then shouldn''t you fuck off away from us?" "Nah." She grinned at him. The bitch! "You can help me all you want. I just can''t help you fight the invaders." "You gave me that core earlier! That''s helping!" Sam rolled her eyes. "Please. It''s the spirit of the deal, not the letter." "Does that mean that your stadium is a safe place?" Nate asked eagerly. Far too eagerly. She shrugged. "Like I said, it wasn''t really a formal deal. They promised to leave me alone so long as I didn''t fight them." "That seems like a... generous offer," Nate said. "Or they fear your power." Sam shook her head. "I doubt it. My neutrality was part of the deal my friend made with them. They had a skill the invaders wanted..." "Why do you keep saying they?" Stanley growled. "How many of your friends decided to become traitors!?" "It''s the singular they, asshole!" Oh. Stanley shut his mouth but didn''t stop glaring at her. "They," she emphasized the word while glaring back at him. "Had a skill the invaders really wanted, and so the invaders offered them something they wanted in return. A deal that included my neutrality." "Traitor," Stanley muttered under his breath. "You think the invaders will honor it?" Nate asked. "Don''t they need to defeat all of us?" "They have so far, and maybe my neutrality will be enough." "I understand the position you''re in," Nate said. "But you should warn your friend. We are going to win this little war, and if they come against us in battle, we won''t hold back." "They aren''t really the fighting type, so I don''t think that''s likely." Sam smiled at Zeke while wiggling her newly restored fingers. "Thanks, kid. That would''ve taken a lot longer without your help." Zeke smiled back, like an idiot. "You''re welcome!" Sam turned her grin on Stanley while rising slowly into the air. "Later, schizo. Don''t forget our truce, and I won''t have to do anything... drastic." Stanley gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to restart the fighting until she''d flown away. Then his gaze fell on a strange woman and child lurking among the rest of the group. Oh, right, Martha, wasn''t it? The F-grades. He was going to give her a core to... He patted his jacket and found a ragged hole where a pocket should have been. Shit. ~~~Sam~~~ Sam was almost completely certain Stanley wasn''t following her home after he vanished over the horizon. At the very least, she couldn''t feel his soul looking at her, and unless he had an invisibility skill, she would see him anywhere in the open. Because everything the light touched was hers to see, though it was slightly harder to focus on details when peering beyond the horizon... It was still early, and she should have kept hunting, but that fight had been... rough. Annoying as hell, too. He fought unlike anything else she''d faced in battle to date. She couldn''t see any of his attacks coming, and then there was the way it felt like he was spinning the world around her... Worse, he didn''t even have a teleport skill and she could still barely touch him. He had something¡ªmaybe a prediction skill of some kind? Otherwise, there was no way he should have been able to avoid her teleport. It would have been a different story if he hadn''t wanted to fight in broad daylight and above the ocean, no less. Light fueled her mana regeneration, and having the ocean reflect even more light onto her had made a huge difference. It had been less pleasant when he tried to drag her under the water... The stadium was quiet when she got back, and she had plenty of time until darkness arrived and the bugs came with it. Plenty of time to relax in her skybox turned home. Having a friendly face waiting for her inside was nice as well. "Welcome home, Sam. Would you like dinner early today?" "No thanks, Henry. Later is fine." She was actually hungry, but watching Stanley shovel raw fish into his face had ruined her appetite. So she dismissed the cook and then just reveled in the peace and quiet as she looked out over her domain. "That was so cool!" Sam didn''t flinch or turn at the sudden voice coming from what should have been the empty room behind her. "How long have you been here, V?" The voice laughed cheerfully. "Oh, I was already here when Stanley showed up. I was waiting for you to come back from your hunt, and holy shit, am I glad I did! I loved watching you fight, especially when you almost killed him. You should have seen his soul; he was actually scared!" Sam spun around to stare in shock at the skeleton standing behind her. "You followed us? What if he''d seen you!?" Twin red lights flashed brighter in the empty eye sockets while the sound of laughter filled the room. "Relax, Sammy. He''d never spot me." The lights dimmed, and the skeleton turned its head toward the windows. "Besides, I think his dog started picking up my scent after you both left..." "Forget the dog! There''s no guarantee I could''ve protected you from that schizo!" V took a step closer and grabbed onto her with both hands. "Oh no! The dog is much more dangerous than Stanley! You should never fight it!" Their hands shook her and their voice was pleading. "Promise me you won''t fight it!" Sam took an involuntary step back from the overenthusiastic skeleton. "Geez, okay. I won''t!" She didn''t realize she was rubbing her arms where V had touched her until their eyes dimmed and they ducked their head. "Sorry. I know you don''t like..." "No," Sam said as she closed the gap and placed a hand over V''s nervously fidgeting fingers while her other hand lifted their chin. "I''m the one who''s sorry. I''m just... I''m still getting used to it." "You don''t hate me?" V whispered. Their jaw didn''t move when they spoke, but oddly enough, their voice sounded the same as it had before the... change. Including the fear of rejection that came through all too well, and it left an ache in Sam''s chest. She pulled the skeleton into a hug. It felt weird as hell, but they were still her friend. "I love you, V. No matter what you look like. The only thing that matters to me is that you are happy." V leaned back and grinned up at her with a huge, if also slightly disturbing, smile. "I am happy, Sammy. I''ve never been happier!" They stepped back and spread their skeletal arms wide. "I feel amazing and not like a prisoner in my body anymore." Sam smiled. "So, the flesh was the problem?" "No. It''s..." They paused and looked down at their hands. "These bones don''t feel like a body. Not really. It''s more like a puppet that I ride around on. Not me, but a... vehicle?" "I''m really glad you like it," Sam said with a genuine smile. "That''s all that matters to me. Though you better let me know if those eternals misbehave." "I do! And they''re being really nice! I''ve been having so much fun working on the..." Their voice cut off abruptly. "Oh, I can''t say that. Um... magic... um..." Sam put her hand on V''s arm. "It''s okay. You don''t have to explain. Knowing you''re having fun is plenty for me." V glanced down. "You could join me... then we could talk about everything." "Not knocking you, but I wasn''t a fan of turning into a skeleton before, and I''m still not. What if I just..." "No, don¡¯t join yet!" V exclaimed. "I can already make a race shard, but I''ve been learning how to change it!" They paused, head tilted. "Oh, I can talk about that. Cool! You have to wait, Sammy! There are so many more eternals than just skeletons, and I''m going to make you a perfect one! Then we can be together forever!" Sam smiled, despite not being fully on board with joining the undead. It was worth it just to see V so alive again. Alive-ish. "I''ll look forward to seeing what you come up with." V grinned up at her. They were still grinning when they looked down, but now their voice came out with a hint of worry. "They are going to win, Sammy. The magic they are... I can''t talk about it, but they will win the war, and I don''t know what they''ll do to you when that happens. They won''t need me anymore..." "Guess what?" Sam said while pulling them into another hug. "I will always need you. So don''t worry about those stiffs. Alright?" V leaned into the embrace, and their voice was a whisper. "I love you." "I love you too." 157. Touched By A Pug ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley watched Sam fly away and considered going after her to see if her source showed up, but ultimately decided against it. She was probably expecting him to try exactly that, so he''d wait. Maybe tomorrow. Hopefully, she would let her guard down. Though he would need to be careful. Sam had meant it when she threatened to go to war. It wasn''t like he planned to hurt her friend, but he wanted a chance to talk with them, at the very least. Sam hadn''t been lying, but she could also be wrong about what the truth really was. Her so-called friend might be lying to her, and considering Sam was willing to trust the undead, she had to be pretty gullable. If only she wasn''t so fucking powerful! "Did you learn anything useful?" Nate asked, stepping up beside him and eyeing the tattered state of his clothes. Stanley shook his head, then froze and quickly checked his status. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](57%) [Source Nexus] [Wrath] [Eye of the Storm] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 125 (Expert) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 99 (Advanced) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 75 (Advanced) | Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Soul Meditation (Rare) - Level 85 (Advanced) | Mental Fortress (Epic) - Level 9 (Novice) Attributes: Strength: 709(+70%)1205 Vitality: 720(+162%)1886 Dexterity 706(+70%)1200 Wisdom 830(+1851%)16193 Intelligence 831(+1851%)16212 Willpower 870(+3224%)29367 Twin-Soul 120(+607%)896 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 45 (Intermediate) | Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) Buff: [Soul-Link] Debuff: [Major Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] He exhaled in relief. The shielding buff from his suit was still there. Sure, it was less vital at this point, but every bit counts, even if he was sure the wound debuff was close to another downgrade. The only other glaring problem was his Soul Shield. Sam''s little mention about his soul being hard to miss... was he doing something wrong with the shield? It had been sitting at that threshold for a while now... "No," he told Nate. "Nothing useful. Other than she is too powerful..." "Too powerful?" Stanley ground his teeth in pure frustration. "I couldn''t beat her." "Damn." Nate whistled while staring off in the direction she had gone. "What a shame. Together, you''d be unstoppable." "I don''t need her help!" Stanley spun away from him and reached out to grab everyone. He stopped when he laid eyes on Martha, who was staring back at him. "You!" She flinched away, trying to hide herself and her daughter behind the others. "I lost your core. Do you still want to fight?" She froze, then nodded hesitantly. "Good. I''ll get you some other skill and drop you off at the tower. Walter will keep you alive until you earn enough cores for E-grade." "Come on, Stanley," Nate said. "We can bump her to E-grade with a handful of..." "No!" Stanley yelled. "If she''s not a goddamned coward, then she can fucking prove it... by..." He trailed off at the looks and soul sensations coming his way while another thought occurred to him. "Am I... a bully?" "Yes." Eve and James echoed simultaneously. "No!" Zeke said. Nate shrugged. "Sometimes?" Stanley closed his eyes and tried to think happy thoughts while reminding himself that he actually cared about these fuckers. Besides, they were probably right. He was a bully sometimes. But only to the idiots who deserved it. Mostly. There might have been a few mistakes in the past... "Look on the bright side," Nate said while nudging him with an elbow. "At least she didn''t actually sign up with the invaders." That was... actually a good thing. A very good thing. While he could slow down and redirect her pink light, he couldn''t stop her from teleporting into people. If she had the same immortality as the invaders... Fuck. He needed to get stronger. In fact, it might be worth the risk to kill Harem now and hope for the right skill shard. While he mulled over that, Stanley took everyone into the sky. Both mother and child didn''t seem to appreciate the experience of flying Stanley Air, but Caffeine immediately bounded off to comfort them. Stanley let him go and kept Nate close instead. The man was obviously dying to know what had happened. He relayed the details about Sam as they flew. Her powers. Her threats. How badly he''d failed at stopping her... and a few ideas that he should have thought of during the fight. Most of which involved putting physical barriers around whoever she was attacking. Assuming they could block her light streaks, then the primary threat was her teleportation. But he had a solution for that. Sort of. It was an old technique that he hadn''t used in a while but might be exactly what was needed now. Physical barriers. She wouldn''t be able to stick her hand in someone''s head if the person was surrounded by, say... engine blocks. Hell, even dirt might be enough to destroy her if she tried to teleport into it. That was, of course, operating on the assumption that she valued her life. Even then, it would be a defensive deterrent more than anything actually offensive. "Good to know," Nate said once he''d finished explaining and nodded thoughtfully. "I''ll get our people on it. Silas alone should be able to protect himself and Zeke well enough, but we definitely need more countermeasures." Then he leaned closer. "Can we talk... privately?" Stanley eyed him, then everyone else, all of whom were listening attentively to their conversation. "Sure," Stanley said while having a pretty good idea of what the man wanted to discuss. Then he forced a vacuum air gap into existence between them and the others. "Talk." "What set you off? Why did you attack her like that? It¡¯s not a criticism," he added quickly. "I''m only wondering if I missed something. One moment you were calm, and the next..." Stanley confirmed he still had his Soul Shield going when he felt his face heating up. Rather than go into embarrassing detail about his own realizations, he told Nate the truth. "She was a threat to us. She had information... She still has information that could save us all! I did what I had to do!" Sure, there was a chance that talking to her first might have been the better choice, but it was a slim chance. She was a traitor to humanity and he would kill her in a heartbeat. If only he could... "Us?" Nate asked with a smug little smile and a clear emphasis on the word. Him and his stupid intuition. "Shut up," Stanley muttered. "Or I''ll make you run home." Nate chuckled and tried to pat him on the shoulder. "We all love you t..." Stanley dropped him. To his disappointment, the man wasn''t the least bit surprised or worried when his level flight turned into a downward arc. Not even as he approached closer and closer to the ground. Was he confident that Stanley would catch him? Or did a fall like this not matter to him? Terminal velocity wasn''t really all that fast anymore. He let Nate hit the ground. Partly to call his bluff, but also because he was curious. Besides, he knew it wouldn''t kill him, and Zeke could fix anything short of death. Unfortunately, Nate''s soul never betrayed any surprise, though his body lit up with his buffs right before impact. There was also no pain, and the man took off running almost instantly. Talk about disappointing. Not that Stanley wanted him to get hurt¡ªwell, maybe a little? Was a sprained ankle too much to ask!? He also wasn''t flying very fast, so Nate had no trouble keeping up on the ground. Stanley would have flown faster, but Martha''s kid was already terrified about being in the sky, even with Caffeine trying to distract her, and for some reason she didn''t enjoy the sight of Nate plummeting to earth. Stanley pulled him back up, which helped the kid feel better. Also, he still had questions. "What happened after I... left? I didn''t think those weaklings could run you off." Nate was grinning and not at all out of breath. "Things got a little... tense after you took their leader away, but no one tried anything. Hell, they didn''t even leave their posts. I think they were more scared of her than anything we might do." "I got that feeling too..." Stanley frowned. "Do you have any idea how they''re keeping all those people alive? What are they even eating?" "You really weren''t listening before, were you?" Nate asked incredulously, and Stanley just glared at him until he continued. "I asked about that exact thing while you were... busy, and she told me about a nearby insect lair that sends out a swarm every night. Supposedly, enough of them are drawn to the stadium, where her people wipe them out. They take all the cores, but leave enough... meat for the rest to survive." "What about the miasma?" Stanley asked, with a vague recollection of seeing a notification or two regarding the corruption. Or at least his resistance to it. Nate grinned. "She wouldn''t say." He narrowed his eyes. "And that makes you happy. Why?" "Because there wasn''t any miasma in or around the stadium, and more importantly, I think her friend might be the one responsible." Stanley halted their flight. "You think the friend is at the stadium? Right now!?" Nate held up his hands. "No, no! Not exactly. But I''m almost positive that they put some sort of magic around it. I''m definitely going to take some of our wizard friends down there on a recruiting trip, and hopefully they''ll be able to get a glimpse." Stanley continued flying. "Recruiting? And can''t the wizards already block the miasma?" "Yes. Recruiting. I won''t write them off, Stanley. Not without giving them a chance first. As for the magic, the wizards can protect a building, but nowhere near that kind of far-reaching scale. Plus, it''s most likely magic they learned from the invaders, and any insight we can get on them is bound to be valuable." Nate reached into his pocket while he was talking and pulled out some... change? "Almost forgot; here, this one''s for you." Stanley took the proffered coin¡ªa dollar coin. "Thanks? But I don''t do a lot of shopping these days." "Magic," Nate said, rolling his eyes before holding up another dollar coin between two fingers. "It''s basically a walkie-talkie. Squeeze to talk. Release to receive." He demonstrated while explaining, complete with screeching feedback and everything. "They only work in pairs," he continued. "But I''ll have the other half of yours. So if you ever need anything..." Or, in the unspoken but far more likely scenario, if he ever needed Stanley to come running. Stanley eyed the coin suspiciously when another thought occurred to him. "Who made these? The wizards? How do you know they aren''t tracking devices? Or listening devices?" "It was the wizards," Nate said while doing some fancy trick that made the coin dance over his fingers. "But I''ve had a few of our people look over the enchantments, and they found nothing that stood out." He shrugged. "I think it''s worth the risk either way." Stanley tucked the coin into one of his undamaged pockets. "Fine." "Excellent." Nate held out more coins, each one of a different denomination and one that looked Canadian... "Can you take these to the tower? Got one each for Edward, Walter, Adrian, and Daryl. Oh, and one extra, just in case." "Now I''m your delivery driver?" Stanley grumbled but still took the coins. "Thanks!" Nate said, grinning. "And since you''re going there already, do you mind taking our latest batch of newbies with you? I was going to escort them myself, but..." Stanley sighed. "Fine." He made one slight detour on his way, and that was to check on his new team. Which meant he scanned their souls as he flew past. They looked fine, so he left them to their hunting. He''d come back later with some lunch. Or dinner? He could grab some extra chicken, or Walter probably wouldn''t mind cooking up some extra fish if he asked. Stanley liked to eat with the team because mealtimes were a great opportunity to judge everyone''s character. Primarily in who shared their food with Caffeine. Especially when they''d been fighting for a while and were extra hungry. It wasn''t like he expected them to hand over all of their food to the bottomless pit that was Caffeine''s stomach, but a bite here and there was another story. Anyone who could resist his pleading puppy-dog eyes was obviously a total psycho. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Unfortunately, Harem was all too happy to share with Caffeine. All of them were. A fact that made it slightly harder to write them off... They were humans. Normal humans with their stupid, complicated souls. Why couldn''t they just be the bastards they were supposed to be? Then he could simply kill them and be done with it! Nate used another of his magic coins to talk with someone back at the base while they flew, and a small crowd had gathered when they arrived. Stanley didn''t recognize any of them, but Caffeine greeted a couple of kids in the waiting crowd with his usual enthusiasm. Kids... Stanley pulled Nate aside before he could escape. "Hey, what''s with the kids?" "They''re going with you." Stanley narrowed his eyes. "Why?" Nate said what he both expected and dreaded. "To fight. They both aged into their classes yesterday." "But..." Stanley looked at the far too young children as they returned Caffeine''s enthusiastic affection. "They''re just kids!" Nate smiled sadly. "They are, and the best way to keep them safe now is to help them get stronger." "That''s..." Stanley clenched his fists in frustration. Not because he disagreed, but because he knew Nate was right. Somehow, knowing it was the right thing to do didn''t make him feel any better about the situation. "Well, fuck." "Watch over them, Stanley," Nate said softly. "I know you''re busy, but..." He smiled with a secretive smirk. "Ask them about their classes. I''m betting you can help set them up for success." Stanley watched suspiciously as the man moved off to meet up with an approaching group of dress-wearing freaks. They immediately fell into a discussion about the stadium and the potential magic they might find there. A discussion that devolved quickly into magical gibberish, and Stanley left them to it with a fresh grimace when he looked back at his waiting passengers. They were just kids! They shouldn''t be fighting! The adults in the crowd should fight! They should have been fighting this whole time! Now, because too many hadn''t stepped up, they were drafting children into the war. Fuck! It turned out that he didn''t need to ask what classes they had. They showed him. Unfortunately, he was still fuming about the necessity of their presence on the battlefield when they both started pointing at Caffeine and shouting, "Tame!" He took the sight of them trying to steal Caffeine out from under him rather... poorly. Luckily for everyone involved, his burst of murderous rage vanished the same instant it appeared, and then Stanley was studying the children with emotionless detachment as their excitement turned slowly into disappointment. They had obviously chosen some kind of beast tamer classes, probably because of Caffeine, and now they were trying to claim him... as a pet. Or a soldier. It was a smart move, assuming the attempt didn''t get them killed... But it was also ultimately futile because Caffeine couldn''t be claimed. He couldn''t be tamed. He was the Beast Lord. Despite the cleverness of their plan, Stanley was deciding on a proper punishment for the attempt when Caffeine canceled Still Mind. His returning anger felt ridiculous when it once again resurfaced, and Stanley turned away before he said or did anything stupid. They were just kids, and he wasn''t that much of a bully. He found Eve watching him from afar with that same mixture of anger and fear from before, along with a confusing mess of other feelings lurking below that. Talk about unnecessary drama that he didn''t need right now! "I''m assuming you''re all ready to go," Stanley said loudly, looking away from the lunatic woman as he picked up a layer of dirt below the waiting crowd''s feet and used it as a platform to carry them all into the air. Nobody protested. Well, not loudly enough anyway. So he stopped wasting time and took them all toward the tower. The day hadn''t been a total waste, he realized with another glance at his status. His fight with Sam had earned him more than a few points of willpower, along with some vitality. Not to mention all the levels he''d added to his skills. Sam must have earned something as well... Maybe he could convince her to spar with him again. She wasn''t afraid of him. Not seriously, at least. It might even help him figure out a way to kill her... "Mister Stanley." The small voice, almost but not quite lost in the roar of rushing wind, pulled him from his thoughts, and Stanley looked over at the boy, who was crawling closer across the dirt platform. "I''m sorry that I tried to tame Caff." Stanley studied him, and then the little crowd of people hunched against the wind behind him. Had one of them put him up to this? Had they noticed his anger earlier? The boy wasn''t scared... but he did feel bad. So did the girl crawling behind him. "I''m sorry too, Mister Stanley!" Caffeine happily panted where he stood between the pair, then jumped into Stanley''s lap and rolled over for a belly rub. "Forget about it," Stanley said, putting up a psionic wall to block the wind. "What are your classes?" "Tamer!" they both chorused in unison. Obviously. "What happened when you tried to tame Caffeine?" he asked, curious. The boy looked down while his hands fidgeted with the dirt he was sitting in. "He... rejected it." "Nothing else?" "No." The girl shook her head. "It only said the beast lord has rejected your taming bond..." Both of their souls felt very... rejected at the admission, and a petty part of Stanley was happy about that... He quashed the feeling. "I can grab some animals for you to tame. Any preferences?" He was unsurprised to find that they both wanted to tame not only a dog but, more specifically, a pug. Stanley tried not to think about the fact that he''d seen no other pugs in this prison when, by all odds, there should have been more than a few in here with them. Even other dogs were vanishingly rare. "What about something other than a dog?" He slowed down their flight. "A wolf? That''s basically a bigger dog. Or a bear? Or hell, how about a tiger?" Stanley hadn''t seen that tiger again, but Caffeine played with the bear whenever he got the chance, and it lived inside the purified zone along with the wolves. Presumably, the tiger was somewhere in there as well. While he didn''t think the wolves were anything special, power-wise, they were friendly. Or would they be even weaker out in the miasma? "What about a bat? They''re like flying dogs." Both kids looked dubious about his suggestion. "Or," Stanley had another thought, and as if on cue, a bird appeared on his shoulder. "A crow..." "Caw!" The more he thought about it, the more Stanley liked the idea of them taming the crow. It could teleport and use some kind of soul shielding magic... What if it knew where the undead were hiding? If someone could actually talk to it... "Yeah, you should tame this little guy. He''s really powerful." "That''s a bird," the boy said, as if it wasn''t the most obvious thing in the world. Stanley resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Yeah, it''s a crow." Or was it a raven? He wasn''t actually sure. "It''s a powerful teleporting crow that can help protect you and your... wait, where are your parents?" It was a stupid question, and Stanley cursed himself as an idiot for even asking. He hadn''t seen any obvious parent figure either seeing them off or, in the far more likely scenario, coming with them on their first hunt, and in this new world, that meant only one thing. "We don''t need parents!" the boy said. "We''re adults now." "Y... yeah," the girl said with less enthusiasm. "We''re adults!" They both put up a strong front, but he could feel their souls and so only nodded past the lump in his throat while keeping his gaze locked on the flight path ahead. Unfortunately, they were inside his domain, so he couldn''t miss the trembling lips and teary eyes. Martha must have also been eavesdropping, because the terrified woman forgot her own fear long enough to scramble closer across the flying patch of dirt, dragging her daughter with her and then pulling all of them into her arms. Stanley let the wind back in to muffle the first sniffles that escaped and pretended not to notice when they all started crying while holding onto each other. Or when Caffeine scrambled from his lap and wormed his way in between all of them. Listening to their souls made Stanley want to scream and rage against... everything. This wasn''t fair. None of it! And in this moment, he absolutely loathed his soul-sensing abilities. He didn''t want this. He didn''t need to feel even more pain! So he activated Still Mind. It was that or go on a killing spree. And that second option was probably a bad idea considering he was transporting a bunch of brand new E-grades. Not to mention the two F-grades... Afterward, he felt¡ªwell, he didn''t really feel anything. Instead, he flew faster toward their destination while, for some reason, thinking carefully about whether or not killing Harem was worth the risk. Or should he attempt to have Harem mind-control Sam first? If the man was ready and didn''t hesitate, they might be able to take her before she could kill him. Even if he died in the attempt, Stanley could still take the shard at that point. There was the risk of her retaliating and going after Zeke, but Nate thought Silas could protect him. Also, what if they brought Zeke to the tower and added Walter to his protection detail? The butler could teleport, and he had some control over others inside the building. Could he slow down or stop Sam''s teleporting? Nate would probably go along with the plan to kill, or ideally, mind-control Sam. She''d chosen her position, and it wasn''t on humanity''s side. Nate was practical, and he would sacrifice her if it meant saving humanity. Assuming they could pull it off without risking Zeke too much... Stanley stopped his flight next to a familiar skyscraper and studied its occupants in silence while ignoring the crater in the street below. Lair occupants who might offer yet another solution to the Sam problem. Or at the very least, they might help in defending Zeke. The bats came flying over to the small gathering of humanity, either drawn by the mana or merely curious; it was hard to say. Until one landed in the dirt and immediately started sucking down all the mana it could get... Stanley was about to kill the stupid creature when Caffeine howled¡ªa long, slowly trailing off howl. You have heard the Howl of the Beast Lord. It didn''t grant any effects, other than canceling his Still Mind. But the bat reacted to the noise. Not only it, either. Every bat surrounding them and in the lair reacted. Though the strongest response came from the queen herself... Stanley held back while the mana-stealing bat flailed its way across and then off the platform. There it joined a flock of its fellows that flew in a swarm around the hovering section of dirt. Meanwhile, he felt another soul approaching. Another bat, but one that stood out from the rest. He wasn''t sure if it was the same bat Caffeine had befriended previously, but the pug seemed happy enough to see it when the thing landed on his back with a chirp. It looked slightly bigger than he remembered, if not by much, and was definitely more intelligent than the other bats. "It''s cute," the boy whispered, and Stanley smiled at the much happier sensation of his soul before realizing he didn''t actually know either of the children''s names. "Do you want to tame it?" Stanley asked. He''d learn their names later. Besides, he had a feeling this bat might be more accepting of the idea... especially with Caffeine here. The pug had obviously said or done something to the bats and their queen with his howl. "It''s like a little dog with wings!" the girl breathed excitedly. "Tame!" they both shouted together while pointing at the bat. Stanley didn''t see any obvious magical effect, but he couldn''t miss the feeling of acceptance from the bat''s soul. Then Caffeine huffed, and Stanley felt surprise from both the bat and the boy. There was a lingering moment of shared understanding, then acceptance, and Stanley felt their souls connect. Which meant he wasn''t that surprised when the boy whispered, awestruck, "I soul bonded with him!" "No fair!" his... sister? Whined. On second thought, she couldn''t be his sister since they''d supposedly aged into a class on the same day. Unless they were twins? Fraternal twins? They didn''t look that similar. But they had ended up with the same class... Was that accidental? Or did they choose it? Considering they both tried to tame Caffeine, the latter option looked rather likely. The bat chirped, and the boy''s soul lit up with fresh surprise, followed quickly by awe as he said breathlessly, "You can talk!" More chirps and squeaks came from the bat as it crawled from Caffeine''s back and into the boy''s outstretched arms. It licked his fingers while he giggled, then looked at the surrounding people with more noises, along with a chirp toward Caffeine. "Beast lord?" the boy asked. "You mean Caffeine? He''s a good dog and always plays with us a lot!" Stanley watched curiously while ignoring the nervous and impatient grumbling from his other passengers. Some of them were unhappy about being out in the open, not to mention surrounded by monster bats, while others were unfazed and only wanted to get started with their own hunting. "This is Lucy," the boy said, holding the bat toward the girl, who was enjoying the event far less than he was. "She''s my best friend!" So they weren''t siblings after all? Despite her feelings, Lucy still reached out a finger to scratch the bat''s cheek, then smiled when it licked her fingers. "He''s really cute. What''s his name?" It chirped. "He... you have to have a name!" It chirped again. "You want me to give you a name?" He looked at the girl. "What should I name him, Lucy?" She shrugged and dropped her hand, her smile slipping. "I don''t care. Name him whatever." The bat chirped, and the boy nodded. "She''s sad because she wanted to tame you too, but I was faster." It looked at Caffeine and chirped again, a question in its soul. Caffeine tilted his head and woofed softly. Stanley stared as boy, bat, and dog all looked back and forth at each other while making various noises. They were talking¡ªor at least Caffeine and the bat were talking. Could all animals talk to each other? Was it always that way, or had the system changed something? Was there a universal animal language? "What are they saying?" "Oh?" The boy looked at Stanley. "I''m not sure. He''s asking Caffeine about friends..." The bat stopped chirping at Caffeine, tilted its head toward the sky, and let out a high-pitched screech that left everyone wincing. "What did he..." Stanley''s question trailed off as he felt the bat queen''s soul respond inside the lair. It was a strange feeling of... hope? He turned on Soul Sight and saw that she wasn''t the only soul feeling that way. Another bat sat beside her in there, probably the king, and it shared her hope along with what felt like grim resolve... right up until the moment it died. What the hell? The queen''s soul swelled in tune as the king''s faded. Had she eaten him? That was quite literally what it felt like... and then her soul cried out in pain as it, too, began fading. Stanley recognized what was happening a moment later when he felt a new soul spark into existence. He''d seen it before, not only from the bats on his last visit to their lair but from countless other lair queens throughout the city. She was spawning in more bats. Well, one more bat. Unlike most of the times he''d witnessed similar things happening before, this spawning of new life felt like it was taking far more from the queen than usual. It almost felt like she was dying... Her soul faded further and her strength diminished with it, but she didn''t actually die. Instead, a brand new soul cried out in fear at the realization of its own existence and the terror of the unknown that had been suddenly thrust upon it. The fear in that little soul didn''t last long, quickly replaced by a warmth and peace that made Stanley''s heart ache with forgotten memories of comfort and absolute safety that only a mother can provide to her child. Then that sensation faded as well and sorrow took its place. Stanley watched as the new soul left its mother''s side only moments after being born. It was carried away by others of its kind and whisked quickly... outside. To the humans. A bat that was as large as a full-grown human landed clumsily on Stanley''s dirt platform before crawling toward him. Caffeine immediately went to investigate, only for the bat to open its mouth and reveal another bat nestled within its jaws. A bat barely the size of Stanley''s palm. Caffeine sniffed curiously at it, and the tiny creature studied him in return, surprisingly calm and equally curious about the pug. Then it crawled from the larger bat''s mouth, over Caffeine''s face, and then onto his head with tiny little squeaking noises. Caffeine loved it, of course, and he trotted proudly back to the humans with his new accessory clinging to his head. The tamed bat chirped from where it was cradled in its human''s arms, and the boy looked at Lucy excitedly. "He''s said she''s his sister! And he said, She''s for you to bond..." "Sister..." Lucy''s eyes were already sparkling as she stared at the definitively adorable little bat, and they went wide when she heard what he said. "For me?" The crow had remained surprisingly silent and still throughout everything so far, but it chose that moment to pop onto Caffeine''s back for an up-close look at the baby bat on the pug''s head. The little bat didn''t mind the scrutiny and only looked back with equal curiosity, but its brother screeched angrily from the boy''s arms. "Caw!" the crow squawked back, which only set the bat chirping and scrambling angrily from the boy''s arms. At least until Caffeine sat down with a whine. The bat settled down instantly, while the crow almost tumbled off his back before teleporting back to Stanley''s shoulder with an annoyed, "Caw!" Lucy ignored all of that and reached both hands tentatively toward the bat on Caffeine''s head. "Is it really okay if I tame you?" It squeaked and crawled into her cupped hands as her soul lit up with delight. "I can understand you!" She gently hugged the little thing close before thrusting it back toward Caffeine. "Isn''t she adorable, Caff!?" Strangely, their souls didn''t link together. Not like... Caffeine licked them both with a wagging tail and the girl gasped. "You want to soul bond with me? Of course!" Stanley watched her soul link with the bat and then he just stared at the happily panting pug while the two kids chattered back and forth obliviously. The first time, he hadn''t been sure, but now he was. Caffeine had done that. Somehow. What did you do, Caff? And why? He looked back into the lair at the queen, and she was... happy. Diminished, but happy. What the hell was going on here? 158. Side Effects ~~~Stanley~~~ Why are you so happy? Stanley thought while he studied the bat queen''s diminished soul through the lair wall. She''d basically given her children away to humans¡ªtwo of them¡ªat a major personal cost to her, and that made her happy. But why? What did she gain? Was it for protection? Was she afraid that someone like Stanley might wipe her out and so she was looking for allies... or friends? What was it the bat had said to the boy? Something about friends, right? He didn''t have to look to know that the kids and their new soul-bonded companions were all as happy as the queen, if not more so. All four of them whispered, chirped, squeaked, and laughed, respectively, as they communicated back and forth. From what he picked up, it sounded like the kids could only understand their own bats, even though the bats could talk to each other as well. Likely something to do with the original taming ability, since Lucy had understood the baby bat before it soul-bonded with her. Stanley also didn''t need to look to feel the mix of impatience, fear, and annoyance from his other passengers. Some of them clearly didn''t enjoy sitting in the sky like this, even though he''d provided a comfortable place for them to sit. It was actually rather peaceful up here, and they had a decent view all the way out to the ocean. Even the bats had stopped swarming and gone back to guarding their lair more closely, leaving the sky to Stanley. As all things should. The lack of birds in the area wasn''t a new development, and Stanley was perfectly fine not seeing pigeons or seagulls. He wasn''t sure if his early days of bird slaughtering had permanently reshaped the local populations or if it was something else, and he didn''t care. The crow was here... though it was strange that there was only ever the single bird. Or was it more than one crow? He never really got any good long looks at its soul... Could it be that there was a whole lair of crows somewhere out there and they were taking turns trolling him? No, Caffeine would notice. Wouldn''t he? Unless... he''d made friends with all of them? Far-fetched, but well within the realm of possibilities for the pug. The bolder passengers behind him were clearly eager to get to the fighting, but no one said anything outright. It didn''t feel like they were too afraid of him to speak up, not exactly. There was definitely some nervous energy, but it felt more like they were willing to let him sit and brood if he wanted to. At least for now. Of course, Martha wasn''t eager. She just felt confused about everything that had happened. Stanley didn''t blame her for that, and he also hadn''t forgotten how she tried to comfort the kids before. Though her caring concern held far less weight when she was literally weaker than the kids she''d wanted to protect. Hell, the baby bat could probably kick her ass... He took a breath and reminded himself that her weakness probably wasn''t her own fault. She would get her chance to prove how much she cared soon enough. Of course, he was only delaying that eventuality by sitting here and wasting time. Well, it wasn''t a complete waste. Stanley canceled his Soul Sight and smiled at the happy pug that was sprawled in his lap to receive some well-deserved belly rubs. Good boy. Whatever you did, however you did it, you¡¯re a good boy. The tower wasn''t far and Stanley had already caught a few glimpses of Daryl''s training program at work from here. It was a new addition that didn''t involve the ants. This one involved most of the nearby hunting groups either luring monsters outside before killing them or dragging them outside after they were dead. There, other groups lured the resulting zombies toward the tower, where the newbies could fight them in a safer environment. They left the bats alone. Probably because they exploded when they died and therefore couldn''t become zombies, but also because the bats would kill any zombies that even got close to their lair. Stanley started moving again and felt a lightening from the souls at his back. It was as if a collective sigh of relief went through them. He wasn''t that bad... and without him, they''d be walking to the tower. Well, maybe a gravity wizard could fly them in? But who wanted to rely on magic when they had something so obviously better? He glanced northwest, toward the wizards'' enclave, and considered if he should give them another visit. Sam''s teleport was magic. They might have a way to block teleportation... but no. Nate knew the deal. He¡¯d find out what they had. There was another minor worry that he was trying not to think about as he flew down the street. Minor for him, but maybe not for... them. The kids. Lucy and... He listened more closely to their happy chattering. Ken? Who the hell names their kid Ken? Whatever. Nate had suggested he could help, and he sort of had. Well, Caffeine had. The question now was how much help they''d actually provided. "Lucy, Ken," he called without turning around. "Can either of you tame another animal?" Stanley knew the answer before they replied, and it was exactly what he''d worried about. Those bats might do well against a few zombies, but they were tiny, with the baby being ridiculously small. How were they going to keep the kids safe? He should''ve gone looking for the bear... Hell, even a wolf would''ve been better than the bats. On the plus side, they might gain the ability to tame more beasts as they leveled. Hopefully. Until then, he might have screwed them over by stopping at the bat lair. Unless... "Did you get any skills from the bats?" "Um... I don''t think so?" Lucy said. "It says we can share health and mana!" Ken added. "That''s... something." If the bats could supplement the kids'' mana pools with their mana drain, then it would still make them more powerful. He''d just have to keep an eye out for some strong and, ideally, ranged skill shards. Or... any of the skills he''d seen Sam use. Those were all plenty powerful... All he had to do was kill her. Stanley put those thoughts out of his mind as he carried his passengers into the small-scale and frankly far too peaceful battlefield that was the entire ground floor of the tower. It was a single massive room past the wide doors, broken up only by scattered pillars. A handful of four and five-man groups fought in the room, each of them with their own little area where they faced off with a lone zombie or ant in a sad little parody of combat. Strangely, the crow vanished an instant before he passed the threshold. Was it because of Walter? Stanley could feel the line where Walter''s soul became ever present... Maybe he really could block teleporting? Also, he really needed to get Daryl and Princess together with the crow, assuming Princess could talk to a bird... Damn it! He should have asked the kids to talk to the crow. What if it knew something about the invaders? His train of thought was interrupted by the group of humans nearest the door who didn''t have a zombie or ant to fight and seemed to be waiting for something to come in. One of them was also an idiot who attacked the moment Stanley flew inside. A weak idiot who tried to punch him. From twenty feet away... Stanley caught the fist coming for his head with his bare hand. It was that weak. Then he stopped and stared at the arm stretching from the man below all the way up to his platform. That was just wrong! He quickly let go of the disgusting limb and wiped his hand on his pants. Stanley also dropped the dirt platform, and some of it may have accidentally rained down on the man as he passed overhead... He carried his passengers to the glowing crowd at the center of the room. A crowd of Daryls and Princesses were all standing around a massive bonfire that burned without fuel on the bare cement floor. "Got some new recruits for you, Daryl." Daryl''s gaze immediately landed on the two kids, and Stanley wasn''t sure if he was more upset about their age or the bats on their shoulders that were eyeing his copies hungrily. "What are those doing in... No, don''t tell me. They tamed the bats?" "We soul bonded them!" Ken exclaimed right as both bats stopped staring hungrily and launched themselves at the nearest copy of Daryl. They immediately destroyed the illusion by inhaling the magic, only to slam to a halt when the real Daryl grabbed one in each hand. The larger bat he took around the throat, and the smaller one almost vanished inside his grasping fist. He squeezed until the blue glow vanished from their mouths and both bonded children cried out in a mix of pain and shock. "Ow!" "You''re hurting her!" Daryl let up his grip but didn''t release the creatures. Instead, he glared at them. "What were you thinking?" he asked both animals and children while stalking closer. He held up the captive bats, both of them squeaking angrily at him. "Rule one of a bond class is that you protect your bond! Always! Is that clear!?" Both kids wilted before him, but they nodded in agreement. "Yes, sir." "Good." Daryl let the angry and frightened bats crawl back onto their bonded humans. "I''m in charge here," Daryl continued, now addressing the whole group of newbies. "You follow my orders, or you don''t get to fight. If any of you have an issue with that, then there''s the..." His gaze stopped roving over the small crowd when it landed on Martha, and he turned to Stanley. "Where did you find F-grades?" "That''s Martha, and there are thousands more where she came from." Stanley shook his head with a fresh twinge of bitterness at the memory. "Want me to grab some cores for them?" Daryl shook his head with a thoughtful feeling in his soul. "No. In fact, I think she should stay in F-grade for a while." "Why?" Was he punishing her? Instead of answering, Daryl turned to Martha. "I''m assuming you aren''t a combat class?" "N... no." "Now, I can''t say for sure, but you''ll probably get a better E-grade evolution if we first get you some levels in whatever combat skill you wind up learning." "I... if you think that''s the best way..." "Are you good, then?" Stanley interrupted. "If you don''t need any cores, I''m gonna head to my room and..." "Actually," Daryl said. "I have another idea I want to try. Can you give me a sec before you go?" Stanley knew Daryl wasn''t his biggest fan; his soul betrayed that much every time they met, but Daryl had helped him when he needed it most. Between him, Adrian, and Walter, they had sheltered and protected him at his weakest. Not to mention everything they''d done for him since. Daryl had earned plenty of leeway. "Sure, I''ll wait." "Walter," Daryl said to the empty air. "How are we doing on boar spears?" "Only two remain, sir," Walter said, appearing without warning. "Shall I request additional constructions?" He held a spear in each hand, both with a large crossguard below the spearhead, and the weapons looked like they were all one solid piece of... bone? All the newcomers flinched away from the butler with varying degrees of surprise, but Daryl took the spears. "Don''t bother, Walter. Keep him working on the armor. I''ll graduate a few of the others and spread their spears around." "Very good, sir," Walter said, vanishing once again. Daryl held the spears out to the kids as two copies of himself appeared behind them. One copy said, "Take these over there, and do what I show you until I tell you to stop." They both flinched, wide-eyed at seeing more copies of him behind them. They also looked disappointedly at the empty corner he''d directed them toward before glancing longingly toward the actual monsters. It was obvious they wanted to leap right into the fighting, and it was equally obvious they weren''t ready. Stanley watched as Daryl talked to the kids and took them through some stabbing maneuvers while also talking to the rest of the group. It was an impressive ability if he could hold two separate conversations at the same time... It also looked like he was keeping a close eye on every fighting group down here. Or was Princess helping him pull it off? Her soul felt very focused, and her gaze never stopped moving around the room. "If you do something stupid and get hurt," the real Daryl said, eyeing each of them one at a time before pointing at the bonfire. "This is where you come. This is phoenix fire, and it will heal you." The skepticism felt stronger than it should have. They were living in a magical world, about to learn how to fight against monsters, and they thought fire couldn''t heal? Daryl seemed to expect the reaction because he pulled a knife and grinned evilly. "So, who wants to try it first?" No one volunteered, and Stanley was a heartbeat from helping things along when he hesitated. He drifted closer and held out a hand instead of taking off someone else''s. "You can..." Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. "Not you," Daryl said immediately, with a touch of fear in his soul. Unfounded fear. He''d volunteered, and the man was still afraid of him!? Did he think Stanley was that much of a... "Fine, I''ll go first," Daryl said quickly before Stanley could do or say anything and he dragged the knife across his palm. Except he didn''t. Stanley was close enough for his domain to touch the man, and he saw the knife completely miss his hand. Even the blood that welled up wasn''t real... Then Daryl stuck his hand into the fire. Flames licked at the fake wound with a sizzling hiss, but instead of burning him, the flames appeared to burn away the wound and leave unblemished flesh behind. The bonfire also shrank to less than half its original size in the process. Daryl pulled his hand out and let them all get a good look. "Each of you is going to do the same." He pointed the knife at one man, who took a worried step back. "I won''t have any of you dying on me because you''re afraid of the fire. Come. This is your first order." No one stepped forward. A bunch of fucking cowards that were afraid of a little... "Y¡ªyes, sir." Martha took a step closer and held out a trembling hand. Daryl smiled and took her hand gently. She stared at the blade with wide eyes but didn''t pull her hand away even as it approached her flesh. "Look at me," Daryl said, and then flicked the blade across her palm when she met his gaze. He''d actually cut her, unlike what he did to himself. She flinched, but still didn''t pull away. "Good. Now put in the flames." She did as instructed, even though her fear climbed higher the closer her hand got to the fire. Then the fear faded and awe replaced it as her hand healed almost instantly. "See? Not so..." Daryl twitched at the same time that Stanley felt Walter''s soul appear briefly on the far side of the floor and disappear again. Then Daryl''s voice echoed from the same location. "What the hell was that!? Are you trying to die!?" More voices sounded as someone replied, but the Daryl in front of Stanley talked over them as he pointed at another newbie. "Your turn." "We all saw it already. Why do we..." "This is your first order," Daryl interrupted, his smile long gone. "If you won''t do what I say, then you''re done. I won''t have your blood on my hands!" From the tone of his voice and the feeling in his soul, it sounded like he was speaking from experience. An experience that still haunted him... "I''m not carrying any of you back if you''re too chickenshit to do this," Stanley said, his voice a low growl. "In fact, if you refuse, I''ll cut off your fucking hands and let you heal from..." "Thanks," Daryl said dryly. "But I''d rather you didn''t make me waste that much mana. This fire isn''t free, you know?" As he spoke, golden flames bloomed in his hand. Then he tossed those flames into the bonfire, expanding it back to a much more impressive size. Whether it was his threat or Daryl''s, no one else protested as each one of them took turns bleeding and healing. Martha''s daughter even walked fully inside the flames, much to her mother''s alarm. "Jean!" "Relax," Daryl said, catching her arm and then dragging the smiling girl from the flames with his other hand. "And stop wasting time." "I want to try the fire, too!" Stanley turned and saw Ken facing off with Daryl''s copy while he and Lucy looked longingly toward the flames. "No," the copy said. "I suspect you two and your companions are more likely to eat the magic than to get healed by it. Also, I want to see if you can heal by draining mana from a zombie." They both liked that idea and leapt at the chance, obviously already tired of the spear practice. "Can we..." Daryl shot down their dreams. "You won''t get near a zombie until you prove to me you can hold it back with those spears." Meanwhile, the real Daryl had the others tell him their skills and classes, after which he sent them to join the kids. "I''ll have a few more spears soon enough. For now, you''ll take turns." He only kept Martha back and started pulling out skill shards for her to look over. "Don''t accept anything, but look at the adaptability cost of adapting yourself to each one. That will give us the best idea of where your strongest affinity..." "Daryl?" Stanley finally interrupted. This sounded like it was going to take a while. "You wanted to talk? I can come back later." He''d done his part already and he could work on his soul wound, if nothing else. "Check them," Daryl said, handing Martha the entire bag. Then he stepped away and stopped beside Stanley. He spared a small smile and a head scratch for Caffeine before finally meeting his gaze. "Stanley, I want... Could you do your... thing down here? Instead of in the room, I mean." Stanley frowned. "My thing? You mean the soul repair?" "Yeah, if you don''t mind..." "I can''t shield while I work," Stanley said while eyeing the surrounding weaklings dubiously. "Even if the wound has gotten better than it used to be, it''s still going to be unpleasant for... or is that what you want? You want to make it harder for them to..." He paused at what Daryl''s soul was telling him. "No, you want to unlock their soul attributes, don''t you?" Daryl nodded. "We''ve had some time now, enough that we''re almost certain that having it unlocked makes a very real difference in what evolutions people will get offered." "You want this?" Stanley dropped his Soul Shield and felt the dozens of flinches echo back to him from everyone in the room at the same time as it felt like he''d turned up the volume on all of their souls. It was annoying. "You know there''s no guarantee it will unlock anyone''s soul?" "I know," Daryl said hesitantly. "I also know you like to be alone, but if it works... this could change..." "It''d probably be more effective if I just glare at them with soul sight turned all the way up..." Stanley did just that, funneling soul energy into his eyes until they started burning. Daryl flinched back and held up a hand. "I know! But... please don''t." "Isn''t it better to just get it over with rather than a long, drawn-out torture!?" Stanley canceled the skill with only a little bitterness about his fucked-up soul. Hell, it might even be his fucked soul that was responsible for unlocking other people¡¯s attributes. They should be grateful. "Actually," Daryl said with a wince. "The slow way might be better. It''s at least worth a shot, I think. Your method works, but..." He looked away. "Some people have had... lingering side effects to the... more violent exposures." Side effects? "Who?" Stanley demanded. "Was it Zeke!?" That might explain why Eve hated him so much? Zeke hadn''t said anything... and why wouldn''t Eve just tell him if that was the case? "Who was it? Tell me!?" "Woah!" Daryl said while taking a half step back. "I don''t know anything about Zeke. It was... Look, don''t worry about it. They''re stronger for it and have nothing to complain about, but if we can get the same result another way..." Stanley looked down and met the big brown eyes staring up at him. He took a deep, cleansing breath. "Fine," he said without taking his gaze from Caffeine''s. "I can work down here. Any spot in particular that you want me to sit?" "Here''s fine," Daryl said softly. "And... thanks." "Don''t thank me," Stanley said as a smile crept onto his face. "Thank Princess." "Princess?" Daryl said. "What does she..." Daryl''s voice vanished when Stanley dropped into his meditation and got to work. Between his meditation and the focus of working on the wound, it didn''t take long for him to calm down. Which had the expected result, and he felt Caffeine''s excitement rising in step with his own cooling mood. Then the pug vanished from his lap and shot toward the suddenly alarmed fox like a furry missile. You asked for it. Stanley focused on the happy pug and reluctant fox in an attempt to ignore all the other souls. It worked somewhat, and he felt Caffeine sprint outside of the building a short time later. Then come back. Then run out again. Back and forth, Caffeine ran, and he loved every second of it. He wasn''t sure how much time had passed, but Caffeine suddenly stopped enjoying himself somewhere outside. Instead, Caffeine got angry. Furious! Stanley let the emotion drag him out of the calm darkness. He let it empower him. Then he moved. Whatever had made Caffeine upset would die. ~~~Caffeine~~~ "Fire Dog!" Caffeine barked. "Chase!" "That is not my name! I am Princess!" Fire Dog always said that, even though she was always on fire! "Besides, you can''t play here. Daryl is teaching..." Caffeine dropped lower, his legs ready to run very fast, and barked again. "Chase!" "Ugh. Fine." Fire Dog said the thing she always said before chasing. Then she turned into a bunch of Not Fire Dogs, and Caffeine ran! The new Not Fire Dogs didn''t smell exactly the same, and they turned into sparkles if he crashed into them, but they were very good chasers! The Not Fire Dogs chased him outside the big house, and Caffeine had to run his fastest to stay ahead of them. Until they all disappeared! They always did that if he ran too far and too fast. So he ran back, and more Not Fire Dogs ran out of the tall house before he got inside! Caffeine had to swerve very hard to not get caught! Twice! Then he was running away while the Not Fire Dogs tried to bite him. They always did that. Just like Fire Dog always did! It made the chasing more fun! Caffeine wasn''t sure how many times he ran back and forth, but it didn''t matter. Dearest Human didn''t try to sneak away and only did his very hard thinking inside the house. Which meant Caffeine could play chase as long as he wanted! It would have been even more fun if his other Friends were here. Also, the outside here was a little stinky. But it was okay. He still got to see some of his Friends while playing! "Hi, Caff!" Cold Rock Human called him while he was running around another tall house, and Caffeine ran to see her when the Not Fire Dogs disappeared again. She was a good human, and she never got upset when he chewed on her cold rocks. They were very cold and very crunchy! The best for chewing! He found even more Friends in the big house with Cold Rock! Caffeine gave them all very good hello sniffs and some licks as well. He said hello to Stick Thrower with her Very Much Not For Chewing Stick. Then he licked Strange Light, who sometimes made things unchewable with his lights. He was a good Not Dearest Human, but his lights were not good. Strange Light did give the best ear scratches, though. Almost as good as Dearest Human! "Stanley must be at the tower," Strange Light said something while smelling like laughing. "This is my chance to go make him mad at me!" "Shut up, Sven." Stick Thrower hit Strange Light with her Not For Chewing Stick. "I never should have told you about that!" But it was a gentle hit, and she only smelled a little like upset while mostly like friendly. "I''m glad you told us, Kira." Cold Rock gave Stick Thrower a snuggle. "Though I''m not sure if it made me more or less afraid of him..." She smelled a little afraid, so Caffeine gave her some extra licks to feel better and barked some of the magic words, too. "You are a Good Boy, Cold Rock!" "I know, Caff. You are a good boy, so Stanley can''t be that bad, can he?" She said the magic words too! She really was the best human! "Good boy!" Caffeine barked and then ran in an excited circle around his best friends! "Here, Caff," Stick Thrower said his name and held up a different stick. A For Throwing Stick! "I know what you want. You want the stick, right?" Caffeine stood very still and very ready as he watched the stick move back. Then it flew very fast, and he ran! Stick Thrower was the best at throwing sticks! She could throw them very far! He tried to bring the stick back for more throwing, but only chewed up little sticks fell out of his mouth when he dropped it in front of Stick Thrower. Caffeine whined sadly. It was so hard not to chew on a good stick... "Aw, do you want some ice cubes, Caff?" Cold Rock said something. "Look, I can make them bigger now!" Cold Rock was the best human because she made him a cold stick to chew on and it was the best kind of cold and crunchy! Caffeine followed his Friends as they walked between the big houses. They were nice and made all the Stinky Not Humans stop being alive whenever they came out. It was very nice because Caffeine didn''t have to bite the Stinky Not Humans. They tasted very bad! He didn''t follow them when they went inside a big house because another Friend came to play with him. Here There! "Caffeine!" Here There said Caffeine''s name when he appeared, and Caffeine chased him with a friendly bark. "Here There!" He was the very best at playing chase because he was the very best at not getting caught! Every time Caffeine thought he would catch him, Here There would suddenly be somewhere else. He was also the very best at catching, because Here There could be suddenly here! They played chase for a long time in and around all the big houses. It was the best chasing ever! Caffeine ran and ran so fast! He never stopped until Here There suddenly had a big piece of Chicken! Then Caffeine immediately stopped and did his very best sitting in front of Here There. "Are you hungry, Caff?" Here There said something about Hungry! Caffeine knew that word! Hungry was a good word! It meant eating time! "Hungry!" Caffeine barked, and Here There was a Best Human because he shared the Chicken! Chicken was the best, and Here There gave him so many good bites! Caffeine stopped eating when he suddenly smelled the VERY BAD Stinky Not Humans. He looked quickly and saw it hiding on top of a big house while watching them eat. It was after his Chicken! Or even worse, it was after Here There! "I won''t let you hurt him!" Caffeine growled at it and jumped his hardest and angriest jump. The BAD Stinky Not Humans tasted terrible, but he would still bite it! He would bite it over and over until it stopped being alive! Unfortunately, the BAD Stinky Not Human became not there before he could bite it... and then Dearest Human was outside with him! "What is... how the hell did you get all the way up here, Caff?" Dearest Human smelled like angry and upset as he looked around with his extra Dearest Human eyes, so Caffeine jumped into his lap and woofed his best comforting woof. "I won''t let the BAD Not Human hurt you!" He barked and then threw in some of the magic words, too. Those always made him feel better. "You are a Good Boy, Dearest Human!" Here There became suddenly here, and Dearest Human smelled like frightened when he appeared, but not for very long. Instead, he sighed and gave Caffeine some ear scratches while saying something to Here There. "Sorry, Adam. I''m not mad at you. You just startled me, and... What are you doing way out here? Did something attack you? Is that why Caff was upset?" Caffeine gave Dearest Human another lick before jumping down to comfort Here There. He knew Dearest Human didn''t mean to make him upset, but Here There still sometimes got upset when Dearest Human or even Not Dearest Humans talked to him. "You are a Good Boy too, Here There!" Caffeine barked, and Here There smelled like happy again. "I really wish you could talk, Adam. But it''s fine. He really enjoys playing with you, and that''s enough." Dearest Human was a little happy when he said something, but he was also still a little upset as he looked around. He must have seen the BAD Stinky Not Human. That was a good reason to be upset. "God damn it!" Dearest Human suddenly said an angry thing that he''d said a lot of times back in the rumbly place. "I forgot to ask Daryl if he can talk to birds... and I''m an idiot." Dearest Human shook his head and looked at Caffeine. "Wanna go find Adrian with me, or do you want to keep playing with Adam?" Caffeine didn''t know what Dearest Human was saying, but he smelled happy again. That was good, so Caffeine barked his agreement, "Yes!" 159. Brave New World ~~~Lee~~~ "I did it!" Gabriel exclaimed, and Lee flinched at the sudden noise in the previously quiet room. It shouldn''t have surprised him. Mana Mind told him everything that happened within its domain. Unfortunately, he was still vulnerable to distraction, and his current distraction was especially strong. Despite the surprise, Lee forced himself to smile at the excited boy. "Good job." He looked more closely at Gabriel''s rune¡ªparticularly at the plate that was now twitching in his hands¡ªand his smile turned genuine. "Very good! You ready to test it?" "Yes!" Gabriel set the plate on its edge against the floor and let go. The plate immediately started rolling across the floor. At least until it ran into the wall and fell over. Even then, it still twitched and scrapped as it turned in a slow, grinding rotation. Gabriel had created a self-powered wheel. Sort of. "It works!" Gabriel said, practically screaming in excitement as he scrambled over to pick up the plate. "And look, the rune is stable!" The rune was indeed stable, and it was also a rune that Lee never would have tried to make, let alone even thought of trying. "What''s your plan for a control method to turn it on and off?" Gabriel''s enthusiasm waned, but not for long. "I think I can add it on right here! If I bend this line into a wider..." Lee smiled and nodded in all the right places, but his gaze kept drifting back to the pile of dirt in one corner of the small room. He''d finally succeeded in getting Three to handle the dirt compression and subsequent creation of new, stronger stone. The problem was that the pile of dirt had stopped shrinking yesterday, and he didn''t know why. Three, Lee directed his thoughts toward the building and what he wanted it to do. The dirt. The dirt shifted almost immediately and resumed slowly compressing itself. So it was fine. Except he''d never told it to stop before. Had he? He didn''t remember giving that order. Maybe in his sleep? Could he do that? Three, stop. The dirt went still. "What''s wrong, Uncle Lee?" "Nothing," Lee said quickly, forcing a smile back onto his face and pulling his gaze back to Gabriel. "But you''re worried..." Gabriel glanced at the dirt pile. "Is it because I stepped in the dirt? I swept it back..." His damn leaking soul. "No, Gabe. It''s not you, it''s..." Lee trailed off. He didn''t want to worry the kid about something so far outside of his control, especially when he wasn''t even sure himself what was happening. "I''m just thinking about something." "I can help!" He was a good kid. Too good for this shitty world he was stuck in. "Use the pen to work out the control rune, okay? I''m going to... take a walk." Lee stood and looked down at the boy. "You know the rules..." "I know," Gabriel said glumly. "I won''t make any runes while you''re gone." Lee slipped out the door quickly before he infected the child with any more of his fear and saw Gabriel grab the pen a heartbeat later. It would keep him busy for a bit, and he''d probably forget all about whatever he''d sensed from Lee''s soul. Gabriel''s enthusiasm for all things rune hadn''t waned following his apprenticeship. If anything, it had only gotten stronger. Amy was waiting for him outside the room. "What is it?" she asked, her posture tense, with one hand on her sword and her gaze roaming over the garage interior. "Is something coming?" Of course she would notice. "I''m... not sure," Lee said, then amended his statement. "Nothing is coming. That I know of, but..." "But you''re worried about something?" Lee nodded. "Have you noticed if..." There was no reason not to share. Amy had a strange connection to him, and he probably wouldn''t be able to hide his anxiety from her even if he tried. "Does Three seem any more sluggish than usual?" She frowned, then shrugged. "You would know better than me, but the doors still open and close themselves. I... could the upgrades be causing a problem?" "No..." Lee could see all of Three in his Mana Mind. It still shone brightly with both the source and his soul, including the newly improved and reinforced areas, but... was it dimmer than before? It was hard to tell with how bright it always was. Would he even notice if it dimmed? "At least, I don''t think so." "We''re almost due for another invasion," Amy said, pointing out the glaringly obvious. "Why do you think I''m worried!?" Lee snapped, then closed his eyes and took a breath before apologizing. "Sorry. I just... it feels like we''re under attack." She didn''t like that idea. Her sword came halfway out of its sheath, and Lee could almost feel the heat of her gaze as it swept past him on a never-ending scan of their surroundings. "The problem is that I can see all of Three, and there''s nothing wrong. I can''t even see any damage. It''s just getting... it feels like it''s getting weaker, and I don''t know why." Amy dropped her sword back into its sheath and smiled at him as her worry drained away. "Don''t worry. I''m sure you''ll figure it out, and I''ll be here if you need any help along the way." Lee gaped at her sudden shift in attitude. She really believed it. "You have way too much faith in me. I''m only human." "Don''t be like that," Amy said while bumping her shoulder into his. "You''ve been through worse and always pulled it off. Just don''t forget that you''re not alone in this." "I know," Lee said with a sigh. But other people couldn''t help with this. They didn''t know anything about the magic he was dealing with. Hell, Lee himself barely understood what he was working with here. Three was far and beyond anything else he''d seen to date. Worse, everyone was counting on Three to protect them and their families. If Lee made a mistake and let them down... "It might feel like it to you," Amy said. "But everything doesn''t rest on your shoulders alone, Lee." She was too perceptive... and she was wrong. "Except it does! Everyone is expecting me to..." Amy interrupted him with a scoff. "Don''t get too full of yourself just cause I have a little faith in you. You''re still only one man. I mean, Three is great and all, but don''t forget that you also have an army at your back. The rest of us aren''t a bunch of helpless sheep that require your protection!" "But..." Amy put a hand on his shoulder and shook him. "But nothing." Then she smiled. "You got this. I know you do. Now, it''s almost lunchtime, and you''ll probably figure this out better on a full stomach. So how about it?" "I''m not really..." Lee sighed at the confidence he could feel in her soul¡ªunfounded confidence. "Fine, let''s eat." Jamaal was hard at work preparing lunch for the kids who were studying right outside his home turned restaurant. He still lit up with a smile when Lee walked in. "My friend! Come in, sit! Will you dine in today, or is this to go?" Lee opened his mouth, but Amy spoke first. "We''ll eat in. And make him something different today, Jamaal. He can''t eat breakfast burritos his whole life!" "I can," Lee grumbled as he dropped into a seat at the table. "But it''s fine. I''ll try something else." "Excellent!" Jamaal exclaimed, and with a gleam in his eyes that Lee wasn''t sure if he should be worried about or not. "I have some new recipes you will enjoy. I promise!" "I''m ready," Amy said while taking her own seat. "Knock our socks off." Jamaal went to work. Well, he went back to work. He already had over a dozen different things cooking in various pots, pans, and on grill tops, but he fired up a few more of Lee''s heating runes and started pulling more ingredients from the coolers. Streams of mana shot from him constantly, though Lee couldn''t tell exactly what each one did when it hit the food. "What if there''s a leak somewhere?" Amy asked while they watched the man cook. "A slow leak." "I would see it," Lee replied. "A really small one. Maybe in the foundation or underground somewhere. Bradley could..." "I would see it," Lee said again. "I literally couldn''t avoid seeing it if it was there." "Hmm. Okay. Then what about all the mana everyone gets from Three? Maybe they''re using too much?" "That''s..." Lee studied what his Mana Mind could see and then shook his head. "It''s a drop in the bucket. I alone use more mana than everyone else in here." "We can take a walk around the building after lunch. Maybe you''ll spot something." "I can already see everything!" "Yeah, yeah. You can see mana, but maybe looking at it with your own eyes will make a difference." "I... might as well." Lee highly doubted that his eyes would ever pick up more than Mana Mind, but it wouldn''t hurt and he had to do something. Especially with a feeling of impending doom that he wasn''t sure was coming from his worry about Three or his fear of what the next invasion might bring. They''d come out of the last invasion with no casualties or even serious injuries, though he suspected Saira was wholly responsible for that last part. Well, technically, Z had come back a bit worse for wear, but Lee didn''t care about that. What he cared about was that the alien had fought against what he said was a peak D-grade... Z was incredibly powerful compared to anyone else here, and for him to come back so injured... Lee needed Three to be at its strongest next time. They couldn''t afford anything less. Lee glanced at his fort''s status, and his attention slid to their updated resource. Blood-Iron Mine. Their reward for going out and fighting the invaders. He wasn''t sure if it had been worth the risk after seeing Z''s condition, but May was absolutely thrilled when they brought back the first pieces of the red-tinted metal. She''d gone on a crafting bender that lasted... well, she was still at it right now, but at least she''d finally started taking naps. Her new creations were all a step above the older equipment, and that was undeniably a great thing. Lee had so far resisted the urge to demand a new set of armor for Alejandro¡ªthe runes on his old one would keep him safe for now¡ªand settled on enchanting a new sword for Z. The alien claimed that between the higher-tier metal and the runes, he would fare much better against another peak D-grade. Of course, there had been another major benefit from risking battle with those D-grades. They all dropped D-grade cores, and Lee currently had one of them in his pocket. [Skill Shard](D-grade) Limit Break (Epic) Go even further beyond. Allows the user to transcend the limits of their power, but not without cost. While active, the skill will drain mana, stamina, and health. The rate of drain is dependent on skill level and how far the user pushes beyond their limits. When deactivated, the user will receive a backlash to all attributes for a duration ten times longer than the skill was active. The further the user pushes beyond their limits, the greater the backlash when the skill ends. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Higher skill levels may alter these effects. Skill Level Effects (Novice): +1% All Effective Attributes Requirements: Mana Core/Channels [Requirement Not Met][N/A][Adaptable] Adapting to this Skill will require 50% Adaptation and may alter your Class. Adapting this Skill to your Class will require 1% Adaptation but may drastically alter the Skill. Adapt Yourself and Learn Skill: Y/N? Learn Adapted Skill: Y/N? Consume and Destroy Skill Shard to gain +100 All Base Attributes: Y/N? Bradley and Alejandro were at the top of the list to take those cores when they got close enough to evolve. Bradley might even get there today... Unfortunately, the attributes the core offered went down the closer anyone got to D-grade. Plus, this one was probably worth far more as a skill... it was just a matter of deciding who would learn it. Saira was another obvious choice, both for the skill and evolution, but she''d refused to evolve until after her baby was born. A choice that Z had backed up. It wasn''t necessarily bad, but he also agreed there was a small risk of... side effects. Lee supported her choice, and he would do whatever was necessary to ensure her safety until she was ready. Which brought him back to Three and the vague feeling that something was wrong. Very wrong. While he ruminated, Lee kept watch on Gabriel in the garage. So he knew when the boy finished drawing and came looking for him. "Gabriel''s coming too, Jamaal. You mind fixing something for him?" Jamaal smiled as he set three steaming plates on the table. "I expected as much and have prepared his favorite." It was mac and cheese. Most of the kids loved the stuff, and Lee couldn''t blame them. It just wasn''t as good as a breakfast burrito. Still, the fact they had pasta at all was fantastic. It, among other things, like cheese, was a benefit of having so many non-combat residents in the fort. Luxuries. Lee only hoped that they didn''t end up paying a toll in human life for those luxuries later... "I got it, Uncle Lee!" Gabriel said immediately upon entering and while holding up his plate for inspection. "Can I make it now!?" Lee pushed out a chair in front of the steaming plate of mac and cheese. "Eat first while I look at it. We won''t be making any runes in Jamaal''s home, right?" Gabriel deflated, then went after his food as if trying to set a world record for the fastest person to eat a plate of mac and cheese. Lee looked over the proposed rune while he did that. "I checked it over and over!" Gabriel said between bites. "It won''t explode!" "It looks good," Lee agreed. "So, assuming it works, then what''s the next step?" Gabriel froze with the fork halfway to his mouth. "Umm..." He thought about for a few more, much slower, bites. "Oh, make it faster?" Lee smiled and nodded. "Yep. It will need to be a lot stronger if you want it to roll while carrying some weight. Also, you might need more than an on-off switch. Like, say, a way to speed up or slow it down?" "Oh." Gabriel stopped eating and then only moved the food around on his plate. "I forgot about that. I can adjust the switch..." He said it while he stared longingly at the plate in Lee''s hands. Lee chuckled as he slid it over. "Here. You can think about it while you eat." Then he could no longer ignore the man looming beside the table and Lee looked down at his own food dubiously. It was very red and smelled... spicy, among other things. Amy was already going to town on her meal, and she grinned at him with a sinister expression. Though he knew she was enjoying it. Buff Gained: [Devil Sauce] He''d expected that much, but the flavor that exploded in his mouth was... intense and complex. It was delicious, no doubt about it, and Lee cleaned his plate only a little behind Amy. Of course, by then he could see Jamaal still watching him out of the corner of his eye in the kitchen. "It was fantastic, Jamaal," Lee said honestly. "I didn''t know food could taste like that..." Jamaal beamed, even as he said, "Do I hear a but coming?" Lee sighed. "But I still like your breakfast burrito better." He glanced at the aghast Amy beside him. "What? It''s a perfect food with all the right flavors!" "Don''t listen to this Luddite," Amy said, rolling her eyes. "That was the best thing I''ve ever tasted!" Jamaal laughed. "Thank you both, and there is nothing wrong with someone knowing what they like. Food is meant to bring pleasure! So one should always eat whatever they enjoy most!" Gabriel was long done with his food and completely ignored everyone else as he worked on editing his rune design. Lee had to give him a shake before he even noticed they were leaving. "I''m going to walk around a bit. Just head to the garage when you think it''s ready, and I''ll meet you there." "Okay!" Lee was smiling as he left. He couldn''t imagine having a better apprentice, and half the time, it felt like he was learning as much from Gabriel as he taught him. Or more. The kid was a total natural, and Lee had a feeling that he didn''t even need a teacher. So long as he could avoid blowing himself up in his eagerness, Gabriel might very well figure it all out on his own. His smile faded as he paced through the building and looked for... well, anything. It all looked fine, but he couldn''t stop the feeling that something was wrong. Very wrong. Three was struggling. He couldn''t see it, but he could feel it. "God damn it!" Lee exclaimed when his circuit throughout the building ended back where he''d started, with no answers. "Why can''t I find it!?" "Well," Amy said. "And no offense here, but is it possible that you''re just being paranoid and jumping at shadows? We''ve all been through... why are you looking at me like that?" Lee only stared at her as a chill crawled up his spine. Finally, he asked, "Shadows?" "It''s nothing. I''m just saying that our lives can be stressful, and..." "Amy," Lee interrupted. "I gave Three the Shadowstride ability!" How had he forgotten about that? What if they were under attack from the shadows right now, but Three was fighting it off? Alone. "You gave it to... Three? You can do that!?" He probably should have told her about that. He''d told Alejandro... he also hadn''t been as diligent as he should have been in trying to give more skills to the building. Not that he''d seen any results from the first skill... until now. "Three, take us into the..." Lee froze and sent frantic thoughts toward the building to cancel his request. Either way, nothing happened, and he looked toward the courtyard full of children with a sick feeling in his stomach. "Three," he whispered. "Can you take only me and Amy into the shadows? Only us, no one..." "What!?" Amy exclaimed, drawing her sword. "Wait!" She was worried about nothing because they didn''t go anywhere. But something still happened... Lee turned and stared up at his apartment, where the front door had just opened. "Come on, Amy!" Amy didn''t come on, and instead she latched onto him and kept him from going anywhere. "Absolutely not! You don''t know what we''ll face in there!" "It''s the only explanation!" Lee growled, tugging uselessly against her grip. Why was she so damn strong!? "I didn''t say we weren''t going," Amy said. "But we damn sure aren''t going alone! You have an army, remember!?" That was a fair point. "Go get whoever you need. I''ll..." "You''ll wait!" Amy glanced up at his apartment and then tightened her grip. "Those shadow creatures..." Her soul trembled, and Lee remembered all too well how her fight had gone that night. "We need the best for this. Alejandro, Bradley, Z... maybe even Saira. We can even wait for Bradley to hit D-grade. Last I heard he was..." "Three is under attack!" Lee hissed, well aware of all the people who might overhear him. "We can''t wait any..." Amy shook him slightly with her grip on his arm. "You said this started yesterday. We can wait a few more hours and do this right!" "I..." Lee glanced toward the children again. "You''re right. Okay. Start calling them, and..." He swallowed. "We might want to evacuate Three. Just in case." He had no idea how the skill would work, and if it took the entire building into that darkness... She already had a disc in her free hand before he finished talking, and Lee saw her eyes widen at the last part. "Alejandro," she called into the disc. "We have a... situation." Then she tightened her grip on his arm. "Don''t you dare think of going anywhere without me!" "I won''t," Lee said sincerely and honestly. As much as he wanted to rush to Three''s rescue, he knew what the stakes were. Whatever might be happening over there, it wasn''t over yet. Three was still standing on this side of the shadows. But that would change in an instant if he got himself killed. Amy must have felt his sincerity because she let go of his arm and kept sending out messages. The people who were already in the fort arrived quickly. Namely, Maria and Saira. Lee told them what he suspected while Amy tried to get through to Bradley, and they immediately started the evacuation. "They will be safe under my tree," Saira said as every bit of the fort that Lee could see in his Mana Mind started preparing for war. Lee did the same by creating a few plates and sticking his light runes on them. Not a normal light, but the ones he''d used to defeat the shadows before. They were beyond bright, even in the noonday sun, but not painfully so. Instead, it felt as if someone had turned up the saturation level of reality. Every color was sharper, every line more distinct, and every shadow banished. The lights didn''t care about obstructions and seemed to shine even where there should otherwise be darkness. "Take these." Lee handed all three to Saira. "Just in case." He could make more, and he started on that immediately. He''d only made one more when Z entered the building, coming over the roof at a blinding speed and landing in front of Lee with his sword already bared. "Ready. What is the threat?" Lee explained what he suspected and what he planned to do about it, and Z calmed down considerably as he did, even sheathing his sword and canceling his boost. Then Z tapped Lee''s glowing plates. "Shouldn''t take these. Will be a beacon. More harm than good." "But... that''s how I killed the last one." "Good on this side. Not in the shadows. Been to the shadow before. Always move fast. Stay quiet. Light will harm, but also draw more." He stared down at Lee''s plate as he traced a finger over the rune. "This light too strong. Too pure." There was a touch of awe in his voice, then it turned into fear. "May wake the sleepers." "What..." Lee swallowed nervously. "Is a sleeper?" Z shook his head. "Never seen myself. Would be dead if so. But heard stories from those who have. Leviathans. Dead gods. Mad gods. Sleep in the deep shadow. Wake for blood. Why you never stay long. Never fight, if possible. Spilling blood draws more. Endless. Until you spill enough and wake something worse." "Then how do we fight?" Lee asked, almost pleading, as terrible visions danced through his head of giant monsters pounding Three into rubble. "Shouldn''t fight. But if must fight, do it in the dark." He touched his sword. "Use steel. Kill fast. Keep moving. Shadow is dangerous. Not meant for us." Lee took a deep breath. "So, I guess I''ll need some armor then." Amy and Z followed on his heels as he headed for the garage, but only Z kept talking. "Shouldn''t go. You are a beacon. May draw more attention. I will go with your soldiers. Will protect them." He stopped walking as what Z said sank in. Stay behind? Again? It was bad enough when the monsters came knocking at his front door, but somehow it felt even worse when they didn''t, when he had to watch his friends and family go into danger while he stayed behind. In safety. "No," Lee finally said before continuing down the stairs. "Three hides me on this side, and it can hide me from whatever is over there, too." "Possible," Z said thoughtfully. "You assume building exists in the shadows?" Lee stopped again. That was indeed what he''d assumed. Was he wrong to think that? "Wouldn''t it? I mean, Three is obviously here, but if something''s attacking it from the shadows, then that means it must exist over there as well, right?" He''d seen that flash when he first gave Three the shard... "Unknown. Is madness to build a fortress in the shadow. Doomed. But you are impossible. If fortress gained skill to cross over... I can''t say. But suggest scouting before crossing. I will go. Caution always the correct choice when dealing with shadows." "Deal," Lee said. Z was the most expendable person he had. Well, there were probably some actually useless humans that were more expendable. But Z was the strongest he had that he was willing to sacrifice if necessary. "You''ll go first." That was how he found himself with a crowd of armed and armored warriors in his apartment. A sharp contrast to the emptiness of the surrounding building. Lee didn''t like it. Three wasn¡¯t meant to be empty... "Why in here?" Bradley asked. He was the last of them to arrive, and as of a few minutes prior, the newest and only second D-grade in the fort. He''d also taken the limit break skill... after confirming that humans were so far among the lucky races when he gained another three non-class skill slots. "I think it has to be in here," Lee said. "Either because this is where Three absorbed the skill, or..." He had another theory, but he didn''t want to say it out loud. "It doesn¡¯t matter. Are you ready, Z?" "Ready." Z stood with a bared blade in hand. "In and out. I''ll tell Three to bring you right back. Just make sure the building is still standing." "Understood." "Three," Lee said, using verbal commands only for the benefit of everyone else. "Take Z to the shadow and bring him right back." He didn''t even finish talking before the world flashed with the same negative colors as the first time. When reality reasserted itself, Z was gone. Lee didn''t see how it worked, and not even Mana Mind could tell him what had happened. "Holy shit!" Bradley gasped, along with a few other whispered exclamations. Bring him back. It flashed again, and Z was back. His soul was... well, Lee wasn''t really sure what Z was feeling, aside from a touch of fear and awe. "What did you see!?" "Three stands." Z hesitated slightly. "This room stands." Lee didn''t like the sound of that. It was too much in line with his darker theories. "Is it under attack!?" "Yes. War rages in the shadows." That was enough for Lee, and he looked once more at the people who had volunteered to stand by his side. Aside from the obvious, like Bradley and Alejandro, Martin had also stepped up after leaving his students under Saira''s protection. He wore no armor, but his sword shone with a powerful mana density to nearly rival one of Lee''s runes. Lee was glad to have him, especially considering how the man had shown his abilities in the first shadow fight. That wasn¡¯t mentioning how much stronger he would be now. Jackson was here as well, outwardly stoic, if not inwardly, but ready to fight all the same. He''d brought his whole hunting team along, and Lee swore to remember their names and faces after this was over. Mar was in the room, but she was only seeing Bradley off. She would remain behind with Meathead, where she was strongest, and help watch over the children alongside Saira. The others were all fighters that Lee had seen around but never really interacted with. Some were parents of the children who lived in Three, and almost all of them carried the soul-link. They were heroes who had stepped up to save him in the past, and now they were doing so again. "Everyone ready?" Nods and murmured agreement came back from most. Mar squeezed Bradley''s hand and backed out the door, but no one else followed. "Three, take us in." Reality didn''t change colors this time. It rolled over, flipped upside down, and spit them out into a nightmare. 160. Nightmares Lurk ~~~Lee~~~ Lee found himself still inside Three, but it was a Three from his darkest nightmares¡ªa Three in ruins. Half of the building was just... gone, and what remained was little more than the hollow shell of a somewhere long abandoned. Or the aftermath of a war... The walls had myriad holes throughout. Windows were either broken or missing entirely, and the shattered courtyard was little more than a pit leading down into the garage. In fact, it looked as if his apartment was the only area that remained intact. He saw the full, terrible picture through Mana Mind the moment he arrived, but he also saw something else. Monsters. Both living and dead, inside and out. Everywhere. Lee didn''t realize he was charging for the door until he felt the grip on his arm drag him to a halt. He rounded on the person responsible. "Let me go, Amy! I''ll kill them all! I''ll burn them all right out of..." Alejandro latched onto his other arm. "Easy, Lee. We''re here to help, but why don''t you tell us what you see before we go charging into the dark?" Lee hesitated, blinked, and only then noticed that he could barely make out anyone''s features in the dark apartment. Except it was worse than that. This darkness wasn''t from a lack of light. In this new reality, darkness held an actual, real physical presence. It filled the very air itself, muting, smothering, and cloying. Even the runes shining from armor and weapons still failed to spread their glow through the inky air. Z had told them what to expect, but it was still jarring. Lee couldn''t imagine what it was like for the others, since he at least had Mana Mind to see with. He went so far as to create a plate, then hesitated before sticking a light rune on it, remembering Z''s warning about using any light sources inside the shadow. Instead of creating a light, Lee kept them in the dark. Literally, but not figuratively. He shared what he could see with Mana Mind, relaying what was happening outside, even as what was happening made him want to unleash an inferno on the monsters. Because they were trying to eat Three! A never-ending tide of hungry monsters trickled into Lee''s Mana Mind, drawn in by the veritable carpet of dead that lay strewn across every still-standing surface of Three. They went after the cores first, then the flesh. Lee didn''t care that they were eating the dead. The problem was the few who weren''t content with only flesh and tried to take a bite from the floor. Three killed them when that happened, but each kill left a little more damage in its wake. A few tooth marks here, a piece of jutting rebar there, or even just small cracks in the concrete. Each instance was minor and insignificant, but seeing the totality of destruction left Lee with a sick feeling in his gut. How long had this been going on for the damage to accumulate to such an extent? How long had Three been waging this war all alone? Had this been happening ever since he first gave Three the skill? Ever since he sent Three into the dark... alone? Lee knew he was anthropomorphizing the building. It didn''t have feelings. Three didn''t care that Lee had left it to fight a hopeless war alone, but... Three was his building, damn it! Three had saved his life and the lives of those he cared about, so Lee fucking cared! He would care enough for both of them! "Three must withdraw!" Z said immediately after Lee finished his description of the events happening outside. "We all must withdraw immediately!" The alarm in his soul was enough that Lee sent the order to Three without hesitation. He should have already thought of that himself... Light returned with blinding intensity as reality flipped back into existence around them, and Lee closed his eyes against the glare. Instead, he listened to his soul, or rather, to Three''s soul. Technically the same thing, but still. Unfortunately, he could still feel it. Tiny fluctuations. Except now he knew where to look and what they meant. Three was still under attack, and Lee wasn''t surprised. There''d been a certain feeling that he couldn''t quite put into words, and he felt it even more strongly now. Three wasn''t traveling back and forth between the dimensions. Three had become a bridge. A permanent bridge. Lee wasn''t sure how he knew that, but he knew it was correct. Especially after seeing both ends of the bridge. It was also all his fault. He''d given Three the skill instead of learning it himself. All because he''d been too afraid of the dark... He tried again, ordering the building to comply with every variation of the order he could think of, even though he knew it was hopeless. Was it because Three was a building? Shadowstride. Three couldn''t stride through the shadows. So instead, Three had... straddled them? Alejandro stopped in front of him. "What''s wrong, Lee? Did it work?" Lee shook his head and opened his eyes. "We have to go back. We have to help Three." "Then we will!" Alejandro exclaimed, then glanced around at the others. "You all got a glimpse of what it looks like over there. Anyone want to stay behind?" Despite the fear Lee could feel in some of their souls, no one took the offered escape, and Three took them back into the dark at his request. Z was at the porch windows when reality stopped spinning again, and Lee followed as the alien traced a hand over the glass with confusion in his soul. "What do you see, Z? Is there anything else you can..." Lee trailed off when he got a look outside the building and saw the ocean only a hundred yards away. It was dark and hard to make out details, but it was undeniably the ocean. He blinked, and it was gone, replaced by rolling hills that stretched into the distance. He blinked again, and the wall was gone, leaving him staring out at an abandoned city instead. "What the hell!?" "The shadows shift," Z said beside him. "Can shorten the distance between spaces. But need a skill to control it." "Does that mean if we go out there... we could get lost?" Z took his hand from the glass. "Yes. But fine if we stay close. We are too solid. Prevent the shadow from shifting nearby. But also draw attention." His soul frowned as he touched the window again. "Three is too solid as well." "We have to protect it," Lee said. "Tell me how we can do that. Please." "Surprised it still stands. Should have been destroyed long ago." He was truly surprised, but his soul also felt confused when he crouched to place a hand on the floor. "A fortress in the shadow..." "I won''t abandon Three!" Lee stated as he glared down at the alien. He wasn''t even sure if that was an option... and he had a bad feeling about what would happen if Three got destroyed on this side of reality. Z stood up, his soul shifting from confusion to resolve. "Understood. We must remove the dead. Clean the blood. Scent travels far here. Should have drawn more..." Lee opened his mouth, then had a crazy idea. Three, can you send the dead monsters back across? He felt a flicker of something travel through his senses, and every dead monster inside Three vanished. Even the blood went with them. "Three can send the dead back to our reality. What next?" There were still plenty of dead right outside the bounds of Three, but they were the minority and it would be easy enough to drag them inside. Probably. Though he was glad now that they''d evacuated the building because it was going to be a mess whenever they got back... Z''s mood brightened considerably. "Good. Will make things easier. Can''t retreat. So must defend. You repaired damage on other side. Assume you can do the same here?" "I... think so." Lee looked at Bradley. "Can you still move the earth in here?" It looked like earth mana down there, if a bit... darker. Bradley stared at the floor, and Lee saw his mana zip down to touch the earth below Three. There, it latched on and compressed a small square. "I... think it''ll be fine," Bradley said thoughtfully, then didn''t quite meet Lee''s gaze when he added, "It should be easy... now that I''m in D-grade." He''d been acting that way since his evolution, and Lee thought he knew why. But this wasn''t the time to ask, so he left it alone. "What if we rebuild underground, Z? We could hide Three from..." Fear danced across Z''s soul. "No. Stay here. Stay shallow." "Shallow?" "Told you our realm reflects into shadow. More permanent on our side, more likely to show here. Earth and air reflect too. But not far. Not deep." He gestured vaguely around them. "This is shallowest shadow. Nearest to your world. Brightest. The sleepers lurk above or below. Deeper. Where darkness is stronger." Z looked at Bradley. "Use only earth from the surface. It stops being earth if too deep. Same for the sky." Lee craned his neck to see the sky through the window and he saw only darkness up there. Which prompted another question. "Where''s the light coming from?" "Told you. Shines in from your world." "Works for me," Lee said, drawing his sword. "Let''s get to killing." Three was still taking more damage the longer they stood here talking. Z didn''t move. "You shouldn''t go out there." "We already went over this! Three is still hiding me!" "Three is damaged. You said this was the only secure room." Lee realized where this was going and closed his eyes. "Three made you enter here. May mean the rest is compromised. We rebuild first. Then you come. Do not worry. I will protect your people." "Fuck." Lee couldn''t deny his logic and slumped in resignation. "You better keep them safe, Z. If even one of them..." "I will protect them. It is my purpose." He was sincere, almost desperately so; besides, they also had Bradley. "Okay. I''ll wait in here. That way, I can still keep a lookout if..."Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. "Should not risk opening the door. Not with you here. You are a beacon. Any slip and we all die. Certain of it." Lee cursed silently and took one last, long look at his friends and family, who would have to risk their lives on his behalf again while he ran away and hid in his safe little fortress. He didn''t know what to say... ¡°I¡¯ll tell Three to bring you back when you ask.¡± Heads nodded, though Trak looked torn between staying to help here or following him back to the light. Lee gave him no orders and only glanced at Amy. He knew she would follow him. ¡°Make sure it works, or I¡¯ll come back.¡± He sent a thought to Three and felt reality flip over. ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley waited until Amy vanished before opening the door and stepping through. He tightened his grip on the runed staff as he stepped through the door and felt the stone creak in his hand when he glanced at the sky. Or at least where the sky should have been. It was darkness all the way up. No stars. No moon. No sun. No light at all. In fact, it felt far more like he was staring down into a deep, dark ocean than up at the sky. Worse, it almost felt like something was staring back at him from its depths... which, given Z''s explanation, wasn¡¯t impossible. He forced the nervousness aside and focused on his own body instead. D-grade was no joke, and he felt alive in a way he never had before. Not even the jump to E-grade could compare with this feeling of power. His every step felt light, but with a coiled strength lurking just below the surface. His skin tingled with vivid and informational sensations as the too-thick air brushed past him, bringing with it a knowledge of how many strode behind him. He could hear their breathing and pick out who each breath belonged to simply by thinking about it. He was powerful, and he knew it. The E-grades around him sounded clumsy and heavy in his ears as they walked. Their motions were sluggish and their reactions were dull. In other words, they were weak. One stood out among them. The only other D-grade and the alien walking beside him. Unfortunately, his new power didn''t help at all with his fear of said alien, though it definitely told him he''d been an idiot to attack Z during the invasion. This level of power... well, it was no wonder he''d gotten himself cut in half. Of course, his newly heightened sense of hearing still couldn''t compare to what he felt from the earth spread out below. He wasn''t even touching the ground, and he already knew where every monster was. On the surface or below it. He could even feel the light disturbances from the flying creatures above the earth. Though that was only when they got low enough. The earth here wasn''t the same. It felt... lighter. Less substantial. At least on the surface. That feeling changed as his senses stretched deeper, but he wasn''t actually sure what he felt from the depths. It definitely felt more solid the deeper he reached, but it came with something else. An increasing... darkness. Except darkness wasn''t quite right either. All he knew for sure was that he would follow Z''s advice and not delve too deeply. Bradley took another step, and this time, he put a modicum of effort behind it. That single step propelled him across the destroyed courtyard and down to the wide-open, far side of Three. He twitched a finger before he''d even landed, and earthen spears impaled a trio of approaching monsters. They were thin, almost catlike, and obviously built for speed and stealth. They didn''t even make a sound as they struggled on the impaling stone. Then it was even less effort to flip the earth up and inside Three, carrying the dying creatures with it, whereupon they vanished, blood and all. He closed his free hand into a fist, and the dirt compacted instantly into a block the size of his thumbnail. Effortless, but far too little for the project ahead. So he waved his hand and tore apart the entire neighboring apartment building next to Three. It wasn''t as solid as the earth below their feet, something to do with its real counterpart being newer than the ground... He wasn''t sure he really understood Z''s explanation, and it didn''t matter. The building was also far less solid than Three but constructed of mostly the same components. The rebar within felt like putty and far weaker than the stone he could create now. So he abandoned it and compacted the cement into something that would have set any old-world geologist drooling before using the resulting material to fill in one of Three''s missing walls. One wall. An entire building''s worth of material for one wall. This was going to take a while. He pulled up more earth, going wide rather than deep, and turned that into another section of wall. He didn''t need to rebuild the whole building today. They only needed to make some progress and get things set up for whoever ended up on guard duty in here. Enough that the defenders could help Three kill anything that showed up and then drag any bodies inside before they lured more. Bradley''s thoughts kept straying back to Mar as he worked, and it didn''t help that he was currently inside a facsimile of their home. A smashed-up one. Not to mention the ghost town feel of the entire complex. The sight made it all too easy for him to envision their home ending up like this. He should have given her the core and damn whatever Lee wanted! Then there was Lee... Talk about a whole different problem. Well, not a problem, really. But he still didn''t know what to make of what he''d seen during his evolution, or more specifically, about the evolution option the system had offered him. The option he''d chosen. It never mentioned Lee by name, but who else could it be talking about when it said he swore fealty and linked his soul to a chained god? He''d only ever sworn to Lee... and, of course, the whole soul-link thing. It had to be Lee. Bradley would never forget what he''d felt from the strange man, first when Lee created Three, and then when his soul was attacked... He wished he could forget, but he knew those memories would stay with him forever. He hadn''t told anyone about his evolution yet. Not even Mar. There hadn''t been time before they rushed in here. He wasn''t even sure what to tell her. Half of him wanted to take Mar far away from here. Far away from Lee. Of course, he knew Mar wouldn''t leave without her mom, and Saira was even more unlikely to run. She''d put down roots here. Literally. On the other hand, he wanted Mar to get the best possible evolution she could, and it looked like sticking near Lee was a serious path to power. The problem with that was that no one ever gets anything for free. They''d already seen the danger that Lee''s presence brought, and there was no telling how much worse it might get in the future. Hell, he was only in this shadowy nightmare world because of Lee. Bradley steered well clear of the twisted tree that mirrored Saira¡¯s tree back home as he dragged in more earth, and he never strayed very far from the building, either. Z said that the entire complex would most likely stay together, but he really didn''t want to get lost in this place. Besides, he was almost... He felt the earth compress beneath his feet, but not from anything he was doing. It was compressing sideways... like an expanding shockwave. There was no time to yell a warning. It came on too fast. Worse, it didn''t come for him. Well, not only for him. Bradley saw it with his eyes long before he could feel it in the earth. Because it shot out of the ground and arced into the sky. A snake. Or a worm. Whatever it was, he never saw its tail end as a maw the size of Three loomed higher and larger in the sky. Then its arc leveled off, and it started descending. Straight toward Three. He got a good look into the maw as it loomed closer and saw nothing but darkness. There were no teeth or anything like what he''d grown to expect in this new violent world. Only a darkness that sent some small corner of his brain into a gibbering, hysterical mess. It was the darkness that all humans instinctively feared. It wasn''t a dark night. It was not a moonless night. Not even a starless night. This was the darkness that snatched children from their beds. It was the bump in the night. It was the nightmare. Bradley stood frozen, unmoving, trapped by a terror deeper than anything he''d ever felt before as all of his nightmares came to life in that darkness. A writhing, living darkness that lashed out when Z shot into the sky on an intercept course. The alien shone with a muted light that leaked through the gaps in his armor as he ascended skyward. Then his sword flashed with a glowing symbol when he severed one of the inky tendrils that speared out for his flesh. Unfortunately, there were so many more tendrils... Runes flashed, both from Z''s sword and then his armor, as the alien fought a futile battle against a behemoth that never even slowed in its downward trajectory. It probably didn''t even notice his efforts... but Bradley noticed. Those flashes didn''t only light up the darkness. They carried another feeling along with the light. It was a feeling that reminded Bradley of times past. Of times when he''d fought against overwhelming odds. Of times when he''d refused to give up, no matter what. Of the times when he''d faced his fear and come out the other side stronger. It also reminded him of Lee. The so-called chained god. A man who brought danger in his wake, but also a man who would willingly throw himself into the fray without hesitation. The man who had given him an opportunity in the form of his D-grade evolution. [Bulwark of the Earth](D-grade Human) You are a Bulwark to many. Become the Bulwark of your World. You have been a bulwark to a chained god. He has seen the power of the Earth within you. You have sworn fealty to a chained god. He has entrusted the Earth to your power. You have linked your soul to a chained god. He believes in you. You have created Bulwarks to protect what you cherish most. Create a Bulwark for your World. You have conquered your fear and turned it into fuel for the fire that drives you. Be a Bulwark against fear for your World. You have shaped the Earth, and it has shaped you in turn. Now become one with the Earth and become its greatest Bulwark. Step onto the path of the Bulwark of Earth and stand against the forces that threaten your World. Take up the mantle and be empowered by your World. New Traits: [Bulwark of the Earth] He hadn''t known what to make of it, but he had accepted it all the same. It was too good not to. [Bulwark of the Earth] You have accepted the mantle of your World and it empowers your every step. Effects: +1000% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes +1% ¡ª +1000% Additional Effectiveness of All Base Attributes while within the domain of (Earth). Effect increases or decreases with distance from the ground. Bradley wasn''t exactly on Earth at the moment¡ªhe could tell thanks to the trait¡ªbut he also wasn''t very far away. He was close enough that he could feel some additional power filling his body. Z lost in his exchange with the behemoth overhead and was sent straight back down with a final flash from the glowing symbols on his armor. Bradley saw the light, and he knew what he was feeling every time those symbols pulsed. It was the same thing he''d felt from the earth so many times before. It was power. Indomitable power. Bradley stared up at the descending darkness and let the fear slide off him. This was his world. If slightly adjacent. He was the bulwark of Earth, and he''d be damned if he let a little worm stop him now. He pulled on his mana and covered himself in stone. Not the tainted earth and stone of this place, but true stone. The stone of his home. The stone of Earth. Then he activated his new Limit Break skill as high as it would go and jumped into the sky toward a nightmare. The ground rippled beneath his feet, then exploded, propelling him skyward faster than a bullet. His staff whirled as the first inky tendril stretched out to meet him, and he blasted through it without slowing his ascent. More followed on the first tendril''s heels, and all met the same fate. Bradley never changed course or slowed as he approached the maw of darkness. Instead, he only sped up. His smile grew along with his speed, and he laughed aloud right before flying directly into the massive nightmare''s maw. It didn''t hurt, and he only slowed slightly. Though that was only because he wanted to. Half of his armor flaked off, and Bradley sharpened it into something beyond obsidian before sending the shards out in a whirlwind of annihilation. He felt it when the creature died¡ªa sudden lack of resistance¡ªand used the last of his mana to force the massive bulk aside from its intended target before bursting back into the relatively bright light of the shadowy sky. Bradley smiled as he plummeted toward Three, and then pulled the extra mana from his staff. It wasn''t very much mana anymore. Not compared to his D-grade mana pool. Especially not with his new evolution. Still, it was enough for him to arrest his downward momentum and touch down gently in what remained of Three''s courtyard. "Nicely done." Z was waiting for him, and Bradley felt no fear when he gazed upon the metal mask of the alien who had cut him in half not so long ago. He would never be afraid of Z again. He was the bulwark of Earth. He would never be afraid of anything ever again! Okay... that last bit might be a stretch, but he still laughed aloud, and for a different reason. "I can fly, Z!" Sure, the mana cost was extreme, but who cared? He could fly! "Very useful," Z said with none of the enthusiasm he should''ve had. "We must retreat. Now." Bradley stared at him for a long moment as his smile faded. "Seriously? It was only a D-grade, I think." Speaking of which, he should really go grab the core for Mar. "Between the two of us, I think we can handle a few..." "No. It has escalated too far. We must leave before..." Z''s voice abruptly choked off, and the alien''s entire body went rigid. Bradley knew that because his own body also locked up in pure, instinctive, mind-numbing terror as a voice drawled thunderously from behind him, "Leave? But you''ve only just arrived, and I''ve been waiting so long to meet you!" 161. Hold On ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley wanted to turn and see what was behind him, but he couldn''t move. He couldn''t even breathe. His heart pounded in his chest faster than he thought it should be able to without exploding, and terror thrummed through him like liquid ice through his veins. This wasn''t like all the times he''d been afraid. For the first time in his life, Bradley understood something absolutely and unequivocally. Sometimes fear is the appropriate response. Because whatever was behind him was not something that could be overcome with courage or strength of will. It was power. Pure power. Power overwhelming. If he''d been a religious man before this, Bradley imagined that this is what it would feel like to meet God. An indifferent God. A God that saw you as little more than an ant beneath his thumb as he pushed down and watched you squirm... Darkness crept into the edges of his vision. Unfortunately, it wasn''t the sweet release of unconsciousness coming to save him. It was something so much worse. He dearly wished he could close his eyes as the darkness rolled inexorably in. As it slid over his shoulders with caressing claws that left frostbite in their wake. As it brushed past his ribs with bone-cracking gentleness. As it whispered past his ears with the screams of a million tortured souls. As it coalesced before his eyes into something that should not, could not, be. Bradley''s mind screamed where his voice could not at what he saw in that darkness. Impossible geometries. Unfathomable depths. Incomprehensible heights. Those were the gentlest and kindest visions that he saw in that darkness. They only fractured his mind. They didn''t crush his soul. The nightmares did that. Every nightmare he''d ever had came to life in that darkness. Every dark thought he''d ever had. Every intrusive thought. Every fear. All of them became real. Everyone he cared about died. Over and over, with each death more gruesome than the last. Until he was the one killing them. He felt the hot blood on his hands, heard the agonized screams howling in his ears, and something inside him died. A spark of innocence that he knew he would never get back. Then it all faded. As if it had never been. As if it was all a dream. Because it was. Bradley blinked at the figure standing before him but couldn''t understand what he was seeing. His heart was pounding, but he felt... numb. He felt... hollow. Where was he? What had he been doing? What had he seen? There had been something... "Such fragile little things," a voice said, and Bradley blinked again. He saw... himself? Standing on nothing in front of him was... himself. It looked off, but he couldn''t deny the likeness. Why did it look like him? Where had it come from? There had been something else here a moment ago... a darkness... Bradley shuddered involuntarily as a flash of memory returned, yet his body didn''t so much as twitch. The overwhelming power and pressure were gone, as if it had never been, but he still couldn''t move. Which meant he could only watch helplessly as the reflection of him stretched out a hand toward him. A single finger touched his chest, and Bradley felt his sternum crack. The facsimile of himself frowned. "You are not the one who created this place." His mind still felt thick, but Bradley understood well enough what was happening. It wanted Lee. They always wanted Lee. Instead, it had found him, and now he would die because of that. He knew there was no fighting this thing. For all of his new D-grade power, he was an ant compared to it. No, he was even less of a threat than that. An ant could bite a man. An ant could inflict pain. He was completely and utterly powerless compared to the creature before him. "None of these are the one," it said while it turned slowly in place, and Bradley saw everyone who had come into this nightmare world with him all arrayed in a circle around the pit in the courtyard. All of them were equally motionless, and all the faces he could make out were full of the same terror that he knew must be on his own face. He''d suspected it was dangerous to stay near Lee and he was right. If only he''d understood how dangerous. Except he had. Deep down, he''d known it might end up like this. But he''d chosen to stick around despite that. Partly because he wanted some of that power, but mostly because of Mar. Bradley didn''t regret his choice. Mar was the best thing that ever happened to him. He especially didn''t regret his choice to take the core. He would die here, but Mar wouldn''t. She would live, and really, what more could he ask for than that? The creature finally finished its inspection of the others and faced him again. Probably because he was the strongest person here. For whatever that was worth. "You know the one I speak of, don''t you?" It didn''t speak with his voice, despite looking like him, so small mercies. Of course, its actual voice only reminded him of the nightmares and made him want to rip out his own ears rather than have to hear it. "Speak, human!" Bradley''s mouth popped open. "Yes." "Another human?" "You''ll never get to him." Bradley surprised himself. He didn''t see the harm in telling it Lee was a human, but why should he? They were all going to die in here, no matter what he did. Three was a pretty smart building, sometimes, but there was no way it hadn''t noticed this creature. Three would never let Lee come back, but maybe... "Three, take us all back!" Nothing happened. Well, nothing besides the disturbing smile growing on his reflection''s face. "Who is Three?" Bradley kept his mouth shut. He couldn''t turn his head, but his all too brief hope died when he realized that none of the others were actually touching the floor. Presumably, he wasn''t either. He didn''t know all the rules for how Three moved them back and forth, but the building only took away the dead monsters that were touching it. If he could move... The mirage of himself abruptly shot out tendrils of darkness, and Bradley had an instant to see them heading toward everyone before the one coming his way collided with his chest. He didn''t see anything after that, because the tendril didn''t collide so much as rip and tear its way inside him. Except it was so much worse than that. It didn''t tear his flesh. Instead, it felt like it went right through his flesh and stabbed directly into his soul. It hurt. A lot. But there was something else alongside the pain¡ªa terrible feeling of violation. As if someone had pried him open to peer in at all of his most private places. His hopes and dreams. His fears. His love. All of it lay bare before a callous, uncaring, and hungry monster. "You all have oaths to the same soul," a voice was saying when he came back to himself, and Bradley saw the monster looking toward Z. "Except that one. You also have links in your souls. Links that resonate with this place." "So..." It looked back at Bradley with a wide smile. "Which of you is the favorite? Which of you will your master come for?" Bradley couldn''t help the tears welling up in his eyes. They were going to die here all right, but he had a terrible feeling about exactly how they would die. Or when. If ever. His only consolation was that Mar wasn''t here in his place, and he clung to that thought with everything he had. "Or," the monsters said, still smiling as it drifted lower and finally touched down onto Three. "Is this structure more precious than any of you?" Bradley felt the mana surging through the building below the monster¡ªmore mana than even his D-grade body could ever hope to channel¡ªand then that part of Three was just... gone. He didn''t see the creature move. He didn''t even feel it use any mana. "Do you think your master noticed that?" Lee probably did... but he wouldn''t come back, would he? That would be insane, right? Three wouldn''t be stupid enough to let him come back. It would be suicide. Lee wasn''t that stupid. "You don''t want to answer?" the monster said. "Hmm, perhaps I''m using the wrong face?" Its body shifted, morphing into someone else... into a face he knew. A face he loved. "How about this?" it said, from Mar''s face and with her voice. Oh god, no. Mar smiled at him and drew her twin blades. "Oh yes. You care about me, don''t you?" She drifted closer, and Bradley closed his eyes, only for them to snap open again. "Don''t you want to look at me? We''re going to have so much fun together!" He knew it would be suicide for Lee to return, but Bradley still hoped he would. Lee had pulled off some crazy stunts before. Maybe he could do it again? "You know I never actually cared about you?" Mar''s voice said as it smiled with a cruel grin. "I just thought it was fun to watch you follow me around like a desperate little puppy!" "You... you''re not her," Bradley said. "How could you say that!?" She... no, it pouted. "I mean, you always knew I was way out of your league, but I needed someone powerful to help me. Now that you''re D-grade..." She slid a knife across his cheek, and it burned like acid as it carved into his skin. "I can just take your core and finally be done with you!" Bradley forced himself to smile. "You''re not Mar. She''s safe, and you''ll never touch her!" "Is she?" Her face twisted and then the creature abruptly looked like Bradley once more. It waved a hand, and Mar appeared beside it. "Bradley?" Mar looked at the monster in confusion. It wasn''t her... It couldn''t be her! "How did I get here?" "It''s an illusion," Bradley said, and she didn''t even look his way. It was obviously an illusion. The monster was trying to trick him. "I brought you here because I''m tired of dealing with your drama," fake Bradley said. Mar flickered in and out of sight. "You... what?" "She''s not real!" Bradley screamed. She couldn''t be real. "I found someone else. Someone better." The monster pulled a knife from somewhere and twirled it between its fingers. "Only thing is, she could use some more skills, and since I''m done with you..." "But..." Mar took a step back and stumbled on the rubble strewn across the floor. "But I thought you loved me?" It looked so much like her... sounded so much like her... but it couldn''t be. Could it?This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. "Because I wanted you to think that," the monster said, laughing as it reached down and dragged her back to her feet by her throat. "Now I want you to die." "It''s not me, Mar!" Bradley screamed. "Get away from her! I''ll tell you anything you want!" "No..." Mar gasped as tears ran down her face. "You can''t be..." Her voice cut off when the monster rammed the knife into her gut. Mar screamed. Then she kept screaming as the monster stabbed her again. And again. "No! Stop, damn you!" Bradley fought against the force holding him in place. He threw every scrap of mana he could toward the earth and met only an impenetrable wall. "Please stop! I''ll tell you anything... please..." Then, all at once, everything changed. Mar froze mid-scream, and the monster wearing his face was once again radiating with suffocating power as it stared off to one side... and up... toward Lee''s apartment. Lee! Bradley felt a sliver of hope even as that crushing power beat against him and drove him toward unconsciousness. Save her, Lee! Forget me, save Mar! His world was going dark, but he fought against the dying of the light, his gaze locked on Mar. Nothing else mattered. Darkness swallowed the world, but distantly, he felt something... shift. Then light bloomed into blinding brilliance and air rushed into his lungs as he fell to the shattered ground. No, not shattered. It was smooth... tiles? He opened his eyes, squinting against the glare, and saw the smooth, unblemished tiles of Three''s courtyard. He looked up and saw a blue sky overhead. He was back... ~~~Lee~~~ Lee flipped back into reality, and for the first time that he could remember, he was alone inside his apartment building. He could see his runes scattered all over, and Three was there, still humming along beneath the surface, but it wasn''t the same. Three wasn''t what made this place feel truly alive. Or at least, not only Three. Now it felt far too quiet... and lonely. It didn''t help that there were piles of corpses strewn all over the building. He was glad they''d evacuated, at least, but that was going to be a bitch to clean up... then he saw a few more monsters appear. Then one more, and another on the other side. It was working. Though they might need to have a designated spot to send the bodies... something to worry about later. Amy appeared in his apartment. "Guess it worked?" Lee nodded. It was bad enough that he left the others to clean up his mess, but at least they weren''t trapped in there while he was gone. "Come on, we''ve got a huge mess to clean up. I just hope Saira''s plants can eat these monsters." At the very least, Bradley could simply bury it all when he got back. Or they could throw the dead outside the walls and use them as bait to clear out the surrounding area around the fort. Or maybe the crafters could use the bodies because Lee saw a trio of them dart into the garage and drag a corpse outside. They started taking it apart almost before it crossed the threshold. Lee left Amy to go update the others while he grabbed the nearest corpse and dragged it toward a door. It was the least he could do. Plus, he was full of nervous energy and had to do something. He''d made a handful of trips when something made him stop in his tracks. He wasn''t sure what. Only a feeling. But after everything he''d learned today, he was definitely going to pay attention to his feelings. "What is it?" Amy asked. "Something..." Lee frowned and closed his eyes. Not that it helped much with Mana Mind. "I don''t know." He glanced toward his apartment and saw her frown even before he said, "We should go back. Just to check on them." "I''ll go," Amy said. "Alone," she added. Because, of course she would. Lee sighed but opened his eyes and kept dragging the corpse toward the nearest door. "Go. Hopefully, I''m just being paranoid." She went, and Lee watched her go with Mana Mind. Or at least, he watched her go stand in his apartment, but that was it. Was she only pretending to go? To appease him? But she knew he could see mana... and he could tell that she was saying something up there. The feeling that something was wrong only got worse, especially when he realized there were no more new corpses appearing inside Three. He''d seen how many were scattered around right outside in that dark place, never mind all the still-living ones they were supposed to be killing. Lee headed upstairs after tossing the corpse. Amy met him at the door, blocking his path. "Three won''t send me back." "Let me try." Amy didn''t move, a stubborn glint in her eyes. "Did you tell it not to send me?" Lee glared back. "This isn''t a game, Amy! It feels like... I don''t know what it feels like! But I know it''s bad!" As if to punctuate his statement, he felt a very definite flicker in Three''s runes. It came from the courtyard... and the entire rune throughout the building dimmed. "I don''t care how dangerous it is in there. I can''t and won''t abandon any of them! The same way I wouldn''t abandon you!" "Send. Me. First. We don''t know what''s happening. What if the door is open? What if you showing up is the last thing they need?" He closed his eyes in frustration. Not because she was being stubborn, but because she had a valid argument. Instead of agreeing, Lee dumped his mana into Three. All of it. Until his Mana Mind vanished back into his head. Then he focused wholly on the sensations that were coming from... his soul. It was the soul-link! He was hearing echoes from the linked souls... except he couldn''t feel the souls anywhere. Because they weren''t in this reality! He wasn''t hearing echoes, either. He was hearing screams. Their souls were screaming in pure, unadulterated terror. Lee snapped his eyes open as mana flooded back into him, and Amy must have seen something in his expression because she didn''t protest when he pushed past her into the apartment. She only drew her sword and followed on his heels. "Three, bring the others back through." He tried, even though he fully expected the result. Or lack of one. Amy''s soul was resolute when he met her gaze. "Three, send her through." She vanished. Lee waited for one long second. "Bring her back." Amy reappeared, except she came back beside one of the front windows. She was unharmed and somehow less worried than when she''d left. "What did you see!?" Lee demanded when she took more than a second without speaking. The souls were still screaming! "I looked through the window and saw a few of them standing around in the courtyard. But it didn''t look like anyone was fighting." She shrugged. "I think slightly more of the building was destroyed than previously. Maybe they had a fight, but finished it already?" Lee wasn''t buying it. The souls were still screaming! "I''m going in!" She frowned at him but didn''t protest. Not until he told her to climb on his back. "What? Why?" "Just do it! Now!" She jumped on, and Lee dropped a speed bubble over them both. "Take us in, Three." Nothing happened. This was bad. Even if Amy saw nothing, he knew something was wrong. Now that Three hesitated... No, the only thing he could imagine causing Three''s reluctance and this feeling in his soul was if they woke up one of Z''s so-called sleepers. If that had happened, then... well, they would all die. Lee wouldn''t even be able to save them. If Bradley and Z couldn''t handle it, then did he have any chance? Did it matter? No. It didn''t. He had to try. But why hadn''t Amy noticed? Was his apartment still safe? Then why the reluctance if that was the case? Except none of that mattered anymore. Three, I know you are trying to protect me, but I''m ordering you to take me through! Reality flipped, and to his surprise, the speed bubble went with him. It was a good thing too, because it was likely the only reason he didn''t immediately die when a black hole of nightmares and misery tried to eat him. Lee flipped right back out into the light and then fell on his face. He was sweating and gasping for air as he dragged himself up, and this time Amy was far less blase about everything. "Holy fucking shit, what the fuck was that fucking..." She stopped swearing from the floor and pounced on him an instant before the speed bubble went up. "No! What are you..." Lee sent the order, and Three took him back into the dark, except this time he stayed standing, barely, and growled out, "Try that again, and I''m gone for good!" He didn''t worry about the speed bubble surrounding him or the closed door and windows between them. He knew that bloated and swollen thing out there was far beyond such minor impediments, and he was right. "You," a terrible howling chuckled in his ears. "You are the one I''ve been waiting for!" "Back off," Lee hissed. Then half of his Mana Mind vanished into nowhere, and he was screaming in agony when he landed back in the light. That one hurt, and he hadn''t even known it was possible... Still, it didn''t matter, and he choked down the sobs as he crawled away from Amy''s grasping hands. "Please don''t..." She was crying too. Had she shared in the pain just now? Or was it simply the crushing pressure of the monster''s presence? Lee wasn''t feeling much better himself. Yet he also knew it didn''t matter. "I have to save them." She made it to her hands and knees. "You can''t!" "I will, and I can!" He knew he could, but he also knew she wouldn''t like his plan for how to go about it. She stared at him as he finally stood up, then grimaced and jumped onto his back. "God damn it!" Lee was more prepared when the darkness slammed into him and he barely swayed. Mana Mind was almost back to its full range again, but he almost wished it wasn''t. He didn''t need it to know what lurked outside this room. A darkness so deep he imagined even a real black hole wouldn''t escape its depths. Mana Mind only made it worse. Only made it more real. He spoke to the darkness. "I can leave faster than you can touch me." "But you keep coming back!" "Because you have something I want." It was the only upside to his Mana Mind at the moment. That he could see his friends and family were still alive. Though he couldn''t imagine how much worse it must feel up close. Because some of their souls felt like they wished they were dead... especially Bradley''s. "Oh?" The creature seemed confused, then disbelieving. "These humans?" Disbelief turned into greed. "Which one!?" "All of them." Lee sent a silent apology to Amy and added, "In exchange for me." Fortunately, Amy didn''t believe him, though her arms still tightened around his throat. Unfortunately, neither did the monster of hunger and darkness outside. He could feel it furiously analyzing each human, zhint, and anubian for clues, as if trying to figure out what his angle was. "I don''t believe you," it finally grumbled. Then lied. "But come out and they go free!" "They go free first. Decide quickly." His time bubbles were getting better, but he couldn''t keep it up forever, and he really didn''t want to face something in real time that could talk to him through the bubble. "Half. Then you come out." "I know you can see my soul," Lee said. "You know I''m not lying when I say I''ll stay." Amy''s grip tightened as she finally started believing. "You''re serious?" "You... are!" The monster was even more incredulous. "Why?" "I don''t want you to knock down my house." Lee told the truth and hoped Amy would understand. He had no choice but to stay. Three was hiding him from the universe. If it fell, then they would come for him, for the source, and he would still die. Except then he would take everyone else down with him. "Also, I''m planning to kill you once we''re alone." It laughed, as he knew it would. The idea was obviously ridiculous, and it knew that. "Deal!" Lee saw his friends and family sink slowly toward the floor in the courtyard, each of them vanishing the moment they touched any piece of Three. Alejandro vanished, and Lee felt a weight lift from his shoulders when he did. Gabriel might lose his apprenticeship, but Lee expected he would find the class again once he was older. More importantly, he would do so with his father still around to look after him. Trak vanished, and Lee wished him well on his future journey to find his family. He was a good person, and he deserved to find happiness. Bradley left, a young man with his whole life ahead of him. A strong young man. He would help keep the others safe. Z left, and Lee watched him go with mostly indifference. Though the zhint had helped him a lot, with cores if nothing else. Maybe even enough to let him survive what was coming. Eventually, all of them vanished back into the world they belonged in. Then it was only him and Amy, with her holding onto him for dear life. Perhaps literally. He would fight his damnedest, but he knew the odds were beyond bad. He still didn''t know what Amy''s class was, but given all he''d seen so far, if he died here, then he might take her down with him. Even if he figured out how to use the source to kill this thing, it might still mean her death, or at best, years of her life burned away. "Amy, you have to go." "I''ll fight with you!" she pleaded, almost crushing him with the strength of her grip. "Don''t do this!" "Get to Saira," Lee said, glad that he kept his voice steady. "She''s my only hope." She''s your only hope as well. Because if anyone could keep him or her alive, it was Saira. "No! I''ll..." Amy vanished when Three took her away. Lee stared into the darkness and gathered his courage for the coming fight. He didn''t have to wait long. 162. A Light In The Dark ~~~Bradley~~~ Bradley surged to his feet, eyes wide, as he frantically searched the courtyard. He saw bodies slumped all around him¡ªstill living bodies¡ªand Z struggling to his feet, but no sign of what he desperately sought. "MAR!" His roar set the earth dancing around and below Three, and Bradley was about to demand Three send him back when he felt something. A familiar flicker of power. It came from the behemoth under Three and flowed to... her! She flew from the roof overhead, then kicked off the air and shot earthward. In his adrenalized state, and despite her using the beastmaster boost, it still felt like it took an eternity for Mar to reach him. Bradley spent that eternity drinking in the sight of her. She was here and uninjured. It had all been an illusion. He''d known it wasn''t real, but it had felt so... "What is it!?" Mar said, landing smoothly and with twin-blades bared in preparation for a fight. Bradley took a step toward her, half terrified that this might all be another illusion, and opened his mouth. There was the bang of a door crashing open, and Bradley tore his gaze from Mar even as he surged to stand between her and the sound. He moved fast enough to see Amy emerge from Lee''s apartment. Alone. She leapt onto the balcony railing, then sprang for the far roof, screaming for Saira as she went. Amy never made it to the roof. Instead, she exploded into a cloud of blood and gore before making it halfway across the gap. Bradley watched it happen in slow motion, a terrible realization finally dawning in his mind. Lee had gone in after them. That was the only explanation. He''d gone in and gotten them all out alive. Somehow. But he was still in there. In the clutches of that... thing. Lee was special; there was no doubt about that, but even he couldn''t fight against the power Bradley had felt from that monster. Could he? The power Lee had used to create Three had felt... close. But it had also nearly killed Lee while turning him into an old man. Could he use it again? Would it even be enough? He knew Amy was some kind of bodyguard class and that she shared damage whenever Lee got hurt. But looking at her now, or what remained of her, Bradley wasn''t even sure if she was still alive. What did that mean for Lee? It meant Lee was dying. Or already dead. Bradley called to the Earth and felt stone materialize around his body. He wasn''t creating the stone¡ªhe still couldn''t do that¡ªbut his new evolution came with some perks. Earth, as in planet Earth, was sending him the stone. Or at least that was his current theory. There was a... sense. Or a feeling. However it worked, it gobbled mana like crazy. But it was fast, and speed was what he needed now. He used the stone to carry himself into the air and onto an intercept course with Amy. Unfortunately, he didn''t catch her. Something rippled through his soul, something dark. It blacked out his world for a moment, then it was gone, leaving behind nothing more than a screaming echo of pain and rage. Along with a reverberating growl... Fortunately for Amy, the vines covering Three''s roof shot out in a storm of red spears that snatched her from the air. Saira wasn''t far behind, and she landed among the increasingly dense bed of vines before they even reached the courtyard floor. Bradley followed them down as Saira peeled the woman out of her armor, and he felt a touch of relief when he saw that Amy still lived. The downside was that he only knew she was alive because he could see her heart beating between her ribs. With his eyes. She wasn''t breathing, either, which, considering that most of her throat and face were missing, came as no surprise. Despite everything he''d seen to date, between monsters and humans dying before his eyes, the sight of her like this still made him queasy. He forced himself to ignore that feeling as he landed in the courtyard beside Saira, being careful to avoid stepping on even a single life-giving vine. That was when he felt a tile crack beneath his feet... and realized that his mana wasn''t regenerating. It was obvious once he noticed. Three was constructed of stone on a fundamental level. Cement being a type of stone, at least according to his magic. Except it was usually an immutable stone that his power couldn''t touch. Only now it wasn''t. Aside from one small area... Mar gasped when she reached them, and her hands went to her mouth. "W... what happened in there?" Bradley opened his mouth to explain... and closed it again. How could he explain any of it? He didn''t even know what was happening with Lee. Aside from the fact that he was obviously dying. So was Amy. The vines were shriveling up into dust and blowing away one after another. Yet she wasn''t improving. Even if her heart still beat. Saira was muttering under her breath the entire time, then she growled, "It''s not working! I need more!" Bradley didn''t hesitate. He dropped to his knees beside Saira and held out his arm. "Take from me!" He was a D-grade. His body was full of more life than anything or anyone in the entire fort. Lee might well be responsible for this entire mess... but he had gone back for them. He had saved them from a very real and terrible nightmare. This was the least he could do to help. Saira didn''t hesitate, either. Vines erupted from beneath her flesh and stabbed into his arm. Well, they tried anyway. Bradley had to snatch a knife from Mar and use it to open a hole through his skin to let the vines in. Then he almost toppled over when he felt his life start draining out of him in a rush. Mar held out her own arm, her motions extra sluggish now that her boost had ended, but Saira waved her off with a, "Wake the others. Get my apprentice!" She stumbled away while Z kneeled on Saira''s other side and held out his own already bleeding arm. "Take." Bradley eyed the alien as a new concern rose into his thoughts. Z was helping them now, but what would happen if Lee actually died? Its contract was with Lee, not any of them. Would it turn on them? "He still lives," Z said, its eyes meeting Bradley''s gaze through the narrow slits of its helmet, almost as if reading his mind. Bradley glanced down at Amy and then away again. "Why isn''t she healing?" "I don''t know!" Saira snapped. "I''m keeping her alive, but most of the energy is going... somewhere else! Where is Lee!?" "In the shadows... I think." There was a certain feeling that always permeated the building, one he only now realized was missing. Though he wasn''t sure if the lack was from Lee''s missing presence or Three''s diminished... size. Bradley glanced up as Alejandro stumbled to a stop, looming unsteadily over them. "Bradley... we''re alive... My god, Amy! Wait, where''s Lee!?" "He went in after us." Bradley didn''t know that for sure, but it was the only thing that made sense. "We have to help him!" Alejandro said and started staggering uselessly toward the stairs. There was nothing he could do. He had to know that. There was nothing any of them could do. Every single member of this fort working together would still be less than an ant before that monster''s power. One of the anubians sprinted past Alejandro and slid to a stop beside Saira. "Mistress! I am here!" "Rax, get the elixirs of regrowth and dump them on my tree!" "Yes, Mistress!" He hesitated while staring wide-eyed at Amy. "How many, Mistress?" "All of them! Now!" His eyes somehow got even wider, and he sprinted away immediately with a howled, "Yes, Mistress!" Bradley only then noticed that he could feel the ground vibrating around her tree. He glanced up to where it should have been towering above Three''s roof and saw only the very top in view. It was shrinking... and the little he could see looked far more brown than its usual blood-red color. Saira wasn''t looking very good, either. She had wrinkles, and they were visibly growing even as she shriveled before his eyes. "Saira, are you okay?" "Where is the mana!?" Saira demanded instead of answering, her eyes wet. "Is Three... is it gone!?" "His apartment," Bradley said. "It''s the only..." The vines squirmed and shifted beneath them, then lifted all of them into the air and up toward Lee''s apartment, the only part of the building that he couldn''t touch. The only part of Three that remained. He felt his mana tick up when they entered, but it felt slower. Weaker. Or was that because he was D-grade now? He''d never really tested it after evolving. He hadn¡¯t had time. Alejandro got there after them, and despite his pleas to Three, he didn''t disappear. Lee didn''t reappear either. More people came in and out, bringing potions and food, but Bradley barely noticed and simply ate or drank whatever was handed to him through the haze of his life draining away. He did notice when Mar returned and sat beside him. She took his hand in hers and there was a stark difference between her smooth, healthy skin and his own increasingly shriveled skin. Mar noticed, and he saw her expression as she glanced between him and the not quite dead but not quite alive Amy. She finally opened her mouth to say something, but he preempted her. "I love you, Mar."This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Her eyes leapt to his, and she froze like a deer in headlights. Bradley was aware of the other people in the room with them, but he didn''t care. "I''ve loved you for a while now, but I think I was too scared to say anything. Well, I was an idiot, and I love you." He squeezed her hand gently. "You don''t have to say anything. I just wanted you to know." Of course, he really started wishing she would say something when she only stared at him with an expression he couldn''t decipher. "Mom?" she said after what felt like an eternity. "I think you''re killing him." Saira looked even worse than he felt, but she mustered a small smile. "He is fine. At least feed him, if nothing else. His body is a furnace, and it needs fuel. I will not give up on Amy or Lee so long as they live." Mar turned bright red for some reason, then stuffed a piece of meat in his mouth when he tried to ask if she was okay. She kept feeding him every time he tried to speak, to the point he feared he might choke and stopped opening his mouth. She hadn''t replied to his confession, but she also hadn''t fled screaming. She even leaned into him and held tightly to his arm when not stuffing his face. That was enough. He hadn''t scared her off, and she knew the truth. That was all he wanted. Bradley watched her when she wasn''t looking, content to drink in the sight. He also watched Z, though with less content and more concern. He didn''t fear the alien anymore, especially since it had signed up for the life drain alongside him. However this turned out, he knew he was stronger. If Lee didn''t come back... I''ll protect them for you, Lee. You trusted me, and I won''t let you down. His silent promise turned into a fiery conviction when Mar whispered ever so softly beside him, "I love you, too." ~~~Lee~~~ I''m sorry, Stan. Lee had time for one last thought of his brother before the monster came through his apartment door. Literally. It didn''t have a defined physical form, but it condensed itself into the facsimile of one as it attacked. A human facsimile. Sort of. It had two legs, a head, but far too many arms. Or appendages, at least. Not that Lee thought it needed a physical form to hurt him; it had more than enough power for that. He only got to see it coming thanks to his time bubble, and even then, it all happened in less than a second. The doorway evaporated ahead of its charge, its appendage reached for him, and Three turned on the lights before Lee could even articulate the order to do so. True lights. Brilliant runes shone from every surface inside his apartment, lighting up the darkness in a way that Lee suspected this world had never seen before. The sudden illumination didn''t hurt his eyes, but the momentary glimpse of what was assaulting him did more than enough psychological damage on its own. It was a nightmare, literally and figuratively, and in that moment, Lee knew this creature had never seen the light of day in its entire existence. It was born in the dark, and it had never left. He didn''t even think it could leave. At least, not for long. Because it would burn, and not only in daylight. The reflected sunlight from the moon would burn this thing. Perhaps even the stars themselves would shine too brightly... It was darkness personified. Pure, untouched darkness. Lee''s light runes were special¡ªa type of pure light that would not abide such darkness¡ªbut they were such a small thing compared to the shadows filling this monster. They burned it, scoured at the shadow of its existence, and ripped holes into its very being. Unfortunately, it wasn''t enough to stop it. At least, not by shining in from the outside. Lee had expected as much already, which was why he enacted his own mad gamble of a plan at the same time. He had to stick a light rune inside the monster. Ideally, a source-empowered light rune. It was a terrible plan. Obviously. He''d barely managed to stick a rune on the last shadow monster, and that thing had been so much weaker than this one. Never mind his plan of using the source. But it was all he had. Light was its only weakness and the only way he could ever hope to hurt it. Much less kill it. Of course, his concentration broke when its appendages slammed into him with enough force to launch him into orbit. Luckily, they hit from every angle, at almost the same time. It meant he only got beaten to a pulp but without a free trip across the dark countryside outside. The speed it attacked with was what he''d expected, and much too fast for him to dodge or escape, but shockingly, he didn''t die to the impacts. He felt each hit vividly as they ripped and tore him apart. Or tried to. Because somehow, his runed bones held up under the onslaught. They shouldn''t have... He''d seen it go through Three''s walls like the building wasn''t there, and Three was stronger than him. Or it should have been. Lee wasn''t aware of much else in that moment, but he''d never been more aware of his runes. He felt them, knew them, and saw them grow only brighter when they should have otherwise failed. He knew why, too. Because he would die if they failed, and he couldn''t die here. He couldn''t do that. He couldn''t die. He couldn''t fail his brother. He wouldn''t fail everyone who was counting on him! He had to live. He had to survive. He had to fight! Debuff Gained: [Mana Burn] His survival wasn''t free, and mana flooded from his core at a speed akin to unleashing a Mana Beam. Meanwhile, his soul did something... similar. It didn''t flood, but it moved. In a way. His soul wasn''t content with merely standing unyielding in the face of overwhelming power. It pushed back, and Lee pushed back with it. From the floor where his unresponsive body lay, Lee took every scrap of mana the Well could offer on this side of reality, and he threw it all at the darkness. Uselessly. The monster laughed. It stood in his apartment, burning under the glare of a thousand light runes, and it laughed. Then it drove a cloud of shadowy appendages into and through his flesh. Except they never touched his flesh... instead, they dug into his soul. He knew what it was after once it did that. He''d suspected as much but hadn''t been sure before. Not until he felt those tendrils digging in, reaching straight toward the glowing crack inside their wounded soul. It wanted the source. Unlike the previous time, this monster didn''t carve their soul apart. It was so much stronger than the skeleton had been that it simply smothered him beneath its own power and started pushing deeper. Straining to reach the source. Lee remembered what Z had told him about True Souls and how inviolable they were supposed to be. He was pretty sure that was where they held the source, and so for all its power, he didn''t think this thing was strong enough to violate their True Soul. Unfortunately, it didn''t have to. Because they had a weak spot. It snaked a single tendril into the still-healing soul wound, slipping through tiny gaps in the rune seal, and it felt terrible. Not quite on the level of when they received the original wound, but somehow worse in its own new way¡ªa horrible sense of violation that ripped through him as the tendril wriggled inexorably deeper. He fought back, but it accomplished nothing. He was drowning under the pressure. He couldn''t stop this thing... Then anger rose inside him. Not even anger. He was already beyond pissed at this monster. For threatening his friends. For hurting Three. For putting him in this situation where he now stood poised to lose everything. So no, he was already well and truly angry. This new feeling was beyond anger, beyond even rage. It was a blind, hateful, bloodthirsty, and poisonous wrath that would burn him for touching it. It was Stanley. Lee''s heart ached at what he felt from his brother, at the fear that Stanley tried to hide beneath so much rage. So much rage... It wasn''t good, and it wasn''t right, but Lee still grasped onto it like a lifeline, and Stanley pulled his head back above the surface. That was a good start, but it wasn''t enough. The monster was still wriggling deeper into their soul, and they had to stop it before it reached the source. It was all over if they didn''t, because Lee suspected this monster might actually be strong enough to wield the source itself, and then their already slim chances of survival would shrink to nil. Lee never found out if it could wield the source or not, because something inside their soul stirred. Something... woke up. Something moved. The smothering monster of darkness shrieked and recoiled from their soul, pulling back a mere stump of the appendage it had driven inside their soul. As it recoiled, a single spark of the source slipped out after it and through the same weak spot in their soul. A spark that burned through Lee''s mind and body, then slipped free into the realm beyond light. A new star, shining upon a world of darkness. Strangely, and despite it appearing so very bright to him, it didn''t seem to bother the monster of shadow and darkness as it lunged for the spark. In fact, the spark didn''t even shed its light on anything... Lee hadn''t expected or even considered that something could be bright without being actual light, and he didn''t care. Because he reached the spark first. It was only an infinitesimal speck, but that didn''t matter. It was power, and it didn''t matter if it was an actual light or not. He could make it become one. So he did. He wrapped that tiny spark of potential within a piece of his soul, twisted that bit of soul into a specific shape, and then burned that shape into the nightmare''s very essence. It screamed again, louder this time, and fled for its life, but not because of the blazing rune of light shining from within its body. That rune was already failing, but then again, Lee had never expected it to be enough. Not when the monster could destroy Three''s structure so casually. His runes were good, but not that good. Even when empowered by the source, he simply couldn''t channel enough of it to compete with the dark mana that absolutely saturated the creature''s form. Instead, he had a different plan. His original plan. And phase one of that plan had just gone off almost perfectly. Aside from a few hiccups, of course. Like not being able to use the source before it invaded their soul. Or almost getting knocked out by the sheer pressure of its presence. Or it almost getting its hands on the source before him... and having to get saved by what he was certain had to be Caffeine... Lee didn''t dwell on his mistakes. He would have plenty of time to ruminate on those later if he survived the consequences of his actions. Instead, he immediately started in on phase two of his plan. A plan that depended on one singular principle. There is always a bigger fish. Fortunately, he was right. There was a bigger fish, and now it was coming his way. Lee didn''t know how far away it was, but he could feel it coming, and it was definitely bigger. The nightmare must have felt the same thing, because it ran for its life even faster than it had moved to attack him before. Even as the nightmare fled, Lee was already creating a new rune on Three. Or rather, a variation of an older rune. In fact, it was almost the exact opposite of the rune he''d stuck into the nightmare. Instead of a light, it was an... anti-light. He didn''t know if Three felt what was coming or if the building simply reacted to him. Either way, it did what he wanted and switched its own lights. Darkness fell inside Three. Deep enough that the dim illumination shining in through his missing front door felt bright. Illumination that came from a pinprick of light attached to a rapidly disappearing nightmare fleeing over the horizon. The darkness came just in time, too. Because he saw something blot out the light and the horizon, an instant before a new notification appeared with a flash of pain. -1 Twin-Soul The nightmare was dead. Just like that. Eaten right along with the rune Lee had left on it. Three didn''t let him see anymore. Instead, the building swallowed him into itself while shrinking what remained of its now shadowed rune into a tight coffin around his body. It was the only reason Lee remained conscious when whatever had devoured his enemy was suddenly looming over them. Lee had thought he understood, at least roughly, what the differences between grades felt like. He''d been so wrong. He felt like an ant standing on the surface of the sun. A dark sun. An incomprehensibly vast inferno of dark fire far beyond any understanding of his insignificant little insect brain. Those searing flames burned him to ashes a thousand times, and yet he remained to burn again. It scoured him, flayed him, and crushed him into oblivion for an eternity... and then it retreated, fading away into lingering echoes of a growl, until even that was gone, leaving nothing but silence in its wake. Lee remained where he lay, unsure how much time had passed and if he even still lived. He didn¡¯t dare to even breathe. His lungs eventually started screaming for air, but it was trivial to ignore. He couldn''t believe that it was gone, yet it was impossible that it remained. Nothing could hide that inferno. Nothing could possibly have hidden him from it. He couldn''t be alive. He must already be dead. It was the only explanation. It was only as his consciousness faded when he finally noticed the runes on his bones. And how they had changed. 163. My Life For You ~~~Lee~~~ Lee stirred when he felt a flash of fear coming from somewhere nearby. Then the fear faded and turned into pure contentment. That was better. Lee breathed out with his own contented sigh as he rolled over to go back to sleep... and stopped when he bumped against something soft and warm. Someone else was in his bed. His bed... His breath caught and his eyes snapped open as he lurched upright. He was home! How was he home!? He couldn''t be here! Wait... how was he alive? That monster! Where was the monster!? It might have followed him! It was dark in his room, but he calmed slightly as he took in the whole picture of what Mana Mind was showing him, including inside himself. That reminded him of what had happened. Or rather, what he had done to himself at the end there. When he''d turned himself into a shadow. Sort of. The rune on his skeleton had changed. Now it had an extra little flourish that looked an awful lot like the rune he''d used to hide Three in the shadows. His anti-light rune. He''d created it to help Three blend in with the shadows, and it had worked! Three was still standing. Mostly. At the time, he''d never even considered sticking it on himself, much less that it would work. Though he didn''t think it had been much of a conscious choice at the end there. More of a last-ditch effort born from a desperate and instinctive desire to survive. And it had worked... he was still alive. Somehow. It made no sense. He couldn''t believe it had worked. Nothing could hide from what he''d felt in there. Even with this rune. Even with Three hiding him. It was impossible. Yet here he was. Alive and well, if slightly... changed. Except he was pretty sure the change wasn''t permanent. Or it didn''t have to be. The rune was making him a shadow, and he could change it back. Probably? He studied both the rune and the effect it was having on his body, and the more he looked at it, the more certain he was that he could change it back. Because he wasn''t technically a shadow. Not like the monsters he''d seen in that place. To change into something like that would probably require a full racial evolution, and his runes couldn''t do that. Not that he knew anyway. Instead, it was only cosmetic. The rune only made him look... faded. He looked like the ambient background of the shadow realm. Like a rock or any other piece of the landscape. Uninteresting and unimportant. Not food. Not a target. It was a cloaking device. Useful if he ever wanted to go... back... Lee shuddered as his mind and body both violently objected to the thought of ever going back there. Of ever facing that terrible presence again. He clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms, and fought back against the terror. It had been worth it, and he would do it again in a heartbeat if he had to! The proof was right outside his apartment, in the courtyard. Alejandro. Bradley. Martin. Everyone. They were all out there. They were all alive! What wouldn''t he do to keep them that way? He knew the answer. He would do anything to protect his family. Even go back into the shadows. An eventuality that was almost guaranteed. He''d hidden Three''s copy over there, but they would need to check on it. Maybe even help rebuild it. Though he could always send Z to check first... It looked like they were having dinner in the courtyard, going by the gathered people and the angle of the sun... Lee frowned as he looked around his pitch-black room. There was no light. But he could see. Though not very well, and everything looked gray, but he could see. Not only that, but he could feel the light outside like a physical presence pressing in on his room. As for how he knew where the sun was in here? That was easy. Mana Mind let him practically see the light-rays from the sun, including where they didn''t shine. Like behind a wall. Because wherever the sun shone, it filled the air with a type of light mana, or maybe solar mana? It was definitely different from other types of light. Of course, that was how he knew normally. Right now, he could feel the sun like a roaring furnace just out of sight. He wasn''t even sure if the slightly brighter and warmer sensation coming from that direction was actually real or only his imagination. Either way, he was pretty sure his current shadowy state was responsible for the sensation. Lee memorized the new addition to his skeletal rune, even copying it into his soul storage, then pushed his will against it and told it to become what it used to be. It obeyed, and his room darkened into complete opacity. He''d practiced changing his runes plenty of times, but never on this one. Not since he''d first changed it to survive getting nuked, also an instinctive reaction, and then earned a couple of traits for his trouble. Runic Resonance and Runic Augmentation, the latter of which evolved into Rune Harmonics. Both traits had definitely helped him today. Along with his Indomitable trait. The strangest and most interesting part of the shadow rune was that it hadn''t confined itself solely to his bones, like before. It had changed his whole body. Was it really as simple as wanting it to work that way? Pinching himself confirmed that it definitely wasn¡¯t making his flesh as strong as his bones, so it wasn¡¯t quite that simple. Maybe it only worked with some effects? Could he make himself invisible? Not that he had a rune for that yet, but his anti-light rune felt like a good place to start. Or a time rune to make himself faster? Anti-grav rune to fly? If he could ever figure out a healing rune... whatever he came up with, the possibilities felt nearly limitless, and not only for himself. Before he got too excited, Lee tested switching it back and watched the light reappear in his room even as a slight chill permeated his flesh. The light was definitely coming from the wall facing the sun, but also from every wall, though to a lesser extent. It was even coming from the woman sleeping in his bed... He kept the rune in shadow mode as he climbed gently and slowly from the bed, trying not to wake her. He failed and froze in place when she turned over with a mumble, "Not yet... five more minutes." Lee waited with his feet on the floor until she''d settled back down, then slowly stood... "You!" Amy''s hand shot out and latched onto his wrist, though he had no idea how she could see him in this darkness. "I should punch you!" Lee smiled down at her. "If you must." "You left me behind!" she growled. "I had to. You couldn''t have helped me against... that." Lee shivered and forced himself to smile at her. "If it''s any consolation, I''m pretty sure you saved my life." He had a lot of notifications about bleeding, organ failures, and the like. He''d taken a beating even before that thing showed up. "I''m guessing you got to Saira?" "Why do you think I''m not punching you?" she grumbled with her face still half-buried in the pillow. Her soul held a bone-deep weariness, but it wasn''t enough to drown out the terror as she whispered, "You still shouldn''t have left me... You don''t know what it''s like... I''ll tell you anything you want about my class." Her grip tightened around his wrist as she struggled upright in the bed, and her voice was pleading. "Just don''t leave me behind again! Please!" Lee sat back down. "You don''t have to tell me anything. I already know I can count on you to the ends of the earth. I knew that when I sent you back. Honestly, I didn''t think I would survive, but I knew you were my only chance of doing so. Besides, there was nothing you could have done against that monster." "You don''t know that!" She knew he was right. She just didn''t want to admit it. "I could have fought! I could have done... something!" She was being stubborn, and Lee had a sudden terrible insight into why her soul felt so rundown. "You felt it, didn''t you?" He didn''t need to clarify what he was talking about. Her grip on his arm tightened to a painful degree, and he both saw and felt the tremor pass through her as she squeezed her eyes shut. "I''m sorry, Amy. You shouldn''t have had to..." Her eyes snapped open, locked on and boring into his own with fire in her gaze. "I don''t care about that! I don''t care what we have to face! I don''t care if it hurts! So long as I can face it beside you!" The fire in her eyes faded back into weariness. "Just don''t leave me waiting helplessly to find out if... don''t leave me to die alone." "Amy." He''d never come right out and asked, but he needed to know. "Will you die if I do?" He assumed there must be some limit, a cutoff where... She nodded. "Why!?" Lee couldn''t help the disbelief in his voice. "Why do you care about me that much? Why would you ever take that class?" He knew it wasn''t anything romantic, and he couldn''t imagine any other reason someone would tie themselves so tightly to another person. Well, he would do it for Stanley. Hell, they were already linked like that. He might even do the same for Alejandro or Maria... but Amy didn''t even know him that well. They weren''t family. At least they weren¡¯t before. She was for goddamn sure a part of his family now. Amy finally broke eye contact and looked away. "I... don''t make me answer that. I don''t think I can explain." "Of course you don''t have to." Lee didn''t know what else to say. What the hell do you say to someone in this situation!? He wanted to thank her again for saving his life, but now it just felt weird. Thank you for being willing to sacrifice your life for me? He almost wanted to hug her... but didn¡¯t. She said nothing either, but eventually let go of his wrist and scooted around him to put her feet on the floor while obviously still exhausted. "Go back to bed," Lee said, standing up to make room. "I know you''re tired, and don''t worry, I won''t go anywhere." It wasn''t like he could, anyway. Because Three''s rune only reached slightly past his apartment, though it looked like it was growing. Slowly. "Unless you want the room to yourself... my apartment still looks solid." "Don''t!" Amy said, almost lunging for him. "You''ll burn out there. Your body''s all gray ever since you came back, and..." He''d suspected as much, but it was nice to have it confirmed. At least without getting burned to find out. "It''s fine. I made myself a little shadowy to hide... over there, but I can change it back." "Oh." She stared longingly down at the bed before looking back at him. "I can''t believe how tired I still am after all that healing... and how the hell are you not tired!?" Lee shrugged. "I''m special. Now go to sleep. I''ll sit on the floor over here." Amy laid down reluctantly but pulled a communication disc from under her pillow as she did. "He''s awake," was all she said before shoving it back. "Lee, wait for them to come inside. We don''t know if the airlock works or not, but the bedroom door does." She was asleep before Alejandro reached the... airlock, which was impressive since it took him all of two seconds after hearing her message. The airlock was exactly what it sounded like¡ªsort of, basically an extra door outside his original door¡ªBradley''s work, no doubt. Lee switched his rune back before going into the light, only then remembering that Amy had seemed to have no trouble seeing him despite the blackness. She must have a skill for it. Dark vision? Then Alejandro was there, sweeping him up into an enthusiastic embrace. Lee hugged him back, equally grateful that the man was alive and okay. It was a nice hug. Alejandro definitely had a knack for them. Though maybe it was simply that he put everything into his hugs while holding nothing back.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Alejandro let him go eventually, and Lee asked why they''d all moved back in already. Three was a shell of its former self, and they had no idea if that nightmare might be able to cross over... "Z told us that even the C-grade couldn''t cross," Alejandro said, surprisingly calm about everything. "C-grade?" "The one who was holding us until you..." "No way! That wasn¡¯t a C-grade! No, it was too powerful for that... It had to be at least a B-grade... right?" Alejandro shook his head. "Z was adamant. Said it was high or peak C-grade. Though he thinks the second one that Amy told us about might be a B-grade... a low B-grade." It was impossible. If the system was letting through D-grades now, how the hell would they survive once it started sending C-grades? Never mind if they made it to C-grade. That so-called B-grade had gobbled the C-grade like it was nothing. "Where''s Z?" "Hunting," Alejandro said. "Ever since you got back. He refused to rest, even though I''m pretty sure he''s as wiped out as Bradley." Lee could see Bradley downstairs, asleep with his head on a table. "What happened to them, and how are you holding up?" Alejandro''s soul felt fine¡ªnot even tired. Nothing like Bradley''s soul when the man suddenly jerked awake downstairs in a fit of pure terror. The fear eased when Mar took his hand, but Lee could feel a shadow of it still lurking inside him. "Saira used them as healing batteries while keeping Amy alive, but Z also said the monster was doing something to Bradley before you showed up... the rest of us just blacked out as soon as it appeared. Something to do with grade suppression." Alejandro shivered and glanced toward the door. "I only got a flash before things went dark... but it was bad. Bradley hasn''t said anything, and I didn''t want to pry... not yet. Still, he''s strong. I think he''ll bounce back after some rest." Torture? That monster had wanted him. Had it been torturing Bradley to find him? Lee watched Bradley in his mind''s eye as the man''s relentlessly scanning but exhausted gaze kept straying back to Mar beside him. Mar hadn''t been in the shadows... but it felt like Bradley was terrified of something happening to her. Whatever had happened, his exhaustion couldn''t be helping his mental state. "Can we give him a vacation or something? What if we send him to a smaller fort before the timer ends?" He didn''t like the idea of having their newest D-grade away for the next invasion, but Bradley had earned it. He''d been a true champion of this place for so long, never mind whatever torture he''d endured in that dark place. A dark copy of Three. Yeah, it might do him a lot of good to get away from this place. "I floated the idea, and he insisted on staying. Though, maybe now that you''re awake..." Alejandro held Lee''s gaze. "How are you holding up? From what little I felt, and after what Amy said she felt from the B-grade... well, I can''t imagine you''re doing much better." It was Lee''s turn to shiver as he recalled the experience, but... "I''m okay. It wasn''t... that bad." Sure, it had sucked, but he was an E-grade and had gone up against a C-grade and a B-grade. Allegedly. It should have been worse, shouldn''t it? If all the other E-grades, including Alejandro, had been knocked out by a C-grade... how had he remained conscious in front of a B-grade? Well, as long as he had anyway. He had some theories about that. Three had helped, shielding him from the outside as much as it shielded the outside from him. Stanley had also played a role, for sure. His rage... Lee could still feel it echoing back from his twin, though it was far less intense now. I''m sorry, Stanley. You shouldn''t have had to help me. I fucked up. Then there was Caffeine. He knew the pug had protected their soul somehow, but thinking back on it now, he could have sworn he''d also heard Caffeine growling at the B-grade. Had it been some kind of shadow beast that Caffeine could scare off as the Beast Lord? Was that even possible? Caffeine definitely kicked some ass, but he couldn''t send a B-grade packing. Could he? Or had he played a role in hiding Lee from it? That would explain why it hadn''t found and eaten him¡ªimpossible as it was. Either way, he''d helped. I''m sorry for you too, Caff. Please look after Stan for me. I''ll make it up to you. I swear! Alejandro was still staring at him and clearly not believing a word he''d said as he tried to pull Lee into another hug. Lee fought him off. "Seriously, I''m fine." He was, too, and he only felt better by the minute as he drank in the sight of everyone he cared about going about their lives instead of grieving what could have been a terrible loss. Gabriel was barely eating his food as he struggled to squeeze another rune onto the plate beside him that was already chock full of runes. Meanwhile, Anita was already finished and trying unsuccessfully to sneak away from her mother under the long tables. She found Maria waiting for her at the end, and Lee could easily imagine the sound of her scream to match the wild glee in her soul as she took off in the other direction. Maria pursued, and while her soul couldn''t compare to the more carefree soul of a child, it was mostly positive. She wasn''t mourning the loss of her husband. Her kids were happy. They weren''t asking her when Daddy would come home. So yes, Lee was perfectly fine. You don''t know it yet, Stanley, but our pain was worth it. These people are your family, too. Saira was out there too, under her tree, and Lee couldn''t miss how much smaller the tree was now compared to the day before. A sacrifice she''d made to keep him alive. Still, that wasn''t what got most of his attention. Instead, it was the newborn girl cradled in Saira''s arms. She was the origin of the fear he''d felt when he''d first woken up, as she''d finally come out into the world. Of course, that fear was long gone. Now she slept, content in her mother''s arms, while Saira''s soul radiated with pure and absolute love for her child. The anubians were out there with her, but no one else... He was glad to see she wasn''t alone, though Trak obviously hadn''t heard that he was awake, and Lee was silently grateful for the reprieve. Outwardly, he asked, "Did you know Saira had her baby?" Alejandro''s eyes went wide, and he immediately fumbled through a handful of rune discs on his belt before activating one. "Saira! Lee said... are you okay? Um, can I get you anything?" Lee saw her laugh as she touched her own disc. "Thank you, but I am well. Though I take it, Lee is awake then? Is he there?" Alejandro handed over the disc, clearly eager to escape from his awkward start. "Congratulations," Lee said, smiling. "What¡¯s her name?" Saira''s smile widened as she stared down at her sleeping baby. "Aasha. Her name is Aasha." "I can''t wait to meet her," Lee said, surprised to find that he actually meant it after the words left his mouth. He''d never been a fan of babies before, or children, for that matter. Then another thought occurred to him. "Though you should probably keep her away from me and my soul." "Nonsense!" Saira exclaimed while standing up and immediately heading his way. "No, she will know you, and she will know that you are a good and kind man." He didn''t even try to argue with the woman, and Alejandro was no help either. He just grinned at Lee as he backed toward the door. "I''ll let you two have some alone... I mean, I should go finish dinner!" "Bring me some," Lee said, not rising to the bait. "Some for Amy and Saira, too." Then he sat down on the couch and looked through his notifications, starting with the most obvious. Source is burning your body and mind: -100 All Base Attributes per second.(+80 from Source Nexus) -100% Health per second from Source +100% Health per second from Source Regeneration It had only taken one second, so not that bad. A very low price for their survival. Honestly, if they could figure out a way to channel only tiny amounts of source like that... it might be a viable weapon. A very viable one. If expensive. He skipped past a bunch of notifications about bleeding and injuries. Debuff Resisted: [Soul Suppression] That must have been the C-grade... sadly, it hadn¡¯t lasted. Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Suppression] Debuff Gained: [Soul Intrusion] That one sucked, but the next one made up for it. Debuff Removed: [Soul Intrusion] Lee smiled as he remembered that thing screaming. Good boy, Caff. Debuff Gained: [Soul Suppression] The B-grade. It felt like there should be something more, but that was it. The entire hellish experience of realizing how utterly small and insignificant he truly was in this universe, all summed up with a single debuff. He had more notifications about his injuries, all of which slowly healed one after the other, all without any climbing hunger debuffs. It had to be from Amy. It looked like she couldn¡¯t send healing back to him, but it also looked like she was sharing something. Energy, at least. Whatever it was, it had kept him from dying. Then his mana burn debuff expired shortly after he gained a heal from Maria. Which told him that he¡¯d spent somewhere close to an hour in that place... Lee smiled bittersweetly as he glanced toward his room. For all that he didn¡¯t understand her reasons, Amy was a goddamned hero. His smile grew as he felt Saira''s meeting with Mar and Bradley downstairs. He couldn''t help it. Saira''s soul was so happy. She was literally bubbling over with joy. It infected Mar and even lifted Bradley''s mood as the man gazed upon the precious little bundle in her mother''s arms. Unfortunately, Bradley''s good mood didn''t last, shifting back toward fear... but also resolve. Lee understood. It was a wonderful day for Saira. For all of them. A new life had just begun, and all of their worlds would be brighter for Aasha''s presence. But that same joy was also something that would be all the more bitter if it was lost. Lee felt the weight of it settling onto his own shoulders, another life hanging in the balance of his choices and mistakes, and from what he could tell, Bradley was feeling that same weight. He was too young to be feeling that way. He should be worried about sneaking in alone time with his girlfriend while hiding from her mom and not about how many near-literal gods he would need to defeat to protect his girlfriend and her family. I''m going to make damn sure you take a vacation! Lee swore to Bradley as they all headed his way together, Trak studiously and deliberately trailing behind. Maybe he could send all of them... except Saira might not want to leave her tree. Either way, he''d make sure Bradley went with Mar. They could use some alone time, and he highly doubted Saira would object. She liked Bradley. She liked seeing him with her daughter, and hell, she might even secretly be hoping for a grandkid and could help him set up the vacation. On that note, Lee realized he had no idea how old either Bradley or Mar were. Though he was pretty sure they had to be over eighteen at least. Hadn''t Bradley been going to college? Lee''s anticipatory smile grew as Saira entered the airlock, the new solid-stone door sliding shut behind her. He deliberately pushed his concerns and fears away, thinking only pleasant thoughts. It wasn¡¯t difficult, and hopefully it would make his soul easier to bear. At the last minute, he told Three not to open the door if his soul might leak beyond. The door opened immediately and without fanfare, revealing a radiant Saira and a wide-eyed Aasha staring at him from her arms. ¡°This is Lee,¡± Saira said, holding Aasha so the girl could see him. ¡°You¡¯ll like him.¡± Lee smiled, and she didn¡¯t cry like he had feared she might; she only watched curiously and contentedly as more people cycled into the room. On closer examination, he noticed a similar weariness inside Saira that matched Bradley and Amy, but her joy drowned it out. She looked healthy. Perfectly healthy, as if she hadn¡¯t even been pregnant only this afternoon. The benefits of magical healing? Alejandro returned with food, as well as his family, and others followed behind. People who had been there in the shadows. Some of them only wanted to confirm that it was over. That they were safe. While others wanted to thank Lee for getting them out... He reassured them as best he could without any blatant lies, since they would know if he lied, and accepted the thanks while returning them in kind. They were all heroes. They had stepped into a nightmare for him. It was the least he could do to bring them back out. His apartment got crowded and noisy, and even Jeremy stopped in, but Lee didn¡¯t care. It was wonderful. Amy didn¡¯t feel the same, and she came out of his room clearly ready to holler at everyone to shut up. Lee met her in the hall with a smile and a rune plate of silence. Bradley was the opposite, and he finally knocked out on the couch despite the racket. Or maybe because of it. He slept peacefully, for the most part, and Mar stayed by his side to hold him when he stirred. Lee told everyone about his new rune discovery and asked for ideas. Of course, Gabriel was the only one completely unsurprised by the revelation, and he immediately started drawing new variations once Lee showed him the rune. Z returned later, as things were winding down and children were being taken to bed. He staggered through the door, a beaten and bloody mess. Half of his weapon and armor runes were depleted, with the other half not far behind as he collapsed to one knee in front of Lee and held out a core. ¡°Found one. In the... mountains.¡± Then he face-planted into the floor, unconscious. He was driven; Lee had to give him that, though this seemed a little excessive. It wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d ordered the alien to push himself so hard. His soul had felt almost... desperate? Still, Lee took the core while Saira made no move to heal the alien. [Skill Shard](D-grade) Titan Stride (Rare) Walk like a Titan. Allows the user to adjust a portion of their weight when moving... It was a D-grade core... where had Z gotten it from? Had he gotten himself caught in an invasion somewhere, or were D-grades appearing naturally? Lee handed it to Saira without hesitation. Sure, he should probably give it to Amy if not use it himself, but Saira was closer to the next grade and could protect her daughter better than he could at this point. Plus, he wasn¡¯t sure if he wanted Amy to be that much stronger than him¡ªespecially not if he needed to send her away again. Saira¡¯s eyes flashed when she saw what it was, and Lee thought she might absorb it then and there. She didn¡¯t. Instead, she passed it to Alejandro before begrudgingly sending a small vine threading between Z¡¯s armor plates, carrying a trickle of healing energy with it. Alejandro agreed with Lee¡¯s decision to give it to Saira, and Lee finally realized that her baby was E-grade. How did that work? Did it mean she was stronger than a peak F-grade adult? Was she stronger than Gabriel and Anita? He should probably find out... but later. Despite everything that had happened that day, including the news of a potential looming D-grade advancement coming to Earth, it was a good dinner, and Lee smiled through most of it. The bright smiles, the warm laughter. It was the perfect capstone to an otherwise dark day. There was only one lingering shadow throughout. Lee could feel his twin far away, and Stanley wasn¡¯t enjoying a wonderful night with friends and family. He felt alone and afraid. Take care of him, Caff. There must be some good people over there. Help him find them. 164. Alone In The Dark ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley was busy killing off a lair from the outside when he felt an echo of pain stab through him. He knew what it meant an instant before a wall of pressure crashed down on his mind. Lee was under attack... and losing. The rage came easily, rising in a torrent as he turned it against whatever fuckface was trying to kill his twin. Fuck you, you son of a bitch! Get the fuck out of our heads! Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Mental Fortress has reached the Level 10 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Mental Fortress Upgraded to Level 10 (Basic) Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress He liked that, but it was too little, too late, as something dark stabbed into their soul. Debuff Gained: [Soul Intrusion] Not again. Never again! He reached for the tendril of intruding darkness, and the little shadow of Caffeine hiding in their soul got there first, chomping it clean off with one bite and sending a scream of pain resounding through whatever was attacking them. Good! Debuff Removed: [Soul Intrusion] Unfortunately, it wasn''t without consequences. Stanley wasn''t sure if the intruder had pulled it free or if it was because Caffeine''s shadow had shifted from where he stood on the crack, but a spark of source drifted from the wound. It sparkled in the gloom of their soul, a tiny drop of limitless power... A drop that Lee snatched up. Source is burning your body and mind: -100 All Base Attributes per second.(+80 from Source Nexus) -100% Health per second from Source +100% Health per second from Source Regeneration Stanley couldn''t tell what Lee did with it, but the pressure vanished, so he must have done something right. -1 Twin-Soul Or not? What the hell was... The pressure reappeared, but worse this time. A thousand times worse. A million. Billion. Infinitely worse. It felt like a god had appeared. A dark, malevolent, and hungry god that wanted nothing more than to devour everything, Stanley and his brother included. Except it wouldn''t even notice when it swallowed them up. They were so far below this thing that they might as well not exist. Debuff Gained: [Soul Suppression] Stanley raged against it. Even as he knew his paltry resistance was pointless. Even as he saw Caffeine sprinting his way with desperate abandon, the pug little more than a black streak and leaving an expanding trail of destruction in his wake. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Reality seemed to stutter step around him as he fought back against the pressure. He was in the air, then on his knees in the dirt, and then Caffeine was standing over him, a towering behemoth howling in defiance against something that would never hear him, let alone care. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress His world compressed further with each passing moment beneath that crushing presence. Light fled from the dark. Caffeine''s howl faded into the distance. Until even the memory of light and hope became long-forgotten things of the past. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Stanley knew only one thing as he slowly and instantly lost the fight. The only thing he could feel outside of this hopeless and insignificant war he waged against the impossible. Caffeine. The pug stood with them. Growling. Defiant. Fighting back against the dark with his own inconceivable power. Except something was very wrong. Caffeine, the unquestionable and unassailable Beast Lord of Earth, was terrified. He''d been afraid before. He''d been worried. But nothing like this. Never like this. It wasn''t possible. It shouldn''t be possible. It was wrong. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Stanley wanted to rage and scream against the wrongness of it all, but it was far too late. He had already lost. He was all hollowed out. Flattened. Then somehow crushed even further. Into oblivion. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress His last glimpse before the darkness swallowed him up was of Caffeine growling in a heartbreaking mix of terror, defiance, and, strangely, a threat. He was threatening the... no; he wasn''t threating. It was a promise. Caffeine was promising to deliver complete and utter annihilation... to a god. It was a promise he believed in, even as his heart broke at the prospect... Stanley fell. ... Then clawed himself back out of the dark with a scream. "NO! Don''t..." His breath caught when nothing looked right, and it took him long moments to realize the sun had moved since he''d last seen it. How long was I down? It couldn''t have been very long if nothing was trying to eat... "Caw!" His groggy and confused gaze landed on a crow. The crow... had it protected him? Its soul flashed, and it hopped in place next to a small black shape laying unmoving in the dirt... "Caw!" Stanley''s heart turned to ice even as clarity returned to his mind with one terrible thought. "Caffeine... no!" He learned two things in the instant it took to arrive at Caffeine''s side. His domain told him Caffeine was alive and uninjured, and his soul told him the same thing, including that Lee was as well. Though his twin felt... dim. They both felt dim and were both unconscious. Still, this was good... right? Lee was alive! Caffeine was alive! Stanley repeated that like a mantra as he gently settled the limp pug in his lap while the crow watched him silently. Lee was alive. Caffeine was alive. They''d all survived against... whatever that was... and how the hell did his brother find a monster like that!? How the fuck were they still alive!? It was literally impossible! That thing could level Boston with a sneeze. Everyone and everything here, human, monster, and undead. All of them fighting together would make absolutely no difference in the face of that much power. Which begged the question of how the fuck were they still alive!? The last thing he remembered was Caffeine growling, and... had he been threatening it? He had. Caffeine had definitely been threatening a god. Which was insane! It was also exactly what he would expect from the pug. His fearless guardian. His mostly fearless guardian... because he also remembered feeling Caffeine''s terror as he ran to save his humans. That part was bad enough, but thinking about the crushing pressure Caffeine must have been feeling on top of that... it left a sick feeling in Stanley''s stomach. It made his chest tight. It made him want to scream... and above all, it made him angry. So. Very. Angry. None of that explained how they were alive, and obviously, it wasn''t because of Caffeine. Had it been after the source? What else could it be? If it was after them, then what the hell could they even do about it!? Even if he wielded the source himself, it wouldn''t matter against that thing! Greater challenges, my ass! Stanley wished he could see that smug alien again. He''d punch it in the fucking mouth! Rules... They''d changed the rules, but they couldn''t have changed it that much... could they? Maybe that meant the monster couldn''t actually touch them? Because it hadn''t... That whole ordeal had been nothing more than its mere presence crushing them. Stanley had the notifications to confirm... Did that mean it was now lurking somewhere out there? Waiting for its chance to come eat them? If it couldn''t touch them yet, then they still had a chance. They could get stronger, though imagining himself strong enough to fight against that thing felt... impossible. Forget all of Boston; that thing was probably strong enough to crush the entire planet into dust... Stanley eyed the bird that was watching him with what he thought was wariness since it hadn''t jumped on his shoulder like it usually did. There were a few headless zombies around, but he wasn''t sure if those were his or the crow''s kills. Either way, at least it hadn''t tried to kill him? Or had it been about to? Is that why it seemed nervous? "Caw!" No, it wasn''t the bird''s nervousness. It was the humans lurking further away. Behind it. Stanley moved. "You''re too late to kill me," he growled down at the huddled cowards, and every head but Blindfold''s snapped to his new position with fear in their souls. They were definitely plotting... "We weren''t trying to kill you," Blindfold said. "We were trying to figure out what attacked you and where it went." Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. He believed what he was saying, but the others were still nervous. They should be. They didn''t know what was out there... and how completely screwed everyone was. Still, they could help him get stronger, and maybe, just maybe, they could help him get out of this dungeon. Well, one of them could. "Harem, you..." "Stop calling me..." "I don''t care what your fucking name is!" Stanley screamed, getting in his face. Then he took a breath and said as softly as he could, "You are going to use your domination power on me right now, or I am going to kill you. Okay?" Harem really was a coward, and he only stumbled backward with terror in his soul. "But..." Not all of them were cowards, however, and Stanley sent his knife to Reflector Bitch''s throat and pointed a finger at Bubbles. "I will kill you if you get in my way!" Both of them froze, but Stanley could still feel Bubbles getting ready to attack. The idiot. He really thought he was fast enough? So be it. Someone else would get his class shard. Sure, they''d have to start all over with leveling, but who cared? The class was practically worthless, anyway. C... "What happened to Caffeine?" Blindfold asked. Bubbles hesitated, and Stanley stiffened as his gaze jumped to the unconscious pug in his lap. "I..." There had been that whole threatening a god thing... but that was probably nothing. The fact that his soul felt so dim meant nothing! He was fine. He''d be fine! "He... he''s just tired." "What attacked you? Was it the undead?" Blindfold was trying to distract him by changing the subject. "We came running when we heard you screaming, but didn''t see anything before it stopped." Or was he playing peacemaker? Had he realized Stanley wasn''t bluffing? Maybe not using his eyes was making his other senses better. Like his survival sense. "I wasn''t screaming." Was he? He didn''t remember having enough breath to scream if he¡¯d wanted to... "Your soul was screaming." That was probably... true. "So, what? You snuck over here to fucking watch!?" "We came to help!" Reflector exclaimed after moving away from his knife, and with her soul mostly agreeing with her words... surprisingly. "Then where were..." "We didn''t get to you because your damn bird attacked us as soon as we showed up!" Bubbles snapped, also backing up a step as he spoke, but his soul said he was still ready to get himself killed. "It wasn''t attacking us," Blindfold said. "But it clearly didn''t want us any closer..." "Are you kidding!?" Bubbles shouted, rounding on the other man. "That thing is a menace and a psycho that..." Stanley finally noticed that Bubbles had some suspicious scratches on his face as the man ranted against crows. Stanley smiled at that, but his smile didn''t last. The crow obviously knew something about soul magic, even if it refused to communicate with Cheesesteak or the bats, and it had attacked Bubbles... Did it know something about the man? Had it thought Bubbles might actually try to kill him while he was down? The idea was not that difficult to believe, and Stanley seriously considered killing the man. Again. Though... maybe not just yet. The crow obviously hadn¡¯t tried to kill him, only warn him off, and he could still contribute something. If he didn''t get himself killed first. Harem was staying out of the discussion while also trying to back away quietly behind his girlfriend. At least until Stanley glared at them and waggled his knife in front of their faces. That got Blindfold''s attention as well. Somehow... "What was it, Stanley? Let us help you. Let us fight!" Stanley eyed the group as they all shared Blindfold''s sentiment, though with varying degrees of enthusiasm. "None of you can help me." He pointed at Harem. "Except you." "Please, don''t do this!" The man cowered behind his girlfriend while shooting pleading looks at the others. "You can''t do this!" "Really?" Stanley said, advancing on the man as he backed up. "Why not? Why can''t I do this?" "Nate will..." "Seriously!? You think Nate will side with you over me? You think Nate trusts you? You think anyone fucking trusts you after what you did!?" "I didn''t do..." "No one cares! You chose a class that made you a monster!" "I didn''t choose it!" Harem cried, with actual tears running down his face. "That''s so much worse..." Stanley pulled back from the man in disgust and confusion. Disgust because if the man didn''t choose the class, then that meant it was his highest affinity... and confusion because the man''s soul really didn''t match up with something like that. "It was from a skill," Harem whispered. "My class was Professor''s Assistant when this started." He wasn''t lying... and judging by the surrounding souls, he hadn''t told anyone this before. "It was my roommate..." Stanley shook his head. "Who fucking cares!? You have it now, and you''re going to use it on me!" "But I''ll die!" "You''ll die if you don''t!" "Stanley, please..." "Don''t fucking please me!" Stanley screamed, rounding on Blindfold and the rest of the group. "A god just tried to eat my brother and me! I don''t know why it didn''t finish the job, and I don''t know if it will fucking try again! So don''t fucking please me, you worthless, weakling, fucks!" That finally shut them up and earned Stanley some dirty looks, but he didn''t care about their feelings, only their power. "You are supposed to be out here so we can find and kill the undead, but you don''t want to do the one thing I need from you! The only actual useful thing any of you can do!" More baleful glares. As if he cared. What were they going to do? Cry about it like Harem? Stanley flew toward the crybaby. "Do it, or..." Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Mental Fortress has reached the Level 25 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Mental Fortress Upgraded to Level 25 (Intermediate) Finally... and he barely even felt it. Though perhaps his anger was helping. That, and the higher skill level. "Again!" Harem stared wide-eyed at him, still alive and well despite his stupid fear of Caffeine. Somehow, that only made Stanley feel worse. Caffeine hadn''t even twitched. Was he hurt that badly? Had something else happened to Caffeine after he passed out? Something worse? Was it his soul? No... he was only tired. Right? Stanley cursed himself for the idiot he was and dragged everyone into the sky with him as he flew toward Zeke. He should have done that first. Just in case... "Do it again!" Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress "Again!" Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress "Keep going!" "I''m out of mana!" Harem wailed. "Seriously!" Stanley seethed, but only focused all of his power on moving faster. He should have left the rest of the freeloaders out there... They were only slowing him down. Nate was waiting for him, along with Zeke. Had they felt his soul screaming all the way over here? Had the entire dungeon felt it? Had the undead? Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Unfortunately, Caffeine didn''t wake up in Zeke''s light. He didn''t respond at all, for better or worse. Even steaming meat in front of his nose elicited no response... He was just tired. That''s all it was! Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Nate said nothing through all of that; he only watched him with his stupid judging eyes. Especially when Stanley had to yell at Harem to keep going. Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress At least, not until Stanley took him aside and told him most of what had happened, including about his plan to go after Sam. "As soon as Caffeine recovers, I''m taking Har..." He wracked his brain and finally came up with what he was looking for. "I''m taking Brett to dominate Sam." Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Nate took it better than expected, much better than Brett and his girlfriend did. "Are you sure? I know you''re... angry after what happened. Plus, you thought she couldn''t help before, what with her friend''s oath and all." Stanley was angry. He was angry about still being trapped in here. Angry that his brother was under attack and he couldn''t do anything about it. Angry that Caffeine was... tired. But that wasn''t the whole reason. "She''s the best lead we have¡ªthe only lead¡ªand she has made it perfectly clear who''s side she''s on. Best case, she stays completely out of it, but I doubt that. If she cares so much, then it''s far more likely that she joins up with her friend and attacks us at some point. This way, we get rid of her and potentially draw out her friend. Also, we get most of her power on our side..." Assuming Harem kept her around. She wouldn''t be nearly as powerful once she was in his thrall, and Stanley doubted anyone would appreciate seeing a dominated human walking around... but power was power. Nate nodded slowly. "That was a bit more well reasoned than I expected from you." "Wait, you''re seriously talking about killing someone because they won''t help you!" Reflector bitched. To Nate. Stanley glared at the woman. Didn''t she ever leave Harem''s side? It wasn''t like Stanley was going to kill him. Not anymore. Then he turned his glare on Nate. "I''m angry, not an idiot!" "Unfortunately," Nate said. "Those two often go hand in hand. Despite that, I think you might be right. Though I''m not looking forward to dealing with all those people afterward." Reflector huffed, and Stanley ignored her. "Did the wizards ever figure anything out? Can''t they recreate the miasma shield?" Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Nate shrugged. "They are... reasonably confident. But it''s going to be rough for the F-grades if they can''t pull it off." Stanley didn''t give a flying fuck about them, but Nate knew that. "Just make sure you''re ready here. In case she... slips away." "We will, and you should go after her at night." "That... you think her magic is weaker in the dark?" "Yes," Nate said while eyeing Harem and whatever her name was. "I asked some of our wizard friends to take a look at her if they got a chance. She uses a type of light magic, and while it won''t necessarily be weaker in the dark, they did think it might slow down her regeneration." That made far too much sense when Stanley thought back to his fight with the woman. He''d never met anyone who could fight as long as she had... after he''d taken her out over the ocean... literally the brightest spot he could have found. She''d practically outlasted him. While he was eating... "God damn it!" Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Stanley frowned at the lack of a skill level. Of course, he''d expected diminishing returns to kick in. He''d also hoped it would take longer. Debuff Resisted: [Mental Domination] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress The next one gave a level, but it only got worse from there. Nate moved off to deal with people bullshit, and Stanley started attacking Reflector to train his other skills while he waited for Harem to regenerate mana. He kept them all at a safe distance from the actual base, far enough that none of the kids would see him bleeding everywhere... Not that it really mattered. They would be in the war soon enough. Possibly before they had any chance to defend themselves. What was the sight of a little blood dripping from his clothes? He kept at it until it got dark, and his assistants started whining. Well, continued whining. Though it was mostly on the girlfriend''s end. Brett had finally stepped up and stopped being a coward. Or he was too afraid to protest... Stanley didn''t care which it was, but he let them go when he felt Lee wake up on the other side of the continent. Besides, by then, the diminishing returns were abysmal, and it didn''t even matter if he was angry or not. His skill alone was enough to resist the man''s power. Which was good because Stanley felt increasingly drained and tired of being angry. It was still comforting, in a way. He didn''t need to fear the man, but then he never really had. Harem wasn''t a real threat. Not on the scale of what Stanley faced all too often, and not compared to what his brother had run into... Stanley retreated to his house and worked on their soul wound while listening to Lee''s... half of their soul? His twin was scared when he woke up, but it didn''t last. Lee''s soul calmed down quickly. Then it felt happy. Warm. Comforting. It echoed with a similar sentiment that he could feel from Nate''s base in the distance. A weak sentiment. Ignorant people being happy in their blissful ignorance of what lurked beyond. They didn''t know about the hungry gods. Yet, even Nate was happy... and he knew. Stanley had told him. But did he really understand? Could he? Stanley wouldn''t have understood before feeling it himself. They were all ants. Scurrying about while completely unaware of the foot descending to crush them into paste. Then why was Lee so happy? He knew what was out there. He''d nearly died a few hours ago! Why did he feel... safe? Stanley thought about flying back to the base. Enough of them would welcome him in. The ones he cared about, at least. He could pretend everything was okay for a little while. He could bask in their delusions... He could, if not for the limp and unresponsive pug in his lap. It left his reality too dark to pretend otherwise. So instead, he curled up around Caffeine, alone in the dark. Please wake up. Please be okay... I can''t do this without you. 165. Become God ~~~Stanley~~~ They came for him in the night. A bright cluster of souls that couldn''t hide their inexorable advance through the darkness as they descended on his home. Stanley considered fleeing. Or driving them off. But he couldn''t muster the will to do either, and instead only remained curled up around Caffeine on the bed. Even when they made it inside. He hadn''t locked the door, but it wouldn''t have mattered. This house had never turned into an actual lair, which left the entire structure about as durable as a sheet of paper for keeping anything out. Buff Gained: [Purifying Aura] "He''s in here, guys." Zeke cheated by using his aura to find him. Since they shouldn''t be able to feel his soul with the shield going. "Hi, Stanley! We brought you dinner!" "I''m not hungry. You can go away." At least he wouldn''t be if Zeke stood there long enough. Debuff Downgraded: [Famished] Exactly. Olivia followed him in and added her own light magic to the room to supplement Zeke''s golden glow. It felt unpleasantly bright against Stanley''s closed eyelids. They should''ve left it dark... "I think we can all squeeze in here," Silas said, tromping through the door behind her and ahead of a crowd as he summoned a crystal table at the foot of the bed. He was definitely getting better with that skill, and he followed up the table by creating stools for everyone. The rest of them unburdened themselves by piling food onto the table and filling the room with a myriad of delicious scents. It was terrible. Stanley''s stomach grumbled, but his gut twisted at the lack of reaction from Caffeine. Absolutely nothing. His nose didn''t twitch. He didn''t start looking to see who had food in their hands. He didn''t scramble free from Stanley''s hold on him. He only lay there. Limp. He never even twitched or whimpered like he usually did when sleeping. Was his sleep too deep for dreams? Was that a thing? It must be. It had to be! Right? "I''m. Not. Hungry," Stanley growled at the invading people. "So fuck off before I make you fuck off." "No can do," Nate said, far too cheerful for the circumstances. "We all love Caffeine too, and there''s no way we can let you stand vigil alone." "This isn''t a damn vigil! He''s... just tired." "You know what?" Nate said. "You''re right! We should make it a party!" "A dinner party!" Serenity exclaimed. "Caffeine always loves mealtimes!" Her cheer was a bit more forced than Nate''s, but not completely. "Right?" Nate agreed. "Good food and good friends. That''s like his whole jam!" Yeah. Because of course Caffeine loved mealtime! Except he liked them when he was awake and getting snacks from everyone! Not while he was sleeping. He''d only be sad that he missed out on all the food... Stanley finally opened his eyes when Zeke climbed onto the bed with him and put his glowing hands on Caffeine. "He''s not hurt, Stanley. I would feel it if I was healing him... I don''t think he''s even hungry." That didn''t help. "He''s... always hungry." "I don''t think I''ve ever healed his hunger." Zeke smiled down at the pug. "I think he just really likes eating!" As if that wasn''t the most obvious thing in the world. Stanley carried himself above the bed, settled Caffeine carefully in his lap, and once again considered throwing the intruders out as he glowered at them. Maybe through a wall? They were all too stupidly cheerful. Well, most of them were. Eve had come along, and she was still her usual miserable self. "What!?" Eve demanded after he''d stared at her a little too long. She was still afraid of him as well. Angrily afraid. Her gaze jumped to Zeke, then to Caffeine, before landing back on Stanley. "I like Caffeine too... so stop fucking staring at me!" Stanley didn''t toss her through a wall. He understood anger. Fear too. She was right to be afraid and right to be angry at what she feared. She wasn''t living in denial like everyone else. She knew they were screwed, and she was rightly pissed off about that fact. He still stopped staring at her and took in the rest of his gathered... friends? As they settled in around the table. All of his old team were here, except Edward, and Nate hadn''t brought the new guy in Zeke''s guard detail, so that was nice. Because that guy was an idiot. Though he had brought one strange addition that Stanley hadn''t expected. Blindfold. "He wanted to come," Nate said, shrugging when he saw who Stanley was looking at. "Why? Didn''t I shit on you guys enough earlier? You know, when I pointed out how useless you all are?" Blindfold took the insult in stride. "We were useless in your... fight? I''ll admit that. Though I still don''t understand what happened..." "What''s not to get?" Silas asked, pointing with a skewer of meat. "Something attacked his brother on the other side of the country, so Stanley and Caff helped him fight it off. They''re a package deal like that." Stanley wished it were that simple. Or that they''d actually won the fight. "We didn''t fight it off. We fucking lost! I don''t even know how we''re still alive..." "You''re alive," Nate said. "Caffeine''s alive. I''d call that a win." They were alive. Caffeine was alive. So why wouldn''t he wake up? Had he gotten hit harder than they did? Stanley had his mental fortress, and Lee probably had some magic bullshit... or had something extra happened to Caff because he threatened that... thing? It was so powerful... there was no telling what it could do. It might have... Buff Gained: [Purifying Light] "Will you eat with us?" Zeke asked while touching his arm and pumping golden light into him. It felt... nice, but Stanley pulled away. It was too nice. Too peaceful. Too pleasant. He shouldn''t feel good when Caffeine might be... "Check it out," Silas said, pointing to a spot at the table with no accompanying stool. "Your spot, since I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen you sit in a chair. Like, ever." "Please?" Zeke begged, though he kept his hands to himself this time. Some of the cheer went away as everyone stared at him, and Stanley double-checked that his soul shield was still up. It was. But, apparently, they didn''t need to feel his soul. His face must have given away the weight in his chest. The ache that no amount of Zeke''s light could remove. Only one thing could do that. Only one person... one dog. They understood that but were still trying. Because they cared... about him? Or Caffeine? Obviously, caring about Caffeine was a given. Everyone loved the pug. But it also felt like the people in this room cared about him, too. They were still worried about Caffeine¡ªperhaps even as much as he was¡ªbut they were trying to hide it behind those useless smiles because it was the only thing they could do to help. "Okay," Stanley whispered while he drifted to his designated place at the crystalline table. "I''ll eat." Nate smiled at him as he slid a plate over, but it was a toned-down smile compared to before. A much more realistic expression. Hopeful, but not stupidly delusional. Stanley took a skewer, pulled a chunk of meat off with his teeth, and froze mid-bite. It wasn''t bad. In fact, it was delicious. Chicken, seasoned to perfection, roasted over an open flame, yet still succulent. It was perfect¡ªCaffeine''s undisputed favorite. He bit down, flavor exploding in his mouth... then spit it out when something between a gag and a sob bubbled up. His vision blurred, but he still caught the chunk of meat before it landed on the sleeping Caffeine. It hung there in the air, a tasty morsel that Caffeine should have been all over... The moment stretched as he resisted the urge to throw it through a wall... Instead, he closed his eyes and set the half-chewed meat ever so gently back onto his plate with the skewer while both of his hands brushed over Caffeine''s fur. He didn''t need to eat. He could wait for Caffeine to wake up first. It especially didn''t matter with Zeke here. Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry] No one commented on the bad table manners. Instead, Silas spoke up like nothing had happened. "Did you guys see Caffeine playing with the kids last night? He and Barbie were carrying them around, like they do, and Landon fell off next to the fireplace... Man, I swear that Caffeine can teleport with how fast he got under him. He even took the kids on his back with him!" "That''s nothing," Serenity said. "You should see him when he runs around with the wolves!" James chuckled. "I almost feel sorry for them sometimes. Have you seen that one little wolf that always acts so tough?" Were the wolves getting more chummy with the humans? He hadn''t really checked on them, other than noting their souls when Caffeine was playing with them... Stanley thought about asking but he didn''t. It didn''t really matter, and he didn''t really care. "What I don''t get," Olivia said. "Is how he can be friends with both the wolves and moose when they actively hunt each other?" "They don''t..." Nate said with his mouth full, then swallowed before adding, "Hunt each other, I mean." "I''ve seen them..." "Oh, they still chase each other, but it''s not hunting." He pointed at Olivia with a skewer. "You ever see them actually kill a moose?" She shrugged. "I''m not sure if they can... those things are terrifying!" "They are, which only makes it more hilarious when you see them next to Caffeine." Nate laughed. "But no, I think it''s somewhere between leftover instincts and training their young. For both sides. Other than that, I''m pretty sure they are working together to keep any other competitors out." That tracked with what Stanley had seen. Or felt. He could feel them now if he concentrated. Two groups, each on opposite sides of Nate''s base and the center of the clean zone. Well, clean-ish zone. There were other bright spots out there. Smaller clusters of unknown and uncorrupted monsters, along with lairs and random lone creatures. "Have..." Stanley cleared his throat and opened his eyes, then quickly looked away from the gazes coming his way and settled on watching Caffeine sleep. "Have you seen the tiger?" If there was one monster to deal with while Caffeine was asleep... it was that one. He knew it wasn''t an actual friend to Caffeine; it only pretended to save its own life. Unfortunately, it could also hide its soul... "I haven''t seen it," Nate said. "But I''m sure I''ve felt it watching me a few times now, and it wasn''t a friendly feeling. I think it''s still too scared of Caff to try anything." It should be afraid of Stanley... and he should have killed it when he had the chance. "We''ve seen the bear!" Zeke exclaimed out of nowhere. He shared a look with Nate before adding, "One of the newer teams tried to hunt it." Nate sighed. "I tell them all to stick with the lairs if they want to stay in the clean zone, but there are always a few idiots that don''t listen." Stanley had seen Caffeine play with a bear once, or try to anyway. It had mostly ignored him, a normally impossible feat that it only pulled off by standing in the middle of a river, where Caffeine couldn''t or wouldn''t go. It was clever, but its soul had felt amicable enough. Plus, it had kept slapping fish clear across the water to Caffeine...This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. He could feel its soul now, one of the singular souls that stood out all on its own. It had a lazy vibe, and he''d never noticed if it strayed far from the river. Probably not. Either to discourage Caffeine from playing with it or because it really liked fish. Or both. Stanley also had no real idea of its strength. "What happened to them?" Zeke grinned, and Eve''s soul echoed his amusement as she likely recalled the occasion. "It sat on one of them and then went to sleep! They couldn''t even hurt it!" "The idiots still tried," James said, shaking his head. "It took until they ran out of mana before they finally came back for help." "That thing is a tank," Nate agreed. "And I''m glad Caffeine showed up to get it off the moron..." "It''s so huge!" Zeke exclaimed. "I can''t believe they even tried..." Stanley closed his eyes and only listened as the others ate and chattered on. They talked a lot about Caffeine, sharing stories of things he''d done, friends he''d made, and about how great he was. Obviously. Some of the stories were nice. A few even brought a ghost of a smile to his face a few times. Events he hadn''t been there to witness firsthand, but chock full of Caffeine being his best self. The rest of it sucked. It felt too much like they were at a goddamned funeral and reminiscing about the deceased. Luckily, they also chattered about a lot of stupid stuff completely unrelated to Caffeine. James even got into an argument with Nate about rules and laws for their growing settlement. Stanley sat through it all. Because he knew they were simply passing the time. It didn''t really matter what they talked about. Just like the food. It was only an excuse for them to gather. An excuse to hang out here with him and Caffeine. They were trying. That meant something... He abandoned the conversation a few times as the night dragged on. Sometimes to meditate when Caffeine''s silent stillness got to him, but also to squeeze in whatever little bits of progress he could on fixing the soul wound. He had to pass the time somehow, and sure, it meant he was bombarding them with his soul, but they were probably used to it... No one complained, at least. They also never left. Worse, Caffeine didn''t wake up. The night dragged on, but no one headed for bed. Even when he started wishing they would. Until he returned from another silent trip into his soul and found only more silence waiting for him in the real world. They weren''t gone, but they were clearly waiting for him to wake up. That wasn''t all he found waiting. Debuff Downgraded: [Soul Wound(Rune Seal)(Shielded)] Progress. It was down from a major wound... did that mean it would go to a minor wound next? Would that be the last? He couldn''t wait to see the debuff removed notification... Stanley opened his eyes and saw daylight shining in from outside. They''d stayed all night... Nate stood up shortly afterward. He was finally ready to leave. "Stanley, thanks for hanging out." Is that what he was calling it? A hangout? "I''ve got to get back to work, but come see me if you need anything. Okay?" Stanley nodded, but his gaze never strayed from Caffeine in his lap. He was still limp, but was his soul a little brighter than it had been? His breathing and heartbeat were still steady. That was good, right? Nate left, but he was the only one who did. Stanley eventually looked up at the rest of the people in his house, who only stared back at him. They weren''t leaving? Weren''t they tired after staying up all night? Not that anyone needed much sleep anymore, but he''d at least gotten in some meditation along the way... "Goodbye?" "We were actually going to stay with you," James said. "Until..." He glanced at Caffeine. "As long as it takes." "I''m going hunting." He wasn''t going after Sam until tonight, and it couldn''t hurt to add a few more attributes while he waited for the darkness. Caffeine would definitely wake up by then, and they''d be good to go. "Great!" James said. "We''ll come with, and it''ll be just like old times." He was clearly losing his mind, because Stanley was pretty sure the man had hated their time together... or at least not enjoyed it as much as he claimed now. Stanley eyed their eager but also tired and worried expressions. It would be easy enough to escape. He could fly away, and they would never keep up. They could go home and sleep. But he didn''t do that. Despite his grumbling, he was... grateful for last night. It hadn''t been as dark with them here... Literally and figuratively. They''d come for him when he hadn''t asked for or even known he wanted them to. That was worth something, right? Or had they done it simply because they needed his power? Was that all it was? No, he knew for a fact that they loved Caffeine, and not only for his incredible power, but because who wouldn''t!? Caffeine was the best dog in the world, and dogs were the best people. So, of course they were worried about him... As for himself... well, Stanley could see and feel their souls. Those souls told him they cared about him. So why did he have so much trouble believing it? What if the caring he sensed was only because they needed him? If they weren''t trapped in this dungeon, would they still care? Or would they be only too happy to see him fly off into the sunset? They''d just lost a whole night because he couldn''t handle Caffeine taking a longer than normal nap... Stanley quashed those thoughts. It was too depressing. Besides, Caffeine liked these people¡ªif not loved¡ªand who was more qualified to judge the worth of a human than a dog? Caffeine loved them. That was enough. "Sure," Stanley said. "I''d... like that." Zeke beamed, clearly excited, while Eve managed not to verbalize her own less positive reaction. Seriously, why was she so worried? She actually felt... guilty? Whatever. Blindfold was the odd man out in that he left. Though not before jabbering a bunch of nonsense. "Thanks for having me, Stanley. I enjoyed it, and you have some great friends." "Tonight," Stanley said. "We''re taking her down tonight. Tell the others to stay ready." Caffeine would be awake by then. Before then, even. Any minute now. He waved and started walking away. "I''ll let ''em know." Luckily, everyone else had come ready for a fight last night, so he didn''t have to delay much while they strapped into the few armor pieces they''d taken off overnight. Then he carried them to the next lair on the path of his rampage through this dungeon. A five-story apartment building. Or at least that was what it felt like in his mental sweep. Unluckily for the monsters living in there, Stanley was not in a good mood when he arrived, and he cut them down en masse. Or maybe it was a good thing because they died fast? That was better, wasn''t it? If that god came back to kill him, he would prefer that it killed him quick. Wouldn''t he? No, a stubborn part of him realized. He didn''t want to die quick. He wanted to see it coming. He wanted the chance to fight back. No matter how hopeless it was... On the heels of that unpleasant thought, Stanley dropped his companions outside and flew into the lair to get his cores. Sure, he could have dropped them at the next lair to start fighting, but no one had asked him to and he suspected they wanted to remain close. To keep an eye on him, maybe. Though he got some mixed feelings from their souls when they charged in after him and found nothing to fight. Silas was the first one to ask the obvious as he let his crystal shield dissipate. "You... already killed everything, didn''t you?" Stanley nodded tersely, using his soul sight to pinpoint each core and yeet them into his hand. "Of course. It''s only five stories." "An entire lair..." James muttered and picked up the skill shard at the entrance. "It took you what, two seconds?" "I left the queen," Stanley said. "No reason to depopulate it... and what are you talking about? I was already killing lairs just as fast back when you were on the team." "You know the monsters are getting stronger too, right?" James said. "I mean, we''ve all gotten a lot stronger, but the monsters are too! This doesn''t get easier! Only more... predictable." Silas laughed. "I doubt he ever even noticed. I mean, he fought against a god yesterday. What''s a few..." He looked closer at one of the bisected corpses. "Bugs? What are a few bugs compared to that?" Stanley ignored Silas and sent his mind sweeping through the building. He dragged the dead monsters through doorways, hallways, downstairs, and into a disgusting blob. It was the lazy way to do it. If he wanted to be more meticulous, he could carefully pluck each core without even setting foot inside. But he wasn''t in a meticulous mood. "You know," Olivia said sometime later, as they walked into another defeated lair behind him. "When we talked about coming with you, I actually expected we''d do some real fighting." She glanced around at the bloody carnage. "I''m not sure what I was thinking." "Then go fight!" Stanley snapped and felt her soul flinch at his tone. He shoved his anger as low as it would go and added, "You should all go hunt, because following me around like this is obviously a waste of your time." "It''s never a waste of time to help a friend," James said calmly. "Besides, another day of hunting won''t change much for us at this point." Stanley stopped and stared. "You''re all capped on attributes?" "Yep. Best we get these days is a handful of skill levels." "You..." Stanley looked at his own attributes, only recently climbing past nine hundred, with mixed feelings. Sure, he needed a lot more cores than anyone else, but that didn''t really matter in the long run. Not compared to the benefits he gained from the source nexus trait. He wasn''t even that far behind, and if they didn''t find any D-grades soon, he would catch up. "You should still fight. Skill levels aren''t nothing." "I mostly agree with James," Serenity said with a smile and emotion in her soul while she looked steadily at him. "Some things are more important than a few extra percentages on our attributes." Stanley looked away and kept grabbing cores. He didn''t need all their useless emotions and caring right now. He only needed Caffeine to wake up. So of course she kept talking. "Where I don''t agree is that I don''t see us as friends." Not what he''d expected, and it didn''t match with her soul. "We''re a family." Okay, there it was. "A fucked up family, sure. One brought together by tragedy and horror, but a family nonetheless. I know I would do whatever I could for any of you, and I believe you would all do the same. That is what makes a family. Not blood. Not relations. But by being there for each other in our darkest moments. So no, Stanley, this isn''t a waste of our time." Stanley cursed silently to himself and tried to shove his feelings away even as he felt the rising emotions behind him. Why did they have to be like this? Why did they have to care so much? Why did they have to make him care in return!? Couldn''t they see that this only made things worse? All those bubbly, happy emotions would only turn into poison when the inevitable happened. Was it really worth feeling happier now when it would hurt so much more later? Stanley didn''t want to answer that question. He was too afraid of what the answer might be. So he distracted himself by meticulously gathering up the cores instead. It took a lot of focus to pick out each speck of soul, then drag those shards through the lair and into his waiting hand. His attributes ticked up slowly, each core giving him tiny fractions of a point thanks to the diminishing returns. +0.1 All Base Attributes A core that would have given him at least ten to each attribute back in the day, and now it barely cleared the point zero threshold. While he wasn''t seeing the strength increase in the monsters that James mentioned, he couldn''t deny that the cores were getting stronger. They were definitely getting closer to D-grade; it was only a matter of how close. He ran out of cores to collect far too quickly and finally turned to face the now silent group at his back. They all smiled to varying degrees as his gaze jumped from face to expectant face, all of them watching him and waiting for... something. Except for Eve, she was watching her brother instead. Stanley broke first. "What!?" James rolled his eyes and shook his head, but his small smile didn''t slip. It felt like he''d expected Stanley''s response. The other happy expressions in the room slipped more, with Eve outright glaring at him, probably because Zeke''s reaction was the worst. Stanley didn''t even need to see the kid''s soul. He could see it written all over his face when the beaming smile darkened. "God damn it!" Stanley yelled. "Fine! We''re a fucking family! Is that what you want!?" It was. The bastards all smiled at him, and James even laughed! "You''re going to regret..." Stanley had to dodge aside when Zeke tried to tackle him. "Hey, there''s no hugging in my family!" Zeke kept smiling but backed off, at least until Serenity shouted, "Get him!" They were all a bunch of traitors and ganged up on him. Stanley could have defeated them. All of them at once, if he had to. He could have escaped... but deep down, he knew it was far too late for that. He''d already lost this fight days ago. There was nothing left to do but surrender. So he gave up and let it happen. A few of them were less enthusiastic about the group hug, primarily James and Eve, but they still piled on. It was awkward and uncomfortable... but also pleasant. It was safe, warm, and not from the heat of all the bodies surrounding him, but from their souls. They truly cared. This wasn''t a ploy to use him for his power, but actual people who actually cared about him. For what god-forsaken reason they cared, he didn''t know, but he knew they did. It reminded him of what he''d felt from Lee... and Stanley finally understood. Lee had found a family of his own. He''d found the few good people out there, and they were looking out for him. They weren''t doing a very good job, considering, but what could anyone do against monsters like that? Maybe it was enough that they tried. Maybe it was simply enough that they were there. They also held onto him for way too long. Like, sure, hugs could be nice and all, but there were limits! Stanley started spinning in place, trying to throw them off, but the idiots only laughed and held on tighter when their feet left the floor. E-grade humans were too damn strong... "Enough!" he finally yelled. "You got your damn hug. Now get off me already!" He was ready to start forcibly peeling them away, but they got the message and clambered off, all smiles and laughter. Caffeine slept through everything, which was a shame because he would have loved that. Stanley looked up from the pug at his... family, some of their excessive cheer relenting as they too took in the image of the still sleeping pug. Yet somehow the sight wasn''t as heavy as it had been. He wasn''t alone in waiting for Caffeine to finish napping. He had them. His family... It was a good feeling. Too good. Which meant this was going to hurt. Stanley knew it would. There would be a terrible price to pay for this. Nothing good was ever free, and he dreaded the moment this bill came due. You know what? Stanley thought. Fuck that! These fuckers were his now! He wouldn''t let anything take them away! He only had to become powerful enough that nothing would dare to try. If he was as powerful as that god that had attacked Lee... no, stronger than that. Much stronger. He would make his will the absolute law of the universe! "Go fight," Stanley said, then continued when he felt the protests coming. "I... appreciate the support, but I''m good, and you all need to get stronger. Even if it''s only a few percentage points." They still hesitated. "You chose this, remember? You wanted to be a part of my family. Well, you got what you wanted, but now you should understand something important. You should understand what you''ve gotten yourselves into." Stanley smiled, and it was his first real smile since the attack. A true expression of how he was feeling in this moment, but also something more. It was a promise to them and to himself. "You see, I''m going to become a god, and I''d really like it if you all did the same. 166. Trudy ~~~Trudy~~~ "On your left, Tru!" Mika screamed. It was unnecessary and louder than they should probably be in here, but he was a sweet boy trying his best. "Thank you, dear," Trudy said, already sending her magic spell to break the rabbit''s feet before it could jump again. She followed that up with a quick spear thrust into its heart. There was no need to prolong its suffering longer than she had to. The creatures were almost cute. Though perhaps a touch too large when they stood nearly at her height. Plus, their needle-like teeth and glowing red eyes didn''t help. Such a shame. She''d always loved rabbits since having one as a pet, but then, that had been quite some time ago, and she had eaten her share of the animals in the interim. It was all part of the natural circle of life. Well, it had been. There was no denying the unnatural circumstances she found herself in these days. Some good. Some bad. For one, she had magic spells. That was new. Unnatural, but not bad. In fact, she quite enjoyed casting spells. It was intoxicating and made her feel powerful. No wonder the kids were so into that Wicca stuff back in the day! She only used one of her spells out here; one called Force Impact. A nice young man named Nathaniel had given it to her and only asked that she bring back food for the base every time she went out. It wasn''t a big and flashy spell like the magic some folks used, and it left her quite tired if she used it too many times in a row, but it got the job done. It definitely made hunting rabbits easier. Trudy thrust her hand toward another hopping rabbit, timing her magic as it landed and its muscles tensed for the next hop. She made the spell as flat as she could, and at about the thickness of a dinner plate, it could break bones. It might do more damage if she could make it thinner, but that would have to wait. The rabbit''s hind legs broke, and she finished it before it could scramble closer with its forelegs and try to take a bite from her. They did that if you weren''t quick. Defending themselves from attacking creatures and zombies was one thing, but venturing into the animals'' dens and slaughtering them didn''t feel right. Especially considering they would only take a few back for food. It reeked of irresponsible and wasteful culling, and the only reason she went along with it was because there were never any corpses left the next day. With no signs of an outside attack either. The obvious implication was that the remaining animals in the lair were eating their dead, which... well, things had changed. As long as they weren''t rotting in the fields, she could accept it. Besides, they bred quite a lot faster now... Eventually, no more rabbits emerged from the tunnel leading deeper in, and Dean called for a retreat to the entrance. Right on time, too. Her mana was low, and she could see the signs of fatigue on a few others as they gratefully sank to the floor wherever they could find a clean spot. "How we doing?" Dean asked while taking a quick look outside the cave. "Everyone okay?" He sat down at the entrance to keep watch. "Hallie, how''s your leg?" "It''s okay," the girl in question replied, touching the bandage. "We have the rest of the potion..." "No!" Hallie said. "We should save it! I can still fight... and someone might get hurt worse." "You might get hurt worse because you''re limping," Dean said, his voice earnest. "And I don''t want you risking yourself like that." "I''m fine!" Hallie squeaked, then ducked her head to hide her blushing face behind a curtain of hair. She had it bad for Dean, and Trudy didn''t blame her. The boy was a gorgeous snack, what with that chiseled jaw and those brilliant baby blues. If only he wasn''t over eighty years her junior... Abby, sitting beside her, alternately glowered at the other girl for the attention she was getting or beamed at Dean whenever he looked her way. It was painfully obvious why both girls had leapt at the chance to join this team the moment they laid eyes on him. Ah, to be young again. Unfortunately for both of them, the boy was oblivious to their attention. Why were the pretty ones always like that? Of course, there was a chance that he was a boy''s boy, but she''d never gotten that vibe from him. Either way, he completely missed the girls'' reactions and turned to Trudy instead. "How are you doing, Miss Trudy?" "Boy, how many times I gotta tell you to stop it with that miss nonsense?" Dean smiled. "At least one more time, Miss Trudy." "Cheeky, but you best stop treating me like an old woman! Don''t think I won''t bend you over my knee..." "But Miss Trudy," Dean said, grinning wider. "You''re a hundred and ten years old, and if I recall correctly, you are the one who told me I best not forget it." He tilted his head and touched his chin as if deep in thought. "Repeatedly, and usually while threatening me with a spoon." "Bah! Kids these days have no respect for their elders!" she grumbled but couldn¡¯t keep the smile off her face. Trudy loved the boy like he was her own grand... great grandchild. She had plenty of those. Somewhere out there. Hopefully surviving. She''d done her best for her family, and they''d put her in a home. Not a bad one, but it had hurt. Looking back, she knew they''d done what they had to. She''d been a handful. Something Dean knew well from his time caring for her, including the aforementioned spoons. He was a good egg. The only one who had stayed when the world ended. He''d fought for them. Fed them. Given them cores so they could fight with him. Then he watched as, one by one, they fell. Until it was only the two of them left. It wasn''t his fault, but she knew it pained him to lose the people in his care. Even if they''d all been on their way out before the world ended. That was what made him one of the good ones. Unfortunately, it also meant he''d insisted on following her when Nate''s people found them and she joined the hunters. She got back at him by insisting he be the team leader. He might be a bit overprotective now, but she''d work on him. He''d get there. On that note, she shook her finger at the uppity boy. "Don''t you make me go looking for a spoon!" "Yes, Miss Trudy." Trudy sighed. She''d never get rid of him at this point. Oh well. At least he was easy on the eyes... Maybe a girlfriend would help distract him? Hallie was right there. She only had to make him notice the girl. Speaking of which, while the others were already used to their back and forth, Hallie looked... worried. "What is it, dear?" If she was trying to impress Dean and hiding a more serious injury... "Let me see your leg." "It''s not my leg!" Hallie protested while Trudy climbed to her feet. "I just suddenly got a bad feeling..." Dean also stood up at that. "Is it your intuition?" "I... don''t know, but Nate told me I should always listen to my feelings." "Inside or outside?" Dean asked, all business once again, as he scrutinized both the dark tunnel leading deeper into the lair and the opening leading into daylight. Hallie shook her head as she and everyone else scrambled back to their feet. "I can''t tell! But..." She clutched her chest, and tears sprang into her eyes. "It feels terrible!" Dean decided quickly. "Everyone outside!" He caught Hallie as she tried to limp past and forced the half-empty potion into her hand. "Drink this. Now. We''re running all the way back." His good looks were one thing, but he really took things to the next level when he got all commanding like this. The poor girl looked to be in a trance as she took and drank the potion, her wide-eyed gaze locked on Dean until he dragged her out into the sunlight. She blinked in the sudden glare and broke from her trance. Only then did the girl remember she was terrified as she looked frantically around. "Which way..." "Come on, you kids. This..." Trudy hesitated and moved back toward them when she saw something coming closer through the trees. Coming fast! She didn''t hesitate to put herself between the children and whatever it was. She''d lived a long, full life, and they were only barely getting started. She wouldn''t let them... The incoming blur resolved into a man who looked familiar, and he was talking to a coin. "...wolves won''t slow it..." He trailed off as he slid to a stop and stared at them in shock. Then he cursed. "Shit!" "Nate!" the man yelled at his coin. "I''ve got a team at the rabbit lair! Sector eleven!" His gaze jumped to the cave opening behind them. "All of you, back inside!" He hustled them in while still talking to his coin. "We''re hunkering in the lair, but I won''t be able to protect them forever! I need backup!" "What''s happening!?" Dean demanded. "A swarm," the man said, then shook his coin before yelling at it again. "Nate, can you hear me!?" Nothing happened. "Please tell me you didn''t pick today to stop working!?" he pleaded and tapped madly on the coin before glancing around the cave''s antechamber. "All of you, watch the tunnel! Keep the rabbits off me and stay out of my way! I''ll hold ¡®em at the entrance. Do you have any potions!? I''m sure I''ll need as many as..." "I just drank the last one," Hallie whispered, her voice horror-stricken as they felt the ground start to rumble beneath their feet. "Shit!" He drew his sword and faced the entrance, yelling at his coin again. "Tell me you heard me, Nate! Rabbit lair! Sector..." Hallie suddenly gasped and pulled everyone''s attention to her. "The bad feeling..." She stared wide-eyed back at them as the rumbling intensified into a roar. "It''s gone." "Maron!" A tiny voice came from the coin, barely heard above the growing noise that seemed to come from every direction at once. "Stanley''s coming for you. Just hold..." The voice vanished beneath the racket, but it didn''t matter. Trudy saw the effect it had on Maron. Hope blazed back to life on his previously stricken face, and while she couldn''t hear what he said next, she saw his lips form the words as he exclaimed, "Thank God!" A new feeling grew on the heels of that message. A feeling of being watched. A feeling of being seen. Of being known. It was a new sensation for her, and not entirely unpleasant. Though it definitely felt... intrusive. The feeling rose in intensity until, abruptly, it vanished, and the earth-shaking roar diminished to a mere rumble once again. Maron snuck a peek outside the cave, grinned back at them, and then slipped back out into daylight. They all shared a look before following. Outside, they found a war zone, where a handful of humans fought against an army of... raccoons? Something close to that, or maybe wolverines? Either way, they were the size of grizzly bears, with claws and teeth to match. Orange light bathed the area directly past the entrance, emanating from a man with a large sword that would require two hands to hold up, let alone to wield it in combat. Or so she thought at first sight. She was wrong. Every animal in that orange light moved in slow motion as they charged, and even that movement ground to a halt when they got close to the man at its center. She recognized him. It was James, one of Nate''s friends, and unlike the animals, he never stopped moving as he waded deeper into the mob. His sword never stopped, either. The massive blade danced in his hands as if lighter than a feather as he alternately beheaded, stabbed, or merely cut the throats of the unmoving beasts. Others flanked him, keeping well clear of his sweeping blade but remaining within the confines of his orange aura. Trudy knew Ezekiel and his sister Eve. Both of them were precious children, and she hated to see Ezekiel out here on the battlefield, though at least he wasn''t fighting. He huddled behind an armored figure with a hand on their back while they dealt out death. Except... that armor? She''d seen it before in Eve''s workshop... was that Eve under there? Trudy had never even considered that the girl might also create weapons, though it all made a sort of sense when she saw how Eve fought. She advanced in lockstep with James, but instead of a sword, she carried a rifle, and it released repeated booming cracks with no visible fire or smoke from the barrel. However, it had a very visible effect on the animals she pointed it at. Blood spurted from the holes that appeared in the heads, torsos, and limbs of the creatures. Not merely one at a time, either. Her shots went through multiple bodies before stopping. Meanwhile, twin turrets on her shoulders fired almost constant pencil-thin beams of light that always struck delicate points on the charging beasts. Eyes, noses, even inside their open mouths... Trudy didn''t know the woman on James'' other side, also throwing out lasers, but she''d seen her around a few times. Her lasers were also far more impactful on the battlefield. The beams flew less often, but they were as wide around as Trudy''s thigh, and they burned through everything in their path with one high-intensity and instantaneous flash. She also knew Silas, and he, like Eve, had helped a lot with the children. Only, once again, she hadn''t considered that he would use his exquisite powers of creation for such a violent endeavor. A cloud of floating crystals surrounded him, but there were no sparkling butterflies. No twirling ballerinas. There was none of the delicate beauty that she''d seen from him before. These crystals were simple, wicked-looking things. They were implements designed for one thing and one thing only. Killing. They flew in a storm of flesh-seeking missiles, each one unerringly plunging into eyes, heads, and throats. Serenity walked on the far end, where a fiery snake swirled and danced around her as she advanced. Any time an animal approached too close, that fire would flick out, cracking like a whip where it landed. Every time it struck, bones shattered, blood flash-boiled, and it left behind a dead animal or one well on its way. Trudy had barely taken in the scene before her when a flash of movement caught her eye and pulled her head up in time to see the wolverine-slash-raccoon pouncing from above. She didn¡¯t even have time to lift her spear or cast her magic before the entire animal split apart down the middle. Then, both halves, including the blood, shot off in different directions and vanished into the forest. She''d never seen that before... but she''d heard about it. Stanley. He sat cross-legged in the sky above everyone, staring down at them with pitch-black eyes that whispered of terrible things hidden within their depths. Then the darkness cleared, and Trudy saw the glowing light of his eyes reappear before his gaze swept away. Those were the eyes she''d seen before. Only once, but she hadn¡¯t forgotten the sight. How could anyone forget such a dapper gentleman? The world had descended into violence and chaos, yet he still put in the effort with that immaculate suit and impeccable grooming. Never mind his stern countenance and those piercing violet eyes... "He scares me," Hallie said quietly, drawing Trudy¡¯s mind back from tantalizing and lurid imaginings. The poor girl was practically huddling behind her as she watched Stanley fly slowly after the others, the sounds of violence receding with them. Mika nodded in agreement, then murmured, "I heard that he''ll kill you as soon as look at you!" "Don''t believe everything you hear," Maron said loudly, his voice reprimanding. "Sure, he''s terrifying, but trust me, when shit hits the fan, there''s no one you want on your side more than him." He glared at Mika and Hallie. "I hear either of you spreading bullshit after he saved your asses today..." "I wouldn''t!" Hallie protested. Mika followed up with a muttered agreement, then lifted a hand and summoned the magic to coat his sword. "Should we... help?" Maron shook his head. "I could take those things one at a time, but you guys will get slaughtered. What are you, early E-grade? No, there''s a reason Nate tells you to stay in the clean zone. He keeps these lairs weaker so you can get your feet wet without dying." "Is that all it is?" Mika asked, staring at the retreating battlefront with a longing expression on his face. "Higher attributes and better skills?" "Some of it," Maron said. "But it''s also fighting day in and day out. I saw some of those skills in the early days, and trust me, they weren''t anything impressive. That power you see out there is from thousands and thousands of dead monsters. Literal rivers of blood, sweat, and tears. You have to eat, sleep, and breathe fighting if you want to stand at the top like those guys." He shook his head. "Don''t even ask about Stanley. His power is on a whole other level, and no one, aside from maybe Nate, knows what the deal is there." "I heard he can wipe out entire lairs in an instant," Dean said. "Is that true?"Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Maron glanced toward the people fighting their way ever deeper into the swarming monsters, or rather, through them, then said quietly, "It''s true. You saw that one that tried to jump on us? I''ve seen him do that to an entire swarm. All at once. I don''t know why he didn''t do it here, and I''m not asking." "Maybe he''s letting his team get some leveling?" Hallie asked. "Stanley doesn''t have a team," Maron said. "Other than maybe Caffeine? That was Zeke''s team, though they''re more like bodyguards. I think." He shook his head. "Those details are all way above my pay grade, and I like it that way." He pulled the coin from his pocket. "Maron here. Thanks for the save, Nate, and thank Stanley for me, yeah?" Nate''s voice came from the coin. "Thank him yourself." "Come on, man," Maron said. "I like to keep my head down!" "I''ll let him know," Nate said. "But can you escort the rabbit team back and gather up a few others in sectors ten and nine on your way? I''m pulling in all the lower grades until we can confirm there are no lingering problems from the swarm''s incursion." "Deal." Maron tucked the coin away and looked at them. "You heard him. Let''s get going." "I don''t get it," Mika finally said as they jogged behind Maron toward another lair. "Don''t you want to get stronger? Like Zeke''s team? Or like Stanley?" "Nope," the man said instantly and without hesitation. "I like being a scout, and that''s enough for me." "But why?" It was quiet for a time, with nothing but the sound of their feet pounding across the ground. Too quiet. There was no birdsong. All her life, whenever she was in nature or simply anywhere this rural, there was always birdsong, but not anymore. Birds were no longer a delightful part of the world but another potential threat. Maybe she would cultivate some... gentler species once things settled down. Maron answered the question eventually. "If you think you want to be strong, like, really strong, then ask Nate about the trial." "What''s that?" Mika asked, his excitement rising. Maron glanced back at him briefly. "You are new. Well, basically, he hurts you. A lot. All you have to do is keep fighting, and you pass." "That doesn''t sound bad," Mika said, then amended. "Well, not that bad." "Have you ever lost a limb?" Maron asked without looking back. "Or held in your guts with one hand while still trying to fight with the other? Because, with Zeke on hand, Nate can do all that and more without killing you." Mika didn''t reply. "Nathaniel did this to you?" Trudy asked. It sounded extreme, perhaps straying into the realm of torture. Though with magical healing... "Not to me," Maron said. "I bailed from the training. Like I said, being a scout is good enough for me. I''m strong, and I can hold my own in a fight. I don''t need to be able to defeat an entire army solo." "Did..." Mika hesitated before continuing. "Did Stanley do the training?" "No," Maron laughed. "I heard he started it. Thought people were too soft, or some such." "That''s horrible!" Abby exclaimed. "Only a sadistic person would want people to suffer more!" Trudy was about to say something, but Dean took the words right out of her mouth, and he sounded so much like her; even the inflection was spot on. "Hush, chi... Abby." She caught the moment he realized, including the annoyed glance her way. That poor boy was definitely spending too much time around her. "I know you like to... talk, Abby." He meant to say gossip. "But I better not hear you spreading what is obviously hearsay about a man who I''m pretty sure just saved our lives." The girl lied. "I would never do something like that!" "It is fine," Trudy said. "We will talk with him when he returns, so you can learn the truth and gossip about that instead." "I don''t gossip... wait, no! I don''t want to talk to him! He''s terrifying! Didn''t you see his eyes!? It felt like he wanted me dead..." "Bah!" Trudy spat. "Young''uns these days only want pretty boys to swoon over. In my day, we chased after men! Men with some fire in their eyes!" She glanced at Dean. "And those men dressed to impress..." Dean didn''t bat an eye. "I''m still not going to dress up as an army man for you, Miss Trudy." She grinned. "One day, boy." "I don''t get it," Abby said. "Why would you want him to..." Then her eyes went wide. "Eww!" Trudy cackled, Maron chuckled, and even Dean cracked a smile as they ran on. It felt good to laugh. Good to run. And she was pretty sure she could run further and faster now than at any time in her life before. They gathered up a few more hunting teams from various lairs before all heading back home and only got attacked once. By a snake. A hairy snake. Which was wrong on so many levels. Maron proved himself quite capable when he turned into a blurring streak and decapitated the creature before it could attack anyone. Then he tasked all of them with carrying the fifty-foot-long and still-twitching thing back to base because Nate would want to study it... "It''s new," Maron said. "He''s got people studying everything, trying to figure out how it all works." He glanced over the line of people trudging beneath their burden. "Which reminds me. You guys probably aren''t there yet, but don''t try to keep secrets about any class or skill evolutions you get. Not only will he reward you for information, but the big brains can usually help you figure out a path to new and better evolutions once they know about the first one." Trudy had heard rumors of that, but it was nice to have confirmation, and better still to know that someone was actually trying to learn instead of merely speculating. The man himself met them in person on their return. He was all smiles and reassurances that everything was fine and that he would have them all back out hunting again as soon as possible. Them, and all the other groups, milling about aimlessly after having their day cut short. Under the smiles, Trudy could see the weight Nathaniel carried on his shoulders. He tried to hide it, but she''d been around the block a few too many times to be fooled by him. It was the kind of pressure that would either forge him into the strongest of leaders or it would break him. She leaned toward the former. He had a certain strength of conviction, and it burned like a fire inside him. Trudy also caught Maron before he could slip away and dragged him to Nathaniel. "I don''t know if you are giving out medals, dear, but this fine young man certainly earned one today." Maron blushed and squirmed. "I didn''t do..." "Hush, dear," Trudy said, patting his captive hand gently. To Nathaniel, she said, "Some might have run right past us out there, but he did not. He didn''t hesitate to put himself in harm''s way on our behalf, and I wanted to make sure you knew that." "Thank you, Trudy," Nathaniel said with an honest smile. He''d even remembered her name. "Maron is indeed one of our best, and don''t worry, I''ll make sure he''s well rewarded." Formalities aside, it was still earlier than usual, but Trudy went ahead to her little corner in the large workroom. She found a bit more waiting for her attention than expected and had to go check with Patty. If those little rascals were stealing... "Of course not, Trudy! They were all absolute angels, and I would have given them bigger scraps before if I had known what they were doing with them!" Satisfied, Trudy got to work, using her one other magic spell, her favorite spell. Transmutation. She wasn''t turning lead into gold or anything like that, though she probably could. It would simply take forever, and besides, she was making something much more precious than gold. She took out each piece of animal pelt and cleaned them up first. Trimming hide, softening and sometimes shortening the fur, and molding it all into a specific shape. It took time, with most of it spent waiting for her mana to regenerate. She had some visitors along the way, bright little spots of sunshine that made it all worthwhile. "Trudy?" one such visitor asked in a tiny voice. "You said you would make me one next... please?" "Of course, dear! Did you decide what you want?" "A rabbit!" Trudy eyed the child, then looked at her current project and realized she''d unconsciously been making exactly that. She must have rabbits on the brain today. Though her version would have less scary teeth and no red eyes. Much more cuddly. "And..." the little boy said hesitantly. "Will it move? I want... I would really like the... a hugging rabbit..." "We''ll have to see if Eve comes... Oh, there she is now!" Eve trudged wearily across the room, but her posture straightened and her pace picked up when she saw Trudy and the child at her side. She smiled at the boy. "Hi, Ben. Trudy, did I see you out there today?" Her smile faltered. "When Stanley..." "You did, dear." Trudy caught her hand and pulled Eve down to sit on the bench beside her. "Though I had no idea you could..." She looked at little Ben, waiting impatiently beside her. "Run along now." "But..." "But nothing. I''ll find you when I''m finished." He ducked his head. "Yes, Ma''am." Trudy cleared her throat. "What did I say about calling me that?" Ben flinched. "I mean... Yes, Trudy!" "Very good. Now go play!" Eve squirmed when Trudy looked back at her and wouldn''t meet her gaze. "You never told me you could fight like that." "What does it matter?" Eve said, still refusing to look at her. "Because I worry about you, dear!" Eve flinched and finally met her gaze. "Oh." "You could have reassured this poor old woman! If I''d known that you were strong... and that you have such strong friends looking out for you... well, at least I would know that you are safe." Eve smiled, but it was weak and drained away as the girl slumped in her seat. Until she stared at the floor and whispered, "None of us are safe, Trudy. I don''t know if we will ever be safe..." "Nonsense, dear! I saw you out there, and if nothing else, you have that Stanley fellow watching out for you, right?" Eve had never mentioned him, and that was despite the ever-present gossip the man inspired. Her reaction now was telling... fear and... guilt? Had that boy done something to her!? Heavens knew men with that much power weren''t above pressuring someone to get what they wanted. Or taking it by force. And most men only wanted one thing from a pretty little girl like this. "Eve," Trudy held the girl''s hand gently. "Tell me true now. Did Stanley hurt you?" Eve flinched slightly but didn''t reply. "Did he force himself on..." "What!?" Her eyes shot wide, and her cheeks flushed red. "No! Nothing like that!" "Hmm," Trudy studied her. "I know he has a commanding presence, and there''s nothing wrong with getting caught up in the moment, even if you regret it later." Eve''s face flushed darker with each word. "You just tell that boy that it''s over, and don''t let him..." "I didn''t sleep with him!" Eve hissed. "Why would you even think that!?" "Then talk to me, girl. Anyone with eyes can see that you''re all twisted up about him, and it ain''t healthy to keep that inside, so let it out." Eve slumped and stared at the floor. Trudy waited, holding her trembling hand but saying nothing. Finally, the girl whispered, "He tried to kill me." "Hmm... Well, seeing as you''re still alive and working together, I say you give him a solid punch in the nose and let bygones be... Except that''s not the whole of it, is it?" "He said it was an accident," Eve whispered. "That he didn''t mean to, but..." She glanced around the room fearfully before continuing in an even quieter voice. "I hurt him back... I took something from him... something I can never give back... and I think he''ll kill me if he finds out what I did." Trudy sighed. There it was. This poor girl was getting all ate up over something that probably didn''t matter nearly as much as she thought it did. "Tell him." "What!? I told you, I can''t!" "Ya took something, right? So apologize, make it up to ''em somehow, and move on. You don''t, and this guilt will poison you ''till you break." "He''ll kill me!" "Did you kill someone? One o his?" "No..." "Death is the only thing final, girl. I''ve seen Stanley, and he might be frightening, but I think he''ll give you a fair shake." Trudy smiled. "That, or he kills you and you don''t got to worry no more." Eve gaped at her. Trudy laughed and patted her hand. "I''m still serious about talking to him, child. Trust me, I''ve been around a long time and seen so many man-made problems that could''a all been solved if we only talked it out." "I..." Eve stiffened in terror as she stared at something behind Trudy. Trudy turned, following her gaze, and saw a flash of white drift out of sight in the far doorway. "Heya, Stanley!" she shouted and turned to Eve. "There ya go. Ready?" "You can''t be serious!" Eve hissed, then stiffened when the man himself came back into view and drifted through the doorway, his legs folded and with a little black dog laying in his lap. Stanley stared at each of them in turn as he floated closer before focusing on Trudy with those blazing violet eyes. "What?" "Don''t what me, boy!" Trudy hollered at him. "You say hello, or heya, or nice to meetcha!" He glared, eyes flashing. "You called me, woman! I have shit to do, so don''t waste my fu..." "Stanley! Stanley! Stanley!" Denise sprinted into the room, hollering her little head off the whole way. She crashed into the man''s leg and then stared wide-eyed at the dog in his lap. "Can Caffy come play!?" Stanley didn''t yell at the child, but his hands settled gently and protectively on the dog while pain flashed across his face. "He... can''t right now. He''s... tired." "Awww," Denise whined. "But it''s too early to be tired!" It was strange... Trudy didn''t think she''d ever seen the pug sleep. Denise reached out, and Trudy saw Stanley tense but otherwise do nothing as the girl gently pet Caffeine''s head. "Do you want to play, Caffy?" Stanley held his breath, desperate hope clambering into his expression as he watched the girl. But nothing happened. The dog didn''t stir, and Trudy saw the hope come crashing back down hard. Down into the lowest depths of fear and despair. "He''ll..." Stanley swallowed hard. "I''ll bring him back... once... when he wakes up." As he spoke, she watched him bury all that fear back where he''d been keeping it before. Back behind the angry mask he showed to the world. "Okay!" Denise said before sprinting from the room as fast as she''d come in and almost colliding with Nate as he entered. "Stanley," Nate twisted easily around her dashing form, dodging her completely without breaking stride or interrupting what he was saying. "Please reconsider. You can wait one more day." "No," Stanley growled without looking away from Caffeine. "I''ve been trapped in here for too long already. This is my only lead. I can''t keep sitting on my ass, waiting for those bastards to show up and do some new and fucked-up bullshit!" Trudy glanced at Eve to see if the girl knew what this was about. She did, but she wasn''t talking, only watching the argument with a bleak expression. "One day," Nate said. "Give me one more day. No, give Caffeine one more day! You can''t go after them like this. Not alone." Stanley wavered. "I won''t be alone." "I know you aren''t counting on them," Nate scoffed, then shook his head. "That''s still beside the point. You know I''m not lying about this. You can see it. I know you can. Look at me, Stanley!" Stanley''s eyes turned into those bottomless pits of darkness again as they swept up and over Trudy to settle onto Nate. "You go after them tonight, and it ends bad. For all of us. I don''t know how. I don''t know why, but look at me, Stanley. Feel what I''m feeling and don''t go!" She didn''t know what the young man was feeling, but his expression looked worse than Eve''s... "What if..." Stanley whispered, then swallowed before continuing. "What if it always ends bad? What if we can''t win? Ever." "I know we can win," Nate said. "There''s a way, and I will find it no matter what! Just give me another day." Stanley went back to staring at Caffeine for long moments before he finally whispered, "Okay." "Thank you!" Nate gasped as relief practically poured off him. "I''ll have this place ready for war by tomorrow. Just in case..." He immediately jogged from the room, yelling for James as he went. Trudy worked in silence for a while, crafting the animal pelt more and more into a rabbit shape. She gave it big, floppy ears with fur like velvet, large back feet for hopping, and front legs just long enough for what they needed to do. Then she handed it off to Eve, who stuck another of her metal contraptions into the stuffing-filled interior. That was when Stanley finally reacted to whatever Eve was doing, and his head snapped up to look at her. Eve flinched at the attention but didn''t look away from her work. Trudy met his gaze when it came around to her, and she saw no sign of the rage from before. In those eyes, she saw only a terrified man hanging on for dear life. A man teetering on the brink of losing everything and one who was searching desperately for a way through. "I know it looks dark, dear," Trudy said softly. "But the sun will rise tomorrow, and it will get better." He opened his mouth... hesitated, and then vanished in a gust of wind. "That boy shouldn''t be alone right now," Trudy said, staring after him. "Doesn''t he have anyone?" Eve hunched in on herself. "I''m sure Nate will go check on him later." She held up the rabbit. "Here, it''s done." Trudy didn''t take it and only waited for Eve to look at her. She finally did. "What!?" "You know what." "I can''t tell him now! Not while Caffeine is... I''ll tell him when Caffeine wakes up..." "That''s not what I''m talking about, girl, and you know that. He is your friend, and he needs you." "He''s not..." "Friendship ain''t always easy. Sometimes they hurt you, and sometimes you hurt them, but if it''s a true thing, then you forgive and you stick with them. Through good and bad." She stood and pulled Eve up with her. "I know you''re hurting now, but I think deep down, you care. You know he done right by you and yours. Don''t you?" Eve looked up from the floor with tears gathering in her eyes. "He saved my life." She choked, then sobbed, "He saved Zeke!" Trudy pulled her into a hug. "There you go, dear. You see? He''s not the big bad monster you been makin'' him out to be, now is he?" "But he scares me... every time I look into his eyes, I see..." "No need for none of them soulful gazes with the man. He jus'' needs to know he ain''t alone." Eve shook and made a noise somewhere between a sob and a laugh, but the girl pulled herself together quick. Too quick. She was too afraid to have a good cry, even when she needed one. "Now, before you go doing that." Trudy held up the rabbit. "How ''bout we make a little one''s dream come true?" Ben''s eyes went wide when he saw the rabbit that was nearly as tall as he was. He reached for it, then hesitated. "May I?" "You may," Trudy said, and set the rabbit down on its large feet. "But first, it needs a name." "Hoppy!" "That is a wonderful name! What do you think, Hoppy?" "I... like it," a voice said from the rabbit. "Hi, Ben. I am Hoppy." It spread thick, fluffy arms wide. "Can I have a hug?" Ben came in slowly, arms going around it and squeezing gently. "You''re so soft..." The rabbit''s arms wrapped around him, and Ben blinked up at Trudy. "Thank you. I love him!" "I love you, too, Ben," the voice said from inside the rabbit. Ben squeezed tighter as his face twisted, then he burst into tears. "I love you, Ben,¡± the rabbit said again. ¡°Everything''s going to be okay." He only sobbed and held on even tighter until Trudy pulled him and the stuffed rabbit into her arms. Then he threw one arm around her as well and held on for dear life. "I can''t make very many," Eve whispered, and Trudy saw her nervous glances toward the other watching children. "But maybe a few more..." "Thank you, dear, and don''t worry about that. You run along to where you need to be." Not all the children needed or wanted a talking, hugging teddy... rabbit. Only a few. Only the desperate ones who had nothing and no one else. Even then, they only needed it long enough to open the door. Eve was doing a very good thing here, even if it was guilt that motivated her at first. Now she only needed to help Stanley, and in doing so, help herself. 167. For Want Of A Soul ~~~Eve~~~ Eve stopped atop the wall and glared from behind her full-faced helmet. "I''m going out, Declan. Maybe try not throwing fireballs at me this time?" "Come on, Eve. How was I supposed to know you blacked out your armor?" The man grinned, unabashed. "Besides, it''s not like I actually hurt you." "It still gets hot in here!" she growled. The under armour was far too good at soaking up sweat and then stinking to high hell all day. He winked at her. "I bet it''s hot in..." Eve punched him in the stomach, and the servos in her armor added a little something extra to the strike. Not too much, but enough to send the message. Enough to send him flying off the wall and out into the darkness beyond. Well, mostly darkness. The wizards were doing something to the walls, and the light of their efforts stretched out, illuminating the night almost to the treeline. She jumped off after Declan and didn''t even need the extra power from her armor to absorb the landing. Stanley and his fucking bullshit. She was strong! All of them were strong! They''d gone through that swarm like it was nothing! "I''m going to become a god," he''d said. "I want you to do the same," he''d said! "You''re too weak," he''d fucking said! Too weak because they weren''t gods. Because, of course, Stanley wanted to be a fucking god! Whatever that actually meant... Honestly, it sounded like yet another step on his journey into batshit insanity, aside from one slight issue¡ªEve could still remember the echoes of his soul on that day. The day Caffeine went to sleep... She hadn''t seen or felt whatever attacked him. Not directly, only secondhand, through Stanley. She''d felt his rage, she''d felt the power that came with his anger, and she''d also felt the impotent despair that followed. Because whatever he''d seen¡ªor whatever his brother had seen¡ªit had crushed him. Utterly and instantly. The monster that was Stanley. That lunatic who she couldn''t even look at without seeing flashes of... death. The mad freak with more power than everyone else combined. And he had been completely helpless against whatever it was he''d faced. Obviously, it wasn''t a god. There was no such thing. But maybe a higher grade? The only question was, how much higher, and also, what did that mean for the rest of them? For her brother? Could something like that come here? Stanley didn''t know, or claimed he didn''t... Eve contemplated those miserable thoughts while she stomped through the night toward the man himself. She didn''t have to worry that he may have flown off somewhere; she could feel him out there in the dark, and he was getting worse. His soul was a steady mix between anger, fear, and more of that sickening despair, but even as she trudged closer, it went quiet. Not completely silent, but almost. It was his soul shield. Unfortunately, he couldn''t hide from her behind that shield. The others might not feel his soul when he used it, but she always did. Especially when she was listening for it. No matter how far he flew, he was always there, like a splinter in her mind, a splinter she''d stolen from him¡ªa splinter of his soul. It was all his fault! That psychotic fucking... Eve stopped walking and shook her head vehemently. She couldn''t deny this anymore. She knew what he had done for her. She''d always known... but hadn''t wanted to admit it. Worse, she could no longer deny what she had taken from him. It was too much. Far, far too much. Every point of soul that she had leeched away from him... it was so much more than she had originally thought. She''d watched those numbers ticking up on her status and had known that it was a good thing. It was power. A power that she foolishly thought she''d understood in the beginning but one that she had only barely dipped her toes into, as she knew all too well now. She''d forced it into her machines and weapons the same way she did with the mana. Merely another power supply, though one that let her control things from a greater distance and with more precision. Yet in reality, it was so much more. Sure, it could be used as a power source, in the crudest and dumbest way possible, but that was only touching upon the surface of it. Soul was... truth. It was... purpose. It was the reason. It was the driving force. It was life itself. It was... everything! Hell, she was pretty sure it was on par with the power she''d seen Stanley using when he tried to kill her. If only she had enough of it, which she didn''t, not yet. Though that goal didn''t feel very far away... not very far at all. Not after how much soul she''d stolen from him. She''d been such an asshole... such an idiot! Even after getting that damn angry soul trait, she''d kept going. She''d kept leeching. Like a fucking moron! The trait probably hadn''t helped, but she couldn''t lay all the blame on it. She''d been angry before. She''d wanted to... hurt him, and so she used it as an excuse. It hadn''t felt like she took very much¡ªonly a bit here and there¡ªenough to keep her attribute climbing. He wasn''t even around enough for her to take more. Until the day she finally realized exactly what she''d done. She had infused her soul almost completely into her devices and had been trying to eke out one last scrap for another spider. It had worked. 0.01 Soul Reserved It had worked exactly the same as all the rest... but for a mere tenth of what she''d been using before. Further experiments proved she didn''t even need that much. In light of that discovery, she''d gone back over everything she''d thought she knew and found out the terrible reality. Every machine, every weapon, every servo, every battery, every damn piece of her equipment¡ªall of it only needed the barest touch of her soul to double in efficiency and power. She''d been hamfisted in her early efforts to the point of pure idiocy. She''d even lost a few points by carelessly allowing monsters to eat her machines! What a fucking waste! What a terrible waste of such a precious resource... Soul: 71(22 Reserved) Seventy-one soul. There was so much power in the tiny number. More power than in all the rest of her attributes combined. More than she even needed or could use¡ªfar more¡ªand the vast majority of it stolen from the very man who''d saved her and her brother''s lives. Twice. Even if he hadn''t physically been there the second time, his presence had been. His soul had been there, inspiring Zeke and restoring his faith, even if she hated the very idea of that. His power had sent the undead fleeing, and the trait she''d earned from him trying to kill her had saved her life. Never mind what her death might have done to Zeke... In return, she''d taken advantage of his wounded soul and leeched away every drop she could get her hands on. She could have taken the skill as the boon it was and used it on the monsters, but no, she had to make him pay for perceived slights! For saving their fucking lives! It wasn''t nearly as effective against the monsters, and she actually had to put her hands physically on them to get any noticeable returns. Even then, she got hundredths of a point at most from each and often none at all. She hadn''t tried directly leeching from any other humans after Walter had caught her trying... that had been awkward as fuck. She hadn''t even meant to try but had accidentally left the skill running on her mana drain tower. She didn''t know how he''d noticed it so fast or if other people would be the same and hadn''t wanted to risk it. Something about Stanley just made him the best possible target¡ªprobably the wound. A breach in his soul that let her in. A breach earned in service to all of them... Stanley said he had over a hundred soul now. He''d told them that his class was Soul Psionic. Knowing what she did now, it might even explain his extremely overpowered... power. A power that might be even stronger if she hadn''t leeched so much of it away from him... Which begged the ultimate question, ''How the hell could Stanley possibly not know what she''d done?'' And more importantly, ''Why hadn''t he killed her for it?'' Eve stopped with one foot on Stanley''s front porch, resisting the urge to flee for her life as Stanley''s soul abruptly blasted out a fresh wave of anger and fear. How much more powerful would he be if she hadn''t done what she did? Would Caffeine still be awake? Was this entire situation her fault? He would kill her for sure if her actions had hurt Caffeine... She stood there for long moments, frozen in guilt and the subsequent terror it invoked. Worse, she knew he could probably feel her emotions... Was he toying with her? Was he letting her torture herself before he finally confronted and killed her? But then why hadn''t he stopped her before? Why let her keep leeching? Stanley went mostly quiet again, vanishing back behind his shield. Well, mostly vanishing. The splinter was still there. The stinging, itching, digging splinter. Then his shield fell, and she felt his concentration and focus rise through the fear. Eve finished stepping up onto the porch. Despite her own feelings on the matter, Trudy was right; Stanley shouldn''t be alone right now. He''d been... okay this morning, but his mood had only spiraled as the day passed and Caffeine had kept sleeping. But why did she have to be the one to come out here!? Stanley was Nate''s hero. Why didn''t Nate go hang out with him? No. I deserve this. After everything she''d done¡ªand not only what she''d done to Stanley¡ªshe deserved to suffer. Plus, it would all be worth it if it kept Zeke safe. She didn''t bother to knock. Stanley had to know she was here. Instead, she went inside... or tried to. The door was locked. Seriously!? Of all the petty... Eve managed not to batter down the door when the burst of anger flashed through her. She was getting better at controlling the rage, especially after she''d shot Stanley at the stadium. Her hand went involuntarily to her throat at the memory. She''d been so sure he would kill her... and then she¡¯d broken down crying like a fucking bitch! She forced the shameful memory away and sent a thread of metal between the door and jam to flip the lock while the heat slowly faded from her face. Inside, a trickle of moonlight came through the bedroom window, enough to see Stanley sitting in the dark, cross-legged on the bed with his eyes closed and Caffeine in his lap. The pug''s side rose and fell in a steady rhythm as he slept on, oblivious. Eve sat awkwardly at the crystal table Silas had left behind and watched as pulses of concentration and pain blasted from the still figure on the bed. It wasn''t a foreign experience. She''d felt the like plenty when he was working on his soul wound before... while trying to help her increase her own soul... Fuck. Rather than wallow in her guilt any longer, especially not right in front of him, Eve pulled a laser cannon from her shoulder and got to work herself. If nothing else, Stanley''s work ethic was undeniable and something more people should emulate if they wanted to survive this nightmare world. She peeled the weapon open and pulled out the power supply¡ªa cluster of cores all wired together. Much like the soul, there was a wealth of power jammed into these tiny rocks. The trick was not only accessing it but doing so well enough to get the most power in the shortest time frame. Ideally in microseconds, or better yet, nanoseconds. There was obviously a limit to the total power in each core, but it might be completely worth it to drain an entire core with each shot. If her idea panned out, then her weaker lasers had the potential to far outperform her railgun in terms of instant destruction. It was hard to compete with a metal slug traveling thousands of feet per second, but the capacitors she''d created to do that gave her some other ideas for the lasers. She''d started out simply throwing energy through a tube, which barely even fit the definition of a laser. Since then, she''d done better at focusing the energy into a smaller beam and gaining some efficiency, but she could still do more. Physics had obviously changed dramatically with magic coming into the world, but Eve hoped it hadn''t changed too much. If she could excite the energy into higher states, she could create lasers beyond ultraviolet, maybe into x-rays or even gamma... Would radiation do anything to a magically animated skeleton? Did they even have DNA to destroy? Did it matter? That much energy shouldn''t care about matter, much less DNA. "What do you want!?" Eve froze as she abruptly realized that the darkness was no longer quite so deep, and now a violet light tinted the world. She knew that light and lifted her eyes from her work, hesitantly meeting Stanley''s wild gaze. "Nothing! I''m... working? To get stronger like you fu... like you wanted, you..." Fucking narcissist wanna-be god! Stanley''s eyes narrowed. "Why here?" "I..." Eve floundered before throwing out, "We''re a family?" He laughed humorlessly. "I''d believe that from some of the others, but you? No, what are you really doing here?" Eve bristled. That wasn''t entirely fair. "I care just as much as..." "Please! You can barely stand to look at me!" She flinched and looked away before forcing herself to meet his gaze once again. "I..." She swallowed. "I owe you, alright! Is that what you want to hear!? I owe you my life and Zeke''s life! Is that reason enough for me to fucking care!?" It was Stanley''s turn to flinch, surprisingly, and then his gaze dropped to Caffeine. "Whatever." He looked back at her. "Is that why you feel guilty all the time?" Eve froze in the violet light of those blazing eyes. "I..." Her throat closed up. She couldn''t do it! She couldn''t tell him! He''d kill her for sure, and then... would he still protect Zeke? Would he still care? He''d been betrayed before¡ªor so Nate said. What would he do if he found out about her betrayal? What if he took it out on Zeke!? She couldn''t risk it, so she offered up something else instead, something she had told no one else yet. "I left a spider in the stadium!" "You..." Stanley blinked, then lifted into the air and roared, "Are you a fucking idiot!?" He didn''t stop there. "You put a damn piece of your soul in plain fucking sight, and the undead found it, didn''t they!? That was my only fucking lead, and you fucking ruined..." "I''m not an idiot!" Eve screamed back, standing from her seat to put herself at eye level with this asshole. "You think I don''t know about the undead''s soul sight, you moron!? I didn''t put any soul in the spider, and they didn''t fucking find it!"Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. His rising rage stuttered to a halt and then shifted into a confusing jumble of emotions. "They... then you have eyes on Sam? Have you seen the undead!? Is it there!? Why didn''t you tell me sooner!? Does Nate know about this!? Is that why..." "It''s not there!" Eve shouted quickly at the advancing Stanley. "I haven''t seen any undead yet!" No skeletons, at least. Her camera was only a camera. It wouldn''t help her detect any of the more human-looking undead. "Oh." He deflated instantly, drifting back to the bed and closing his eyes as his hands stroked gently over the pug in his lap. Belatedly, he muttered, "Sorry." "I was going to tell you," Eve said, wincing at the fresh wave of pain in his soul. "If and when I spotted the undead." Stanley opened his eyes and looked at her. "But you do have eyes on Sam?" Eve nodded. "How long have you been watching her?" "I went with the wizards. After what she said..." She didn''t mention that she''d had to leave a trail of signal relays to get the camera feed all the way back here without using her soul. "But nothing after all this time?" Stanley closed his eyes at her confirmation and whispered, "Fuck." He shook his head. "No, she has to know how to find them. Or... at the very least she might work as bait to draw out... her friend." Eve wasn''t sure about that, but she had picked up some other tidbits. "Nate''s right about going after her at night. She spends pretty much all day away from the stadium but always comes back around sunset and doesn''t leave until sunrise." "She''s there now." Stanley stated as much as asked and with an intense feeling that made her hesitate to answer. It didn''t matter. His cheating soul abilities betrayed her. "She is!" "You said you''d wait!" Eve exclaimed when he lifted into the air. Stanley frowned but settled back down and muttered, "I did... and I will." His gaze slid to Caffeine. "I might need backup, and Caffeine will be awake by then." Except he didn''t believe what he was saying. About Caffeine, not about needing backup. Then, with soul-deep pain in his gaze, he spoke in a barely audible whisper. "Right?" "Of course!" Eve blurted, doing her damnedest to convince herself that she wasn''t lying. And failing. How was she supposed to know!? Caffeine was his dog! His impossible dog! She didn''t know what he could do! Goddammit, Trudy! I never should have come here! The pain in Stanley''s eyes was the most honest feeling she''d ever seen from the man. An expression of heartbreaking worry that dug mercilessly at her guilt... and inflamed her anger. He cared more about his damn dog than he did about anyone else! It was a dog! A great dog, sure, but... Instead of committing suicide by either confessing her sins or criticizing his affections, Eve went back to her work while doing her best to ignore Stanley''s gaze. She unwrapped a wire from around the core, a wire made of bonded metal and touched by her soul. The bonded part was fine. It was her soul that needed adjustment. She''d gotten glimpses of what she wanted it to do, but actually getting it to do that was the hard part. Her soul could do almost anything she wanted it to, from insulating against outside interference and power loss to increasing energy conductivity. Or both. Unfortunately, it wasn''t as simple as pointing and saying, Do this or do that. There was certainly a lot of intent involved in the process. It mattered what she wanted. It mattered a lot. But it was also more than that. If she was being honest, it felt like she needed... belief. If she didn''t believe that her soul would do as she wanted, it wouldn''t. The whole thing reeked of faith, and she hated that. Faith was for morons that didn''t want to think for themselves, and she''d had more than her share of that bullshit already. Never again! She believed in herself and no one else! No one else deserved that kind of trust! Well, maybe Zeke. She believed in him. He was still a good kid. That cunt hadn''t ruined him, and Eve only hoped there was a real hell so that bitch could scream for eternity! All while knowing she''d failed to destroy Zeke! Eve pulled her thoughts back on track. She knew belief, and she believed in herself. She believed in her soul. She had no choice. Zeke needed her to believe, and so she did. As simple as that. Well, obviously, not that simple, but she demanded it to be so anyway. That was the whole point of belief. She touched a finger against the wire and held back the sparks of her soul as she demanded it conform with what she wanted to be the truth. No, what she believed to be the truth. What she knew to be reality. Then she let the spark go. The tiniest of sparks. Less than a tenth of a tenth, but plenty for what she needed. 0.001 Soul Reserved It zipped into the wire in an instant, a tremulous yet complex tapestry of power that encapsulated the entirety of the metal. Inside and out. Perfectly! Eve tamped down her elation quickly. This was as it should be. As she knew it must be. Perfectly normal. Then she rewrapped the core with the newly infused wire and moved on to the next one. It was tedious work requiring high focus and attention, but it wasn''t energy intensive. She almost managed to forget Stanley''s presence. At least until she felt his soul sight staring at her. "What are you doing?" Stanley asked, this time with none of the hostility he''d had earlier. He sounded and felt... curious? Eve didn''t believe it. The bastard probably had this shit all figured out already and was getting ready to start mocking her about whatever mistake he''d spotted. As if she wanted his fucking advice! Or... did she? He knew more about souls than anyone else, aside from maybe the undead. It would be idiotic not to learn whatever she could when the stakes were life and death. Despite his interruption, Eve successfully infused the last wire and started wrapping it back around the core before responding to his question. "It''s to improve the..." Her voice stuttered when she looked up and saw the black pits that were his eyes, but she swallowed and forced herself to keep talking. "Efficiency." It was almost completely dark in the room, but the voids where his eyes should be somehow managed to shine with an even deeper blackness. They looked nothing like the blazing eyes that still haunted her¡ªvirtually the opposite, in fact¡ªbut looking into that darkness felt eerily similar. Except the darkness wasn''t absolute. There was a light in there¡ªa spark of something¡ªa gleaming and jagged line of blazing... "Do you need more soul?" Stanley asked. Eve blinked and tore her gaze away from his, her heartbeat thundering in her ears. That light. Was that it!? Was that the power he''d used before? The source? She wanted it. The things she could do with that kind of... Then her brain caught up with what he''d said, and her heart pounded for an entirely different reason. "W-what!?" "Your soul," Stanley said, still staring with those bottomless pits; only she realized he wasn''t looking at her. He was looking at the wire-wrapped cores. "Are you running out?" His gaze moved to her, and she resisted the urge to squirm. "I can''t really tell by looking at you... Is that why you came out here? Were you hoping to increase your soul attribute by staying close while I work on the wound?" Eve couldn''t breathe. He knew! He was just toying with her before he killed her! He... "Never mind," Stanley said, looking away even as violet light swirled in to fill the void in his eyes. "I was only curious." His soul wasn''t angry... it was regretful? He''d felt her fear and... felt bad about it? Did he really not know what she''d done? Or was this all an elaborate ruse? Maybe he could project whatever he wanted from his soul? Could he do that? But why would he? Was he getting some sick satisfaction out of torturing her? "I''ve done some experiments with Daryl," Stanley said, still not looking at her. "We found another method to improve people''s soul attributes faster... but I''m told it''s very unpleasant." He glanced at her. "If you''re desperate..." Eve swallowed and shook her head before she could find her voice. "I have... plenty of soul." He only shrugged and didn''t otherwise react to her statement. Instead, he closed his eyes and went back to working on his soul wound. Or so she assumed from what she could feel. Eve went back to work as well. She didn''t want to think about her problems anymore, and the best way to do that was to think about something else with all her attention. Still, when violet light lit up the room again, Eve couldn''t help asking, "What''s the method?" Stanley was quiet for a time, then said, "I basically crush your soul with mine... I don''t think you want to do it, and besides, it works a lot better on people with very low soul attributes. Like single-digit low. What''s your soul up to now?" Eve stiffened. She couldn''t lie. He would know! And she couldn''t tell him what it was up to because he might ask how she got her soul so much higher than anyone else... "Geez. Forget it. What is wrong with you!? You''re acting like you think I''m going to kill you!" "I..." Eve grasped for words even as her throat closed up. "I... don''t want to talk about it." Stanley rolled his eyes with a muttered, "Whatever." He glanced again at her laser cannon. "Though I could have sworn you used to have way more soul in your equipment. Or do you have an army of spiders out there constantly hunting for you?" "That would be great," Eve said, grateful for the change of topic even if it hadn''t strayed very far from what she didn''t want to talk about. "But my spiders aren''t autonomous. Aside from that, I would need to use soul if I wanted any kind of range, and that would increase the risk of potentially losing the... soul." "You can lose the soul you put in those!?" Stanley asked, horrified. Eve blinked at the shock coming from him. "Yes? If something eats the spider or even just the piece with my soul infusing it... well, I lose it. It fucking..." She looked away. "It sucks." "I bet," Stanley murmured, his soul echoing with remembered pain. "Is that why you don''t have soul in your armor anymore?" "Yeah..." Eve picked up her helmet and flipped it over to peer inside. "I''m working on something to project a shielding effect into the metal from deeper inside." She''d succeeded, partially. Though the strength of the effect was abysmal. Better control of her soul would improve things, but she was counting on a better offense adding up into a better defense for now. It wasn''t as bad if something took a bite out of her blood-bonded metal. Sure, she would lose the metal if it stayed in a monster''s stomach too long, but that didn''t hurt so much as set her back. The monsters were also far less likely to swallow her metal if it didn''t have soul in it. They must be able to sense the soul somehow... and maybe even absorb it by eating it. She could test that theory with Stanley''s help... if she was willing to lose a bit of soul. Which she wasn''t. "How much soul did you lose?" Stanley asked, as if reading her mind. He actually sounded concerned, and darkness flickered through his eyes as he looked at her. "Your soul looks fine... if not stronger than ever." He had to know. How could he not? Though his bombarding soul actually felt better now than it had earlier. She was distracting him from his misery... with her own. Or was he actually interested in what she was doing? Was this why Trudy had sent her out here? Eve hadn¡¯t planned for much else besides simply being here, but distracting him was probably better than letting him stew alone in the dark... Which meant that maybe she could help Stanley by distracting him while also getting his advice on her soul usage. A win-win for both of them? Eve swallowed and held up the helmet while pointing out her shielding array. "What do you think of the soul I put right here? Does it look good, or is there a better way?" Stanley''s eyes flicked to black as the helmet floated free from her grip. He studied it up close, and Eve focused on her laser rather than risk looking into those dark voids again. She felt his gaze on her more than once, but still didn''t look up. Not until he murmured, "That''s so weird." "What!?" Eve''s heart sank as her head shot up and around. "Did I screw it up? What''s wrong!?" Had she been doing it wrong all along? Or... Oh fuck! Can he see the soul I leeched from him!? She''d never even thought of that before and never noticed any differences. It all felt the same to her, but this was Stanley. She never should have let him look so closely... "It''s your soul," Stanley said while glancing back and forth between her and the helmet. "But it has a different feel to it." She was fucked! Absolutely fucked! Eve opened her mouth to confess. He would probably kill her, but she could beg for Zeke''s life. Stanley liked Zeke and wouldn''t take it out on him. Would he!? Nate wouldn''t be able to stop him! Caffeine was the only one who might be able to... and he was asleep! Stanley continued before she could get the words out. "It''s almost like I can feel..." He frowned, staring intently, his face nearly inside the helmet. "It feels like... protection? Whereas the rest of your soul is a jumble of..." He looked up at her, the dark pits of his eyes feeling like black holes dragging her down to her death and the death of all she held dear. Violet light bloomed from the void, and Stanley exclaimed, "God damn it, Eve! Just leave if you''re that fucking scared of me! For fuck''s sake!" He closed his eyes and turned away. Then he rubbed at his face before glancing sideways at her. "Is it the soul sight? I can''t really look at these specks of your soul without it." He didn''t know... He hadn''t seen anything... Still, Eve wanted to leave. She wanted to run screaming for her life! She never should have come out here. But she couldn''t move. Her eyes burned, and she felt tears threatening to spill over as that moment of absolute terror drained away. I won''t cry, damn it! I won''t cry in front of him ever again! I won''t fucking cry, period! Never again! Eve squeezed her eyes shut and clung to the scraps of anger, anger at herself for her weakness. For her mistakes and failures. She held it tight even as it burned. She would not cry. She was stronger than that! She had to be stronger! So she poured that anger and determination into her soul. All of her soul. Not the tiny sparks that she infused into her equipment, but the entirety of her being. I am strong. I will stand. I will fight. I will not break! When she opened her eyes, Stanley was watching her, and she met his gaze with all the strength of her soul. She might be afraid, but it would not control her. It would not break her. "This is my house," Stanley said. "You can leave if you want, but don''t expect me to go anywhere just cause you''re mad about something." Eve laughed. Once. And it came out treacherously close to a sob, but she laughed. Stanley might be an asshole and a lunatic, but he wasn''t the monster she made him out to be. He wouldn''t kill her. Well, not once Caffeine woke up... At the very least, he wouldn''t kill Zeke. Not for her sins. "I''m fine," Eve said, proud that her voice didn''t crack. "And I''m not leaving." She cleared her throat. "What were you saying about my soul?" Stanley eyed her suspiciously as his eyes turned black, then glanced between her and the helmet a few times. "How are you doing that?" "Doing what?" "Your soul is different." He looked her up and down and even shot a glance at her wire-wrapped cores on the table. "Or, I should say, the emotions are different." Eve stared at him in confusion. "So?" "It''s your soul. It should all match. Shouldn''t it?" He frowned. "I know it did before..." "What are you talking about?" Eve asked. "How did you make some of your soul different?" He glanced at the helmet again. "And why use so little? Is that the trick?" Still not sure where he was going with this, Eve explained her process, going into detail about how she''d realized that more soul didn''t necessarily equate to more power¡ªa temporary limitation, she was sure, and one based solely on the quality of her materials. "You''re a soul psionic," she finally said while trying not to think too closely about... other things. "Don''t you do the same thing I''m doing? That''s what makes you so much more powerful than everyone else... isn''t it?" Was she on the wrong track? Stanley shrugged. "I think so? I know I''ve used my soul to increase my power..." He stared at the helmet. "But I don''t think I''ve ever used individual pieces like this." Eve slowly closed her gaping mouth as a new realization dawned. Stanley might be an idiot. Well, not a total idiot, but he obviously wasn''t the soul savant she''d blindly assumed him to be. Which, in hindsight, made total sense. They''d all assumed him to be the foremost authority on the soul simply because he was the first one to have the attribute unlocked... Though his starting at such a high number was definitely an abnormality. Her understanding of his own lack of understanding helped to ease some of her fears. Maybe he was too dense to even notice what she''d done? Maybe she didn''t even have to tell him the truth? Trudy would hound her if she didn''t, and she would be right to. Stanley had indeed done right by her and her brother. She was the one who fucked up, and she would make amends for it. But after Caffeine woke up. There was no need to push her luck too far... Despite Stanley''s disappointing lack of impartable wisdom, he wasn''t as bad as she''d initially thought. He merely had a different way of looking at the whole issue, and they talked into the night, discussing and experimenting with their respective souls. Stanley even tried to infuse a bit of his soul into her metal, with no luck. Though he claimed he''d almost managed the trick with his knife. She could somewhat sense his soul, but it was a far cry from his own soul sight. Which meant she wasn''t much help in either case. He turned out to be even more useful when she got back to work, with him not only watching closely but also adding live feedback. She only had to endure those midnight eyes during the process... Caffeine slept through everything, his breathing sometimes the only sound in the otherwise silent room, and she felt the ache of Stanley''s worry for the pug often. Fortunately, it wasn''t the continuous onslaught it had been. She was helping him, even if only as a distraction, and he was helping her in turn. Eve kept watch over her many camera feeds throughout the night. From the ones scattered around the clean zone as an early warning system to the cameras inside the base, including the one focused entirely on her brother once he finally went to sleep. She even checked in a few times on the stadium, though only when Stanley was distracted and she didn''t have to worry about him getting a glimpse and flying off. Still no skeletons. She finally finished a particularly difficult infusion on her armor shielding array¡ªsuccessfully for once¡ªand looked up at Stanley with a wide grin. "I did it!" He smiled back, though not quite as enthusiastically, and she realized she could see his face clearly. The sun was coming up... and Caffeine still slept. Stanley followed her gaze, and his smile faded to a shadow of itself. "He''ll wake up soon," she said softly. "I know," Stanley said, and this time he believed what he was saying. A little bit. 168. A Window ~~~Stanley~~~ Cut Stanley frowned at the beheaded, feathery badger while its lifeblood drained away into the dirt. It was too weak for any meaningful tests. Everything was too weak! How was he supposed to tell if his soul was doing anything extra when they died no matter what he did? Eve''s explanation of how she used her soul had been... eye-opening. In a way. He was already doing something similar¡ªif not identical¡ªby using his soul to empower his... power. The only difference between them was in the how of it. His way felt mostly passive, a byproduct of his class, and she was using it more directly. Also, how little of her soul she used while claiming that using more made no difference. She''d been especially nervous when discussing her discovery of how powerful each soul attribute point really was. Also, very disbelieving of his questions. As if she thought he knew everything about souls! He was still trying to get his damn Soul Awareness skill to rank up... Cut He killed another monster and still couldn''t feel a difference. He was missing something... again. Damn it! Stanley closed his eyes and took a slow breath. When he opened them, his knife hovered in the air before him. Infuse! Obviously, nothing happened. As expected. Eve could only infuse her soul into her weird blood metal, so it wasn''t strange that he couldn''t do the same with some random knife. Still... it was worth a shot. Apparently, souls were all different. So, who knew what was possible? Eve said her soul was like lightning. Or electricity. Which actually fit somewhat with what it felt and looked like to him... The problem was that he had no idea what the nature of his own soul was and no one who could look at it and tell him what they saw. He''d asked around. There weren''t a lot of people actively using their souls to empower magic or craft, but there were some. None of whom had anything similar to Soul Sight. Though they all seemed to have a decent handle on what their own souls felt like... including that one guy who said his soul was a complex mathematical equation. The freak. It had made his head hurt if he looked at it for too long... Of course, that was still better than the guy in the tower who said his soul both smelled and tasted like a dark liquor. Based on the smothering scent coming off him, there was a much more obvious reason he would think that. How the hell was he still alive if he hunted while that drunk? Where did he even find alcohol strong enough? Stanley shook his head and refocused. The main takeaway he''d gotten from Eve and everyone else he talked to was that his soul was loud, angry, smothering, and dark. In that order. Though Eve had gone a bit more colorful with her descriptions... until she went back to being afraid of him. For no reason. Or one she wouldn''t say. Because she only got more terrified when he finally asked about it. He''d never actually hurt her... and hardly ever even threatened her. Still, aside from the emotional drama, Eve had been helpful. Now he knew there was another way to get stronger. Because he wasn''t buying her theory. He wasn''t stronger than everyone else because of his higher soul attribute. At least, not entirely. That was a part of it, but only a small part. The simple fact of the matter was that his willpower boosts were far and above anyone else''s primary stat boosts. Especially when he got angry. Part of his willpower boosts did come from his soul, but not in the way Eve was thinking. It was far more of a passive buff than the direct infusion she was using. Which meant, if he could figure out how to infuse his soul into his psionics, then... well, he should become exponentially stronger. Maybe even strong enough to protect Caffeine from a god... Cut You have attacked a lair structure. All lair residents notified. Hitting the lair structures was a marginally better test, but still lacking. Nevertheless, he kept at it. He wanted all the power he could get for tonight. No... that wasn''t right. He didn''t want it. He needed it. So he kept fighting¡ªif it could even be called that¡ªwhile the sun crossed the sky. He picked up the cores from his efforts, even if it wasn''t his main priority. A few more points of willpower wouldn''t hurt, but figuring out his soul should pay out much larger dividends. If he could manage it... Caffeine slept the day away. No twitches. No little dream noises. Only his slow, regular breaths. Which was probably why Stanley felt justifiably upset as he watched the last sliver of the sun vanish below the horizon. He touched the sigil on his magic coin. "Eve, is she there? Any sign of the undead?" She took an agonizingly long time to respond, only to come back with a simple, "No." "What do you mean? She''s not there, or the undead aren''t there!?" Her and her damn spy cameras! After their talk last night, he''d been watching for them and found dozens of the damn things scattered around the base, both inside and out. There was a good chance those spiders were the reason she was acting so scared. If he could find them, then what were the odds that Sam couldn''t? Or worse, the undead? Though he had used Soul Sight to find most of them and his domain to discover a couple more. If she really hadn''t put any soul in the spider, then... maybe it could go undetected? Of course, the undead were supposedly way ahead in magical ability, at least according to the wizards, so who knew what they could or couldn¡¯t do? "I mean, there''s no one there!" Eve yelled through the coin. "I told you I would tell you when and if they showed up, and I fucking will!" He hadn''t been bugging her that much... maybe she was feeling guilty? Had she seen the undead before and not told him? Or had they found her spider? That might explain her fear. Except... her soul hadn''t looked like she was lying. Stanley tried his best to be patient even as he kept working. He probably should rest before whatever was coming, but he was too wired for that. So he only checked in every hour to see if there were any updates. Nate answered the magic coin a few of those times, which probably had something to do with why Eve didn''t yell at him again... Despite that, he only lasted three hours before flying back. It wasn''t because he suspected they were stalling him and wanted to see Eve''s soul the next time he asked... She wasn''t lying. She even went as far as to project the supposed camera feed onto a blank wall for Stanley to see for himself. Not that there was much to see. The angle of the camera and the minor obstructions suggested the spider was hiding inside a potted plant. The fisheye view revealed a large, dark, and nearly empty room, with the only light coming through the floor-to-ceiling windows that covered the far wall and looked out over the interior of the stadium. Flickering fires were visible on the far side, if blurry, and with indistinct figures moving occasionally around them. "So she''s not in her room," Stanley said. "Can you look around? Are you even sure this is her room?" There was a large unmade bed, but he couldn''t see whichever wall held the doorway. "I know it''s her room!" Eve snapped. "And my spider isn''t invisible! Moving around only increases the risk of detection, something you were oh so adamant about avoiding. Right!?" Stanley gave up pacing after only a few laps¡ªit wasn''t nearly as satisfying without actually walking¡ªand settled for meditation instead of simply staring at the feed. It was the next best thing to sleeping and even reduced his fatigue. Somewhat. He''d still have to sleep eventually, but he could push the need back long enough to see this through. Or until Caffeine was awake to watch his back. Not that he didn''t trust Nate and the others to watch over him while he slept. Hell, with his domain, no one could sneak up on him even if he was asleep. Anyone or anything moving inside his domain always woke him. Except for Caffeine. The pug never slept straight through the night and would occasionally get up for some stretches and then circle around again until he found just the right spot to lie down. But something about the little dog never set off his senses. He almost felt like a part of Stanley... and with whatever they''d done to their souls, maybe he literally was? Nate intruded into his domain some unknown amount of time later, and before Nate could touch him, Stanley opened his eyes to see the man''s grim expression. "It''s time." A lot more people were in the room with them now, their expressions mostly matching Nate''s, but with a few exceptions. All of them were staring at the projection of Eve''s camera where the scene had changed. Slightly. Stanley felt a rush of fear and anger surge through him when he saw the woman he was looking for outlined against the windows. He wouldn''t have known it was her in the dark room, but the glowing pink eyes reflecting off the glass were a dead giveaway as she stared out at the stadium beyond. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. He almost took off that instant but hesitated. Nate''s expression wasn''t the only thing that looked grim. His soul was worse. "What is it, Nate? This is a good thing, right? Or is the bad feeling back? Do you... want me to wait again?" Nate shook his head. "No. You should go after her... because it''s going to work. But I don''t think this will be as simple as you''re hoping. Whatever happens tonight, it''s kicking off something... big." His expression darkened. "People will die tonight. People we know. People we love." Everyone heard him, and Nate''s proclamation brought an end to all the other murmured conversations in the crowded room as every eye swiveled to the man. Nate met their gazes silently, then headed for the door. "Let''s get ready." Stanley followed as Nate gave orders through a handful of different coins and found a massive crowd waiting for them outside. It had to be most of the people in the base... and they barely fit in the spaces between the buildings and the wall, with the crowd spilling almost all the way around the fortress. Nate climbed to the top of the wall, and a hush spread through the crowd as more and more people saw him. Stanley flew beside him, his team and Zeke''s detail keeping pace, and really didn''t enjoy it when he turned to face the crowd and saw more than a thousand pairs of eyes staring back. "I''m sure most of you have heard about my... hunches by now," Nate said into the silence. "So believe me when I tell you, this is it. This is the moment we''ve been preparing for, fighting for." He paused as mutters broke out, then said loudly, "The undead are coming for us. They are coming to enslave us! They are coming here to convert us into their puppets! But believe me when I tell you we''re ready, and believe me when I tell you we are going to win this war!" Someone cheered. A lone voice in the crowd at first, then more joined in. Stanley didn''t; he only studied Nate. Because the man was lying. Not about there being a war coming; he believed that, but about winning said war... Nate went on, shouting now to be heard over the crowd. "It won''t be easy, and we may not all survive, but those eternal bastards are going to find out once and for all that this is our world! This is our country! Our city! We are Americans, and we will never bow down to any masters! We are free, and we will fight for that freedom no matter what!" Louder cheering followed. Until Nate held up his hands for quiet. When he could be heard again, he said, "You all know what to do. Get to your posts and listen to your team leaders." "Nice speech," Eve said as the man turned back to those gathered atop the wall with him. "Very... patriotic." Stanley was ready to go¡ªitching to go¡ªbut Nate''s soul was... worrying. Despite Stanley''s burning, aching desire to find and end the undead, he didn''t want to sacrifice any of his newfound family to make it happen. Not if there was another way. "What happened last night, Nate? What changed between then and now, and why do you still want me to go if you''re this scared?" Nate''s frightened soul flickered with annoyance at Stanley''s words, but his inscrutable gaze roved over them with no outward display of the rioting emotions within. "Stanley, can I talk to you in private..." A lot of the surrounding souls didn''t like that, and Nate must have picked up on it because he shook his head. "Never mind. You should all hear this." He took a deep breath. "I am scared, and I don''t know what changed from last night. All I know is that everyone would have died, and now... well, now we have a chance." "I can..." Stanley clenched his jaw but forced out the words. "I can wait..." "No!" Nate said. "That''s the problem, you see? Now my intuition is saying it''s worse if you don''t go tonight, and I..." The calm facade broke, and he threw up his hands while exclaiming, "I don''t know why!" Despite his words, there was a touch of something more in his soul, and his gaze flicked briefly to the sleeping Caffeine in Stanley''s lap before returning. "Does it have something to do with Caff?" Stanley asked. "Is he waking up soon!?" "I don''t know," Nate said. "But it''s the only reason I can think of that makes any sense." He put a hand gently on the sleeping pug and scratched his head. "He''s fine, Stanley. I know he is." He''d been saying that a lot, and his soul said he believed it... for whatever that was worth. Which... was something. "But you don''t want to wait for him to wake up?" "No. This is the right play, right now. We have a brief window of opportunity here, and it''s closing fast. So go." Whatever would happen, Stanley set it in motion by dragging his team into the night sky and heading south toward their target. If it hadn''t been for feeling his soul, Stanley might have thought Nate was trying to manipulate him into something. Like a trap. But he knew better. Nate was in the dark as much as the rest of them. If anything, Nate was being manipulated by his intuition... Nate might be going into this blind, but at least he wasn''t slacking along the way. He''d spent the last twenty-four hours preparing. Well, technically, he''d been preparing for war ever since this nightmare started, but this last stretch had been more... frenetic. People were going to die... that''s what he''d said. Did he know who? He had some strong people beside him. Or he was counting on Stanley to make up the difference. Stanley brushed his fingers over the coin in his pocket one more time, even though his domain told him it was still there. One of two coins. He''d brought a backup just in case. Nate would call him if the undead attacked, which he expected them to... only not if Stanley stayed at the base. Stanley had to attack Sam first... which practically screamed that they''d set up a trap for him. One they thought would take him out of the fight. Stanley looked forward to disappointing them. To that end, Stanley looked over the strike team he was taking into the belly of the beast. Quinn, June, and Brett. He wasn''t taking Blindfold. The guy was decent, but not for what they were going up against tonight, whereas June could hopefully block or even reflect Sam''s pink magic. She''d reflected every other type of magic they''d tested, including Bubble''s black holes, much to the man''s annoyance. It should never come to that because Brett was, of course, the star of the entire show, and he would be responsible for taking over Sam''s mind. The entire point of this endeavor and something that shouldn''t require any fighting. Quinn was straight damage, and he''d gotten... marginally better at intercepting magic with his bubbles. Which was great since they destroyed everything that touched them, including magic. So maybe¡ªjust maybe¡ªthere might be something special about his legendary class... Also, Stanley was taking the pervert. A damage sponge and backup damage dealer, if nothing else. The guy was a freak, but he was hard to kill. Not that Stanley had ever tried, even if tempted to occasionally. Stanley kept his Soul Shield as strong as he could and only wished he''d gotten the damn thing to level up before this. According to Sam, the undead could see his soul like a beacon... so his shield might not even matter. If they were waiting for him, then they would know he was coming. But he didn''t dare use Soul Sight because everyone would know he was coming if he did... He was definitely flying into a trap. While he flew, he went over a few last-minute details with the team. Nothing they hadn''t discussed before, but important enough to reiterate. "June, I''m going to take us in fast. You need to be ready with your shield the instant I let go." It was a slight wrinkle in that he couldn''t carry them if she used the shield. A tiny delay that could prove fatal against someone like Sam. "Don''t worry about where we are or what is happening. Just get that shield up the moment..." "I know!" she snapped. "Stop harping on it!" She didn''t like Stanley forcing her boyfriend to do this, or at least that was his best guess for the attitude she''d been nursing for the past two days. She shouldn''t complain. His harping on it was all about keeping her boyfriend safe. Exactly like she wanted. Though for different reasons. "Brett, you..." "I know, and I won''t hesitate." The man himself was less opposed to the plan than Stanley had expected. Especially after Nate had taken him aside for a chat... "I''ll catch anyone coming your way," Pervert said. "And suck the life out of ''em!" "Bu... Quinn," Stanley corrected himself. "Try not to kill her. Only use your bu... black holes defensively. Unless it is a trap and the undead attack. Then you can go nuts. Oh, unless there''s only one of them. Then don''t kill it until I have time to find out where the rest of them are hiding." "Yeah, yeah," the man drawled, far too confident for his own good. He put too much stock in his legendary class... There was a chance Stanley might be overestimating his own power while underestimating the undead, especially with Caffeine still asleep... but he didn''t think so. The undead had hidden for a reason. They feared him. He''d felt the fear when he killed their D-grade and almost killed the E-grade after Zeke. Sure, that victory had cost him dearly, but Stanley wasn''t the same person from back then. If he faced that same D-grade skeleton now, he would crush it. Immortality or not. Higher grade or not. He could do this. He could end this! Plus, it was better this way. Caffeine wouldn''t have to help. He wouldn''t have to bite any more undead heads off and make himself sick. He wouldn''t have to suffer like before. If this attack panned out the way Stanley hoped, then they would be on their way back to Lee when Caffeine woke up. Maybe even all the way to Lee... He could fly pretty fast these days, and wouldn''t that be a wonderful surprise for the pug? Plus, if he hadn''t woken... maybe Lee could help... he''d seen what did this to Caffeine... maybe he would know some magic to fix it... unlike those useless wizards! It turned out that he didn''t even need to follow the souls to find the stadium in the dark. The place was lit up and stood out wonderfully from the sky. The only problem from there was picking out where Sam''s room was without alerting her with his Soul Sight... So Stanley activated Still Mind. It left him slightly weaker without his anger, but he needed speed more than power for this. Plus, it might not hurt to have a cooler head for the coming... interrogation? He had to rely on Soul Awareness to pick out Sam''s soul from the surrounding cacophony of souls... and it turned out to be easy. Her pink soul wasn''t exactly pink when sensed this way, but it still stood out as the strongest one around. Cut You have attacked a lair... Stanley opened one of the floor-to-ceiling windows by removing it entirely and followed the glass inside. He was fast enough that Sam hadn''t even turned when he set his passengers down behind her and surged closer with both his body and mind. He needed her inside his domain to do what he could to keep her from escaping or killing one of them. For whatever it was worth with her ability to tele... His domain found... nothing. He could still see her and feel her soul. Even Soul Sight confirmed it. But there was nothing there for his mind to touch¡ªonly a slight... buzzing? And she still hadn''t moved. He heard the voices of his team crawling slowly into his accelerated mind as he grasped what was happening, and they reached the same conclusion that he did. She wasn''t real. She was an illusion. It was a trap, after all. So he wasn''t surprised when a voice rang out behind him. "I knew you''d come." 169. Weak Link ~~~Stanley~~~ "I knew you''d come." The voice sounded smug, but Stanley had plenty of time to react with Still Mind active, so he knew the skeleton that appeared behind him was another illusion before it finished talking. He even had time to study it with both his eyes and domain. It looked like a human skeleton and not one of the four-armed, ten-foot-tall invaders. Of course, seeing as it was an illusion, its appearance meant little. It could very well be an invader masquerading as a human, though he doubted it. What would be the point? A new approach after the previous recruitments had failed? No. It was far more likely this was Sam''s friend. As for knowing he''d come... had Eve''s camera been discovered after all? Or were the undead spying on the humans as well? Nate had been worried about that eventuality and supposedly taken countermeasures, but with no confirmed spying attempts blocked, there was no way to say if his measures were working or not. "You seemed like the sore loser type!" the smug voice finally finished gloating. So maybe they were only spying on Stanley? Maybe simply seeing his soul was enough for them to know he would come back? Unlike the illusion of Sam, the skeletal illusion carried no soul he could sense or see as it stood before him. Not at first. "Though..." the skeleton''s perpetually grinning mouth didn''t move as it spoke, but the glowing red lights shining from empty eye sockets flickered with each word. Its head tilted, and the red light of its eyes swirled with new colors¡ªthe colors of a soul peeking out. An undead soul. "Oh. I guess that explains why you''re not acting like you usually do. You know, like an angry asshole?" It was using Soul Sight and had recognized his Still Mind. Had Sam told it about the skill, or did it know something more? If it could see his emotions, then it would be obvious. Unless it could see the actual skill at work? This wasn''t the first time he''d felt someone using Soul Sight on him, but it felt different now. This thing''s soul felt very similar to the invaders, but it also felt less... substantial? It definitely lacked the weight and pressure he remembered. Perhaps because this thing was so much weaker... or because he had gotten stronger since. It mostly reminded him of the former human who had helped that first skeleton chase him across the city. He''d never actually gotten around to killing that one for good... had he? He couldn''t remember, but he''d also never seen it again. Hopefully it had been among the casualties when he was throwing source around later that night. "You got that skill from the D-grade, right?" the skeleton asked, eyes and soul flashing. The soul peeking through its eyes had been angry at first, but that anger was quickly being overshadowed by curiosity and... jealousy? "You''re so lucky, and I really don''t get why you don''t use it constantly. Is it too draining, or do you just like being angry all the time? Wait, what''s the skill actually called!?" Stanley didn''t reply. Curiosity was good, and the longer he could keep it here, the better. Because he was having trouble tracking the origin of this projection. It was using Soul Sight, and so technically looking through the illusion''s eyes. He should be able to follow it back to its source... or maybe not. Eve left pieces of her soul in her machines, but there was no tether running back to her, at least not one he''d ever detected. Which meant he''d need to follow the magic instead. Something he was terrible at. He should have brought a wizard... Its curiosity shifted back into anger. "Just going to ignore me?" Stanley ramped up Soul Sight as he swept his gaze around the area. Now that he knew what its soul looked like, maybe he could... He saw nothing matching the soul in its eyes. Especially not against the thick backdrop of the thousands of souls filling the stadium, not to mention the souls of his allies waiting tensely beside him. No undead at all... aside from the illusion. Was this a trap? Or something else? Fortunately, he could feel its magic buzzing within his domain. Enough that he could follow the lines of it running outward. Unfortunately, the magic lines ran in multiple directions, and he couldn''t track them outside his domain. Even if he was quick, he couldn''t follow all of them fast enough, and unless he got lucky in picking the right trail, it would have time to escape. Perhaps even if he picked right... "Fine!" it exclaimed, eyes flashing and bony fingers curling into fists. "I guess I''ll just tell the Eternals you''re here, and you can talk with them instead! Is that what you want!?" That was... interesting. It wasn''t here on behalf of the invaders? Then why? Wasn''t it one of them now? They must know it was here and what it was doing. Or could it really be this simple? He nodded. "Do it." The skeleton slumped ever so slightly. Not enough for his eyes to pick up on, but his domain saw it. Plus, its soul told him things wouldn''t be that easy. Predictably. "You were bluffing," Stanley said. "They are too scared to face me." Its soul bristled. "They don''t fear you! They just... don''t want to fight you yet. But they will eventually! And it will be too late for..." "Then why are you here?" Stanley asked. "I doubt you are powerful enough to stop me yourself, especially since you didn''t come in person." "I want you to leave Sam alone! Or else..." It hesitated. "I don''t care about Sam," Stanley said honestly. "The only reason I came here was to find you. Or, ideally, your masters." "They aren''t my masters!" "Really? Then tell me where to find them, and I''m gone. You and Sam will have no more trouble with me. I don''t even care that you went and joined them." He truly didn''t. Sure, this person, or former person, was a traitor to humanity, but he had far more pressing concerns. "I only want to escape this dungeon." "I..." The skeleton''s soul fluctuated. "I took an oath and can''t tell you where they are." "So they are your masters, and worse, you signed up for it willingly." "It''s not like that!" "How? Did they force the oath? Or did you simply trade away your freedom for a few scraps of power?" It was foolish, if so. Nate had already proven with a few people that you didn''t need to start with a strong class to become powerful. You just had to work harder. "What good is having power if you''re not free?" "Freedom is an illusion!" the skeleton said with a violent shake of its head and venom in its soul. "It always has been!" Stanley didn''t agree, not completely, though he might once have. He''d gained greater understanding about a lot of things during his time in this dungeon. Freedom, as he''d known it before, was never really what people liked to think it was. It had always been conditional, vulnerable, and liable to vanish without warning. Now he knew without a doubt that freedom existed¡ªreal freedom¡ªand it only required one thing. "Freedom isn''t an illusion. Not if you''re powerful enough." The skeleton laughed. "Seriously!? Sure, you might be powerful, maybe even the strongest individual, but you''re still trapped in this dungeon, aren''t you?" "Not forever." "You know what?" It scoffed. "You might be right. Power is freedom, or the closest thing we''ll ever get to it, but it''s never enough. No matter how powerful you become, there will always be someone stronger. Someone telling you what you can and can''t do! It''s the way it has always been and the way it will always be." Stanley nodded. "Yes, and I will be the someone stronger. No matter what it takes." He didn''t look away from the skeleton but addressed those behind him. "Brett, can you touch this thing?" Brett shook his head warily, and anger flared in the illusion''s red eyes. "I''m not a thing!" Its gaze turned toward Brett. "And you''re worse than the Eternals for wanting to use that power on Sam! You talk about trading away my freedom when you would strip everything away from someone simply because they don''t obey you!" It knew about Brett and his power, which meant it might have been spying on the humans at the very least. Or worse, they had a traitor in their midst, and Nate had missed it. A problem for later. "I don''t care what you are," Stanley said. "I don''t care that Sam refused to help me. The issue is that you both turned your backs on humanity, literally and figuratively. Working with our enemies makes you an enemy as well. You chose your side, and Sam did the same. What did you expect would happen? This is a war for survival as much as it is for freedom." "You don''t have to do this," the skeleton said, a hint of pleading entering its tone. "This fighting is pointless! The Eternals don''t want to kill any of us! All we have to do is join them. So what if you have to change your race to do so? I''m as alive as you are, and you don''t even have to go this far! They have race options that are practically indistinguishable from humans. I mean, can you really even call yourself human anymore? No human could ever do what you can! What does it matter if you change a little more!?" "I don''t really care what race..." Stanley started, but his voice choked off as something bubbled up from deep below the emotionless calm of his Still Mind. A knot of bitter emotion that fought against the forced rationality of his thoughts. He saw flashes of the monsters that had assailed him while he was trapped in this dungeon. Visions of a red-eyed zombie that ripped and tore apart his flesh. A monstrous skeleton that hounded him across an entire city with soul-shredding magic. Then the next of its kind that finally carved open his soul and almost took everything from him. Worse than all of that, though, he remembered all the injuries those monsters had inflicted upon Caffeine. He remembered the heart-rending pain that came along with each whimper and cry. It was a pain more terrible than all the damage done to his flesh and soul. Combined! Buff Partially Resisted: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] "I will destroy them!" Stanley snarled, and he could feel the flinch from every soul in the room as his anger surged toward murderous rage. "Every last one! They will die screaming for what they''ve..." Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] "What I mean to say," Stanley continued more softly after he''d forced his anger back down with more effort than he liked. "Is that that''s not happening." Anger wasn''t what he needed here. Blindly attacking this illusion in front of him wouldn''t get him any closer to finding and killing the monsters who really deserved it. "I won''t be joining those monsters," Stanley continued when the skeleton only watched him warily and silently. "I... can''t." It wasn''t only that he hated them with a burning, raging passion¡ªno, it was more than that. Caffeine had made his opinion clear when he destroyed the race shard that was offered that night, and his opinion carried a lot of weight. Stanley wasn''t sure if that reaction was because Caffeine simply didn''t like the undead or if it was something more. Perhaps the source in their soul wouldn''t have remained contained if he evolved that far from human? Maybe because he had a twin soul and it wouldn''t hold together if he went undead and Lee didn''t... or was it because the shard would have made him a so-called civilized race instead of a monster race? Whatever the reason, he wasn''t joining the undead. Of course, there was still the matter of the oaths. A rather glaring obstacle to him ever going down that route. So it made no sense why this... "What is your name?" It glared at him for a beat before saying one word. "V." Or one letter? Was it Vee or V? Whatever. "Let''s start over. Hi, I''m Stanley. It''s nice to meet you, V." He could be diplomatic, and it was nice to meet... them. He''d been looking forward to meeting this... them for a while now, after all. V didn''t reply but kept right on grinning, even if their soul didn''t share the same sentiment as that pale skull. They were still wary. Still angry. And... plotting something? Was this all a stalling tactic? A distraction while someone else moved on Nate? He hadn''t heard anything from the coins yet, but at that reminder, Stanley pulled one from his pocket. "Nate, how''s things?" Nate didn''t make him wait, and his voice came from the coin almost instantly. "Nothing''s changed on our end." His choice of words was... strange. They''d agreed on some prearranged signals before he headed out here, and that one meant that his intuition was still giving him the same feeling. After all of Nate''s worries, Stanley had half expected the base to be under attack by now. Or at least for something to have changed. Did that mean he hadn''t done whatever he was supposed to do out here? Was this not the trap? Or would V actually help him if he said the right thing? If he showed up at the undead base, maybe they''d go after Zeke in retaliation. Or as a last-ditch effort before they died? Stanley tried a new tactic. "Why did you join them, V? Sam seems plenty strong enough to protect you, even if you had a shitty class. She probably could have helped you get pretty much any class you might want." "Because I''m not a bigot that judges someone simply for their appearance!" V yelled. "Yes, they''re undead. But they aren''t the undead that humans invented. They aren''t monsters just because they''re different or frightening to our sensibilities! If you ask me, humans are worse! How many wars and genocides have we accomplished? How many of our own do we kill every day!? How many humans have killed each other since this started, huh!? I''m betting it''s more than the Eternals have!" Humans were terrible. V was right about that much. But to claim they were worse than the undead was... a stretch. Wasn''t it? Zeke and Eve''s mom didn''t make a good case for humanity. How many people had her cult full of humans killed? Where even were all of them? Of course, the problem wasn''t that they were undead. "They invaded our world, V. By choice. Now there are zombies literally every..." "So they''re raising the dead. Those people were dead already! Probably killed by other humans, if I had to guess! Humanity failed the quest, remember? Even the system thinks we''re monsters. So why not let someone else have a shot at leading humanity forward? They can''t possibly screw it up worse than we have!" V sounded like they''d had some bad experiences with humans. Either recently, or maybe even before the system. Stanley couldn''t blame them for that; he had his own grudges against the species. But he also had an even stronger grudge against the undead, and V was dreaming if they thought the undead were the better option. Stanley had seen their rotting souls up close and personal, and he knew what he saw. They were monsters. Even if the system claimed otherwise. Sure, there were some godawful humans on this earth¡ªhell, right here in this city¡ªand Stanley might even be one of them, but there were also some good ones too. Samantha... she''d given her life to save him. Not because she had to. Not because someone ordered her to, but because she cared. He still didn''t know why she cared about him, but he knew not one of the undead would ever sacrifice themselves to save their comrades. It was far more likely they would sacrifice their allies to save themselves. Zeke was another good example. He wasn''t after power, money, or influence. He honestly and truly cared about other people. He wanted to help them however he could. He wanted them to be happy. Even if he wasn''t. The undead weren''t here to help. They weren''t here to save humanity from itself. They only cared about conquest and whatever rewards they would receive for doing so. Unfortunately, V was too far gone to see the truth of things anymore. They''d drunk the kool aid and drunk it deep. Stanley tried anyway, though on a slightly different track. "I can''t join the Eternals, V. I literally can''t. I''m pretty sure I''d die for real if I tried. But you should know that I also won''t lose this war. I can''t afford to lose. I don''t know if they''ve told you about the power I''m carrying. It''s called Source." This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. V''s reaction to his mention of the source was telling. They didn''t know about it before... It was a gamble to say what he wanted to say next, but Stanley was fairly certain that the undead knew far more about the source than he did. "I''m sure they know I can''t use it without hurting myself in the process, but look at my soul, V," Stanley said with absolute conviction. "I will use it if I have to. If I''m doomed either way, then I will burn this entire city down to bedrock before I let them have it." "Of course!" V snarled. "You''d rather kill everyone if you can''t get your way! If you actually cared about humanity like you claim, then you''d stop this useless war and save their lives." "If the undead actually cared," Stanley said. "Then they wouldn''t force anyone to trade their lives for freedom. Oh right, you don''t believe in freedom, do you? So it''s no big deal if we all enslave ourselves to a bunch of alien undead who invaded our world unprovoked." "I didn''t enslave myself! I only accepted a few... restrictions. It''s no different from signing an NDA for a job!" Stanley studied the illusory undead before him in silence. This wasn''t working, and he had a feeling it never would. Was V even more far gone than he''d assumed? Did they even have free will anymore? Or had they lost that somewhere in the change? It didn''t even make sense. Why join the undead? Was it for a class? The racial buffs? The race shard he''d seen hadn''t seemed worth turning into a skeleton. Who volunteers for that? A skeleton. Or did they offer V something better? That might explain it... and why was he now feeling upset that they''d apparently not offered him the best option? Of course, if they hadn''t recruited V, then Stanley wouldn''t have a potential lead on the undead. So maybe it was better this way? This little chat had bought him time to study V''s illusion, along with the magic lines running from the spell. It had taken a minute, but he was almost certain which line was the real one and which were the distractions meant to mislead any potential pursuit. Almost certain. Unfortunately, he wasn''t absolutely sure about which line to follow. The last two on his short list looked almost identical in size, and he doubted he''d get more than a second to follow either. If he figured out the right one and followed it long enough to see if it remained straight or curved somewhere... well, that might be enough to find the origin. He could dig up a straight line across the dungeon far, far easier than digging up the entire city. "What bonuses did you get from the race shard?" Stanley asked, both to buy time and because he was actually curious. "I..." V blinked their glowing red eyes. "What?" "The one they offered me was nothing special," Stanley said, while most of his attention remained focused on the magic lines within his domain. "I''m guessing they gave you something better to convince you to turn into... this." "This!?" V hissed, and the illusion finally moved, with both arms gesturing at itself. "What''s wrong with this? Am I not handsome or beautiful enough in your eyes!? Do I have some obligation to conform to your standards!?" "I was only curious," Stanley said. "You were human, but I don''t think I''ve ever met another human that wished to become a... skeleton. Not that it was an option until recently, and I suppose that''s not the type of thing to come up in idle conversation." V''s soul was angry, but the anger softened. Slightly. "I''m just sick of... Humanity has just been given the opportunity to become literally anything we want. How much do you want to bet that they still get hung up on race and gender? How many supremacist groups are out there right now hunting down and killing anyone who doesn''t conform to their standard of what humanity should be!?" "Plenty," Stanley said distractedly, then shrugged a shoulder. "If you don''t like it, just get powerful enough to change it. Or gather enough people who agree with your perspective¡ªyou know, the old-school tribal method. Though, honestly, I suspect personal power is the only way to go in our new world. The strong will make the rules, and the weak will fall in line or die." "So nothing''s changed, has it?" V said bitterly. "Not really. Humans were always a mess. Magic won''t change that. In fact, it will probably make everything worse." "You know," Quinn said. "It''s great that you''re having a nice heart to heart with your new friend, Stanley, but when do we get to fight something?" A black hole popped into existence over his shoulder, set the air swirling as the spell sucked up everything, then vanished a heartbeat later with a pop. "I agree," said Pervert. "I''d like to get my hands on something besides ghosts. Why are we even talking? You said it yourself. This thing is a traitor. So let''s just kill it and go find the rest of them!" As usual, he had that same creepy, hungry feeling in his soul. June gave both men a withering glare, but Brett beside her only seemed relieved. He really hadn''t wanted to mind-control anyone... Stanley wanted to tell them all to shut up because he needed more time, but he was no longer sure if it would matter. The two buzzing threads of magic he was studying were identical. Luckily, V did it for him. "Quiet, children," V said, their skull turning to face them and red eyes flashing. "The adults are talking." "Fuck y..." Quinn started, while June and Pervert both opened their mouths to add their own likely similar sentiments. Stanley stopped them before it could escalate further. Silence V''s eyes brightened, and their soul betrayed curiosity as they stared at the now silent trio that was trying and failing to hurl insults. The curiosity didn''t last, and V turned back to him. "They''re right. We''re wasting time. I know you''re using that soul sight on me, so you know I''m telling the truth when I say I can''t help you. Which means Sam can''t help you either." They weren''t wrong, but Stanley shook his head slowly. Nate hadn''t sent him here on this particular night for nothing. There had to be a way. There had to be something he was missing. If he followed the right thread and found V, would Brett be able to mind-control the skeleton? Would the oath still work after it was dominated? Or would it be able to give up a location? Maybe V knew about that possibility... "I don''t care about you or Sam," Stanley said, and saw V''s soul bristle at the obvious lie. "If I can leave the dungeon." "I wanted to come to an agreement," V said. "But I guess that''s not going to happen, is it?" "Give me a hint. A clue. I won''t hunt you or Sam if I don''t have to." V sighed, which was strange for a skeleton without lungs. "You just have to get your way, don''t you? The strong rule and all. Well, consider this your final warning. I don''t care if you hunt me, but you will swear to leave Sam out of it. Or else." Stanley hesitated at the feeling he was picking up from V''s soul. They were serious, and they believed they had the upper hand... "Or else what?" "Swear it!" They had to be bluffing. Even if they believed they weren''t... If V thought they were powerful enough to take him out, then why even talk about it first? Or was the threat pointed at Nate''s base? Was this what Nate''s intuition picked up? He didn''t like it. The last time he followed Nate''s intuition, he''d nearly died for it. Of course, he had saved Zeke in the process, so it probably turned out to be a good thing in the end, but he still didn''t like it. Seeing things line up like this felt too much like destiny or pre-determinism. As if his path to this point had always been unavoidable. The very idea nagged at something deep in his mind. Something he couldn''t remember but which agreed with the sentiment. Worse, it came with the feeling that he''d known what would happen here. Not this exact night, but the broader picture. Him being in Boston that first night. His class. The dungeon. The undead. All of it felt... destined. A feeling that he had not only known what would happen but had then chosen this path intentionally. Which meant he had accepted not only his own suffering but Caffeine''s as well. Not only accepted, he¡¯d planned for it... Which was unforgiveable and would make him a monster worse than anything else in this dungeon. Stanley refused to accept that feeling. He made his own choices, both in the past and here and now. He''d already planned to come after V. Nate had nothing to do with it. Only the timing... which wasn''t the same. Nate didn''t know the future. He''d be more powerful if he did. The only question left was, which path led to the future Nate wanted? Presumably the good future. Did he pick a thread and go hunting, or did he wait to see whatever V thought would be enough to protect Sam? Whatever it was, Stanley wasn''t afraid. Not for himself. Well, not for anyone since he was using Still Mind. But he was concerned. Still Mind had changed since he first used it, or maybe he''d changed. Either way, despite the lack of emotion, he still cared about his friends. His family. Whatever choice he made here could potentially get one or more of them killed. Of course, if he did nothing, they still might die. Especially if Nate''s intuition was right. So he made a choice¡ªhis choice¡ªand stared into V''s blazing red eyes. "I¡¯ll never give up." He was actually surprised when the spells lit up around him, massive twin circles shining blindingly bright from floor and ceiling, with him sandwiched in between. Surprised because he''d really thought V would go after the base rather than strike at him directly. To be fair, magic was his weak spot. Well, slightly weaker spot. He hated magic when it did things he couldn''t, but that didn''t matter in the long run. It wouldn''t be enough to kill him. Nothing would be enough to kill him. He had to protect Caffeine and get back to Lee. Nothing would stand in the way of that. He wouldn''t let anything stand in his way. Cut You have attacked a sapient lair... He diced the floor and ceiling into pieces. Unfortunately, and predictably, the magic circles didn''t care and remained untouched despite his efforts, even as his allies started falling ever so slowly through the destroyed floor. Stanley considered fleeing, but his premonition of what was coming only showed him darkness. Not the darkness of the void, simply a lack of light. This magic, whatever it was, wouldn''t kill him. It didn''t look like it would even hurt. The other deciding factor, however, was that he couldn''t take his team with him if he fled. June had used her reflection ability on everyone, and she could never remove it in time. Assuming she even thought to. Stanley wouldn''t sacrifice himself for these people, but he also wouldn''t abandon them to an unknown fate. Sure, there might be something deadly coming further than his premonition could see, but he trusted the ability and his own power enough to risk it. He could always run away later, and there was still the distinct possibility that this was exactly what needed to happen for Nate''s desired future to come to pass. So he waited, every sense ready for the slightest warning as the magic raced toward a crescendo. First, the stadium vanished from his mental touch. The thousands of souls filling the place went with it, and Stanley figured out what had happened quickly after that. The spell hadn''t been an attack at all. It was a teleport. ~~~V~~~ V grinned as they watched their magic take hold and whisk Stanley away. "I did it!" "What did you do?" Sam asked, book forgotten as she sprang from her recliner with a stern look on her face. "And why is my stadium under attack!?" "Stanley came after you," V said. "Just like I told you he would, and one of the guys with him was the mind controller." Sam tensed and cursed, "That fucker... so what did you do? There''s no way you killed Stanley. Did you get the mind controller, at least?" "What!?" V pouted at the conviction in those words. Not that it changed their frozen expression. The one downside of this new body. Though with their soul gaze going, they could still express their emotions better than a face ever could. "I could totally kill him!" they exclaimed, then added more softly, "If I had enough time to prepare..." Sam laughed as she flew across the room and pulled them into a hug. "V, I know you''ve gotten a lot stronger, but you aren''t at his level just yet." Sam let go and pushed them out to arm''s length, expression serious. "So tell me what you did." "I sent him away," V said, a smile in their soul. Sam was safe now. Stanley was powerful, but without his dog, he wouldn''t be able to fight the monster they''d sent him to. "To get..." "You fool!" A towering skeleton shouted, red eyes blazing like twin stars, as it appeared in the room without warning. "What have you done!?" V felt the bonds of their oath pull a response from them before they could even think about what to say to Nefraxis. "I sent Stanley to get killed by that..." A skeletal hand flashed out faster than they could follow, and the world spun around V before they crashed to a halt, half buried in the wall. This improved form didn''t have a physical brain that could rattle around inside the skull, so V was still fully aware enough to see Sam try to come to their rescue. Futilely. Sam''s hands lit up with pink light an instant before hundreds of glowing red chains speared into her from every direction. She growled and flickered in place as her blood splattered to the floor below, but her teleportation never took, and she remained helplessly suspended in midair. "No!" V screamed, still embedded in the wall. "You swore not to..." Nefraxis never even looked Sam''s way as they advanced lightning quick across the room. A skeletal hand closed around V''s head and tore them from the wall. "The oath is broken!" Nefraxis hissed, their faces inches apart and those red eyes burning with fury. "You have betrayed us!" V''s non-existent heart skipped a beat. "No! I would never! There''s no way Stanley can kill that..." The hand currently wrapped around their head squeezed harder, and V felt cracks appearing in their skull. "We hid that creature from the world for a reason. More specifically, we hid it to avoid this exact scenario! Now your foolish desire to protect your pet human may have doomed us all!" "But... why?" V gasped out, not from lack of air but from the pain of their cracking skull. "They are our two greatest threats! Either way, one of them should die tonight!" Nefraxis shook them violently. "It doesn''t matter who wins! If that creature devours the humans, it will take and may very well be able to wield Stanley''s... power! If Stanley defeats it... then he will no doubt take that creature''s power as his own. Either way, you have betrayed us!" The Eternals knew something more than they were letting on about Stanley. He had some special power that they desperately wanted, but also one they feared. Stanley hadn''t been wrong about that. What had he called it? Source? Whatever that meant! "What if..." V wheezed. "What if we join the fight!? Let them beat each other up and come in at the last..." "That creature blocked the teleportation matrix as soon as you foolishly revealed it. The fight may well be over by the time we arrive." Nefraxis dropped V. "No. We have no choice but to use this brief window to eliminate their purifier from the equation. The attack has already begun." "But..." V swallowed back what they wanted to say. This was the wrong choice. Nefraxis was afraid. They thought Stanley would win the fight, and it terrified them. V didn''t dare point that out. Not with Sam still hanging in those chains. Besides, removing the purifier wouldn''t be a waste. Worst case, Stanley still had to eat, and he would eventually starve if he refused to join up. So V ducked their head and asked meekly, "H-how may I serve, my lord?" "Your actions forced us to act ahead of schedule, before we were ready." Nefraxis''s voice shifted to match the grinning skull of their face. "So you will be going to join the assault." "Yes, my lord." V didn''t object, even though this was another mistake. They were far too valuable an individual to risk on the battlefield, and they didn''t even have an immortality ritual to protect them... This was a punishment, and V couldn''t refuse even if they wanted to. The oath saw to that. An oath that had changed... tightened, like a noose around their throat. All because Stanley had to interfere! "I will depart immediately, my lord," V said, bowing low and sparing a longing glance toward the silently struggling Sam in her bloody chains. Then V turned and headed for the teleportation arrays deeper into the base. Stanley would regret this. Him and all his self-righteous humans! "V," Nefraxis called as they were leaving, and V stopped to look back. "Impress me, and I will allow your pet human to join you in the march. Fail me, and..." They left the rest unsaid, but then again, they didn''t need to say more. Sam wouldn''t be killed if they failed tonight¡ªthe Eternals would never let her go¡ªbut she would be inducted. Forcibly. And in the worst case, as little more than a mindless zombie, though Nefraxis was unlikely to waste such a powerful individual in that way. Most likely, they would simply use a harsher oath. Assuming Sam didn¡¯t refuse... V nodded once and sprinted from the room without a backward glance. They would impress Nefraxis. Sam would stand at their side alive and herself, even if she''d been balking at the idea for a while now. The false freedom Sam had been enjoying had to run out eventually. She simply wasn''t powerful enough to remain free. No one was, and Stanley would find that out the hard way. The teleportation area was crowded as the Eternal army filed onto each array, filling them to maximum capacity before teleporting away. V didn''t wait in line, but ran to the front and took another''s place on the array. The displaced undead soldier didn''t protest. It couldn''t if it wanted to. The oaths were too strong for that. Still stronger and more restrictive than V''s own oath. For now... There were perks to being valuable, though V might have lost some of those privileges today... They''d gotten too angry when they found out about Stanley''s plan. Trying to mind control Sam into betraying her friend was one thing, but finding out that it would destroy Sam''s mind to do so was a whole other story. That arrogant asshole! V wasn''t sure which would be a better outcome: Stanley dying to that creature or him surviving long enough to starve to death... Reality shifted, and V followed the charging soldiers through the woods that now surrounded them. It wasn''t hard to know which way to go, not with the magical storm going off ahead. Of course, V peeled off before they got to the actual fighting. Nefraxis had ordered them to the front lines, but they weren''t just another foot soldier to be tossed into the grinder. Dying wouldn''t impress Nefraxis enough to protect Sam. They needed to do what they were best at. V worked a few spells into being as they approached the edge of the treeline. Protection, for what it would be worth. Cloaking, so the protection hopefully wouldn''t be needed. Finally, their own version of mana sight¡ªone reason the Eternals had granted them extra privileges¡ªand then V got to work studying the defenses and looking for a weak spot. The humans had some solid magical defenses. Their so-called wizards weren''t bad, but they weren''t V. There were other reasons the Eternals had given them such a light oath. It took less than a minute for V to find a flaw in the shield surrounding the base that could bring the entire thing down, though only temporarily. The wizards had some decent contingencies built in. Still, they didn''t need to bring down the shield to win. They only needed to take the purifier, and the war would be over. Of course, the humans knew that, and so Zeke was guaranteed to be the most well protected person in the entire place. Luckily, V knew these people. Well, V knew them enough. Eve''s little spy camera had been a great idea. Not only did it inspire them to set up their own spy network, but the girl had even created a handy relay that V could piggyback their own magic onto. It was how they''d learned of Stanley''s plan... and now it might work to give them eyes inside if they tuned the spell just right. Zeke might be too well protected for V to make a move on him, but there was always a weak link. 170. I Want To Live ~~~June~~~ June cursed silently at Stanley as the magic coalesced brighter and brighter around her. He''d dragged them here on his crazy witch hunt, and now she was surrounded by magic that she couldn''t reflect away. There wasn''t even a notification that she could attempt to copy the spell if it was something good. There was a sudden lurch in her stomach. The light vanished. And only darkness took its place. "Monster incoming." Stanley''s cold voice echoed in that darkness before she could do anything more than confirm her shields were still active on the others, which told her they remained beside her where she''d last seen them. Then light bloomed overhead and she realized they were all somewhere else entirely, including Stanley. He was sitting cross-legged in the air like he always did and staring at a wall with his soul-black eyes as he added, "Kill it." He looked and sounded completely emotionless, and she still wasn''t sure if she preferred this to when he was angry. Both were disturbing in different ways. When he was angry, it felt like any wrong move could bring that rage down on her head. Conversely, this didn''t feel much better. When he looked at her like this, it felt like he was observing a bug crawling up his sleeve and contemplating whether to brush it harmlessly away or pinch it between his fingers. Despite his motionless and emotionless demeanor, June knew he was responsible for the light and... something else. Ever since she''d added psionics to her repertoire, she could feel whenever Stanley used his power. It didn''t tell her exactly what he was doing, but the ripples were there, and it was the primary reason she never used the copied skill around him. Not that it mattered. Stanley''s so-called legendary skill was nearly worthless. She couldn''t do half the shit Stanley could, and that was after she''d wasted a permanent skill slot on the damn thing! It should have been called telekinesis instead of mind over matter. Weirdly though, it didn''t use any mana... She didn''t get to dwell on the issue for long. Almost as soon as Stanley had spoken, a wave of magic crashed into her like a sledgehammer and nearly drove her to her knees with its power. Luckily, this magic was targeting her and the others directly enough for her shields to work. Debuff Deflected: [Quiescence of the Feast] Aura of the Docile Feast She reacted instinctively to copy the magic attacking her¡ªlike she always did¡ªsacrificing a few more copies of her most useless skills to make room. Though she''d never seen a deflect instead of a reflection before... Skill Copy Failed. Skill Exceeds Copy Limits. Skill Level Up: Copycat Mirror That was impossible! She''d copied Stanley''s legendary skill without issue, and his was the strongest power she''d ever come across. At least it would be if she could ever figure out how the damn skill worked! Never mind that she''d also failed to reflect the magic¡ªa mere debuff. It wasn''t even a direct attack, and it was draining her mana like nothing else she''d ever seen! The overpowering magic didn''t arrive alone. A man appeared in the room along with it¡ªalmost certainly the source of the attempted debuff¡ªand possibly the monster Stanley was talking about? Though he really did look like a human... if very out of place. A lot like Stanley, in fact. He looked slightly younger than Stanley, so... old. He was wearing a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and slacks, but his clothes were only partially visible beneath the thick leather apron that adorned his figure as he frowned around the room at everyone and muttered, "Intruders?" Stanley wasn''t attacking him, so June held back as well, trying to keep an eye on every entrance the real monster might come through. Meanwhile, the man held up one hand with his fingers contorted in a strange gesture, and from his hand pulsed a blinding white light. June tensed and squinted against the glare, but when Stanley still failed to react, she did the same. Through squinted eyes, she watched as the light seemed to shine into and through everything¡ªwalls and people alike. Even her shields didn''t block the light but appeared as a visible aura around everyone except Stanley. That wasn''t all. It also shone into the floor and ceiling, illuminating a familiar pair of magical circles above and below them. The same magic circles that had brought them here... "Who among you created this?" the man asked, his frown shifting into a smile. "It is exquisite!" "Who are you!?" Quinn demanded. "Where are we!?" The man only glanced at each of them before shaking his head. "It wasn''t you? A pity." He lifted his free hand and pointed at the magic circles, whereupon a pencil-thin red beam shot out and carved both circles in half. "You see, I abhor uninvited guests." Stanley still didn''t react as the magic circles flared and collapsed, and June started having a bad feeling about the man in front of them. Stanley had said there was a monster coming and to kill it, but nothing else had shown up. Only this man, or what looked like a man. One who had drained her mana down to almost half already. If this was the monster he''d been talking about, then why wasn''t he killing it? Unless... he hadn''t resisted that debuff? It was a ridiculous idea. Stanley resisted everything! Even Brett''s mental domination! Why would he fail now!? Was it really that powerful? More importantly, what did the debuff do? Going from the name alone, she surmised it was a calming effect, but since Stanley was already emotionless, she couldn''t tell if it had done anything to him. Should she shield him? Adding another person would only increase the mana drain exponentially, and shielding Stanley was the worst in that regard. Besides, there might be a cheaper option, and they didn''t really need Stanley. He wasn''t the be all end all that everyone liked to think he was. Obviously, the others shared some of her concerns regarding this... man, though none of them had attacked just yet. Roland was practically drooling as he stared hungrily at the man. Quinn was suspicious and angry that the man had ignored his question, and Brett was his usual nervous self. They only needed a nudge to kick things off, and June provided it using another of her permanently copied skills. Mind Sway. "Kill him!" Quinn yelled while he simultaneously summoned a black hole in the strange man''s head. Or where his head had been... because the man reacted faster than any of them had expected. Well, most of them. After the way it appeared in the room and the strength of its magic, June had expected it to be fast, hence why she didn''t want to be the one to attack first. Still, Quinn wasn''t a rookie when it came to combat. He was already moving and managed to dodge away when the man appeared beside him to take a swing at his head. It helped that he dropped a spread of smaller black holes between them to prevent any pursuit. Roland had a sort of sixth sense for living things and wasn''t phased in the slightest by the man''s abrupt relocation. He was already lunging towards his back when the newcomer pulled up short to avoid the black holes. Unfortunately, his target reacted like he had eyes on the back of his head and reached back without looking to catch Roland by the throat. Worse, June saw his hand change an instant before it made contact, turning into something scaly and clawed. Those claws sank deep into Roland''s throat as the man slammed to a stop. Then the man swung his monster arm and threw Roland away while ripping out his throat in a spray of blood, even as he dodged another black hole aimed at his head. Roland didn''t go far. His own hands grasped claw-like at the man''s arm and refused to let go, and his hungry grin never wavered as he greedily drained every drop of life force he could from the man. It helped that Brett finally acted, and he didn''t hold back, going straight for the domination with his first attack. June smiled as the man went to his knees, his free hand clutching his head and his face a rictus of agony. Especially when another black hole appeared, one big enough that it swallowed his head entirely. She stopped smiling when a clawed hand wrapped around her neck and she watched his smiling head regrow almost instantly before her eyes. "Turn off your shield or die." How did he know she was the source!? June scrambled to free herself from the claw and pushed back with as much mana as she could spare, even as her gaze leapt to Stanley. She''d screwed up. This monster was too powerful. She needed to shield Stanley and snap him out of... The claws punctured her skin, digging deeper like shards of ice beneath her flesh. Behind the monster, she could see Roland charging her way with that same stupid and hungry grin on his face, even as blood poured from his still shredded and gaping neck. Brett and Quinn weren''t moving, but they were looking her way with shocked expressions. None of them would be fast enough to save her, and if their attacks had already failed, then none of her copied skills would make a difference. So she pulled back her shield. "It''s off!" The claws stopped digging deeper, and the man narrowed his eyes at her. "Yourself as well." June could see the others behind him, all of them now standing still with the same blank expressions as Stanley. She couldn''t let herself end up like that. It would be all over. "I... it''s passive!" He studied her silently, and June clung to the fact that she wasn''t technically lying. Her skill was basically passive when used only on herself, but she could and had turned it off before when she needed healing and the like. She just really didn''t want to do that right now. The claws withdrew, and she clapped her hands over the wounds while watching his scaled hand shift back into normal-looking human flesh in the blink of an eye. Luckily, he hadn''t hit anything vital, so she wasn''t in danger of bleeding out. Though she was still very much in danger. "Very well!" he said, suddenly smiling with an expression she really didn''t like. "Uninvited as you were, you are still the first new guests I''ve had in quite some time. I suppose I could overlook your rather crass introduction and offer you a proper welcome. Though I do detest any such outbursts from my... guests." He removed the apron as he spoke and threw it casually over his shoulder. It vanished into thin air before hitting the ground, and he glanced at Stanley with a frown. "Stop looking at me like that." Stanley''s eyes turned from black pits into the usual violet, and the man nodded once before heading through a pair of swinging double doors. "Come along into my parlor, then. Despite the interruption, dinner will be served shortly." Dinner? June flinched when the previously motionless people all started moving after the man, with Stanley still gliding along in midair. Why was he still using his power when no one else was, and why didn''t the monster tell him to stop? Was he only playing along? He wouldn''t do that, would he? He was her only hope of getting out of this alive, though, technically, the monster hadn''t actually killed anyone yet. Not even Roland, who must have drained enough life from the monster or had enough stored, because his throat had already stopped bleeding when he trudged past her. She reluctantly followed the others as slowly as she dared through the double doors and into the darkness, out of Stanley''s light. There was nowhere else to go, and no other exit from this room. The light shining through the porthole windows on the doors was all she had to illuminate her path, along with a faint violet glow from Stanley''s eyes ahead. She trekked slowly after them until another light source appeared ahead¡ªlight shining through another set of double doors. One by one, they passed through those swinging doors, with June bringing up the rear. It took a second for her eyes to adjust to the new light, and when they did, she froze in horror. Human corpses dangled from meat hooks. Hundreds of them. In long rows stretching off into the distance of what she now assumed must be a meat packing plant. The sight was enough to glue her feet to the floor, and she only resumed moving with effort when the monster paused and glanced back with a terrible glint in its eye. June followed. She wasn''t ready to fight yet. Her mana was low, and while her skill could protect her alone indefinitely against even this monster''s magic, that wouldn''t be enough, especially not when it did nothing to shield her from physical attacks. What she needed to do now was get the shield on Stanley, and for that, she needed more mana. Far more. Ideally, she would shield everyone at once and long enough for them to kill this thing. For that, she needed her mana to regenerate. Which might take too long. She needed to stall before they reached... wherever it was they were heading. "What is this place?" June asked, stopping and looking more closely at one of the dangling corpses. It was a man. Naked, completely hairless, and with one leg missing, including his genitals and a butt cheek. "Why all the..." As she stared at the body, trying to appear genuinely curious, it dawned on her that the wounds didn''t look at all like an injury. It looked more like the pieces were surgically removed. Or maybe carved off by a butcher... "This one was... disappointing," the monster said from right behind her, and June couldn''t help her flinch at the suddenness of his relocation. It had to be teleportation. Even Stanley couldn''t move that fast. Not without making a sound. "One of my earlier guests, and one with a particular knack for hopping about. Unfortunately for him, I found a better specimen soon after... but you know what they say, waste not, and all that. Besides, his life can still serve to sustain those with greater potential." "You found a..." June''s voice choked off when she finally realized what was bothering her about the corpse. It was breathing! She leapt back with a gasp and a fresh wave of horror. "H-he''s alive!?" The monster frowned at her. "Of course. Fresh meat is far preferable to the alternative." "Fresh... meat?" June forced out, her gaze trailing over more of what she''d thought to be corpses, most of whom were missing pieces. All of whom were still breathing, and one of which had a gaping hole in his torso that let her see the single remaining lung slowly inflate and deflate. She was sure there should have been more organs in there... and none of them were bleeding despite the open wounds. "You''re eating... them?" "Nothing so banal, I assure you," the monster said calmly. "I am granting them a gift by allowing them to be a part of something much greater than they ever could have imagined." "By eating them!?" June didn''t want to piss off this creature, but she couldn''t help the shrill tone of her voice, and she couldn''t seem to catch her breath, either. This was so much worse than she''d thought. "You humans always seem to have trouble understanding anything beyond what you can see," the monster said, while he smiled dreamily at the dismembered man. "But I''ll admit, I do enjoy the... process." "You''re not... human?" June asked, her reeling mind grasping at whatever she could to delay the inevitable while her eyes refused to look away from the rows and rows of strung-up men and women. Strangely, the idea that he was just another monster made her feel better about what she was seeing. But not much better. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. "I once thought I was," the man said with a sigh. Then he smiled. "The system saw the truth in me, though. It showed me what I truly was. What I was always meant to be!" "What truth?" June whispered, her breaths coming in short, nearly panicked gasps. "That I am a king!" he exclaimed, dragging her gaze back to him. "That I am meant to rule this world and all of its people!" He smiled at her. "You too will have a place. You and your friends. The tribute of life and power you have brought me will at last find its destined purpose when it becomes a part of me!" She couldn''t look away from the ecstatic monster. He was a cannibal. An insane cannibal. And he was going to eat all of them if she didn''t do something to stop him. Her mana was still too low to shield even Stanley alone for any length of time, and even if she did, what was to stop this thing from killing her first? He gestured toward the others, all of whom had stopped in place for his little speech. "Come along now. The work of a king is never done, and I have much to attend to." "Wait!" June exclaimed, frantically trying to think of something to say. "We can help you!" "Of course you can," he said. "And you will." "What... wait, what about the undead!?" His expression darkened. "They are the ones who sent you here, are they not?" She nodded rapidly. "Yes! You don''t want them turning all your food into undead, right!? We were hunting them! We can help you kill them!" "No." He shook his head, and her flicker of hope died as his smile grew. "They are nothing more than an annoyance. I will deal with those rotten creatures in due time, and fret not; you will all play a role in destroying the abominations." "But..." "Enough dawdling. Come!" He grabbed her arm and dragged her through the next set of doors, revealing countless more humans dangling from identical hooks. Like the rest, none of them bled, either from the hooks piercing their flesh or from the missing pieces some had lost. Her panic and dread only grew as he dragged her toward the end of a line, where ominous and empty steel hooks glinted silver in the light. Her mana was barely above a quarter, but she was about to act when he released her arm. Instead, he approached Quinn. "Disrobe," he ordered, and Quinn immediately started removing his clothes, though in no particular rush, almost as if he were half asleep. While he undressed, the cannibal traced a finger through the air, leaving a glowing green line behind. He moved in smooth, practiced motions until he''d drawn out a strange and complex pattern in the air. Then he drew a line from the pattern to Quinn''s forehead. As soon as the line made contact, the glowing pattern shifted into... words. Words she could read and in a very familiar format. It was a status screen! Status Name: Quinn Salvatore Race: [Caster](E-grade Human) Titles: N/A Traits: [Adaptable](35%) [Proud] Class: Bringer of Oblivion (Legendary) - Level 78 (Advanced) Class Skills: Black Hole (Legendary) - Level 89 (Advance... That was all she got to read before the letters swirled back into nonsense, and the cannibal nodded with a smile. "Excellent. He will serve his king well indeed." He left the pattern hanging in the air and drew out another beside it, this one comprised of glowing red lines. Then he shoved the entire thing into Quinn''s chest, where it vanished, before lifting the man up and impaling him on a pair of hooks that burst from his chest just below his shoulders. Yet not a drop of blood spilled from the man. June grimaced and tensed as he turned back, but he only went after Roland next, repeating the process. While he worked, he spoke. "I suspect you were bluffing about that skill you are hiding behind, and for your sake, I hope that is true. Fighting my power will only bring you unnecessary suffering, and I have no desire for that. I am a merciful king, and I share that mercy with all who feed me their gifts." June wasn''t buying it, but she said nothing while he scanned Roland. This time she didn''t bother trying to read the status and instead backed up a few steps before touching a woman dangling beside her and casting a different copied skill. Mana Drain. Unfortunately, it was only a copy, and she''d never made the skill permanent. Why would she? It was pathetically weak, and she''d only kept a few charges for absolute emergencies, something she was regretting now. The flesh beneath her hand felt disturbingly warm for the state the woman''s body was in, but she ignored her discomfort and quickly spent all the mana drain charges in rapid succession while the cannibal stripped and hung up Roland. It gained her another ten percent of mana. Some of which she immediately spent on a Mind Sway against the cannibal when he turned to look at Brett next. Despite what people might think of him, she cared for the man. He was attentive, sweet, just the right amount of submissive, and yes, a little naive. He definitely never would have had the guts to build his harem if not for her wanting to bring some other women into their bed... and so what if some of them had to be coaxed in!? They would have all died if not for Brett''s power. They should''ve been grateful that was all they had to do! It had been so perfect... until the undead ruined everything with their damn miasma! So she nudged the cannibal''s mind as delicately as she could, away from Brett... and toward Stanley. The bully could take some punishment, and he deserved it for the way he treated Brett! Hell, for the way he treated all of them! "Stanley''s really powerful," she said, drawing his attention and reinforcing the sway with her voice. "Once you have his... gifts, you should be able to handle anything, no problem." Sway was useful, but it was nowhere near Brett''s domination ability. An ability that she unfortunately couldn''t copy without potentially killing Brett... Still, it had its uses. The closer she pushed someone towards doing what they would''ve done anyway, the easier it was. Also, maybe Stanley would snap out of it himself if he got impaled on a meat hook? It worked. The sway, not Stanley waking up. Not yet. The cannibal paused, his gaze drifting away from Brett and landing on the other man. He drew the line to Stanley''s forehead, and despite the circumstances, June felt a shiver of excitement to see what secrets Stanley''s status might hide. Only, nothing happened. The line to his forehead shattered and took the entire glowing pattern with it. The cannibal frowned, leaned closer while muttering something, then lurched away with a horrified shout of, "What is that filthy creature doing in here!?" June flinched back as well, and it took her a moment to realize what he was looking at. He was looking down where both of Stanley''s hands were draped over the small, unmoving pug in his lap. "You mean Caffeine?" He rounded on her with fury in his gaze. "Why didn''t you tell me he was carrying that... that... beast!?" June reflexively backed up a step. "I..." But the cannibal didn''t press; he only rounded on Stanley. "Get rid of that thing at once!" Stanley didn''t move, and his hands remained on the sleeping pug. "Did you hear me!? Drop it at once!" Stanley still didn''t move. "Stop using your power." Stanley sank to the floor, legs still crossed, pug still in his lap. "Stand up!" the cannibal screamed. It seemed he really didn''t like animals, and June was wracking her brain about how they could use this to their advantage when Stanley finally responded. "I can''t," was all he said, his voice monotone. "You..." the cannibal screamed before abruptly calming down. "Can''t?" He frowned intently at Stanley''s face, crowding close and studying his eyes. "Why can''t you?" "Caffeine is sleeping." "Disrobe." "I can''t." June hid her smile. For once, Stanley''s twisted obsession with his dog might come in handy. It was also the moment she was waiting for, so June sent another sway at the cannibal. "It''s just a dog. Kill it, and..." He stepped back from Stanley and looked at her with a flat expression. A sinking feeling crept into her heart as those insane eyes bored into hers. Then he frowned. "You shouldn''t have done that." "I didn''t..." "The first time I could understand. A mistake born out of fear. But trying to manipulate me into doing your bidding? Trying to manipulate your king!?" "No!" Time was up, and she cast her shield on Stanley. Or she tried to, anyway, but her spell hit an invisible wall and never reached the man. "I would never..." "Lies." June stopped pretending and unleashed her magic. Not at the cannibal, but at Stanley, trying to break through whatever was blocking her shield. A bolt of lightning struck and revealed a glowing box around the seated man. Twin red beams launched from her eyes but only splashed harmlessly against the barrier. The crystal shards that appeared from her hands and shot his way all shattered uselessly on the wall. She even tried a Mind Sway before resorting to shoving him with Mind Over Matter. None of it made a difference. None of it could even touch the man inside the box. The cannibal watched her calmly the entire time, as if he had no expectation she might succeed. Then he smiled, lifted a finger, and shot a bolt of lightning at her. Spell Reflected: Electric Arc (Epic) Skill Copy Successful. It shot right back the way it had come, along with the copy she''d made. He caught both in the palm of his hand, then shook his head while glancing at his slightly blackened skin. "A reflection and a copy?" While he was distracted, June threw herself bodily at Stanley, only to slam into a solid wall. She ended up in a heap on the floor and felt hot tears threatening to slip free as the hopelessness of her situation settled in. She pounded a fist on the invisible wall. "Damn you, Stanley! Do something!" He did nothing. Only sat there like a worthless idiot with his hands resting on the equally worthless... She froze. Had his hand just tightened around Caffeine? Was he fighting the debuff? "There, there," a soft voice said in her ear while a hand gently stroked her head. "Fighting the inevitable will only cause you unnecessary suffering. Accept your purpose. You will become more than you ever thought possible." "I can help you!" June pleaded. "Me and Brett! We''ll bring you more people! There''s a kid that can remove the miasma! We''ll bring him to you!" "He, too, will join me in due time." "But the undead are..." The hand on her scalp tightened, clamping down painfully on her hair. "You think I don''t know your game?" he hissed into her ear. "You are like all the rest, conniving, duplicitous, but... there may be another way." He dragged her up with the hand in her hair and pointed her at Brett. "This is the one you care for? The one you seek to preserve? The one you say will serve me in life?" June nodded frantically, as much as she could with the vice grip on her hair. "Yes! He will! We both will!" "You truly care for him?" "I do!" "Excellent." He turned to Brett. "Use your domination on her." "What!? Nooo!" June met Brett''s blank eyes as the man turned to her and she had a single instant to decide what to do. She made the only choice she could. Debuff Reflected: [Mental Domination] Permanent Skill Copy Successful. Skill Removed: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) New Skill Acquired: Mental Domination (Legendary) Her mind slid easily into his, crushing everything he was and tying the strings of her control on what little remained. She watched through her welling tears as the last light went out of his eyes. Then a single tear ran down his cheek, and his gaze somehow became even more dull. Even more lifeless. Then her own vision turned into a blurry mess, and she sank to the floor. "No..." "So you weren''t lying," a voice said, and June looked up through her tears to see the cannibal studying Brett, then his gaze shifted to her, and he smiled. "You truly couldn''t turn off your magic... or, perhaps, you simply chose to save yourself?" "Die, you bastard!" June screamed from her knees and cast her newest skill on the monster. Not only that, but she ordered the puppet that used to be Brett to do the same. It felt like hitting a brick wall with her mind. There was no give. No cracks in the wall. It was nothing like the first time. Nothing at all. She hung her head in defeat and let the tears rain down onto the cement floor. It was over. She''d lost everything but her life, and that would follow soon enough. If she was lucky... "You truly did care," the hateful voice said. "Go fuck yourself," June whispered, because she didn''t have the energy to scream like she wanted to. "I won''t tolerate such language from my subordinates," the monster said. "So if you wish to serve, then you will refrain from vulgarity in my presence." Of course! The flesh-eating cannibal didn''t like cursing! Because why not!? Then his words caught up to her, and June lifted her head. "Y-you''re not going to kill me?" "You said you would serve. Have you changed your mind?" She thought about it this time, really thought about it. She could help a monster devour hundreds or even thousands of people, or she could die. It was really no choice at all. She took one last look at Stanley, their supposed savior and now just another drooling idiot, then brushed a sleeve across her eyes and said, "I''ll do it." "Excellent! I hadn''t thought to recruit servants, but I suppose it is only fitting for a king." He glanced around at the macabre scene with a wide smile. "Perhaps I will recruit more in the future. There is plenty of work to be done after all." She hung her head, but then there was a squelching noise and June looked up to see Brett, or what used to be Brett, now impaled on the hooks while a happy monster stroked his cheek fondly. "Convenient, isn''t it?" he said, turning to smile at her. "You can gain his power without stealing what is rightfully mine. You know, I may have underestimated your ability at the start, but serve me well and I will ensure some scraps of my power fall to you as well." He turned away then, waving a hand impatiently. "Run along now and bring me the boy you spoke of." He rubbed his hands together. "It will make everything that much easier... oh, the exit is that way." June nodded, numb, and climbed to her feet. "Sure." She paused beside Stanley and reached a tentative hand toward him. Nothing blocked her, but she pulled her hand back without touching him. "You know, if anything can kill you in this dungeon, it''s this guy." When she looked up, she found the monster studying her with a suspicious expression. "I''m not trying to trick you this time. It''s just... if he kills you, then I''m dead." She wasn''t trying to trick him, but she''d be lying if she said there wasn''t the tiniest hope that Stanley might still snap out of it and kill this fucking thing. Plus, if that was going to happen, she''d really like it to happen before she went and tried to feed Zeke to a cannibal... How the hell she was supposed to make that happen was another problem entirely. "Remove the animal," the monster said with a shudder. "I detest the things. I''ll deal with the man." June took a step back, shaking her head vigorously. "He''ll kill me." "Nonsense. He is under my spell. Now do as you are told!" She shook her head again. "I want to live. If you are going to send me on a suicide mission, then just kill me now and get it over with." The cannibal frowned at her for a long moment, then pulled a thick, elbow-length leather glove out of nowhere and approached Stanley. "We will work on your obedience later." He gingerly reached for the pug, as if he were about to touch the most disgusting thing in the world... and Stanley''s hand snapped out to latch onto the monster''s gloved wrist. "Let go of me!" the cannibal exclaimed, the outrage clear in his tone as he now strained to reach Caffeine. "I can''t," Stanley said, still in the same monotone as the glove creaked beneath his tightening grip. The monster glared at him from inches away as a knife appeared in his free hand. "Fine," he huffed. "I suppose I can prepare you immediately, then." He thrust the knife toward Stanley''s throat, and June saw Stanley¡¯s other hand lift from Caffeine''s back to intercept the blade. Neither hand nor blade reached their destination. A sound echoed through the building instead. A sound she would never forget and would recognize anywhere. A sound that felt as it shook the very fabric of reality itself. Caffeine was growling. You have felt the Wrath of the Beast Lord. You are stunned. June hadn¡¯t realized how much noise there was in here until the silence fell in the aftermath of that all-encompassing noise. Absolute silence. No one breathed. No one moved. No one could move, not even if they wanted to. She didn''t even notice the absent weight of the cannibal''s magic until it slammed back into her shield right as she gasped for breath with suddenly freed lungs. Debuff Deflected: [Aura of the Docile Feast] The cannibal was still angry, but she saw something else appear on his face the moment he could move again. For the first time, she saw fear on his face, and that fear drove him to do the dumbest possible thing he could have done in that moment. He redirected the knife to stab Caffeine. June was turning to run before her conscious mind even made the choice. Then the world exploded, and she knew only one thing as a wave of debris sent her sailing through the air. Stanley was finally awake. And he was pissed. 171. Its Supposed To Be Over ~~~Stanley~~~ Debuff Gained: [Aura of the Docile Feast] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Stanley noted the debuff when it first appeared, but it didn''t feel important enough to worry about. Instead, he watched the others fight the monster he''d warned them about. He had tried to kill it before it arrived, but the thing had some kind of premonition and teleportation ability... and now he just... didn''t care. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress They lost the fight, and Stanley followed along when they left the room. He had nothing better to do. He even turned off his Soul Sight when the monster told him to. Because... why not? Plus, it was probably better not to look at the thing. Its soul was a mess of other souls, thousands of them, and it was... bad. It was how he knew it was a monster. Nothing could have a soul like that and not be a monster. All the terrible things he''d thought about his own soul, and he now knew how very much worse it could be. Or he would have if he cared. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress That notification also kept popping up. Over and over. But he didn''t care about it any more than anything else. There was something wrong with his thinking¡ªhe knew that much¡ªbut he couldn''t muster enough effort to do anything about it. Not even when he realized the monster was a cannibal with a veritable feast stockpiled in this place. Which made sense, given that soul... Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Of course, the cannibal was a liar, too. It said it didn''t want people to suffer, and while the bodies appeared at peace, the souls in this place were in a perpetual state of agony and horror. Their screaming was almost annoying, but only almost. It was kind of nice, honestly. Not caring was so much easier than the alternative. So what if the souls were screaming? It wasn''t his problem, and it was easy enough to tune them out. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress That changed when the monster told him to drop Caffeine. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Ignoring the screams was one thing, but taking away Caffeine''s bed? That wasn''t possible. So he said as much to the monster. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress It didn''t like that, but Stanley didn''t care. Instead, he watched June do a bunch of stuff he hadn''t even known she could. She even used a psionic ability... which was a new sensation. Not that he really cared about any of it. Did he? Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Did he care? He cared about a lot, didn''t he? He had... friends. A family. He must care about them, right? He cared about Caffeine... Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress That thought stuck in his head and wouldn''t go away. Not even when he watched June reflect Brett''s domination back on the man, nor when she agreed to help the monster get its hands on Zeke in exchange for her life. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress The feeling got stronger when the monster tried to touch Caffeine. Stanley didn''t fully understand why, but he knew it couldn''t do that. So he stopped it. The monster didn''t like that either, but there was nothing Stanley could do. Caffeine had to be protected. There couldn''t be any question about that. It was absolute. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress That led to another problem. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress The monster wanted to kill him when he refused to let it touch Caffeine, but he had to protect Caffeine and wouldn''t be able to do that if he died. So he needed to stop the monster¡ªexcept he never had to. Caffeine solved the problem himself by growling at it. You have felt the Wrath of the Beast Lord. Debuff Removed: [Aura of the Docile Feast] Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] A lot of feelings rose into his mind in the total silence that followed Caffeine''s growl. Relief came first, an all-powerful and overwhelming relief that Caffeine was finally awake. Relief that Caffeine was truly okay after all this time. He stayed with that feeling for what felt like a long time. As long as he could, and the entire time, his gaze remained locked on Caffeine. The entire time, only one other thought was in his mind; his intense longing to see Caffeine''s big brown eyes finally open and look back at him. Unfortunately, that never happened. The pug never opened his eyes or lifted his head. In fact, he did nothing after his growl, even if he''d woken up. He had woken up... hadn''t he? Debuff Gained: [Aura of the Docile Feast] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress The debuff helped mute the bitter disappointment of not seeing Caffeine open his eyes. Still, it was better than nothing. Caffeine had done something. That had to mean he was recovering. Right? Stanley didn''t care about anything again¡ªanything other than Caffeine, that is. He still knew something was wrong with that, but he barely noticed as he watched Caffeine sleep. He didn''t care what else was happening around him. Not until the monster tried to stab the little dog sleeping in his lap. That action brought another emotion rising to drown out all other feelings or rational thought. RAGE. Debuff Removed: [Aura of the Docile Feast] Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress His psionic punch caught the monster, plus a handful of the strung-up people behind him, and sent them all into and through a concrete wall. Stanley followed them through the wall, one hand resting on Caffeine in his lap and the other outstretched, millimeters away from ripping and tearing this monster into pieces. The humans caught in his attack didn''t survive, their screaming souls winking out almost as one, but Stanley didn''t care. He didn''t even care that this thing had mind-controlled him. He only cared about one thing now. One thing, and one thing only. Killing the monster that had dared to attempt to hurt Caffeine. All of his fear for the pug over the past few days. All of his worry about how long Caffeine had been asleep. All his fear about what that god might have done to the pug. All of his guilt over being the reason Caffeine had needed to face off with a god. And now his despair that Caffeine still hadn''t opened his eyes. Stanley poured all of it into his rage, and he pointed all of that rage at the monster in front of him. A single grasping finger brushed against the human-looking monster''s cheek, and the psionic power cloaking his finger dug a furrow into its soon-to-be dead face. It vanished before he could finish splitting its head in half. Stanley reversed course instantly, spinning and lashing out again at almost the same instant the monster appeared behind him. His hand didn''t make contact this time, but his mind was faster, and he drove the thing into the floor hard enough to shatter cement clear down through the foundation. Its flesh compressed under the blow, skin splitting wide, blood, bones, and organs bursting through in a spray of... Once again, the monster vanished, and once again, Stanley was on it the instant it appeared. He moved faster than he ever had before, holding nothing back. His aggressive pursuit had consequences. He could feel the shockwaves of his movements cracking cement and deforming steel in his wake, never mind what they were doing to the cannibal''s human captives. None of that mattered, though, and deep in the back of his mind, Stanley considered it a mercy to end their suffering. Deep, deep in the back of his mind. Because he had much more important priorities at the moment, and he knew the fight was far from over. Because this time, the monster fought back when it reappeared as a pulped mess of blood and bone. The gore didn¡¯t sit still, and Stanley saw the dozen spears of blood launch toward him even as the rest of its flesh pulled itself back together in mere moments. The spears shattered against the wall of his will, and the magical barrier it erected in his path performed no better. But it all slowed him down enough for a sphere of lightning to manifest around the recovered monster. Stanley didn''t fear the magic, but he still stopped at the edge of the lightning field thanks to a premonition showing him bolts of electricity arcing into the pug in his lap if he''d gone any closer. The unrealized future only fueled his rage, and through it, his next strike. Where he crushed everything surrounding his enemy into an infinitesimal point. Black Hole Sure, he might not be able to summon a black hole like Quinn, but he still tried his damnedest to create one the old-fashioned way. By crushing every scrap of matter into a singularity. His will was absolute. Nothing would escape. Nothing could escape. Unfortunately, his will wasn''t as absolute as he wanted, and it didn''t quite work; the monster escaped. But it wasn''t for nothing. For a single instant, he''d held back its teleportation with willpower alone¡ªlong enough to feed its legs, pelvis, and part of its stomach into the singularity. He could do it again. He only needed to be faster. He only needed to be stronger. He only needed more rage! The flying torso was already regrowing new bits and pieces when it appeared behind him, and this time it came in hot. Literally. Stanley retreated from the supernova that exploded at his back. He raced ahead of the shockwave for a single instant, then reversed course, parting the wave of fire and force around him, refusing to let even a lick of flame get through the wall of his will and touch Caffeine. He had to dodge sideways amidst the flames to avoid a spray of arcing lightning, then again to avoid a glowing yellow arrow that multiplied into hundreds of arrows. He tanked the laser beams from the monster''s eyes with his sleeve, followed by the flesh of his arm, then sent out an unavoidable grid of cutting power the moment it was within his domain. CUT The domain gave him enough of an edge for his power to reach the monster before it could flee, and he diced the front half of its body into cubes. It wasn¡¯t enough to finish the job, and the creature retaliated by sending out its blood in a spray of crimson blades that carved through steel and cement alike. Not that he expected it to be that easy. Not that he wanted it to be that easy, either. He wanted it to hurt before it died. He wanted it to hurt bad! So he made his desire a reality. He pursued the monster around its lair, destroying chunks of the building as well as pieces of the creature itself. He evaded, blocked, or simply tanked everything from fire, ice, lightning, and acid, along with a myriad of effects he didn''t even have names for. He blasted through countless barriers and shields that the monster put in his path, magical and mundane. Nothing stuck¡ªto him or it¡ªthough Stanley''s clothes proved the more durable of the two, until he was eventually chasing a naked man around the factory. Or at least the pieces of one. Assuming you could call the monster a man. Which it wasn''t. It only pretended to be one. Along the way, his hot, bloodthirsty rage cooled enough to take stock of the situation, and he''d gotten a good look at how it was surviving so much punishment, aside from an insane regeneration factor. Its soul carried what he guessed were thousands of other souls within itself. Like a stomach of souls. Living souls. Living, screaming souls. Each time his attack would have or should have killed the thing, one of those souls would rise from within to replace the monster''s soul and die in its place. It felt an awful lot like fighting the undead, but worse. These weren''t zombie souls getting sacrificed. They were living human souls... well, sort of living. From what he''d seen so far, Stanley was pretty sure that most of them were only pieces of souls. The truly terrible thing was that they felt... aware. Screaming nonstop but aware. They felt pain when the monster used them as shields. They felt fear when they died in its place... though it wasn''t all bad. Plenty of those fearful, dying souls also felt relief at the end. They knew something about where they were and what was happening, and they welcomed the escape, even if it meant their end. He didn''t know if it had literally eaten an entire person for each of those souls, but he wasn''t ruling it out. The alternative was worse. Stanley had seen a lot of its captives with missing pieces of their flesh. What if it had taken chunks of their soul as well? Was he damning people that could still be saved? Or were they already doomed? Distantly, he was aware of June fleeing. She''d almost made it to the far side of the building, and what''s more, she''d taken Quinn and Pervert with her. Also Brett, whose soul felt... strange. She''d reflected his domination, and the man was essentially dead, but not completely. His soul remained in his flesh, or at least part of his soul. It was definitely dimmer than before, and it felt... flat. Nothing but faint echoes of the man he used to be. It was fine that they ran¡ªgood even. Because this was his fight. This monster was his, and he would be the one to kill it. Also, he would probably need to kill June, not to mention the Brett puppet, at some point... because he hadn''t dropped a core yet. Skill Level Up: Mental Fortress Mental Fortress has reached the Level 50 Threshold. No Evolution Available. Mental Fortress Upgraded to Level 50 (Advanced) He''d ignored those notifications, and he continued to ignore them as he pursued the end of a monster that refused to accept its inevitable reality. Stanley stayed close to the monster whenever he could, because it was the only way to hit it hard and fast enough that it couldn''t teleport away. It definitely had a sort of premonition, but either the skill was far weaker than Stanley''s, or alternatively, it simply couldn''t react fast enough. It was hard to say since Stanley wasn''t using Still Mind. He shouldn''t have any mental speed boosts... unless his domain was making up the difference? Or the monster was simply weak. At least when it came to reaction time, because it wasn''t weak in any other aspect. The thing was a cockroach that refused to die. Not only was it cheating death, but cutting its flesh felt akin to cutting through a D-grade''s flesh, even though it wasn''t actually D-grade, and its physical strength felt equally powerful. It had more magic and skills than should be possible¡ªfar more, though he assumed the vast majority of those were stolen from the people it had... consumed. An easy deduction after hearing it blabber. The battle evoked memories of his encounters with the undead, especially the D-grade, but it also brought back memories of his battle with Sam, which had required every ounce of his concentration. The primary difference between those fights and this was that they had fought like actual warriors. Both the skeleton and Sam had used only a handful of abilities, but they''d used their powers like scalpels, with finesse and skill. Their abilities felt honed, whereas this thing was a brute. It simply threw everything at him and hoped something would stick. It had wasted its time carving up helpless weaklings and stealing their skills. Skills he suspected were still all low level. It had never learned to fight with any of those skills. Hell, it probably hadn''t even used most of them before. Something Stanley was immensely grateful for. He didn''t want to imagine this monster with the fighting skill Sam had shown him... Because of that, he wasn''t too worried. He could and would kill this monster a thousand times if that was what it took. Though he suspected neither of them would last that long. Fighting at full steam took a lot out of a person, and Stanley''s hunger was growing. Debuff Upgraded: [Famished] He''d brought some food along, but it didn''t last long. Not for someone like him. Sure, there was plenty more meat around, but only if you didn''t mind eating human flesh, which Stanley very much preferred not to do. Unfortunately, his opponent didn''t share the same dietary restrictions, and its next teleport wasn''t to attack. Instead, it teleported to the opposite end of the building and was already busy chowing down on a human in the second it took Stanley to catch up. It also accelerated the eating process by shapeshifting its head into something with a larger mouth. Much larger. And reptilian... was that its true form?Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. He forced it to flee from the meal, but its unfortunate target was little more than a pair of legs by that point. Stanley spared a glance for the fresh meat as he passed... He''d eaten human flesh before, as much as he didn''t like to think about it, and he would do it again if he had to. But only if he really had to. Life and death stakes. This wasn''t that. He could hunt some animals easily enough, even while he was under attack, but what he didn''t want to do was give the monster a chance to escape, and it might very well do that if he went hunting. There was no guarantee it would chase him into a beast lair... and going back over his memories while under the influence, it was almost a certainty that it wouldn''t go anywhere near a beast lair. He''d never seen this monster before¡ªthere was no way he''d forget a soul like this if he had¡ªwhich meant it had a way to hide from him. The last thing he needed was for it to escape and go back into hiding. He had enough nightmares lurking out there in the dark... Which meant he needed to end this before it was too late. Stanley had an idea for that, one he''d already been working on ever since his night with Eve. He hadn''t progressed on that front since, but what better time to figure it out than in the middle of a fight when everything was on the line? The trick was to add his soul into his psionics. Not simply as an attribute booster, but directly into his attacks. He knew how strong his soul was. He''d seen it firsthand when fighting the D-grade, not to mention the fact that he could unlock and increase other people''s soul attributes merely by exposing them to his leaking soul. No one else could do anything similar. So what if, instead of cutting something with his mind, he could cut it with his soul? Or ideally, both at the same time? His soul was stronger than anyone else''s, so did that mean he could cut someone''s soul directly? He was pretty sure he''d done as much to kill the D-grade skeleton... though ideally, he wouldn''t almost destroy himself in the process this time. There had to be a way. Eve had figured out a way... His contemplations and attempts ended abruptly when the monster he was chasing suddenly swelled with power. Well, more power than it already had. He caught a single glimpse of disgusting blood-red light bursting from every inch of its exposed skin, which was all of it. The light matched its soul but wasn''t exactly the same. It wasn''t its soul, but something else. Something horrible. An extension of the monstrous thing that was this being''s entire purpose and reason for existence. Looking at it gave Stanley the same feelings as gazing upon its soul, and they weren''t nice feelings. Its soul looked like human blood. Not red, but human blood. There shouldn''t have been a distinction between types of blood¡ªStanley could never tell the difference¡ªbut there was now. Same thing with the smell. It smelled like human flesh, like raw and bloody flesh awaiting the butcher''s knife, but also simultaneously like human meat roasting over the fire. The worst part of that light, the absolute worst part, beyond even the sight and smell, was the taste. Merely looking at that soul, Stanley could taste it. And it was delicious. Succulent. Sickening. Underlying all of that was a deep, abiding hunger. Only it was more than that. Hunger was the barest description for what it felt like. It was the swollen and empty belly of a child dying from starvation. It was the glutton too fat to stand on his own two feet but who never stopped eating. It was a hunger that could never be satisfied and would never be satisfied. It was... ravenous. As if its entire existence was that debuff. As if it were the actual source of the debuff... He''d been looking at its soul this whole time, but now it drowned out everything else. Now he couldn''t not see it. He couldn''t not smell it. He couldn''t not taste it. He couldn''t not feel it. The monster lunged, glowing claws now extending from its hands, and Stanley moved. The claws grew to follow him, extending and expanding until there was no avoiding them¡ªwell, almost no avoiding them. Stanley sank fully into his premonitions as he spun through the air, twisting and twirling a hair''s breadth from the edge. Dancing and spinning between the shredding claws as they carved through everything they touched. Metal, concrete, and flesh. Everything. It wasn''t only the glowing claws, either. The terrible light kept spreading out from the monster, expanding and sending tendrils of itself in every direction. Those tendrils touched upon every human in the place and started sucking them dry, body and soul. Stanley could see and feel the energy flowing back along the lines into the monster itself, speeding and strengthening it more with every second that passed. For a moment, Stanley regretted not killing the captives when he had the chance, but he quickly realized that it wouldn''t have mattered. Every scattered piece of flesh went into the light. Every wayward drop of blood. All of it fed the monster now, and all of it made the thing stronger, faster, and hungrier. Stanley struck back even as he dodged. Smashing, carving, and chipping pieces off, but it was a losing game. It was healing far faster than he could hurt it. Even his domain wasn''t enough to even the odds anymore. Despite that, he didn''t waver. This thing would die. He knew it would die. It had to. No matter what tricks it pulled. No matter how many times it regenerated. It would die. His hot rage had long since cooled, and Stanley held the icy ball of his anger tight in his chest. It fueled his power and drove him unrelentingly forward. Until it wasn''t enough... He dodged a spread of shredding claws, carved apart the two he couldn''t avoid, then struck out at the monster... and his premonition changed. He hadn''t attacked the monster. It was fake¡ªan illusion. A trap. He tried. He tried so hard to find a way through. But there wasn''t one. Stanley wasn''t afraid to take a hit. He''d already taken plenty, and he could take as many more as were necessary to see this fight through to the end. The problem was, the attack wasn''t aimed at him. It was aimed at Caffeine. No matter how he moved. No matter what he did. Caffeine would take a hit. The monster was deliberately targeting the helpless, sleeping pug. In that terrible moment, Stanley''s icy rage lost its chill. The ball of ice in his chest burned so white-hot that Stanley half expected his skin to catch fire. As the inevitable moment crept ever closer, and as the fire burned ever hotter, something inside him... shifted. Something aligned. Something finally clicked into place, and time stopped. Stanley found himself inside his soul, or beside it, or looking in at it. He was within and without. He was... one with his soul. For the first time, his mind and soul perfectly aligned on a singular idea. On a singular purpose. There were no extraneous thoughts. No worries about his uncertain future or the mistakes of his past. No worries for his brother or his new family. Nothing else but what he needed to do in this one moment. So he did that. With a crash, time resumed, racing ever onward into the future, and Stanley reached out almost lazily with his body and mind, just as he had done countless times before. Only this time, his soul came along, like another hand extending out from the deformed orb of his soul, only it wasn''t another hand. It wasn''t separate. It was him¡ªall of him¡ªand it was enough. Stanley touched the monster that was trying to hurt Caffeine... and sent it away. Even as he killed it. DIE He felt its fear even before he touched it. The monster knew death had arrived. It knew the end was here. And it was afraid. The fear vanished when it didn''t die immediately, instead substituting another to die in its place. Stanley watched it happen and wasn''t upset. It was a minor delay, nothing more. Even as it grinned up at him from the crater its body had made. All bloody smiles and gloating words that Stanley ignored. Instead, he noted that the soul substitution had to be an actual skill. A passive one at that. The entire process was far too smooth and clean to have been handled by the monster itself. Still, the fight was over, and Stanley took a moment to acknowledge the human soul he had just condemned to death. It was green with swirls of white and black throughout, and it smelled like a chalkboard. It had been a woman in life... and he wasn''t sure how he knew that, but he knew. She''d been a woman with hopes and dreams. She had loved someone more than herself... and now it was over. Stanley watched her go, and he didn''t regret what he''d done. Death was a mercy for this soul. Because all those little things that made her who she had been were so very faint now. Almost lost beneath the screaming. A sound like someone was dragging their nails over a chalkboard. Or like a fork scratching a plate... Emotionally, it was an overpowering mix of what he could only describe as helpless despair and unrelenting horror. Honestly, it felt like how Stanley imagined a soul trapped in hell would feel. If hell was a real thing... which it very well might be in this new world. Souls went somewhere when they died¡ªat least most of the soul did, aside from the bits that ended up in a core. Had they always done that? Even before the system? What about the bits that went into cores? "She wasn''t lying," the monster said, now standing back on the ground, with its rotten aura still spreading through and illuminating the rubble of its former lair. "You are powerful!" It had been jabbering the whole fight, but it was all just a lot of nonsense about how Stanley should submit and let the monster eat him, and it still didn''t seem to realize that the fight was already over. "You must know that your struggle is pointless. Accept your destiny and become one with your king!" Yeah, that was the basic gist. Stanley didn''t dwell on the question of souls for long. Only long enough for the green soul to die, whereupon it dissipated like all the rest, and he couldn''t tell if it simply dispersed into the ambient background or went... somewhere else. He thought there might have been the faintest touch of relief at the end there, and he hoped it wasn''t merely his imagination. I hope you found peace. Wherever you went. "But you will dispose of that beast before kneeling at my..." It wasn''t over. Another captive soul followed the first, dying and fading away. Then another. And another. "What... what did you do!?" For once, Stanley didn''t blame the souls for their weakness. Even he, with all his power, had fallen under its spell. This world wasn''t fair. The system had screwed them all right from the start by giving so much power to such an absolute monster. Perhaps someone might have killed this thing at its inception, but even he hadn''t known it existed until today, and he wasn''t sure he could have killed it before tonight if he had known. Meanwhile, the extra souls inside it kept winking out, one after another, faster and faster. "Stop it!" the monster howled. It was finally beginning to understand the situation. Lights flashed below, and spells flew into the sky toward Stanley. The monster followed them, claws bared and growing. "I will tear out your heart and..." Stanley extended his hand and pushed it back down, it and all of its spells. Then he clenched his fist and gathered that disgusting light back where it belonged, forcing all of its magic down until the only light was a dim red glow coming from a monster masquerading as what was now nothing more than a pitiful-looking, naked man on his knees. "No! You can''t do this!" The devoured souls were dying by the dozens now, and Stanley let it keep talking while he pet Caffeine and looked out into the night. It was a dark sky, with no stars shining through the thick clouds. Even the moon couldn''t make a dent. Fitting for a night like this. He knew they''d been teleported somewhere but didn''t see any recognizable souls other than June and company in the distance. They were still running... Did they know where they were? Or where they were going? It didn''t matter; he''d catch up in a minute. Or less than a minute at this rate. Honestly, he was grateful to V for sending him here. Sure, he still needed to find the undead, but this monster was almost certainly what had set Nate''s intuition off. It had already been strong enough to tear its way through Nate''s base or the tower. Who knew how strong it might have become if left alone? V had obviously known it was here, given the teleportation circles... which begged the question. Did V send him here to die or to remove the threat? Or both? He could forgive the latter option; this thing needed to die. Yesterday. But if V knew about this monster and was okay with it gobbling down humans left and right... then V would die right alongside their masters, no matter what. Or was it simply part of becoming undead? Did V just no longer care about humanity, or had they never cared? They claimed to care about Sam... Speaking of her, Stanley was definitely going to seek the woman out after this, assuming V hadn''t spirited her away... He hoped not. He really didn''t want to face an immortal, undead Sam, and unless she was far more of a monster than he thought, she would not condone a fucking cannibal being allowed to live and feast to its heart''s content. This might even be enough to sway the woman onto their side... maybe that was how they would find the undead? The only question he didn''t get now was why tonight was the night he had to go after Sam. Was it because Caffeine needed an extra day of rest before he could growl? That had helped, but Stanley thought he would have broken free eventually. Caffeine still hadn''t acted fast enough to save Brett... or was that on purpose? A part of Nate''s plan? June was another issue entirely¡ªone he''d need to deal with, and soon. She''d hidden a major facet of her power, more than he¡¯d originally expected, which meant she was the obvious culprit for mind-controlling those women into Brett''s harem... and now she''d almost certainly copied Brett''s skill as well. Wait, did that mean she might drop the skill if he killed her? Did he have two shots at it now? He took another look in the direction she''d gone and saw that, even if she had learned the skill, she hadn''t yet used it on Quinn or... whatever his name was. The pervert. Also, could Brett still use the skill while under her control? And what would happen to him if she died? His soul was still... mostly there? More than half, at least. It was something to deal with later or let Nate deal with. After fighting a flesh-eating cannibal, he just wasn''t feeling that upset about a little mind rape. Stanley finally looked at his hand as he descended toward the screaming, dying monster below. Specifically, at the back of his hand, where the veins were all glowing a brilliant, pulsing purple. It wasn''t only his hand, either. He could feel it throughout his body, like fire or acid burning through his veins. Still, he''d endured worse. This was nothing he couldn''t handle, and regeneration should fix it up soon enough. He''d been right about the power of his soul. Unfortunately, it looked like his flesh was still the weakest link. Maybe he could look into finding a high rarity skill that boosted vitality? It likely wouldn''t be enough, but it would be a start. "Stop this at once!" the monster mewled when Stanley arrived. "I am a king!" Stanley ignored the dying thing; it was almost out of lives anyway, and instead he started clearing the rubble. Because it wasn''t the only thing dying here. Some of its victims were still alive, and they''d just started screaming¡ªactual, real-life screaming. With their voices. He''d assumed they would all die with the cannibal, especially the ones who were missing some rather important pieces of themselves. Not to mention if it had eaten parts of their souls. It turned out he was only partially right. Many of them still died, but not all. Stanley dug the survivors out of the rubble and found out that whatever magic was preventing the bleeding must have expired because they were bleeding everywhere now. Some of them had no chance¡ªtoo many missing pieces, including vital organs. But others could still be saved. Sleep Burn Unfortunately for them, Stanley wasn''t a healer, but what he could do was cauterize their bleeding stumps. He was even nice about it and put them to sleep first. Zeke or Adrian could fix them the rest of the way, though that would have to wait. As certain as he was about the inevitable end, Stanley wasn''t going to leave until that thing was dead and gone. For good. Besides, he wasn''t sure how much anyone could help these people. Every one of their souls told a rather grim tale of what they''d been through here, and Stanley wasn''t sure if any of them would ever be okay again. Still, he would give them the chance. It wasn''t their fault... someone powerful should have put a stop to this a long time ago. Before it ever got... Stanley turned in alarm when he felt something impossible happening behind him. The cannibal was finally dying, but his soul wasn''t dissipating like it was supposed to. Instead, it was all flowing into a hellish-looking red core that hovered in midair above the monster''s body. It hung there in the air for long seconds, even after the soul stopped flowing. When it fell onto the lifeless body below, it punched a hole through its chest... after which the entire body started crumbling into dust from the chest outward. It didn''t take long for the entire body to collapse, and Stanley drifted aside when the light breeze started blowing the dust his way. Then the only thing left behind in the drifting dust was a brightly glowing red core. A red core. Cores weren''t supposed to be red. Especially not that shade of red. It was a terrible shade of red, human-blood red, a shade he hadn''t even known was terrible until tonight, and it certainly shouldn''t have an entire soul inside it. Stanley left the creepy thing alone and finished his triage of the wounded. It kept him busy and helped postpone the inevitable, but he still finished all too soon. Then he was left staring at the thing and dreading what came next. He couldn''t leave it here, and he had a terrible feeling about what he would see if he touched it. He knew what it was¡ªwhat it had to be¡ªand he cursed the system again for what it had done to all of them. Finally, he pulled the core into his hand, and it came easily¡ªalmost too easily. Eagerly. Like it wanted to be touched. It struck his hand, and Stanley let it fall back into the dirt. That one touch was enough. More than enough. Far more. Enough to confirm his worst fears. [Class Shard](E-grade) Cannibal King (Mythic) - Level 145 (Expert) Devour. Take up the mantle of a king and consume your world. Class Level Effects (Expert): +50% All Effective Attributes Requirements: None Class Skills: Aura of the Docile Feast (Mythic) - Level 165 (Expert) | Binding of... Stanley gagged and heaved, but nothing more than bile came up. It wasn''t the contents of the core that made him sick; he''d expected that. It was the feeling of hunger that rose inside him when he touched it. A hunger so intense it turned into nausea. A hunger strong enough to turn the smells of blood and death surrounding him into the scents of a bountiful feast. He fled from that place, taking the wounded with him. Only when he could barely feel that terrible soul behind him did Stanley stop and look back. He couldn''t leave it there. He couldn¡¯t let anyone or anything touch that... that thing! So he dragged that baleful light back to himself and slipped it into his jacket pocket without letting the disgusting thing touch his skin. It sat there, heavy against his chest, a hungry, murderous little thing, whispering to him of how hungry he was and how good it would feel to have a bite. Just one bite. A small one. Wind screamed in his ears as he flew on but did nothing to drown out the whispers, and Stanley refused to so much as glance at his slightly roasted cargo... He didn''t even slow as he passed the next lair, but two birds flew out and caught up with him despite their best efforts. His thoughts felt wild as he looked at his prey. Hah, birds! So I didn''t wipe them all out after all! The captured birds died in the next second, and he ate them raw, though without letting a drop of blood or a hint of flesh touch his tongue. He feared he would throw it back up if he did, and he really needed the sustenance... before he got any hungrier. As he ate, he flew in the direction he''d last seen June fleeing, and it didn''t take long to spot her soul ahead. He knew she felt his gaze when he saw her fear spike, and he seriously considered killing the woman and being done with the whole mess. Then more souls came into range, and he finally realized where he was. Walter''s soul permeated the tower, and he could never mistake it for anywhere else, not to mention all the other human souls filling the building. It was a good enough place to leave the wounded, though he wasn''t seeing Adrian''s soul... or Daryl''s. He passed June before she and the others reached the tower, and he didn''t kill her, but he also didn''t give her a lift. He really didn''t want to deal with the woman tonight... or anyone, for that matter. He''d done enough, and now he only wanted to curl up with Caffeine and try to forget everything. Walter appeared the instant he crossed the threshold into the tower, and the man showed up ready for war. Stanley caught the bone sword in his hand¡ªwell, mostly with his mind¡ªand realized the butler was far stronger than he looked, but then so were most people these days. He was also furious... "You..." Walter''s eyes widened, and he pulled back. "Stanley!" Then his gaze snapped down to Stanley''s breast pocket, and his hands tightened on the sword. "What vile thing have you brought into my domain!?" Stanley didn''t feel like getting into it, and he didn''t want to touch or even see the damned core again. Not yet. "Where''s Adrian?" He gestured at the floating naked people in various states of... amputee...ism? Butchery? Whatever. "They need..." He trailed off at the alarm coming from Walter''s soul. "Sir," Walter said. "Nathaniel missed his check-in with Edward, and we could not contact anyone..." No... Stanley dropped the unconscious people and was outside before they''d started falling toward the floor. It can''t be! Then he ripped a hole through the sky and MOVED. I killed the monster... I won! It''s supposed to be over! 172. Dominoes ~~~Nate~~~ Nate didn''t watch Stanley leave. Whatever was going to happen had already been set in motion. Now he only needed to find the best path through whatever was coming. Though it sure would be freaking nice if he knew exactly what that was! He didn''t dwell on it. That wasn''t how you got things done. "Mareen!" he called, hopping off the wall and catching up to the woman currently in deep discussion with the wizards. "How are we looking?" "We''re as ready as we were an hour ago," she replied without turning. "Johnson, I''m giving you lead on the shield backup team. Don''t let a single one of them drop their mana below seventy-five percent. You can contribute until called on, but the shield is your priority." "Yes, ma''am." "Blake, don''t leave it to the last..." Nate left her to it. The woman knew what she was doing, and his micromanagement wouldn''t help. His trust in her was the reason he''d put her in charge of the wizards, after all. Instead, he went looking for the newer additions to their fighting force. They were the ones who would benefit most from his attention. Not that they were doing anything wrong, but Nate knew that his own projected confidence might rub off on them. He made the rounds, checking in with some teams, reassuring others, and generally trying to look like he had everything under control. He was successful, mostly. "Are you really sure about this?" Bernard said, falling into step beside him as he entered the main building. At least he kept his voice low. "I am." Nate didn''t have to look to know Bernard was frowning at him. "My people will be on the front lines out there," Bernard said, his voice riding the line between a statement and an accusation. "So will I." The older man was still coming to grips with taking orders from Nate instead of giving them. But it wasn''t all about that. He truly cared for his people and worried Nate didn''t. He feared Nate might spend their lives carelessly, which he wouldn¡¯t. "I asked for the best, and they volunteered. You know that." Bernard huffed, then lowered his voice even more. "Don''t think I can''t see through you! You aren''t as confident as you''re pretending to be, and I want to know what you aren''t saying." Nate held up a finger as he strolled through a doorway. "Need anything, Trudy?" The older woman grinned at him from her chair, a small child on each of her legs and a gaggle of the little tykes crowded behind her. All of them staring with rapt attention at the book in her hands. "We good." She was only one of many guarding the children, and even though he knew the woman would die before letting anything touch them, Nate wasn''t counting on her. She and the others in here were some of the weakest in the base and mostly crafters. In fact, Trudy was likely the strongest among them. He wished he could spare better guards, but it just didn''t make sense. If the enemy reached this room, then they would already be in deep trouble. Besides, he had a secret weapon in the room with them. Well, not that secret. Barbie was lying down beside Pita, but he wasn''t relaxed. The children might not all understand what was going down tonight, but the pit bull knew. His head was up and his ears twitched and turned as if he was hearing more than anyone else in here, which he probably was. Nate had been quietly feeding the dog cores every chance he got, and he suspected its power to be near his own by now. It was difficult to know for sure because Barbie refused to leave Pita, and Nate wasn''t about to put her in danger just to test the dog''s strength. Instead, he was basing his assumptions on the times he''d watched Barbie play with Caffeine. Man, he wished they had Caffeine here... he definitely wouldn''t be as nervous with the little pug on their side. But that wasn''t in the cards. Not yet... Nate knew Caffeine would play a role before this night was over... but he still had no clue how. Bernard was waiting when he left, and he was still scowling. "You know as much as I do, Bernard," Nate said, a half-truth. He''d shared information freely, both about his intuition and what it told him. Just not... all of it. He shared the pertinent bits. The stuff they could understand. Too much of what his intuition gave him these days was beyond even his own understanding. There was no point in everyone else being confused along with him. "The invaders are coming for us, and..." Nate whipped a coin from his pocket. "Get that shield up now! They''re coming!" He received confirmation before pulling out another coin. "Stanley? Come in, Stanley!" No response came, but then he''d known it wouldn''t the moment he touched the coin. He tried another, expecting the same result. "Edward, do you copy?" He was right, and Nate tucked the coins away with a rueful smile for Bernard before heading for the walls. "Shall we?" Bernard looked upset. "Wait... I thought Stanley was going to be a part of this!?" "He will be," Nate said over his shoulder as he jogged. "But he didn''t reply," Bernard said as he caught up in a burst of wind. "What if he''s..." Wind swirled, and Bernard''s voice whispered in his ear, "Dead?" Nate chuckled at the man, who, despite his lingering dislike of Stanley, clearly understood and respected his power. Nate also ignored the niggling voice in the back of his head that shared Bernard''s fear. He was ninety-nine percent sure Stanley wasn''t dead. Ninety-nine point nine nine percent... "He has his own fight, and we have ours." Honestly, he didn''t think Stanley could or ever would die quietly. They would know if he had died. Nate shivered at the feeling that was half intuition and half... something else. A feeling that told him in no uncertain terms that everyone would know if Stanley died. Right now, he was more worried about the failed call to Edward and regretting not consolidating his forces with the tower''s fighters, but he just hadn''t been certain if the tower would face an attack as well. Zeke was still the most obvious target, but between Walter and Adrian, the tower could easily become another thorn in the invaders'' attempts to corrupt everyone and everything. While they could have brought Adrian here... Walter was stuck at the tower. Also, it didn''t matter now. Edward would probably guess the fight had started when they missed the next scheduled check-in. If they weren''t also under attack, they would come. Nate didn''t need to win outright here. They only needed to hold out long enough for backup to arrive. Either the tower''s fighters or Stanley, and ideally both. Nate knew they could pull it off... but he didn''t like the feeling that came along with that knowledge. In fact, he didn''t like anything he was feeling right now. His intuition felt... fluttery, and he knew what that meant. Things were in the air, and he didn''t know where they would land. People were making choices, or about to make them. Or so he thought. It was times like this that he wished he knew more about how it all worked. He had to be touching on some kind of future sight with his intuition. There had been too many times where there was no way even the greatest intuition could ever connect the dots between what he knew and what happened later. Hallie, with her single point of intuition, had predicted an incoming monster swarm. There was a chance she''d felt the faintest vibrations in the ground. But he suspected it was more to do with all of her potential futures narrowing into inevitable death, and her intuition had picked up on that. Nate knew he always felt imminent death the clearest out of any other intuition. But it wasn''t only about seeing the future. His intuition was clearer the more he knew about whatever he was trying to see a way through. People, places, or things. Knowledge was and always had been power, perhaps even more so for him than anyone else. One thing he knew for sure was that the future wasn''t set. Not until it happened. He only passed a few scurrying people on his way back to the wall. Mostly runners. Everyone else was already in position. Including Zeke. Nate didn''t go to the room the kid was in to check on him. He didn''t need to. It was obvious that Zeke was in position even before he got back outside. Golden light burst past Nate as he ran. It shone into every room. It illuminated every shadow, both inside and out, until it culminated in a dome of brilliant light covering the entire base, including the walls. Buff Gained: [Purifying Shield] The wall surrounding them hadn''t ended up exactly circular, but it didn''t matter; it was mostly cosmetic, aside from granting the defenders a height advantage. They''d built it tall, but most people had at least some kind of traversal ability, if not outright flight, and while Nate couldn''t leap the wall in a single bound, he didn''t need more than the tiniest of imperfections to easily scale the wall. It was the shield that would make the real difference. A shield built by the wizards, but fueled and empowered further by Zeke''s magic. Obviously, Zeke wasn''t powering the whole thing, but he was contributing. From their earlier testing, Nate knew that anyone inside the dome should heal from anything short of an instantly fatal wound. So long as Zeke lasted, at least. Bernard alighted on the wall a heartbeat behind him, and they both stared out into the now illuminated night. A side benefit of the glowing shield. For some reason, they both looked south, in the direction Stanley had gone. Nothing moved out there, but a wolf howled from the darkness beyond the light. It was a chilling sound on the eve of battle, but everyone here knew the wolves were on their side. Nate had sent one of his beast talkers out the day before to make sure they knew what was coming, and the leader of the pack hadn''t hesitated to promise their aid. He''d also sent someone to recruit the bear, but that lazy bastard hadn''t even responded to the man... Another wolf answered the first howl, then another, until a chorus of howls filled the night. Then, all at once, they fell silent, and the entire forest fell silent with them. The silence stretched, and Nate could feel tensions climbing among the surrounding soldiers, most of whom weren''t soldiers. They did have some veterans, mostly among Bernard''s forces, but the vast majority of these people had been ordinary folks just living their lives. Then the world changed forever. Monsters became real, and people no longer had the luxury to sit on the sidelines. So many of them were heroes. So many had stepped up when no one else did or could. They''d saved lives, and Nate''s heart ached at the knowledge that some of these brave men and women may not live to see the sun rise again, but sometimes that was the price of freedom. It started as a low rumble that grew louder by the second. Alongside a growing vibration through the wall beneath his feet. Then a tide of creatures burst from the trees and into the light. They were zombies, mostly former humans but not completely, and they spilled into the clearing between the walls and the forest like a rolling carpet of death. Someone immediately sent a fireball arcing out into the tide of zombies, where it exploded in a fiery wave of destruction, and Nate silently cursed when a hundred more attacks followed the first. Despite that, he held his tongue. "Hold fire!" Bernard said, not shouting, but using the wind to carry his words to the ears of every single fighter atop the walls. The attacks stopped, and Nate watched as the leading zombies finally reached the shield. To a one, they immediately burst into raging, golden flames that burned them all to ash before they could even touch the wall itself. It wasn''t free for Zeke to burn up zombies like this, but it was far cheaper than letting the fighters blow their mana on them. Besides, this was only fodder. The whole point was to waste their mana. Hundreds of the things burned and died to Zeke''s light before, as one, the zombies stopped charging. Instead, they spread out sideways, staying just shy of the shield but slowly filling up the clearing around the entire base. "Dead zone in the trees," Bernard murmured, once again using the wind to carry his words, and this time into Nate''s ears alone. "Six hundred yards out at nine o''clock. Most likely their ingress point." Nate nodded and touched another coin. "Eve, you get eyes on them yet?" "No," Eve growled, the irritation coming through in her voice. "They''ve got jammers or something. I''m not getting shit." That was disappointing, but given that his coins weren''t connecting to the outside world, it made sense. He also hadn''t expected the undead to simply march across the countryside¡ªit would have taken too long and been too easy to see them coming. Which meant Bernard''s dead zone had to be where they were teleporting in. He was tempted to rally out there with a team, but he didn''t need his intuition to know that was a bad idea. Not now. If he''d known beforehand where they would appear, that would have been different, but there was no telling how much power was waiting in there now. Bernard kept giving orders. Some Nate could hear and others he couldn''t. Nate only glanced at the men and women around him. The strike team he was leading, and the ones who would venture over the wall when the time was right. Most likely whenever Bernard gave the order and a target to destroy. Because Nate had put him in charge of their army, he''d have been a fool not to. The man was a former general with decades of experience in small- and large-scale war. Sure, the battlefield had changed since then, but he''d had time to adjust to the new rules of warfare, aside from a few hiccups. Ever since he met the man, Nate had always planned to make him the general of his army. Despite his shortcomings in interpersonal communication, Bernard excelled when it came to commanding his soldiers in live combat. Bernard might not have figured it out yet or might not want to admit it, but his original plan to lead would have always ended in disaster. He''d been a soldier for a long time, and that, combined with the current state of the world, left him wanting to see everyone else as just another soldier. That might work on a small scale, but it would fall apart once the group expanded enough. They might be in a war, but not everyone was a soldier, and using the military to control civilians was always a terrible idea. "I''m getting no communications from them," Bernard said into his ear. "But I''m seeing smaller dead zones approaching. They must know about my power." Nate nodded at what he wasn''t saying. They''d discussed the possibility of traitors before, but they also couldn''t rule out that the invaders had magic beyond what his own people could detect. That wasn''t to say Nate was any better himself. Most people gained a sense for whatever flavor of magic they used, but not much beyond that narrow spectrum. The only exceptions so far were the wizards. Sure, they liked to focus on specific schools of magic, but their ability to manipulate mana was the real key. Even if they didn''t know what a spell did, they could usually still detect it. Unfortunately, Nate had his doubts about how much he could trust them, particularly those from Dale''s camp, which, sadly, were the ones he needed most.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. The former leader of the wizard conclave had always been suspicious, from his refusal to reach out when he knew Nate was building a safe haven to his even worse lack of aid when he knew their haven was under assault by the invaders. He''d had plenty of talks with Theo since, one of the more reasonable and less stuck-up house leaders, and the man had his own suspicions about Dale. Theo claimed the man wasn''t nearly bright enough to have done so well so fast. There was always the possibility that Dale just so happened to be a magic prodigy, even if he was otherwise an idiot, but Theo wasn''t buying it, and he wasn''t the only one, either. Nate had tried his best to vet every wizard he recruited here, especially the enchanters, but there was always a chance he''d missed something. Worse, if they were working with the invaders, then tonight would be their best chance to betray him. Zeke was down there with them right now, but Nate had absolute faith in the boy''s guardians over any of the wizards. His main worry was that they controlled the shield... Zeke''s aura was fantastic, but it wouldn''t be enough to stop the horde if the shield fell. He got to see the shield in action a heartbeat later when a sizzling, crackling ball of fire shot from the forest in the distance and soared above the treeline before arcing down into the shield a few feet from his face. It exploded with a deafening bang, but the wave of expanding fire never crossed inside the golden barrier and dissipated away without effect. Unfortunately, it wasn''t the only spell. Dozens more soared above the trees, launched from the same location, and all of them exploded harmlessly against the shield. Well, mostly harmlessly. As the bombardment went on, he started feeling bits of heat leak through, as well as small buffets of force that the shield failed to completely block. Each of those hits would also drain mana from the people powering the shield, and they were coming in nonstop. Behind the bombardment, Nate saw new figures emerging from the treeline as far around as he could see, and presumably from every direction. Most were obviously undead, but some were harder to tell. Unlike the mindless zombies, most of them had weapons and armor. All of them started throwing magic toward the shield as they advanced through the horde. Nate looked at Bernard when the now almost constant wave of explosions went abruptly silent. "I need that artillery removed," Bernard said, and Nate caught the flicker of his gaze as it swept over his people beside him. "Can you do it?" Nate knew the man was asking for input from his intuition, and he looked out toward the origin of the spells. It was a decent distance from where they were likely teleporting in, and he didn¡¯t feel any impending death... so he nodded. The rest of his team were more enthusiastic and saluted with a shout, "Yes, sir!" "Wait for my signal," Bernard said, holding up a hand. "I''ll open you a path." Then the sound of explosions returned and they couldn''t hear Bernard''s next words. They did, however, see the results. The defenders, who, until now, had been holding their fire, cut loose in a wave of fantastic destruction through the horde of undead at their walls. Bernard dropped his hand, and Nate was the first off the wall ahead of his squad. He soared across the battlefield and landed in the fifty-foot-wide swath of scorched earth, leading straight out toward the source of the bombardment. None of the zombies had survived the assault, but Nate found a skeletal fighter climbing to its feet from behind a blackened and dented metal shield. It made a desperate slash his way, but Nate merely slapped the blade aside and put his fist through its human skull. He half expected it to heal from the blow, but the thing went down and stayed down. He ran on into the treeline, every sense alert for what almost certainly had to be a trap, either for him or whoever was foolish enough to come out here with him. He was aware of the others behind him and kept his speed low enough so as to not outpace his team. He had a feeling he''d be needing all of his power soon enough... The cleared path didn''t last long, with countless zombies pouring in from all sides, along with a dismaying number of former humans now fighting on the side of the invaders. Luckily, all of them stayed dead once killed. Though he knew it couldn''t last. They were just more fodder. The poor fools... His team went through all of it without slowing, killing what they had to and avoiding the rest. They weren''t out here to cull the horde, after all. Nate had an idea of what to expect from his time with the wizards, and his expectations proved accurate. A series of glowing magical circles spaced out between the trees, each one surrounded by a dozen undead casters feeding them mana. Unfortunately, the undead couldn''t miss where they were going, and the opponents in their path increased exponentially with every step. Still, there was a good reason he''d wanted these people on his team, not to mention on this mission. Though not quite at Nate''s level, they were among the best of the best. Soldiers of the old world and warriors of the new. People who had fought since day one, honing and perfecting their technique with weapons, magic, or both. One man''s flaming greatsword bisected zombies three or four at a time. Meanwhile, another man wielded twin blades of pure magical force and went through the horde like a blender, even occasionally throwing his blades like spears before instantly summoning a fresh pair. The single woman on the team held no weapon but wreathed her body in spiked magical armor that turned her into a juggernaut of destruction simply by running over or through anything in her path. A ninja wannabe danced, cartwheeled, and bounded after them, even jumping off or into the trees as he went. He threw out a never-ending supply of tiny shurikens that curved through the air and zeroed in on his targets. Each one went through an enemy''s head. So maybe not really a wannabe? There were more. Metal fists. A spear. A shield. And... a table. That one was odd, but the guy kicked ass, so who was Nate to say anything about his choice of weapon? Together, they mowed down everything in their path until they reached the first circle. The casters there never had a chance, and the team barely slowed before heading to the next. "Deadzone incoming on your loc..." Bernard''s voice said into his ear before cutting off abruptly. The guy was good, no doubt, and his magic was especially well suited to command when he could send orders directly to individuals across the battlefield. Of course, it was vulnerable to interruption, like anything else. "Go on ahead!" Nate had to shout over the sounds of combat as he ran with his team. "Take them down!" He had just gained a new target, and not one he trusted anyone else to handle. If he was right, then one of the actual invaders had decided to join the fight, and he knew he was right. Power swelled through his body, and time slowed down as Nate activated his boost at full power. He knew he would need it, and it was the only way he could keep his team alive. He kicked off the ground, leaving a crater still expanding behind him as he shot toward Adrianna. He kicked out as he passed the armored woman, his bare foot cutting through the air at the speed of a bullet. He put everything he had into the kick and was right to do so. Even if there was nothing visibly attacking her, he knew she was about to die. His heel connected with what felt like a steel bar, but then his bones were stronger than steel right now, and he pushed through. The very air itself seemed to shatter under his blow, and there was abruptly a towering skeleton where nothing had stood before. Nate''s foot continued on, breaking through the skeletal arm that was reaching out to touch Adrianna''s head. The green fire in its palm fizzled out when Nate shattered its arm, but then he had to twist to avoid the green fire shooting from another of its hands. He punched a third hand that didn''t have any fire in it and then kicked off the thing''s chest, backflipping out of its reach. To their credit, his team didn''t even hesitate at the sight and continued toward their objective without looking back. Nate landed between their retreating forms and the skeleton, and its missing hand had already regrown by the time he touched the ground. Oddly, it didn''t attack him or them... "Natheniel Washington," it said instead. "Still not ready to accept the inevitable?" What was with people saying his whole name like that? First Dale, and now a damn skeleton? How did they even know his name? Still, he hesitated and didn''t immediately go for the kill. He wasn''t sure how much it would take to put one of these down for good, and that wasn''t his mission here. If he had to fight, he''d much rather do it with a lot more backup... and if it wanted to talk instead of fight, well, that would only buy his team more time to stop the bombardment. Unless there was another one coming... "Well," Nate said slowly, reducing his boost to save energy but keeping all his senses on high alert for either an attack on himself or his team. "I actually am ready to accept the inevitable. Are you?" It cocked its head at him, and Nate resisted the urge to smile. It got easier when he felt its eyes change and knew it was using Soul Sight on him. Or at least something similar. Interestingly enough, the sensation felt... weak. He didn''t know if that was because Stanley''s skill was different or if maybe he was using it wrong, but he suspected it was because Stanley''s soul was just straight up more powerful. "You are not lying," it said, and he wanted to say it looked... confused? "Yet you still resist?" Nate did smile then. "I think you got it backwards. See, you are the ones resisting the inevitable." It took a second, but it got it. Then it got angry. "Your madman dies as we speak!" "Doubt it," Nate said, never taking his eyes off the thing but judging by the sounds behind him that another artillery circle had fallen. "You don''t know what has been set in motion," the skeleton said. "Even should he prevail in his battle, it will only bring a greater calamity down upon you. Regardless of the outcome, you will come to me in the end, begging for salvation." "Great! So let''s call it a night, and I''ll come find you when I''m ready for salvation." Another circle down. "Unfortunately," it said, and Nate felt its anger fade into a grim resolve. "Whatever emerges from that place cannot be allowed to acquire your purifier. He must join us. It is the only way any of us will survive. Human or Eternal." Nate felt a chill at hearing his own words coming from this thing''s mouth. How long ago had he said that exact thing to Stanley? It knew something, and his intuition told him this was important... but something else was happening while he stood here, and he was running out of time. Despite that, he knew he needed to know this. "What do you mean?" He didn''t think it would answer, especially when he heard another circle shatter in the distance. It felt strange. A war was raging not far away, yet he remained untouched. Zombies and traitors streamed past on their way to stop his team, but none so much as looked at him. "This world, or at the very least, this dungeon, has exceeded all expectations for what it should have been, and I suspect your madman is the cause for everything." So... it was monologuing? "You have a purifier, not only a divine class but one beyond rare even for high-tier worlds. Not only that, but this same dungeon also holds your world''s Beast Lord? Those two, together with... him, are... extremely unlikely, but not impossible. Power attracts power, after all. Yet there is still another. This dungeon also hosts a... king." It said that last word with gravitas... as if he was supposed to know what it meant. "Which means?" Nate could feel the pressure growing, and it didn''t seem to matter that his team was already mopping up the last artillery circle. "It is power!" the skeleton bellowed, and Nate could feel its desire. "Not only that," it continued. "But your world has spawned a particularly nasty king. Should your madman lose, it will devour him and all his power. Even the alternative is no better! Your human will not resist taking its power for himself, whereupon he will become exactly what it would have been. If whatever emerges from that place comes here and devours your purifier, then even the eternal march will not be enough to stop it. We will fall, and your entire world will follow!" Nate smiled as he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. That was exactly the information he needed, and now he could finally feel the scales tilting back in his direction. "You''re wrong," Nate said confidently. "Stanley won''t lose, and I guarantee he won''t do what you think." "You are a fool! It would all but make him a god! No one would reject that!" It believed what it was saying, but it didn''t matter. "Don''t you get it?" Nate said with a grin as he backed up. "He already is a god!" Sure, in any other circumstance, he might agree with this monster, especially when they were talking about a paranoid, antisocial, desperate-for-power, and extremely anger-prone Stanley. But the skeleton was forgetting about one very important and massive factor. It was forgetting about Caffeine. Nate ramped up his boost and took off after his team, who were already retreating toward the shield by now, even though he knew he wouldn''t make it back. Not in time. The skeleton hadn''t only been trying to convince him to give up; it had been delaying him, and it wasn''t done. The skeleton appeared in front of him, and Nate dropped into a slide to dodge the green lightning bolt that shot over his head with a crackling boom. His slide carried him forward, and he was back on his feet the instant the spell vanished, his fists glowing. His maximum boost was no joke, and he advanced on the skeleton while the world stood still around them. Even the D-grade skeleton moved in slow motion... and it was a D-grade. He''d known that the instant he''d kicked its arm. How it had already advanced was a question he¡¯d really like answered. It wasn''t as physically fast as him, despite the higher grade, but its mind was quick, and it had four hands, each one of which threw spells without pause. Nate juked left to avoid another green lightning bolt, then immediately dodged back to the right when a vertical sheet of black light shot through where he had been, spinning like a saw blade. He dove under a crescent blade, coming to take his head off, then hopped out of the magic circle that appeared beneath his feet. More magic followed, and this time, from every direction. The undead army was no longer ignoring him. In fact, it now looked like they were all focused solely on him. Fortunately, it would be a veritable eternity before any of them reached him and a lifetime before any of them were an actual threat. Unfortunately, their master was another story. Soaring through the air, Nate felt the smug satisfaction oozing from the creature as it pointed a finger and shot a third lightning bolt at him. The skeleton clearly thought it had him helpless in midair. Of course, it was wrong. Nate kicked against the air and propelled himself sideways away from the lightning. He also used the kick to rotate himself around because the lightning was only a distraction. The true threat was the chains coming up behind him from the magic circle he''d jumped over. There were five of them, each tipped with a wicked-looking harpoon-like spearhead, and they all turned to follow his new trajectory. Nate could feel a touch of soul energy coming from the chains and wasn''t about to let those hooks get hold of him. So he punched them out of the air, shattering two and sending the others harmlessly into the dirt. When he finished his midair rotation and once again laid eyes on the skeleton, it no longer looked smug. It once again looked angry... and surprised. It left Nate with a brief window where no magic was coming his way, long enough to reach the ground and send himself rocketing ahead into melee range of the skeleton. His flurry of punches shattered its leg, hip, and a handful of ribs as he passed, dodging more spells along the way, then he followed up by kicking off its spine in a desperate bid to gain ground towards his home and people. Because the scales had just tipped the wrong way. +1 Intuition Something was coming. Something was about to happen, and he knew he was too far away to stop it in time, but he still tried. +1 Intuition The air felt thick with possibility, and the very fabric of reality itself seemed to shift and stretch as unseen dominoes fell one after the other, all leading toward an unavoidable future. +1 Intuition By now, magic was flying everywhere, but Nate''s gaze was drawn toward the treeline, where a single human skeleton appeared amid a stacked series of magic circles. Its hand pointed, and he saw the magic leave its fingers. Nothing big or flashy. Nothing more than a few pencil-thin beams of barely visible light that traveled erratically and left jagged lines stretching between it and the shield. +1 Intuition The magic had no visible effect upon touching the shield, but the sight alone was enough for Nate''s formerly confusing intuition to crystallize. It was enough to know that he had lost. +1 Intuition As that feeling rose bitter in his throat, something told him he was looking at the very person Stanley had gone to find, and given the invader''s little speech earlier, he already knew Stanley''s plan to interrogate the traitor hadn''t gone... to plan. Now, it was here attacking them while Stanley was off somewhere fighting... something else. Something that scared the undead... +1 Intuition Nate stopped his headlong charge as the inevitability of his situation swallowed him up. He''d screwed up somewhere. He''d missed something important, and now they had lost... Now he could only watch helplessly as a previously dark and silent patch of forest lit up with another barrage of magical artillery. One far more powerful than what came before, and it lit up the night even brighter than the golden shield. +1 Intuition He knew what came next, and the knowledge only made it worse when he saw the golden shield split open ahead of the magical artillery. Nate closed his eyes as death rained down on the people who had trusted him to lead them. The people who had trusted him to protect them. Then he forced his eyes open. He wouldn''t look away. He couldn''t. This was his mistake, and he wouldn''t hide from it. He''d been too arrogant, too sure of himself, and now others would pay the price. The least he could do was watch the magical barrage falling like a star from heaven to destroy everything he''d worked so hard to build. Like the sun setting on his dreams... Nate didn''t let a single tear escape to blur his vision as a stretch of wall exploded beneath the magical barrage. Bodies flew, and Nate watched them die in slow motion. It gave him plenty of time to sear each of their names permanently into his memory. I''m sorry, he thought bitterly. None of them had needed to die here. If he hadn''t made a mistake... if he''d found the right way from the beginning... if he hadn''t doomed them... +1 Intuition Only, it wasn''t over. There was still a way through. A new path that would see humanity prevail. No, not even a path¡ªa narrow ledge fraught with dangerous precipices at every turn¡ªbut it was there, and it was terrible. His intuition told him what needed to happen, and he didn''t like it. There had to be another way! He couldn''t let this happen! He wasn''t even sure why it had to happen¡ªonly that it did... Not that it mattered either way. It was already too late to stop it if he wanted to. +1 Intuition He didn''t know exactly what came next, but he knew where it would end up and was jogging closer when Eve flew backward out of the ruins of his home and through the gap in the wall, dragged away by magic unseen. Another domino falling into place. It was obvious in hindsight. He''d ensured Zeke was as safe as anyone could be, and he''d never considered that they might go after Eve instead. He''d treated the undead like monsters and never thought them capable of understanding human connections. He''d definitely never expected them to leverage those connections... He kept watching, bearing witness to his failures, even as magical chains stabbed into his flesh from behind and lifted him into the air. Nate never looked away as what had to happen played out in front of him. He only hoped they would understand in the end, even if they never forgave him for his failure... 173. Eidolon ~~~Eve~~~ Eve was watching everything that happened, both in the room and outside. She watched the battle unfold outside with an army of spiders, but used her eyes to keep an eye on the people inside with her. Nate might trust these people, but she didn''t know most of them. "Relax, Eve," Serenity said, putting a hand on her arm and stopping her pacing, even as another shudder shook the building. "This is the safest place he can be." Obviously, she trusted Serenity and the others protecting Zeke, but the wizards were another story. Not to mention they were the ones in charge of the giant magic circle they had Zeke sitting in! How the fuck was anyone supposed to know for sure what that thing did!? What if they''d changed it? She had taken pictures of the design during the testing, but what if they changed something she couldn''t see? The entire thing looked powerful... and dangerous. Even if she couldn''t tell what all the magical mumbo jumbo did, she couldn''t miss the massive amounts of mana flowing through everything... "I wish we could be out there fighting," Zeke said. "You are helping much more by..." James started. "I know," Zeke interrupted with a sigh. "I know I can heal them better from in here, but... it still feels like I''m hiding. Especially when I''m the reason they''re fighting..." "Come on," Silas chimed in without looking away from the cloud of hovering crystals. "You know as well as everyone that you''re the only reason we can fight. Everyone out there is fighting because they don''t want to get enslaved by monsters, or worse, turned into one." "I won''t let that happen," Zeke stated with the conviction only a child who didn''t know better should have. Except he did know better. He knew and still believed he could do it. Eve didn''t believe. She wanted to, but she couldn''t. She could see the monsters outside. A literal army at the gates. An army that already had them completely surrounded, and it was still growing. She couldn''t see where they were coming from, despite risking pieces of her soul in dozens of spiders spread through the forest. They were still out there. She could feel them in the trees, but even with her soul empowering them, she still couldn''t get a signal. Everything outside the shield had gone dark. Inside, she still had eyes, as well as some weapons. She hadn''t wasted her time moping like Stanley and had created a half-dozen more rail guns to contribute to the defense. Even if she was hiding in here with Zeke. She didn''t bother shooting at the never-ending zombies but saved her shots for the things that made it onto the walls. They weren''t mindless, even if they were suicidal. They still burned inside the shield, but it wasn''t instantaneous destruction. They had time to kill people before they died¡ªnot a lot, but every human down was one too many. Eve didn''t think Zeke knew people were dying out there. He''d be much more upset and probably demand to join the battle in person. Which would be stupid. Despite her distrust of the magic surrounding her baby brother, it was working amazingly well. Zeke was healing more people at once than he ever had before. Or maybe he did know... he had sweat on his brow, and she could spot a tremor in his hands where he held them against the magic circle. The earlier bombardment had taken a lot out of him and the wizards, but he was pretending it hadn''t... He was growing up too fast. At least Nate had actually done something useful by charging over the walls and putting a stop to that magic. It was an insane plan to go out into that, but who better than Nate for the job? Other than... Stanley. He should be here. He wanted to kill the undead, and it looked like they were all right fucking outside! So where the hell was he!? Eve finally spotted Nate returning, and her fear only grew when she saw he wasn''t coming back alone. A giant skeleton was in pursuit. They''re here! She''d suspected as much, but it was another thing entirely to have it confirmed. Nate fought it toe to toe, and for the first time, Eve understood why the man was in charge. She could barely follow his movements but saw enough to know that he definitely deserved his title of second-strongest in the dungeon. Unfortunately, he couldn''t win¡ªat least not fast enough. She knew as much when she saw the next massive wave of magic go soaring into the sky from a different section of forest. "Big hit coming," Eve said to the room, and then it was too late to do anything else. The magic rained down onto the shield in a storm of destructive power... and the shield parted around it. Eve only had an instant to realize what had just happened. She took a step toward Zeke, then the building shook violently around her and nearly threw her to the ground. Unfortunately, that was only the first hit. The following explosions came one after the other, like a meteor shower crashing to earth, until they finally burst through into the room she stood in, and Eve''s world dissolved into fire and destruction. Distantly, and as she crawled through the chaos toward where she remembered Zeke sitting, Eve was aware of multiple camera feeds going dark as every spider in the path of destruction died. But not all of them. A few escaped unscathed, and when the dust cleared, one showed her the grizzly aftermath. Blood, bodies, and a smoking crater blown deep into the side of the building. At the epicenter of that crater lay a dome of crystal glittering from within with a golden light. Eve coughed and forced herself through the dome, crystals falling at her touch and pouring off her back in a tinkling wave. There was no more glowing magic circle inside, but others moved amid the raining crystals as well. Her heart soared when Zeke''s head emerged with a bloodied and unconscious Silas in his arms. She took a stumbling step toward him but never made it to Zeke. Something tugged painfully at her back, and Eve stopped in her tracks. She met Zeke''s wide-eyed gaze for a long, timeless moment amid the destruction. His hand came up, reaching for her... then her brother fell away as something dragged Eve through the newly created opening and out into the night. "Eve!" His receding cry echoed after her, and she saw him surge to his feet before he was out of sight. Meanwhile, she was just glad it was her instead of him. Things were even worse outside. They''d setup the circle and Zeke near the center of the building, and that magic bombardment had blasted all the way through to him. The only positive was that they must have sacrificed spread for penetration because the damage wasn''t as widespread as it could have been. That wasn''t to say the damage wasn''t extensive. It was far darker without the shield up, but she still saw too many unmoving bodies in the rubble as the magic dragged her away. She didn''t go quietly. Eve shot out grappling wires from her gauntlets even as her single surviving shoulder cannon sent its beam sweeping the space behind her back. One grapple caught a corpse and dragged it after her, but the other snagged on the jagged edge of the outer wall. She snapped to a halt, suspended between two opposing forces, and with excruciating pain coming from her back. Despite the pain, Eve twisted her head and spotted the line of magic running to her back. That was enough for her cannon to get a lock, and Eve dumped its battery in one massive blast that melted her gun into scrap but had the desired effect of freeing her. For all the good it did. Golden light intensified in the gap, and she saw Zeke scramble into view with a terrified expression on his face. Only he wasn''t looking at her. He was looking at something behind her. Eve tried to run, but she was too late to escape the massive skeletal hand that wrapped around her helmet and carried her away from her brother, even as the edge of Zeke¡¯s aura licked at its bones with golden fire. It wasn''t all bad. They hadn''t snagged Zeke, and she could see Silas coming up behind her brother with the rest of the team. They could protect him. Hopefully long enough for his aura to burn down the undead. Long enough for Nate to... the idiot was already caught. Her heart sank further when Zeke ran after her, and she realized what was about to happen. It wasn''t a mistake that they''d grabbed her, and it was never her they were really after. She was bait. "Zeke!" she screamed, knowing it was hopeless but trying anyway. "Run!" He didn''t give up the chase. He probably couldn''t. He was too desperate to save everyone, even if it cost him his own life. He would never let her go, and that would be his downfall. She could see it all too clearly now, and she couldn''t let that happen. It didn''t matter if she died. She was a terrible person who had done terrible things. But not Zeke. He was still good. He was worth saving, and it was now or never. Eve dropped out of her armor and left the skeleton holding a ticking time bomb behind her as she ran for her brother''s life. Zeke beamed to see her free but kept running closer, his guards scrambling to keep up. Not that it did any good. Silas was still summoning more crystals around them, but it didn''t matter. They wouldn''t have protected him against an attack from below. So, of course, that was where the skeleton attacked from. It didn''t even have to fully emerge. A skeletal hand burst from the ground at his feet... and Eve detonated the batteries in the armor she''d left behind. All of them at once. It was insane and a massive loss, but she didn''t need to look back to know she''d blown the shit out of the monster left holding her armor. There was enough power in those batteries to level half the base, and the shockwave that slammed into her back told her as much. It propelled her forward like a bullet from a gun, and Eve reached for her brother... She was too late. The skeletal arm was as long as Zeke was tall, and it didn''t try to grab him or carry him away. It didn''t need to. It only reached up and drove a pitch black spike into Zeke''s chest. Eve couldn''t think. She couldn''t breathe, and not because the explosion had blown the air from her lungs. All she could see was Zeke and the towering skeleton that was emerging from the ground in front of him. She blew past Zeke and snagged him as she went, dragging her brother violently away from the monster. They spun together across the ground until fetching up against the wall, and Eve immediately reached for the black thing stuck in Zeke''s chest. He was still alive! She just had to get it out, and he''d be fine! He could heal himself! The thing was darker than the deepest night, and merely looking at it made her want to vomit. That alone was enough to know it was bad, but she didn''t hesitate to grab it. It felt cold in her hand. Beyond cold. It burned her flesh and seared her mind, but she refused to let go and pulled. She heard voices screaming, but none of that mattered because she could see that same icy darkness spreading across Zeke''s chest beneath the crumbling metal of his breastplate. She''d made his armor... it should have stopped anything! Eve pulled until something dragged her away from her brother, and she fought the grasping hands with everything she had. "Let me go! I can save him!" "Cut it off!" a voice yelled, and Eve felt a flash of pain in her arm but didn''t understand even when she saw a blackened and skeletal arm fall to the ground at her feet. It looked like a zombie arm. It looked like Zeke''s chest... Eve glanced to the side and saw Serenity clasping a hand over the stump where her right arm should have been. She blinked as the pain roared to life, but it felt far away and unimportant. What did it matter? How could anything matter when her brother was dying? He lay against the wall with his eyes closed, his entire chest blackened and shriveled, and with that darkness visibly spreading to his extremities, including crawling up his neck... "Zeke!" she cried, struggling uselessly to get away from the hands restraining her and back to his side. "No! Let go of me!" Zeke opened his eyes and smiled as he looked up at her. He was dying before her eyes, and he was smiling. "It''s... okay... Eve," he said, his breathing labored. "I... can... beat... this." His eyes were still full of golden light, but his aura had changed. It no longer shone pure gold. Now it had streaks of black running through it, and the darkness was growing before her eyes. Even his buff had changed, and it kept flickering back and forth between a buff and a debuff... Buff/Debuff Gained: [Purifying/Corrupting Light/Darkness] Until the hands dragged her further away and out of the aura. Eve kept struggling, but couldn''t get any closer. "Don''t," Serenity said. "I can''t heal you if you touch it!" "I don''t care!" Eve screamed, and Zeke''s eyes fluttered shut. "Help him! Somebody help him!" She looked around at the strangely silent battlefield, but no one moved to approach her brother. Even Nate just stared, the fuckface tied up in magic chains like a goddamned moron! What was the fucking point of this battle if no one could even protect Zeke!? What was the point of her if she couldn''t protect her baby brother? It was all her fault; she''d gone along with it. She should have told Nate and Stanley both to get fucked! She shouldn''t have let herself get dragged outside... Of course he would follow her! Right into a trap! "Please," Eve whispered. "Let me go..." The least she could do now was stay by his side... Then she felt Stanley''s gaze an instant before the air boomed overhead. He was here. He was here, and he was too late. ~~~Stanley~~~ As he tore across the sky, Stanley pushed his soul into his eyes until they burned, but still couldn''t see Zeke''s golden soul. He spotted Adrian and Daryl''s souls for an instant, along with a bunch of humans he didn''t know, all of them sprinting through the woods. Then they were behind him, and he was racing toward Nate''s base with a sick, gnawing pit in his chest. He should be able to see them already... anyone! But there wasn''t a single soul ahead! Where he should have seen a thousand souls was only a dark pit of nothing. Was he that late? Were they all dead already? They couldn''t be... they were stronger than that... and he hadn''t been gone for that long! Stanley passed through... something¡ªthe buzz of magic trailing over his skin, and like a veil peeling away from his eyes, thousands of souls suddenly appeared in the formerly dark night ahead. The vast majority of those souls were undead, a dark tide of zombies surrounding a bright cluster of humanity at the center of it all. Stanley took it all in as he approached. He saw stronger souls amid the horde of mindless undead¡ªformer humans turned traitors¡ªand most of them weren''t enjoying the choice they''d made. But not all. Some of them were excited... gleeful. Some of them still had hopes and dreams... Two souls stood out among the undead, and Stanley knew exactly what they were before he ever laid eyes on them. The invaders had come calling, as Nate predicted, two of them, at least, and both D-grade, no less. Still, there had to be more of them still in hiding. It only made sense. They had to know he was going to kill them, but their souls felt like they''d already won. He knew why they felt that way. Because he had come back too late. Stanley stopped beside Eve and stared into the swirling orb of black and gold that now surrounded the best person he''d ever met. Zeke''s soul had always been pure. A true light in the dark. Sure, he wasn''t perfect, but he was the closest thing to it in this miserable world. He was honest, caring, and selfless. He loved healing people. He loved it when people smiled. He was at his happiest when he spread happiness to others. Now the undead wanted to take all of that away. Stanley could see the thing they''d stuck in him, and he knew what it was. A race change shard. Only now it seemed like they''d found a way to force the change. Worse, it wasn''t merely changing his race. It was corrupting his soul as well. They weren''t content with merely killing him. Instead, they wanted him to become anathema to everything he loved and cherished, and they were succeeding. "Stanley!" Eve gasped, finally reacting to his arrival and staring up at him with tears running down her face. The overwhelming despair in her soul hurt, but she still mustered up some anger to go along with it. "Where were you!? You were supposed to protect him! You and Nate! Fuck you, Stanley! Fuck you, fuck Nate, and fuck your stupid fucking war!"A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Classic Eve, except that her anger was completely justified this time. He had screwed up. He never should have left them to face these monsters alone. They were his friends... his family. He''d let his fear for Caffeine make him an idiot... All he could do now was fix his mistake. "You''re right," Stanley said, wrapping his arms around Caffeine and dropping his feet to touch the ground for the first time in what felt like forever. He knelt in front of her and placed the sleeping Caffeine gently onto Eve''s lap. "Can you watch him for a bit while I deal with this?" "You..." Eve stared into his eyes, a flicker of hope struggling against the despair in her soul, and wrapped her single remaining arm around the pug. She pulled Caffeine close and asked with a tremulous whisper, "Can you... save him?" Stanley didn''t reply but stood up and walked into Zeke''s blackened aura. Buff/Debuff Gained: [Purifying/Corrupting Light/Darkness] Even the system couldn''t seem to decide what was happening... and Stanley wasn''t resisting the debuff portion of it like he resisted so much else. He could feel it sinking into him¡ªlike rotten worms digging through his flesh, eating him, changing him one piece at a time into something else. The other half was fighting back, the golden half, but it was a losing fight. It explained why no one else was inside the aura. Why no one was holding Zeke as he died... His eyes were closed, but they opened when Stanley knelt and touched his limp hand. "Stanley..." Zeke breathed out, a smile lighting up his face even as black, rotten lines crawled inexorably up toward his golden eyes. "I''m glad... you''re okay." This close, Stanley could see what Zeke''s soul had already shown him. There was no pulling the shard out; it was already a part of him, body and soul. Zeke''s smile slipped. "Stanley," he said, voice breathy. "Will you take care of... Eve for... me? I... don''t think I can... beat this, after all." Stanley was already angry. Angry at the undead, angry at the twisted reality that was his world, but most of all, he was angry at himself. Watching Zeke spend his final moments worrying about someone else only added fuel to the fire, and Stanley fed it all to the furnace of icy rage burning inside his chest. He fed all that cold fire into his soul and let it crystalize into an unstoppable purpose. "I believe in you, Zeke," Stanley said softly, with none of the rage inside him leaking into his voice. "So hold on until I fix this, okay?" He was going to fix it, too. He knew what to do, and he knew it was possible. He''d seen it done before, after all. But... just in case, he would try it on someone else first. Something else. Stanley walked out of the aura and looked around. No one was fighting, despite the army of undead on all sides. The humans only watched Zeke, and now, him. They were afraid and waiting for... something. Anything. A sign that they could still fight. A sign that they still had something to fight for. The jabbering skeleton probably didn''t help. "We are eternal," it bellowed. "And all will join the march in the end!" It had been going on about futility and inevitability since he got here, obviously trying to convince people to switch sides. "Despite your defiance, you have fought well, and the march will welcome any who kneel..." Silence Stanley knew they had magic voices, but it turned out that they still used sound. He hadn''t been sure... The other skeleton stood off to the side but was already silent and watching him with a strange feeling in its soul. It wasn''t alone over there. It had Nate wrapped up in glowing chains and dangling at its side. Chains that held a touch of the skeleton''s soul... Nate didn''t seem concerned about the chains and was also watching him with an equally strange feeling in his soul. Stanley wasn''t sure what to think about Nate''s intuition right now. The man still had hope, even now, but if this outcome was what he''d planned for... then he was a monster. Despite his reservations, Stanley still found some comfort from the man''s confidence, if only that it meant his slightly insane plan could work. "Eve," Stanley said, stopping beside her, but with his gaze locked on the silenced skeleton. "Was it that one?" She glanced over and nodded with short, jerky movements. "Yes... can you really save him?" "I will," Stanley stated. He had to. Failure wasn''t an option. It was what had to happen. No matter what. It was all or nothing, and Stanley was all in. Mind, body, and soul. The invaders had to know what was coming. He wasn''t even trying to hide his soul from them and assumed they all had some kind of Soul Sight. There was a feeling coming from their eyes, especially the one he''d silenced, and it was casting a spell as it glared at him... He moved before it finished whatever magic it was trying to use and latched his hand onto its giant face. He could just barely hook his fingers through its eye sockets and his thumb into its... nose hole? Assuming they had noses before becoming these dead things? Obviously, his physical grip wasn''t anything special, but it helped him focus and his mind more than made up for the lack of strength. Adding his soul on top of that more than made up for the grade difference, and he clamped down on the monster with unshakeable power. It couldn''t move when it tried to escape. It even tried to teleport away, but Stanley refused to let it leave, his hand on its skull making the effort trivial, and for the first time tonight, he saw fear in the glowing red eyes staring back at him from only inches away. It was right to be afraid. Sadly, the other skeleton wasn''t content to let things play out and tried to interfere, only to find out it had forgotten about the threat hanging right next to it. A rather serious mistake in hindsight. Stanley had never seen Nate actually use his soul for anything directly, but he did now. Sort of? It swelled¡ªnot growing, but flexing? The chains holding him shattered, and Nate went after the skeleton beside him with a level of speed and power Stanley had also never seen from the man before. He disrupted whatever magic it had tried to cast and started taking the monster apart with fists and feet. Nate''s attack kicked things off, and violence once again broke out all over. Stanley only hesitated long enough to ensure that Silas and the others were watching over Zeke. Eve, too. Since she''d lost her armor somewhere... and then he focused on his own fight, arguably the most important and the most difficult. But no one else could do what needed to be done. It had to be him. He had to turn back the clock. It was a bit extreme, but he had no better ideas. Besides, that wizard had done it, so why couldn''t he? If magic could do it, then psionics could do it better. He was more powerful than any of those chuckle fucks! And that was even before he knew how to use his soul properly. He could do it for sure now. He had to do it. He''d considered rewinding Zeke, but this was beyond experimental, and he couldn''t risk there being... unintended side effects. At the very least, he''d try it first with the undead. It didn''t matter if something bad happened to them. "You invaded my world," Stanley whispered, his voice inaudible amidst the violence and screaming surrounding him. But that wasn''t the point. He didn''t need to hear what he was saying, and he didn''t need the skeleton to hear it either. Instead, it helped align his mind and soul. "So I take from you your future." He knew the monster had no future. Showing up here tonight had ensured that much. It was easy. Obvious. Never a doubt. "You trapped me in this place," he continued. "You separated me from my brother when he needed me most." Sure, that wasn''t all this monster''s fault, but it had played a role, and it helped feed his rage. "So I take from you your present." His power tightened around and throughout the skeleton, inside and out, stopping it from so much as having another thought. He held so tightly that even its soul stopped, frozen in an endless instant where it would never know anything ever again. He held it tighter still, so tightly that not even time could touch it. It was heavy... but Stanley held on. He had to hold on. This was his moment. He had the power, and what good was all of his power if he didn''t use it when it mattered most? Zeke deserved this. He was a good kid. The best of them! Stanley wouldn''t let these monsters turn him against everyone he loved! "You came here," Stanley growled, his mind, body, and soul screaming at the power flowing through him. Power that he drove against the monster in his hand. "You came after my family!" It was getting harder. He couldn''t see anything anymore. He couldn''t hear anything, but he couldn''t give up. "So I take from you... your past." Notifications were going off in his head, and Stanley was distantly aware that at least one was a warning against doing what he was doing. He ignored it. You The system continued to scream at him, but Stanley continued to ignore it. His entire soul was engaged in making this happen, far more than he''d used to kill the cannibal, and he knew he was damaging himself. But none of that mattered anymore. Never His body wasn''t keeping up with his mind and soul, so Stanley let it fall behind. He didn''t need it. His soul was enough to see his mind through to the end... except it was fraying at the seams. He knew Lee''s patch was failing... but it was too late to back out now. He''d committed himself too fully, and there was no going back. Even if it killed him. Existed The patch holding his soul together broke, and Stanley knew the wound in his soul was about to tear wide open. He would die. But he couldn''t stop and he didn¡¯t want to. He had to finish what he¡¯d started. Except his soul didn''t tear... Instead, two figures stood in the gap, holding it closed and holding back the end. Stanley knew them both. One, a small pug, and the other, an indistinct man that he would recognize sight unseen. They shared a soul, after all. All three of them. Caffeine held their soul together in his jaws, and then Lee was there, taking Stanley''s free hand in his even as his other hand reached out and closed around the broken part of themselves. He was inside their soul, and he simultaneously stood at Stanley''s side, supporting him. He wrapped their wounded soul in a new, more brilliant and indomitable web of power, even as he urged Stanley onward. Even as he demanded that Stanley finish what he''d started. Stanley didn''t need the encouragement. He''d never stopped. He couldn''t. He pushed through the pain and the screaming notifications. He threw everything he was, had been, and would ever become into his will... and drove it against the towering wall of reality that pushed back against him. He demanded reality conform to his will. He made it conform. He rejected any possibility that it wouldn''t obey... and his brother stood behind him, holding Stanley up with his own unwavering belief. Reality blinked first. It bent before the power of his will, and he forced it the rest of the way. Stanley opened his eyes with a grin on his lips. He¡¯d won, and the weight of the world fell from his shoulders as reality conformed to his will. He''d done it! Even better, he could see again, and he felt fantastic! Light as a feather! Except... what he was seeing made no sense. He turned his head easily, but nothing else moved. The entire world stood still. Spells hung in midair, zombies stood frozen mid-stride, and even Nate wasn''t moving where he stood with a fist coming out the back of the other skeleton''s skull. Stanley''s previous elation died hard when he realized that Zeke still looked the same. He was still dying... or turning. Albeit, not at the moment; he was as frozen as everything else. The reason for that might have been that Stanley''s skeleton was still here as well... only now there was a jagged crack running down through its body. Not only through its body either... the crack was spreading upward and downward through the... air? It was also getting wider, and whatever was on the other side of that crack looked... bad. Stanley had seen a lot of terrible things, most of them in recent memory, and with some standout highlights. Monsters out of his nightmares. Souls rotted through with corruption. A cannibal feasting on the flesh and souls of his own kind. To name a few. Yet he''d never seen anything as frightening as what was inside that crack. It wasn''t evil or corrupted. It wasn''t light or dark. It wasn''t anything. It was... nothing. It was less than nothing. It was oblivion. Not the oblivion he''d seen when he almost died, but true oblivion. He hadn''t even understood the difference until now. Death may or may not be the end for living souls, but he knew without a doubt that falling through that crack would be the end. Permanent. Final. Body, mind, and soul. Not death, but the end. His soul wouldn''t dissipate like all the others. He would be outside of reality, and nothing could be outside. He would simply cease to exist... and the crack was spreading, growing longer and wider by the... second? He tried to take a step back, but every step took him nowhere and left him in the same spot. Even trying to fly yielded the same results, and the crack was getting closer. Or felt like it... was it dragging him in!? Stanley stared for a long moment but couldn''t actually tell if it was growing or if it only looked bigger because it was swallowing the world around him. The whole thing was just... wrong. There was no reference frame on where the edges were. It didn''t have edges. It couldn''t grow or shrink. Despite the confusion, he kept fighting to escape. But no matter how fast he thought he should have flown away, he made no progress. He didn''t dare try to push the crack away; the mere thought of sending his mind anywhere near that thing left him with a deep, abiding terror. He tried to push the nearest people away, namely Eve and Zeke''s team, but couldn''t touch them. It was as if they didn''t exist. He tried to scream as the nothingness loomed closer, but no sound escaped, and only afterward did he realize he wasn''t breathing anything. He was going through the motions, but there was no air entering or leaving his lungs. It was all bad, and Stanley''s anger was fast turning to fear as he contemplated that he might have just killed everyone he cared about¡ªor was he the only one here? That would suck, but maybe the skeleton would go with him? Maybe he''d even succeeded in saving Zeke out in the real world? Maybe this was just a side effect of what he''d done? Had he accidentally gotten himself caught up in whatever he¡¯d done to the monster? Maybe split them off into a dead timeline? He didn''t want to die, but if he''d saved Zeke... well, that wasn''t a complete waste. He''d have done something worthwhile, at least, and how bad could it really be to get deleted out of reality? Movement caught his eye, and Stanley''s heart pounded painfully in his chest. Oh, no. Caffeine stepped halfway out of Eve''s lap before taking a long stretch back, then up, along with a huge, whining and grumbling yawn. After which, he shook himself vigorously and trotted toward Stanley with a wagging tail and a chorus of little happy noises. Stanley fought harder to escape. No! You can''t take him too! It took him a moment to realize that he could hear Caffeine, and the pug was actually moving across the ground! Did that mean he could run away? Could he escape!? Stanley tried to make him do just that, but he couldn''t move Caffeine anymore than he could move himself. Caff, run! Caffeine didn''t run away. Instead, he stopped in front of Stanley and proceeded to growl angrily at the crack in reality. Because of course he did... You can''t do this! I won''t let you... Someone laughed, the sound coming from everywhere and nowhere. It was a strangely familiar yet disturbing laugh... and then an equally familiar voice said, "You owe... me one." In the same instant that the voice finished talking, the crack slammed shut. Violently and explosively. Stanley didn''t even have time to shield Caffeine. He tried, but before he could even finish forming the thought, something slammed into him with all the power of a nuclear explosion. His domain told him he''d gone through a dozen trees before he managed to arrest his momentum, and then he was racing back toward the small sensation in the distance. Caffeine! He moved fast, furious at what he might find, and only partially about Caffeine. He knew the pug was strong, and he could feel his soul, so he knew Caffeine was still alive. Despite that, Stanley came in hot... and stopped cold when he saw what awaited him. His emotions were a... rough mix. He was thrilled to see Caffeine''s tail wagging. He was awake! Truly awake! But plenty of rage still tempered his joy, because one side of the massive pug was a hairless and bleeding mess where he''d used his body to shield the others from the explosion. Someone or something would pay for that! Something would die for that! Aside from his rage over Caffeine, Stanley was also slightly disappointed to see that he hadn''t saved Zeke, though he had accomplished something... The boy''s soul was almost pure gold again, but there was still a nugget of rotten darkness clinging to his chest, sending wisps of that same corruption drifting through his aura. "Impossible!" a skeleton screeched, and it wasn''t the one Stanley had fought. That one was... dead? Either way, it was something else, at least. It still stood, but in two jagged halves, and Stanley was pretty sure it was dead from that alone. Not to mention its lack of a soul. The halves stood a few feet apart amidst a massive circular field of... glass? Broken glass? Something smooth and glittery, and whatever it was, it also covered and encased the two pieces of dead skeleton. Stanley only noted that in passing as he shot toward the still-living... unliving skeleton. It was time to end this war, and Stanley was more than ready to finish what he''d started so long ago. He closed on it almost before it finished screaming, which was somewhat surprising. He''d really expected to be out of commission after that ordeal, but he felt fantastic. Hell, he felt better than ever. More powerful than ever! The last skeleton was smarter than its fellow and teleported away the instant Stanley touched it. Which was exactly what he wanted it to do! He laughed aloud when he felt its soul, including the handprint of his own soul he''d left on it, appear far to the south. "Game over, motherfucker!" He took off after it, hoping it went back to where the rest of them were. That would let him finally wrap this whole shitshow up and be done with it. He could kill them all in one fell swoop! Caffeine appeared in his path before he made it anywhere, and Stanley stopped at the whine coming from the pug. "I''m happy to see you too, Caff, but I have to go kill some monsters first, okay?" He tried to go around, but Caffeine got in his way again. It made him... angry. "What are you doing!?" Buff Gained: [Purifying Aura] "Stanley!" Zeke''s voice came from behind him, and then Nate bounded past to stand beside the enlarged pug, echoing Zeke''s exclamation. "I have them, Nate!" Stanley said, grinning. "I know where it went, and now I can kill them all!" "But your body!" Nate exclaimed. "Are you... okay?" "What?" Stanley spread his arms wide. "I feel... fantastic?" He trailed off when he saw his arms. The flesh was... blackened, maybe burnt? It was hard to see it clearly past the blazing trails of purple light that ran down his arms in massive bands. "Huh." He shrugged. "I feel fine. I''ll worry about it after I kill all those..." "Check your status," Nate said. "Please! Something is very wrong!" "I guess?" He didn''t like the delay, but this would only take a moment, and he was curious about why he felt so good. Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Pending... Racial evolution in progress: [Eidolon of Wrath](E-grade Eidolon) 95% Complete. Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](57%) [Source Nexus] [Wrathstorm Unleashed] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 150 (Expert) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 150 (Expert) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 90 (Advanced) | Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Soul Meditation (Rare) - Level 89 (Advanced) | Mental Fortress (Epic) - Level 59 (Advanced) Attributes: Strength: 50(+20%)60 Vitality: 50(+112%)106 Dexterity: 50(+20%)60 Wisdom: 950(+2373%)27172 Intelligence: 950(+2373%)27172 Willpower: 950(+9918%)108431 Twin-Soul: 127(+747%)1075 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) Buff: [Soul-Link] Debuff: [Soul Wound(Unbroken Soul Binding)] Stanley shrugged. His attributes were weird, but otherwise, he didn''t see anything to worry about. He was plenty powerful enough to finish this. "Looks fine. No debuffs. I''m just evolving my race. Now all of you get out of my way before..." Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. That notification hurt. Like really, really, really hurt. Stanley shouldn''t have been able to feel any emotions, but he definitely appreciated it when everything went away and he fell into the oblivion of unconsciousness. 174. Wisdom ~~~Nefraxis~~~ Nefraxis appeared underground in a jumble of panicked thoughts. Fear was the predominant emotion, and they no longer assumed that Morgrath was a coward for fleeing from that... That human! No, that monster! As if summoned by their thoughts, Morgrath emerged from the lair entrance ahead, followed by the most promising recruits they''d found in this dungeon. All of them were still E-grade; all of them were worthless! Morgrath''s flesh grinned with a knowing and mocking smirk. "I told you not to go, didn''t I?" Their gaze drifted lower. "Let me guess, he sent you fleeing for your life, and you came here? Instead of completing the mission, you led him here, like a coward! Who do you think should be fed into a ritual now?" "Silence!" Nefraxis hissed. "You are to withdraw at once to the..." "Are you sure you don''t need help to get that off?" Morgrath drawled. "No! Now withdraw!" Morgrath went toward the teleportation ritual, waving the others along, but slowly. "I told you we should take his beast first." Nefraxis ignored the comment but sighed inwardly. Morgrath already wouldn''t shut up about claiming the Beast Lord, and they would only be more insufferable after this. Besides, there were more pressing matters to deal with at the moment. Like the human handprint burning inside their soul... The savage was an amateur of the highest order, but then he went and did this. It was soul magic and crude beyond belief, but that didn''t seem to matter when it was so strong, and by all the gods of accursed light, it was strong! What was wrong with that human!? Souls did not have this weight! His attribute would have to be in the thousands to... was that it? Was that how he held a source? But no, even a soul that strong shouldn''t be enough. The source would still burn his flesh... Then there was the way it had killed Ruish. Psionics could not do what that human had done. He had done something to time itself... No one tampered with time! Those who attempted to do so either vanished without a trace, or they took entire cities with them when they vanished without a trace! The human had been well on his way to doing the same with all of them. Nefraxis knew he had! There had been something for an instant there, a single instant of... nothing, followed by a... presence, and the void hadn''t taken them. More than that, Nefraxis could have sworn the Great System had spoken in that frozen instant. Only now there was nothing. It was one thing for the human to break time¡ªplenty of fools had done the same over the eons¡ªbut it was impossible for that human to undo his idiocy. Which meant someone or something had interfered, and the Great System did not protect fools from themselves. There was a very slim chance that the Eternal itself had intervened on his children''s behalf to spare them from oblivion''s touch, but it was foolish to even entertain such thoughts. As valuable as this world would undoubtedly prove to the multiverse at large, it was still only a single world among nearly infinite others, and the Highest Lord would never bestow attention, much less aid, upon the lowest of the low like them. Despite that, Nefraxis couldn''t shake the thought. They knew someone had interfered. A lesser god, most likely. Perhaps one of the High Lords. But what if? What if the Eternal was watching? They were always told to comport themselves as if that were the case, though everyone assumed that meant that the High Lord¡¯s underlings would be watching in the Eternal''s stead. But what if? Nefraxis didn''t know what was required to receive the Great System''s permission to reach inside a dungeon''s walls as must have just happened. But it couldn''t be easy... the Great System was absolute. Nefraxis carved off the infected piece of their soul without hesitation at the agony it caused and stepped through the teleportation circle. They could not waver. No matter who watched. The mission was all that mattered, and Morgrath may have been more correct than they expected with their mocking. A sacrifice might be the only path forward now. It might be the only way they could ever stop that impossible human. ~~~Caffeine~~~ Caffeine huffed in relief when Dearest Human stopped being scary angry and instead started being asleep. Sleeping was much better than angry, and Dearest Human was very tired. He would feel better after a nap because naps were the best! Best Human caught the sleeping Dearest Human and put him down gently. Which was nice because Caffeine was still very tired. Almost too tired for catching. Instead, he crawled onto Dearest Human and curled up for a nap. Naps with Dearest Human were the best naps! Even if there were a lot of Stinky Not Humans running around... It was okay, though, because all the Not Dearest Humans were here and they could make the bad things dead without his help. "Can you heal him!?" Best Human said something to Warm Light, and he smelled like a lot of things... but mostly worried. "I can''t!" Warm Light smelled even more like worried, but he also made the very nice light. It was like the sun shining just the right amount of warm on his fur. Perfect for napping! "It''s like he''s... not wounded." "What about you, Zeke!?" Warm Light''s littermate was very upset, and Caffeine wanted to give her a lick to tell her that everything was good now... but he was too tired to get up again. "I''m... I think I¡¯m... fine." It was okay because Warm Light gave her a good cuddle for him. "But it''s still there!" The cuddle didn''t work. Angry Metal was still afraid. Warm Light should have tried licking her face. Everyone always felt better after a good face lick. Caffeine thought he understood why she was upset. Warm Light had a tiny bit of cold light on his chest... It was very bad. Caffeine wanted to growl at it to go away, and he would... after a nap. He was so tired. He had been very tired ever since he had to growl at the Dark Not Human. It had been such a very, very big, very Dark Not Human, and Caffeine had growled his biggest growl ever! He''d growled too big! So big that he almost hurt his Dearest Humans... and that would be really bad! He''d had to make himself small again, and afterward, he was very tired¡ªtoo tired to wake up. Even too tired to eat! That was almost as bad as making Dearest Human sad... but only almost. Caffeine had played a lot with both Dearest Humans in the sleep place, but it wasn''t as fun as playing in the awake... and he could smell Dearest Human''s sad sometimes. He didn''t like playing when Dearest Human was sad... He smelled other things, too. Bad things. The worst was the Not Dearest Human who smelled like Bad Hungry. The Dark Not Human had wanted to eat Dearest Human for a snack. That was okay. It was so very big that it didn''t realize that Dearest Humans were not snacks. Not until Caffeine growled big enough for it to understand that he would eat it instead if it didn''t stop trying to eat his Dearest Humans. It stopped trying, and Caffeine wasn''t mad. It was only hungry, and he knew hungry. He ate lots of little Not Humans for snacks when he was hungry, especially if they tried to bite him first. But the Bad Hungry wasn''t hungry. It had wanted to eat Dearest Human not for food but only for hurting. It hadn''t listened when Caffeine told it his Dearest Human wasn''t for eating. It was not a good boy! If Caffeine hadn''t been so tired, he would have given it a lot of bites until it stopped being alive! Dearest Human had made it not alive instead. So he didn''t have to. Dearest Human was the best! Caffeine wagged his tail when Dearest Human pet him, and he tried to roll over for a belly rub... until he woke up and remembered. Dearest Human was sleeping now. But it wasn''t all sad... because he smelled something good. He smelled chicken! Caffeine scrambled out from underneath a blanket while the breeze made a bunch of noise with Windy Human''s voice. "Get back to your post, Jerry!" "I don''t take orders from tyrants!" It was Food Human, and he had a bunch of chicken! He was the Best Food Human! "I only take orders from one person, and he''s a better man than you will ever be!" "You''re talking about Caffeine, aren''t you?" Crunchy Rock Human said his name, and Caffeine saw one of his rocks fly past to hit a Stinky Not Human chasing Best Food Human. That was good, because the Stinky Not Humans might make the chicken stinky! "Of course!" Best Food Human crouched beside him and held out a piece of chicken! "Here, Caff. Are you..." Caffeine''s stomach made a loud noise as he grabbed the chicken, and then everything else went away as he ate the best snack ever! Then another one! And another! "Guess he was hungry," Warm Light said something while he gave Caffeine a nice back scratch. "Of course he is! Poor guy hasn''t eaten in days." Best Food Human stood up. "I''ve got a few more chickens already cooked. Just keep feeding him while I..." "Stay with him, Jerry. I''ll get it." Fire String waved her hot string and then went flying away after it, but Caffeine barely noticed as he ate and ate! It was so good! Something thumped nearby, and Caffeine only opened his eyes long enough to see Best Human back again. The other Best Human. "Bernard, keep everyone away from that thing." He had a shiny rock in his hand, and there was blood on his fingers. "I think I almost lost my hand getting the core out of there." "What the hell happened out here!?" Best Food Human said something, but Caffeine didn''t care because he kept having pieces of chicken in his hand! "It sure felt weird as fuck from inside..." "I honestly can¡¯t say... and I''m glad you brought Caff some food, Jerry, but I really would prefer it if you were inside helping protect the kids." "It''s just some zombies. Barbie can handle it easy, and why are you all still out here if you''re that worried?" "Look at him, Jerry." Best Human smelled like afraid. "He said he was evolving... and all I know is that I really don''t want to find out what he was evolving into." "He wouldn''t hurt the kids..." Best Food Human lifted the blanket covering Dearest Human. "Probably. He¡¯s freaky looking, for sure. But probably not too bad if you get some clothes back on him." "He looks like a fucking monster!" Angry Metal was still angry while she played with her metal. She was angry a lot. Maybe some chicken would make her feel better? Chicken always made everything better! Caffeine dropped the piece in his mouth and pushed it to her with his nose before grabbing another. "Ah, what the fuck!?" It didn''t make her feel better, but that was probably because she moved her head before it could land in her mouth. Instead, the chicken bounced off her face into the dirt... That was okay. The other Not Dearest Humans made happiness noises, and she would be happy too once she ate her chicken. Besides, a little dirt would only make her chicken extra crunchy and delicious! "Guess you shouldn''t talk shit..." "Fuck you, Jerry! And... I wasn''t talking shit. Look at him!" "On that note," Best Human said something and held up the shiny rock. "I''m going to use this core to hit D-grade. Right now." Caffeine smelled a lot of nervous from the Not Dearest Humans, but then Fire String came back with even more chicken! He barely even noticed that the Windy Human came along with her. "Are you sure taking his core is wise?" "Not cool, Nate." Best Food Human was upset too. "Stealing his core while he''s down... You really think he''ll be okay with that?" "I know he''s not close enough to evolve yet, and we need a D-grade on our side as soon as possible." "He said he knew where they were hiding," Windy Human said things. Best Human shook his head. "No, it''s something else, and besides, he never got a chance to tell us where they..." "I know." Angry Metal said something but didn''t look up when everyone else looked at her. "I know where that thing went." She smelled like afraid and guilty, and she still hadn''t eaten her chicken. Humans were strange sometimes... "You planted a tracker!?" Windy Human pulled a paper from his pocket. "Can you mark it on the map?" "I... can only feel it." Angry Metal pointed and shivered. "It''s that way." "Bernard, I want either you or your fastest runner! Eve... can you guide someone to it using a spider!?" "I..." Angry Metal got a little less angry. "Sure." Then a bunch of Fire Dogs came running out of the trees. Most of them spread out to chase the Stinky Not Humans, but one came over to say hi. "Fire Dog!" Caffeine woofed happily. It had been so long since he played with her! "Do you want some chicken!?" "That''s not my name! And I don''t want your slobbered on chicken!" Caffeine gave her a piece of chicken anyway. He was feeling a lot better after his snack. Almost better enough to play chase with Fire Dog! But he didn''t want to leave Dearest Human alone while he was sleeping... "Sorry, Fire Dog. We will have to play later." "This is no time for playing, you idiot! There are zombies attacking your home!" That was no reason not to have fun... and besides, lots of Not Dearest Humans were already making the Stinky Not Humans stop being alive. They were Good Not Dearest Humans. They were helping keep Dearest Human safe, and Caffeine didn''t have to get any yucky tastes in his mouth either! They probably knew they were all good boys, but Caffeine always liked to hear the magic words even when he knew he was a good boy. So he said them, just in case. "You are all Good Boys!" Caffeine howled, and he was right¡ªa lot of the Not Dearest Humans smelled better after hearing the magic words! The howl made him sleepy again, so Caffeine ate more chicken with his eyes closed while the Not Dearest Humans talked about something. Angry Metal gave Fire Dog''s Dearest Human a little metal spider, a not-for-chewing spider that smelled like her, and then he ran away with Fire Dog. That was sad, but Best Human sat down beside him and gave Caffeine a head scratch to make him feel better. He was a good human. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Adrian, see if you can do anything to help Stanley. Caff and the rest of you watch my back. I''ll be quick." He said something and then laid down for a nap too. Caffeine thought that was a good idea, but then Best Food Human came running back with another huge chicken! He really was the best! Caffeine ate and ate, and he watched the Stinky Not Humans stop being alive more and more. It was almost quiet when the chicken ran out, and Caffeine closed his eyes for a little nap. His eyes popped open again when Best Human finished his nap. Best Human stood up very fast. Faster than anyone else noticed him moving. He looked at Caffeine and Dearest Human, and Caffeine looked back. Best Human''s nap wasn''t only a nap. It was a getting bigger and faster nap that Dearest Human sometimes took... Best Human was a lot bigger now, and he smelled like worried when he looked away at the trees. Caffeine didn''t smell anything in the trees, but Best Human ran into the dark anyway, and Caffeine watched him go until the loud noise of his running made a lot of dirt and leaves jump in surprise... A lot of Not Dearest Humans jumped too. "Holy shit... Did anyone see him move?" Bright Light said something very loudly. "No... but I can see which way he went, and it''s the wrong way." Fire String smelled confused. "Maybe he''s just trying to escape before Stanley wakes up?" Angry metal smelled a little like laughing but also like afraid. "He knows what he''s doing." Slow Light only smelled serious. He smelled like that a lot... Caffeine didn''t look at any of them. He kept watching where Best Human had run off because he knew Best Human was worried. He was running very fast to make something very bad stop being alive... ~~~Nate~~~ Nate took a deep breath as he sank into the evolution space, then just stood where he was and let the weight of everything that had happened crash down on his shoulders. Here where no one could see his terror. It was a lot. Zeke turning into a monster before his eyes... then Stanley. He couldn¡¯t help but shudder at the memory of what had happened. They had almost all died. Stanley had almost killed them. Not even killed. He¡¯d nearly erased them from existence¡ªthat wasn¡¯t any part of his plan! How had he missed something that absolutely fucked!? Then there had been the aftermath... Stanley, glowing like a fallen star even as his body withered away into something very far from flesh. The look in his eyes when first Caffeine and then Nate had stood in his path... It wasn¡¯t the rage everyone knew the man for; it was something much more terrible. Something cold. Something ruthless. Something... unforgiving. If Caffeine hadn¡¯t stopped him... well, getting erased from existence was only one of the ways they¡¯d almost all died tonight. Whatever he¡¯d been turning into wasn¡¯t human, and it definitely wouldn¡¯t care about any humans after the fact. Nate knew that much without question. Now he had stolen that... man¡¯s core. He¡¯d stolen it from a monster frozen in time so thick it felt like glass. Not to mention the notification he¡¯d seen upon sticking his hand inside... Don¡¯t touch things you don¡¯t understand. Seriously. If you¡¯re lucky, it will delete you from existence. If you¡¯re unlucky, it won¡¯t. Luckily, the core had been on the edge, though it had taken every scrap of his power to pull the damn thing free... minus one fingertip. Adrian had healed it just fine, and Nate wasn¡¯t even that upset about it. Not about that. What he would never forget was what he¡¯d felt when everyone had teetered on the edge of oblivion... Not only that, but he knew that something terrible was coming. Out there in the darkness, something was about to happen. Something on top of everything else he¡¯d seen tonight. Something that could still wipe them all of the map if he didn¡¯t stop it in time. He knew his time was short as he looked out at the evolution orbs hovering before him, but he still needed a few moments to just... feel. To acknowledge how badly he¡¯d fucked up. Worse than any other time before. Everything was off the rails, and his only hope now was that something in here would give him the power he needed to see it through. There were a lot of options to choose from... He went through them quick and narrowed his choices down to the three best. Not quite what he was expecting, but they were within range. [Prophet](D-grade Human) Chart the future for a chained god, be it the actual future or the future you wish to bring into existence. You have already started down this dangerous path. Continue and risk the chains slipping through your grasp. Forge your intuition into a sword. Carve the future as you see fit. Forge your intuition into a shield. Hide your true intentions from all who might doubt you. Traits: [Chained Prophet] It sounded less than ideal, but the bonuses were nothing to scoff at. [Chained Prophet] You have guided a chained god along his path. For his good or ill. You have led a chained god into a role as your protector. Continue to shelter beneath his power. You have convinced a chained god to fight your battles for you. Continue to let him handle the burden of violence. Effects: +10000% Effectiveness of All Physical Attributes +10000 - 20000% Effectiveness of All Mind Attributes depending on proximity to the chained god +1% - 1000% Effectiveness of Intuition Attribute depending on proximity to the chained god He didn''t like the implications that he was manipulating Stanley, but his actions this far had kept a lot of people alive, himself included, and strengthening his intuition could only help him going forward. Still, he had other options. [Almost a King](D-grade Human) Stand at the top. Or near enough. Not everyone has what it takes to be a king. But you have the chance to come closer than most. Rise to your station. Stand above all but one. Traits: [Puppet King] This one was slightly condescending. But not without its perks. [Puppet King] You have been a puppet leader for a chained god. Now become a puppet king. You have led thousands beneath the banner of a chained god. Even if many did not know it. You seek to gather all beneath your banner. Now do so at the behest of another. Effects: +20000% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes +0.1% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes per subject beneath your banner Condescending, but it gave him the most straight-up power. With something like this, he was certain the undead would no longer be a danger to him. It might take a while to kill one of them, but that was all it would take. Plus, his boosting skill would only propel it further. Even defeating Stanley might be within his reach... though he wasn''t sure how that would work given his evolution mentioned the man. Something about Stanley was very off, aside from today¡¯s events, and Nate was almost certain it involved the source. He was betting the undead knew more, but they weren''t all that talkative. At least they hadn''t been before tonight. When the skeleton talked about a king... and he had a feeling it wasn¡¯t talking about anything close to what he was seeing here. A number of people had seen similar mentions of the chained god in their E-grade evolutions, all of them close to Stanley in some way. As tempting as it was to push everyone toward him, Nate had erred on the side of caution and asked those people to keep the specific wording of their evolutions to themselves. It wasn''t a big ask since they all knew Stanley, and no one who knew the man wanted to piss him off. Which brought him to his last choice, and arguably, the best one. [A Wise Man](D-grade Human) It takes a strong man to admit his mistakes, but it takes a wise man to learn from them. You have made mistakes and tried to learn from them. Learn more. You have trusted in your intuition to guide your actions, and it has led you into treacherous waters. Trust it to guide you out the other side. Traits: [Wisdom] Strangely, this one didn''t mention Stanley, despite being on par with the others that did. Maybe that was part of the reason he liked it. [Wisdom] Turn your intuition inward and guide others through the lens of yourself laid bare. You have seen your mistakes. See them all and do not shy away. You have looked into yourself. Look ever deeper. Effects: +10000% Effectiveness of All Base Attributes +10000% Effectiveness of Intuition Attribute It was a slight tradeoff from the previous two options, but Nate liked it more. Mostly for the stronger boost to his intuition. He couldn''t deny that it had gotten him this far, but he also couldn''t deny that he might have done better... The one downside of going first like this was that he didn''t know what the baseline for D-grade evolutions should be. Though he assumed this was a good one going by what he knew of people''s E-grade choices. A tenfold increase fit well with the number of attributes they needed to advance, but what stood out most was getting such a large boost to a bonus attribute like intuition. Hell, he hadn''t heard of anyone getting more than one hundred percent to their soul attribute... and that had been an evolution involving Stanley. Nate only spent a few seconds deciding. He wanted physical power, but he also wanted to save more people than himself. Stanley, for all his power, still hadn''t managed to save Zeke... Nate should have picked up the slack there. He should have known better; he should have seen more clearly, and he would. Evolution to [A Wise Man](D-grade Human) has begun. ~~~June~~~ "Where are you going now!?" Quinn demanded. "The tower is right there!" He was being extra bitchy. Not that he didn''t have a good reason, what with his wounds and all, but was this really the time? It wasn''t even like he had to run, not with Brett carrying him¡ªwell, Brett''s body, at least. "Stanley went that way!" June said between panting breaths. "Which means we''re probably under attack back home!" "But..." "It means that Adrian is probably on his way there already," Roland chimed in with a laugh. "So if you want to get healed..." Despite the extra exertion, June didn''t mind the detour. She could use more time to decide what the hell she was going to do after this shitshow of a night, and she didn''t want to put herself into Walter''s clutches without knowing what exactly he was capable of. She might never leave once she went inside... There was still a good chance Stanley might kill her, especially after she''d agreed to get Zeke for the cannibal. Hell, Nate might want to kill her for that, too. But he hadn''t killed her yet... and she knew he could have when he flew overhead. It would have been nothing for him. Maybe Stanley hadn''t been aware of what was happening? Though Quinn and Roland remembered everything... but aside from offering her a token condolence for Brett''s death, she didn''t think they knew she''d copied his domination. They wouldn''t be so blase about it if they knew, would they? More importantly, did Stanley know? He couldn''t blame her for choosing her own life over Brett, could he? Who was she kidding? There was no telling what might set that lunatic off, and if he decided to kill her, then there was literally nothing she could do to stop him. He''d let Brett live with the ability... and he shouldn''t know that she had mind-swayed the women before, but if he knew she could copy skills, then it wasn''t a huge leap to make that connection. But where else could she go? Without Zeke, she would starve to death no matter what she did, unless... June slowed to a walk as she weighed what was most likely her only remaining option. What if she joined the undead? "What is it now?" Quinn complained. "Some of us are running on our own two feet!" June snapped. "I need to catch my breath." "I feel fine," Roland said, and she ignored him. Sure, she''d have to become undead to join, but was it really as bad as everyone liked to say it was? They were probably just being racist. She''d be alive... in a manner of speaking. That was a better deal than Nate or Stanley were likely to give her. She would need to ditch Quinn and Roland... or kill them, since she couldn''t simply dominate their minds and bring them along. Her copy of the skill wasn''t strong enough to control more than one mind at a time, and she could feel Brett like a massive weight in her head. Brett could have done it, but she couldn''t use him as a loophole. She''d already tried on a monster. Brett could destroy its mind, but he couldn''t control it after the fact. Probably because there wasn''t enough of him left in there... Damn you, Stanley! If he''d had his temper tantrum a little earlier... or better yet, not dragged them all into his revenge... June''s thoughts derailed when she felt... something. It was coming from up ahead¡ªa whispering. She kept walking but sent a thought to Brett, stopping him in his tracks along with his passenger. "Watch them, Roland. I think there''s something coming." "I can..." "Stay with them!" she snapped, and then took off jogging before he could protest again. A red glow slowly came into view ahead, and she didn''t understand until she laid eyes on the core. Then she knew exactly what it was. She hadn''t seen it before, but there was no mistaking what she was looking at now. It was the cannibal''s core. No doubt about it, even if it was red instead of blue... June approached slowly, her thoughts racing, and stopped, standing over the glowing crystal. She stared at it for long moments, afraid to touch it for some reason... until she heard a noise behind her and snatched up the core before anyone else might. It felt nauseating in her hand, but she couldn''t help the smile that spread on her face as she read through the notification that appeared in her head. It was long. She''d thought her power was good, but this was something else entirely. Her handful of copied skills couldn''t compare to the hundreds of skills that the monster had... taken. Not all of them were good, but enough of them were... and some of them were beyond great. She clutched the core tight to her chest, trying to block the light as her gaze darted across the dark city surrounding her. Stanley must have dropped it, and he was probably long gone by now. No... he hadn''t dropped it. June could feel it calling out to her. Stanley hadn''t dropped the core. He''d rejected it, and so it rejected him. It didn''t want to sit in a pocket. It wanted to be used. It wanted... her. All that power up for grabs... and it had chosen her! The realization felt better than it should have... she wasn''t a cannibal, and she didn''t want to be a cannibal, did she? June shook her head and immediately felt better. Because she didn''t want to be a cannibal... and that was just it. She didn''t have to be one! She would gain all the skills if she took the class, but that didn''t mean she had to eat anyone! That monster had already done the work for her... Better yet, some of those skills looked like they would be more than enough for her to hide out away from the prying eyes of people like Stanley or Nate. It was perfect! Yes, I accept! June almost groaned aloud in ecstasy and simultaneously nearly threw up as terribly wonderful power flooded into her in a raging torrent. It felt amazing... and horrible. Class Removed: Copycat (Epic) All Class Skills Removed. New Class Gained: Cannibal King (Mythic) - Level 145 (Expert) Class Skill Gained: Feast of Devouring (Mythic) - Level 110 (Expert) Class Skill Gained: Aura of the Docile Feast (Mythic) - Level 165 (Expert) Class Skill Gained... The notifications went on for what felt like forever, first the class skills, then the countless non-class skills that followed. Each one of them injecting a little more power. Each one of them making her feel a little more powerful, a little more sick, and a little more... hungry. "Are you okay!?" The voice startled her, and June realized she was on her knees. Quinn and Roland stood over her, worried expressions on both of their faces. "Brett''s dead..." She''d forgotten about that. She''d lost the copied skill along with her class, and Brett went with it. It was unfortunate that she couldn''t eat him and take the domination skill permanently... Wait; she didn''t want to eat any... "June!" Quinn shouted, and she blinked up at him. "Are you..." She activated her aura, and he shut up. That was much better, and Quinn had a useful power. He would be delicious... No! I don''t... "Yes," a voice rang through her head, feeling both like her own thoughts but also foreign. Terribly foreign. "I do want to eat him." No! She stood up, but it wasn''t her decision to do so. "Oh, yes!" She strolled lazily around the two men, her finger tracing a line along Quinn''s jaw and neck. "Yes, this one will be a tasty treat." It was her voice, but she wasn''t the one speaking... then her hand came up, twisting this way and that, as if she were inspecting her nails. "Hmm, this body will require some adjustment, but it is acceptable." June tried to scream, but her voice was no longer her own. Instead, she laughed. "I told you that you would serve, and you have done well. Though I would have preferred the other one... Ah well, I will have him eventually. As for you, my dear, I''m afraid I don''t need you cluttering up the place." There was a horrible tearing sensation, and June could no longer feel her body. She was still looking out of her eyes, but it was far away... as if she were watching through a TV screen. She didn''t have time to process the feeling before a new one took its place. It was confusing, like someone had just punched her in the... Then a fist crashed into her¡ªits¡ªface. Except it became her face an instant before the fist landed. She felt her flesh tear. She felt an eye burst. She felt the bones of her face shatter and cave inward. Then space twisted, and she got to feel what it was like to teleport. Distantly. Her broken face took up most of her attention, and more injuries followed. She''d only just appeared when a fist drove through her ribcage and shredded her left lung. Another fist followed the first inside, reaching for her heart... She teleported again, but this time the twisting space didn''t take her far. A hand followed after her, reaching into the twisted space faster than she could escape. It latched onto her wrist in that place between spaces and dragged her violently back into reality. Her elbow shattered faster than she could process, and then her lower arm was simply gone. The next punch shattered her sternum and turned her heart into pulp... and then her remaining eye went dark as her skull turned inside out. The pain didn''t stop. Not even when she could no longer feel her body. Instead, it turned into a terrible gnashing of grinding teeth that chewed her up. She could only watch, helpless to scream or turn away, as that red light took her place inside a once again physically whole body, even as it devoured what little was left of her. It was a small comfort when she witnessed the damage continue piling on. The thing that had taken over her body would die, but she would never get to see it happen... You have died. That message wasn''t comforting, but then it no longer mattered. 175. Family ~~~Lee~~~ Lee paced anxiously around the courtyard balcony, and Amy shared his anxiety as she moved in lockstep beside him, though probably for different reasons. How many times did he have to tell her he wouldn''t ditch her again? At least, not unless he had to. It did neither of them any good if she died beside him... He felt immeasurably better when Z reappeared outside his apartment, mostly because the alien was so calm, though he still moved faster than Lee could track with his eyes. "All is well," Z said a heartbeat later, now standing directly in front of him and halfway around the building from where he''d appeared. Lee had told him to report the moment he returned... Further confirmation of his words followed when Bradley appeared in the courtyard below. Alive and unharmed, but not nearly as calm as Z about the current situation. Bradley glanced up instantly in their direction, and Lee met his outwardly calm gaze, even if the man behind those eyes was anything but. Lee had never expected Bradley to return to the shadows. Not after what happened last time. He wouldn''t even have allowed him to go if Bradley hadn''t come to him first and offered a deal, though perhaps offered wasn''t the right term. He''d demanded the deal. Bradley would go back and keep rebuilding Three on the other side, but Lee had to swear that Mar would never cross over. Ever. He''d sworn on everything Bradley could think of, even going as far as giving Three a verbal order to never allow the woman through, even if he later ordered otherwise. Lee wasn''t sure if that kind of order would hold up in the future, but he''d done it all the same, along with a caveat that Bradley could rescind the order if he ever changed his mind. Never say never and all that. The entire thing felt a bit... controlling, but Mar had been right there going along with it, even agreeing that she wouldn''t set foot inside Three while Bradley was on the other side. Lee had taken the deal. He was sure Shadow Three could recover on its own, given enough time, but it would also be vastly quicker with Bradley''s help. Especially since Bradley had come up with some new tricks to speed the process along. Bradley jumped or flew out of the courtyard¡ªLee could never tell the difference¡ªand Mar met him on the fort''s walls. Most of Bradley''s tension drained away, and together they vanished into the countryside beyond. "Go back in and guard them," Lee ordered, and Z vanished on the spot. Lee resumed his pacing. They''d been at this all day yesterday and today. He shouldn''t be nervous. Things were good. Everyone was alive, relatively happy, and his soul wound was smaller than ever. Even better was that the invasion had come right on schedule the day before, as in, literally the same instant that the victory buff had expired. Better still, it had only been a bunch of beasts that the defenders had no trouble wiping out, including the two D-grades that Bradley and Z handled easily. It was strange to only see two D-grades, but even stranger was the victory message. All remaining invaders have retreated. Dungeon: [False Assault] successfully defended. Victory. Retreated. That was what Z had been trying to do before... well, before he lost. The problem here was that none of the beast''s souls felt smart enough to retreat... that and the name of the dungeon. Z said those names weren''t random. They had meaning, though not always one that was easily discernible. Aside from that oddity, it was still a victory, and now they had another week of relative safety during which they could deal with other things instead of worrying about an invasion. Like, say, nightmares lurking in the shadows, which they were dealing with, and it was going well. Z had handpicked people from the volunteers who were willing to cross over, those with classes that would make the least noise, as he put it, and then given them a crash course in shadow etiquette. Now they stood guard on the other side while Bradley rebuilt Three. There were far fewer monsters for them to kill, and Z claimed it was because the new shadowy rune on Three was helping it blend in better. Still, Lee worried. Despite his words to Alejandro, he wasn''t as okay as he wanted to be. He couldn''t shake the fear that another C-grade might show up, never mind a B-grade... even if Z claimed the odds of that were slim to none. Especially without Three acting as a lure. On the note of Three, his building on this side had fully recovered since the... incident. The rune once again covered the entire building, and it was slowly growing into the newer additions. Lee knew some of the previous... shrinkage had resulted from Three trying to protect him, but it had still recovered faster than he expected. His best guess was that the original Three rune was a sort of baseline for the building. It was slow to grow beyond that but had little trouble refilling the original design. That still left him with a mystery regarding the source. He hadn''t added any, but the reappearing rune seemed to hold the same amount it always had... He wasn''t even sure what happened when pieces of Three got destroyed, since the source was right there. Until it wasn''t. Bradley flew back into range, and he came back with tons of earth. Literally. He landed all of it in the courtyard, and then he and the compacted earth all vanished. It was a lot safer and easier to gather on this side of the light, even if, according to Z, that would have been a bad idea before Three''s new shadow rune. Normally the stone would be brighter than the rest and fade to match slowly, but as long as Three''s rune spread into it, then it wouldn''t matter. While he paced, Lee tried to keep his mind busy by studying the magic ring he''d taken from Z''s former... employer. He hadn''t come close to cracking it yet, and Z was adamant that he never would, but Lee still tried. He''d also drawn out the enchantment for those who couldn''t see past the surface, which left almost every enchanter that looked at it pissed off about how complicated it was. Almost every one. A few had been thrilled. Jeremy was the foremost expert on space magic. Unfortunately, he wasn''t an enchanter, and the enchantment looked like gibberish to him. He could feel the magic out better than anyone, but still hadn''t made any significant progress in recreating the effect. To be fair, his skill, while space magic, leaned in a different direction. Lee wanted to learn both magics. Jeremy''s and the ring''s. A portable storage would be fantastic, and figuring out a way to transport people and matter through space without Jeremy would be even better. He''d even had Gabriel helping him study in the hopes the kid would see something he missed. It hadn''t worked yet, but Lee had some half-formed ideas that he thought would work. At least once he figured out the missing pieces. He''d made a lot of progress with changing his runes by adjusting his soul''s intent during the creation process, but he still needed an actual working rune to start with. Gabriel was in the garage, where he wouldn''t be affected by Lee''s anxieties, and working on his own project. Lee didn''t think reinventing the automobile was going to make much difference to their lives in this new world, but plenty of the runes he was creating along the way had potential applications far beyond that. Shock absorbers. Energy and momentum transfers. Applying directional forces... The one area Lee thought it might show the most promise was if they created tanks. Or the magical equivalent. Which was probably what any cars would essentially need to be if they wanted to survive out there. It would be even better if they could man them with the less... combat-oriented people. Crafters were useful, but they had... a lot of them. Making super comfortable furniture was nice¡ªas an example¡ªbut it wasn''t exactly a priority. Lee glanced up during the part of his pacing circuit that let him see Saira''s tree. Or at least the top of it. It was growing back quickly but hadn''t yet returned to its former glory. Not that he expected it to regrow in a single day... but come on. It was magic! Saira was out there with her daughter, and Aasha was a bright little bundle of joy, wrapped in vines and swinging gently beside her mother. Injured people trickled through almost constantly, but Lee thought the number of injured was decreasing lately. Not only did they have potions for smaller injuries, but the number of other healers was increasing as well, and not only from this fort. They''d lost some people to other forts, especially once word spread about how much easier their invasions tended to be, but they''d also gained more from others. Usually after a fort did poorly in an invasion despite the reduced danger, including one group who''d surrendered to the invaders... Lee couldn''t imagine ever taking that risk, but they''d been desperate. It could have ended much worse. The aliens had only stripped them, literally, then claimed skill cores from everyone before leaving. It destroyed their fort status, including removing the sapient lair status from every structure, which was how they ended up here. They''d been lucky. Other forts hadn''t fared nearly as well after surrendering. Or at least that was Alejandro''s assumption when they found former forts abandoned or destroyed. There had been bodies left behind, but not enough to account for everyone who was there before. Z suspected the survivors had been taken as spoils and likely enslaved. They had spread the word to every settlement, but that still didn''t stop it from happening. Lee couldn''t imagine gambling with his life like that, but he understood it. When you had to choose between certain death for you or your loved ones versus only potential death or enslavement, well, it wasn''t as hard of a choice. Lee swore he would never allow his people to be put in that situation, but... it still weighed on him. If he wanted to ensure their safety, he needed not only to be powerful but also to make them all powerful enough to stand on their own as well. A daunting task, but one well on its way. Saira sitting out there at D-grade was a fantastic step in the right direction, and it had been a group effort the likes of which Lee hadn''t seen before. Nearly everyone had chipped in their cores yesterday, including hunters, crafters, and vendors. All of them came together to push the woman to the peak of E-grade, and then the D-grade core Z had supplied did the rest. It was a sign of what they could accomplish when working together, and it gave him hope for their future. Alejandro would probably get there next, and Lee expected the upgrades to accelerate from there. They were getting D-grade cores from every invasion now, and it was only a matter of time until more D-grades appeared in the lairs here. Like the one Z had found. Lee brushed a hand over the red-leaved vines that carpeted almost every inch of Three as he walked. It was beautiful... and the only areas clear of the vines were the courtyard floor and other places people might walk. Outside, he saw Saira glance his way and then felt a trickle of healing energy flow into him from the vines. It was soothing and helped dampen his nervous energy, but unfortunately, it also drew Saira away from her tree. He knew she was at least as fast as Bradley now, but she still strolled casually inside, probably because Aasha, now in her arms, was still E-grade. Lee tried to control his nerves before she arrived, but he failed miserably. If anything, they got worse, though at least he was nervous about something other than the shadows now... Saira didn''t bother with the stairs but ascended smoothly to his third-floor balcony amid a web of crimson vines and with a gleaming smile on her face. "Hello, Lee." "Um," Lee glanced down to meet Aasha''s wide eyes staring back at him. She looked... curious? Though that could change at any moment. "Sorry, I''m just a little nervous right now. Maybe she shouldn''t..." "Nonsense," Saira said, sidling closer and pushing the vine-wrapped baby into his arms before Lee could stop her. "Hold Aasha for a moment, would you?" "Wait... what!? No!" Lee''s protests fell on deaf ears, and then it was too late. He stared down at the baby in his arms with something close to pure terror running through his veins. He''d never held a baby before! What if he dropped her!? Aasha stared back silently, then gurgled softly and started sucking on her fingers... "Saira, you..." Rax came flying over the roof of Three and landed smoothly beside Saira, courtesy of another vine, all without dropping the small potted plant he was carrying. He wasn''t even the least bit surprised... "Mistress?" "I thought we might enlist Lee''s assistance on this one. I''m sure you know he has a particular knack with mana." "Y-yes, Mistress!" So Rax didn''t mind getting hauled through the sky, but panicked as soon as she mentioned working with him? Typical. Lee sighed and tried to ignore the baby still staring at him. "What am I looking for?" Saira touched one of the plant''s leaves. "What mana can you see in here?"Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. "Well, it''s green." Lee grinned at the flat look she gave him, then looked closer. "Obviously, it has plenty of what I think of as plant mana, the green stuff, but it also has traces of other stuff... still green, but different. Is that... healing mana?" "Likely. Can you see where it''s coming from?" "I can..." It was strange. Lee hadn''t done a lot of deep dives on plant life, despite being surrounded by it in the form of Saira''s tree and vines. He couldn''t not see the mana, but a lot of the smaller minutiae tended to get lost in the background noise. It had to, or he''d probably go insane from the information overload. Though maybe that would change at higher grades... "It''s starting in the stalk around..." Lee realized he didn''t have a hand free to point, and he didn''t want to risk removing one from around Aasha. "It starts just below the lowest offshoot and thickens up each stem before congregating in the leaves." "Okay. So what changes if I do this?" Saira sent a microscopic thread of her mana into the plant''s root¡ªor rather, into the seed it was still sprouting from. Her trickle of mana changed everything, but only slightly. "Less healing mana overall, and it''s not appearing until nearer to the leaves." "Mistress," Rax chimed in finally. "I was thinking a touch of fire mana might provide enough spark. What if we spliced in a..." Lee knew what Saira was doing. She was trying to distract him from his worry, and it worked. Between the baby in his arms, whom he expected at any moment to cry but never did, and her mother, whose gaze Lee felt lingering often and repeatedly, he found himself thoroughly distracted. Saira and Rax both could detect the healing mana, but they lacked the precision Lee had, so he actually got to help. Ideas went back and forth. Time passed, and Lee lost himself in what they were doing. Bradley came and went a few more times, and Gabriel brought a handful of rune questions to him while they worked. Z even checked in a few times, but Lee never got to worry for long. He eventually found himself in the courtyard outside Jamaal''s while Saira ordered dinner for them. There were more people around too, and Bradley had already recreated the communal dining tables throughout the courtyard. It was also getting dark... He had definitely gotten distracted. Lee glanced down at the bundle in his arms, like he had so many times before, and froze. She was asleep. After staring at him for hours, she was finally asleep! Her eyes were closed, and her soul was a peaceful rhythm of incredibly simple yet pleasant dreams. Saira appeared beside him while he stood frozen in place, and she leaned closer with a beautiful smile adorning her face as she watched Aasha sleep. "Wonderful, isn''t she?" "What do I do!?" Lee whispered frantically, still not daring to move, terrified that his anxiety alone might wake her up. "You should take her!" Saira chuckled but only patted his arm uselessly! "Relax, Lee. You are doing very well." Amy was smirking and sharing a look with Saira when Lee looked up. They were in on it together! Maria was no better when she passed through. The madwoman only grinned and pinched his cheek while he was helpless to defend himself! Lee finally took a few careful steps and eased himself down ever so gently into a chair. It helped him relax a little, but then the food came out and Jamaal had to fuss over the baby too before finally leaving them to eat. Except Lee had no free hands... "Let me help you," Saira said and picked up his burrito. She held it up to his mouth, a serious expression on her face, as if she were going to feed him. Lee felt his face heating... and then Amy chuckled. Saira''s own serious expression broke into a grin as she put his burrito down. "I''m only kidding." Instead, she finally took Aasha back into her own arms, and the girl stirred, opening her eyes and making happy little gurgling noises. She also had a new sensation in her soul that Lee didn''t recognize until Saira lifted one side of her shirt and exposed a breast. It was hunger, but so much simpler than he was used to. Aasha immediately latched on, and Saira looked up with a beaming smile. "Thank you, Lee. You were wonderful today." Lee glanced away awkwardly... and found Amy smirking at him again. He tried to ignore her and forced himself to look back at Saira. It was a perfectly natural thing. It had simply... taken him by surprise. It also sparked another thought. "Don''t babies usually eat and sleep a lot more?" He''d also expected more poop... "I mean, she''s only two days old." "Oh, yes." Saira looked past Lee, a wistful smile on her face, to where he could see Mar and Bradley taking a quiet moment to themselves behind a pillar. "Mar indeed had a voracious appetite... as well as extremely healthy lungs." Her eyes held a twinkle when they came back to Lee. "This is quite different, but I can''t say I mind." She was smiling, but there was something wistful in her soul as she watched her older daughter. "So how was it?" Amy asked, leaning in toward Lee and still grinning. "Feeling the baby fever yet? I gotta say, you took to it pretty naturally." "It was..." Lee thought about it and, after a moment''s hesitation, answered honestly, "It was nice. Also terrifying. What if I had dropped her!? Plus... I can''t believe she never cried!" "Nah." Amy waved a hand dismissively before taking a bite of her own dinner. "Mommy dearest was watching you like a hawk the whole time," she said with her mouth full. "Besides, Aasha''s an E-grade." She glanced back at Saira. "I know F-grade babies have low stats, but I never asked about E-grades." "Two across the board," Saira said, her expression softer than Lee had ever seen as she ran the back of a finger over Aasha''s chubby, suckling cheek. "It was one when she was born." "Huh," Amy said. "That''s the same as F-grade. Shouldn''t she be higher?" "Maybe it''s just a higher cap?" Lee mused after swallowing his own bite of a perfect breakfast burrito. "Though I''m pretty sure Aasha already has a higher mana density than Anita... and she''s only a point away from evolving to E-grade. Gabriel''s mana density is higher, but I''m betting that''s only from the liquid mana." It had been a few days of workouts since the participating children had capped their attributes, and Z said it could take days to weeks more before they advanced to E-grade. Plus, it was more likely at this point that they would evolve from the mana pressure than from any working out. A process that could be accelerated by using special enchanted rooms that no one on earth had access to. Still, it didn''t hurt to keep the workouts going since Martin was basically teaching them to fight, and that was something almost everyone needed to learn. Trak and the rest of his people joined them for dinner after that, and while Trak had to nudge a few who hesitated, most of them settled in without too much awkwardness toward Lee. Rax brought a few of them into his discussions with Saira, and after listening to them all day, Lee could almost follow along. He got halfway through his second burrito before something changed, and not for the better. Amy noticed too, and she was staring at him when he looked her way. "Excuse me," Lee said to the others as he stood up. "I just need to... step out for a minute." It was hard to hide anything with his broadcasting soul, but he hoped to escape before he subjected the entire courtyard to the anger leaking through from Stanley. It felt bad this time... and then it got worse. RAGE His hand on the back of his chair spasmed, and Lee crushed the stone into dust beneath his grip. He tried to run but only saw red. Something had pissed Stanley off beyond forgiveness. Something was about to die, and it would die screaming! The next thing he knew, he was inside Jamaal''s apartment, the man staring at him in shock as the door slammed shut behind Lee, cutting him off from the courtyard. "Sorry..." Lee started, then fell to his knees and clutched at his chest. Something was wrong. This wasn''t the usual anger he felt from Stanley lately. It had started that way, but it was twisting into something else. Something cold and hard. Something... wrong. "What is happening!?" Saira demanded from behind him, and her voice sent a chill through Lee. No... He turned his head and felt his heart sink when he saw the woman in the room with him, her baby still in her arms and staring at him with wide eyes. "Get..." He wanted to tell her to run, but he never got the chance. Something inside him twisted beyond where it ever should have gone, and Lee screamed. He screamed in pain but also in fear because he could feel Stanley receding. His brother wasn''t dying; he barely even felt angry anymore. But he was slipping away. "It''s your soul!" Amy screamed, and Lee barely heard her over the roaring in his head. But he did hear. He heard, and he sank inside himself without another word. It wasn''t usually easy to find his soul, not like the times Stanley or the skeleton dragged him in, but he found it quick this time. It almost pulled him in... Lee saw the problem the moment he laid eyes on their soul. Well, not eyes. His mind''s eye? Whatever it was, he saw it, and he knew it was wrong. Even more so once he slipped inside the dark orb. It was the crack, not the wound he''d sealed, but the crack, and the little pug who had stood over that glowing crack every other time was now curled into a ball atop it. Asleep. Or so he thought... Caffeine cracked his eyes open and looked at Lee with a worried expression, even if that was kind of how his face always looked... though he had a good reason to be worried now. Because the crack was... changing. It wasn''t growing wider or spreading, but it was becoming... more substantial? More defined. Where before it had been a small crack, Lee could see now that it had never been small. Or even a crack. No, it was closer to a seam, a spot where two pieces of their soul were stitched together. Where they had stitched it together¡ªhe and Stanley. They had done this. Looking at it now, Lee could almost remember the screaming. He could almost feel the agony they''d felt. He could almost hear the echoes of their despair... as they did what had to be done. He didn''t know what that was, and looking at the straining seams now, he wasn''t sure he wanted to know. Two pieces, but still his and Stanley''s soul. He couldn''t define one side as different from the other. Their soul was their soul. It wasn''t half and half. It was one whole, but the whole was... coming undone. It wasn¡¯t quite tearing at the seams... and none of that mattered now anyway, because Stanley wasn''t actually messing with the crack. The flexing was only a side effect of something else. Stanley was changing their entire soul. Their soul, at least what he could see of it, was a constantly shifting field of... well, everything that they were. Lee was sure that if he knew where to look, he could find any part of them in here. Their hopes. Their dreams. Their fears. Everything. Only, something was changing it. Bits of their soul were crystallizing into something else... something unchanging. Inflexible. Something... cold. Something... angry, and Lee couldn''t do anything to stop it. He didn''t even know where to start! It wasn''t a single point. There wasn''t an origin for him to contain or restrict, even if he knew how. It was everywhere. An infinite number of infinitesimal points spread out through their entire being... all of them growing slowly, all of them changing his brother and him... No, that wasn¡¯t it. They weren¡¯t both changing. Not directly. Stanley was changing, and he would drag Lee along because they were too tightly connected for it to be any other way. What''s happening, Stanley? Lee sat helplessly beside the once again sleeping Caffeine and stroked the pug''s head as he struggled to come up with a solution. There wasn¡¯t a rune for this! It wasn¡¯t an outside force trying to get in. It was Stanley. He still hadn''t figured out how to help when everything got worse. The cold spots turned icy and started spreading at an alarming rate. Lee knew Stanley was angry, but he didn''t know why, not until he reached out and touched a patch of frozen wrath. Then he saw what Stanley saw, and he understood. Then he understood all too well. He didn''t know the boy in Stanley''s eyes, but Stanley did. The face was a stranger''s face, but it also wasn''t. His name was Zeke¡ªa wonderful boy with a soul as pure and true as an angel. Not perfect. Not innocent. But the flaws only served to magnify the light that shone from within. Lee knew him, and he knew the others surrounding him. Stanley knew them, and now Lee did too. Most importantly, Lee understood who they were. They were Stanley''s family. Which meant they were Lee''s family. Now all of them were going to die. The monsters had killed their family. It was heartbreaking. A tragedy. One which Stanley was rightfully furious about. He was more than furious. It was a fury that Lee had never wished to know, but one he''d come close to more than once. It lurked in the darkest places of his heart, where his worst fears dwelled. It was the fury of a man with nothing left to lose. A fury that could drive a man to do terrible things¡ªgreat but terrible things. Stanley was wrath personified as he turned his power against the one responsible for taking his family from him, and he wasn''t content with mere revenge. He wanted to undo what had been done. It was impossible, but Stanley didn''t care, and Lee agreed with him. Lee wanted his family back, too, and he would break the world if that was what it took. Lee couldn''t stop his twin, and he didn''t want to, but he also knew something was wrong with Stanley. He wanted Stanley to do what needed to be done, but he didn''t want his brother to lose himself along the way. Because it felt like he was... Stanley drove his will against the monster, and Lee stood at his side while their soul turned to ice. He reached out to Stanley, adding his own resolve to the fight. Finish it, Stanley. Then come back to me. He felt the power raging through his brother in a torrent to rival even the storm of his mana well. Enough power that it scorched him on the other side of the world. Enough power that their soul shook and threatened to rip itself apart. Caffeine was there too, awake again and adding his own resolve to holding them together. It was almost enough. The seams in their soul held, but the wound in their soul proved itself a weak link. It was okay. Lee had known it would break first, and he was ready when it did. He reached out and touched the still-healing scar of their last encounter with these monsters. He''d patched it as best he could back then, but he wasn''t that man anymore. He had grown stronger. He had learned more about his power. Most of all, he had learned more about himself and, through himself, Stanley. In that moment, Lee knew who they were, and he knew what they were meant to do. Both of them had found their way here along different paths, but here and now, they were together. Aligned as one in their purpose. Lee poured what he knew into a new rune, a rune not from his library but one from his soul. Their soul. This is who we are, Stanley. Two of us in one, and we are... unbroken. The rune settled into place like it had always been there, like it was always meant to be there, and then it was over. Or it should have been... Instead, things got a little weird. It was only an instant. A touch of fear came through Stanley''s rage. Caffeine growled... a voice said something... and then the rage returned, colder than ever. There was also a touch of relief mixed with regret, but it quickly vanished beneath the icy rage. Stanley was still out for blood... He''d succeeded, but it wasn''t enough, and Lee could see now that it would never be enough. Stanley had done the impossible, but he''d traded away something precious to do it. He''d saved his family, but that fact barely registered in him anymore. He was truly slipping away now... Lee wouldn''t let it happen. He couldn''t! He held as tightly as he could to the part of himself that was Stanley, and he poured out all the warmth and love in his heart. Stay with me, Stanley! Come back! You won! Now you have to let go of the... Caffeine woofed behind him, and blinding pain drove Lee screaming out of their soul, back into reality. The pain was worth it because Stanley stopped slipping away. He wasn''t back, but he wasn''t leaving either. He was... asleep? Still in pain, but asleep, and best of all, Lee knew he wasn''t alone. He had Caffeine. He would always have Caffeine, but now he had something more. Now he had a family. That realization was the reason that despite everything, Lee was smiling when he opened his eyes on the real world. 176. Day After Tomorrow ~~~Lee~~~ Lee opened his eyes with a smile on his lips, but it didn''t last long. He knew now that Stanley had found some good people to stand beside him in the war, but he also knew that the war wasn''t going well. Hang in there, Stan. I know you can win this. It still took him a second to come back to the here and now after... everything. But it helped that the ceiling in Jamaal''s was easy to recognize for its uniqueness after Lee had particularly enjoyed his breakfast one day and insisted on giving Jamaal a fancier light scheme than everyone else got. Not that he needed his eyes. Mana Mind showed him everything already. Even if he''d lost track of things for... a minute? Or longer, considering there were more people in here than he remembered and all of them seemed upset. Well, almost all of them. Aasha was the only one completely unbothered by recent events as she tugged clumsily at his hair. Lee looked up past Aasha and met Saira''s gaze from where his head rested in her lap. "Did I miss anything?" She shook her head mutely, eyes glistening. "Amy?" Lee said, turning to the other woman. "You come out of that okay?" She looked fine physically, but her soul felt... shook. She grinned at him, the expression only slightly forced. "Of course! Hell, that was almost mild compared to the usual shit you pull." Her smile faltered. "Is he... will Stanley..." "He''ll be okay," Lee stated. "I know he will." Stanley was still there in his mind, and still... cold, but looking at him now, he could have sworn the chill was fading. Not a lot but definitely less severe than it was. "Are you well?" Saira gently brushed sweat-damp hair off his forehead, drawing his gaze back. "Truly?" Her fingers felt cool... but with a noticeable tremor running through them. Lee nodded as well as he could in his position. "I... think so." He didn''t mention the debuff on his status. It would be gone soon enough. [Liquid Mana Contamination(Psionic)](05:12) Your body has been suffused with Psionic Energy that is incompatible with your Liquid Mana. Effects: -23% Liquid Mana Capacity The negative percentage was dropping along with the timer, and Lee could see why. Or rather, he couldn''t see, and that was the problem. There were blank spots in his otherwise consistently mana-dense body. He assumed those spots were the psionic energy, but he couldn''t actually detect anything. At least, not with Mana Mind. His core was fine, at least, and it looked like it was actively displacing the foreign energy with liquid mana. Psionic... He''d wondered about Stanley''s power, and now it looked like he had a big clue. The debuff wouldn''t give him any information about what it actually was, but Z might know... "You were burning up," Amy said before he could ask someone to fetch the alien. "Like you had a seriously bad fever." That helped explain why he was so sweaty... and possibly why his body ached. Though both effects were likely related to the debuff. Alejandro, who up until now had been content to watch, nodded his head in agreement when Lee glanced at him. So did Trak. "Forgive me, my lord. I could not diagnose your injury and so did not dare to experiment..." Lee made no move to get up just yet but offered an explanation with a question. "Have you ever heard of psionic energy?" Trak tilted his head, large ears twitching. "I have heard mention, but I''m afraid my knowledge does not extend further." "Is that what he was using!?" Amy asked. "That''s like... a psychic thing, right?" Trak nodded. "I do believe it is a type of mental energy." "Definitely," Lee said, thinking back to everything he''d seen Stanley do through their connection. None of it was close to what he thought of as psychic, but he also had never noticed Stanley using mana¡ªnot that he knew if he even could notice something like that through their soul. "Apparently, it doesn''t play well with mana. Or not liquid mana, at least." "Mana contamination!" Trak exclaimed. "Of course! How could I have failed to consider something so obvious!? It explains the fever and..." "Dude, chill," Lee said before the little guy could freak out anymore. "I''ll be fine in a few minutes." "That''s..." Trak''s soul frowned. "Contamination should linger... unless... your liquid mana?" Lee finally sat up and shrugged. "That''s my guess. It looks like it''s forcing the psionic energy out." His body still felt a little achy, so he only turned slightly to look back at Saira and Aasha. "What I really want to know is how is she so calm?" The experience hadn''t been a picnic for him, and he could only imagine what everyone else felt. Except he didn''t need to imagine; Jamaal was in here, watching silently, and the poor guy''s soul felt... not good. A far cry from the baby. Saira smiled. "She knows you. What is there to..." "I call bullshit," Amy said, climbing to her own feet. "You''ve got to be shielding her somehow. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s the vines." Lee couldn¡¯t tell either way, but the vines swaddling Aasha sure looked powerful with the amount of mana inside them, and he wondered briefly how deadly they would turn if something threatened the baby. "Believe as you will." Saira stood smoothly, outwardly calm, but with a shadow of... something lurking deep in her soul. She offered her free hand to Lee. "Shall we? I suspect there are others who might be relieved to know that you are well." There were. He hadn''t left the courtyard fast enough, and now, vines or not, Aasha was probably the calmest soul inside Three... though the other kids were alright. The adults were the ones taking it the worst. "Jamaal," Lee said after letting Saira pull him up. "Sorry about that. You okay?" "O-of course!" he lied. "I''m sure I will be perfectly fine." Less of a lie. Then he straightened and smiled, a wry expression of acceptance and not quite regret filling his face and soul. "Please do not apologize on my account. Instead, I would ask you to forgive me for my lacking resolve. All of us here have remained by your side, not despite the burdens you carry, but because of them. So please, do not allow my momentary weakness to weigh upon you. I am with you to the end, no matter if I waver along the way." Where the hell did that come from!? Lee stared at the man who had worked his way closer throughout that speech and now stood directly in front of him. "Um... thanks?" "Good man!" Amy clapped Jamaal on the back with a chuckle and a grin. "But be careful with those heartfelt confessions. Look, you made him blush." Saira smiled, and Alejandro reached for the door with an identical expression. "We good to go then?" "Yeah," Lee said. "But... could you all give me a moment with Saira?" He ignored Amy''s smirk and blatant wink. "I need to talk to her about something." They left, and Lee forced himself to focus once they were alone. He could feel the mix of emotions coming from Saira, curiosity being only one of them. "So..." He realized he wasn''t sure how to broach the topic, so he just came out and said it. "Aasha. You weren''t shielding her, were you?" She smiled, but Lee felt that shadow of doubt again. "I told you, she knows..." "I believe you, but I also know you''re worried." He glanced at the baby in her arms. "She''s too quiet, isn''t she? Too calm about... everything." Saira''s smile held, but a lot of the more pleasant emotions in her soul dimmed behind a rising and protective worry, even as her hands gripped Aasha tighter. Lee pressed on before he made her feel any worse. "I think I know why, and it''s not a bad thing!" "What are you talking about?" Her smile finally fell away, and Lee caught a fresh glimpse of the predator lurking behind her eyes. "Aasha is perfectly fine." "She is!" Lee exclaimed. "I just wanted to... I think I can show you what I''m talking about!" "Explain." "I will. Just..." Lee closed his eyes and focused on his own soul, and more importantly, on the tether running from him to Saira. He wanted to quiet all the other links while amplifying their connection... Unfortunately, it wasn''t as straightforward as he''d hoped. He tried everything he could think of until, finally, he stumbled onto the obvious solution and asked the creator of the soul link itself. Three, can you... The link between them expanded, and Saira gasped. She had to be used to his loud soul by now, but Lee knew this was far beyond that. For him as well. He didn''t even need to open his eyes to know she was staring at and through him, but he did anyway and stepped closer, reaching out for Aasha as he did. "May I?" Saira took a few seconds to respond, and each second felt like an eternity as the weight of her attention on his soul climbed higher. Finally, she blinked and shook herself, confused and with a touch of suspicion. "What is this?" "Do you trust me?" Lee asked, knowing that right now he couldn''t hide anything from her and knowing that she knew that. "Of course." Her suspicion vanished, and she passed Aasha into his arms with only curiosity lingering in her soul. Aasha stared at him the same way she had all day, and Lee backed up to give himself some distance from Saira. It didn''t affect the link between them, but it allowed him to feel Aasha''s soul more clearly, and through him, it should allow Saira to do the same. "Can you feel that?" "Is that... her?" Saira whispered. "What... what is that feeling?" "I didn''t figure it out until a minute ago," Lee said, smiling. "Her emotions are so much simpler and cleaner than ours that I couldn''t place it at first, but I see it now. She''s learning." The baby in his arms was a sponge as she stared up at him¡ªa sponge in a good way. Her little soul churned away nonstop as her mind hungrily absorbed everything she saw, heard, and touched. She might even be feeling the mana in and around her... "That''s not all," Lee said, and focused past the hunger for knowledge that made up most of her soul to the overarching background framework that held everything else together. "I know why she''s so calm." He turned, angling Aasha''s gaze back toward Saira, and they both knew the instant she saw her mother. It would have been impossible to miss even if they didn''t see her eyes widen and her tiny fists wave fitfully. Emotions that had always been there in her soul, though mostly in the background, now brightened into unmistakable clarity. They were simple emotions, but then again, they didn''t need to be complicated. Gazing upon her mother filled Aasha with joy, comfort, and love. Lee soaked it all up and fed it through his link to Saira. "She''s calm because she has nothing to fear. She knows you and so knows that she is safe. It doesn''t matter what else is..." Saira moved faster than Lee could follow, even with Mana Mind. One moment she was across the room, and then she was in front of him and taking Aasha into her arms with tears sparkling in her eyes. Happy tears. "I love you too, Aasha," she said vehemently. "Always and forever!" The baby responded with a joyful burble and some more uncoordinated hand waving. Lee let them have their moment and took a few steps back, content to enjoy the sensations coming from both of them. Until Saira finally pulled her face away from the gurgling baby sometime later and looked at him with some alarmingly strong emotion of her own. "Thank you for this!" "It''s nothing," Lee said quickly. "You were worried, and I just wanted you to know there was nothing..." Saira was kissing him before he could react, and it was... a lot. The amplified soul-link between them was still going strong, and it went both ways. He could feel her lips on his and his lips on hers. More than that, he could feel her passion. A raging bonfire of overwhelming emotion unlike anything he''d ever felt. The embrace didn''t last. Something... shifted in the emotional storm, and Saira''s lips slowed in their frenzy, then stopped. She stayed close, her forehead resting against his, and Lee could feel their breath intermingling while his racing heartbeat slowly eased up. This wasn''t quite what he''d had in mind when he asked her to stay behind... but he''d be lying if he said he hadn''t enjoyed it. Except her soul felt... conflicted. "Saira..." She put a finger on his lips, silencing him. "I won''t apologize for kissing you this time," she whispered, and her mouth curled into a smile. "Because I know you enjoyed that." "I did," Lee said with a smile of his own. There was no way to deny it with the link between them. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. "But I am sorry," Saira continued. "Because I''m afraid I''ve changed my mind about you." That was confusing, especially since her soul didn''t match what she was saying. Aasha added her own input to the moment by squealing from Saira''s arms, and they both pulled back to look at the excited girl as she flailed her arms. "Don''t worry about it," Lee said softly while they both basked in the glow of Aasha''s bubbly little soul. "The heart wants what it wants... and I really don''t mind." "I know," Saira said, a touch of sorrow creeping into her voice. "That''s the problem." She took his hand, her fingers gentle as they traced over his skin. "You see, before I only wanted to..." Her lips quirked up into a smile. "Jump your bones. As some might put it." "Oh." Lee winced. "You, ah... you heard that?" "I did. Unfortunately, that is no longer the case." That was... still okay. But did she have to keep hammering the point home? It was starting to feel a little... personal. "Now," she continued. "I want more... because I think I''m falling in love with you." Oh. Well, that explained the feelings he was getting from her soul, but not why she seemed upset about the whole thing... until he realized. "It''s me, isn''t it?" He could feel her emotions, her passion, and her... love. It was a powerful emotion, and he could feel it, but it all came from her, not him. "I don''t feel the same way." She smiled sadly. "The downside of seeing so deep into another''s soul, I suppose. Though it would have been... amazing." Her soul did some... interesting things at the end of that sentence, and Lee saw what could have been. Their bodies writhing against each other beneath the stars... moonlight reflecting off glistening skin while the night''s chill failed to penetrate through the heat of... Then he was back inside, and Lee couldn''t suppress the shiver that chorused through him at the intensity of that... whatever it was. Saira noticed, and her gaze was hungry, if still a little sad. Lee opened his mouth but had to cough and clear his throat before he could get a single word out. She''d definitely done that on purpose! "Saira," Lee finally said, forcing his thoughts back to the present. "I know this might sound strange, but... I''m not sure if you really know me." She stared into him. "You say that now? When we know each other better than words can describe?" "I barely know myself!" Lee said. "Hell, most of my life is a complete blank! I could have been a terrible person before..." "No," she said. "You will not dissuade me so easily. You have proven yourself time and again. Few men would have done as you did, and I will not have you disparage..." "I''m not trying to dissuade you," Lee said, taking her free hand in both of his. "What I was trying to say is... well, I don''t really know you either." She closed her mouth, and he pressed on. "Right now, it feels like I do. I''m sure it feels that way to you too, but I don''t think it''s the same thing. We''ve been through so much since we met, but how much do we actually know about each other beyond those life and death moments?" Saira frowned. "You are wrong. It is in those moments that we see who we and others truly are. Everything else is meaningless drivel that we use to fill the awkward silences and dance around our feelings." She gestured back and forth between them. "This here is real. It is truth. I know what I feel, and I know who you are, even if you do not agree." Lee shook his head. "Maybe I''m different. Maybe I don''t see things the way you do, but I don''t think that''s the case. You''re right about how much the big moments matter, but they aren''t everything. We''ve fought side by side. Hell, you''ve saved my life more times than I can remember. You''ve saved my brother''s life! How could I not love you for that!?" He sighed. "But that isn''t the same thing, is it? That''s not the kind of love you''re talking about. It''s not loving you for you. Not all of you. It''s love for an idealized, perhaps even mythical, version of a person... What I''m trying to say is that I don''t know you well enough to love you for who you really are, and I doubt you know me well enough either." She only stared at him with a scrutinizing gaze, but at least she appeared to be thinking about it now. "I know you love your children more than yourself. I know you''re passionate, powerful, and, frankly, more than a little terrifying." She liked that last bit, and her grin returned. "But I don¡¯t know your hopes and dreams, I mean, other than the obvious ones we all share. I don¡¯t know why you feel so sad when you look at those flowers beneath your tree. I don¡¯t know..." Saira put a finger on his lips again, silencing him. "So," she said, leaning closer. "You''re saying we must get to know each other better?" "Exactly! I''m sure you just got caught up in the moment, and..." "Lee Cascade," Saira said while staring intently into his eyes. "Are you asking me out on a date?" "Um..." Lee swallowed, trying to moisten his suddenly dry throat. That was not at all what he was trying to do here... or was it? "I... am?" "Yes," she replied softly, her gaze lingering on his lips a little too long before snapping back up to look him in the eye. "When and where?" "I mean, I can''t exactly take you out on the town, but..." Lee tried to ease away from the hungry look in her eyes and realized his back was already against the door. When had that happened? He glanced frantically around the apartment they were currently inside of. "I know a great place where we could grab dinner some night!" "Tomorrow night." "S-sure." Saira beamed and finally backed up. "I''ll be looking forward to it." "Me... too," Lee said, and he realized he was smiling, despite the slight panic of his now racing thoughts. What had he just agreed to!? Her gaze shifted to the door at his back. "We should probably get out there." "Right!" Lee jumped to open the door and only then remembered to ask Three to fix the soul-link. He didn''t even realize how much feedback he was getting from Saira or how much he''d enjoyed it until it fade... "Ah!" "So," Amy said, standing directly on the other side of the door and grinning wickedly at him. "Tomorrow night?" How had he missed her standing there? He could see the entire building! Saira brushed past Lee while he stood frozen in the doorway, her hand warm and lingering against his side. "Look after him, Amy. I''ll need him alive for our date." "Yes, Ma''am." "Also, I might need you to babysit." Amy grinned and stuck a gauntleted finger out for Aasha to grab at. "So I get to watch this cutie, and you have to take care of Lee? Deal!" "Hey!" Lee said, finally finding his voice. "I''m... not that bad." They moved off together laughing and then ducked their heads to whisper about something... Lee waited in the doorway while he tried to come to grips with what had just happened as well as get his buoyant mood under control. Well, buoyant, but also nervous. Seriously!? What had just happened!? He''d only wanted to comfort Saira. Now she might be in love with him, and he was supposed to take her on a date tomorrow... He wasn''t even sure what that meant, and he''d never even been on a date before! At least, not one he remembered... He must have had dates before, right? Regardless, he might want to get some advice before then. But from whom? Alejandro? Yeah, that was a good idea. He still had some time... he could prepare. Lee took a deep breath and walked after the women. It got a lot louder the moment he stepped through the door, and Lee focused on that instead of acknowledging Amy''s smirking expression as the women returned to fall in beside him. It wasn''t hard because there was a serious problem out here that required his attention. The kids were playing with flying discs, a new game by the looks of it, and one that involved jumping from disc to disc in a sort of race around the entire courtyard. It couldn''t be easy with how the discs slid around, but they were making it look that way. None of that was the problem. It was that Lee hadn''t made the runes powering the discs... Obviously, he''d known about it before stepping foot out here, but now it was time to get some answers from the person responsible. Gabriel stood on the second-floor balcony, on the sidelines of their game, with a very serious feeling in his soul as he looked on. The feeling shifted into fear the moment he met Lee''s gaze from across the courtyard. He definitely knew he''d broken the rules... but Maria wasn''t angry where she stood next to him. Lee headed their way but took his time by heading for the stairs instead of jumping straight up. He studied Gabriel''s creations along the way. Aside from the obvious fact of Gabriel''s soul in the runes, they also stood out for their lack of uniformity. It wasn''t something Lee had really thought about or even noticed before since he always copied his runes through his soul storage, and so they all came out identical. The differences here weren''t enough to consider them flaws, but it reminded him of his early days... "Uncle Lee," Gabriel said at his arrival, with only a quick glance before returning his gaze to the courtyard. "I..." "I give permission," Maria interrupted. Lee wasn''t sure she should have done that, but she was Gabriel''s mother, and he wouldn''t challenge her authority. At least not right in front of him... "Okay." Gabriel flinched at the word but didn''t glance away from the courtyard. He flinched again when Maria put a hand on his shoulder. "Keep watch," she said, then turned to Lee. "Come. We talk." He followed her a short distance away before the woman turned to face him. She didn''t have good news. "The children feel you and your brother fight. Feel through soul links. Three not block enough." Lee winced, but she went on before he could say anything. "They feel fear, but anger, too. Gabriel..." Her soul swelled with pride but also a touch of sorrow. "He want to help. He ask me first, and I give permission but tell him to watch for... mistakes." There was defiance in her soul, as if she expected him to countermand her decision, but Lee only nodded and repeated his agreement again. "Okay. He''s your kid, Maria. A good kid." He smiled. "Plus, his runes are good. You don''t have to worry about them failing." Some of the tension left her, and her gaze returned to her son in the distance, the touch of sorrow rising in her soul. "He growing up fast." She left unspoken that it was too fast. Which sent Lee''s thoughts back to Aasha. How fast would an E-grade baby grow? Would her childhood be even shorter than Gabriel''s and Anita''s? It was probably a good thing, if so. Childhood was a luxury, and maybe humanity would get used to it in the future? How long would it take for people to forget what things used to be like? "No, is good thing." Maria straightened and shook off her melancholy. "Thank you for not be angry with him." She touched a finger to Lee and sent her magic flashing through his body. "Alejandro say you well, yes?" His debuff was long gone after... everything. "I''m fine, Maria. Thanks." He nodded toward Gabriel. "Go back to him. He still needs his mother, no matter how grown up he thinks he is." "Every man need his mother!" Maria scoffed, but she couldn''t hide the warm glow his words lit in her soul. Lee watched her go and considered if he should try repeating the experiment he''d done with Saira. Especially if he could pull it off without the kids noticing... except maybe they should notice. They should know how much their parents loved them... They probably already knew, but it was another thing entirely to truly know. He''d ask. "Amy, can you get Z off the roof for me? I want to ask him about..." "Z!" Amy yelled. "Get your butt over here!" "Amy. Lee," Z said, appearing at their side in a blurring streak before Amy even finished yelling. "How may I assist?" "Thanks, Amy," Lee said dryly to the grinning woman. "I don''t know what I''d do without you..." To the alien, he asked, "What do you know about psionics, and what were you doing on the roof?" "Mrs. Morales ordered me to watch the human offspring. I was to rescue any who was in danger. Am I still to obey her orders?" "Absolutely." "Understood. Have heard of psionics. A non-mana class. Considered one of the weaker ones." "Non-mana..." Lee mused. "Are there a lot of those, and how does that work? Isn''t mana in everything?" "Many. Don''t know exact numbers. All absorb mana, but some convert it into other energy. Psionic. Stamina. Health. Some elemental types. Others." "Okay. But why is psionic considered weaker?" "Requires a strong mind. Strong will. System doesn''t help with that. Hard for most to compete with mana skills." That did not match with what Lee had seen. "Z, my brother just killed one of the so-called eternals with psionics. But not only that, I''m pretty sure he killed it back in time. Is that... possible?" The alien went as still as a statue inside his armor. His soul did the opposite and flashed almost too fast to sense through a wide range of complex emotions. Along with some not-so-complex ones. Like fear. Eventually, Z opened his mouth again. "You live. So assume brother lives. Is he... well?" Not the most comforting way to start off, especially when Lee remembered Stanley''s... coldness. "Why wouldn''t he be?" "Should not be possible." Z shook his head, then froze. "But maybe..." he trailed off. "Maybe what!?" "System does not grant skills to alter the past. But a high rarity psionic skill... maybe combined with the will of a..." he trailed off again. Amy came to Lee''s aid this time and knocked on Z''s helmet with her own gauntleted knuckles. "Hello! Earth to the alien!" Z flinched. "Pardon. Hard time believing you. But know you aren''t lying. Maybe you are mistaken?" "I don''t think so," Lee said. "That thing had hurt someone... almost killed him, and Stanley... well, when it was over, he was..." Lee thought back to what he''d seen of Zeke in that brief aftermath. "Well, he wasn''t completely fine, but he was no longer dying, if that helps." "It does not. Even gods do not alter the past. Must be another explanation." "Why don''t they?" Amy asked. "I mean, you call them gods. Isn''t that like... a miracle or something?" "Many try," Z said. "Lot of stories. All fail. Usually before they die or vanish from reality." "Is it the system?" Lee asked, feeling an all-new worry creeping in. "Does it... stop them? Or punish them?" "Don''t believe so. System rules mostly about higher grades interfering with lower-grade worlds. Though I am no expert." Lee focused on Stanley, but nothing had changed. He was still there and still asleep. It also felt like he was still creeping away from that cold thing he''d been becoming. Or had that been the system doing something to him for breaking a rule... they had already broken one rule with the source, right? And there had been that flash of... something at the end there. "I''m going to go work on some stuff," Lee said. Whatever was happening with Stanley, Lee needed to help, and he''d already started. The new rune on their soul was a fantastic first step, but he could do more. He had to do more. "Let me know if you remember anything else, Z." "Yes... Lee." He couldn''t read the alien expressions on Z''s face behind the helmet, but the alien''s soul was working furiously on something. "You have given me much to consider." Lee only made it halfway to the garage when adult voices began calling for the end of fun in the courtyard. He watched Gabriel pull the runes back one by one, and Lee smiled. Things were not exactly ideal right now, but they weren''t that awful either. He had an amazing family around him, a fantastic apprentice, and a date for tomorrow night... That last part felt almost... wrong. Especially because he was looking forward to it. Should he really be enjoying himself while Stanley was in trouble? Worse, was he only leading Saira on when he might die at any moment? Not that anyone was truly safe anymore, but he had been feeling better about their chances lately, and that was despite his run-in with a B-grade shadow god. At least until it went slightly off the rails tonight... Stanley had felt extra angry after the B-grade... Hell, he¡¯d been downright miserable. Had that encounter led Stanley to whatever happened tonight? That cold anger... and Caffeine sleeping in their soul! How had he missed that? Stanley had been under attack, and Caffeine had been sleeping! Lee suddenly remembered something and stopped in his tracks. Caffeine growled at the shadow god... Sure, Caffeine had woken up to help at the end, but now Lee was seeing the expression on the exhausted pug¡¯s face in a new light. Caffeine had helped save Lee from the shadows, and he¡¯d paid a price for doing so. It made perfect sense with Stanley¡¯s worsening mood over the last couple of days. Of course Stanley would be upset if Caffeine was hurt! I¡¯m sorry, Caff, Stan. I¡¯ll make it up to you both! I promise! Lee hurried his pace with fresh guilt as a prime motivator. He felt terrible and worried for both his brother and Caffeine, but it wasn¡¯t all bad. One small comfort that had come out of this was that he now knew without a doubt that Stanley was powerful enough to win. He only had to not lose himself in the process, and Lee could help him do that. Somehow... he would find a way. 177. Inner Peace ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley woke up in pain but also feeling... strange. He could have sworn he was furious moments ago, but now he wasn''t. He checked his recent notifications and understood. Racial Evolution Progress... 65%... 66%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] ... Racial Evolution Progress... 62%... 63%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] There were a lot of those. Starting from ninety-five percent evolution progress and slowly creeping down to where it was now. Caffeine was obviously turning Still Mind on to interrupt the evolution. The only question was, why? And why was he turning it off again only for the process to repeat? Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] It wasn''t like all the times before. His emotions still came crashing back in, but this time a singular emotion mostly muted all the others as it slowly grew into a crescendo of rage. Because memories came along with the emotion. Memories of what had happened. Memories of how he''d failed. Memories of how he''d let Zeke down... how he''d let them all down. After everything. All his preparation. All his fighting and getting stronger. All of his grand and useless claims that he would end this nightmare. How he would protect his family... and how he had ultimately failed. The memory hurt, but the pain didn''t last because there was no point dwelling on it. There wasn''t anything to do now except finish what he''d started, and Stanley was already lifting into the air when a notification drove him back down. Racial Evolution Progress... 63%... 64%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. He involuntarily gasped at the pain and opened his eyes to a ceiling covered in red-gold flames. The next instant, a pug was in his face with lots of worried whines and frantic licking. Stanley was calm again, with none of the rage he''d felt a moment ago, but Caffeine''s worry bothered him... even though it shouldn''t. He didn''t care... but he did. More than that, he felt a swelling relief at seeing the pug awake. Interesting... perhaps the sensation was related to how Caffeine had changed the skill that first time? Had he snuck in an exclusion for himself? A knock on the door followed, barely heard above Caffeine''s cries, along with a voice. "Stanley, may I enter?" It was Walter. Expected, given the room, the lack of souls surrounding him, and of course, the phoenix fire everywhere. "Co..." Stanley tried to speak, but his throat felt raw and scratchy, so he waved a hand instead. Walter would see it... except Walter''s presence wasn''t in here... Wasn''t this the tower? It looked like his room and felt like the tower in his mental touch, except Walter''s domain usually filled the place. Even when the man was blocking all other souls, Stanley could always feel him like a thin fog in the air, but not anymore. Walter must have seen him anyway, or maybe he''d heard his croak? Whichever it was, the door opened, and Stanley felt Walter''s soul appear. Not only did it appear, but his soul preceded him into the room, flowing out to fill the space like it usually did, even as the man himself entered. How odd. Stanley wasn''t sure how he¡¯d ended up here, though he remembered passing Adrian and Daryl on the way to Zeke... Had they brought him back or had Nate finally moved into the tower? It would make sense if Zeke was dead... or worse. That thought... itched at his mind, but Stanley ignored it as he lifted himself into the air, with Caffeine nestled on his lap¡ªwhere he belonged. Instead, he studied Walter as the man entered the room. The butler looked the same as always, but his soul felt extremely worried, bordering on frightened. It made sense. Without Zeke, it was only a matter of time until everyone either died or turned undead. Still, he was worried about nothing. Stanley would end the threat before it ever came to that, and he knew right where to start. He''d marked that thing, and his mark still lingered out there. Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] He made it out the door around Walter, flew past Adrian, and out into open air before that notification crashed back into him. Racial Evolution Progress... 64%... 65%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. "Stanley!" Walter yelled behind him, and Stanley stopped his flight. He owed the butler for past aid after all, but also because Caffeine was quite upset and that... bothered him? He shook it off and kept flying. Because how much did he really owe? Walter had provided him with shelter and food, sure, but Stanley had rescued Daryl. He''d rescued the whole lot of them, and they''d aided him in return. They were even. And he had things to kill. Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Stanley flew faster, tearing his way across the sky and toward a monster that would die in screaming agony when he reached it! Racial Evolution Progress... 65%... 66%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. He grimaced but kept going, and his mark led him to an unremarkable patch of wilderness, or rather, beneath it. Not unexpected¡ªhe¡¯d assumed for a while that they must be hiding underground somewhere. This time, it wouldn¡¯t save them. Stanley dove into the ground, tearing the earth from his path without slowing. Until something very unexpected appeared before him. Where nothing had existed in his Soul Sight, souls suddenly appeared. Not undead like he¡¯d anticipated, but mostly human souls, and ones he knew well... including Zeke. The boy lived¡ªa touch of rot in his soul¡ªbut the boy lived. Stanley finished his plunging flight deep into the earth and emerged into an illuminated underground cavern. The humans within grew frightened at his approach, but he didn¡¯t care and didn¡¯t slow. Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] It felt different this time. Something about seeing the boy he¡¯d already presumed dead, now alive and in front of him, had a powerful effect on his emotional state. An effect strong enough that it pushed back his anger. "Zeke..." Stanley whispered, his throat still raw and his voice coming out as a croak. "You''re... alive!" "Stanley!" Zeke exclaimed and immediately tackled him into a hug. "I''m so glad you''re awake! Are you feeling better!? You look better!" "I..." Stanley¡¯s relief didn¡¯t last. He peeled Zeke off him and then peeled Zeke out of his armor to look at his chest, where a small, shiny nugget of rot festered inside him. The boy wasn¡¯t any better. Nothing had changed. "I''m sorry," Stanley whispered, because it wasn''t only in his flesh, either. The rot hadn¡¯t spread much through his soul, but it had rooted itself deep enough, and the thousand tendrils of corruption throughout meant there was still no hope. "I''m so sorry." "Wait!" Zeke protested while flailing in the air. "Stanley, it¡¯s okay!" "No..." Stanley shook his head, anger clashing with despair as he gazed upon his failure made manifest. He''d tried so hard... with every scrap of power he possessed... and it still hadn''t been enough. "I failed." In the end, he hadn''t had what it took. He¡¯d failed, and all he had left now was revenge. Racial Evolution Progress... 64%... 65%... "But..." Zeke said. Stanley let Zeke go and turned back to his original reason for coming here. To the piece of his soul he''d attached to the skeleton before letting it run away. Unfortunately, the undead fuck was long gone. He''d taken too long to get here, and it had escaped. Though from the looks of it, the thing hadn''t done so without consequences. No one else should be able to see it, but a group of humans was clustered around it anyway, doing something useless with their stupid magic. They all scattered at his approach. In Stanley''s Soul Sight, he could see a glowing black and starry fist hovering in the air. It clutched what looked like a tattered and filthy rag. Except it wasn''t a rag. It was the piece of its soul the skeleton had ripped away to escape his grasp... That had to have hurt, and Stanley smiled at the thought. Obviously, he should have used more of his soul, enough that it never could have escaped, but he hadn''t expected the delay, and now it was too late for regrets. Now it was time to end this. Racial Evolution Progress... 66%... 67%... So he reached out and gathered the piece of himself back into the fold, including the prize in its grip. It was almost amusing when the filthy little scraps tried to bite him... Almost amusing. Mostly infuriating. That little fuck thought it could hurt him with these scraps! It thought its worthless fucking soul could touch him! Racial Evolution Progress... 68%... 69%... It took some effort, but Stanley pushed the hot flames of his rage back down. He forced that wild anger back into a block of icy wrath deep inside him. It wouldn''t do if he snuffed out the irritant prematurely¡ªnot until he¡¯d tracked it back to its host. Stanley carefully tucked that little scrap of fetid rot deep inside his own soul, where it would never escape. He didn''t fear its corruption tainting him. It was far too weak for that. The only hard part was keeping his soul from obliterating it. Voices intruded on him as he worked¡ªhis friends'' voices¡ªbut Stanley ignored them. They wanted to help him. They thought he needed help! There was nothing they could do to help anymore. He would end this alone. Like he always should have from the beginning. Racial Evolution Progress... 70%... 71%... Then another voice intruded, and Stanley''s icy rage burned too hot to contain. He moved with all the power at his disposal, taking Nate by the throat and driving him into the solid stone walls of this underground space. "Don''t you dare," Stanley growled in the man''s face. "Don''t you dare speak to me!" Racial Evolution Progress... 72%... 73%... Nate didn''t speak. He only stared at the ground and refused to even fight back! He could fight if he wanted to... the bastard was a D-grade already! Stanley didn''t know for sure how the man had pulled it off, but he had a pretty damn good idea! Not that it mattered. Not that any of this mattered anymore. Racial Evolution Progress... 74%... 75%... "Fight, damn it!" Stanley screamed and slammed him deeper into the stone. "Fight back or I''ll fucking kill you!" "I won''t," Nate said with a shake of his head that sent rock chips scattering. "This is my fault." Stanley opened his mouth to agree but couldn''t get the words out. He wanted this to be Nate''s fault. He needed it to be Nate''s fault! It would be easier that way... because then it wouldn''t be his own fault. If he hadn''t gone to the stadium... If he had returned faster... "I thought I knew what I was doing," Nate said. "I thought I was pulling the strings, but I was wrong." "Shut up," Stanley breathed. Buff Gained: [Cleansing Light] He ignored the golden light blooming behind him and spilling around his back, but he couldn''t ignore the black streaks amid the light... "Shut up!" Even the notification from Zeke¡¯s light had changed. How long until it turned completely rotten? How long until it became poisonous? Racial Evolution Progress... 76%... 77%... "I fucked up, Stanley. I damned everyone by thinking I was in control." Stanley squeezed harder. "I can still kill you." Racial Evolution Progress... 78%... 79%... "You... could," Nate wheezed. "You... earned it... after you pulled us... from the fire." "I fucking tried!" Stanley said, and his voice came out somewhere between a scream and a sob. "I tried so fucking hard!" Racial Evolution Progress... 80%... 81%... Caffeine whined in his lap, and Stanley glanced down in time to see the pug haul himself up into a sitting position. He knew Caffeine was exhausted... but the pug still lifted his head and licked Stanley''s nose with another whine and a wag of his tail. Zeke stepped up beside him, shirtless now, and with Stanley''s failure on full display. "Please," he said, and Stanley stopped staring at the knot of corruption long enough to meet the poor kid''s gaze. "I couldn''t stop it before, but you saved me!" Zeke touched the glassy spot of corruption on his chest. "This little bit is nothing! I know I can beat it now!" He really believed what he was saying... Nate did not believe it. At least, not enough when he said, "Worst case, you bought us time. We can still..."If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Stanley shut him up by squeezing tighter even as he shook his head. Nate with his delusions of grandeur. Zeke with his useless faith. He could literally see the corruption spreading! It wasn''t fast, sure, but what had they gained? A few days? A week? So now he could watch Zeke slowly turn into a monster instead!? Or he could just kill them all now and get it over... Racial Evolution Progress... 82%... 83%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. "Stanley," Nate wheezed, and Stanley tried to decide if the man was worth more dead or alive. "You said you were evolving?" Right... that notification. He really should have looked into that already. So he did. [Eidolon of Wrath](E-grade Eidolon) Become Wrath. Eidolons are the primal spirits of thought, emotion, and life itself, ethereal manifestations that embody the intangible forces shaping all conscious existence. Each Eidolon is unique and resonates with the raw essence of its domain, carrying with it the primal energies that drive all living beings. They serve as both keepers and avatars, existing as the purest expressions of the forces they represent. You have proven yourself worthy to represent Wrath. You have cast off the constraints of your flesh along with all else which could hold you back from becoming the purest expression of your Wrath. Removed Traits: [Adaptable] Altered Traits: [Wrathstorm Unleashed] = [Eidolon of Wrath] It was... different. He would lose his body? Did that mean he''d be completely immune to the undead? No flesh should mean no corruption. Zeke''s soul held corruption, but it wasn¡¯t the same. His stemmed from his flesh, and from there, into his soul. Or was a spirit just another type of undead? He probably wouldn''t need to eat, at least... but Caffeine would. He checked the trait. [Eidolon of Wrath] Become Wrath. You have silenced your fear. You have smothered your joy. You have buried your sorrow. You have released your envy. You have forsaken your love. You have stifled your desire. You have shattered your trust. You have lost your hope. You have relinquished your compassion. You have drowned your ambition. You have betrayed your loyalty. You have rejected your gratitude. You have erased your regret. YOU. ARE. WRATH. Effects: +10000% Effectiveness of All Mind Attributes It was a lot. Power, but at a price. "What is it?" Nate asked, pulling Stanley¡¯s attention back. He only glared at the man. As if he¡¯d tell him¡­ "Is it something you want!?" Nate asked, a note of desperation in his soul. "I..." Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Racial Evolution Progress... 82%... 83%... "I might!" Stanley snarled at the man. He could see it now. It would be so easy... he would be more powerful than ever! But more than that, he wouldn''t have to care about anything ever again; he could just... let go. There would be no more fear. No more regrets. He would be free... Except he couldn''t do that. Even if he failed everyone else. Even if he had to watch them all die. He couldn''t stop caring about Caffeine. He couldn''t, because Caffeine would never let go of him. Even if he went down that path, Caffeine would follow him. He would be heartbroken, but he would never abandon him. Caffeine would follow and would do everything in his power to drag Stanley back. It wasn''t only Caffeine that he would stop caring about. It was everyone else too, and deep down, he didn''t want to not care. It was a small voice, a whisper almost lost beneath his anger, but it was there. He didn''t want to let them go. Even if it hurt! "No," Stanley whispered. "I don''t want it." Racial Evolution Progress... 83%... 84%... "Then turn it down," Nate said. Stanley tried that, but it did nothing. Racial Evolution Progress... 85%... 86%... "No!" Stanley growled. "Stop! I don''t want it!" His denial accomplished nothing. He knew what was happening. It was painfully obvious now. He¡¯d gone all in on being angry. He¡¯d embraced it, made it his own, and now it wasn¡¯t ever going away. He couldn''t make it go away if he wanted to, and it was dragging him toward the inevitable outcome of his decisions. So he activated Still Mind himself this time... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. It hurt, but it was a solution. He couldn''t be angry like this. "Stanley!" Nate said, peeling himself out of the wall. "Try to meditate!" Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] He tried. He really tried, but the rage followed him into the dark. It filled what should have been a quiet place with screams and nightmares. It was too much a part of him! He needed his psionic power to meditate, but his power was rage. It didn''t want to flow quietly and smoothly. It wanted to destroy! It wanted to rage! "I can''t!" Stanley yelled, and the rage drowned out his fear, turning his wail into a scream, even as he drove his fist into the stone wall. Racial Evolution Progress... 85%... 86%... Stanley pulled his hand back and stared at the blackened, shriveled flesh of the limb with a new dawning horror. He couldn''t actually feel his arm... there were no muscles moving in there... his body was little more than a stick figure piloted by his mind at this point. Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. He tried again before Caffeine could remove his buff, and it worked. He slipped into a perfectly calm meditation... Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] "Why, Caff!?" Stanley yelled, once again somewhere halfway between despair and rage. He knew Caffeine didn''t want him to evolve! So why did he keep fighting him on this!? Racial Evolution Progress... 86%... 87%... "You have to figure it out!" Nate yelled, now in front of him. "That''s not fucking helping!" Stanley screamed back and punched the man into another wall. Racial Evolution Progress... 88%... 89%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. "He let you stay in for an hour last night," Nate said, completely unbothered at having to pull himself out of the wall again. Unhurt too. "After that, he started kicking you in and out, with shorter intervals each time. Maybe there are side effects if you stay too long?" Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Racial Evolution Progress... 90%... 91%... "You fucking think!?" Stanley punted him back into the wall. It felt good... It felt really good. Fantastic even. So he did it again. And again. Harder and harder. Racial Evolution Progress... 92%... 93%... "Or maybe," Nate yelled between visits to the wall. "He''s not the one kicking you out!" Stanley frowned at the implications of that statement, then made another Nate-shaped hole in the wall. It was easier that way. Because if it wasn''t Caffeine, then it was him. Because then he wanted this. Zeke dashed to Stanley''s side and threw his arms tight around his floating figure¡ªwhat little of it remained. "Stop, please!" Stanley almost punted him into a wall too, but he settled for hitting Nate again. It really was satisfying. He was like a yo-yo that kept coming back for more! Racial Evolution Progress... 94%... 95%... Besides, Zeke let go on his own once he realized what Stanley had already seen. Zeke''s hug had crushed dents into Stanley''s chest and ribs. It was no wonder. His flesh and bones were barely more than cardboard at this point, and while his inner organs weren''t all gone yet, and the effect hadn''t fully reached his head either, it was only a matter of time now. Racial Evolution Progress... 96%... 97%... Stanley pushed Nate into the wall again, and this time, he made sure it hurt, pushing, crushing... why Nate ever thought getting to D-grade would be enough to save him... Caffeine licked his nose, and... Stanley hesitated. Not because of the lick, but because a strange sensation followed on the heels of it. A warm sensation... coming from... inside him? It didn''t stay merely warm; it kept growing until it was scalding hot against the icy rage that vied for space within his heart. Racial Evolution Progress... 98%... Scalding... but gentle. Soothing even, and strangely enough, it wasn''t from Caffeine; he could still feel the little beacon of Caffeine''s soul with its unwavering belief, but this was something else. Something... not bigger, but grander. More... substantial. It was his brother... but not only him. Lee was there, holding onto him; he had been all along, but now he was no longer alone. Hundreds more joined him, all of them reaching out to Stanley¡ªpeople he had never met and didn''t know, but who knew him and... loved him? Sort of. They knew Lee; some even loved Lee, and through him, they passed that affection on to Stanley here on the far side of the world, to a man they¡¯d never met except by proxy. Their collective strength forced Stanley to acknowledge them. They forced him to feel the warmth of their souls. They forced him to hear their voices as they cried out. Racial Evolution Progress... 99%... Somehow, they were in his soul with Lee... The answer finally dawned on him as he burned in the fires of so much affection. It was coming from the soul link. That glowing symbol in their soul, holding it together, was not merely a creation of Lee. It held a spark of each of their souls. Those souls all stood beside him now. All of them called out for him alongside his brother and asked him to stay... They weren''t the only ones. Stanley felt people crowding in around him on this side of the world, too. Nate. Silas. Serenity. Olivia. James. Zeke. Eve... All of them reached out to him with the same message. Don¡¯t go. Stay with us. Zeke slipped his arms around Stanley once again, his embrace gentle this time but unrelenting. "I believe in you, Stanley," he said softly, and his soul blazed bright with his words, pushing back the corruption in his soul ever so slightly even as it seared into Stanley¡¯s own soul. "So hold on until I fix this, okay?" He was a little bastard to throw Stanley''s words back at him like that, but he truly believed he could do it... Stanley had thought the same, and he¡¯d been wrong. But what if Zeke wasn¡¯t wrong? "Thank you," Eve whispered from his other side. There was no hug from her, and her soul held none of the belief her brother did, but she had something else. A fire in her soul that flickered and wavered but absolutely refused to go out. Plenty of other crazy in there too, even more than usual, but she was still alive and still fighting to stay that way. "Thank you for giving him a chance." Racial Evolution Progress... Other people spoke, but Stanley could no longer hear them as he sank back into his meditation. It was the same as before. His power still raged against any attempt to quell its wrath. Only... he was no longer alone. Hundreds of hearts and minds bolstered him. They drowned out even Stanley''s unquenchable rage through sheer numbers. They sheltered him within their embrace, and Stanley found a moment of peace. It didn''t last. The rage crashed against their refuge like the waves of a storm battering against a seawall. The waves spilled over the wall and slipped through the cracks, but each time, the wave receded and the wall remained. Each time, Stanley found another moment of peace, and each time, those moments grew slightly longer. Each time, the waves grew a little smaller and crashed against him with a little less force. Stanley stayed there, riding out the storm until it passed over, sheltering behind the wall until the waves could no longer break through. He didn''t know how long it took, but no one left. They remained by his side throughout, even when he finally emerged. Skill Level Up: Harmonic Soul Meditation (Epic) Skill Level Up: Harmonic Soul Meditation (Epic) ... Skill Level Up: Harmonic Soul Meditation (Epic) Everything looked different when he blinked at the smiling faces around him. They no longer looked as... hostile. Well, not until he glanced at Nate and was reminded of something else. "You took my core!" Racial Evolution Progress... 49%... 50%... Apparently the waves weren''t that calm, and Stanley dropped back into his meditation without waiting for a reply. At least this time, he barely needed the bulwark of souls. He also remained even longer, though without the urgency from before; he relaxed enough to take stock. Zeke still looked bad, but maybe a little less bleak? He had pushed it back for a moment there, even if it was growing again. Was it truly possible he could beat it? If anyone could pull it off, it would be Zeke, but Stanley didn¡¯t believe it anymore than Nate did. If only he hadn¡¯t... Stanley let the thought go when the next wave crashed against him with worrying force. Time to think about something else. He¡¯d obviously screwed up somewhere, though he was hesitant to blame everything on his anger. It had carried him through when nothing else could. It had allowed him to give Zeke the little chance he had now. Though it had also driven him to go running to the stadium after Sam... Next topic. Aside from his friends, there were a lot of other souls down here, including a bunch of wizards. They''d stayed very quiet and still the entire time; otherwise, he probably would have killed them. Or hurt them. But at least he didn''t want to kill them now? He wasn''t positive on why they were down here, but he had some strong theories. This should have been an undead stronghold, or a base at least, so there was probably magic to study. Also, he could feel a D-grade monster in the distance... So maybe Nate hadn''t taken his core? It definitely wasn¡¯t an undead monster, and if he listened closely, it felt like there were a large cluster of other monster souls growing near it. Had the undead found a D-grade lair down here? Was that how they got to D-grade already? There were plenty of E-grade monsters as well. Though they were dying at a steady pace to the... Wait, were the humans feeding them to the D-grade? That was what it looked like, and he felt more certain about it as time passed. They were definitely feeding the monster¡ªprobably to encourage it to have more babies. His domain still worked in meditation, and the people surrounding him were getting fidgety enough that he almost came back into the real world to tell them to fuck off away from him. Nate''s intuition must have still been working well enough, though, because he said something and they all backed off. Except for Zeke. Stanley let that slide since he could also see his flesh coming back to life... It wasn¡¯t pretty. He wasn¡¯t even sure if his regeneration would have been enough to rebuild him from so little. His legs had been nothing but twigs, and the only reason he suspected they hadn¡¯t crumbled into dust was that he needed them to hold up Caffeine, though it couldn¡¯t have been a soft or comfortable seat... Also, his suit was gone, and his less-than-reliable memory of the previous night¡¯s events told him that he likely lost it in the explosion following his... victory. His pyrrhic victory. He had a lot of those, didn¡¯t he? The upside was that he still had on a pair of boxer briefs, Walter¡¯s doing if he had to guess, though the parts of him beneath that minor bit of clothing had gone to dust... so yeah, he didn¡¯t mind Zeke¡¯s healing at all. Not that he particularly cared about his genitals at the moment, but there was something decidedly... wrong about not having them. Something... less human. Watching himself regenerate was a way to gauge his progress without notifications and was a decent motivation to stick with the meditation. Decent, but not the main motivation, well, aside from not wanting to turn into a monster. The other main driving force was watching Caffeine sleep. He understood now that Caffeine hadn¡¯t been pulling him out of Still Mind; he¡¯d been putting him back in every time Stanley pulled himself out. Worse, he suspected that it hadn¡¯t been easy on the pug. Caffeine had only just woken up after his face-off with a god, and then he had to spend all night protecting Stanley from himself... Thinking about Caffeine wasn¡¯t helping with remaining calm, so Stanley let it go and focused entirely on his meditation. Easier said than done, but it was worth the effort. Unfortunately, it kept getting easier, and that gave him time to think, which made it harder if he thought about the wrong things. Instead of thinking about the many unpleasant topics on his mind, Stanley instead tried to focus on the people shining through the mark on his soul. It was difficult to pick out individuals among so many, but there were a few that stood out as notable exceptions. Strangely, amid the crowd, some of the souls felt like... children, or at least they had a certain flightiness or attention deficit that Stanley had come to associate with children. At least the younger ones. They weren¡¯t the standouts. Instead, there were a handful of souls over there that cared more than the rest. Sure, they all cared, but the majority were more... casual about it. They wanted Lee to survive, and through him, Stanley as well, but it was less personal. The standouts were another thing entirely. Lee was... precious to them. They were ready to risk life and limb if it meant his survival. They were Lee¡¯s family. More than that, they were Stanley¡¯s family as well. Not by association, but by choice. It didn¡¯t matter that they¡¯d never met him. It didn¡¯t matter that their first meaningful contact with him involved trying to get a raving madman to chill the fuck out. That didn¡¯t bother them. It was the least they were willing to do... As his body looked more human inside his domain, and as the anger got easier to ignore, Stanley finally felt the hundreds of souls recede from that glowing symbol. They went slowly, one at a time, or in groups, but eventually, they all trickled away. All but the diehards. They felt less focused on him, like they were doing other things at the same time, but they still popped back in regularly to make sure he was okay. The reduced numbers made it far easier for Stanley to pick out individuals, and he spent some time getting to know each of them as well as he could. They were people he would remember when, and not if, he made it back to Lee. He owed them, not for services rendered, but for... well, it was hard to put into words. Not only them, either. Everyone who had stepped up when they needed it the most, when they were hurting the most. When their soul was bleeding out... Stanley knew it was almost a certainty that they had shared in his and his brother¡¯s pain. To endure that and still stick around all this time... to still care after all this time. He owed them, and he would make damn sure their sacrifices were rewarded. Watching all those souls across the world had another impact. They reminded Stanley not only of his own family on this side but also of the hundreds of others whom he so often overlooked. People who had never done enough to draw his attention, positively or negatively, but who still helped in their own ways. He could feel some of those souls in this underground pit... They were afraid of him, but also for him. They wanted him to be well not only because of what he might do for them or to them, but also because he was a fellow human and he was in pain. They were good people even if they couldn''t do the impossible. Not everyone could turn back the clock or kill a cannibal... Stanley¡¯s meditation broke as he finally realized that he was no longer carrying a certain horror show of a class shard. ¡°Nate!¡± 178. Branding ~~~Stanley~~~ Nate moved quick, almost faster than Stanley could track, and appeared in front of him. "What is it?" Stanley grimaced at the reminder of their grade difference. But did it matter? He could still kick his ass and had done so not that long ago... or had he? Nate hadn''t fought back... What if he was the stronger one? Racial Evolution... 20%... 22%... He wasn''t stronger; Stanley had beaten worse, and besides, this was more important. "I killed something before I came back. I had its core..." "June absorbed it," Nate said, then glanced around before adding in a whisper, "I killed her." Racial Evolution Progress... 22%... 28%... Zeke''s eyes widened, and Stanley returned to his meditation instead of hurling Nate into another wall. For a moment there, he''d thought the idiot might have let her get away! June... how the fuck did she get her hands on the damn core!? Maybe he¡¯d lost it in the explosion? Except the last time he''d seen her had been near the tower... had she come after him, or had the core flown that far? That wasn''t even the real problem because how had he not seen what an absolute monster she was if she would take that class!? She''d seen it with her own eyes! Or was she just an idiot? She probably didn''t know the monster was still inside the core, and Stanley found himself mildly curious about what had happened when she absorbed it. Mildly. "How did you kill her?" Stanley asked instead. Nate shrugged. "I was already D-grade. She had some new skills and crazy good regeneration, but she still died." "And you''re sure she''s dead!?" "I got the core. I can''t be more certain than that, can I?" True... would it have her soul hiding inside now, or was it still the monster? Stanley couldn''t imagine anyone''s soul surviving contact with that... thing. Except his own, maybe, not that he wanted to test it. "Where''s the core?" "Safe," Nate said with a touch of suspicion in his soul. Racial Evolution Progress... 21%... 24%... "Where. Is. It?" Racial Evolution Progress... 24%... 29%... "It''s secure, in a place where no one will find it until I figure out how to destroy it for good." Racial Evolution Progress... 30%... "Where..." Caffeine heaved himself up into a sitting position, and Stanley bailed back into his meditation. Sorry, Caff. Also, fuck you, Nate! The asshole actually thought he would want to use the core!? Stanley stopped thinking about it when his meditation wavered and instead watched Caffeine settle back down. He had more immediate concerns to worry about right now, anyway. Like why his evolution progress wasn''t lower and why it kept going back up so fast. He waited until he felt as calm as he was going to get before coming out again. "Fuck you, Nate!" Racial Evolution Progress... 20%... 25%... Caffeine opened his eyes, but Stanley was back inside his meditation before the pug could do more than that. Worth it, but what the hell!? Stanley focused on thinking cheerful thoughts rather than angry ones, and the sight of Caffeine munching on the piece of chicken Zeke provided definitely helped. He would have been far more upset about how drained Caffeine felt if not for seeing him eat. Because everyone knew a hungry pug was a healthy pug. Caffeine was okay, or he would be soon. Stanley could let a lot slide on that knowledge alone. All the dread from the last couple of days... the uncertainty... none of it mattered anymore. Nothing else mattered! Well, some things still mattered. Anything that might be a threat to the recovering pug, for one. Also, why was he getting so much angrier than usual? When he emerged again, Stanley went looking for answers while listening to the drone of a dozen conversations in the distance. He found at least one likely culprit in his new trait. Traits Merged: [Wrath] + [Eye of the Storm] = [Wrathstorm Unleashed] [Wrathstorm Unleashed] Let the Storm Rage. You have abandoned the Eye of the Storm. There is no longer any refuge from your Wrath. Not even for yourself. Effects: You are prone to wrath. +5000% Effective Willpower -50% Effective Physical Attributes Fantastic. It had made him more powerful, if only slightly, but at a price. Prone to wrath... It looked like the trait had changed when he killed the cannibal, but he hadn''t started turning into a rage monster until the skeleton... The power was good, and he couldn''t feel too bad about the cost when he could see Zeke alive beside him. The purifier wasn''t okay, sure, but he was a far cry better from where he would have been. A little anger problem was a small price to pay for that. Not that Zeke was making much progress with beating the corruption. Racial Evolution Progress... 21%... 25%... Stanley was grateful Zeke was doing well but still angry he wasn''t doing better. In fact, it was really easy to get mad about... lots of things. Nate, himself, and all the other weaklings. Hell, it was just plain easy to get mad about anything... "Not that I don''t appreciate you feeding Caffeine," Stanley said to the kid after another bout of meditation. "But shouldn''t you be working on removing that crap?" Zeke smiled wistfully. "I wish it was that simple, but... I can''t just heal myself like I do everyone else." He watched Stanley a little too warily, as if waiting for an explosion. "I need to have faith." "Well, that''s some bullshit!" Stanley said, perfectly calm. He was calm, damn it! Zeke would get rid of the corruption... it was only a matter of time... but what the hell was he supposed to have faith in!? "It''s not that bad," Zeke lied. "I can definitely do it!" Stanley didn''t call him out but went back to meditating instead. The situation was bad enough without him turning into a rage monster... He dragged Nate back over when he''d calmed down. "How many D-grade cores did you get from this place, and where''s mine?" "Yes," Nate said, with a similar wariness to Zeke. "I took your core last night, but we found three D-grades in the lair down here. I gave one to Zeke and one to Walter to give to you... Did he not tell you?" Stanley remembered Walter calling after him... and changed the subject with a glance at Zeke. "You aren''t D-grade. Weren''t you close enough?" "It wouldn''t let me evolve... it said I needed to choose a side." Zeke visibly wilted. "I''m sorry I wasted the core..." Olivia had been fiddling with Zeke''s torn shirt, but she tucked it away and went to the boy alongside Serenity. They said something to him, but Stanley couldn''t hear it from his meditation. Instead, he watched them through his domain and tried to decipher what they were saying from their mouth movements and the vibrations in the air. Surprisingly, he picked up some of it, or thought he did at least. It was what he expected them to say. Encouraging platitudes. Stanley would have said the opposite¡ªnot that he blamed the kid. But he would have told him to get mad and fight... but then, that was pretty much all he wanted to do right now... Nate didn''t wander off again. Instead, people came to him when they wanted to talk. Stanley waited until Zeke was feeling better before emerging from the darkness. "You said three cores?" "We''re currently deciding who should get it, if you want to weigh in. Personally, I''m leaning toward Adrian." It was a solid choice, given he was the only other person who could heal corruption. Though given the current situation... "I''m guessing he couldn''t heal Zeke?" Stanley asked, his voice low, and Nate shook his head. "Wait, if you''re giving it to Adrian, does that mean you''re moving into the tower? I thought it was too crowded... or did that many people die last night?" "No, it''s going to be tight, but who cares? This isn''t a damn vacation. We should have consolidated our forces a long time ago. They didn''t even make it to us before the fight was over!" Nate shook his head bitterly. "Another one of my mistakes..." "What exactly went wrong?" Stanley asked, not quite accusing the man, at least not completely, though he couldn''t keep the edge from his voice. "You said it was bad if I didn''t go last night." "It was..." Nate trailed off, his soul a tangle of uncertainty and a stark contrast to his usual demeanor. "I think you needed to kill that... thing." He didn''t need to clarify what thing he was talking about; the shiver in his soul was enough. "Did you know there were only two D-grade invaders last night?" "I noticed," Stanley growled. "I''m guessing it''s because they found a D-grade lair down here?" Nate shook his head. "I don''t think they found it. I think they built it." "They... what?" "The wizards can explain all the mumbo jumbo if you want, but the important bit is that we only got three cores from the lair because they had killed the rest. The bodies were still fresh when we got here..." "So only two of them were at D-grade?" Stanley made the connection, not that it mattered. "Seemed like more than enough to me!" Except it shouldn''t have been. If he''d been there... "They weren''t ready!" Nate said. "But they attacked because of... you." Racial Evolution Progress... 31%... 39%... Stanley glared at the man, not even caring about the stupid numbers ticking their stupid way higher! Not until Caffeine tried to sit up. Then he fell away into the dark. Fucking Nate! Fuck him and his... That wasn''t helping either. "They knew about the cannibal," Nate said, abandoning his conversation with a man in a dress the moment Stanley emerged again. "They never wanted you to find it and were certain that whichever of you won the fight would come and... devour Zeke." "I wouldn''t touch that fucking..." Nate held up his hands defensively. "I knew you wouldn''t! I told them to get fucked!" "Fat lot of good that did!" "Yeah," Nate sighed. "I thought our shield would work... It didn''t." "That''s it!?" Stanley growled. "It didn''t work!? You were supposed to be ready for anything! Did you lose because you stopped to chat with the monsters about how I was going to eat everyone!?" "It was nothing like that!" Nate hissed. "I told you, I fucked up! I thought Zeke was safe... and he wasn''t. It''s my fault." Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Stanley was all too happy to let Nate take the blame. The man felt guilty enough... perhaps even too guilty. "What aren''t you telling me?" "I''m not..." He knew he was right when Nate''s soul flinched. Nate knew it too. "No, you''re right. I haven''t told you everything, and I won''t. Not yet. It''s too late to do anything about it, and knowing will only make you angry." Racial Evolution Progress... 32%... 37%... "Guess what, Nate? I''m already angry!" Instead of throwing the man into a wall, Stanley stole some chicken from Zeke and started feeding the sleepy Caffeine a handful of bite-sized chunks. It made him feel better... but did nothing to lower the evolution progress. Talk about some bullshit. "I know you can''t..." Nate started saying something, and Stanley ignored him by going back into meditation. It was almost amusing to feel the man''s annoyance... though it would have felt better without the relief that followed. Nate really didn''t want him to know whatever he was hiding... It was tempting to push for an answer... but did it really matter? Nate hadn''t joined the undead; his soul showed that much, but he was feeling guilty... especially toward Zeke. Was it simply that he''d failed to protect the boy? Or was it something more? He seemed doubtful that Zeke could save himself... did he know something? Was it really hopeless? Except his soul didn''t feel that bleak. Stanley mused on that and watched Nate''s soul as he meditated but learned nothing more. People came and went, and Stanley gleaned what he could of their conversations from his domain. Mostly a lot of status reports. Including from the wizards talking about enchantments or some such. He watched the others, too. Zeke spent a lot of time with his eyes closed and his lips moving occasionally... like he was praying. The only question was who or what he was praying to. Stanley liked to call the thing that attacked Lee a god, but as powerful as it was, he doubted it was the kind of god Zeke imagined. Of course, there might be actual gods now... gods who weren''t silent. In fact, Stanley owed a favor to what he suspected to be one of those gods. He hadn''t forgotten that voice. He didn''t think he could forget it even if he wanted to, and he wanted to. But out of all his memories last night, the memory of that gnawing hole in reality remained crystal clear. Despite the memory, Stanley couldn''t find a single notification that mentioned anything related to it. He knew there had been at least a few, but now there was nothing... Very strange. Gods or no gods, Zeke''s efforts had an effect. Whether it was the prayer or something else, the corruption slowed its spread. Sometimes it even reversed... just not enough to make up for the growth. Still, it was something. Maybe he only needed practice? Eve remained nearby, working on something, but outside of his domain. It felt like she was keeping her distance on purpose... not only from him, but from Zeke as well. She felt... guilty and still afraid of him. Less angry, though, or was that him projecting? Olivia approached, and Stanley realized she''d been fixing Zeke''s shirt after he ripped it off the boy... Oops. She and Serenity helped him get back into his armor after donning the repaired shirt. James stayed in the distance, and Stanley was pretty sure he was helping people feed the D-grade queen. Meanwhile, Silas hovered. Not literally, but it felt like his gaze never stopped moving between Zeke and everything else. The guy was on edge. He should be. They''d all fucked up big... No, it wasn''t all on them. Stanley should have been there. He could have killed the cannibal another time... Stanley emerged from his meditation when a moron of a wizard left Nate''s side and attempted to touch him. He even caught the bastard before Nate could. "What the fuck do you want!?" "I... y... w..." "I think you''re killing him," Nate said. "Please don''t?" Stanley dropped him and then went back to meditating while Zeke healed the idiot. How was the guy that squishy? He''d barely touched him... oh, right, the new trait. He was essentially going around in full rage mode, and he... liked it. Maybe a little too much? Surprisingly, the guy didn''t run away like he should have. Though at least he waited this time, instead of trying to touch him... "What?" "Did you... um, did you remove the soul energy?" He pointed, and Stanley followed the gesture to where he''d collected his soul mark. "I did." "Please tell me you didn''t destroy it!" the wizard exclaimed. "That was our only sample to track them with!" "Can you? Track it, I mean?" The man lost most of his zeal. "Well, no. Not yet. And we never will without a sample to test!" The bastard got his hopes up for nothing. "Can you follow it?" Nate asked, and Stanley switched his glower to him. "You think I''d still be here if I could!?" "So you do have it!?" the wizard blurted, then practically started rubbing his hands together in glee. "May we... borrow it?" "No." Stanley looked inside himself at the scrap of soul he''d claimed from the undead. "I don''t trust you." The man puffed up in his dress, affronted. "We are not traitors, sir! We are trying our best to help end this war!" "I definitely don''t trust you not to lose it!" Stanley yelled back. "You only found it because my soul held onto it!" "Of course!" the man exclaimed, his soul buzzing furiously. "Two souls! That explains the readings we were getting..." "How did you even find it in the first place?" Stanley glared at him, but the man simply stared into space while his mind churned. "Huh? Oh, Ms. Mitchell led us to it," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Who the hell is that!?" Nate laughed. "You might know her. She''s got little robot spiders running around? A little brother that lights up the world?" "Eve?" Stanley looked over at the woman and found her staring back with wide eyes. "Since when can you track souls? Can you follow the un... dead?" He trailed off when she shook her head, fear blooming in her soul. "No! I... only yours! Only since I..." Stanley turned away. "I don''t care if you can track me, but..." He eyed the wizard instead. "You want a piece of soul?" "Very much! Without the soul, there is no way to know if our spells are... Ah! What are you doing!?" "Relax," Stanley said, his hand wrapped around the man''s wrist as he forced a fresh handprint of his soul onto him. "I''m giving you what you wanted. There, can you feel that?" "I can feel it... my god! What did you do to me!? Get it off! Oh, god! What is that!?" Stanley watched him flail around for as long as he could stand to wait... so for all of a few seconds. Then he wrapped him into immobility. "I gave you a piece of my soul. So stop acting like a baby and come back when you figure out how to track me with it! Then I''ll give you the undead..." "That''s your soul!?" the man wailed. "Get it off!" Stanley meditated instead of hurting the man; he didn''t want to kill him by accident... Besides, his soul wasn''t that bad... and it wasn''t actually hurting him. The guy was just being dramatic. Nate calmed him down eventually, and he ran off to a group of his buddies, all of whom were far more eager than the man himself. One side effect Stanley didn''t bother to mention was that he could track the man now. He didn''t think the guy was a traitor, but his eagerness to get a hold of the only remaining link Stanley had to the undead was... suspicious. What if it was the key to tracking them down, and he was here to destroy it? He might not even know he was a traitor if they could mind-control people... This way, Stanley could monitor him, and he wasn''t exactly worried about the undead tracking him in return. They probably already could. Hell, he wanted them to come after him. Everything would be so much easier if they came to him. Ideally right now. Though a fight now might push him into the evolution he didn''t want to take... so maybe he didn''t want them to come? No, Stanley realized. They wouldn''t come after him even if they knew where he was. If they''d seriously thought he would turn into a human-eating monster for a few scraps of power, then they probably couldn''t imagine him wanting to turn down any advantage. Just another sign of how fucked up they were... and they were supposed to be the civilized ones! The piece of his soul he''d attached to the man had another unintended effect. An annoying effect. It practically broadcasted the man''s soul back to him. As if the man were standing beside... him... "Zeke," Stanley said. "You''re used to my soul, right?" "I... guess?" Stanley placed his hand on Zeke''s chest, over the knot of corruption in his heart. "Tell me how this feels." "That''s..." Zeke gasped. "Oh!" "Does it hurt?" Stanley asked. He didn''t think it did, but still wanted to make sure. "Is it too much?" "N-no," Zeke said, breathing heavily despite his words. "It''s fine!" Of course, then Eve stormed over, but she wasn''t even angry... only scared. "What did you do!?" "I branded his soul with my own," Stanley said. "Something I should have done before..." Eve didn''t like that and opened her mouth, but Stanley flew away before she could say anything. He needed to check something. Specifically, he wanted to check the soul-blocking spell covering this place. Sure enough, he could still feel Zeke even when outside the barrier. He couldn''t see him with Soul Sight, which was weird, but he also couldn''t miss where the boy was. He could even feel Zeke''s mood. It was perfect... and something he should have thought of before last night. He could have put it on everyone¡ªhe would have known when they were attacked. Fuck me, I''m an idiot! Racial Evolution Progress... 42%... 55%... Stanley sat beside the hole and meditated. It was almost too much to push back this time, but Lee was there instantly, and more of those souls came with him through the link. With their help, it became trivial, and Stanley spent the free time trying to use his domain to pet Caffeine. He could have sworn it almost worked... though he wasn''t sure if those moving hairs were from his efforts or the breeze. Zeke was the most chill when Stanley flew back down. It also felt like he was getting used to the brand. "Could you feel me up there?" Stanley asked, and Zeke nodded. "Sort of? I knew you were in that general direction, but mostly I could feel your... emotions?" "It goes both ways then," Stanley said. "I could feel the same from outside the barrier." He looked at Nate. "You do know there''s a barrier around this place that blocks my soul sight, right? A lot like the one around your base last night..." "I did not," Nate said, his gaze lingering on Eve for a moment. "I''ll let the magic folks know." "Can they track spells?" Stanley asked, once again kicking himself for not thinking of it before. "If they can track soul-blocking magic..." "It is not so simple," a man in a gray dress interrupted, and he looked familiar. "Theo?" Stanley said, then nodded. Yeah, that was it. He was the head gravity-magic honcho. "Can you do it or not?" "Theodore Echeart, and as I was saying, tracking a spell will be difficult due to the..." "I don''t care if it''s hard!" Stanley snapped, turning away to study the piece of his soul on Zeke''s chest. "If it''s possible, then make it happen!" He knew his soul was more powerful than Zeke''s, a given considering the skeleton had to cut out a chunk of its own soul to remove the brand. Could he leverage that power to help Zeke fight the corruption? It was a tempting idea... though he''d be flying blind while potentially messing with Zeke''s soul... so maybe only as a last resort? If Zeke couldn''t save himself... well, they wouldn''t have much to lose at that point. First, though, he pulled the brand back, mostly to make sure he could do so without... side effects. It came away clean, and he saw nothing to say otherwise. Zeke even confirmed it was completely gone. So he put it back and turned to the others. "Who else wants to get their soul branded?" Shockingly, no one volunteered. "It will let me feel your soul at all times, and vice versa," Stanley added to sweeten the pot. Extra shockingly, his explanation garnered no... "I''ll take it," Eve said. Everyone within earshot turned to stare at her, Zeke included, and she glared right back. "I said I''ll fucking take it! So are you gonna stand there all day or do it already!?" Stanley shrugged and drifted closer. It was nice to see some fire back in her gaze. Better than the morose guilt and fear she''d been stewing in. He stopped when her breastplate peeled open. "It doesn''t have to be on your chest." The metal shouldn''t get in the way either, since souls weren''t skin deep, and he wasn''t really putting it on her flesh. The physical touch only helped him focus... Eve turned away, her anger quickly giving way to fear despite the bravado of her earlier statements. "Put it on my back." That would work. Stanley touched her back and hesitated when she flinched in something close to terror. "Are you sure about this?" She drew in a shuddering breath, but her voice didn''t crack. "Two brands are better than one, right?" He thought about it. It wasn''t impossible that something might still interfere with his mark. It definitely couldn''t hurt to have an extra. "Yes. It''s better." She tensed under his hand and whispered, her voice close to breaking. "This means you¡¯ll come if Zeke¡¯s in trouble, right?" "I''m sorry, Eve. I should have been there," Stanley said to the desperate girl. He spoke softly, recognizing the reality. Eve was still a scared child, crying out in the dark, and he wasn''t sure if he was much better. She had been fighting so hard to protect her brother... and she was losing. "I won¡¯t let them touch him again." Eve straightened, her resolve firm. "Do it." Stanley did it, and Eve held her breath... only to let it out with a sigh of relief. Had she really been that scared? "What!?" she demanded with a glare over her shoulder, then she blushed and looked away. "I... thought it would be worse, alright!?" Stanley smiled. Eve had spent a lot of time with him, so he expected her to be the most used to his soul, though she might change her mind when the feeling never went away... She spun back a heartbeat later, eyes wide when she saw the people gathering behind him. "W-what are you guys doing?" "You said two was better," James said, smiling beside the rest of the team. "So six can''t hurt, right?" Nate joined them in a surprising show of solidarity, "Make it seven." He must have felt Stanley¡¯s skepticism because he added, "I fucked up, alright? But I''m still in this." Stanley shrugged and branded all of his friends. It wasn¡¯t that difficult now that he knew the trick, and each of the brands earned a sniff and tail wag from Caffeine, which was fun. Silas spoke up first once it was over, rolling his shoulders and pacing in a slow circle. "Man, it feels like you''re lurking behind me." "So, like usual?" Serenity said, grinning. "You can take it off, right?" Olivia asked. "I might have a hot date coming up soon, and no offense, but having you ride shotgun like this might be distracting." "You should have said something!" Stanley exclaimed sincerely enough that he actually fooled her for a second. The dirty look he received was totally worth it. "Who''s the guy?" Serenity asked, and Stanley took that as his cue to keep meditating. His evolution progress kept climbing, and it didn''t seem to matter if he was having a good time or not... he didn''t even feel angry. At least, not unless he thought about it... Was it the trait? Whatever it was, it was getting annoying... Unfortunately, soul-branding a wizard, followed by all his friends, had the opposite effect he expected. Instead of keeping them away, his actions drew more attention. A few of the wizards even formed a damn line in front of him while he meditated! 179. Favors ~~~Stanley~~~ Stanley didn''t mind talking to the first wizard in line. In fact, he was hoping the guy had some good news. "Did you figure out how to track the spell already?" "Ah, not yet," Theo said. "Though I have assigned a team to get started. I had hoped to discuss another topic if you have a moment?" So, in other words, he was useless. "Fine," Stanley said while taking the chicken from Zeke and feeding it to Caffeine himself. "Who¡¯s a good boy, Caff!?" "Well, you see..." Theo cleared his throat. "I received a message from Mr. Neveral shortly after our... battle. He was quite distraught and kept going on about broken time and how we had all died..." "You''re a good boy!" Watching that curly tail wag back and forth was the best thing since... well, since the last time he''d seen it. "He also said he had seen into oblivion and it had... winked at him," Theo continued. "Honestly, I thought he was hysterical and convinced his apprentices to place him under a sleeping enchantment before he hurt himself... or someone else." "You''re a good boy!" Stanley said again, beaming to see and feel Caffeine''s happiness. "I had hoped," Theo said with a slight edge of impatience in his voice. "That you might have some insight into the events of last night." Nate shifted beside him, and Theo''s tone vanished. "If you don''t mind, that is. I understand if you do not wish to discuss it." "It''s possible," Stanley said without looking away from Caffeine. "The winking, I mean. The broken time thing was real, but I think whatever fixed it is probably what your friend saw. Did he say what it looked like?" "He... may have tried to describe it, but like I said, he wasn''t making sense. That was when I contacted his apprentices." Stanley already had a pretty good idea of who and what the voice belonged to. It had to be that fake man who had taken him back to watch how this all started on that day in the mountains. Time travel, of a sort. It had said they weren''t really there, but Caffeine had growled at it... so maybe it was actually time travel? He''d felt nothing from it to match the power of that thing that had attacked Lee, not before and not last night, but Stanley expected it had been on par. Something with the power to fix a hole in reality like that had to be a god, right? Theo kept talking. "Am I correct in assuming his reaction involves the... artifact you left behind?" "The what?" "He''s talking about the invader you killed back at the base," Nate said. "It''s... something else. Even gives you a notification if you try to touch it." "It..." Stanley stared at him, but the guy wasn''t kidding. "What does it say?" Nate shared a glance with Theo, then grinned. "You should probably see it for yourself." "Just fucking tell me!" Stanley snapped, his anger rising fast and hot. Too hot. Luckily, Theo was in a more helpful mood. "It says not to touch things you don''t understand." "That¡¯s... weird." Stanley looked back and forth between them. "So you all touched it anyway?" Nate laughed. "We''re only human, aren''t we?" "True... for now." Stanley turned and glared at the next wizard still waiting in line. "What!? Can you track the soul yet!?" "I..." The man looked nervously around, then turned and left. "I can come back!" The rest of the eager wizards followed his lead, as they all seemed to suddenly remember that they had other important things to do. Stanley watched them go with a glower, then looked around at his friends. He''d been hesitant to leave Zeke alone before, but the new marks had him feeling a lot better about the prospect. Better, but not comfortable. "How safe is he?" "No one is safe," Nate said quietly, following his gaze. "But given how they cleared out of here ahead of us is... reassuring. You scared them, Stanley. That thing was already terrified, but then you showed up and did... that." He glanced around, then whispered, "Did you really break time? I felt something for an instant, and I could have sworn there were notifications... but now there''s nothing." "I did. A god fixed it. Or at least, I think it''s a god. Said I owed it a favor." "You..." Nate scoffed, then stared at him. "You''re serious." "Yup. There was a big hole in reality, and..." Stanley smiled. "Caffeine growled at it." His smile didn''t last. "I thought it was going to swallow me up... or all of us. Then it closed, and I heard a voice telling me I owed it one." "That''s... a lot," Nate finally said, his gaze calculating. "I''m still stronger than you," Stanley said. "In case you were wondering." Nate looked dubious but not eager to test the matter, either. "You were definitely terrifying enough last night... and today. I also can''t help but notice that you''re... still glowing?" Stanley frowned at the lines of purple light shining from beneath his skin. "Yeah, it''s being stubborn about fucking off... I might need to meditate longer..." "Then do that," Nate said. He was seriously worried about this. "We can wait all day if..." Stanley meditated. Not because Nate told him to, but because the man''s genuine worry was making him angry. He stayed in longer this time, for what felt like an hour at least, until Caffeine woke up on his own and started sniffing the air. Racial Evolution Progress... 20%... 21%... It still hadn''t gone below twenty percent... and just looking at it bumped it up another percentage point. Damn it. Racial Evolution Progress... 21%... 25%... Damn it! Racial Evolution Progress... 25%... 30%... Oh, for fuck''s sake! Stanley grabbed the food, and this time, he ate a few bites himself rather than let Zeke heal him, mostly to make sure he could regenerate without the healer... Luckily, it turned out he could, though it took a lot of food. Instead of eating everything, he saved the chicken for Caffeine and flew outside to find a lair for himself. The nearest one was corrupted... not quite undead, but damn close. He wiped it out, queen included, and it was easy... like pinching ants between his fingers. He didn''t even need to try... a simple sweep of his power left everything, even the lair itself, shattered and broken. Like brushing away cobwebs. Racial Evolution Progress... 32%... 49%... Unfortunately, all that wonderful power came with a cost... Stanley meditated for a bit, then flew back to Zeke rather than eat any more of Caffeine''s chicken. He tried using Still Mind for the next lair... and it didn''t work. As soon as he attacked, the skill broke. He kept trying, but it kept forcing him to stay angry. Or he kept forcing himself... It was annoying and infuriating, but also so, so good. The power at his fingertips was intoxicating, and he couldn''t get enough. Even the anger stopped bothering him after the initial irritant of his Still Mind ending. Hell, he didn''t actually feel angry. He felt amazing! Caffeine was the only bummer with the way he kept sitting up and looking all sad... and Stanley loved him for it. Caffeine really was the best dog, and mercifully, no matter how annoyed he got with the pug, Stanley never felt the slightest urge to hurt him. Instead, he wanted nothing more than for him to be happy, and that definitely made it easier to let go of the power. Lee and his friends helped too... but so did Stanley''s friends. The brands he''d stuck on them went both ways, after all. It felt simultaneously like they were right beside him but also in the distance, and they all knew when he was spiraling... Stanley almost regretted branding them, more so when the brands led them right to him, but he didn''t. Not really. They cared, and it was a good feeling. Plus, it made Caffeine happy when they showed up. Though they didn''t all care the same. Nate still had something lurking inside him... regret and guilt, mostly. It wasn''t really a problem because Stanley could tell that the man was still fully on his side. He cared, but it was more... calculating? No, that wasn''t quite right; maybe more... strategic? He didn''t care less, and he wasn''t cold about it, but he also wasn''t going in with blind affection like some others... mainly Zeke. Zeke''s soul held a fanaticism that bordered on disturbing. Likely a holdover from his religious background, and it had only gotten worse since he''d known him. God, I hope he''s not praying to me... He probably wasn''t. I can''t hear you, Zeke! Eve was almost the opposite, with a desperate devotion toward her brother and nothing else. That was probably unhealthy... but who was he to judge? Between his brother and his dog... The rest weren''t quite to the level of being willing to die for him, but they were ready to fight on his behalf, physically and emotionally... and that was enough. Better friends than he''d probably ever had. Stanley opened his eyes when they stopped beside him. "Any trouble?" Nate asked, eyeing the rapidly rotting corpse Stanley had snacked on. "The opposite," Stanley said and stretched out his hand. "I feel like a god." Probably a poor choice of words, given how Zeke''s soul reacted... but it was true. He closed his fist, and the entire four-story building-turned-lair imploded. You have attacked a... Lair destroyed. It wasn''t entirely his new and permanent willpower boost. He''d tapped into his soul for that demonstration... Unfortunately, that didn''t change the cost of showing off. Racial Evolution Progress... 25%... 46%... He could only imagine what would happen if he were really trying... or actually angry. He''d crept right to the edge twice now. First, last night, then even closer today, and he hadn''t even been fighting the second time... It would be a delicate dance, but he should be able to destroy at least one invader without falling off, though, just in case... "Eve," Stanley said. "If they come for Zeke... I''ll stop them, but... just stay out of my way afterward. That goes for all of you. If I change... well, I don''t think I''ll hurt any of you... at least not if you don''t try to stop me." Zeke didn''t like that, but Eve only nodded, oddly comforted by his statement. Nate was more pragmatic. "They won''t attack him again. Not while you''re still alive, at least, and I doubt they''d risk attacking you directly, either." "But if they do..." "They won''t," Nate stated. "They know they can''t beat you, so they''ll try something else." His confidence wavered, and he muttered, "Though I have been wrong before..." "Either way..." He rallied quickly, despite the moment of doubt, and glanced around the group before receiving silent nods from each of them. "We think it''s time for you to try something else, too." Stanley glared at the odd looks and smiles coming his way, trying to discern what they were conspiring about... "You''ve done enough," Nate said, and Stanley shook his head. This couldn''t be going where it sounded like it was going. "You''ve carried this entire dungeon on your back. Now it''s time to take a break and let others take up the..." Stanley picked him up and, sans a cave wall to hit him with, threw the idiot into the sky, aiming for somewhere over the horizon. So, of course, Nate somehow kicked off the air, reversing his flight and landing back where he''d started. "...fight. You''ve earned a break." He couldn''t be serious... "I''m dead serious about this," Nate said. "Yeah, you''re powerful, but look at yourself. You said you didn''t want to change, but now you''re playing with fire by..." Stanley wanted to throw him away, harder this time, but Caffeine was sitting up in his lap with that worried look on his face. So he meditated instead. It had the added benefit of muting Nate''s stupid voice. The moron was serious. Nate really wanted to sideline him... and it was only the day after they''d just lost one of the most important fights of their lives. Had he given Nate brain damage with all those blows to the head? Or did the man just think he was hot shit after reaching D-grade? How strong was he, really? While he alternately mused and fumed, Silas created a crystalline platform and used it to carry him after the others when they jogged away. It was strange to be moving while he meditated, but not enough to distract him from the issues at hand. It didn''t matter how strong Nate thought he was. There was no way Stanley would or could sit out the fight. No way in hell! So what if he had anger issues!? He could still fight! Even if he had to take some extra breaks... it wouldn''t be that much different from his early days. They stopped at the next lair, and Stanley remained in his meditation, though he listened to their souls to gauge their progress as they wiped it out. Not nearly as fast as he could have... but decent. Then they dumped the cores onto the platform beside him and ran on... Stanley glared at the cores through his domain. Really? You''re going to buy me off with a few cores!? I don''t need your pity! I don''t need to be carried! The irony of that last thought pulled him back out, and Stanley flew on ahead before Nate could say anything else so stupid. They were fast, but he was faster and arrived back at the base well before they caught up, whereupon he found the place in a state of... organized chaos. People rushed in all directions, carrying stuff from the damaged building to a whole train of giant wooden platforms lined up outside. Each platform was the size of at least two semi-trailers side by side and lined with short walls around their perimeters. Like very rectangular boats... or barges.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. The best part, in Stanley''s opinion, was how one barge floated in the air a few feet above the ground. Going by the group of gray robes surrounding it, the wizards were finally making themselves useful. He left them to their weak imitation of his power and went looking for Jerry because if anyone would have some food ready, it would be him. Along the way, he noted the scene of last night''s... execution. It looked identical to what he remembered, if not a bit more sparkly in the sunlight. Maybe bigger too? Everyone moving between the building and the platforms gave the area a wide berth... Stanley did, too. He''d come back to see the notification Theo had mentioned after Caffeine had something to eat. "Stanley," Bernard''s voice whispered in his ear. "Could we..." It went away when Stanley stilled the air between him and the flying man overhead. He didn''t want to waste time getting angry over whatever bullshit the man had cooked up. Food first. The glittering edge of his... artifact stretched all the way inside the walls, through a gaping opening that Stanley was mostly sure had been there before he arrived the night before. The damage didn''t stop at the wall, and Stanley flew into the building through the brand new entrance. On the upside, it made it easier to get inside since no one else was using the gap... He didn''t like that the trail of destruction came awfully close to Jerry''s grill, and he might have been worried if he couldn''t see the man''s soul in there... where Jerry had a giant chicken rotating on a spit over his cookfire. "You''re still alive," Jerry said without sparing a glance. Instead, he only had eyes for Caffeine when the pug sat up with a wagging tail. "Hello to you too, Caff. Hungry?" Caffeine''s tail wagged faster, and he made excited noises of agreement while hopping out of Stanley''s lap. "Here," Jerry said, and cut off a leg of the roasting chicken with a flick of his knife. He''d barely held it out when Caffeine ballooned in size and ate the entire thing with a single crunching chomp, bone included. After which, the pug stared intently at the remaining chicken while licking his lips. "Oh, you''re feeling much better, aren''t you!?" Jerry said with a laugh. "Who''s a good boy!?" He followed his words with more chicken, this time in smaller bites, and Caffeine loved each and every one. Stanley drank in the sight of Caffeine acting so energetic and happy. It was the perfect moment... until Jerry ruined it. "You know you''re flying around in your underwear, right?" "Is that a problem?" "Nah," Jerry said, scrutinizing him up and down. "I wouldn''t dream of critiquing your fashion sense, and the whole glowing bit''s a pretty good distraction. Though if I could suggest one thing..." Stanley only stared at the man. He knew this was going to be something stupid, and it was. "You should put your crown back on. It would really tie the whole look together." Stanley frowned and touched his head while Jerry chuckled to himself. Where was his crown? He was fairly certain he''d been wearing it when he flew in last night... had it gotten blasted into the woods at the end there? Technically, nothing should be able to leave his domain without him noticing, but he didn''t remember losing the crown. Or the cannibal core... Jerry finished laughing at his own joke but never stopped feeding chicken into Caffeine. That sight, along with thoughts of his domain, reminded Stanley of something from... last night? A memory of sorts, except not one of sights and sounds. Instead, it felt like an echo from his domain. "Did you feed Caffeine last night?" "Of course," Jerry said. "I''ve been keeping a stockpile of chicken on hand ever since he knocked out. Figured the poor little guy would be starving when he finally woke up, and he was." "Thank you!" Stanley said, almost choking up from the feelings surging inside him. "You''re one of the good ones, Jerry, and I''m glad you survived that shitshow last night." "Please." Jerry rolled his eyes. "Don''t get all emotional on me now. I just happen to know that Caffeine''s my only chance to survive when you finally snap and kill everyone." He eyed Stanley critically. "Though you are looking a little less murder-y today..." Stanley rolled his eyes and shoved the cook, but only gently, since he didn''t want him to stop feeding Caffeine. "Whatever. I''m still glad you..." "No!" a woman''s yell came from somewhere in the building. "You have to stay in..." "Caffy!" A much higher-pitched voice screamed behind him, and Stanley turned in time to see a small child literally bounce off the ceiling as she careened into the room. The girl crashed into another man on her way back down, launched herself off a table, and slammed to a halt against Caffeine''s side when the pug appeared between her and the massive firepit she''d been flying straight toward. What were they feeding the kids these days? "Denise!" a woman shouted as she came through the door behind the girl. "You aren''t allowed to play in the..." She locked eyes with Stanley and trailed off as the blood drained from her face. Stanley looked away from the terrified woman and instead watched Caffeine attack the child''s face with his tongue. She had no reason to be frightened, and she had to have known he was here already... On that thought, Stanley put his soul shield back up. As expected, it did nothing to mute the branded souls of his friends and one still unhappy wizard... so that was good. "Irene," Jerry said, his voice barely carrying over the child''s squeals. "How many times I gotta tell you that Stanley''s harmless?" The woman started moving again but went wide on her way to the girl and Caffeine. "You also tell everyone that he''ll snap and kill us all!" she hissed, then winced and forced an apologetic smile Stanley''s way. "No offense!" "I only said he probably would!" Jerry protested. "Otherwise, he''s harmless! He won''t hit on you, he won''t undress you with his eyes, and he won''t look at you like he''s hoping you wander far enough out that he can have his way with you." "Wow," Stanley muttered, giving Jerry a much harder shove. "Glad I''m living up to your ridiculously high standard of not being a serial killer." Jerry grinned at him. "You''d think that, wouldn''t you? But you obviously haven''t heard the bullshit some guys try to pull after getting a taste of power." "So?" Stanley frowned at him. "You just kill them, don''t you?" Though that reminded him of Brett... Where was he? If June was dead, that probably meant that Brett was, too. Had he dropped a core? Nate probably knew... "See?" Jerry said, smiling at Irene while holding both hands out toward Stanley. "He''s a simple guy with simple solutions. Long as you aren''t a problem, you got nothing to worry about!" Shockingly, his speech did nothing to make the woman feel better. Instead, she tried futilely to capture the child chasing after Caffeine between and under the tables. "Come along, Denise! We have to stay out of the way while everyone is..." "Let them play," Stanley said. "I... but it''s not safe in here!" Stanley glanced around at the tables and chairs, not to mention the huge bed of coals in the open firepit. None of it mattered. Given her entrance, she was probably tough enough to walk barefoot through the fire, and besides, Caffeine would protect the kid no matter what. Still... there was only one of them here, and Caffeine would want to play with all of them. He caught the child¡ªtaking extra care to be as gentle as possible with his new power¡ªand carried the squirming thing back to its caretaker, Caffeine now in pursuit. "Where are the rest of them?" "I..." She looked back and forth between him and the floating child before sighing. "This way... and thank you." Before he left, Stanley took the remaining leg from the roasting chicken, and Jerry shouted after him, "You''re welcome!" Stanley waved without looking back, instead focused on steering the squealing child''s hands away from the doorjamb and everything else she tried to grab onto. Caffeine helped by effortlessly avoiding her grip while darting in and out to lick her face. Irene led him past the room Stanley had last seen the kids, and he understood why after a glance inside where a portion of the ceiling no longer existed. He could see into the floor above, and there was daylight shining through from somewhere out of sight. It made him angry¡ªwell, angrier¡ªand Stanley flicked on his Soul Sight to find his destination quicker. He took Irene with him and moved toward the large cluster of child souls. Caffeine kept up without trouble, and Stanley heard a single booming bark come from Barbie before he dropped his cargo and fell into meditation. Caffeine''s presence helped distract from his soul shield failing. Either that, or the kids didn''t care, because none of them seemed to react. Not like the adults did. Then the chaos that followed made a fantastic background to his meditation. The kids were thrilled, and Barbie no longer felt any fear at seeing the pug. In fact, the pit bull''s soul actually seemed more relaxed after his arrival... maybe he finally understood that Caffeine would only help him protect his human better? Those were all good things, but the best feeling of all came from Caffeine, because the pug was having the time of his life... It all added up to an extremely pleasant atmosphere to meditate in. More exciting than soothing, but still great. The pleasantness waned when a vaguely familiar woman entered his domain and started talking at him. It waned further when she started yelling and poking him. Irene''s worried soul was speeding back his way when Stanley opened his eyes. "...like a lump when someone''s talking to ya, boy!" The angry little Black woman finished yelling, and Stanley remembered why her soul felt familiar. Her name was still a mystery, but she''d been equally annoying the last time he saw her... "Trudy!" Irene called. "What are you doing!?" "Telling. This. Boy," Trudy said, punctuating each word with a finger jabbing into his ribs. "To put his clothes back on!" Stanley looked down at his briefs. "I''m wearing enough." "Bah! Enough, he says! Where''d your suit go!? Ya looked good in that one!" Her soul felt weird when she said that last bit... not so much angry as wistful... and something else he couldn''t place. Wasn''t she one of Eve''s friends? That would probably explain her weird behavior... Still, friend of a friend and all that. Instead of wasting his time getting angry or arguing with the lunatic, Stanley flew away. His evolution progress was low enough, and there was still something else he wanted to check. The skeleton stood like two separate halves of a statue amidst a field of glass, and Stanley stared at it for long moments before he could bring himself to approach the thing, let alone touch it. It was a menacing sight, even broken, and it loomed large before him as he drifted closer. Though not as large as he remembered... These things had always felt so much bigger in his nightmares. Unstoppable behemoths that hounded him relentlessly. Now, here in the light of day, dead and broken, it still towered over him, but only physically. It hadn''t been unstoppable this time, and he had killed it. Hell, he''d more than killed it. He had annihilated it. Sure, it hadn''t gone quite how he''d wanted, but he''d still won. Mostly. Trying to change the past had always been a long-shot plan... hadn¡¯t it? Technically, the only thing preventing his plan from working was the same thing that had always held him back. He just needed more power. "I do not fear you, foul thing," Stanley finally whispered, before reaching out to touch one half of its face... His hand never reached the bones; instead, his fingers ran into a glass-like wall almost a whole foot away, and a notification appeared. (Hi, Stanley! I left... you a little reminder... here, since you might have... lost a few notifications when... I fixed your mess. Ha... Ha...) The familiar voice and laugh were not a surprise; he¡¯d already suspected that creature¡¯s involvement, though Stanley had a feeling that neither Theo nor Nate had seen this particular notification... They would have mentioned that terrible laughter if nothing else. (Ha... Ha... After all the... trouble I went to... to give your other half a taste of time... magic, you were the one... who went and pushed... it! Ha... Ha...) Stanley shivered but didn''t miss what it had said. His other half... was it talking about Lee? Had it given him something? When!? And how!? And what the fuck did a taste of time magic mean!? Wait... the god that had attacked Lee... was it... The disturbing laughter finally ended and the disturbing voice continued. (Oh, right... the notifications.) At least the following notifications were normal... or as normal as they could be given what they said. Warning! Spacetime rupture detected! Emergency Quest created. Preparing containment measures. Warning! Isolating Grand Raid: [The Fall of Boston] from Dungeon World (Earth) Warning! Strengthening Dungeon Perimeter to Contain Spacetime Rupture. Warning! Sealing Dungeon Perimeter. Consigning all Sapient and Sentient... Emergency Quest accepted. Spacetime rupture contained. Isolation and consignment of Grand Raid: [The Fall of Boston] aborted. Recalculating Threat Level of Lee and Stanley Cascade... That was a lot. Nate definitely hadn''t seen this. He wouldn''t have been so amused with himself if he had... and that last bit was especially troubling. Never mind the faint laughter that trailed off into a whispered... (Remember, you owe me one.) So it probably wasn¡¯t the thing that attacked Lee, considering it wanted something from him... or maybe both of them? Did Lee owe it a favor already? Did he get a similar message? Other than that, it was definitely the same man that wasn''t a man. The system even mentioned quests again... but why? Why couldn''t the system fix the rupture itself? Was this being more powerful than the system? Or were there simply certain things it couldn''t do? What did the quest say? Did it bring that being here, or was it already here and watching? If it was already watching, then why? Why did something so powerful even care about him or want something from him? What could he possibly do that it couldn''t, and worse, what did it mean that he owed it one? "Mr. Cascade," Bernard''s voice came from behind him, and Stanley didn''t bother to turn. The man''s grudges and schemes just felt so... small in the face of everything else. Who cared who was in charge? What did any of that matter? Though Bernard''s soul felt... strange, and he was being oddly polite. "Sir!" Stanley turned then, mostly because he couldn''t believe what his domain was telling him. It wasn''t wrong. Bernard was saluting him... in plain sight of everyone, where he hovered a few feet off the ground. The man didn''t meet his gaze and instead stared over his shoulder, but his soul was sincere, if not entirely thrilled, when he said, "Thank you, sir." Stanley wasn''t about to salute back, but he opened his mouth to say... well, he wasn''t sure what he wanted to say. Luckily, Bernard didn''t seem to expect any response. He dropped the salute and instead held out a bundle of different-colored cloth. "I brought a variety of clothing options in case you would like to get dressed." Again with that? What was everyone''s problem with clothing when they could all die at any fucking moment!? Well... looking at Bernard now, the man was wearing more armor than clothing. Not that Stanley needed armor these days... at least, not against most monsters. It just so happened that the only actual threats to his person were beyond any armor he''d seen yet. Except the clothing on offer wasn''t armored... so maybe Bernard understood that. Stanley sighed. "Where did you get all of this?" "I asked around when you arrived. Though I''m sure I could procure something more tailored to your specifications if you don''t mind waiting." Yeah, and Stanley could do the same if he wanted to. "It doesn''t matter," Stanley said instead of arguing and took a gray cloth from the other man, which turned out to be a wizard robe, though that wasn''t why he took it. The cloth turned out to be exactly as soft as his domain had shown, and he donned it with only minor reservations about what magic might linger within. He would have only folded it in his lap since he mainly wanted Caffeine to have a softer bed when he came back for his next nap, but this way, maybe people would stop bitching about his outfit? "I suppose now you want my help with all this?" Stanley asked, waving at the surrounding chaos. "On the contrary," Bernard said. "Not only did Mr. Washington give a direct order that you were to be left out of it, but I agree with him. You have done enough for..." "You can fuck right off with that bullshit!" Stanley snapped. "Nate was bad enough, but you''re brain-damaged if you think I can''t still fight!" Bernard held up both hands and drifted back, frightened. "I don''t think that! Rather, I hope and pray for the opposite!" Despite his fear, he moved closer again in a swirl of air, though he lowered his voice before continuing. "I''ll admit I''ve had my doubts about your commitment to humanity, but after last night, that is no longer the case." He was a bastard, but he meant what he was saying. "Whatever you need to see this through, I and mine stand with you. So long as you continue to uphold the values and ideals of this great nation..." Stanley stopped listening and started meditating. Bernard definitely feared him more than he had. A perfectly healthy amount of fear. But whatever he''d seen, the guy had changed his tune. To a point. Bernard probably wouldn''t risk turning on him now, but Stanley wouldn''t be surprised if he started trying to steer him toward replacing Nate... Not that Stanley was feeling very good about Nate''s leadership right now. Conniving or not, Bernard took the hint and fucked off. Which was good because Stanley had one more rather important thing to check. His soul. More specifically, the wound in his soul. He hadn''t fixed it yet, and he needed to make sure it hadn''t gotten worse from what he did. More importantly, he needed to make sure he could still finish the repair job with his new... limitations. He''d been afraid to look too closely before, but now it was time to face the music. Good news, it didn''t look any worse. In fact, it looked better than it should... Stanley studied the wound he was all too familiar with, along with the new glowing symbol Lee had stuck over it. Unlike the previous symbol, this one looked far more... simple? Except it didn''t feel simple. It was only a single line doubling back on itself in a swirling pattern, but it felt like there was so much more hidden within the deceptively plain lines. More than that, something about the symbol felt... right. Like it... belonged. Within the oddly comforting symbol, Stanley could still feel all the souls who had helped him before, some more dim than others, but all of them packed into the tiny thing. Somehow. Not that he really had a way to judge size and scale in here... He was taking it all in, trying and failing to make sense of how Lee''s magic worked, when something shifted. It was a minute change. Minuscule enough to be almost unnoticeable, but not to him. Not when he saw and felt what it did. Especially not when he left his meditation to find a new notification waiting... Debuff Downgraded: [Minor Soul Wound(Unbroken Soul Binding)] Lee''s magic was repairing the wound with no input from him. He almost couldn''t believe it, but after all the time he''d spent repairing their soul, the effect was undeniable. It was slow, but it was there. Unceasing. Moment by moment, Lee''s magic was pulling their soul back together. Stanley smiled, but it was bittersweet. Lee kept having to help him. All the time he''d spent trapped in this place... it was time he should have spent protecting his brother. He should have been by his brother''s side through everything. Instead, Lee was the one who kept saving him... Thank you, Lee. I won''t let it be for nothing, and I swear I''ll get back to you! He added his own efforts into the mix and found his soul more receptive than ever to his power, or maybe that was just his increased strength? Unfortunately, that didn''t mean his soul wound could handle the extra strain that came along with the power, and he reached his limit almost instantly. That wasn''t a bad thing, and Lee''s magic worked slowly enough that it wasn''t a problem either... but it left Stanley with extra free time. He considered going hunting, especially when Nate arrived and chucked a bag of cores into his lap... but he didn''t. Despite Nate''s optimism, Stanley still thought the undead might come back to try again. Of course, that wasn''t the only reason he stayed. He had another very good reason not to go hunting. It involved the notification he got every time he tried to absorb a core. Racial Evolution in progress. You must complete or abort the evolution process before upgrading further. 180. Talking ~~~Stanley~~~ Racial Evolution in progress. You must complete or abort the evolution process before upgrading further. Stanley wasn''t sure whether to laugh, cry, or scream in rage at the system for doing this to him. It felt like a twist of terrible irony because, for the first time in his life, he wasn''t too weak. In fact, he might actually be too powerful instead. He''d gotten exactly what he wanted, and only at the end did he realize he should have been careful what he wished for. It hadn''t come as a complete surprise, either. Not after seeing his weird attributes the night before. They looked closer to normal now, probably because his evolution progress was much lower... Status Name: Stanley Cascade Race: [Wrathstorm](E-grade Human) Pending... Racial evolution in progress: [Eidolon of Wrath](E-grade Eidolon) 25% Complete. Titles: [Titan Slayer] [F-grade Source] Traits: [Adaptable](57%) [Source Nexus] [Wrathstorm Unleashed] [Source Burned] [Ruthless Soul] Class: Soul Psionic (Epic) - Level 150 (Expert) Class Skills: Mind Over Matter (Legendary) - Level 150 (Expert) | Premonition (Epic) - Level 90 (Advanced) | Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Harmonic Soul Meditation (Rare) - Level 99 (Advanced) | Mental Fortress (Epic) - Level 59 (Advanced) Attributes: Strength: 612(+20%)734 Vitality: 605(+112%)1282 Dexterity: 613(+20%)735 Wisdom: 821(+2373%)23981 Intelligence: 835(+2373%)24328 Willpower: 901(+9918%)103522 Twin-Soul: 127(+747%)1075 Non-Class Skills 2/6: Soul Awareness (Epic) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Psionic Barrier (Rare) - Level 49 (Intermediate) | Psionic Soul Shield (Rare) - Level 24 (Basic) Buff: [Soul-Link] Debuff: [Minor Soul Wound(Unbroken Soul Binding)] He was still missing a chunk of his physical attributes, and the numbers fluctuated wildly along with his evolution progress. Not that those attributes mattered to him. Well, aside from the whole not turning into a monster thing... otherwise, it was all good. More than good! He was unstoppable! Which meant Nate was probably right about the undead not coming back... because they were no longer a threat. Not directly. If they showed their faces again, he would snuff them out like candles in a hurricane, and they knew that. After all, the damn thing had ripped out part of its soul to escape... Stanley still felt amusement at imagining that monster''s suffering, but it wasn''t a happy feeling. It was cruel... and angry. Racial Evolution Progress... 25%... 32%... He dropped back into meditation and studied the stolen piece of soul again. It still yielded no connections back to its original owner, and unlike with his brands, Stanley wasn''t detecting the greater whole through the smaller piece. He also couldn''t feel its emotions through the piece... It wasn''t a blank slate by any stretch. It felt like the undead''s soul, but it also felt... static. Unchanging. Not dead, but more... in limbo? Eve did something similar with the bits of her soul spread throughout her machines, where the bits no longer mirrored the rest. They used to, but not lately. Now she programmed them to do specific tasks... or so she said. He hadn''t quite figured out the knack; otherwise, he could have made his brands only one way. Or so he suspected. Souls were weird. He''d never tried to track Eve down from a spider, and he doubted it would work if he tried. There weren''t links stretching between all the pieces, at least not that he could detect. Not even between him and Lee... Maybe it was some kind of quantum entanglement effect? Were quantum physics still a thing? The wizards might know... maybe they would even figure out how to track souls before him, and wouldn''t that be nice? Either way, the undead wouldn''t be coming to him. Instead, as Nate said, they would try something else... whatever that meant. They might not even have to do anything if Zeke couldn''t purge himself... a task Stanley could feel him currently working on nearby. His progress so far wasn''t much, but it was only the first day... I''ll find them before it gets to that, Stanley promised silently. Maybe he could torture the undead into removing the corruption? Or at least for information on a way to remove it? That might even be fun... He didn''t know the limits of his new power, but he imagined that inflicting pain had to be easier than altering the past. He could even start in on their souls if their flesh¡ªor lack thereof¡ªproved resistant to suffering. Unfortunately, his violent thoughts weren''t helping with being chill, so Stanley tried to focus on Caffeine''s soul instead. It was much more pleasant, but even that reprieve ended when the children got rounded up onto a barge and the exhausted pug came running back for a nap. He still wasn''t at a hundred percent... but on the upside, Stanley got him to eat a few cores before knocking out. Hopefully, he was actually absorbing them and not just destroying them... There was a chance that if he fed enough cores to Caffeine and then convinced the pug to send him the attributes... well, it probably wouldn''t work. The system wouldn''t let him have a loophole like that, would it? Though even if it would, that still left him with the problem of getting Caffeine to cooperate. Adrian and Daryl might help with that... maybe even those kids with the bats. It was definitely worth a shot, and worst case, he might accidentally push Caffeine into D-grade. So, win-win. One positive effect of him sitting in the shadow of a dead skeleton was that no one wanted to come close. It left him with a modicum of peace amidst the chaos of a thousand people getting ready to move. The downside came when he confirmed the glassy surface was indeed spreading outward... and dragging the divided halves of the skeleton with it. It was slow, as in, he only knew because his domain told him it was moving. Even then, he couldn''t actually see the movement. It was there, but too small to measure. The notification had said the rupture was contained... so hopefully this was just some residual effect? Maybe it was still settling? Or maybe it was simply how time magic worked. How the hell was he supposed to know either way!? That god wanted a favor, so he presumably needed Stanley alive to collect. His notification also hadn''t told him not to touch it... unlike Nate and Theo. Did that mean something? Were the wizards capable of undoing it? But then why wouldn''t he be at least an equal threat? Did it just know he wouldn''t try anything? After all, he had seen into the abyss... Stanley shivered, then gave Caffeine some pets before slipping back into his meditation. Barring the Caffeine loophole, he needed to get rid of this evolution, and the best way to do that was probably through meditation. Based on what made the progress go up or down, he needed to be... calm. Well, calmer, at least. Assuming he actually could abort the evolution... The notification seemed to imply that it was possible, but it didn''t tell him how. He''d already tried every mental command he could think of, and all he had left now was to push the progress as low as it would go. There had to be a threshold where it would let him turn it down... right? If he couldn''t... No, there had to be a way. Stanley buckled down and kept focusing on Caffeine''s soul as the pug slept. Caffeine dreamt a few times, but they were all pleasant dreams. Especially when Zeke ventured into the quarantine zone and sat beside him. Caffeine didn''t wake, but he definitely seemed to enjoy the light... Meanwhile, Stanley meditated and thought all the stupid, happy thoughts until the gathered mass of humanity started moving away, Zeke going with them. Racial Evolution in Progress... 19%... That was the best he''d seen, and it gave him a glimmer of hope. He could beat this and get to D-grade! It shouldn''t take long, a day or two at most. In the distance, he saw the train of floating platforms drifting away above the trees, and true to their word, neither Nate nor Bernard had tried to recruit him into helping in the effort... so why did that bother him? It was a good thing. They''d improved enough that they didn''t need his help... and that was bothering him? The more he thought about it, the more he realized why. It bothered him because it was all too little too late. They hadn''t won the fight! They had lost, and now he was stuck with this damn evolution! Now they wanted him to take a break!? Now!? When it was already too... Stanley blew out a breath and let it go. As much as he could, at least. Nate''s little dream about sidelining him was exactly that¡ªa dream. Though he had picked a good time... if they didn''t have to worry about the undead attacking again... well, maybe the weaklings could take over. Hell, maybe they could go really crazy and actually find the undead for him? He could take a day or two to fix this evolution thing... and they could feed Caffeine cores while he did that. Then he could end this once and for all. Zeke didn''t leave. He came back with the whole team... and they lingered at the edges of the time field, waiting for him. "I''ll catch up," Stanley said after they continued not leaving. "We will too," Nate said. "Yeah," Silas said, poking gingerly at the glass with one of his crystals. "Those platforms are pretty slow, so take your time." Stanley sighed and flew after the barges. Despite what Silas said, they weren''t that slow. Maybe forty miles an hour? Which, once he thought about it, made the people running through the trees below and keeping up all the more impressive. For normal people, at least... They were all still pitifully slow compared to the real powers of this new world. Not everyone was on foot¡ªthough they had loaded the barges with more luggage than people¡ªbut enough of them were, and they didn''t seem to be enjoying the fresh air and exercise. The overall mood was... dim. Nate had said people would die... and going by the way some individuals were feeling, maybe some had. Not that he''d noticed any obvious missing persons... He almost second-guessed his decision to join the caravan once he got in the thick of it, but it wasn''t all bad. Not all the humans were miserable, and some were even enjoying themselves, particularly the children playing with the wolves and Barbie. The pit bull stayed near the middle of the pack with his human, but the wolves roamed around the outskirts, never quite mingling with the mass of humanity, even if they would occasionally dart in. Usually to steer a child back toward the center... almost like they were herding the kids to keep them from wandering too far. Which maybe they were? At least Barbie didn''t seem to mind their presence. Hell, if anything, he was less wary of the wolves than the other humans. Smart. Stanley followed the bits of Eve''s soul to a barge carrying her equipment and made himself a seat by rearranging some of the junk that wasn''t hers. Zeke was probably safe for now, but why risk it? And if he was going to tag along, well, he might as well get a free ride out of it. Eve didn''t protest his presence when she caught up and only went right back to work on building... something. Probably a weapon, if her soul was anything to go by. He watched her work¡ªat least as well as he could without Soul Sight¡ªand waited for a lull before asking about something nagging him. "Do you still have eyes at the stadium?" "No," Eve said without looking away from her work. "Not since... well, it doesn''t matter now, and besides, there''s supposed to be a bunch of wizards down there now." Of course. Nate had been planning to take over the stadium, hadn''t he? Stanley went back to meditating instead of asking. Going after Sam now was a total long shot, and the odds of success were even worse since they didn''t have Brett anymore... or did they? "He''s dead," Nate confirmed when Stanley flew over to ask about the mind controller, but there was something else there... something Nate didn''t want to share. "What about his core!?" "He dropped it," Nate finally admitted reluctantly. "His domination skill." Stanley would have become excited if he hadn''t been able to see Nate''s soul, so instead, his voice fell flat when he asked, "What did you do with it?" "I gave it to someone to turn it into attributes," Nate said honestly, and Caffeine immediately woke up. Racial Evolution Progress... 26%... 49%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. "Why?" Stanley asked more than a few miles later, and after an extended bout of meditation. "Why the fuck would you..." Racial Evolution Progress... 21%... 40%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. Stanley sat back in the dirt while Caffeine licked his face, then meditated until he only wanted to hurt Nate rather than kill him. He kept meditating until Caffeine finally went back to sleep before flying after the others. Slowly. Nate had to know what that skill meant. It might even be the difference between Zeke living or dying. Or a fate worse than death. Nate knew that and still destroyed it... Stanley stopped before rejoining the convoy and before Caffeine could Still Mind him. This time Lee brought the extended family back into the mix so they could bombard him with their stupid love and affection! It was... nice, and with their help, he could look at the situation more rationally. He was obviously overreacting. After all, it hadn''t even been an hour ago that he''d thought the skill lost forever, and he hadn''t been all that upset about the fact. Not until he found out Nate destroyed it.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. When Stanley next opened his eyes, he gazed upon the returned and waiting people with mixed emotions. "Did you all know about this?" "I agreed with the decision," James said, but then he would agree with whatever Nate wanted. Serenity and Olivia both nodded, and while Silas shifted uncomfortably when Stanley''s gaze landed on him, he still nodded his own agreement. "I would have used it rather than destroy... it," Eve said, finally looking up from her nonstop crafting, only to trail off after meeting his gaze. She found her courage a heartbeat later. Not a lot, but enough to surprise Stanley. "Well, I would have... but destroying it is probably better since we didn''t know what you were turning into. Or if Caffeine could stop you again..." She shrugged at him before turning back to her work, and Stanley stared back at her for a long moment before he could decipher the jumble of her soul. She wasn''t unafraid, but she''d moved on into a sort of fatalistic courage. Or maybe... acceptance? Whatever it was, he almost liked it. Aside from the implication in all of their souls, even if they weren''t stating it explicitly. "You didn''t want me to learn it." Damning silence followed his statement, and Stanley meditated some more. It wasn''t their fault... not really. Well, probably not. They were afraid of him, and he couldn''t blame them for that. Especially with his current... situation. So he sat still and thought happy thoughts. It helped, and the longer he waited, the less upset he felt about the betrayal. Because it wasn''t a betrayal. Questionable decision-making, sure, but not a betrayal. After all, he''d never come out and said he wanted the skill... though they probably would have destroyed it sooner if he had. Besides, he hadn''t even wanted the skill until that monster put Caffeine into an extended nap. Caffeine was better... but of course, now Zeke was the one in trouble... "That skill might have been what we needed to find out how to remove the corruption from Zeke," Stanley said without opening his eyes. "But I get it. I''m an unstable luna..." "I didn''t do it to protect us from you," Nate interjected. "I did it to protect you from yourself." Stanley opened his eyes. "Let me clarify," Nate said, voice steady despite his nervous soul. "It wasn''t fear of you that stopped me. It was fear of who you might become. Not now or anytime soon, but eventually. Power like that changes people, even if they don¡¯t mean for it to. Brett was bad enough, but he had limits. Hard ones. His reach could only go so far." He hesitated, eyes narrowing as if searching for the right words. "But you? I don¡¯t know what your limits would be... or if you¡¯d have any at all. That¡¯s what scares me. Not the person you are today, but the one you might become when there¡¯s no one left to say no to you." It wasn''t a terrible argument... or one Stanley hadn''t already had with himself. "You know," Stanley mused aloud. "I once turned down a class skill that would have let me read and manipulate minds." Nate didn''t even try to hide his relief. "So you get it?" "Yeah, yeah," Stanley said, rolling his eyes. "I don''t trust myself either. Of course, that still leaves Zeke..." "I believe in him," Nate said with a pat on Zeke''s back. "He''s got this." Of course, he was still lying, but it made the kid feel better, so there was that. Stanley picked everyone up and flew them after the convoy. It was later, after some more meditation, when he caught a snippet of conversation between Nate and Theo. "Dale is at the stadium!?" Stanley asked the duo incredulously. "Isn''t that the self-serving fuck who left you hanging? I assumed you''d have killed him by now..." "Not yet," Nate said. "And he didn''t go himself, but he sent a lot of his people... Though it''s definitely suspicious that he''s suddenly willing to help us." "It''s not suspicious," Theo said. "He simply heard about the magic we found in the pit and doesn''t want to be left out." "Maybe." Nate shook his head. "Unfortunately, we need his help, since whatever was protecting the stadium from the miasma is gone, and the logistics of taking over that place are... problematic." "Just give ''em an ultimatum to fight or die," Stanley said. "We can clear out some extra skyscrapers easily enough..." They were already drifting into view of downtown, and while most of the buildings were lairs, they weren''t all thriving. Maybe Zeke moving into the area would help with that? "We''re not to that point yet," Nate said. "At least not if the wizards can keep them going... but I''ve also been recruiting anyone willing to fight. I won''t complain if Dale''s people can keep even a few more people alive long enough to come around." Nate and his grand dreams. "I should go check on them," Stanley muttered. "Just to be safe..." "Not that I don''t enjoy seeing Dale knocked down a peg," Theo said. "But his help is useful. Don''t worry; we have enough people down there to monitor him. He won''t be able to get away with much of anything." Stanley wasn¡¯t buying it, but then again, he could always kill the guy later. They didn''t get much further before they started seeing hunting parties from the tower, which might explain some of the weaker lairs in the area... Not that the teams Stanley saw were anything impressive. Well, one team stood out, or rather, one person. It was Kira wielding her blood-red spear. Samantha''s spear... It looked different now, more like Kira... but he would always recognize that weapon. Stanley really thought he was over that loss, but seeing the spear again... it hurt. When she started approaching the convoy alongside Adrian and Daryl, Stanley took the coward''s way out and flew away. He wasn''t supposed to help anyway... right? Instead, he flew ahead to the tower. It felt like a long time ago that he''d flown away. So much had happened... and Stanley felt a little bad about how he''d brushed off Walter earlier. Sure, he''d been under the influence of Still Mind and... other things, but he still felt bad. Which made him angry... Stanley could see Walter''s soul waiting in his room, so he went that way, flying in through the open balcony doors and into the room. He could at least apologize for... "Welcome home," Walter said, turning away from the wall with an apron draped over his ever-present tuxedo. He held a tray covered in plaster in one hand and a spade in the other. "If you will pardon the mess, the renovation of your quarters is nearly complete." Stanley stared at the butler, then around at the room. There was an open bucket of paint atop a sheet, and he could see more than a few spots of fresh plaster where Walter had patched holes, some of them larger than others... and all of them probably caused by his... outbursts. No, not probably. Certainly. The sight shouldn''t have come as such a surprise, considering, but he''d never actually stopped to think about it. He''d always assumed someone was fixing what he broke, because it was never still broken when he returned, but he''d never really had to consider who was repairing it or how. "Walter," Stanley said, feeling even worse than he had. "I''m sorry for..." He glanced again at the half-patched wall. How many times had Walter fixed this room? How many times did he never even notice? "For everything." "Nonsense," Walter said, his voice as droll as ever, even as his soul beamed. "You have nothing to apologize for." "But..." "Seeing you alive and well is reward enough for my efforts. I could not ask for anything more." He meant it. Utterly and completely. Walter was too good to him, and it wasn''t merely him trying to be nice to the crazy, powerful guy. He actually cared... and worried. Stanley could feel it in the man''s soul... and it made him furious. With himself. So, despite wanting to thank the man, or apologize again, or anything else that he should have said or done, Stanley could only sit on the floor and meditate. It came hard to him, but he managed. Walter didn''t mind, accepting his sudden silence as he returned to repairing the wall. Of course, that wasn''t all he did. The butler vanished often, and his soul briefly reappeared in various places below before returning to his work. The absences only increased as the mass of approaching souls grew ever closer outside. Stanley mostly stayed in his meditation and watched through their souls as the two groups of humanity merged into one. It took a while, and Stanley only took a few breaks. He timed each break intentionally when Walter wasn''t present and tried his own hand at repairing the holes Walter hadn''t gotten to yet. For some annoying reason, it was a lot harder than it looked, and he abandoned his efforts after making a small hole into a much larger one... He stayed in his meditation when Walter next returned and felt it when the man noticed his... efforts. As before, there was no recrimination from him. In fact, he might have even been smiling while he fixed Stanley''s latest mistake. It wasn''t until Nate and the others appeared upstairs that Stanley gave up hiding inside his own mind. Even then, he only emerged when Adrian''s soul started acting weird. Soul Sight through the walls was enough, and before he even left his room, he knew what was happening. Adrian was evolving to D-grade. The sight of the man lying on a couch with Cheesesteak sitting protectively beside him reminded Stanley of what Nate had said earlier. "Walter, did Nate give you a core for me?" "Of course, sir." Walter held out a white-gloved hand, and a core that hadn''t been there before lay in his palm. "Pardon me, but I had intended to mention..." "Keep it," Stanley said, ignoring the surprised looks from his friends as he did so. "You can use it." "That is not necessary..." "I don''t care!" Stanley snapped. "Take it!" He closed his eyes and took a few breaths to calm down as much as he could without meditating, then glanced at Nate. "You''ll have more soon enough, right?" "We will," Nate said slowly, his soul surprised and suspicious. Stanley considered sharing his current predicament regarding cores and how he couldn''t absorb them, but he didn''t. The mood was actually fairly pleasant in here, and he didn''t want to ruin it. "The core is yours, Walter. It''s a..." He almost said repayment but caught himself in time. "It''s a gift." "Then..." Walter floundered for a second before regaining his composure with a shallow bow Stanley''s way. "I thank you." Stanley could feel where Walter''s soul was going, and he glanced at Daryl with a smile. "I won''t mind if you also want to give it away..." Walter was already handing the core to Daryl before Stanley finished speaking. He probably could have skipped straight to giving it to Daryl in the first place... Of course, neither of them was expecting Daryl to turn immediately and offer the core to Cheesesteak. Though maybe they should have... "You don''t mind, right?" Daryl asked Stanley, his soul far more wary than Walter''s. Stanley shook his head, then watched the core dissolve while clutched in Cheesesteak''s beak... maybe birds didn''t like to chew up cores like Caffeine? The others trickled away after that, though Daryl remained at Adrian''s side. Nate gave Stanley some strange looks, but he still left to go deal with all the bullshit that arises when humanity gathers in large numbers. Caffeine slept through it all, which Princess probably appreciated, though Stanley thought he saw the pug''s nose twitching more than once. He stopped sleeping when the two new D-grades woke up, though that was probably because of the deafening screech the phoenix unleashed rather than anything else. Red-gold flames bathed the penthouse, emanating from the pair in a torrent, and Stanley wasn''t the only one who had the same idea following their evolution. Zeke appeared upstairs almost immediately, and both bird and man poured their fire into the corruption in his chest without prompting. Maybe they''d talked about it earlier? Stanley watched with anticipation... anticipation that slowly morphed into helpless despair. The corruption retreated at first, with many of the rotten tendrils pulling back into the little nugget of darkness in Zeke''s chest, but that was as far as it went. Amid the raging phoenix fire, that knot of corruption didn''t shrink. It reacted to the flames, but not in a good way. Instead of burning away, it condensed into a brighter blackness, then exploded back out, forcing its way through the flames to entangle itself even deeper throughout Zeke''s soul once again. That was when Zeke started screaming... and Stanley''s despair turned into murderous fury. Racial Evolution Progress... 27%... 53%... Buff Gained: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Warning! Skill: Still Mind of the Psionic Beast (Epic) is incompatible with Race: Eidolon of Wrath Racial Evolution Interrupted. He could go right now. He could scour the entire dungeon, could tear up the ground, and destroy every lair. Nothing could stop him... especially not if he finished evolving into an Eidolon. Once that was done, there would be nothing stopping him from getting to D-grade... other than the fact he''d just given away his only core... No, the D-grade lair queen was still down there. He could kill it instead of waiting for more to be born. He would... Buff Removed: [Still Mind of the Psionic Beast] Stanley retreated to his room and missed whatever was said after that. He didn''t want to leave them, but he had no choice. It was that or go hunting, and he would not start down that path. Not yet. Not until all hope was lost. Not until he had no other choice. So he hid in his room¡ªwhere he couldn''t see or hear anything¡ªand felt like a coward the whole time. Not that hiding really helped. The walls of his room still sheltered him from the souls outside, but they didn''t block the soul brands... Mercifully, Zeke didn''t suffer long, at least not physically. Honestly, he took the pain better than the disappointment that followed. Especially since it felt like he was blaming himself... It sucked. A lot. Lee came to his aid again, and it was the only way Stanley maintained his meditation. From that slightly calmer place, he watched the aftermath as best he could through the brands. Adrian tried a few more times by the feel of things, but each attempt ended with the same result, until eventually they gave up, and Stanley watched bitterly as their souls receded downstairs. He didn''t follow. There was nothing he could do to help... Walter appeared in his room later¡ªonly for an instant¡ªand left something behind when he vanished. Caffeine''s abrupt awakening and scramble across the room was all that Stanley needed to know exactly what the man had left for him. Dinner. He would have kept meditating and let Caffeine eat all the food, but he needed to eat something if he didn''t want to go find Zeke... Also, Caffeine only sat beside the table and cried instead of stealing the food... Stanley yeeted one bite of fish into his mouth and dumped the rest into Caffeine''s maw. He assumed correctly that Walter was watching, because the man knocked on the door with more food the moment the last scraps vanished into the pug. The man said nothing as he cleared the dirty plates and replaced them with fresh, steaming plates he pulled from nowhere. He''d probably talked with the others... so he likely knew everything already. His soul sure felt concerned enough... though that might have been about something else, because he broke the silence first. "I..." Walter hesitated but was clearly itching to get something out while also trying to be delicate about whatever it was. Stanley said nothing but pushed an extra chair out from the table as an invitation. Walter sat primly, an extra plate appearing before him as he did so, but he didn''t start eating. Instead, he finally mustered up the will to say what was on his mind. "I would like to introduce you to someone. Would you mind if I invited her to join us?" "Who?" Stanley asked, a bad feeling tickling at the back of his mind. "A Ms. Marie Lennon. She was a... psychologist..." Walter trailed off, and Stanley reined in the flash of rage his words had incited. Instead of lashing out, Stanley only laughed bitterly. "You know what? Why not? Bring on the shrink!" Walter had either been expecting his answer or the man had been planning to bring her in either way, because there was a woman waiting outside the door when he opened it. "Ms. Lennon," Walter said after stepping aside. "Please, allow me to introduce you to Stanley Cascade." "It''s nice to meet you, Stanley," the blonde-haired and blue-eyed woman said while smiling genially, and that was despite the fact she had to be feeling his soul. She wasn''t lying... or was that just some kind of professional thing? Caffeine seemed happy enough to see her... so that was something. Walter turned into a whirlwind as he escorted her to the table and piled more steaming dishes atop it from out of nowhere. Of course, once they were seated, Walter abruptly apologized that he was needed elsewhere and vanished... leaving Stanley alone with the shrink. Obviously his plan from the start. The woman smiled at him, her calm demeanor unshaken by Walter''s abrupt departure. "I must say, I''ve heard quite a bit about you. It''s nice to finally put a face to the rumors." Stanley shifted uneasily, feeling a strange and unfamiliar flutter of nerves. "What... what have you heard?" he asked, his voice catching despite himself. "W-what did Walter tell you about me?" He had to remind himself that she was E-grade¡ªliterally harmless. There was no logical reason to feel threatened. So why did his palms feel clammy? What did shrinks even do? Was she a magic shrink now? Did that mean she had... mental powers? The woman tilted her head slightly, studying him in a way that felt both disarming and invasive. "Walter has spoken little of you," she said, her tone light and matching her soul. "And besides, I prefer to hear the truth from the source rather than relying on hearsay." Stanley frowned, his unease deepening. "Why?" Her smile softened, and for a moment, there was a flicker of something almost like empathy in her eyes. "Because people are more than the stories told about them, Stanley. And because I think the truth deserves to be heard in your own words, not filtered through someone else''s perspective." "And that''ll help you fix me?" "Do you believe you need fixing?" Stanley laughed bitterly. "Why else would you be here? I mean, you can feel my soul, can''t you!?" She nodded, her expression calm. "I can. Will you tell me about it?" "Tell you about what!?" "Whatever you''d like to talk about." Her tone was too even, too measured, and it grated on Stanley in a way he couldn¡¯t fully articulate. It wasn¡¯t just the words¡ªit was the way she said them. She was too calm about... well, everything! He wanted to shout, to break the silence with something loud and forceful. Instead, he sighed, stabbing his fork into the fish on his plate. He took a bite, tossed another piece to the eager Caffeine, who caught it midair, and then stared at the woman across from him. "I have an identical twin brother," he began, his voice quieter than he¡¯d intended. He told her about Lee, about how strong his brother was, and once he started talking, he couldn¡¯t seem to stop. 181. Gifts ~~~Lee~~~ Lee blew out a breath and slumped back in his chair. He didn''t know what was going on with Stanley but assumed it had something to do with that Zeke kid. Luckily, the current bouts of rage from his twin were nothing compared to the terrifying experience they''d had this morning... Stanley had come so close to becoming... a monster. A terrifyingly cold and heartless monster the likes of which Lee had not yet seen in this already nightmarish world. He didn''t know why it was happening or what the anger had to do with it, but then again, none of that mattered. All that mattered was how everyone had stepped up again. His friends. His family. People he barely even knew. They had all been there for him and his brother when they needed it most, and he wasn''t sure how he could ever repay them. Including the woman currently sitting across from him... "Sorry, Saira," Lee said, opening his eyes and looking apologetically at her seated across from him. "This probably isn''t what you had in mind for a date night, is it?" Saira smiled mischievously and took another delicate bite of her dessert. "Oh, I don''t know," she purred, eyes half-lidded as her tongue flicked out to lick the cream from her lips in a very slow and deliberate motion. "The view''s not half bad." If he''d been eating, Lee would have choked on his food when he felt the sensations coming from her through the soul link. Instead, he coughed and still had to take a sip before he could catch his breath. "Would you stop doing that?" Her seductive smile shifted into a blatantly false expression of innocence. "Doing what?" Lee sighed. He knew she was doing it on purpose, and she knew he knew. She kept doing it anyway, and he knew why. She was trying to distract him from moping over Stanley, and it was working. Perhaps a little too well... For that reason, along with others... he couldn''t be upset with her. It just felt wrong to enjoy himself when he could so clearly feel Stanley suffering on the other side of the... Another wave of heat and lust crashed into him, and it was so visceral that he could almost feel the scorching brush of her skin on his own... her lips sliding over... Lee collapsed the soul link back into its normal state¡ªrather, he asked Three to do it since he still hadn''t figured out how the building was controlling it. That muted Saira, and he was almost sad to feel her go... but as much as he currently wanted to leap across the table and tackle her to the floor, that wasn''t why he was here. The woman smiled at him as she took another bite of her tiramisu. How Jamaal had pulled that one off was still a mystery... "It''s okay to be happy even if others are not," she said after swallowing. "Being miserable yourself will not help Stanley. If anything, it will make it harder for you to help him." "So would climbing over this table and..." Lee caught himself and stopped talking as heat rushed to his face. He shouldn''t feel embarrassed. Not with the way she was behaving. Saira quirked an eyebrow and offered him the next bite across the small table, her face the picture of innocence even as her soul delighted in the moment. "We did not drag him back from the edge this morning by wallowing in morose pity and despair, did we?" "I know," Lee said, then ate the sweet fluff from her waiting fork. It was delicious, but Stanley... "You were telling me about your previous girlfriend?" Saira interjected. "Anything I should be jealous about?" "No." Lee sighed and shook his head. "In fact, I feel bad just thinking about..." He winced. "I think her name was... Emily... something?" "You don''t remember her name?" "That''s what I was trying to tell you... before. I''m pretty sure we were together for almost two years, but after that day... well, I forgot everything about her, even that she existed. Worse, I''m pretty sure I did so willingly." "But you said you forgot everything from before, not only her?" "Yeah, but... I still feel bad." Lee stared at the table but didn''t see it, his mind in the past. "She was there when I woke up in the hospital... but I can''t even remember her face. I didn''t know who she was, and I didn''t care. All the pictures and videos of us... they all meant nothing. All I cared about was Stanley." He looked up and met Saira''s gaze. "I haven''t really thought about her since and don''t even know if she''s still alive... does that make me a bad person?" Saira shook her head. "Relationships end all the time, and for all manner of reasons..." Her expression darkened for an instant before she forced a smile. "Forgetting someone is not a terrible reason to end things." "But if I chose to..." "You were fighting to survive. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made." Once again, something unpleasant flashed across her face. Probably a memory from her own past. "What about you?" Lee asked. "Anyone I need to worry about?" He didn''t really want to pry when he felt her reaction, but learning about each other was kind of the whole point of this date. Her smile was bittersweet when she shook her head. "No. Mar''s father has been out of the picture for... well, a long time. You see..." It turned out that Saira had a lot more stories to tell. She wasn''t actually that much older than him, but wiping out thirty years'' worth of memories takes a toll. She''d come from India as a child, with parents almost too stereotypical to be believed. Her arranged marriage fell apart when she fell in love with a boy and got pregnant with Mar. Only for said boy to bail on her. "It broke me," Saira admitted. "I took out a lot of my bitterness on Mar... I was afraid she would make the same mistakes as me, and it made me even worse than my parents. I am ashamed that it took nearly losing her for me to realize how foolish I was behaving." It was the most difficult part of the night when she spoke about her abduction at the hands of those human monsters. "I was so helpless," she said bitterly. "They laughed at my struggles. They laughed when they hurt me. Worse than even that, though, was that I did not know if my daughter lay dead or dying in the street where I had last seen her." "I was certain I would die, and all I could think about was all the things I''d said to Mar. And all the things I should have said but hadn''t..." Lee wasn''t a parent, so he didn''t know what it felt like to fear for your child''s life. He imagined it would feel similar to seeing Gabriel or Anita in danger. Never mind, Aasha... Of course, he didn''t need to imagine anything. He could feel Saira''s soul, and through it, exactly how she had felt in that moment. There was nothing he could say in response to the feelings coming from her, so Lee only placed his hands gently over her clenched fists. Saira blinked at his hands as if surprised to see them there, then unclenched her fists to interlace her fingers with his¡ªfingers that felt like steel bands. She smiled at him, but there was little warmth in the expression. It was the grin of a tiger baring its fangs. "I will not waste my second chance," she said with conviction. "Not with Mar, and not with Aasha!" "I know," Lee said, smiling. "It''s one of the things I love about... you." He only realized what he''d said after the fact, when Saira''s grin grew somehow more dangerous while simultaneously softening. "Only one of the things?" she whispered, leaning closer with a gleam in her eyes. "Say more things you love about me." "Well..." Lee swallowed, trying to get some moisture into his suddenly dry throat. "I... love how you..." Time passed in a blur, and Lee only felt a little bad about enjoying himself while Stanley suffered. It helped that his twin calmed down as evening turned to night, and most of the people inside Three eventually made their own way to bed. He actually thought Stanley might even be asleep when Saira finally had enough. Aasha was as thrilled as ever to see her mom when they left Lee''s apartment, and Amy handed the girl over almost reluctantly. "She''s an angel, Saira." Lee walked with the women through the silent and sleeping building to the door, and Saira stopped at the threshold, looking at him expectantly. Lee hesitated nervously before going in for a kiss. He shouldn''t have been nervous; the kiss was well received. "I had fun," he said a little breathlessly once it was over and he''d stepped back. "We should... do it again?" He felt irrationally scared she would say no when he asked... but what if she did!? She didn''t say no. "We should," Saira purred, her fingers sliding like silk over his as she slipped out the door and into the night. "Goodnight," her voice echoed back from the shadows. Lee stayed where he was and watched with Mana Mind until Saira settled in under her tree. He didn''t really get the whole sleeping outside thing, but hey, to each their own. Amy smiled knowingly when he turned back but said nothing, and Lee went to the garage to keep working instead of going to bed himself. He was still a little wired after everything, and there was no point in wasting time tossing and turning. Better to do something productive, like increase his and everyone else''s chances to survive by creating new and better runes. He''d already finished Saira''s staff earlier in the day, and while he still couldn''t get it to store healing energy, he had crammed a decent amount of spare mana inside the former tree branch turned glaive. Thanks to her tree and the vines running to Three, she was unlikely to need mana while anywhere inside the fort, so most of that mana went into making sure the staff would never break and never dull. She claimed the wood still lived, so there was that, and if nothing else, it should prove a decent backup weapon. Alejandro''s armor was already the peak of defensive power he could create, combining every scrap he''d learned about tweaking runes with his intent. It would bend in the right places rather than break, and it wouldn''t yield where he didn''t want it to. He''d even incorporated something that should help with suppression if Alejandro ran up against a higher grade again. Though that was difficult to actually test... Otherwise, the man should be untouchable. The armor advances weren''t applicable to everyone, since Alejandro could get around some limitations with his class skills¡ªhe and his apprentice¡ªbut Lee had improved all the other defenders'' weapons instead. Mostly with better cutting power and lower mana drain. He wasn''t bothering with recharge features since the return was negligible and it was always better to bring the weapons into Three to recharge them that way. Especially since those weapons were only for people on active guard duty. Many of the hunters in the fort took shifts on guard duty, but not all of them. In fact, they had a sizable portion of them that weren''t even Fort members. Lee didn''t sell runes to those people even if they wanted them, and the more local hunters usually only took a handful of rune weapons for emergencies. Like if they ran up against something that their normal attacks couldn''t handle. Lee hadn''t forgotten that he might someday owe a hefty amount of runes to that alien... but he was going ahead on the assumption that the alien wouldn''t come back anytime soon. Just in case that wasn''t how things panned out, he''d started telling people that his ''enchantments'' wouldn''t last if they went too far away. He wasn''t really lying, especially as his runes got stronger. The effects were powerful enough that it wasn''t a hard sell, and as a bonus, he hoped it would entice more powerful hunters to stay in the area. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. What he really wanted now was a time rune. Ideally one that other people could use. If anyone could freeze time like he did with his bubbles, it could be a literal lifesaver for healers and fighters alike, and the reason he wanted to work on it tonight was that he had sort of learned a new rune after seeing Stanley''s attack on the undead. His class skill, Language of the Rune, had reacted to the sight, and the idea for a new rune had been slowly growing in his mind ever since. The reason he said ''sort of learned'' was that even with his limited understanding, it was already turning into a nightmare of complexity¡ªnever mind what it would look like once he had the whole thing figured out. Finishing it would likely be akin to building an entire analog watch out of mana. Gears, springs, levers, and everything else in between. Even with his rune storage to experiment in, it was still a daunting process. Worse, he was increasingly sure the thing needed to be three-dimensional to work, which wasn''t something he''d ever done. Aside from Three... Also, it wasn''t actually a watch. It wasn''t shaped like a clock and didn''t look like one. Not yet. That was just his preferred analogy, though he guessed his analogy wasn''t that far from reality. Going 3D wasn''t a real issue¡ªhe could stick the damn thing in a solid orb if necessary. The problem was that he didn''t think they''d have any material durable enough to hold the rune once he successfully created it, given how large it was getting. Also, he still had no idea what the finished product would actually do, though he knew it would do... something. He''d extracted bits and pieces of the current whole¡ªones that he''d even successfully implanted¡ªand the effects varied greatly. One piece had rusted the metal it was on, and that was despite May''s claim that the metal couldn''t rust. He''d thought it might be a fast-aging rune, but unfortunately, it did nothing noticeable to the monsters he''d stuck it on. Another had slowed everything around it, including him, and he only knew what it did because people on the edge of the effect noticed what was happening. Even then, the effect was weak, and the rune burned itself out at an astonishing rate. Still, it was more than he''d had a couple of days ago... so he got to work. ... Lee jerked awake when a door opened and then stared up in confusion at Gabriel standing in the doorway. "Good morning, Uncle Lee!" Gabriel exclaimed before dashing to his spot with the usual enthusiasm. "Good morning," Lee murmured, allowing Mana Mind to update him on the current situation. He''d fallen asleep in the garage... and Amy was still sitting outside. More importantly, Stanley was... stable. Not exactly happy, but he felt... better than he had since that night. Maybe even better than last night, though not a lot. Lee stood up, and despite having slept slumped over on solid concrete, felt perfectly fine. There were definitely some perks to living in an apocalyptic hellscape... "Sorry, Amy," he said, leaning out the door. "Did you get some sleep at least?" He was pretty sure he''d noticed her napping a few times before he passed out. "No worries," Amy said while springing to her feet. "But I get first dibs on showering." "Go," Lee said, waving her away. "I''ll wait in here." He wanted to get Gabriel''s take on his latest runes and thought the boy wanted to ask him something as well. Despite being as safe as possible in his workroom, Amy didn''t leave until Jackson had taken up a post outside the door, but then Lee was used to her overprotectiveness. His late night hadn''t been for nothing, and he''d progressed in teasing out more of the time rune. Unfortunately, it was indeed three-dimensional, which made showing it to his apprentice much more difficult. In the end, he had to use his Mana Mind to build a 3D model out of mana in midair. Not that it mattered. "Woah..." Gabriel whispered while he stared wide-eyed and stunned at the still-incomplete rune. To Lee''s disappointment, he had no helpful insights to share. "What does it do!?" "You can''t tell?" Gabriel shook his head, entranced even as he scrambled closer and studied it from every direction. "It''s so... big! How can you make something like that!?" Lee sighed and let the mana disperse. Gabriel was the apprentice, after all. He couldn''t rely on the kid to figure out everything for him. "I think it''s a... time rune?" Next, he tried pulling out bits of the rune and letting Gabriel see those, all with the same result. "I''m sorry, Uncle Lee," Gabriel said after the last one, his voice too timid. He was picking up on Lee''s frustration... "If anyone should be sorry, it''s me," Lee said, forcing away his irritation. "You''re my apprentice, remember? I''m supposed to be teaching you, not the other way around. Now, what did you want to ask me about?" He already had a pretty good idea what the kid was working on, but Gabriel immediately perked up at the question before rushing to his spot and bringing back a plate. There was a drawing of a rune on the plate, and it wasn''t one that Lee knew or had taught him. Despite that, Lee knew what it would do at a glance and knew his apprentice was a bona fide genius for coming up with it on his own. "Is this rune okay?" Gabriel asked. "You know what it does?" Gabriel did, and Lee asked a few follow-up questions before creating a particular plate for him to use. Unlike with many of his runes, this time Gabriel went slower than necessary. Lee knew he really wanted to get it right, but his hesitance only made him mess up more. Still, he got it eventually, and then he set it aside for later. Lee headed upstairs when Amy finished with his shower and cleaned up while Jamaal made breakfast. The woman had given up her apartment to another few families with kids, and given the way she stuck to him, it was almost pointless to have her own apartment anyway. Though throwing her out of the shadows might have played a role... "Everything was fantastic last night," Lee said to Jamaal when the cook brought out his burrito. "But how''d you get sugar for the tiramisu? It had sugar, right?" It tasted too sweet not to have it. "Ah, now that''s a story," Jamaal said, beaming. "A visitor to our fort brought cuttings of a sweet plant. He said he traded with aliens to get it. Ms. Singh was able to cultivate it, and Mr. Johanson in building four turned the resulting crop into usable sugar! It is truly wonderful what we can achieve together, is it not?" "It is..." Lee said thoughtfully. Alien sugar... he hadn''t expected that, but it made perfect sense when he remembered the alien he''d traded with. How many aliens were already on Earth, and how many more would come? More importantly, how many came to trade, and how many were here to conquer or replace humanity? Probably a bit of everything, he decided. The vast majority of aliens he''d met were monstrous killers, but the Anubians stood out as an alternative example, and now he couldn''t simply write off every alien as evil. Though there was also the looming threat of enslavement brought up by Trak and Z... He stopped worrying about all of that once he took a bite of his breakfast and instead focused all of his attention on savoring every morsel. Then he went back to work. Saira stopped by to see him later while he was standing in the courtyard and watching the kids take turns driving Gabriel''s ''car'' around the space. The screaming had probably drawn her in... The car was small and relatively slow and only got slower the more weight they put on it, but it worked. It was basically a child''s toy, and the drain on the runes meant it wouldn''t work for long outside the building... but it was still a good proof of concept. Despite it being far less exciting than riding the flying discs, plenty of the kids still wanted a turn, and Gabriel watched it all with pride. Hell, he''d probably had more fun creating the thing than they did playing with it. Lee left them there and took a stroll around his building with Saira instead. They talked about little things. How their respective apprentices were doing. Alien crops. That sort of thing. He even told her about his progress on the new rune, and she nodded politely in all the right places, even though she obviously had no clue what he was talking about through most of it. It was a nice break. Dinner at the Morales'' apartment later that night was also fantastic. Gabriel waited until after the meal to bring out a pair of paper-wrapped discs. He''d cajoled Amy into finding him the paper, not that it took much convincing. Gabriel handed one to Maria and one to Alejandro. "For you, Mommy, and for you, Dad. Open them!" Both parents glanced at Lee, but he refused to give anything away. At least, as well as he could with his leaking soul. Still, they didn''t hesitate to open their respective presents. "Thank you, Gabe!" Alejandro exclaimed upon pulling out the runed disc suspended on a leather strap from within. "It''s..." He trailed off and his eyes widened in shock when Maria pulled out an identical disc. It wasn''t the sight that shocked him; Lee knew that. Not only could he feel the man''s soul, but he knew what the runes were doing. "What is..." Maria trailed off in a similar fashion while staring back at Alejandro. "I want one!" Anita proclaimed into the lull, and Lee slid a miniature floating disc across the table to distract her while Gabriel explained. "Mommy is always worried when you leave," Gabriel said to his dad. "With this, she can know you''re okay and won''t be worried..." Maria pulled the boy into her embrace before he could finish. "Mi Chiquito!" Lee''s distraction proved inadequate when Alejandro joined the group hug, and Anita ran around the table to join in. He left them to it and only studied Gabriel''s runes again to make sure they hadn''t degraded since earlier. They looked fine. Not as clean as he could make them, but he didn''t want to take away from the boy''s efforts by stepping in. He''d tested the runes with Gabriel earlier and knew exactly what the parents were feeling. It actually wasn''t far off from what they''d already experienced while helping Stanley through the soul link... In fact, it was practically the same thing, just not as... serious. More of a window than an actual link. "I learned it after we helped Uncle Stanley not be evil," Gabriel said once the emotional hug broke up. "Do you like it? Uncle Lee said it was good..." They liked it, and they told him so enthusiastically. Lee piled on by bringing out two more presents he''d wrapped up while Gabriel wasn''t around. This seemed like as good a time as any, and he wanted the parents involved for this one. "Here, Gabriel, Anita," Lee said, holding out what was obviously a staff underneath the wrapping paper, and to Anita, he offered a disc similar to what her parents received, though with a different rune attached. "I got you both something as well." Anita shredded the wrapping paper in an instant, then frowned at the rune disc necklace in disappointment. Gabriel was the opposite, and he unwrapped the staff that was slightly taller than him with a reverential hesitance that only got stronger as he saw more and more of what lay within. Lee went to Anita first and showed her where to grip the amulet on each side. Her disappointment vanished when it lifted her into the air and a shield bubble materialized around her. It stopped holding her up once the shield formed, and Anita immediately started tumbling around the room while inside the spherical bubble. She ricocheted off the table, then a wall, and squealed, "Daddy, look at me!" She was chaos incarnate as she careened around, and Lee quickly told Three to stop recharging the amulet, which resulted in her crashing to the floor moments later. Freestanding shields like that were serious mana hogs, but they could still act as protection while inside the building. Or just a toy, since he''d only made it as an afterthought, mostly so she wouldn''t be too jealous when he gave the real gift to Gabriel. "You have to let it recharge," Lee said. "And you''ll need to be extra careful because the more stuff you run into, the faster it will pop, okay?" He wasn''t lying. Not really. Only about how long it needed to charge... as an experiment, he sent a thought to Three to trickle charge the disc, assuming the building could do so... "Uncle Lee," Gabriel said from across the room while holding his gift gingerly at arm''s length. "What does this do?" Going by his wariness, Lee was guessing the kid had picked up enough of what it did, and he liked the caution. He''d been ready to pull the runes if things had gone another way, but his apprentice was still proving himself, and this was a good test. "What do you think it does?" Gabriel looked closer, though still holding the staff as if it might explode, which it very well might. He finally let go with one hand and pointed at a particular part of the rune. "This will make a shield like Nita''s, right?" "Yep. What about the rest?" "I think this is a battery..." he said after pointing at another spot before trailing off. "But this... this will... it''s very dangerous. It will... shoot mana..." His eyes widened. "A lot of mana... from the end?" "Yes," Lee said, trying not to wince under the glares coming his way. Well, glare, singular. "It will fire a mana beam like mine. It''s a weapon. A very dangerous weapon, and I''m glad to see you understand that." "But... why?" The kid really wasn''t a warrior. He didn''t want to fight and only wanted to create. Lee was more than fine with that. Unfortunately, reality wouldn''t conform to their wishes just because they wanted it to. "For emergencies," Lee said. "You''re a big brother. If you or Anita is in trouble and there are no adults to help you, don''t you want to protect her?" Gabriel didn''t want a weapon, but he was a good big brother and his hands tightened around the staff as he pulled it closer. "I will protect her." "I''m not in trouble!" Anita exclaimed. "I''m always good!" Lee finally met the gazes of the parents. "I talked with Martin already, and he agreed to give Gabriel some extra training in a safe environment." Alejandro was already on board, but his wife was still resisting the idea. They both knew it was a good idea, but she just didn''t want to admit it. Lee understood and wouldn''t force anything, but he also had to try. "We will discuss it," Alejandro said, earning a glare from his wife but at least taking the heat off of Lee. "Later. Right now, it''s bedtime." "But I''m not tired!" both children chorused in unison.