Luke and his cohort of undead apex-predator-catlike animals were in the trees above yet another one of the Fog Creeper nests. It had to be the one that was guarded by the eleven they’d fought a few hours before in the treetops.
He stared down and figured the best way to attack would be to have the kriskarns drop down and ambush. That was their preferred hunting style, according to Garran.
Luke glanced sideways at the man, who was on a slightly higher branch, away from the Undead, as his steed seemed uncomfortable with their closeness. The still-living animal was quiet, though the massive torso pulsating softly gave Luke a hint as to its state of mind. The animal was ready to fight.
Luke looked back at his cohort of Undead minions, and didn’t say anything, as he’d learned that animals like these, and presumably the humanoid-based corpses, would listen to his mental commands. When he thought with intention, he could feel a little thread, and envisioned it—literally, thanks to his HUD—as a little cord of pale white and dark grey energy. It was a connection between him and his Mindless Undead.
Three from above, one from the left, right, and behind.
He dismounted Pierce, and the six minions all took off into the trees: three descending to the forest floor and circling around the outside edge of the clearing, and the other three sticking to the heights above.
Luke could hear whispers in his mind. Feral, pack instincts as the undead used him as a locus of silent coordination. The urge to leap and tear was pushed back as some stronger urge—somehow Luke knew it was Pierce—ordered a delay until all were in position. Luke crouched down to the tree branch, and gripped it, watching, and waiting.
Now!
The thought fired as if it weren’t his own, like the pack of kriskarns had all decided they were ready, and as one, using Luke and their resonance, descended on the Fog Creeper Matriarch.
It was a bloodbath.
The three from above all landed on top of the squealing, shouting monster, while the ones coming from the sides and behind latched on. Claws tore in all directions, skeletal teeth, sharp as razors and long as daggers, tore flesh asunder, and within two seconds of the initial pounce, the monster lay slain in multiple pieces.
The kriskarns dropped the pieces, Pierce bit something from near the torso-chunk of the corpse, and they all vanished into the forest. But Luke could see the threads connecting him to them, and saw them all return as the threads shortened in length. They all leaped to various branches around him, and Pierce deposited a Life Essence Shard in his outstretched palm.
Garran let out an impressed whistle. “That is effective.”
Luke couldn’t help but grin and said, “Good work, all of you.”
[Experience Gained: 75. Current Experience: 1054 / 1000.]
[You have enough Experience to level-up. Would you like to level-up at this time?]
Yes, Luke thought to the recorded-sounding voice of The Last Warden.
He mounted Pierce and said, “Follow Garran.” To Garran, he said, “Lead the way, friend.”
Garran let out a whoop and his steed, Fang, dove into a cluster of branches. Luke and his skeletal entourage followed. And, during the travel, Luke dealt with his VITAE-based level-ups.
[Level 13: +1 Essence, +1 Acuity, +1 Free Point]
[Please allocate your Free Point now . . .]
Well, I’ve got a nice spread right now. Everything but Instinct is above twenty, and I already know that that is my lowest stat and not really important to my Class. I can ignore it safely, I think. I’ve been burning through more Mana than Stamina, so I’d like more Essence.
[Choose 1 Art and 1 Aspect to put a Rank into.]
For the Art, let’s go with Grim Harvest, since it can go up another to tie with the top Ranked ones. For Aspect…damn, all of them are tied except for Gravebound Fortitude. But, I can break ties…well, try putting one into Melee Familiarity.
[Art Increase: Grim Harvest 6 → 7 (Restores/Damages 9% max Health).]
[Aspect Increase: Melee Familiarity (Blade) 7 → 8 (Gain +8% damage with bladed weapons.).]
[Would you like to see your full status screen?]
Sure, it’s been a while.
-----
Name: Luke Rivers.
Class: Gravebound Knight 13 (Tier 1).
Vigor: 22
Instinct: 10
Tenacity: 23
Acuity: 22
Essence: 23
-----
Health: 125
Mana: 138
Stamina: 123
Initiative: 32
Focus: 45
Burden: 33.5
Command: 50
-----
Arts: Corpse Retainer 5, Pale Flame Bolt 7, Black Guard 7, Marrowsteel Plate 4, Chill Field 4, Grim Harvest 7, Infuse Weapon 4.
Aspects: Undead Creature, Enduring Soul 7, Melee Familiarity (Blade) 8, Armor Familiarity 7, Gravebound Fortitude 1.
Resistances: Blunt (1%), Pierce (0%), Slash (0%), Heat (2%), Cold (25%), Spark (0%), Caustic (3%), Toxin (100%), Force (0%), Holy (-49%), Life (-21%), Death (100%), Soul (10%), Mind (10%), Curse (25%), Void (0%).
Equipment: Gambeson (Standard), Chain Coat (Standard), T1 Life-Resist (5) Scale Coat (Fine), Bastard Sword (Standard), Wooden Mask (Standard), Backpack w/ Adventuring Supplies (Standard)
Essence Shards: x25 T1 Death, x63 T1 Life, x2 T1 sub-Life
XP / Threshold: 54 / 1000
-----
Command Limit: 45 / 50 {Mindless Undead x6}
-----
Luke was a little disappointed in his lack of leveling progress. Sure, he’d been progressing Arts and Aspects just fine, but levels were where the real indicator of power lie. People, monsters, or animals at a higher Tier would reduce his resistances by 5% per Tier of difference, up to fifty-percent negation. Thankfully, at least, from what he could tell given the prior conversation along those lines, it did not tip into the negatives, and thus give him vulnerability to Power Types.
Silver linings, Luke thought.
[You have three questions you may ask.]
Luke didn’t jump, but was slightly startled by the active voice of the god of Death.
Three questions…well, might as well see—
He asked aloud, “Are there anything like achievements that give unlocks?”
[Yes. If you repeat your feat with your pack, you should reach one such Achievement.]
Awesome, Luke thought.
“Am I able to use other Power Type combinations of Death? Or just the three I have access to now?”
[Already you have bypassed your limitations with the gift of another deity. You may continue to access more: but they must be aligned with Death.]
“Can you actively start talking to other gods about partnering up for Quests? I’d love to get a bit more direction when I’m done with helping this region. Well, aligned with my goals, I mean.”
[I have been doing just that. The Dawnbringers’ deity, The Radiant Tribunal, is inclined. But, you will need to prove your worth by finishing your current task of culling the Fog Creeper populace. Finish your current Quest, my Gravebound Knight.]
“Thanks,” Luke replied, feeling very happy that someone was watching out for him. The idea of being able to use Final Rite, the combination of Death and Holy Power, was enthralling. He had no clue what it would look like, or what types of effects it would have, but if the flaming, white swords of the Dawnbringers were anything to judge by, it would be badass.
***
The duo traveled with their pack of kriskarns into the night and set up camp in another one of the giant trees. Garran rolled out his hammock and strung it up, and his Bonded companion Fang just lazed on the branch below.
Luke set to his nightly routine of injuring his minions and mending them with Pale Flame Bolt and Grim Harvest. He still had all of his other Arts active, but had swapped his weapon infusion to Gravefrost.
He didn’t make any Rank progress, but he had nothing better to do.
He still had Pierce hit his shield while the night went on—scratches for Slashing, the thwipping tail for Piercing, and headbutts for Blunt damage. Resistances took a while to go up as well, but he figured that the more damage from them he suffered—greatly dulled thanks to his mere nature and muted senses—the faster they would increase.
And, unlike on prior nights, he started up a fire. A small one, but thanks to the branch he set it upon and chopped down into, he had a nice, constantly-burning, dim red flame. Taking off his gauntlet in between bouts of healing, he shoved his hand into the red-hot wood. The stench of cooking flesh permeated the air around him, and when he could no longer bear the pain, he ripped his hand away.
Every time he repeated the process, he kept reminding himself that the sooner he dealt with the pain, the sooner it would stop being an issue. Just like with the gym: no pain, no gain.
As the sun rose, he did not see Rank increases…but did see Resistances go up with the dawning light.
They traveled for a few more days and nights, and Luke repeated his routine night after night. After the third, Garran advised him that they would probably find the next Fog Creeper nest the next morning.
Luke settled in for the last night, and when the time came for the living to rouse, he looked with pride at his accomplishments in his HUD.
[Resistance Increase: Blunt (1%) → (3%). Pierce (0%) → (3%). Slash (0%) → (3%). Heat (3%) → (5%).]
***
The duo and their minions were, once more, overlooking another Fog Creeper nest. This one was in a clearing, like the rest, but unlike the others, this one had a water feature. A trench filled with dark, murky brown water dominated the space, and at the center was an island where the Fog Creeper Matriarch was exuding the thorn-embedded ropes to lash victims and corpses down to the ground for their grisly reproduction process.
The same tactic as before wouldn’t work. There was just too much space between the forest’s edge and the water itself, much less the Matriarch. Garran would be able to snipe her from the distance, given his stellar aim and accuracy, but Luke couldn’t let his minions take full advantage of their abilities.
That necessitated a change. Luke had Pierce carry him to the forest floor, and then willed the group of kriskarns to spread out along the branches up above. The plan was for Luke to bait the Fog Creeper Guardians over to him, in the tree line, and then let his minions do their work.
Luke strode out, all of his Arts active, and Marrowsteel Plate fully stacked.
[Health: 125 / 125 {Barrier 62}]
[Mana: 93 / 93 {138}]
[Stamina: 98 / 98 {123}]
“Hey! Ugly fuckers! Come and get me!”
The Fog Creeper Guardians turned toward him, and two of the four present rushed to cross the water—moving through it like floating pieces of driftwood with purpose. Luke backed away into the foliage, and glanced at the threads around him that moved and gathered closer together. His minions were right overhead, and he waited—
Twang!
He heard Garran’s crossbow fire, and in the distance, saw the Fog Creeper Matriarch collapse off of her perch on a rock.
The remaining Guardians rushed toward the water.
Alright, buddies, Luke thought, I only need a few of you to help deal with these first two. Make sure some of you wait for the other two coming in.
He felt that animalistic instinctual reply of the pack acknowledging his orders in his mind. Luke bent his knees, and braced himself for the impact of the charge: heater shield on his arm, a deep, black barricade that was ready to take any hit. His right hand held the bastard sword, covered with a glimmering layer of deep, blue frost that had a sinister, black, inner core, almost making it into a serrated monstrosity.
The first Guardian made it into the forest’s edge, and Luke took several steps forward, keeping his body tucked behind his shield, as he met the charge. The much-larger monster slammed into him with its whole body weight, and Luke slid back a foot in the dirt before holding firm, his feet partially dug into the loam beneath.
Luke swung out with his sword, and the blade of frost cut into the side of the monster, and then with a ripping motion, he tore the jagged, serrated edge through the body, which opened up the side and spilled out the goopy, black ichor inside.
The moment the second Fog Creeper Guardian got into the forest’s edge, the kriskarns pounced. Luke saw the foe directly in front of him crumple under the weight of a skeletal predatory cat falling on its head, and as the kriskarn Pierce bit down and ripped with claws, Luke delivered a swift stab to the neck. Bringing his other hand to the hilt, the shield shifting up his arm in response to the movement, he ripped back, and the serrated edge split the whole neck wide, nearly decapitating the monster.
The second Guardian behind the first only had two of the kriskarns pounce on its head, but that was more than enough. The combined weight of the two hunting animals crunched the monster underfoot, and Luke was able to advance over the rapidly-goopifying monster he had just slain. Delivering another blow to the head, he ripped his sword back and cut halfway through the skull—dark, brackish brains came out in a spurt and landed on the ground before congealing to muck.
The other two Guardians seemed to realize that Luke had set up an ambush, and stayed put on their side of the water-filled ditch.
Fine by me, Luke thought.
He raised his hand and fired off a Pale Flame Bolt. The warm, comforting feeling of mana surged up his arm, and when it flickered out from his palm, down the length of the sword, and shot forward, it split into two projectiles. One slammed into the torso of each foe, respectively, and they replied with flung thorns of their own.
Two of his minions took the hits for him, and the thorns broke off a few bones, but the skeletal animals didn’t feel any pain, and thus just kept their position, covering for Luke
Twang!
A bolt shot from somewhere across the clearing, as Luke only saw the Fog Creeper Guardian go tumbling forward, toward him, and observed the bolt sticking out of the back of its head.
Garran’s new mount gives him a lot of mobility, Luke thought.
The other Guardian, seeing that it was outnumbered, made to run. Luke shouted, “Get it!”
All of his kriskarns descended the trees and moved to the edge of the watery trench. Three paced along it, while the other three moved into the brown fluid and vanished from sight.
Luke’s cooldown timer faded, and he fired off another Pale Flame Bolt.
[Mana: 73 / 93 {138}]
This time, even though two bolts fired out of the tip of his sword, one of the two fizzled out of existence after a foot of travel distance.
Must be because there aren’t enough targets, Luke thought.
His shot slammed into the Fog Creeper and it went reeling. Then, the three kriskarns emerged from the water, like jaguars attacking a caiman basking on the shore. They ripped into its legs and brought it down, and then Pierce, who had led the pack, gripped the torso and pulled the monster into the water fully.
Luke watched the turbulent surface as his minions fought the thing out of sight, under the water, and a few bones floated to the surface, denoting his Undead suffering some injury. But, the bubbles from the still-needing-to-breath Fog Creeper ceased, and Pierce came up, missing two ribs, but holding an Essence Shard in his mouth.
“Good boy,” Luke said as he took it from the minion. “Go get your bones, and the rest of the shards.”
The undead minions set to work, and as they came back over, Luke began healing them with Pale Flame Bolt and Grim Harvest.
Garran came over on his mount, almost sauntering. “How’s that for an encounter, eh?”
“Good shooting,” Luke replied.
“This is a cinch with your minions.”
“Five shards,” Luke said as his minions finished bringing them over. “Three for me, two for you?”
“Sounds fair,” Garran replied as he scratched Fang’s head.
[Art Increase: Pale Flame Bolt 7 → 8 (Fire 3 bolts with each use, which must target different creatures.).]
[Black Guard 7 → 8 (While active, reduce all damage taken by 8%).]
[Infuse Weapon 4 → 5 (5% of the inflicted damage is converted to the applied Power Type.)]
Luke smiled as he finished healing up his minions. “Alright. Onto the last one.”
Garran frowned at that.
“What?” Luke asked.
The man’s frown stay in place, and his voice was tense, as he replied. “It is the Forest’s Heart. We have to go to the farthest point, where the mountains meet and finish off the shape of the range. The deepest part. Probably another three days.”
Luke mounted up on Pierce. “Then let’s get a move on.”
Garran sighed. “Fucking thighs are hurting. I’m not used to riding like this.”
“Like what?” Luke asked.
“Mounts,” Garran grumbled as they took off riding once more, the Trapper taking the lead as they vanished into the tree line once more.
***
Luke’s overnight training had borne further fruit when it came to Resistances. He knew a break point was coming, he just didn’t know when. But, a reasonable system designer wouldn’t allow him to just keep intentionally hurting himself.
Or would they? He had no ability to ask anyone except for Garran at the moment, and the man didn’t know, as he sensibly said, “No one I know of willingly subjects themselves to pain like that.”
[Resistance Increase: Blunt (3%) → (5%). Pierce (3%) → (5%). Slash (3%) → (5%). Heat (5%) → (7%).]
By the dawn of the second Belday of Dovrak—what Luke had learned was basically day two, of week two, of the last month of summer—the duo arrived at the Forest’s Heart. The name was warranted, as the sight that Luke beheld was both astonishing and disturbing.
Where the two sides of the ‘spoon’ shape of the mountain met, there was an enormous, singular peak that rocketed skyward. Grown into the rock and stone, with roots threading across like a giant tapestry. The tree was a mix of a Japanese maple and a yellow birch, with intersecting hues of yellow, gold, purple, and bordering-on-pink. The whole trunk was almost using the mountainside as a scaffold to grow up along, and the branches primarily jutted out toward them.
The disturbing part was what Luke witnessed on the forest floor below, where the trees had stopped growing a short distance from the massive Forest’s Heart proper and left some clearance on the ground. There, he saw not one, not two, but three Fog Creeper Matriarchs, all in the process of birthing their disgusting means of reproduction through corpses.
Luke counted hundreds of corpses on the ground—animals, mostly, with a few humanoids mixed in.
Huh, Luke thought. Come to think of it, I haven’t encountered any non-human—
Garran tapped on his shoulder, and as Luke turned, he froze. It wasn’t Garran who had touched his pauldron, but a woman, with skin carved wood, and burning, green eyes.
She asked, “What are you doing here?”